Politics

CNBC reports: Global oil prices spiked 20% when markets reopened on Monday, after a weekend attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities suspended the production of 5.7 million barrels a day. That amounts to roughly 5% of the world’s total daily crude oil production. State-run oil company Aramco said in a statement that work was underway to restore production. The U.S. …

The Hill reports: The New York Times on Monday added a correction to a report accusing Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. The correction notes that friends of the woman allegedly involved in the incident with Kavanaugh during law school say she does not recall it. The Times in the story published Saturday reported a former classmate of …

Business Insider reports: A former college classmate of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh tried to tip off US senators and the FBI last year to another previously unreported sexual misconduct allegation, The New York Times reported Saturday. According to the newspaper, a former Yale student named Max Stier said he saw Kavanaugh at a drunken dorm party where his friends …

The Guardian reports: Facebook has suspended a chatbot on Benjamin Netanyahu’s official page after it breached hate speech policy by sending visitors a message warning of Arabs who “want to destroy us all”. Battling a tight election race in the run-up to the 17 September polls, the Israeli prime minister has sought to appeal to far-right religious and nationalist voters …

The New York Times reports: California lawmakers approved a statewide rent cap on Wednesday covering millions of tenants, the biggest step yet in a surge of initiatives to address an affordable-housing crunch nationwide. The bill limits annual rent increases to 5 percent after inflation and offers new barriers to eviction, providing a bit of housing security in a state with …

The New York Times reports: Few races are as convoluted as the one in North Carolina’s Ninth Congressional District, which is — 10 months after Election Day 2018 — the last vote of the midterm elections. Polls show an extremely close race between State Senator Dan Bishop, a Republican, and the entrepreneur Dan McCready, a Democrat. Mr. McCready appeared to …

NBC News reports: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday that he may annex the Jordan Valley and other parts of the occupied West Bank “in coordination” with the United States — a move that risks shattering the fragile status quo in the volatile region. “This is a historic opportunity to apply sovereignty to communities in Judea and Samaria,” he …

Politico reports: Rep. Justin Amash (I-Mich.) on Sunday denounced President Trump for inviting Taliban leaders to Camp David for peace talks just days before the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. “How about we end the war without inviting the Taliban to dinner on the week of 9/11?” Amash, an Independent who left the GOP earlier this year, said …

The New York Times reports: Robert Mugabe, the first prime minister and later president of independent Zimbabwe, who traded the mantle of liberator for the armor of a tyrant and presided over the decline of one of Africa’s most prosperous lands, died on Friday. He was 95. Mr. Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state before his ouster in 2017, …

The Daily Beast reports: The firearms industry’s lobbying group is spending about $250,000 on ads directed at lawmakers as the gun debate intensifies on Capitol Hill, according to an official with the group. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade group that represents the gun industry, has started running ads in Washington, according to an NSSF official. It is …

Politico reports: Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election rattled America’s next-door neighbor so badly that Canada spent the last three years developing the most detailed plan anywhere in the Western world to combat foreign meddling in its upcoming election. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government passed new transparency rules last year for online political ads that run on platforms …

The New York Times reports: Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, said on Wednesday that she was withdrawing a contentious extradition bill that set off months of protests in the city, moving to quell the worst political crisis since the former British colony returned to Chinese control 22 years ago. The move eliminates the major objection among protesters, but it …

Politico Europe reports: German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier asked for Poland’s forgiveness as he marked the 80th anniversary of the start of World War II on Sunday. Speaking at a ceremony in the Polish town of Wieluń, where the first German bombs fell, Steinmeier said “far too few” Germans knew the town’s history today. Alternating between German and Polish, he continued: …

It seems like she’s just trolling the haters lately. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said Saturday that she is on her way “to being very well” after receiving cancer treatment, adding that she will be prepared when the high court’s next term begins in October. “This audience can see that I am alive. And I am on my way …

Jared Holt reports at Right Wing Watch: A right-wing candidate for governor in Louisiana said the “n-word” on a local radio show on Wednesday. Gary Landrieu, a cousin of former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, is running as an independent candidate for governor of Louisiana and has largely built his campaign around a right-wing platform of targeting undocumented immigrants in …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams on Wednesday ruled out running for Senate next year following news that Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) would retire. “Our thoughts are with Senator Isakson and his family. Leader Abrams’ focus will not change: she will lead voter protection efforts in key states across the country, and make sure Democrats are …

Reuters reports: Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) said Wednesday that he will resign at the end of 2019, citing health problems. Isakson, who was reelected to a third term in 2016, said in a statement that he has informed Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) of his decision, effective Dec. 31. “I am leaving a job I love because my health challenges …

The Washington Post reports: Ronald Reagan wore tan suits during his presidency. So did Dwight D. Eisenhower, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. But on Aug. 28, 2014, when President Barack Obama showed up for a White House news conference dressed in beige, the light-colored suit became a matter of national import. Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.) …

CNN reports: A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a Missouri law banning abortions after eight weeks from going into effect. “The various sections specifying prohibitions on abortions at various weeks prior to viability cannot be allowed to go into effect on August 28, as scheduled,” writes Judge Howard Sachs in an 11-page opinion. “However formulated, the legislation on its face …

Politico Europe reports: The Brazilian government rejected an offer for a fund from the G7 members to help fight fires in the Amazon rainforest. G7 leaders, hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron in Biarritz, France, agreed Monday to set up a $20 million fund to help Brazil tackle the ravaging fires, which have sparked international concern and condemnation. Brazil Ambassador’s …