Here are some of the biggest headlines today.
Analysis: Trump’s transition sabotage threatens vaccine rollout
President Donald Trump’s refusal to coordinate with President-elect Joe Biden on the critical Covid-19 vaccine is bringing a staggering possibility into clearer view: that an outgoing US commander in chief is actively working to sabotage his successor.
New Zealand has just elected one of the most diverse parliaments in the world. Here’s how it stacks up
As two older, White, male candidates fought for supremacy in the United States election, New Zealand was offering its electorate a more progressive choice: two White women.
SpaceX-NASA mission: Four astronauts arrive at International Space Station
The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft that launched from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center with four astronauts on board Sunday night safely docked with the International Space Station around 11 p.m. ET Monday.
Mark Zuckerberg and Jack Dorsey testify before Senate committee: Live updates
By Brian Fung and Kaya Yurieff, CNN Business Updated 11:10 a.m. ET, November 17, 2020 What we’re covering here What’s happening: Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter’s Jack Dorsey are testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee. At issue: The social platforms’ content moderation policies.
Trump aims to undermine Biden’s legitimacy even as legal challenges fizzle
When President Donald Trump learned at the end of last week that his lawyers were dropping their lawsuit seeking a review of ballots in Arizona, the news caught him by surprise.
The global economic bailout is running at $19.5 trillion. It will go higher
Governments and central banks have promised to shell out $19.5 trillion since the coronavirus erupted to “put a floor under the world economy,” according to the International Monetary Fund. Some countries need even more help to recover from the crisis, but they might not get it.
University of California reaches a $73M settlement against former gynecologist accused of sexual misconduct
The University of California system has reached a $73 million settlement Monday with alleged victims of sexual abuse by a former obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. James Heaps.
Elon Musk is now an A-lister on Wall Street
Tesla has no shortage of doubters. But on Monday, the company got a stamp of approval from Wall Street that sends a clear message: It’s time for the fast-growing electric carmaker to go mainstream.
Huawei is shrinking its smartphone business in a fight to save the brand
Huawei has been battered by a long US campaign against the company. Now it is hunkering down for survival by selling off its budget smartphone business.
The doctor ‘terraforming’ Mars with lasers – BBC Reel
A Hampshire GP is laying claim to land on Mars by using high-powered lasers to ‘terraform’ the red planet. Phil Davies has been trying for more than a decade to highlight the ‘terrible plight’ of the 43-year-old Outer Space Treaty.
Africa Live: Kenya adds to pressure for Ethiopia talks – BBC News
Sudan and Egypt over the weekend started joint air exercises, dubbed The Nile Eagles 1, at the Merowe air base in northern Sudan. The joint drills will continue until 26 November. It’s the first of its kind military exercise between the two North Africa neighbours since the era of former Sudanese President Jaafar al-Nimeri in the 1970s.
Covid: Hospitality boss says 660,000 jobs lost so far in 2020
The head of the industry’s trade group tells MPs 660,000 jobs were lost before the latest lockdown.
Head Of Government Agency Under Pressure To Let Biden Transition Proceed
WASHINGTON (AP) – The head of an obscure federal agency that is holding up the presidential transition knew well before Election Day that she might soon have a messy situation on her hands. Before Nov. 3, Emily Murphy, the head of the General Services Administration, held a Zoom call with Dave Barram, the man who was in her shoes 20 years earlier.
Trump Reportedly To Order Troop Cuts In Afghanistan, Iraq
President Donald Trump is expected to cut a significant number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and a smaller number in Iraq by the final days of his presidency, U.S. officials said Monday. The plan would run counter to military commanders’ advice over the past year, while still falling short of Trump’s much-touted goal to end America’s long wars.
Trump Asked About Attacking Iran’s Nuclear Site: Reports
President Donald Trump asked senior advisers last week about a military strike on Iran’s main nuclear site following a report the country was stockpiling material used to build an atomic weapon, according to news reports citing unnamed officials familiar with the meeting.
Michelle Obama Calls Out Trump’s Refusal To Transition To Biden: ‘This Isn’t A Game’
Michelle Obama shared some candid reflections Monday on the current state of the White House, calling out President Donald Trump for his refusal to concede the election and take part in a peaceful transition of power to President-Elect Joe Biden.
OOPS: Trump’s New Attorney Admits Biden Won, Says Lawsuits ‘Will Not Work’
President Donald Trump’s latest legal shakeup has left him with an attorney who just nine days ago admitted that President-elect Joe Biden won the election and that the legal battles won’t work. “I’ve been saying since Wednesday morning that Biden would win,” attorney and radio host Marc Scaringi told his listeners on Nov.
What ‘The Crown’ Season 4 gets wrong about the Troubles in Northern Ireland
When you’re watching The Crown, there’s always one question that springs to mind: did that actually happen? There’s no shortage of drama in the fourth season of the Netflix show, but just how historically accurate is this on-screen dramatisation of the events that have defined the royal family’s lives?
Maisie Williams asks about Bitcoin. Memefest ensues, and Elon Musk joins the party.
Maisie Williams – also known as Arya Stark, daughter of Lady Catelyn and Lord Eddard, acolyte of the Faceless Men, you know the one – is considering buying some bitcoins. On Monday, she asked her Twitter followers whether she should “go long on bitcoin” (going long, in traders’ lingo, means betting that bitcoin’s value will go up).
Twitter launches its own version of Stories, calls it Fleets
Twitter’s got a new feature, and it’ll probably sound familiar. It’s called Fleets, a new tool that lets you write text, post photos, videos, or add earlier tweets into a little visual info-nugget that disappears after 24 hours. So, pretty much exactly the same as Instagram Stories, which themselves are a rip-off of Snapchat Stories.
‘This claim is disputed’ Twitter meme is here to question your baseless statements
If you’ve been anywhere near Donald Trump’s Twitter feed recently, chances are you’ll have seen one of the platform’s many “This claim is disputed” warning labels that have been slapped onto his baseless claims about election fraud.
Space Karen is the burn Elon Musk deserves after his COVID-19 tweets
Elon Musk would like to speak with the coronavirus test manager. The SpaceX CEO delivered another problematic Twitter thread this weekend, this time with a series of uninformed statements about the accuracy of COVID-19 diagnostic tests. The billionaire questioned how it was possible that he had gotten two negative and two positive results from four rapid antigen tests.
