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Published by Reuters By Omar Younis ADELANTO, Calif. (Reuters) -Taking a cue from demonstrations that paralyzed Canada’s capital city for weeks, U.S. truckers on Wednesday plan to embark on a 2,500-mile (4,000-km) cross-country drive toward Washington D.C. to protest coronavirus restrictions. Organizers of the “People’s Convoy” say they want to “jumpstart the economy” and reopen the country. Their 11-day trek will approach the Beltway around the U.S. capital on March 5 “but will not be going into D.C. proper,” according to a statement. The Pentagon said on Tuesday it had approved 400 D.C. National Guard troops to “provide support at designated traffic posts, provide command and control, and cover sustainment requirements” from Feb. 26 through March 7. About 50 large tactical vehicles were also approved to be placed at traffic posts. Brian Brase, a truck driver who is one of the organizers, said regardless of where the trucks stop “we’re not going anywhere” until the group’s demands are met. Those demands include an end to COVID-19 vaccine and mask requirements. Most U.S. states are already easing some restrictions. In California, where the convoy begins, universal mask requirements were lifted last week while masks for vaccinated people are required only in high-risk areas such as public transit, schools and healthcare settings. Another convoy was expected to leave Scranton, Pennsylvania – President Joe Biden’s hometown – on Wednesday morning and arrive on the 495 Beltway (highway) in Washington sometime during the afternoon. Organizer Bob Bolus told WJLA news, an ABC affiliate in Washington, that his convoy has no intention to break laws or block traffic, but warned this could happen if their demands regarding pandemic mandates and the cost of fuel are not meant. “They are not going to intimidate us and they are not going to threaten us. We’re the power, not them,” he said. In Canada, pandemic-related protests choked streets in the capital Ottawa for more than three weeks and blocked the busiest land crossing between Canada and the United States – the Ambassador Bridge connecting Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario – for six days. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked rarely used emergency powers to end the protests, and Canadian police restored a sense of normalcy in Ottawa over the weekend. “We plan to stay a while and hope they don’t escalate it the way Trudeau did with his disgusting government overreach,” Brase said from Adelanto, California, where the convoy will begin, about 80 miles (130 km) northeast of Los Angeles. Brase said he expected thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, would participate. Organizers bill the convoy as nonpartisan, trucker-led, and supported by a wide range of ethnic minorities and religious faiths. Economic growth in the United States – as in other countries – was brought to a juddering halt by the imposition of lockdowns in 2020 to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The economy has boomed since the federal government pumped in trillions of dollars in relief, growing 5.7% in 2021, the strongest since 1984 albeit from a low ebb in 2020, the Commerce Department reported in January. Meanwhile, unemployment stands at 4%, close to the 3.5% rate of February 2020, just before the pandemic took hold, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But headwinds related to strained supply chains and inflation remain. “It is now time to reopen the country,” the protest organizers said in a statement. Among other demands, the protesters want an immediate end to the state of emergency in California – the most populous U.S. state with one of the world’s largest economies – that Governor Gavin Newsom has extended. Nationwide, new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations due to the coronavirus have plummeted from all-time highs hit a month ago, though nearly 2,000 people per day are still dying from the disease and the number of total deaths is closing in on 1 million since the pandemic began. (Reporting by Omar Youis in Adelanto; Additional reporting and writing by Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien and Mark Heinrich) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Dmitry Antonov and Polina Nikolskaya MOSCOW/DONETSK (Reuters) -The United States and its allies unveiled more sanctions against Russia on Wednesday over its recognition of two separatist areas in eastern Ukraine, while making clear they were keeping tougher measures in reserve in case of a full-scale invasion by Moscow. European Union sanctions to take effect on Wednesday would add all members of Russia’s lower house of parliament who voted to recognise the separatist regions in Ukraine to a blacklist, freezing their assets and banning travel. Britain followed the United States in announcing new restrictions banning Russia from the issuing of new bonds in its security markets. The steps follow measures announced on Tuesday, including freezing the approval of a new Russian gas pipeline by Germany, and imposing new U.S. sanctions on Russian banks. But none of the measures announced so far directly targets President Vladimir Putin himself, or is expected to have severe medium-term consequences for Moscow, which is sitting on more than $630 billion in international reserves. Oil prices eased from Tuesday’s seven-year highs as it became clear the first wave of sanctions were unlikely to disrupt oil supplies. Global stocks broke a four-day slide and demand for safe-haven assets waned. Western countries fear Russia plans a full-blown invasion of Ukraine after Putin announced on Monday he was recognising two small breakaway regions controlled since 2014 by separatists viewed by the West as Moscow’s proxies. Putin also signed a decree allowing Russian forces to be deployed there. Washington has described Russia’s actions as the start of an “invasion” but because the massed military assault they predicted has not materialised, they have had to calibrate their response. “There will be even more tough sanctions on key oligarchs, on key organisations in Russia, limiting Russia’s access to the financial markets, if there is a full scale invasion of Ukraine,” British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said. She announced plans to bar Russia from issuing new foreign debt in London, a step taken years ago by the United States. Moscow said it would respond by issuing any new debt in roubles at home for now. Some Western leaders have faced criticism at home for the response so far. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was ridiculed in parliament when he announced the blacklisting of three billionaires already under U.S. sanctions for years, and five obscure banks. Leaders say the most serious sanctions must be held in reserve to deter a larger assault. STATE OF EMERGENCY Putin has as many as 190,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders, according to U.S. estimates. More ominous signs pointed to possible war: Moscow announced it had started evacuating its diplomats from Kyiv, while Ukraine declared a 30-day state of emergency and has announced the conscription of men of fighting age. Ukraine’s military said one soldier had been killed and six wounded in increased shelling by pro-Russian separatists using heavy artillery, mortar bombs and Grad rocket systems in the two breakaway areas over the previous 24 hours. New satellite imagery showed several fresh troop and equipment deployments in western Russia and more than 100 vehicles at a small airfield in southern Belarus, which borders Ukraine, according to U.S. firm Maxar. For months, Russia has presented the crisis mainly as a dispute with the West, demanding security guarantees, including a promise never to allow Ukraine to join NATO. But this week’s recognition of the separatist regions was accompanied by much stronger language against Ukraine, including personally from Putin, raising Western concerns he will not stop at an intervention in the separatist areas. In a TV address on Monday described by Washington as “delusional”, Putin rambled across centuries of history to characterise the Ukrainian state as an artificial construct wrongly carved out of Russia by its enemies. Ukrainians consider such views ominous and false. Europe’s second biggest country by area after Russia, Ukraine has a history older than Russia’s, and its people voted overwhelmingly for independence when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Russia was making a strategic mistake by heading down a path that would make it a global pariah. “The action that is taking place now may follow a strategy in the short-term, but it is not a medium or long-term strategy to completely isolate yourself worldwide,” she said. The diplomacy of recent weeks has now faltered. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian cancelled separate meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. A summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and Putin, floated by France at the start of the week, now seems unlikely. Putin said he was always open to finding diplomatic solutions but that “the interests of Russia and the security of our citizens are unconditional for us.” Germany said on Tuesday it was halting the $11-billion Nord Stream 2 pipeline owned by Russian state-owned gas giant Gazprom, a move likely to raise gas prices in Europe. Built and awaiting German approval, the pipeline had been set to ease the pressure on European consumers facing record energy prices but critics including the United States have long argued it would increase Europe’s energy dependence on Russia. (Reporting by Reuters bureaus, Writing by Peter Graff, Editing by Timothy Heritage) View the full article

Published by Radar Online MEGA Faye Dunaway is firing back at her gay ex-assistant who is suing her for allegedly being a terror to work with — and demanding his lawsuit be thrown out of court. According to court documents obtained by Radar, the 81-year-old actress is asking a New York judge to dismiss claims against Rocha. MEGA Back in 2019, the legendary Hollywood actress was sued by her former personal assistant Michael Rocha. “[Rocha] has suffered as a result of being discriminated against on the basis of [Rocha’s] sexual orientation and retaliated against by termination of [Rocha’s] employment after he complained of being discriminated against as a gay man,” the suit read. In the suit, Rocha claims he was hired to help Dunaway while she worked on the play Tea at Five. His duties included making sure the actress made it at and from rehearsals, did not forget to take her medicine and working on her schedule. Rocha worked out of Dunaway’s apartment and was paid $1,500 a week. However, he claims it was hell working for her. The suit states the actress “regularly and relentlessly subjected plaintiff to abusive demeaning tirades.” Rocha says his former boss used his sexual orientation to “demean and humiliate him at work.” Dunaway reportedly called Rocha and other employees “little gay people” and Rocha specifically “a little homosexual boy.” He claims to have a recording of the latter. The assistant took the issue to the general manager and lawyer for the play but ended up being fired weeks later. He was told Dunaway was not “comfortable” with him anymore. Other employees reportedly spoke out to The Post claiming Dunaway was a terror on set. Rocha is suing Dunaway for discrimination and retaliation. Now, Dunaway is denying the majority of allegations in the complaint. The response also states, “Dunaway denies calling [Rocha] “a little homosexual boy.” She is asking the court to dismiss all claims. On top of that, the actress wants the court to order Rocha to cover her legal bills for having to defend herself in this action. Fun fact — Dunaway ended up being fired from the play after being accused of slapping another cast member. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Chet Hanks/YouTube Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson‘s son, Chet Hanks, decided to open up about growing up the child of a famous and beloved actor – and his vulnerability came back to bite him. Earlier this week, the 31-year-old rapper/actor took to his new YouTube channel to get candid about “the truth about growing up as a Hanks.” In the lengthy video, Chet said repeatedly he felt “blessed” and “grateful” to have the parents he has but admitted that being the son of such an adored man is a “double-edged sword.” With that fame-by-association came expectations from everyone around him – family, friends and the public. People automatically assumed he was an “arrogant,” “entitled,” “spoiled brat.” He explained how those “preconceived notions” resulted in bullying and therefore a lack of trust on his part in basically everyone around him. And all of that, said Chet, created a lot of “contempt,” “disdain” and “animosity.” Chet Hanks/YouTube He explained what he really felt inside was “shame” for how “privileged” and “sheltered” he grew up, embarrassment over how “unprepared” he felt to “deal with real life,” and insecurity about his self-worth. And then came the self-destruction. Chet said he went in the complete opposite direction of how he grew up out of numerous resentments he just wasn’t equipped to manage. But the part that left him vulnerable to internet trolls was when he said he always had the “it factor;” he was handsome, talented, popular and “good with girls.” He said envy was also a huge factor in his negative experiences growing up and wishes he had had “a strong male role model” to tell him, ”Hey, bro, f–k these people. They are just jealous of you.'” Critics feel Chet is blaming his shortcomings on his father instead of taking accountability for his own behavior, with many pointing out that “America’s Dad” has other children who don’t seem as troubled. “Chet Hanks has a lot of problems. Ask Colin Hanks about the ‘strong male role model,’ he turned out fine,” read one of thousands of tweets mercilessly mocking Chet. “Just because you didn’t listen to your parents/dad, doesn’t mean that you didn’t have a strong male role. Take some responsibility of your own behavior,” read another. Mega Someone else tweeted, “Rough life, unless you compare it to: not being raised wealthy, having to pay back student loans, having to compete for a real job, not having health insurance, having to help your family out financially, etc.” “Awww, poor privileged little rich boy!” yet another critic posted. “I can tell you many stories about my childhood and truly having no strong male role model growing up, but I’ve faced those demons and moved forward with my life.” “Chet’s parents are well known in the industry as two of the most kind and down-to-earth stars in the business. I don’t buy what he’s selling. My guess is that they enforced rules and boundaries and Chet was having none of that,” remarked another Twitter user. Others think Chet has “disassociated from reality. I think he got called rich boy so many times that he’s taken on the stereotypical persona of trailer park wanna be rapper who grew up without a dad. Reality, [he] came from a loving home and when to top schools including, Northwestern.” “Sounds like Chet wanted a father who would lie to him and tell him to keep doing whatever he wanted,” read another tweet, while an umpteenth dissenter added, “What is Chet’s definition of a ‘strong male role model.’ Because @tomhanks does have 3 other children, all of whom seem to be gainfully employed.” View the full article

Published by The Seattle Times An organizational psychologist formerly employed by Amazon on the management team of a Spokane, Washington distribution center claims he was fired for speaking up about bullying and inappropriate behavior by a key leader at the massive, roboticized warehouse. Jonathan Fahlberg, formerly a senior business partner for human resources, contends Amazon management failed to respond when he raised concerns about his supervisor, who he claims propositioned him and then retaliated against him. Instead, they were both summarily fired in late 2020 after Fahlberg made a formal request for support. In an … Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Cheryl Hole thought it was a joke when she was told Adele wanted to meet her backstage at G-A-Y’s Porn Idol event. The ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ star had thought it was “strange” when she went to her dressing room at London’s Heaven nightclub earlier this month to find the area deserted and couldn’t believe it when G-A-Y owner Jeremy Joseph told her there was a special guest on the way. She said: “I walked up and there was no one there, and I was like, ‘This is strange! Normally there are people here already, it’s like quarter-past twelve’, and I was like, look let’s just crack on, let’s just do the damn thing, and all of a sudden, I’m putting my last three nails on, and then they say ‘Adele’s at the back door’, and I’m like ‘What?’, they’re like, ‘THE Adele is here’, and I was like, ‘Nah, I don’t believe you, you’re just trying to pull my leg Jeremy’. “Then all of a sudden, you know the voice, you can’t mistake that voice… I just hear ‘Hello Babes!!’, this cackling coming round the corner, and I went ‘F***, F***, F***, F***, F***”, I could not believe it.’ Adele went on stage with Cheryl and even pole danced for the stunned crowd. And the drag star admitted she is going to “sell” the moment forever to help her own career. Speaking to Rylan Clarke on his ‘Ry-Union’ podcast, she said: “I’m going to put that on every poster that I’ve got and sell that until the end of time, I mean I have hugged and shared a stage with Adele, and I sang her song! Not with her but I sang it to her!” Listen to ‘Ry-Union with Rylan’, brought to you by Sky Bingo, on Apple, Spotify and all podcast providers Cheryl Hole Adele Gay Club London on Towleroad Lamar Odom Lashes Out At ‘Fake Friend’ Todrick Hall Following ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ Eviction More Annual conservative gathering puts Trump’s sway vs rising DeSantis under scrutiny More Explainer-How Western sanctions might target Russia More Ahmaud Arbery’s killers convicted on all federal hate-crimes charges More Kyle Rittenhouse Reveals Plans To Sue Whoopi Goldberg Over ‘Murderer’ Label More US Supreme Court rejects Trump bid to shield Capitol attack records More US women’s soccer reaches landmark $24 mn settlement in equal pay dispute More EU agrees sanctions ‘to hurt Russia’ over Ukraine crisis More Minneapolis police officers lacked ‘human decency’ in Floyd arrest, prosecutor says More Mayor Adams hires ex-NYC Councilman Fernando Cabrera as faith adviser after he apologizes for anti-gay views More U.S. Supreme Court takes up web designer’s bid to rebuff gay weddings More ‘RHOM’ Star Alexia Echevarria Clarifies That Her Late Ex-Husband & Father Were Bisexual, Not Gay More Sarah Jessica Parker Privately ‘Admits Fans Miss’ Kim Cattrall’s ‘Sex And The City’ Character In Reboot Ahead Off Possible Season 2 More Load More View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Lamar Odomhas a bone to pick with Todrick Hall. After getting sent home from Celebrity Big Brother, the 42-year-old retired NBA star lashed out at the 36-year-old American Idol alum-turned-social media influencer. Khloé Kardashian‘s ex-husband was voted out in the first part of Monday night’s double-elimination episode. He was nominated by the Head of Household, Hall, who’s been catching heat online for some of his behind-the-scenes commentary. Odom took to Instagram late Monday to share an illustration that read, “You should have played Chess Not checkers Todrick.” “So I was booted off of @bigbrothercbs by my fake friend Todrick,” he captioned the post, adding a wide-eyed emoji. “He should have been a bit more strategic as he must have forgotten I get a jury vote for the winner!” Lamar added, “I still need you all to vote me for FAN FAVORITE. Text: LAMAR to 21523 from your mobile device! Tell a friend to tell a friend and if I win I will do another CASH APP GIVEAWAY.” Mega No stranger to sometimes winning and sometimes losing, Odom elaborated on his stance with regard to Hall on Tuesday morning. “I know how much social media and his fans and the people mean to him. I don’t really think he wished to rub anyone the wrong way,” the former athlete told Us Weekly of the singer. “He just took the wrong approach to winning and playing a game. I think that was kind of obvious when he won the HOH. And then he even, after he won the HOH, he comes downstairs still singing. ‘HOH!’ I thought that was a gloat. There’s a certain way to win and a certain way to lose.” “Because when I lost, after I was disappointed with my performance, he was one of the people that always come up to me and be like, ‘Are you OK? Are you OK? Are you OK?'” he went on. “And I’m like, ‘No, I just lost.’ Your energy can be that much discerning, even when you win, it can be kind of negative.” Admittedly, Lamar had “never even heard of” Todrick before CBB. However, he claims he was warned about the YouTuber prior to coming into the house. “[My friend] told me that he was a person that I would have to keep my eye on,” he said. When asked about the “most surprising thing” he learned after his eviction, Lamar said it was getting his phone back and seeing “the hit that Todrick is taking from the outside world.” Mega Other eliminated houseguests have mentioned that they feel Hall often plays the victim. While Odom said he could see that, he doesn’t necessarily feel it’s intentional. “I think that’s the position that maybe he’s used to being in from being a gay African American man in society,” he said. “I could see how it was hard, but in the house, that’s where you have a clean slate. I don’t think anybody was judging him.” “I don’t think __Carson [Kressley]__ had that same problem. But he’s a white gay man, because it depends on how you look at it,” he added. “But I think he had a clean slate in the house so he could have just been whoever Todrick is.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Alexandra Ulmer (Reuters) – The leading photo on the website of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), the annual get-together of American rightwing notables, is of a grinning Donald Trump. When the conference kicks off in Orlando, Florida, this week, the former president will be counting on an adoring crowd to cement his dominance of the Republican Party ahead of November’s congressional elections – as well as a potential presidential run in 2024. The photo next to Trump’s on the speakers’ list is of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, whose rising national profile is driving speculation that the 43-year-old former federal prosecutor is also eyeing a run for the White House. The juxtaposition is symbolic of the Republican Party’s looming choice: Does it coalesce around a fresh face or Trump, who would be 78 in 2024 and whose presidency was marked by turmoil? “I’m sure Trump will be received as a hero,” said Mike DuHaime, a Republican strategist. “The question will be: Are there any cracks in that armor?” If in his Saturday speech Trump belabors false assertions that election fraud was to blame for his loss against Democratic President Joe Biden in 2020, it will reinforce party fears that he is backwards-looking, DuHaime added. While polls show a significant percentage of Republicans believe the 2020 election was stolen, half of Republicans also said it was time to “move on” from Trump’s 2020 fraud claims, according to a Politico-Morning Consult survey conducted Feb. 12-13. Trump’s fixation on 2020 has fanned concerns among establishment Republicans that he is putting personal revenge above party success by endorsing challengers running against incumbent Republicans who have crossed him. But given Trump’s pull with voters, concerns among Washington, D.C., insiders may not carry that much weight: Trump’s rallies attract large crowds, congressional candidates covet his endorsement, and his fundraising operations have left him with over $100 million in cash. He is widely considered the 2024 frontrunner, should he throw his hat in. Even so, Trump’s presidential aspirations could yet be stymied by several investigations involving him, including a New York state civil probe into his family business and a congressional panel looking into the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. DeSantis, meanwhile, has earned conservative plaudits for opposing COVID-19 mask mandates and being on the forefront of “culture war” issues like abortion and how much say parents should have over their children’s education. While neither man has said he is running for the White House in 2024, attending the Feb. 24-27 CPAC meeting, which touts itself as the “largest and most influential” worldwide gathering of conservatives, will be important for both of them. It will give DeSantis access to national media coverage and exposure to conservatives from across the country. For Trump, “it’s a chance to see if his base is still solid or showing cracks,” DuHaime said. Representatives for Trump and DeSantis did not respond to requests for comment. CPAC will hold a straw poll of who should run for president. Last year in Orlando, Trump reportedly garnered 55% of votes, more than twice as many as DeSantis, who was also a featured speaker. Trump then reportedly received 70% of votes at CPAC’s summer gathering in Dallas last July. A NEW ‘TRUMPISM’? Trump last month slammed “gutless” politicians who don’t disclose their COVID-19 vaccination status, in what was seen as a dig at DeSantis, who has not revealed whether he has received a booster shot. Trump later said reports of a rift with DeSantis were “fake news.” Dan Eberhart, a prominent Republican donor and the CEO of oilfield services company Canary, LLC, said any more verbal broadsides at CPAC would be a sign of how “seriously” the former president takes DeSantis as a challenger. Eberhart said he supports both men. But, he added: “DeSantis would present Trumpism with a newer, less divisive gloss.” Some Trump supporters, like political strategist Roger Stone, stress that DeSantis owes Trump for his 2018 endorsement that helped propel the then-low-profile U.S. congressman to Florida’s top office. “Therefore I would hope that Governor DeSantis gives the president wide berth,” Stone, who has openly criticized DeSantis and called on him to endorse Trump in 2024, said in an interview. Stone, a former Trump adviser, does not currently have a role in Trump’s operation. Trump pardoned Stone in December 2020, sweeping away the most important convictions under the long-running Russia election probe. DeSantis’ camp is seeking to tone down talk of tension and keep the focus on Florida. DeSantis’ CPAC speech will seek to highlight the state’s unrestrictive approach to COVID-19 to anyone “looking to flee lockdown and mandate states,” said Nick Iarossi, a Tallahassee lobbyist and DeSantis fundraiser. (Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer; additional reporting by Jason Lange; editing by Ross Colvin and Leslie Adler) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Karin Strohecker (Reuters) -The United States and its allies are coordinating new sanctions on Russia after Moscow recognised two regions in eastern Ukraine as independent, officials said. Details have started to emerge on the steps taken or planned by the United States, European Union, Britain and other western powers. Below are details on the curbs proposed so far and on what other sanctions could target Russia: BANKS & FINANCIAL FIRMS Britain announced sanctions on five banks – Bank Rossiya, Black Sea Bank, Genbank, IS Bank and Promsvyazbank – all are smaller lenders, with only Promsvyazbank on the central bank’s list of systematically important lenders. Bank Rossiya is already under U.S. sanctions from 2014 for its close ties to Kremlin officials. A European Union sanctions package has been drafted to include curbs on banks involved in financing separatist activities in eastern Ukraine. EU foreign ministers will discuss the measures in Paris from 1500 GMT and aim to finalise “without delay”. While Washington has yet to announce exact measures it plans to take, sources have said President Joe Biden’s administration has prepared sweeping measures to hurt the Russian economy which would cut the “correspondent” banking relationships between targeted Russian banks and U.S. banks that enable international payments. Washington also will wield its most powerful sanctioning tool against certain Russian individuals and companies by placing them on the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, effectively kicking them out of the U.S. banking system, banning their trade with Americans and freezing their U.S. assets. Sources familiar with the planned measures said VTB Bank, Sberbank, VEB, and Gazprombank are possible targets. It is unclear whether Russian banks would be added to the SDN list, but both types of sanctions could hit Russia hard and make it difficult to transact in U.S. dollars. Russia’s large banks are deeply integrated into the global financial system, meaning sanctions could be felt far beyond its borders. Data from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) shows that European lenders hold the lion’s share of the nearly $30 billion in foreign banks’ exposure to Russia. According to data from Russia’s central bank, total Russian banking foreign assets and liabilities stood at $200.6 billion and $134.5 billion respectively with the U.S. dollar share amounting to around 53% of both, down from 76-81% two decades ago. SOVEREIGN DEBT & CAPITAL MARKETS The package of measures under discussion by the EU aims “to target the ability of the Russian state and government to access the EU’s capital and financial markets and services, to limit the financing of escalatory and aggressive policies,” according to a statement by the bloc. Britain threatened last week to block Russian companies from raising capital in London, Europe’s financial centre for such transactions, though has stopped short of doing so in its announcements on Tuesday. Even before the latest events, access to Russian bonds had become increasingly restricted. U.S. sanctions imposed in 2015 made future Russian dollar debt ineligible for many investors and key indexes. In April 2021, Biden barred U.S. investors from buying new Russian rouble bonds over accusations of Russian meddling in the U.S. election. The curbs have cut Russia’s external debt by 33% since early 2014 — from $733 billion to $489 billion in the third quarter of 2021. Lower debt improves a country’s balance sheet on the surface, but deprives it of financing sources that could contribute to economic growth and development. INDIVIDUALS Sanctioning persons via asset freezes and travel bans is a commonly used tool and the United States, the EU and Britain already have such sanctions in place against a number of Russian individuals. The EU on Monday imposed sanctions on five people who were involved in a Russian parliamentary election in annexed Crimea in September 2021. The package drafted by the EU on Tuesday could see curbs on those who were involved in the decision to recognise the breakaway regions – which could mean all members of the lower house of the Russian parliament who voted in favour of the recognition, according to one official. Meanwhile Britain has imposed sanctions on three men, Gennady Timchenko and billionaires Igor and Boris Rotenberg – all of whom are allies of President Vladimir Putin from St Petersburg whose personal fortunes grew precipitously following Putin’s rise to the presidency. All three men are already sanctioned by the United States. Detailed measures from Washington are yet to come. While the U.S. has used the SDN designation in the past to sanction oligarchs deemed to be “bad actors”, it has become more cautious in recent years after 2018 sanctions on the owner of Rusal saw aluminium prices skyrocket and forced Washington to backtrack. A bill unveiled by U.S. Senate Democrats in January aimed for sweeping sanctions against top Russian government and military officials, including Putin, and President Biden has said he would be ready to consider personal sanctions on the Russian president. Moscow has said any move to impose sanctions on Putin himself would not harm the Russian president personally but would prove “politically destructive”. ENERGY CORPORATES & NORD STREAM 2 The United States and the EU already have sanctions in place on Russia’s energy and defence sectors, with state-owned gas company Gazprom, its oil arm Gazpromneft and oil producers Lukoil, Rosneft and Surgutneftegaz facing various types of curbs on exports/imports and debt-raising. Sanctions could be widened and deepened, with one possible option being to prevent companies settling in U.S. dollars. Nord Stream 2, a recently completed pipeline from Russia to Germany, was awaiting regulatory approval by EU and German authorities before Berlin put its certification on ice. Europe’s dependence on Russian energy supplies weakens the West’s hand when considering sanctions in this sector. CURBING CHIPS The White House has told the U.S. chip industry to be ready for new restrictions on exports to Russia if Moscow attacks Ukraine, including potentially blocking Russia’s access to global electronics supplies. Similar measures were deployed during the Cold War, when technology sanctions kept the Soviet Union technologically backward and crimped economic growth. SWITCHING OFF SWIFT One of the harshest measures would be to disconnect the Russian financial system from SWIFT, which handles international financial transfers and is used by more than 11,000 financial institutions in over 200 countries. In 2012, SWIFT disconnected Iranian banks as international sanctions tightened against Tehran over its nuclear programme. Iran lost half its oil export revenue and 30% of its foreign trade, the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank said. Among Western countries, the United States and Germany would stand to lose the most from such a move, as their banks are the most frequent SWIFT users with Russian banks, said Maria Shagina at the Carnegie Moscow Center. Calls to cut Russia’s SWIFT access were mooted in 2014 when Moscow annexed Crimea, prompting Moscow to develop an alternative messaging system, SPFS. The number of messages sent via SPFS was about one fifth of Russian internal traffic in 2020, according to the central bank, which aims to increase this to 30% in 2023. However, SPFS has struggled to establish itself in international transactions. (Reporting by Karin Strohecker and Catherine Belton in London, Katya Golubkova and Andrey Ostroukh in Moscow; editing by Timothy Heritage and Jason Neely) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Rich McKay BRUNSWICK, Ga. (Reuters) -The three white men convicted of chasing down and murdering a young Black man, Ahmaud Arbery, as he was out jogging in their suburban Georgia community, were found guilty on Tuesday of committing federal hate crimes and other offenses in the 2020 killing. A predominantly white jury deliberated for about four hours over two days before returning the verdict against Travis McMichael, 36, his father, former police officer Gregory McMichael, 66, and a neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, in U.S. District Court in Brunswick, Georgia. “Ahmaud will continue to rest in peace but he will now begin to rest in power,” Wanda Cooper-Jones, Ahmaud’s mother, said outside the courthouse after the verdict was read. All three men were found guilty of violating Arbery’s civil rights by attacking him because of his race, and of attempted kidnapping, capping the latest high-profile trial to probe issues of vigilantism and racial violence in America. The McMichaels were additionally convicted of a federal firearms charge. Bryan was not charged with a weapons offense. The hate-crimes felony, the most serious of the charges the defendants faced, carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. The three men were convicted last year of murder and other crimes in state court and sentenced to life terms for the shotgun slaying of Arbery, 25, a onetime high school football star who worked for a truck-washing company and his father’s landscaping business. Prosecutors in the state trial avoided characterizing the killing as racist, seeking only to prove that the McMichaels and Bryan were responsible for his death. Cooper-Jones on Tuesday railed against the Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutors, who had originally reached a plea deal with the defendants to avoid a trial. In a rare move, the judge last month rejected the plea deal https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-prosecutors-reach-hate-crime-plea-deals-ahmaud-arbery-murder-court-filings-2022-01-31 after Ahmaud’s family implored her not to accept it. “What we got today, we wouldn’t have gotten today if it wasn’t for the fight that the family put up,” Cooper-Jones said. “What the DOJ did today, they was made to do today. It wasn’t because it’s what they wanted to do.” LAG TIME ON CHARGES Arbery was shot to death on Feb. 23, 2020, by the younger McMichael after all three defendants had chased him down in pickup trucks as the victim was out for an afternoon jog through the community of Satilla Shores, near the southeastern coastal town of Brunswick. The McMichaels insisted they did not act out of racial animus but out of self-defense and a belief that Arbery appeared suspicious when they saw him running through the streets after a series of neighborhood break-ins. But trial testimony revealed there had been no burglaries, but thefts from unlocked cars. And federal prosecutors presented testimony from 20 witnesses and other evidence they said showed that the three men had long histories of using slurs and making racist statements. The defense rested its case after calling just one witness. There was never any dispute that the younger McMichael fired his shotgun three times at Arbery at close range. The killing was captured in a graphic cellphone video recorded by Bryan, stoking public outrage when it surfaced on social media more than two months later with no arrests yet made, even though Travis McMichael had admitted to police at the scene that he gunned down Arbery. Civil rights activists pointed to the lag time in arrests of the three men as the latest example of law enforcement allowing white perpetrators to go unpunished in the unjustified killing of Black people. Arbery’s name became entwined with a host of others invoked in a summer of protests against racial injustice across the United States after another unarmed Black man, George Floyd, was killed by a white police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck until he could no longer breathe in May 2020. The federal prosecution of Arbery’s killers is the first in which those who committed such a high-profile murder are facing a jury in a hate-crime trial. The two McMichaels had agreed last month to plead guilty to the federal hate-crimes offense, and the son acknowledged at a federal court hearing that he singled out Arbery because of his “race and color.” But Judge Lisa Wood rejected the plea bargain because it bound her to a 30-year sentence that prosecutors had agreed would be served in a federal lockup before the men were returned to the Georgia prison system, widely perceived as a tougher environment for inmates compared with federal penitentiaries. The plea deals were then withdrawn, and all three defendants proceeded to trial. (Reporting by Rich McKay in Brunswick, Ga.; Additional reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Donna Bryson and Alistair Bell) View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Kyle Rittenhouse is gearing up to sue Whoopi Goldberg, in addition to a whole “list” of other celebrities and politicians, over comments they made regarding him being a “murderer” before he was ultimately found not guilty of the charges and cleared of all wrongdoing. According to the 19-year-old’s appearance on Monday’s episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight, Rittenhouse revealed his plans to sue Goldberg and a slew of others when he told the Fox News host: “We’re gonna be holding them accountable, Tucker.” Mega “I want to hold them accountable for what they did to me ’cause I don’t want to see anybody have to go through what I did,” Rittenhouse continued before revealing he allegedly has a “list” of names made up of famous celebrities, politicians, and even athletes who falsely accused him. Besides Goldberg, the teenager then named Cenk Uygur, the founder of the left-wing news and commentary program The Young Turks, as another person he plans on suing for reportedly “lying” about him in the past. “We’re going to hold everybody who lied about me accountable, such as everybody who lied and called me a white supremacist,” he said. “They’re all going to be held accountable. And we’re going to handle them in a courtroom.” Mega As Radar previously reported, Rittenhouse faced five different charges in connection to his fatally shooting of two men and the injuring of a third during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin on August 25, 2020 when he was 17-years-old. Although the Illinois native was ultimately cleared of all charges – one of which being first-degree intentional homicide – he made headlines throughout the country and was the subject of much debate regarding whether or not he acted in self-defense. On November 19, 2021, the teenager was acquitted of all charges. Now, he is vowing to exact his revenge on all those who allegedly called him a “murderer” and “white-supremacist” before he was given his right to a fair trial. Mega Rittenhouse has also since launched what he and his team are calling the Media Accountability Project, which will reportedly act as a plan to raise money and “hold the media accountable” when they lie on their news networks. The money raised will then be used to bring legal action to the news organizations Rittenhouse and his team see fit. View the full article

Published by AFP The US Supreme Court rejected a bid by former president Donald Trump to block the release of documents to a congressional committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol Washington (AFP) – The US Supreme Court on Tuesday formally ended former president Donald Trump’s bid to block the release to congressional investigators of White House records related to last year’s attack on the Capitol. The court’s decision, issued in an unsigned order that made no comment, followed its rejection last month of Trump’s emergency request to shield the documents held by the National Archives. Trump, who has been accused of fomenting the deadly January 6 assault by a mob of his supporters, had asked the nation’s highest court to stay a ruling by a federal appeals court rejecting the petition. But it refused in a decision issued on January 19, and Tuesday’s announcement marks the definitive end of the line for Trump’s legal fight. “We expected this to happen after the Court voted 8-1 to deny Trump’s request to block documents while they considered his petition for review,” the public accountability watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said in a statement. “But even though it was expected, it’s still good to see it happen.” The House select committee is scrutinizing the attempt by hundreds of Trump supporters to block congressional certification of President Joe Biden’s November 2020 election victory by storming the Capitol. The development will be seen as a victory for investigators looking into how the riot took place, and whether Trump and members of his circle had any part in encouraging it. The ex-president had sought to exercise his privilege as a former president to keep under wraps White House records and communications that might relate to the attack. In a filing with the Supreme Court, Trump’s lawyers had argued that “a former president has the right to assert executive privilege, even after his term of office.” Biden waived executive privilege on the Trump records so they could be handed over to the committee and the appeals court decided that “the right of a former president certainly enjoys no greater weight than that of the incumbent.” The appeals court said the public interest was greater than Trump’s own in relation to the records. View the full article

Published by AFP The US women's soccer team first launched a lawsuit in 2019 demanding equal pay Washington (AFP) – The US national women’s team has won a $24 million payout and a promise of equal pay in a landmark settlement with US Soccer, the two sides announced Tuesday in a joint statement. “US Soccer has committed to providing an equal rate of pay going forward for the Women’s and Men’s National Teams in all friendlies and tournaments, including the World Cup,” the terms of the deal, sent to AFP, said. The question of World Cup prize money had formed a prominent part of the lawsuit filed by the US women’s soccer team in 2019, which accused the federation of “stubbornly refusing” to pay its men and women’s players equally. “I think we’re going look back on this day and say this is the moment that, you know, US Soccer changed for the better,” women’s star Megan Rapinoe said in an interview with ABC after the deal was announced. “Obviously we can’t go back and undo the injustices that we faced but … we know that something like this is never gonna happen again,” she continued, adding she hopes that they can now “move forward” with “setting up the next generation so much better than we ever had it. So it’s a great day.” Her teammate Alex Morgan, also speaking on ABC, called the deal “a monumental step forward in feeling valued, feeling respected and just mending our relationship with US Soccer.” The agreement stipulates that $22 million will be distributed to the players, while $2 million will go into an account to benefit them “in their post-career goals and charitable efforts related to women’s and girls’ soccer.” The settlement is contingent on a new collective bargaining agreement, which needs to be ratified before the deal can be finally approved by a court. A federal judge had rejected the claim of pay discrimination, but the US women then launched an appeal. The 2019 lawsuit cited the discrepancy in World Cup prize money payments paid to the two teams in 2014 and 2015. The US men received $5.375 million for reaching the round of 16 at the 2014 World Cup, while the women received $1.725 million for winning the 2015 tournament. ‘Not easy’ The US Soccer Federation had argued that its hands were tied because the prize money is set by FIFA, which awarded $38 million to France for winning the 2018 men’s World Cup in Russia, but only $4 million to the American women for winning the 2019 Women’s World Cup. “Getting to this day has not been easy,” both sides admitted in a statement announcing the deal. “The US Women’s National Team players have achieved unprecedented success while working to achieve equal pay for themselves and future athletes… We look forward to continuing to work together to grow women’s soccer.” In September last year USSF president Cindy Parlow Cone said the body hoped to equalize the World Cup prize money for its players. “Until FIFA equalizes the prize money that it awards to the Men’s and Women’s World Cup participants, it is incumbent upon us to collectively find a solution,” she wrote in an open letter addressed to fans. She said the gulf in prize money paid out by FIFA was “by far the most challenging issue” facing US Soccer in pay negotiations with men’s and women’s teams. View the full article

Published by Reuters By John Chalmers, Sabine Siebold and Robin Emmott BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union agreed new sanctions on Russia that will blacklist more politicians, lawmakers and officials, ban EU investors from trading in Russian state bonds, and target imports and exports with separatist entities. However, EU foreign ministers chose not to sanction Russian President Vladimir Putin, the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said following a meeting in Paris on Tuesday. Russia’s formal recognition of two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine was an unacceptable breach of Ukraine’s sovereignty, Borrell said. “This package of sanctions that has been approved by unanimity by the member states will hurt Russia, and it will hurt a lot,” Borrell told a news conference alongside France’s foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian at a meeting in Paris. Separately, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told Reuters that further Russian aggression in Ukraine would result in more sanctions, in coordination with the United States. The package of sanctions includes all members of the lower house of the Russian parliament who voted in favour of the recognition of the breakaway regions, freezing any assets they have in the EU and banning them from travelling to the bloc. It was not immediately clear when the sanctions would take effect, but diplomats expect them in the coming hours or days, when names and details will be made public. Borrell also said: “We are going to target 27 individuals and entities who are playing a role in undermining or threatening Ukrainian territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence.” Borrell said those individuals and entities were in Russia’s defence, banking and financial sector. “We target the ability of the Russian state and government to access our capital and financial markets and services,” Borrell said. Banks involved in financing separatist activities in eastern Ukraine would also be targeted. The two regions could also be removed from a free-trade deal between the EU and Ukraine, “to ensure that those responsible clearly feel the economic consequences of their illegal and aggressive actions,” an EU statement said. PRAISE FOR GERMANY Borrell congratulated Germany’s decision to put the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project on ice, arguably the most far-reaching reaction to Moscow’s move late on Monday. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also praised Berlin. Taking steps to limit or ban Russia’s access to the Belgium-based SWIFT global interbank payments system used for Russian money flows was not immediately part of the EU sanctions. The EU had repeatedly said it was ready to impose “massive consequences” on Russia’s economy if Moscow invaded Ukraine but has also noted that, given the EU’s close energy and trade ties to Russia, it wanted to move in stages. Not all of the bloc’s 27 member states have the same relation to Russia or dependency on its gas, which could eventually complicate the adoption of further sanctions. EU officials and diplomats have said some EU countries, including Austria, Hungary and Italy, Russia’s closest allies in the bloc, would prefer more limited sanctions in response to Putin’s move on eastern Ukraine. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, whose country relies on Russia for much of its gas, told a news conference in Rome that any sanctions should not include energy imports. (Reporting by John Chalmers, Robin Emmott, Sabine Siebold, Francesco Guarascio, Ingrid Melander, Marine Strauss, Bart Meijer, Padraic Halpin and Crispian Balmer, Andrius Sytas, writing by Ingrid MelanderEditing by Tomasz Janowski) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jonathan Allen ST. PAUL, Minn. (Reuters) -A federal prosecutor told a jury in closing arguments on Tuesday that three former Minneapolis police officers ignored their training and basic human decency by failing to intervene when their colleague knelt on George Floyd’s neck leading to his death. Tou Thao, 36; J. Alexander Kueng, 28; and Thomas Lane, 38, have all pleaded not guilty to charges they willfully denied Floyd’s right to receive medical aid in police custody during the May 2020 arrest even as they had what a prosecutor called “front-row seats” to Floyd’s murder beside a police car parked in a Minneapolis intersection. Thao and Kueng are also charged with willfully breaching the handcuffed 46-year-old Black man’s rights by not intervening while their colleague Derek Chauvin, who is white, knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as horrified onlookers begged the officers to check Floyd’s pulse. Chauvin, 45, was sentenced to 22-1/2 years in prison after being convicted of Floyd’s murder at a separate state trial last year. The federal trial in the U.S. District Court in St. Paul hinges on when an officer has a duty to intervene in a colleague’s misconduct and has shone a light on a deeply hierarchical culture at police departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Manda M. Sertich said Thao was captured on video choosing to “argue and mock” with the people on the sidewalk begging him to help Floyd rather than trying to get Chauvin off Floyd’s neck. Kueng, she said, could be seen smiling at a shared joke with Chauvin as Floyd died beneath them, and picking gravel out of a police car’s tire. Lane could be heard worrying that they should turn Floyd on his side but did not get up from pinning down Floyd’s legs. She said the defendants did not do what “human decency and common sense required them to do: to stop the slow-motion killing unfolding right in front of them.” All three defendants testified in their own defense, saying they deferred to Chauvin’s many years of experience as the most senior officer on the scene. Lane and Kueng, who pinned down Floyd’s buttocks and legs as Thao stood nearby keeping onlookers on the sidewalk, have emphasized that they were rookies only a few days out of training. Sertich said that even the rookies could and should have asked Chauvin to get off Floyd or to check his neck for a pulse. “They want you to accept that it is too much to ask of them to say those things even though it was not too much for those regular people who were walking by,” Sertich said. “They made the choice not to upset their colleague rather than do their duty, even though that choice resulted in the death of a human.” The men said they did not grasp that Floyd was dying beneath Chauvin’s knee, and assumed that, with 18 years on the force, the officer knew what he was doing. Sertich argued that they could easily tell Floyd had passed out from a neck restraint, which they should have known from training, was dangerous. Prosecutors have repeatedly drawn attention to the horrified bystanders on the sidewalk, most of whom had no medical training but correctly observed that Floyd had fallen unresponsive and screamed at officers to check Floyd’s pulse. Some appeared on the stand during the near three weeks of testimony. Kueng can be heard in body-worn camera videos telling his colleagues twice that he cannot find a pulse. He told the jury he did not take from this that Floyd’s heart had stopped, but decided instead that the handcuffs were preventing him from checking the pulse successfully. The defendants’ lawyers will deliver their own closing arguments before the jury begins deliberating. All three men face years in prison if convicted, and are also due to stand trial in a Minnesota court in June on state charges of aiding and abetting Floyd’s murder. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen; Editing by Aurora Ellis and Mark Porter) View the full article

Published by New York Daily News NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams tapped ex-City Councilman Fernando Cabrera late Monday to serve as a faith adviser in his administration after the controversial Bronx politician apologized for his history of anti-gay views and remarks. Cabrera, a Christian pastor who was initially under consideration to become the city’s top mental health official, will act as a senior adviser in the newly formed Office of Faith-Based and Community Partnerships, Adams said in a statement. “I hope New Yorkers will give Fernando the opportunity to show his commitment to bringing together all New Yorkers, regardless … Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear a web designer’s free speech claim that she cannot be forced under a Colorado anti-discrimination law to produce websites for same-sex marriages, a practice she opposes on religious grounds. The justices took up evangelical Christian Denver-area business owner Lorie Smith’s appeal of a lower court ruling rejecting her bid for an exemption from a Colorado law barring discrimination based upon sexual orientation and certain other factors. The case follows the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in favor of a Christian Denver-area baker who refused on religious grounds to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. Smith’s case gives the justices an opportunity to answer a question that has been raised in other disputes including the baker case but never definitively resolved: can people refuse service to customers in violation of public accommodation laws based on the idea that fulfilling a creative act such as designing a website or baking a cake is a form of free speech under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The justices are set to hear oral arguments and decide the case in the Supreme Court’s next term, which begins in October and ends in June 2023. The court declined to take up a separate question concerning whether Smith has a religious rights claim, also under the First Amendment. Smith had asked the court to overturn its important 1990 ruling that limited the ability of people to cite their religious beliefs in seeking exemptions from laws that apply to everyone. Smith runs a web design business called 303 Creative that she wants to operate in accordance with her Christian faith. She believes that marriage should be limited to opposite-sex couples, a view shared by many conservative Christians. Before adding wedding websites to the services she offered customers, Smith sued the state’s civil rights commission and other officials in 2016 because of her concern she would be punished under the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act. The law bars anyone from refusing “goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages or accommodations” to anyone based among other things on sexual orientation, age, race, gender and religion. About 20 other states have similar laws. Smith’s lawyers at the conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom have said that any state action punishing her for refusing to design websites for gay weddings violates her right to religious expression and her free speech rights. Colorado officials have said they never investigated Smith’s company and saw no evidence that anyone ever actually asked her to design a website for a same-sex wedding. Lower courts backed the state, including the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a July 2021 ruling. The Supreme Court, with its 6-3 conservative majority, has become increasingly supportive of religious rights and related free speech claims in recent years even as it has backed LGBT rights in other cases. The court legalized gay marriage nationwide in 2015 and in 2020 expanded protections for LGBT workers under federal law. The Supreme Court has struggled to resolve cases in which conservative religious opposition to LGBT rights has clashed with situations in which LGBT people are seeking to exercise their own rights. The justices in 2021 issued an important decision in a religious rights case involving a Catholic Church-affiliated organization that sued after the city of Philadelphia refused to place children for foster care with the agency because it barred same-sex couples from applying to be foster parents. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-supreme-court-rules-catholic-group-lgbt-rights-dispute-2021-06-17 in favor of Catholic Social Services but left some legal questions unresolved. The Colorado website case is a similar dispute to the one that prompted the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling on narrow legal grounds siding with a baker named Jack Phillips. The court said in that case that the state civil rights commission that imposed sanctions on Phillips was motivated by anti-religious bias but did not make any broader pronouncements. Similar legal fights have been waged in other states involving other small business owners including a wedding photographer and a calligrapher. (Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham) View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Real Housewives of Miami star Alexia Echevarria never ceases to drop word bombs in the most matter-of-fact ways. Viewers of the rebooted reality show – which debuted late last year on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock – were shocked when the 54-year-old OG spoke openly about the rumors that had long plagued her 12-year marriage to her late ex-husband, Herman Echevarria. The “Cuban Barbie” and well-known businessman decided to go their separate ways in 2015. Their divorce was finalized in 2016. Herman died later that year, in a sense freeing Alexia to explore this idea that the man who had worshiped the ground she walked on and helped raise her two sons could have possibly lived his life as a closeted gay man. Mega In fact, it was during the currently airing season of RHOM that Alexia decided to seek out Herman’s alleged “lover,” who she was told even attended his funeral. Though the man refused to appear on camera, Alexia told her co-stars that the two spoke for hours over the phone. It was a conversation, she said, that gave her closure but also made her sad. Later on – at a Pride event honoring Alexia for her work in the LGBTQIA+ community – she dedicated her award to both Herman and her late father, who she revealed she had learned later on in life was also a closeted man. However, during a recent interview, the reality star said she wanted to clarify that she believes both men were bisexual, not gay. “I want to say that they were bisexual,” she said on the Behind The Velvet Rope with David Yontef podcast. “Yeah, I mean, that’s what their history shows, that they were bisexual. And I do believe in bisexuality, so yeah.” Yontef asked Echevarria why she felt she had the authority to out two people who were not alive to tell their own stories. It’s a question previously posed by RHOM alum Lea Black, who flat-out trashed the move. “There has to be more awareness and openness. If people would be more open with their hearts and with their minds then we wouldn’t live in this world that we do,” she explained. “Obviously, everybody’s going to have an opinion, but it is my story because all these things affected me. So it is my story.” Mega On the show, Alexia told her co-stars that Herman’s alleged boyfriend told her that the late businessman had no intention of ever being honest with her or anyone about his sexual orientation. “I had to say my story because A.) there was always rumors. The girls brought it up in Season 3. It didn’t really happen like that, but it was rumored,” explained Alexia. “And B.) after he passed away, when the person’s no longer here, everybody starts talking.” “But in my community, in the Cuban-American community here in Miami, a lot of people knew,” she revealed. “And it’s still a taboo [topic]. People want to act like, ‘oh it’s so cool’ or ‘we’re so open,’ and they’re all a bunch of liars.” “But my heart has always been that I’ve always wanted to be an advocate,” she added, “and I’ve always wanted to help in any way.” Echevarria also explained why she chose to open up about her late father, who – prior to Season 4 – was rarely mentioned. “When I was being honored at Wynwood Pride, it made me think of my dad,” she said. “So it’s like, this is reality TV. You don’t know what you’re going to say. How are you going to act? So it is my story, you know? And I feel like people should be more open and more sensitive and compassionate … because I feel like it was very therapeutic and healing for me.” She recalled feeling instant relief that was soon followed by immense pride. “I grew up being ashamed, or you know, having my family protect me from knowing that my father was bisexual because they thought it was a bad thing,” she said. “Because if they thought it was a good thing, why didn’t they tell me? Why didn’t they tell me?” Mega Alexia said she knew the rumors about Herman would come up again when the show got a second wind, and she wanted to make sure it wasn’t done in an “ugly” or nasty” way. “You know how these shows are – if you don’t say your story and your narrative, somebody else will,” she told David, pointing to an outburst made by her co-star, Adriana de Moura, who announced at a cast dinner that she’d heard a rumor that Herman died while having sex with his alleged lover. “Look what Adriana said in the middle of the sushi dinner, what she had heard at the funeral,” said Alexia. “I can control what comes out of my mouth, but I can’t control what’s going to come out of yours. So I’m happy that I got to share it the way that it really is, the way that I really feel it, the way that I really wanted it, because it wasn’t to badmouth him or to make fun of this or anything like that. It came from love, and it came from a good place. … I needed to speak about this, and it’s something that was important to me. So that’s why I shared it.” Mega The only thing Alexia regrets is not being given the opportunity to tell Herman she loved him for exactly who he was. “We were separated, but you know, I wanted him to trust, like I wanted him to know that it was OK. Like, ‘I still admire and respect and love you. This is never going to change our relationship,'” she told David. “And I never had the moment to do that. You know what I mean? I wish I would’ve had that moment because I know he thinks he was all alone, like with nobody’s support. So I’m just unhappy about that. But I got to have that moment with this boyfriend.” As for why she thinks Herman’s alleged lover felt comfortable discussing the topic with her, she remarked, “I think it might be a cultural thing, or like, you know, he’s a young guy. Herman was older.” View the full article

Published by OK Magazine mega Take Two? An insider says not so fast! While Sarah Jessica Parkerand her castmates are eager for a second season of And Just Like That, it may not happen due to a mess behind the scenes. Though talks are underway to renew the Sex and the City sequel, which reunites Parker, Cynthia Nixonand Kristin Davis, “there are a ton of issues to resolve first,” the insider dishes. The biggest, of course, is whether Kim Cattrall, 65 — who sat out the reboot due to her nasty public feud with Parker, 56 — will finally bury the hatchet and reprise her role as Samantha this time around. MEGA; CRAIG BLANKENHORN / HBO MAX Parker recently dashed hopes of Cattrall’s return when she bluntly told an interviewer that she does not want her back, “but privately, she admits that the fans miss her,” spills the insider. KIM CATTRALL HAS ZERO INTEREST IN WATCHING ‘SEX AND THE CITY’ REBOOT ‘AND JUST LIKE THAT…’, ACTRESS FOCUSED ON THE FUTURE, NOT THE PAST “And plot-wise, the show’s clearly left the door open for Samantha to come back.” But cutting a deal with Cattrall and the cast is going to be tough, warns the insider: “Everybody will be pushing for a raise for a season 2. Sarah has closed complicated deals in the past, but this is a big mountain to climb.” mega As OK! reported, Parker refused to address Cattrall directly by name during her appearance on Watch What Happens Live on Monday, February 14. When asked about her former castmate’s absence, Parker replied: “The actress that played the role is no longer playing that role.” ‘SEX AND THE CITY’ STAR CHRIS NOTH ‘FEELS LIKE HIS LIFE IS OVER’ AMID MULTIPLE HORRIFYING SEXUAL ASSAULT ALLEGATIONS Cattrall’s choice to not reprise her role was rumored to have been due to the actresses’ estranged relationship, although the How I Met Your Mother star has also not directly addressed her reason for sitting out of the reboot. The 65-year-old is “still bitter about the way Sarah treated her,” and is “convinced it was all due to jealousy,” an insider squealed. The Sex and the City reboot has been a hot topic for more than one reason, as Chris Noth (a.k.a. Mr. Big) was slammed with multiple sexual assault accusations after the reboot aired. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Early 2000s internet sensation SouljaBoy took to Instagram to put Kanye West on blast. The rapper mocked West for crying over Pete Davidson being with his wife asking “what are you gonna do?” Mega “Kanye WAKE UP, Skete got your b—- n—-” SouljaBoy said in a live stream on his Instagram before taking a puff from a joint. The Crank That rapper asked West on stream “what are you gonna do? Is you gonna keep postin memes of Marvel vs Capcom?” He broke out into a fit of laughter proud of that one. “That’s what you get,” SouljaBoy brings up previous beef with Ye telling the rapper directly “n—- tried to play me, do you know what the f— I am? I’m big Drako. Now you’re running around Hollywood crying like a b—-.” Soulja continues to mock Kanye fake crying in the stream. “‘whaaah whaaah help me!’ F— YOU KANYE!” Mega SouljaBoy asked a question of Ye many have been wondering. “Are you gonna lay the smackdown? What are you talkin about?” West has been on the war path in the news recently throwing out several threats to the SNL comedian. The Yeezus rapper even went as far as to include one of his threats in his most recent songs City of God. In it West yells that “a hundred goons” were gonna pull up to Saturday Night Live. West’s beef with Davidson started after the comedian was seen constantly with the rapper’s estranged wife Kim Kardashian. The socialite filed for divorce from the rapper hoping to move on with her life, but West wasn’t having any of that. Since then, West has relentlessly posted memes and rants on all of his social medias. He also brought Kardashian look-a-likes to parties to get his ex’s attention. The rapper even went as far as to cut Kid Cudi from his next album Donda 2 after learning of his friendship with Davidson. Mega West was subsequently banned from the weekend variety show after appearing on the show seven times. His most recent girlfriend Julia Fox split from the rapper after constant public pleas to reunite with his wife. West doesn’t seem to care what bridges he burns to get what he believes is rightfully his. Many have spoken out worried about the rapper’s mental health. SouljaBoy doesn’t appear to be part of that group. The fellow rapper appears to just be stirring the pot waiting to see what happens. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Just days after Jeffrey Epstein‘s alleged pimp was found hanging in his prison cell — similar to Epstein’s own mysterious death — Ghislaine Maxwell‘s brother, Ian Maxwell, has voiced his concerns over his sister’s wellbeing in prison. Mega Ghislaine’s brother says he fears for his sister’s safety after hearing of 75-year-old Jean-Luc Brunel‘s sudden death. Brunel was found in his prison cell in La Sante, Paris hanging by the neck in an alleged suicide while guards were not around. This was very similar to the way Epstein was found dead — which was also immediately rules a suicide. “It’s really shocking,” Ian told the New York Post. “Another death by hanging in a high-security prison. My reaction is one of total shock and bewilderment.” Ian has spoken out about his sister’s treatment being incarcerated saying, “Despite the psychiatrist advising to the contrary, she was deemed a suicide risk and they are continuing to wake her up every 15 minutes in the night. It’s a complete violation of prisoner rights and human rights.” Mega The brother of the sex trafficker finds it “ironic” that Ghislaine was subjected to suicide watch as soon as she was arrested but Epstein and Brunel were not. Before his death, Epstein specifically told his prison’s therapist that he was not suicidal and was worried he was going to be assassinated. The Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn is not allowing what happened to Epstein or Brunel to happen to Ghislaine. Brunel’s hanging came just days after Prince Andrew agreed to settle Virginia Roberts Giuffre‘s lawsuit which included Brunel by name. Roberts had accused the prince of sex abuse after meeting her through Epstein, Brunel and Maxwell. The death caused a resurgence of conspiracy theories revolving around the case with some believing that Epstein and Brunel were killed because they were going to spill the beans on social and political elites around the world. Mega Epstein and Ghislaine had been known to be friends with high ups in power from the Clintons, the Trumps and even the royal family through Prince Andrew. Ghislaine was found guilty of sex trafficking minors back in December of last year. She is now serving 65 years in federal prison. View the full article

HIV attacks human cell Notes and Quotes from Interview with Carlos Del Rio of Emory University in Atlanta. He’s the co-director, the Emory Center for AIDS Research. –Excited by the pure research. –What’s unique in this case is the the specific mutation in the transplant where the virus attaches that makes those with it resistant to HIV. The mutation is found in just 1 in 100 people of northern European descent, rare. Not seen in African Americans nor Hispanics. –This woman is described as ‘mixed race’, with the implication being that a cure based on mutation would not just work for one race and 40% of Americans living with HIV are of color. –With effective, antiretroviral therapy, you can get somebody with HIV to live essentially a normal life. People with HIV who receive antiretroviral therapy and have the viral suppressed, don’t transmit to others. –“The goal is to decrease the number of new infections globally to under 500,000. We’re not there and we could certainly be there.” — To get to 500,000: “identify the people who are at high risk of developing HIV of acquiring HIV, and getting them on, pre-exposable access” — “…diagnose people shortly after they’re infected linking them to care, getting them in therapy and keeping them, on antiretroviral therapy and suppress for the rest of their lives. So when they age it is healthy aging and they die with HIV, but not of HIV.” Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Jeffrey Epstein‘s late alleged pimp, Jean-Luc Brunel, had apparently tried numerous times to take his own life. As Radar reported, the dead body of the 76-year-old business partner of the late accused pedophile – who was believed to have trafficked and sexually abused over 1,000 underage girls and young women – was found hanging in the early hours of Saturday morning in a prison in La Santé in Paris, France. The circumstances surrounding Brunel’s death are eerily similar to those of Epstein’s; both men were found hanging in their jail cells while awaiting their respective trials, and both men were said to have attempted suicide earlier. Mega Arrested and jailed in late 2020, Brunel tried to kill himself on numerous occasions during his 14-month stay behind bars, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter, who spoke to The Miami Herald on condition of anonymity. One of Brunel’s attorneys, Mathias Chichportich, confirmed the claim, telling the newspaper that his client had a history of “several suicide attempts.” And yet, he was not under active suicide watch, known in France as “emergency protection,” at the time of his death. Typically, inmates who are at risk of killing themselves are placed in special cells with rounded corners. They are often given paper clothes to wear and tearable bedsheets to sleep on. Instead, Brunel was housed in the prison’s “vulnerable people area,” nicknamed the “VIP quarters,” for inmates who are considered vulnerable to violence. In these areas, guards generally check on prisoners four to six times per night. Mega “I can confirm that Mr. Brunel was discovered at 1:30 a.m. last night dead in his cell. He was alone in the cell. According to the first findings, it is a suicide by hanging. An investigation in search of the causes of death is however opened,” said a spokesperson for the Paris public prosecutor’s office, according to The New York Post. Like with Epstein’s death, it’s been reported that no cameras captured Brunel’s alleged suicide at the otherwise high-security facility, which is also one of the toughest in France. Epstein’s August 2019 death in New York, which was also mysteriously not recorded, was ruled a prison suicide by hanging. “It almost seems like the entire ring of people who were doing this that their conscience is getting the better of them now that they are being held accountable for their actions,” said an attorney who represented several of Epstein’s victims. “Of course, the alternative conspiracy theory is that it’s like someone is trying to clean up shop.” Mega Brunel and Epstein once collaborated in forming a modeling agency in Miami, Florida, that many models have said was a pretext for luring unsuspecting victims into Epstein’s orbit. Brunel’s death comes days after Prince Andrew settled a sexual assault lawsuit with his accuser, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, and two months after Epstein’s madam, Ghislaine Maxwell, was convicted. Brunel was under investigation for sex trafficking and rape at the time of his death. Just like Epstein’s victims, Brunel’s feel robbed of justice. View the full article