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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez questioned Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan about the whereabouts of Border Patrol agents who threatened her in a secret Facebook group.

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 6:02 PM

Argentina's government on Thursday branded Hezbollah a terrorist organization and froze its assets, 25 years to the day after a bombing blamed on the Lebanese-based group destroyed a Jewish community center in Argentina's capital, killing 85 people. The nation's Financial Information Unit took the action a day after President Mauricio Macri's government created a list of terrorist organizations to help coordinate actions with other nations and as the nation held memorial services for victims of the attack, for which no one has been convicted. The unit noted that Hezbollah has been accused of responsibility for a 1992 attack on the Israeli Embassy in Argentina that killed 29 people, as well as the 1994 attack on the Argentine-Israelite Mutual Association in Buenos Aires.

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 2:01 PM

A cannonball discovered this week by archaeologists provides a further indication of how close Napoleon Bonaparte came to winning the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. The 3 kilogramme (6-pound), rusty cannonball was found on Monday near the site of a field hospital about 600 metres behind Anglo-Allied lines on the battlefield in Belgium. Tony Pollard, the head archaeologist at the site, told Reuters Television he believed it was fired by the French army, another sign of near Napoleon's troops came to victory in the battle described by the Duke of Wellington as a close-run thing.

POSTED JULY 17, 2019 10:24 AM

For years, Iran has been successful in smuggling drone parts in spite of international sanctions, and now its smuggling efforts have moved into counter-drone markets. Iran shot down a RQ-4A Global Hawk drone last week. Several years ago, in 2011, it demonstrated its evolving capabilities at drone interception when it captured a RQ-170 Sentinel stealth drone. To down the Hawk, Iran claimed to use the 3 Khordad surface-to-air missile system. Prior to that, Iran supposedly jammed the communication links of the RQ-170 Sentinel stealth drone, taking control of the drone inside Iranian territory, later reverse engineering it to produce the Shahed-171 and Saeqah drones. So, on top of drone capabilities, Iran has some counter-drone capabilities—that is the ability to detect, identify, track and/or control unmanned aircraft. It also boasts powerful cyber-attack capabilities that can be used to control enemy drones. Efforts should now focus on preventing Iran from enhancing these capabilities by countering its attempts to obtain Western counter-drone technology.

POSTED JULY 19, 2019 2:00 AM

38 percent of Democrats say they do not believe they will achieve the American dream in their lifetimes, compared to just 11 percent of Republicans, according to a new Gallup poll.Two-thirds of independents said they see the dream as attainable, compared to 31 percent who said they do not. Overall, about 70 percent of Americans feel that American dream could be grasped, the poll reported, while 29 percent disagree.The 38 percent of Democrats who said they did not believe they could achieve the American dream represented a sharp increase from a decade ago, when 29 percent of Democrats said the same. President Trump has described the Republican party as "the party of the American Dream," perhaps contributing to the increasing partisan split on the matter."The American dream is back," the president said after taking office in 2017. "We're going to create an environment for small business like we haven't had in many, many decades."

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 2:57 PM

Tens of millions of Americans will feel triple-digit heat between Thursday and Sunday. The National Weather Service (NWS) noted that 20 to 30 high temperature records could fall between the Rockies and the East Coast. There will be little relief even at night: The weather agency expects 123 records for the warmest daily low temperature to be either broken or tied this week. The Midwest will see many of the highest extremes on Thursday and Friday, while the East Coast will feel its most intense heat on Saturday.The NWS labeled this excessive heat as "scorching." On Saturday in Washington D.C., the confluence of humidity and air temperatures are forecast to produce a heat index (or feeling) of around 110 F. Meteorologist Michael Ventrice called these forecasted conditions "dangerously hot." Indeed, heat waves kill more Americans than any other weather event.Although climate change doesn't produce weather -- like sprawling fronts of unusually warm air, hurricanes, or wildfire conditions -- it does make these events worse. Any heat wave today, for example, is sitting atop boosted global temperatures. These elevated temperatures are responsible for June 2019 being the warmest June in 139 years of record-keeping, and 18 of the 19 warmest years on record occurring since 2001.This added heat means more record hot weather becoming not just possible, but occurring more frequently. "A barely noticeable shift in the mean temperature from global warming can end up turning a 'once-per-decade' heatwave into a 'once-per-year heatwave' pretty easily," Patrick Brown, an assistant professor in the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science at San Jose State University, said over email. Shifting averages mean more heat.Image: Climate central / climatecentral.org> The likelihood of extreme heat, like what we are seeing in the US Midwest this week, increases nonlinearly with the warming of average temperatures (caused by increases in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations). pic.twitter.com/Q20frMvgVa> > -- Patrick T. Brown (@PatrickTBrown31) July 17, 2019"Heat waves are occurring more often than they used to in major cities across the United States, from an average of two heat waves per year during the 1960s to nearly six per year during the 2010s," noted the U.S. Global Change Research Program.SEE ALSO: Climate change will ruin train tracks and make travel hellBoosted temperatures translate to more heat records. In the last decade, for instance, twice as many daily high heat records have been set as daily low records in the U.S. > NYC has chance for hottest feels like temperature in the country on Saturday but DC and Philly will make a run at it also. pic.twitter.com/w6Hl31WhxK> > -- Bill Karins (@BillKarins) July 18, 2019The powerful driver of the increased frequency of extreme heat is clear. In the late 1850s, physicists like John Tyndall discovered that certain gases, like carbon dioxide, trap radiative heat on Earth -- meaning solar radiation reflected off the planet's surface and heat emitted from Earth itself. Today, atmospheric concentrations of the heat-trapping gas carbon dioxide are at their highest levels in at least 800,000 years, though likely millions of years. What's more, atmospheric CO2 levels are now increasing at rates that are unprecedented in both the historic and geologic record. "What's important to recognize is the changes humanity is driving at present are commensurate with the most significant events in the history of life on this planet," Matthew Long, an oceanographer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, told Mashable in March.  WATCH: Ever wonder how the universe might end?

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 1:29 PM

(Bloomberg) -- Ursula von der Leyen won’t be getting a bear hug from the Kremlin.Russia’s top diplomat was asked during a visit to Germany about the incoming president of the European Commission and her “strict” view of his country. His frosty response was that the decision by the European Union’s leaders and Parliament was one “we simply acknowledge.”“Show me anyone who isn’t critical of Russia nowadays,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters on Thursday at a conference in the city of Koenigswinter. “We are pragmatists, we want to focus on practical matters, not on public statements.”Von der Leyen takes over at the helm of the EU’s executive arm in November and Chancellor Angela Merkel’s defense minister staked out a hawkish stance on Russia. She’s led calls for a common European military strategy since Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and is a staunch backer of sanctions.“The Kremlin doesn’t forgive weakness,” von der Leyen told Die Welt in an interview Thursday. “From a position of strength we should stand by Russian sanctions.”Lavrov’s language was calculatingly neutral, saying President Vladimir Putin will react to EU policy rather than dwell on verbal volleys.“I hope that the new composition of the European Commission will conduct an inventory of relations with Russia, and when they express their position on the long-term development of relations with us, we will of course respond,” Lavrov said.\--With assistance from Henry Meyer and Tony Halpin.To contact the reporter on this story: Patrick Donahue in Koenigswinter, Germany at pdonahue1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Flavia Krause-Jackson, Richard BravoFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 2:03 PM

Former President Barack Obama surprised a group of students participating in the Obama Youth Jobs Corps in Chicago on Tuesday.

POSTED JULY 17, 2019 5:24 PM

A stunning example of a highly desirable American icon. If you have been in the market for an iconic American muscle car, then you’re in luck. GR Auto Gallery is pleased to announce this bold and beautiful 1972 Dodge Challenger up for sale. Dressed in a brilliant Rally Red paint job, the exterior shines at every angle and is in pristine condition. It’s nicely contrasted by the tidy black interior with wooden accents. Overall, this example is in immaculate condition and was taken care of with love. Everything from the door panels to the dashboard and floor mats are like-new and very clean.The heart and soul of this bad boy is a massive 440 cubic-inch V8 motor paired to a smooth-shifting 727 automatic transmission. This 1972 Dodge Challenger received a full restoration, which includes the powertrain. The odometer reading on the add is 808 miles.  Other features include front disc brakes, power steering and heat, all-new front suspension, and a 391 Sure Grip Posi rear end. The sale of this vehicle comes with a full folder of receipts for the restoration and general maintenance paperwork.The Challenger debuted in the fall of 1969 for the 1970 model year. The first-gen was positioned to compete against the Mercury Cougar and Pontiac Firebird in the higher end of the pony car segment. It was also a fairly late response to the Ford Mustang, which was introduced in April of 1964. Nevertheless, the American automaker intended for the Challenger to be the most potent pony car and produced a number of trim and option levels that included virtually every engine in Chrysler’s lineup.The 1972 Dodge Challenger received just a few minor changes. For one, the grille sloped down on either side and extended below the bumper, where the headlights were housed in their respective panels. The taillights were also located in two separate housings on each side of the rear valance. The Rally grille and rear tail panel were both blacked out. Shaker hoods were left behind and replaced by either a flat hood or twin dummy scoops. The bumpers were also chromed out instead of being body-colored. Although some options were changed, buyers could still add front and rear spoilers, rear window louvers, and power accessories like seats and door locks. Read More: Peel Out In This Banana Yellow 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T Set Of Rare 1971 Challengers Up For Grabs

POSTED JULY 18, 2019 12:46 PM

"There’s a crisis in Queens and it’s called AOC," said Scherie Murray, a Republican businesswoman who is challenging Ocasio-Cortez in 2020.

POSTED JULY 17, 2019 3:47 PM