Putin fires back at Biden’s ‘killer’ remark
MOSCOW — U.S.-Russia ties nosedived on Thursday after Russian leader Vladimir Putin shot back at President Joe Biden’s description of him as a killer.
The back and forth underscored Biden’s desire to distance himself from former President Donald Trump’s perceived softness on Putin despite actions his administration took against Russia. Although Biden agreed to extend a major arms control deal with Russia, he has been notably cool toward Moscow and highly critical of many of its activities.
In taking a tough stance on Russia, Biden has said the days of the U.S. “rolling over” to Putin are done. And he has taken pains to contrast his style with the approach of Trump, who avoided direct confrontation and frequently spoke about Putin with approval.
In an interview broadcast Wednesday, Biden replied “I do” when asked if he thought Putin was a “killer.” Also Wednesday, U.S. intelligence released a report finding that Putin authorized influence operations to help Trump’s re-election bid.
Later that day, Putin recalled his ambassador to the U.S. and on Thursday he pointed at the U.S. history of slavery and slaughtering Native Americans and the atomic bombing of Japan in World War II.
MINNEAPOLIS — Attorneys at the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s death nearly finished jury selection on Thursday by choosing three more panelists, hours after clashing over how much they should hear of Floyd’s own actions.
A total of 12 jurors have now been selected, leaving just two alternates yet to be chosen. So far, the racial makeup of the jury is evenly split; six of the jurors are white, four are Black, and two are multiracial, according to the court.
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday confirmed California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as President Joe Biden’s health secretary, filling a key position in the administration’s coronavirus response and its ambitious push to lower drug costs, expand insurance coverage, and eliminate racial disparities in medical care.
The 50-49 largely party-line vote makes the 63-year-old Becerra the first Latino to head the Department of Health and Human Services. The $1.4 trillion agency encompasses health insurance programs, drug safety and approvals, advanced medical research, substance abuse treatment, and the welfare of children, including hundreds of Central American migrants arriving daily at the U.S.-Mexico border.
A federal judge in Philadelphia will decide if there’s enough evidence to rule in favor of survivors of a 1990 massacre during Liberia’s civil wars or whether a trial should take place.
A filing this week by four people who lived through a military assault on people sheltering in a Lutheran church in the capital of Monrovia in which about 600 people were killed argues that there’s enough evidence to decide the case.
The lawsuit states that members of the Armed Forces of Liberia shot and hacked to death unarmed civilians at a Red Cross shelter on the grounds of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, and seeks damages from the alleged military commander at the scene, Moses W. Thomas.
Thomas had lived in the Philadelphia area after the war, working in a restaurant, but is now believed to be in Liberia, said Nushin Sarkarati with the Center for Justice and Accountability in San Francisco, a lawyer for the plaintiffs.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama could become the next conservative state to prevent transgender girls from playing on female sports teams as the state House of Representatives on Thursday approved the legislation.
Representatives voted 74-19 for the bill that will require K-12 athletes to play on teams based on the biological sex listed on their birth certificates. The approval came after Republicans voted to end a filibuster. The bill now moves to the Alabama Senate.
More than a dozen states are considering restrictions on transgender athletes or gender-confirming health care for transgender minors. Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves last week signed a bill to ban transgender athletes from competing on girls or women’s sports teams. However, South Carolina lawmakers this week rejected a similar bill.
SEOUL, South Korea — America’s top diplomat on Thursday pressed China to use its “tremendous influence” to convince North Korea to abandon its nuclear program, hours after the North said it will ignore U.S. offers to resume negotiations.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke at the end of security talks in Seoul, which included Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and South Korea’s foreign and defense ministers. Their first so-called “two plus two” meeting in five years came as President Joe Biden pushes to restore America’s alliances in Asia in the face of challenges from China and North Korea.
MANDALAY, Myanmar — A Myanmar construction magnate with links to military rulers said he personally gave more than half a million dollars in cash to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi in a broadcast on state television aimed at discrediting the ousted civilian government.
The statement by Maung Waik could pave the way for more serious charges against Suu Kyi, who has been detained since the Feb. 1 military takeover.