Democrats say Trump impeachment charges must come swiftly

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats moved aggressively to draw up formal articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on Thursday, with Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying he “leaves us no choice” but to act swiftly because he's likely to corrupt the system again unless removed before next year's election.

A strictly partisan effort at this point, derided immediately by Trump and other leading Republicans as a sham and a hoax, it is a politically risky undertaking. Democrats say it is their duty, in the aftermath of the Ukraine probe, while Republicans say it will drive Pelosi’s majority from office.

Congress must act, Pelosi said. “The democracy is what is at stake."

“The president's actions have seriously violated the Constitution,” she said in a sombre address at the Capitol. “He is trying to corrupt, once again, the election for his own benefit. The president has engaged in abuse of power, undermining our national security and jeopardizing the integrity of our elections."

Trump has insisted he did nothing wrong. He tweeted that the Democrats “have gone crazy."

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House Speaker Pelosi rebukes reporter: 'Don't mess with me'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Finger pointing and voice hoarse, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday delivered a broadside to a reporter that might well apply to all of impeachment-era Washington: “Don't mess with me."

It was a warning scarcely needed among the official set, least of all by President Donald Trump as he fights Pelosi and the Democrats in their drive to impeach him. Only a few hours earlier, Pelosi had instructed the Judiciary Committee to write articles of impeachment — formal charges — against Trump for pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democrat Joe Biden and resisting Congress' probe.

The House speaker insisted she brought impeachment proceedings because Trump's conduct and the Constitution left the House no choice.

“The president's actions have seriously violated the Constitution,” Pelosi said from the speaker's office at the Capitol. “He is trying to corrupt, once again, the election for his own benefit. The president has engaged in abuse of power, undermining our national security and jeopardizing the integrity of our elections.”

But as the California Democrat began exiting a news conference two hours later, James Rosen, a reporter for Sinclair Broadcast Group, asked, “Do you hate the president, Madam Speaker?”

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Giuliani in Ukraine as Congress moves closer to impeachment

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani was in Ukraine on Thursday, reviving the efforts that landed him and Trump in the impeachment inquiry now roiling Washington.

The inquiry was triggered by a July 25 phone call in which Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden and his son and also a discredited conspiracy theory that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 U.S. election. Trump denies wrongdoing.

Giuliani was at the centre of those efforts, conducting shadow diplomacy throughout the spring and summer.

On Thursday, he met in Kyiv with Andrii Derkach, a member of Ukraine’s parliament who has promoted unsubstantiated claims against the Bidens.

Derkach posted photos on Facebook with Giuliani and said the two had had a meeting to form a new group, Friends of Ukraine Stop Corruption.

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Uber reports more than 3,000 sexual assaults on 2018 rides

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Uber, as part of a long anticipated safety report, revealed that more than 3,000 sexual assaults were reported during its U.S. rides in 2018.

That figure includes 229 rapes across the company's 1.3 billion rides. The ride-hailing company noted that drivers and riders were both attacked, and that some assaults occurred between riders.

The Thursday report, which the company hailed as the first of its kind, provides a rare look into the traffic deaths, murders and reported sexual assaults that took place during billions of annual rides arranged in the U.S. using Uber's service. It is part of the company's effort to be more transparent after years of criticism over its safety record.

In 2017, the company counted 2,936 reported sexual assaults during 1 billion U.S. trips. Uber bases its numbers on reports from riders and drivers, meaning the actual numbers could be much higher. Sexual assaults commonly go unreported.

“I suspect many people will be surprised at how rare these incidents are; others will understandably think they’re still too common,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi tweeted about the report. “Some people will appreciate how much we’ve done on safety; others will say we have more work to do. They will all be right.”

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Chase with stolen UPS truck ends with shootout, 4 dead

MIRAMAR, Fla. (AP) — Four people, including a UPS driver, were killed Thursday after robbers stole the driver’s truck and led police on a chase that ended in gunfire at a busy South Florida intersection during rush hour, the FBI said.

Both robbers were shot and killed, and the fourth victim was in a nearby vehicle when shots rang out at a crowded intersection in Miramar, about 20 miles (32 kilometres) north of where the incident began, FBI Special Agent in Charge George Piro said during a news conference Thursday night.

Television news helicopters showed first responders tending to at least one person who fell out of the UPS truck, moments after several shots were fired when the chase ended.

“It’s very early in the investigative process,” Piro said. “There are a lot of questions that are still unanswered.”

In Coral Gables, where the incident began, police said a jewelry store worker was also injured but did not say if she had been shot. There was no immediate update on her condition.

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Blind inmate executed in Tennessee for woman's 1991 killing

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A blind prisoner convicted of killing his estranged girlfriend by setting her on fire in her car was put to death Thursday in Tennessee's electric chair, becoming only the second inmate without sight to be executed in the U.S. since the reinstatement of the nation's death penalty in 1976.

Lee Hall, 53, was pronounced dead at 7:26 p.m. at a Nashville maximum-security prison, corrections officials said. He chose the electric chair over Tennessee's preferred execution method of lethal injection — an option allowed inmates in the state who were convicted of crimes before January 1999. He also became the first blind inmate in U.S. modern history to die by electrocution.

Hall was already strapped into the electric chair when the curtains were raised for the witnesses — which included family, attorneys and reporters.

As his head swiveled around the room not appearing to focus on anything, he was asked if he had any final words. Hall initially said he needed a glass of water before talking. He was denied and asked again to make a statement.

“People can learn forgiveness and love and will make this world a better place,” Hall said, wearing a white T-shirt and rolled-up white pants.

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R. Kelly charged with paying bribe before marrying Aaliyah

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors are accusing singer R. Kelly of scheming with others to pay for a fake ID for an unnamed female a day before he married R&B singer Aaliyah, then 15 years old, in a secret ceremony in 1994.

The revised indictment, filed Thursday in New York, accuses Kelly of paying a bribe in exchange for a “fraudulent identification document” for someone identified only as “Jane Doe” on Aug. 30, 1994.

A day later, Kelly, then 27, married Aaliyah in a secret ceremony he arranged at a hotel in Chicago. The marriage was annulled months later because of her age. Aaliyah died in a plane crash in 2001 at age 22.

The U.S. attorney's office declined to comment about whom the fake ID was meant for, and the indictment didn't mention the wedding, but a person familiar with the investigation confirmed the “Jane Doe" was Aaliyah. The person wasn't authorized to discuss details of the new charge and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The new charges mark the first time that Kelly's brief marriage to Aaliyah has been connected to any of the criminal cases against Kelly.

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Pearl Harbor commemoration to go on after fresh tragedy

HONOLULU (AP) — Officials will beef up security as usual for the ceremony to remember those lost in the attack on Pearl Harbor 78 years ago, with service members and dignitaries confronting a fresh tragedy after a U.S. sailor killed two civilians, wounded another and then turned the gun on himself at the storied military base.

The National Park Service, which is hosting the event with the Navy, would not give specifics on the heightened security measures, many of which aren’t readily apparent, Pearl Harbor National Memorial spokesman Jay Blount said.

The commemoration of the anniversary of the Japanese bombing that propelled the United States into World War II will go on as planned Saturday, he said. It's expected to draw survivors, veterans, dignitaries and the public to honour more than 2,300 Americans who perished on Dec. 7, 1941.

“We have not heard of anyone cancelling plans to attend the event due to security concerns and want the public to know that it will be a safe, fun and enjoyable day for everyone,” Blount said.

Across the harbour at the naval shipyard, a sailor on Wednesday shot three civilians working for the shipyard on the base, killing two, before taking his own life. The wounded victim was hospitalized in stable condition.

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US considers sending several thousand more troops to Mideast

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is considering sending several thousand additional troops to the Middle East to help deter Iranian aggression, amid reports of escalating violence in Iran and continued meddling by Tehran in Iraq, Syria and other parts of the region.

John Rood, defence undersecretary for policy, told senators Thursday that Defence Secretary Mark Esper “intends to make changes” to the number of troops deployed in the region. Other officials said options under consideration could send between 5,000 and 7,000 troops to the Middle East, but they all stressed that there have been no final decisions yet. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

The troop deliberations follow several decisions since spring to beef up the U.S. presence in the Middle East because of a series of maritime attacks and bombings in Saudi Arabia that the U.S. and others have blamed on Iran.

President Donald Trump has approved those increases, even though he also routinely insists that he is pulling U.S. troops out of the Middle East and withdrawing from what he calls “endless wars” against extremists. In October, Trump told his supporters that despite the sacrificing of U.S. lives in Iraq and other parts of the Middle East, the region is less safe and stable today. “The single greatest mistake our country made in its history,” he said, “was going into the quicksand of the Middle East.”

Asked about a possible troop increase, Trump told reporters Thursday: ”We'll announce whether we will or not. Certainly there might be a threat. And if there is a threat, it will be met very strongly. But we will be announcing what we may be doing — may or may not be doing.”

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Micthell Trubisky helps Bears beat Cowboys 31-24

CHICAGO (AP) — Mitchell Trubisky threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score in the Chicago Bears' 31-24 victory over Dak Prescott and the slumping Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night.

In a matchup between disappointing teams that made the playoffs last season, the Bears (7-6) came away with their fourth win in five games. The Cowboys (6-7) have lost seven of 10 since a 3-0 start.

Trubisky shook off an early interception near the goal line to complete 23 of 31 passes for 244 yards. He matched a season high for touchdown passes and scored on a 23-yard run early in the fourth quarter, making it 31-14.

Allen Robinson caught two TD passes, and Anthony Miller hadone as Chicago tied a season scoring high. Khalil Mack had a sack. Linebacker Roquan Smith left the game with a pectoral injury on the opening drive. But the Bears took out the NFC East leaders after beating the struggling Detroit Lions twice and New York Giants in recent weeks.

Facing a top 10 defence for the third week in a row, the Cowboys once again couldn't get their high-powered offence going.

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