China has loaned Uganda hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to build new roads. However, some Ugandans question the benefit of these projects. Most of the construction is performed by Chinese companies, and it is the Ugandan taxpayer who ultimately bears the burden of paying off the loans. Halima Athumani has more on the story from Kampala
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Month: July 2018
China’s Uganda Road Construction Building Debt, Dependence
China has loaned Uganda hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to build new roads. However, some Ugandans question the benefit of these projects. Most of the construction is performed by Chinese companies, and it is the Ugandan taxpayer who ultimately bears the burden of paying off the loans. Halima Athumani has more on the story from Kampala
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Sistine Chapel Choir Delivers Message of Peace, Unity Worldwide
Those who have been lucky enough to enjoy the Gregorian chants and complex Renaissance melodies of the pope’s choir say it’s like hearing the angels sing. The choir sings at all the main papal events and travels around the globe to perform. Officials say the choir delivers a message of peace to people of all faiths. VOA’s Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome.
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Sistine Chapel Choir Delivers Message of Peace, Unity Worldwide
Those who have been lucky enough to enjoy the Gregorian chants and complex Renaissance melodies of the pope’s choir say it’s like hearing the angels sing. The choir sings at all the main papal events and travels around the globe to perform. Officials say the choir delivers a message of peace to people of all faiths. VOA’s Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome.
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Unchecked Northern California Fire Claims Sixth Life
The wildfire burning almost unchecked in Northern California has claimed it’s sixth victim.
At a news conference Sunday, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said the victim, who was not identified, didn’t evacuate despite receiving an evacuation warning. Other victims included two children and two firefighters.
He said seven others are still missing in the Carr Fire near Redding, a city of 90,000 about 370 kilometers northeast of San Francisco.
The National Weather Service has predicted continued hot and dry conditions, with wind gusts expected late Sunday afternoon.
“Right now, it’s going everywhere. We still have a lot of open line,” said Anthony Romero, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The fire has already forced tens of thousands to flee from their homes.
Local officials estimate at least 517 structures have been destroyed and another 135 damaged — a majority of them were homes.
Keswick, a mountain town of about 450 people, was almost burned to the ground, officials said.
The Carr Fire is the largest fire burning in the state Sunday, threatening more than 5,000 structures. The fire is just 5 percent contained.
Wildfires across California have forced more than 50,000 people from their homes, said Lynne Tolmachoff, a Cal Fire spokeswoman. About 12,000 firefighters are battling 17 significant fires, she said Sunday.
“We are well ahead of the fire activity we saw last year,” Tolmachoff said. “This is just July, so we’re not even into the worst part of fire season.”
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Unchecked Northern California Fire Claims Sixth Life
The wildfire burning almost unchecked in Northern California has claimed it’s sixth victim.
At a news conference Sunday, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said the victim, who was not identified, didn’t evacuate despite receiving an evacuation warning. Other victims included two children and two firefighters.
He said seven others are still missing in the Carr Fire near Redding, a city of 90,000 about 370 kilometers northeast of San Francisco.
The National Weather Service has predicted continued hot and dry conditions, with wind gusts expected late Sunday afternoon.
“Right now, it’s going everywhere. We still have a lot of open line,” said Anthony Romero, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The fire has already forced tens of thousands to flee from their homes.
Local officials estimate at least 517 structures have been destroyed and another 135 damaged — a majority of them were homes.
Keswick, a mountain town of about 450 people, was almost burned to the ground, officials said.
The Carr Fire is the largest fire burning in the state Sunday, threatening more than 5,000 structures. The fire is just 5 percent contained.
Wildfires across California have forced more than 50,000 people from their homes, said Lynne Tolmachoff, a Cal Fire spokeswoman. About 12,000 firefighters are battling 17 significant fires, she said Sunday.
“We are well ahead of the fire activity we saw last year,” Tolmachoff said. “This is just July, so we’re not even into the worst part of fire season.”
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Death Toll in Greek Fires Rises to 91, 25 Missing
Greece began over the weekend to begin burying the victims of the deadly wildfire that raged through crowded resort areas east of Athens last week.
Fire officials raised the death toll to 91 and said 25 people remained missing on Sunday, after last Monday’s fire raced through the area.
Hundreds attended a memorial service Sunday in Mati, a popular resort village hardest hit by the fire.
The local Orthodox Church official, Bishop Kyrillos, presided over the service.
“There’s fewer of us now than usually,” Kyrillos said. “It is the victims of the recent fire that are missing — friends, relatives and acquaintances, next-door people that we saw every day in town and on the beach.”
Fire officials said most of the victims died in the fire, but some drowned in the sea while trying to flee the blaze.
Greek authorities said the fire was the result of arson. It spread quickly because of dry conditions and winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour.
A database maintained by the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters in Brussels shows this was the deadliest wildfire in Europe since 1900.
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Death Toll in Greek Fires Rises to 91, 25 Missing
Greece began over the weekend to begin burying the victims of the deadly wildfire that raged through crowded resort areas east of Athens last week.
Fire officials raised the death toll to 91 and said 25 people remained missing on Sunday, after last Monday’s fire raced through the area.
Hundreds attended a memorial service Sunday in Mati, a popular resort village hardest hit by the fire.
The local Orthodox Church official, Bishop Kyrillos, presided over the service.
“There’s fewer of us now than usually,” Kyrillos said. “It is the victims of the recent fire that are missing — friends, relatives and acquaintances, next-door people that we saw every day in town and on the beach.”
Fire officials said most of the victims died in the fire, but some drowned in the sea while trying to flee the blaze.
Greek authorities said the fire was the result of arson. It spread quickly because of dry conditions and winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour.
A database maintained by the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters in Brussels shows this was the deadliest wildfire in Europe since 1900.
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Josip Peruzovic, Wrestler Who Played Villain Volkoff, Dies
Josip Peruzovic, the former pro wrestler known for playing beloved villain Nikolai Volkoff, has died. He was 70.
His wife Lynn Peruzovic confirmed his death Sunday. She says he has had heart problems, and that when she went to give him medicine he was not responsive.
World Wrestling Entertainment says Peruzovic was “one of the greatest villains sports-entertainment had ever seen.” He was known for singing the onetime Soviet Union’s national anthem before matches and for his tag team alliance with another wrestler known as The Iron Sheik.
WWE says his career spanned the better part of 40 years and featured showdowns with wrestlers such as Hulk Hogan.
In 2006, Peruzovic made an unsuccessful run for a House seat in the Maryland General Assembly.
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Josip Peruzovic, Wrestler Who Played Villain Volkoff, Dies
Josip Peruzovic, the former pro wrestler known for playing beloved villain Nikolai Volkoff, has died. He was 70.
His wife Lynn Peruzovic confirmed his death Sunday. She says he has had heart problems, and that when she went to give him medicine he was not responsive.
World Wrestling Entertainment says Peruzovic was “one of the greatest villains sports-entertainment had ever seen.” He was known for singing the onetime Soviet Union’s national anthem before matches and for his tag team alliance with another wrestler known as The Iron Sheik.
WWE says his career spanned the better part of 40 years and featured showdowns with wrestlers such as Hulk Hogan.
In 2006, Peruzovic made an unsuccessful run for a House seat in the Maryland General Assembly.
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Manafort Trial to Focus on Lavish Lifestyle, Not Collusion
The trial of President Donald Trump’s onetime campaign chairman will open this week with tales of lavish spending, secret shell companies and millions of dollars of Ukrainian money flowing through offshore bank accounts and into the political consultant’s pocket.
What’s likely to be missing: answers about whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Kremlin during the 2016 presidential election, or really any mention of Russia at all.
Paul Manafort’s financial crimes trial, the first arising from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, will center on his Ukrainian consulting work and only briefly touch on his involvement with the president’s campaign.
But the broader implications are unmistakable.
The trial, scheduled to begin Tuesday with jury selection in Alexandria, Virginia, will give the public its most detailed glimpse of evidence Mueller’s team has spent the year accumulating. It will feature testimony about the business dealings and foreign ties of a defendant Trump entrusted to run his campaign during a critical stretch in 2016, including during the Republican convention. And it will unfold at a delicate time for the president as Mueller’s team presses for an interview and as Trump escalates his attacks on an investigation he calls a “witch hunt.”
Adding to the intrigue is the expected spectacle of Manafort’s deputy, Rick Gates, testifying against him after cutting a plea deal with prosecutors, and the speculation that Manafort, who faces charges in two different courts and decades in prison if convicted, may be holding out for a pardon from Trump.
“Perhaps he believes that he’s done nothing wrong, and because he’s done nothing wrong, he’s unwilling to plead guilty to any crime whatsoever — even if it’s a lesser crime,” said Jimmy Gurule, a Notre Dame law professor and former federal prosecutor. “Obviously, that’s very risky for him.”
Manafort was indicted along with Gates in Mueller’s wide-ranging investigation, but he is the only American charged to opt for a trial instead of cooperating with the government. The remaining 31 individuals charged have either reached plea agreements, including ex-White House national security adviser Michael Flynn, or are Russians seen as unlikely to enter an American courtroom. Three Russian companies have also been charged.
Prosecutors in Manafort’s case have said they may call 35 witnesses, including five who have immunity agreements, as they try to prove that he laundered more than $30 million in Ukrainian political consulting proceeds and concealed the funds from the IRS.
Jurors are expected to see photographs of his Mercedes-Benz and of his Hampton property putting green and swimming pool. There’s likely to be testimony, too, about tailored Beverly Hills clothing, high-end antiques, rugs and art and New York Yankees seasons tickets.
The luxurious lifestyle was funded by Manafort’s political consulting for the pro-Russian Ukrainian political party of Viktor Yanukovych, who was deposed as Ukraine’s president in 2014.
Lawyers have tangled over how much jurors will hear of his overseas political work, particularly about his ties to Russia and other wealthy political figures.
At a recent hearing, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, who will preside over the trial, warned prosecutors to restrain themselves, noting the current “antipathy” toward Russia and how “most people in this country don’t distinguish between Ukrainians and Russians.” He said he would not tolerate any pictures of Manafort and others “at a cocktail party with scantily clad women,” if they exist.
Prosecutor Greg Andres reassured the judge that “there will be no pictures of scantily clad women, period,” nor photographs of Russian flags.
“I don’t anticipate that a government witness will utter the word `Russia,”‘ Andres said.
While jurors will be hearing painstaking detail about Manafort’s finances, they won’t be told about Manafort’s other criminal case, in the nation’s capital, where he faces charges of acting as an unregistered foreign agent and lying to the government.
Nor will they hear about the reason he’s been jailed since last month after a judge revoked his house arrest over allegations that he and a longtime associate attempted to tamper with witnesses in the case. And they won’t learn that Manafort’s co-defendant in the Washington case is a business associate named Konstantin Kilimnik, who lives in Russia and who U.S. authorities assert has connections to Russian intelligence.
Trump and his lawyers have repeatedly sought to play down Manafort’s connection to the president, yet the trial won’t be entirely without references to the campaign.
Mueller’s team says Manafort’s position in the Trump campaign is relevant to some of the bank fraud charges. Prosecutors plan to present evidence that a chairman of one of the banks allowed Manafort to file inaccurate loan information in exchange for a job on the campaign and the promise of a job in the Trump administration. The administration job never materialized.
The trial will afford the public its first glimpse of a defense that so far has focused less on the substance of the allegations than on Mueller’s authority to bring the case in the first place. At one point, his defense lawyers sued Mueller and the Justice Department, saying they had overstepped their bounds by bringing a prosecution untethered to the core questions of Mueller’s investigation — whether Russia worked with the Trump campaign to tip the election.
Ellis rejected that argument despite having initially questioned the special counsel’s motives for bringing the case. He noted that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller, had explicitly authorized Mueller to investigate Manafort’s business dealings. Mueller’s original mandate was to investigate not only potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, but also any other crimes arising from the probe.
“When a prosecutor looks into those dealings and uncovers evidence of criminal culpability,” said Stanford law professor David Alan Sklansky, “it doesn’t make sense to ask him to avert his eyes.”
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Manafort Trial to Focus on Lavish Lifestyle, Not Collusion
The trial of President Donald Trump’s onetime campaign chairman will open this week with tales of lavish spending, secret shell companies and millions of dollars of Ukrainian money flowing through offshore bank accounts and into the political consultant’s pocket.
What’s likely to be missing: answers about whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Kremlin during the 2016 presidential election, or really any mention of Russia at all.
Paul Manafort’s financial crimes trial, the first arising from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, will center on his Ukrainian consulting work and only briefly touch on his involvement with the president’s campaign.
But the broader implications are unmistakable.
The trial, scheduled to begin Tuesday with jury selection in Alexandria, Virginia, will give the public its most detailed glimpse of evidence Mueller’s team has spent the year accumulating. It will feature testimony about the business dealings and foreign ties of a defendant Trump entrusted to run his campaign during a critical stretch in 2016, including during the Republican convention. And it will unfold at a delicate time for the president as Mueller’s team presses for an interview and as Trump escalates his attacks on an investigation he calls a “witch hunt.”
Adding to the intrigue is the expected spectacle of Manafort’s deputy, Rick Gates, testifying against him after cutting a plea deal with prosecutors, and the speculation that Manafort, who faces charges in two different courts and decades in prison if convicted, may be holding out for a pardon from Trump.
“Perhaps he believes that he’s done nothing wrong, and because he’s done nothing wrong, he’s unwilling to plead guilty to any crime whatsoever — even if it’s a lesser crime,” said Jimmy Gurule, a Notre Dame law professor and former federal prosecutor. “Obviously, that’s very risky for him.”
Manafort was indicted along with Gates in Mueller’s wide-ranging investigation, but he is the only American charged to opt for a trial instead of cooperating with the government. The remaining 31 individuals charged have either reached plea agreements, including ex-White House national security adviser Michael Flynn, or are Russians seen as unlikely to enter an American courtroom. Three Russian companies have also been charged.
Prosecutors in Manafort’s case have said they may call 35 witnesses, including five who have immunity agreements, as they try to prove that he laundered more than $30 million in Ukrainian political consulting proceeds and concealed the funds from the IRS.
Jurors are expected to see photographs of his Mercedes-Benz and of his Hampton property putting green and swimming pool. There’s likely to be testimony, too, about tailored Beverly Hills clothing, high-end antiques, rugs and art and New York Yankees seasons tickets.
The luxurious lifestyle was funded by Manafort’s political consulting for the pro-Russian Ukrainian political party of Viktor Yanukovych, who was deposed as Ukraine’s president in 2014.
Lawyers have tangled over how much jurors will hear of his overseas political work, particularly about his ties to Russia and other wealthy political figures.
At a recent hearing, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, who will preside over the trial, warned prosecutors to restrain themselves, noting the current “antipathy” toward Russia and how “most people in this country don’t distinguish between Ukrainians and Russians.” He said he would not tolerate any pictures of Manafort and others “at a cocktail party with scantily clad women,” if they exist.
Prosecutor Greg Andres reassured the judge that “there will be no pictures of scantily clad women, period,” nor photographs of Russian flags.
“I don’t anticipate that a government witness will utter the word `Russia,”‘ Andres said.
While jurors will be hearing painstaking detail about Manafort’s finances, they won’t be told about Manafort’s other criminal case, in the nation’s capital, where he faces charges of acting as an unregistered foreign agent and lying to the government.
Nor will they hear about the reason he’s been jailed since last month after a judge revoked his house arrest over allegations that he and a longtime associate attempted to tamper with witnesses in the case. And they won’t learn that Manafort’s co-defendant in the Washington case is a business associate named Konstantin Kilimnik, who lives in Russia and who U.S. authorities assert has connections to Russian intelligence.
Trump and his lawyers have repeatedly sought to play down Manafort’s connection to the president, yet the trial won’t be entirely without references to the campaign.
Mueller’s team says Manafort’s position in the Trump campaign is relevant to some of the bank fraud charges. Prosecutors plan to present evidence that a chairman of one of the banks allowed Manafort to file inaccurate loan information in exchange for a job on the campaign and the promise of a job in the Trump administration. The administration job never materialized.
The trial will afford the public its first glimpse of a defense that so far has focused less on the substance of the allegations than on Mueller’s authority to bring the case in the first place. At one point, his defense lawyers sued Mueller and the Justice Department, saying they had overstepped their bounds by bringing a prosecution untethered to the core questions of Mueller’s investigation — whether Russia worked with the Trump campaign to tip the election.
Ellis rejected that argument despite having initially questioned the special counsel’s motives for bringing the case. He noted that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller, had explicitly authorized Mueller to investigate Manafort’s business dealings. Mueller’s original mandate was to investigate not only potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, but also any other crimes arising from the probe.
“When a prosecutor looks into those dealings and uncovers evidence of criminal culpability,” said Stanford law professor David Alan Sklansky, “it doesn’t make sense to ask him to avert his eyes.”
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Witnesses: Heavy Fighting Near Yemen’s Hodeida Kills Dozens
Heavy fighting along Yemen’s west coast between pro-government forces and Shiite rebels in recent days has left dozens dead from both sides, Yemeni officials and witnesses said Sunday.
Government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, have been advancing in the area in recent weeks as they battle Iran-allied rebels known as Houthis. The fighting has escalated as government forces try to retake the port city of Hodeida, the main entry point for food in a country teetering on the brink of famine.
The government has been waging an offensive to seize the rebel-held district of Zabid south of Hodeida, the officials said. The offensive is being waged by ground troops carrying sophisticated weapons, including shoulder-fired missiles, with air cover from the Saudi-led coalition, they said.
The fighting to capture Zabid, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, killed dozens from both sides of Yemen’s conflict, now in its fourth year.
The coalition on Sunday targeted rebels in the district of ad-Durayhimi south of Hodeida with airstrikes, killing at least 18 people, the officials said. The rebels, known as the Houthis, were trying to break into ad-Durayhimi, about 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) south of Hodeida International Airport, they said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, while the witnesses did so for fear of reprisals.
United Nations Human Coordinator for Yemen Lise Grande said airstrikes hit and damaged a sanitation facility in Zabid and a water station that supplies the majority of the water to the city of Hodeida.
“These airstrikes are putting innocent civilians at extreme risk,” she said. “Damage to sanitation, water and health facilities jeopardizes everything we are trying to do. We could be one airstrike away from an unstoppable epidemic.”
Also on Sunday, the coalition said it destroyed missile launch sites in the rebels’ northern home base of Saada province, according to a statement carried by the Saudi state-run al-Ekhbariya TV channel.
The Saudi-led coalition launched the campaign to retake Hodeida in June, with Emirati troops leading the force of government soldiers and irregular militia fighters backing Yemen’s exiled government. Saudi Arabia has provided air support, with targeting guidance and refueling from the United States.
Hodeida, home to 600,000 people, is some 150 kilometers (90 miles) southwest of the capital Sanaa. The campaign to take Hodeida threatens to worsen Yemen’s humanitarian situation as it is the main entry point for food, humanitarian aid and fuel supplies to the country.
Aid groups fear a protracted fight could force a shutdown of the port and potentially tip millions into starvation. Some 70 percent of Yemen’s food enters via the port, as well as the bulk of humanitarian aid and fuel supplies. Around two-thirds of the country’s population of 27 million relies on aid and 8.4 million are at risk of starving.
The Houthis seized control of Sanaa in September 2014, and later pushed south toward the port city of Aden. The Saudi-led coalition entered the conflict in March 2015 and has faced criticism for a campaign of airstrikes that has killed civilians and destroyed hospitals and markets.
The Houthis, meanwhile, have laid land mines, killing and wounding civilians. They have also targeted religious minorities and imprisoned opponents. The stalemate war has killed more than 10,000 people.
Impoverished Yemen has been devastated by the stalemated three-year civil war that has left around two-thirds of Yemen’s population of 27 million relying on aid, and over 8 million at risk of starving.
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Witnesses: Heavy Fighting Near Yemen’s Hodeida Kills Dozens
Heavy fighting along Yemen’s west coast between pro-government forces and Shiite rebels in recent days has left dozens dead from both sides, Yemeni officials and witnesses said Sunday.
Government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, have been advancing in the area in recent weeks as they battle Iran-allied rebels known as Houthis. The fighting has escalated as government forces try to retake the port city of Hodeida, the main entry point for food in a country teetering on the brink of famine.
The government has been waging an offensive to seize the rebel-held district of Zabid south of Hodeida, the officials said. The offensive is being waged by ground troops carrying sophisticated weapons, including shoulder-fired missiles, with air cover from the Saudi-led coalition, they said.
The fighting to capture Zabid, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, killed dozens from both sides of Yemen’s conflict, now in its fourth year.
The coalition on Sunday targeted rebels in the district of ad-Durayhimi south of Hodeida with airstrikes, killing at least 18 people, the officials said. The rebels, known as the Houthis, were trying to break into ad-Durayhimi, about 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) south of Hodeida International Airport, they said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, while the witnesses did so for fear of reprisals.
United Nations Human Coordinator for Yemen Lise Grande said airstrikes hit and damaged a sanitation facility in Zabid and a water station that supplies the majority of the water to the city of Hodeida.
“These airstrikes are putting innocent civilians at extreme risk,” she said. “Damage to sanitation, water and health facilities jeopardizes everything we are trying to do. We could be one airstrike away from an unstoppable epidemic.”
Also on Sunday, the coalition said it destroyed missile launch sites in the rebels’ northern home base of Saada province, according to a statement carried by the Saudi state-run al-Ekhbariya TV channel.
The Saudi-led coalition launched the campaign to retake Hodeida in June, with Emirati troops leading the force of government soldiers and irregular militia fighters backing Yemen’s exiled government. Saudi Arabia has provided air support, with targeting guidance and refueling from the United States.
Hodeida, home to 600,000 people, is some 150 kilometers (90 miles) southwest of the capital Sanaa. The campaign to take Hodeida threatens to worsen Yemen’s humanitarian situation as it is the main entry point for food, humanitarian aid and fuel supplies to the country.
Aid groups fear a protracted fight could force a shutdown of the port and potentially tip millions into starvation. Some 70 percent of Yemen’s food enters via the port, as well as the bulk of humanitarian aid and fuel supplies. Around two-thirds of the country’s population of 27 million relies on aid and 8.4 million are at risk of starving.
The Houthis seized control of Sanaa in September 2014, and later pushed south toward the port city of Aden. The Saudi-led coalition entered the conflict in March 2015 and has faced criticism for a campaign of airstrikes that has killed civilians and destroyed hospitals and markets.
The Houthis, meanwhile, have laid land mines, killing and wounding civilians. They have also targeted religious minorities and imprisoned opponents. The stalemate war has killed more than 10,000 people.
Impoverished Yemen has been devastated by the stalemated three-year civil war that has left around two-thirds of Yemen’s population of 27 million relying on aid, and over 8 million at risk of starving.
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NASA Marks 60 Years Since Legal Inception
America’s dream of space exploration took its first official step 60 years ago Sunday when President Dwight Eisenhower signed a law authorizing the formation of NASA – the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Although humanity had been staring at the stars and wondering since they were living in caves, it took the Cold War to fire man into space.
The world was stunned when the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, launched Sputnik — the first man-made object to orbit the Earth.
The United States was humiliated at being caught short — not just technologically, but militarily.
Eisenhower ordered government scientists to not only match the Soviets in space, but beat them.
NASA and its various projects — Mercury, Gemini and Apollo — became part of the language.
Just 11 years after Eisenhower authorized NASA, American astronaut Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. Six year later, an Apollo spacecraft linked with a Soviet Soyuz in orbit, turning rivalry into friendship and cooperation.
NASA followed that triumph with the space shuttle, Mars landers and contributions to the International Space Station. A manned mission to Mars is part of NASA’s future plans.
Last month, President Donald Trump called for the formation of a “space force” to be the sixth U.S. military branch.
NASA officially celebrates its 60th anniversary on October 1 – the day the agency formally opened for business.
your ad hereNASA Marks 60 Years Since Legal Inception
America’s dream of space exploration took its first official step 60 years ago Sunday when President Dwight Eisenhower signed a law authorizing the formation of NASA – the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Although humanity had been staring at the stars and wondering since they were living in caves, it took the Cold War to fire man into space.
The world was stunned when the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, launched Sputnik — the first man-made object to orbit the Earth.
The United States was humiliated at being caught short — not just technologically, but militarily.
Eisenhower ordered government scientists to not only match the Soviets in space, but beat them.
NASA and its various projects — Mercury, Gemini and Apollo — became part of the language.
Just 11 years after Eisenhower authorized NASA, American astronaut Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. Six year later, an Apollo spacecraft linked with a Soviet Soyuz in orbit, turning rivalry into friendship and cooperation.
NASA followed that triumph with the space shuttle, Mars landers and contributions to the International Space Station. A manned mission to Mars is part of NASA’s future plans.
Last month, President Donald Trump called for the formation of a “space force” to be the sixth U.S. military branch.
NASA officially celebrates its 60th anniversary on October 1 – the day the agency formally opened for business.
your ad hereViolence, Rocket Attacks, Threats Mar Mali Presidential Election
Officials in Mali are counting the votes from Sunday’s presidential election, marred by violence, rocket attacks, threats and suspected fake polling places.
President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is seeking a second term. Twenty-four other candidates are challenging him.
Voter turnout was reported to be light across much of Mali, including the capital, Bamako. Only about half the voters in two regions received voter cards, meaning more than 800,000 people may have been unable to cast ballots.
Voting was briefly suspended in a northern village after militants fired rockets at a nearby United Nations mission camp. No one was injured.
In several other villages, election officials were beaten up, ballot boxes burned and armed groups stopped election supervisors from entering polling stations.
Some candidates and European election monitors also reported fake voting stations were set up in several spots and took steps to warn voters against them.
The international community is hoping for an overall successful presidential election in Mali. A positive outcome would help solidify a peace agreement between the government, pro-government forces and former Tuareg rebels in combating Islamic extremists in the largely lawless north.
Initial results of Sunday’s vote are expected later this week with a final result coming by Friday.
If no one wins more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff is scheduled for August 12.
Bram Posthumus in contributed to this report from Bamako.
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Violence, Rocket Attacks, Threats Mar Mali Presidential Election
Officials in Mali are counting the votes from Sunday’s presidential election, marred by violence, rocket attacks, threats and suspected fake polling places.
President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is seeking a second term. Twenty-four other candidates are challenging him.
Voter turnout was reported to be light across much of Mali, including the capital, Bamako. Only about half the voters in two regions received voter cards, meaning more than 800,000 people may have been unable to cast ballots.
Voting was briefly suspended in a northern village after militants fired rockets at a nearby United Nations mission camp. No one was injured.
In several other villages, election officials were beaten up, ballot boxes burned and armed groups stopped election supervisors from entering polling stations.
Some candidates and European election monitors also reported fake voting stations were set up in several spots and took steps to warn voters against them.
The international community is hoping for an overall successful presidential election in Mali. A positive outcome would help solidify a peace agreement between the government, pro-government forces and former Tuareg rebels in combating Islamic extremists in the largely lawless north.
Initial results of Sunday’s vote are expected later this week with a final result coming by Friday.
If no one wins more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff is scheduled for August 12.
Bram Posthumus in contributed to this report from Bamako.
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White House Economic Adviser Sees Sustainable US Growth
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Sunday he believes the 4.1 percent growth the U.S. recorded in the last three months is sustainable in the coming months despite skepticism expressed by independent economists.
“There’s just a lot of good things going on,” Kudlow told CNN. He said President Donald Trump “deserves a victory lap,” with “low tax rates, rolling back regulations, opening up energy, for example. Trade reform I think is already paying off. The fundamentals of the economy look really good.”
He said “business investment spending is really booming. That’s a productivity creator. That’s a job creator. That’s a wage creator for ordinary mainstream folks, terribly important.”
Kudlow said the five calendar quarters occurring fully during Trump’s 18-month presidency have now been recorded with average economic growth of 2.9 percent for the world’s largest economy.
“I don’t see why we can’t run this for several quarters,” Kudlow said.
As the 4.1 percent growth rate for the April-to-June period was announced Friday, Trump boasted that the U.S. was on track to hit its highest annual growth rate in its gross domestic product in 13 years and predicted that as the country reaches new trade deals with other countries, the U.S. would exceed its second quarter advance.
“These numbers are very, very sustainable,” he said. “This isn’t a one-time shot.”
On Sunday, Trump said on Twitter, “The biggest and best results coming out of the good GDP report was that the quarterly Trade Deficit has been reduced by $52 Billion and, of course, the historically low unemployment numbers, especially for African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and Women.”
Skeptics less upbeat
Some independent economists, however, voiced skepticism that the $18.6 trillion annual U.S. economy would continue to advance at the same pace as the last three months.
Some forecasters said the gains in recent months were mostly, although not totally, the result of temporary factors, such as the initial boost from tax cuts Trump supported that took effect earlier this year. Most analysts say that for all of 2018 the U.S. could reach 3 percent growth, which would be the best since a 3.5 percent gain in 2005, but not again hit the annual 4.1 percent growth rate recorded last quarter.
“We believe quarter two will represent a growth peak as the boost from tax cuts fades, global growth moderates, inflation rises, the Fed tightens monetary policy and trade protectionism looms over the economy,” said Gregory Daco, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics.
Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said, “The second quarter was a strong quarter, but it was juiced up by the tax cuts and higher government spending.”
In the U.S., consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, with Ian Shepherdson, the chief economist of Pantheon Macroeconomics, saying that such spending accounted for the robust second quarter.
“Consumers were really on a tear,” he said. “So to grow at 4 [percent] probably tells you people were spending the tax cuts that they enjoyed back in January, but that’s extremely unlikely to happen again.”
your ad hereWhite House Economic Adviser Sees Sustainable US Growth
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Sunday he believes the 4.1 percent growth the U.S. recorded in the last three months is sustainable in the coming months despite skepticism expressed by independent economists.
“There’s just a lot of good things going on,” Kudlow told CNN. He said President Donald Trump “deserves a victory lap,” with “low tax rates, rolling back regulations, opening up energy, for example. Trade reform I think is already paying off. The fundamentals of the economy look really good.”
He said “business investment spending is really booming. That’s a productivity creator. That’s a job creator. That’s a wage creator for ordinary mainstream folks, terribly important.”
Kudlow said the five calendar quarters occurring fully during Trump’s 18-month presidency have now been recorded with average economic growth of 2.9 percent for the world’s largest economy.
“I don’t see why we can’t run this for several quarters,” Kudlow said.
As the 4.1 percent growth rate for the April-to-June period was announced Friday, Trump boasted that the U.S. was on track to hit its highest annual growth rate in its gross domestic product in 13 years and predicted that as the country reaches new trade deals with other countries, the U.S. would exceed its second quarter advance.
“These numbers are very, very sustainable,” he said. “This isn’t a one-time shot.”
On Sunday, Trump said on Twitter, “The biggest and best results coming out of the good GDP report was that the quarterly Trade Deficit has been reduced by $52 Billion and, of course, the historically low unemployment numbers, especially for African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and Women.”
Skeptics less upbeat
Some independent economists, however, voiced skepticism that the $18.6 trillion annual U.S. economy would continue to advance at the same pace as the last three months.
Some forecasters said the gains in recent months were mostly, although not totally, the result of temporary factors, such as the initial boost from tax cuts Trump supported that took effect earlier this year. Most analysts say that for all of 2018 the U.S. could reach 3 percent growth, which would be the best since a 3.5 percent gain in 2005, but not again hit the annual 4.1 percent growth rate recorded last quarter.
“We believe quarter two will represent a growth peak as the boost from tax cuts fades, global growth moderates, inflation rises, the Fed tightens monetary policy and trade protectionism looms over the economy,” said Gregory Daco, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics.
Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said, “The second quarter was a strong quarter, but it was juiced up by the tax cuts and higher government spending.”
In the U.S., consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, with Ian Shepherdson, the chief economist of Pantheon Macroeconomics, saying that such spending accounted for the robust second quarter.
“Consumers were really on a tear,” he said. “So to grow at 4 [percent] probably tells you people were spending the tax cuts that they enjoyed back in January, but that’s extremely unlikely to happen again.”
your ad hereZimbabwe’s Two Main Parties Promise Change Ahead of Pivotal Vote
Zimbabwe’s main political campaigns hold final rallies in the capital, two days before Monday’s historic elections, the first in 38 years without Robert Mugabe on the ballot. Anita Powell and Paul Ndiho report from Harare.
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Zimbabwe’s Two Main Parties Promise Change Ahead of Pivotal Vote
Zimbabwe’s main political campaigns hold final rallies in the capital, two days before Monday’s historic elections, the first in 38 years without Robert Mugabe on the ballot. Anita Powell and Paul Ndiho report from Harare.
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Zimbabwe’s Mugabe Denounces Former Party Day Before Elections
Zimbabwe’s former president, Robert Mugabe, lashed out Sunday at the political party he founded, saying he could not vote for the ruling ZANU-PF in Monday’s poll. His sharp words came just hours ahead of the nation’s most critical election in decades — the the first one in which Mugabe is not running. VOA’s Anita Powell was there, and brings us this report from Harare.
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Zimbabwe’s Mugabe Denounces Former Party Day Before Elections
Zimbabwe’s former president, Robert Mugabe, lashed out Sunday at the political party he founded, saying he could not vote for the ruling ZANU-PF in Monday’s poll. His sharp words came just hours ahead of the nation’s most critical election in decades — the the first one in which Mugabe is not running. VOA’s Anita Powell was there, and brings us this report from Harare.
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