Ambassador to Testify Trump Assured No Quid Pro Quo
A U.S. ambassador is expected to tell Congress that his text message reassuring another envoy that there was no quid pro quo in their interactions with Ukraine was based solely on what President Donald Trump told him, according to a person familiar with his upcoming testimony in the impeachment probe.
AP
Former Envoy to Ukraine Says Trump Forced Her Out
Speaking during a deposition in Democrats’ impeachment inquiry, the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine told House investigators Friday that she was forced out of her position in May after President Donald Trump pressured State Department officials to remove her.
By JACK RODGERS
100,000 Flee as Wind-Driven Wildfire Scorches LA County
Wildfires kicked up across multiple counties in Southern California on Friday, with one blaze whipped to 7,500 acres in northwest Los Angeles by strong Santa Ana winds that show no signs of slowing down moving into the weekend.
By NATHAN SOLIS
California Power Outages Highlight Economic Disparity
When the nation’s largest utility warned customers that it would cut power to nearly 2 million people across Northern California, many rushed out to buy portable generators, knowing the investment could help sustain them during blackouts.
AP
Former Texas Congressman Distances Himself From Ukraine Scandal
Former Texas Rep. Pete Sessions said late Friday he will donate to charity campaign contributions made by two indicted associates of Rudy Giuliani accused of laundering foreign money to influence American elections.
By DAVID LEE
Two Dead as Typhoon Hagibis Batters Japan With Unprecedented Rain
Powerful Typhoon Hagibis barreled through Japan Saturday, killing at least two people and lashing large parts of the country with “unprecedented” rain that caused floods, landslides and emergency disaster warnings.
AFP
President Orders Army Onto Streets of Ecuadorian Capital
President Lenín Moreno ordered the army onto the streets of Ecuador’s capital Saturday after a week and a half of protests over fuel prices devolved into violent incidents, with masked protesters attacking a television station, newspaper and the national auditor’s office.
AP
Esper Says Trump Orders US Troops to Leave Northern Syria
Amid growing chaos in Syria, President Donald Trump has ordered all U.S. troops to withdraw from the country’s north to avoid a bloody conflict between Turkey and U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters that “gets worse by the hour,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Sunday.
AP
Louisiana Governor to Face Runoff Election
Incumbent Democratic Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards will vie for another term in a runoff election in November because he did not get the required 50% plus one vote in Saturday’s election.
By SABRINA CANFIELD
Outrage After Police Kill Texas Woman at Home
A white Fort Worth cop is on leave after he shot and killed a black homeowner through her window during a welfare check Saturday, angering a community still reeling from the murder conviction of former Dallas cop Amber Guyger two weeks ago.
By DAVID LEE
Around the Nation
White House Threatens New Sanctions Against Turkey
Looking to make good on his promise to demolish Turkey’s economy if the country crosses the line in Syria, President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order expanding the Treasury Department’s ability to sanction Turkish officials.
By MEGAN MINEIRO
Circuit Backs House Power to Subpoena Trump Taxes
Linking the congressional investigations gripping Washington today to the Watergate scandal, the D.C. Circuit affirmed Friday that House lawmakers can subpoena eight years of President Donald Trump’s personal financial records.
By MEGAN MINEIRO
Man Sentenced to Death in Killing of Texas Family of 6
A California man who drove to Texas in 2014 and murdered a husband and wife and four of their children in their suburban Houston home was sentenced to death by a jury Friday.
By CAMERON LANGFORD
Newsom Signs Toughest Gun-Seizure Laws in US
Shortly after winning the November 2018 election, California Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed to “raise the bar” on gun control after 12 people died in a mass shooting at Borderline Bar in Thousand Oaks. On Friday, the Democrat made good on his promise by signing a bill package that expands gun violence restraining orders and limits residents from buying more than one semiautomatic rifle in a month.
By NICK CAHILL
Abortion Foes' Videos Spurred Safety Concerns, Clinic Workers Testify
A Planned Parenthood doctor who was surreptitiously recorded by anti-abortion activists David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt at a National Abortion Federation conference in San Francisco said her sense of security was shaken after a video of what she thought was a private conversation about fetal tissue donation was released online.
By MARIA DINZEO
Trump Defends Giuliani, Reportedly Under Investigation
President Donald Trump on Saturday defended his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, who is reportedly under federal investigation over his dealings with Ukraine on the president’s behalf.
AFP
Sixth Circuit Upholds Injunction Blocking Ohio Abortion Ban
A Sixth Circuit panel on Friday upheld an injunction that says a women’s right to an abortion cannot be blocked in Ohio based on indications that a fetus has Down syndrome.
By NATHAN SOLIS
Beto O’Rourke Unveils Plan to Boost Homeownership
Democratic presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke shifted his focus Friday to fixing the nation’s housing system, promising to undo Trump administration efforts to weaken tenants’ rights and make major investments to increase affordable housing with a goal of building 6 million new homes.
By ERIK DE LA GARZA
Washington State Lawmaker Espouses Hatred of Muslims in Video
Washington state Representative Matt Shea said in a video posted Thursday that the media’s exposure of his extremist ideas such as Christian dominion — which calls for Christians to control society by taking over political and cultural institutions — is a “Soviet tactic” to persecute him.
By KARINA BROWN
Columns
Hot Sauce
By ROBERT KAHN
As I drove past Danny Cash’s little storefront in suburban Denver the other day — Danny Cash Hot Sauce – Retail Wholesale — some unseen force sucked me in. (“Use the Force, Bob.”)
Read the Nightly Brief
EU, UK Intensify Negotiations Over Brexit Deal
A deal on Brexit suddenly appeared more likely Friday after the European Union and the United Kingdom said they will intensify negotiations.
By CAIN BURDEAU
Son of Sheriff Who Called Immigrants ‘Drunks’ Arrested
The son of a Texas sheriff was arrested Saturday for indecent exposure, two days after his father controversially described some immigrants and repeat offenders in his jail as “drunks” who will “run over your children and my children” during a White House briefing.
By DAVID LEE
Acting Chief McAleenan Leaving Homeland Security
The acting head of the Department of Homeland Security is leaving his position, President Donald Trump announced on Friday.
By TIM RYAN
Federal Judge Rules Against Trump Border Emergency Declaration
A federal judge in Texas ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s use of a national emergency declaration to speed up construction of his long-promised border wall is unlawful.
By TRAVIS BUBENIK
Trump Tax Returns are Off-Limits, Feds Tell Second Circuit
Taking President Donald Trump’s side, the Justice Department on Friday asked the Second Circuit to block the release of Trump’s tax returns to the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
By MATTHEW RENDA
UN Court Wraps Pretrial Hearing for African War Crimes Suspects
A preliminary hearing for two former African officials accused of human rights violations came to a close Friday, and judges on the International Criminal Court must now decide if there is sufficient evidence to hold a trial.
By MOLLY QUELL
California Bans For-Profit Prisons and Detention Centers
In its latest blow to the for-profit prison industry, California will become the first state to ban the use of private prisons under legislation signed Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
By NICK CAHILL
Indiana AG: 165 Fetal Remains Linked to Late Doctor
Indiana’s attorney general said Friday that 165 sets of fetal remains have been found in the Chicago area inside a car owned by a late Indiana abortion doctor, boosting the total number of abandoned sets of fetal remains discovered at properties linked to him to more than 2,400.
AP
Trump Delays Plan to Hike Tariffs on Chinese Imports
President Donald Trump on Friday announced a tentative partial trade deal with China, putting off impending tariffs hikes set to be snapped in place on $250 billion in Chinese goods next week.
By TIM RYAN
Attorneys Spar Over Nominating Process for Iowa Judges
An Iowa judge said during a hearing Friday he will rule soon on a challenge to a state law that critics say politicized the selection of appeals court judges in violation of the Iowa Constitution.
By ROX LAIRD
Russian Tweets Linked to Release of Hacked Emails
Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. election has generally been seen as two separate, unrelated tracks: hacking Democratic emails and sending provocative tweets. But a new study suggests the tactics were intertwined.
AP
Japan Top Court Upholds Damages Over Student Tsunami Deaths
Japan’s top court has upheld a ruling awarding millions of dollars in compensation to families of children swept out to sea in the massive 2011 tsunami, officials said Friday.
AFP
Spain Says It Will Exhume Franco's Remains by October 25
Spain is to remove the remains of Francisco Franco from a grandiose state mausoleum by October 25, the government said Friday after a court overruled objections from the late dictator’s family.
AFP
Vivid Gladiator Fresco Discovered at Pompeii
A vivid fresco depicting an armor-clad gladiator standing victorious as his wounded opponent stumbles gushing blood has been discovered in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, Italy’s culture ministry said Friday.
AFP
Walt Girdner was born in central Iowa in 1922, one of five children. His father took a job as a Christian minister in Alameda after the family moved to California in 1925. Growing up during the Great Depression, Walt worked double shifts at a cannery to make money for college. He attended Stanford where he put together a string of letters and wins, running the quarter and half-mile. An invitation to join the U.S. Olympic team was negated by World War II and cancellation of the games. During the war, he disembarked in Normandy, fought in the infantry and marched into Germany .
As a young man, he developed an interest in imagery, first through drawing then through the developing technology of photography. Although he left the church where his mother and father were pastors, he kept a lifelong faith in the power and mystery of the natural environment, seeing in its beauty an overriding and everlasting spiritual force. His subjects focused on people and their settings. Farmers, flower sellers, youth were recurring themes.
He traveled in large part to find new images and capture them, in France at first, then the rest of Europe and later Africa and Mexico. Towards the end of his life, Walt focused on images in nature, including letters and numbers that emerged through abalone shells, beach tableaus and patterns in the sand. He had faith that imagery was a powerful way to communicate and believed young people were much better at interpreting the language of imagery, gifted with imaginations more agile and unencumbered.
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