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 2 injured in motorcycle crash in Surfside Beach 2 injured in motorcycle crash in Surfside Beach SURFSIDE BEACH, SC (WBTW) - Surfside Beach police were called to a reported motorcycle crash Friday afternoon.The crash happened around 1 p.m. at the intersection of 10th Avenue South and Hollywood Drive.A man and a woman injured in the crash were treated by EMS.There's no word on what caused the crash. SURFSIDE BEACH, SC (WBTW) - Surfside Beach police were called to a reported motorcycle crash Friday afternoon.The crash happened around 1 p.m. at the intersection of 10th Avenue South and Hollywood Drive.A man and a woman injured in the crash were treated by EMS.There's no word on what caused the crash. ||||| By Erica Byfield

 Only Channel 2 Action News was there when a widow hugged the woman who killed her husband.

 Glen Walker died in November 2011.

 Police say Tamara Matthews was behind the wheel of an out-of-control minivan that slammed into the Walker family car on Flat Shoals Road in south Fulton County.

 Walker was driving and his wife, Sandra, and their two kids were in the car.

 Matthews’ 16-year-old son died in the crash, Sandra Walker suffered a life-altering brain injury and her husband died days later.

 On Thursday, nearly 2 ½ years after the accident, Matthews entered a plea to misdemeanor counts of homicide by vehicle and failure to maintain l ane.

 A judge sentenced Matthews to 36 months’ probation and 500 hours of community service.

 During a victim-impact statement, Sandra Walker shed tears as she told Matthews she forgives her. When the court proceedings ended, Walker hugged Matthews.

 Channel 2's Erica Byfield spoke to Walker afterwards.

 "I know she is going through as much pain as I am feeling . I wanted her to know that I forgive her for what she did," Walker said.

 Earlier, Matthews told the court and the Walker family she was sorry.

 The judge told Matthews her community service should include acts that honor the lives of her son and Glen Walker. ||||| Sandra Walker was also injured in the head-on crash. The couple’s two children were not injured. (Family photo)

 By Alexis Stevens

 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 One woman lost her husband in the crash. The other woman caused the crash, which also killed her teenage son.

 But today in court, the two women hugged.

 Tamara Matthews avoided jail time in the crash that killed both Joshua Jenkins, 16, and Glen Walker, 35, in November 2011. She entered a guilty plea today to misdemeanor counts of homicide by vehicle and failure to maintain lane and was sentenced to 36 months’ probation and 500 hours of community service, Channel 2 Action News reported.

 Matthews apologized to Walker’s family in court. And when it was her turn to speak, Walker’s widow, Sandra, said she forgives Matthews.

 “I know she is going through as much pain as I am feeling,” Sandra Walker told Channel 2. “I wanted her to know that I forgive her for what she did.”

 On Nov. 5, 2011, Matthews veered into oncoming traffic on Flat Shoals Road in south Fulton County, near the intersection with Harper Valley Drive, causing the head-on wreck, The AJC previously reported. Eight people were hospitalized after the crash, which killed Joshua Jenkins at the scene.

 Matthews’ van struck a van containing the Walker family of Duluth, which caused the family’s van to flip and land on its roof, police said.

 Glen Walker, 35, who was driving the van, died from injuries weeks after the crash. His wife sustained a traumatic brain injury in the crash and turned 30 while hospitalized. The couple’s two young children were not seriously injured.

 At the time of the crash, the Walkers were on their way to Callaway Gardens, where Sandra Walker was planning to run a 10K race, a family member previously said. Family members aren’t sure why the Walkers had gotten off I-85 and were on Flat Shoals Road, but speculated the family may have planned to stop for a bathroom break.

 Glen Walker was a loyal friend who always smiled and enjoyed playing a variety of sports, such as basketball, flag football and soccer, sister-in-law Michelle Walker said after his death. He attended the University of Georgia after growing up in Norcross.

 The judge told Matthews her community service should include acts that honor the lives of her son and Glen Walker. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– A Georgia widow confronted the woman responsible for her husband's death in a fatal car accident in court yesterday—and gave her a hug, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I know she is going through as much pain as I am feeling,” Sandra Walker told WSB-TV of her encounter with Tamara Matthews. "I wanted her to know that I forgive her for what she did." In the 2011 crash, Matthews' van hit the Walker family's van, killing both Walker's 35-year-old husband and Matthews' 16-year-old son. Sandra Walker suffered life-altering brain trauma; her two young children, who were also in the car, escaped serious injury. Matthews pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and failure to maintain lane, but she avoided jail time at yesterday's sentencing. Walker, who didn't want Matthews to be separated from her remaining children, had wanted it that way, WBTW reports. Instead, the judge gave her 36 months of probation and 500 hours of community service.


Article:
A mysterious earthquake that struck the centre of the US was one of the deepest earthquakes of its type ever recorded, say scientists.

 The quake, known as the Wind River Earthquake, struck the state of Wyoming in 2013 with a magnitude of 4.7 Mw (Moment magnitude scale).

 This earthquake occurred well within the mantle

 The quake was strange for various reasons.

 The Wind River area of Wyoming is usually quiet, seismically speaking. In the past 60 years since records have been collected, few earthquakes in the region have been recorded with magnitudes of 4 Mw, while just one surpassed 5 Mw.

 So by regional standards the Wind River earthquake was unusually powerful.

 However, the region is also tectonically quiet - that is, there is little movement in the Earth’s tectonic plates below the site. The nearest tectonic movement occurs 200 km away to the northwest, at the so-called Yellowstone Hotspot, an area that produces volcanic activity across the states of Oregon, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming.

 A new study published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters has now revealed what may have happened.

 Earthquakes usually occur as tectonic plates in the Earth’s crust grind into each other along fault lines, releasing pent up energy, or as slabs of crust descend deeper into the Earth’s hotter and more viscous mantle.

 They can occur tens of kilometres deep in the crust, or much deeper, at depths of a few hundred kilometres.

 Earthquakes that occur near the surface produce more shaking, and those occurring at a depth of less than 70 km (43 mi) are classified as shallow-focus earthquakes.

 The extreme depth of the Wind River Earthquake poses some interesting questions

 Now scientists have evidence that the Wind River earthquake actually occurred deeper within the Earth, in its mantle, rather than within the Earth’s crust.

 Their measurements suggest the earthquake occurred at a depth of 75 km.

 In the local area, known as the Wyoming Craton, the Earth’s crust is no deeper than 40-50 km, forming part of the cold, stable lithosphere that underlies much of North America.

 “This earthquake occurred well within the mantle, and likely over 20 km deeper than the base of the crust,” report the researchers in the journal.

 That would make it among the three deepest earthquakes yet identified to have occurred in a region covered by a stable continental crust.

 It could mean the mantle is brittle

 The scientists, Dr T Craig of the PSL Research University in Paris, France, and R Hepburn of the UK’s Atomic Weapons Establishment, based in Reading, say they are aware of only two comparably deep earthquakes, which occurred in the Earth’s mantle underneath a stable continental lithosphere.

 In 1979, an earthquake struck at depth of 90 km under Randolphe, Utah, some 40 km into the Earth’s mantle.

 In 2000, another quake struck under the Arafura Sea, at a depth of 61 km, some 25 km into the mantle.

 The extreme depth of the Wind River Earthquake “poses some interesting questions”, say the researchers.

 Deep seismic activity can occur in volcanic regions, but it’s usually at a much smaller magnitude. Also, the Wind River location is not near any active surface volcanoes and is unlikely to be connected to the volcanic region 200 km away at the Yellowstone Hotspot.

 The size and type of shock produced by the Wind River earthquake also suggests it was produced by tectonic forces, rather than by the movement of magma or fluid in the Earth’s mantle.

 That could mean the mantle is brittle under the Wind River Craton, and it failed, producing the shock.

 But that doesn’t match our current understanding of the forces needed to deform and break the mantle in such areas, say the researchers, leaving the true cause of the quake open to debate.

 Follow Matt Walker and BBC Earth on twitter. ||||| If you want to learn a bit of the science behind earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, rogue waves, cyclones and hurricanes, and tornadoes, this is an introduction that weaves together stories of various disasters--some barely known to much of the world--their causes and dynamics, and some suggested actions we can take to protect ourselves. The book is available both in paper and as an audio CD.

 "This is a fantastic book. I've recommend ed to colleagu es at FEMA and am using it as a text for my disaster classes. It really demonstrates how knowledge of the environment should inform policy. It was a page turner for me!"--Dr. Trish on Customer Reviews at Amazon.com

 "Sharp, timely, slightly terrifying science writing." -- Kirkus

 ''A clear, engagingly wonky introduction to the field.'' -- Publishers Weekly

 ''Geologist Kieffer argues that we don't understand disasters as well as we should. She contrasts 'stealth disasters' caused by long-term human impact, including climate change and soil erosion, with natural disasters or 'acts of God,' which are also increasingly affected by human actions . . . [A] highly accessible look at disasters.'' -- Booklist ''A clear, engagingly wonky introduction to the field.'' --''Geologist Kieffer argues that we don't understand disasters as well as we should. She contrasts 'stealth disasters' caused by long-term human impact, including climate change and soil erosion, with natural disasters or 'acts of God,' which are also increasingly affected by human actions . . . [A] highly accessible look at disasters.'' --

 "Kieffer's brisk and lucid presentation has some of the relish with which surgeons reputedly regale each other with tales from the operating theatre. Laid out before the reader are the suppurating wounds, scalds, tremors, and scars acquired by the Earth over millennia, centuries, decades, or minutes."--Claudio Vita-Finzi in The Times of London

 "A study on natural disasters [that] puts fizz into the physics." --Review in Nature by Roger Bilham

 "Educates but also entertains... A fast-moving interesting bedtime read..." Review in Science by Donald Turcotte

 "Photos enhance the drama of this highly accessible look at disasters." -- BookProfessor.com by Vanessa Bush

 Discover magazine , November 2013 "Geologist Kieffer analyzes recent earthquakes and eruptions with a clear eye on improving our planning for, and response to, these inevitable events."--

 "If you are an amateur weather geek, disaster wonk or budding student of the earth sciences, you will want to read this book. (If you're squeamish, skip the chapter titled "A Plague of Snakes.")--Seattle Times by Mary Ann Gwinn

 "[T]he clarity of Kieffer’s writing, coupled with her careful choice of supporting graphics, makes the content engaging and accessible to a wide readership." Alison Stokes in TheTimesHigherEducation

 Picked by Gone Bookserk.com as one of the "Top Science Books of 2013."

 “In The Dynamics of Disaster , famed geoscientist Susan Kieffer merges stories and science in a fascinating introduction to the dangerous side of the Earth, with key insights for citizens and enough excitement to captivate the full range of students.”

 — Richard B. Alley, author of Earth: The Operator’s Manual

 "Both general readers and working scientists will enjoy this well-written book--and learn some things they did not know...Summing up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through professionals; general audiences."--by Seth Stein in Choice Reviews Online (of the American Library Association), April 2014

 "This [impressive] book ought to be placed in the hands of politicians, engineers, insurance assessors and, frankly, anyone who sees sense in understanding the processes and systems that guide our planet." -- Geographical , December 2013, by Jonathan Wright Jonathan Wright

 Nominated for 2014 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award

 A "read-alike"--Carnegie Medal Read-alikes , 2014, nonfiction

 This book is part of a recent trend--one that is just beginning, but is likely to grow--in which scientists, especially young ones, seek to move beyond the "disasters are bad" view presented in beginner classes to a more sophisticated and nuanced view … Seth Stein in Physics World (U.K.)

 "It is like a "Magic School Bus" outing for adults, with Kieffer acting as Ms. Frizzle, guiding the reader around the world to disaster hotspots, where she analyzes and breaks down the physical characteristics that contribute to events in those areas."--Summit Daily, December 20, 2013 |||||Summary:

– An earthquake struck Wyoming two years ago that made little sense, scientifically speaking—but experts seem closer to solving the mystery, the BBC reports. Called the Wind River Earthquake, it hit with 4.7 magnitude in an area that rarely sees such seismic power. Hardly surprising, since the Wind River area has little tectonic-plate movement that would normally trigger such an earthquake. But a new study in Earth and Planetary Science Letters says the quake may not have originated with tectonic plates grinding against each other at all. The Wind River Earthquake may have started deeper, in what the BBC calls "the Earth’s hotter and more viscous mantle." Such a quake might be caused by crust falling into the mantle, which lies between the Earth's higher crust and deeper core. These deeper quakes remain "a highly controversial topic," the scientists write, but this one "occurred well within the mantle, and likely over 20 km [12.4 miles] deeper than the base of the crust." If true, the finding makes the Wind River Earthquake one of the three deepest ever recorded in the area. Still, some things don't fit: While such deep quakes can occur in volcanic regions, when fluid or magma flows in the Earth's mantle, they usually affect a smaller area; the Wind River quake ruptured nearly 11 million square feet, notes Geology in Motion. And Wind River is noticeably far from the nearest volcanic region. So what's up? Perhaps the mantle was so brittle that it failed and triggered the quake, say researchers, who admit that the causes remain debatable. (Read about naked tourists blamed for a mountain quake.)


Article:

LONDON — Police investigating the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann have contacted Australian authorities after the body of a fair-haired child was found in a suitcase.

 The British girl was aged three when she disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal. Police have spent the equivalent of millions of dollars trying to find her, but no one has been charged and there have been no confirmed sightings.

 Earlier this month, South Australia Police found what they believed were the remains of a girl, aged between 2 ½ and 4 years old, dumped in a case on the side of a highway near the city of Adelaide. ||||| UK police make inquiries about remains found in suitcase but Australian authorities say there is currently ‘no evidence’ it relates to McCann case

 Police officers investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have contacted Australian authorities over the discovery of a young girl’s remains in a suitcase, Scotland Yard has said.

 The remains of a fair-haired girl likely to have been aged between two and four were found dumped on the side of a rural highway in the South Australian wild earlier this month.

 The girl is believed to have been killed at a different location at some time since the start of 2007, according to South Australian police. The remains were found in a suitcase along with items of clothing and a degraded quilt next to a motorway in Wynarka, near Adelaide.

 The discovery has led to speculation that the remains could be those of McCann, who had blond hair and was three years old when she went missing from her family’s holiday apartment in the Algarve, Portugal, on 3 May 2007.

 A spokesman for the Metropolitan police said: “We are aware of reports of the remains of a child having been found in South Australia and we have made contact with the Australian authorities.”

 Australian authorities have so far been unable to identify the body, but Det Supt Des Bray, the officer in charge of the major crime investigation branch of South Australia police, said it was “highly unlikely” that the victim is Madeleine.

 “At this time our inquiries will focus on where the evidence leads us in this investigation and at this point that primary focus remains within Australia,” Bray said.

 Australian police commissioner Grant Stevens told a parliamentary committee hearing: “There is absolutely no evidence at this point in time that the child is Madeleine McCann … to suggest something like that at this point in time would purely be speculating to get attention.

 “We are focusing our inquiries on South Australia but we would be considering any potential missing child. Until we ascertain the identity of the child we need to be open to all possibilities.” ||||| Skeletal remains found in scrub near a highway in South Australia are believed to be those of a child aged between two and seven, police have said.

 It is thought the child was killed some time before being placed in a suitcase that was left in scrub alongside the Karoonda highway, east of Adelaide.

 Detective Superintendent Des Bray said the suitcase was left in the area between four to six weeks ago. Police said earlier there was no doubt the child whose remains were found on the side of a freeway met with foul play.

 “We have the skeletal remains of a young child, someone who I would suggest has clearly been murdered,” Bray said. A passing motorist discovered the child’s bones in bushes besides the Karoonda highway about 11am on Wednesday.

 The bones have been taken to Adelaide for forensic testing.

 Bray said police hoped to know more about how the child died soon.

 “Young children don’t disappear without people noticing,” Bray said. “We’d encourage people to think about friends, acquaintances, people who live near them ... and perhaps on reflection might be concerned that a child might not be around who was there previously.”

 Police combed missing persons records and canvassed people living near the scene, which is about 2km west of Wynarka in the Murray Mallee region. ||||| POLICE Commissioner Grant Stevens has dismissed speculation that a murdered child found by the side of an SA highway could be the world’s most high-profile missing girl, Madeleine McCann.

 Mr Stevens today told a parliamentary estimates committee hearing that “clearly we’re looking at tragic circumstances here”.

 “There is absolutely no evidence at this point in time that the child is Madeleine McCann … to suggest something like that at this point in time would purely be speculating to get attention,” he said.

 Missing since 2007 — English girl Madeleine McCann was snatched from a Portuguese holiday resort. The picture at right is an age-advanced estimation of how she could have looked several years after her disappearance.

 Detective Superintendent Des Bray updates media on Wynarka bones investigation 11:55 Officer in Charge of Major Crime Investigation Branch, Detective Superintendent Des Bray, gives an update regarding the discovery of human bones at Wynarka in early July 2015. Courtesy: SA Police Detective Superintendent Des Bray updates media on Wynarka bones investigation

 Officer in Charge of Major Crime Investigation Branch, Detective Superintendent Des Bray, gives an update regarding the discovery of human bones at Wynarka in early July 2015. Courtesy: SA Police

 The quilt, left, found in the suitcase, with the digital image, left, released by the police today that shows seven patches identified.

 A close-up of one of the patches from the quilt.

 Detective Superintendent Des Bray with a photo of the musical note fabric used to make a quilt found with child’s remains. Picture: Campbell Brodie.

 The quilt that was handmade specifically for a young child. Picture: SA Police

 A mannequin with hair of a similar colour and length, dressed in new versions of items of clothing found with the body, along with suitcase found at the scene. 1 of n

 “We are focusing our inquiries on South Australia but we would be considering any potential missing child. Until we ascertain the identity of the child we need to be open to all possibilities.”

 Earlier, police said fabric used to make a distinctive homemade quilt found with the remains was manufactured in New York about seven years ago.

 Major Crime officer in charge Detective Superintendent Des Bray said police wanted to trace the origins of the quilt in a bid to find out how it came to be on the side of the Karoonda Hwy, near Wynarka, in the Murray Mallee.

 They have released digital images that identify seven of the quilt’s 25 octagonal patches, which were sown into the quilt. Police hope someone will recognise the quilt.

 It was found alongside the remains of what police say was a little girl, aged between two and four when she was violently killed.

 It was found alongside the remains of what police say was a little girl, aged between two and four when she was violently killed.

 Her skeletal remains had been dumped in a suitcase next to the highway up to four months ago.

 But her bones had been tipped out of the suitcase when discovered by a passing motorist on July 15.

 Det-Supt Bray said it was “more likely than not” that the little girl was never reported missing to authorities.

 “It would be impossible to believe that someone didn’t love this little girl,” he said.

 “It’s hard to believe someone hasn’t missed her.

 “I thought when we started this job that we would quickly identify who this little girl was. “Somewhere out there is a mother, a father, at the very least an extended family that obviously lived near someone and I’m at a loss as to why someone hasn’t reported this little girl."

 Det-Supt Bray said the distinctiveness of some of the items, including the quilt and a black tutu, found with the remains would help solve the mystery.

 He said police believed some of the quilt fabric — coloured musical notes — was manufactured in New York in about 2008.

 “The quilt is really important to the investigation,” he said.

 “If we can find out who that quilt was given to or whether it ended up in an op-shop that will take us back to a geographical area.”

 He said the quilt was homemade using a sewing machine and a polyester material was used to line its inside, which indicated it was made for a child.

 Previously, police said the labels, decomposition of fabric and staining of clothes found with the remains indicated she was killed some time after 2007.

 It was also likely she had fair hair and was 90-95cm tall when she was killed, police said.

 Det-Supt Bray said the little girl was killed in a violent manner.

 “We’re certain of how the little girl met her death — why, who and what circumstances, it’s just impossible to tell,” he said.

 “It could fit any scenario.”

 He said 55 calls had been made to Crime Stoppers about the quilt since police released its image to the Sunday Mail.

 “We’ve had about 280 Crime Stopper calls being received in South Australia and across the country,” he said.

 “I guess in terms of recent cases that’s unprecedented the number of calls we’re getting.”

 Anyone with information about the murder is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

 Wynarka suitcase murder clues Previous Next 1 of 25 2 of 25 3 of 25 4 of 25 5 of 25 6 of 25 7 of 25 8 of 25 9 of 25 10 of 25 X Want to see more?( 15 more photos in collection )Continue to full gallery

 Clues in the Wynarka suitcase murder

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What is a summary?

– First, the words of caution: "There is absolutely no evidence at this point in time that the child is Madeleine McCann," says an Australian police commissioner. But the body of a child, found near the South Australia town of Wynarka and thus far unidentified, has led the detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine to reach out to their Australian counterparts. Here's why: The remains, contained in a suitcase that also held a quilt and some clothing, are thought to be those of a fair-haired girl, between the ages of 2 and 4, who was killed some time after the beginning of 2007. Madeleine vanished at age 3 on May 3, 2007. NBC News reports police said the child was likely white, with hair about 7 inches long. The Australian Associated Press reported the skeletal remains were found on July 15; it's thought the suitcase had been left along the rural highway four to six weeks prior, with the child having been killed before that. British law enforcement officials confirm they have made contact, but neither side sounds overly optimistic. It's "highly unlikely" the remains are those of Madeleine, says Detective Superintendent Des Bray, per the Guardian. Adds the commissioner, to suggest the child is Madeleine "at this point in time would purely be speculating to get attention." What they are zeroing in on, per the Advertiser: that homemade quilt. "The quilt is really important to the investigation," says Bray. Investigators believe a portion of the quilt fabric, which shows colored musical notes against a black background, was made in New York around 2008.


5 years ago

 Washington (CNN) – "Reprehensible." "Irresponsible." "Hard to stomach."

 White House senior adviser David Plouffe did not mince words Sunday when talking about the reaction by Republican presidential candidates Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich to President Barack Obama's comments on the Trayvon Martin shooting.

 - Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

 "Those two comments are really irresponsible. I would consider them reprehensible," Plouffe said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I think those comments were really hard to stomach, really, and I guess trying to appeal to people's worst instincts."

 While the GOP presidential candidates said the incident was a tragedy, Santorum and Gingrich were particularly critical of the president's response to the shooting in which Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old, was shot and killed by a George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer. Zimmerman claimed he shot Martin in self-defense.

 A somber Obama on Friday commiserated with the Martin family and urged authorities to fully investigate the shooting.

 "If I had a son he would look like Trayvon," Obama said. "I think (his parents) are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves and we will get to the bottom of exactly what happened."

 Santorum said the president politicized the events, while Gingrich characterized Obama's comments as "nonsense."

 "What the president of the United States should do is try to bring people together, not use these types of horrible and tragic individual cases to try to drive a wedge in America," Santorum said Friday on "The Hugh Hewitt Show," a radio program.

 "Is the president suggesting if it had been a white who had been shot, that would be OK because it wouldn't look like him? That's just nonsense," Gingrich said Friday on conservative host Sean Hannity's radio show, "The Hannity Show." "I mean dividing this country up, it is a tragedy this young man was shot."

 But Plouffe, who served as Obama's 2008 campaign manager, said the Republican reaction is evidence of a circus-like primary.

 "I don't think there's very many people in America that would share that reaction. You know, this Republican primary at some points has been more of a circus show and a clown show," Plouffe told CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley.

 Although he indicated the Obama campaign expects Romney to be the Republican nominee, Plouffe also predicted an aggressive election come fall.

 "Romney has a big delegate lead so we've always felt you know because Romney's won a couple of big states lately, the fundamentals kind of support him," Plouffe said. "But it's going to be a close competitive race no matter who come out the other side."

 Also see:

 Santorum's Louisiana win does little to change the game of delegate math

 ‘Math isn’t adding up,’ Gingrich delegate says

 Santorum video: 'Obamaville' is a house of horrors

 Watch State of the Union with Candy Crowley Sundays at 9am ET. For the latest from State of the Union click here. ||||| White House senior adviser David Plouffe said on Sunday that the administration is "confident" that the U.S. Supreme Court will find the health care law constitutional.

 "We are confident it will be upheld," Plouffe said on ABC's "This Week," a day before oral arguments open on the case.

 He said the mandate requiring every American to obtain health insurance is a concept developed by conservative thinkers and once supported by Republicans Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole and Mitt Romney, who Plouffe termed the "godfather" of the mandate.

 Asked why the law isn't more popular, Plouffe said that hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent attacking it and that the major benefits won't kick in until 2014.

 "We just have to tell the story of this," he said. "One thing I am confident of, by the end of this decade, we are going to be very glad the Republicans termed this Obamacare because when the reality of health care is in place it will be nothing like the kind of fear mongering that was done."

 Read more about: Supreme Court, David Plouffe, Health Law ||||| White House senior adviser David Plouffe declined on Sunday to say whether President Barack Obama would support or fight a gay marriage plank in the Democratic Party's platform.

 "We don’t even have a platform committee," Plouffe said on ABC's "This Week." "We are going to work through the platform process."

 Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and 22 senators have endorsed the national party taking a stance on marriage legalization.

 Obama, however, remains opposed to gay marriage.

 Read more about: Barack Obama, David Plouffe, Gay Marriage ||||| White House senior adviser David Plouffe on Sunday branded the House Republican spending plan as the "Romney-Ryan budget," a tactical move to link the budget crafted by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) with the Republican presidential front runner Mitt Romney.

 "If Mitt Romney is the nominee, then this really is going to be the Romney-Ryan plan," Plouffe said on ABC's "This Week." "He said he's going to rubber-stamp it. ... So the American people have to understand, if Mitt Romney's elected president, he'll rubber-stamp that budget. And here's what that budget is. It fails the standard -- it fails the test of balance and fairness and shared responsibility. It showers huge additional tax cuts on the wealthy ... that are paid for by veterans and seniors and the middle class, so it's not a balanced approach."

 "So the president's approach is the right approach. It's the balanced approach," Plouffe said. "Anybody out there that's offered a deficit reduction plan, any expert says it's got to have balance, which means it's got to cut spending, and we've already cut a lot of spending, almost $2 trillion. It's got to reform entitlements in the right way. And you've got to get revenue through tax reform."

 Ryan defended his plan on "Fox News Sunday," saying Medicare would grow at the same rate as under the president's plan while balancing the budget more quickly.

 Read more about: Mitt Romney, David Plouffe, Paul Ryan |||||

Write a summary.

– David Plouffe is making the talk-show rounds this morning, and CNN reports that he's wasting zero time in bashing Newt Gingrich for accusing President Obama of politicizing the Trayvon Martin killing, and dismissing the GOP nomination race at large as a "clown show." Gingrich "is clearly in the last throes of his political career," said Plouffe, and instead of exiting "with some shred of dignity," has "clearly chosen" to "say these irresponsible, reckless things." "I think the president spoke movingly about this tragedy, as a father," Plouffe said. "So I think those comments were really hard to stomach, really, and I guess trying to appeal to people’s worst instincts." Elsewhere on the Plouffe dog-and-pony show, as per Politico: On Paul Ryan's budget: "If Mitt Romney is the nominee, then this really is going to be the Romney-Ryan plan. He said he's going to rubber-stamp it." On being "confident" health care reform will be upheld by the Supreme Court: "By the end of this decade, we are going to be very glad the Republicans termed this ObamaCare, because when the reality of health care is in place it will be nothing like the kind of fear mongering that was done." On the White House's gay marriage stance: "We don’t even have a platform committee. We are going to work through the platform process."


Summarize this article:

Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| President Trump, who signed a $1.3 trillion spending bill last week, is frustrated with the amount Congress provided to finance a U.S.-Mexico border wall and is pressing to use money dedicated to the military. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

 President Trump, who repeatedly insisted during the 2016 campaign that Mexico would pay for a wall along the southern border, is privately pushing the U.S. military to fund construction of his signature project.

 Trump has told advisers that he was spurned in a large spending bill last week when lawmakers appropriated only $1.6 billion for the border wall. He has suggested to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and congressional leaders that the Pentagon could fund the sprawling project, citing a “national security” risk.

 After floating the notion to several advisers last week, Trump told House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) that the military should pay for the wall, according to three people familiar with the meeting last Wednesday in the White House residence. Ryan offered little reaction to the idea, these people said, but senior Capitol Hill officials later said it was an unlikely prospect.

 The president’s pursuit of defense dollars to finance the U.S.-Mexico border wall underscores his determination to fulfill a campaign promise and build the barrier despite resistance in the Republican-led Congress. The administration’s last-minute negotiations with lawmakers to secure billions more for the wall failed, and Trump grudgingly signed the spending bill Friday after a short-lived veto threat.

 Four days later, Trump continued to express regret over signing the $1.3 trillion package, which funded the government and averted a shutdown, saying it was a mistake and he should have followed his instincts.

 In another interaction with senior aides last week, Trump noted that the Defense Department was getting so much money as part of the spending bill that the Pentagon could surely afford the border wall, two White House officials said. The Pentagon received about $700 billion in the spending package, which Trump repeatedly lauded as “historic.”

 Meanwhile, the $1.6 billion in the bill for some fencing and levees on the border not only fell far short of the $25 billion that Trump was seeking, but it also came with tight restrictions on how the money could be spent.

 The individuals and officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk freely about private discussions.

 [Trump signs massive spending bill, but not before a little drama]

 White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders deflected a question Tuesday about money dedicated to the military being used to fund construction of the wall.

 “I can’t get into the specifics of that at this point, but I can tell you that the continuation of building the wall is ongoing, and we’re going to continue moving forward in that process,” Sanders told reporters.

 “Build WALL through M!” Trump recently wrote on Twitter. He retweeted those words Tuesday, noting that “our Military is again rich.” Two advisers said “M” stood for “military.”

 The president has suggested to Mattis that his department, instead of the Department of Homeland Security, could fund the construction, two Trump advisers said. But the military is not likely to fund the wall, according to White House and Defense Department officials.

 The Pentagon has plenty of money, but reprogramming it for a wall would require votes in Congress that the president does not seem to have. Taking money from the 2018 budget for the wall would require an act of Congress, a senior Pentagon official said.

 To find the money in the 2019 defense budget, Trump would have to submit a budget amendment that would require 60 votes in the Senate, the official said.

 Democrats in Congress would probably chafe at military spending going to the construction of a border wall, and military officials may also blanch, White House advisers said.

 Defense hawks in the Republican ranks would balk at taking money now dedicated to the Pentagon for aircraft, weapons and improvements to the armed forces’ readiness and instead steering it toward construction of the wall.

 “First Mexico was supposed to pay for it, then U.S. taxpayers, and now our men and women in uniform?” Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement to The Washington Post. “This would be a blatant misuse of military funds and tied up in court for years. Secretary Mattis ought not bother and instead use the money to help our troops, rather than advance the president’s political fantasies.”

 Trump has grown frustrated watching constant TV criticism of the spending package and is determined to find a new way to fund the wall, several advisers said, privately grousing that his political supporters could become disenchanted without progress. After a recent trip to see prototypes of the wall in California, Trump has grown more animated by the issue, advisers said.

 The president’s comments raising the possibility of using Pentagon funds to build the wall came after the collapse of negotiations with Democrats to secure $25 billion in long-term wall funding in exchange for protections for young immigrants at risk for deportation because of Trump’s cancellation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

 The White House offered three years of protections for DACA recipients, according to multiple congressional aides, but Democrats demanded protections for a larger group of “dreamers,” including those who never applied or are ineligible for DACA. The negotiations fell apart before the spending bill was drafted and passed last week.

 [‘Trump blew it’: The president missed his best chance yet to get funding for his border wall]

 The urgency to strike a deal reflected the growing sense that the spending bill represented the last chance for the Trump administration to secure substantial wall funding, at least in the president’s first term. Top Republicans believe it is all but certain that Democrats will gain House seats in November’s midterm elections — and perhaps take the majority — greatly enhancing their bargaining position in future spending negotiations.

 Only $641 million is earmarked for new primary fencing in areas that have no barriers, and most of the money can be spent only on “operationally effective designs” that were deployed as of last May. That means the prototype designs the Trump administration is exploring cannot be built, except along a stretch of the border near San Diego where a barrier is already in place.

 Greg Jaffe contributed to this report. ||||| Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump has privately floated the idea of funding construction of a border wall with Mexico through the US military budget in conversations with advisers, two sources confirmed to CNN Tuesday.

 Trump discussed the idea in a private meeting last week with House Speaker Paul Ryan, a source familiar with the conversations said, as he reviewed the omnibus spending bill, which does not include funding for construction of a border wall. It was not immediately clear how serious Trump was about pursuing this option, but the move would likely face steep hurdles with appropriators in Congress.

 The idea is Trump's latest attempt to find a way to build the border wall he promised supporters during his campaign as Mexico has dismissed his call for Mexico to fund its construction. Trump has said he would seek that payment in the form of a refund, either through trade negotiations, remittance payments or other means.

 Congressional budgeting is done with very specific instructions for how dollar amounts are spent. Any repurposing of funds requires express congressional approval, which Trump is unlikely to get. The source noted that additional authorization from Congress would likely be necessary if this option was pursued.

 A senior administration official confirmed the President has floated this idea, along with others, as alternative ways to pay for the wall.

 Read More |||||

– After failing to get Congress—or Mexico—to cough up enough cash for a wall along the Mexican border, President Trump has been looking into getting the Pentagon to pay for it, reasoning that it has plenty of money under the new federal budget, insiders say. The sources tell the Washington Post that Trump, worried that failure to build the promised wall will cause supporters to desert him, has been privately pushing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, among others, to make the wall a military-funded project because of national security fears. But officials say the military is unlikely to pay for the wall, and even if the Pentagon was willing, it would require an act and the move would not get 60 votes in the Senate. In a tweet Tuesday, Trump argued that the military is "rich" and building a border wall is all about national defense because there are "enemy combatants pouring into our Country." "Build WALL through M!" he urged. Trump wants $25 billion for the wall, but the latest spending bill allocates just $1.6 billion, with restrictions on how it can be spent. "First Mexico was supposed to pay for it, then US taxpayers, and now our men and women in uniform?” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer tells the Post. "This would be a blatant misuse of military funds and tied up in court for years." CNN reports that press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders declined to comment on possible military funding Tuesday. The "continuation of building the wall is ongoing, and we're going to continue moving forward in that process," she said.


Civilians and rebels prevented from leaving as shelling resumes despite ceasefire deal brokered by Turkey and Russia

 Iran-backed militias are preventing civilians and opposition fighters from leaving the besieged districts of east Aleppo as Russia struggles to convince the Assad government and allied militants to abide by a ceasefire agreement.

 Shelling of the besieged districts resumed on Wednesday morning despite the agreement brokered by Turkish intelligence and the Russian military on Tuesday that would have offered a respite to tens of thousands of trapped civilians.

 It was unclear on Wednesday when residents would be allowed to leave east Aleppo and whether the deal would hold. Turkey’s state-run Anadolu agency quoted the head of the Turkish Red Crescent as saying nearly 1,000 people from east Aleppo were being held at an Iranian militia checkpoint.

 Rebels inside east Aleppo said they would support the agreement but Iranian-backed militias on the ground, which led the assault into east Aleppo, were blocking it because the deal was reached without Assad or Iran’s involvement.

 “The sectarian militias want to resume the massacre in Aleppo and the world has to act to prevent this sectarian slaughter led by Iran,” said Bassam Mustafa, a member of the political council of Noureddine Zinki, one of the main rebel groups in east Aleppo. “The opposition will continue to abide by the agreement.”

 Yasser al-Youssef, a spokesman for the group, said Russia was attempting to convince the Assad government to accept the ceasefire. The Turkish foreign minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, said discussions were ongoing with Russia and Iran to continue the planned evacuations.

 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ruined buildings in east Aleppo Photograph: TASS / Barcroft Images

 Russia and Turkey negotiated the agreement apparently without the Assad regime’s knowledge. The Syrian military initially said it had no knowledge of the deal before backtracking and saying the evacuations would begin on Wednesday at 5am Aleppo time. The evacuation of rebel-held eastern Aleppo has however yet to begin.

 The confusion over the deal, which imposed a ceasefire at 6pm local time on Tuesday, highlighted the splits and competing interests of Assad’s supporters, which include Russia, Iran and Iran-backed militias on the ground, who were on Tuesday implicated by the United Nations in execution-style shootings of civilians in opposition areas.

 Fight for Aleppo is almost over – but a new chapter of misery begins Read more

 Residents said intense shelling had resumed on Wednesday in their shrinking, besieged enclave, where they had endured what the UN described as a brutal “meltdown of humanity” as forces loyal to Assad rampaged through newly reclaimed districts.

 Russia said the renewed shelling was a response to rebel attacks.

 The French foreign minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, said confusion surrounding the evacuation showed it was imperative to have UN observers to manage the process. “France wants the presence of UN observers on the ground and humanitarian organisations like the Red Cross must intervene,” he told France 2 television.

 There had been conflicting accounts of the expected start times for the evacuation. A military official in the pro-Assad alliance had said the evacuation was due to start at 5am (3am GMT), while opposition officials said they had been expecting a first group of wounded people to leave earlier.

 However, none had left by dawn, according to a Reuters witness at the agreed point of departure. Twenty buses were waiting with their engines running but showed no sign of moving into Aleppo’s eastern districts.

 “There is certainly a delay,” said Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor. The pro-opposition Orient TV cited its correspondent as saying the plan might be delayed until Thursday.

 The United Nations said on Wednesday it was not involved in plans to evacuate fighters and civilians, but it was ready to help.

 “[The UN] stands ready to facilitate the voluntary and safe evacuation of injured, sick and vulnerable civilians from the besieged part of the city,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.

 A senior Turkish official told the Guardian that Ankara and Moscow would act as guarantors of the ceasefire agreement, which would allow “civilians and moderate rebels with light weapons” to leave Aleppo for Idlib province. “Once they reach Idlib, they will be free to relocate,” the official added.

 Rebel officials from Nour al-din al-Zenki and Ahrar al-Sham, two powerful opposition groups with a presence in the city, confirmed the deal to evacuate, but there was confusion over exactly where the opposition would have to go, with rebels saying they would be transported to the western Aleppo countryside.

 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Syrian residents fleeing Aleppo’s Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood arrive in the city’s Fardos district. Photograph: Getty Images

 Weeks of immense suffering and violence in east Aleppo since the Syrian regime and allies began a final push into territory that had been in rebel hands since 2012 have left residents in total despair and increasingly angry at the international community for abandoning them to their fate.

 The US ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, told the security council that the Syrian government, along with Russia and Iran, bore responsibility for the deaths of civilians in Aleppo. She accused the three states of putting a “noose” around civilians in the city, asking: “Are you incapable of shame? … Is there no execution of a child that gets under your skin? Is there literally nothing that shames you?”

 Twisted narratives won’t spare Aleppo a moment of its agony | Janine di Giovanni Read more

 The United Nations said it had received reliable reports from multiple sources that pro-Assad forces, including the Iraqi Shia militia Harakat al-Nujaba, had carried out summary killings of at least 82 civilians, including 11 women and 13 children, in four different neighbourhoods of east Aleppo that had fallen under government control.

 Iranian leaders were self-congratulatory on Wednesday at the role it had played in the assault. The chief military adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said the city was “liberated thanks to a coalition between Iran, Syria, Russia and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.”

 Reports of killings by the advancing forces raised grave concerns over the fate of tens of thousands of civilians, doctors and activists who have remained in the shrinking rebel enclaves, and who faced death if they stayed there or being tortured and killed in regime-held areas if they fled over government lines.

 As a White Helmet in Aleppo I ask for only one thing: help | Raed Al Saleh Read more

 Reuters reported that residents in eastern Aleppo were burning personal possessions as they prepared to leave, fearing looting by the Syrian army and Iranian-backed militias.

 “I really, really hope this deal will materialise because the suffering of civilians on both sides has been immense,” said Pawel Krzysiek, head of media at the International Committee of the Red Cross, who was in Aleppo. “There is a human tragedy happening all over the city. People who lost everything are suffering here enormously.”

 The evacuation of east Aleppo means the opposition will cede the entire city, Syria’s former commercial capital, to the Assad regime, surrendering the last major urban stronghold where it maintained an active presence.

 Additional reporting by Saeed Kamali Dehghan ||||| ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT (Reuters) - An evacuation of rebel-held districts of Aleppo is back on track and expected to begin within hours, officials on both sides of the war said late on Wednesday, a retreat that would mark a major victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and end years of fighting.

 An initial deal that would have seen thousands of civilians and opposition fighters granted safe passage out of the city stalled on Wednesday and the planned exodus failed to materialize.

 Iran, one of Assad’s main backers, had imposed new conditions, saying it wanted the simultaneous evacuation of wounded from two villages besieged by rebels, according to rebel and U.N. sources.

 But Abdul Salam Abdul Razak, a military spokesman for the Nour al-Din al Zinki rebel group, said late on Wednesday that a new agreement had been reached which included those villages in Idlib province. “Within the coming hours its implementation will begin,” he told Reuters.

 An official in the Jabha Shamiya rebel group said implementation would begin around 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) on Thursday.

 An official in the pro-Damascus military alliance confirmed the truce deal was on, and said about 15,000 people would be evacuated from the majority Shi’ite villages, Foua and Kefraya, in return for the evacuation from Aleppo of “militants and their families and whoever wants to leave among civilians”.

 He said those leaving Aleppo would head for Idlib province to the west of the city.

 The Jabha Shamiya official however denied that 15,000 people would leave the two villages and said only the wounded would be evacuated.

 It was not immediately clear how the deal had been reached.

 The original ceasefire was brokered by Russia, Assad’s most powerful ally, and opposition backer Turkey on Tuesday. But the planned evacuation of rebel-held areas did not happen and instead shelling and gunfire erupted in the city on Wednesday, with Turkey accusing government forces of breaking the truce. Syrian state television said rebel shelling killed six people.

 The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein, said the bombardment by Syrian government forces and their allies “most likely constitutes war crimes”.

 Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Russian leader Vladimir Putin agreed in a phone call earlier in the day to make a joint effort to start the process, Turkish presidential sources said.

 Shortly before the new deal was announced, clashes raged in Aleppo.

 Government forces made a new advance in Sukkari - one of just a handful of districts still held by rebels - and brought half of the neighborhood under their control, the Observatory said. Rebels saying they launched an attack against government forces using suicide car bombs.

 The Russian defense ministry said - before the report of the government forces’ advance in Sukkari - that the rebels controlled an enclave of only 2.5 square km (1 square mile).

 RAPID ADVANCES

 At dawn on Wednesday nobody had left under the initial evacuation plan, according to a Reuters witness waiting at the departure point, where 20 buses stood with engines running but showed no sign of moving into rebel districts.

 People in eastern Aleppo had packed their bags and burned personal belongings, fearing looting by the Syrian army and its Iranian-backed militia allies.

 Officials in the military alliance backing Assad could not be reached immediately for comment on why the evacuation had stalled.

 U.N. war crimes investigators said the Syrian government bore the main responsibility for preventing any attacks and reprisals in eastern Aleppo and that it must hold to account any troops or allied forces committing violations.

 In what appeared to be a separate development from the planned evacuation, the Russian defense ministry said 6,000 civilians and 366 fighters had left rebel-held districts over the past 24 hours.

 Civilians fill containers with water in a rebel-held besieged area of Aleppo, Syria December 14, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail

 A total of 15,000 people, including 4,000 rebel fighters, wanted to leave Aleppo, according to a media unit run by the Syrian government’s ally Hezbollah.

 The evacuation plan was the culmination of two weeks of rapid advances by the Syrian army and its allies that drove insurgents back into an ever-smaller pocket of the city under intense air strikes and artillery fire.

 By taking full control of Aleppo, Assad has proved the power of his military coalition, aided by Russia’s air force and an array of Shi’ite militias from across the region.

 Rebels have been supported by the United States, Turkey and Gulf monarchies, but the support they have enjoyed has fallen far short of the direct military backing given to Assad by Russia and Iran.

 Russia’s decision to deploy its air force to Syria 18 months ago turned the war in Assad’s favor after rebel advances across western Syria. In addition to Aleppo, he has won back insurgent strongholds near Damascus this year.

 The government and its allies have focused the bulk of their firepower on fighting rebels in western Syria rather than Islamic State, which this week managed to take back the ancient city of Palmyra, once again illustrating the challenge Assad faces reestablishing control over all Syria.

 FEAR STALKS STREETS

 As the battle for Aleppo unfolded, global concern has risen over the plight of the 250,000 civilians who were thought to remain in its rebel-held eastern sector before the sudden army advance began at the end of November.

 The rout of rebels in Aleppo sparked a mass flight of terrified civilians and insurgents in bitter weather, a crisis the United Nations said was a “complete meltdown of humanity”. There were food and water shortages in rebel areas, with all hospitals closed.

 On Tuesday, the United Nations voiced deep concern about reports it had received of Syrian soldiers and allied Iraqi fighters summarily shooting dead 82 people in recaptured east Aleppo districts. It accused them of “slaughter”.

 The Syrian army has denied carrying out killings or torture among those captured, and Russia said on Tuesday rebels had “kept over 100,000 people in east Aleppo as human shields”.

 Slideshow (8 Images)

 Fear stalked the city’s streets. Some survivors trudged in the rain past dead bodies to the government-held west or the few districts still in rebel hands. Others stayed in their homes and awaited the Syrian army’s arrival. ||||| BEIRUT (AP) — The Latest on the conflict in Syria, where fighting is still underway in Aleppo despite a cease-fire deal that was to allow opposition fighters and civilians to withdraw (all times local):

 1:20 p.m.

 Iran is congratulating its close ally Syria on driving rebels from Aleppo, where fighting is still underway despite a cease-fire deal that was to allow for the evacuation of opposition fighters and tens of thousands of civilians.

 Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said Wednesday that the "brave sons of the region" have forced the "mercenary terrorists" to retreat.

 Thousands of Shiite fighters from Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan are battling alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces as they near victory in Aleppo, the country's largest city and former commercial capital. Russia, another key ally, has provided airstrikes.

 Gen. Rahim Safavi, a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said that after Aleppo, "Americans have realized that the Islamic Republic of Iran is the top player in southwest Asia."

 ___

 12:40 p.m.

 Syrian activists say fighter jets have resumed bombing raids over remaining rebel areas in eastern Aleppo, further imperiling a cease-fire deal for the city.

 Media activist Mahmoud Raslan says the aircraft bombed the rebel Ansari district in the city on Wednesday.

 He says that the aircraft "began to strike as if there's no such thing as a 'cease-fire' or 'evacuation of civilians'."

 Raslan says the bombing is a de facto announcement that "they are going to kill us all."

 A member of the first responders' team in eastern Aleppo, Ibrahem al-Haj, confirmed the strikes. It was not clear whether the planes were Syrian or Russian.

 Russia and Turkey brokered a cease-fire deal to evacuate Syrian rebels and civilians from their last holdout in eastern Aleppo late on Tuesday but that appeared to be collapsing on Wednesday, according to both sides.

 ___

 11:50 a.m.

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has dismissed new Syria talks with the United States as "pointless."

 Lavrov said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies on Wednesday that Moscow has high hopes for Syria talks with Turkey and thinks they could be "more effective than many months of a pointless hangout we have had the United States."

 Lavrov has complained that every time they reach a deal, the United States "rolls back" on what has been agreed.

 Russia and Turkey have brokered a cease-fire deal to evacuate Syrian rebels and civilians from their last holdout in eastern Aleppo that seems to be unravelling on Wednesday, according to both sides.

 ___

 11:45 a.m.

 European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is appealing on the Syrian government and Russia to do their utmost to spare civilians as they prepare to capture the last rebel holdouts in the besieged city of Aleppo.

 Mogherini said in a statement on Wednesday that "the priority now, in these hours, is to protect civilians, guarantee them safe and monitored transit to a place of safety."

 She added that "this is particularly the responsibility of the Syrian government and its allies." Mogherini also warned that "those who perpetrate war crimes will be held accountable."

 ___

 11:40 a.m.

 Media reports say that buses, which were meant to evacuate rebels and tens of thousands of civilians from Syria's eastern Aleppo, have left the crossing point on the edge of the opposition enclave and returned to their depots.

 The buses' departure could signal a major delay in the evacuations and even the collapse of the cease-fire deal.

 The Lebanese channel al-Manar TV has broadcast footage showing Syrian government's green-colored buses leaving the evacuation point without any passengers on Wednesday.

 Al-Manar is the media arm of the Lebanese militant Shiite group Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's government forces in Syria.

 Shelling and rocket fire also resumed Wednesday at the edges of the opposition's one-square-mile enclave in Aleppo.

 ___

 11:15 a.m.

 A legal adviser to Syrian opposition factions says an evacuation deal for Aleppo is behind held up by Iranian fighters who have renewed shelling of the rebel part of the city.

 Shiite volunteers from Lebanon, Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan have been fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar Assad's forces. Assad is also backed by Russia, his top ally in the war.

 Osama Abu Zayd said despite Russian renewals of their commitment to the truce agreement, the Iranian field commander in Syria was obstructing the deal.

 Aby Zayd told The Associated Press on Wednesday that "it is clear that the Russians can't get Iran to abide by the deal." He says Iranian militias and Hezbollah are shelling four Aleppo neighborhoods still held by the opposition.

 Abu Zayd spoke on Wednesday from the outskirts of Aleppo. He says the Iranians are making new demands, including recovering the remains of Iranian fighters killed in Aleppo and the release of Iranian hostages held in Idlib.

 ___

 11 a.m.

 The Russian Defense Ministry says Syrian rebels in the besieged city of Aleppo have broken the latest cease-fire deal.

 The ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that the rebels "resumed the hostilities" at dawn, trying to break through Syrian government positions to the north-west.

 The ministry also says the rebels fired at a convoy that was due to depart in the early hours of the day from an eastern Aleppo neighborhood with the rebels who had agreed to be evacuated to the city of Idlib.

 Syrian rebels and civilians were expected to pull out from their last holdout in Aleppo after the remaining rebel factions the previous day reached a cease-fire deal to evacuate from eastern Aleppo.

 ___

 10:50 a.m.

 Syrian activists say shelling has resumed in the remaining rebel part of eastern the city of Aleppo, despite a cease-fire deal to allow for the evacuations of the opposition fighters and tens of thousands of civilians.

 Aleppo media activist Mahmoud Raslan says he was reporting for a Turkish agency when a rocket crashed beside him at around 10:15 a.m. on Wednesday. He shared an audio recording of the explosion with the Associated Press.

 The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says an explosion was heard in the rebel-held Saif al-Dawleh district around the same time.

 Pro-government forces have trapped thousands of civilians and gunmen in eastern Aleppo under a crushing bombardment over the past weeks as they pushed to clear the northern city of the opposition.

 The implementation of the deal struck on Tuesday to evacuate civilians and rebels from the enclave, signaling a surrender by the opposition, was delayed on Wednesday morning.

 ___

 8:50 a.m.

 The Syrian rebel pullout from their last holdout in the city of Aleppo has been delayed.

 The withdrawal was supposed to start early in the morning on Wednesday after the rebels the previous day reached a cease-fire deal to evacuate from eastern Aleppo in what is effectively a surrender — and a defining moment in Syria's civil war.

 The pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV broadcast footage of Syrian government buses idling at an agreed-on evacuation point. It's unclear what has caused the delay.

 The TV says it expects at least another couple of hours of delay. It says the buses are prepared to move 5,000 fighters and their families to Atareb, an opposition-held town in the northwestern Aleppo countryside.

 The Syrian government or the opposition haven't made any announcements about the delay. ||||| Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption Smoke is seen rising in this rebel-held area on Wednesday

 A deal to evacuate rebel fighters and civilians from eastern Aleppo has stalled, with heavy shelling reported in the Syrian city.

 A ceasefire was declared in Aleppo on Tuesday and buses brought in to ferry people out of the devastated enclave.

 But fighting resumed on Wednesday. Syrian activists also say air strikes over rebel-held territory have resumed.

 The breakdown of the deal, brokered by Russia and Turkey, is being attributed to demands from the government side.

 It is said to be seeking the evacuation of injured fighters and civilians from nearby towns encircled by opposition forces.

 The latest on the ground

 Eastern Aleppo has been held by the rebels since 2012. But they have been squeezed into ever-smaller areas in recent months by a major government offensive, backed by Russian air power.

 In recent days government troops have made sweeping gains. Russia's military said on Wednesday that rebels were confined to only 2.5sq km of the city.

 Image copyright AFP Image caption Buses were brought in for evacuations but have not been used

 Late on Tuesday, Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told an emergency session of the UN Security Council that "military actions in eastern Aleppo are over".

 Under the evacuation deal, civilians and rebels from eastern Aleppo were to be allowed to go to rebel-held areas in northern Syria.

 Evacuations had been due to start at 05:00 (03:00 GMT), but did not go ahead. Fresh shelling was reported several hours later.

 "The clashes are violent and bombardment is very heavy... it seems as though everything (the ceasefire) is finished," Rami Abdulrahman, director of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) monitoring group, said.

 The SOHR also said aircraft had resumed bombing in rebel-held areas.

 Russia - Syria's ally - said the Syrian army resumed firing after the rebels broke the truce. Syrian TV reported rebel rocket fire on government-held parts of the city and said at least six people had been killed.

 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Syrian forces of breaking the ceasefire deal and called the situation in Aleppo "very fragile". He said civilians had to be allowed to leave.

 The residents still under siege

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Bombs interrupt interview as Zouhir Alshimale, a journalist in east Aleppo, says there is nowhere to go that is safe

 Residents of besieged eastern Aleppo have faced weeks of bombardment and chronic food and fuel shortages. Medical facilities in the city have largely been reduced to rubble.

 AFP news agency reported that before the fighting had resumed, crowds of civilians, holding belongings, had gathered in the streets to await evacuation.

 Some information continues to emerge from besieged areas:

 Ibrahim Abu-Laith, a spokesman for the White Helmets volunteer rescue group, said more than 40 people were injured in eastern Aleppo

 One resident, Zohair, told the BBC there was total chaos. "We don't know how many casualties there are and if there is anyone to help them"

 "Bombing is ongoing, no one can move," one activist, Mohammad al-Khatib told AFP. "The wounded and dead are lying in the street. No one dares to try and retrieve the bodies"

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "Here comes the barrel bomb" - trapped resident Joud al-Khatib in Aleppo

 Residents say they fear reprisals from government forces or being forcibly conscripted. There have also been reports of atrocities.

 On Tuesday the UN said it had received reliable evidence of summary executions taking place, saying that in four areas 82 civilians were killed by pro-government forces. It said that many more may have died.

 Syria's government and Russia said the allegations were untrue.

 Meanwhile, the BBC has learned that Western forces are using satellites and unmanned aircraft to gather evidence of possible war crimes in Aleppo and elsewhere in Syria.

 How many people are in eastern Aleppo?

 It is not clear exactly how many people remain in besieged areas. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura put the figure at about 50,000.

 He said there were approximately 1,500 rebel fighters, about 30% of whom were from the jihadist group formerly known as the al-Nusra Front.

 Other local sources say there could be as many as 100,000 people, many of them arriving from areas recently taken by the government.

 High stakes - by Sebastian Usher, BBC Middle East analyst

 The deal to evacuate rebel fighters and civilians out of eastern Aleppo is only the latest and most complex of such arrangements. It is also the one with the highest stakes.

 Rebel-held towns in a ring around Damascus have one by one ceded in similar ways.

 The choreography often follows the same pattern, with buses waiting hours or days at evacuation points as final guarantees on both sides are hammered out. Safe passage to the rebel-held province of Idlib has also been part of such deals.

 More rarely, the agreements have involved reciprocal evacuations from government areas encircled by rebels. That now seems to have been made part of this deal, complicating it further.

 The violence has resumed, but that does not mean that the deal is off. The rebels have reached a point of no return. Many more lives may be lost in the meantime, but it is all but certain that the fighters will leave Aleppo. |||||

Write a summary.

– Looks like the "complete meltdown of humanity" in Aleppo will continue for at least another day. The ceasefire declared in the war-ravaged Syrian city Tuesday appears, to nobody's surprise, to have broken down, leaving tens of thousands of civilians in rebel-held areas stranded in desperate conditions. Reuters reports that a planned evacuation has stalled amid fierce fighting and what rebels say is a resumption of airstrikes by Russian-backed Syrian government forces. Buses that were supposed to evacuate fighters and civilians to rebel-held areas outside the city returned to their depots Wednesday morning, the AP reports. Activists say Iran-backed militias and Syrian government forces blocked the evacuation after demanding that the Russia- and Turkey-brokered deal be changed to allow the evacuation of their own injured fighters from towns in rebel-held zones, reports the BBC. "The sectarian militias want to resume the massacre in Aleppo and the world has to act to prevent this sectarian slaughter led by Iran," a member of rebel group Noureddine Zinkitells the Guardian. "The opposition will continue to abide by the agreement." Russia, which claims thousands of civilians and hundreds of fighters left the remaining rebel-held portion of Aleppo over the last 24 hours, says Syrian forces are responding to rebel attacks, and they expect resistance to end over the next two or three days.


Article:

Acting DEA chief says President Trump 'condoned police misconduct' in staff memo

 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE President Donald Trump appeared to advocate rougher treatment of people in police custody during a speech in New York. He spoke dismissively of arresting officers who protect suspects' heads while putting them in police cars. (July 28) AP

 After President Trump made controversial comments that appeared to support police violence, the acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration sent a memo instructing agents to maintain core values of respect and compassion when dealing with suspects.

 In the memo sent Saturday, acting DEA chief Chuck Rosenberg said the president had "condoned police misconduct regarding the treatment of individuals placed under arrest by law enforcement."

 Rosenberg noted that he did not want to advance any sort of agenda, nor did he believe that his agents would mistreat defendants.

 Still, he listed "core values" for agents to follow, including: rule of law, respect and compassion, service, devotion, integrity, accountability, leadership and courage and diversity.

 "This is how we conduct ourselves," Rosenberg said in a memo, provided to USA Today by a source who is not authorized to share internal communications. "This is how we treat those whom we encounter in our work: victims, witnesses, subjects and defendants. This is who we are."

 Trump last Friday told an audience of law enforcement officers in Brentwood, N.Y., not to be "too nice" when throwing "thugs" into the back of a "paddy wagon."

 “Like when you guys put somebody in the car and you’re protecting their head... I said, ‘You can take the hand away, OK?’" Trump said. Also during the speech, the president referred to members of the international MS-13 street gang as "animals" who have "transformed peaceful parks and beautiful quiet neighborhoods into blood-stained killing fields."

 After the speech, law enforcement agencies said they did not tolerate "roughing up" prisoners.

 Yet Trump spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that the president was likely joking during his speech. "I believe that he was making a joke at the time," she said.

 Attorney General Jeff Sessions, speaking Tuesday to the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, did not directly address Trump’s remarks but pledged to prosecute officers for abusing their authority.

 “We all know the cases of the last several years where, in confrontations with police, lives have been cut short,’’ Sessions said. “Just as I am committed to defending law enforcement who used deadly force while lawfully engaged in their work, I will also hold any officer responsible (for) breaking the law.

 “You and I know that all it takes is one bad officer to destroy the reputations of so many who work day in and day out to build relationships in these communities and serve with honor and distinction.’’

 Rosenberg, in his memo, told agents to "act honorably" to "earn and keep the public trust and continue to hold ourselves to the very highest standards"

 "I write because we have an obligation to speak out when something is wrong," he said. "That's what law enforcement officers do. That's what you do. We fix stuff. At least, we try."

 Read more:

 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2vqcFEy ||||| Story highlights "When you see these thugs being thrown into the back of a paddy wagon. You just see them thrown in -- rough. I said, 'Please don't be too nice,'" Trump said Friday

 DEA Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg in email to employees: "I write to offer a strong reaffirmation of the operating principles to which we, as law enforcement professionals, adhere."

 Police departments have criticized Trump's comments

 Washington (CNN) Less than 24 hours after President Donald Trump told an audience full of police officers in New York to be "rough" on suspects, the acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration sent his employees an email that rebuked the President's suggestion.

 "The President, in remarks delivered yesterday in New York, condoned police misconduct regarding the treatment of individuals placed under arrest by law enforcement," DEA Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg wrote in a message to DEA's "Global Distribution" list Saturday.

 JUST WATCHED Trump to police: Don't be too nice to suspects Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Trump to police: Don't be too nice to suspects 06:08

 "In writing to you, I seek to advance no political, partisan, or personal agenda. Nor do I believe that a Special Agent or Task Force Officer of the DEA would mistreat a defendant. I know that you would not," Rosenberg added. "So, why do I write? I write to offer a strong reaffirmation of the operating principles to which we, as law enforcement professionals, adhere. I write because we have an obligation to speak out when something is wrong. That's what law enforcement officers do. That's what you do. We fix stuff. At least, we try."

 Trump, in a speech meant to focus on effort to combat the brutal gang MS-13 Friday, told police officers to be "rough" with suspects.

 "When you see these thugs being thrown into the back of a paddy wagon. You just see them thrown in -- rough. I said, 'Please don't be too nice,'" Trump said to applause, referring to officers shielding prisoners' heads with their hands. "Like, don't hit their head and they've just killed somebody, don't hit their head. I said, 'You can take the hand away, OK?'"

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What is a summary?

– "We are not thugs. We are professionals," says the leader of a black policing group, addressing a speech in which President Trump urged officers to not be "too nice" when arresting suspects. Perry Tarrant of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives met with AG Jeff Sessions on Tuesday to discuss Trump's comments, which he said could have "potential harm … in detracting from the legitimacy [of police], and detracting from the trust that local law enforcement and communities have," per the Los Angeles Times. Sessions said he would "hold any officer responsible [for] breaking the law," noting it took "one bad officer to destroy the reputations of so many" who "serve with honor and distinction," reports USA Today. Tarrant isn't the only one with a grievance. In a Saturday memo, acting DEA chief Chuck Rosenberg said he had "an obligation to speak out when something is wrong," then addressed how the president had "condoned police misconduct regarding the treatment of individuals placed under arrest by law enforcement." Rosenberg encouraged agents to "earn and keep the public trust and continue to hold ourselves to the very highest standards." Trump has yet to elaborate on his comments made to law enforcement officers in Brentwood, NY, on Friday. At the time, he suggested officers need not shield suspects' heads when placing them in police cars. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday, per CNN, "It wasn't a directive, it was a joke."


– In every corner of the world girls do more housework than boys, and this gender gap starts young and only widens with age. So reports UNICEF in a global analysis that finds girls on average spend 40% more time on household chores than do boys, and that this amounts to 160 million more hours of work every day. The gender divide starts by age 5, with girls between the ages of 5 and 9 devoting 30% more time on this unpaid work than boys, and widens to 50% more time for girls between the ages of 10 and 14. The BBC reports that the findings, which include data on violence, child marriage, education, and female genital mutilation, is being formally released on Oct. 11, the UN's international day of the girl. Chores range from cooking and cleaning the house to taking care of family members young and old and collecting water and firewood, reports New York magazine. "As a result, girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow, and just enjoy their childhood," says UNICEF’s principal gender adviser, Anju Malhotra. She adds that the unequal distribution of unpaid labor perpetuates gender stereotypes and in some countries is shown to increase girls' risk of sexual violence. The countries with the highest gender gap are Burkina Faso, Yemen, and Somalia, and girls in Somalia average 26 hours a week on chores, more than any other children anywhere. (Women do the bulk of housework in the US, regardless of how many hours they work outside the home.)

Expand this summary.

Press release

 Girls spend 160 million more hours than boys doing household chores everyday – UNICEF

 © UNICEF/UNI133724/Holt A girl helps prepare her family’s evening meal, outside their makeshift home in the Majo camp for displaced people in Mogadishu, Somalia.

 NEW YORK, 7 October, 2016 – Girls between 5 and 14 years old spend 40 per cent more time, or 160 million more hours a day, on unpaid household chores and collecting water and firewood compared to boys their age, according to a report released by UNICEF ahead of International Day of the Girl on 11 October.

 Harnessing the Power of Data for Girls: Taking stock and looking ahead to 2030 includes the first global estimates on the time girls spend doing household chores such as cooking, cleaning, caring for family members and collecting water and firewood.

 The data show that the disproportionate burden of domestic work begins early, with girls between 5 and 9 years old spending 30 per cent more time, or 40 million more hours a day, on household chores than boys their age. The disparities grow as girls get older, with 10 to 14 year olds spending 50 per cent more time, or 120 million more hours each day.

 “The overburden of unpaid household work begins in early childhood and intensifies as girls reach adolescence,” said UNICEF’s Principal Gender Advisor Anju Malhotra. “As a result, girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow, and just enjoy their childhood. This unequal distribution of labour among children also perpetuates gender stereotypes and the double-burden on women and girls across generations.”

 The report notes that girls’ work is less visible and often undervalued. Too often adult responsibilities such as caring for family members, including other children, are imposed on girls. Time spent on chores limits a girl’s time to play, socialize with friends, study and be a child. In some countries, collecting firewood and water puts girls at risk of sexual violence.

 The report also found that:

 Girls between 10 and 14 years old in South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa spend nearly double the amount of time on household chores compared to boys.

 The countries where girls between 10 and 14 years old bear the most disproportionate burden of household chores compared to boys are: Burkina Faso, Yemen and Somalia.

 10 to 14 year-old girls in Somalia spend the most amount of time on household chores in total: 26 hours every week.

 “Quantifying the challenges girls face is the first critical step towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality and breaking down barriers that confront the world’s 1.1 billion girls,” said UNICEF Chief of Data and Analytics Attila Hancioglu.

 Harnessing the Power of Data for Girls: Taking stock and looking ahead to 2030 notes that In addition to household chores, the report presents data on girl-related issues addressed by the SDGs including violence, child marriage, female genital mutilation and education. Achieving the SDGs that address these issues and empowering girls with the knowledge, skills and resources they need to reach their full potential, is not only good for girls, but can drive economic growth, promote peace and reduce poverty

 ###

 Download broadcast quality multimedia materials here: http://weshare.unicef.org/Package/2AMZIFM2ONZ

 About UNICEF

 UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere.

 For more information about UNICEF and its work for children visit www.unicef.org

 Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

 For more information, contact

 Melanie Sharpe, UNICEF New York, +1 917-251-7670, msharpe@unicef.org ||||| Image copyright Unicef Image caption Young girls find many domestic tasks imposed on them as they grow up, Unicef says

 Girls spend 40% more time performing unpaid household chores than boys, according to a new report from the UN children's agency.

 Unicef said the difference in time spent working amounted to 160 million extra hours a day worldwide.

 Two out of three girls cook and clean in the home, and almost half collect water or firewood.

 They also perform more "less visible" domestic work like childcare or looking after the elderly, the report says.

 It also found that the extra workload increased with time: between ages five and nine, girls spend 30% more time on chores - by 14, it rises to 50%.

 African girls tell housekeeping tales

 Tasks such as gathering water or firewood can also put young girls at increased risk of sexual violence, the report says.

 In Somalia, girls between 10 and 14 years old spend 26 hours a week on household chores - the most of any country. Burkina Faso and Yemen also have some of the largest labour gaps between boys and girls.

 "Girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow and just enjoy their childhood," Unicef's Anju Malhotra said.

 "This unequal distribution of labour among children also perpetuates gender stereotypes and the double burden on women and girls across generations."

 The report, which also includes data on violence, child marriage, female genital mutilation and education, is being released to coincide with the UN's international day of the girl child on 11 October. |||||


– Actor Randy Quaid was arrested—along with his wife Evi—Friday night while trying to cross the Canadian border into Vermont, the CBC reports. According to the AP, the Quaids were detained by US Customs and Border Protection agents because they're still wanted on felony charges from 2010 in California. The couple had been hiding up north since then, but the Canadian government recently gave them until next Wednesday to get out of the country. This isn't Randy's first arrest this week. He was detained last Tuesday by Canadian officials, who thought he might try to flee rather than leave Canada, the CBC reports. The Quaids first fled to Canada in 2010 after being accused of vandalizing and squatting in the guesthouse of a home they once owned in California, the AP reports. They also claimed they were being targeted by the "Hollywood star-whackers," who they say killed their friends David Carradine and Heath Ledger. According to the CBC, Randy was denied permanent resident status in Canada in 2013 because of the California charges. Following his detention last Tuesday, he told the AP he was finally ready to return to the US to settle the vandalism charges and move on with his life. While he was unavailable for comment following his arrest in Vermont, we imagine Randy's long-awaited return to America went a little something like this.

Expand this summary.

American actor Randy Quaid and wife Evi Quaid were arrested by U.S. law enforcement Friday night as they tried to enter the United States at a border crossing south of Montreal, according to Vermont State Police.

 The Quaids were stopped around 8 p.m. while crossing into Vermont at the border point between Philipsburg, Que., and Highgate Springs, Vt.

 Both were detained on arrest warrants stemming from vandalism charges against them in California, and bail was set by a Vermont Superior Court judge for $50,000 US each.

 Evi Quaid, seen in a mugshot taken by Vermont State Police, entered a not guilty plea at her arraignment Monday morning on a charge of being a fugitive from justice. (Vermont State Police)

 While in Canada, Randy Quaid had been arrested on Tuesday by the Canadian Border Service Agency for being a potential flight risk after he attended a regular check-in as part of deportation proceedings against him. But two days later, an Immigration and Refugee Board member ruled he was not.

 The Independence Day actor was ordered to leave Canada by Oct. 14.

 The Quaids had applied for refugee status in Canada in 2010, claiming they were being persecuted in the U.S. and were possible targets of so-called "Hollywood star-whackers" who were bent on killing actors.

 Evi Quaid's father was born in Canada, and she was granted Canadian citizenship in 2012.

 Randy Quaid later withdrew his refugee claim and applied for permanent resident status. His immigration application, however, was denied in 2013 because, according to Federal Court documents, he had been accused of defrauding an innkeeper in California — an act that would be considered a Criminal Code offence in Canada.

 The Quaids had been living in Montreal since February 2013.

 The Quaids are wanted in Santa Barbara, Calif., to face felony vandalism charges filed in 2010 after they were alleged to be squatters in a guesthouse of a home they previously owned. ||||| HIGHGATE, Vt. (AP) — American actor Randy Quaid was taken into custody Friday night while trying to cross into the United States from Canada, Vermont State Police said.

 In a photo provided by the Vermont State Police, actor Randy Quaid stands in the Vermont State Police barracks in St. Albans, Vt., Friday, Oct. 9, 2015. State Police say Quaid has been taken into custody... (Associated Press)

 In a photo provided by the Vermont State Police, Evi Quaid stands in the Vermont State Police barracks in St. Albans, Vt., Friday, Oct. 9, 2015. Quaid and her husband, actor Randy Qaid, were taken into... (Associated Press)

 Actor Randy Quaid, right, is escorted into his Immigration and Refugee Board hearing in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2015. Quaid said in an interview that he could be deported from Canada next week and... (Associated Press)

 Actor Randy Quaid arrives at his Immigration and Refugee Board hearing in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2015. Quaid said in an interview that he could be deported from Canada next week and that he would... (Associated Press)

 The "Independence Day" actor was detained by troopers at the Highgate Springs port of entry days after Canadian officials said he would be deported. Quaid is wanted in Santa Barbara, California, to face felony vandalism charges filed in 2010 after he and his wife, Evi, were found squatting in a guesthouse of a home they previously owned.

 The pair skipped several court appearances and went to Canada, where Evi Quaid was granted citizenship. Randy Quaid's bid to gain permanent residency was denied.

 The 65-year-old actor said in interview with The Associated Press from a detention center in Laval, Quebec, on Wednesday that he would like to resolve his legal issues in California and "move on with my life."

 U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents detained the Quaids at the Vermont port of entry at about 8 p.m. Friday after determining they were fugitives from justice and subject to extradition, State Police said. They were taken into custody by troopers, and a judge set bail at $500,000 each. Randy Quaid was being held at the North West State Correctional Center and Evi Quaid at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility.

 Attempts to reach a current attorney for the Quaids were unsuccessful early Saturday.

 Randy Quaid's bid for permanent residency in Canada was denied in 2012, and it can take years for deportation to follow. He was arrested in Montreal in May after becoming the subject of a nationwide arrest warrant when he stopped checking in with border authorities. He later apologized and was released, with the requirement to check in every two weeks.

 The actor and his Canadian wife fled the U.S. in 2010, saying they were victims of persecution. Quaid said he was being hunted by "Hollywood star-whackers" who killed his friends David Carradine and Heath Ledger.

 The couple's current legal problems in California stem from a 2010 arrest when they were charged with trespassing and causing more than $5,000 in damage to the guesthouse of a home they once owned. They were allegedly squatting in it when they were arrested. Two days before they were charged, they traveled to Vancouver, British Columbia.

 Santa Barbara Senior Deputy District Attorney Lee Carter said Wednesday there is an active extradition order for Quaid on a felony vandalism case, and prosecutors would be seeking his extradition if he's returned to the United States. Carter said Quaid and his wife also face felony charges for failing to appear at a November 2010 court hearing while out on bail.

 Randy Quaid is the older brother of actor Dennis Quaid and is best known for his roles in films such as "National Lampoon's Vacation" and "Independence Day."

 He told the AP that the couple's behavior, statements and videos they've posted to social media, including a sex tape, are an act and a way of expressing themselves. |||||