A respected religious counselor in New York's ultra-orthodox Jewish community was convicted Monday of repeatedly sexually abusing a young girl who had come to him with questions about her faith.

 The Brooklyn courtroom was silent as the foreman said jurors had found Nechemya Weberman guilty of 59 counts, including sustained sex abuse of a child, endangering the welfare of a child and sexual abuse. He faces 25 years in prison on the top charge and may get more time when he is sentenced on Jan. 9.

 The 54-year-old defendant looked down as the verdict was announced and glanced briefly back at his family, who held hands, as he was handcuffed and led from the courtroom. Some of the accusers' supporters smiled quietly. The girl's mother, who was not in the courtroom at the time, said later she was weeping tears of joy, according to her friend.

 Defense lawyers said the jurors, who deliberated about half a day, did not properly grasp the complicated issues. They plan to appeal.

 "We firmly believe that the jury got an unfairly sanitized version of the facts," attorney George Farkas said. "As a result, the truth did not come out and the struggle continues in full force to free this innocent man."

 The trial put a spotlight on the insular Satmar Hasidic sect, and its strict rules that govern clothing, social customs and interaction with the outside world.

 The accuser, now 18, told authorities that Weberman abused her repeatedly behind his locked office door from the time she was 12 until she was 15. She had been ordered to see him by her school because she had been asking questions about her religion and was dressing immodestly according to the sect's customs, and she needed to be helped back on the right path. Weberman was not a licensed counselor but spent decades working with couples and families in his community.

 Assistant District Attorney Linda Weinman said Weberman abused his role as a confidant and teacher, intimidating the girl to satisfy his sexual needs.

 "The defendant took this young girl with a fiery spirit and he broke her," Weinman said.

 But there was no physical evidence regarding the suspected abuse. Defense attorney Stacey Richman said the case boiled down to a simple "he said," `'she said," and the girl was a petulant, calculating liar.

 "The only evidence in this case of sexual abuse is the word of (the girl)," Richman said. "She's making things up in front of you as they occur."

 The Associated Press typically doesn't identify people who say they are the victims of sexual assault.

 Brooklyn is home to the largest community of ultra-orthodox Jews outside Israel, more than 250,000, and the Satmar sect is one faction clustered mostly in the Williamsburg neighborhood. The group has its own ambulances, volunteer police and rabbinical courts. Women dress modestly and cover their heads. Men wear earlocks and dark clothing. Men and women rarely interact in public; in the packed courtroom, the women sat in one row and the men another even though it often meant Weberman's family sat next to supporters of the girl.

 "It's really a sad day for our community that a person did such heinous deeds," said Judy Genut, a Hasidic woman who had been to court to support the young woman. "We are a wonderful people, and a wonderful community, and this has been embarrassing."

 Questioning faith or customs is strictly forbidden, according to trial testimony, and the sect has what's known as a "modesty squad" that admonishes followers who break the rules.

 The girl, who is now married, testified for four days, chronicling abuse that she said lasted for three years. Weberman would take off her clothes and touch her, force her to perform oral sex and re-enact scenes from porn films, she said. She didn't know what to do; he was a well-respected member of the community, and she was "a piece of dirt," she said.

 "My body just froze. I didn't know how to respond," she said. "I just felt I wanted to die."

 The allegations surfaced last year when the girl told a guidance counselor at a different school that she'd been molested, and later that she was molested by Weberman. She eventually went to police.

 Weberman also testified, saying he "never, ever" abused the girl. Defense attorneys said she was angry that he had betrayed her trust, telling her parents about a boyfriend, and had conspired to help get the boy arrested. The charges were later dropped, and the girl then accused Weberman of sex abuse out of revenge, and a hatred for her community, the defense said.

 The guarded society strongly discourages going to outside authorities. The girl testified she was branded a traitor and was shunned for going to police. Her father lost his job and her nieces were kicked out of school, she said. Three men were charged with criminal contempt for photographing the girl and posting her picture online during her testimony. Before the trial, District Attorney Charles Hynes charged other men with trying to bribe her with $500,000 to drop the case.

 Genut and other supporters were doubtful that the case would make it easier for others to come forward _ but remained hopeful.

 "I don't know how it will change," Genut said.

 "There is such intimidation to sweep it under the rug," she said. "But it only takes one pioneer."

 Hynes said he hoped the courage of the girl, and the trial outcome, would encourage other victims to come forward, and he urged the Satmar community to reform its rules restricting families to go to outside authorities. He said he's not clear how widespread sexual abuse is in the community, but there was at least one more victim of Weberman's who has not come forward.

 "What the leaders have to understand is we will never get to the bottom of this until there is total cooperation," he said. ||||| On Dec. 9, Mr. Weberman was found guilty of 59 counts of sexual abuse, charges that carried a maximum combined sentence of 117 years. He was found guilty of engaging in various sexual acts, including oral sex, groping and acting out pornographic videos, during therapy sessions that were meant to help the girl become more religious. The abuse lasted three years.

 In her statement, the victim said that for years during and after the abuse, she would look in the mirror and see “a girl who didn’t want to live in her own skin.”

 “I would cry until the tears ran dry,” she said. But now, she said, she can see someone “who finally stood up and spoke out,” on behalf of both herself and “the other silent victims.”

 “You played around with and destroyed lives as if they were your toys,” she told Mr. Weberman, “without the slightest bit of mercy.”

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 Mr. Weberman, who wore his traditional black suit and head covering, did not speak before the sentencing, but his lawyer, George Farkas, said he was “innocent of the crimes charged.” An appeal is planned.

 Critics have charged Mr. Hynes with not being aggressive enough in going after molesters in the politically well-connected community. But Mr. Hynes has attributed the lack of prosecutions on the intimidation to stay silent that ultra-Orthodox sexual-abuse victims and their families often face from their own community leaders.

 Support for Mr. Weberman was strong in powerful circles of the Satmar community after his arrest in 2011, with hundreds turning out for a fund-raiser for his defense. But the courtroom on Tuesday was about equally divided between supporters for him and for his victim.

 Mr. Hynes has said he believes the case may be a turning point for ultra-Orthodox victims of sexual abuse. In addition to convicting Mr. Weberman, his office also charged seven Hasidic men with bribery and intimidation of Mr. Weberman’s victim, who testified over four days. Prosecutors say they know of more victims who were too afraid to testify.

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 “If there is one message to take away from this case, it is that this office will pursue the evil of sexual abuse of a child no matter where it occurs in this county,” Mr. Hynes said in a statement. “The abuse of a child cannot be swept under the rug or dealt with by insular groups believing only they know what is best for their community.”

 The victim, who has since married and enrolled in college, no longer lives in Williamsburg but continues to face harassment and intimidation by some who still support Mr. Weberman, according to her husband.

 “She definitely feels relieved, and she will be able to sleep better at night,” the husband said Tuesday. “He definitely won’t be able to hurt anyone else.” |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– Nechemya Weberman, an unlicensed therapist and powerful member of the Hasidic Jewish community of Brooklyn, will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars after being convicted of 59 counts of sexual abuse yesterday, reports the New York Times. After days of testimony from a victim who says she was repeatedly abused by Weberman starting when she was 12, a judge sentenced him to 103 years in prison, just short of the 117-year maximum. During her testimony, the victim, now 18, told Weberman that he "played around with and destroyed lives as if they were your toys, without the slightest bit of mercy.” Weberman's crimes included various sexual acts with minors, sometimes during therapy sessions under the guise of helping girls become more religious. The case is the first in two decades Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes has brought against a member of the Satmar ultra-Orthodox community. While many criticize Hynes for not being aggressive enough toward Hasidic abusers, he says the self-silencing culture of the Satmar community is to blame. The case has divided the community, even leading to violence against a victim advocate.


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 USDA and EPA Join with Private Sector, Charitable Organizations to Set Nation's First Food Waste Reduction Goals

 NEW YORK, Sept. 16, 2015 – Today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Environmental Protection Agency Deputy Administrator Stan Meiburg announced the United States' first-ever national food waste reduction goal, calling for a 50-percent reduction by 2030. As part of the effort, the federal government will lead a new partnership with charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, the private sector and local, state and tribal governments to reduce food loss and waste in order to improve overall food security and conserve our nation's natural resources. The announcement occurs just one week before world leaders gather at the United Nations General Assembly in New York to address sustainable development practices, including sustainable production and consumption. As the global population continues to grow, so does the need for food waste reduction.

 "The United States enjoys the most productive and abundant food supply on earth, but too much of this food goes to waste," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "An average family of four leaves more than two million calories, worth nearly $1500, uneaten each year. Our new reduction goal demonstrates America's leadership on a global level in in getting wholesome food to people who need it, protecting our natural resources, cutting environmental pollution and promoting innovative approaches for reducing food loss and waste."

 Food loss and waste in the United States accounts for approximately 31 percent—or 133 billion pounds—of the overall food supply available to retailers and consumers and has far-reaching impacts on food security, resource conservation and climate change. Food loss and waste is single largest component of disposed U.S. municipal solid waste, and accounts for a significant portion of U.S. methane emissions. Landfills are the third largest source of methane in the United States. Furthermore, experts have projected that reducing food losses by just 15 percent would provide enough food for more than 25 million Americans every year, helping to sharply reduce incidences of food insecurity for millions.

 "Let's feed people, not landfills. By reducing wasted food in landfills, we cut harmful methane emissions that fuel climate change, conserve our natural resources, and protect our planet for future generations" said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. "Today's announcement presents a major environmental, social and public health opportunity for the U.S., and we're proud to be part of a national effort to reduce the food that goes into landfills."

 Ongoing federal initiatives are already building momentum for long-term success. In 2013, USDA and EPA launched the U.S. Food Waste Challenge, creating a platform for leaders and organizations across the food chain to share best practices on ways to reduce, recover, and recycle food loss and waste. By the end of 2014, the U.S. Food Waste Challenge had over 4,000 active participants, well surpassing its initial goal of reaching 1,000 participants by 2020.

 In addition to the U.S. Food Waste Challenge, USDA has unveiled several food loss reduction initiatives over the past few years, including an app to help consumers safely store food and understand food date labels, new guidance to manufacturers on donating misbranded or sub-spec foods, and research on innovative technologies to make reducing food loss and waste cost effective. USDA will build on these successes with additional initiatives targeting food loss and waste reduction throughout its programs and policies.

 In addition, today, USDA is launching a new consumer education campaign through its Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion with information on food loss and waste facts and reduction tips. Moreover, a new section on ChooseMyPlate.gov will educate consumers about reducing food waste to help stretch household budgets.

 USDA and EPA will also continue to encourage the private sector—food service companies, institutions, restaurants, grocery stores, and more—to set their own aggressive goals for reducing food loss and waste in the months ahead. Organizations such as the Consumer Goods Forum, which recently approved a new resolution to halve food waste within the operations of its 400 retailer and manufacturers members by 2025, are helping to lead the way.

 The United States is leading global efforts to address the threat of climate change. The first-ever national food waste goal is just one part of the Obama Administration's commitment to protecting our environment for future generations. Since President Obama took office in 2009, the United States has increased solar generation by more than ten-fold, tripled electricity production from wind power, and reduced greenhouse gas pollution in the United States to its lowest levels in nearly 20 years. By setting achievable environmental goals, this Administration is making strides to help boost the economy and protect the health of American families for the long-term.

 #

 USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users). ||||| In a first-of-its-kind announcement, the Obama administration has set a goal to cut food waste in half by 2030. (Photo: BRIAN RAY, AP)

 As part of its effort to act against climate change, the Obama administration has taken a sweeping stance to reduce food waste by 50% in the next 15 years.

 The announcement Wednesday from the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency is a continuation of efforts in recent years to educate consumers about food date labels and safe food storage, as well as partnerships with food companies to address food insecurity and help figure out how to reduce the billions of pounds of food that go to landfills.

 The average American family of four throws away an estimated $1,500 worth of food every year, and overall, retailers and consumers waste nearly a third of the country's food supply, according to government data. The 133 billion pounds of food that end up sitting in landfills each year also releases methane gas as it rots, which contributes to Earth's warming. Meanwhile, 14% of U.S. households are considered food insecure — they don't have enough food to sufficiently feed themselves.

 "By reducing wasted food in landfills, we cut harmful methane emissions that fuel climate change, conserve our natural resources and protect our planet for future generations," said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy in a statement.

 According to the agencies, even reducing food waste by 15% would save enough food to feed more than 25 million people each year.

 As part of the initiative, the USDA said it's launching a consumer education campaign, including tips on how to reduce waste, and is partnering with food-service companies and state and local governments, among others, to carry out the plan. Food companies, including grocery chain Albertson's, grocery-delivery service FreshDirect and food services company Sodexo, expressed their support — Albertson's said that it's working to divert food to hunger-relief organizations and repurposing scraps and leftovers for things like animal feed.

 Research has shown that common reasons for food waste include consumer concerns about eating fresh and safe food. But those use-by and sell-by dates on food packages can be misleading. Sell-by dates are solely for the use of grocers to know how long to display a product for, while use-by dates refer to peak food quality, the USDA says. But once either date passes, it doesn't necessarily mean food is bad or unsafe to eat.

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1KgLQBh |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– The amount of perfectly good food that Americans throw away every year is enough to feed dozens of smaller countries, and the federal government says it's time to cut the waste dramatically. We throw away around a third of our food, and the USDA and EPA have partnered with private sector groups to announce the first-ever target for reducing food waste, which amounts to around 133 billion pounds a year in the US, NPR reports. The agencies want to cut waste by 50% by 2030, largely by scaling up existing initiatives to educate consumers on avoiding waste and to divert more food to hungry Americans. The US "enjoys the most productive and abundant food supply on earth, but too much of this food goes to waste," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says in a press release. "An average family of four leaves more than two million calories, worth nearly $1,500, uneaten each year." EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy adds: "Let's feed people, not landfills," warning that the staggering amounts of food that end up in landfills are a major cause of greenhouse gas emissions. The USDA says part of the plan will involve teaching consumers that food is often still good to eat after the "sell by" date and the "use by" date on packaging, reports USA Today. (Advocates want a national standard for the "haphazard" and "almost completely arbitrary" system of expiration dates.)


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– The top speed of a giant tortoise on dry land, according to Gizmodo, is about 0.17mph. That turned out to be great news for Japan's Shibukawa Animal Park, which had a 121-pound Aldabra giant tortoise named Abuh escape earlier this month. Channel News Asia reports Abuh is allowed to wander around the zoo during operating hours. But on Aug. 1, the 35-year-old tortoise wandered right on out, according to the Asahi Shimbun. Aldabra giant tortoises can survive for months without food or water, but the zoo was anxious to have Abuh back and was offering a $4,500 reward for her safe return. The Asahi Shimbun reports Abuh was returned Wednesday after a family spotted her on a steep hill in a forest 160 feet or so from the zoo. But Channel News Asia states the tortoise was found in some bushes nearly 500 feet from the zoo. Regardless, Abuh didn't make it far. The zoo says she appears healthy and has been eating pears and watermelon since her return. "We were so relieved that she came back safely as she is so popular among children," zoo staffer Yoshimi Yamane says, per Gizmodo. Yamane says the zoo will try to take steps to prevent Abuh from escaping in the future, as this was actually her second disappearing act in a month.

TOKYO: A giant tortoise that made a break from a Japanese zoo has been found safe and sound two weeks after it escaped - just 140 metres from the park.

 The 35-year-old female, named Abuh and measuring around one metre (three feet) in length, steamed out of the Shibukawa Animal Park in Okayama prefecture in early August having been allowed to walk freely around the zoo during opening hours.

 Zoo keepers, unable to trace the truant tortoise, offered a reward of ¥500,000 (US$4,500) for her safe return.

 Their plan proved a success when a sharp-eyed local bounty hunter spotted the roaming reptile in nearby shrubbery.

 A giant female tortoise named Abuh who made a break from a Japanese zoo has been found safe and sound two weeks after she escaped - just 140 metres from the park. (Photo: AFP/Handout)

 "We were so relieved that she came back safely as she is so popular among children," said zoo staffer Yoshimi Yamane, describing Abuh - who weighs 55 kilogrammes (121 pounds) - as having a "gentle" disposition.

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 "We will try to take new measures so that this won't happen again," Yamane added, without giving details.

 The incident was the second time in less than a month that Abuh had disappeared. Her return home to the zoo was a top item on a TV news bulletin by Japan's public broadcaster NHK. ||||| TAMANO, Okayama Prefecture--A female Aldabra giant tortoise named “Abu,” missing for two weeks, was found by a family at a forest near Shibukawa Zoo on the afternoon of Aug. 16.

 The zoo had been looking for the escaped Abu from Aug. 1, but no solid leads had been reported. As a result, the zoo had been prepared to offer a cash reward of 500,000 yen ($4,500) for her safe return.

 On Aug. 16, Abu was discovered in a forest about 50 meters from the entrance of the zoo, on top of a steep slope.

 According to Shibukawa Zoo officials, the family from Okayama city found Abu and came to the zoo at around 2 p.m. to report finding her.

 Abu is doing fine and has a healthy appetite after two weeks in the wild, eating pears and watermelon given by zoo staff.

 “I was relieved that Abu was discovered safely,” said a zookeeper. “She might have climbed a mountain, making a big detour.”

 The free-range tortoise, from one of the largest tortoise species in the world, is described as about 1 meter in length and weighs about 55 kilograms. She can travel at a full speed of 1 kph.

 Aldabra giant tortoises, which thrive in the summer heat, can survive for months without food or water. ||||| A female Aldabra giant tortoise named Abuh who had escaped from a Japanese zoo earlier this month has been found just a few steps away from the facility. Which got us wondering: Just how far could a 121 pound tortoise travel in 16 days?

 As reported in ChannelNewsAsia, Abuh made her daring escape on August 1st, breaking free from the Shibukawa Animal Park in Okayama prefecture. The zookeepers had been allowing the 121-pound tortoise to walk freely through the park during opening hours, a policy shift that Abuh seems to have exploited.

 After a failed search to find the missing reptile, the zoo offered a reward of 500,000 yen ($4,500) to anyone who could find her. This strategy apparently worked as a “sharp-eyed local bounty hunter” located the tortoise in nearby shrubbery a mere 140 meters (460 feet) from the zoo. Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun is reporting a different story, claiming that Abuh was discovered by a family in a forest just 50 meters (165 feet) from the entrance of the zoo on top of a steep slope. After spotting the tortoise, the family from Okayama city went to the zoo to report their discovery.

 Regardless, of which version is true, it’s clear that Abuh didn’t venture very far from the zoo, most likely because she didn’t really want to, or because she somehow couldn’t. Tortoises may be slow, but given the amount of time Abuh was free, she could have traveled an impressive distance.

 The maximum speed for giant tortoises on dry land is about 0.17 miles per hour (.027 km/hr), which means the most she could have traveled in the 16 days, or 384 hours, she was missing is about 65 miles. But that bit of math assumes she didn’t didn’t stop to sleep at night, or take the time during the day to eat and cool down. So, if we allow for six hours of sleep and about three hours for eating and cooling, that brings her total estimated and potential travel time down to 240 hours. At full travel tilt, that equates to 40 miles (64 km). Not bad. In the real world, experiments have shown that marked tortoises can travel eight miles (13 km) in two to three days. Extrapolating from these figures, a tortoise could conceivably travel 43 miles (69 km), which is pretty close to my back-of-a-napkin estimate.

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 All that said, Abuh is now back in the hands of her handlers and doing quite well, munching on pears and watermelons as if nothing happened.

 “We were so relieved that she came back safely as she is so popular among children,” said zoo staffer Yoshimi Yamane in ChannelNewsAsia. “We will try to take new measures so that this won’t happen again.”

 Seems like a good plan. This is apparently Abuh’s second escape attempt in as many months.

 [AFP via Channel NewsAsia, The Asahi Shimbun] |||||


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BEIJING — The United States and China are the world’s two largest economies, two largest consumers of energy, and two largest emitters of greenhouse gases. Together we account for about 40 percent of the world’s emissions.

 We need to solve this problem together because neither one of us can solve it alone. Even if the United States somehow eliminated all of our domestic greenhouse gas emissions, it still wouldn’t be enough to counteract the carbon pollution coming from China and the rest of the world. Likewise, even if China went down to zero emissions, it wouldn’t make enough of a difference if the United States and the rest of the world didn’t change direction.

 That’s the reality of what we’re up against. That’s why it matters that the world’s most consequential relationship has just produced something of great consequence in the fight against climate change.

 Today, President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping are jointly announcing targets to reduce carbon emissions in the post-2020 period. By doing this – together, and well before the deadline established by the international community – we are encouraging other countries to put forward their own ambitious emissions reduction targets soon and to overcome traditional divisions so we can conclude a strong global climate agreement in 2015.

 Our announcement can inject momentum into the global climate negotiations, which resume in less than three weeks in Lima, Peru, and culminate next year in Paris. The commitment of both presidents to take ambitious action in our own countries, and work closely to remove obstacles on the road to Paris, sends an important signal that we must get this agreement done, that we can get it done, and that we will get it done.

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 This is also a milestone in the United States-China relationship, the outcome of a concerted effort that began last year in Beijing, when State Councilor Yang Jiechi and I started the United States-China Climate Change Working Group. It was an effort inspired not just by our shared concern about the impact of climate change, but by our belief that the world’s largest economies, energy consumers and carbon emitters have a responsibility to lead.

 The targets themselves are also important. Ambitious action by our countries together is the foundation to build the low-carbon global economy needed to combat climate change. The United States intends to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 – a target that is both ambitious and feasible. It roughly doubles the pace of carbon reductions in the period from 2020 to 2025 as compared to the period from 2005 to 2020. It puts us on a path to transform our economy, with emissions reductions on the order of 80 percent by 2050. It is grounded in an extensive analysis of the potential to reduce emissions in all sectors of our economy, with significant added benefits for health, clean air, and energy security.

 Our target builds on the ambitious goal President Obama set in 2009 to cut emissions in the range of 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. We are on track to meet that goal, while creating jobs and growing the economy, with the help of a burgeoning clean energy sector. Since the president took office, wind energy production has tripled and solar energy has increased by a factor of ten. This summer, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed the first carbon pollution standards for existing power plants, which account for a third of United States carbon pollution.

 The Chinese targets also represent a major advance. For the first time China is announcing a peak year for its carbon emissions – around 2030 – along with a commitment to try to reach the peak earlier. That matters because over the past 15 years, China has accounted for roughly 60 percent of the growth in carbon dioxide emissions world-wide. We are confident that China can and will reach peak emissions before 2030, in light of President Xi’s commitments to restructure the economy, dramatically reduce air pollution and stimulate an energy revolution.

 China is also announcing today that it would expand the share of total energy consumption coming from zero-emission sources (renewable and nuclear energy) to around 20 percent by 2030, sending a powerful signal to investors and energy markets around the world and helping accelerate the global transition to clean-energy economies. To meet its goal, China will need to deploy an additional 800 to 1,000 gigawatts of nuclear, wind, solar and other renewable generation capacity by 2030 – an enormous amount, about the same as all the coal-fired power plants in China today, and nearly as much as the total electricity generation capacity of the United States.

 There is no question that all of us will need to do more to push toward the de-carbonization of the global economy. But in climate diplomacy, as in life, you have to start at the beginning, and this breakthrough marks a fresh beginning. Two countries regarded for 20 years as the leaders of opposing camps in climate negotiations have come together to find common ground, determined to make lasting progress on an unprecedented global challenge. Let’s ensure that this is the first step toward a world that is more prosperous and more secure. ||||| The United States and China are pledging to move faster to reduce or limit emissions of heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming. China and the U.S. are the world's two largest polluters, and by taking action together, leaders from both countries hope to spur other nations to be equally aggressive as they work to finalize a worldwide climate treaty next year.

 What both countries are announcing, according to the White House:

 UNITED STATES

 —Reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 26 percent to 28 percent by the year 2025, compared to what the U.S. was emitting in 2005. Previously, Obama had committed to cutting emissions by 17 percent by 2020 compared to 2005 levels, and officials say the U.S. is on track to meet that goal.

 —Double the rate at which the U.S. is reducing its emissions per year. Between 2005 and 2020, the U.S. on average must cut emissions 1.2 percent per year to meet Obama's overall goal of 17 percent. Over the five years between 2020 and 2025, the U.S. aims to reduce emissions and average of 2.3 percent to 2.8 percent per year.

 —Submit the new 2025 emissions reduction target by the end of the first quarter of 2015 as the intended U.S. contribution to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, the treaty that nations hope to finalize later in 2015 in Paris.

 CHINA

 —Set a target for carbon dioxide emissions to peak by around 2030, with the goal of topping out earlier if possible.

 —Expand the share of China's energy consumption derived from zero-emission sources to about 20 percent by 2030. The U.S. says that would require China to develop up to 1,000 gigawatts of new power from sources like nuclear, wind and solar. |||||

– The US and China rank as the world's two largest polluters, but a surprise deal is turning them into the world's two largest pollution fighters: The nations announced that they'll be working in tandem on long-term greenhouse-gas controls that would cut emissions by nearly a third over the next 15 years or so, CNN reports. "As the world's two largest economies, energy consumers, and emitters of greenhouse gases, we have a special responsibility to lead the global effort against climate change," President Obama said in a joint press conference with Chinese President Xi Jinping today at the end of the APEC summit. The move, which was months in the making, came as a surprise to experts expecting a much more limited scope, the Wall Street Journal reports. Calling it a "game changer," Mother Jones notes that it could heavily influence next year's climate talks in Paris. Key mandates include the US reducing emissions by 26% to 28% by the year 2025 (compared to the year 2005), as well as doubling the rate of emissions reduction each year between 2020 and 2025 to an average 2.3% to 2.8%, the AP reports. China is pledging to stop increasing emissions by 2030 (even earlier, if possible), as well as increase energy from zero-emission sources such as wind, solar, and nuclear to 20% by 2030. Although some worry about recent GOP gains in government as a possible roadblock, a senior administration official tells CNN that "we believe we can proceed with the authority we already have." Secretary of State John Kerry writes in a New York Times op-ed that "this is … a milestone in the United States-China relationship," a "fresh beginning," and "the first step toward a world that is more prosperous and more secure."


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Decades from now, cinephiles will look back on the early 2000s as the Superhero Era — and they’ll be able to pinpoint the moment when the bubble burst. As with all trends, it’s only a matter of time. It happened with film noir and then westerns, it happened to the spy movies of the 1960s, and then to the gritty crime dramas of the ’70s.

 And that’s why Warner Bros.’ plan to produce 10 DC Comics movies between 2016 to 2020 seems so short-sighted. The company is so focused on dethroning Marvel as the reigning box office champ that it’s missing the big picture: Superheroes may be invincible on screen, but their popularity won’t last forever. And the upcoming glut of movies might just speed their demise.

 The saturation is no joke. Studios have already slated 22 titles over the next five years, not including the handful Marvel has promised with release dates but without any details. That also doesn’t count second cousins like the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” sequel and “The Lego Batman Movie” in 2017. The spandex industry must be thrilled.

 Can this man rescue Warner Bros.? Henry Cavill plays Superman in “Man of Steel.” (AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures, Clay Enos)

 While Marvel has enjoyed hit after hit, from “Iron Man” to “Guardians of the Galaxy,” Warner Bros. has had a spotty past with its DC Comics adaptations. Batman and Superman can deliver predictably big box-office numbers, but beyond those guys, all bets are off. Remember the “Catwoman” catastrophe of 2004? Not to mention the two consecutive bombs “Jonah Hex,” in 2010, and “The Green Lantern” the following year.

 Warner Bros. is doubling down on its golden boys: In addition to “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” with Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne, Warner plans to release two other Justice League movies. The directive is clear: Replicate the success of Marvel’s “Avengers” franchise, and pray that Affleck doesn’t pull a Clooney.

 The 2016 release of “Suicide Squad” is another copycat move. The comic book features a crew of antiheroes, who are sprung from jail to become covert operatives for the good guys. Sound familiar?

 Here’s the problem: The great asset of Marvels movies like “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Iron Man” and “Captain America” is their sense of humor. Warner’s superheroes lean much more somber. And the fact that David Ayer, the man behind dark action films like “Fury” and “Training Day,” is set to direct “Suicide Squad” doesn’t suggest a fun romp.

 Marvel’s casting has also been exceptional. Warner Bros., meanwhile, is betting big on newcomers. First there’s Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman — and, credit where it’s due, good for them for finally making a female superhero movie. Also noteworthy: Warner has hired openly gay actor Ezra Miller to star in “The Flash” (to be released in 2018). Though acclaimed for “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” few multiplex-goers know who he is. Jason Momoa, the “Game of Thrones” warlord lined up to play Aquaman, has only slightly better name recognition. Though, hey, at least there’s Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson cast as Black Adam in “Shazam.” In other news, Warner will reboot “Green Lantern,” in 2020, not even a decade after the Ryan Reynolds incarnation bombed. If at first you don’t succeed. . .

 Director James Gunn brings "Guardians of the Galaxy" that follows a motley team of otherworldly misfits, including a talking raccoon, led by Chris Pratt's character. The film opens Friday. . (Walt Disney Pictures)

 Of course, the superhero genre might hang on for another decade. Westerns delighted audiences for ages. But box office numbers overall are down for the year. “Guardians of the Galaxy” is the number one movie so far, but with a little more than $326 million, that’s not as impressive as last year’s top superhero movie, “Iron Man 3” ($409 million), which wasn’t even number one domestically. “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” brought in more than $424 million. How many more times will people pay to see Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark or a muscled Hugh Jackman with mutton chops as Wolverine?

 It looks like Warner Bros. is running hard to catch up when it might be smarter to focus on the next big thing. ||||| Well played, Warner Bros. Just when everyone thinks that Robert Downey Jr.’s potential return as Tony Stark is the biggest news of the week—well, if someone can return before they’ve actually left, considering he’s still signed up for the next two Avengers movies—you go and drop the names, dates, and casting announcements for no fewer than 10 movies during a conference call. Well played indeed. Here are the highlights of the week’s superhero movie news.

 SUPER IDEA: Warner’s Making a Lot of Superhero Movies Over The Next Five Years

 Warner Bros. has finally unveiled plans for its DC Comics properties on the big screen. We all knew that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was coming in 2016, but during a conference call yesterday Warners CEO Kevin Tsujihara announced it’ll be joined by a Suicide Squad movie directed by David Ayer. In 2017, there will be a solo Wonder Woman movie and the first of two Justice League movies. The following year Warner Bros. will release The Flash and Aquaman, with Ezra Miller and Jason Momoa in the lead roles, respectively. In 2019, we’ll get Shazam and Justice League Part Two (Really, that’s the title), with 2020 offering up a new Green Lantern movie and a solo Cyborg movie, starring Ray Fisher. Yes, we’re already talking about movies that’ll be coming out six years from now.

 Why this is super: Beyond the simple fact of Warner’s stepping up and declaring its intentions, there’s a lot to unpack here. Warner Bros. has beaten Marvel to the punch of not only a solo female-led superhero movie, but also superhero movies with non-white leads: Aquaman and Shazam, and possibly even Green Lantern, depending which Lantern they choose to focus on. More to the point, the scale of this announcement shows that Marvel will very soon have a serious competitor in the superhero movie business, one that’s in it for the long haul and may even outpace Marvel in terms of production. The official announcement of these movies hinted that even more DC projects could be revealed for the time period, including solo Batman and Superman projects. The race is on. Or, rather, it will be on in 2016.

 SUPER IDEA … MAYBE: Captain America 3 Will Have Cap Take on Iron Man

 So it turns out that Robert Downey Jr. might not be making a fourth Iron Man movie—because he’s actually in talks to appear in the third Captain America instead … as the bad guy, oddly enough. According to Variety, the Marvel movies are expected to follow the direction of the 2006 comic book series Civil War, with Stark and Cap coming to blows over whether or not superheroes should register their identities with authorities. (This is a heavy-handed gun control metaphor, everyone.)

 Is this super?: On the plus side: More Robert Downey Jr. playing himself in a suit of superheroic armor! On the slightly more ambivalent side: There’s a risk in bringing the Civil War storyline to movies, and not just because the comic book was about as subtle as someone dropping an anvil on your head. For one thing, it arguably turned Iron Man into a bad guy and turned many readers against him for awhile, and that seems like a road that movie audiences might not appreciate. For another, do we really want to see another movie where Cap fights against a corrupt system he’s already entirely complicit with, using only his unshakable moral system, chiseled jaw, and utter lack of personality? Wasn’t that exactly what happened last time, as good as it was? For now, let’s chalk it up to “To Be Continued,” instead of passing judgment. Isn’t that how superhero stories should end, anyway?

 SUPER IDEA: Michael Keaton Becoming Batman Again

 In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Michael Keaton said he’d play Bruce Wayne again “in a heartbeat”—as long as Tim Burton was directing. “He started everything, and some of the guys who have done these movies since then don’t say that, and they’re wrong,” Birdman star added.

 Why this is super: There are many who feel that Christopher Nolan did the best Batman movies, but Burton definitely made the most interesting ones (Batman Returns, anyone?). The idea of Burton and Keaton re-teaming now to do another one is very exciting indeed, even if it is almost entirely unlikely to happen considering that whole Ben Affleck thing. But we can dream…

 SUPER IDEA: Hawkeye In A Solo Movie? Sure, Why Not?

 During a Reddit AMA, Jeremy Renner backtracked on earlier comments about his Marvel character going it alone. “Am I interested?” he wrote in response to the prospect being raised. “Always have been interested. I always love Clint, and in the last Avengers: Age of Ultron, we got to dive into him some more. Very excited about the outcome of it, and where it can go in the future.” It’s ultimately up to Marvel, he said. “It all comes down to … how the puppeteers at Marvel can manifest a story that’s worthy of a solo movie. Not sure what that is, or how that is, but I’m confident they can do whatever they want, if they want to do it.”

 Why this is super: If someone at Marvel Studios hasn’t thought about trying to adapt Matt Fraction and David Aja’s Hawkeye series for the big screen yet, we’d be very surprised. And if they haven’t, it’s clearly time to start.

 SUPER IDEA: Darkness. No Parents.

 Nevermind all the other DC news: A movie featuring Will Arnett’s Lego Batman is being fast-tracked, according to reports. It’s going to be directed by Chris McKay, who was the animation supervisor on The Lego Movie, with that movie’s writers acting as executive producers. It’s likely to hit theaters in 2017.

 Why this is super: If you saw The Lego Movie, you know why. If you didn’t, then you should really watch The Lego Movie, because it is—if you’ll pardon the cliche—awesome. More importantly, you’ll get to meet the none-more-dark Batman, who is as vain, lacking in self-awareness, and hilarious as you’ve always suspected the Dark Knight would be. More of that just might be the best movie news of the year. |||||

– News that Warner Bros. is planning no fewer than 10 DC comics movies in the next six years is great news for superhero fans, yes? No, writes Stephanie Merry at the Washington Post. In fact, the announcement might just herald the end of the genre. "Decades from now, cinephiles will look back on the early 2000s as the Superhero Era—and they’ll be able to pinpoint the moment when the bubble burst," she writes of the studio's announcement. This kind of bubble-bursting happens with any film trend, from film noir to westerns to spy movies, and the move by Warner Bros. seems likely to speed things up. The studio is desperately trying to overtake Marvel (Iron Man, Guardians of the Galaxy) as king of the superhero flicks, but in doing so it will only worsen the glut of such movies, writes Merry. People are going to get bored. "It looks like Warner Bros. is running hard to catch up when it might be smarter to focus on the next big thing," she concludes. Those looking for antidote to the skepticism can check out Graeme McMillan at Wired, who loves most of the new DC Comics lineup. With Wonder Woman, for example, "Warner Bros. has beaten Marvel to the punch of not only a solo female-led superhero movie, but also superhero movies with non-white leads: Aquaman and Shazam." Taken as a whole, the 10-movie schedule is, in a word, "super," and the heightened competition could lead to bigger, better movies from both studios. Click for McMillan's full column, or for Merry's full column.


Here is a news article: More than 400 people say they got sick after eating at an Ohio Chipotle. Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

 More than 400 people said they fell ill after eating at an Ohio Chipotle that is thought to be at the center of an illness outbreak, according to a website that tracks foodborne illnesses.

 A total of 228 reports have been made to the website iwaspoisoned.com suggesting that 418 customers have fallen sick after eating at a Powell, Ohio, Chipotle since Friday, according to Patrick Quade, the website's founder. The restaurant's address is 9733 Sawmill Pkwy.

 The website saw a surge in reports after Business Insider's article late Monday revealing that Chipotle had shut down the restaurant over reports that customers had fallen ill. The site allows users to self-report suspected foodborne illnesses. Chipotle shares fell more than 3% in after-hours trading Monday.

 The local health department, called the Delaware General Health District, is investigating the possible illness outbreak. The agency said Thursday that it has received 518 inquiries — including 95 emails and 423 calls — related to the possible illness outbreak, according to Traci Whittaker, a spokeswoman for the Delaware General Health District.

 "The Health District food inspection team inspected the restaurant this afternoon," Whittaker said in an email to Business Insider on Tuesday. "Based on the food protection procedures followed by the facility, the inspection team found no reason for the facility to not reopen."

 She said 33 stool sample kits were delivered Tuesday to people that reported illness.

 Chipotle shut down the Powell restaurant on Monday over reports of customer and employee illnesses.

 "We take all claims of food safety very seriously and we are currently looking into a few reports of illness at our Powell, Ohio, restaurant," Chipotle spokeswoman Laurie Schalow told Business Insider on Monday. "We are not aware of any confirmed foodborne illness cases, and we are cooperating with the local health department."

 The Delaware General Health District said it received illness reports from seven customers on Sunday and Monday. In response, health officials arrived at the Chipotle restaurant on Monday for an inspection and found the restaurant closed.

 Health officials then discussed the illness complaints with the company and discovered that Chipotle had also received four to five illness complaints from customers. Chipotle management said it was unable to get in touch with the health department to report the illnesses.

 Chipotle also told health officials that two to five staff members called off work citing illness on Sunday and Monday.

 Chipotle voluntarily closed the Ohio restaurant Monday for deep cleaning and removal of all exposed foods and single-use equipment, the company said. The company planned to reopen the restaurant on Tuesday. ||||| Location: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Sawmill Parkway, Powell, OH, USA

 Report Type: Food Poisoning

 Symptoms: Diarrhea

 Details: My husband and I at at the Powell chipotle on our way home from zoombeezi bay. He had a Chicken Burrito and I had a Chicken bowl. We both had said last night that it was awful, no flavor but after spending the day in the sun at the park we were hungry and ate it on our way home anyway. I would say about mid morning is when the diarrhea started. Over the last few hours the stomach Cramps have been more painful. My husband came home from work and he was telling me that his stomach was tore up all day as well. Then as I was scrolling through Facebook I saw the news article that there were several reports from people that ate there yesterday as well!! ||||| Avocado lovers rejoice, because when you visit Chipotle on Tuesday, you won’t hear the dreaded words “Guac is extra.”

 In honor of National Avocado Day on July 31, Chipotle is handing out guacamole on the house. In order to redeem the deal, customers must purchase an entrée through the mobile app or online and use the promo code AVOCADO at check out. You can choose to redeem the free guac as an add-on, a side item or as a regular order of chips and guac.

 “Our fresh, homemade guacamole has a massive fan following,” Chris Brandt, chief marketing officer at Chipotle, said in a statement. “We want to show our love for the avocado and reward our customers’ guac obsession.”

 While free guac is a one-day-only deal, the burrito chain recently announced their plans to make permanent changes to their restaurants in a quest to make Chipotle a “lifestyle brand,” Thrillist reports. The overhaul includes new menu items like quesadillas, nachos and milkshakes and a possible happy hour for half-off margaritas and beer.

 Want the ultimate dish on the latest celebrity food news, plus exclusive recipes, videos and more? Click here to subscribe to the People Food newsletter.

 Chipotle isn’t the only restaurant giving away free food for the national holiday on Tuesday. Fast-casual chains Honeygrow and Minigrow are offering avocado as a free add-on topping for their stir-fries and salads through the mobile app or the QR code here. ||||| The Chipotle at 9733 Sawmill Parkway in Powell was closed Monday following multiple complaints of food making customers sick.

 The illness reports come from Iwaspoisoned.com, a website that consumers use to lodge complaints of what they believe to be foodborne illness.

 The website, which is run by Patrick Quade, has six reports, alleging 12 people became sick this past weekend after eating at the store. Three of the complaints were filed Monday, two on Sunday and one is from Saturday. One of the complaints said a family of four ate there this weekend and three of them became ill.

 Chipotle said they are investigating the reports and said that the store was closed Monday. Chipotle plans to reopen the location Tuesday.

 Get breaking news sent to you. Sign up for our breaking news email.

 "We take all claims of food safety very seriously, and we are currently looking into a few reports of illness at our Powell, Ohio, restaurant," said Laurie Schalow, chief communications officer for Chipotle.

 "We are not aware of any confirmed foodborne illness cases, and we are cooperating fully with the local health department.

 Iwaspoisoned.com collects complaints from consumers on possible food poisoning cases and screens the reports for authenticity, Quade said. The site then uses the information to pinpoint what might be bigger problems with a particular location. Iwaspoisoned.com helped figure out the major outbreak at Chipotle locations in 2015.

 The Chipotle store in Powell was last inspected by the Delaware General Health District on Thursday. The report cited two critical violations — one was for pinto and black beans that were not held at a high enough temperature, and one for cut lettuce that was not properly cooled after preparation. Both violations were corrected that day, according to the report.

 On a positive note, the report from Thursday also said, "Observed great hand-washing while on site."

 Chipotle has battled food safety concerns since 2015 when hundreds of people were sickened across the country, but mainly in Boston and California. In response Chipotle made changes to the way it handles its ingredients, but food-safety issues have lingered for the chain.

 jmalone@dispatch.com

 @j_d_malone |||||
A summary of this is?

– Food safety concerns are once again plaguing Chipotle: Consumer complaints filed on IWasPoisoned.com—a website that tracks possible food poisoning cases and helped reveal a 2015 E. coli outbreak at Chipotle locations—suggest close to 200 people have fallen ill after eating at a Ohio restaurant, per Business Insider. The location at 9733 Sawmill Parkway in the Columbus suburb of Powell closed Monday based on "a few reports of illness," with a rep noting "we are not aware of any confirmed foodborne illness cases," reports the Columbus Dispatch. The number of reports has since ballooned to 182 as of this writing, with most describing multiple people with nausea and diarrhea. In one case, a family of six, including four kids ages 1 to 8, describes coming down with food poisoning symptoms after "celebrating completion of the summer reading program with the coupons provided as prizes." Per the Dispatch, a Thursday health inspection at the location found pinto and black beans weren't kept at a high-enough temperature, while lettuce wasn't appropriately chilled. The inspection report noted both issues were corrected the same day, though Chipotle, whose shares fell more than 3% in after-hours trading Monday, says it's doing a deep cleaning of the restaurant anyway. Still have an appetite? You can add guacamole to your Chipotle order for free Tuesday in honor of National Avocado Day, People reports.


Write a summary based on this article:

Focused crawls are collections of frequently-updated webcrawl data from narrow (as opposed to broad or wide) web crawls, often focused on a single domain or subdomain. ||||| House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., leaves a meeting with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and and members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, hoping to construct a legislative replacement... (Associated Press)

 WASHINGTON (AP) — The top House and Senate Democrats said Wednesday they had reached agreement with President Donald Trump to protect thousands of younger immigrants from deportation and fund some border security enhancements — not including Trump's long-sought border wall.

 The deal announced by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi following a White House dinner would enshrine protections for the nearly 800,000 immigrants brought illegally to this country as kids who had benefited from former President Barack Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. The program provided temporary work permits and protection from deportation.

 Trump ended the program earlier this month and had given Congress six months to come up with a legislative fix before the statuses of the so-called "Dreamers" begin to expire.

 "We agreed to enshrine the protections of DACA into law quickly, and to work out a package of border security, excluding the wall, that's acceptable to both sides," Pelosi and Schumer said in a joint statement.

 It was the second time in two weeks that Trump cut out Republicans to reach a deal with Pelosi and Schumer. A person briefed on the meeting, who demanded anonymity to discuss it, said the deal specifies bipartisan legislation called the DREAM Act that provides eventual citizenship for the young immigrants.

 The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but said in its own statement that the president had had "a constructive working dinner" with Schumer, Pelosi and administration officials "to discuss policy and legislative priorities," including DACA.

 "This is a positive step toward the President's strong commitment to bipartisan solutions for the issues most important to all Americans," the White House said.

 During a White House meeting with moderate House members from both parties earlier Wednesday, Trump had urged lawmakers to come up with a bipartisan solution.

 "We don't want to forget DACA," Trump told the members at the meeting. "We want to see if we can do something in a bipartisan fashion so that we can solve the DACA problem and other immigration problems."

 The apparent deal is the latest example of Trump's sudden pivot to bipartisanship after months of railing against Democrats as "obstructionist." He has urged them to join him in overhauling the nation's tax code, among other priorities.

 Trump, who was deeply disappointed by Republicans' failure to pass a health care overhaul, infuriated many in his party when he reached a three-month deal with Schumer and Pelosi to raise the debt ceiling, keep the government running and speed relief to states affected by recent hurricanes.

 "More and more we're trying to work things out together," Trump explained Wednesday, calling the development a "positive thing" for both parties.

 "If you look at some of the greatest legislation ever passed, it was done on a bipartisan manner. And so that's what we're going to give a shot," he said.

 The "Kumbaya" moment now appears to extend to the thorny issue of immigration, which has been vexing lawmakers for years. Funding for Trump's promised wall had been thought to be a major point of contention between Republicans and Democrats as they attempted to forge a deal.

 White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said earlier Wednesday that Trump was "committed to the wall. It doesn't have to be tied to DACA but its important and he will get it done."

 House Speaker Paul Ryan, who also sat down with Pelosi to talk immigration Wednesday, said during an AP Newsmaker interview that deporting the so-called "Dreamers" was "not in our nation's interest," and said the president had "made the right call."

 "I wanted him to give us time. I didn't want this to be rescinded on Day One and create chaos," Ryan said, arguing the time would allow Congress to "come up with the right kind of consensus and compromise to fix this problem."

 __

 Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Ken Thomas contributed to this report.

 ___

 Follow Colvin on Twitter at https://twitter.com/colvinj ||||| Democratic leaders announced late Wednesday that they agreed with President Trump to pursue a legislative deal that would protect hundreds of thousands of young undocumented immigrants from deportation and enact border security measures that don’t include building a physical wall.

 The president discussed options during a dinner at the White House with Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that also included talks on tax reform, infrastructure and trade. Trump has showed signs of shifting strategy to cross the aisle and work with Democrats in the wake of the high-profile failures by Republicans to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

 “We’re working on a plan for DACA,” Trump said as he left the White House on Thursday for a trip to survey hurricane damage in Florida.

 Trump said that he and Congress are “fairly close” to a deal and that Republican leaders Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.) and Sen. Mitch McConnell (Ky.) are “very much on board” with a deal that would address DACA. The agreement must include “massive border security,” Trump said in response to shouted questions about whether he had reached a deal on the terms Schumer and Pelosi had described.

 “The wall will come later” he said, apparently confirming a central element of the Democrats’ account.

 Earlier Thursday, amid backlash from conservative supporters, Trump had sought Thursday to reach out to his GOP base with messages claiming his agenda would remain intact on signature issues such as the border wall.

 In a series of tweets, Trump wrote that “no deal” was made on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, an Obama-era program that has allowed 690,000 dreamers to work and go to school without fear of deportation. He further wrote that agreements on “massive border security” would have to accompany any new DACA provisions, and insisted that “the WALL will continue to be built.”

 But he again put lawmakers on notice that he favors some protections for the so-called “dreamers.”

 “Does anybody really want to throw out good, educated and accomplished young people who have jobs, some serving in the military?” Trump wrote in back-to-back tweets. Really! … They have been in our country for many years through no fault of their own — brought in by parents at young age. Plus BIG border security.”

 The WALL, which is already under construction in the form of new renovation of old and existing fences and walls, will continue to be built. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 14, 2017

 A possible alliance between Trump and the Democrats on immigration would represent a major political gamble for a president who made promises of tougher border control policies the centerpiece of his campaign and pledged to build a “big, beautiful wall” along the U.S.-Mexico border. A majority of Republicans, especially in the House, have long opposed offering legal status, and a path to citizenship, to the nation’s more than 11 million undocumented immigrants.

 In a sign of the potential trouble for the president, Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), an immigration hard-liner and early Trump supporter, wrote that if reports of a potential immigration deal are accurate, the president’s “base is blown up, destroyed, irreparable, and disillusioned beyond repair. No promise is credible.”

 President Trump meets Sept. 6 with Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and other congressional leaders in the Oval Office of the White House. (Evan Vucci/AP)

 Trump has vacillated over the fate of the dreamers, who have lived in the country illegally since they were children. Under mounting pressure from the right, Trump moved two weeks ago to begin dismantling the program.

 In announcing the decision, the president made clear that he expected Congress to pursue a plan to protect the DACA recipients, offering a six-month delay until their two-year work permits begin to expire in March.

 In a statement, the White House described the meeting as “constructive” and said the administration “looks forward to continuing these conversations with leadership on both sides of the aisle.”

 A similar positive readout was given by Schumer, who said Thursday that he expected White House to “support enshrining the DACA protections into law.”

 “What remains to be negotiated are the details of border security with a mutual goal of finalizing all the details as soon as possible,” Schumer said during a Senate floor speech. “While both sides agreed that the wall would not be part of this agreement, the president made clear he intends to pursue it at a later time and we made clear that we will continue to oppose it.”

 “Details will matter, but it was a very, very positive step” to have Trump agree to seek legal protections for “dreamers.”

 Schumer noted that lawmakers have in the past supported a bipartisan plan to spend billions of dollars on border security technology to track illegal border crossings and to hire more U.S. Border Patrol agents.

 He dismissed talk of a border wall as “A ‘Game of Thrones’ idea for a world that is closer to ‘Star Wars.’”

 Congressional aides familiar with the exchange said that Trump and the party leaders agreed to move quickly on legislation to protect dreamers, though aides did not disclose whether they agreed that the goal should be for dreamers to eventually be offered a path to citizenship.

 In a statement, Schumer and Pelosi said they had “a very productive meeting at the White House with the President. The discussion focused on DACA. We agreed to enshrine the protections of DACA into law quickly, and to work out a package of border security, excluding the wall, that’s acceptable to both sides.”

 In a letter to her Democratic colleagues in the House, Pelosi said she hoped the deal could be done “in a matter of weeks.”

 White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed that DACA and border security were discussed, but she said excluding border wall funding from a package deal was “certainly not agreed to.”

 While DACA and border security were both discussed, excluding the wall was certainly not agreed to. — Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) September 14, 2017

 Earlier in the day, Trump held a bipartisan meeting with a group of House members. Afterward, several Democrats involved in those talks said the president also had made clear that he did not expect border wall funding to be included in a legislative deal on the dreamers. They said Trump was not giving up on the wall but that he emphasized the money could be added to another bill, though he was not specific.

 “He said, the wall doesn’t have to be necessary,” Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Tex.) told reporters at the White House. “He said we’re going to add [wall funding] somewhere else. … We’ve told him we don’t want to tie this [together]. He said, ‘DACA, we’re going to do it early. We’re going to do some kind of border security.’ He brought up the wall. He said that doesn’t have to be on this DACA bill.”

 Democrats, and some Republicans, have resisted funding for a wall, saying such a structure is not worth the billions of dollars it would cost.

 Breitbart, the conservative news outlet headed by former Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon, called reports of an immigration deal a “full-fledged cave” by Trump on “amnesty” for the dreamers.

 Sens. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) have introduced legislation, called the Dream Act, that would offer dreamers a path to citizenship. The number of undocumented immigrants that would potentially be covered by that bill, however, is expected to be far larger than the number of those who have DACA protections, a prospect that would probably engender more Republican opposition.

 Cuellar said that he told Trump the Dream Act has sufficient bipartisan support to pass and that the White House should be pushing for a vote. Trump, Cuellar said, told the group: “Oh, it will be on the floor.”

 But Trump also instructed Democrats to consider tougher restrictions on legal immigration, including provisions of a bill called the Raise Act, introduced by Republican Sens. Tom Cotton (Ark.) and David Perdue (Ga.), which would slash legal immigration levels by half over the coming decade. Immigrant rights groups are strongly opposed to such measures, but Trump endorsed that legislation during an appearance with the GOP senators at the White House last month.

 And Republican leaders are already wary of the spending agreement Trump brokered with Democrats last week on a three-month spending plan to raise the debt ceiling and keep the government funded.

 Pelosi and Ryan met earlier Wednesday to begin discussing the broad parameters of the forthcoming immigration debate. Ryan’s team signaled that despite the administration’s eagerness to quickly seal the deal, it will take awhile.

 AshLee Strong, Ryan’s spokeswoman, said that regarding the plight of the dreamers, the speaker “reiterated that any solution needs to address border security and enforcement, which are the root causes of the problem. Discussions among the Republican conference will continue in the coming weeks.”

 Ryan is already facing growing pressure from House conservatives who have begun to question his leadership and have even floated names of possible replacement as speaker. An agreement between Trump and Democrats on a bill to protect dreamers could potentially put Ryan in the position of having to decide whether to bring it for a vote with the prospects that it might pass with more Democratic support than among the GOP.

 Brian Murphy and Anne Gearan contributed to this report. |||||

– In a move that stunned many Republicans, Democratic leaders announced Wednesday night that they had reached a deal with President Trump to protect Dreamers from deportation in return for funding extra border security—but not a wall. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi announced the deal after a White House dinner, the AP reports. "We agreed to enshrine the protections of DACA into law quickly, and to work out a package of border security, excluding the wall, that's acceptable to both sides," they said in a joint statement. A source says the deal also includes a pathway to citizenship for the almost 800,000 young immigrants involved. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that DACA and border security were discussed at the meeting, though "excluding the wall was certainly not agreed to," the Los Angeles Times reports. This is the second time in two weeks that Trump has bypassed Republicans to cut a deal with Democrats and immigration hardliners are furious over what they see as an amnesty, the Washington Post reports. If reports of the deal are true, Trump's "base is blown up, destroyed, irreparable, and disillusioned beyond repair," said GOP Rep. Steve King. "No promise is credible." Breitbart.com called the deal a "full-fledged cave" and dubbed the president "Amnesty Don."


Summarize this article:

Image copyright AP Image caption The raid on Wprost's offices by a prosecutor was broadcast live by several TV channels in Poland

 Poland's justice minister has said a controversial raid to find leaked tapes that embarrassed the government "should have never taken place".

 Marek Biernacki said the raid on the offices of a news magazine had raised "legitimate concerns".

 Wprost published an alleged private conversation in which Poland's top banker discusses the next election with a minister.

 Under Polish law, the central bank must remain independent of politics.

 Transcripts of the recordings, made at a restaurant in Warsaw popular with politicians, were published earlier this week.

 In the recording, Interior Minister Bartlomiej Sienkiewicz is allegedly heard talking to Marek Belka, head of the National Bank of Poland.

 Mr Belka is apparently heard calling for Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski to be removed in return for the bank's support in the event of an economic crisis.

 Mr Rostowski was replaced four months later - but Prime Minister Donald Tusk denies this was as a result of the taped discussion.

 Image copyright AP Image caption PM Donald Tusk said if "the crisis in confidence" continues there would have to be a snap election

 Mr Tusk backed both men on Monday and said the leaked recordings were "an attempt at a coup d'etat, bringing down the Polish government by illegal means".

 A prosecutor, accompanied by state security agents, raided the magazine's offices overnight on Wednesday and its editor said "physical force" had been used in an attempt to seize his laptop.

 Justice Minister Marek Biernacki said the prosecutors' actions could be considered as "too far-reaching" and raise "legitimate concerns about breaching of journalistic confidentiality".

 Michal Krolikowski, the Justice Ministry's undersecretary of state, added to the criticism, saying there had been "several legal deficiencies and some errors" in the operation.

 The emergence of the tapes and the government's handling of the situation has put Mr Tusk under severe pressure.

 On Thursday he said "the only solution" would be a snap election if "the crisis in confidence" continued.

 Mr Tusk and his centre-right coalition won a second term in office at the October 2011 parliamentary election. ||||| In an episode that was also highly embarrassing to Mr. Tusk’s government, prosecutors raided the offices of Wprost last week and tried to seize the editor in chief’s laptop. The subsequent siege was broadcast on live television, and security agents were forced to leave empty-handed, though the newspaper later turned over copies of the taped conversations to the authorities.

 “I am especially concerned about the lack of clarity as to who did the recordings,” said Andrew Michta, a professor of international studies at Rhodes College in Memphis, who has extensive experience in Central and Eastern Europe. “And also why they surfaced now, at a time of significant shifts in regional security, when Poland is making key decisions on defense, military modernization and working to increase U.S. and NATO military presence in the country.”

 Rumors have been flying in Warsaw about who might be behind the electronic eavesdropping, which appears to have been underway for more than a year. Potential suspects include political enemies, disgruntled security operatives or Russian agents releasing the tapes now in reaction to Poland’s hard-line on Ukraine.

 At first, Wprost would not say how it had obtained the recordings, but on Sunday it said that the tapes had been provided by a “businessman.”

 Aleksander Smolar, the president of the Stefan Batory Foundation, which advocates for open government and civic issues, said the timing of the conversation was critical to understanding the comments in it.

 While still maintaining a strongly pro-American position, Poland’s top officials had worried in recent years about the United States’ interest in deepening its commitment to regional security. But Russia’s annexation of Crimea turned that attitude around, Mr. Smolar said, as shown by President Obama’s warm reception in Warsaw this month.

 Mr. Sikorski’s comments, if they are accurately depicted in the excerpt, were a reflection of that earlier frustration, Mr. Smolar said. |||||

– A man who sounds a lot like Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski doesn't mince words about his feelings toward the US—and his fellow Poles—in a boozy, secretly recorded backroom chat obtained by Polish magazine Wprost. The man the magazine identifies as Sikorski says the "Polish-American alliance isn't worth anything. It is even harmful because it creates a false sense of security," the AP reports. We are "suckers, total suckers," the man continues. "The problem in Poland is that we have shallow pride and low self-esteem." The magazine shook Polish politics last week with the release of a recording of the country's interior minister and the chief of the central bank discussing how the bank could help the governing party win elections this year. The new recording—apparently made before the Ukraine crisis—drags the scandal into foreign policy at a critical time and the magazine says it will release full transcripts today, reports the New York Times. The magazine, which says the recordings were obtained from a businessman, was raided last week by prosecutors who tried to seize the editor-in-chief's laptop. The government later admitted there had been "legal deficiencies" and the raid should never have happened, the BBC reports.


Write a summary based on this article:

Colbert joke prompts thousands of FCC complaints from all political stripes

 Disgruntled viewers of Stephen Colbert’s late-night show on CBS complained to the FCC that a sexually explicit joke about President Donald Trump and his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin is “beneath the dignity of American broadcasting,” and urged the agency to sanction the network.

 A sample of the more than 5,700 complaints that flooded the agency since Colbert’s joke on the May 1 episode of “The Late Show” included concerns about indecency, hate speech and homophobia from across the political spectrum. Colbert used a crude term to refer to a metaphorical sexual relationship between the U.S. and Russian presidents in a monologue on Trump’s first 100 days in office.

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 The FCC, in response to a POLITICO Freedom of Information Act request, released samples of the complaints, with the names of the people who submitted them redacted but their geographic locations intact. The agency provided the first 100 complaints received between May 2 and May 17.

 Parents complained about answering questions from their kids, while one viewer thanked God “my children, elderly parents, and other loved ones did not see the dispicable (sic) display of vitriol that spewed from his hateful mouth!”

 Some viewers argued that Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama wouldn’t be the butt of a similar joke, and complained that Trump was unfairly targeted by the media.

 “I know all you Commie shills hate this president but it is your job to keep these Leftists from dragging this nation further into the gutter,” one complaint from St. Petersburg, Fla. said.

 Several raised qualms about what they viewed as the homophobic nature of the joke: “By using accusations of being gay as an insult, it implied that there is something wrong with being gay,” an Urbana, Ill. viewer wrote.

 “There is nothing wrong with two men who love each other,” one complaint, from a trans man who identifies as homosexual, said. “I don't like Trump but I also don't like anti-homosexual comments being aired for millions of people to see. I have to say, shame on you for allowing this.”

 “I really thought we left this kind of bigotry in the wastebin of history,” a New York City viewer said. “Instead I have to endure it during dinner with me and my husband's son.”

 Many of the complaints called for fines against Colbert and CBS, but lawyers familiar with the FCC’s indecency and obscenity rules say that’s not going to happen.

 FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has said the agency is reviewing the complaints. Such a review is standard protocol for the FCC, and doesn’t imply the complaints have merit. Pai declined to give an update on the review when asked Thursday at a press conference following a commission meeting.

 The number of complaints about Colbert's joke is dwarfed by the more than half a million the agency received over Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" during the halftime show of the 2004 Super Bowl on CBS.

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 The FCC’s indecency rules apply to broadcasts between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., and even then, they prohibit material that “depicts or describes sexual or excretory organs or activities in terms patently offensive,” as measured by the community standards.

 Andrew Schwartzman, an attorney with Georgetown University’s Institute for Public Representation, pointed out that what Colbert said was bleeped out, and even if it wasn’t, it would probably pass the FCC’s indecency test.

 But that doesn’t matter because "The Late Show" airs at 11:30 p.m., in what’s known as the safe harbor, where the rules are looser because children are presumed to be asleep. The FCC would have to prove the joke was obscene, and as broadcast attorney David Oxenford wrote in a blog post on the subject, “for a program to be obscene, it needs to be really bad.”

 “A television program like that in question here is never going to be found obscene — the words describing the specific sexual act itself was bleeped out of the broadcast, the description was not designed to appeal to prurient interests (sexual interests — it was not delivered in such an explicit way as to appeal solely to sexual interest), and it did have social significance — it was delivered in a politically motivated statement,” Oxenford wrote. “Under these circumstances, the extremely rigorous obscenity test simply would not be met.”

 Schwartzman was even more blunt, “There is zero chance the FCC would even dream of bringing a obscenity case against this. ... There is less than zero chance it could succeed.” ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. |||||

– Stephen Colbert's well-covered joke about President Trump, Vladimir Putin, and oral sex has netted more than 5,700 complaints to the FCC since the May 1 episode of The Late Show. Upon request from Politico, the FCC released the first 100 of those complaints, which center on hate speech, indecency, and homophobia and come from both liberals and conservatives. One viewer was thankful their "children, elderly parents, and other loved ones" didn't hear the joke. Another told the FCC: "It is your job to keep these Leftists from dragging this nation further into the gutter." Most of the complaints advocated for a fine against Colbert. FCC chairman Ajit Pai says they are reviewing the complaints, but that doesn't mean the complaints have merit. A lawyer tells Politico there's "zero chance" the FCC brings an obscenity case against Colbert and a "less than zero chance" such a case would be a success. Colbert is also unlikely to face punishment from CBS. Both the late-night host and network chairman Les Moonves joked about the situation during a CBS upfront presentation Wednesday in New York, the Los Angeles Times reports. "There's only one word to describe this president, and the FCC has asked me not to use it anymore," Colbert said following a song-and-dance number. Moonves added The Late Show is very popular with "FCC investigators 18 to 49."