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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 30, 2017)
5A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2017 WORLD IN BRIEF Associated Press Manafort indicted; ex-Trump aide pleads in Russia probe WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s former cam- paign chairman, Paul Manafort, and a former Manafort business associate, Rick Gates, were indicted today on felony charges of conspiracy against the United States, acting as an unregistered foreign agent, and several other financial counts involving tens of millions of dollars routed through offshore accounts. The unsealing of the indictment came the same day that Special Counsel Robert Mueller announced that a former Trump campaign aide had pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about the timing and detail of his attempts to line up meetings between Russian government officials and the Trump campaign. The plea by George Papadopoulos marked the first criminal charges that cite interactions between Trump campaign associ- ates and Russian intermediaries during the 2016 presidential campaign. The charges brought Mueller’s sprawling investigation into a new phase, with campaign aides including the man who once led the president’s campaign facing felony charges and possible prison sentences. Papadopoulos’ plea occurred on Oct. 5 and was unsealed today. In court papers, he admitted to lying about the nature of his interactions with “foreign nationals” who he thought had close connections to senior Russian government officials. Manafort’s indictment doesn’t reference the Trump campaign or make any allegations about coordination between the Kremlin and the president’s aides to influence the outcome of the election in Trump’s favor. The indictment does allege a criminal conspir- acy was continuing through February 2017. The indictment filed in federal court in Washington accused both men of funneling tens of millions of dollars in payments through foreign companies and bank accounts as part of their political work in Ukraine. Manafort and Gates surrendered to fed- eral authorities today, and were expected in court later in the day to face charges brought by Mueller’s team. Senators to press Tillerson and Mattis on new war authority WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s national secu- rity brain trust faces Congress on the need for a new war autho- rization as the deadly ambush in Niger is igniting a push among many lawmakers to update the legal parameters for combat oper- ations overseas. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Til- lerson are scheduled to testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today. They told the panel behind closed doors three months ago that a 2001 law gave the military ample authority to fight terrorist groups. But that’s a position that won’t wash with a growing number of congressional Republicans and Democrats, many of whom were startled by the depth of the U.S. commitment in Niger and other parts of Africa. They’ve argued that the dynamics of the bat- tlefield have shifted over the past 16 years and it’s well past time to replace the post-Sept. 11 authorization with a law that reflects current threats. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said last week he believed most Americans would be surprised by the extent of the operations in Africa that U.S. forces are involved in. Kaine and Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., are sponsoring legislation to install a new war author- ity for operations against the Islamic State group, al-Qaida and the Taliban. “I don’t think Congress has necessarily been completely kept up to date and the American public, I think, certainly has not,” Kaine said after leaving a classified briefing conducted by senior Pentagon officials on the assault in Niger that killed four Ameri- can soldiers. Health law sign-ups start, and some see a ‘hostile takeover’ WASHINGTON — It’s sign-up season for the Affordable Care Act, but the Trump administration isn’t making it easy — cutting the enrollment period in half, slashing advertising and dialing back on counselors who help consumers get through the process. Many people already faced fewer choices and higher premi- ums. But President Donald Trump’s decision to cancel a subsidy to insurers that lowers consumer costs compounded the turmoil, pushing premiums even higher. Add it all up and the number of uninsured people may start rising again, eroding gains that drove the uninsured rate to a his- toric low. “It certainly is a hostile takeover,” said health policy expert Joe Antos of the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute. “We are going to see a decline in enrollment. The people who will drop out in droves are the ones who are not getting a premium subsidy.” Open enrollment starts Wednesday and ends Dec. 15 in most states, a sign-up period six weeks shorter than last year’s. Ship with sailors rescued at sea reaches US base in Okinawa WHITE BEACH NAVAL FACILITY, Japan — Two women from Hawaii who were adrift on a storm-battered sailboat in the Pacific for months set foot on solid ground today at a U.S. Naval base in southern Japan. The USS Ashland rescued Jennifer Appel and Tasha Fuiava and their two dogs about 900 miles southeast of Japan, and brought them to America’s White Beach Naval Facility after wait- ing for a typhoon to pass. The two women, sporting USS Ashland knit shirts, were stand- ing with the commanding officer and others high on the bridge- way as the ship docked. They later spoke to reporters on the flight deck before clearing customs and walking down metal stairs to the dock. They had left Honolulu on May 3 aboard Appel’s 50-foot ves- sel, the Sea Nymph, for what was supposed to be an 18-day trip to Tahiti. Storms flooded the engine, destroying the starter, and dam- aged the mast so badly that they couldn’t generate enough wind power to stay on course, they said. The two women tried to return and at one point in June were within 726 nautical miles of Oahu but couldn’t make it, Appel said. Judge: Bergdahl to get fair sentence, despite Trump remarks FORT BRAGG, N.C. — President Donald Trump’s scathing criticism of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will not prevent the sol- dier from receiving a fair sentence for endangering comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan in 2009, a judge ruled today. The judge, Army Col. Jeffery Nance, said the court has not been directly affected by Trump’s remarks. Then-Republican nominee Trump repeatedly called Bergdahl a traitor on the cam- paign trial and suggested that he be shot or thrown from a plane without a parachute. Trump revived those comments when Berg- dahl pleaded guilty on Oct. 16 by saying at a news conference that he thinks people are aware of what he said before. After walking away from his post, Bergdahl was held by Taliban allies for five years. He pleaded guilty to desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. He faces a maximum of life in prison. The judge said he would consider Trump’s comments as a mitigating factor in the sentencing. Other mitigating and aggra- vating factors that he could consider include Bergdahl’s mental health and serious wounds to service members who searched for him. Also Monday, emotional testimony was expected from the wife of a seriously wounded soldier. Prosecutors said they intend to call Shannon Allen to the stand to discuss a traumatic brain injury suffered by her husband when he was shot during a search mission for Bergdahl. National Guard Master Sgt. Mark Allen was on a mission with other U.S and Afghan troops to gather information in two villages in July 2009 when they were ambushed by insurgents using small arms, machine guns and rocket propelled grenades. He suffered a traumatic brain injury that left him unable to speak, in need of a wheelchair and dependent on assistance for such everyday tasks as getting out of bed. Spacey apologizes after actor alleges past sexual advance LOS ANGELES — Actor Kevin Spacey said Sunday he is “beyond horrified” by allegations that he made a sexual advance on a teen boy decades ago. The two-time Oscar winner posted on Twitter that he doesn’t remember the encounter. “But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sin- cerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years,” he said. In an interview with BuzzFeed , actor Anthony Rapp said Spacey befriended him while they both performed on Broad- way shows. Rapp was 14 when he attended a party at Spacey’s apartment in 1986, he said. At the end of the night, an inebriated Spacey picked him up, placed him on his bed, and climbed on top of him, Rapp said. Rapp said the 26-year-old was holding him down tightly, but he was able to get away and left the apartment. Rapp, who is now 46 and starring in the TV show “Star Trek: Discovery,” said he came forward after allegations against Har- vey Weinstein sparked conversations about sexual abuse and harassment in the entertainment industry. Come Trick-or-Treat at Clatsop Care! The residents of Clatsop Care will be passing out treats from 3-5pm on Halloween Day. Please stop in and see us! 646 16 th Street, Astoria I got screened. Now it’s your turn. Gretchen Darnell Seaside, Oregon Colorectal cancer is the #2 cancer killer. But screening can prevent it or catch it early when it’s highly treatable. Talk to your doctor today about getting screened. COLORECTAL CANCER The cancer you can prevent. www.TheCancerYouCanPrevent.org A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded campaign
