7A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2018
WORLD IN BRIEF
Associated Press
Ex-Trump campaign
adviser to be sentenced
in Russia probe
WASHINGTON — George Papadopoulos,
the Trump campaign adviser who triggered the
Russia investigation, will find out today whether
he will go to prison for lying to the FBI.
Papadopoulos is set to be sentenced in federal
court in Washington, where special counsel Rob-
ert Mueller’s team is pushing for a prison sen-
tence of up to six months, while defense attor-
neys are asking for probation.
Papadopoulos, who served as a foreign policy
adviser to President Donald Trump’s campaign,
has been a central figure in the Russia investi-
gation dating back before Mueller’s May 2017
appointment. He was the first to plead guilty in
Mueller’s probe and is now the first Trump cam-
paign adviser to be sentenced. His case was also
the first to detail a member of the Trump cam-
paign having knowledge of Russian efforts to
interfere in the 2016 presidential election while
it was ongoing.
Memos authored by House Republicans and
Democrats, now declassified, also show informa-
tion about Papadopoulos’ contacts with Russian
intermediaries triggered the FBI’s counterintel-
ligence investigation in July 2016 into poten-
tial coordination between Russia and the Trump
campaign. That probe was later taken over by
Mueller.
He admitted last year to lying to the FBI about
those contacts. In court papers filed ahead of the
sentencing, prosecutors say those lies caused
irreparable harm to the investigation during its
early months.
Teacher strikes,
unrest hit West Coast
as unions flex muscle
SEATTLE — Fights over teacher salaries and
working conditions are escalating along the West
Coast, emboldened in part by the momentum
from widespread teacher strikes in more conser-
vative states.
The teachers in these blue states — with
robust teachers’ unions, the right to strike and
legislatures that are generally more supportive of
education funding — are tapping into a shift in
public sentiment that supports better wages for
teachers that came as a result of the “Red4Ed”
protest movement that began earlier this year.
The latest disputes are particularly acute in
Washington, a state that has infused at least $1
billion for teacher pay to resolve a long-running
court battle. With students returning to school in
the last few weeks, teachers in at least 18 pub-
AP Photo/Noah Berger
A firefighter works to control a backfire in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest.
California fire keeps
I-5 closed for 3rd day
WEED, Calif. — Interstate 5 usually swarms with trucks and traffic as it winds its way
through California.
But the main highway between Mexico and Canada was a ghost road this morning along
a 45-mile northern stretch that remained closed since a fire two days earlier swept down and
turned hills on either side into walls of flame.
Drivers fled in terror and several big-rigs burned Wednesday as the fire erupted on both
sides of the artery. Crews managed to remove the burned hulks and abandoned rigs on Thurs-
day but flames continued to burn along an edge of the road in some areas, fire spokesman Bran-
don Vacarro said.
A decision was expected today on whether to reopen the highway, but first authorities had to
check the safety of the pavement and cut down burned trees next to the road — some of them
70 feet tall — that might be in danger of falling down.
The fire had burned more than 34 square miles of timber and brush and prompted evacua-
tion orders for scattered homes and buildings in three counties in and around the Shasta-Trin-
ity National Forest. At times, flames shot up 300 feet high.
Truckers who rely heavily on the I-5 to transport timber and other goods along the West
Coast had the unenviable choice of waiting or taking a jammed detour that added 115 miles or
so to their journeys over steep hills.
lic school districts so far have voted to authorize
a strike, gone on strike or settled their strikes in
order to get pay raises.
In California, teachers in the Los Angeles
Unified School District also voted last week to
authorize a strike, although a walkout isn’t immi-
nent. The union and district in the nation’s sec-
ond-largest school system have failed to reach an
agreement on pay raises, smaller class sizes and
other issues. Both sides have filed charges against
the other and a state mediation session is sched-
uled Sept. 27.
The Washington teachers’ union said it has
been fighting for schools funding for more than
a decade, and that the timing of their latest con-
tract and strike discussions was coincidental to
the national teacher uprising.
Defense secretary
makes surprise visit
to war-weary Kabul
KABUL, Afghanistan — Defense Secretary
James Mattis made a surprise visit to Afghani-
stan’s war-shattered capital today, just days after
a suicide bomber killed 21 people in the city and
wounded 90 others.
Accompanied by Gen. Joseph Dunford, chair-
man of the joint chiefs of staff, Mattis met with
senior government officials, including Presi-
dent Ashraf Ghani and his leadership partner in
the often fractious government, Chief Executive
Abdullah Abdullah. Security featured prominently
in their discussions, as did government attempts to
put the brakes on runaway government corruption.
Mattis also assured the Afghan leadership
that the United States was committed to stay the
course in Afghanistan until the country is secure
and stable.
There was no indication either from the Afghan
government or the U.S. military command of a
change in strategy that might bring about greater
security or how the existing strategy might bring
about results.
Mattis’ visit to Afghanistan, which lasted a lit-
tle more than six hours, comes amid brutal assaults
against the country’s minority Shiites and a fresh
round of insider attacks this week that have
claimed the life of one American service member
and eight local police.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced
this week the appointment of Zalmay Khalilzad
as Washington’s new point man for Afghan rec-
onciliation. Khalilzad, a controversial figure in the
region, is a former envoy to Afghanistan.
Senate begins final day
of Supreme Court
nominee hearings
WASHINGTON — Senators began the fourth
and final day of hearings for Supreme Court nom-
inee Brett Kavanaugh today, but with the nomi-
nee finished answering questions the day they
seemed unlikely to alter his path to confirmation.
Senate Democrats worked into the night
Thursday in a last, ferocious attempt to paint
Kavanaugh as a foe of abortion rights and a likely
defender of President Donald Trump. But after
two marathon days in the witness chair in a Sen-
ate hearing room, Kavanaugh appeared on his
way to becoming the court’s 114th justice.
The 53-year-old appellate judge stuck to a
well-rehearsed script throughout his testimony,
providing only glimpses of his judicial stances
while avoiding any serious mistakes that might
jeopardize his confirmation. In what almost
seemed like a celebration Thursday, Kavanaugh’s
two daughters returned to the Senate Judiciary
Committee hearing room for the final hours of tes-
timony, accompanied by teammates on Catholic
school basketball teams their father has coached.
On the schedule today are more than two
dozen witnesses on both sides of the nomina-
tion fight. Democratic witnesses include John
Dean, Richard Nixon’s White House coun-
sel who cooperated with prosecutors during the
Watergate investigation, and Rochelle Garza, the
legal guardian for a pregnant immigrant teenager
whose quest for an abortion Kavanaugh would
have delayed last year.
THANK YOU,
seaside!
Hood To Coast / Portland To Coast Relays would like to thank the City of Seaside, Seaside
Fire and Rescue, Seaside Police Department, and Seaside Chamber of Commerce for
hosting the 37th HTC/PTC Relays Finish Party. Your beautiful city and county were on
display this year for participants from all 50 U.S States and 43 countries. We would also
like to thank Clatsop County public safety, residents, and businesses for your patience
and support. $19,000 will again be donated to Seaside Parks and Recreation.
With more than 60,000 individuals visiting Seaside for The Hood and Portland To Coast
Relays, this visit represents a first impression to a captive audience that very often leads
to future visits for these individuals and their families. This is an economic impact that
goes beyond measure and one that can very often be a lifelong development of future
memories in your town.
Additionally, participants raised a record amount of over $850,000, which benefits
Providence Cancer Institute and their continuous efforts to find a cure for cancer.
Thank you Seaside, for supporting the race for 29 years in your community! We look
forward to many more fantastic race finishes in Seaside. Special thanks to all the
amazing charities on course; runners and walkers loved everything you provided, and
we hope you continue to raise money for your
charities in future years.
Looking forward to seeing you all in 2019!