4A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2018
WORLD IN BRIEF
Associated Press
Democratic senators
sue over Whitaker’s
appointment as AG
WASHINGTON — Three Senate Democrats
filed a lawsuit today arguing that Acting Attor-
ney General Matthew Whitaker’s appointment
is unconstitutional and asking a federal judge to
remove him.
The suit, filed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal of
Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Shel-
don Whitehouse of Rhode Island, argues that
Whitaker’s appointment violates the Constitution
because he has not been confirmed by the Senate.
Whitaker was chief of staff to Attorney Gen-
eral Jeff Sessions and was elevated to the top job
after Sessions was ousted by President Donald
Trump on Nov. 7.
The Constitution’s Appointments Clause
requires that the Senate confirm all principal offi-
cials before they can serve in their office.
The Justice Department released a legal opin-
ion last week that said Whitaker’s appointment
would not violate the clause because he is serv-
ing in an acting capacity. The opinion concluded
that Whitaker, even without Senate confirmation,
may serve in an acting capacity because he has
been at the department for more than a year at a
“sufficiently senior pay level.”
“President Trump is denying senators our
constitutional obligation and opportunity to
do our job: scrutinizing the nomination of our
nation’s top law enforcement official,” Blumen-
thal said in a statement. “The reason is simple:
Whitaker would never pass the advice and con-
sent test. In selecting a so-called ‘constitutional
nobody’ and thwarting every senator’s constitu-
tional duty, Trump leaves us no choice but to seek
recourse through the courts.”
Yemeni rebels say they
will halt rocket fire at
Saudi Arabia
SANAA, Yemen — Yemen’s Shiite rebels
said today that they will halt rocket fire into Saudi
Arabia for the sake of peace efforts, answering a
key Saudi demand in the latest push to stop the
civil war in the Arab world’s poorest country.
But the rebels also said they had fired a bal-
listic missile into Saudi Arabia overnight in
response to an attempted border incursion and a
Saudi airstrike, and that they reserved the right to
respond to attacks.
For the past three years, a U.S.-backed, Sau-
di-led coalition has been waging war against the
Iran-aligned rebels, known as Houthis, to restore
Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
The rebels say they have long been excluded
AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd
Demonstrators clash with police outside a migrant shelter Sunday as they protest
the presence of thousands of Central American migrants in Tijuana, Mexico.
Tijuana protesters chant ‘Out!’
at migrants camped in city
TIJUANA, Mexico — Hundreds of Tijuana residents congregated around a monument in
an affluent section of the city south of California on Sunday to protest the thousands of Central
American migrants who have arrived via caravan in hopes of a new life in the U.S.
Tensions have built as nearly 3,000 migrants from the caravan poured into Tijuana in recent
days after more than a month on the road, and with many more months ahead of them while they
seek asylum. The federal government estimates the number of migrants could soon swell to 10,000.
U.S. border inspectors are processing only about 100 asylum claims a day at Tijuana’s main
crossing to San Diego. Asylum seekers register their names in a tattered notebook managed by
migrants themselves that had more than 3,000 names even before the caravan arrived.
On Sunday, displeased Tijuana residents waved Mexican flags, sang the Mexican national
anthem and chanted “Out! Out!” in front of a statue of the Aztec ruler Cuauhtemoc, 1 mile from
the U.S. border. They accused the migrants of being messy, ungrateful and a danger to Tijuana.
They also complained about how the caravan forced its way into Mexico, calling it an “inva-
sion.” And they voiced worries that their taxes might be spent to care for the group.
Most of the migrants who have reached Tijuana via caravan in recent days set out more than
a month ago from Honduras, a country of 9 million people. Dozens of migrants in the caravan
have said they left their country after death threats.
But the journey has been hard, and many have turned around.
Alden Rivera, the Honduran ambassador in Mexico, said Saturday that 1,800 Hondurans
have returned to their country since the caravan first set out on Oct. 13, and that he hopes more
will make that decision.
from that government and aim to rectify historic
grievances.
The Houthis swept down from north-
ern Yemen in 2014 and captured the capital,
Sanaa, with the help of forces loyal to longtime
strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had been
forced from power by an Arab Spring-inspired
popular uprising. Saleh was killed in internal
fighting between the Houthis and their allies last
year.
The government fled Sanaa in early 2015, and
Saudi Arabia, citing fears that its nemesis Iran
was trying to make inroads on the Arabian Penin-
sula, began launching airstrikes against the rebels
in March of that year.
Florida recount ends,
Nelson concedes
Senate race to Scott
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Sen. Bill Nelson, a
Florida political icon who first arrived on Capitol
Hill in the decades when Democrats dominated
this presidential battleground state, conceded his
bitterly close re-election bid to Republican Rick
Scott on Sunday after a bruising recount left Nel-
son thousands of votes short of the outgoing
governor.
Nelson gave up his quest after days of tense
and often acrimonious recounting wrapped up at
midday Sunday, when Florida’s counties had to
turn in their official results. Florida will not offi-
cially certify the final results until Tuesday, but
the totals showed Nelson trailing Scott by more
than 10,000 votes.
The close of nearly two weeks of high polit-
ical drama in the presidential swing state likely
spelled the end of the political career of the
76-year-old Nelson. First elected to the U.S.
House 40 years ago, Nelson had been a Demo-
cratic survivor in an era when Republicans swept
to power in Florida in the ‘90s. He was first
elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000 and was mak-
ing his fourth bid at Senate re-election.
A Florida native with a distinct twang, Nel-
son fought a hard race against Scott, a multimil-
lionaire businessman and relative newcomer to
the state who had been urged to run by President
Donald Trump. A Scott victory will help Repub-
licans boost their Senate majority.
This marked the third time Scott, who did
not jump into politics until eight years ago, has
barely edged a Democratic rival.
Nelson was seen as a moderate, rarely mak-
ing waves or gaining much national exposure
as he focused on Florida-specific issues. One of
his more notable moments came when he flew
on Space Shuttle Columbia while serving in
Congress.
Acrimonious Pacific
summit underscores
China-US tensions
PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea
— Pacific Rim leaders at a key Asian sum-
mit failed to reach agreement on a joint decla-
ration on world trade for the first time in nearly
three decades, highlighting the growing tensions
between China and the U.S.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
summit’s acrimony also underscored the rivalry
between China and the West for influence in the
South Pacific, where Beijing has been wooing
impoverished island states with aid and loans.
The 21 APEC nations, which account for 60
percent of the world economy, struggled at the
two-day summit in Papua New Guinea to bridge
their differences over the role of the World Trade
Organization, which governs international trade,
officials said.
Draft versions of the declaration showed the
U.S wanted strong language against unfair trade
practices that it accuses China of conducting.
China wanted a reaffirmation of opposition to
protectionism and unilateralism that it says the
U.S. is engaging in.
‘‘
Word of mouth goes a long way through our
coffee stand window, but when we need an
extra boost to reach the community we know
The Daily Astorian can bridge that gap. April
is always helpful when coming up with fresh
ideas too. Our main priority is the benefit
to local community with fun and rewarding
specials. The Daily Astorian is our way of
getting those promotions to our customers.
Mary Freiurger
The Human Bean-Seaside
REACH NEW CUSTOMERS!
n Drive More Business
n Find New Customers
n Marketing assistance from print/digital experts
n Gain Exposure. Over 10,000 Clatsop county readers every day
Talk to our customer success team today! 503.325.3211
95 Hamburg Ave Astoria
(503) 325-4341
T HE D AILY A STORIAN