WORLD BRIEFLY
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
East Oregonian
McCain making dramatic
Senate return for health vote
WASHINGTON (AP) — John McCain
will make a dramatic return to the Senate for
a make-or-break vote on GOP health care
legislation Tuesday, just days after getting
diagnosed with a brain tumor.
The decision by the 80-year-old senator to
travel to Washington from his Arizona home
was announced by his office in a brief press
release late Monday night. It comes with the
GOP health care bill to repeal and replace
“Obamacare” on the brink as Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell pushes toward a pivotal
vote Tuesday prodded by an impatient and
frustrated President Donald Trump.
“Senator McCain looks forward to
returning to the United States Senate
tomorrow to continue working on important
legislation, including health care reform, the
National Defense Authorization Act, and new
sanctions on Russia, Iran and North Korea,”
his office said.
It was the latest head-spinning turn of
events for health legislation that’s survived
several near-death experiences in recent
weeks, yet could make it past a critical hurdle
Tuesday with Republicans determined to
make good on seven years of promises to get
rid of former President Barack Obama’s law.
McCain’s startling decision to return
suggests McConnell believes Tuesday’s vote
will be successful — with McCain’s vote.
Trump intensifies criticism of
his own attorney general
WASHINGTON (AP) — President
Donald Trump took a remarkable new swipe
at his own attorney general on Monday.
He’s referring to Jeff Sessions in a tweet as
“beleaguered” while privately musing about
whether he should fire his longtime ally.
Trump again directed his displeasure at
Sessions while fuming about the ongoing
investigations into Russian meddling in
the 2016 election and possible campaign
collusion with foreign officials
He has speculated aloud to allies in recent
days about the potential consequences of
firing Sessions. That’s according to three
people who have recently spoken to the
president and demanded anonymity to discuss
private conversations.
But Trump often talks about making staff
changes without following through. Those
who have spoken with the president caution
that a change may not be imminent or happen
at all.
No collusion, Trump son-in-
law Kushner tells Congress
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senior White
House adviser Jared Kushner denied Monday
that he colluded with Russians in the course
of President Donald Trump’s White House
bid and declared he has “nothing to hide.”
Behind closed doors, Kushner spoke to
AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File
In this 2015 file photo, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John
McCain, R-Ariz., speaks on Capitol Hill. McCain has been diagnosed with an
aggressive form of brain cancer.
staff members of the Senate intelligence
committee for nearly three hours at the
Capitol, then made a brief public statement
back at the White House.
“Let me be very clear,” he said. “I did not
collude with Russia nor do I know of anyone
else in the campaign who did so.”
Kushner left without taking questions. In
an 11-page statement, released hours before
the Capitol session, he detailed four contacts
with Russians during Trump’s campaign and
transition. It aimed to explain inconsistencies
and omissions in a security clearance form
that have invited public scrutiny.
In the statement, Kushner said that none
of his contacts, which included meetings at
Trump Tower with the Russian ambassador
and a Russian lawyer, was improper.
Kushner arrived Monday morning at a
Senate office building, exiting a black sport
utility vehicle and greeting photographers
with a grin and a wave. When he left, he
responded to shouted questions, saying the
interview went “great” and that he answered
as many questions “as they had.”
In speaking to Congress, Kushner — as
both the president’s son-in-law and a trusted
senior adviser during the campaign and
inside the White House — became the first
member of the president’s inner circle to face
questions from congressional investigators
as they probe Russian meddling in the 2016
election and possible links to the Trump
campaign. He is to meet with lawmakers on
the House intelligence committee Tuesday.
11 states sue over EPA delay of
new chemical safety rules
effect for at least two years.
The group led by New York Attorney
General Eric Schneiderman filed a petition
for review by the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia Circuit. The states
say Environmental Protection Agency chief
Scott Pruitt exceeded his legal authority
by delaying the new Accidental Release
Prevention Requirements until 2019.
The Obama-era regulations are aimed at
preventing explosions, fires and poisonous
gas releases at more than 12,000 chemical
facilities across the country.
In addition to New York, the other
states joining the lawsuit are Illinois, Iowa,
Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New
Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont
and Washington.
Israel removes metal detectors
from holy site entrance
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel began
removing metal detectors from entrances
to a major Jerusalem shrine early Tuesday
morning to defuse a crisis over the site that
angered the Muslim world and triggered
some of the worst Israeli-Palestinian clashes
in years.
The Israeli security Cabinet had met for
a second straight day Monday to find an
alternative to the metal detectors, which were
installed following a deadly Palestinian attack
at the holy site.
Associated Press photos showed a worker
dismantling one of the devices at Lions Gate
before 2:00 a.m.
“The Security Cabinet accepted the
recommendation of all of the security bodies
to incorporate security measures based on
advanced technologies (“smart checks”) and
other measures instead of metal detectors,”
Israel announced Tuesday morning.
It said the measure will “ensure the
security of visitors and worshippers” at the
holy site and in Jerusalem’s Old City. It added
that police will increase its forces in the area
until the new security measures are in place.
Israeli media earlier reported high
resolution cameras capable of detecting
hidden objects would be deployed.
Israel erected the metal detectors after
Arab gunmen killed two policemen from
inside the shrine, holy to Muslims and Jews,
earlier this month. The move incensed the
Muslim world and triggered violence.
The fate of the site is an emotional issue
at the heart of the conflict between Israel and
the Palestinians. Even the smallest perceived
change to delicate arrangements pertaining to
the site sparks tensions.
Immigrants wept, pleaded for
water and pounded on truck
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The tractor-
trailer was pitch-black inside, crammed with
maybe 90 immigrants or more, and already hot
when it left the Texas border town of Laredo
for the 150-mile trip north to San Antonio.
It wasn’t long before the passengers,
sweating profusely in the rising oven-like
heat, started crying and pleading for water.
Children whimpered. People took turns
breathing through a single hole in the wall.
They pounded on the sides of the truck and
yelled to try to get the driver’s attention. Then
they began passing out.
By the time police showed up at a
Walmart in San Antonio around 12:30 a.m.
Sunday and looked in the back of the truck,
eight passengers were dead and two more
would soon die in an immigrant-smuggling
attempt gone tragically awry.
The details of the journey were recounted
Monday by a survivor who spoke in a federal
criminal complaint against the driver, James
Matthew Bradley, who could face the death
penalty over the 10 lives lost.
Bradley, 60, of Clearwater, Florida,
appeared in federal court on charges of
illegally transporting immigrants for financial
gain, resulting in death. He was ordered held
for another hearing on Thursday.
“Even though they have the driver in
custody, I can guarantee you there’s going
to be many more people we’re looking for
to prosecute,” said Thomas Homan, acting
director of U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A coalition of
11 states has filed a legal challenge to the
Trump administration’s decision to delay
new chemical plant safety rules from taking
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Page 7A
HONORED
to be a part of the community we serve
First-place winner
of the 2017 Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association’s
General Excellence
Award
FIRST-PLACE AWARDS
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best News Photo
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best Sports Photo
Tim Trainor, Opinion Page Editor: Best Editorial
George Plaven, Reporter: Best Government Coverage
George Plaven, Reporter: Best Feature Story/Personality
Jade McDowell, Reporter: Best Spot-News Coverage
SECOND-PLACE AWARDS
Kathy Aney, Senior Reporter: Best Writing
Drew Langton, Page Designer & Night Editor: Best Headline Writing
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best Multimedia Element
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best News Photo
THIRD-PLACE AWARDS
Staff, 2016 Round-Up magazine: Best Special Section
George Plaven, Reporter: Best Coverage of Business & Economic Issues
Phil Wright, Senior Reporter: Best Lifestyle Coverage
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best Photo Essay
E.J. Harris, Photographer: Best News Photo
Digital Team, Staff: Best Web Project
Pictured in the EO newsroom staff photo, L-R:
Front row: Kathy Aney, Tammy Malgesini, Renee Struthers, Kathryn Brown, Jade McDowell
Second row: Antonio Sierra, Tim Trainor, Daniel Wattenburger, Jayati Ramakrishnan, Drew Langton, Matt Entrup
Third row: Eric Singer, George Plaven • Top row: EJ Harris, Phil Wright