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After a two-year hiatus, the White House press dinner is back

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After a six-year hiatus, US President Joe Biden has resumed his tradition of speaking at the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. 

Since 2016, he is the first leader to speak at the event, where the president is mocked by a friendly audience of journalists.  It was postponed for two years due to the pandemic, and Donald Trump boycotted it while he was in office. 

Trevor Noah, a comedian and host of The Daily Show, was the event’s main attraction.  The gala, which has been an American press tradition since 1921, brought together celebrities, renowned journalists, and high-ranking US officials. Among the celebrities in attendance were Kim Kardashian, Pete Davidson, Drew Barrymore, and Chris Tucker. With a jab at Donald Trump, Mr. Biden addressed the fact that he is the first president to attend the event since 2016. 

“This is the first time in six years that a president has attended this dinner. It’s understandable given that we experienced a terrible plague followed by two years of Covid “he stated. “It’s actually nice too, once again, to have a president who isn’t afraid to come to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and hear jokes about himself,” Noah added later on stage. 

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News Trending War

Biden proposes $33 billion to assist Ukraine in its war

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President Biden has requested $33 billion (£27 billion) in military, economic, and humanitarian aid for Ukraine, despite insisting that the US is not “attacking Russia.”

Mr. Biden stated that approval of the deal by US lawmakers was “critical,” as it would aid Ukraine’s defence. More than $20 billion in military aid, $8.5 billion in economic aid, and $3 billion in humanitarian aid are included in the proposal.

On Thursday, Mr. Biden said, “It’s not cheap.” “However, if we allow aggression to prevail, it will be more costly.”

Despite the fact that the US has already pledged assistance to Ukraine, the proposals represent a significant increase in aid. President Biden stated that the United States has provided ten anti-tank weapons for every tank Russia has deployed in Ukraine.

Despite his fiery rhetoric, he stated that the United States was not attacking Russia. He insisted, “We are assisting Ukraine in defending itself against Russian aggression.” A spokesperson for Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that Western military support for Ukraine threatens “the continent’s security.”

President Biden is requesting that Congress authorise a massive sum of money for Ukraine, more than twice what the US has already spent on military and humanitarian aid. The US president wants to show that he is unfazed by vague threats of nuclear retaliation and a warning from Russian President Vladimir Putin that retaliatory strikes could be launched against countries that intervene in Ukraine.

He dismissed those remarks, saying they reflect Russia’s desperation over their abject failure to accomplish what they set out to do.

He explained to Americans why this money was needed – at a time when many are struggling with rising living costs – by saying that it was not cheap, but that doing nothing was even more expensive.

A new plan to allow US authorities to not only freeze but also liquidate the assets of Russian oligarchs is risky, and it has alarmed civil liberties groups in the United States. In Congress, however, it is likely to receive bipartisan support.

It will not, however, begin to cover the cost of the additional funds the White House wants to devote to Ukraine’s war efforts.

The White House said in a statement that the package will “establish new authorities for the forfeiture of property linked to Russian kleptocracy, allow the government to use the proceeds to support Ukraine, and further strengthen related law enforcement tools.”

This week, the Canadian government proposed legislation that would allow it to seize and sell Russian assets.

Under pressure to broaden its sanctions, the ruling Liberals are pushing for the seizure of “any type of property,” including money, digital assets, and virtual currency.

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News Trending War

The Ukraine conflict will result in the largest price shock in 50 years

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The World Bank has warned that the conflict in Ukraine will result in the “largest commodity shock” since the 1970s.

According to a new forecast, the conflict’s disruption will result in massive price increases for goods ranging from natural gas to wheat and cotton. According to Peter Nagle, a co-author of the report, the price hike is “starting to have very large economic and humanitarian effects.” “Households all over the world are experiencing a cost-of-living crisis,” he said.

“We’re especially concerned about the poorest households because they spend a larger percentage of their income on food and energy, making them particularly vulnerable to this price spike,” the World Bank’s senior economist added.

According to the World Bank, energy prices are expected to rise by more than 50%, increasing household and business bills.

The most significant increase will be in the cost of natural gas in Europe, which is expected to more than double. Prices are expected to decline next year and in 2024, but they will still be 15% higher than last year.

According to the World Bank, “the largest 23-month increase in energy prices since the 1973 oil price hike,” when tensions in the Middle East sent prices soaring, occurred between April 2020 and March this year.

Similarly, oil prices are expected to remain high into 2024, with a barrel of Brent Crude, the benchmark measure, expected to average $100 this year, resulting in widespread inflation.

Russia produces about 11% of the world’s oil, the third largest share, but “disruptions resulting from the war are expected to have a lasting negative effect,” according to the report, as sanctions force foreign companies to leave and access to technology is limited.

Although Russia currently supplies 40% of the EU’s gas and 27% of its oil, European governments are working to wean their countries off of Russian supplies. This has aided in the rise of global prices by increasing demand for supplies from other countries.

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France Election Results: Macron Defeats Le Pen and Promises to Bring a Divided France Together

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Emmanuel Macron has been re-elected as France’s president for another five years after a convincing victory over rival Marine Le Pen, who received the far right’s highest vote share yet. He won by a larger margin than expected, 58.55 percent to 41.45 percent.

At the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the centrist leader told jubilant supporters that now that the election was over, he would be a “president for all.” He is the first sitting president to be re-elected in 20 years.

Despite her defeat, Ms Le Pen, 53, claimed that her large vote share was still a victory.

She told her supporters that the ideas represented by her National Rally had reached new heights. “It’s the eighth time the Le Pen name has been hit by defeat,” said far-right rival Eric Zemmour, pointing out that she had ultimately failed, just like her father before her: “It’s the eighth time the Le Pen name has been hit by defeat.”

In 2011, Marine Le Pen took over the party founded by her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, in an attempt to electability. On Sunday, she received more than 13 million votes on a platform that included tax cuts to combat rising living costs, a ban on wearing the Muslim headscarf in public, and a referendum on immigration controls.

In his victory speech, Mr Macron said, “An answer must be found to the anger and disagreements that drove many of our compatriots to vote for the extreme right.” “It will be my responsibility, as well as the responsibility of those around me.”

More than a third of voters did not cast a ballot for either candidate. More than three million people cast spoilt or blank votes, resulting in the lowest turnout in a presidential run-off since 1969.

Although much of France was on vacation on election day, the low turnout reflected voter apathy, as voters complained that neither candidate represented them. The BBC reported that voters who said they were casting blank ballots wanted to punish the current president. Anti-Macron protesters gathered in a number of cities, including Paris, Rennes, Toulouse, and Nantes, to reject the outcome.

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News Trending War

Ukraine war: Russia aiming for full control of south, commander says

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According to a senior Russian commander, Russia wants to take full control of southern Ukraine as well as the eastern Donbas region.

State media quoted Maj Gen Rustam Minnekayev as saying that achieving this goal would allow Moscow to build a land bridge to Crimea, which it annexed in 2014. He also stated that it would allow Moscow access to the separatist region of Transnistria in Moldova, which is backed by Russia.

Transnistria is a small region on Ukraine’s western border. Although it is unclear whether Gen Minnekayev’s remarks were officially sanctioned by the Kremlin, they were widely reported in Russian state media outlets such as Interfax and Tass.

Russian defence officials told the BBC’s Steve Rosenberg that they were “looking into” the general’s remarks, which, if true, would provide the first glimpse into Russia’s possible plans for the coming weeks. Meanwhile, a senior EU official told Reuters that Russia is likely to intensify its attacks in eastern Ukraine and along the southern coast in the coming days, adding that the next two weeks could determine the outcome of the war.

Moldova summoned Moscow’s ambassador in response to the remarks, which the country’s foreign ministry described as “deeply concerning.”

Transnistria is a small Russian-speaking breakaway region that borders Ukraine on the west. It declared independence after the Soviet Union fell apart in a bloody conflict, but it is not recognised internationally and remains part of Moldova officially.

As part of a truce agreement, a small detachment of around 1,500 Russian troops has been stationed in the region since 1995. On Friday, Gen Minnekayev, deputy commander of Russia’s central military district, spoke at a military event in the Sverdlovsk region.

“Control of Ukraine’s south is another route to Transnistria, where there are also reports of oppression of the Russian-speaking population,” Gen Minnekayev said.

Before launching the invasion on February 24, Mr Putin made similar claims about alleged discrimination against Russian speakers in Ukraine, but without providing evidence. Ukraine’s defence ministry slammed Gen Minnekayev’s remarks as “imperialism” by Russia.

Volodymyr Zelensky, the country’s president, responded to them in his regular overnight address. “The Russian invasion of Ukraine was only meant to be a start; they want to take over other countries,” he claimed.

He previously stated that Russia planned to stage a series of phoney independence referendums in occupied territories in order to establish a series of pro-Russian breakaway states.

“You should know this is not to help you if they ask you to fill out some questionnaires or leave your passport data somewhere,” he warned.

“If an order from Moscow is given to stage such a show, it will be used to falsify the so-called referendum on your land. This is the situation. Take care.” In the coming weeks, referendums are planned in Kherson and occupied areas around Zaporizhzhia, according to a spokesperson for the Ukrainian defence ministry.

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Tom Grennan recovering after NYC attack

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Tom Grennan, a British singer, is recovering from a “unprovoked attack” that left him with injuries including a torn eardrum, according to his manager.

After performing in New York on Wednesday, the 26-year-old was allegedly attacked and robbed outside a Manhattan bar. As a result, he’ll have to cancel his Friday performance in Washington, DC.
At this year’s Brit Awards, Grennan’s song Little Bit of Love was nominated for song of the year.

“Tom was the victim of an unprovoked attack and robbery outside a bar in Manhattan in the early hours of this morning following his New York show,” his manager John Dawkins said in a statement posted online on Thursday evening. “Doctors are currently evaluating Tom’s injuries, which include a ruptured ear, torn eardrum, and a problem with his previously fractured jaw.” “Despite this, Tom is in good spirits,” he said, “but he will need to rest for a while while doctors assess his ability to continue touring.”

His manager went on to thank Grennan’s American fans, saying that the singer was “desperate not to let anyone down,” but that his Washington show had been postponed until further notice due to a “precautionary decision.” Mint Royale, an electronic producer, tweeted his support for the singer, writing, “Get well soon, sounds awful.”

“Sending love mate,” said presenter Rylan Clark-Neal. “Sending love to you bro,” DJ Mista Jam said.

Grennan rose to prominence as a guest vocalist on Chase & Status’s All Goes Wrong, and his solo album, 2021’s Evering Road, reached number one. The Bedford-born singer was nominated for two Brit Awards recently, including best rock/alternative act and song of the year, but lost to Adele’s Easy on Me.

As he opened up about his mental health struggles last month, he said that therapy had given him “light at the end of the tunnel.”

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European companies face a ‘logistical nightmare’ in Shanghai, according to a business group

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Western companies in Shanghai are facing a “logistical nightmare,” according to a European business group, as they begin to reopen following a city-wide lockdown.

According to the European Union Chamber of Commerce, the problems are expected to last for several more weeks. Chinese officials announced on Friday that they will assist more than 600 businesses in the major financial centre in resuming operations.

It comes after business groups in the United Kingdom and the United States said their members had been affected by Covid measures in China.

Although some businesses have resumed operations in Shanghai by keeping their employees on-site, “many businesses continue to face labour shortages and logistical challenges,” according to Bettina Schoen-Behanzin, vice president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China and head of the Shanghai chapter.

“We estimate that due to the ongoing lockdowns, less than 30% of their workforce is eligible to go to work, so there’s a huge gap between policy and reality,” she added in a statement on Thursday.

Other business organisations representing companies in the United Kingdom and the United States have expressed concern about the impact of lockdowns in Shanghai and other Chinese cities.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai also stated on Thursday that officials were still coordinating the movement of workers and goods across Chinese provinces.

Meanwhile, according to a survey released on Wednesday by the British Chamber of Commerce in China, UK companies in China expect profits to fall this year as a result of local Covid restrictions.

More than two-thirds of the more than 200 businesses polled predicted lower revenue this year. Almost half of them said that the restrictions had hampered their ability to recruit and retain foreign workers.

Covid infections spiked earlier this year in Shanghai, a financial, manufacturing, and shipping hub. Authorities shut it down in late March for mass testing.

Tesla’s ‘giga factory’ in the city has recently resumed production after restrictions were eased.

Elon Musk, the company’s CEO, admitted on Wednesday that “we did lose a lot of important days of production.”

The Shanghai factories of German automaker Volkswagen (VW) and Apple iPhone maker Pegatron, on the other hand, remain closed.

VW said it was assessing the “feasibility” of resuming Shanghai operations.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Pegatron told the BBC that it was “waiting for further instruction from local government.”

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In less than 100 days, Netflix has lost 200,000 subscribers

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Netflix’s stock has lost a quarter of its value. Tuesday, the company announced that its subscriber base had shrunk in the first quarter of this year.

The leading streaming television service had lost subscribers for the first time in a decade. The company attributed the decline to the suspension of its service in Russia as a result of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Netflix had 221.6 million subscribers at the end of the first quarter of this year, down slightly from the same period last year.

In the most recent quarter, the Silicon Valley tech firm reported a net income of $1.6 billion, down from $1.7 billion a year earlier. Following the release of the earnings figures, Netflix shares fell 25% to $262 in after-market trades.

In an earnings letter, Netflix stated, “We’re not growing revenue as quickly as we’d like.” “Covid clouded the picture by significantly increasing our growth in 2020, leading us to believe that the Covid pull forward was responsible for the majority of our slowing growth in 2021.”

Netflix believes that the time it takes for homes to get access to affordable broadband internet service and smart televisions, as well as subscribers sharing their accounts with people who do not live in their homes, are stifling its growth.

According to the streaming giant, while nearly 222 million households pay for its service, accounts are shared with over 100 million households that do not pay for the television streaming service.

“Account sharing as a percentage of our paying membership hasn’t changed much over the years,” Netflix said, “but when combined with the first factor, it makes it more difficult to grow membership in many markets.”

Last year, Netflix began experimenting with ways to profit from people sharing accounts, such as adding a feature that allows subscribers to pay a small fee to add additional households to their account.

Another factor affecting Netflix is the fierce competition it faces from behemoths like Apple and Disney.

“Our plan is to reaccelerate our viewing and revenue growth by continuing to improve all aspects of Netflix,” Netflix said, adding that it is “doubling down” on content creation.

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Discrimination and deprivation are causing a mental health crisis among Irish travellers

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According to European Union research, Irish travellers face some of the worst discrimination and poverty of any ethnic group in Europe. It is causing a mental health crisis in their home country, according to community members.

In Ireland, 11% of people commit suicide, and their life expectancy is up to 15 years lower than that of the general population. Rose Marie Maughan is a member of the Irish Travellers Movement, which is a national network of more than 40 organisations. “Our suicide rate is seven times that of non-travelers,” she explained.

“Only 3% of us live beyond the age of 65, and 80% of us are unemployed.” “There would be international attention if that were any other community in Ireland.” The Irish Travellers National Mental Health Network is chaired by Mags Casey. In the last ten years, nearly 30 members of her extended family have committed suicide.

In January 2012, her sister-in-law died, followed two years later by her brother, who, according to Mags, never recovered from the grief of losing his wife. “When our first family member committed suicide, I thought the world had ended,” she said.

“I didn’t know how to sit down with four kids and tell them their mother was dead, gone.” “The devastation it has on a family – addiction, family breakdown, a spiral of grief, and young people who don’t know how to deal with that grief.”

The Irish government has stated that it has a number of policies in place to encourage Traveller inclusion in areas such as education, employment, health, and lodging.

Irish Travellers, on the other hand, have stated that they require more action and support to address the discrimination that is causing a mental health crisis in their community.

In 2021, €250,000 (£207,013) was spent on Traveller mental health, and €12 million (£9.9 million) was spent on Traveller housing.

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Sweden is experiencing unrest as a result of planned Quran burnings

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Clashes have erupted in several Swedish cities for the fourth day, sparked by the alleged burning of a Quran by a far-right, anti-immigrant group.

Three people were injured, according to local media, when police fired warning shots at rioters in Norrköping, Sweden, on Sunday.
At least 17 people were arrested after several vehicles were set on fire.

During a far-right rally in the southern city of Malmo on Saturday, vehicles, including a bus, were set on fire. The governments of Iran and Iraq had summoned Swedish envoys to express their displeasure with the burning.

Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the Danish-Swedish Stram Kurs, or Hard Line, movement, said he had burned Islam’s most sacred text and would do so again.

On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, at least 16 police officers were reported injured, and several police vehicles were reported destroyed in unrest in areas where the far-right group planned events, including Stockholm suburbs and the cities of Linköping and Norrköping.

According to Deutsche Welle, Paludan had threatened to hold another rally in Norrköping on Sunday, prompting counter-demonstrators to gather there.

In a statement, local police said they fired warning shots after being attacked, and three people were apparently hit by ricochets.

Anders Thornberg, Sweden’s national police chief, said in a statement on Saturday that demonstrators had shown a lack of concern for police officers’ lives, adding: “We’ve seen violent riots in the past. This, on the other hand, is a unique situation.”

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