Republican lawmakers bash Biden's trip to Ukraine
Republicans Monday trashed President Joe Biden’s trip to Ukraine, claiming the visit to support Kyiv is an “insult” to Americans.
Dumping the tradition of politics ending at the water’s edge, right-wing lawmakers said Biden was wasting American taxpayers’ money defending Ukraine against the Russian invasion. “The President of the United States chose Ukraine over America, while forcing the American people to pay for Ukraine’s government and war,” tweeted Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. “I can not express how much Americans hate Joe Biden.”
Greene also accused Ukraine Preisdent Volodymyr Zelenskyy of failing to dress appropriately to greet the man she claims Americans “hate.” “He gladly takes our money in sweat shirts and t-shirts, but Biden is dressed up,” she tweeted. “So insulting. America Last!!!”
Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., claimed that helping Ukraine fight off Russia’s aggression is somehow comparable to the situation at the U.S. border with Mexico. “Breathtaking that President Biden can show up in Ukraine to ensure their border is secure, but can’t do the same for America,” Perry tweeted.
—New York Daily News
Donald Trump and Erin Brockovich will descend upon East Palestine as residents plead for help
PITTSBURGH — Two weeks after a catastrophic train derailment unleashed toxic materials on a small village near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, the attention being showered on East Palestine by politicians and activists is reaching a fever pitch.
Former President Donald Trump plans to visit the Ohio town on Wednesday. Pennsylvania state lawmakers will scrutinize railway company Norfolk Southern during a hearing Thursday in Beaver County. And celebrity environmental advocate Erin Brockovich will host a town hall Friday in East Palestine.
“The people of East Palestine need help,” Trump said on his social media network Saturday. “I’ll see you on Wednesday.”
Trump’s visit, as he ramps up his comeback presidential campaign, is likely to bring the crucible of national politics to a village where residents are increasingly fearful of the derailment’s immediate and long-term health consequences. His administration rolled back Obama-era safety regulations on high-hazard cargo trains. But that rule would not have applied to the train that derailed in East Palestine, since it wasn’t classified as high-hazard.
—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Husband of LA bishop’s housekeeper arrested in slaying of beloved cleric
LOS ANGELES — Authorities have arrested the husband of a woman who worked as a housekeeper for Bishop David G. O'Connell in connection with the slaying of the beloved Los Angeles cleric, officials said Monday.
L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna identified Carlos Medina, 65, as the suspect in the slaying. He did not cite a motive but said a tipster had told authorities that Medina was acting strangely after the killing and claimed the bishop owned him money.
Luna said detectives connected Medina to the crime from a video that showed a vehicle at the O'Connell home about the time of the killing. Weapons were found at his home but Luna said ballistic tests are still pending.
O'Connell, 69, was killed Saturday afternoon in the Catholic archdiocese-owned home in Hacienda Heights where he lived alone, authorities said.
—Los Angeles Times
China blasts US for military, cultural ‘hegemony’ as ties sour
China laid out a fresh laundry list of problems it has with how the U.S. uses its power, underscoring how tensions between the two nations have worsened over issues from the alleged spy balloon dispute to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The official Xinhua News Agency published a 4,000-word article on Monday titled “U.S. Hegemony and its Perils” that lays out Beijing’s sweeping view of how the U.S. misbehaves on the world stage in the political, military, economic, technological and cultural spheres.
The article said the U.S. “embeds American values in its products such as movies,” to dominate public opinion. “When Hollywood movies descend on the world, they scream the American values tied to them,” it added.
The denunciation comes with U.S.-China ties at a fresh low after the two nations’ top diplomats traded barbs at a security conference in Germany over the weekend. The latest debate is over the U.S. decision this month to shoot down what it said was a spy balloon that flew over the country.
—Bloomberg News
