Section: The Mercury News (USA)
Will: What the U.S. should NOT do in response to Syria’s use of chemical weapons
WASHINGTON — On April 22, 1915, chlorine gas, wafted by favorable breezes, drifted from German lines toward enemy positions held by French troops near Ypres, Belgium. This was the first significant use of chemical weapons in a war in which 100,000 tons of chemical agents would be used by both sides to kill almost 30,000 soldiers and injure...
Competition keeps marijuana prices lower on ‘vice index’ of alcohol, drugs, cigarettes
Interested in more coverage of the California marijuana industry? Head to TheCannifornian.com or subscribe to The Cannifornian newsletter to get cannabis-related news, features and more. The cost of maintaining a drugs, booze and cigarettes habit got a lot more expensive in the U.S. last year, rising the most of almost anywhere in the world, the...
‘The Bay Area is broken:’ Why local startups are hiring outside Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley may be the world’s tech paradise, but it’s a hiring nightmare for many local startups now forced to venture from Portland to Boise in search of talent. Enormous salary expectations — driven by the Bay Area’s soaring cost of living and competition from well-paying giants such as Google and Facebook — have made it...
US hits Russian elite with sweeping new sanctions
By John Hudson and Seung Min Kim | Washington Post WASHINGTON – The United States imposed new economic sanctions on senior Russian politicians, companies and business leaders Friday, citing a list of complaints including Moscow’s attempts to undermine Western democracies, support of separatists in Ukraine and its backing for Syrian...
First sentence handed down in Russia meddling probe
By Spencer S. Hsu | Washington Post WASHINGTON – A London-based lawyer was ordered to serve 30 days in prison after a federal judge Tuesday handed down the first sentence in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Alex van der Zwaan, 33, a son-in-law of a...
Mueller has authorization to probe Manafort/Russia collusion
By Spencer S. Hsu and Rosalind S. Helderman | Washington Post WASHINGTON – Special counsel Robert Mueller was authorized by a top Justice Department official to investigate whether Paul Manafort, the onetime chairman of President Donald Trump’s campaign, illegally coordinated with Russia to interfere in the 2016 election, new court filings...
Israel says it has reached deal to resettle African migrants in the West
By Adam Taylor | Washington Post The Israeli government announced Monday that it would scrap controversial plans to deport African asylum seekers, saying it had reached an “unprecedented understanding” with the United Nations to resettle many of these migrants in Western countries. In a statement released by Prime Minister Benjamin...
Report: Manafort associate had links to Russian intelligence
By Spencer S. Hsu and Rosalind S. Helderman | Washington Post WASHINGTON – The FBI has found that a business associate of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort had ongoing ties to Russian intelligence, including during the 2016 campaign when Manafort and his deputy, Rick Gates, were in touch with the associate, according to new court...
Rubin: What are the costs of President Donald Trump’s dogged pursuit of Vladimir Putin?
Want to view the costs of President Donald Trump’s persistent pursuit of Vladimir Putin? Look no further than Syria, where the Kremlin is determined to drive out U.S. forces that are assisting the Syrian Kurds who defeated ISIS. The consequence would be a likely return of jihadis to Syria along with a strengthening of Iranian influence....
White House in uproar over Trump-Putin call leaks
By Zeke Miller and Jonathan Lemire | Associated Press WASHINGTON — The tempest over President Donald Trump’s congratulatory phone call to Vladimir Putin quickly grew on Wednesday into an uproar over White House leaks, sparking an internal investigation and speculation over who might be the next person Trump forces out of the West Wing. The...
