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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell pushed back Friday against the uproar over a comment he made about African American voters, calling the criticism directed his way “outrageous.” McConnell had been accused of racism for saying that “African American” voters cast ballots at similar rates to “Americans.” The comment implied that Black voters are somehow not American and underscored the concerns of voting rights advocates that Republicans in state legislatures across the country are explicitly seeking to disenfranchise Black voters. Following a speech Friday at an annual conference in Louisville, the Republican leader said he misspoke Wednesday when he made the comment during a Washington news conference. “I’ve never been accused of this sort of thing before, and it’s hurtful and offensive,” he said. “And I think some of the critics know it’s totally nonsense.” McConnell on Wednesday had said that "African American voters are voting in just as high a … [Read more...] about ‘It’s totally nonsense’: McConnell responds to uproar over comment about Black voters

Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. was “reckless” and “outrageous” when he suggested things are worse for people today than they were for Anne Frank, the teenager who died in a Nazi concentration camp after hiding with her family in a secret annex in an Amsterdam house for two years, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum said. “Making reckless comparisons to the Holocaust, the murder of six million Jews, for a political agenda is outrageous and deeply offensive. Those who carelessly invoke Anne Frank, the star badge, and the Nuremberg Trials exploit history and the consequences of hate,” the museum said Monday in a statement posted to Twitter. A spokesman said the museum made the statement in response to Kennedy's speech and other recent incidents of people invoking the Holocaust for political purposes. The museum also pointed out that Anne Frank was one of the 1.5 million children who died during the Holocaust. During a Sunday rally in Washington organized by his … [Read more...] about Holocaust Museum criticizes RFK Jr. for Anne Frank comment

With freezing weather sweeping into Texas late this week, subsidiaries for a major pipeline company are threatening to cut off natural gas to the state’s largest power generator — which could impact the electricity supply for hundreds of thousands of customers — over a financial dispute stemming from last February’s deadly winter storm. Vistra Corp. subsidiary Luminant on Wednesday asked the Railroad Commission of Texas, which regulates the state’s oil and gas industry, to prevent Energy Transfer LP from cutting off fuel to five Vistra power plants, which produce enough electricity to power 400,000 Texas homes, businesses and critical infrastructure such as hospitals and schools. Railroad Commission officials have not responded to questions about whether the agency will act. The companies under Energy Transfer, the pipeline company, have told Vistra that gas will stop flowing to five Vistra power plants on Monday unless Vistra pays Energy Transfer $21.6 million, according to … [Read more...] about 400,000 Texas homes and businesses could lose power over financial dispute between energy companies

Men suspected of being affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) group are gathered in a prison cell on October 26, 2019 in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasakeh. BEIRUT - The Islamic State group attacked a Kurdish-run jail in northeast Syria on Thursday, freeing fellow jihadists, a war monitor reported without specifying how many escaped. Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces confirmed the rare attack in a statement but did not mention any prisoners fleeing. According to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a car bomb hit the entrance of the Ghwayran prison and a second blast went off in the vicinity before IS jihadists attacked Kurdish security forces manning the facility. "A number of prisoners managed to escape," said the Observatory which relies on a network of sources inside Syria. It did not specify how they managed to break out. Ghwayran is one of the largest facilities housing IS fighters in a semi-autonomous region controlled by Kurdish authorities … [Read more...] about IS attacks Syria prison, freeing jihadists: monitor

The Ducati MotoGP ace has been back in his native Australia since early December, when he returned for a cameo in the Australian Superbike Championship . He was due to return to Europe ahead of next Friday's pre-season launch, however those plans have been scuppered by Miller contracting COVID-19. In a video posted to social media he said he is asymptomatic and able to continue his physical preparation ahead of the new season. However the positive test means he's unable to travel and will therefore miss the January 28 launch. "Unfortunately, as you can tell, I'm still here at home in Australia due to testing positive for [COVID-19]," he said. "I'm currently unable to travel and will miss the team presentation. "I just wanted to let you all know that I'm doing fine, no symptoms, still able to continue with my training here on the farm. But unable to travel at this point in time. "I'm missing you all and I can't wait to see you all very soon." A wave of Omicron … [Read more...] about Miller stuck in Australia with COVID-19

F1 raced on a tweaked layout of the track on the outskirts of Barcelona for the first time last weekend after Turn 10 was reprofiled in a bid to improve overtaking and make the corner faster. But drivers remained more critical about the Turn 14-15 chicane in the final sector, which was introduced in 2007 and has long been a point of contention. A number of drivers have called for a return to the two sweeping right-hand corners that were previously used, leading the drivers back onto the main straight instead of slowing speeds down. Sebastian Vettel said ahead of the race weekend that one way to solve the lack of overtaking in Spain would be "to bring back the last two corners", and that he had "hopes for the future" that the layout would return. FIA race director Michael Masi explained after the race that a return to the old layout in the final sector has been considered as part of the governing body's continuous reviews of circuits. But he warned that it was not a snap … [Read more...] about FIA has evaluated removal of final Barcelona chicane for F1

Reigning Formula 2 champion Schumacher hasn't enjoyed the easiest rookie season so far, having been unable to finish higher than 16th in the lacklustre Haas VF-21 F1 car. With Haas deciding not to carry out any development work ahead of the 2022 rule changes, Schumacher's fortunes are unlikely to improve this year. But despite not qualifying higher than 18th so far, Schumacher is still confident he can break into the top 15 and advance to Q2 at some point this season. When asked if his pre-season goal of aiming for Q2 was still on given Haas' poor form, Schumacher said he believes it's realistic ambition for his debut campaign. "It is totally a realistic goal," Schumacher said in Barcelona. "Obviously, I'd be unhappy if that wasn't the case this year. We're still pushing hard for it. "There will be tracks that maybe come more our way. I think considering this track may be not one of our strongest, I think we still managed to obviously produce a very good laptime. "We … [Read more...] about Schumacher: Reaching Q2 still a “totally realistic goal” in 2021

Click here to read the full article. If you’ve spent even five minutes on TikTok this week, you may have seen at least one video referencing a new For Your Page villain: West Elm Caleb. According to the trending clips, Caleb is a 25-year-old furniture designer for West Elm. The white, conventionally attractive, 6’4” designer seemed to do pretty well on dating apps, where he’d meet women. In these TikTok videos, the women who say they have dated Caleb described how these relationships generally included romantic dates, active texting, and Spotify playlists. Many creators have used the phrase “love bombing” in their description of Caleb’s dating style, or the use of excessive flattery and romance early in a relationship that is often a red flag. These stories also end in the same way: Caleb becomes distant and eventually ghosts, like a mirage in the New York dating desert. More from Rolling Stone Viral 'Dissociative Identity Disorder' TikToker Sparks Questions … [Read more...] about The Internet Uproar Around West Elm Caleb Is Out of Control

The German car manufacturer was locked in a tight title battle with Red Bull throughout 2021, but had to endure a run of grid penalties in the closing stages of the campaign amid concerns about the durability of its power units. The rules limited teams to a total of three major power unit components for the entire season, but both Mercedes drivers had to take a number of new parts. Valtteri Bottas used a total of six internal combustion engines during the season, the most of any driver, while Lewis Hamilton got through five. Mercedes customer teams McLaren , Aston Martin and Williams also had to run a fourth power unit in the second half of the year. With F1 set to enter an engine freeze from the start of this year, there was some urgency on Mercedes to get its issues solved immediately so it did not lock in any problems. But, with a few weeks still to go before the new power units run on track for the first time in pre-season testing, McLaren has … [Read more...] about Mercedes ‘bullish’ on engine reliability progress, says McLaren