The GOP Weasels Out of Questions About Michael Flynn: The Daily Show
We had a really nice show planned for you, Trevor Noah began last nights The Daily Show. Very civil, very calm. And then, in the middle of the day, Hurricane Trump happened.
The hurricane in question took place at The White House press conference on Thursday, when the president had a particularly volatile response to an ultra-Orthodox reporters question.
Jake Turx, a journalist with Ami Magazine, asked Trump how he planned to combat the uptick in anti-Semitism in the United States, but only after carefully telling the President that nobody believes he is personally anti-Semitic. Instead of responding, Trump slammed Turx for asking him a difficult question, while also clarifying that he is the least anti-Semitic person you have ever seen in your entire life.
Noahs problem was not with Trumps response. Instead, he criticized the President for complaining that Turx had asked him a question that was, according to him, neither simple nor fair.
Whats even more striking in that interaction is you have a president of a democracy who thinks press is only valid when they ask him easy questions, questions that he likes, noah said. in fact, in his mind, he deserves it.
Besides, The Daily Show host noted, the answer was handed to the President on a silver platter.
Its an easy question, Noah said. What are you going to do about anti-Semitism? Were going to stamp it out. Done. Thats all you have to say. That was the softest ball possible. A matzo ball, if you will.
The segment starts at 3:37, but the whole clip is worth watching.
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Oroville Dam update: Spillway releases curbed, small Earthquakes near #OrovilleDam
As authorities raced to reduce the level of Lake Oroville before the next storm, new evidence emerged on Monday that more than a decade ago state water officials insisted that the emergency spillway that forced the evacuation of nearly 200,000 residents this week was a safe and stable structure founded on solid bedrock that will not erode.
The revelations in a May 26, 2006, filing fromthe state Department of Water Resources to federal officials underscored how state officials rejected calls 11 years ago fromthree environmental groups to require that concrete be used to armor the emergency spillway at the nations tallest dam.
The department went on to say in its document to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that its geology division had closely evaluated the emergency spillway at Oroville, the tallest dam in the United States. Environmentalists concerns that the spillway a 1,730-foot concrete lip along the reservoirs edge, with only a tree-lined, earthen hillside below could fail, triggering a catastrophe, were overblown, department officials said at the time.
There are only one to four feet of erodable topsoil in the downstream area, and that erosion would not compromise the stability of the emergency spillway, Michael A. Swiger, an attorney for the Department of Water Resources, wrote in the filing.
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Eventually, the federal commission agreed, and did not require the state to reinforce the emergency spillway. On Saturday, after water only about 1 foot deep flowed over it for the first time since the dams construction was finished in 1968, erosion carved in the hillside below so violently that the Department of Water Resources said the spillway could collapse within an hour, forcing Butte Countys sheriff to order a mass evacuation from what could have been one of the worst dam failures in U.S. history.
Monday, with state and federal dam operators trying desperately to lower the level of Lake Oroville through its damaged main concrete spillway before new storms come in on Wednesday night, Bill Croyle, acting director of the Department of Water Resources, said he was not ready to discuss earlier positions taken by his department.
I, myself, in this incident command post, working with my partner agencies, have focused on addressing the challenges that we have at this very time, he said at a mid-day news conference.
Were going to get into recommendations and concerns that were voiced in the past, but right now were focused on public safety, he said, adding:Before I answer a question like that, we need to do the homework and then we can have a better conversation on that.
Those who raised the alarm 12 years ago said they were surprised at the time by the position of the Department of Water Resources, which was then under the administration of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
All you have to do is look at theso-called emergency spillway and think about what you have witnessed in your backyard when you run a hose over a mound of dirt. It creates erosion. Thats what we said 12 years ago, said Kathryn Phillips, executive director of Sierra Club California.
The Sierra Club, Friends of the River and the South Yuba Citizens League filed motions with the federal government in 2005 urging the that emergency spillway be reinforced because in a very wet winter, erosion might become so severe that the reservoir would suffer a loss of crest control, meaning the top would wash away, sending billions of gallons of water raging to Oroville, Marysville and other towns below.
They just patted us on our little heads all the way along, she said. Its beside me why they would think it wouldnt erode. It seems they just didnt want to spend the money.
Not only were the state and federal officialsopposed to armoring the spillway, the major water agencies that likely would have had to pay the costs were, too. In 2006, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which provides water to 19 million people in Los Angeles, San Diego and other cities, along with the State Water Contractors, a collection of 27 water agencies that buy state water, filed a motion urging the federal government not to require a concrete emergency spillway.
On Monday, the two organizations said they didnt take the stand over cost concerns, but contended they were simply following the recommendations of the state and federal agencies.
I dont recall seeing any cost estimates of it, said Terry Erlewine, general manager of the State Water Contractors. We just deferred to the appropriate agencies, the Corps of Engineers, FERC and DWR. We just deferred to them.
Asked if he would support armoring the emergency spillway now, Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District, sidestepped the issue.
I would defer to DWR working with the Army Corps to what is the appropriate safety standard, and then well worry about the costs later, he said, adding:Flood control is a public benefit that is usually paid for by the state.
Ron Stork, a policy analyst with Friends of the River, said the emergency spillway needs an upgrade a job that likely would cost tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars for public safety, and the costs should be paid by the Metropolitan Water District and the State Water Contractors, a group that includes the Santa Clara Valley Water District, Kern County Water Agency and Alameda County Water District.
They never put it in writing, but it was common knowledge among the water community 12 years ago DWR, local water agencies, consultants that they didnt want to pay the cost, Stork said. Its easy to say it wasnt needed because the experts said it wasnt needed. If I was them, Id own up.
Holding his first news conference since the mass evacuations, Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday said he didnt know about the past concerns from environmentalists about the spillway. But heassured citizens that the state was doing everything it could to make sure we have a safe dam up there and all the other places where we have these kind of potential threats.
The governor also on Monday sent a letter to the White House requesting direct federal assistance for some 10,000 evacuees from Butte, Sutter and Yuba counties.
We live in a world of risk, Brown said, referencing the collapse of the Bay Bridge after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Stuff happens, and we respond.
Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea stressed Monday that evacuation orders remain in place, with no set time for nearly 200,000 people in Butte County and neighboring areas to return home.
We are working on a re-population plan that will get people back to their homes as soon as possible, as long as we can preserve public safety, Honea said.
Meanwhile,state officials continued to race to lower the lake level, releasing 100,000 cubic feet per second of water down the main concrete spillway, as about 35,000 cubic feet per second naturally flowed into the lake. As a result, by nightfall, it was five feet below the top, and water was no longer running over the emergency spillway.
The danger, however, was that not only is a new storm forecast for Wednesday night, but the main spillway partially collapsed last week when a huge hole wore through the concrete. State water officialsslowed releases through that spillway after the water, looking like Niagara Falls, carved a section of hillside away toward the main face of the 770-foot-tall Oroville Dam. If the main concrete spillway continues to crumble upstream, they may have to close off all releases or risk its collapse at the lakes edge. Shutting off the water would send the lake level rising again. Croyle said his department is trying to lower the lake by 50 feet as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, FERC ordered the Department of Water Resources to convene a five-member independent board of dam experts to review the condition of Orovilles emergency spillway and the damaged regular concrete spillway, and to make recommendations about how to improve safety during the emergency and over the long term.
Trucks and helicopters Monday afternoon began dropping rocks on the compromised hillside behind the emergency spillway to slow the erosion.
The next Lake Orville area rain is projected to bring up to 8 inches of rain to the region from Wednesday night to Monday. While not as strong as the previous wet weather, officials are concerned.
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Staff writers Malaika Fraley, Katy Murphy and Mark Gomez contributed to this report.
15 POKEMON GO FACTS/TRICKS FOR GEN 2 IN POKEMON GO! ★ POKEMON GO GEN 2 UPDATE RELEASE!
Na segunda-feira, a conta oficial do Pokmon GO compartilhou a notcia emocionante de que novos Pokmon foram adicionados ao jogo.
A partir de ontem, os ovos agora tm a chance de chocarTogepi, Pichu e vrios outros Pokmon da Gerao II (o lote de 100 Pokmon da verso Gold e Silver).
Ento, quais novos Pokmon esto disponveis?
Niantic estsendo claramente muito inteligente sobre a liberao da segunda gerao. Pelo visual de seu anncio eles esto planejando gradualmente lanar os 100 Pokmon nos prximos meses, e eles comearam com um grupo lgico: os bebs.
A segunda gerao, para quem no muito familiar, introduziu oito Pokmon beb no jogo: seis que so essencialmente mini verses de Pokmons da primeira gerao, e dois que podem evoluir para novos Pokmons.
No momento da escrita, sete destes parecem estar disponveis para ser chocado no jogo
Pichu.
A forma do beb de Pikachu. Pichu parece nosovos 5K, e precisa de 25 doces para evoluir para a sua forma crescida.
Cleffa.
Uma verso pequena (e muito fofa) de Clefairy. Este vem de um ovo 2Km.
Igglybuff.
Nenhum prmio para adivinhar este um mini Jigglypuff. Como Cleffa, ele choca com um ovo de 2Km.
Togepi.
View post on imgur.com
Esta talvez a mais interessante nova adio. Togepi, que aparece no vdeo do anncio, encontrada em um ovo 5Km. Mais interessante, porm, ele no evolui para um Pokmon da Gerao I; Ele evolui para Togetic, um novo Pokmon adulto da GeraoII. No momento da escrita, eu ainda tenho que ver algum postar uma foto de Togetic (a partir do visual do anncio de vdeo Togepi pode evoluir aps 50 doces).
Elekid.
Elekid um Electabuzz em miniatura o primeiro de trs Pokmon beb que chocam em umovo de 10Km.
Magby.
Beb Magmar. Inegavelmente muito fofo.
Smoochum.
Por ltimo mas no menos importante Smoochum: Averso beb de Jynx.
At o momento, os sete Pokmon acima so os nicos que foram vistos em Pokmon Go.
Crucialmente, estes Pokmons no podem atualmente ser encontrados em sua caminhada: podem somente ser chocados dos ovos.
Onde est o Tyrogue?
Assim: h oito bebs da segunda gerao, mas apenas sete esto disponveis atualmente.
Bem, o oitavo beb um pouco mais complicado do que os outros. Tyrogue (retratado acima) um beb que (como Eevee) pode evoluir em trs Pokmon possveis diferentes: Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, e Hitmontop.
No momento da escrita no h nenhum sinal de Tyrogue no jogo. Se Niantic vai fazer esta aparioem estgios, porm, ele seria o prximo passo lgico.
Qual o prximo passo ?
complicado dizer como o resto do lanamento da segunda gerao vai acontecer, mas vale a pena notar que h um monte Pokmons da gerao II que evoluem paraGerao I existente em Pokmon Go. Alguns deles so novas evolues de terceiro estgio (Seadra evolui para Kingdra, por exemplo), enquanto outros so evolues (em Gerao II, Slowpoke pode evoluir para Slowbro ou Slowking).
Voc pode conferir mais informaes de todas evolues da segunda gerao aqui:
Se tivssemos que adivinhar, diramos que o prximo passo da Niantic poderia estar fazendo com que o Professor Willow (reconhecidamente muito intil) descobrisse essas novas evolues. Talvez isso acontea no Ano Novo, talvez antes.E depois disso? Bem, ento hora de abrir caminho para o resto da segunda gerao
The View February 16 2017 | Ice Cube ("Fist Fight") | Burl Davis
Action fantasy The Great Wall took in $970,000 at 2,470 North American locations in Thursday night shows that began at 7 p.m., easily topping high school comedy Fist Fight with $600,000.
Fox-New Regencys psychological horror movie A Cure for Wellness grossed a quiet $300,000 at 2,215 locations from Thursday previews that began at 8 p.m.
Universals The Great Wall, starring Matt Damon as a European mercenary joining the fight against monsters during Chinas Song Dynasty, is expected to take in about $17 million at 3,326 sites during the upcoming weekend. The Legendary production has already grossed a hefty $171 million in China since its Dec. 16 opening and another $50 million in other international markets. Its opening in 21 more markets this weekend.
The Great Wall, directed by Zhang Yimou, carries a $150 million budget and is co-financed by Le Vision Pictures and China Film Group. Its the most expensive movie ever shot in China. Damon stars along with Jing Tian, Pedro Pascal, Willem Dafoe and Andy Lau.
Fist Fight, starring Ice Cube and Charlie Day as feuding teachers, is also expected to debut to roughly $17 million over the four-day Presidents Day weekend at 3,185 locations. The titular fight stems from Cubes history teacher character blaming Days English teaching for getting fired. Richie Keen directed with Jillian Bell, Tracy Morgan and Christina Hendricks also starring.
fist fight should be profitable for New Line as it carries a $20 million price tag and will be the only comedy for several more weeks.
Warner Bros. animated The Lego Batman Movie should notch its second box office victory easily with forecasts in the $40 million range. Universals erotic sequel Fifty Shades Darker will battle The Great Wall and Fist Fight for second. Lego Batman opened with $53 million on Feb. 10-12.
The three new films have not received much critical support with Fist Fight scoring a 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes while The Great Wall received 36% and a A Cure for Wellness came in with 41%.
A Cure for Wellness is opening at 2,704 sites with muted expectations in the $6 million to $8 million range. Wellness centers on a young executive (Dane DeHaan) trying to retrieve the companys CEO from a shadowy spa in the Swiss Alps.
Fox apologized Thursday after reports emerged that it had partnered with fake news providers to post dubious stories such as a fake meeting between President Donald Trump and Russias president, Vladimir Putin, at a resort, which made passing references to the film.
A Cure for Wellness, directed by Gore Verbinski, has a $40 million budget.
Courtney Stodden Gets Real About Her & Her Mother’s Relationship & More!
Both have a penchant for flashing the flesh, have courted scandal for relationships with significantly older men, love wigs and have been known to dabble in plastic surgery.
So it makes a lot of sense that the busty duo would party up a storm together on a wild night out.
The pair shared a bevy of pics on their respective Instagram accounts in what appeared to be a major case of b**b oneupmanship.
INSTAGRAM / GABI GRECKO
BOSOM BUDDIES: Courtney and Gabi enjoyed a night out in LA
Courtney Stodden sexiest pictures Monday, 6th February 2017
Former CBB contestant Courtney Stodden shows off her hot body in sexy selfies and bikini pictures.
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Courtney wore a tiny bejewelled crop top and gold pencil skirt, alongside her favourite platinum blonde hair piece.
Meanwhile Gabi donned a black minidress over a pair of statement leggings and a silver choker.
The pair playfully stuck out their tongues in one snap, with Courtney toting a glass of champagne while Gabi held the camera.
Gabi followed up with a video of herself dancing on a pole, only to subsequently delete it in a rare moment of modesty.
INSTAGRAM / GABI GRECKO
CHAMPAGNE BLONDE: Courtney coiffed a glass of bubbly
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INSTAGRAM / GABI GRECKO
PARTY ANIMAL: Gabi couldn"t resist dancing on the pole
Courtney was less timid, sharing a (somewhat outdated) mannequin challenge in which she seductively draped herself over a velvet sofa.
"Super lit right now. Stay classy and sexy," Courtney"s Instagram read.
At the end of last year, Gabi vowed to cut back on her debauched antics and seedy social media stripteases.
Gabi Grecko flaunts extreme cleavage Monday, 5th December 2016
American model Gabi Grecko deserves cleavage of the year title and you"ll soon see why.
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INSTAGRAM / COURTNEY STODDEN
STEADY ON: Courtney doesn"t do things by halves, does she?
PeTA"s sexiest campaigners Tuesday, 22nd November 2016
Here"s our round-up of PeTA"s finest and sexiest ever campaigners, including Pamela Anderson and Courtney Stodden.
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Alicia Silverstone Is Anti-Wool, Pro-b**t in New n***d PETA Ad
"Last just sexy video, though I tried something new here with the strobe lights. So one goal in 2017 is to post more art, content, fashion and creative projects (blah, blah blah...so predictable... but hey) and LESS half-n***d videos," she wrote in December.
"Well, unless it"s a creative half-n***d video or I think it"ll give people a good laugh. So anyways here"s to less predictable, less vapid content and more surprises!" she went on.
"We are all more than our bodies, you can still look fly as h**l but cherish your minds as creative goldmines."
Judging by her scantily-clad twerking, the New Year"s resolution is proving difficult to stick to...
The Great Wall | all international trailers (2017) Matt Damon
Pedro Pascal had been working steadily for years guest spots on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and NYPD Blue and Nurse Jackie and CSI before he landed the role that kick-started his career: Oberyn Martell, aka the swaggering Red Viper, during the fourth season of HBOs Game of Thrones.
His traumatic showdown with Ser Gregor The Mountain Clegane is what fans of the show remember most about Pascals seven-episode stretch. But it was a quieter scene in the preceding episode a conversation with the imprisoned Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) that sparked Hollywoods interest.
I was in New York doing Much Ado About Nothing in Central Park when those episodes aired, Pascal says. Fans of the show had started to come see me in the play. The day after [the Mountain] crushed my head, someone asked to take a selfie with me while I was riding the A train uptown.
But it was the week before, when that scene with Peter Dinklage aired, that I got the offer to play [DEA agent] Javier Pea on Narcos, he says. That was the episode that changed everything.
Opening today is The Great Wall, in which Pascal co-stars with Matt Damon as two European mercenaries who end up helping Chinese soldiers fight off a horde of lizard creatures trying to break through the countrys Great Wall.
The movie, which was directed by Zhang Yimou (Hero, House of Flying Daggers), is the first big-budget Chinese production starring Hollywood actors (willem dafoe plays another important role). the film was released in China in December, where it earned $224 million.
But with a reported budget of $150 million, The Great Wall will need to duplicate that gross in the U.S. in order to turn a profit. Hollywood, which has been aggressively courting the massive Chinese movie-going audience, is watching closely to see how this experiment turns out.
For Pascal, though, The Great Wall the movie was the culmination of a deep admiration that started when he was a teenager and saw director Zhang Yimous 1991 historical drama Raise the Red Lantern.
I never missed one of his movies after I saw that one, Pascal, 41, said during a recent visit to Miami. When I was getting on a plane to go to Beijing to start to work on this movie, I was terrified, because I have so much respect for Yimou, I didnt know if Id be able to deliver what was expected of me. But he turned out to be this incredibly generous, gentle, humble man. His energy immediately put me at ease.
Most of the crew who worked on The Great Wall was Chinese. But Pascal says the language gap became part of the adventure: I liked the feeling of being an outsider and watching how people from different cultures communicated with each other, he says. Yimou was so clear-minded about what he wanted that he almost didnt need to use an interpreter.
Pascal is familiar with that outsider feeling. Born in Santiago, Chile, and raised in Texas and California, Pascal has used different stage names throughout his career variations on his full name of Jose Pedro Balmaceda Pascal in order to avoid typecasting. With The Great Wall and the upcoming Kingsman: The Golden Circle, in which he appears opposite Channing Tatum, Colin Firth, Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore, Pascal finally has a movie career to go along with his long stint on television.
I had a hard time through my 20s and my early 30s, because I never looked like a Pedro to casting directors, he says. There was often a bit of a head tilt when they met me. Why is your name Pedro if youre not brown? I think thats changing slowly for Latinos, because we represent everyone on this planet: Asian, European, African, indigenous and everything in between.
GENIE BOUCHARD AGREES TO 2ND DATE with Super Bowl Bet Guy | TMZ Sports "; var imageDivId = "#"+"firstImageDisplayModal_494848648"; if ($(".reveal-modal-bg").length == 0) { $("#wrapper").after(""); } if ($(imageDivId).length == 0) { $("#wrapper").after(contentText); }
Keeping her promise after losing a Super Bowl bet on Twitter with a random fan, Canadian tennis star Genie Bouchard and her blind date attended a Brooklyn Nets game Wednesday night at the Barclays Center.
>> Read more trending news
Bouchard and University of Missouri student John Goehrke sat courtside at the Nets game against the Milwaukee Bucks, even throwing souvenir b***s into the stands.
Bouchard tweeted that the Atlanta Falcons would beat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI when the Falcons were leading by 25 points.
Goehrke responded by asking her for a date if the Patriots won, and she agreed.
Bouchard even said she enjoyed the date and would consider going out with Goehrke a second time.
The Falcons blew their lead and the Patriots won the game 34-28. Bouchard made good on the bet and met Goehrke for the game on Wednesday while she was in New York for events connected with her appearance in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.
