WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden told NBC News in an interview airing Monday that it was a “mistake” to say he wanted to put a “bull’s-eye” on Republican nominee Donald Trump, but argued that the rhetoric coming from his opponent was more incendiary while warning that Trump remained a threat to democratic institutions.
Those remarks from Biden came during a private call with donors last week as the Democrat had been scrambling to shore up his imperiled candidacy with key party constituencies. During that conversation, Biden declared that he was “done” talking about his poor debate performance and that it was “time to put Trump in the bull’s-eye,” saying Trump has gotten far too little scrutiny on his stances, rhetoric and lack of campaigning.
Insisting “there was very little focus on Trump’s agenda,” Biden told NBC anchor Lester Holt that while he acknowledged his “mistake,” he nonetheless is “not the guy who said I wanted to be a dictator on day one” and that he wanted the focus to be on what Trump was saying. It’s Trump, not Biden, who engages in that kind of rhetoric, Biden said, referring to Trump’s past comments about a “bloodbath” if the Republican loses to Biden in November.
“Look, how do you talk about the threat to democracy, which is real, when a president says things like he says?” Biden said. “Do you just not say anything because it may incite somebody?”
The interview was occurring the same day that his reelection team was preparing to resume full-throttle campaigning after the assassination attempt on Trump, particularly after the GOP nominee announced Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his running mate — which unleashed a flurry of criticism from the Biden campaign and other Democrats about the young freshman senator’s policy positions.
“He’s a clone of Trump on the issues,” Biden told reporters at Andrews Air Force Base shortly before departing for Nevada for a series of speeches and campaign events. “I don’t see any difference.”
The NBC interview, scheduled before the attempt on Trump’s life at a rally in Pennsylvania, had been part of Biden’s broader strategy to prove his fitness for office after angst grew among Democrats because of his disastrous June 27 debate performance.
The Biden campaign recalibrated some of its political plans in the immediate aftermath of the assassination attempt on Saturday, pulling advertising off the air and hitting pause on messaging. The White House also scrapped Biden’s planned Monday visit to the Lyndon B. Johnson library, where he had been slated to deliver remarks on civil rights.
It’s still not finalized when Biden’s campaign ads will resume airing. But Biden is pressing on with the Nevada portion of his previously scheduled western swing, which will include remarks to the NAACP and UnidosUS, a Latino civil rights and advocacy group. He’ll also headline what’s been billed as a “campaign community event” on Wednesday in Las Vegas.
Hours ahead of the NBC interview, his campaign issued a blistering statement on Trump’s selection of Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his running mate, saying he picked the freshman senator because he would “bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda.”
“Over the next three and a half months, we will spend every single day making the case between the two starkly contrasting visions Americans will choose between at the ballot box this November,” said Biden campaign chairwoman Jen O’Malley Dillon. “The Biden-Harris ticket who’s focused on uniting the country, creating opportunity for everyone, and lowering costs; or Trump-Vance – whose harmful agenda will take away Americans’ rights, hurt the middle class, and make life more expensive – all while benefiting the ultra-rich and greedy corporations.”
Biden has acknowledged that his candidacy and agenda will be under attack at the Republican National Convention this week, and aides feel no need to put their campaign on complete pause while Biden comes under scrutiny in Milwaukee. But they’ll tread carefully in the aftermath of the shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“I’ll be traveling this week, making the case for our record and the vision — my vision of the country — our vision,” Biden said during his Oval Office remarks on Sunday night, just the third such address of his presidency. “I’ll continue to speak out strongly for our democracy, stand up for our Constitution and the rule of law, to call for action at the ballot box, no violence on our streets. That’s how democracy should work.”
Biden’s renewed campaigning this week comes as Democrats have been at an impasse over whether the incumbent president should continue in the race even as he was defiant that he would stay in. Biden has made it clear in no uncertain terms that he remains in the race, and aides have been operating as such.
It was unclear if the attempt on Trump’s life would blunt Democratic efforts to urge Biden to step aside, but it appears to have stalled some of the momentum, for now. No Democrats have called for him to exit the race since the shooting Saturday night.
In the hours before the shooting, Biden was still being confronted by frustration and skepticism from Democratic lawmakers. Rep. Jared Huffman of California said he asked the president during his meeting with the Congressional Progressive Caucus about objectively assessing the trajectory of the race, and if the Lord almighty doesn’t intervene would Biden consider “the best earthly alternative”: meeting with former presidents Obama and Clinton, and the Democratic leadership including Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer, and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi “to seek their advice.”
Huffman said on a social media post that Biden “disagreed with the notion that we are on a losing trajectory.”
And while Biden expressed a “willingness to listen” to other voices, Huffman said he doubted any would be persuasive. “I continue to believe a major course correction is needed, and that the President and his team have yet to fully acknowledge the problem, much less correct it,” he said.
But now, several Democrats who requested anonymity were skeptical that there would be enough drive among lawmakers to successfully try and pressure Biden not to run, especially because they are scattered and away from Washington until next week and because Biden has said he won’t step aside and seized the opportunity to quickly respond to the shooting over the weekend. The people requested anonymity to characterize private conversations.
Many in the Democratic Party had been looking to congressional leaders Jeffries and Schumer to voice concerns directly to the president. Jeffries met with Biden at the White House on Thursday night, while Schumer went to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Saturday for his visit with Biden, which occurred just before the assassination attempt on Trump.
There were still deep concerns that Biden is not up to the job and a sense that pressure to try and find another candidate could ramp up again when lawmakers return to Washington. Congressional Democrats were watching the Republican National Convention and Biden’s appearances this week with awareness that the dynamics could change — again.
Biden says it was a ‘mistake’ to say he wanted to put a ‘bull’s-eye’ on Trump
https://arab.news/p73qx
Biden says it was a ‘mistake’ to say he wanted to put a ‘bull’s-eye’ on Trump
- “Look, how do you talk about the threat to democracy, which is real, when a president says things like he says?” Biden said
Albania police fire tear gas, water cannon at anti-government protesters
“The protests will continue, this is a battle until this regime goes,” Tedi Blushi from the opposition Freedom Party said
TIRANA: Police in Albania’s capital Tirana fired tear gas and used water cannon to disperse hundreds of opposition protesters blocking roads, who accused the government of corruption and demanded it be replaced with a technocratic caretaker authority.
Protesters said they were engaged in a campaign of civil disobedience against Socialist Party Prime Minister Edi Rama. The opposition in Albania have been protesting almost every week demanding a caretaker government step in until parliamentary elections in 2025.
“The protests will continue, this is a battle until this regime goes,” Tedi Blushi from the opposition Freedom Party told local media.
The leaders of Albania’s two biggest opposition parties, Sali Berisha of the Democratic Party and Ilir Meta of the Freedom Party, are charged with corruption offenses and both accuse Rama of orchestrating these. They deny the charges.
Rama says the charges are not politically-motivated and accuses the opposition of trying to seize power with violence.
Berisha is being held under house arrest on corruption charges relating to his time as prime minister. Meta was arrested in late October also on corruption charges for the time when he served as president between 2017-2022.
Rama has been in power since 2013 and plans to run for a fourth term next year.
One killed in Bangladesh as Hindu protesters clash with police over arrest of religious leader
- Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested from Dhaka airport on Monday on several charges, including sedition
- India condemned the arrest, saying perpetrators who hurt minorities and desecrated deities remained at large
DHAKA At least one person was killed in Bangladesh in clashes between security forces and Hindus protesting against the arrest of a religious leader, police said, even as neighboring India urged that the safety of Hindus and minorities be ensured.
Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Hindu leader associated with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), was arrested from Dhaka airport on Monday on several charges, including sedition.
His arrest sparked protests by his supporters in both the capital Dhaka and Chittagong city.
“A Muslim lawyer defending Das was killed amid protests outside the court (in Chittagong),” said police officer Liaquat Ali.
A probe has been ordered into the alleged killing, the caretaker government said in a statement, adding that Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus had directed law enforcement agencies to step up security in the port city.
“The interim government is committed to ensuring and upholding communal harmony in Bangladesh at any cost,” the government said.
Das faces sedition charges filed in October after leading a large rally in Chittagong, in which he was accused of disrespecting Bangladesh’s national flag and was denied bail by a court in Chittagong on Tuesday.
'RAMPAGE'
When Das was being escorted back to prison from court, more than 2,000 supporters surrounded the van, blocking it for over two hours, Chittagong Metropolitan Police Commissioner Hasib Aziz, said.
“They went on a rampage, throwing bricks at us. To disperse the crowd, we had to fire tear gas. No one was seriously injured, but one of our constables was hurt,” Aziz said.
India condemned the arrest of Das, saying in a sternly worded statement that the perpetrators of documented vandalism and arson against minorities as well as those who desecrated deities remained at large.
Hindu-majority India has strong cultural and business ties with its neighbor and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has expressed concern over a spate of attacks on Hindus.
“It is unfortunate that, while the perpetrators of these incidents remain at large, charges should be pressed against a religious leader presenting legitimate demands through peaceful gatherings,” the Indian foreign ministry statement said.
Bangladesh’s foreign ministry, responding to India, said the government does not interfere in the judiciary’s work, and the matter was being dealt with by the court of law.
“The Government of Bangladesh is also committed to upholding communal harmony in the country,” the ministry said. One killed in Bangladesh as Hindu protesters clash with police over arrest of religious leader
Russian shelling kills two in Ukraine’s Sumy, President Zelensky says
- Zelensky said in a video on the Telegram messaging app that a rescue operation was underway at the site and more people could be under debris
- “It is realistic to protect against it only by destroying Russian weapons”
KYIV: Russian shelling killed two civilians in the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine on Tuesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Zelensky said in a video on the Telegram messaging app that a rescue operation was underway at the site and more people could be under debris.
City officials earlier said that Sumy, located about 30 km (19 miles) from the Russian border, had been hit by a Russian airstrike at about 12.10 p.m. (1010 GMT). They said a car servicing station, several houses, and an educational building were damaged in the attack.
But Zelensky, citing preliminary findings, later said Sumy had been struck by a multiple-launch rocket system.
“It is realistic to protect against it only by destroying Russian weapons, the Russian launch systems on Russian territory. That is why the ability to strike at Russian territory is so important for us,” Zelensky said.
Russia’s defense ministry said that Ukraine hit Russia with US-produced ATACMS missiles twice over the last three days, adding that Moscow was preparing retaliatory measures.
The war between Russia and Ukraine is at a critical stage, with Moscow reported to be using North Korean troops and Kyiv using Western-supplied missiles to strike back inside Russia.
Prosecutors seek up to 14-year terms for French rape trial defendants
- The case has sparked horror, protests and a debate about male violence in France
- Until Wednesday, or latest Thursday morning, prosecutors are outlining their sentencing demands for all the defendants
AVIGNON, France: French prosecutors on Tuesday demanded sentences of up to 14 years for some of the remaining co-defendants of a man charged with enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his wife while she was drugged and unconscious.
On Monday, prosecutors requested a maximum 20-year jail term for Dominique Pelicot, who has been on trial in the southern city of Avignon since September with 49 other men for organizing the rapes and sexual abuse of Gisele Pelicot, now his former wife.
One man is being tried in absentia.
The case has sparked horror, protests and a debate about male violence in France, with tens of thousands of protesters staging demonstrations across the country on Saturday against violence targeting women.
The decade-long abuse of Gisele Pelicot by Dominque Pelicot was only uncovered when he was arrested for a separate upskirting offense, leading investigators to discover his meticulously-kept records of the visitors to the family home in the town Mazan.
Until Wednesday, or latest Thursday morning, prosecutors are outlining their sentencing demands for all the defendants, most of whom come from ordinary professions ranging from the fire brigade to the media.
On Tuesday, public prosecutor Laure Chabaud asked for a 14-year sentence for Karim S., 38, who was one of the few defendants whose messaging with Dominique Pelicot was discovered by investigators.
For Florian R., 32, who did not admit “intent” and Gregory S., 31, who was “aware of Gisele Pelicot’s altered state,” Chabaud demanded thirteen years in prison.
Some defense lawyers have described the sentencing demands as “staggering” and “out of proportion,” alleging the public prosecutor’s office was under pressure from “public opinion.”
“I fear what will happen next,” said Louis-Alain Lemaire, a lawyer for four defendants.
But public prosecutors say the trial should herald a fundamental change in society.
“In 2024, we can no longer say ‘she didn’t say anything, she agreed,’ that’s from another era,” Chabaud said on Monday.
Prosecutors asked for a 12-year sentence for nine of the remaining defendants, including Boris M., 37, who claimed during the hearings that he, too, was a victim.
“He says he was a victim of Dominique Pelicot, like Gisele Pelicot,” prosecutor Jean-Francois Mayet said.
But “at no time did he seek or obtain Gisele Pelicot’s consent,” he said, adding, “in reality, he was pleased with the situation presented to him” by the main defendant.
Prosecutors sought a 12-year sentence for Mahdi D., 36, who also claimed to be a victim of Dominique Pelicot’s actions.
Chabaud also asked for 12-years for Lionel R., 44, who said he was taking “part in a couple’s fantasy.”
Many of the accused argued in court that they believed Pelicot’s claim that they were participating in a libertine fantasy, in which his wife had consented to sexual contact and was only pretending to be asleep.
Among them, 33 have also claimed they were not in their right minds when they abused or raped Gisele Pelicot, a defense not backed by any of the psychological reports compiled by court-appointed experts.
Prosecutors also sought a 12-year jail term for Cyril B., 47, who “was well aware Gisele Pelicot should not be woken up,” and for Thierry P., 54, who said Dominique Pelicot was “solely responsible,” the public prosecutor said.
Mayet demanded the same prison sentence for Omar D., 36, who argued “the husband’s consent and presence seemed to be sufficient,” and Ahmed T., 54, who “denies any responsibility.”
Two other defendants, Redouane A., 40, who said he came to Mazan to “please the couple” and Jean T., 52, who claimed without evidence he was also drugged by the main defendant, are also facing a 12-year jail-term.
On Monday, prosecutors requested a 17-year prison sentence for one defendant, Jean-Pierre M., 63, who applied Pelicot’s practices against his own wife to rape her a dozen times, sometimes in Pelicot’s presence.
The trial has made Gisele Pelicot, who insisted the hearings be held in public, a feminist icon in the fight of women against sexual abuse.
Prosecutor Mayet praised her “courage” and “dignity,” thanking her for allowing the hearings to be held in public.
The verdicts and sentencing are expected by December 20.
Russia vows response to latest Ukraine ATACMS strikes
- Ukraine firing the long-range missiles into Russia for the first time last week prompted a furious reaction from Moscow
- Russia’s defense ministry on Tuesday said Ukraine had carried out fresh strikes — on November 23 and 25 — using ATACMS
MOSCOW: Moscow’s military on Tuesday pledged a response to fresh Ukrainian air attacks inside Russia using US-supplied ATACMS missiles.
Ukraine firing the long-range missiles into Russia for the first time last week prompted a furious reaction from Moscow.
Russia’s defense ministry on Tuesday said Ukraine had carried out fresh strikes — on November 23 and 25 — using ATACMS.
“Retaliatory actions are being prepared,” it said in a post on Telegram, without elaborating.
The United States gave Ukraine permission to use the weapons to hit Russian territory earlier this month after months of requests from Kyiv.
In a rare admission, Russia said the fresh strikes had caused damage to military hardware and wounded some of its personnel on the ground.
A strike on the Kursk Vostochny air base wounded two servicemen, the defense ministry said, while a strike on an air defense battery damaged a radar system and also caused “casualties.”
It said three of the five missiles fired in the first strike were shot down, while seven of the eight used in the second were destroyed.
Moscow rarely provides such specific details on Ukrainian aerial attacks and almost never admits missiles have reached their intended target.
The defense ministry also posted photos of what it said were the missile fragments, showing large casings with English-language inscriptions on the side.
AFP was unable to immediately verify the images.
The strikes come with tensions having ratched up dramatically in the near three-year conflict over the last few weeks.
Putin last week signed a decree lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, days before launching the nuclear-capable hypersonic Oreshnik missile at Ukraine.
