CHEYENNE, Wyoming: Former Vice President Dick Cheney, a lifelong Republican, will vote for Kamala Harris for president, he announced Friday.
Liz Cheney, who herself endorsed Harris on Wednesday, first announced her father’s endorsement when asked by Mark Leibovich of The Atlantic magazine during an onstage interview at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin.
“Wow,” Leibovich replied as the audience cheered.
Like his daughter, Dick Cheney has been an outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump, notably during Liz Cheney’s ill-fated reelection campaign in 2022.
Dick Cheney put out a statement Friday confirming his endorsement, which read almost entirely as opposition to Trump rather than support of Harris.
“He can never be trusted with power again,” the statement said. “As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.”
Trump responded on his Truth Social platform by calling the former vice president “an irrelevant RINO, along with his daughter.” The acronym stands for “Republican in name only.”
Asked for comment, Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said, “Who is Liz Cheney?”
The campaign confirmed Cheung was being sarcastic by also pointing to a comment Liz Cheney posted online four years ago in which she called Harris a “radical liberal.”
Dick Cheney, 83, has made few if any public appearances over the past year or more. He has dealt with heart issues since his 40s and underwent a heart transplant in 2012.
Dick Cheney’s statement Friday was similar to a 2022 campaign ad for Liz Cheney as she sought a fourth term as Wyoming’s lone congressperson. In it, he called Trump a “coward” for trying to “steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him.”
The ad did little good for his daughter in a deep-red state that once held the Cheney family dear but is now thoroughly in Trump’s corner. By a more than 2-to-1 margin, Liz Cheney lost her Republican primary to Trump-endorsed attorney Harriet Hageman.
Dick Cheney has been friends with Democrats over the years but never supported one for president.
Both Cheneys backed Trump in 2016, but after Liz Cheney criticized Trump foreign policy decisions and Trump criticized the “endless wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq launched when Dick Cheney was vice president, their support waned.
If either Cheney supported Trump in 2020, they were mum about it. Meanwhile, their home state of Wyoming that year delivered Trump his widest margin of victory.
By 2021, Liz Cheney’s vote to impeach Trump and her investigation into him for the 2021 US Capitol riot made them irredeemable to Trump — and soon most of the GOP.
There were exceptions. One was Cheney ally Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, a Republican Trump critic who earlier this year endorsed Biden and spoke in support of Harris at the Democratic National Convention in August.
Several other top Republicans have come out in support of Harris while some, including Sen. Mitt Romney and former Vice President Mike Pence, say they won’t be voting for Trump.
Of them only Romney, who is not seeking reelection, is still in office.
Former US Vice President Dick Cheney, a lifelong Republican, says he will vote for Kamala Harris
https://arab.news/wv25a
Former US Vice President Dick Cheney, a lifelong Republican, says he will vote for Kamala Harris
- Cheney, who was VP from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush, says Republican candidate and former president Donald Trump “can never be trusted with power again”
- Several other top Republicans have come out in support of Harris while some, including Sen. Mitt Romney and former Vice President Mike Pence, say they won’t be voting for Trump
Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari dies in London
- Buhari, 82, who first led the country as a military ruler after a coup in the 1980s, earned a devoted following for his brand of anti-corruption conviction politics
LAGOS: Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari, who led Africa’s most populous country from 2015-23 and was the first Nigerian president to oust an incumbent through the ballot box, died in London on Sunday, a presidential spokesperson said.
“President Buhari died today in London at about 4:30 p.m. (1530 GMT), following a prolonged illness,” President Bola Tinubu’s spokesperson said in a post on X.
Buhari, 82, who first led the country as a military ruler after a coup in the 1980s, earned a devoted following for his brand of anti-corruption conviction politics.
He referred to himself as a “converted democrat” and swapped his military uniform for kaftans and prayer caps.
“I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody,” was a constant refrain Buhari told supporters and critics alike.
Buhari defeated Goodluck Jonathan in 2015 in what was judged to be Nigeria’s fairest election to date. Many hoped the retired major general would crack down on armed groups, just as he had as the country’s military head of state.
Instead, violence that had mostly been confined to the northeast spread. That left swathes of Nigeria outside the control of its stretched security forces as gunmen in the northwest, armed separatists and gangs in the southeast roamed unchecked.
Much of his appeal lay in the anti-corruption ethos that was a central plank of his agenda both as a military and civilian ruler. He said endemic corruption in Nigeria’s political culture was holding people back.
“Baba Go Slow”
But Buhari quickly disappointed after his 2015 win.
He took six months to name his cabinet. During that time, the oil-dependent economy was hobbled by low crude prices, prompting people to call him “Baba Go Slow.”
His second victory in 2019 came despite his first term being blighted by Nigeria’s first recession in a generation, militant attacks on oilfields, and repeated hospital stays.
Born on December 17, 1942, in Daura in the northwestern state of Katsina state, Buhari enrolled in the army at 19. He would eventually rise to the rank of major-general.
He seized power in 1983 as a military ruler, promising to revitalize a mismanaged country. Buhari took a tough line on everything from the conditions sought by the International Monetary Fund to unruliness in bus queues.
In 1984, his administration attempted to kidnap a former minister and vocal critic living in Britain. The plot failed when London airport officials opened the crate containing the abducted politician.
His first stint in power was short-lived. He was removed after only 18 months by another military officer, Ibrahim Babangida.
Buhari spent much of the following 30 years in fringe political parties and trying to run for president until his eventual victory over Jonathan in 2015.
’Inexcusable’ failures led to Trump assassination attempt: Senate report
- A congressional inquiry accused the Secret Service of ‘a cascade of preventable failures that nearly cost President Trump his life’
- Six unidentified Secret Service staff have been disciplined with punishments range from 10 to 42 days’ suspension without pay
WASHINGTON: A congressional inquiry into the attempt to assassinate US President Donald Trump at a campaign rally a year ago on Sunday lamented “inexcusable” failures in the Secret Service’s operations and response, and called for more serious disciplinary action.
On July 13, 2024, a gunman shot the then-Republican presidential candidate during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing his ear.
One bystander was killed and two other people in addition to Trump were wounded before a government sniper killed the gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks.
“What happened was inexcusable and the consequences imposed for the failures so far do not reflect the severity of the situation,” said the report released by the US Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
The dramatic incident energized Trump’s bid to return to the White House, with his campaign using a photo of him bloodied and pumping his fist as he was hurried offstage to woo voters.
The report did not shed new light on the gunman’s motive, which still remains a mystery, but accused the Secret Service of “a cascade of preventable failures that nearly cost President Trump his life.”
“The United States Secret Service failed to act on credible intelligence, failed to coordinate with local law enforcement,” said the committee’s Republican chairman Rand Paul.
“Despite those failures, no one has been fired,” he added.
“It was a complete breakdown of security at every level-fueled by bureaucratic indifference, a lack of clear protocols, and a shocking refusal to act on direct threats.
“We must hold individuals accountable and ensure reforms are fully implemented so this never happens again.”
Staff disciplined
The Secret Service cited communication, technical and human errors and said reforms were underway, including on coordination between different law enforcement bodies and establishment of a division dedicated to aerial surveillance.
Six unidentified staff have been disciplined, according to the agency. The punishments range from 10 to 42 days’ suspension without pay, and all six were put into restricted or non-operational positions.
Reflecting on the assassination attempt earlier this week, Trump said “mistakes were made” but that he was satisfied with the investigation.
In an interview with his daughter-in-law on Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump,” Trump said the sniper “was able to get him from a long distance with one shot. If he didn’t do that, you would have had an even worse situation.”
“It was unforgettable,” Trump said of the events.
“I didn’t know exactly what was going on. I got whacked. There’s no question about that. And fortunately, I got down quickly. People were screaming.”
Russia’s Lavrov visits Beijing to discuss Ukraine
- Russia’s top diplomat arrived in China following a visit to North Korea
- China claims to be neutral in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine
MOSCOW: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met Sunday in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart to discuss Ukraine and relations with the United States.
Russia’s top diplomat arrived in China following a visit to North Korea, where he received assurances of support in its conflict with Ukraine.
Lavrov and Wang Yi “discussed relations with the United States and the outlook for settling the Ukrainian crisis,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
China, a diplomatic and economic ally of Moscow, claims to be neutral in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
But it has never denounced Russia’s 2022 invasion nor called for it to withdraw its troops, and many of Ukraine’s allies believe that China has provided support for Russia.
Beijing regularly calls for an end to the fighting, while also accusing Western countries of prolonging the conflict by arming Ukraine.
The statement from the Russian foreign ministry said Levrov and Yi also discussed other “burning issues” such as the war in Gaza and the “situation on the Korean peninsula.”
Hundreds sign letter opposing ban on Palestine Action, calling it ‘major assault on freedoms’
- Palestine Action, known for its direct action protests targeting UK-based Israeli weapons factories and their supply chains, was officially proscribed under anti-terrorism laws
LONDON: Hundreds of trade unionists, activists, politicians and campaigners have signed an open letter condemning the UK government’s recent decision to ban the protest group Palestine Action, describing the move as “a major assault on our freedoms.”
Palestine Action, known for its direct action protests targeting UK-based Israeli weapons factories and their supply chains, was officially proscribed under anti-terrorism laws earlier this month after a parliamentary vote.
The ban makes it a criminal offence to be a member of or express support for the group. A last-minute legal challenge to halt the proscription was unsuccessful.
“Peaceful protest tactics which damage property or disrupt ‘business-as-usual’ in order to call attention to the crimes of the powerful have a long and proud history. They are more urgent than ever in response to Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people,” the open letter, which has gathered more than 900 signatures so far, argued.
Among the signatories are singer Charlotte Church and long-time environmental and human rights activist Angie Zelter, who was previously acquitted after disarming a BAE Hawk jet and destroying infrastructure linked to Britain’s Trident nuclear weapons system, The Guardian newspaper reported.
Elected representatives also joined the list of supporters, including James Dornan, Scottish National Party MSP for Cathcart, who last week tabled a motion in the Scottish parliament calling for the Israeli military to be designated a terrorist organization.
Glasgow Trades Union Council, which is collectively backing the letter, issued a statement saying: “As the UK government is attacking our civil liberties, we must ask ourselves if not now, then when?”
Anne Alexander, a University of Cambridge researcher and UCU activist who helped organize the letter, said the response showed widespread opposition to the government's stance.
“The response to this open letter shows that people up and down the country want to stop arms going to Israel and that they don’t agree that a direct action group are ‘terrorists’ because they tried to disrupt the supply chain fuelling a genocide,” she said.
The draft order to proscribe Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 2000 was put forward by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and passed the House of Commons on July 2 by 385 votes to 26.
The legislation included a ban on two neo-Nazi organisations, the Maniacs Murder Cult and the Russian Imperial Movement.
Some MPs and human rights groups have been critical of the government for the move, suggesting that combining Palestine Action with white supremacist groups in a single motion placed political pressure on MPs to support the measure.
EU and Indonesia announce ‘political agreement’ on trade deal
- European bloc and Southeast Asia’s largest economy have been negotiating since 2016 to agree a deal that is expected to increase trade and investment
BRUSSELS: EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto on Sunday announced a “political agreement” to conclude a long-awaited free trade deal, as US leader Donald Trump upends global commerce.
“We’re living in turbulent times and when economic uncertainty meets geopolitical volatility, partners like us must come closer together. So today we’re taking a big step forward in this partnership,” von der Leyen told journalists in Brussels.
“I am very pleased to report that we have just reached a political agreement on an ambitious Free Trade Agreement.”
The 27-nation European bloc and Southeast Asia’s largest economy have been negotiating since 2016 to agree a deal that is expected to increase trade and investment.
A European Commission statement called Sunday’s agreement a “decisive milestone” toward striking the deal — which is to be concluded in September by EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic and Indonesia’s chief economic minister Airlangga Hartarto.
“There’s a lot of untapped potential in our trade relationship. And therefore this agreement comes at the right time, because the new agreement will open new markets,” von der Leyen said.
“It will create more opportunities in key industries, in business activity and agriculture, in automotive and in services.”
Brussels has stepped up efforts to improve ties with key potential partners around the world as Trump threatens a trade war with sweeping tariffs.
“This big and important political agreement on the free trade agreement with Indonesia is today a huge milestone forward, and shows that we’re looking for new markets, open markets,” von der Leyen said.
Prabowo called the announcement in Brussels a “breakthrough.”
“After 10 years of negotiations, we have concluded the agreement to have a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which basically is a free trade agreement,” he said.
The president said “we consider Europe still a very important factor, and we would like to see a very strong Europe.”
But he insisted that “the United States will be always a very important leader in the world.”
The European Union is Indonesia’s fifth-largest trading partner with bilateral trade between them reaching $30.1 billion last year.
Ties had been frayed by a proposed EU import ban on products linked to deforestation that has angered Indonesia because it is a major palm oil exporter.
That legislation has been delayed to the end of this year.
