Jul 10, 2019

Alex Acosta to hold press conference on Jeffrey Epstein plea deal

Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta has cleared his schedule Wednesday and is expected to hold a 2:30pm press conference where he will make a statement and take questions from the media on his involvement in the 2008 plea deal with Jeffrey Epstein, sources familiar told Axios, and the Labor Department later confirmed.

Why it matters: A source close to President Trump tells Axios there is "zero" chance he fires Labor Secretary Alex Acosta over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. But, as we reported, Acosta has few allies inside the White House — and a number who want to see him gone — because of what they perceive as his inadequate efforts on deregulation.

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Fadel Allassan

Updated 48 mins ago - World

2 Lebanese ministers and 9 lawmakers resign days after deadly explosion

Anti-government protesters in Beirut. Photo: STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Lebanon’s information and environment ministers resigned Sunday in the wake of massive protests over the deadly blast in Beirut's port last week, per AP.

Why it matters: In her resignation letter, Information Minister Manal Abdel-Samad called change "elusive" and apologized for not delivering more to the country, which had been devastated by a financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic even before the blast destroyed much of the capital city.

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Axios

Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3 a.m. ET: 19,863,850 — Total deaths: 731,374 — Total recoveries — 12,117,346 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3 a.m. ET: 5,044,864 — Total deaths: 162,938 — Total recoveries: 1,656,864 — Total tests: 61,792,571 — Map.
Politics: Pelosi says states don't have the funds to comply with Trump's executive order on unemployment — Mnuchin says Trump executive orders were cleared by Justice Department.
States: New York reports lowest rate of positive coronavirus test results since pandemic began
Public health: Ex-FDA head: U.S. will "definitely" see 200,000 to 300,000 virus deaths by end of 2020.
Schools: 97,000 children test positive for coronavirus in two weeks — Nine test positive at Georgia school where photo showing packed hallway went viral .

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Zachary Basu

Updated 2 hours ago - World

Police and protesters clash in Belarus after "Europe's last dictator" claims election win

Protesters and riot police clash in Minsk, Belarus, on Sunday during a demonstration against President Alexander Lukashenko's claim of a landslide victory. Photo: Misha Friedman/Getty Images)

Riot police clashed with protesters in Belarus overnight after a government exit poll predicted Sunday President Aleksander Lukashenko, an authoritarian who has ruled the Eastern European country since 1994, had overwhelmingly defeated a pro-democracy opposition candidate.

Why it matters: It's a precarious moment for the former Soviet republic, where decades of repression and a complete disregard for the coronavirus pandemic threaten to topple "Europe's last dictator." There were reports of police in Minsk using excessive force on protesters in a brutal crackdown.