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Trump Claims German Crime Is Way Up To Defend Child Separation Policy. It's Not.

President Donald Trump, once again defending his policy of separating migrant

Patrolling the border, where immigrants wait to be caught

Photojournalist Sergio Flores recounts his day with U.S. Border Patrol near McAllen, Texas.

Barack Obama Gets School Named After Him In Former Confederate Capital

The school board in Richmond, Virginia, on Monday night voted to rename an

Nielsen: Separating families isn't a 'policy,' it's just something we do

Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen told reporters Monday that it was “offensive” to imply that the administration had a “policy” of separating parents from children at the border — even though it was the stated purpose of the controversial change in enforcement procedures put in place by the Trump administration.

Police identify gunman killed by bystander in Walmart lot

TUMWATER, Wash. (AP) — Tim Day has been identified as the armed suspect killed by a bystander Sunday in a Walmart parking lot in Washington state, police said Monday.

Kendall And Kylie Jenner Wish Heartfelt Happy Father's Day To Caitlyn

Caitlyn Jenner's model daughters got sentimental on Father's Day.

Extreme volcanic eruptions could explain mysterious rock formation on Mars

Could a volcanic eruption be the key to unlocking the mysterious geological history of Mars? Back in the 1960s, NASA's Mariner spacecraft discovered an extremely large and unusually soft rock formation. The makeup of the mass, now known as the Medusa Fossae formation, stumped researchers for decades because they were never able to determine how it got there.  SEE ALSO: Tiny NASA satellite bound for Mars snaps photo of Earth from thousands of miles away But now, new research seems to answer that question — and maybe many others.  More than 3 billion years ago, extreme volcanic eruptions on Mars dropped the huge deposit near the Martian equator, according to the new study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. A 13-kilometer (8-mile) diameter crater being infilled by the Medusae Fossae Formation.Image: High Resolution Stereo Camera/European Space AgencyThe Medusa Fossae is about one fifth the size of the United States.  “This is a massive deposit, not only on a Martian scale, but also in terms of the solar system, because we do not know of any other deposit that is like this,” planetary scientist Lujendra Ojha, the lead author of the new study, said in a statement. Ojha and his colleagues used gravity data from spacecraft orbiting Mars to measure the formation density. Through this, they were able to determine that the rock was unusually porous, allowing them to rule out other potential compositions like ice.  On a basic level, the formation is a bunch of hills and mounds of sedimentary rock but because much of Mars’s history is shrouded in mystery, a finding like this is huge.  An isolated hill in the Medusae Fossae Formation. The effect of wind erosion on this hill is evident by its streamlined shape.Image: High Resolution Stereo Camera/European Space Agency.Eruptions of the magnitude suggested by the study would also have an enormous impact on the planet's climate as well. A considerable amount of “climate-altering” gases like hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide accompany most volcanic eruptions and would have spit out enough water to cover the red planet in a global ocean, the study says.  These findings paint a better picture of what habitability on Mars would look like, as well as the usefulness of gravity surveys.  “Future gravity surveys could help distinguish between ice, sediments and igneous rocks in the upper crust of the planet,” co-author and planetary scientist Kevin Lewis explained.   WATCH: NASA is attempting to fly a helicopter on Mars for the first time

Georgia Grandma Strangles Rabid Bobcat With Her Bare Hands While Granddaughter Slept

Dede Phillips must now get rounds of painful and expensive treatment to prevent rabies.

Senate FBI hearing takes twists and turns, including a 'wangdoodle' reference

It was not, perhaps, the most somber moment in the history of the U.S. Senate. In the midst of reciting a list of complaints about FBI agents allegedly swayed by their own anti-Trump animus, Sen. John Kennedy R-La., had to engage in a subtle act of censorship.

'Wolf-Like' Animal That Baffled Officials Turns Out To Be A Regular Wolf

The mystery of a seemingly bizarre "wolf-like" creature that was shot and

Monday's Morning Email: Dems Beg GOP For Help Stopping Immigrant Family Separations

### TOP STORIES

Trump family separation policy becomes focus of national outrage

Rep. Beto O'Rourke talks with Rachel Maddow about a Father's Day protest march he organized at the site of Trump's "tent city" camp for migrant kids in Tornillo, Texas, and the plight of migrant families being persecuted by the Trump administration.

South Korea Defense Ministry Confirms Suspension of Joint U.S.-South Korea Military Drills Originally Planned for August

The South Korean Defense Ministry confirmed Tuesday that their major military exercise with the US planned for August has been suspended.

Texas Border Patrol Chase Ends In Crash, Killing At Least 5 Immigrants

At least five people were killed and several others injured when an SUV

Saudi entertainment chief sacked after outrage over circus

Saudi Arabia on Monday sacked the head of its entertainment authority, state media said, following a conservative backlash against a circus featuring women wearing figure-hugging costumes. "Ahmad al-Khatib, chairman of the Saudi General Entertainment Authority has been removed from his position," the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said citing a royal decree, without giving a reason. The pro-government Sabq news website said Khatib was dismissed over a controversial circus performance in Riyadh, which included women wearing "indecent clothes".

Remnants of hurricane help crews in Colorado, Wyoming fires

DURANGO, Colo. (AP) — A welcome dose of rain spawned by a hurricane that churned through the Pacific has given a boost in the battle against two large wildfires in Colorado and Wyoming.

Philippines' ousted Supreme Court chief lambastes Duterte

The ousted Philippine Supreme Court chief justice launched a blistering attack on President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday, calling him a "self-styled savior who is willing to kill", after she lost an appeal against her removal from office. Maria Lourdes Sereno, the first woman chief justice of the Philippines who Duterte denounced as an "enemy" for her opposition to some of his proposals, was ousted by fellow-judges allied with the president last month. "Our sights have been set low by the very leaders who should lead us to pursue lofty visions for our nation and our people," Sereno said in a speech to her supporters after the court ruling.

Senate candidate's first campaign ad depicts Trump administration as literal dumpster fire

Richard Painter, a former White House ethics attorney under President George W. Bush who is running for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota as a Democrat, is taking his pointed criticism of President Trump straight to voters.

Dunkin' Donuts Sign Asks Customers To Snitch On Workers Not Speaking English

A Dunkin Donuts in Baltimore is under fire for posting a sign offering

Rapper XXXTentacion Shot Dead In Florida

Jahseh Dwayne Onfroy, the rapper known as XXXTentacion, was shot dead in South

Here's How to Stop North Korea from Cheating on Denuclearization

Now that North Korea has agreed at the Singapore summit to work towards denuclearization certain elements will need to be in any nuclear deal for the agreement to be effective. Despite North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s more recent suggestions that he is open to denuclearizing if the United States were to provide security guarantees for the regime, North Korea has a significantly longer history of arguing that it would never do so.

US soldier who said ‘communism will win’ and wore Che Guevara T-shirt to graduation kicked out of army

A US cadet who donned a Che Guevera T-shirt to his graduation in and shared a message online which said “communism will win” has been discharged from the army. In the video, Spenser Rapone opens his dress uniform to reveal a T-shirt with a red image of Argentine Marxist Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara – one of the world’s most famous revolutionaries in one of the photos which were taken at his graduation in May 2016. The 26-year-old, a cadet at US Military Academy West Point, raises his fist and flips over his cap to expose a hand-written message saying “communism will win” in another image.

Children separated from parents at US border held in cages in Texas warehouse

Inside an old warehouse in South Texas, hundreds of children wait in a series of cages created by metal fencing. One cage had 20 children inside. Scattered about are bottles of water, bags of crisps and large foil sheets intended to serve as blankets. One teenager told an advocate who visited that she was helping care for a young child she didn't know because the child's aunt was somewhere else in the facility. She said she had to show others in her cell how to change the girl's diaper. The US Border Patrol on Sunday allowed reporters to briefly visit the facility where it holds families arrested at the southern US border, responding to new criticism and protests over the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy and resulting separation of families. More than 1,100 people were inside the large, dark facility that's divided into separate wings for unaccompanied children, adults on their own, and mothers and fathers with children. The cages in each wing open out into common areas to use portable restrooms. The overhead lighting in the warehouse stays on around the clock. Children who've been taken into custody related to cases of illegal entry into the United States, rest in one of the cages at a facility in McAllen, Texas Credit: AP The Border Patrol said close to 200 people inside the facility were minors unaccompanied by a parent. Another 500 were "family units," parents and children. Many adults who crossed the border without legal permission could be charged with illegal entry and placed in jail, away from their children. Reporters were not allowed by agents to interview any of the detainees or take photos. Nearly 2,000 children have been taken from their parents since Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the policy, which directs Homeland Security officials to refer all cases of illegal entry into the United States for prosecution. Church groups and human rights advocates have sharply criticized the policy, calling it inhumane. I saw chain link cages full of unaccompanied children. They sat on metal benches and stared straight ahead silently— Rep. Peter Welch (@PeterWelch) June 17, 2018 Stories have spread of children being torn from their parents' arms, and parents not being able to find where their kids have gone. A group of congressional lawmakers visited the same facility on Sunday and were set to visit a longer-term shelter holding around 1,500 children - many of whom were separated from their parents. "Those kids inside who have been separated from their parents are already being traumatised," said Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon, who was denied entry earlier this month to children's shelter. "It doesn't matter whether the floor is swept and the bedsheets tucked in tight." In Texas' Rio Grande Valley, the busiest corridor for people trying to enter the US, Border Patrol officials argue that they have to crack down on migrants and separate adults from children as a deterrent to others. "When you exempt a group of people from the law ... that creates a draw," said Manuel Padilla, the Border Patrol's chief agent here. "That creates the trends right here." Agents running the holding facility - generally known as "Ursula" for the name of the street it's on - said everyone detained is given adequate food, access to showers and laundered clothes, and medical care. People are supposed to move through the facility quickly. Under US law, children are required to be turned over within three days to shelters funded by the Department of Health and Human Services. People who've been taken into custody related to cases of illegal entry into the United States, sit in one of the cages at a facility in McAllen, Texas Credit: AP Padilla said agents in the Rio Grande Valley have allowed families with children under the age of 5 to stay together in most cases. An advocate who spent several hours in the facility on Friday said she was deeply troubled by what she found. Michelle Brane, director of migrant rights at the Women's Refugee Commission, met with a 16-year-old girl who had been taking care of a young girl for three days. The teen and others in their cage thought the girl was 2 years old. "She had to teach other kids in the cell to change her diaper," Brane said. Just left Border Patrol Processing Center in McAllen—aka "the dog kennel." Witnessed loads of kids massed together in large pens of chain-linked fence separated from their moms and dads. @realDonaldTrump, change your shameful policy today! #FamiliesBelongTogether— Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) June 17, 2018 Brane said that after an attorney started to ask questions, agents found the girl's aunt and reunited the two. It turned out that the girl was actually 4 years old. Part of the problem was that she didn't speak Spanish, but K'iche, a language indigenous to Guatemala. "She was so traumatised that she wasn't talking," Brane said. "She was just curled up in a little ball." Brane said she also saw officials at the facility scold a group of five-year-olds for playing around in their cage, telling them to settle down. There are no toys or books. Demonstrators hold a large banner that reads "Humanity Is Borderless," outside of a U.S. Border Patrol station in McAllen, Credit: Bloomberg But one boy nearby wasn't playing with the rest. According to Brane, he was quiet, clutching a piece of paper that was a photocopy of his mother's ID card. "The government is literally taking kids away from their parents and leaving them in inappropriate conditions," Brane said. "If a parent left a child in a cage with no supervision with other five-year-olds, they'd be held accountable." Dr. Colleen Kraft, the head of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said she visited a small shelter in Texas recently, which she declined to identity. A toddler inside the 60-bed facility caught her eye - she was crying uncontrollably and pounding her little fists on mat. Staff members tried to console the child, who looked to be about two years old, Kraft said. She had been taken from her mother the night before and brought to the shelter. The staff gave her books and toys - but they weren't allowed to pick her up, to hold her or hug her to try to calm her. As a rule, staff aren't allowed to touch the children there, she said. "The stress is overwhelming," she said. "The focus needs to be on the welfare of these children, absent of politics." 

Fans Cheering World Cup Goal May Have Caused 'Artificial Earthquake' In Mexico City

Mexico shocked the soccer world Sunday when it defeated defending champions

Strong quake near Osaka, Japan, kills 4, knocks over walls

TOKYO (AP) — Residents in western Japan were cleaning up debris Monday evening after a powerful earthquake hit the area around Osaka, the country's second-largest city, killing four people and injuring hundreds while knocking over walls and setting off fires.

UN chief warns of risk of war in Gaza

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is warning that Gaza is close to the brink of war and expressed shock over the number of Palestinians killed and wounded by Israeli live fire during protests, in a report obtained by AFP on Monday. Guterres told the Security Council that he "unequivocally condemns the steps by all parties that have brought us to this dangerous and fragile place" in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The report was sent to the council last week ahead of a meeting on Tuesday on the Israeli-Palestinian crisis.

DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen Defends Separation Of Families At The Border

Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen stuck to talking points on Monday

Weekend Rewind: Federal judge reverses Manafort's bail

Take a look the top stories that happened over the weekend, including the reversal of fortune for President Trump's former campaign head Paul Manafort.

Toyota confirms production of 986bhp GR Super Sport

Since the Toyota MR2 went out of production in 2007 there hasn't been much evidence of sportiness in the Japanese automaker's lineup beyond the somewhat underpowered GT86, but that's about to change in a big way as it's now been confirmed a production version of the 986 horsepower GR Super Sport is in the pipeline. At the moment we only have images of the concept first shown at the Tokyo Auto Salon in January of this year, but news of a production version was released by Toyota on the eve of the Les Mans 24 hour race. This isn't the first time Toyota has looked at building a production Le Mans racer, because in 1998 the company brought us the GT-One (TS020) Le Mans Prototype where a road-going concept was produced with a view towards building a handful of production models.

U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Rips Trump Over Child Detention Policy

Two historically conservative business lobbying groups on Tuesday slammed the

Texas sheriff deputy charged for child abuse after allegedly blackmailing undocumented mother with deportation

A Texas sheriff’s deputy has been accused of sexually assaulting an undocumented immigrant’s child, and blackmailing the mother with potential deportation to keep her quiet about the attacks. Jose Nunez, 47, is being held on charges of “super aggravated sexual assault” after the mother sought help at a fire department for her 4-year-old child, who had reportedly been crying out in pain. “The details of the case are quite frankly heartbreaking, disturbing, disgusting and infuriating all at the same time,” Javier Salazar, the Bexar County Sheriff, said during a press conference announcing the charges and circumstances.

Melania Trump and Laura Bush join debate over children separated from families at US-Mexico border

Melania Trump waded into a debate over children being separated from their families at the Mexico border, saying the United States should "govern with heart". In a rare intervention the first lady's spokeswoman said she wanted Republicans and Democrats to work together to achieve "successful immigration reform". Her comments were taken by some as an implicit criticism of her husband's recently introduced "zero tolerance" policy at the border. A two-year-old Honduran asylum seeker cries as her mother is searched and detained near the US-Mexico border on June 12, 2018 in McAllen, Texas Credit: Getty It was also possible she was backing the president's recent claim that Democrats in Congress were responsible for the situation. Her remarks were followed by a strong statement from former first lady Laura Bush, who called the policy "cruel" and "immoral" and said "it breaks my heart." Melania Trump said she wants an end to children being separated from their families at the Mexico border Credit: CARLOS BARRIA/Reuters More than 2,000 children have been removed from their parents over the last six weeks since Jeff Sessions, the US attorney general, introduced the new approach. Under the policy adults are being detained and prosecuted with their children taken away and sent to separate shelters. Previously, many illegal immigrants were allowed to remain at liberty while they awaited proceedings. Children who've been taken into custody related to cases of illegal entry into the United States, rest in one of the cages at a facility in McAllen, Texas Credit: AP A spokeswoman for the first lady said: "Mrs Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform. "She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws but also a country that governs with heart." A mural at a former Walmart where illegal immigrant boys are being held Credit: Reuters Mrs Trump, who immigrated to the United States legally from her native Slovenia, campaigns on behalf of children. The comments came amid a growing uproar over the detention of minors, including hundreds being held at a former Walmart superstore in Texas. On Monday night Hilary Clinton also condemned the situation, calling it a "humanitarian crisis".  What’s happening to families at the border right now is a humanitarian crisis. Every parent who has ever held a child in their arms, every human being with a sense of compassion and decency, should be outraged.— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) 18 June 2018 Despite what this White House claims, separating families is not mandated by law. That is an outright lie, and it’s incumbent on all of us – journalists and citizens alike – to call it just that.— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) 18 June 2018 Laura Bush writing a guest column for The Washington Post on Sunday compared the policy to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. "I appreciate the need to enforce and protect our international boundaries, but this zero-tolerance policy is cruel," the wife of George W Bush wrote. She said "the US government "should not be in the business of warehousing children in converted box stores or making plans to place them in tent cities in the desert outside of El Paso." The US Border Patrol on Sunday allowed reporters to briefly visit the facility where it holds families arrested at the border. The cages in which people are held in cases of illegal entry into the United States Credit: AP Inside an old warehouse in South Texas, hundreds of children wait in a series of cages created by metal fencing. One cage had 20 children inside. Scattered about are bottles of water, bags of chips and large foil sheets intended to serve as blankets. One teenager told an advocate who visited that she was helping care for a young child she didn't know because the child's aunt was somewhere else in the facility. She said she had to show others in her cell how to change the girl's diaper. Behind the Shutter: US-Mexico border Mr Trump himself has also said he "hates to see separation of parents and children" and has accused Democrats of pursuing a "horrible and cruel legislative agenda". On Sunday Kellyanne Conway, his counsellor, tried to further distance the White House from responsibility.  Mrs Conway said: "As a mother, as a Catholic, as somebody who’s got a conscience, I will tell you that nobody likes this policy. "Congress passed the law that it is a crime to enter this country illegally. So if they don’t like that law, they should change it." Democrats and some Republicans in Congress also criticised the policy, blaming the White House. Illegal immigrant boys are allowed two phone calls a week at a shelter Credit: Reuters Susan Collins, a Republican senator from Maine, accused the White House of trying to send a message "that if you cross the border with children, your children are going to be ripped away from you". She added: "That's traumatising to the children who are innocent victims and it is contrary to our values in this country." Democrats suggested Mr Trump was using the separation of families as a negotiating tool to secure funding for his proposed border wall in future immigration legislation. Adam Schiff, a Democrat congressman, said the administration was "using the grief, the tears, the pain of these kids as mortar to build the wall. It's an effort to extort a bill to their liking in the Congress". Mr Trump is due to meet with Republicans in Congress on Tuesday and there is expected to be a vote on an immigration bill next week. Steve Bannon, Mr Trump's former chief strategist, defended the separation of families at the border. He said: "We ran on a policy, very simply, stop mass illegal immigration and limit legal immigration, get our sovereignty back, and to help our workers. "And so he went to a zero tolerance policy. Zero tolerance, it's a crime to come across illegally, and children get separated."

Hundreds of children wait in Border Patrol facility in Texas

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — Inside an old warehouse in South Texas, hundreds of children wait in a series of cages created by metal fencing. One cage had 20 children inside. Scattered about are bottles of water, bags of chips and large foil sheets intended to serve as blankets.

Supreme Court Punts On Partisan Gerrymandering

The U.S. Supreme Court took a pass on setting limits on extreme partisan

In death, one young man stands tall in North Korea relations

CINCINNATI (AP) — Otto Warmbier's legacy is still being written a year after his death.

Rudy Giuliani Says His Calls To Suspend Mueller Probe Were Just A Casual Bluff

Rudy Giuliani said his recent calls for the Justice Department to suspend

FARC peace deal at risk as conservative Duque wins Colombia presidency

Conservative Ivan Duque won Colombia's presidential election Sunday after a campaign that turned into a referendum on a landmark 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels that he pledged to overhaul. Duque, 41, polled 54 percent to his leftist rival Gustavo Petro's 42 percent with almost all the votes counted, electoral authority figures showed. Tensions over the deal became apparent in the immediate aftermath of Duque's victory, after the president-elect lost no time in pledging "corrections" to the peace deal.

Re-Boot: The All-New VW Jetta Plays a Little Golf

The Golf with a trunk returns, sort of.

Three Dead, Dozens Injured by Earthquake in Western Japan's Osaka

A strong earthquake knocked over walls and set off scattered fires around metropolitan Osaka in western Japan on Monday morning, killing at least three people and injuring dozens.

DHS Secretary Claims There’s No Family Separation Policy, ‘Period'

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen defended her

Gang shootout at New Jersey arts festival kills one, injures 22

One of the shooting victims was a 13-year-old boy who was in extremely critical condition, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri told a news conference. Three others were in critical condition. At least two people opened fire around 2:45 a.m. at the annual Art All Night event in Trenton, about 60 miles (100 km) southwest of New York City.

Admire The Sinfully Gorgeous BMW 8 Series Coupe In Official Videos

It's okay to stare.

Former Israeli government minister charged with spying for Iran

A former Israeli government minister, once imprisoned for trying to smuggle drugs, is back behind bars after being charged with spying for archenemy Iran, the country's internal security agency said Monday. The Shin Bet, the Israeli security agency, said Gonen Segev was extradited from Guinea and arrested upon arrival in Israel last month on suspicion of "committing offenses of assisting the enemy in war and spying against the state of Israel." It said Mr Segev, a former energy minister, acted as an agent for Iranian intelligence and relayed information "connected to the energy market and security sites in Israel including buildings and officials in political and security organizations." Lawyers representing Mr Segev issued a statement that did not reject or accept the accusations, only saying that the indictment "portrays a different picture" than what the Shin Bet says. Mr Segev, who served in the Cabinet under Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the mid-1990s, was arrested in 2004 for attempting to smuggle 32,000 Ecstasy tablets from the Netherlands to Israel using an expired diplomatic passport.  Former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin speaks with former energy minister Gonen Segev Credit: REUTERS/GPO A former doctor whose medical license was revoked, Mr Segev was released from prison in 2007 and had been living in Africa in recent years. The Shin Bet said Mr Segev met with his operators twice in Iran, and also met with Iranian agents in hotels and apartments around the world. Mr Segev was given a "secret communications system to encrypt messages" with his operators. The statement said that Mr Segev maintained connections with Israeli civilians who had ties to the country's security and foreign relations. It said he acted to connect them with Iranian agents who posed as businessmen. Israel and Iran are bitter enemies, and the allegations against Mr Segev are extremely grave. Israel considers Iran to be its biggest threat, citing Iranian calls for Israel's destruction, Iran's support for hostile militant groups like Hezbollah and its development of long-range missiles.

Column: Koepka wins an Open where the whiners go home early

SOUTHAMPTON (AP) — The whiners went home early, beaten down by Shinnecock Hills and the USGA's clumsy efforts to turn the venerable golf course into something it was never meant to be.

Melania Trump ‘Hates’ Family Separation, But Doesn’t Directly Call Out Zero Tolerance Policy

First lady Melania Trump issued a subtle rebuke to her husband's

Strike on east Syria killed 38 pro-regime fighters: monitor

Nearly 40 foreign fighters allied to Syria's regime were killed in an overnight bombing raid near the country's eastern border with Iraq, a monitor said on Monday. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strike was one of the deadliest on forces allied with Syria's government. "Thirty-eight non-Syrian fighters from regime loyalist militias were killed in the night-time raid on Al-Hari, on the Syrian-Iraqi border," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.