Tuesday, November 7, 2023

11/7 WAKE-UP CALL: Israel To Consider Tactical Pauses


Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would consider "tactical little pauses" in fighting to facilitate the entry of aid or the exit of hostages from the Gaza Strip, but again rejected calls for a ceasefire despite international pressure. Having encircled the densely populated Gaza City in the north of the enclave, where the Hamas Islamist group is based, Israel's military said it had taken a militant compound and was set to attack fighters hiding in a warren of underground tunnels.

➤ISRAEL PUSHES IN GAZA: Israel pushed further into Gaza City, where it says much of Hamas’s military defenses, command and fighters are concentrated. The Hamas stronghold is still full of civilians after one of the most intense bombing barrages of the monthlong war. The Israeli military said that its engineering corps is focusing on destroying Hamas’s tunnels wherever they find exit points and that its focus on killing Hamas’s commanders remains. The U.S. is pressing Israel to ease its Gaza Strip bombardment, even without the release of hostages Hamas took during its Oct. 7 attacks; Israel set the hostage release as the condition for any pause in military operations. Separately, a daily list of foreigners allowed to leave the enclave is splitting up families and causing bureaucratic headaches.


➤GAZA CALLED GRAVEYARD: Gaza is becoming a "graveyard for children", U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday, amplifying demands for a ceasefire in the enclave, where Palestinian health authorities said the death toll from Israeli strikes had exceeded 10,000. Both Israel and the Hamas militants who control Gaza have rebuffed mounting international pressure for a ceasefire. Israel says hostages taken by Hamas during its rampage in southern Israel on Oct. 7 should be released first; Hamas says it will not free them or stop fighting while Gaza is under assault.

➤8 MORE ATTACKS ON U.S. FORCES IN IRAQ AND SYRIA AS IRANIAN-BACKED MILITIAS RAMP UP THEIR ATTACKS: American troops were attacked an additional eight times since Friday morning by one-way attack drones and rocket barrages in Iraq and Syria as US forces face ramped up attacks by Iranian-backed groups. The new incidents, one on Friday afternoon, another on Saturday, five more on Sunday and one on Monday morning – mark a total of at least 38 attacks on US and coalition forces in those two nations since October 17, just days after the start of a bloody war between Israel and Hamas.



➤TRUMP TANGLES WITH DA JUDGE: Trump gets testy on the witness stand. After his sons testified last week, Trump took the witness stand Monday at his civil fraud trial as he strives to prevent what he calls the "corporate death penalty" for his namesake real estate company that could potentially result in $250 million in damages and end his ability to do business in New York state. And he didn't hold back. The former president opened his testimony in Manhattan by praising how "smart" his eldest son, Don Jr., is, calling him a "very honorable guy." 

As the morning unfolded the judge at times seemed to lose his patience with Trump's answers. “I beseech you to control him if you can,” the judge told Trump lawyer Chris Kise.

The trial addresses several allegations, including that Trump, his adult sons and Trump Organization executives falsified corporate financial statements and committed insurance fraud. The testimony will also inform the judge’s decision about what further punishment, if any, to impose. 


➤RFK JR. REQUESTS PROTECTION: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is again pleading for Secret Service protection and petitioning the courts to issue a restraining order against a man who has already attempted to break into his house twice. Kennedy is seeking a court-issued restraining order against Jonathan Macht, who has been previously identified by the police as the intruder at his home. RFK Jr. made the move on Monday, although it is unclear whether a judge has approved the request. Kennedy Jr., 69, is running as an independent after initially challenging Biden for the Democratic nomination, but he is far behind in opinion polls.  The son of U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968 during his own presidential bid, has made pleas for federal protection before - but they have not been granted. 

➤DEMS WARN TWH: Democrats are warning the White House to pay more attention to a new poll that shows Donald Trump leading Joe Biden in five critical swing states and Democratic strategist James Carville called it a 'tipping point' in the 2024 election. 'The poll is totally unsurprising,' Carville told DailyMail.com, pointing out that while the numbers have been low for Biden for some time, the New York Times/Siena College poll has become 'some kind of a tipping point' for Democrats.  But, he argued, more data is needed for Democrats to determine their next steps, saying the poll question he'd like to see 'is to simply "I would not consider voting for Biden and, alternatively, I would not consider voting for Trump."' 

The polling from The New York Times and Siena College that shows the president trailing behind Trump in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania. Biden is ahead only in Wisconsin, by 2 percentage points. Biden won all six states in the 2020 election. The numbers, which were published over the weekend, resulted in a chorus of Democrats warning there is 'work to do,' and using words like 'trouble' and 'concern' to describe Biden's chances for a second term with less than one before the 2024 election.

➤SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS IS SET TO ENDORSE TRUMP AT HIS FLORIDA RALLY THIS WEEK: Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is set to endorse Donald Trump's presidential bid on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the matter. Sanders will make her announcement at Trump's rally near Miami. Trump is skipping the debate that night and holding a counterprogramming event, as he did with the first two debates. The Trump campaign declined to comment. A spokesperson for Sanders did not reply.

➤JURY FINDS COLORADO OFFICER NOT GUILTY IN ELIJAH MCCLAIN'S KILLING: A Colorado jury found police officer Nathan Woodyard not guilty of manslaughter in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain, a young Black man who died after police placed him in a chokehold during an arrest and medics injected him with a sedative. Woodyard, 34, the last of three Aurora Police Department officers to stand trial in McClain's death, had been suspended without pay from the force since 2020.

Earlier this month a jury rendered a split verdict for the two other officers charged in the case, finding officer Randy Roedema guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault, and officer Jason Rosenblatt not guilty on any charges. Two paramedics face separate trials this month for their role in giving McClain ketamine, a powerful sedative at times used on highly agitated patients. The death of McClain, 23, inspired sweeping police reforms in Colorado in 2020, including the banning of chokeholds like the one he was put in. His case, however, initially received scant attention, with local prosecutors declining to file any charges.

➤FATHER OF ACCUSED JULY FOURTH GUNMAN IN CHICAGO SUBURB PLEADS GUILTY: An Illinois father pleaded guilty on Monday to multiple counts of reckless conduct for helping his troubled underage son obtain a gun that the latter used to kill seven people at a Fourth of July parade in 2022. Illinois Circuit Court Judge George Strickland sentenced Robert Crimo Jr. to two years of probation and 60 days in custody of the Lake County sheriff, as well as 100 hours of public service. The father of the accused shooter was also ordered to surrender his firearm owner identification card and any ammunition.

🎸THE BOSS WAS IN PAIN: Bruce Springsteen's struggle with peptic ulcer disease was a surprise to fans and his bandmates, Steven Van Zandt of the E Street Band revealed. "I got to tell you the truth, we had no idea how much pain (Bruce Springsteen) was in," Van Zandt told USA TODAY's EntertainThis! at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday. "We were just as surprised as everyone else to learn the extent of his illness." Springsteen and the E Street Band performed three shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and two at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts earlier this year before they postponed their tour until next year as the frontman recovers. "It was remarkable when we found out that he had been in pain for five shows at least, he is just a tough guy," Van Zandt said.

🏈NFL CHARGERS 27 JETS 6:  Rookie Derius Davis returned a punt 87 yards for a touchdown, Austin Ekeler added two more scores and the Los Angeles Chargers cruised past the New York Jets' standout defense for a 27-6 victory on Monday night at East Rutherford, N.J. Ekeler ran for 47 yards on 14 carries, and the Chargers (4-4) flashed some defense of their own with eight sacks while winning back-to-back games after a two-game skid. Los Angeles won with 191 total yards of offense, while the Jets had 270.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert was 16-of-30 passing for just 136 yards, the lowest total in a game in his career, while getting sacked five times. Los Angeles receiver Keenan Allen had eight receptions for 77 yards, passing the 10,000-yard mark for his career. Zach Wilson was 33-of-49 passing for 263 yards for the Jets (4-4), who failed to score more than 10 points for the third time this season. Breece Hall had 50 yards on 16 carries for New York and Garrett Wilson had seven receptions for 80 yards.

⚾METS GO WITH MENDOZZA:  Carlos Mendoza is going from the No. 2 in The Bronx to the top guy in Flushing. The Mets are hiring Mendoza to be their 24th manager in franchise history, replacing Buck Showalter. Mendoza, who turns 44 this November, is the first major hiring or acquisition made by the Mets’ new president of baseball operations David Stearns. He last served as the Yankees bench coach under Aaron Boone, and will be a first-time manager in 2024.

⚾CUBS FIRE DAVID ROSS, HIRE CRAIG COUNSELL AS NEW MANAGER: The Chicago Cubs fired manager David Ross and hired Craig Counsell on Monday. The longtime Milwaukee Brewers manager was lured to Chicago with a record-setting five-year, $40 million contract. The moves, which the Cubs announced Monday afternoon, stunned the baseball world, which had seen Counsell's return to Milwaukee or hiring by the New York Mets as the likeliest outcomes. The Cubs had publicly praised Ross, with owner Tom Ricketts saying Oct. 2: "He's our guy."

🏈CARDINALS QB KYLER MURRAY TO START SUNDAY IF NO SETBACKS: If all continues to go well this week for Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray he will make his season debut Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, coach Jonathan Gannon said Monday. Murray, who hasn't played since Week 14 of the 2022 season when he tore his right ACL three plays into a "Monday Night Football" game against the New England Patriots, will take all the reps with the first-team offense and continue to "ramp up," Gannon said. "Pleased where he is at right now," Gannon said. "We'll see how the week goes."

🏀SOURCES: BLAZERS' ROBERT WILLIAMS REQUIRES RIGHT KNEE SURGURY: Portland Trail Blazers center Robert Williams III will require right knee surgery and is expected to be sidelined for an extended period of time. Doctors and Williams' agent Kevin Bradbury of Lift Sports Management are working to gather information and discussing the kind of surgery that'll be necessary and how long of a timeline will be required for recovery, sources said.

🏈VIKINGS QB JOSHUA DOBBS TO START SUNDAY AGAINST SAINTS: Sunday was for celebrating. On Monday, the Minnesota Vikings began charting a path forward in the wake of their improbable 31-28 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Joshua Dobbs will start the team's Week 10 game against the New Orleans Saints, coach Kevin O'Connell said, with veteran Sean Mannion as the likeliest backup. Rookie Jaren Hall, whose first-quarter concussion Sunday opened the door for Dobbs to play just five days after the Vikings acquired him, is in concussion protocol.



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