AP News in Brief at 6:04 p.m. EST
Chinese doctor who sounded the alarm about the virus dies
BEIJING (AP) — A Chinese doctor who got in trouble with authorities in the communist country for sounding an early warning about the coronavirus outbreak died Friday after coming down with the illness.
The Wuhan Central Hospital said on its social media account that Dr. Li Wenliang, a 34-year-old ophthalmologist, was “unfortunately infected during the fight against the pneumonia epidemic of the new coronavirus infection.”
"We deeply regret and mourn this,” it added.
Li was reprimanded by local police for “spreading rumors” about the illness in late December, according to news reports. The outbreak, centered in Wuhan, has now infected over 28,200 people globally and killed more than 560, triggering travel restrictions and quarantines around the world and a crisis inside the country of 1.4 billion.
The World Health Organization tweeted: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of Dr Li Wenliang. We all need to celebrate work that he did" on the virus.
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Experts scramble, but new virus vaccine may not come in time
WASHINGTON (AP) — The flu-like virus that exploded from China has researchers worldwide once again scrambling to find a vaccine against a surprise health threat, with no guarantee one will arrive in time.
Just days after Chinese scientists shared the genetic map of the culprit coronavirus, researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health had engineered a possible key ingredient for a vaccine they hope to begin testing by April.
Scientists from Australia to France, along with a list of biotech and vaccine companies, jumped in the race, pursuing different types of inoculations.
And Texas researchers froze an experimental vaccine developed too late to fight an earlier coronavirus — SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome — but are pushing U.S. and Chinese authorities to give it a try this time around. Because the new virus is a close cousin of SARS, it just might protect, said Dr. Peter Hotez of Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital.
All that work is coming at lightning speed compared to past outbreaks. Yet many experts agree it still may take a year — if every step along the way goes well — for any vaccine to be ready for widespread use. That's if it’s even needed by then.
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DNC chair calls for 'recanvass' of Iowa results after delays
WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the Democratic National Committee on Thursday called for a “recanvass” of the results of the Iowa caucuses, saying it was needed to “assure public confidence" after three days of technical issues and delays.
”Enough is enough," party leader Tom Perez wrote on Twitter.
With 97% of precincts reporting, Pete Buttigieg, a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders are nearly tied for the lead, and both candidates have declared themselves victorious in the contest. The Associated Press has not called the race.
The Iowa Democratic Party apologized for technical glitches with an app that slowed down reporting of results from Monday's caucuses and has spent the week trying to verify results. However, it was unclear if the state party planned to follow the directive of the national leader to recanvass those results, a process that would likely require state officials to review caucus math worksheets completed at more than 1,600 caucus sites to ensure the calculations were done correctly and matched the reported results.
Iowa chairman Troy Price suggested in a statement Thursday that he would only pursue a recanvass if one was requested by a campaign.
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Trump unleashes impeachment fury in acquittal 'celebration'
WASHINGTON (AP) — Exulting in his impeachment acquittal, a defiant President Donald Trump took a scorched-earth victory lap Thursday, unleashing his fury against those who tried to remove him from office and pointing ahead to his reelection campaign.
Triumphantly waving newspaper front pages that declared him “ACQUITTED," Trump denounced the impeachment proceedings as a “disgrace” and portrayed himself as a victim of political foes he labeled "scum," “sleaze bags” and “crooked" people. Hours earlier, he unleashed broadsides that stunned the crowd at an annual bipartisan prayer breakfast
“It was evil, it was corrupt, it was dirty cops," Trump declared in a packed White House East Room, where he was surrounded by several hundred of his most loyal supporters. “This should never ever happen to another president, ever.”
He conceded nothing in regard to charges that he improperly withheld a White House meeting and U.S. military aid in an effort to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden and other political matters.
“We went through hell, unfairly," he insisted. "Did nothing wrong.”
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Syrian army enters key town as Turkey beefs up its troops
BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian government troops entered a strategic town in the country's last rebel stronghold Thursday after fierce clashes with opposition fighters, even as Turkey sent reinforcements seeking to curtail the offensive, Syrian state media reported.
The push by President Bashar Assad's forces into towns and villages in the northwestern Idlib province has caused the displacement of more than a half million people in just over two months, compounding a humanitarian disaster in the region packed with internally displaced people. It has also angered Turkey and risked a military confrontation between Turkish and Syrian troops.
The town of Saraqeb, near the Turkish border, has been at the center of intense fighting for days. Opposition fighters pushed out government soldiers who entered it Wednesday, while Turkey sent in new reinforcements Thursday and threatened to use force to compel the Syrian forces to retreat by the end of the month.
The town sits at the intersection of two major highways, one linking the capital Damascus to the north and another connecting the country’s west and east.
State news agency SANA and state-run Al-Ikhbariya TV said Syrian army units entered the town before nightfall and were combing it for remaining fighters and explosives.
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States use Catholic clergy abuse lists to screen applicants
In the wake of revelations that scores of Roman Catholic priests and religious workers credibly accused of child sexual abuse are living unsupervised in communities across the country, state officials face a quandary: Should they screen former clergy members who seek licenses for jobs that put them in contact with children? And, if so, how?
An Associated Press investigation last fall found nearly 200 accused clergy members had been granted teaching, mental health or social work licenses, with roughly six dozen still holding valid licenses to work in those fields in 2019.
Since then, at least 20 states have started using church-released lists of priests and employees who faced credible allegations to screen applicants or check for current state teaching, foster care and therapy licenses -- and, in some cases, have revoked credentials.
As part of the church’s attempt to be more transparent about its ongoing sexual abuse crisis, more than 170 dioceses and religious orders have publicly released lists of clergy members they found to be credibly accused of abuses ranging from rape to child pornography.
Over 5,300 priests, clergy members and a handful of lay employees -- more than 2,000 of them still living -- are on the lists. But because most were never convicted of a crime, the allegations of child abuse never appeared in licensing background checks, the AP’s investigation revealed.
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Venezuela rounds up US oil executives as Guaidó visits DC
MIAMI (AP) — Six American oil executives under house arrest in Venezuela were rounded up by police hours after President Donald Trump met Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's chief opponent at the White House, according to family members of the men.
Alirio Zambrano said early Thursday that the executives of Houston-based Citgo were abruptly taken from their homes last night by the SEBIN intelligence police. Zambrano, the brother of two of the six detained men, said their current whereabouts are unknown.
“We demand to know they are safe but more importantly their freedom!” Zambrano said on social media, adding that he was very worried about the detainees.
The State Department and Maduro's government have yet to comment.
But the move comes two months after the men were granted house arrest and just hours after Trump welcomed opposition leader Juan Guaidó to the White House in a show of support for his flagging, year-old campaign to oust Maduro.
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King angry at CBS promo of interview questions about Bryant
NEW YORK (AP) — In the wake of a social media backlash, CBS' Gayle King says she is embarrassed and angry with how the network promoted part of her interview with WNBA star Lisa Leslie that concerned the late Kobe Bryant.
King responded via Twitter on Thursday to address the reaction to a video clip from her wide-ranging “CBS This Morning” interview with Leslie that aired Tuesday. The clip, distributed online and on CBS News' social media accounts, focused on a portion of the interview where Leslie addressed a sexual assault charge that had been brought against Bryant and dismissed.
Bryant died in a helicopter crash in Southern California on Jan. 26.
“I know that if I had only seen the clip that you saw, I'd be extremely angry with me, too,” King said. “I am mortified, I am embarrassed and I'm very angry.”
CBS responded by agreeing that the excerpt “did not reflect the nature and tone" of the complete interview. “We are addressing the internal process that led to this and changes have already been made,” CBS said.
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Prosecution rests, defense gets turn at Weinstein rape trial
NEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors in Harvey Weinstein’s rape trial rested their case Thursday after more than two weeks of testimony punctuated by harrowing accounts from six women, including some who said he ignored pleas of “no, no, no” and justified his behavior as the cost of getting ahead in Hollywood.
Now Weinstein’s lawyers are calling witnesses of their own as the landmark celebrity trial moves one step closer to a verdict. They haven’t said whether Weinstein himself will testify. Doing so could bring big risks because prosecutors would be able to grill him about each of the allegations that jurors have already heard about in vivid detail.
When the prosecution rested, Weinstein attorney Donna Rotunno immediately asked the judge to dismiss the case, arguing that testimony from the woman he is charged with raping “does not in any way show a forcible act by Mr. Weinstein.” The judge rejected the request.
The defense's first witness, an industry executive who remains a Weinstein ally, seemed blindsided when a prosecutor confronted him with text messages that appeared to justify the movie mogul's behavior and bash his accusers.
Paul Feldsher, a former agent who once knew accuser Annabella Sciorra, scolded Weinstein in November 2018 for “behaving like a cad.” But in another message read to the jury, he stuck up for Weinstein, telling him: “I think the dog pile of actresses who are suddenly brave and recalling repressed memories are hideous.”
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AP Source: Bryant memorial set for Feb. 24 at Staples Center
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A public memorial service for Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others killed in a helicopter crash is planned for Feb. 24 at Staples Center, a person with knowledge of the details told The Associated Press on Thursday.
The arena is where Bryant starred for the Los Angeles Lakers for two decades and the date 2/24 corresponds with the No. 24 jersey he wore and the No. 2 worn by his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna.
No official announcement about the memorial has been made. The person who provided the information to the AP is knowledgeable about the planning and spoke only on condition of anonymity. The Los Angeles Times was first to report the event, citing two anonymous sources with knowledge of the planning.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has said a memorial would be held but his office had no immediate comment, nor did the Lakers or Staples Center.
Staples has played host to other memorials, including for Michael Jackson and, last year, for rapper Nipsey Hussle.