From Thai Jail, Sex Coaches Say They Want to Trade U.S.-Russia Secrets for Safety

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From Thai Jail, Sex Coaches Say They Want to Trade U.S.-Russia Secrets for Safety Photo Alexander Kirillov and Anastasia Vashukevich in Bangkok, where they claim to be targets of a covert Russian effort to silence them for what they know about meddling in the 2016 election in the United States. Credit Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press PATTAYA, Thailand — A pair of self-described sex instructors from Belarus have been stuck in a Thai detention center for weeks. They say they have evidence demonstrating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign in the United States, and that they have offered it to the F.B.I. in exchange for a guarantee of their safety.
Their claim — that they are targets of a covert Russian operation to silence them because they know too much — might seem outlandish, but their case certainly includes some unusual circumstances.
They have influential enemies in Russia. They were arrested with the help of a “foreign spy,” according to the Thai police, and locked..

Sermons and Shouted Insults: How Erdogan Keeps Turkey Spellbound

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Sermons and Shouted Insults: How Erdogan Keeps Turkey Spellbound Photo President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey speaking at the country’s presidential palace in February. He often makes three speeches in a day, each broadcast live on multiple channels. Credit Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Presidential Palace, via Reuters ANKARA, Turkey — As President Trump has his tweets, the leader of Turkey has his speeches.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan makes up to three every weekday — two a day on weekends — and his charismatic, combative talks are the primary vehicle of his success.
He calls democracy advocates “marauders.” He mocks the German foreign minister as a “disaster.” He is as comfortable in the vernacular as he is reciting poetry. He takes on his enemies publicly by name, pivoting seamlessly from pious to pushy.
Even after 15 years at the helm, Mr. Erdogan, whose skills as an orator even his opponents envy, treats every event like a campaign rally — and he turns just about every day into one. He..

Calling Standards ‘Too High,’ E.P.A. Moves to Relax Car Pollution Rules

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Supported by Climate Calling Standards ‘Too High,’ E.P.A. Moves to Relax Car Pollution Rules Photo The Environmental Protection Agency did not say how far the Obama-era rules should be rolled back, only that it would seek “more appropriate” standards. Credit George Etheredge for The New York Times The Trump administration on Monday launched an effort to weaken Obama-era greenhouse gas and fuel economy standards for automobiles, moving to reverse one of the single biggest steps any government has taken to rein in emissions of earth-warming gases.
“The Obama Administration’s determination was wrong,” Scott Pruitt, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said in a news release. “Obama’s E.P.A. cut the Midterm Evaluation process short with politically charged expediency, made assumptions about the standards that didn’t comport with reality, and set the standards too high.”
Photo Scott Pruitt, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, announced the plan ..