CPAC: Trump to return to political stage at conservative conference - BBC News

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Donald Trump will give his first speech since leaving office as US president later on Sunday at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

It comes just weeks after he was acquitted during an impeachment trial which saw some members of his own Republican party vote against him.

Mr Trump is expected to attack the actions being taken by successor Joe Biden in the Florida speech.

The CPAC appearance represents his continued influence over Republicans.

The mood of the conference so far has been extremely pro-Trump, with loyalists including Texas Senator Ted Cruz and his son Donald Trump Jr among the speakers confirmed.

Mr Trump's speech is being hotly anticipated by his supporters, given his relative absence from the political spotlight since leaving office.

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The former president remains banned from social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter, over his response to January's deadly riot at the US Capitol.

He has been living at his Mar-a-Lago Florida golf resort since leaving the White House.

What is Donald Trump expected to say?

According to prepared script excerpts sent by his office ahead of time, Mr Trump will attack early actions by President Joe Biden during the speech - especially on immigration.

He is also set to focus on what he will describe as the future of "our movement" during the speech, amid a divide among some Republicans over the party's future political direction.

Mr Trump is expected to say that "incredible journey" that he and supporters "began together four years ago is far from over". But the former president is not expected to confirm another presidential run in 2024 yet, according to a senior advisor quoted by CBS.

Mr Trump's son, Donald Jr, trailed his father's appearance during his own speech on Friday.

"I imagine it will not be what we call a low energy speech, and I assure you that it will solidify Donald Trump and all of your feelings about the Maga [Make America Great Again] movement as the future of the Republican party," he told attendees.

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Members of his party remained largely loyal to Mr Trump during his time in office but 10 voted to impeach him in the House of Representatives last month and seven voted to convict him in the subsequent Senate trial. The overall tally, 57-43 in favour of his guilt, fell short of the two-thirds margin needed to convict Mr Trump.

• Commission to investigate Capitol riots
• What impeachment verdict means for America
• Florida town allows Trump to stay

Senator Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in congress, criticised the former president's actions after his acquittal - declaring Mr Trump "practically and morally responsible" for provoking the riot, despite personally voting against his guilt on the incitement charge.

Mr Trump then broke his relative silence to launch a scathing personal attack on Mr McConnell who he described as "a dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack".

The schism in the party has remained since, with those who have broken rank against him notably absent from the CPAC stage.

The conference, which began in 1974, is seen as the most influential gathering of US Conservatives and a barometer of the Republican party's political direction.

Despite losing November's presidential election and being deeply criticised over the January riot by some of his supporters, reports suggest Mr Trump remains extremely popular among his voting base.

Last week one US poll suggested 46% of surveyed Trump voters would vote for him on a third-party ticket rather than another Republican candidate.

There has been much speculation about the 74-year-old's future political plans following his electoral defeat.

What else has happened at CPAC?

The conference began on Thursday at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Orlando.

Trump loyalists like Senator Josh Hawley and Representative Matt Gaetz have been on the bill so far with other major figures like former Vice President Mike Pence and Mr McConnell notably absent.

Many speakers have focused on the importance of "blue-collar workers" to the party in their speeches.

Senator Ted Cruz appeared on Friday on the back of his own political controversy regarding his decision to fly to Cancun with his family during a deadly winter storm in Texas.

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"I gotta say: Orlando is awesome! It's not as nice as Cancun, but it's nice," he said, making light of the scandal. He then went on to rail against the media, coronavirus restrictions and "cancel culture" before declaring: "Donald J Trump ain't going anywhere".

The sentiment was echoed by Mr Trump's eldest son and his former Fox News presenter partner Kimberly Guilfoyle during their appearance at the event.

Mr Trump will headline the conference's closing on Sunday, following speeches from others including his former press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who is now running for Arkansas governor.

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2021-02-28 15:51:58Z
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Junta warns embassies against speaking to Aung San Suu Kyi representatives - Financial Times

Myanmar’s junta has ordered foreign embassies, UN agencies and other international organisations in the country not to talk to “illegal entities” representing Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party, which it forced out of power this month.

The regime’s warning to embassies came as representatives of Aung San Suu Kyi’s toppled government consolidated their drive for international recognition, amid a sharp escalation of a crackdown by the military regime on Sunday that turned parts of Yangon into battle zones.

Police and soldiers on Sunday fired live ammunition, stun grenades and tear gas at crowds in Myanmar’s biggest city, and clashed violently with protesters in Mandalay, the second city, Dawei in the south, and several other cities, including in ethnic minority states. At least 18 people died in the worst day of violence since the coup, and hundreds were arrested over the weekend.

The directive from Myanmar’s military-controlled foreign ministry, dated February 26 and seen by the Financial Times, said that the formation of groups such as the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), or parliament, formed by MPs pushed aside in the February 1 coup, were illegal. 

“The Ministry, therefore, would like to advise all diplomatic missions, the specialised agencies of the United Nations and international organisations accredited in Myanmar to refrain from making contacts or communications with those illegal entities,” the directive said. 

Myanmar state television reported on Saturday that Kyaw Moe Tun had been sacked as the country’s UN ambassador after he denounced the coup, publicly broke with the junta and urged the world to support the CRPH in a speech at the general assembly.

“It is crystal clear that we all do not want to go back to the system we were in before,” he said, raising three fingers at the end of his speech in a gesture popularised by democracy protesters in Myanmar and Thailand.

The CRPH was formed on February 5 by National League for Democracy MPs who managed to avoid arrest after Aung San Suu Kyi’s government was ousted by General Min Aung Hlaing. The military commander declared a year-long state of emergency and vowed to rerun an election the NLD won after making unsupported allegations of voter fraud. 

Sa Sa, the CRPH’s UN envoy appointed last week, told the FT that the CRPH planned to form its own “interim government” inside Myanmar in the coming weeks and seek recognition from the US, UK and UN. 

South-east Asian governments, led by Indonesia, are seeking to defuse the crisis and last week held talks in Bangkok with Wunna Maung Lwin, the junta’s foreign minister. The meeting infuriated supporters of the NLD and Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under arrest and facing criminal charges.

Popular sympathy for Myanmar’s protest movement has spread among democracy activists elsewhere in Asia, through an online “Milk Tea Alliance”, which has called for mass protests in Bangkok and elsewhere in the region on Sunday. 

On Saturday, Woodside, the Australian energy company, became the latest foreign investor to pull out of Myanmar, saying that it “condemns human rights violations”, and would be demobilising its offshore exploration drilling team there in coming weeks.

“Reports of violence against the Myanmar people participating in peaceful protests are deeply distressing,” the company said. Woodside was lambasted by human rights groups after its chief executive Peter Coleman seemingly dismissed the coup and said that the company would proceed with a gas project in the country. 

Follow on Twitter: @JohnReedwrites

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2021-02-28 15:08:07Z
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COVID-19: Single-dose Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine cleared in the US - Sky News

US regulators have approved Johnson & Johnson's single-dose COVID jab, enabling millions more Americans to be vaccinated and setting the vaccine up for additional approvals around the world.

The J&J vaccine is the third authorised in the US following ones from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, both of which require two doses.

COVID-19 has claimed more than half a million lives in the US, and states are clamouring for more doses to stem cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

In a 44,000-person global trial carried out by Johnson & Johnson, the vaccine was found to be 66% effective at preventing moderate-to-severe COVID-19 four weeks after inoculation.

It was 100% effective in preventing hospitalisation and death due to the virus.

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Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are based on new messenger RNA technology, showed higher efficacy rates in pivotal trials that used two doses versus J&J's single-shot vaccine.

Direct comparison, however, is difficult because the trials had different goals and J&J's was conducted while more contagious new variants of the virus were circulating.

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Dr William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, said: "It potentially could play a very substantial role if we have enough doses because it's only a single-dose vaccine and that will make it attractive to people who are difficult to reach.

"It's one and done."

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President Joe Biden hailed the move but cautioned Americans against celebrating too soon.

"Things are still likely to get worse again as new variants spread," he said in a statement, urging people to continue washing their hands, wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.

"There is light at the end of the tunnel, but we cannot let our guard down now or assume that victory is inevitable," he added.

The US government, which has purchased 100 million doses of the J&J vaccine, plans to distribute about 3 million to 4 million next week. That would be on top of the around 16 million doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines the government already planned to ship across the country.

So far, the US has distributed more than 90 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, some of which have been used for second shots. About 14% of Americans have received at least one dose, according to US government data.

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2021-02-28 06:16:51Z
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Junta warns embassies against speaking to Aung San Suu Kyi representatives - Financial Times

Myanmar’s junta has ordered foreign embassies, UN agencies and other international organisations in the country not to talk to “illegal entities” representing Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party, which it forced out of power this month.

The directive from Myanmar’s military-controlled foreign ministry, dated February 26 and seen by the Financial Times, said that the formation of groups such as the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), or parliament, formed by MPs pushed aside in the February 1 coup, were illegal. 

“The Ministry, therefore, would like to advise all diplomatic missions, the specialised agencies of the United Nations and international organisations accredited in Myanmar to refrain from making contacts or communications with those illegal entities,” the directive said. 

The regime’s warning to embassies came as representatives of Aung San Suu Kyi’s toppled government consolidated their drive for international recognition, amid a sharp escalation of a crackdown by the military regime on Sunday that turned parts of Yangon into battle zones.

Police and soldiers fired live ammunition, stun grenades and tear gas at crowds in Myanmar’s biggest city, and clashed violently with protesters in Mandalay, the second city, Dawei in the south, and several other cities, including in ethnic minority states. At least seven people died in the worst day of violence since the coup, and hundreds were arrested over the weekend.

Myanmar state television reported on Saturday that Kyaw Moe Tun had been sacked as the country’s UN ambassador after he denounced the coup, publicly broke with the junta and urged the world to support the CRPH in a speech at the general assembly.

“It is crystal clear that we all do not want to go back to the system we were in before,” he said, raising three fingers at the end of his speech in a gesture popularised by democracy protesters in Myanmar and Thailand.

The CRPH was formed on February 5 by National League for Democracy MPs who managed to avoid arrest after Aung San Suu Kyi’s government was ousted by General Min Aung Hlaing. The military commander declared a year-long state of emergency and vowed to rerun an election the NLD won after making unsupported allegations of voter fraud. 

Sa Sa, the CRPH’s UN envoy appointed last week, told the FT that the CRPH planned to form its own “interim government” inside Myanmar in the coming weeks and seek recognition from the US, UK and UN. 

South-east Asian governments, led by Indonesia, are seeking to defuse the crisis and last week held talks in Bangkok with Wunna Maung Lwin, the junta’s foreign minister. The meeting infuriated supporters of the NLD and Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under arrest and facing criminal charges.

Popular sympathy for Myanmar’s protest movement has spread among democracy activists elsewhere in Asia, through an online “Milk Tea Alliance”, which has called for mass protests in Bangkok and elsewhere in the region on Sunday. 

On Saturday, Woodside, the Australian energy company, became the latest foreign investor to pull out of Myanmar, saying that it “condemns human rights violations”, and would be demobilising its offshore exploration drilling team there in coming weeks.

“Reports of violence against the Myanmar people participating in peaceful protests are deeply distressing,” the company said. Woodside was lambasted by human rights groups after its chief executive Peter Coleman seemingly dismissed the coup and said that the company would proceed with a gas project in the country. 

Follow on Twitter: @JohnReedwrites

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2021-02-28 04:10:35Z
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Bad news for Donald Trump Jr: the right is fast tiring of Trumps - The Times

Donald Trump will stride into Orlando, Florida, today for his first public engagement since Joe Biden’s inauguration, confident that he remains the biggest political superstar on the planet. The Conservative Political Action conference (CPAC) — the most important gathering of Republican Party activists — is home to his most ardent supporters. The mere mention of his name guarantees whoops and cheers. He is certain to receive a rip-roaring ovation.

I have news for Trump, though. Republican activists love him, but do not want him to lead them in the 2024 presidential elections. They do not think his son Don Jr is ready for primetime at the White House either.

At the conference, our photographer caught Don Jr making the “OK” hand gesture to an acquaintance

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2021-02-28 00:01:00Z
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Covid-19: Police officers injured at Dublin anti-lockdown protest - BBC News

Damian Eagers/PA

Three police officers have been injured after attacks during a demonstration against Covid-19 restrictions in the centre of Dublin.

Hundreds of protesters were prevented from gathering at St Stephen's Green and were moved to Grafton Street by officers using batons.

Police were attacked with fireworks, cans and bollards and Irish broadcaster RTÉ reported one officer was taken to hospital.

There have been 23 arrests.

On Saturday night, gardaí (Irish police) said 20 people had been charged in connection with the protests, with 13 of them appearing before the Criminal Court of Justice before being remanded in custody to appear before Cloverhill District Court at a later date.

Seven of those arrested were charged with offences and released on station bail while "three juveniles were released for consideration of inclusion in the Juvenile Diversion Programme", gardaí said.

Garda (Irish police) Commissioner Drew Harris said police were "lucky" an officer was not seriously injured when a firework was aimed at them.

Damian Eagers/PA

"It was directed at that individual and so we're fortunate we didn't suffer a serious injury. It's only the individual member's quick thinking saved him," Mr Harris told a media briefing on Saturday evening.

"You don't carry fireworks to a protest for any other purpose than to engage in violent conduct," he added.

The commissioner said a full investigation is under way into what happened at the protest.

Mr Harris said: "Undoubtedly there was an element of planning, we could see that building up during the week between social media and other contexts."

He said a number of groups were "working in concert" with each other, ranging from far right and far left groups, as well as those opposing lockdowns and vaccines.

Taoiseach (prime minister) Micheál Martin condemned the protest and said they "posed an unacceptable risk to both the public and Gardaí (Irish police)".

Paying tribute to police "who moved quickly to make arrests and restore order", Mr Martin added that the large gathering "showed a complete lack of respect to the people who have made huge sacrifices during this pandemic".

Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) Leo Varadkar said he was "horrified" by what had happened.

Horrified to see this on our streets. Irish people have spent last year fighting Covid. There is no excuse for violence to Gardaí or anyone. This behaviour on Grafton St by a selfish few undermines sacrifices that millions have made in the last 12 months https://t.co/QI8x2dmFg3

— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) February 27, 2021

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter

The Fine Gael leader said there was "no excuse for violence to gardaí or anyone", adding that a "selfish few" were undermining "sacrifices that millions have made in the last 12 months".

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2021-02-27 23:18:36Z
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Arrests made after hundreds gather for anti-lockdown protests in Dublin - Sky News

Police have arrested a number people after hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters gathered in Dublin.

About 20 people were arrested by Gardai in the centre of the Irish capital on Saturday after an anti-lockdown demonstration began around 2pm.

Officers were forced to draw their batons after one protester threw a firework at police.

The protesters, who were not wearing masks and carried anti-lockdown placards, tried to gather in St Stephen's Green park, but the gates were closed by officials.

Sky News Ireland correspondent Stephen Murphy said there were no reports of any serious injuries and a "handful" of public order arrests were made.

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Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said up to 20 people were arrested during the protest.

"Very regrettably, people arrived intent on violence. They engaged in attacks on members of An Garda Siochana including the throwing of a firework type device.

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"They had no reasonable grounds for being there in the first place so we will pursue particularly those who formed a very hard core to deal with.

"We will follow through with an investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice."

Image: Officers hold one protester to the ground

Image: A man is arrested during the demonstrations in Dublin

Simon Harris, Ireland's minister for further and higher education condemned the protest.

He tweeted: "Pure thuggery on the streets of Dublin today. It's not a 'protest'. It's an attack on our national effort.

"The abuse directed at the Gardai is sickening and shameful. Disgraceful. Thoughts with the Gardai and their families."

Image: Officers were forced to draw their batons

Ireland is in its ninth week of Level 5 national coronavirus restrictions.

Nationwide, 373,280 COVID-19 jabs have been given out - compared to 19.6 million in the UK.

On Friday, 29 new COVID-related deaths were reported alongside 776 new cases.

In the UK on Friday there were 345 further deaths recorded and 8,523 new infections.

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2021-02-27 18:42:51Z
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