Thursday Morning Briefing: Ducking queries on Trump, Kavanaugh resumes U.S. Senate test

Highlights

Brett Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, embraced judicial independence but sidestepped Senate Democrats’ questions yesterday on whether a president can pardon himself or fire a prosecutor investigating him. Kavanaugh will face a final barrage of questions today in a multi-day U.S. Senate confirmation hearing.

The U.S. Department of Justice and state attorneys general will meet this month to discuss concerns that social media platforms are “intentionally stifling the free exchange of ideas.” This comes after Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg and Twitter Chief Executive Jack Dorsey testified at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on efforts to counteract foreign efforts to influence U.S. elections and political discourse.

When Reuters journalist Peter Apps woke up with a broken neck in a Sri Lanka war zone, he tried to persuade nearby soldiers to shoot him. Twelve years later, he works as a columnist, military reservist and director of a think tank. Writing on the anniversary of the car accident that left him paralyzed from the shoulders down, he explains how he has adapted to his disability and regained a measure of independence.

World

India’s top court scrapped a colonial-era ban on gay sex in a landmark judgement that sparked celebrations across the country, where gay sex had been punishable by prison for up to 10 years.

About 50 Rohingya Muslim refugees gathered in a muddy sports field in a camp in Bangladesh to protest against the conviction in Myanmar of two Reuters reporters, who were arrested while covering the plight of their community. Read the latest on their case here.

A powerful earthquake paralyzed Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido on Thursday, killing at least seven people, triggering landslides and knocking out power to its 5.3 million residents.

Sponsored by IBM: Build your AI foundation. Learn how to implement the techniques and technologies associated with AI and machine learning, and unlock the massive potential of your data. Read the report.

Beijing expressed anger after a British Royal Navy warship sailed close to islands claimed by China in the South China Sea late last month. The challenge to China’s growing control of the strategic waterway comes after the United States said it would like to see more international participation in such actions.

 

Hudhayfa al-Shahad strapped a colorful paper cup filled with cotton and charcoal to a child’s face and tightened a plastic bag around his head: an improvised gas mask if chemicals once again fall on #Syria’s #Idlib. https://reut.rs/2wNBt7Q by @KhalelAshawe

10:57 AM - September 9, 2018

Business

Tesla bond hits record low, stock slips as investor worry deepens

Tesla’s stock and bond prices dropped yesterday after Chief Executive Elon Musk renewed an attack on a British caver whom he had previously insulted on social media and a day after Mercedes unveiled a challenge to the electric car maker.

5 min read

JD.com investors spooked by 'key man risk' after CEO accused of rape

A U.S. police investigation into an allegation of rape against JD.com CEO Richard Liu has hammered the e-commerce giant’s shares, with the case laying bare risks posed by his iron grip on management and the lack of other leaders to challenge him.

6 Min Read

Starbucks' Italian dream comes true, but it is not cheap

Starbucks will realize its chairman’s dream when it opens an upmarket roastery and cafe in Milan, but the test will be to convince coffee-obsessed Italians to pay more for their daily espresso.

4 min read

Burberry ends bonfire of the luxuries and use of real fur in social shift

Britain’s Burberry will no longer burn millions of pounds worth of unsold luxury goods or use real fur in its collections following a furor over its environmental record.

4 min read

Top Stories on Reuters TV

Twin blasts hit Kabul, killing at least 20

Kim Jong Un wants to denuclearize by 2021

White House 'resistance' battling Trump: NYT op-ed