Jill Stein Raises Enough Money to Fund Recounts in 2 States

Her campaign says the effort is not meant to help Hillary Clinton—but it could

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein has raised enough money to fund a recount in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania part of an effort “to ensure the integrity of our elections.”

The third-party candidate raised more than $4.7 million of a $7 million goal in just two days, according to the candidate’s site. Additional funding will pay for a recount in Michigan, the campaign says.

“Raising money to pay for the first two recounts so quickly is a miraculous feat and a tribute to the power of grassroots organizing,” the site says. “In true grassroots fashion, we’re turning to you, the people, and not big-money corporate donors to make this happen.”

Some Hillary Clinton supporters have called for a recount in the three states critical to Donald Trump’s election victory earlier this month pointing to anomalies in voting data. The Clinton campaign has thus far declined to act on the call, but Stein, who was also on the ballot in those states, can also initiate such a process. The Stein campaign has said explicitly that its recount effort is not meant to aid Clinton.

Trump leads Clinton by less than 1 percentage point in Michigan and Wisconsin and by 1.2% in Pennsylvania, according to a New York Times report.

Tony Blair says Britain's EU exit can be stopped

Tony Blair has suggested the public could stop the process of leaving the European Union if they disagree with the terms.

Sir John Major has also backed the idea of a second referendum before Britain leaves, in order to give the public a say on the deal struck by the Government and EU countries.

Both former prime ministers campaigned for the UK to remain in the EU, and fear Theresa May's Government will withdraw Britain from much of the single market in a so-called "hard Brexit".

In a magazine interview, Mr Blair said: "It can be stopped if the British people decide that, having seen what it means, the pain-gain cost-benefit analysis doesn't stack up...

But he claimed voters - including those who backed Leave on 23 June - may opt for that if "the economic pain may be very great" for up to a decade.

Voting to leave was "like agreeing to a house swap without having seen the other house", he said.

"In the end for a larger number of the people, even those who voted Leave, they will look at this in a practical way, not an ideological way … I think, in the end, it's going to be about Parliament and the country scrutinising the deal."

Sir John, who was speaking at an event at the National Liberal Club on Wednesday night, risked a backlash from eurosceptic Tories by expressing concerns that Brexit terms were being dictated by the "tyranny of the majority" - and that the 48% of people who voted to stay were getting "no say".

The former Conservative leader said he accepted the UK would no longer remain a full member of the EU, but hoped the Brexit deal would enable the country to stay as close as possible to the other 27 members and the single market, The Times reported.

He also said Parliament must have a say on the final deal and decide whether the public will have a second referendum, but said he thought there was a "perfectly credible case" for holding one.

Ministers are hoping to overturn a High Court decision that MPs must vote before Britain can trigger the process for leaving the EU, which Mrs May hopes to do at the end of March.

The Government's appeal will be heard at the Supreme Court in two weeks.

Mr Blair and Sir John joined forces during the referendum campaign, visiting Belfast to warn that a vote to leave the EU would "jeopardise the unity" of the UK by reopening the Scottish independence question and undermining stability in Northern Ireland.

The former Labour prime minister is winding up his private companies and is reported to be looking to set up an institute in Westminster.

He suggested in the interview that he was looking to re-enter public life to mobilise "millions of politically homeless people" in the "progressive centre" not supporting the Conservatives or Labour.

Leave.EU spokesman Tom Brooke said: "It was undeniably clear to voters at the time of the referendum that a vote to leave was a vote to leave the single market and for greater control over immigration.

"This is what the people voted for and must be a red line in any negotiation.

"Major talks about the tyranny of the majority, but we cannot envisage anything more tyrannical than our out-of-touch political elite delaying and blocking Brexit before eventually watering down the deal to look nothing like the deal Britain voted for."

Manhunt after attack at monks' retirement home

An elderly woman has died after an armed man burst into a retirement home for monks near Montpellier in southern France.

The victim was stabbed and found bound and gagged outside the home, a spokesperson for the French Gendarmerie said.

The man who broke into the Chenes Verts retirement home in Montferrier-sur-Lez was reportedly armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun.

He fled the home and has remains at large.

There is no indication the attack is terror-related, sources close to the investigation said.

More than 100 police officers were dispatched to the facility, which is home to about 70 men and women who have served as missionaries in Africa.

Armed police conducted room-to-room searches of the building, Le Parisien reports.  

After completing a search of the ground floor, officers took 59 monks into safety one by one, local media says.

Reuters reports that the woman was a resident of the home, but BFMTV says that she was a warden.

Earlier reports suggested that a man had also died at the home, but this has not been confirmed.

"For the time being, there is only one victim," Montpellier prosecutor Christophe Barret told AFP.

"There is no particular evidence about the motive for this crime."

Montferrier-sur-Luz Mayor Michel Fraysse said: "A large number of security forces, firefighters and ambulance personnel are at the scene."

Some of the home's residents are more than 90 years old, local councillor Alain Berthet said.

Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, the secretary general of the French Bishops' Conference, tweeted: "Our prayers tonight go to the woman who lost her life in this attack on a retirement home."

Armed man breaks into retirement home for monks

A woman has died after an armed man burst into a retirement home for monks near Montpellier, according to reports.

The victim had contacted police before she was killed with a knife, according to Reuters.

The man who broke into the home is reportedly armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun.

He is holed up in the Maison de Petraite retirement home in Montferrier-sur-Lez, where 70 monks live, BMTV reports.

Armed man breaks into retirement home for monks

A woman has died after an armed man burst into a retirement home for monks near Montpellier, according to reports.

The victim had contacted police before she was killed with a knife, according to Reuters.

The man who broke into the home is reportedly armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun.

He is holed up in the Maison de Petraite retirement home in Montferrier-sur-Lez, where 70 monks live, BMTV reports.

Tens of thousands flee Haifa as Israel wildfires spread

The Israeli government has declared a state of emergency after wildfires ripped through residential areas in the country's third largest city.

Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in Haifa and other parts of central and northern Israel, while some houses near Jerusalem and in the West Bank are also at risk.

People are taking shelter in sports halls and other municipal buildings.

The country's most senior police officer has said politically motivated arson may be behind some of the fires.

Police Chief Roni Alsheich said: "It's likely that where it was arson, it goes in the direction of nationalistic," before adding that he did not want to "disturb the investigation".

Meanwhile, some Israeli politicians have implied the fires were started deliberately by Palestinians as an act of terror against Israel, although no material evidence has been offered to back up the allegations.

The fires, which are threatening to engulf Haifa, a city with a population of around 300,000, started on Tuesday and have dramatically intensified over the last few hours.

The government has appealed for help from its neighbours.

Several aircraft capable of dropping retardant have already arrived in the country from as far afield as Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Russia.

The fires have managed to spread rapidly thanks to strong winds and a lack of wet weather over the last few months.

Forests and woodlands across Israel are bone dry and forecasters say it is likely to stay that way for some time, with no rain expected in the coming week.

The next 24 hours will be crucial for fire and rescue teams as they try to prevent the blazes from spreading further.

Military reservists have also been drafted into action, giving an indication of the scale of the problem.

There has so far been no loss of life reported but many people have been treated for the effects of smoke inhalation.

Wildfires are common in Israel but the latest are the worst the country has experienced since 2010, when 42 people were killed.

Viagra found in South Korean presidential offices

The scandal in South Korea involving President Park Geun-hye has taken an unexpected twist with news that Viagra has been found in her offices.

Authorities found the pills - usually used to treat erectile dysfunction - while investigating corruption allegations against Ms Park.

The government says the Viagra was bought to combat altitude sickness.

The South Korean leader is accused of allowing her friend, Choi Soon-sil, to influence her decisions.

The presidential office confirmed it bought 364 Viagra and similar generic pills to deal with altitude sickness on official trips to East Africa, although the pills were never used.

The discovery of Viagra grew out of the drug UK92480, a new treatment for angina, a heart condition that constricts the vessels that supply the heart with blood.

It failed in treating angina, but during drug trials many volunteers reported an unusual side effect - lots of erections. Scientists ran more tests and discovered its effectiveness at treating erectile dysfunction. 

Because of biological similarities between the lungs and penis, scientists also discovered it could help protect against pulmonary hypertension, common in climbers. 

At high altitudes decreased levels of oxygen can trigger high blood pressure in the lungs, which in extreme circumstance can be fatal.

Viagra reduces high blood pressure and improves the transport of oxygen in the blood. 

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Meanwhile, South Korean authorities have raided the offices of Samsung and the national pension fund as part of a corruption investigation linked to the president.

They are probing whether Ms Park pressured the fund to support a Samsung merger, said the Yonhap news agency.

Samsung's offices had already been raided over related allegations.

Wednesday's raid had to do with a merger last year between the electronics giant's construction arm, Samsung C&T, and an affiliate firm, Cheil Industries.

For weeks, tens of thousands of protesters have gathered in Seoul to demand Ms Park's resignation - a call she has resisted.