Luanda, Angola | AFP | Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who has ruled for 37 years, will stand down before next year’s general election, state radio said Friday citing sources in the ruling MPLA party. The autocratic Dos Santos, 74, became president in 1979, making him Africa’s second-longest serving …
Read More »Trump builds his team -and isn’t changing his style
Washington, United States | AFP | As a candidate, Donald Trump tore up the political rule book. As the president-elect, the Republican billionaire, who was back at work building his cabinet Friday, is showing no signs of tempering his unconventional style. On the heels of his first “thank you” …
Read More »The Trump administration turning into club for the wealthy
Washington, United States | AFP | The US administration-in-waiting nominated by President-elect Donald Trump is a circle of multimillionaire businessmen and women the public may view as a cabinet whose wealth is unprecedented in US history. Himself a billionaire real estate developer, Trump could entrench this characteristic should he choose …
Read More »France’s Hollande says will not stand for re-election
Paris, France | AFP | French President Francois Hollande announced Thursday he would not seek re-election next year as he bowed to historically low approval ratings after a troubled five years in power. The 62-year-old Socialist leader put a decisive end to speculation in a solemn televised statement from …
Read More »Rule by tweet: Trump cultivates new ‘bully pulpit’
Washington, United States | AFP | US presidents are normally wary that their words alone can move armies and markets, but for President-elect Donald Trump, incendiary early morning tweet-bombs are a style of governance. Since his shock win on November 8, the septuagenarian mogul has used Twitter to wade neck-deep …
Read More »Trump vows to put aside doubts over business empire
New York, United States | AFP | Donald Trump tried Wednesday to head off criticism that his vast business empire poses an unprecedented conflict of interest for an incoming US president, even as he comes under attack for packing his cabinet with fellow billionaires. In one of his trademark pre-dawn …
Read More »Steven Mnuchin: From Wall St to Hollywood to Washington
New York, United States | AFP | Steven Mnuchin is hardly a household name, but US President-elect Donald Trump’s new pick for Treasury secretary has close ties to Wall Street that could prove a double-edged sword in the current populist era. A former Democratic Party donor, the 53-year-old surprised his …
Read More »Fidel Castro takes final voyage across Cuba
Havana, Cuba | AFP | The ashes of Fidel Castro begin a four-day journey across Cuba Wednesday to his final resting place, retracing the late communist leader’s revolution victory tour of 1959. The “caravan of freedom” will leave from Havana, making symbolic stops along the 950-kilometer (590-mile) trek that will …
Read More »Hillary, pizza and a phony sex scandal: the power of ‘fake news’
Washington, United States | AFP | The internet rumor had the makings of a bizarrely sordid scandal involving a top political aide to Hillary Clinton, allegations of pedophilia and a restaurant in an upscale part of Washington. It ended in death threats against a small business owner — and became …
Read More »Australia strikes deal on ‘backpacker tax’
Sydney, Australia | AFP | Foreigners in Australia on working holidays face paying a 15 percent levy on every dollar they earn after the government Monday compromised on a controversial “backpacker tax”, dumping plans for a higher rate. Canberra had initially sought a revenue-raising 32.5 percent tax for seasonal workers …
Read More »