🔵 Big Panama Win

Author

Citizen Frank
February 03, 2025

Good evening. It’s Sunday, February 2.

 

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said on Sunday afternoon that his country will be withdrawing from communist China’s predatory Belt and Road Initiative after meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Rubio’s trip comes as President Donald Trump has signaled that he is willing to use military power to retake control of the Panama Canal if the country does not regain complete control over the operations of the canal from China.

“One important thing, which is a decision I made and communicated to him, is that the 2017 memorandum of understanding on the Silk Road, part of the Belt and Road Initiative, will not be renewed by my government,” Mulino said. “That is a fact.”

The Federal Aviation Administration was using a backup system to send real-time safety alerts to pilots late Saturday because its primary one was “experiencing a temporary outage,” the Transportation Department said.

“The primary NOTAM system is experiencing a temporary outage, but there is currently no impact to the National Airspace System because a backup system is in place,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on social media.

Mr. Duffy was referring to “Notice to Air Missions,” the alerts that the F.A.A. uses to share information about hazards in the air or on the ground, such as closed runways, airspace restrictions and navigational signal disruptions.

Senior officials at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were placed on administrative leave after they refused to turn over classified material to teams from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Officials spoke with The Associated Press on Sunday to say USAID members were eventually unsuccessful and DOGE teams were able to gain access to some of the agency’s classified information, including intelligence reports.

John Voorhees and deputy Brian McGill were the two employees that believed they were legally obligated to deny DOGE teams access after they didn’t have a high enough security clearance.

Kanye West and Bianca Censori were escorted out of the 2025 Grammys after making their shocking red carpet debut.

An insider tells Page Six that cops ushered the pair out after “the crazy outfit moment they pulled on the carpet,” which we’re told “was an attempt to replicate the album cover of ‘Vultures.’”

West’s 2024 “Vultures 1” album cover featured Censori standing backward in nothing but thigh-high boots and a tiny piece of fabric covering her behind.

Passengers and the crew of a United Airlines flight from Houston to New York City were evacuated after an engine issue was reported Sunday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The crew of United Airlines Flight 1382 “safely aborted its takeoff” from the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston due to a “reported engine issue” at around 8:35 a.m. local time Sunday, according to the FAA. Passengers on the flight were deplaned on the runway and bused to the terminal.

“During takeoff, United flight 1382 received an indication about one engine and halted the takeoff while still on the runway,” a United Airlines spokesperson told USA TODAY in a statement.

The Senate Finance Committee will vote Tuesday on the recommendation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation to lead federal health agencies, thecommittee announced Sunday.

Kennedy’s approval by the committee is far from certain. Last week, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said he was “struggling” with the nominee’s reticence to publicly support vaccines despite the overwhelming evidence that they’re safe and effective.

Republicans’ one-vote edge in the Finance Committee means Cassidy could ultimately keep Kennedy from getting a favorable recommendation from the panel, should all the Democrats vote against him.

Former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem will visit Del Rio, Texas, on Saturday. This marks her first visit to the southern border since her confirmation as secretary of Homeland Security.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he will discuss “victory over Hamas,” countering Iran and expanding diplomatic relations with Arab countries in his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Tuesday’s meeting at the White House will be Trump’s first with a foreign leader since returning to office. It comes as U.S. and Arab mediators begin the daunting work of brokering the next phase of an agreement to wind down the war in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of militant-held hostages.

Hamas, which has quickly reasserted its control over Gaza since the ceasefire took hold last month, has said it will not release the hostages slated to go free in the second phase without an end to the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.

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