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AF2 USAF C-32A departed Janesville, WI and currently starting it's descent for Bozeman, MT
Pence to headline Republican campaign rally in Montana
Vice President Mike Pence is due to headline a campaign rally in southcentral Montana Monday as Republicans in the state seek to take back the governor’s mansion and retain seats in the U.S. House and Senate.
Pence is scheduled to appear Monday afternoon at the Big Yellow Barn, an event venue in Belgrade, Montana, just west of Bozeman. Also scheduled to be in attendance are Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, who is facing a challenge from Gov. Steve Bullock; U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte, who faces Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney in the run for governor; and state auditor Matt Rosendale, who is being challenged by former state legislator Kathleen Williams for Montana’s sole House seat. The event if open to the public but crowd size is limited because of restrictions due to the coronavirus.
Pence was originally scheduled to attend a fundraiser for the Trump re-election campaign earlier Monday in Bozeman, but cancelled following revelations that the event’s hosts have supported the discredited QAnon conspiracy theory.
https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/ap_news/montana/pence-to-headline-republican-campaign-rally-in-montana/article_4d605872-629a-53e8-b801-c86dfcd4320b.html
Daimler to pay $1.5bn over emissions cheat claims in US
German carmaker Daimler, which owns Mercedes-Benz, has agreed to pay $1.5bn (ÂŁ1.2bn) to resolve US government claims that it designed its diesel vehicles to cheat air pollution tests. The firm was investigated for installing software to evade emissions laws in 250,000 Mercedes cars and vans. US officials said they hoped the fine would deter future misbehaviour.
Daimler called the deal an "important step" towards resolving diesel proceedings but denied the claims. "By resolving these proceedings, Daimler avoids lengthy court actions with respective legal and financial risks," the company said. In addition to the $1.5bn settlement with US authorities, Daimler said it had agreed to pay $700m to settle a class action lawsuit brought by owners. It also disclosed "further expenses of a mid three-digit-million EUR amount to fulfil requirements of the settlements." The deals, which Daimler had said it was nearing last month, conclude an investigation that the US started in 2016, after "defeat devices" were discovered through testing.
Officials said that an $875m fine included in the $1.5bn settlement with authorities is the second-largest civil penalty the US has ever imposed under its Clear Air Act and the largest if measured on a per-vehicle basis. Daimler has also agreed to fix the affected cars, which were sold between 2009 and 2016, at no cost to their owners. US officials said that commitment was worth about $400m. At a press conference on Monday, Andrew Wheeler, the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency, said: "The message we are sending today is clear: We will enforce the law.
"If you try to cheat the system and mislead the public, you will be caught. Those who violate public trust in pursuit of profits will forfeit both." The penalties are the latest in a wide-ranging scandal that has cast a cloud over the motor industry since 2015, when Volkswagen admitted to installing secret software on vehicles sold in the US.
The system allowed the cars to emit up to 40 times legally permitted emissions and evade detection during tests.
Volkswagen later admitted the devices affected more than 11 million vehicles globally. The company more than $20bn to resolve claims in the US alone.
But investigations soon widened to other companies, including Ford, Mitsubishi, and Nissan. In 2018, Daimler recalled more than 700,000 vehicles in Europe that had "defeat devices" installed. BMW and Porsche have also recalled cars over the issue.
Fiat Chrysler in Europe were raided this summer over the matter. The firm agreed to an estimated $800m settlement to resolve civil claims in the US in January.
Daimler said the US settlement concerned vehicles that were not sold in the same configurations in Europe.
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54153126
Putin throws $1.5 billion lifeline to Belarus leader
Russian President Vladimir Putin bestowed a $1.5 billion loan on Belarus on Monday in a gesture of support for its leader Alexander Lukashenko, who flew to entreat his patron for help after five weeks of mass protests demanding his resignation. A day after more than 100,000 protesters took to the streets of Minsk with chants of “You’re a rat”, Lukashenko met Putin in the Black Sea resort of Sochi in urgent need of help to maintain his 26-year grip on power.
“First of all, I want to thank you… personally thank you and all Russians, all those, and I will not list them, who were involved in supporting us during this post-election time,” Lukashenko said. The Kremlin said some of the new money would be used to refinance earlier loans.
Putin backed plans Lukashenko has previously announced for constitutional reform, which the opposition has dismissed as a stunt to retain power after a disputed Aug. 9 presidential election. But his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would stand down a reserve of law enforcement officers and national guards that Putin had placed near the border late last month, ready to intervene in case the situation got out of control.
The move signalled Moscow’s keenness to emphasise financial support, not force - and possibly its belief that a violent crackdown by Lukashenko’s security forces has been effective enough to keep him in power in the former Soviet republic. “We want Belarusians themselves, without prompting and pressure from outside, to sort out this situation in a calm manner and through dialogue and to find a common solution,” Putin said.
Putin said, however, that defence cooperation would continue. Hours earlier, Russian news agencies reported Moscow was sending paratroopers for joint exercises. It was an uncomfortable encounter for the 66-year-old Lukashenko, who had antagonised Moscow shortly before the election by rounding up 32 Russian nationals that Belarus accused of being mercenaries sent to destabilise the country. Lukashenko said he was “very grateful” for Moscow’s support, adding that he had learned “a very serious lesson” from recent events. At one point, TV footage showed him mopping sweat from his brow with a handkerchief.
Since the election, which Lukashenko denies rigging in order to defeat opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, thousands of people have been arrested and nearly all opposition leaders jailed, deported or forced into exile. Police said they detained 774 people on Sunday.
https://www.reuters.com/article/belarus-election-russia/update-6-putin-throws-1-5-billion-lifeline-to-belarus-leader-idUSL8N2GB27N
82-8000 USAF VIP 747 departed McClellan Airport, Sacramento to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
09-0016 USAF C-32A departed Travis AFb sw and SAM582 USAF G5 also departed McClellan Airport Sacramento nw