Factbox - Still counting: Uncalled U.S. federal elections

Democrats took control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the Nov. 6 elections and Republicans held onto a majority in the U.S. Senate, but eight federal races remain undecided more than a week later. In Mississippi, Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democratic challenger Mike Espy will compete in a runoff election on Nov. 27 after neither won a majority for a U.S. Senate seat. On Sunday, Florida’s outgoing governor, Republican Rick Scott, was declared winner of the state’s U.S. Senate race following a recount of ballots in the tight matchup against three-term Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson.

Vote tallies continue to trickle in for seven U.S. House races that appear too close to call and there is no consensus among media outlets that a victor has emerged. Democrats have so far made a net gain of at least 35 House seats. The outcomes of the remaining undecided elections will not change the overall balance of power in either the Senate or the House.

The following are House seats where there is no consensus winner:

''State District''California - 39, Georgia - 7, New Mexico - 2, New York - 22, New York - 27, Texas - 23, Utah - 4

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-undecided-factbox/factbox-still-counting-uncalled-u-s-federal-elections-idUSKCN1NN0R0

PG&E reports another outage on morning when California fire started

NEW YORK (Reuters) - California utility PG&E Corp (PCG.N), facing investor concerns over its possible role in the deadly Camp Fire in Northern California, has reported another power-line outage that it experienced on the morning of Nov. 8 when the blaze started. The incident report, which was filed on Friday with the safety division of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), said a line near the area of Concow in Butte County suffered an outage at 6:45 a.m. on Nov. 8.

The information in the report is preliminary, according to a spokesman for PG&E, who said the company was cooperating with any investigations. The utility has said it could face liability that exceeds its insurance coverage if its equipment were found to have caused the Camp Fire.

Authorities were still searching for signs of the 1,276 people listed as missing after the Camp Fire tore through the mountain town of Paradise. The remains of 76 people have been recovered so far in what is considered the state’s deadliest-ever wildfire. A CPUC spokesman confirmed that the agency received the second report on Friday, and said the incident would be incorporated into its investigation “to assess the compliance of electric facilities with applicable rules and regulations in fire impacted areas.”

Investors are watching for clues about whether California’s government will step in to save PG&E should it eventually be found responsible for the fire and should any potential liability exceed the utility’s resources. CPUC President Michael Picker told Reuters on Friday that utilities must be able to borrow money cheaply in order to properly serve ratepayers. Similar comments from Picker a day earlier caused PG&E’s stock to surge in after-hours trading. The company’s stock had slumped more than 60 percent since the wildfire broke out, on fears that without help from California’s government, the utility could go bankrupt should it eventually be found responsible.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-wildfire/grim-search-for-1276-missing-after-deadliest-california-wildfire-idUSKCN1NN07Y

>>3955795

Hmm interesting, wonder if this was purposeful..for reasons of eminent domain…

Grim search for 1,276 missing after deadliest California wildfire

PARADISE, Calif. (Reuters) - Authorities sifted through the charred wreckage of California’s deadliest ever wildfire on Sunday, searching for any signs of the 1,276 people now listed as missing after the Camp Fire tore through the mountain town of Paradise. The remains of 76 people have been recovered so far, 63 of whom have been tentatively identified pending DNA confirmation. Early on Sunday the blaze, which ignited on Nov. 8, was 60 percent contained, officials said, up from 55 percent Saturday.

Rain is forecast for the area this week, potentially helping douse the flames but raising the risk of floods and mudslides, adding to the misery of 46,000 people under evacuation orders. Many refugees from the fire have taken up temporary residence with friends and relatives, while others have pitched tents or were camping out of their vehicles. The death toll far surpasses the previous fatality record from a single California wildfire - 29 in the Griffith Park fire of 1933 in Los Angeles - and already ranks among the deadliest U.S. wildfires since the turn of the last century. Eighty-seven people perished in the Big Burn firestorm that swept the Northern Rockies in August 1910. Minnesota’s Cloquet Fire in October 1918 killed 450 people. In Paradise, the flames moved so fast that some victims died in their cars in a chaotic evacuation as gridlock formed on the two exit routes out of town.

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office said the list of the missing is compiled using information received from a special hotline, as well as emails and emergency-911 calls that came in during the first chaotic hours of the blaze. Authorities said some of those listed likely survived but have not yet notified family or officials, either because they lack phone service or were unaware anyone was looking for them.

In Paradise, home to nearly 27,000 people before the Camp Fire struck, two forensic anthropologists for the University of Nevada, Reno, were helping firefighters on Saturday sort through the wreckage at a mobile home park for senior citizens. Firefighters peeled back the metal sheet of a collapsed roof as the anthropologists picked up charred bone fragments, sorting them into paper bags. Roger Fielding, chief deputy coroner with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, said each site was treated as a crime scene, with every step of recovery documented with photographs. “Our job is to pick up any items that might reflect who this person might be,” he said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-wildfire/grim-search-for-1276-missing-after-deadliest-california-wildfire-idUSKCN1NN07Y

White House Will Release "Very Full Report" On Khashoggi Findings On Tuesday

In a wide-ranging Fox News interview released on Sunday, President Trump said he hadn't listened to the Khashoggi tape, one day after he praised the US's relationship with Saudi Arabia in response to reports that the CIA had identified Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman as the mastermind of the plot to kill Jamal Khashoggi. And as speculation about the administration's ability to hold the Saudis accountable intensified, Trump said the administration will release a "very full report" on the killing on Tuesday, according to BBG. Trump again denied that the CIA had made a final conclusion as to who is responsible for Khashoggi's killing, instead insisting that the US "hadn't assessed anything yet." In response to the Friday report in the Washington Post, Trump said that information was premature. "It’s too early. That was a very premature report.

On Saturday, Trump spoke with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and CIA chief Gina Haspel while aboard Air Force One as he traveled to California to meet with people affected by deadly wildfires, according to White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Asked by reporters if the president had confidence in the CIA’s conclusion, Sanders said: "He has confidence in CIA." "As of this moment, we were told that he did not play a role, we’re going to have to find out what they say," Trump told reporters on Saturday before leaving the White House. While Trump has defended the US's relationship with Saudi Arabia, others in the administration haven't been so enthusiastic. On Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence referred to Khashoggi's killing as "an atrocity" and vowed that the kingdom and anybody involved in the killings would be held responsible.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-11-18/white-house-will-release-full-report-khashoggi-findings-tuesday