A new campaign is asking all Americans to show up for Shabbat this weekend and fight anti-Semitism

Launched by the American Jewish Committee, a global Jewish advocacy organization, the #ShowUpForShabbat campaign is a reaction to last Saturday's massacre, when 11 worshipers were gunned down at a synagogue in one of Pittsburgh's most vibrant Jewish communities.

"I encourage all members of the Jewish community and all people of conscience across our country to join me," AJC CEO David Harris said in a statement. "What could be a more fitting response to the terror in Pittsburgh?"

"We are determined to ensure that love triumphs over hate, good over evil, unity over division. That's our America."

Shabbat, Judaism's traditional day of rest, is observed from Friday evening to Saturday evening. Its rituals include prayer, family gatherings and festive meals.

The campaign is also asking elected officials, religious and civic leaders and other community allies to show up. It's telling synagogues to expect an influx of attendees during their Shabbat services and asking them to provide explanatory programming for newcomers.

One religious group has already pledged to attend.

A leader of the Sikh community in the US, who experienced their own tragedy when a gunman killed six worshipers at a temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, in 2012, is encouraging Sikhs to go to Shabbat services this weekend.

"After Oak Creek, the Jewish community resoundingly stood by Sikh Americans, and this time we encourage our whole community to stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters," said Rajwant Singh, co-founder of the National Sikh Campaign, in a statement.

CNN has reached out to AJC for further comment and is waiting to hear back.

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Megyn Kelly was never a fit for NBC. The network missed that

Some things don't go together: brussels sprouts and bubblegum; cats and canaries; Megyn Kelly and NBC News.

In each of those cases the mismatched mix should be obvious, but somehow NBC missed the telltale signs of how off and off-putting the combination of Kelly's views, especially on race relations, would be with NBC's own, more conventional positions. The network's top news executive, Andrew Lack, decided to woo Kelly away from her Fox News prime time show almost two years ago, and insert her in a starring role in the 9 a.m. timeslot for his network's long-running hit, the Today show.

Lack, who was hardly alone in media circles in pursuing Kelly, may have been blinded by a familiar malady of television executives: glamour glare. That's the effect that sometimes emanates from a glowing-hot on-air talent. It can lead to temporary loss of vision.

Events of recent months, especially of the past week, seem to indicate vision has been restored, though the cost of the fix — $69 million — might be deemed a tad pricey. That's not great news for Lack, it's fair to assume.

The denouement of the drama that has surrounded Kelly since the day she arrived at NBC seems to be upon us. The network formally canceled her show Friday with the expectation that she will have no further role at the network.

The experiment put in place by Lack — having Kelly, who had been icily appealing on Fox News as a solo act, try to emulate Oprah Winfrey by playing warm and wise with a studio audience — moved quickly from misbegotten to miserable. Ratings were tepid to worse, critical evaluation was scathing, internal dissension at NBC News over the move was widespread, and then there were those moments where fingernails met blackboards: comments that sounded like body shaming; guests that came away alienated (Jane Fonda, Debra Messing); the persistent awkwardness in performance; and the occasional whiff of what might kindly be labeled racial insensitivity.

The past week brought intense focus on Kelly's tone-deaf dismissal as "politically correct" of the idea that African Americans take offense at white people in blackface. But she had a documented history of such insensitivity, having, during her Fox News days, accused some in the black community of a "thug mentality."

And, of course there was her famous insistence that Santa Claus should never be portrayed by a black performer because he is — though fictional — definitively white. You might be able to make a fair case that it could be a risk to hire anyone who cares that much about the race of Santa Claus.

NBC apparently shrugged off those concerns when it landed Kelly at what has been reported to be $23 million a year. The shrug included the decision to have her replace two black anchors, Tamron Hall and Al Roker, who were making far less money (and, as things have worked out, were drawing better ratings).

Lack certainly has had a long and distinguished career in news, and retains high cards in his hand, including increasing ratings at MSNBC as well as the status of Today and NBC Nightly News, all of which he has played well. But for a time he seemed seduced by the idea of stretching the appeal of NBC News to followers of the new regime in Washington. Thus Hugh Hewitt, a conservative radio host, got a show on MSNBC, by then established as a liberal stronghold, and Megyn Kelly, whose views only occasionally veered away from the usual Fox News right-tilted narrative, moved into what had been the neutral territory of Today's 9 a.m. hour.

Both those gambits have now foundered. At least Hewitt's sour note in MSNBC's otherwise left-leaning musical score didn't involve a lottery-ticket payoff.

Just how bad was the mistake of hiring Megyn Kelly? If it involves loud discord within the news division staff, low ratings, racially charged remarks, and a check that could fund the entire roster of a small-market baseball team, it likely qualifies as a mistake with little chance of going unnoticed.

If past is prologue, and it usually is in the television business, all of that could play a hand in future decisions about the leadership at NBC News.

It probably doesn't help that another recent NBC News talent decision has not worked out well either. Not too long after hiring Kelly, Lack made the call to let Ronan Farrow go — just before his work won numerous prizes, including a Pulitzer for his reporting on the sexual improprieties of numerous media figures.

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Nancy Pelosi is right. Democrats should win the House on Tuesday.

"Let me say this," Pelosi told Colbert. "Up until today, I would've said, 'If the election were held today, we would win.' ... What now I'm saying is, 'We will win.'"

She's almost certainly right. And the reason is, well, math.

Let's go through the numbers starting with this one: 23. That's the number of seats Democrats need to net in order to retake the House majority in six days' time.

CNN currently rates 49 seats as either toss ups (30), leaning toward Democrats (14) or likely (5) to go for Democrats.

Of those 49, Republicans currently hold 42 -- including 29 toss-up seats, 10 lean Democratic districts and 3 likely Democratic ones. (One GOP seat -- New Jersey's 2nd -- is rated as solid Democratic.)

Give Democrats ONLY those Republican seats that are either solid, leaning or likely to go for them as of today and the minority party is more than halfway to winning back the House. Give Democrats the GOP seats that are leaning or likely to go for them and simply split the Republican toss-up races down the middle -- 14 for Democrats, 15 for Republicans -- and you have a 28-seat pickup for Democrats, more than they need to retake the House majority they lost in the 2010 election.

Assume that the toss-up races fall primarily for Democrats -- history tells us that one party tends to win the lion's share of the closest races -- and Democrats not only win the House but do so by a comfortable margin. If Democrats win 75% of all the races rated as toss-ups (and take all the GOP seats leaning or likely to go for the opposition party), you are talking about a gain of 40-plus seats.

A close look at the map suggests the potential for even larger Democratic gains is there. CNN currently rates 45 seats as either lean Republican (20) or likely Republican (25), and late-breaking data in other races, which isn't always reliable but could indicate last-minute surges, suggest real vulnerability for some other GOP incumbents.

The point here is that Democrats' upside -- like a young athletic swing man in the NBA draft -- is very high. And the party's own vulnerabilities are almost non-existent. Three Democratic-held seats are currently rated as toss-ups or worse: 1) Pennsylvania's open 14th District, where Rep. Conor Lamb (D) left to run (and likely win) in the 17th district; 2) Minnesota's 8th District, where Republican Pete Stauber is a slight favorite to win a Democratic seat; and 3) Minnesota's open 1st District. And, that's it. Three seats.

What that massive inequality in vulnerability means is this: Even in a national political environment that leans -- even slightly -- to Democrats, the party is extremely well-positioned to gain those 23 seats and perhaps many more.

That is, six days out from the election, a fact.

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Fed proposes softening 'too big to fail' rules on US banks

The Federal Reserve unveiled a fresh proposal Wednesday for regulating more than a dozen US banks that takes advantage of greater oversight authority recently granted by Congress -- and marks a step back from the tight controls imposed after the 2008 financial crisis.

The plan was approved 3-to-1 by the Fed's Board of Governors, with members appointed by President Donald Trump casting the deciding votes.

"Congress and the American people rightly expect us to achieve an effective and efficient regulatory regime that keeps our financial system strong and protects our economy, while imposing no more burden than is necessary," said Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, a former investment banker appointed by Trump last year.

Since the passage of the 2010 Dodd-Frank regulatory reform law, regulators have applied one simple mechanism -- a threshold of $50 billion in assets -- to trigger a slew of strict rules on those institutions requiring them to bolster their balance sheets to minimize risk of collapse.

Congress earlier this year passed a bill raising the level at which banks are considered "too big to fail" to $250 billion.

Under Wednesday's proposal, the Fed will have more discretion to review how complex a firm may be or how connected it is to the broader financial system as other factors in deciding how onerous or prescriptive a bank should be regulated.

The draft proposal divides financial firms into four new categories based on a variety of risk factors, including international activity, off-balance-sheet exposure and reliance on short-term wholesale funding.

While no changes will be applied to the country's behemoth banks like JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs under the new proposal, banks under $250 billion in assets will now see softer rules applied.

The Fed also created a new regulatory category for the country's biggest regional banks, which are not as large as the megabanks and have less than $700 billion assets or have more than $75 billion in cross-jurisdictional activity. Those firms will see a lighter regulatory touch than their megabank rivals but not the same level of relief as smaller regionals.

"These proposals embody an important principle: the character of regulation should match the character of a firm," said Randal Quarles, the Fed's regulatory czar, in prepared remarks.

The newly tailored proposal by regulators responds to legislation sponsored by Idaho Republican Sen. Mike Crapo and passed by Congress five months ago is aimed at easing rules for midsize regional banks like SunTrust Inc., Fifth Third, KeyCorp and American Express.

"The Crapo bill gives the Fed a fair amount of flexibility for those banks in the $100 billion to $250 billion range and in some ways even more than it had before," said Ian Katz, a director at Capital Alpha Partners."Until it's all settled there is some uncertainty how rigorous or not those regulations will be for those banks."

Those institutions that have hold assets between $100 billion and $250 billion will no longer have meet two liquidity buffers, meaning they won't have to hold assets they can sell quickly for cash, and would only be subject to the Fed's stress test exercise every two years.

It still remains unclear if those smaller regionals will have to comply with the Fed's yearly checkup next year, but Quarles said he hopes for those banks that will be moving to stress tests every two years 2019 will be an "off-cycle" year.

Four other bigger regional institutions -- US Bancorp, Capital One, PNC Financial and Charles Schwab -- which also have less than $700 billion in asset or more than $75 billion in cross-border activity or non-bank assets will also see minor relief by now having to meet a lower liquidity standard. They would still face yearly stress tests and submit their capital plans annually to the Fed.

US Bancorp commended the Fed's proposal, adding it "strikes a good balance." Representatives from PNC and Capital One could not be immediately reached for comment.

Overall, the new proposed changes would decrease the amount of required capital banks would have to hold by $8 billion, or a change of less than 1%, according to estimates by the Fed. And potentially lower the amount of highly liquid assets firms carry, which totals $3.1 billion, by as much as 2.5%.

One Fed governor, Lael Brainard -- an appointee of President Barack Obama -- objected to the Fed's new plan, arguing the proposal goes well beyond what Congress intended and raises the risk that American taxpayers will be on the hook again.

"I see little benefit to the institutions or the system from the proposed reduction in core resilience that could justify the increased risk to financial stability and the taxpayer," Brainard said at the meeting.

Better Markets President and CEO Dennis Kelleher called the Fed's actions "unjustified" and "unwise" so late in the business cycle following a $1.5 trillion tax cut and a massive government spending bill.

"Deregulating some of the largest banks in the country will make the financial system less safe, less stable and less protected from another crash," said Kelleher in a statement.

Julia Horowitz

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EPA quietly telling states they can pollute more

The Trump administration's position is outlined in a highly technical guidance memo about plans states must create and submit for EPA approval under the Clean Air Act's good neighbor requirements. It was sent in August to EPA regional offices and posted on the agency's website, but not announced to the public.

The memo introduces the idea of increasing the threshold for how much smog a state can dump on its neighbors -- known as cross-state pollution -- before taking action to reduce emissions.

Under the Trump administration's new guidance, states that are currently finalizing their plans can consider adopting a looser standard than would have been allowed under the Obama administration. The new one part per billion standard means a state can emit 43% more pollution across state lines than before.

Smog is a byproduct of air pollutants including greenhouse gases, which contribute to climate change. It can originate from sources including power plants, refineries and factories. Smog can reduce the ability of the lungs to function, and especially impacts children, people who are active outside, or those who have respiratory diseases. It is linked to breathing issues and conditions such as asthma.

The guidance memo is just the latest move by the Trump administration to loosen restrictions surrounding air pollution. The administration has moved towards replacing the Clean Power Plan, moved towards freezing vehicle emission standards, and pulled out of the international Paris climate agreement. The EPA also recently overhauled the committees of scientists who advise it on clean air.

The Clean Air Act mandates that the EPA works to make sure smog from certain states doesn't jeopardize air quality in downwind states. If there's pollution above the threshold, then the states would need to reduce emissions to come into compliance.

Maryland is an example of a state struggling with this issue. According to an estimate from the Maryland Department of the Environment, 70% of smog in Baltimore on bad ozone days comes from out-of-state cars, trucks and power plants. Maryland has asked the EPA for help curbing the smog coming from upwind states. The EPA has denied the request and Maryland has filed a suit asking for a judicial review of the EPA's decision.

The Obama-era EPA supported a tighter 0.7 part per billion threshold for smog. The 0.7 part per billion cross-state threshold was rooted in a 2015 rule that tightened the standards to "provide increased public health protection against health effects associated with long- and short-term exposures" to smog.

The new memo is influential, because it guides decision making, but is not legally binding. It is guidance, rather than a regulation, so it did not go through the rigorous review process used to craft new rules. That also leaves it vulnerable to being reviewed or overturned by courts or a future administration.

EPA spokesman John Konkus disputed that the EPA was raising the pollution threshold. Instead, he said the agency is giving states the option to raise the threshold themselves through the memo.

"The memo identifies potential technical approaches that a state may wish to choose in drafting their implementation plans' approach to its good neighbor obligations," he said.

Konkus also said that the memo has "no health impacts," but the agency admits they have not yet performed any health-related analysis.

Several public health advocates say EPA isn't playing it straight with the public.

"EPA is allowing more harmful air pollution to be sent from big polluters in one state to neighboring states, refusing to control the pollution, then lying about what is an obvious rollback," said John Walke, the director of clean air at the Natural Resources Defense Council and a former agency attorney during the Clinton administration.

"It's absurd to pretend this so-called 'guidance' doesn't change what's acceptable: the purpose of the rollback memo is to let upwind states pollute more and refuse to control harmful smog and soot they emit into neighboring states," he added.

Kyla Bennett, science director at Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, told CNN the agency is allowing some states, "under the guise of 'flexibility' and cooperative federalism, to emit more pollution."

"With a flick of the pen, this EPA guidance condemns hundreds of unlucky downwinders to early deaths every year," Bennett said.

The EPA memo claimed the nationwide overall pollution impact will likely be small -- the difference of 7 percentage points out of 100.

Some parts of the country, such as Western states like Arizona, will see virtually no impact, the memo said.

But other states, like Maryland and parts of Colorado, could see pollution levels spike.

The agency argues major gains have been made in reducing this sort of pollution. From 2007 to 2017, nitrogen oxides emissions, the key precursor for ground-level ozone pollution, has dropped by more than 40% nationwide, the agency said.

Bill Wehrum, a former energy industry attorney who fought to weaken air pollution rules, critics say, now oversees air pollution regulations at the EPA.

The EPA under then-Administrator Scott Pruitt initially tried to delay implementation of the Obama-era air quality rule, but now the Trump administration has decided to defend it in court, and recently argued in a federal appeals court against fossil fuel interests and five states supporting those interests. It is not clear why the administration changed course.

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Amazon undercuts Casper with its own new mattresses

Amazon (AMZN) has sold other companies' mattresses on its website for years, but it launched two of its own in October. A 12-inch full memory foam bed under the AmazonBasics brand goes for $219.99, while a Rivet memory foam full mattress costs $449.

Separately, Amazon debuted Revel this week. It's an exclusive-branded foam mattress, topper, and pillow made by a third-party.

Amazon positions the Rivet brand as its upscale mattress, and offers a 100-day free trial.

The company wants to capitalize on market trends and sees an opening in the $16 billion American mattress industry.

The hard part is already done for Amazon: Casper and digital upstarts busted up brick-and-mortar retailers' grip on mattresses, convincing Americans to buy beds online. Mattress Firm, the country's largest mattress retailer, filed for bankruptcy earlier this month and may close up to 700 stores around the country.

Walmart (WMT) debuted its own premium mattress under its Allswell digital home brand earlier this year. Target (TGT) recognized the opportunity even earlier, investing in Casper a year ago.

"Mattresses are an ideal category for Amazon to private label," said Cooper Smith, head of Amazon research at the consulting firm Gartner L2. "Brands like Casper and Tuft & Needle have already validated digital as a growing sales channel."

Amazon isn't attempting to overtake Casper. The company turns to its own brands to widen selection on the website.

But Amazon is undercutting competitors on price. It could nab shoppers who want to buy a premium mattress on the site, but don't want to pay $895 for a Casper full bed or $899 for a Purple mattress.

"Amazon private label tends to target a very specific white space in pricing," Smith said. "Mattresses have some of the highest margins in retail, giving Amazon a lot of room to work with."

There are early signs of success: The Rivet mattress has already earned 4.7 stars out of five on Amazon ratings, boosting its ranking in mattress search pages on the website.

Amazon may be on solid footing with Rivet because the company has insight into Casper, Tuft & Needle, and Purple customers' shopping patterns on the site. It has combed through its ratings and reviews to learn rival products' flaws and what prices can sway customers.

Mattress sales are growing on Amazon, according to e-commerce research firm Edge by Ascential. The new mattresses were first spotted by TJI Research, which analyzes the rapid growth of Amazon's own products.

Amazon keeps its in-house brand collection under tight wraps, but TJI Reearch has found 130 private-label brands and 191 exclusive brands on the website in clothing, food, household products, furniture and electronics.

Analysts say Amazon has accelerated its brand push lately to gain higher profit margins on sales, build customer loyalty, and put pressure on third-party manufactures that sell on its site.

Having its own brands could give Amazon more leverage over manufacturers to bring down prices, or force them to pony up advertising dollars on the website to promote their products.

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Steve King's explanation for his racially charged comments is epically bad

Albright, Powell express disgust over incendiary rhetoric, Trump policies

Appearing together before a packed auditorium at Creighton University, in Omaha, Nebraska, as part of a Presidential Lecture Series celebrating the school's 140th anniversary, the two former top diplomats expressed disgust over the country's current hot political rhetoric.

"We have come to live in a society based on insults, on lies and on things that just aren't true. It creates an environment where deranged people feel empowered," said Powell, who served under Republican President George W. Bush.

"I'm deeply troubled by the direction we're going," said Albright, who served under President Bill Clinton, a Democrat. "I'm a naturalized American citizen. I came when I was 11 years old. I'm very upset about the image we're projecting abroad."

Albright cited the massacre of 11 Jewish worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue over the weekend and the coordinated attack on Trump critics from a Florida man who allegedly mailed pipe bombs.

"There's no way to describe what has been one of the most disappointing, horrible and un-American set of activities that's taken place. There are divisions in our society that have come about as a result of technology and the downside of globalization, but we need leaders who look for common ground and don't exacerbate it," Albright said.

"We've seen incidents before but now, we've come to live in a society based on insults and attacking almost every facet of American life," Powell said. "All of our public officials, not just the President, need to take time to talk to one another, across the aisles."

Both criticized the Trump administration of promoting an immigration policy that demonizes those seeking a better life in the US.

"My parents came from Jamaica on banana boats and raised two children here, that one became a teacher and the other had success as a soldier. You can do that in America," he said. "We are giving that image up and we shouldn't. It's the strongest message we give the rest of the world."

Albright, who was born in Czechoslovakia, escaped the Nazis with her family by fleeing to America around World War II. She was an 11-year-old refugee who became a naturalized US citizen and learned that she had 26 Jewish relatives killed in the Holocaust.

"I'll never forget what it was like to come to America, on the S.S. America, past the Statue of Liberty," Albright said. "One of the things I loved to do was hand out people's naturalization certificates. I remember doing it July 4, 2000, at Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's house. And I figured, why not? I have Thomas Jefferson's job. And I remember giving a certificate to a man, a refugee, who said, 'Can you believe I'm a refugee and the Secretary of State is handing me my naturalization certificate?' I said, 'Can you believe the Secretary of State is a refugee?'"

Both diplomatic leaders took offense to Trump's characterizing a caravan of refugees currently traveling from Central America making their way through southern Mexico as "criminals," "terrorists" and "unknown Middle Easterners."

"These are hungry people trying to find a better life in America. That's what you find in America. And now we're seeing the separation of families again. This is a disgrace," Powell said. "I don't see any terrorists. I don't see any bombs going off. I'm not saying we let everybody in, you don't just open the door. But we should avoid language like this and see how we can solve this problem."

Albright said Trump's stance is "un-American."

"I wish our Congress would get its act together and pass some comprehensive immigration legislation," she lamented.

At one point, Powell used the President's own slogan to urge immigration reform.

"We were great then, we're great now, and we'll be greater in the future because of those immigrants who make us greater still," Powell said.

And on the President's renewed call to issue an executive order to end the automatic right for citizenship for those born in the US, Powell said dryly, "Trump needs to re-read the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. He doesn't have the authority to rewrite birthright citizenship."

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How a right-wing effort to slime Mueller with a sexual assault allegation fell apart

The document was not just an allegation of sexual assault against Special Counsel Robert Mueller, a favorite enemy of President Trump's supporters -- it was also an opportunity to troll liberals, supporters of the #MeToo movement, and the media.

The blog's commenters were gleeful.

"We believe the victim...we believe the victim...we believe the victim...," the top comment read. "Proof doesn't matter. It's the seriousness of the charge," another commenter responded. A reply to that said, "Absolutely. Anyone who doesn't believe her is supporting sexual assault and attacking alll women." And then another: "Lol time to rub it in."

Just a few hours later, however, the story collapsed. Journalists and internet sleuths tied a scheme to smear Mueller with charges of sexual assault to an entity called Surefire Intelligence. That firm was tied to 20-year-old Jacob Wohl, a far-right internet personality who has written for The Gateway Pundit and who was previously banned from financial trading by the National Futures Association over allegations of fraud, and to a number of fake LinkedIn profiles apparently intended to create the impression that Surefire Intelligence was a legitimate and impressive organization with several employees.

The Gateway Pundit's founder, Jim Hoft, removed the document from his website and published an editor's note in its place. He said that there were "very serious allegations against Jacob Wohl" and that he was "looking into" them. Hoft did not respond to phone calls or an email from CNN seeking comment.

It is still unclear exactly who or how many people were involved with the scheme, or what their motives were. Did they want to discredit Mueller? Were they trying to setup reporters in an attempt to smear them? Were they just in it for themselves?

The bizarre saga appeared to have kicked into gear over the last few weeks when reporters from various news organizations were emailed by a person or people who identified themself as Lorraine Parsons. Parsons, who did not respond to requests for comment from CNN and has reportedly declined to speak to several other media organizations, said she had been offered money in exchange for making a sexual assault allegation against Mueller.

The matter has now been referred to the FBI for investigation.

"When we learned last week of allegations that women were offered money to make false claims about the Special Counsel, we immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation," Peter Carr, a spokesman for the Special Counsel's office, said in a statement on Tuesday.

In the email to reporters, Parsons claimed to have worked at a law firm with Mueller in the 1970s, though the law firm has said it had no records of her being employed there. Parsons said that the person who had contacted her about making a sexual assault allegation in exchange for money said he was working for Republican lobbyist Jack Burkman.

On Tuesday morning, Wohl tweeted that a "scandalous story about Mueller" would be "breaking tomorrow."

Burkman announced shortly after that he would be holding a press conference on Thursday to "reveal the first of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's sex assault victims."

The Gateway Pundit, which Wohl writes for, then published the document detailing what it portrayed as an unidentified woman's accusation that Mueller had raped her.

As the story gained media attention, Vermont Law School professor Jennifer Taub, who has previously written for CNN's opinion section, said she too had received an email from an individual offering to compensate her "at whatever rate you see fit" for discussing "past encounters with Robert Mueller."

Taub told CNN she had never met or spoken with Mueller, and that she had forwarded the email to the Department of Justice.

The individual who emailed Taub identified himself as Simon Frick, who claimed to be a researcher for Surefire Intelligence. Ed Krassenstein, a liberal Twitter personality who writes for HillReporter.com, said he had also been contacted by an individual claiming to work for Surefire Intelligence after he looked into claims from Parsons.

Phone numbers listed on the Surefire Intelligence website, however, automatically redirected callers to a voicemail for Wohl's mother.

Other discrepancies soon started to add up.

Twitter users pointed out that the same Google user who had uploaded images for the Surefire Intelligence website had also previously uploaded images for a website Wohl used for an asset management firm.

Aric Toler, a researcher for Bellingcat, an organization that uses online and open source material to conduct investigations, also noted that a LinkedIn profile for Simon Frick used a picture of Christoph Waltz, an actor who has starred in movies including "Django Unchained," "Muppets Most Wanted," and the James Bond film "Spectre."

And Jane Mayer, a writer for The New Yorker, noted that a LinkedIn photo of an individual claiming to be the head of Surefire Intelligence appeared to simply be a darkened photograph of Wohl. (The picture had been removed from the profile by the time CNN viewed it Tuesday afternoon.)

Wohl himself even apparently confirmed a link between Burkman and Surefire Intelligence. He told The Daily Beast that Burkman had hired Surefire Intelligence to help him investigate Mueller's past. Burkman, however, told CNN that he doesn't "comment on any employees or subcontractors."

When reached for comment through Twitter's direct message feature and asked about his ties to Surefire Intelligence, Wohl said, "Sounds like a kooky Russiagate conspiracy theory."

When CNN dialed a number listed on Surefire Intelligence's website, an unknown individual answered. That person told CNN that he didn't know what Surefire Intelligence was -- "it doesn't ring a bell" -- and, when asked to identify himself, said "don't call" if "you aren't sure" who the number belongs to.

Several hours later, phone numbers listed for Surefire Intelligence on its website had been disconnected. At least some of the LinkedIn profiles that showed purported employees of Surefire were also taken down, as were two articles on Medium promoting the company under the guise of news stories.

Burkman said on Twitter Tuesday night that "the allegations of paying a woman are false."

Burkman is a Republican operative who has a history of organizing stunts that get him attention, present narratives aimed at benefitting the GOP, and ultimately fall apart in spectacular fashion.

For instance, earlier this year, Burkman helped peddle conspiracy theories about the murder of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich when he announced a press conference in which he said he would "present a witness" who would identify two individuals who had information about Rich's murder.

However, when reporters arrived, Burkman said the witness would call in, and not appear in person. After technical difficulties establishing a phone connection, the witness, who was not identified by name, rambled instead of providing actual information.

The press conference was executed so poorly, it was even lambasted by individuals on the far-right who believe or at least give credence to the Seth Rich conspiracy theory.

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Thanksgiving meal essentials to buy now and use year-round

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Have you bought your Thanksgiving meal essentials? This year, make your most memorable Thanksgiving meal with top-notch kitchen appliances and cookware. With these pie dishes, wine decanters, turkey roasters and pumpkin scoopers, you'll be all set to play chef for your guests.

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Trump's Pittsburgh trip doesn't calm the anger -- and fear

The week ended with the horrific massacre in Pittsburgh, when Robert Bowers walked into the Tree of Life Synagogue and opened fire, killing 11 people. He reportedly made anti-Semitic comments on social media before the attack, and to authorities after his arrest.

President Trump's visit to Pittsburgh in the wake of the synagogue shooting -- during which he placed stones on the 11 Star of David markers outside the synagogue, lit candles, and spent time in the hospital with patients who were injured in the attack -- won't do anything to allay the outrage of those who believe that the President has helped to aggravate our toxic national atmosphere, where white nationalists, anti-Semites, racists, nativists, and Islamophobes have come to believe that their ideas have somehow gained presidential legitimacy.

It is not a total surprise that some Jewish activists in Pittsburgh stated that they didn't want the President to visit the city until he fully denounced white nationalism while several government officials, including the Mayor of Pittsburgh, announced that they would not appear with the President in the grieving city.

The reason for this reaction is not just political, as his supporters keep arguing. It is a response to the much deeper questions about the administration's relationship to the forces of right-wing extremism.

There is now an ample body of evidence, from campaign ads to tweets, showing how then-candidate and now-President Trump has repeatedly used keywords and images that carry immense symbolic weight among white nationalist organizations and individuals.

From his campaign ad that some have noted featured anti-Semitic rhetoric, to his refusal to come down in straightforward fashion against neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, to his insistence on using the term "nationalist" despite the connotation it bears, it is not difficult to see why white nationalists would believe (rightly or wrongly) that he is on their side. His positions on key public policies, such as those regarding refugees and immigrants, play directly into the hands of extremists groups who support these ideas as well.

When President Trump wonders why former President Obama was not blamed for the shooting at an African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015, he either misses the point completely or is not listening. After all, Obama was never accused, even by his harshest critics, of giving legitimacy to the ideas of white nationalists from the Oval Office. It was not a surprise, however, that the Anti-Defamation League has found a historic spike in anti-Semitism in 2017, Trump's first year in office.

Nor has President Trump done much to inspire confidence since Saturday morning's horrific shooting. After the President called the murders an act of evil and expressed his deep support for the families in Pittsburgh, he quickly returned to his standard way of doing business. During a rally on Saturday night in Illinois, Trump repeated his familiar talking points, railing against the news media, attacking Democrats and blasting Hillary Clinton.

Since then, things have only gotten worse. Indeed, President Trump and his spokespeople, including Sarah Huckabee Sanders, have decided that it is best to defend Trump's previous attacks on the media, while Vice President Pence made the odd decision to appear at a campaign rally in Michigan on Monday with a Messianic Rabbi, who believes Jesus was the Messiah.

Since the anti-Semitic hate crime, Trump and Fox News have only doubled down on their attacks on the immigration march that in their hyperbolic rhetoric is set on "invading" the country -- the same terms that Bowers used as he attacked the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, HIAS, before his deadly killing spree.

Tuesday began with a report of the President planning to sign a shocking executive order to revoke birthright citizenship, another example of "Trump playing with fire on the question of immigration to fire up his base," according to Jay Michaelson.

If the President were serious about wanting to offer a response to white nationalism, he would be putting some realistic ideas on the table. Thus far, all he has talked about has been arming synagogues in America and supporting the death penalty for Bowers. As progressive Jewish leaders in Pittsburgh stated, Trump needs to start by offering a forceful, firm, and consistent denunciation of white nationalism, as a concept and as a movement.

Trump should then follow through by moving to restore funding for community programs that actually help to stop the spread of hate groups. As Peter Beinart argued in a piece for The Atlantic, the administration has severely reduced funding for these efforts. And then, of course, there is gun control. If the President wants to be a true deal-maker, he should push his own party into some kind of grand compromise that includes regulations to stem the flow of assault weapons within the population. The students who witnessed the Parkland shooting are still waiting.

While it is good to see the President demonstrate some sympathy for those who were victimized in the sacred space of a synagogue, at this point a speech won't do much to convince those outside the base that he is serious about using his presidential power to actually tackle the hate and violence that shook America in October 2018.

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Megyn Kelly's problems began long before her 'blackface' comments. Corporate America needs to step up

These work environments don't simply come into existence. It requires planning, investment from company leaders at the highest level, and a commitment to supporting and nurturing diverse, inclusive work teams. It's something that NBC seems to be learning.

While some might frame the Kelly issue as "political correctness run amok," in reality it demonstrates how an individual's blind spots, if not brought to light through dialogue and engagement with people who have various perspectives and life experiences, can lead to embarrassment and the all-too-familiar corporate apology cycle. Corporate mea culpas do little to alter the structures that created the problem to begin with.

Nobody has perfect knowledge of the social and political realities that everyone faces in our society. However, that doesn't absolve us of the need to constantly educate ourselves. And regarding an issue as obvious as the offensive nature of blackface, it speaks to an especially problematic blind spot for Kelly, who once previously declared that "Santa Claus is white, period."

This is how white supremacy works: It blinds people with privilege to the skewed reality in which they reside.

The most effective way to defend against racist and stereotypical imagery is to create work environments where there is both representation and power held by individuals who have been historically oppressed. This goes beyond the tokenized "diversity hire." This is about reimagining organizational cultures that ask hard questions and engage in critical dialogues that result in outcomes that respect the humanity of all people.

The day after Kelly's comments, she invited two African-American commentators, Roland Martin and Amy Holmes, to a discussion about the impact of her comments. While a positive step, it leaves the question: Shouldn't Kelly's production room and staff feature voices such as Martin's and Holmes' on a daily basis?

Having the ability to talk through an important topic such as cultural appropriation, colorism and the legacy of Jim Crow laws before the cameras come on is a resounding endorsement for the power of workplaces that are not simply diverse — which is representation — but are inclusive, where historically marginalized populations are involved in decision making and the direction of the organization. An inclusive and equitable organization would have had multiple voices around the table discussing this topic. This may have resulted in a decision to take an educational approach: "Here's why blackface is problematic," rather than posing it as an open question on Kelly's show.

We need to step beyond just having people of different backgrounds in the room; that's not sufficient. An organization that brings in one person from a marginalized population risks tokenizing their presence. There's also the phenomenon of cultural taxation — placing the burden of all issues related to their identity on the shoulders of that individual alone — which can lead to burnout.

Kelly asked, "How do we talk about race and our country's history with race, and have a real conversation?" Holmes responded, "With information, with sensitivity, and with also the knowledge that as a country we have struggled — paid a very dear price, and we continue to do — to try to be a country where we have dignity toward each other and different racial groups."

I would add two other attributes to the list: humility and empathy.

Any organization with a focus on equity and inclusion will have to embody these qualities — both institutionally and in its leaders. Unpacking the societal baggage that contributes to racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia and ableism, for example, means that leaders will find themselves taking stands that challenge the status quo. But isn't this the essence of leadership?

At a time where many Americans are concerned that our moral and ethical compass is breaking, we are in desperate need of people and actions that articulate values of inclusion and respect for all people. We need bravery in confronting not only the extraordinary, but also the mundane and everyday ways that discrimination, prejudice and oppression are perpetuated in society.

Empathy is essential to understand that our identity greatly shapes our reality, and for those of us with an identity that is of dominant or majority status, we are often unaware of the realities for people whose identities are marginalized. Equitable and inclusive workplaces provide organizations and individuals with a bridge to understand those communities that resist oppression on a daily basis.

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Lion Air crash: Indonesia to inspect all Boeing 737 Max 8 planes

Speaking to CNN by phone Tuesday, transportation ministry official Capt. Avirianto said Lion Air currently has 11 of the models in its fleet while national carrier Garuda Indonesia has one.

"We have inspected Garuda last night while Lion is still in progress," he said, adding that the ministry hopes to inspect at least three of Lion Air's planes Tuesday night and the other eight soon.

It is unclear whether the Garuda aircraft passed the inspection.

The managing director of Lion Air group, Daniel Putut Adi Kuncoro, confirmed to CNN that the transport ministry was carrying out the inspections. "We are waiting for their results," he said. "We will follow what the regulator tells us to do."

Search-and-rescue operations expanded to at least 400 square nautical miles Tuesday, with divers working to bring passenger remains out of the water and investigators examining fragments of debris scattered over a large expanse of sea.

The aircraft's fuselage and flight data recorders are yet to be recovered. They should provide more evidence about what caused the flight to crash about 13 minutes after taking off on a routine flight expected to take just over an hour.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo joined search teams at Tanjung Priok port Tuesday, where remains and debris recovered from the crash site have been unloaded.

What we know

• The plane went down at around 6:30 a.m. Monday, en route from Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang
• Indonesian authorities believe all 189 people on board were killed
• The so-called black box flight recorder has yet to be found
• Flight crew reported an issue with the plane the night before the flight, and repairs were carried out

Police said Tuesday that 24 body bags had been transferred from the crash to a local hospital for post-mortems. DNA samples have been taken from 132 family members of passengers on board to help with identification, but the Jakarta police commissioner warned that identifying the victims could be difficult, and each body bag so far transferred could contain the remains of more than one person.

At a news conference Tuesday, Muhammad Syaugi of Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency said the identification process was proceeding as quickly as possible, but said it was unlikely the remains of all passengers would be found.

Cause of crash remains a mystery

The plane, a new Boeing 737 MAX 8, was carrying 181 passengers, as well as six cabin crew members and two pilots, bound for Pangkal Pinang on the Indonesian island of Bangka.

It made a request to air traffic control to return to the airport around 19 kilometers (12 miles) after takeoff, but did not indicate there was any emergency.

Radar data did not show that the plane had turned back, and air traffic controllers lost contact with it soon after, Yohanes Sirait, spokesman for AirNav Indonesia, the agency that oversees air traffic navigation, told CNN.

David Soucie, a former safety inspector with the US Federal Aviation Administration, said the fact that an emergency wasn't declared should be a cause for concern.

"What's most peculiar to me is the fact that they didn't declare an emergency. They just simply said, 'We're going back'," said Soucie, a CNN safety analyst.

"But when I look at the track of the aircraft after that, the aircraft made a very steep dive after that which is not typical of what they would've done," he added. "They would have maintained altitude and made that turn and come back to (the airport)."

The plane had reported problems the night before on a flight from Denpasar to Jakarta, but engineers had checked and repaired the issue and given the plane clearance to fly, Lion Air Chief Executive Edward Sirait told local media.

AirNav Indonesia said the flight would have been given a priority landing spot had it declared an emergency.

"Something happened to lose control of that aircraft," Soucie said.

He ruled out weather as a cause of the crash, however, since the plane did not appear to attempt to turn back toward Jakarta. "That says that something abrupt and very fast happened to the aircraft."

Though the flight data recorder and voice cockpit recorder -- the so-called black boxes -- have yet to be recovered, Soucie warned that the emergency locator transmitters on them are somewhat unreliable, and could be undetectable, as they were with the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

"When that aircraft goes down, the first thing you find is those boxes, and if the signal that tells where they are isn't working or is not designed properly, that's a big problem," he said. "It's again more of a systemic problem than it is a particular aircraft."

Black boxes typically provide information on the causes of the crash and final minutes of the flight.

New aircraft

Lion Air acquired the Boeing jet in August and it had flown only 800 hours, according to Indonesia's National Transport Safety Committee (NTSC).

The aircraft is one of Boeing's newest and most advanced jets, one of 11 such planes in Lion Air's fleet. In a statement, Boeing said the company was "deeply saddened" by the loss and offered "heartfelt sympathies" to passengers and crew on board, and their families.

Soucie said 800 hours was plenty of time "to get this tried and true."

He added the MAX 8 was "the top of the line, it's one of the best you can buy ... I don't see anything coming back towards maintenance on this issue or the flight of the aircraft itself."

CNN aviation analyst Peter Goelz agreed that the loss of such a new aircraft was "highly unusual."

But because Lion Air jet's pilot and co-pilot were experienced -- 6,000 and 5,000 flight hours, respectively -- and weather did not seem to be a factor, investigators would be focusing on the aircraft, said Goelz, a former chairman of the US National Transportation Safety Board.

'I have to be strong'

Agency staff are going through personal items recovered from the crash site, including passports, wallets and IDs. Images show a child's bright red Hello Kitty money pouch among items retrieved from the sea.

More remains and debris were unloaded at the Tanjung Priok port late Tuesday afternoon local time, where Indonesia's Transport Minister, Budi Karya Sumadi, joined search teams in examining the material.

One family member, 14-year-old Keshia Aurelia, was in high school when she heard the news her mother Fifi Hajanto had been on the plane when it went down.

"We cried a lot in (the crisis center) while we were waiting for the authorities," she told CNN. "All of the families were crying. I'm not the only one suffering so I have to be strong."

"My mom was a very kind person," Aurelia added. "I don't understand why (this happened)."

Nunik Hesti, 53, lost both her son and grandson in the disaster. The pair -- Wahyu Aldilla and Xherdan Fahrezi -- had traveled to Jakarta to watch a football game over the weekend.

"I saw the breaking news coverage of the plane crash," she said. "My heart sank. I just lost it."

Indonesia's poor safety record

Attention will also fall on the general safety record of Indonesia's aviation industry, which has long lagged behind other countries in the region.

In the wake of the crash, Australia has advised its government officials and contractors not to fly Lion Air, a government official told CNN.

Lion Air was one of the dozens of Indonesian carriers banned from European airspace in 2007, following a series of crashes and concerns over falling safety standards.

That same year, a Garuda Indonesia plane with 140 people on board overshot the runway in the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta and burst into flames, killing 21 people on board.

The crash was one of a litany of accidents involving Indonesian airlines since 2000, including several involving Lion Air.

In 2013, a Lion Air Boeing 737 missed the runway and crashed into the sea near Bali, forcing passengers to swim to safety. That same year, another Lion Air Boeing 737 collided with a cow while touching down at Jalaluddin Airport in Gorontalo.

Others were not so fortunate, in 2014 Indonesian AirAsia Flight 8501 crashed in the Karimata Strait while flying from Surabaya to Singapore, killing all 162 aboard.

However, standards have since improved and major carriers -- including Lion Air -- were gradually removed from the European blacklist over the years. All remaining Indonesian airlines on the list were cleared earlier this year.

A similar ban, preventing Indonesian carriers from entering US airspace, was lifted in 2016.

Soucie, who was involved in several of the investigations resulting in Indonesia being cleared, said the 2007 ban had more to do with "the Indonesian government and their commitment to safety than it does about an individual airline."

Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 13,000 islands, has seen a boom in domestic aviation in recent years, with passenger traffic tripling between 2005 and 2017, according to Australian consultancy the CAPA-Center for Aviation. Today, Indonesia has the world's fifth-largest domestic aviation market after the US, China, India and Japan.

As of 2017, Lion Air, considered a budget carrier, controlled more than 50% of Indonesia's domestic market, according to CAPA.

"What they (Indonesian government) dealt with there was a systemic issue, something that had to readjust or recalibrate the way that Indonesia looks at safety," said Soucie. "They've come a long, long way."

CNN's Ivan Watson, Jo Shelley, Darran Simon, Edi Amin, Devianti Faridz, Sheena McKenzie and Sarah Faidell contributed to this report.

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Pittsburgh shooting suspect indicted on 44 charges -- 32 of which are punishable by death

Included are 11 counts each of obstruction of free exercise of religious belief resulting in death and use of a firearm to commit murder during a crime of violence.

Thirty-two of the charges are punishable by death, according to the indictment.

The suspected gunman, Robert Bowers, is accused of targeting the Saturday morning services at the Tree of Life synagogue after making anti-Semitic posts online.

Developing story. More to come.

CNN's MK Mallonee contributed to this report.

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