Displaying items by tag: USA

The satellite launch facility at Tongchang-ri became dormant last August. Now satellite images show that rebuilding efforts began between 16 February and 2 March - either just before, during or immediately after Kim Jong-Un and Donald Trump abruptly ended their second summit on 28 February without signing a deal. Though the satellite images provide useful information, analysts and experts express caution against reading too much into them without sufficient intelligence to complement. Amid much media and ‘professional’ speculation, a senior research associate at the Centre for Nonproliferation Studies said, ‘It's possible that the activity at the facility is a chess move in North Korea's negotiating strategy to ratchet up pressure on Washington. The site, in the macro-sense, is very transparent and the North Koreans know we are always watching.’

For the past eighteen years, the ministry of The Call has filled stadiums with a message of prayer and fasting, believing that America would turn back to Jesus. Then God spoke to its leaders, saying that a shift was coming that would give birth to a new sending movement. The shift began as 70,000 people raised their shoes in response to a call to go anywhere for the gospel. This gathering, called Azusa Now, catalysed a grassroots movement activating believers to evangelism and mobilising missionaries all over the world. In response to Azusa Now, national ministries gathered together in Florida to seek the Lord, believing that the momentum must become a national movement. The Send was born. On 23 February 60,000 youths were mobilised into mission! Believing now is a tipping point of action to reach this generation in five mission fields: schools, universities, colleges, friends, and neighbourhoods.

By a vote of 53-44, the Senate failed to pass the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which would have required doctors to provide medical care to infants born alive after an attempted abortion procedure. The bill needed sixty votes to overcome the legislative filibuster. Currently, medical professionals are not required to treat and save a baby that is still living after an abortion procedure. However, three days before the vote, the Trump administration issued a draft proposal to cut millions of dollars in federal funding to abortion providers, who currently receive $250m for clinics providing birth control and abortion services. The draft rule would also prevent funding being given to organisations that refer women elsewhere for abortions. See

President Trump wants Europe to ban Chinese tech giant Huawei from their next-generation 5G information networks, citing security risks (giving China power inside telecommunication networks where they could modify or steal information or conduct undetected espionage). US secretary of state Mike Pompeo warned of consequences for countries that don’t toe Washington’s line on the issue. Nevertheless, Germany may allow Huawei to operate in its 5G network plans, and the UK thinks the security risks of using Huawei resources are manageable. Huawei set out ambitious plans for Europe at a festive evening to mark the beginning of the Chinese New Year. ‘Europe is like a big, lively family. We feel happy to be a part of it, and look forward to growing together with it,’ said a Huawei representative. See 

Las Vegas is one of five cities participating in a new nationwide programme to reduce chronic homelessness by 20%. Deacon Thomas Roberts said that a partnership will simultaneously tackle shelter issues and the root causes of chronic homelessness - mental health and addiction. ‘We think that it is important to recognise the reasons why people have become chronically homeless and to address those issues. I think that is where we can effect really meaningful change.’ Within five years, the project hopes to have built 100 homes: Roberts said this will be enough to support 20% of the 500+ people who have been homeless for at least two years. There will be mental health offices in the housing units or transportation to locations off site. The homeless don’t have transportation, so resources need to be accessible, otherwise you have not addressed the underlying cause of what got them homeless.

President Trump declared a national emergency to fund a US/Mexico border wall after failing to secure $5.7bn through a 35-day government shutdown. Concerned Republicans say, ‘We have a crisis at our southern border, but no crisis justifies violating the constitution’. Democrats issued stronger condemnations and intend to mount legal challenges for his abuse of power by declaring a national emergency when there is none. The ‘emergency’ allows $8bn military funds to be diverted to the project. Many believe this declaration shows an alarming disregard for democratic norms; Trump’s conviction that, as president, he should be able to impose his own will, at whatever cost, is dangerous. The American Civil Liberties Union said, ‘There is no “national emergency” at the border, and Trump’s declaration is illegal.’ See

President Trump calls the ‘migrant caravan’ an invasion of the USA. . A desperate 2,600-mile walk from Honduras with children and a few possessions is an odd invasion. Honduras has suffered much since President Hernández’s fraud-marred re-election in 2017. As resistance to him persists, scores are killed by government security forces. Also gangs and drug trafficking cause one of the highest rates of homicide. Some are fleeing not because of crime or political oppression, but because of economic inequity and lack of opportunity. Scripture says we should care for the widow, the orphan, and the stranger. Pope Francis said, ‘It is hypocrisy to call yourself Christian and chase away refugees, those seeking help, someone who is hungry or thirsty. If I say I am Christian, but do these things, I am a hypocrite.’

In 1987 a treaty was agreed on by Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan. Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov has said that the US has been violating the treaty since 1999 by testing unmanned aerial combat vehicles with the same characteristics as land-based cruise missiles banned by the treaty, and has used ballistic target missiles for testing missile defence systems. Meanwhile the US said that it would exit the landmark Cold War nuclear missile treaty because of purported violations by Russia. Washington says that a new Russian medium-range missile system breaches the treaty, although US officials also have an eye on China as the 1987 pact does not constrain the rising Asian power. Trump said the US was suspending its obligations under the INF treaty and starting a process to withdraw in six months’ time. See

All across the Midwest, preparations have been under way for a bone-deep, relentless chill called a polar vortex. Extreme cold, which is expected to break all records, has already been blamed for one death in Minnesota. Officer Kraig Kalka is spending his time driving between homeless shelters, arranging transportation for those stuck on the streets, and collecting blankets and hand warmers to dole out downtown for some of Madison's most vulnerable residents. ‘What we're going to see, I don't remember ever seeing something like that before.’ The cold has caused statewide declarations of emergency, school closures, postal service interruptions, and 1,000 airline flight cancellations. Diesel fuel can turn to gel, clogging vehicles' fuel filters and leading to breakdowns. If a bus falters on a rural route, the wait for help can be lengthy.

The partial federal government shutdown is in its fourth week. When a Baptist pastor in Memphis, Donald Johnson, realised that people in his congregation would be affected by what the president was doing, he stepped in to help them weather an uncertain period of missed paychecks. Having found eight people on the church's database who were federal workers, he collected an offering and had the church's financial board match what was collected. He was able to raise $8,000, enough for $1,000 each.