International

Obama says democracy at stake in US midterms

Photo; The Straits Time

| By AFP |

Former US president Barack Obama said Friday that democracy is at stake in next month’s midterm elections in the United States, as he hit his first stop on the campaign trail.

The Democratic power player, who remains a hugely popular figure in his party, told a boisterous rally in Georgia that everyone had to get out and vote to prevent election conspiracy theorists getting their hands on the levers of power.

“It’s not enough to elect Democrats at the top of the ticket,” a fired-up Obama told the crowd in the suburbs of Atlanta.

“We need to elect good people up and down the ballot. Across the country, some of the folks who tried to undermine our democracy are running for offices that will oversee the next election.

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“And if they win, there’s no telling what might happen.”

Obama, who has kept a relatively low profile since leaving office in 2017, was guest of honor at the rally in Georgia, where two extremely close contests, fueled by tens of millions of dollars, are captivating America.

Democrat Raphael Warnock, the first Black US senator elected in the southern state with a long history of segregation, is seeking re-election against Herschel Walker, a former American football star backed by Donald Trump.

The contest could well decide which party gets control of the US Senate — and the ability to advance or frustrate President Joe Biden’s agenda.

There is also a fierce battle for the governor’s office, where Republican Brian Kemp is up against influential Democratic figure Stacey Abrams.

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As well as hammering the Republican Party on electoral integrity and the Trump-driven false claims that the 2020 presidential ballot was rigged, Obama also touched on abortion rights, which have been threatened since the Supreme Court overturned the long-standing Roe vs. Wade.

“Women everywhere should be able to control have a say in what happens with their own bodies,” he said.

“It shouldn’t be controversial to say that the most personal of healthcare choices should be made by a woman and her doctor. Not by a bunch of mostly male politicians.”

Americans have already begun voting in elections that will decide control of both houses of Congress, as well as who gets the governors’ mansions in dozens of states.

Hundreds of other positions at county and state level will also be decided in the November 8 polls.

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International

Fire at substation triggers major blackout in San Francisco

The U.S. city of San Francisco was plunged into darkness Saturday night after a power outage left about 130,000 customers without electricity, although the utility company said service was restored to most users within hours.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) said in a statement posted on X that nearly 90,000 homes had their power restored by 9:00 p.m. local time (05:00 GMT on Sunday), while the remaining 40,000 customers were expected to have service restored overnight.

Large areas of the city, a major technology hub with a population of around 800,000, were affected by the blackout, which disrupted public transportation and left traffic lights out of service during the busy weekend before Christmas, a crucial period for retail businesses.

“I know it’s been a difficult day,” San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a video posted on social media from the city’s emergency operations center. “There has been progress, but for those still without power, we want to make sure they are safe and checking in on their neighbors,” he added.

Lurie said police officers and firefighters advised residents to stay home as much as possible. He also noted that officers and traffic inspectors were deployed to manage intersections where traffic lights were not functioning.

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The mayor confirmed that the outage was caused by a fire at an electrical substation. Parts of the city were also covered in fog, further complicating conditions during the incident.

As a result of the blackout, many businesses were forced to close despite it being the weekend before Christmas. The sudden drop in shopper traffic ahead of the holiday is “devastating” for retailers, the manager of home goods store Black & Gold told the San Francisco Chronicle.

International

Cristina Kirchner recovering after appendicitis surgery in Buenos Aires

Former Argentine President Cristina Kirchner underwent surgery on Saturday after being diagnosed with appendicitis and is recovering “without complications,” according to a medical report released by the Otamendi Sanatorium.

Kirchner was admitted to the Buenos Aires medical center on Saturday after experiencing abdominal pain. Doctors performed a laparoscopic procedure that confirmed a diagnosis of “appendicitis with localized peritonitis,” the statement said, adding that her post-operative recovery has been progressing without complications.

The former president was transferred to the clinic with judicial authorization from her apartment in Buenos Aires, where she is serving a six-year sentence under house arrest for corruption.

International

Argentina detects first local cases of Influenza A (H3N2) Subclade K

Argentina’s National Administration of Laboratories and Health Institutes (ANLIS) “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán” has confirmed the detection of three cases of influenza A (H3N2) corresponding to subclade K in the country. These are the first locally recorded cases of this variant, which has become predominant in several countries in the Northern Hemisphere in recent months and is associated with higher transmissibility.

The cases were identified through the National Network of Laboratories and Sentinel Units and confirmed by the National Reference Laboratory of INEI-ANLIS using genomic sequencing techniques. According to health authorities, the cases involve two adolescents from the province of Santa Cruz, detected as part of the Ambulatory Monitoring Strategy for Acute Respiratory Infections, and a child who had been hospitalized in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.

In all three cases, patients experienced mild illness and recovered without complications. Officials did not specify whether any of the affected individuals had a recent travel history.

The jurisdictions involved have already launched the corresponding epidemiological investigations and are responsible for ensuring timely medical care for the detected cases. According to the latest integrated surveillance report, the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses in Argentina remains within expected levels for this time of year.