International

Harris distances himself from Biden for having called Trump’s followers “trash”

The Democratic candidate for the White House, Vice President Kamala Harris, dismated herself this Wednesday from the controversy unleashed by US President Joe Biden by calling the supporters of the Republican candidate, former President Donald Trump, “trash” for the racist joke about Puerto Ricans.

“I totally disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for,” the vice president told the press from the Andrews air base, on the outskirts of the capital.

Although Harris pointed out that Biden has already “clarified his comments,” the Democratic candidate repudiated any speech that divides society and reiterated the message of national unity she expressed on Tuesday night in a massive electoral rally in front of the White House.

“In the work I do I try to represent all people, whether they support me or not, and as president of the United States I will be the president of all Americans, whether they voted for me or not,” she said.

Controversy after controversy

Biden made the controversial comment on Tuesday night during an interview with CNN in which he defended Puerto Rico after a comedian described it as a “floating island of garbage” during Trump’s big electoral rally at Madison Square Garden in New York.

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“Well, let me tell you something. (…) The only garbage I see floating around are his followers. His demonization is excessive and anti-American. It is totally contrary to everything we have done,” said the president, who in July resigned from running for re-election and passed the baton to Harris.

Biden’s words provoked rejection by both Trump and Republican Party politicians.

“He really doesn’t know what he said. It’s something terrible, terrible, but he really doesn’t know,” Trump replied at a rally in Allentown, a Latin-majority town in Pennsylvania.

Biden assures that he was not referring to Trump’s followers

The president rectified his comments on social networks, claiming that he was referring to the “hateful rhetoric” of comedian Tony Hinchcliffe in New York.

“I said it was garbage, the only word I find to describe it,” the president wrote. “The comments at that rally do not really reflect what we are as a country,” he added.

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Likewise, the White House modified the transcript of the interview to point out that the president actually called Hinchcliffe’s words “trash” and not Trump’s followers.

International

Marco Rubio warns Venezuela against military action against Guyana

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Venezuela on Thursday that a military attack on Guyana would be “a big mistake” and “a very bad day for them,” expressing his support for Georgetown in its territorial dispute with Caracas.

“It would be a very bad day for the Venezuelan regime if they attacked Guyana or ExxonMobil. It would be a very bad day, a very bad week for them, and it would not end well,” Rubio emphasized during a press conference in Georgetown alongside Guyanese President Irfaan Ali.

International

Ecuador oil spill worsens as containment dam collapses

The collapse of a containment dam holding back part of the 25,000+ barrels of oil spilled from a pipeline rupture nearly two weeks ago has worsened the environmental crisis in northwestern Ecuador, contaminating rivers and Pacific beaches.

The Ecuadorian government attributed the March 13 pipeline rupture—which led to the spill of 25,116 barrels of crude—to an act of sabotage. The spill affected three rivers and disrupted water supplies for several communities, according to authorities.

On Tuesday, due to heavy rains that have been falling since January, a containment dam on the Caple River collapsed. The Caple connects to other waterways in Esmeraldas Province, a coastal region bordering Colombia, state-owned Petroecuador said in a statement on Wednesday.

Seven containment barriers were installed in the Viche River, where crews worked to remove oil-contaminated debris. Additional absorbent materials were deployed in Caple, Viche, and Esmeraldas Rivers, which flow into the Pacific Ocean.

Authorities are also working to protect a wildlife refuge home to more than 250 species, including otters, howler monkeys, armadillos, frigatebirds, and pelicans.

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“This has been a total disaster,” said Ronald Ruiz, a leader in the Cube community, where the dam was located. He explained that the harsh winter rains caused river levels to rise, bringing debris that broke the containment barriersthat were holding the accumulated oil for extraction.

International

Federal court blocks Trump’s use of Enemy Alien Act for deportations

A federal appeals court upheld the block on former President Donald Trump’s use of the Enemy Alien Act on Wednesday, preventing him from using the law to expedite deportations of alleged members of the transnational criminal group Tren de Aragua.

With a 2-1 ruling, a panel from the Washington, D.C. Court of Appeals affirmed previous decisions by two lower court judges, maintaining the legal standoff between the White House and the judiciary.

On March 14, Trump invoked the 1798 Enemy Alien Act, a law traditionally used during wartime, to deport hundreds of Venezuelans whom he accused of belonging to Tren de Aragua, a criminal organization that originated in Venezuelan prisons.

The centuries-old law grants the president the power to detain, restrict, and expel foreign nationals from a country engaged in a “declared war” or an “invasion or predatory incursion” against the United States, following a public proclamation.