In Brief: Nation & World: 2-16-16

Deadly airstrikes hit hospitals, school in northern Syria

Deadly airstrikes hit hospitals, school in northern Syria

BEIRUT — Airstrikes blamed on Russia hit at least two hospitals and a school in northern Syria on Monday, killing and wounding dozens of civilians and further dimming hopes for a temporary truce, as government troops backed by Russian warplanes pressed a major offensive north of Aleppo.

The raids came days after Russia and other world powers agreed to bring about a pause in fighting that would allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the revival of peace talks.

The projected truce agreed on Friday in Munich was to begin in a week, but there was no sign that would happen.

On Monday, Syrian state TV reported that pro-government forces have entered the northern town of Tel Rifaat, where they were fighting “fierce battles” against insurgents. Tel Rifaat is a major stronghold of militants fighting to overthrow President Bashar Assad.

Capturing Tel Rifaat would bring government forces closer to their target of Azaz, near the Turkish border.

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Russia presses air blitz in Syria to dictate peace terms

MOSCOW — Moscow joined the fight in Syria to return to relevance in international diplomacy. It has succeeded by anyone’s measure — and Russia hopes to use its air power to dictate the terms of a cease-fire and prospective peace talks.

Russian warplanes have helped the Syrian army make broad advances and close in on the country’s biggest city, Aleppo. Meanwhile, the Western-backed opposition is fractured and weakened.

So as talk turns to a cease-fire, Syrian President Bashar Assad, Moscow’s sole ally in the region, is in a stronger position than he has been in years.

What’s more, Russia has cast itself as an indispensable global player that holds the key to the settlement of a nearly five-year conflict that has flooded Europe with refugees. And the United States can’t hope to push forward its agenda of ending the war without overtures to Russia.

Not that there aren’t challenges ahead for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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Results in key cases could change with Scalia’s death

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court abhors even numbers. But that’s just what the court will have to deal with, perhaps for many months, after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. Eight justices will decide what to do, creating the prospect of 4-4 ties.

Here are some questions and answers about the prospects of filling the vacancy left by the death of its conservative icon and longest-serving justice and its effect on the court:

Q: What happens when Obama makes a nomination?

Any nominee would first face the Senate Judiciary Committee, which would hold confirmation hearings and then vote on whether to send the selection to the full Senate. An Obama nominee would have a hard time even getting a favorable vote to get out of the committee, where Republicans hold an 11-9 edge. Some of the fiercest foes of the president serve on the panel, including GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz of Texas, Jeff Sessions of Alabama, David Vitter of Louisiana and Mike Lee of Utah. The committee chairman, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said within hours of Scalia’s death on Saturday that Obama’s successor should select the next justice.

Q: What if the nominee did emerge from the committee?

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Taylor Swift wins 2 early Grammys Awards in pre-telecast

LOS ANGELES — Taylor Swift won two Grammy Awards — for best pop vocal album and best video for “Bad Blood” at the pre-telecast Monday.

Swift wasn’t in the audience to pick up the awards.

When she won for best pop vocal album, Jack Antonoff, the guitarist from the band fun. and a producer who worked on Swift’s album “1989,” went onstage to accept the honor and called Swift on the phone.

“Taylor wants to be here so badly …One sec, she’s gonna freak,” he said as his phone rang.

Once she answered and Antonoff delivered the good news, Swift yelled, “What?! We won! We won pop vocal album!”

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Bye, dangerous cold; Hello, sleet and snow along eastern US

NEW YORK — Residents along the eastern U.S., freed from bitter, dangerous cold temperatures on Valentine’s Day, couldn’t even pause to take a slightly warmer breath before the next winter weather hurdle showed up. Snow, sleet and rain fell across the mid-Atlantic states while tornados rolled through the South.

With federal offices and many businesses closed for Washington’s Birthday, though, many people were able to hunker down at home.

Officials in Mississippi were investigating reports of at least two possible tornadoes. Windows were blown out in cars, and ceilings were damaged at a K-12 school.

The tornadoes were part of a large winter storm system accompanied by rain, strong winds, snow and sleet. Snow totals ranging from 1 to 4 inches were predicted from Washington to northern New Jersey. National Weather Service meteorologist Bruce Sullivan said there could be significant snowfall — 4 to 8 inches — in eastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania and western New York. Some mountainous areas could get even more snow.

The weather could have less of an impact because schools and many workplaces were closed for the federal holiday, and traffic was lighter than usual.

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Texas judge disclosed details about Scalia’s health

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Texas county judge who decided no autopsy was needed following the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has disclosed new details about Scalia’s health in the days before he died.

Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevara told The Associated Press on Monday she spoke with Scalia’s doctor on the day he was found dead in his room at a remote Texas ranch. She said the doctor told her that Scalia had a history of heart trouble, high blood pressure and was considered too weak to undergo surgery for a recent shoulder injury.

Those details are seemingly at odds with recollections of friends who described Scalia has his usual, happy self during the days leading up to his death. News that the 79-year-old justice was in declining health may come as a surprise to the public, but unlike presidents, the high court’s members don’t provide regular health disclosures.

Guevara told the AP that she consulted with Scalia’s personal physician and local and federal investigators, who said there were no signs of foul play, before concluding that he had died of natural causes. She said she spoke with a “Dr. Monahan” at some point after 8 p.m. on Saturday to discuss Scalia’s health history.

Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan is the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. A Supreme Court spokeswoman could not immediately confirm that Monahan had examined Scalia, and Monahan did not return a phone message left for him at his Capitol office Monday.

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Pope denounces exploitation of Mexico’s indigenous people

SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS, Mexico — Pope Francis denounced the centuries-old exploitation and exclusion of Mexico’s indigenous people Monday and prayed before the tomb of their controversial priestly protector during a visit heavy in symbolism to the rolling hills of southern Chiapas state.

Francis celebrated a Mass for Mexican Indians that featured readings in the native languages of Chiapas, a traditional dance of prayer and the participation of married indigenous deacons, whose ministry had been suspended by the Vatican but was revived under Francis.

The visit, at the halfway mark of Francis’ five-day trip to Mexico, was of great personal importance for the pope. He insisted on visiting San Cristobal de las Casas, where the late Bishop Samuel Ruiz ministered to Mexico’s poorest and supported blending their indigenous culture into Catholic rituals, much to the dismay of Mexico’s church hierarchy and occasionally the Vatican.

In his homily, Francis denounced how, “in a systematic and organized way,” indigenous people have been misunderstood and excluded from society over the course of history.

“Some have considered your values, culture and traditions to be inferior,” he said. “Others, intoxicated by power, money and market trends, have stolen your lands or contaminated them.”

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While ‘affluenza’ teen went free, similar case led to prison

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — One 16-year-old drove drunk, ran a red light and crashed into a pregnant woman’s car, killing her and her unborn child. Another drunken teenager rammed a pickup truck into a crowd of people assisting a stranded driver, killing four.

Jaime Arellano went to prison. Ethan Couch went free.

The stories of the two Texas teens illustrate how prosecutors’ decisions in similar cases can lead to wildly different outcomes. The poor immigrant from Mexico has been behind bars for almost a decade. The white kid with rich parents got 10 years of probation.

Couch lost control as he drove his family’s pickup truck after he and his friends had played beer pong and consumed beer that some of them had stolen from Wal-Mart. The vehicle veered into a crowd of people helping the driver on the side of the road. Authorities later estimated that he was going 70 mph in a 40 mph zone.

The crash fatally injured the stranded motorist, a youth minister who stopped to help her and a mother and daughter who came out of their nearby home.

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George W. Bush jumps back into presidential politics

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Former President George W. Bush was making his first direct foray into the 2016 campaign Monday in South Carolina, hoping a state that put him on the path to the White House 16 years ago can do the same for his brother, Jeb.

The younger Bush’s decision to put the former president front-and-center underscores his tenuous position in a race he was once expected to dominate. Bush is seeking to trade on his family’s popularity in South Carolina, even if that means reviving his brother’s complicated legacy and reminding voters eager to break with the political establishment that he’d be the third Bush to serve as president.

“The Bush family is beloved,” South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said Monday. Graham joined the former president and wife, Laura, at an American Legion Post in Columbia, where they greeted the crowd before traveling to Charleston for an evening rally.

Presidents George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush each won two Republican primaries in South Carolina, and their family retains deep social and political ties here. But in the turbulent 2016 race, the state appears to be Donald Trump’s to lose.

On Monday, the billionaire seemed intent on overshadowing Bush’s return to presidential politics. Trump added events in Charleston, including a news conference where he repeatedly noted that “the Word Trade Center came down during the reign of George Bush.”

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Obama to welcome Southeast Asian leaders to US for talks

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — President Barack Obama and the leaders of Southeast Asian nations are gathering in Southern California for an unprecedented two days of talks on economic and security issues and on forging deeper ties amid China’s assertive presence in the region.

Obama on Monday will welcome each leader from the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, for a summit at Sunnylands, a storied California desert estate where Obama held his first meeting with China’s current president.

This is the first time the leaders of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia have assembled in the U.S. at Obama’s invitation and not on the margins of another gathering. China is not a member of ASEAN.

The summit was conceived as part of Obama’s mission to raise the U.S. profile and help set the agenda in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific, where China’s territorial claims over disputed waters have raised international concerns and led to friction with ASEAN countries.

Member countries make up the world’s seventh-largest economy and represent the fourth-largest trading partner with the U.S.