Videos of the Day: Trump Tells Farmers “Greatest Harvest Yet to Come”

Epoch Newsroom
1/14/2019
Updated:
1/14/2019

President Donald Trump defended his tough trade policies in front of thousands of farmers in New Orleans on Monday, a key constituency that has struggled because of the trade war with China, and promised fair trade deals that will put America’s rural heartland back on its feet.

Trump said on every front “we are fighting for our great farmers” and “fixing broken trade deals that are ”horrible,” pointing to trade talks with Canada, the European Union and China.

Speaking to the American Farm Bureau Federation, Trump said “to all of the farmers here today and across our country, the greatest harvest is yet to come. The future for America’s farmers is bigger, better, bolder and brighter than ever before. ”

The president authorized about $11 billion in aid payments last year, billing it as a promise kept to a key constituency.

The administration extended the deadline for aid applications last week because of the processing delays caused by the shutdown over funding for a border wall with Mexico.

Odds Of Opioid Deaths Surpass Car Accident Deaths

Some grim findings from the National Safety Council: For the first time on record, the lifetime odds of accidentally dying from an opioid overdose in the U.S. are now greater than those of dying in an automobile accident.

The NSC found the lifetime odds of dying from an accidental opioid overdose were 1 in 96. For motor vehicle accidents, the odds were 1 in 103.

The NSC also found the lifetime odds of death for opioid overdose were greater than the risk of death from falls, pedestrian incidents, drowning and fire.

An NSC spokeswoman says: “too many people still believe the opioid crisis is abstract and will not impact them. Many still do not see it as a major threat to them or their family. This data shows the gravity of the crisis.”

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Canadian Sentenced to Death in China for Drug Smuggling

A Chinese court sentenced a Canadian man to death for drug smuggling on Monday, a ruling sure to aggravate already sour relations between Beijing and Ottawa following the arrest of a senior Chinese executive in Canada.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the decision: “As a government, we actually strengthen the policy that requires the Canadian government to always intercede on behalf of Canadians facing the death penalty anywhere in the world.”

“We will continue to do that as we have in this case. But I will say it is of extreme concern to us as a government as it should be to all our international friends and allies that China has chosen to begin to arbitrarily apply death penalty in cases facing - as in this case - facing a Canadian.”

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Mermaid School in Finland

Want to swim like a fantasy sea creature? At “mermaiding” classes in Finland, adult women and men swim wearing a garment that combines a monofin flipper with fabric from the waist down to create a distinctive mermaid tail.

The ornamental pink mermaid tail and the pool’s ocean-like blue color make it hard to remember that outside it is a blistering cold winter day with the ground covered in snow.

Since August, Mottonen, a former kindergarten teacher, has taught more than 200 mermaids and mermen how to swim with a tail on.