WorldAug 11, 2020
Trump 'surprised' Biden picked Harris for VP
President Donald Trump says he's ``a little surprised'' that his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, has selected Kamala Harris as his running mate. Trump told reporters at a White House briefing that Harris ``was very disrespectful to Joe Biden'' during the Democratic primaries, and said ``it's hard to pick somebody that's that disrespectful.'' He's also noting that Harris ''did very poorly'' when she ran for the nomination, she dropped out in December, and says, ``That's like a poll.'' Trump is trying to paint Harris as too far left, saying she wants to raise taxes, slash funds for the militarily
WorldAug 11, 2020
Biden selects California Sen. Kamala Harris as running mate
Joe Biden named California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate on Tuesday, making history by selecting the first Black woman to compete on a major party’s presidential ticket and acknowledging the vital role Black voters will play in his bid to defeat President Donald Trump.In choosing Harris, Biden is embracing a former rival from the Democratic primary who is familiar with the unique rigour of a national campaign. Harris, a 55-year-old first-term senator, is also one of the party’s most prominent figures and quickly became a top contender for the No. 2 spot after her own White House c
CanadaAug 11, 2020
Safety won't be compromised for vaccine, Canada's top doctors say
The chief public health officer says Canada will not cut corners to get a vaccine for COVID-19 approved. Dr. Theresa Tam says she has full confidence in Health Canada's process to approve a vaccine. She says she is cautiously optimistic that will happen soon but says safety will not be compromised to get there. Her words come as Russia approved the world's first COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday. Her deputy, Dr. Howard Njoo, says the Russian product went from discovery to approval unusually fast. He says there is not really any information available about the safety or effectiveness of the Russian vac
BCAug 11, 2020
BC Ferries eligible for joint provincial-federal Safe Restart
The financially struggling BC Ferries will be eligible to receive funding through the joint federal and provincial Safe Restart Agreement.Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says the ferry service will be eligible for some of the $540-million financial package meant to spur recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.Wilkinson says the B.C. government will have to match the funds and it will determine how much BC Ferries and other transit providers will receive. Provincial Transportation Minister Claire Trevena says the province is working closely with BC Ferries, BC Transit and TransLink to under
BCAug 11, 2020
COVID-19 exposure at Vancouver shoe store
The health authority in Vancouver is warning those who shopped at the Foot Locker on Robson Street to monitor for symptoms of COVID-19. Vancouver Coastal Health says the potential exposure dates were Aug. 4 and Aug. 5 during operating hours. It says the possible exposures are believed to be low risk, but it asks those who may have visited the store during that time to monitor for symptoms and get tested if they are feeling ill. Advisories have also been issued for passengers on several planes arriving or leaving Vancouver after positive COVID-19 tests related to those flights. Affected flight
BCAug 11, 2020
Man dead after drowning in Squamish Lake :RCMP
Squamish RCMP say a man has died after slipping off an inflatable at a lake in Murrin Provincial Park. Mounties say they were called early yesterday evening about a swimmer missing on Browning Lake. When they arrived they say they were told the man, in his 20s, had slipped off the inflatable and couldn't be found. He was located a short time later, pulled from the water and rushed to hospital but police say he didn't survive.
CanadaAug 11, 2020
Trudeau shuts down speculation that Morneau about to be fired as finance minister
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he has full confidence in Finance Minister Bill Morneau and that any reports to the contrary are false.Trudeau's office has taken the unusual step of issuing a statement in support of Morneau in a bid to shut down speculation the finance minister is about to be fired.Opposition parties have been calling for Morneau's resignation over allegations that he had a conflict of interest in the WE Charity affair.News that Mark Carney, a former governor of both the Bank of Canada and Bank of England, is helping to advise Trudeau on the post-pandemic economic recovery
BCAug 11, 2020
Police seek witnesses, dashcam video, in Vancouver's tenth homicide of the year
Vancouver police are seeking witnesses to an assault last week on the city's Downtown Eastside, saying the details could be critical to what is now a homicide investigation. A statement from police says 64-year-old Jeff Strom was assaulted and seriously injured last Thursday and died two days later in hospital. The death is Vancouver's tenth homicide of the year.An arrest was made following the assault and charges against the man in custody have been upgraded to manslaughter.Sgt. Aaron Roed says investigators believe there may be more witnesses who haven't spoken with detectives and their inf
CanadaAug 11, 2020
Ministers, top public servant to be grilled by committee on WE affair
Two federal cabinet ministers and the country's top public servant will be grilled today about how a charity with close ties to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wound up administering a $912-million student grant program.The House of Commons ethics committee is scheduled to hear from Youth Minister Bardish Chagger, Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough and Ian Shugart, clerk of the Privy Council.The committee is ostensibly conducting a review of the existing safeguards in place to prevent conflicts of interest when the federal government is deciding how to spend taxpayers' dollars.But opposition M