Republicans Fight Amongst Themselves While South African Students Unite

PNUT GALLERY

“Could it get any worse?” Pnut readers had some dire predictions for what America will be like in five years.

 IN A NUTSHELL: MUST READ

 Republicans Are Too Busy Fighting Amongst Themselves To Run For President

The train wreck otherwise known as Donald Trump’s Presidential bid continued apace on Monday as the Republican nominee spent the day fighting with the Republican Party instead of his rival, Hillary Clinton. With post debate polls indicating a Clinton victory and another WSJ poll giving Hillary an 11 point lead, some GOP leaders took the unprecedented step of abandoning their nominee. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said he would no longer support Donald Trump and told members of Congress to do what’s right for their districts, aka “you do you.”

Donald Trump went on the offensive, tweeting that Ryan should focus on his job rather than fighting with him and Newt Gingrich told the leadership that they are either with Trump or against him. RNC members put pressure on their leadership to remain behind Trump, something they eventually affirmed. Meanwhile, Warren Buffet released his tax returns, saying he didn’t use the loophole Trump used to carry forward his $900 million loss. Buffet pointed out that he was also under audit and that that shouldn’t stop Trump from releasing his taxes.

GOOD READ: An Analysis Of The Republican Civil War

The US Now ‘Involved’ In That War They’ve Always Been Involved In

There was presumably a lot of anxiety in the White House after a US Navy missile destroyer was fired at twice from a Houthi rebel-controlled area on coastal Yemen. The USS Mason was not hit and the missiles landed in the surrounding Red Sea. The incident would be the first known attack by Houthi rebels on an American target since the onset of Yemen’s civil war in 2014. Why direct their attention at the US now? Well, the attack comes a day after more than 100 mourners were killed and over 600 injured at a funeral ceremony in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa. The airstrike was Saudi-led but backed by the American government, which finally became aware of how bad it looks to support a funeral attack, and has since pledged to reassess American military aid to Saudi Arabia.

NUTSHELL: 7 Things To Know About The War In Yemen

 NUTS AND BOLTS: SHOULD READ

 Syrian Refugees Help Germany Defend Against ISIS

Chancellor Angela Merkel praised three Syrian refugees for guiding police to a man suspected of working with ISIS. The three refugees recognized Jaber al-Bakr, the 22-year-old suspect, from wanted posters and managed to detain him while they called a local police station. Pretty impressive for a trio considering the operation required 700 police officers to arrive at the scene. Investigators found roughly one kilogram of TATP, a highly volatile explosive, and believe al-Bakr was planning to target an airport. The is the fourth alleged ISIS bomb plot that German authorities claim to have foiled this year.

Jordan Adopts A ‘Look Don’t Touch’ Approach To Syria Aid

Jordan is adopting an “innovative” new approach to providing aid to 75,000 Syrian refugees trapped in a “no-man’s land” on the border between Jordan and Syria. Jordan will use a massive crane to drop supplies to the refugees, letting them provide aid without opening the border due to security risks. If the method sounds familiar it is because you’ve probably seen it at your local zoo. Before getting too angry at the Jordanians however, it is worth noting that Jordan, a country of 6.5 million people is currently hosting 650,000 Syrian refugees (~10% of its population). That’s 6500% higher than the 10,000 refugees the US (population 300 million) wants to host this year…

South African Students Feel The Bern, Demand Free Education

Students at South Africa’s Wits University protested on Monday as part of an ongoing movement for free tuition. It was supposed to be the reopening of classes at Wits after months of protests, but hundreds of student members of the “Fees Must Fall” movement stormed into lectures and disrupted classes. While the police response may sound like a trip to the arcade, their use of water cannons and stun grenades were just part of the violent clash between protestors and police. The school year is supposed to end in November, but Wits and many other universities have fallen behind and may not finish on time.

SNAPSHOT: Striking photos from the protests in South Africa

 KEEPING OUR EYE ONE

Thailand: According to a palace statement, King Bhumibol Adulyadej is in unstable condition. The 88-year-old is the world’s longest reigning monarch, but his condition has worsened since undergoing haemodialysis, a blood purification treatment.

Pope Francis: On Sunday, Il Papa named 17 new cardinals, including three moderate-to-progressive Americans and even a few prelates from non-Western countries, in an effort to give South American and African churches a greater voice in selecting his successor. Pope Francis seems to be ignoring the conservatives and candidates from large dioceses, which could change the future of the Church. He has already selected about 40% of the 120 cardinals who are currently eligible to choose the next pope.

 PNUTTY VIDEOS 

John Oliver called Billy Bush “Donald Trump’s hug pimp” and had some other choice words for the former Access Hollywood co-host.

Seth Meyers has a new nickname for Donald Trump.

The debate wasn’t all bad. Here are 3 good things that came out of Sunday night’s debate.

 LOOSE NUTS: FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT

 Despite State Of Emergency, Venezuela Makes Time For Award Shows

You would think that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro wouldn’t have much time on his hands. Sure, his government can’t afford to keep the electricity on and hundreds of thousands of protestors have marched in the streets of Caracas demanding his departure, but the man has his priorities. Maduro managed to carve out time to create the Hugo Chavez Peace Prize, because that is sure to increase morale despite the country’s food shortage. “I’ve decided to create the Hugo Chavez prize for peace and the sovereignty,” Maduro said while unveiling another new statue of Chavez.

Any guesses who won the peace prize? Did Maduro look to his neighbors and consider Nobel Prize winner Juan Manuel Santos in Colombia? LOL. Maduro awarded the peace prize to none other than Russian President Vladimir Putin. Sure, the UN is blaming Putin for aiding the Syrian government’s siege on civilians in Aleppo, but, as Maduro puts it, he’s just a “fighter for peace.”