US

Here Are Three Things That Happened While Impeachment Proceeded

Dome of the U.S. Capitol building. (By Diliff - Uploaded by Diliff, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=517895)

A woman gained a Vatican leadership position and the president’s campaign flew a banner over Iowa on debate day, all while impeachment proceeded in Washington this week.

House managers walked articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump to the Senate Wednesday. A trial in the Senate convened Thursday.

Here are three news items that happened outside of D.C. while impeachment played out:

1. Pope appoints first woman to senior role in Vatican’s most powerful office

The head of the Catholic Church appointed a woman to a high-level diplomatic position at the Vatican. Pope Francis elevated Italian lawyer Francesca Di Giovanni, 66, to undersecretary of multilateral affairs in the Secretariat of State office Wednesday.

“It’s the first time a woman has had a managerial position in the Secretariat of State,” she told Vatican News. “The Holy Father has made an unprecedented decision, certainly, which, beyond myself personally, represents an indication of an attention towards women.”

Pope Francis appoints Dr. Francesca Di Giovanni as an under-secretary at the Secretariat of State, to head up the multilateral sector.https://t.co/r7t1bQ7sVj

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) January 15, 2020

2. Trump’s campaign did a flyover in Iowa

A Trump ad flew over a Democratic debate venue in Des Moines, Iowa, before presidential candidates kicked off remarks Tuesday.

“Trump fights for Iowa farmers,” the banner said.

On the day Democrats debate in Des Moines, @realDonaldTrump’s campaign has taken to the skies.

“Trump fights for Iowa farmers” says the aerial banner.

POTUS will be in Des Moines in person for a rally on January 30th leading up to the Iowa caucuses.https://t.co/e8NBc0JgXl

— Tim Murtaugh – Text TRUMP to 88022 (@TimMurtaugh) January 14, 2020

3. Relief for Australia

Rain drenched parts of Australia amid deadly wildfires.

Rain has fallen across most firegrounds over the last 24 hours which is great news! Our fingers are crossed that this continues over the coming days.

This morning 82 fires are still burning across New South Wales, with over 30 still yet to be contained.#NSWRFS #NSWFires pic.twitter.com/Zn6Id3TX85

— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) January 16, 2020

“Rain has fallen across most firegrounds over the last 24 hours which is great news! Our fingers are crossed that this continues over the coming days,” the New South Wales Rural Fire Service tweeted Thursday.

WATCH:

Relief is here for a number of firefighters working across NSW. Although this rain won’t extinguish all fires, it will certainly go a long way towards containment. This footage was captured down at the Good Good Fire burning near Cooma. #nswrfs #nswfires pic.twitter.com/fxV9u2hN6K

— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) January 16, 2020

Over 100 U.S. firefighters are assisting in Australia with the fires. Bushfires have killed at least 28 people since September 2019.