As TX Spike Grows Dire, Gohmert Says He Won’t Wear A Mask Unless He Gets COVID

Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert has no plans to slow the spread of the coronavirus personally by wearing a mask, even as infection rates reach catastrophic levels in his home state.

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Barr Joins Trump Effort To Will Antifa Into Existence With New ‘Anti-Gov Extremists’ Task Force

Attorney General Bill Barr is hopping aboard President Trump’s effort to go after “antifa,” an amorphous “anti-facist” movement that has become a bugaboo for some on the far-right, including Trump.

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A Brave Trump Takes ‘Strong’ Action To Protect Inanimate Statues

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday to protect monuments, memorials and statues facing new scrutiny amid fresh debate over the nation’s racist beginnings.

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Once Again, Congress Is Unable To Act During National Trauma

WASHINGTON (AP) — For a moment, Congress had a chance to act on a policing overhaul, mobilized by a national trauma and overwhelming public support. Those efforts have stalled now and seem unlikely to be revived in an election year.

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Judge Orders That Roger Stone Surrender To Prison By July 14

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson pushed back Roger Stone’s surrender date until July 14.

Stone had a requested a delay until August 30. Jackson’s order Friday was accompanied by an opinion giving her reasons for only partially granting the delay request that is still under seal, but the judge indicated she would like to make it public at a later date.

The order noted that with the July 14 surrender date, Stone has already been able to delay his prison sentence by 75 days. She additionally ordered that Stone stay under home confinement until his surrender date.

“This will address the defendant’s stated medical concerns during the current increase of reported cases in Florida, and Broward County in particular, and it will respect and protect the health of other inmates who share defendant’s anxiety over the potential introduction and spread of the virus at this now-unaffected facility,” Jackson said.

Her order requested that Stone and the government tell her by Monday if they believe there’s a reason her underlying opinion cannot be released publicly or if there are certain portions they’d request be redacted.

Here is her full order:

ORDER granting in part and denying in part [381] Motion for Extension of Time as to ROGER J. STONE JR. (1). For the reasons set forth in the sealed memorandum opinion entered on this date, it is hereby ORDERED that defendant’s Unopposed Motion to Extend Surrender Date is GRANTED IN PART. It is ORDERED that the defendant’s date to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons will be extended for another fourteen days, until July 14, 2020. This affords the defendant seventy-five days beyond his original report date. It is FURTHER ORDERED that during that time, defendant’s conditions of release will be modified to include the condition of home confinement in accordance with the Attorney General’s memorandum and the strong medical recommendation submitted to the Court by the defense. Pretrial Services may monitor his compliance through any appropriate electronic or nonelectronic means selected in its discretion in accordance with its current practices, which may include such methods as SmartLINK or Voice Recognition. This will address the defendant’s stated medical concerns during the current increase of reported cases in Florida, and Broward County in particular, and it will respect and protect the health of other inmates who share defendant’s anxiety over the potential introduction and spread of the virus at this now-unaffected facility. The Court is of the view that the sealed memorandum opinion could be unsealed in its entirety because while it refers to sealed pleadings, it does not identify any medical condition or conditions or contain any private medical information. The parties must inform the Court by June 29, 2020 whether they agree that the memorandum opinion may be unsealed, and if not, what portions should be redacted and why. SO ORDERED. Signed by Judge Amy Berman Jackson on 6/26/20. (DMK)

ICYMI: Your TPM Weekend News Roundup

TPM Gets Results!

 

The U.S. Is Losing Its Fight Against The Coronavirus

  • The U.S. hit a grim milestone more than three months into the pandemic: A new daily record for new coronavirus cases.
  • CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield told reporters on Thursday that the number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is likely 10 times higher than reported.
  • Texas reversed course on its reopening as cases surge in the state. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday ordered bars to be closed and restaurant capacity to be significantly curtailed.
  • A day earlier, Abbott announced a pause on moving to further reopening phases.

 

The Messy Firing Of The U.S. Attorney In NYC

  • We learned more this week about Attorney General Bill Barr’s messy firing of U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman. The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that ahead of Barr’s shocking late-night announcement of Berman’s ouster, Berman clashed with DOJ leadership over a critical letter the department wanted to send to New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.
  • The White House made a surprising admission over Berman’s firing. Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters that Berman was pushed out because his successor, current SEC Chair Jay Clayton, wanted to live in New York City. Before joining the Trump administration, Clayton was a longtime corporate lawyer in NYC.
  • Clayton, for his part, would not vow to recuse himself from cases involving the President if he is confirmed.

 

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SCOTUS Rebuffs Dems’ Request To Expand TX Absentee Voting Ahead Of July Primary

The Supreme Court on Friday said it would not reverse an appeals court order that will keep vote-by-mail limited in Texas in the pandemic.

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