Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) accused congressional Democrats of playing “race politics” when they largely rejected a police reform bill he drafted in the Senate on Wednesday.
Continue reading “Sen. Tim Scott Accuses Democrats Of Playing ‘Race Politics’ In Police Reform Bill”
Let’s start with one chart that tells one part of the story.
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice (R) ousted the state’s Bureau of Public Health Commissioner Cathy Slemp on Wednesday, hours after he publicly casted doubt on the accuracy of the state’s coronavirus data and outlined fresh outbreaks in about a dozen counties.
The sudden resignation of Slemp, first reported by AP, came after the governor argued during a news conference that West Virginia’s count for active cases of the virus may have been overstated.
The governor’s office said in a statement obtained by AP on Wednesday, that Justice had expressed a “lack of confidence” in Slemp to Cabinet Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources Bill Crouch, who then asked Slemp to resign,.
A spokeswoman for the health department said in another statement obtained by AP, that there were discrepancies in the data related to case counts at the Huttonsville Correctional Center in Randolph County.
Slemp, who has decades of experience in public health made regular appearances on the governor’s daily virus news conferences up until her forced resignation. She previously served as acting state health officer and was the founding director of West Virginia’s public health emergency preparedness and response programs, according to the state health department’s website. Slemp is also on the board of scientific counselors at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Justice, a coal-mining billionaire who switched to the Republican Party while in office, had often applauded Slemp in earlier briefings about the virus, often claiming that his plans to reopen the state swiftly was based on the guidance of health expert on his team.
Justice has held firm on reopening plans in spite of recent increases in positive tests for the virus. He is one of several Republican governors who have refused to mandate face coverings in public, in spite of scientific data which shows that when worn correctly, face coverings can help slow the spread of the virus.
The governor has made recommendations about wearing face masks without enforcing the practice. He also has suggested that West Virginia residents limit travel to tourist destinations like Myrtle Beach instead of issuing mandatory quarantine upon return from the beach which attracts visitors from all over and could be a hotspot for new cases to crop up.
State health data shows at least 92 COVID-19 deaths in West Virginia, in addition to just over 2,600 positive tests.
Carly Fiorina, who was one of President Donald Trump’s Republican primary rivals in 2016, said on Wednesday that she plans on voting for Trump’s Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden.
Continue reading “Ex-Trump GOP Rival Carly Fiorina Says She’s Voting For Biden”
WASHINGTON (AP) — 1.48 million laid-off workers seek US jobless aid, a 12th straight weekly drop, even as virus threat intensifies.
Three North Carolina police officers were fired in Wilmington after a local sergeant reviewed video footage that showed one of the officers saying a civil war was necessary to wipe Black people off the map and that he was ready.
The department took action on Tuesday, firing Cpl. Jessie Moore and officers Kevin Piner and Brian Gilmore for violating standards of conduct, criticism and use of inappropriate jokes and slurs, according to a report by the Associated Press.
The video audit was conducted as part of a monthly inspection, according to police department documents reviewed by AP.
Piner can be heard in the video complaining to Gilmore from his car, that the department’s sole focus was “kneeling down with the black folks.” About 30 minutes later, Piner accepted a call from Moore, who at one point in the conversation referred to a Black woman as a “negro.” He also used a racial slur to describe her. He later combined the same slur with a gay slur in describing a Black magistrate.
As the conversation unfolds, Piner can be heard telling Moore that he feels a civil war is coming and that he is ready, according to AP. Piner tells Gilmore he intended to buy a new assault rifle, and go out to slaughter Black people. “I can’t wait. God, I can’t wait,” Piner said. Moore responded by saying he would not do that.
While the officers protested that they were not racist, they contended that their comments reflected the stress felt by law enforcement amid demonstrations following the death of George Floyd who was killed by Minneapolis police last month.
The U.S. Secret Service has reportedly ordered dozens of its officers who were working at President Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma to self-quarantine for 14 days.
The Democratic National Convention Committee on Wednesday announced that it’s scaling back its convention scheduled in late August as COVID-19 cases spike in several cities. Continue reading “DNC Announces A Scaled Back, Mostly Virtual Convention In Milwaukee”
The written opening statement from the career DOJ attorney who led Roger Stone’s prosecution made clear why House Democrats wanted him as a star witness for a hearing on the politicization of the Justice Department.
Former national security adviser John Bolton isn’t done throwing President Trump under the bus, especially when it comes to his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Continue reading “Bolton: ‘Incomprehensible’ For Trump To Throw Rallies Amid COVID-19 Pandemic”
