Editor Brian Harrod Provides Comprehensive up-to-date news coverage, with aggregated news from sources all over the world from the Roundup Newswires Network
Alessandra Rose Biaggi is a member of the Democratic Party, she is Senator for the 34th District of the New York State Senate, which includes portions of Bronx and Westchester Counties. She is the granddaughter of former Congressman Mario Biaggi.
BRONX, NY – On April 30th, 2021 Westchester District Attorney Mimi Rocah called on the The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the Mount Vernon Police Department (MVPD) for “pervasive and persistent alleged civil rights violations” including continuous excessive use of force, unlawful strip searches, and other misconduct.
New York State Senator Alessandra Biaggi (D-Bronx/Westchester) issued the following statement:
“I commend Westchester District Attorney Mimi Rocah for calling on the United States Department of Justice to fully investigate the Mount Vernon Police Department for potential civil rights violations. The allegations of misconduct within the MVPD are deeply disturbing and threaten the safety of every Mount Vernon resident. It is imperative for the DOJ to thoroughly investigate the MVPD’s policies and training to determine systemic flaws that encourage this pervasive misconduct. I applaud District Attorney Rocah’s commitment to bringing full transparency and accountability to our criminal justice system in order to build public trust between our communities and the police.”
View the latest news and breaking news today for U.S., world, weather, entertainment, politics and health at Roundup Newswires
VICE: Police Unions Want You to Think Derek Chauvin Is the Only Bad Cop
FACTS: Many of the police unions calling Chauvin’s conviction justice represent police departments that regularly kill civilians and aggressively block even minimal reforms.
NEW YORK: Despite regularly providing cover for police officers who commit murders, police unions appeared eager to condemn former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin after his conviction for George Floyd’s murder.
“As we have said from the beginning, what Derek Chauvin did that day was not policing. It was murder,” the Police Benevolent Association (PBA), the NYPD’s rank-and-file police union, said on Wednesday.
“The jury has spoken and he will face consequences for his actions. Now it’s time for an honest discussion of policing and public safety that begins with the real challenges we face on our streets”….
GOD BLESS “MERICA” >>> REDDIT: Don’t Steal the Liquid from my Knees
A doctor on Reddit describes what happened when he diagnosed a Covid denier with Covid:
“I’m an attending physician at our Triage Unit. On a Friday, an older gentleman (60 + years) came in with his entire family (wife, sister, 2 nephews and 3 children), none of them with a face-mask. All had mild COVID symptoms except him, he was saturating 80% with evident shortness of breath. We insisted in doing PCR and a chest CAT-scan looking for COVID but he and his wife refused saying that COVID wasn’t real and it was just a bacterial infection. The more we talked with him the more agitated he got to the point that his face was red. We suggested hospitalizing him to stabilize him and start treatment, but they accused us of exaggerating his symptoms and that we only wanted to hospitalize him so we could steal the liquid in his knees (a stupid rumor that was going around when this whole thing started).”
STRANGE NEWS: The new york posts reports that this guy has 34 girlfriends while you sit at home alone staring at social media in your pajama pants, unwashed t-shirt, two dogs and three cats…
CNN: Pledging to go Green Boosts Corporate Brands, Stocks
Net zero pledges have become all the rage in Corporate America. Big banks, steel companies and even (mostly European) oil companies are pledging to wipe out their carbon emissions over time.
FLORIDA: Turtle Crashes Through Windshield, Hits Passenger in Head
A 71-year-old woman riding with her daughter on Florida’s Interstate 95 suffered a gashed forehead when a turtle smashed through the windshield of their car. The turtlejust had a few scratches on its shell and was released back into the woods
CNN: Russia Orders Troops Back to Base After Massive Buildup
Russia appeared to be pulling back from a confrontation with the West on Friday as state media reported that troops were returning to their bases after taking part in exercises near the border with Ukraine and in Crimea.
A buildup of Russian troops along the border in recent weeks had reignited tensions in eastern Ukraine, where government forces have battled Russian-backed separatists demanding independence from Kiev since 2014.
But on Thursday Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu suddenly declared that the troops had completed their drills in the south of the country near Ukraine and Crimea, and would return to their permanent bases by May 1. “I believe that the objectives of the snap drill have been fully achieved.
The troops have demonstrated the ability to provide a reliable defense of the country,” Shoigu said at a meeting in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Kiev in 2014.
“At present, military units and formations are marching to railway stations, airfields, loading onto landing ships, railway platforms and military transport aircraft,” Tass reported on Friday, citing the Ministry of Defense….
ALJAZEERA: CEO of Turkish crypto exchange flees country as platform shuts down, blocking almost four hundred thousand users from accessing their so-called secure assets
CRYPTO-SCAM: Turkish authorities opened a probe following allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were stolen….
MARSHALL PROJECT: Coronavirus Infection and Fatality Rates in Prisons
It’s worth pointing out that the majority of prison inmates are not 65 or older and that prisons can lock down the entire population if they feel a need.
YONKERS MAN: A Bumble user helped the FBI identify an accused Capitol rioter after he slid into her DMs to brag about the insurrection
BUSTED BY A DATING APP: Robert Chapman of Yonkers, New York, was charged with two counts of trespassing, and two counts of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol Grounds, according to a federal affidavit.
YAHOO NEWS >>> BUSINESS INSIDER:The FBI first became aware of Chapman on January 13, after a Bumble user tipped it off with a screenshot of an exchange she had with him in which he identified himself as having been a part of the riot.
In it, he says, “I did storm the Capitol” and “I made it all the way to Statuary Hall,” a room used by Congress to host dignitaries.
Chapman went on to say that he’d spoken with reporters at both The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal…
FLORIDA MAN: Sean Hannity purchased a $5 million home right next to Mar-A-Lago
SALON: Hannity’s purchase of the three-bedroom, five-bedroom beachfront condo in swanky Palm Beach, which is colloquially known as “Billionaire’s Row,”
Hannity joins a number of conservative firebrands who have decamped south to Florida — including fellow Fox News host Tucker Carlson, Newsmax owner Chris Ruddy, former Republican presidential candidate turned “Borat 2” star Rudy Giuliani, and commentators Ann Coulter and Ben Shapiro.
The late conservative radio star Rush Limbaugh and the late Fox News CEO Roger Ailes were also residents of Palm Beach prior to their deaths.
THE GUARDIAN: Syrian Missile Landed Near Israeli Dimona Nuclear Reactor
A CLOSE CALL: Israel has acknowledged that its air defences failed to intercept a missile fired from Syria overnight that traversed 125 miles of its highly protected airspace and landed near its secretive Dimona nuclear reactor.
WEIRD BUT TRUE: 30 to 40 Year Old Millennials Are Moving Back Into Their Childhood Bedrooms
NEW YORK POST: By July 2020, 52 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds, or 26.6 million adults, were residing with a parent, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis — the highest number since the Great Depression…..
UPI: Biden’s Budget Office Gives Formal Support for DC Statehood
President Joe Biden gave a full endorsement Tuesday of Washington, D.C.’s campaign for statehood by supporting a House proposal to make it the 51st state….
YOU TOO CAN LIVE LIKE A DICK: Richard Nixon’s nine-bedroom “Western White House” where he retreated after the Watergate scandal to write his memoirs goes on the market. For only $65M
DAILY MAIL: The former California home of Richard Nixon where the president retired to write his memoirs after the Watergate scandal is back on the market after failing to sell for six years.
The property – dubbed the ‘Western White House’ after Nixon spent time there during his term in office – is back on sale with a hiked up asking price of $65 million as the state’s luxury housing market experiences a surge.
The 5.45 acre Spanish-style compound was home to the 37th president of the United States and his wife Pat for nearly two decades….
MSNBC: A GOP Senator Likely Regrets Asking Stacy Abrams About GA Law
The Democratic-led Senate Judiciary Committee held an important hearing this week: “Jim Crow 2021: The Latest Assault on the Right to Vote.” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) apparently thought he could trip up former state Sen. Stacey Abrams (D-Ga.) whom Republicans seemed especially eager to tangle with, by asking a question about her own state’s new voter-suppression law. “Tell me specifically,” the far-right Louisianan said, “just give me a list of the provisions that you object to”. So, she did….
FRANCE 24: In Brazil, Young People Have Become the CV’s Prime Targets
Brazil’s intensive care doctors have seen more and more young patients arriving at their wards in recent months, with one in two under 40 years old. The new, more contagious Brazilian variant, known as P1, seems to be affecting younger people with no pre-existing comorbidities.
More than half the patients in Brazilian intensive care units in March were under 40 years old, according to the Brazilian Association of Resuscitation Physicians. The more contagious Covid-19 variant known as P1 is claiming younger victims every day, many with no prior medical issues.
Between January and March the death toll among those between 30 and 39 jumped 353 percent, according to the latest report from the Covid-19 Observatory. At the headquarters of the Fiocruz medical institute, chief pulmonologist Margareth Dalcolmo, who is coordinating the study on the new variant, says not a day goes by without seeing more alarming numbers. And one key question: Why does the Brazilian variant claim more victims among young people?
Dalcolmo and her colleagues already have some clues. “The profile of seriously ill patients has changed. First, because of the evolution of the pandemic and the lack of lockdown measures, we see more and more young people in the streets. They are the ones who have to go to work and who cannot stand the absence of a social life any longer. So they meet in bars,” she says….
BLOOMBERG: Amy Coney Barrett’s Big Book Deal Called Bad Optics Court
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s reported $2 million book deal is drawing criticism from legal experts who say its size and timing create bad optics for a court that is already in the political crosshairs.
MSNBC: After Chauvin’s Conviction, Right Wingers Criticize Jurors
After a year of national and international scrutiny into George Floyd’s death, many on the right have settled on a new culprit worthy of their scorn: members of a jury in Hennepin County, Minn., whom some conservatives perceive as cowards. It’s an argument predicated on the idea that the evidence was on Chauvin’s side — reality notwithstanding — and those rascally jurors put the facts aside in order to prevent social unrest.
CNN: Pentagon Adviser Fights Commanders who Deny Extremism Exists
Pentagon extremism adviser lays out challenge facing military after two commanders deny a problem exists. One day after two four-star military commanders told Congress they did not have problems with extremists in their ranks, the top adviser on the issue to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin took a different view and stated plainly that he believes the opposite.
CNN: Woman Shackled by Police While in Labor Settles with NYC – The young mother of two forced to give birth handcuffed to a hospital bed
An African American woman who says her wrists and ankles were shackled by police for hours while she was in active labor at a hospital has settled with the city of New York and its police department.
The woman was arrested two days past her due date in late 2018 on a misdemeanor assault charge that was later dismissed and sealed, her attorneys told CNN. She went into labor the day of her arrest, according to a lawsuit.
She filed the suit against the city of New York and several New York Police Department officers anonymously in October, seeking damages for emotional distress, a violation of her civil rights, punitive damages, attorney fees and costs. In court Wednesday, a US district magistrate judge for the Eastern District of New York approved a $750,000 settlement for the woman and her baby….
THE INTERCEPT: CVS Health has been quietly bankrolling the anti-Medicare For All campaign
EVIL CORPORATION: The pharmacy and health insurance giant gave $5 million to Dark Money Group
In a year marked by a coronavirus pandemic that has killed millions, CVS Health financed a wave of political advocacy against measures to control health care costs and increase access.
The health care giant, which owns Aetna health insurance and operates thousands of pharmacies and walk-in clinics around the country, provided $5 million to the Partnership for America’s Health Care Future, or PAHCF.
The seven-figure donation from CVS is the largest known contribution to….
REUTERS: Biden to Recognize Massacre of Armenians as Genocide
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to formally recognize the massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during World War One as an act of genocide, sources said on Wednesday, a move likely to infuriate Turkey and further strain already frayed ties between the two NATO allies.
TIME FOR A FACEPALM: Suddenly the NY Post is concerned that the White House Press Secretary didn’t answer a question to a reporter’s complete satisfaction
AP NEWS: Australia Ends China Deals on National Interest Grounds
Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton said his government would not allow the Chinese Communist Party to use such deals with Australian states as “propaganda.” “Our problem is with the values or the virtues or the outlook of the Chinese Communist Party,” Dutton told Sydney Radio 2GB
POLITICO: Capitol Police Told to Pursue Only ‘Anti-Trump’ Protesters Jan. 6
A Capitol Police official radioed units outside of the building on the morning of Jan. 6 and told them only to scout for anti-Trump troublemakers — not pro-Trump protesters, according to Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who described what she said were details of an internal investigation conducted in the aftermath of the mob attack.
Lofgren (D-Calif.) revealed the finding while she questioned Capitol Police Inspector General Michael Bolton, who appeared before the House Administration Committee Wednesday to testify about security failures that precipitated the Jan. 6 attack. Lofgren, who chairs the panel, described the findings as she asked him whether he had read the internal investigation reports.
Lofgren said the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility was reviewing information that a radio transmission to “all outside units’ attention” that they should not be “looking for any pro-Trump in the crowd,” according to Lofgren. She added they were “only looking for any anti-Trump.”
Bolton said he had yet to review the reports of internal investigations into the conduct of about three dozen officers on Jan. 6, many of which are ongoing….
LEGAL NEWS: The Supreme Court In 9-0 Decision Reverses A $1.3B Penalty Against Scammer And payday Lender CEO Scott Tucker, Making Him The Richest Man In the US Prison System
REUTERS: Supreme Court Curbs FTC’s Power To Recoup Ill-Gotten Gains
YAHOO NEWS: Watchdog Nixed Probe Into Conduct of Trump’s Secret Service
Despite recommendations from career staff, a federal watchdog for the Secret Service last year declined to take up probes into the agency’s handling of Black Lives Matter protests in D.C., and on the spread of COVID-19 among Secret Service members, according to the Project On Government Oversight.
CUE THE CONSPIRACY THEORISTS: Now that many of us have been vaccinated, Customers will pay with a palm scan
MARK OF THE BEAST: Whole Foods will soon let customers pay for groceries with palm scan
NEW YORK POST: Whole Foods is getting into palm reading, and yes — the idea is to separate you from your money as quickly as possible.
The upscale grocer said Wednesday that its parent company Amazon’s palm-scanning technology for accepting customer payments in checkout lines will soon debut at a supermarket in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood….
ENVIRONMENTALLY AWKWARD: The CEO of the National Audubon Society resigning in disgrace after accusations he was strutting about like a peacock
POLITICO: Audubon CEO resigns after complaints of toxic workplace
David Yarnold, the CEO of environmental group the National Audubon Society, is stepping down under a “mutual agreement,” coming on the heels of an internal audit into its workplace culture that resulted….
THE HILL: For the People Act is the Bold Legislative Action we Need to Fight Election Disinformation
If we are going to have a real democracy that is truly of, by, and for the people, then we need solutions and accountability to combat the growing cancer of disinformation. We can start with a bill moving through Congress right now: the For the People Act…..
CNN: Biden White House Removes Trump-Era Scientist from Overseeing Climate Report
White House officials have transferred Trump-appointed scientist Betsy Weatherhead from her position overseeing the US government’s report on the effects of climate change, a senior administration official told….
AXIOS: Former Vice President Walter Mondale Dies at 93
Walter Mondale, who transformed the role of U.S. vice president while serving under Jimmy Carter and was the Democratic nominee for president in 1984, died Monday at 93, according to a family spokesperson….
CNN: Officer Sicknick Suffered Strokes and Died of Natural Causes
US Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick suffered strokes and died of natural causes one day after responding to the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol, Washington DC’s chief medical examiner has determined….
POLITICAL WIRE: Biden May Cut Nicotine In Cigarettes
“The Biden administration is considering requiring tobacco companies to reduce the nicotine levels in all cigarettes sold in the U.S. to levels at which they are no longer addictive,” the Wall Street Journal reports….
CNN: Megadrought: Colorado River Reservoir Could Sink to a Record Low
Wracked by drought, climate change and overuse, a key reservoir on the Colorado River could sink to historically low levels later this year, new US government projections show, potentially triggering significant water cutbacks in some states as early as next year.
USA TODAY: Supreme Court Passes on Second Amendment Cases
The Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up three challenges to a federal ban on gun ownership for people convicted of nonviolent crimes, surprising Second Amendment advocates who hoped the court would chip away at the restriction….
GOTHAMIST: The NYPD Deploys ‘Creepy’ New Robot Dog
The NYPD’s robot dog is once again stirring privacy concerns and cyberpunk prophesies of some New Yorkers, after the four-legged machine was spotted inside of a Manhattan public housing complex on Monday….
MSN NEWS: Florida Governor Signs Anti-Riot Bill Into Law
“This is not an anti riot proposal, it is actually an anti-protest proposal. This is just a republican effort designed to stop the rising tide of protest prompted by the police murder of George Floyd. The Governor wants to criminalize peaceful protestors who are merely exercising their constitutional rights. This is dog whistle, red meat legislation prepared for consumption by the Governor’s radical and far right political base,” Ben Frazier of the Northside Coalition said in a statement last week.
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY: ‘Greater Immediate Domestic Threat’ from Wide Range of Lone Actors Than ISIS
ISIS and al-Qaeda “remain the greatest Sunni terrorist threats to U.S. interests overseas” and still want to conduct attacks on our home soil, but “U.S.-based lone actors and small cells with a broad range of ideological motivations pose a greater immediate domestic threat,” according to the intelligence community’s 2021 Annual Threat Assessment….
DAILY BEAST: Top Oath Keeper: Cops Train Oath Keepers for Civil War
The far-right paramilitary the Oath Keepers is home to active-duty law-enforcement officers who are training up other members to prepare for civil war, according to one of the group’s top figures…
CHICAGO TRIBUNE: Trump Appointees Blocked EPA from Investigating Ethylene Oxide Polluters
EPA REPORT: The EPA delayed communicating health risks to community residents in Illinois, which is part of EPA Region 5, who lived near ethylene oxide-emitting facilities.
Specifically Office of Air and Radiation leadership delayed informing the Willowbrook, Illinois, community about the results of the EPA’s May 2018 short-term monitoring around the Sterigenics facility and did not conduct public meetings with residents either near the Medline facility in Waukegan, Illinois, or the Vantage facility in Gurnee, Illinois.
Outside of the residual risk review process, the Office of Inspector General did not identify any statutory, regulatory, or specific policy requirements or protocols to disclose public health information about ethylene oxide emissions.
The EPA’s mission statement and risk communication guidance state, however, that communities should have accurate information to participate in decision-making processes….
Two men were killed in Texas after a Tesla they were in crashed on Saturday and caught fire with neither of the men behind the wheel, the authorities said…
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NYT: How Democracy Faces a Rising Threat Splitting Republicans and Democrats
NATE COHN: The country is increasingly split into camps that don’t just disagree on policy and politics — they see the other as alien, immoral, a threat. Such political sectarianism is now on the march…
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ARS TECNICA: At 38.5% Vaccinated, US May Be Running Low on People Eager for a Shot
The latest survey results and vaccination distribution data are pointing in the opposite direction. Together, they suggest that the US may be close to running out of people eager for their shot and that the robust pace of vaccination in the country may soon wane…
Two DMX fans were shot blocks apart hours after a vigil in a Mount Vernon park.
MOUNT VERNON, NY – A memorial for DMX, who died recently in a White Plains Hospital, was held at the 4th Street playground in Mt. Vernon and was supposed to be peaceful.
However, gunfire in two separate places rang out and disrupted the crowd, striking the attendees.
After getting shot, one victim found safety and shelter in a cable news vehicle.
Later the two cable news employees were not allowed to get back into the vehicle because it is now considered a crime scene.
Information on the second shooting is not available, as the Mount Vernon police investigate.
There is no word on why the shootings started, nor how either victim is doing.
Despite growing up in Yonkers, Money Earning Mt. Vernon hosted Wednesday night’s vigil because they also claim the multi-platinum artist as their son, since DMX, real name Earl Simmons, was born in the Westchester County city.
The vigil included prayers, released balloons, and a block party.
There are not any updates from Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard on the two victims, that shot in two completely separate incidents.
But sources say the shooting victims are expected to survive.
NEW YORK TIMES: Most U.S. Infections Are Now Caused by a Contagious Virus Variant, the C.D.C. Says
A highly infectious variant of the coronavirus that was first identified in Britain has now become the most common source of new infections in the United States, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday — a worrisome development that comes as officials and scientists warn of a possible fourth virus surge…
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RESTRICTIONS STILL IN PLACE: New Yorkers still must buy food with alcohol at bars and restaurants….
CNN: Capitol Rioter Flips to Help Prosecutors Against Proud Boys
At least one of the Capitol riot defendants has flipped against the Proud Boys, agreeing to provide information that could allow the Justice Department to bring a more severe charge against the group’s leadership, according to an attorney involved in the case….
SYRACUSE POST STANDARD: Three more fired at Buffalo radio station over racist comments..
Three more staff members have been fired at a Buffalo radio station after racist comments were made on-air last month. WIVB reports Cumulus Media axed 97 Rock (WGRF-FM) “The Morning Bull” co-hosts Rich “The Bull” Gaenzler and Chris Klein, plus program director John Hager…
STUDY: A Third of COVID Survivors Suffer Neurological Or Mental Disorders
REUTERS: One in three COVID-19 survivors in a study of more than 230,000 mostly American patients were diagnosed with a brain or psychiatric disorder within six months, suggesting the pandemic could lead to a wave of mental and neurological problems, scientists said…
LA TIMES: Tiger Woods Was Driving Twice the Speed Limit Before Crash
Tiger Woods was driving at nearly twice the posted speed limit of 45 mph when he hit a sharp curve and crashed on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in February, the Los Angeles County sheriff said Wednesday in a long-awaited report on the accident that left the golf legend seriously injured….
As fans await updates on the health of rapper DMX following his reported overdose and heart attack on April 2, 2021, they may be wondering more about the music legend and his life. The three-time Grammy nominee has enjoyed a legendary music career, but things were not always bright for young Earl Simmons. DMX endured physical abuse from his mother, and later lived in a children’s home before falling into drug abuse as a teenager. DMX’s drug abuse and addiction troubles continued into adulthood, with the rapper being open about his struggles with addiction…..
DAILY VOICE: COVID-19: FBI Investigating Reports Of Fake Vaccination Cards
The FBI has launched a probe into the discovery of phony COVID-19 vaccination cards that are being sold by fraudsters online and through social media, threatening the progress America has. been making in combating the virus….
NEW YORK TIMES: A Tiny Particle’s Wobble Could Upend the Known Laws of Physics
U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Fermilab: The long-awaited first results from the Muon g-2 experiment at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory show fundamental particles called muons behaving in a way that is not predicted by scientists’ best theory, the Standard Model of particle physics. This landmark result, made with unprecedented precision, confirms a discrepancy that has been gnawing at researchers for decades.
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NEW YORK TIMES: If You Uncheck This Box, We’ll Tell Trump You’re a Defector
The political arm of House Republicans is deploying a prechecked box to enroll donors into repeating monthly donations — and using ominous language to warn them of the consequences if they opt out: “If you UNCHECK this box, we will have to tell Trump you’re a DEFECTOR.” … The prechecked box is the same tactic and tool that resulted in a surge of refunds and credit card complaints when used by Trump’s campaign last year, according to an investigation published by The New York Times over the weekend.
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HUFF POST: GOP Pols & Pundits Lie About CO Voting Laws Compared to GA
Republican politicians and conservative outlets alike claimed that Colorado’s and Georgia’s voting laws are actually quite similar. Fox News went further, suggesting that Colorado’s laws may actually be more restrictive. Even the smallest amount of research exposes these claims as clearly false. [W]hen it comes to election laws, Colorado and Georgia aren’t even in the same ballpark…
NEW YORK TIMES FRONT PAGE: $2.1B for Undocumented Workers Signals New York Progressive Shift….
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WIKI FEET: Meet the Man Who Keeps Uploading My Feet
LAURA BASSETT: I am not a celebrity. I have decent Twitter following from having reported on politics for over a decade, from tweeting jokes about politics and appearing on cable news sometimes. But I was pretty shocked to be looking at my own #wikiFeet profile, which included my full name, birthday, and photos of me and my exposed feet, dating back to a family vacation in 2013. … I mostly thought it was funny, and posted a video of me wiggling my painted toes in a flattering filter to my story “for my fans,” as a joke. Within minutes, a screenshot of it showed up on wikiFeet.
CNN: Biden to Nominate ATF Director and Announce New Executive Actions on Guns
President Joe Biden plans to announce new executive actions on guns on Thursday, a person familiar with the plans said, fulfilling a commitment he made in the aftermath of two deadly shootings last month.
RAW STORY: Trump Anti-Immigration Officials Form Legal Attack Group
Former officials who steered Donald Trump’s anti-immigration offensive announced a new legal advocacy group Wednesday aimed at attacking the “radical activist left” agenda allegedly on the rise under President Joe Biden.
ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION:Fulton DA won’t Prosecute Lawmaker Arrested During Election Law Signing
Fulton County’s district attorney said Wednesday that she won’t prosecute the Democratic lawmaker who was arrested last month after she knocked repeatedly on the door of Gov. Brian Kemp’s state office as he was on live television touting a sweeping new elections law.
SCARY VIDEO: Remember the Black guy arrested taking out his trash after the white woman called the police on her white boyfriend? LAPD finally released the video
HUFF POST: Jeff Bezos Supports Corporate Tax Hike for Infrastructure
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos endorsed President Joe Biden’s focus on building up the country’s infrastructure Tuesday and said the company even supports a corporate tax rate hike to help pay for it. Bezos was careful not to endorse a specific plan. Rather, he said “we support the Biden Administration’s focus on making bold investments in American infrastructure.”
DAILY BEAST: The MAGA Riot Lawsuit Against Trump Keeps Getting Bigger
A federal lawsuit alleging that former President Donald Trump, his lawyer, and far-right extremists at the U.S. Capitol conspired to deprive Americans of their civil rights by disrupting the count of Joe Biden’s electoral college victory with the Jan. 6 riot is expanding this week.
YEE HAW: My new truck is a BEAST (and gets 50 miles to the gallon!)
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NYT: White Evangelicals Could Prolong Pandemic
White Evangelical Resistance Is Obstacle in Vaccination Effort Millions of white evangelical adults in the U.S. do not intend to get vaccinated against Covid-19. Tenets of faith and mistrust of science play a role; so does politics
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TIME FOR A FACEPALM >>> Derek Chauvin’s defense team: George Floyd saying “I can’t breathe” was a form of resisting arrest that entitled our client to continue restraining him….
During the final weeks of President Donald Trump’s administration, Rep. #MattGaetz asked the White House for a blanket presidential pardon — a request that was ultimately not granted…
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TALKING POINTS MEMO: ‘White Lies Matter’ Holds Jefferson Davis Monument Hostage
The Jefferson Davis Memorial Chair in Selma, Alabama was stolen from the Live Oaks Cemetery in March. A group, which calls itself “White Lies Matter,” is demanding that the United Daughters of the Confederacy display a banner featuring a quote by former Black Liberation Army activist Assata Shakur in front of the organization’s headquarters in Richmond, Virginia for 24 hours in exchange for the monument.
THE WRAP: Photo Reveals Trump Continues to Drink Coke after Telling his Fans to Stop
Talk about awkward. Former President Donald Trump got ridiculed on Monday for hiding his beloved Diet Coke bottle in a photo op just days after he called for a boycott of Coca-Cola over Georgia voting rights.
Roundup Newswires Editor Brian Harrod Your trusted source for breaking news, analysis, exclusive interviews, headlines, and videos.
6,500 Migrant Workers have died in Qatar as it Gears up for World Cup
According to reporting in The Guardian, more than 6,500 migrant workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have died in Qatar since it won the right to host the World Cup 10 years ago. They were the labor behind an expansive building scheme that includes seven soccer stadia, roads, a new airport, hotels, transportation systems and a new city that will host the World Cup Final…
The Biden administration will release an intelligence report Thursday that concludes that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the 2018 killing Jamal Khashoggi, three U.S. officials familiar with the matter said….
Police to South Dakota AG: ‘His Face Came Through Your Windshield‘
In a two-part interview, a video recording of which was released by the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, investigators question South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg about a pair of broken glasses found inside his vehicle…
Republicans Are Least Likely to Want COVID Vaccine
Americans of all ages, education levels, genders, races and political parties say they’re more likely than not to get the coronavirus vaccine — except Republicans….
Dem Rep Posts Trans Flag Across from Marjorie Taylor Greene’s House Office
Rep. Marie Newman (D-Ill.) said Wednesday she installed a trans pride flag outside her office after Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R.-Ga.), who works in a neighboring office, called an LGBTQ rights bill “an attack on God’s creation”….
The confession of a partially blind hitman in the heinous murder of Maltese muckraker journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has kicked off a slew of new arrests in the complicated case….
Biden Administration Reopens Trump-era Facility for Migrant Children
The Biden administration reopened a temporary facility for unaccompanied migrant children in Carrizo Springs, Texas, on Monday, the Washington Post reports….
Texas’s Deregulated Electricity Costs Consumers Extra $28B
Texas’s deregulated electricity market has raised costs to consumers by $28 billion since 2004, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis published Wednesday….
The US Department of Defense has urged China to stop sending government ships into Japan’s territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea…
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s old company, XPO Logistics, was awarded a temporary “Christmas” contract to help move mail during the holiday season, according to a list of U.S. Postal Service contracts obtained by CREW….
Conspiracy Theory Claims Texas Weather ‘Government-Generated‘
But one of the stranger responses to the disaster was the spread of viral conspiracy theory videos on TikTok, Facebook and Twitter claiming that the severe snow was actually “fake” and “government generated” as part of a sinister plot instigated by shadowy “elites”, presumably intentionally plunging Texas into its present state of chaos….
Kushner’s Times Square Center Moves Toward Foreclosure
A Times Square retail property owned by Kushner Cos., the family company of former presidential adviser Jared Kushner, is a step closer to foreclosure, according to loan documents…
PostmasterGen DeJoy Apologizes for Unacceptable Mail Delays
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy apologized before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday for the persistent delays in the U.S. Postal Service’s mail delivery amid the peak holiday season … Asked by Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) how much longer he planned to stay in the job, DeJoy responded tersely: “Long time. Get used to me”….
FDA: Johnson & Johnson’s Single-Dose Vaccine is Effective Against COVID
Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine protects against COVID-19, according to an analysis by U.S. regulators Wednesday. The analysis sets the stage for a final decision on a new and easier-to-use shot to help tame the pandemic…
New York Prosecutors Looking at Don Jr. in Trump Business Probe
Investigators with the [Manhattan] D.A.’s office have been expanding their criminal probe into Trump’s business empire, asking questions and grilling witnesses — as recently as in the past few days — not only about Trump but particularly about his eldest son, Don Jr., and Allen Weisselberg, one of the former president’s most trusted officers, The Daily Beast has learned…..
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BUZZ FEED: How Facebook Went Easy On Alex Jones And Other Right-Wing Figures
“Mark [Zuckerberg] called for a more nuanced policy and enforcement strategy,” Facebook spokesperson Andy Stone said of the Alex Jones decision, which also affected the bans of other extremist figures.
CNN: Oath Keeper Claims She was VIP Security at Trump Rally before Riot, Met with Secret Service agents
A leader in an alleged Oath Keepers conspiracy in the US Capitol insurrection claims she was given a VIP pass to the pro-Trump rally on January 6, had met with Secret Service agents and was providing security for legislators and others, including in their march to the Capitol, according to a new court filing.
I suppose walking up to an agent and saying “hi” counts as a meeting.
I read another article on her that said when she found out she was wanted for questioning she drove eight hours to turn herself in to local police. Where the hell do you live that you have to drive eight hours to get to the “local” police?
That, and when she got there they had never heard of her,
She is going to have a real tough time in prison being Trans.
I feel bad she was duped and possibly has serious mental issues, like many others, in the Trump’s Q Cult, ….
AXIOS: Under Biden U.S. Vaccine Rollout Now Among Best in the World
America’s much-maligned vaccine rollout is actually going relatively well, at least compared to other wealthy countries.
It’s amazing how much the roll out of the vaccine has improved since the 300 lb Trump waddled off to Mar-A-Lardo.
It could be argued that Trump is ultimately responsible for the deaths of 500,000 Americans simply because he couldn’t figure a way to gain a personal, political or monetary profit from the effort to stop the virus from spreading…..
BUZZ FEED: Jailed Transgender Oath-Trumper Fears for Her Safety
Jessica Watkins, an Oath Keeper charged with conspiring to storm the US Capitol, has asked to be released from jail pending trial, alleging that she has been “treated harshly” and is at “particular risk in custody” because she is transgender.
Wait…what???
Transgender Oath Keeper?
Ok…the end really is near.
So the Trump ranks really do practice inclusiveness……
ASSOCIATED PRESS: How Will We Know We’ve Reached Herd Immunity?
Health officials around the world are racing to vaccinate enough people to stop the spread of COVID-19, but what qualifies as “enough” is still an open question.
More from the article…
…The goal is to get to “herd immunity,” which is when enough people have immunity, either from vaccination or a past infection, to stop uncontrolled spread.
Herd immunity doesn’t make any one person immune, and outbreaks can still flare up. It means that a virus is no longer easily jumping from person to person, helping to protect those who are still vulnerable to catching it.
Nobody knows for sure what the herd immunity threshold is for the coronavirus, though many experts say it’s 70% or higher. And the emergence of variants is further complicating the picture.
HOW IS THE HERD IMMUNITY THRESHOLD CALCUATED?
It’s a formula based on how contagious a virus is ” or how many people catch the virus from one infected person, on average….
NEW YORK TIMES: His Lights Stayed on During TX Freeze. Now He Owes $16,752.
“My savings is gone,” said Scott Willoughby, a 63-year-old Army veteran who lives on Social Security payments in a Dallas suburb.
He said he had nearly emptied his savings account so that he would be able to pay the $16,752 electric bill charged to his credit card – 70 times what he usually pays for all of his utilities combined.
For customers whose electricity prices are not fixed and are instead tied to the fluctuating wholesale price, the spikes have been astronomical.
looks like the “Energy State” sure does know how to set things up so the “Energy Billionaires” can make a killing out of a crisis!.
Deregulation is wonderful up until the moment that it isn’t and innocent people are left paying for the decisions and mistakes of capitalists freed from reasonable oversight…..
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NEW YORK TIMES: Power Back in Texas, But Water Systems Are Hosed
The end of frigid weather across Texas was in sight on Friday, but many residents who fled their homes this week in search of warm beds and showers were just discovering the extent of the winter storm’s destruction.
Nearly half the state’s population — about 13 million people — remained under boil-water advisories after freezing temperatures overwhelmed systems providing clean water.
Colorado also got near record cold and some snow.
But the regulated utility delivered reliable power for about 2/3 what folks in Dallas pay.
That’s before Texans started getting $3,000 electric bills.
the water continued to flow.
All over the country except Texas wind turbines continued to spin and deliver power because they have deicers.
Roads are plowed so you can go anywhere you want to.
NBC NEWS: Biden Approves Major Disaster Declaration Over Texas Deep Freeze
President Joe Biden has declared a major disaster in Texas as the state reels from a severe winter storm that left millions of people without power amid freezing temperatures.
After approving an emergency declaration several days ago, President Biden has now declared a “major disaster” exists in Texas and is sending more federal assistance.
Assistance can include grants for temporary housing, home repairs & low-cost loans for uninsured property.
Two questions:
Do supporters of Texas’ secession from the US oppose disaster aid from the US federal government?
Does Texas AG Ken Paxton, who joined case to overturn the election, consider President Biden’s emergency declaration for the state illegitimate?….
REUTERS: Share of U.S. Workers Holding Multiple Jobs Is Rising
The share of Americans working more than one job to make ends meet has been growing over the past two decades, and the pay from second jobs make up a substantial share of workers’ earnings, according to a paper published by the U.S. Commerce Department.
More from the article…
…An estimated 7.8% of U.S. workers had more than one job as of the first quarter of 2018, up from 6.8% in 1996, according to new data unveiled by the Census bureau, which provides a more detailed analysis of multiple job holders than was previously available. The findings were based on data from 18 states….
POLITICO: Trump Gears Up for War with His Own Party
There’s no longer a chief of staff to screen his calls and he keeps no predictable working hours.
So an unspoken rule has governed Donald Trump’s calendar since he left Washington last month:
To sit down with the former president, you must belong to his posh Palm Beach club or know how to contact him directly.
More from the article…
…According to three people familiar with the planning, Trump will soon begin vetting candidates at Mar-a-Lago who are eager to fulfill his promise to exact vengeance upon incumbent Republicans who’ve scorned him, and to ensure every open GOP seat in the 2022 midterms has a MAGA-approved contender vying for it….
So, are we about to see just how much of an influence fmr Pres Trump continues to have over the Republican Party.
My guess at this point is that his influence is stronger than many expect, but it may not play out as well as he expects….
MOTHER JONES: Georgia Republicans Doubling Down on Voter Suppression
After Donald Trump failed to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia, Republicans in the state’s legislature are doing everything they can to make it more difficult for Democrats to win the next one.
With almost no public notice, Georgia House Republicans introduced a 48-page bill to significantly change voting procedures in the state in a way that particularly targets Black voters in the Atlanta metro area.
This followed similar moves by the state Senate earlier in the week….
Brian Harrod is the publisher and editor of the RoundupNewswires.com news website, as well as, the hyper local YonkersNewswire.com news and social media pages. You can learn more about Mr. Harrod at BrianHarrod.com.
CNN: Pentagon Delayed Promotions of 2 Female Generals Until Trump was Gone
Promotions of two female generals were delayed by Pentagon officials until after the 2020 presidential election out of fear of “turmoil” from President Donald Trump’s White House, The New York Times reported Wednesday….
ARS TECNICA: France Ties Russia’s Sandworm to a Multiyear Hacking Spree
On Monday, the French information security agency ANSSI published an advisory warning that hackers with links to Sandworm, a group within Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, had breached several French organizations….
NASA: Planning 1st Test of System Designed to Protect Planet from Asteroids
The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), NASA’s first flight demonstration for planetary defense, seeks to test and validate a method to protect Earth in case of an asteroid impact threat.
The mission aims to shift an asteroid’s orbit through kinetic impact – specifically, by impacting a spacecraft into the smaller member of the binary asteroid system Didymos to change its orbital speed.
At the request of Science Mission Directorate (SMD) senior leadership, a risk assessment was performed on the DART project schedule to determine the viability of the primary (July 21, 2021 to August 24, 2021) and secondary (November 24, 2021 to February 15, 2022) launch periods.
Based on the results of this assessment, SMD determined the primary launch period is no longer viable and has directed the DART project pursue their secondary launch window.
The DART project is currently working with SpaceX and NASA’s Launch Services Program (LSP) to identify the earliest possible launch opportunity within this secondary window….
CNN: Mysteries of Massive Holes Forming in Siberian Permafrost Unlocked by Scientists
The massive crater appeared violently and explosively in the Siberian tundra last year — a powerful blowout of methane gas throwing ice and rock hundreds of feet away and leaving a gaping circular scar in the empty and eerie landscape….
BETO O’ROURKE: ‘We are Nearing a Failed State in Texas’
THE HILL: Former Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke blamed Republican leaders in Texas for what he says was a failure to prepare for widespread power outages resulting from a massive winter storm that swept across the state this week….
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made great efforts ahead of Israel’s March 23 elections to ensure that Jewish supremacists from the Jewish Power party will make it into Israel’s parliament, the Knesset…
KTXS – TV: Texas Mayor Resigns Tells Worried Citizens to Figure Out Themselves How to Keep Warm
Colorado City, Texas, Mayor Tim Boyd resigned and wrote this Facebook post:
“No one owes you are your family anything; nor is it the local government’s responsibility to support you during trying times like this! Sink or swim it’s you choice! The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! I’m sick and tired of people looking for damn handout! If you don’t have electricity you step up and come up with game plan to keep your family warm and safe. If you have no water you deal without and think outside of the box to survive and supply water to your family”…
NPR: Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino Is Reduced to Rubble
Former President Donald Trump’s shuttered hotel and casino in Atlantic City, N.J., was demolished Wednesday morning, collapsing amid gentle cheers from the crowd
Rush Limbaugh, the conservative media icon who for decades used his perch as the king of talk-radio to shape the politics of both the Republican Party and nation, died Wednesday after a battle with cancer. He was 70 years old.
A pioneer of AM talk-radio, Limbaugh for 32 years hosted “The Rush Limbaugh Show,” a nationally-syndicated program with millions of loyal listeners that transfigured him into a partisan force and polarizing figure in American politics…
Sen. Ted Cruz struck a rare conciliatory tone after Twitter users lambasted the Texas senator for a resurfaced August tweet in which he mocked California’s “failed energy policies,” as millions of Texans were left without electricity due to a severe winter storm this past weekend
An invitation from Tesla boss Elon Musk for Russian President Vladimir Putin to join him for a chat on a social networking app? “Very interesting,” the Kremlin said…
HUFFINGTON POST: Trump Insurrection Has Tarnished U.S. Diplomacy
America’s ability to promote democracy around the world was unquestionably damaged by “recent events,” in particular the deadly U.S. Capitol riot carried out by a violent mob of ex-President Donald Trump’s supporters on Jan. 6, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said in a new interview…
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NEW YORK POST: Yang campaign manager has ties to Linda Sarsour….
Bitcoin could soon be the currency of choice in Miami
Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to go public via direct listing Twitter bitcoin hack caused by ‘phishing attack’ against employees, company says Nouriel Roubini calls bitcoins ‘s–coins’ at SALT conference Why the stock market has taken a hit lately Bitcoin could soon be the currency of choice in Miami. Commissioners in the Florida city are mulling whether or not to give public officials the option of receiving their salaries, or a portion of it, in Bitcoin and if they should allow the public to use the cryptocurrency to pay for city services, the Miami Herald reported. Mayor Francis Suarez, who’s trying to shape Miami into a tech hub, is ready to go all-in with Bitcoin but commissioners voted late Thursday to first study the use of the virtual currency and to find a vendor that could help with transactions before moving forward, the outlet said. “It’s wonderful to be a very ‘crypto-forward’ city in the city of Miami, and I want to thank my commission colleagues for allowing that to happen,” Suarez told the outlet. Following a long discussion and questions about Bitcoin, the commissioners agreed 4-1 to hold off before an analysis on the futuristic currency, thought to be a guard against a failing dollar, is completed. Commissioner Joe Carollo isn’t convinced — he voted no on the measure, the outlet reported. “I think the mayor has done a fabulous job with that, and his intentions are coming right from the heart,” Carollo said. “Having said that, I can’t drink the Kool-Aid on this one.” Miami will begin launching public awareness campaigns in English, Spanish and Creole to teach residents about cryptocurrency while lobbying the state legislature to pass laws that will allow the city to invest public dollars in the highly-volatile cryptocurrency. Day-to-day price swings of Bitcoin continue to dip and peak in the thousands. Late Friday, it hovered just under $48,000 a share but the public is able to buy portions of a share.
