Thursday, July 23rd, 2020

Mayor Ted Wheeler is tear-gassed in downtown Portland, according to video from a New York Times journalist. The video shows Wheeler, wearing goggles and a face mask amid a crowd of people, holding his nose and closing his eyes in distress as a cloud of tear gas drifts by him. It is unknown at this time who is responsible for deploying the tear gas and there is nothing to indicate the mayor was targeted. (CNN)

Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz announces that there will be a investigation into the Justice Department’s use of force against protesters. (CBS News)

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signs a law banning various forms of chokeholds. (Hastings Tribune)

Trump says he’s canceling Jacksonville portion of the Republican National Convention President Trump announced on Thursday evening that he has canceled the Jacksonville, Florida, portion of the Republican National Convention because “the timing for this is not right” and he has to “protect the American people.” The convention, slated for late August, was originally going to be held in Charlotte, North Carolina. After GOP officials and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) could not agree on social distancing measures, it was decided that party business would still take place in Charlotte, but the parties and programs were moved to Jacksonville. Trump told reporters that he received plans for the nominating convention on Thursday afternoon, “but I looked at my team and I said the timing for this event is not right, just not right with what’s happened recently.” The formal nominating process will still proceed in Charlotte, Trump said, and he will give some sort of acceptance speech. Source: The Washington Post

Senate passes defense bill stripping Confederate names from Army bases The Senate passed a $741 billion defense bill, 86-14, on Thursday that forces Confederate names to be removed from Army bases. The bill passed with a similarly overwhelming majority in the House, meaning President Trump won’t be able to veto the measure. Protests over police brutality and racism in the U.S. led to calls to remove statues of Confederate leaders from around the U.S. and to take their names off bases. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) formalized that effort with an amendment to the defense spending bill after the idea of renaming the Confederate bases was passed with a voice vote. President Trump previously said he would not even consider renaming the bases, including Fort Bragg and Fort Hood. Source: Politico

The End

 

Wednesday,  July 22nd, 2020

President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr announce a surge of “hundreds” of federal law enforcement officers to Chicago, Albuquerque and other cities in an effort to crack down on a recent wave of violent crime. The mayors of Portland, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Atlanta and Kansas City pen a letter to Barr and acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf expressing “deep concern and objection to the deployment of federal forces in our cities”. (Forbes)

South Korea’s economy enters recession after exports plunge to their lowest levels since 1963. (Reuters)

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine issues a statewide mandate requiring masks to be worn indoors and outdoors whenever social distancing isn’t possible. (Reuters)

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announces that masks will be mandatory outside of homes to battle rising COVID-19 cases in the city. (The Hill)

California reports the highest number of new COVID-19 cases in a single day, with 12,807 new cases that bring the statewide total to 413,576 cases, surpassing New York in the process. (The Guardian)

South Africa reports a record 572 new COVID-19 deaths. (Anadolu Agency)

The number of cases in Africa reaches 750,000. (Reuters)

Australia reports the highest one-day increase of new cases since the pandemic began, with 502 new cases, surpassing the previous record set on March 28 at 469 cases. Victoria records 484 new cases and two deaths, the highest of any Australian state. (The Age)

Brazil reports its highest one-day increase in COVID-19 cases days after WHO says the country reaches the plateau, with 67,860 new cases that pushes the nationwide total at more than 2.2 million. (Bloomberg)

 

The End