Michigan Closes Down Capitol in Face of Death Threats From Armed Protesters Against Gov. Whitmer – Newsweek
Michigan Closes Down Capitol in Face of Death Threats From Armed Protesters Against Gov. Whitmer – Newsweek

On Thursday, Michigan closed down its capitol building and canceled its legislative session after online death threats made against Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

The threats were made by protesters who planned to attend a “Judgement Day” protest at the capitol. The protesters ostensibly oppose Whitmer’s statewide shutdown orders meant to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Dozens of posts in private invitation-only Facebook groups called for Whitmer to be hanged, lynched, shot, beaten or beheaded. One suggested crowdfunding sources to hire a hitman to kill her.

“We haven’t had any bloodshed yet, but the populous [sic] is counting to three, and yesterday was day two,” wrote Dave Meisenheimer in a 385,000-member Facebook group called Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine. “Next comes the watering the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants,” he concluded.

Numerous other posts referred to Whitmer as a “Nazi,” “spawn of the devil,” “wicked witch,” “Soros puppet,” “baby killer tyrant” and more, according to the Detroit Metro Times. Others promised to attend upcoming protests “armed to the death” and without face masks, threatening to attack any police officers who dared confront them.

Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel have considered banning firearms from the Capitol building but are awaiting the six-member Michigan State Capitol Commission to figure out if they have the legal authority to do so.

“There are legislators who are wearing bulletproof vests to go to work,” Whitmer told ABC News last week. “No one should be intimidated by someone who’s bringing in an assault rifle into their workplace.”

Newsweek reached out to Whitmer for comment. This story will be updated with any response.

On May 13, Democratic state Senator Mallory McMorrow revealed that she and fellow Democratic state Senator Dayna Polehanki co-sponsored a resolution to prohibit firearms and dangerous weapons in public areas of the Capitol building and to install screening checkpoints.

“We have an obligation to keep all visitors and workers at the Capitol safe,” McMorrow wrote.

“When I read some of the words that were published this week, it’s not about staying at home, it’s not about maybe losing your business … it’s about spreading blood on the front lawn of this building, and I would be lying if I said that sitting in my chair with four men in rifles behind me didn’t make me think that I was going to be [dying from gun violence] very soon,” McMorrow said in a May 12 speech to the legislature.

“Yeah, we’re supposed to stand up here and say we’re brave and we’re not intimidated,” she continued, “but guess what: That is damned intimidation and it is not welcome, and my question back is what the hell are we going to do about it? Or do we wait until something happens?”

On Monday, Whitmer asked Vice President Mike Pence to discourage the ongoing anti-lockdown protests for fear that participants might spread COVID-19 to her state’s rural areas.

On April 29, President Donald Trump offered support for anti-lockdown protesters by tweeting, “LIBERATE MICHIGAN.” Trump defended the tweets, saying that some state’s social distancing policies are “too tough.”

“What he’s saying, when he has a Twitter following of millions and millions of people and gets instant coverage in the U.S. and all over the world, it’s very very dangerous,” McCord told Newsweek. “There are people, armed people out there who listen to what he says and they act up on it in ways that are not always peaceful.”

The following weekend, after an April 30 protest at the capitol in which some protesters carried firearms, Confederate flags, nooses and swastikas, Whitmer said the protests “depicted some of the worst racism and awful parts of our history in this country… The behavior that you’ve seen in all of the clips is not representative of who we are in Michigan.”

Despite the demonstrations, polling has shown that a majority of Michigan residents support the strict lockdown measures put in place by Whitmer.

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Source Article from https://www.newsweek.com/michigan-closes-down-capitol-face-death-threats-armed-protesters-against-gov-whitmer-1504241

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California governor lays out deep budget cuts to close $54 billion deficit – CNN
California governor lays out deep budget cuts to close $54 billion deficit – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/politics/california-budget-deficit-federal-funds/index.html

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Rick Bright plans to start his new job working on coronavirus treatments and vaccines next week – CNN
Rick Bright plans to start his new job working on coronavirus treatments and vaccines next week – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/politics/richard-bright-new-job-hhs/index.html

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‘Lives were lost’ as US officials refused to ramp up production of N95 masks, whistleblower says – CNBC
‘Lives were lost’ as US officials refused to ramp up production of N95 masks, whistleblower says – CNBC

Bright said he told department leaders there would be a shortage of the critical supplies needed to protect health-care workers. The solution offered by HHS officials at the time was to change U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines by advising the public against wearing medical-grade equipment to save the supply for health-care workers, he said.  

“My response was, ‘I cannot believe you can sit and say that with a straight face,'” Bright said. 

To this day, Bright said doctors and nurses in the nation’s hospitals are relying on N95 respirators that were procured in other countries but don’t meet U.S. safety standards. The CDC reported in April that 27 health-care professionals had died due to Covid-19 since mid-February, according to data obtained by the department. 

Medical professionals across the country have voiced concern about strained supplies of personal protective equipment, especially N95 respirators, which filter out 95% of very small particles, saying that they’ve had to reuse the same mask for weeks. However, Trump said that he’s heard the nation has “tremendous supply to almost all places.” 

On Thursday, a senior administration official told reporters that the White House plans to ramp up the production of critical supplies and reexamine supply chains to replenish the nation’s stockpile. Another senior administration official said the nation’s stockpile of N95 respirators is expected to jump from 13 million to 300 million by the fall. 

“When Covid broke out in the U.S., we had one to three weeks worth of supply for most of the items in our stockpile,” the official, who declined to be named, told reporters on a call Thursday. 

CDC officials initially dissuaded the public from buying masks, saying they primarily protected other people from infection, not the person who wears it, and were necessary for health-care workers. The agency didn’t change its position until April 3, when it first recommended that the general public wear face coverings. The department still recommends that N95 masks be reserved for health-care workers, saying they shouldn’t be shared or reused.

States have had to compete for medical supplies such as ventilators, masks and tests in international markets as a result of shortages. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said efforts to procure masks from China amid state competition for medical supplies were “inefficient and ineffective,” saying the lack of medical equipment was a “national security issue.” 

— CNBC’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report. 

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-lives-were-lost-as-us-officials-refused-to-ramp-up-production-of-n95-masks.html

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Richard Burr to step down as Intelligence Committee chairman – CNN
Richard Burr to step down as Intelligence Committee chairman – CNN

As coronavirus spreads through the global economy, CNN Business is tracking the stocks, sectors and indicators most impacted, in real-time.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/politics/richard-burr-steps-down-intel-chairman/index.html

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‘Lives were lost’ as US officials refused to ramp up production of N95 masks, whistleblower says – CNBC
‘Lives were lost’ as US officials refused to ramp up production of N95 masks, whistleblower says – CNBC

Bright said he told department leaders there would be a shortage of the critical supplies needed to protect health-care workers. The solution offered by HHS officials at the time was to change U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines by advising the public against wearing medical-grade equipment to save the supply for health-care workers, he said.  

“My response was, ‘I cannot believe you can sit and say that with a straight face,'” Bright said. 

To this day, Bright said doctors and nurses in the nation’s hospitals are relying on N95 respirators that were procured in other countries but don’t meet U.S. safety standards. The CDC reported in April that 27 health-care professionals had died due to Covid-19 since mid-February, according to data obtained by the department. 

Medical professionals across the country have voiced concern about strained supplies of personal protective equipment, especially N95 respirators, which filter out 95% of very small particles, saying that they’ve had to reuse the same mask for weeks. However, Trump said that he’s heard the nation has “tremendous supply to almost all places.” 

On Thursday, a senior administration official told reporters that the White House plans to ramp up the production of critical supplies and reexamine supply chains to replenish the nation’s stockpile. Another senior administration official said the nation’s stockpile of N95 respirators is expected to jump from 13 million to 300 million by the fall. 

“When Covid broke out in the U.S., we had one to three weeks worth of supply for most of the items in our stockpile,” the official, who declined to be named, told reporters on a call Thursday. 

CDC officials initially dissuaded the public from buying masks, saying they primarily protected other people from infection, not the person who wears it, and were necessary for health-care workers. The agency didn’t change its position until April 3, when it first recommended that the general public wear face coverings. The department still recommends that N95 masks be reserved for health-care workers, saying they shouldn’t be shared or reused.

States have had to compete for medical supplies such as ventilators, masks and tests in international markets as a result of shortages. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said efforts to procure masks from China amid state competition for medical supplies were “inefficient and ineffective,” saying the lack of medical equipment was a “national security issue.” 

— CNBC’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report. 

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-lives-were-lost-as-us-officials-refused-to-ramp-up-production-of-n95-masks.html

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Richard Burr: US Senate intelligence chief quits amid virus trading scandal – BBC News
Richard Burr: US Senate intelligence chief quits amid virus trading scandal – BBC News

Image copyright
AFP

Image caption

Senator Richard Burr has denied basing his sales on privileged information

The Republican chairman of the US Senate intelligence committee will resign from the post amid an insider trading investigation.

Richard Burr of North Carolina would step down on 15 May, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said.

It has emerged on Thursday that Mr Burr’s phone has been seized by the FBI as part of the probe.

The senator is alleged to have used inside information to avoid market losses from coronavirus.

He and his wife sold as much as $1.7m (£1.4m) of equities in February, just before markets plunged on fears of an economic crisis.

It is illegal for members of Congress to trade based on non-public information gathered during their official duties.

Republican Senators Kelly Loeffler of Georgia and James Inhofe of Oklahoma, as well as Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, also reportedly sold holdings before the downturn, but are not confirmed to be under investigation.

Ms Feinstein said she answered questions from the FBI regarding trades made by her husband, however.

Mr Burr’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Mr McConnell said in a statement on Thursday: “Senator Burr contacted me this morning to inform me of his decision to step aside as Chairman of the intelligence committee during the pendency of this investigation.

We agreed that this decision would be in the best interest of the committee and will be effective at the end of the day tomorrow.”

Mr Burr, 64, turned over his mobile phone to authorities after federal agents issued and executed a search warrant at his Washington, DC home, the Los Angeles Times first reported. 

Senators under fire over virus ‘insider trading’

The seizure marks an escalation into the investigation into Mr Burr launched by the Justice Department begun in March.

Public disclosures first investigated by ProPublica show the senator sold more than 30 stocks between late January and mid-February, including in many sectors now devastated by the coronavirus outbreak, such as hotel, restaurant and shipping industries. 

As the chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, Mr Burr receives nearly daily briefings on threats to US national security. Mr Burr has defended the transactions, saying he “relied solely on public news reports”, to instruct his decision to sell.  

However, he was criticised for publicly downplaying the seriousness of the virus, even as he privately sold equities and warned a private North Carolina business group of the stark risks it posed.

Mr Burr’s lawyer, Alice Fisher, said in March the senator welcomed the investigation from the Justice Department, saying it will “establish that his actions were appropriate”. 

“The law is clear that any American – including a Senator – may participate in the stock market based on public information, as Senator Burr did.  When this issue arose, Senator Burr immediately asked the Senate Ethics Committee to conduct a complete review, and he will cooperate with that review as well as any other appropriate inquiry,” she said. 

The bulk of Mr Burr’s sales occurred on 13 February, just before he his speech to the wealthy business constituent group about the dire economic impact of the coronavirus, at a time when the Trump administration was publicly downplaying the threat.

In an audio recording, obtained by US outlet National Public Radio (NPR) he also told the group to curtail their travel. Mr Burr has accused NPR of “misrepresenting” his speech. 

Source Article from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52668126

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Coronavirus global death toll passes 300,000 as countries wait in lockdown – CNN
Coronavirus global death toll passes 300,000 as countries wait in lockdown – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/world/coronavirus-global-death-toll-300000-intl/index.html

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HHS whistleblower Rick Bright is a ‘disgruntled employee,’ Trump says ahead of House coronavirus hearing – CNBC
HHS whistleblower Rick Bright is a ‘disgruntled employee,’ Trump says ahead of House coronavirus hearing – CNBC

President Donald Trump on Thursday tore into ousted federal scientist Dr. Rick Bright just before the whistleblower was set to testify to Congress that the U.S. “missed early warning signals” about the coronavirus.

“I don’t know the so-called Whistleblower Rick Bright, never met him or even heard of him,” Trump tweeted Thursday morning.

“But to me he is a disgruntled employee, not liked or respected by people I spoke to and who, with his attitude, should no longer be working for our government!” Trump said.

Bright was scheduled to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health at 10 a.m. ET.

In prepared remarks, Bright said that Covid-19 could make 2020 the “darkest winter in modern history” if leaders can’t mount a more coordinated response to contain the outbreak.

“Our window of opportunity is closing. If we fail to develop a national coordinated response, based in science, I fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities,” Bright said.

Bright was removed last month as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and transferred to a job with fewer responsibilities at the National Institutes of Health. He filed a whistleblower complaint to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel after his removal.

Lawyers for Bright say he was sidelined in retaliation for his pushback on the Trump administration’s efforts “to provide unfettered access to potentially dangerous drugs, including chloroquine … which is untested and possibly deadly when used improperly.”

In March and April, Trump repeatedly touted the anti-malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine as possibly being effective treatments for the coronavirus. “It can help them, but it’s not going to hurt them,” Trump said at a White House press briefing in early April.

But Bright, in a statement first reported by The New York Times following his ouster as director, said he resisted pressure to spend money on the “potentially dangerous drugs.”

“I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way,” Bright said, the Times reported.

On April 24, the Food and Drug Administration warned consumers against taking chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to treat Covid-19 outside a hospital. The warning came after deaths and poisonings were reported in connection with the drugs. 

A JAMA Network study released Monday found hydroxychloroquine appears to not help Covid-19 patients – and puts them at an increased risk of suffering heart attacks.

NBC News reported that Bright also felt pressured to put in place a national program geared to expanding access to hydroxychloroquine after the president spoke about the drug with Oracle chairman Larry Ellison, who has raised campaign funds for Trump.

Trump has mentioned the drugs significantly less since late April. But when asked at a press briefing why he stopped promoting them, Trump said, “I haven’t at all. I haven’t at all. What are you say — we’ll see what happens. … We’ve had a lot of very good results and we had some results that perhaps aren’t so good.”

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-trump-slams-disgruntled-employee-rick-bright-house-hearing.html

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After Wisconsin court ruling, crowds liberated and thirsty descend on bars. ‘We’re the Wild West,’ Gov. Tony Evers says. – The Washington Post
After Wisconsin court ruling, crowds liberated and thirsty descend on bars. ‘We’re the Wild West,’ Gov. Tony Evers says. – The Washington Post

Live updates: The latest in the U.S.

Coronavirus maps: Cases and deaths in the U.S. | Cases and deaths worldwide | Which states are reopening

What you need to know: Your life at home | Personal finance guide | Make your own fabric mask | Follow all of our coronavirus coverage and sign up for our daily newsletter.

How to help: Your community | Seniors | Restaurants | Keep at-risk people in mind

Remembering the victims: Stories of Americans who have died | A memorial for those lost to covid-19

Show More

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/05/14/wisconsin-bars-reopen-evers/

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FBI serves warrant, seizes phone of Sen. Richard Burr in stock sales investigation: reports – USA TODAY
FBI serves warrant, seizes phone of Sen. Richard Burr in stock sales investigation: reports – USA TODAY

WASHINGTON – The FBI served a warrant to GOP Sen. Richard Burr as part of its investigation into his sale of stocks ahead of the market crash due to the coronavirus, according to reports.

The Los Angeles Times first reported that Burr, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, had his cell phone seized on Wednesday night by federal agents at his Washington residence, citing an anonymous law enforcement official. NBC also reported that the senator was served an FBI warrant and that his phone was seized.

Burr’s office declined to comment on the matter when reached by USA TODAY Wednesday night.

The Justice Department launched an inquiry into four senators’ stock sales in March, a person familiar told USA TODAY at the time. 

Sens. Burr, R-N.C.; Jim Inhofe, R-Okla.; Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.; and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; their spouses or advisers sold stocks around the time lawmakers received briefings about the severity of the coronavirus, financial disclosure forms showed.

Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/05/14/sen-richard-burrs-phone-seized-fbi-serves-warrant-stock-probe/5188726002/

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Chinese State Media Predicts Retaliation Against GOP Lawmakers Who Sued Beijing Over Coronavirus – Newsweek
Chinese State Media Predicts Retaliation Against GOP Lawmakers Who Sued Beijing Over Coronavirus – Newsweek

A Chinese state-backed newspaper has called for sanctions on U.S. lawmakers and entities that have filed lawsuits against Beijing. The lawsuits blame the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for the coronavirus pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands and collapsed the global economy.

A Global Times article published Thursday said Beijing is “extremely dissatisfied” with what is said is the “abuse of litigation” by some U.S. lawmakers, who are seeking damages from China over the COVID-19 pandemic. At least six lawsuits have now been filed against China in the U.S.

Global Times is owned by the People’s Daily newspaper, which is the official publication of the CCP. It is often used to express the more nationalistic and combative sentiment from within the CCP, and has been at the forefront of Beijing’s coronavirus PR strategy—whether defending against international criticism, maligning the performance of President Donald Trump’s administration, or spreading disinformation about the crisis.

Thursday’s article claimed sources “close to the matter” told the newspaper Beijing is “mulling” counter-action against American lawmakers. The newspaper did not provide any clear evidence or official confirmation of such plans. Newsweek has contacted the Chinese embassy in Washington to request comment on Global Times’ assertions.

Global Times named several politicians who it said should be in line for retaliation. Eric Schmitt, the attorney general of Missouri, was the first lawmaker to file a lawsuit against China seeking damages to compensate Missourians. He was followed by Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who filed a similar lawsuit.

But Global Times‘ rancor did not stop with state officials. The newspaper also named multiple GOP senators and congresspeople who have supported bills designed to hold Beijing to account over what critics allege is a catastrophic failure of governance, and even an intentional effort to mislead the international community about the severity of and threat posed by the pandemic.

The newspaper also named Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who announced the Justice for Victims of COVID-19 Act, plus Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw, who introduced a bill that would enable Americans to sue China for damages.

Florida Sen. Rick Scott, Arizona Sen. Martha McSally, Texas Rep. Lance Gooden, New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith, and Indiana Rep. Jim Banks also made Global Times‘ list of those engaging in the coronavirus “blame game.”

“China won’t just strike back symbolically, but will impose countermeasures that will make them feel painful,” Global Times said, citing unnamed analysts. The newspaper also cited anonymous sources who predicted “severe consequences” for those engaging in the “political farce.” Any Chinese retaliation “will also impact the upcoming November elections,” Global Times predicted.

Specifically, Global Times said Beijing might target the states of those lawmakers who have taken action against China. By imposing limits on trade and investments in and from these states, Global Times claimed that the CCP could undermine GOP support and impact coming elections.

On Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said new legislation that would give U.S. executive authorities the power to sanction China over coronavirus “shows no respect for facts.”

He added, “By pushing for investigations based on the presumption of guilt, it is meant to shirk responsibility for the U.S. fumbling response to China. This is highly immoral. We are firmly opposed to it.”

Beijing has been desperately trying to dodge blame for the coronavirus pandemic, which was first identified in the central city of Wuhan in December. China has been accused of trying to conceal the initial outbreak, including by silencing whistleblower doctors in Wuhan.

Beijing is also suspected of concealing its true number of infections and deaths, failing to properly notify the World Health Organization of the risk of a pandemic, and misrepresenting the threat of the virus while hoarding medical supplies to fight it.

President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have both placed the blame squarely at China’s door, and even hinted at repercussions for the CCP. Both have also expressed confidence in an as-yet unproven theory that the COVID-19 virus escaped from a research lab in Wuhan, rather than originating in a wildlife market in the city. So far, most experts and U.S. allies have rejected the theory.

China has embarked on a global PR campaign to exonerate itself from blame, sending medical supplies and doctors to help worse affected nations—so-called “mask diplomacy”—although millions of pieces of equipment have been rejected as faulty.

Beijing has repeatedly called for global solidarity in fighting the virus, though is accused of running a parallel disinformation campaign to malign Western nations and laud its own success in suppressing its national outbreak. Chinese officials have denied such charges, arguing instead that Beijing is the true victim of propaganda efforts.

But China is also resisting calls from Western leaders to allow an independent international probe into the origins and course of the pandemic. Earlier this month, China’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva said Beijing would not prioritize such a probe until “final victory” was won, and even then only under the “right atmosphere.”

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Source Article from https://www.newsweek.com/chinese-state-media-predicts-retaliation-gop-lawmakers-sued-beijing-coronavirus-1503946

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Court Allows Emoluments Case Against Trump Over D.C. Hotel To Proceed – NPR
Court Allows Emoluments Case Against Trump Over D.C. Hotel To Proceed – NPR

Updated at 9:54 a.m. ET

President Trump will not be able to shake off a lawsuit that accuses him of violating the Constitution by continuing to own his businesses while serving as president, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

The 9-6 decision by the full 4th Circuit Court of Appeals opens the way for the governments of Washington, D.C., and Maryland to get documents and financial records in the case.

In a 21-page decision, Judge Diana Gribbon Motz described some of the Department of Justice’s arguments on behalf of Trump as “puzzling.”

“[I]n the United States, every person — even the President — has a duty to obey the law,” wrote Motz.

The case centers on the once-obscure emoluments clauses of the Constitution, which prohibit the president from receiving gifts or favors from foreign and state governments. Trump’s downtown Washington hotel, which occupies a building leased from the federal government, has been at the epicenter of the ethics disputes around the president.

Officials from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other countries have collectively spent hundreds of thousands of dollars at the hotel, just a few blocks from the White House. The lawsuit’s plaintiffs say those profits are funneled directly to Trump’s business coffers.

The District of Columbia and Maryland say planners of major events are booking gatherings at Trump’s hotel over their own taxpayer-owned facilities, making them lose profits because, they allege, doing business at Trump’s hotel is now seen as a way to curry favor with the president.

A smaller panel of the court’s judges had initially ruled against D.C. and Maryland.

The case involving Trump’s hotel is one of multiple lawsuits that seek to pry open Trump’s business records in light of his decision to neither divest his assets nor disclose his financial records.

After his 2016 election, Trump broke with decades of practice by past presidents and decided to maintain ownership of his businesses, which include hotels, resorts and office buildings around the world. He says his sons manage the day-to-day operations, however.

Amid the legal challenges, the Trump Organization had been trying to sell the hotel. However, the economic downturn brought about the coronavirus pandemic has shelved those plans for now.

The 4th Circuit’s decision comes the same week that Trump’s attempts to prevent his tax and financial records from being released to Congress and New York state investigators were the subject of arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court. A decision in those cases is expected this summer.

The Department of Justice and Trump’s personal lawyers are likely to appeal Thursday’s ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, potentially setting up arguments in the case right at the peak of fall presidential campaign.

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2020/05/14/855903107/court-allows-emoluments-case-against-trump-over-d-c-hotel-to-proceed

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Coronavirus in Pennsylvania: G.O.P. Defiance of Lockdown Has 2020 Implications – The New York Times
Coronavirus in Pennsylvania: G.O.P. Defiance of Lockdown Has 2020 Implications – The New York Times

Republicans, sensing a gut-level anger in exurban and rural areas after nearly two months of restrictions, see an issue with the potential to drive turnout by voters in a state where Mr. Trump, as elsewhere in the industrial and Midwest region, needs a surge of support to repeat his narrow victory of 2016. In Wisconsin, also a swing state, the State Supreme Court sided with Republicans on Wednesday and threw out the stay-at-home order of Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat. In Texas, armed men have shown up to support businesses defying government orders to stay closed, an extreme sign of the politicizing of social distancing rules.

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/14/us/politics/pennsylvania-tom-wolf-coronavirus.html

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Owner of house Ahmaud Arbery seen entering in video is getting death threats – New York Post
Owner of house Ahmaud Arbery seen entering in video is getting death threats – New York Post

The owner of the under-construction house in Georgia that Ahmaud Arbery checked out before he was shot dead has been getting death threats — and may never move into his dream home, his lawyer has said.

Arbery, 25, had been shown on surveillance footage looking around the construction site in February — moments before he was shot dead in a caught-on-camera confrontation as he jogged away.

Now homeowner Larry English, 50, has been getting death threats because of the “mistaken impression” he shared fears of break-ins with the father and son charged with Arbery’s murder, his attorney told NBC News.

A still from the video appears to show Ahmaud Arbery calmly wandering around the construction site of a new house in GeorgiaREUTERS

It has so tainted the dream home he was building on the waterfront that he may never move in, lawyer Elizabeth Graddy told the broadcaster.

“Now, it’s honestly not safe,” Graddy said. “It’s supposed to be a place for comfort and peace. And now, it will be forever associated with this tragedy.”

English had once called a non-emergency police number about previous trespassing at the site, but he never used the word “burglary” — and never called the accused killers, Graddy insisted.

Larry EnglishCNN

“Even if there had been a robbery, however, the English family would not have wanted a vigilante response,” Graddy said. “They would have entrusted the matter to law enforcement authorities.”

English has made it clear he will not help the accused — Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son, Travis McMichael, 34 — if they plan to use supposed break-ins as their defense, she said.

“My clients were not part of what the McMichaels told themselves to do,” Graddy said, insisting that her client had only once briefly met one of them, Travis, but never called them.

“If the McMichaels are going to justify what they did, they are going to have to look elsewhere for help,” she said.

Source Article from https://nypost.com/2020/05/14/owner-of-house-ahmaud-arbery-entered-before-death-gets-death-threats/

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Coronavirus live updates: Court strikes down Wisconsin stay-at-home order, Matt Damon’s daughter had virus ‘early on’ and recovered – USA TODAY
Coronavirus live updates: Court strikes down Wisconsin stay-at-home order, Matt Damon’s daughter had virus ‘early on’ and recovered – USA TODAY

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has struck down the state’s stay-at-home order, the most dramatic statewide setback yet in the effort to slow the spread of coronavirus by closing businesses and limiting gatherings.

The move raises the possibility that local officials may make their own restrictions, leading to a patchwork of policies with rules varying significantly from one county to the next. Meanwhile, other states across the nation have been constantly adjusting their regulations in an attempt to flatten the curve of the virus while limiting devastating economic fallout.

There are now more than 84,000 deaths and almost 1.4 million confirmed cases in the U.S., according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard. Worldwide, the virus has killed more than 297,000 people and has infected more than 4.3 million.

Our live blog is being updated throughout the day. Refresh for the latest news, and get updates in your inbox with The Daily Briefing. Scroll down for more details.

Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/05/14/coronavirus-updates-wisconsin-stay-home-order-schools-reopening/5184153002/

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Judge Jeanine Pirro says Flynn case judge should be ’embarrassed to put a robe on’ after unusual order – Fox News
Judge Jeanine Pirro says Flynn case judge should be ’embarrassed to put a robe on’ after unusual order – Fox News
Video

Judge Jeanine Pirro on judge’s shocking delay on resolving Michael Flynn case

Federal Judge Emmit Sullivan has an obligation to rule on the case before him, says Judge Jeanine Pirro, host of ‘Justice.’

Judge Jeanine Pirro told “Tucker Carlson Tonight” Wednesday that U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan‘s decision to allow a third party to present arguments opposing the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss the case against former national security adviser Michael Flynn was “absolutely foreign.”

“The judge has an obligation to rule on the case before him,” Pirro told host Tucker Carlson. “It is not complicated. It is a motion to dismiss with one of the most fact-laden affidavit[s] … behind it to support the application to dismiss. It’s a ministerial move that this judge apparently doesn’t want to make.”

JUDGE IN FLYNN CASE APPOINTS THIRD PARTY TO ‘PRESENT ARGUMENTS’ AGAINST DISMISSAL

Earlier Wednesday, Sullivan appointed retired New York federal judge John Gleeson as an “amicus curiae,” or friend of the court. On Tuesday, Sullivan issued an order indicating he’ll soon accept “amicus” submissions in the case — drawing immediate scrutiny and a planned ethics complaint against Sullivan, who had previously refused to hear amicus briefs in the case.

“Now, they want to bring in the clowns,” the “Justice with Judge Jeanine” host told Carlson. “This morning, it was all the retired Watergate attorneys who want to come in and now we’re going to bring in someone else to tell the judge how to rule. He’s [Sullivan’s] been a judge for 30 years.”

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Pirro called on for Sullivan to “recuse himself,” adding that he “should be embarrassed to put a robe on.”

“This judge doesn’t belong on that case,” Pirro said. “And now what he’s doing is he’s poisoning the 2020 election … He’s trying to destroy the whole thing so that [Attorney General William] Barr looks like the villain here.”

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/media/jeanine-pirro-emmet-sullivan-should-be-embarrassed

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Trump’s rebuke of Fauci encapsulates rejection of science in virus fight – CNN
Trump’s rebuke of Fauci encapsulates rejection of science in virus fight – CNN

(CNN)President Donald Trump’s repudiation of Dr. Anthony Fauci has long been probable. Once the trusted doctor warned of the human cost of Trump’s push to quickly reopen the country, it became inevitable.

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    Bright Says Coronavirus Threatens ‘Darkest Winter’ In Modern Times – NPR
    Bright Says Coronavirus Threatens ‘Darkest Winter’ In Modern Times – NPR

    Federal scientist Richard Bright is seen during a 2018 congressional hearing

    Toya Sarno Jordan/Bloomberg via Getty Images


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    Federal scientist Richard Bright is seen during a 2018 congressional hearing

    Toya Sarno Jordan/Bloomberg via Getty Images

    Richard Bright, a career government scientist-turned whistleblower, will tell a congressional panel Thursday that without a stronger federal response, the coronavirus threatens to make 2020 the “darkest winter in modern history.”

    Bright is testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, which called the hearing after Bright filed a whistleblower complaint with the Office of Special Counsel.

    Bright contends he was removed from his post as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority by top officials at the Department of Health and Human Services “in response to my insistence that the government invest funding allocated to BARDA by Congress to address the COVID-19 pandemic into safe and scientifically vetted solutions, and not in drugs, vaccines and other technologies that lack scientific merit,” according to his prepared testimony, released Tuesday by the subcommittee.

    The House hearing is set to begin at 10 a.m. ET. Watch live here.

    Bright says his testimony is to be “forward looking,” and that he is speaking out “because science — not politics or cronyism — must lead the way to combat this deadly virus.”

    Bright contends his transfer to a lower ranking post at HHS because of his reluctance to promote use of the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine to treat patients with COVID-19, which had been touted by President Trump and others.

    Trump has dismissed Bright as “a disgruntled employee who’s trying to help the Democrats win an election.”

    In his written opening statement, Bright paints a gloomy picture unless the Trump administration responds more quickly and more strongly to the coronavirus.

    “It is painfully clear that we were not as prepared as we should have been,” Bright says. “We missed early warning signals and we forgot important pages from our pandemic playbook.”

    Bright warns, “Our window of opportunity is closing. If we fail to develop a national coordinated response, based in science, I fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities.”

    “The undeniable fact is there will be a resurgence of the COVID-19 this fall, greatly compounding the challenges of seasonal influenza and putting an unprecedented strain on our health care system,” he says. “Without clear planning and implementation of the steps that I and other experts have outlined, 2020 will be darkest winter in modern history.”

    Bright’s attorneys say the Office of Special Counsel has determined there were “reasonable grounds” to believe that his removal from his post at BARDA was retaliatory and therefore prohibited.

    The OSC says it can’t comment on an open case.

    Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2020/05/14/855254610/ousted-scientist-says-window-of-opportunity-to-fight-coronavirus-is-closing

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    FBI serves warrant on senator in investigation of stock sales linked to coronavirus – Los Angeles Times
    FBI serves warrant on senator in investigation of stock sales linked to coronavirus – Los Angeles Times

    Federal agents seized a cellphone belonging to a prominent Republican senator on Wednesday night as part of the Justice Department’s investigation into controversial stock trades he made as the novel coronavirus first struck the U.S., a law enforcement official said.

    Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, turned over his phone to agents after they served a search warrant on the lawmaker at his residence in the Washington area, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a law enforcement action.

    The seizure represents a significant escalation in the investigation into whether Burr violated a law preventing members of Congress from trading on insider information they have gleaned from their official work.

    To obtain a search warrant, federal agents and prosecutors must persuade a judge they have probable cause to believe a crime has been committed. The law enforcement official said the Justice Department is examining Burr’s communications with his broker.

    Such a warrant being served on a sitting U.S. senator would require approval from the highest ranks of the Justice Department and is a step that would not be taken lightly. Kerri Kupec, a Justice Department spokeswoman, declined to comment.

    A second law enforcement official said FBI agents served a warrant in recent days on Apple to obtain information from Burr’s iCloud account and said agents used data obtained from the California-based company as part of the evidence used to obtain the warrant for the senator’s phone.


    Burr sold a significant percentage of his stock portfolio in 33 different transactions on Feb. 13, just as his committee was receiving daily coronavirus briefings and a week before the stock market declined sharply. Much of the stock was invested in businesses that in subsequent weeks were hit hard by the plunging market.

    Burr and other senators received briefings from U.S. public health officials before the stock sales.

    A spokesperson for the FBI did not return phone messages seeking comment. A spokeswoman for Burr declined to comment. Burr has said he does not plan to run for reelection in 2022.

    Burr’s sell-off — which was publicly disclosed in ranges — amounted to between $628,000 and $1.72 million. The stock trades were first reported by ProPublica.

    After the sales became public, Burr said that he would ask the Senate Ethics Committee to review them.

    Burr is not the only senator who has come under fire for dumping stock as the virus neared the United States.


    In late February and early March, Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) sold stocks valued at between $1.25 million and $3.1 million in companies that later dropped significantly, including ExxonMobil. She also bought shares in Citrix, which makes telework software.

    Loeffler, who was appointed to her seat to fill a vacancy and faces an election later this year, said after the sales became public that she and her husband would divest all individual stocks.

    Burr, a longtime supporter of federal programs responsible for dealing with a pandemic, sits on two Senate committees that got early briefings on the coronavirus — the Intelligence Committee and the Senate committee that handles health issues.

    The health committee received a briefing on the virus on Feb. 12, one day before his stock trades.

    The same day Burr sold his stocks, Burr’s brother-in-law, Gerald Fauth, sold between $97,000 and $280,000 worth of six stocks, according to documents filed with the Office of Government Ethics. Fauth serves on the National Mediation Board, which provides mediation for labor disputes in the aviation and rail industries.

    Burr has denied coordinating trading with his brother-in-law.

    In 2012, Congress prohibited lawmakers from acting on intelligence they learn because of their privileged position, such as briefings with high-level federal officials.

    Under the STOCK Act, lawmakers are required to disclose their stock market activity but are still allowed to own stock, even in industries they might oversee.

    The law passed the Senate in 2012 in a 96-3 vote. Among the three senators to oppose the bill was Burr.

    Times staff writer Sarah D. Wire contributed to this report.

    Source Article from https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-05-13/fbi-serves-warrant-on-senator-stock-investigation

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    Bipartisan vow masks a rancorous reality for coronavirus oversight panel – POLITICO
    Bipartisan vow masks a rancorous reality for coronavirus oversight panel – POLITICO

    In fact, the parties started the day miles apart and ended it even further away. The first meeting of the new panel tasked with probing the government’s coronavirus response won’t be remembered for unearthing groundbreaking new policy information — and might not be remembered at all. But it was a visual distillation of the increasing dysfunction that has gripped Congress amid the coronavirus response and threatens to undermine oversight efforts going forward.

    For starters, Democrats beamed into the briefing from their living rooms while most of the Republicans gathered in the Capitol and lambasted Democrats for refusing to convene in Washington. At Scalise’s first chance to speak, he turned his camera around and panned the hearing room, which he said was a spacious venue where lawmakers, staff, the public and press could safely social distance while appearing in person.

    “With just 12 members, we can achieve model social distancing,” Scalise said, as the camera showed three staffers gathered closely together at the rear of the room, and GOP lawmakers disregarding the attending physician’s request that they wear masks. He added, “A virtual briefing unnecessarily sends the wrong message. Congress should be leading the way. We should not be the last to come back.”

    Republicans also slammed Democrats for hastily convening the briefing — which featured five expert witnesses, including former FDA Commissioners Scott Gottlieb and Mark McClellan — and declining to offer Republicans a chance to choose their own witness.

    But the stark divide between the parties extended to the substance of the briefing as well. Democrats — echoing the predictions of public health experts — described a crisis that could linger for year longer until a vaccine is developed. They worried about shortages of medical equipment, coronavirus tests and the prospect of renewed outbreaks that could erupt if the country reopens too quickly. They also repeatedly laid the crisis at the feet of a slow-going federal response that has at times left states to fend for themselves.

    “We’ve lost 82,000 Americans to coronavirus in less than three months, 21 million Americans thrown out of work, more than 1.3 million infections,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.). “I can understand our colleagues’ desperate efforts to distract form the crisis and to talk about almost anything else and to plunge us into partisan conflict.”

    Republicans, meanwhile, emphasized the skyrocketing unemployment rate and suggested the ills of mass unemployment could outweigh the efforts to guard against the virus through stay-at-home orders.

    “The key to all of this is perspective,” said Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.), describing suicides and postponed health procedures as a grave threat. “I don’t minimize [coronavirus] risk at all. It’s there. The problem is, the rest of society has certainly got a health problem as well.”

    Conservative Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) slammed one of the witnesses, Harvard University Global Health Institute Director Ashish Jha, as a partisan for suggesting that federal failures to ensure enough testing were the reason for the nationwide economic lockdown.

    Jha retorted: “Every expert on the left, right, and center agrees that we had to shut our economy down because the outbreak got too big. The outbreak got too big because we didn’t have a testing infrastructure that allowed us to put our arms around the outbreak. And so testing was the fundamental failure that forced our country to shut down.”

    Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushed the House to establish the coronavirus select committee last month, amid slow-going efforts to police the Trump administration’s handling of the coronavirus response. She tapped Clyburn, the Democratic caucus’ third-ranking member, to lead it and dismissed Republican claims that it would be used as a bludgeon against Trump in the heat of his 2020 reelection campaign.

    Source Article from https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/13/oversight-aid-coronavirus-256996

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