| Biden apologizes for telling radio host 'you ain't black' if you are considering voting for Trump Posted: 22 May 2020 08:46 AM PDT  Former Vice President Joe Biden suggested Friday morning that an African-American radio personality "ain't black" if he was questioning whether he should support the presumptive Democrat nominee over President Trump in the upcoming general election.
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| 'This is a bad practice': Doctors question FDA protocol for plasma treatment of coronavirus patients Posted: 22 May 2020 02:00 AM PDT  The story of convalescent plasma is one of a federal medical establishment wanting badly to compensate for its slow response to the coronavirus.
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| McConnell says coronavirus rescue package coming soon Posted: 22 May 2020 10:03 AM PDT  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Thursday another stimulus package to deal with the impact of the coronavirus was "not too far off."
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| India plans scrutiny of new portfolio investors from China, Hong Kong: sources Posted: 21 May 2020 11:01 PM PDT  India has drafted rules proposing tighter scrutiny of new Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) from China and Hong Kong, three government sources told Reuters, its latest effort to check foreign inflows during the coronavirus pandemic. The discussions come weeks after India said it will screen all foreign direct investment (FDI) from countries with which it shares a land border, a move it said was aimed at staving off takeovers when asset prices are depressed during the coronavirus pandemic. Two senior government sources said India could set up a body to scrutinize new FPI registrants from countries such as China, and the rules will also apply to Hong Kong, a special administrative region from where substantial Chinese investments are routed.
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| Republicans call for DOJ investigation into Planned Parenthood over coronavirus relief loans Posted: 22 May 2020 03:11 PM PDT  Republican lawmakers have asked the Department of Justice to look into how Planned Parenthood affiliates received Paycheck Protection Program loans.
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| Trump tells Fox News to 'fire their Fake Pollster' after network reports him 8 points behind Biden Posted: 22 May 2020 09:38 AM PDT  President Trump on Friday suggested Fox News should fire its pollster after the cable news network's latest national survey showed Joe Biden leading.
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| North Dakota governor on brink of tears as he decries ‘mask shaming’ Posted: 23 May 2020 11:51 AM PDT  Republican Doug Burgum called out 'senseless dividing line' between Americans over whether masks should be worn in public * Coronavirus – live US updates * Live global updatesIn North Dakota on Friday, the Republican governor, Doug Burgum, decried a "senseless dividing line" between US citizens over whether masks should be worn in public during the coronavirus pandemic.As he pleaded with citizens of his state to "try to dial up your empathy and your understanding", Burgum was moved to the brink of tears."We're all in this together and there's only one battle we're fighting," he said. "And that's the battle of the virus."As Donald Trump encourages states to reopen their battered economies, federal authorities are recommending covering the face in public when social distancing is difficult, for example in grocery stores.Some states require residents to wear masks in public settings. North Dakota, where Burgum allowed reopening to start from 1 May, does not.The president has notably refused to wear a mask in public, although he was photographed wearing one on a visit to a Ford plant in Michigan this week.On Saturday, Secret Service officers who were with the president on a trip to a golf course were pictured wearing masks. Trump was not.Some rightwing protesters have attracted publicity by refusing to wear masks, while some shopkeepers have reportedly sought to deny service to people wearing face coverings.Speaking to reporters at the state capitol in Bismarck on Friday, Bergum said he "would really love to see in North Dakota that we could just skip this thing that other parts of the nation are going through, that they're creating a divide. Either it's ideological or political or something around mask versus no mask."This is I would say a senseless dividing line and I would ask people to try to dial up your empathy and your understanding. If someone is wearing a mask, they're not doing it to represent what political party they're in or what candidates they support."As he continued, Burgum struggled not to break down in tears."They might be doing it because they've got a five-year-old who's been going through cancer treatments," he said."They might have vulnerable adults in their life who currently have Covid-19 and are fighting."So again, I would just love to see our state, as part of being 'North Dakota smart', also be 'North Dakota kind', 'North Dakota empathetic', 'North Dakota understanding', to do this thing. Because if somebody wants to wear a mask, there should be no mask shaming."According to Johns Hopkins University, by Saturday North Dakota had recorded 2,317 coronavirus cases and 52 deaths.
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| Coronavirus: Ohio health officials apologise for telling black Americans to avoid ‘gang symbolism’ on face masks Posted: 23 May 2020 06:20 AM PDT  Public health officials in Ohio were forced to issue an apology after their guidance on face masks told black Americans not to wear gang colours or symbols on home-made coverings.The Franklin County Public Health board, which covers the state's largest city Columbus, released a document last month addressed at "communities of colour" about wearing face masks.
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| Khashoggi's sons forgive Saudi killers, sparing 5 execution Posted: 21 May 2020 10:53 PM PDT  The family of slain Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi announced on Friday they have forgiven his Saudi killers, giving legal reprieve to five government agents who had been sentenced to death for an operation that cast a cloud of suspicion over the kingdom's crown prince. "We, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father as we seek reward from God Almighty," wrote one of his sons, Salah Khashoggi, on Twitter. Salah Khashoggi, who lives in Saudi Arabia and has received financial compensation from the royal court for his father's killing, explained that forgiveness was extended to the killers during the last nights of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in line with Islamic tradition to offer pardons in cases allowed by Islamic law.
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| Hair stylist exposed 84 people to virus Posted: 22 May 2020 07:22 PM PDT  Health officials were tracking down 91 people who were potentially exposed to determine if they've developed COVID-19.
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| UK PM Johnson resists calls to sack Cummings over 400 km drive Posted: 23 May 2020 01:57 AM PDT  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson resisted calls on Saturday from opposition parties to sack senior adviser Dominic Cummings after he travelled 400 km (250 miles) to northern England while his wife showed COVID-19 symptoms. Cummings, who masterminded the 2016 campaign to leave the European Union during the Brexit referendum, travelled to Durham in late March, when a strict lockdown was already in place. Johnson's office said Cummings made the journey to ensure his 4-year-old son could be properly cared for as his wife was ill with COVID-19 and there was a "high likelihood" that Cummings would himself become unwell.
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| 'We need answers': VA has given hydroxychloroquine to 1,300 vets with COVID-19 amid troubling studies Posted: 22 May 2020 03:06 PM PDT  Democrats are raising concerns over the Department of Veterans Affairs using hydroxychloroquine to treat veterans diagnosed with COVID-19, a path of treatment that has been shown to increase mortality in some patients.
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| Navajo Nation enters 57-hour lockdown as virus death toll rises Posted: 23 May 2020 11:04 AM PDT  Even essential businesses must remain closed as the entire tribe enters a strict lockdown for Memorial Day weekend.
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| Trump demands states reopen houses of worship 'right now' Posted: 22 May 2020 12:02 PM PDT  President Trump said Friday that he wanted state governors to allow the nation's houses of worship to reopen "right now" despite the ongoing health risks from the coronavirus pandemic posed by large gatherings of people.
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| Group: Texas naval base shooter voiced support for clerics Posted: 22 May 2020 10:02 AM PDT  The suspect killed during what the FBI is calling a "terrorism-related" attack at a Texas naval air base voiced support for hardline clerics, according to a group that monitors online activity of jihadists. The attack Thursday at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead. The gunman was identified on Friday by the FBI as 20-year-old Adam Salim Alsahli of Corpus Christi.
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| Trump wants justices' help to stymie investigations and lawsuits Posted: 22 May 2020 11:05 AM PDT  President Trump won at least a temporary reprieve from the Supreme Court this week in keeping secret grand jury materials from the Russia investigation away from Democratic lawmakers. The president and his administration are counting on the justices for more help to stymie other investigations and lawsuits.
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| Guatemala president scolds U.S. for deporting migrants with coronavirus Posted: 21 May 2020 08:51 PM PDT  Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei criticized the United States on Thursday for sending back migrants infected with the novel coronavirus to his Central American country and straining its weak health system. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, and Giammattei's attempts to curb deportation flights from the United States, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has been sending Guatemalan migrants back to their home country.
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| Trump admin won't require nursing homes to count COVID-19 deaths that occurred before May 6 Posted: 22 May 2020 02:43 PM PDT  The most recent computation by NBC News found that as of May 11 at least 27,000 older Americans who were residents of long-term care facilities had died.
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| Syria bars Assad's cousin from travel amid financial dispute Posted: 22 May 2020 05:19 AM PDT |
| Tucker Carlson and Pete Hegseth Try to Bring ‘Kung Flu’ Back Posted: 21 May 2020 07:39 PM PDT  Fox News hosts Tucker Carlson and Pete Hegseth on Thursday night defended the use of racist terms to describe the novel coronavirus, all while wondering why Democrats are "sucking up" to China by decrying these phrases.Taking aim at Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) for introducing a Senate resolution condemning "anti-Asian sentiment as related to COVID-19"—which includes the use of the phrase "Wuhan virus"—Carlson claimed Harris was denouncing "basic facts." "Why is she sucking up to the government of China, exactly?" Carlson wondered aloud before introducing Hegseth, a Fox & Friends co-host and informal Trump adviser."Say it with me, Tucker," Hegseth excitedly declared. "Wuhan virus, Chinese virus, maybe even the 'Kung Flu.' A little off-color, but funny and you know, we still live in a free country the last time I checked."Back in March, when President Trump and many Republican allies were making a show of calling the disease the "Chinese virus," Chinese-American CBS reporter Weijia Jiang said a White House official referred to coronavirus as "the Kung Flu" right to her face. Trump would later brush off the controversy, insisting Asian-Americans agreed "100 percent" with his use of "Chinese virus" to describe COVID-19.Hegseth complained that the left wants to "weaponize" language and "control it" in an effort to make conservatives appear to be the "bad guy," something that Carlson agreed with wholeheartedly."They control language to control your thoughts," Carlson declared.Hegseth would then go on to hawk his latest book, American Crusade, claiming America is now in a "holy war and the righteous cause for human freedom" before snarking that the left should file a class-action lawsuit."They should seek reparation because they've been damaged forever with the title they were given based on the racist notions of Americans who name something after where it came from," he exclaimed. "As we're staring down the communist Chinese who want to end our civilization. So, join the crusade, that's what it's going to take to save our country."Hate crimes against Asian-Americans, meanwhile, have continued to rise amid the coronavirus pandemic, as people of Asian descent have increasingly reported being verbally assaulted, coughed at, and spat on by assailants who blame them for the virus.Kellyanne Conway Spars With Reporters Over 'Kung-Flu' Coronavirus SlurRead more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| US presses advancing Libya government to end fighting Posted: 22 May 2020 01:14 PM PDT  US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday pressed Libya's Turkish-backed government for a ceasefire and criticized the flow of weapons as Tripoli pushes back against a year-old rebel offensive. Pompeo placed a phone call to Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to "reiterate US opposition to the continued level of weapons and munitions being brought into the country," the State Department said. Pompeo and Sarraj "emphasized the importance of an immediate halt to the fighting and return to political dialogue," a statement said.
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| Pakistan plane crash survivor: 'All I could see was fire' Posted: 23 May 2020 04:51 AM PDT  At least 97 people have died after a plane hit a Karachi residential area as it tried to land.
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| Palestinians report first coronavirus death in Gaza Posted: 23 May 2020 09:07 AM PDT  A woman has died in Gaza Strip after contracting coronavirus, the Palestinian enclave's first known fatality from the global pandemic, the health ministry said on Saturday. Blockaded and short on medical facilities, Gaza, run by the Islamist group Hamas, has reported only 55 coronavirus infection cases among its population of two million. Meanwhile, in the Israeli occupied West Bank, where Palestinians have limited self-rule, there have been two deaths and 423 cases.
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| US government health agency CDC revises guidance on spread of coronavirus on surfaces Posted: 22 May 2020 08:50 AM PDT  The coronavirus is primarily spread from person-to-person and not easily from surfaces or objects, the US's government health agency has said in revised guidance. Catching the virus from delivery boxes or takeout food bags, for example, is highly unlikely "because of poor survivability of these coronaviruses on surfaces," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) writes. The virus travels mostly through the droplets a person produces when talking or coughing, its website says. "It may be possible that a person can get Covid-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes," it adds. "This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, but we are still learning more about this virus." While this information is not new, the new phrasing calls more attention to how the disease is not likely to spread.
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| A haunting image of a body abandoned in the street in coronavirus-racked Rio shows how Brazil's health system is struggling to cope Posted: 23 May 2020 07:29 AM PDT  Brazil is now the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in Latin America, with a rocketing death toll and leadership crisis.
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| Iranian ships approach Venezuela with no sign of US threat Posted: 23 May 2020 04:48 PM PDT  The first of five tankers loaded with gasoline sent from Iran approached Venezuelan waters late Saturday, expected to temporarily ease the South American nation's fuel crunch while defying Trump administration sanctions targeting the two U.S. foes. The oil tanker Fortune encountered no immediate signs of U.S. interference as it eased through Caribbean waters toward the Venezuelan coast and Venezuelan officials celebrated the arrival. "Iran and Venezuela have always supported each other in times of difficulty," Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza tweeted.
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| This Giant Monument to Elon Musk Has Tulsa Residents Furious Posted: 22 May 2020 06:04 PM PDT  In a dystopian bid to lure Tesla's Cybertruck Gigafactory to Tulsa, the Oklahoma state monument—a seven-story, 22-ton statue of an oil worker called The Golden Driller—has been redesigned as an effigy of Elon Musk. The likeness of X Æ A-12's multibillionaire father, now called The Driller 'Golden Elon,' is one of the largest free-standing statues in the U.S. "Tulsa is a city that doesn't stifle entrepreneurs - we revere them!" Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum wrote on Facebook, prompting an onslaught of enraged replies. "Golden @elonmusk is now the 6th-tallest statue in the United States. TulsaforTesla @Tesla." The gargantuan statue, unveiled earlier this week at a community event and on Bynum's social media, now features a red Tesla logo painted on its chest. The Driller's 48-foot belt, which once read "TULSA," was changed to read "TESLA." If you squint, the statue's head now looks like a low-budget YouTube cartoon of Musk. "I was told onsite it was an 'Elon Musk Face Skin,'" one worker wrote on Facebook. "It went on like a fruit roll-up." "It's this weird, ghostly, white mask-like thing," said Lucas Wrench, a 28-year-old Tulsa Artist Fellow, who runs an arts space called OK 1. "It sort of looks like if you FaceSwapped with some creature. I just couldn't believe it. I'm shocked at how transparent it is—the kind of a symbol they created in putting this enormous billionaire, literally a giant towering billionaire in Tulsa—the lack of self-awareness. They're groveling."The redesign was spearheaded by a "community-led group" called Tulsa For Tesla, in coordination with the Tulsa County Fairgrounds, a spokesperson for Bynum told The Daily Beast. The group has no online profile, although there is a Facebook page for a group called "Tulsa 4 Tesla," which was started May 17 and boasts 104 followers as of Friday. The administrator of that page told The Daily Beast they had not organized the redesign, but simply wanted Musk to move there. "I had no idea [the other Tulsa For Tesla] existed until a few days ago," the Tulsa 4 Tesla administrator wrote. "I would have thought they would have [a Facebook] page. When I named this one I looked [for others], even using '4' instead of 'For' Tulsa." "The City did not coordinate the Driller Golden Elon," the mayor's spokesperson wrote. "Mayor Bynum spoke at the community-led event earlier this week." Still, Bynum has made similar suggestions to redesign city structures in Musk's image. Earlier this week, reported by CBS News, Bynum posted an image of a Tesla Cybertruck sporting the Tulsa Police logo on Instagram, suggesting police officers would use the pixelated, sci-fi-looking monstrosities if the factory came to town. "The Golden Driller is something that's commonly decorated for special events and holidays," said Sydney Smith, a 22-year-old from Tulsa, who now studies at the Kansas City Art Institute. "Sometimes they paint it to look like wacky stuff, but painting it to paint like the face of Elon Musk is one of the most disturbing things I've ever seen. It's asking a billionaire to come in and just bring his billionaire status to our town."The Golden Driller has undergone makeovers in the past. The first iteration was constructed in 1952 for the International Petroleum Exposition, an annual trade fair in Tulsa. At the time, the belt buckle read "MID-CONTINENT," after the company that commissioned it, The Mid-Continent Supply Company of Fort Worth. In 1959, after the statue attracted attention, the company built a second for that year's expo, before donating it to the Tulsa County Fairgrounds Trust Authority. In 1966, the Trust had it installed permanently by the Tulsa Expo Center, to commemorate the city as the "Oil Capital of the World." When the state adopted it as its official monument in 1979, they changed the massive buckle to read "TULSA."White Anti-Quarantine Protesters Have Cruelly Co-opted an Enslaved Black Woman from the 18th CenturyThe Kentucky Miner Who Scammed Americans by Claiming He Was Hitler and Plotting a 'Revolt' With 'Spaceships'At the base of the statue, which "wears" a size-112 hard hat and size-393DDD shoes, an inscription reads, "The Golden Driller, a symbol of the International Petroleum Exposition. Dedicated to the men of the petroleum industry who by their vision and daring have created from God's abundance a better life for mankind."The redesign reorients a city literally nicknamed the "Oil Capital of the World" toward green energy, at least symbolically. Some residents are riled for precisely that reason. "What a fantastic use of tax dollars!! �� ," a Facebook user named Stacy Spohn Bay wrote. "Tulsa was built on oil, not electric/solar power. How degrading, desperate and embarrassing to see this." Progressives like Smith aren't sure how far the gesture goes. "Sure, they're making efforts to make a sustainable vehicle, but it's not necessarily something that's affordable," she said. "It's more of a status symbol and a way for a billionaire to make billions of dollars than something that's going to actually make a positive contribution to the environment, especially in a place like Tusla that's surrounded by refineries.""Our mayor, G.T. Bynum, I think he gets a lot of credit for being this sensible Republican," Wrench added. "Yeah, we're an oil town, but he's not afraid of clean energy. I think maybe, that is where this started. But they ignored the fact that Elon is just an insanely hated billionaire and that is by the far the dominant symbol that comes across to most people." Wrench plans to host a talk next Thursday called The Colossus of Musk, with Art History Professor Bill Anthes and Rome Prize Winner Classics Professor Michelle Berenfeld, both of Pitzer College, about the history of mega sculptures and what the "Golden Elon" means from an art perspective.The race to determine Tesla's new home came after Musk sued Alameda County in California, demanding to reopen his plant in Fremont, in flagrant violation of the state's stay-at-home order. On Twitter, Musk announced plans to move Tesla's "HQ and future programs to Texas/Nevada immediately." "While we love the idea of Tesla's Cybertruck plant moving to Tulsa, which would provide good paying jobs for Oklahoma families, move our state towards clean energy, and transition TPD to green vehicles, we have concerns pertaining to the fair treatment of workers," Tulsa activist publication The Progressive Report told The Daily Beast. "Led by Musk, Tesla committed several violations to the US National Labour Relations Act in 2017 & 2018\. Knowing Tesla's history of violating workers' rights, it's important we keep a watchful eye on them, especially if they decide to reside in T-Town."According to Electrek, Tesla plans to announce their new factory's site as soon as this month, and by July at the latest. "Maybe there's some benefit by bringing some jobs to Tulsa," Smith said, "But at the same time—outside of any opinions I have about Telsa or Elon Musk—a lot of times big corporations will propose bringing a headquarters to Tusla, and it will go to another city like Austin. The gentrification that comes to cities that used to have a similar vibe to Tulsa has the impact of raising the rent and raising the property taxes for the people that live there and call that place home." Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Black Americans are in an abusive relationship with the Democratic party Posted: 22 May 2020 01:02 PM PDT  An offensive comment by the Democratic presidential candidate is a reminder that black people – all people – deserve better than Joe BidenI am very tired of Joe Biden. My vote for him was already hanging by a thread before his disastrous interview with Charlamagne tha God on Friday. Interrupting the Breakfast Club host's explanation that black people needed assurances that our communities will benefit from his presidency, Biden asserted: "If you've got a problem figuring out whether you're for me or for Trump, then you ain't black."Again, I am very tired of Joe Biden. Not because I am a purist, or have inflexible ideological commitments of what it will take to remove Donald Trump from office. But rather because Biden's condescension towards black communities is intolerable.I want to believe that Biden's condescension started after the respected Representative James Clyburn called the former vice-president an "honorary black man" at a private dinner in March. But his mistreatment of black people, verbally and politically, is decades old, and is a reflection of the Democratic party in general.Throughout Biden's career, he has boasted about his ability to bridge partisan divides by sacrificing the needs of black people and poor people in the name of "compromise". For the last 30 years, Biden has repeatedly talked about freezing, cutting, or raising the age for social security and other benefits – as much as $2tn one time. His response to concerns that these cuts would hurt the poor? "We're going to do lots of hard things … we might as well do this."Social security is an important program for black people, especially as we age. Among African Americans receiving social security, 35% of elderly married couples and 58% of unmarried elderly persons relied on it for 90% or more of their income. The reliance is not due to laziness or spending habits – people of color and white people make similar choices and contributions to retirement – but due to racism, lack of workplace retirement plans and barriers to accessing high-paying jobs."They know where my heart is," Biden has said, of black voters.But do we?Senator Kamala Harris was severely scrutinized for her treatment of poor black women as a prosecutor – yet Biden's criminal justice record makes Harris look like Thurgood Marshall. Biden authored and successfully passed the $30bn 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. Besides putting 100,000 additional police officers in the streets, the crime bill distributed funding for new prison construction, encouraged prosecutors to charge children as adults, and even added the death penalty for 28 new areas, including drug-related offenses. Pushing for further criminalization, then senator Biden argued that George HW Bush's crime plan did not go far enough because it did not "include enough police officers to catch the violent thugs, not enough prosecutors to convict them, not enough judges to sentence them, and not enough prison cells to put them away for a long time". An older black generation fought through Jim Crow only for Biden to help make sure that their children and grandchildren lived through a new Jim Crow.On the House floor, Biden compared his criminal justice approach to Richard Nixon's law and order stance: "I would say, 'Lock the SOBs up.'" Black people were arrested in droves following this bill, despite comparable drug use rates to white people; many are still sitting in prison today. Biden has since acknowledged flaws in the bill, but last summer he reiterated his support for the bill. The law spent $30bn but contributed to only a 1.3% decline in violent crime. He has yet to call for it to be repealed.Today, some cities plan to expunge marijuana records and hope to pay reparations to black people formerly incarcerated for marijuana offenses. But Biden can't seem to let go; he is inconsistent and ambivalent about marijuana legalization. He has argued it may be a gateway drug, a statement he has since dialed back. Of course, keeping marijuana illegal at the federal level does not mean that people will not use it, but rather that the extra police that he put on the street will send people of color to jail for using it. Ironically, the police were probably nowhere to be found when Biden's friends George W Bush and Barack Obama used marijuana. If anything, the drug seems to be a gateway to the White House.Despite attempting to cut social programs and increasing mass incarceration, Biden claims to care about black families. But he doesn't seem to know many. During the September 2019 Democratic debate he claimed that poor families should put on a record player so their children will know more words. Recently, during an interview with the New York Times editorial board, he argued that poor black parents feel ashamed because they cannot read and skip parent-teacher conferences. He was hoping to encourage them to be better parents. But his assertion is incorrect. Black and white parents have comparable participation rates overall and attend parent-teacher conferences at the exact same rates. In fact, black parents and poor parents are the most likely to check their children's homework and meet with guidance counselors. Biden instead relied on stereotypes that black people are not involved in their children's lives.Harris forced Biden to confront his work with racist elected officials to stop integration efforts using school busing. That was not his only education mistake. Biden played a significant role in creating the student debt crisis, including making student loan discharge "nearly impossible". This is devastating to black people, who disproportionately carry school debt. While the average school debt for black women with a bachelor's degree is about $25,000, that level of education does not provide the same level of financial security for black women as it does other groups, including white people with less education (primarily because of sexism and racism).Again and again, Biden's relationship with black Americans, like the Democratic National Committee's relationship, has been patronizing at best and actively harmful at worst.> Biden's friendship with one black person does not mean that he's a friend to black peopleSome black people will support Biden because of his association with Barack Obama – even though Obama himself doesn't seem especially excited about Biden becoming president. The Obama days feel distant yet warm compared to Donald Trump's current presidency. But remember: Biden cycled millions of black people in and out of jail, voted for massive numbers of poor people to go to war in Iraq, threw Anita Hill under the bus to confirm a conservative justice to the US supreme court, and, under Obama's administration, helped to deport millions of immigrants and bombed brown countries. When Biden was vice-president, black home ownership and wealth declined significantly, even as it rose for other races. Biden's friendship with one black person does not mean that he's a friend to black people.The Democratic party holds black people in an abusive relationship but says you cannot leave because the other option is more abusive. That's why I don't believe that a vote against Biden solely means a vote for Trump. Perhaps it is a vote against being captured by the party that makes empty promises every four years when it is election time, and delivers nothing. Perhaps it is a vote against the crime bill, drones and deportations. Perhaps it is a vote against covert and overt racism.Biden and others will rightfully argue that Trump is worse, and I agree. But what can Biden actually deliver? Will there be fewer drones if he's president? Maybe not. Fewer deportations? Maybe not. Less money to police departments? No. Will fewer black people die from police? Unlikely. Will black people have healthcare? Unlikely. Will black wealth increase? Unlikely. Will Palestinian lives be safer? Unlikely. Commitments to preserving our climate? Doubtful. If black people have a hard time figuring out the differences between Trump and Biden, then that is Biden's problem, not ours.Joe Biden refuses to reckon with the harm that he has caused to people all over the world. His best line is that he is better than the other guy, and that is exactly how abusive relationships function. Black people – all people – deserve better than Biden and the Democratic party. And yes, we are still black. * Derecka Purnell is a social movement lawyer and writer based in Washington, DC. Guardian US columnist
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| 'The end of Hong Kong': China's power grab stuns protest-hit territory Posted: 22 May 2020 07:51 AM PDT  "This is the end of Hong Kong and it's like the end of our homeland," said Tanya Chan, a legislator in the territory.
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| A Mississippi church that violated coronavirus orders was burned down. A spray-painted message said 'bet you stay home now'. Posted: 22 May 2020 03:13 PM PDT  A judge previously accused the church of having "insufficient respect for the enormity of the health crisis which the COVID-19 pandemic presents."
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| Argentina, creditors get ready to resume debt talks after ninth sovereign default Posted: 23 May 2020 08:16 AM PDT  A major Argentina creditor group said on Saturday it had been invited to sign a non-disclosure agreement by Argentina's government, signaling that talks could be moving to the next phase after the South American country defaulted a day earlier. The Exchange Bondholder Group, which comprises 18 investment institutions and represents 15% of Argentina's exchange bonds, said in a statement that Argentina approached its representatives and other creditor groups about signing a non-disclosure agreement "in contemplation of engaging in negotiations with the Ministry of Economy." It is common during debt restructurings for creditor committees to agree to limit the flow of information near the end of talks, as some of it may be material and non-public, a source from another creditor committee said.
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| Businesses 'will have to pay a fifth of furloughed workers' wages' Posted: 22 May 2020 07:02 PM PDT  Businesses will have to pay at least a fifth of the wages of furloughed workers in coming months, it has been reported. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said the furlough scheme will be in place until at least October with companies to be asked to "start sharing" the cost from the start of August. The Times reports that the Treasury has devised a scheme which would see employers cover between 20 per cent and 30 per cent of a worker's wage. The plans would also see firms paying national insurance contributions, which are approximately 5 per cent of people's wages. The furlough scheme - which pays 80 per cent of a worker's salary up to a £2,500 monthly cap - currently supports around 7.5 million jobs, with Mr Sunak saying earlier this month he was preparing to "wean" workers and business off the programme amid concerns that the nation was becoming "addicted" to it. The latest report comes a day after new data showed the total volume of retail sales dropped a record 18.1 per cent in April as hundreds of thousands of businesses were forced to shut up shop to help tackle coronavirus.
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| Expletive-filled video of Bolsonaro swearing at cabinet meeting released by Brazil's Supreme Court Posted: 23 May 2020 03:31 AM PDT  Expletive-filled footage of Brazil's far-right president complaining about not being able to get intelligence from the police has been released by the country's Supreme Court.Jair Bolsonaro vows, in the clip, that he will not let his friends and family get "screwed" because he is unable to overhaul law enforcement officials.
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| 11-year-old girl says racism behind white woman’s assault Posted: 22 May 2020 01:41 PM PDT  An 11-year-old African American girl from South Carolina said she didn't think a white woman who accused her of stealing mail was being racist until the woman's husband told the girl that if she were "a different type," things would have turned out differently. Elizabeth Shirey, 38, was charged with assault and battery after grabbing Skhylur Davis' arm as she walked back to her grandmother's house in Aiken with her mail, according to a police report. When Shirey saw the address on the mail she let the girl go, apologized and then offered Skhylur cookies, the girl told officers.
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| US to sanction nine Chinese entities for rights violations Posted: 22 May 2020 01:44 PM PDT  The US Department of Commerce said Friday it would sanction a Chinese government institute and eight companies for human rights abuses against Uighurs and other minorities in China's western Xinjiang region. "These nine parties are complicit in human rights violations and abuses committed in China's campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention, forced labor and high-technology surveillance against Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs, and other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region," the Commerce Department said in a statement. The sanctions followed China's move to impose a national security law to quash the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, which US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called a "disastrous proposal."
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| Caught on camera: Puppy choked in shocking confrontation in San Francisco homeless tent Posted: 22 May 2020 07:47 PM PDT  A confrontation between two homeless women led to a six-month-old puppy being choked. The authorities did not take action, until the ABC7 I-Team got involved.
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| ‘Wise Guy’ Biden Apologizes for ‘You Ain’t Black’ Gaffe Posted: 22 May 2020 09:01 AM PDT  Former Vice President Joe Biden apologized on Friday afternoon just hours after telling radio host Charlamagne Tha God that he "ain't black" if he had additional questions about whether to support Biden's presidential bid over Donald Trump's."I should not have been so cavalier. I've never, never, ever taken the African-American community for granted," Biden said on a call with the Black Chamber of Commerce. "I shouldn't have been such a wise guy."Before Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, addressed the remark, his campaign had moved quickly to clarify it, saying that he was speaking in jest. "The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but let's be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trump's any day. Period," Symone Sanders, a senior adviser to Biden, wrote on Twitter after the segment aired. Biden made the comment on Friday morning during an interview with Charlamagne on popular radio show "The Breakfast Club." After being asked about his search for a vice presidential candidate, Biden first answered vaguely by saying he's "not acknowledging anybody who is being considered" before adding that he could "guarantee" there were "multiple black women being considered."African-American voters are the most loyal constituency in the Democratic Party and played a key role in elevating Biden's candidacy to the status of presumptive nominee.Pressed for additional details, an advisor interrupted to wrap up the interview. Charlamagne then said, "You can't do that to black media!""I do that to white media and black media because my wife has to go on at 6 o'clock," Biden replied, while looking at his watch and saying, "I'm in trouble." "Listen, you've got to come see us when you come to New York, VP Biden," Charlamagne said. "It's a long way until November. We've got more questions." Biden said, in an apparent light-hearted fashion: "You've got more questions? Well, I tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black."Charlamagne said it had nothing to do with Trump but was about wanting something "for my community.""Take a look at my record, man!" Biden responded. "I have a record that is second-to-none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run, I mean, c'mon. Take a look at the record."Within minutes, Trump-aligned Republicans happily seized on the moment. Hosting an impromptu call with reporters, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser on Trump's reelection campaign, called Biden's comment "extremely racist.""We hear a lot on the left, particularly in the media, about white privilege," Pierson said. "And I think this video... of an 80-year-old man telling a young black man how to be black is the definition of white privilege." (Biden is 77.) She added: "He basically says, 'how dare you,' as if black America has the audacity to ask more questions about a candidate who is running for president of the United States."Scott, the only African-American Republican in the Senate, said he was "shocked and surprised" by Biden's remark. Choosing not to respond directly to a question about the suggestion it was said in jest, Scott said he was "struck by the condescension and the arrogance in his comments.""I could not believe my ears that he would stoop so low to tell folks what they should do, how they should think, and what it means to be black. That is as arrogant, and offensive, and demeaning as I can imagine in this time that we're living," the senator said.A handful of Bernie Sanders' supporters and African-American celebrities were quick to dunk on Biden for apparently assuming he had the black vote sealed."Aye bruh," rapper P Diddy tweeted at Biden. "I already told you the BlackVoteAintFree"But other Democrats and prominent media figures weighed in delicately, with some brushing off the moment as unlikely to sway voters. Jonathan Capehart, a Washington Post opinion writer who is African-American, wrote that it was clearly a joke when considered in the context of the 18-minute interview. His argument was retweeted by Charlamagne. One Democratic strategist close to the Biden campaign downplayed the exchange as "bubble stuff," referring to flash moments that insiders and D.C. press talk about, but that won't resonate widely with voters in November.Tiffany Cross, author of Say It Louder! Black Voters, White Narratives, & Saving Our Democracy, who wrote an open letter with several prominent black public figures, agreed it was unlikely to influence votes or turnout. But, she added, "his appeal to Black voters needs to be something beyond 'I'm better than the other guy.'" "Biden makes the mistake of assuming he has the Black vote in the bag. He does not. He needs a ticket that will energize people," Cross said, emphasizing for the need for Biden to select a black female running mate. "He may feel comfortable making comments in jest. But he should know all Black voters are not yet comfortable with him. There's still work to be done. That doesn't mean Black voters will cast a ballot for Trump. But he doesn't just want our votes. He has a responsibility at the top of the ticket to think down ballot. Hence, he and the party wants our votes, our dollars, our canvassing, our phone banking, our enthusiasm."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| This might be one of the best weekends — ever — to buy a new car Posted: 22 May 2020 09:08 AM PDT  With dealers anxious to get their businesses back in gear, don't be afraid to bargain more aggressively than you normally would, experts say.
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| Is international travel allowed yet? See when Spain, Mexico, Iceland plan to reopen borders Posted: 23 May 2020 12:34 PM PDT  Spain has announced that it will reopen its borders to foreign tourists in July and Mexico will start reopening in June. See when others will follow.
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