U.S.TheGrioCity manager fired after calling for ‘due process’ in police shooting of Daunte Wright
In an emergency meeting Monday, Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott was given authority over the city's police department. Curt Boganey, city manager of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, has been fired in the wake of the police shooting death of Daunte Wright. At an emergency meeting Monday afternoon, the Brooklyn Center City Council voted 3-2 to give authority over the police department to Mayor Mike Elliott.
PoliticsAssociated PressWhite House: First lady Jill Biden to undergo 'procedure'
The White House says President Joe Biden will accompany his wife, Jill Biden, Wednesday morning to an appointment where she will undergo a “common medical procedure. The White House says both Bidens will then return to the White House and “resume their normal schedule. Later Wednesday, the president is set to address the nation on his plans to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021.
U.S.AxiosGov. DeSantis directs Florida to close Piney Point wastewater reservoir after averting disaster
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Tuesday he directed the state's Department of Environmental Protection to develop a plan to permanently close the wastewater reservoir at Piney Point phosphate plant that recently threatened to cause a catastrophic environmental disaster, according to AP. Why it matters: The governor said that $15.4 million in agency funds will be used to treat the water, which contains waste from the phosphate production that can cause algae blooms and fish kills and eventually impact the food chain if introduced into the environment in large amounts. What they're saying: “We want this to be the last chapter of the Piney Point story,” DeSantis said Tuesday, according to AP.
PoliticsThe WeekTrump skewers FDA's Johnson & Johnson decision — then casually invents conspiracy theory blaming Pfizer
Former President Donald Trump released a statement Tuesday criticizing the Food and Drug Administration's recommendation to pause the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, baselessly suggesting the decision was politically motivated. "The results of this vaccine have been extraordinary, but now it's [sic] reputation will be permanently challenged," Trump said. "[The FDA] should not be able to do such damage for possibly political reasons, or maybe because their friends at Pfizer have suggested it," he said.
U.S.Raleigh News and ObserverNC town to appeal after judge threatens officials with jail — again — over seized cash.
The legal fight over the police seizure of $17,000 in Mooresville took on a Whac-A-Mole quality this week with a judge again holding the town in contempt only to see town officials file another appeal to stop her. On Monday — and for the second time this year — Iredell County District Judge Christine Underwood threatened town leaders and police with jail time for not returning Jermaine Sanders' money. The judge gave officials seven days to comply with her signed order or she would start putting people behind bars.
WorldArchitectural DigestThe World’s 9 Most Expensive Home Listings Currently on the Market
These fantastical houses range from a 64,000-acre Texas ranch to an oceanside estate in the south of France Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
WorldReutersChina push for global power tops U.S. security threats: intelligence report
China's push for global power is the leading threat to U.S. national security, while Russia's efforts to undermine American influence and assert itself as a major actor also pose a challenge, said a U.S. intelligence report released on Tuesday. The 2021 Annual Threat Assessment lays out U.S. spy agencies' views of the chief foreign policy issues facing U.S. President Joe Biden in his first year in office, complicated by the coronavirus pandemic and global climate change. While China and Russia are presented as the leading challenges, Iran and North Korea will also test U.S. national security, the report said.
WorldDefense NewsUK official: American warhead decision won’t impact British nuclear plans
The United Kingdom's plan to increase its nuclear warhead stockpile will not be impacted should the U.S. scrap a new submarine-launched nuclear warhead, a British Ministry of Defence official said Tuesday. “The number of warheads we need for the future is not determined by anything which the U.S. is doing on W93,” Angus Lapsley, the MoD's director general for strategy and international issues, said during an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The W93 is a new nuclear warhead design for use aboard submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
PoliticsKansas City StarDisgraced MO Rep. Rick Roeber calls it quits. Never forget what happened to his kids
Disgraced Missouri state Rep. Rick Roeber announced his resignation Tuesday afternoon, just steps ahead of potential ouster proceedings in the House chamber. Roeber, of Lee's Summit, had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for alleged sexual assault of his now-adult child Anastasia, and physical abuse of Samson Roeber, a sibling. Gabrielle Galeano, a sister, said she was aware of Roeber's behavior at the time.
WorldBBCTaiwan: 'Record number' of China jets enter air zone
Taiwan has said a record number of Chinese military jets flew into its air defence zone on Monday. The defence ministry said 25 aircraft including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers entered its so-called air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on Monday. The incursion is the largest in a year and comes as the US warns against an "increasingly aggressive China".
U.S.Miami HeraldThree newcomers lead Miami Shores council race, but a recount is still possible
Three political newcomers appear headed for seats on the Miami Shores Village Council after unofficial results were posted Tuesday night, with just 22 votes separating the third and fourth place finishers — although a machine recount is still possible. If the results hold, top vote-getter Sandra Harris will be sworn in April 20 as the second Black mayor in Miami Shores' 89-year history, replacing current Mayor Crystal Wagar, who will stay on the council. The current results also put Katia Saint Fleur in third place, which would make her the council's first-ever Haitian-American woman and create a Black majority on the five-person body for the first time.
U.S.USA TODAYA grieving daughter dropped her toy. A president gave it back.
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden and congressional leaders paid tribute Tuesday to U.S. Capitol Police Officer William "Billy" Evans during a solemn ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda. Evans, an 18-year member of the force who served on the agency's First Responders Unit, died during an attack at the Capitol earlier this month. His body is lying in honor in the Rotunda, an unusual distinction for a private citizen.
U.S.Miami HeraldWhat do you want from Miami-Dade County government? Thrive305 seeks answers this week
About six miles divided two participants in Monday night's town hall on Miami-Dade County government, but there was a wide gap in how they described their local parks options. One question asked residents to pick among government actions to improve public safety.
- NewsYahoo News Video
Fauci: Breakthrough infections after vaccinations 'inevitable'
It is inevitable that some people who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus will still get a "breakthrough" infection because no vaccine is 100 percent effective, Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Monday.
PoliticsUSA TODAYFact check: False claim that President Joe Biden's approval rating lowest in American history
The claim: President Joe Biden's approval rating is at 11%, the lowest of any president in American history President Joe Biden already has tangled with members of both parties over the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic, immigration and infrastructure since his inauguration less than three months ago. But his approval rating is not at an historic low, as a viral social media post suggests. The post, originally from a Twitter account on March 29, attributes Biden's supposed 11% approval rating to a Gallup poll, as reported by the Daily Caller.
U.S.Business InsiderMatt Gaetz's indicted associate Joel Greenberg has been cooperating against him since last year, report says
Joel Greenberg has been cooperating against Rep. Matt Gaetz since last year, NYT reported. Greenberg reportedly told investigators that he and Gaetz had interactions with women who were given cash or gifts in exchange for sex. Gaetz has been embroiled in a political firestorm since The Times reported that he was being investigated over whether he broke sex trafficking laws.
TechnologyCBS NewsSoftware fix planned for Mars helicopter
The long-awaited maiden flight of an experimental $80 million mini helicopter carried to Mars by the Perseverance rover is on hold while engineers test software to resolve a glitch that cropped up Friday during a pre-flight test, NASA announced Monday. If all goes well, the team hopes to determine a new flight date next week. Engineers initially expected to clear the Ingenuity helicopter for launch Sunday on a 30-second up-and-down flight to verify the 4-pound drone can, in fact, autonomously lift off, hover and land in the ultra-thin atmosphere of Mars.
WorldThe IndependentBiden tells Putin to de-escalate troop build-up on Ukraine border and invites him to summit
Joe Biden called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to deescalate tensions at the Ukraine-Crimea border, where he has been amassing troops since March. According to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, there are more Russian troops on the border of Ukraine than there were ahead of Russia's invasion and eventual annexation of Crimea in 2014. Mr Biden and Mr Putin spoke on the phone on Tuesday about a "number of regional and global issues" according to a White House synopsis of the call.
U.S.INSIDERThe Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake in the back has returned to active duty without being disciplined or charged
Rusten Sheskey, the Wisconsin police officer who shot Jacob Blake, returned from administrative leave on March 31. Blake was shot seven times in the back, and Blake's father said his son was paralyzed from the waist down after the incident. Officer Rusten Sheskey, the Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer who shot 29-year-old Jacob Blake in the back in August 2020 will not be charged or disciplined, the police department said on Tuesday.
BusinessBusiness InsiderCompanies that have containers on the Ever Given could have to help pay the up to $1 billion Egyptian authorities are demanding before the ship leaves the Suez Canal
The Suez Canal Authority said the Ever Given can't leave until $1 billion in damages is paid. The $1 billion would likely include paying for the tugboats and dredging ships that freed the ship. The owner of the Ever Given declared "General Average," so insurance could pay some of the damages.
CelebrityThe WeekMeghan Markle reportedly goes on maternity leave next month
It's unclear exactly how Meghan Markle spends her days in sunny Montecito, California, when she isn't taking care of baby Archie, tending to her rescue chickens, and riling up the British royal family by simply existing. Markle — who co-founded the nonprofit Archewell and recently guest edited British Vogue — will have some free time more immediately, too, since she wasn't medically cleared to fly with Prince Harry the 12 hours to the U.K. for her grandfather-in-law's funeral.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump caught on audio mocking Michelle Obama’s looks to giggling GOP hierarchy at Mar-a-Lago
Donald Trump reportedly mocked former first lady Michelle Obama for her looks in front of a group of Republican donors on Saturday, and once again referred to former president Barack Obama by his middle name, “Hussein”. The remarks by Mr Trump were part of speech at Mar-a-Lago for Republican party donors, who reportedly “laughed uproariously” at the former president According to the Washington Post, who obtained an audio of the speech, the former first lady was ridiculed for supporting Stacey Abrams, another black woman and a Democratic opponent of Georgia governor Brian Kemp — a Republican with whom Mr Trump has fallen out.
U.S.The IndependentCaron Nazario ‘feared for his life’ in pepper spray traffic stop
Caron Nazario's lawyer said the army officer feared for his life as he was pulled over by two Virginia police officers who aimed their guns at him and used pepper spray during a violent traffic stop. Attorney Jonathan Arthur told CNN: "He was terrified that if he was going to move his hands below where Officer Gutierrez could have seen them to undo that seatbelt, they would have murdered him." Apart from pointing their guns at him, the officers also pushed Lt Nazario to the ground and pepper sprayed him.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBiden meets with bipartisan group on $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, saying he's open to negotiate
Biden held his first official meeting with eight bipartisan lawmakers to discuss infrastructure. Republican lawmakers argue his plan is too focused on things aside from physical infrastructure. For the first time since unveiling his $2.3 trillion infrastructure package two weeks ago, President Joe Biden met with a bipartisan group of lawmakers on Monday to discuss the proposal.
U.S.The Daily BeastFox News Host Tries and Fails to Bait Jon Stewart Into Attacking Biden
After decades of mercilessly “eviscerating” Fox News during his time as host of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart has made a surprising number of appearances on that network in years, almost exclusively to promote his activism around issues like medical benefits for 9/11 first responders and now veterans who were exposed to “burn pits” in Iraq and Afghanistan. The comedian remained dead serious on Tuesday when he joined Fox host Martha MacCallum to explain why he was in Washington lobbying for a bill that would provide aid to veterans affected by that toxic exposure. “If a senator or a representative is unsure of the science, let's go dig a 10-acre burn pit in their town, light it on fire with jet fuel and see how quickly the health effects come to the forefront,” Stewart said at one point, as the Fox host nodded along sympathetically.
“There’s no ‘both sides of the debate’ when it comes to active voter suppression.”
“Companies that do this ooze contempt for their own customers and employees who are not in the leftmost quarter of opinion.”
“The truth is that Fortune 500 companies were never taking moral stances from the goodness of their corporate hearts.”
“The truth is, the companies hold the cards…If companies stick to their guns, Georgia is likely to back down as well.”
“When a company folds to the unfounded outrage of a few misinformed nuts, they are forever at the mob’s beck-and-call.”