Friday, May 28, 2021

Wake-Up Call: Senate Republicans Expected To Block Commission Probe

Senate Republicans are expected to use the filibuster to block the creation of a bipartisan commission to investigate the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, with a vote on the procedural motion that had been expected Thursday pushed to today after delays on a unrelated bill. After initially saying he was open to the idea of a commission, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has in recent days come out against it, with CNN reporting that he's asking GOP senators who might be leaning towards voting for the commission to support filibustering it as a, quote, "personal favor" to him. McConnell has said that even though the panel would be evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, he believes the investigation would be partisan. A handful of Republicans are still expected to vote in favor of the commission, but 10 would need to in order to overcome a filibuster. The measure to create a commission passed in the House, with 35 Republicans joining with the Democrats.
 

Among those on Capitol Hill meeting with Republicans in the past couple of days to advocate for the creation of a commission was Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone, who responded to the January 6th attack. He was dragged down the Capitol steps by rioters, who shocked him with a stun gun and beat him. Also doing so were the mother and girlfriend of Capitol Hill Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who collapsed and later died after the attack.

➤GUNMAN WHO KILLED NINE AT CALIFORNIA RAIL YARD APPEARED TO TARGET VICTIMS: The 57-year-old gunman who killed nine people Wednesday morning at the San Jose, California, light rail facility where he worked appeared to target some of the victims, Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith told the Associated Press Thursday. Samuel Cassidy, who killed himself as police arrived in response to the attack, brought a duffel bag filled with semi-automatic handguns and high-capacity magazines to the Valley Transportation Authority rail yard, according to the sheriff. Smith said, "It appears to us at this point that he said to one of the people there: 'I’m not going to shoot you.' And then he shot other people. So I imagine there was some kind of thought on who he wanted to shoot." The sheriff also said explosives were found at Cassidy's home, where it's believed he set a timer or other device so a fire would took place at the same time as the shooting, which is what happened.


Sheriff's officials described Cassidy as "a highly disgruntled VTA employee for many years," and AP cited a Biden administration official describing a Department of Homeland Security memo as saying that after he was detained by customs officers in 2016, Cassidy spoke about hating his workplace and had a memo book with notes on how he hated the Valley Transportation Authority. But when asked if had issues with people at work, he said no. It doesn't say why customs officers stopped him, but said he had books about, quote, "terrorism and fear and manifestos."

➤THREE TACOMA POLICE OFFICERS CHARGED IN DEATH OF BLACK MAN: Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed charges Thursday against three Tacoma police officers in the death of Manuel Ellis, a 33-year-old Black man who died in March 2020 after repeatedly telling the officers he couldn't breathe while being restrained. Christopher Burbank and Matthew Collins were charged with second-degree murder and Timothy Rakine was charged with first-degree manslaughter. They are set for arraignment today after being taken into custody yesterday. A probable cause statement said that witnesses said Ellis wasn't fighting back as he was being restrained, and that Rankine allegedly put pressure on his back as he said he couldn't breathe. The incident began with Burbank and Collins saying they saw Ellis trying to get into occupied cars at a red light, and they claim he attacked the officers. But witnesses said Burbank and Collins attacked him without provocation. The Pierce County medical examiner called Ellis’ death a homicide and attributed it to lack of oxygen from being restrained. He said an enlarged heart and methamphetamine intoxication were contributing factors.


➤14-YEAR-OLD FLORIDA BOY CHARGED WITH MURDER IN DEATH OF CLASSMATE STABBED 114 TIMES: A 14-year-old Florida boy, Aiden Fucci, was charged with first-degree murder yesterday in the death of a classmate, 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey, who he alleged stabbed 114 times and then left her mutilated body in a wooded area in St. Johns County earlier this month. State attorney for the 7th Circuit, R.J. Larizza, said Fucci would be tried as an adult, and charged the attack was premeditated. Asked about a possible motive, Larizza said, "We're still working and investigating this case." But he denied when asked if Fucci was suffering from mental health issues.


➤U-S DRIVERS TO GET HIT BY SOARING PUMP PRICES OVER MEMORIAL DAY HOLIDAY:  If you’re driving anywhere this holiday weekend you can expect to pay up for gas. The American Automobile Association (Triple "A") reports that U.S. drivers will see the highest gasoline prices in seven years when they hit the roads this Memorial Day weekend. Retail gasoline prices are at about $3.04 per gallon on average nationwide, the most expensive since 2014. And after a year of lockdown to curb the coronavirus pandemic, some 34 million American are expected to hit the highways between yesterday (May 27th) and Monday (May 31st.) That’s a 53 percent increase in travelers from 2020, which is still ten percent lower than in 2019. GasBudy’s Patrick De Haan adds that the increase in gas price “is still due to the Colonial outage recovery, plus high demand, making it hard for stations to get back on top of things.”


➤BILL COSBY HAS BEEN DENIED PAROLE:  Bill Cosby was denied parole in his sexual assault case after refusing to participate in a "sex offender" therapy program. According to The New York Daily News, the Pennsylvania Parole Board revealed that Cosby also received a "negative recommendation" from corrections officials. Cosby's spokesperson Andrew Wyatt said that the decision "was not a surprise." He said in a statement, “Mr. Cosby has vehemently proclaimed his innocence and continues to deny all allegations made against him. Today, Mr. Cosby continues to remain hopeful that the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court will issue an opinion to vacate his conviction or warrant him a new trial.” The decision was actually made on May 11th but was first reported yesterday (May 27th).

In 2018, Cosby was convicted of drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand at his Pennsylvania mansion in 2004. He was sentenced to three to 10 years in state prison. Constand reacted to the news on Twitter, writing, “DENIED."

➤GOV'T. ORDERS NEW CYBERSECURITY REQUIREMENTS FOR PIPELINES: In the wake of the cyber attack that shut down the Colonial Pipeline for five days earlier this month, disrupting gas supplies, the Transportation Security Administration yesterday ordered new cybersecurity requirements for fuel pipelines. U.S. pipeline operators will be required to conduct a cybersecurity assessment, report any cyber incidents to the federal government, and have a cybersecurity coordinator available at all times to work with authorities if there's an attack. They'll face penalties starting at $7,000 per day for not complying. Until now, pipeline operators had only voluntary guidelines.

➤WORMUTH CONFIRMED AS FIRST FEMALE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY: The Senate confirmed Christine Wormuth unanimously yesterday as Secretary of the Army, making her the first woman to hold the post. Wormuth has an extensive history at the Pentagon, including as undersecretary of defense for policy and senior director for defense policy at the National Security Council during the Obama administration. She also has served as principal deputy assistant secretary for homeland defense.

➤HARRIS TO SPEAK AT NAVAL ACADEMY GRADUATION: Vice President Kamala Harris will deliver the commencement address at the U.S. Naval Academy's graduation and commissioning ceremony today (May 28th). The ceremony is being held in person at the Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis after it was held virtually for the first time last year due to the pandemic. About 1,000 students are graduating, with most to be commissioned as officers. Harris will be the first woman to give the graduation speech at the Naval Academy.

➤HOW LONG YOU SHOULD WAIT BEFORE HAVING A FIRST KISS MIGHT SURPRISE YOU: Kissing on a first isn’t a bad thing. Dating and relationship expert Julie Bekker says if you’re on a first date there’s “no need to wait” if your instincts tell you to go in for a kiss and you get the feeling the other person is into it as well. Spiritual guide and dating expert Heather Strang agrees, saying, “Every connection and couple is different. I find it best to take the pressure off and allow the date to follow organically.” If your date tries to kiss you and you’re not ready, the experts say you should be upfront and let them know from the beginning of the date that you’re looking to take things slow. If you don’t realize you’re not ready until they’re going in for the kiss, you should dodge the kiss as gracefully as possible. If you try to kiss someone and they’re not ready you should try not to take it personally- since you’d want them to respect your choice if the situation were reversed. Also, if they’re easily distracted during the date, they just might not be that interested, and you really shouldn’t go for the smooch. If you have a first kiss and you think it’s awkward, that’s not necessarily a bad thing—the experts say you should be wary of someone who is too comfortable on a first date, as it could be a sign they are a serial dater who’s used to making misleading first impressions.


 🏒CAROLINA BEATS NASHVILLE IN OT TO ADVANCE TO SECOND ROUND: The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Nashville Predators 4-3 in overtime last night to win their first-round NHL playoffs series 4 games to 2 and advance to the second round. Sebastian Aho scored the winning goal for Carolina just 1:06 into overtime. The Hurricanes will now play the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 2.

🏒NHL PLAYOFFS: Results from first-round games yesterday:
  • Carolina Hurricanes 4, Nashville Predators 3 (OT) - Carolina wins series 4 games to 2
  • Montreal Canadiens 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 3 (OT) - Toronto leads 3 games to 2
🏀NBA PLAYOFFS: Results from first-round games yesterday:
  • Milwaukee Bucks 113, Miami Heat 84 - Milwaukee leads 3 games to 0
  • L.A. Lakers 109, Phoenix Suns 95 - Los Angeles leads 2 games to 1
  • Denver Nuggets 120, Portland Trail Blazers 115 - Denver leads 2 games to 1
🏀KNICKS, 76ERS, JAZZ ALL BAN FANS OVER PLAYOFF GAME INCIDENTS: The New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers and Utah Jazz banned a total of five fans from their arenas Thursday over incidents that happened during playoff games a day earlier. The NBA also said that fan behavior rules will be, quote, "vigorously enforced." The Knicks banned a fan for spitting on the Atlanta Hawks' Trae Young. The 76ers banned a fan who dumped popcorn on the Washington Wizards' Russell Westbrook and revoked his season tickets. The Jazz banned three fans over a verbal altercation during the game the Memphis Grizzlies. Utah didn't give details, but the Grizzlies' Ja Morant, who had family members at the game, said they, quote, "felt the love" from many Jazz fans around them, but that those three fans, quote, "just went too far."

🏌SPIETH, GARCIA TIED IN FIRST AFTER OPENING ROUND AT COLONIAL: American Jordan Spieth and Sergio Garcia of Spain are tied for the lead at 7-under 63 after the first round of the Charles Schwab Challenge at the Colonial Golf Course in Fort Worth, Texas yesterday. They were two shots ahead of Erik Compton and Jason Kokrak. Just four days after winning the PGA Championship at age 50 to become the oldest to win a major, Phil Mickelson finished 10 shots back yesterday.
 

➤INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY SOLD OUT FOR INDY 500: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is sold out for the Indy 500 this Sunday, race organizers said Thursday. There will be a reduced-capacity crowd of 135,000 fans on hand for the iconic race, about 40 percent of a full house. Fans will be required to wear masks when not eating or drinking. The Indy 500 was held last year without any fans due to the pandemic for the first time in history.

🏌TIGER WOODS: CAR CRASH REHAB MORE PAINFUL THAN ANYTHING BEFORE: Tiger Woods is continuing to recover from his February car crash that left him with serious leg injuries, and he told Golf Digest that the rehab he's going through is, quote, "more painful than anything I have ever experienced." Despite having had a range of injuries and surgeries in the past that required rehab, he said, "this has been an entirely different animal." Woods didn't address the possibility of returning to competing in golf, saying, "I do my [physical therapy] routines every day and am focused on my Number 1 goal right now: walking on my own."
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