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Friday, August 6, 2021

Wake-Up Call: COVID Hospitalizations, Deaths Spike


As the coronavirus surges again the U.S., driven by the highly-contagious delta variant and not enough of the population being vaccinated, hospitalizations and deaths are now up by more than 40 percent from a week ago. That's coming as daily cases have passed 100,000, numbers that were last seen in February. White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients noted that seven Southern states -- Florida, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi -- accounted for about half of all new infections and hospitalizations over the past week. However health officials said there's been a significant increase in the number of Americans getting vaccinated, including a 90 percent boost in first shots in Tennessee over the last two weeks, an 82 percent increase in Oklahoma and a 66 percent increase in Georgia.

➤N.Y. LAWMAKERS GIVE CUOMO WEEK DEADLINE FOR MORE EVIDENCE IN PROBE OF CONDUCT: New York lawmakers yesterday gave embattled Governor Andrew Cuomo a deadline of August 13th to provide more evidence in their investigation of his conduct, while telling him the probe is almost done. Unless Cuomo resigns, an impeachment seems to be likely in the wake of an independent investigation finding in results released this week that he sexually harassed 11 women, including state employees. Lawmakers are also investigating Cuomo, who has denied wrongdoing, over allegations of misleading the public about Covid-19 outbreaks at nursing homes and using state resources and staff for his book deal. Cuomo's spokesperson said the governor would cooperate.



➤CALIFORNIA TOWN DESTROYED BY WILDFIRE: The small town of Greenville, California, was destroyed by a wildfire that burned through overnight Wednesday into Thursday morning (August 5th). About 1,000 people live in the Gold Rush-era mountain town, which was in the path of the Dixie Fire, currently the largest wildfire in the state. Plumas County Sheriff Todd Johns, a lifelong resident of Greenville, estimated that "well over" 100 homes had burned in and near the town. There are 100 active large fires burning in 14 states, most of the in the western part of the country.

➤BIDEN SIGNS BILL AWARDING MEDALS TO JAN. 6TH POLICE IN ROSE GARDEN CEREMONY: President Biden signed legislation yesterday awarding Congressional Gold Medals to police who responded to the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Present at the White House Rose Garden signing ceremony were Vice President Kamala Harris, some members of Congress, law enforcement officers, and families of police who died following the attack. Biden offered his "profound gratitude" to the officers, and said of the day: "It was a violent attempt to overturn the will of the American people, to seek power at all costs, to replace the ballot with brute force. . . . Without democracy, nothing is possible. With it, everything is." The legislation to award the medals, the highest honor that can be awarded by Congress, passed unanimously in the Senate and over the opposition of 21 Republicans in the House. There will be four medals that will be displayed at Capitol Police headquarters, the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department, the Capitol and the Smithsonian Institution.

➤APPLE IS LAUNCHING FEATURES THAT WILL SCAN PHOTOS FOR SIGNS OF ABUSE: Apple is launching new features that will allow its devices to scan through people’s photos and messages to check for signs of child abuse. Two of the three new measures will prevent children from sending or receiving inappropriate photos. The features will blur sensitive content and send an alert to their parents. The third will scan photos for child sex abuse material. According to the Independent, the company says the features will keep those communications hidden from Apple, and ensure that the user’s privacy is protected.

➤LONGTIME AFL-CIO PRESIDENT RICHARD TRUMKA DEAD AT 72: Richard Trumka, the longtime president of the AFL-CIO, one of the world's largest labor organizations, died on Thursday. He was 72. President Biden said at the White House that Trumka had died of a heart attack while on a family camping trip, and called him a "great labor leader" and a "friend." Trumka had been the AFL-CIO's president since 2009, after being the union's secretary-treasurer for 14 years before that. The Pennsylvania-born Trumka was the son and grandson of coal miners, and worked in the mines himself for seven years before earning accounting and law degrees. He began in national union politics as president of the United Mine Workers of America in 1982.

➤JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO PROBE PHOENIX POLICE: The Justice Department announced yesterday that is beginning a widespread investigation of the Phoenix police force, looking at whether officers have been using excessive force and abusing homeless people. Attorney General Merrick Garland said the probe will also look into whether the police have used discriminatory policing practices or retaliated against people carrying out protected First Amendment activities. Phoenix's police department has been criticized in recent years for its handling of protests and the high number of shootings. Police Chief Jeri Williams defended her department and reforms made in recent years, but said she's open to any recommendations from the Justice Department.

➤SIX KILLED IN CRASH OF ALASKA SIGHTSEEING PLANE: All six people on board were killed when a sightseeing plane crashed in Alaska late yesterday morning, the U.S. Coast Guard reported. The plane, owned by Southeast Aviation, went down in the area of Misty Fjords National Monument near Ketchikan. The five passengers on the flight with the pilot were from the Holland America cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam, which stopped in Ketchikan Thursday. The cruise line said the "float plane excursion" was offered by an independent tour operator.

➤TOKYO OLYMPICS Highlights:


  • U.S. Women Win Beach Volleyball Gold - The U.S. team of April Ross and Alix Klineman won the women's beach volleyball gold medal, beating Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy of Australia, who took silver. The Swiss team won bronze in a defeat of the Latvian team earlier in the day. Ross won silver in the 2012 London Olympics and bronze in Rio in 2016, while Klineman was a first-time Olympian.
  • U.S. Women's Soccer Team Win Bronze Medal - The U.S women's soccer team won the bronze medal, downing Australia 4-3. Megan Rapinoe and Carli Lloyd had two goals each, and Lloyd became the Olympics' all-time leading female scorer with her second goal. Canada, the team the U.S. lost to in the semifinals, will play Sweden for the gold.

  • U.S. Women's Basketball Team Beats Serbia, Will Play for Gold - The U.S. women's basketball team defeated Serbia 79-59 in their semifinal and will play for the gold medal. They'll take on the winner of the semifinal between France and Japan, and will be trying to win the seventh straight Olympics gold for the U.S.

  • U.S. Women's Team to Play for Volleyball Gold - The U.S. women's team will play for the volleyball gold medal after defeating Serbia 3-0 in their semifinal. They will play the winner of the semifinal between Brazil and South Korea.
  • U.S. Men Finish Out of Medals in 400-Meter Race - The U.S. men's track disappointments in Tokyo continued as the American runners didn't make the medal stand in the 400 meters. Steven Gardiner of the Bahamas won gold, Colombia's Anthony Jose Zambrano took silver and Kirani James of Granada won bronze. The highest-finishing American was Michael Cherry in fourth place, while teammate and Olympic Trials champion Michael Norman came in fifth.
  • IOC Removes Two Belarus Coaches After Tried to Force Sprinter Home - The International Olympic Committee removed two coaches on the Belarus team from the Olympics, four days after they were involved in trying to force sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya on a plane back home. The attempt to send Tsimanouskaya home to Belarus, which is ruled by an autocratic government, came after she criticized team coaches on social media over a racing decision. The sprinter, who asked Japanese police for help at the airport to prevent her from getting on the plane, is now in Poland on a humanitarian visa.
MEDAL COUNT: (As of 3:30 a.m. ET) - The U.S. is in first place with 92 medals, followed by China with 74 and the Russian Olympic Committee with 60. In the gold medal count, China leads with 34, the U.S. is second with 30, and Japan is third with 22. ESPN'S MEDAL TRACKER: https://es.pn/3hZWIw0

OTHER SPORTS:

🏈STEELERS BEAT COWBOYS 16-3 IN HALL OF FAME GAME: The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-3 in the Hall of Fame game last night in Canton, Ohio, as the NFL kicked off its preseason. Few regulars played in the contest, which was the first preseason game in two years, as last year's were canceled due to the pandemic. Enshrinement will be held for both the 2021 and 2021 Pro Football Hall of Fame classes this weekend, as the pandemic postponed last year's ceremony.

⚾SANCHEZ IS THIRD YANKEES PLAYER POSITIVE FOR COVID-19: New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez has tested positive for Covid-19, manager Aaron Boone revealed yesterday, the third member of the team to test positive in the last few days, joining pitchers Gerrit Cole and Jordan Montgomery. This is the third Covid outbreak on the Yankees this season, despite more than 85 percent of the team being vaccinated.

⚾DODGERS PITCHER BAUER'S LEAVE EXTENDED AGAIN: L.A. Dodgers' pitcher Trevor Bauer’s administrative leave was extended Thursday for seven days through August 13th, the fourth time it's been extended by MLB and the players' association. Bauer remains on leave while the league and Pasadena, California, police continue to investigate a woman's allegations that he assaulted her during two sexual encounters. Bauer's agents have denied the accusations.

⚽SOCCER ICON MESSI NOT RETURNING TO FC BARCELONA: Soccer icon Lionel Messi isn't returning to FC Barcelona, the team announced yesterday, with him leaving after spending his entire career with them. The 34-year-old has been with FC Barcelona for 17 seasons, during which it has won 10 La Liga titles. Messi has won the men's Ballon d'Or, which honors the world's greatest soccer player, a record six times.
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