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Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Biden, China's Xi To Speak Thursday


President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping will speak on Thursday, Bloomberg first reported yesterday, which will be their first conversation in four months. It has been planned for weeks, but there's new tension between Washington and Beijing over the possible visit to Taiwan by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. China has warned it will take, quote, "forceful measures" if Pelosi does vist the self-ruled island that China claims as part of its territory. Although Pelosi hasn’t confirmed plans to visit Taiwan, Biden said last week that U.S. military officials believe it was "not a good idea" for her to go right now. Pelosi would be the highest-ranking U.S. elected official to visit Taiwan since then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997. The U.S. has long had a "One China" policy that recognizes Beijing as the government of China, but allows informal relations and defense ties with Taiwan.


➤GARLAND DOESN'T RULE OUT PROSECUTING TRUMP OVER JANUARY 6TH: Attorney General Merrick Garland didn't rule out prosecuting former President Donald Trump over the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol when asked about it in an NBC News interview yesterday. When asked if he had concerns that possibly indicting, quote, "a former president, and perhaps a candidate for president, would arguably tear the country apart," Garland replied, "We intend to hold everyone, anyone who was criminally responsible for the events surrounding January 6, for any attempt to interfere with the lawful transfer of power from one administration to another, accountable. . . . We don’t pay any attention to other issues with respect to that."


Rioter Sentence Matches Longest So Far: Meanwhile, a 56-year-old Washington, D.C., man who attacked police officers with poles on January 6th, Mark Ponder, was sentenced yesterday to five years and three months in prison, matching the longest prison term given so far in hundreds of Capitol riot prosecutions. Ponder, who pled guilty to an assault charge in April, said yesterday that he, quote, "got caught up" in the chaos" and "wasn't thinking that day."

➤BIDEN FINISHES PAXLOVID TREATMENT, WELL ENOUGH TO EXERCISE: President Biden's physician, Dr. Kevin O’ Connor, said Tuesday that Biden had finished his five-day treatment with Paxlovid for his Covid-19 infection, and stated that he "feels well enough to resume his physical exercise regimen." O'Connor repeated his statement Monday that Biden's symptoms had, quote, "almost completely resolved," with his pulse, blood pressure, respiratory rate and temperature "absolutely normal." Biden tested positive for Covid last Thursday.


➤RUSSIA PULLING OUT OF INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION: Russia will be pulling out of the International Space Station after 2024, its new space chief, Yuri Borisov, announced yesterday, saying Russia will focus on building its own space station. The news comes amid high tensions between Russia and the U.S. over the war in Ukraine. NASA and its partners had hoped to continue operating the ISS until 2030, but AP reports that it would be extremely difficult to keep it going without Russia. The 24-year-old space station is jointly run by the U.S., Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson issued a statement saying that the agency was committed to the safe operation of the space station through 2030.

➤MORE EVIDENCE FROM TWO NEW STUDIES THAT COVID-19 ORIGINATED IN WUHAN MARKET: Two new studies published by the journal, Science, yesterday (July 26th) provide more evidence that Covid-19 originated in a market in Wuhan, China, where live animals were sold, further supporting the theory that the virus emerged from an animal instead of escaping from a Chinese lab. The studies concluded that the virus that causes Covid-19, SARS-CoV-2, likely spilled over from animals into people at the market two separate times. Kristian Andersen a professor in the Department of Immunology and Microbiology at Scripps Research and co-author of one of the studies, said, "All this evidence tells us the same thing: It points right to this particular market in the middle of Wuhan." She added, "I was quite convinced of the lab leak myself until we dove into this very carefully and looked at it much closer."


💸NO MEGA MILLIONS WINNER AGAIN, JACKPOT NOW TOPS $1 BILLION: There was no Mega Millions winner again after last night's drawing for what was an $830 million jackpot. The jackpot for the next drawing on Friday has now soared to over $1 billion, to an estimated $1.02 billion, the fourth-largest lottery prize ever in the U.S. No one has won a Mega Millions jackpot since April 15th, which is why it has grown so large. Last night's numbers were: 7-29-60-63-66 and Mega Ball: 15. Although nobody got all six, eight people did win $1 million each for matching five of the numbers, and one person won $3 million by matching five numbers including the megaplier.


➤PENCE TO RELEASE MEMOIR AFTER MIDTERM ELECTIONS: Former Vice President Mike Pence will release his memoir, titled, So Help Me God, in November just after the midterm elections, earlier than a previously-announced release date in 2023. Publisher Simon & Schuster said it will tell his story from his childhood in Indiana to the vice presidency, including his time as governor and as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and the, quote, "profound faith that has guided Pence throughout his life." It will include his rift with then-President Donald Trump on January 6th, 2021 over Pence refusing to intervene to stop the formal certification of Joe Biden's presidential victory -- which Pence had no power to change -- when Simon & Schuster said he "kept his oath to the Constitution."

➤BUZZ ALDRIN'S APOLLO 11 MOON MISSION JACKET AUCTIONED FOR $2.8 MILLION: A jacket Buzz Aldrin wore during NASA's historic Apollo 11 mission that was the first to land humans on the moon was auctioned for nearly $2.8 million yesterday. The Inflight Coverall Jacket is made of a fire resistant material known as Beta cloth and shows Aldrin's name tag, the Apollo 11 mission emblem and the American flag. The $2,772,500 paid for it by the unidentified winning bidder in the Sotheby's auction is the most for any American space-flown artifact sold at auction. Aldrin and Neil Armstrong became the first astronauts to walk on the moon during the mission, on July 20, 1969.

🏀TESTIMONY ON MEDICINAL USE OF CANNABIS AT GRINER'S TRIAL: WNBA star Brittney Griner's Russian trial focused yesterday (July 26th) on testimony that while cannabis is illegal in Russia, it's viewed as having legitimate medicinal use in other countries. Griner's defense team had previously submitted a U.S. doctor's letter recommending she use medical cannabis to treat pain. Griner pled guilty to drug possession charges earlier this month after she was found at a Moscow airport in February to be carrying vape canisters containing cannabis oil and was arrested. But she also said she had no criminal intent, and that the canisters were in her luggage inadvertently because she has quickly packed. The testimony is aimed at getting her a mild sentence.

 
🏀ACES BEAT SKY 93-83 IN WNBA'S COMMISSIONER'S CUP: The Las Vegas Aces defeated the Chicago Sky 93-83 yesterday in the second annual WNBA Commissioner's Cup championship game. The Aces' Kelsey Plum led with 24 points, but Chelsea Gray was named the game MVP, having notched 19 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. The defending WNBA champion Sky are in first place in the WNBA standings and the Aces are in second place with less than three weeks remaining in the regular season. They are the only two teams to have clinched playoff spots so far.

🏒SHARKS NAME DAVID QUINN NEW HEAD COACH: The San Jose Sharks named David Quinn as their new head coach yesterday, replacing Bob Boughner, who was fired in late June. Quinn coached the New York Rangers for three seasons, from 2018 to 2021, and had a 96-87-25 record.

🏈SEAHAWKS RUNNING BACK CARSON RETIRING DUE TO NECK INJURY: Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson is retiring after five seasons, all of them with Seattle, due to a neck injury, according to media reports yesterday. The news came on the same day that the Seahawks released the 27-year-old with a failed physical designation. Carson appeared in the first four games of last season and was unable to return because of his neck injury. Head coach Pete Carroll said last month that Carson still didn't have full range of motion, and has said that Carson had what Carroll described as fusion surgery in December.

➤NASCAR PENALIZES MCDOWELL, FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS FOR ILLEGALL MODIFICATIONS: NASCAR penalized driver Michael McDowell and Front Row Motorsports yesterday for illegal modifications, which were discovered after his sixth-place finish at Pocono Raceway on Sunday. Crew chief Blake Harris was fined $100,000 and suspended for four races, McDowell was docked 100 driver points, and Front Row was docked 100 owner points. Yesterday's penalties came after NASCAR disqualified Pocono winner Denny Hamlin and runner-up Kyle Busch when their cars failed post-race inspection, with extra layers of vinyl found under the wrap of the car that modified that area of the lower nose on each car.

⚾JACKIE ROBINSON MUSEUM OPENS IN NEW YORK: The new Jackie Robinson Museum opened in lower Manhattan yesterday, with a ceremony attended by his widow, 100-year-old Rachel Robinson, and the two surviving of their three children, Sharon Robinson and David Robinson. The museum, which will open to the public on September 5th, contains 350 artifacts, including playing equipment and items such as Robinson’s 1946 minor league contract and his 1947 rookie contract, a collection of 40,000 images and 450 hours of footage. There is also an education center.
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