Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Biden Getting Better

President Biden said Monday after participating in a virtual meeting to talk about computer chip manufacturing that he's "feeling better every day" as he recovers from his Covid-19 infection. It was his first public appearance since Friday, one day after he tested positive for Covid. Biden said he still has nasal congestion and his voice remained raspy, but he's sleeping better. His physician, Dr. Kevin O'Connor, said yesterday that Biden's symptoms have, quote, "almost completely resolved." Today will be Biden's fifth day of isolation in the White House, and Dr. Ashish Jha, coordinator of the White House Covid response, said that he'll be able to come out of isolation if he tests negative.
 
➤VP HARRIS MEETS WITH INDIANA DEMOCRATS AS LAWMAKERS CONSIDER NEAR-TOTAL ABORTION BAN: Vice President Kamala Harris was in Indiana yesterday to meet with Democratic legislators as both abortion rights and anti-abortion protesters surrounded the Indiana statehouse as state lawmakers began considering a Republican proposal that would impose a near-total abortion ban in the state. The action comes in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe w. Wade. Harris said in Indianapolis that the proposed abortion ban in the state reflects a health care crisis in the country. She stated, "The parameters that are being proposed [in Indiana] mean that for the vast majority of women, by the time she realizes she is pregnant, she will effectively be prohibited from having access to reproductive health care that will allow her to choose what happens to her body."
 

➤TWO TOP PENCE AIDE TESTIFIED TO GRAND JURY INVESTIGATING JAN. 6TH ATTACK: Two top aides to former Vice President Mike Pence testified last week to a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., that's investigating the events surrounding the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to media reports yesterday. They were Marc Short, who was Pence's chief of staff, and Greg Jacob, who was his counsel. The two are the highest-ranking officials from former President Donald Trump's administration known to have cooperated with the Justice Department’s widening investigation so far. Both men have also testifed to the House January 6th Committee.

➤WOMAN OPENS FIRE AT DALLAS AIRPORT, IS SHOT AND WOUNDED BY OFFICER, NO ONE ELSE HURT: A 37-year-old woman opened fire at Love Field Airport in Dallas Monday, apparently firing several gunshots at the ceiling. A nearby police officer shot and wounded her, enabling her to be taken into custody and brought to a hospital for treatment. No one else was injured. Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said the woman, later identified as Portia Odufuwa, was dropped off at the airport around 11 a.m. and went into a bathroom. She came out wearing a hooded sweatshirt or other clothing she hadn't been wearing when she went it, and then pulled out a gun and fired several shots, apparently at the ceiling. Police didn't speculate about a possible motive.

➤SENATORS MANCHIN, MURKOWKSI HAVE COVID-19: Senators Joe Manchin and Lisa Murkowski both disclosed yesterday that they'd tested positive for Covid-19. The 74-year-old Manchin first tweeted in the morning that he'd tested positive and was "experiencing mild symptoms." The West Virginia Democrat, who is fully vaccinated and boosted, said he would isolate and work remotely. Later in the day, Murkowski also revealed that she'd recently tested positive, with the 65-year-old Alaska Republican saying she'd done so after experiencing flu-like symptoms. Murkowski, who is vaccinated and boosted, said she'd quarantine at home in Alaska and work remotely.

➤KUSHNER HAD TYROID CANCER WHILE WORKING IN WHITE HOUSE IN 2019: Former President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who was a senior White House adviser during Trump's administration, reveals in a new memoir being published next month that he had thyroid cancer in 2019. The previously-undisclosed cancer was detected in October 2019, while Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump, was involved in discussions over a trade deal with China. Kushner had surgery right before Thanksgiving, during which a substantial part of his thyroid was removed. Kushner's memoir, Breaking History: A White House Memoir, will be out on August 23rd. 

➤POPE APOLOGIZES FOR CHURCH-RUN SCHOOLS FOR INDIGENEOUS PEOPLE: Pope Francis apologized in Canada yesterday for the Catholic Church's involvement with Canada's policy of residential schools for Indigenous children, which the pontiff called "catastrophic." There was rampant abuse and cultural suppression at the state-funded Catholic residential schools across the country, which operated from the 19th century to the 1970s, with Francis saying the forced assimilation of indigenous people destroyed their cultures, severed families, and marginalized generations. Speaking before school survivors and Indigenous community members at a former residential school in Alberta, the pope said, "I am deeply sorry," and called the school policy a "disastrous error," stating, "I humbly beg forgiveness for the evil committed by so many Christians against the Indigenous peoples." The pontiff's six-day Canadian visit will also include stops in Quebec City and Iqaluit, Nunavut, in the far north.

💸AMERICANS HAVING DIFFICULTY PAYING BILLS: More Americans are reporting that they're having difficulty paying their bills than did during the 2020 pandemic peak in a new U.S. Census Bureau survey. Forty percent of U.S. adults said it's been somewhat or very difficult to cover their usual household expenses in the poll taken in late June and early July, the highest since the Census started asking the question in August 2020, some five months into the pandemic. At that time, one-third of respondents reported difficulty in covering usual household bills. It declined from that over the following year, but then began rising about a year ago as government pandemic reflief funds ended and inflation began to rise.

💰CEO BUYS 50k MEGA MILLIONS TICKETS, WILL SHARE JACKSPORT WITH EMPLOYEES: The CEO of fast food chain Raising Cane bought 50,000 Mega Millions tickets and has promised to share the $810 million prize with all of his employees if he wins the jackpot in tonight's drawing. Todd Graves tweeted video of the Mega Millions tickets being printed with the caption: "POV: You just bought 50,000 Mega Millions tickets for your Raising Cane's crewmembers," and "Buying 50,000 lottery tickets is harder than you think! Hoping to share the winning jackpot with our 50,000 @RaisingCanes Crew." Graves said in a news release, "None of what we do at Cane's would be possible without our crew, which is why we are always looking for ways to bring them a little extra fun, and if we're lucky, a surprise on Wednesday morning." The tickets cost $2 each, so the purchase cost Graves $100,000. After having no winner for a while, the Mega Millions jackpot hit $810 million yesterday, the third largest in the lottery's history.

Paul Sorvino
✞PAUL SORVINO DIES AT 83:  Goodfellas actor Paul Sorvino died on Monday at the age of 83. His wife, Dee Dee, was by his side when he passed away due to natural causes. “Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage,” Dee Dee said in a statement.  Paul’s daughter, Mira Sorvino, tweeted on Monday (July 25th), “My heart is rent asunder- a life of love and joy and wisdom with him is over. He was the most wonderful father. I love him so much. I’m sending you love in the stars Dad as you ascend.” With over 100 acting credits to his name, Paul is most known for his roles as Paul Cicero in Goodfellas and as NYPD Sergeant Phil Cerreta on Law & Order. Paul also held prominent roles in films such as Reds, The Rocketeer, Nixon, and Romeo + Juliet.

David Warner
✞DAVID WARNER DIES AT 80: Variety reports that British actor David Warner died on Sunday of cancer-related illness in London. He was 80 years old. Warner is known for his roles in The Omen, Time After Time, Tron, Time Bandits, and Titanic. His family said in a statement, “Over the past 18 months he approached his diagnosis with a characteristic grace and dignity. He will be missed hugely by us, his family and friends, and remembered as a kind-hearted, generous and compassionate man, partner and father, whose legacy of extraordinary work has touched the lives of so many over the years. We are heartbroken.”

‘FULL FRONTAL WITH SAMANTHA BEE’ IS CANCELLED AFTER SEVEN SEASONS: Deadline reports that TBS is saying goodbye to Full Frontal with Samantha Bee after seven seasons. A spokesperson for TBS told the outlet, “As we continue to shape our new programming strategy, we’ve made some difficult, business-based decisions. Full Frontal With Samantha Bee will not return to TBS. We are proud to have been the home to Full Frontal with Samantha Bee and thank Sam, and the rest of the Emmy-nominated team for their groundbreaking work. We celebrate this extraordinarily talented cast and crew and look forward to exploring new opportunities to work with them in the future.”

➤KEN JENNINGS AND MAYIM BIALIK WILL BOTH CONTINUE TO CO-HOST ‘JEOPARDY!’: According to TVLine, the search for Alex Trebek’s permanent replacement appears to be over. Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik, who have both been guest hosting Jeopardy!, are set to continue co-hosting the show for its 39th season.

🐳WHALE LANDS ON FISHING BOAT IN MASSACHUSETTS: A humpback whale breached near fishing boats in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and collided with one of them. Luckily, the two people on board the vessel were not harmed. The boat sustained damage but was able to dock on its own. While an incident like this is rare, both whales and boats can be attracted to fish and end up in the same place at the same time.


🏈NFL ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF STREAMING PLATFORM, 'NFL+': The NFL announced yesterday that its new streaming service, "NFL+," was launching that day. The subscription service will be able to be accessed through the NFL app and website. It will let fans watch: out-of-market preseason games on all devices; local and national regular-season and postseason games on mobile devices; team and national radio feeds; NFL Network shows on-demand; and the NFL Films archive. It could also include content produced by teams. An "NFL+" subscription will cost $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year.

➤JOE GIBBS RACING WON'T APPEAL POCONO DQ OF WINNER HAMLIN, RUNNER-UP BUSCH: Joe Gibbs Racing on Monday declined to appeal NASCAR's disqualification at Pocono Raceway Sunday of its drivers Denny Hamlin, who had won the race, and Kyle Busch, who was the runner-up, when their Toyotas failed post-race inspections. Third-place finisher Chase Elliott was given the win. Issues had been found with both cars that affected their aerodynamics, and Scott Miller, NASCAR’s senior VP of competition. said on Sirius XM Monday that, quote, "extra layers of vinyl" were found under the wrap of the car that modified that area of the lower nose on each car. Joe Gibbs Racing apologized and said changes were underway to make sure it didn't happen again.

🏈WIDE RECEIVER AMENDOLA, TWO-TIME SUPER BOWL WINNER, IS RETIRING: Wide receiver Danny Amendola is retiring after 13 NFL seasons and two Super Bowl wins, both with the New England Patriots in 2014 and 2016. The 36-year-old told ESPN he's ready to move on to other interests, and has had initial talks with broadcasting networks. He also tweeted some of his career highlights and captioned it, "Wouldn't have it any other way." In addition to the Patriots, Amendola also played played with the Rams, Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions and Houston Texans.

⚽EX-U.S. WOMEN'S SOCCER STAR HOPE SOLO PLEADS GUILTY TO DWI: Hope Solo, the former star goalkeeper of the U.S. women's national soccer team, pled guilty yesterday to driving while impaired in a March 31st incident in which she was found passed out behind the wheel in a North Carolina shopping center parking lot with her two-year-old twins in the vehicle and the engine running. The 40-year-old Solo was given a 30-day jail sentence, a suspended sentence of 24 months, and was fined $2,500. She was given 30 days credit for time she spent at an in-patient rehabilitation facility, and must get a substance abuse assessment and complete all recommended treatment. In a statement after her guilty plea, Solo called the incident, "Easily the worst mistake of my life," adding, "I underestimated what a destructive part of my life alcohol had become." Solo was dismissed from the women's national team following the 2016 Brazil Olympics after calling the Swedish team "cowards," one of several controversial incidents during her playing career.
 
⚾RARE MICKEY MANTLE BASEBALL CARD COULD BREAK AUCTION RECORD: A mint condition 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie baseball card is up for auction, and it could potentially break the baseball card auction record. It's estimated the final cost of the Mantle card could top $10 million when the auction being held by Heritage Auction ends on August 27th after debuting online yesterday. The current record is $6.6 million for a 1909 Honus Wagner baseball card that was sold at auction a year ago. Bidding was already up to at least $4.2 million on the first day yesterday. The card's current owner is Anthony Giordano, a New Jersey waste management entrepreneur, who bought it at a show in 1991 for $50,000.



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