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Monday, July 25, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Doctor..Biden Improving 'Significantly' From Covid

President Biden's physician, Dr. Kevin O'Connor, said in his latest update Sunday that Biden continues to, quote, "improve significantly" from his Covid-19 infection, while still having a lingering sore throat. O'Connor said that Biden's other mild symptoms, including a cough, runny nose and body aches, had "diminished considerably." Biden has been taking Paxlovid since he tested positive last Thursday, and O'Connor said he is responding "as expected." The White House Covid-19 response coordinator, Dr. Ashish Jha, said Sunday that Biden was infected by the highly contagious BA.5 omicron variant, which is believed to be responsible for most cases in the U.S. right now.

➤RUSSIA CLAIMS UKRAINIAN PORT STRIKE HIT MILITARY TARGETS: Russian defense officials claimed Sunday that an airstrike on the Ukrainian port of Odesa a day earlier hit only military targets. However, the Saturday attack came one day after an agreement the two countries signed on resuming grain shipments, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address Saturday that the attack, quote, "destroyed the very possibility" of dialogue with Russia. AP reports that under the grain shipment agreement, Russia and Ukraine both agreed not to target vessels and port facilities involved in resuming shipments, including the ports of Odesa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny. It wasn't immediately clear how the airstrike would affect plans to resume shipping Ukrainian grain out of the ports. The months-long standoff over shipments of Ukrainian grain has threatened food security around the world.
 

➤TWO KILLED, FIVE WOUNDED IN SHOOTING AT LOS ANGELES PARK: Two people were killed and at least five others wounded in a shooting at a Los Angeles park Sunday afternoon where an informal car show was taking place. The people who were fatally shot at Peck Park in L.A.'s San Pedro neighborhood were at the baseball diamond, according to police. LAPD Captain Kelly Muniz said investigators believe the shooting began as a dispute between two parties, and they were still trying to determine how many shooters there were. No arrests had been made as of late last night.


➤N.Y. GOV. CANDIDATE ZELDIN'S ATTACKER SAYS DIDN'T KNOW WHO HE WAS: The 43-year-old man accused of attacking New York Republican gubernatorial nominee Rep. Lee Zeldin at a campaign rally last Thursday told investigators he'd been drinking and didn't know who Zeldin was. David Jakubonis was arrested Saturday on a federal charge of assaulting a member of Congress with a dangerous weapon, after having been arraigned Friday on a separate state charge of attempted assault in the second degree. The federal criminal complaint said that Jakubonis, who's an Iraq War veteran, told investigators he was drinking whiskey Thursday before he went onstage as Zeldin spoke at a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in the upstate New York town of Perinton to ask the speaker if he was disrespecting veterans. The complaint said Jakubonis, quote, "did not know who the speaker was or that the speaker was a political person." In the incident, Jakubonis raised his arm toward Zeldin as he held a keychain with two sharp points. The congressman grabbed Jakubonis’ wrist and the two went to the ground as others jumped in to help. Zeldin only got a minor scrape.


➤CHENEY: JAN. 6TH COMMITTEE MAY SUBPOENA JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS' WIFE GINNI THOMAS: Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, the vice-chair of the House January 6th Committee, said yesterday that the committee may subpoena Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' wife, Ginni Thomas. Cheney, who appeared on CNN's State of the Union and Fox News Sunday, said, "We certainly hope that she will agree to come in voluntarily. But the committee is fully prepared to contemplate a subpoena if she does not." Cheney said the committee sent her an letter last month seeking an interview. Ginni Thomas communicated with people in then-President Donald Trump’s orbit ahead of the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol and on the day it took place, and committee members want to learn more about her efforts to keep Trump in office. Cheney also said they "anticipate" talking to more members of Trump's Cabinet and more members of his campaign.


 🎥‘NOPE’ TOPS THE CHART AT THE DOMESTIC BOX OFFICE: Jordan Peele’s new horror film Nope had a sizzling summer opening over the weekend, pulling in $44 million. Variety reports that it’s the best opening weekend for an original film since Peele’s film Us debuted in 2019.

Box Office Numbers from Friday (July 22nd) through Sunday (July 24th):

1. Nope, $44 million
2. Thor: Love and Thunder, $22.1 million
3. Minions: The Rise of Gru, $17.7 million
4. Where the Crawdads Sing, $10.33 million
5. Top Gun: Maverick, $10 million
6. Elvis, $6.3 million
7. Paws of Fury, $3.87 million
8. The Black Phone, $3.45 million
9. Jurassic World: Dominion, $2.96 million
10. Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, $1.35 million

➤MUSK DENIES HAVING AFFAIR WITH GOOGLE CO-FOUNDER BRIN'S WIFE: Elon Musk is denying a Wall Street Journal report yesterday that he had a brief affair with Google co-founder Sergey Brin's wife, Nicole Shanahan, that led to the deterioration of his friendship with Brin, as well as the end of Brin and Shanahan's marriage. Brin filed for divorce in January of this year, and the report says he filed several weeks after finding out about Shanahan's alleged fling with the Tesla and SpaceX CEO. The brief affair supposedly took place in early December. The report said Musk went to his knee at a party and apologized profusely to Brin, who's said to have acknowledged the apology, but is no in regular contact with Musk, who was a longtime and once-close friend. Musk tweeted in reponse to the Journal article, "This is total bs. Sergey and I are friends and were at a party together last night! I’ve only seen Nicole twice in three years, both times with many other people around. Nothing romantic."


⚾'BIG PAPI' ORTIZ GETS ROUSING RECEPTION AT BASEBALL HALL OF FAME INDUCTION: Former Boston Red Sox slugger David "Big Papi" Ortiz got a rousing reception as he headlined the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cooperstown, New York, on Sunday (July 24th). Ortiz, the first career designated hitter to be selected on first ballot, said, "I always tried to live my life in a way . . . so I can make a positive influence in the world. And if my story can remind you of anything, let it remind you that when you believe in someone you can change the world, you can change their future, just like so many people believed in me." 


Also going into the Hall of Fame yesterday were six players voted in by veterans committees: Jim Kaat; Tony Oliva; the late Minnie Minoso; former Dodgers star Gil Hodges; and Black pioneers Buck O'Neil and Bud Fowler.

➤ELLIOTT WINS AT POCONO AFTER HAMLIN IN FIRST AND BUSCH IN SECOND DISQUALIFIED: Third-place finisher Chase Elliott was given the win at the NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway yesterday after first place finisher Denny Hamlin and runner-up Kyle Busch were disqualified after their cars failed inspection. It was an extraordinary decision, with NASCAR believing the last time it disqualified an apparent winner was in 1960. NASCAR Cup Series managing director Brad Moran said, "There was some issues discovered that affect aero in the vehicle." He said it was in the "front fascia," the cover of the front car bumper. NASCAR said it wasn't found in the pre-race inspection because the wrap wasn't removed from the cars until after the race.

🚴VINGEGAARD WINS TOUR DE FRANCE: Danish cyclist Jonas Vingegaard won the Tour de France Sunday, taking the championship of cycling's premier race for the first time. The 25-year-old Vingegaard had been the runner-up last year to winner Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia, who finished in second this year, reversing the results. Geraint Thomas of Great Britian was third.

🏌CANADA'S HENDERSON WINS EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP: Canadian golfer Brooke Henderson won the Evian Championship in France yesterday for her second major title, six years after taking her first with the PGA Championship in 2016. She finished at 17-under 267. Coming in second place by one shot was American Sophia Schubert, an LPGA rookie.

 

🏈TEXANS ROOKIE METCHIE DIAGNOSED WITH LEUKEMIA: Houston Texans rookie wide receiver John Metchie III revealed yesterday that he'd been diagnosed with leukemia. The 22-year-old, who was chosen 44th in the first round of this year's NFL draft, said in a statement that he has acute promyelocytic leukemia, which he called "the most curable form" of the disease. Metchie said he expects, quote, "to make a recovery at a later point in time." Because of his diagnosis, Metchie said he "likely" won't be playing football this season.

🏈XFL ANNOUNCES THREE NEW CITIES, DROPS THREE FOR 2023: The XFL announced three new cities for the 2023 season last night, adding to five cities they're keeping, while dropping three other cities from the 2020 season, the last one it played. The three new cities are Las Vegas, Orlando and San Antonio, Texas. They will join: Arlington, Texas; Houston; St. Louis, Seattle; and Washington, D.C., meaning there will be three teams in Texas. Being dropped are New York, Los Angeles and Tampa Bay, after they had the lowest average attendance figures during the 2020 season. The league didn't announce names or branding for the teams. The XFL's 2020 season was cut short after five weeks by the pandemic. It was then sold to an ownership group that includes Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. The XFL's first game in 2023 is scheduled for February 18th.



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