Cut to the News
Cut through the clutter to today's top news
June 8, 2020
Good morning
Welcome to today's top news.
Leading the News . . .
Defund the police gains traction . . . A movement to slash funding for police departments or to disband them entirely has surged in the wake of George Floyd’s killing in Minneapolis police custody last month, with activists, local leaders and elected officials calling to drastically reshape public safety amid nationwide protests of police brutality. Demonstrators have chanted “defund the police” at rallies outside the homes of mayors, and they have
printed the slogan on face masks and spray-painted it on walls in numerous cities. In Washington, D.C., the phrase now appears in huge yellow letters on the newly named Black Lives Matter Plaza on 16th Street near the White House. Though long a
concept floated among left-leaning activists and academics, officials from Washington to Los Angeles are now seriously considering ways to scale back their police departments and redirect funding to social programs. Washington Post
De Blasio to cut funding for NYPD . . . Under pressure from protesters, elected officials and even members of his own staff, Mayor de Blasio announced an unspecified funding cut to the NYPD on Sunday. The statement came as the city was reeling from more than a week of heated protests. “We are committed to shifting resources to ensure that the focus is on our young people,” the mayor said at a press conference. “We will only do it in a way that we
are certain continues to ensure that this city will be safe." He declined to state which part of the NYPD’s colossal $6 billion yearly budget will be targeted, or specify which youth and social programs will get funds. New York Daily News
Cut funding for the police? In New York City? In other news, de Blasio and other leading Democrats to be tested to find out if they're insane.
Minneapolios city council votes to defund police . . . Minneapolis’ left-leaning City Council members on Sunday announced a veto-proof push to disband the Minneapolis police department, ramping up a major conflict inside the city following the death of George Floyd while in police custody. Many activists have been pushing at least for their cities to defund local police departments, a move many other analysts
considered unrealistic. The measure has been the main focus for many people protesting against police brutality. Supporters of the move told Fox News, “We recognize that we don’t have all the answers about what a police-free future looks like, but our community does. Fox News
Minneapolis mayor booed for refusing . . . Minneapolis’ Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey was booed out of a protest on Saturday after reportedly refusing to back far-left calls to defund the Minneapolis Police Department -- a week after riots and looting tore through the city in the wake of George
Floyd's death in police custody. “Go home Jacob, go home,” the demonstrators yelled at the mayor, as others booed and chanted “Shame, shame, shame.” Fox News
Democrats proposing new police procedures . . . A sweeping overhaul of police oversight and procedures is being proposed by Democrats in response to the deaths of black Americans at the hands of law enforcement, according to a draft outline obtained by The Associated
Press. The Justice in Policing Act, to be unveiled Monday, would limit legal protections for police, create a national database of excessive-force incidents and ban police choke holds, among other changes. It is the most ambitious changes to law enforcement sought by Congress in years. Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, which is leading the effort, said called it “transformative.” Associated Press
Poll finds 80% think US is "out of control" . . . Four in five registered voters in a new poll feel "things in the country are out of control" as the death toll from the coronavirus pandemic approaches 110,000, unemployment remains at a level not seen since the Great Depression and protests continue across the U.S. According to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released Sunday, the sense of chaos and economic pessimism did not have much effect on the job approval rating for President Donald Trump. At 45%, his approval rating remains within the range that NBC/Wall Street Journal polls and other surveys have found since he
took office. Trump has pitched himself as the "law and order" candidate for the upcoming election. But 59% of voters said they were more concerned about the actions of police than the protesters, while 27% said they were more concerned about the violent protests and 13% said they were worried about both. USA Today
Study: Shutdowns prevented 60M coronavirus infections in the US . . . Shutdown orders prevented about 285 million novel coronavirus infections in China and about 60 million in the United States, according to a research study published Monday that examined how stay-at-home orders and other restrictions limited the spread of the contagion. A separate study from epidemiologists at Imperial College
London estimated that the shutdowns saved approximately 3.1 million lives in 11 European countries and dropped infection rates by an average of 82 percent, sufficient to drive the contagion well below epidemic levels. Both reports were published Monday in the journal Nature. Washington
Post
Cases on the rise in several major states . . . Nearly three months since the U.S. declared a national emergency over the new coronavirus, some states are reporting a rise in new cases as they lift restrictions meant to slow the virus’s spread. California, Utah, Arizona, North Carolina, Florida, Arkansas and Texas, among others, have all logged rises in confirmed cases, according to a Johns Hopkins tabulation of a five-day
moving average. Meantime, New York City, the U.S. area hit hardest by the pandemic, has seen a drop in caUses and deaths and plans to begin reopening its economy Monday. Fox News
New York City begins to reopen . . . Exactly 100 days since its first case of coronavirus was confirmed, New York City, which weathered extensive hardship as an epicenter of the worldwide outbreak, is set to take the first tentative steps toward reopening its doors on Monday. Getting here took the sacrifice of millions of New Yorkers who learned to live radically different lives. More than 205,000 have been infected, and nearly 22,000 have
died. As many as 400,000 workers could begin returning to construction jobs, manufacturing sites and retail stores in the city’s first phase of reopening— a surge of normalcy that seemed almost inconceivable several weeks ago, when the city’s hospitals were at a breaking point and as many as 800 people were dying from Covid-19 on a single day. New York Times
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Mitt Romney joins DC protests, says "Black Lives Matter" . . . Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) on Sunday became the first Republican senator known to march in one of D.C.'s anti-racism demonstrations following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis nearly two weeks ago.
Wearing a mask and garnering little overt notice from fellow protesters, the former presidential nominee marched alongside hundreds of evangelicals in a crowd that eventually swelled to more than 1,000 demonstrators. Romney said in an interview that he wanted to find “a way to end violence and brutality, and to make sure that
people understand that black lives matter.” Washington Post
The nation's leading virtue-signaller takes to the streets.
Trump denounces kneeling by NFL players as "disrespectful to our country' . . . Donald Trump took to Twitter late Sunday to question Roger Goodell's claims that the NFL was wrong to oppose Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling protests against police brutality, insisting any such
demonstrations are still deeply 'disrespectful'. Goodell voiced regret for not listening earlier to players fighting for racial equality and encouraged them to peacefully protest from now on. ‘Could it be even remotely possible that in Roger Goodell’s rather interesting statement of peace and reconciliation, he was intimating that it would now be O.K. for the players to KNEEL, or not to stand, for the National Anthem, thereby disrespecting our Country & our Flag?’ Trump asked in a
tweet. Daily Mail
VIDEO || Trump brushes off reporter who says good economic news is bad
White House reporters say they were forced to break social distancing rules . . . According to a memo by White House Correspondents’ Association President Jonathan Karl of ABC News: Today the White House press office positioned seating for the President’s Rose Garden “news
conference” in a way that violated the federal government’s guidelines on social distancing and needlessly put reporters health at risk. The chairs were initially positioned in a way that was consistent with social distancing guidelines but were moved closer together by White House staff shortly before the event started. When we asked for an explanation, the White House press office told us the decision to move the chairs close together was made because “It looks better.” White House Dossier
Today's Trump Schedule
Biden to meet with George Floyd's family in Houston . . . Former Vice President Joe Biden plans to travel to Houston on Monday to meet with the family of George Floyd, opting for a private meeting instead of potentially disrupting Tuesday's funeral service with extra security
measures. "Vice President Biden will travel to Houston Monday to express his condolences in-person to the Floyd family. He is also recording a video message for the funeral service," a spokesman said Sunday. CBS News
College cancels Ivanka's commencement speech . . . Ivanka Trump criticized “cancel culture” after Wichita State University dropped her as a commencement speaker. “Our nation’s campuses should be bastions of free speech. Cancel culture and viewpoint discrimination are antithetical to
academia,” Trump tweeted Friday. Trump also shared a video of the remarks she planned to give. The university canceled Trump’s virtual speech Thursday night after protests from students, faculty, and alumni over the president’s handling of large-scale demonstrations across the country. Washington Examiner
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Allies alarmed by Trump order to pull troops from Germany . . . U.S. allies in Europe expressed dismay over President Trump’s plan to slash the number of American troops in Germany by more than a quarter, saying it undermined NATO and boosted adversaries such as Russia.
Mr. Trump’s order surprised allies, who hadn’t been officially informed, according to European diplomats. The proposed cut to 25,000 from 34,500 would reverse recent increases in U.S. troops in Europe designed to deter Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2014 and has bolstered armed forces on its western flank. Wall Street Journal
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New Zeland eliminates the coronavirus . . . New Zealand lifted all social and economic restrictions except border controls after declaring on Monday it was free of the coronavirus, one of the first countries in the world to return to pre-pandemic normality.
Public and private events, the retail and hospitality industries and all public transport were allowed to resume without the distancing rules still in place across much of the world. “While the job is not done, there is no denying this is a milestone ... Thank you, New Zealand,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told a news
conference, saying she had danced for joy at the news. Reuters
Swedish prime minster rebuked as death toll mounts . . . The prime minister of Sweden was forced to defend his Covid-19 strategy after opposition parties mounted a scathing attack on his government amid signs its handling of the pandemic has been fatally flawed. With more than 4,500 Swedes now dead as a result of the coronavirus, and Sweden’s chief epidemiologist admitting mistakes, Prime Minister Stefan Lofven was the target of a series
of rebukes during a debate among party leaders broadcast on Sunday night. Bloomberg
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Don't teller: Bye bye bank branches . . . People are visiting bank branches less frequently during the coronavirus pandemic. That could speed up some banks’ plans for shutting them down. Branch traffic fell more than 30% in April and the first three weeks of May compared with the same period last year, according to Novantas, a financial-services research firm. Teller transactions dropped 32% in March and April compared with the
same period last year, Novantas said. The forced shift toward mobile banking delivers an important win for traditional banks, which have been trying for years to steer people away from branches and toward apps and websites for routine transactions. If customers adapt without much complaint, that could give banks fresh reasoning to expedite planned closures and consider additional ones. Wall Street Journal
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New York Times editorial page editor fired after Tom Cotton op-ed fiasco . . . The New York Times announced on Sunday that editorial page editor James Bennet has resigned from his post — following controversy over the publication of
an op-ed by Sen. Tom Cotton. “Last week we saw a significant breakdown in our editing processes, not the first we’ve experienced in recent years,” said A. G. Sulzberger, the publisher, in a note to staff announcing the changes. “James and I agreed that it would take a new team to lead the department through a period of considerable change.” He also announced that Jim Dao, the deputy editorial page editor, was stepping down from his position on the Times masthead and taking a new job in the
newsroom. New York Post
Meet your new paragons of press pusillanimity. Bennett, whom I knew as a thoughtful, nice guy when he was a White House reporter, deserves his fate. He initially defending publishing the piece, which he knew was the right thing to do, and then he claimed he never read it. Now he lost both his integrity and his job.
Black Georgia trooper refuses to kneel, saying he only does so for God . . . Georgia State Trooper O’Neal Saddler refused to kneel for protesters at a Black Lives Matter rally in Hartwell, Georgia on Sunday. Saddler was seen telling a female protester after she apparently asked him to kneel. “I took off today, this weekend, but I’m out here just to make sure y’all are safe. Don’t go there with respect, okay? I have much respect, but I only
kneel for one person, and that’s God.” Daily Caller
Man drives into protest and shoots demonstrator . . . Terrifying video shows the moment a man attempted to drive his car through a crowd of protesters in Washington state before exiting his vehicle and shooting one demonstrator with a hand gun. Footage showed the man, who has not been identified, driving through a protest that was taking place in Seattle on Sunday. The vehicle is seen speeding down a road where George Floyd protesters
were peacefully demonstrating. Daily Mail
Suspect arrest in shooting of retired St. Louis officer . . . A 24-year-old St. Louis man has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a retired police captain during a night of looting in the city last week, local prosecutors said Sunday. Stephan Cannon was
charged with first-degree murder in the death of 77-year-old David Dorn, who was gunned down early Tuesday in front of a pawn shop he was trying to protect from looters, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner said.
Dorn’s last moments were apparently posted on Facebook Live, though the video has since been taken down. He was a friend of the pawnshop’s owner and would check on the property, including when its burglar alarm went off. New York Post
Air Force sergeant arrested in shooting of Oakland deputy . . . An active-duty Air Force staff sergeant has been arrested in the ambush-style shooting death of a deputy with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday afternoon in Ben Lomond. Steven Carrillo, who is 32 and stationed at Travis Air Force Base, where he is attached to a military police unit, was arrested at a hospital, where he was being treated for
non-life-threatening injuries. Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart said Carrillo will be charged with murder and other felonies for the killing of Damon Gutzwiller, 38, a father of one with another baby on the way with his wife. San Francisco Chronicle
Beyond diet and exercise: How to live to 100 . . . To encourage longevity, to make it to 100, scientists say that, rather than focus solely on diet and exercise, we need to concentrate on softer social and psychological approaches that will benefit us more. The number one thing you can do for long life is to have a committed romantic relationship. This, according to some studies, can lower your risk of early death by a staggering 49 per cent.
Second, have a large social network of friends, family and neighbours, which can reduce the likelihood of early death by 45 per cent. Third, foster a conscientious personality: this cuts the risk by 44 per cent. All these softer social attributes may be as good for you in terms of longevity as eating six portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Daily Mail
Gymnast Kurt Thomas dead at 64 . . . Kurt Thomas, the first U.S. male gymnast to win a world championship gold medal, has died. He was 64. Thomas’ family said he died Friday. He had a stroke May 24, caused by a tear of the basilar artery in the brain stem. “Yesterday, I lost my universe, my best friend and my soulmate of 24 years. Kurt lived his life to the extreme, and I will be forever honored to be his wife,” wife Beckie Thomas told
International Gymnast Magazine. After competing in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, Thomas won the floor exercise in the 1978 world championships in Strasbourg, France, for the first U.S. men’s title. In the 1979 worlds in Fort Worth, Texas, he successfully defended the floor exercise title and won the horizontal bar. USA Today
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Chris Cuomo caught naked in wife's yoga video . . . The CNN anchor was apparently caught in the nude in the garden of his Hamptons mansion during a social media yoga session filmed by his wife Cristina Greeven Cuomo.
The younger brother of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is seemingly seen in a screen grab strutting his stuff in the buff outside of his home in Southampton, where he had been broadcasting from his basement while under quarantine. The 49-year-old super-fit newsman was allegedly seen au naturel in nature, captured from behind through the large windows of
their home, during an Instagram Live yoga video shot by Cristina. The video was deleted quickly after it was filmed around May 27, but not before some eagle-eyed followers grabbed a stark-naked screen shot. New York Post
Speedway holds race bly claiming its a "peaceful protest" . . . The Solid Rock Carriers CARS Tour went on as planned at Ace Speedway Saturday night, despite the governor's ban on outdoor gatherings. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper's executive order on phase two of reopening limits public gatherings to 25
people at places like stadiums and racetracks. A sign outside the track read, "This event is held in peaceful protest of injustice and inequality everywhere." Protests are not restricted under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. WXII 12 Winston-Salem
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Keith
Keith Koffler
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