Cut to the News
Cut through the clutter to today's top news
July 27, 2020, 2020
Good morning
Welcome to today's top news.
Leading the News . . .
Police detain two in Portland after shooting . . . Violence continued Sunday night near the contested federal courthouse, with local police temporarily detaining two people after a gunshot, and federal agents tackling and detaining at least six protesters before seizing weapons and shields from their encampment. Several protesters tried to push the agents off, but were warned back by a camouflaged agent with a rifle. A handful of other protesters
were tackled, restrained and either frog-marched into the courthouse or loaded into marked police vehicles. And police said they found a bag containing loaded rifle magazines and Molotov cocktails. USA Today
Seattle police beaten back into their precinct . . . Seattle police retreated to a precinct early Sunday, just hours after declaring a riot during large demonstrations in the city’s Capitol Hill neighborhood near where weeks earlier people had set up an “occupied protest zone” that stretched for several blocks. Authorities said rocks, bottles, fireworks and mortars were thrown at officers as they attempted to clear the area using flash bangs and
pepper spray over the course of several hours stretching into Saturday night. Washington Times
Protestors march outside home of DHS chief Wolf . . . A few dozen anti-police protesters chanted 'Fascist out' as they rallied outside the Virginia home of Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf to demand the removal of federal agents from Portland, Oregon, and other cities. Demonstrators chanted slogans like 'Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?' and demanded the defunding of police as they rallied in Alexandria, Virginia, on
Sunday morning. The demonstration comes as Wolf blasted Democrats on Sunday for 'sanctioning rioting' and violence against law enforcement. Daily Mail
World scrambles to contain virus surge . . . Health officials around the world are trying to tackle second waves of the pandemic, with outbreaks from China to Spain and Germany underlining the difficulty of stamping out the virus. China reported the greatest number of domestic cases since mid-March amid flareups in the west and northeast. A British researcher said the effectiveness of any vaccine is likely to depend on
annual doses. India’s epidemic is growing at the fastest pace in the world, increasing 20% over the last week. Spain is scrambling to stay ahead of new outbreaks that prompted the U.K. to impose a quarantine on travelers returning from the country. Bloomberg
Florida surpasses New York's coronavirus tally . . . More than 9,300 new coronavirus cases were reported in Florida on Sunday, accompanied by an additional 78 new deaths. As of Sunday, Florida had 423,855 coronavirus cases, an additional 9,344 cases from the previous day, and 5,972 total deaths, according to the Florida Department of Health. Over the weekend, Florida surpassed New York State in having the second-highest caseload in the
US, trailing only California. Associated Press
Covid-19 cases soar amid young sick of social distancing . . . Psychological fatigue with social distancing is emerging as a major challenge for curbing a pandemic now into its eighth month. That’s especially so among young adults who are less fearful of the coronavirus, and suffer greater economic and social costs when they stay home. From Japan to Spain and the U.S., infections among millennials and Generation Z are driving new
waves of cases which don’t seem to be abating despite re-imposed restrictions. The worrying trend reflects that social distancing curbs are proving untenable over a long period, despite their initial efficacy in flattening the virus curve across the world earlier this year. Bloomberg
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Kamala Harris is the leading choice to be Biden's VP . . . Harris, a California senator who has built a national following as a leading combatant against the Trump administration, has been seen as a likely Biden VP even before he started running. More than a year later, despite a campaign that didn’t even make it to the first nominating contests, Harris still appears to be in the pole position for the post:
Interviews with more than four dozen elected officials, strategists, former Biden advisers and plugged-in donors said they think Harris is the closest Biden has to a “do no harm” option. Politico
Trump told to stop using Reagan's name and image to raise campaign funds . . . The Ronald Reagan Foundation and Institute, which runs the 40th president's library near Los Angeles, demanded his name and likeness not be used by the Republican National Committee and Donald Trump to raise money for his re-election campaign. The RNC agreed to comply after an email began circulating promoting a commemorative coin set that includes
Trump's image alongside Reagan's. The coin set was given to anyone who donates $45 or more to the campaign. Daily Mail
Sadly, Ronald Reagan, himself for so many years an insurgent who, like Trump, was branded as a nut, has been kidnapped by the Establishment.
Sen. Tom Cotton called out for saying Founders viewed slavery as "necessary evil" . . . Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) faced criticism on Sunday after he claimed that the Founding Fathers viewed slavery as a "necessary evil" as part of the country's founding while discussing his bill that would reduce federal funding for any school that includes The New York Times's 1619 Project in its curriculum. “We have
to study the history of slavery and its role and impact on the development of our country because otherwise we can’t understand our country. As the Founding Fathers said, it was the necessary evil upon which the union was built, but the union was built in a way, as Lincoln said, to put slavery on the course to its ultimate extinction,” he said. The Hill
Soros pours personal record of $50M into 2020 election . . . Liberal billionaire George Soros has flooded Democratic PACs and campaigns with $50 million this election cycle, shattering his personal record by tens of millions with four months to go before the elections. Soros ramped up his political spending this cycle through the Democracy PAC, which he created last year to pump large sums into the coffers of other left-wing groups. New
filings to the Federal Election Commission show the PAC doled out nearly $17 million last quarter, bringing its total cash disbursements this cycle to $48 million. Washington Free Beacon
Trump and Biden build legal armies for electoral battlefield . . . President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden with help from allies have amassed an expansive legal war chest and marshaled armies of attorneys for what is on track to be the most litigated election season in U.S. history. The Republican National Committee has pledged $20 million this cycle to oppose Democratic-backed efforts to ease voting
restrictions while Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, said his campaign has assembled 600 attorneys as a bulwark against election subterfuge. The Hill
Mnuchin vows new round of $1,200 checks . . . Steven Mnuchin and Mark Meadows will return to Capitol Hill Sunday afternoon to continue negotiations over the most recent $1 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which they claim will include a cut back on unemployment benefits and another round of stimulus checks. Meadows, President Donald Trump’s Chief of Staff, and Mnuchin, his Treasury Secretary, said Saturday that the next legislation will
scale back unemployment benefits to up to 70 per cent of their normal wages in an effort to incentivize individuals to go back to work. Mnuchin also vowed there will be a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks sent out in August. Daily Mail
Trump says he often regrets tweets . . . President Trump said in an interview with Barstool Sports that he “often, too often” regrets tweets he sends out. “It used to be in the old days, before this, you’d write a letter, and you’d say, ‘This letter is really bad,'” he said in a video tweet by Barstool sports Friday. “You’d put it in your desk, and you go back tomorrow, and you say, ‘Oh, I’m glad I didn’t send it.’ Right? But we don’t do
that with Twitter,” he said. “We put it out instantaneously. We feel great, and then you start getting phone calls, ‘Did you really say this?'” he said. He added that it was” not the tweets, it’s the retweets that get you in trouble.” White House Dossier
Trump scraps plan to throw opening pitch at Yankee Stadium in August . . . President Trump on Sunday said he won’t throw the opening pitch at Yankee Stadium as planned next month, citing his busy schedule. “Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th. We will make
it later in the season!” Trump tweeted. New York Post
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Huge crowds gather as US exits its Chengdu consulate . . . Chinese onlookers filled the streets Sunday as American diplomats packed boxes, boarded buses and prepared to abandon the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu, the latest casualty of an increasingly bitter tit-for-tat exchange between Washington and Beijing. The scene outside the complex was mostly peaceful as American personnel prepared for their hasty exit ahead of Monday’s
deadline, gathering documents and electronics, while Chinese law enforcement shut down streets and sidewalks outside to keep crowds out. Washington Times
Iran moves mock-up US carrier into Gulf . . . Iran has moved a mock-up U.S. aircraft carrier to the strategic Strait of Hormuz, satellite images show, suggesting it will use the look-alike vessel for target practice in war games in a Gulf shipping channel vital to world oil exports. The use of dummy American warships has become an occasional feature of training by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and its naval forces, including in 2015 when Iranian
missiles hit a mock-up resembling a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. Reuters
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Canadian PM Trudeau embroiled in scandal . . . The Canadian leader is struggling to contain the rapid spread of a firestorm sparked by his plan to award a sole-source contract to a powerful charity and fueled by revelations that members of his family have been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in speaking fees by the organization over the past half decade. The dustup also threatens to cost Trudeau his trusted
finance minister. Politico
More than 120 killed or wounded in Darfur attack . . . More than 60 people were reported killed and nearly 60 others wounded during an armed attack in a village in Sudan’s restive Darfur region on Saturday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said late on Sunday. The attack in Masteri village in the West Darfur state “was one of the latest of a series of security incidents reported over the last week that left
several villages and houses burned, markets and shops looted, and infrastructure damaged,” the U.N. body added in a statement. It did not cite the source of its information. New York Post
Boris Johnson urges Britons to shed some pounds . . . Prime Minister Boris Johnson used his own struggle with weight on Monday to urge the British to get fitter and tackle widespread obesity that could heighten coronavirus risks. New government measures to help people shed weight include banning TV and online adverts for junk food before 9.00 p.m., ending “buy one get one free” deals on such foods, and flagging calories on menus of large
restaurants plus possibly on alcohol. Johnson, 56, has lost more than 14 pounds since a life-threatening brush with COVID-19. Reuter
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Gold prices set new record . . . Gold’s unrelenting march higher shows no signs of slowing after a plunge in the dollar swept prices past the previous high set in 2011 and put the metal on track for even bigger gains. Bullion’s surge came as a gauge of the U.S. currency sank to the lowest in more than a year, the latest in a long line of bullish factors -- including negative real rates in the U.S. and bets the Federal
Reserve will keep policy accommodative when it meets this week -- that are pushing prices ever higher. With the world facing an extended period of unprecedented economic and political turmoil, gold’s now got $2,000 in its sights. Bloomberg
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Minnesota pair banned from Walmart for wearing Nazi masks . . . A Minnesota man and woman who wore face masks with swastikas on them in an incident captured on video have been banned from Walmart stores nationwide for at least a year. The video, posted to Facebook on Saturday, shows a man and woman in a Walmart in Marshall, Minnesota, wearing red face coverings with swastikas. "You can't be American and wear that mask" a person can be heard saying. "We literally had a war about this." The masked woman can be heard saying, "If you vote for Biden you're gonna be in Nazi Germany. That's what it's going to be like." USA Today
WNBA players walk off the court during National Anthem . . . The Women's National Basketball Association New York Liberty and the Seattle Storm walked off the court Saturday during the national anthem. As the anthem was played prior to the game, players just walked right off the court and went to the locker rooms instead of standing. Both teams also spoke out in support of Breonna Taylor, who was killed by police
in Louisville. Daily Caller
Also news: There is a women's basketball league.
Mike Ditka to Anthem kneelers: Leave the country . . . Mike Ditka says anthem kneeling protests are unpatriotic. The Hall of Famer is slated to be the chairman of the X League -- a women's tackle football org. that was previously known as the Legends Football League -- and when we asked him if he'd be OK with protests during the national anthem, he straight-up said no. "If you can't respect our national anthem, get the hell out of the
country," Ditka said. "That's the way I feel. Of course, I'm old fashioned. TMZ Sports
Yes, respecting the National Anthem is now old fashioned, I suppose.
Olivia de Havilland dies at 104 . . . Olivia de Havilland, an actress who gained movie immortality in “Gone With the Wind,” then built an illustrious film career, punctuated by a successful fight to loosen the studios’ grip on contract actors, died on Sunday at her home in Paris. She was 104 and one of the last surviving stars of Hollywood’s fabled Golden Age. Her death was confirmed by her publicist Lisa Goldberg. Ms. de Havilland was
both a classic Hollywood beauty and an honored screen actress whose very name and bearing suggested membership in a kind of aristocracy of moviedom. Though she was typecast early in her career as the demure ingénue, she went on to earn meatier roles that led to five Academy Award nominations, two of which brought her the Oscar, for “To Each His Own” (1946) and “The Heiress” (1949). New York Times
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Rutgers declares grammar racist . . . The English department at a public university declared that proper English grammar is racist. Rutgers University's English department will change its standards of English instruction in an effort to "stand with and respond" to the Black Lives Matter movement. In an email written by department chairwoman Rebecca Walkowitz, the Graduate Writing Program will emphasize "social justice" and "critical grammar."
Walkowitz said the department would respond to recent events with "workshops on social justice and writing." The "critical grammar" approach challenges the standard academic form of the English language in favor of a more inclusive writing experience. The curriculum puts an emphasis on the variability of the English language instead of accuracy. Washington Free Beacon
Every time you hear about a "workshop," it's some kind of liberal thing going on. Conservatives never have workshops, unless you're talking about a place where tools are used to make things.
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Keith
Keith Koffler
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