Monday, June 29, 2020
PHOENIX – Arizona elections officials disputed President Donald Trump’s latest attacks on mail-in voting, which he leveled Tuesday at a Students for Trump rally in north central Phoenix.
Because of voting by mail, Trump told the crowd, the November election would be the “most corrupt election in the history of our country.”
“And there is tremendous evidence of fraud whenever you have mail-in ballots,” Trump said, repeating unfounded claims widely debunked by media outlets. “And frankly, if we are really going to protect our elections – and some people don’t want to hear this – we must have voter ID.”
Trump, a Florida resident who has voted by mail, went on to say that mail carriers could be robbed of ballots, which then could be duplicated by foreign or domestic enemies, according to The New York Times. The security concerns – along with other claims Trump has made about mail-in voting – are false, according to numerous outlets, including NPR, CNN and NBC.
Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs also disagreed that mail-in ballots aren’t safe.
“He’s flat out wrong,” Hobbs said of the president’s claims. “We have a long track record of successful and secure voting by mail in Arizona. Ballots are tracked when they leave the county recorder’s office to go to voters, and voters can find out the status of their ballots once they return it. So there’s a lot of safeguards in place.”
Because of voting by mail, Trump told the crowd, the November election would be the “most corrupt election in the history of our country.”
“And there is tremendous evidence of fraud whenever you have mail-in ballots,” Trump said, repeating unfounded claims widely debunked by media outlets. “And frankly, if we are really going to protect our elections – and some people don’t want to hear this – we must have voter ID.”
Trump, a Florida resident who has voted by mail, went on to say that mail carriers could be robbed of ballots, which then could be duplicated by foreign or domestic enemies, according to The New York Times. The security concerns – along with other claims Trump has made about mail-in voting – are false, according to numerous outlets, including NPR, CNN and NBC.
Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs also disagreed that mail-in ballots aren’t safe.
“He’s flat out wrong,” Hobbs said of the president’s claims. “We have a long track record of successful and secure voting by mail in Arizona. Ballots are tracked when they leave the county recorder’s office to go to voters, and voters can find out the status of their ballots once they return it. So there’s a lot of safeguards in place.”
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Click here to read their biggest stories as soon as they’re published.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has warned states not to use COVID-19 testing supplies it bought under a $10.2 million contract after a ProPublica investigation last week showed the vendor was providing contaminated and unusable mini soda bottles.
A FEMA spokeswoman said the agency is working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to analyze test tubes filled with saline and sold to the government by Fillakit LLC, whose warehouse is near Houston.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we recommend this media not be used at this time,” spokeswoman Alex Bruner said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has warned states not to use COVID-19 testing supplies it bought under a $10.2 million contract after a ProPublica investigation last week showed the vendor was providing contaminated and unusable mini soda bottles.
A FEMA spokeswoman said the agency is working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to analyze test tubes filled with saline and sold to the government by Fillakit LLC, whose warehouse is near Houston.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we recommend this media not be used at this time,” spokeswoman Alex Bruner said.
PHOENIX – Several Scottsdale bars and restaurants labeled “bad actors” by Gov. Doug Ducey have shut down temporarily, and they’re pushing back on his allegations that they disregarded safety protocols meant to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Ducey labeled eight Scottsdale establishments “bad actors” at a news conference Thursday. The admonishment came after city authorities and the state Department of Liquor Licenses and Control filed charges on Tuesday against Riot House, El Hefe, Bottled Blonde, International, Pattie’s, Casa Amigos, Hi-Fi and Maya Day and Night Club.
A spokeswoman for Riot Hospitality Group, which manages El Hefe and Riot House, pushed back on the characterization as bad actors. On Thursday, both clubs closed temporarily.
“Before the state reopened, we went through exhaustive efforts, actually going above and beyond the CDC guidelines and what was recommended to us by our licensing authorities,” Lissa Druss of Riot Hospitality Group said in an interview with Cronkite News.
Ducey labeled eight Scottsdale establishments “bad actors” at a news conference Thursday. The admonishment came after city authorities and the state Department of Liquor Licenses and Control filed charges on Tuesday against Riot House, El Hefe, Bottled Blonde, International, Pattie’s, Casa Amigos, Hi-Fi and Maya Day and Night Club.
A spokeswoman for Riot Hospitality Group, which manages El Hefe and Riot House, pushed back on the characterization as bad actors. On Thursday, both clubs closed temporarily.
“Before the state reopened, we went through exhaustive efforts, actually going above and beyond the CDC guidelines and what was recommended to us by our licensing authorities,” Lissa Druss of Riot Hospitality Group said in an interview with Cronkite News.
Spike Lee follows up BlacKkKlansman, one of his best movies, with another great one, Da 5 Bloods, now out on Netflix. Delroy Lindo and Chadwick Boseman lead a strong cast as Lee examines the lives of five Black veterans before and after Vietnam.
Lee and his co-writers send the five characters back to Vietnam to search for the remains of their former platoon leader (Boseman) and a bunch of gold bars they stashed during battle. Boseman appears via flashback; the older actors appear as the same age (with no de-aging makeup or technology) in both time periods—and it’s a style choice that works amazingly well. There’s something deep and moving about seeing these characters at their present age in the war they fought a half-century ago.
Lindo does career-best work as Paul, a man who is fraying a bit at the edges and is looking for redemption in the jungle. His son, David (Jonathan Majors), provides a twist when he unexpectedly tags along, forcing David to deal with a lot of demons. Lindo has delivered one of the year’s best performances so far.
The movie is shot beautifully—and is perhaps the most violent film Lee has ever made. It’s also one of the more adventurous, and best-timed, films in his repertoire.
Lee has made two stellar films in a row, indicating he is back in full creative force.
Da 5 Bloods is now streaming on Netflix.
PHOENIX – Nearly three years after it won endangered species status, the Sonoyta mud turtle was granted 12.3 acres of protected habitat this week – but supporters worry that that habitat may no longer provide all the protection the turtles need.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Tuesday designated an area in the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, in the turtle’s historic territory in the Rio Sonoyta watershed, as protected.
But that habitat bumps right against the U.S.-Mexico border, where one expert said construction crews “are pulling huge amounts of water out of the aquifer” to work on the border wall.
Critics worry that the pumping will eventually affect the Quitobaquito springs and pond, which the turtles have depended on for what experts think could be thousands of years. The pond sits around 100 yards from the site of the planned border wall.
“They are pulling huge amounts of water out of the aquifer to mix concrete and to spray on the roads to keep dust down, and it’s only a matter of time before the flow that reaches the surface of the spring there fails,” said Randy Serraglio, southwest conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity.
“When that happens, then that’s it. The aquatic habitat dries up and the turtle will die,” Serraglio said.
The border wall is just one issue the turtle faces in the middle of the desert, where Serraglio said over-pumping, water diversion and 20 years of drought conditions also pose threats.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Tuesday designated an area in the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, in the turtle’s historic territory in the Rio Sonoyta watershed, as protected.
But that habitat bumps right against the U.S.-Mexico border, where one expert said construction crews “are pulling huge amounts of water out of the aquifer” to work on the border wall.
Critics worry that the pumping will eventually affect the Quitobaquito springs and pond, which the turtles have depended on for what experts think could be thousands of years. The pond sits around 100 yards from the site of the planned border wall.
“They are pulling huge amounts of water out of the aquifer to mix concrete and to spray on the roads to keep dust down, and it’s only a matter of time before the flow that reaches the surface of the spring there fails,” said Randy Serraglio, southwest conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity.
“When that happens, then that’s it. The aquatic habitat dries up and the turtle will die,” Serraglio said.
The border wall is just one issue the turtle faces in the middle of the desert, where Serraglio said over-pumping, water diversion and 20 years of drought conditions also pose threats.
DJ Jahmar International from DJs Against Hunger will be live streaming tonight to help Tucson's Homeless Comunity get COVID-19 masks.
DJ Jahmar International of DJs Against Hunger will be live-streaming a two-hour DJ set tonight, Monday, June 29 on his Facebook page, featuring the best reggae and hip hop known to the human race in an effort to help Tucson's homeless community obtain COVID-19 masks.
"I was inspired to do this event because I saw a need since the homeless community was not mentioned during most news interviews and stories didn’t mention how people were helping the homeless," DJ Jahmar said.
The DJ has personally purchased several dozen masks for the homeless community and is working with masksfortucson.org to acquire more. So far, the group has donated over 300 masks to DJ Jahmar's cause.
Tonight's show starts at 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. and will feature Dj L3XX and Emato Johnson helping DJ Jahmar keep the party going. All proceeds will be donated to purchase masks for the homeless, DJ Jahmar said.
Donate via Cashapp to help the cause at $jahmarintl. You can also keep up with DJ Jahmar and DJs Against Hunger on Instagram at Stuntgangdj.
For more information or questions contact [email protected].
It will be another hot, windy day on the flanks of the Catalina Mountains, where the Bighorn Fire has burned 107,000 acres over the past three weeks. The blaze, which began from a lightning strike on June 5, is currently 45 percent contained with more than 1,000 fire personnel on the job.
Since its start, weather and geography have added to the fire's spread throughout the Pusch Ridge and Mount Lemmon areas. As it's moved north and east, the Bighorn Fire has threatened the communities of Catalina Foothills, Oracle and Summerhaven. Most recently, the fire neared the Redington area east of Mount Lemmon.
"Today, our firefighters are out there trying to look at opportunities to come around the south side to limit the fire spread coming south,” said Incident Commander Aaron Thompson. “I know that's a concern from the community and public. That's our goal and objective for the day, but we're going to be faced with some extreme winds today. The weather service is providing us that this may be one of the windiest days in the Tucson area in several years."
Fire crews have also moved in to monitor Sabino Canyon, but there are no active fires and Thompson says the area is “looking really good” and no fire has moved south of the Sabino area. The eastern edge of the fire remains the most active, with winds fanning the flames across the open areas.
"Yesterday, firefighters were extremely challenged with the winds," Thompson said. “That limited our aircraft. We were able to still fly, but the effectiveness of some of that fire retardant and water was limited."
Summerhaven has survived as a “green island” surrounded by burnt areas, Thompson said. No structures have been lost in the community thus far, and the incident management team is reporting their fire breaks are holding strong.
Fire crews remind the public that drones are prohibited over the fire area, as firefighting aircraft are busy and must be grounded in drones' presence. According to the National Forest Service, on June 8, a drone was observed over the Bighorn Fire’s southern perimeter, which "forced the aircraft suppression effort to be halted, endangering the lives of on the ground firefighters and the air crews at a critical time during the height of the burning period." This was the second such incident in three days.
PHOENIX – Changes in lifestyle associated with COVID-19 have heightened concerns among health professionals about anorexia, bulimia, binge-eating and other eating disorders.
But one demographic is drawing particular attention: Black women, who have long been overlooked in this specialized area of treatment.
“We’re underserved. We’re poorly served. We’re served through bias and ignorance,” said Shelby Gordon, a Health at Every Size-trained coach dedicated to helping Black women with eating disorders better advocate for themselves with medical providers.
“The real issues – the real medical and mental issues that we are trying to work through – are not looked at,” Gordon said, “because all they can see is the number on the scale.”
The recent deaths of George Floyd and other Black men and women at the hands of police have sparked outrage nationwide, but they’re also fueling new calls for equity in criminal justice, the news media, entertainment, technology, health care and other industries.
Gordon said white health care providers have reached out to her to acknowledge the lack of Black providers specializing in eating disorders and to question whether their approach to treatment has been appropriate.
But one demographic is drawing particular attention: Black women, who have long been overlooked in this specialized area of treatment.
“We’re underserved. We’re poorly served. We’re served through bias and ignorance,” said Shelby Gordon, a Health at Every Size-trained coach dedicated to helping Black women with eating disorders better advocate for themselves with medical providers.
“The real issues – the real medical and mental issues that we are trying to work through – are not looked at,” Gordon said, “because all they can see is the number on the scale.”
The recent deaths of George Floyd and other Black men and women at the hands of police have sparked outrage nationwide, but they’re also fueling new calls for equity in criminal justice, the news media, entertainment, technology, health care and other industries.
Gordon said white health care providers have reached out to her to acknowledge the lack of Black providers specializing in eating disorders and to question whether their approach to treatment has been appropriate.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Arizona crossed the 74,000 threshold as of Monday, June 29, after the state reported 625 new cases this morning, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
That said, Arizona Department of Health Services tweeted earlier this morning that not all new cases are reflected in this total, and that a higher number is to be expected tomorrow because of this.
Pima County had seen 7,568 of the state's 74,533 confirmed cases.
Cases in Arizona have more than tripled since June 1, when the state had 20,123 confirmed cases.
A total of 1,588 people have died after contracting the virus, including 268 in Pima County.
Maricopa County has more than half the state's cases, with the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases hitting 45,178.
This morning's Arizona Department of Health Services report shows that as of yesterday, 2,721 Arizonans were hospitalized, more than double the 1,009 hospitalized on June 1.
992 people arrived at emergency rooms with COVID-like symptoms on June 28. Previous to June, the number of people seeking help in emergency rooms never topped 667.
A total of 679 COVID-19 patients were in ICU beds yesterday.
If you're out in public in Pima County, you're now expected to wear masks or face coverings if you're older than 5. The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 along party lines to require face masks on Friday, June 19. Likewise, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero issued a proclamation last week that requires face masks and includes a $50 penalty for those who don't mask up, although she said authorities would first try to educate those who don't wear masks and would resort to fines only for report offenders. There are exceptions for those who can't wear a mask for medical reasons.
Banner Health Chief Clinical Officer Marjorie Bessel announced over the weekend that the hospital network, which treats about half of Arizona's hospitalized COVID patients, was reaching its limit as it activated its surge plan and balanced its load of patients among its facilities. Banner is calling in additional health care workers from around the country.
"We are absolutely experiencing a surge of COVID-19 patients that are coming in for care, and we are starting to get full," she said. "We do have plans, however, to continue to increase our capacity so that we can meet the demand of the communities and all the people that we serve in there. But we do ask everybody to follow all the things that we can do to try and reduce the curve of spread."
In a press conference last week, Ducey warned the worst days of the outbreak still lay ahead.
“I don’t want there to be any illusion or sugar-coated expectations," Ducey said. "We expect that our numbers will be worse next week and the week following in terms of cases and hospitalizations."
Ducey noted the greatest growth was among people ages 20 to 44, who generally do not face the worst symptoms of the disease but are capable of transmitting it to parents, grandparents, and others who do.
That said, Arizona Department of Health Services tweeted earlier this morning that not all new cases are reflected in this total, and that a higher number is to be expected tomorrow because of this.
Pima County had seen 7,568 of the state's 74,533 confirmed cases.
Cases in Arizona have more than tripled since June 1, when the state had 20,123 confirmed cases.
A total of 1,588 people have died after contracting the virus, including 268 in Pima County.
Maricopa County has more than half the state's cases, with the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases hitting 45,178.
This morning's Arizona Department of Health Services report shows that as of yesterday, 2,721 Arizonans were hospitalized, more than double the 1,009 hospitalized on June 1.
992 people arrived at emergency rooms with COVID-like symptoms on June 28. Previous to June, the number of people seeking help in emergency rooms never topped 667.
A total of 679 COVID-19 patients were in ICU beds yesterday.
If you're out in public in Pima County, you're now expected to wear masks or face coverings if you're older than 5. The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 along party lines to require face masks on Friday, June 19. Likewise, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero issued a proclamation last week that requires face masks and includes a $50 penalty for those who don't mask up, although she said authorities would first try to educate those who don't wear masks and would resort to fines only for report offenders. There are exceptions for those who can't wear a mask for medical reasons.
Banner Health Chief Clinical Officer Marjorie Bessel announced over the weekend that the hospital network, which treats about half of Arizona's hospitalized COVID patients, was reaching its limit as it activated its surge plan and balanced its load of patients among its facilities. Banner is calling in additional health care workers from around the country.
"We are absolutely experiencing a surge of COVID-19 patients that are coming in for care, and we are starting to get full," she said. "We do have plans, however, to continue to increase our capacity so that we can meet the demand of the communities and all the people that we serve in there. But we do ask everybody to follow all the things that we can do to try and reduce the curve of spread."
In a press conference last week, Ducey warned the worst days of the outbreak still lay ahead.
“I don’t want there to be any illusion or sugar-coated expectations," Ducey said. "We expect that our numbers will be worse next week and the week following in terms of cases and hospitalizations."
Ducey noted the greatest growth was among people ages 20 to 44, who generally do not face the worst symptoms of the disease but are capable of transmitting it to parents, grandparents, and others who do.
