Monday, June 8, 2020
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Friday, June 5, 2020
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Click here to read their biggest stories as soon as they’re published.
A new Trump appointee to the United States’ foreign aid agency has a history of online posts denouncing liberal democracy and has said that the country is in the clutches of a “homo-empire” that pushes a “tyrannical LGBT agenda.”
In one post, Merritt Corrigan, who recently took up a position as deputy White House liaison at the U.S. Agency for International Development, wrote: “Liberal democracy is little more than a front for the war being waged against us by those who fundamentally despise not only our way of life, but life itself.”
Corrigan’s new position in the Trump administration, confirmed by two officials, has not been previously reported.
Corrigan previously worked for the Hungarian Embassy in the United States and tweeted that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is “the shining champion of Western civilization,” Politico reported last year. An embassy spokesman, Béla Gedeon, said Corrigan left her position there in mid-April.
Orban, a far-right politician, has cracked down on civil society, academic freedom and other liberties. USAID has recently partnered with Hungary to help Christians in Iraq, a pairing that some career USAID officials said they found unsettling.
Asked about Corrigan’s writing, acting USAID spokesperson Pooja Jhunjhunwala said the agency has a “zero-tolerance policy of any form of discrimination or harassment based on gender, race, sexual orientation, religion or any other possible distinguishing characteristic that can define any of us.”
A new Trump appointee to the United States’ foreign aid agency has a history of online posts denouncing liberal democracy and has said that the country is in the clutches of a “homo-empire” that pushes a “tyrannical LGBT agenda.”
In one post, Merritt Corrigan, who recently took up a position as deputy White House liaison at the U.S. Agency for International Development, wrote: “Liberal democracy is little more than a front for the war being waged against us by those who fundamentally despise not only our way of life, but life itself.”
Corrigan’s new position in the Trump administration, confirmed by two officials, has not been previously reported.
Corrigan previously worked for the Hungarian Embassy in the United States and tweeted that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is “the shining champion of Western civilization,” Politico reported last year. An embassy spokesman, Béla Gedeon, said Corrigan left her position there in mid-April.
Orban, a far-right politician, has cracked down on civil society, academic freedom and other liberties. USAID has recently partnered with Hungary to help Christians in Iraq, a pairing that some career USAID officials said they found unsettling.
Asked about Corrigan’s writing, acting USAID spokesperson Pooja Jhunjhunwala said the agency has a “zero-tolerance policy of any form of discrimination or harassment based on gender, race, sexual orientation, religion or any other possible distinguishing characteristic that can define any of us.”
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Thursday, June 4, 2020
With the Republican National Committee actively seeking new homes for its August convention, some in Arizona are angling for the state to get in line with the long list of other potential suitors.
The RNC may still hold part of the convention in Charlotte – or it may not – as officials there say lingering COVID-19 concerns may limit convention crowd sizes. But it is looking for a new city to host President Donald Trump’s acceptance speech, after Trump took to Twitter recently to criticize possible crowd limits.
Several states have mounted bids to land part or all of the convention, but some Arizona Republicans are asking, why not here?
“How fitting would it be for President Trump to once again become our party’s nominee for president?” asked Arizona Republican Party Chair Kelli Ward in an opinion piece in Tuesday’s Arizona Republic. She said the RNC should “consider this an invitation to hold the nominating convention in the great state of Arizona.”
But the state would have to beat out at least three other states – four, if you count North Carolina, which is still in talks for part of the convention – for the late August event.
The scramble began last week when Trump tweeted that the party would be “forced to find” another city if North Carolina officials could not guarantee that the nominating hall could be fully occupied.
Party officials proposed strict testing and screening of convention-goers, but no limits on numbers, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said last week that the state would not “sacrifice the health and safety of North Carolinians,” according to news reports.
The RNC may still hold part of the convention in Charlotte – or it may not – as officials there say lingering COVID-19 concerns may limit convention crowd sizes. But it is looking for a new city to host President Donald Trump’s acceptance speech, after Trump took to Twitter recently to criticize possible crowd limits.
Several states have mounted bids to land part or all of the convention, but some Arizona Republicans are asking, why not here?
“How fitting would it be for President Trump to once again become our party’s nominee for president?” asked Arizona Republican Party Chair Kelli Ward in an opinion piece in Tuesday’s Arizona Republic. She said the RNC should “consider this an invitation to hold the nominating convention in the great state of Arizona.”
But the state would have to beat out at least three other states – four, if you count North Carolina, which is still in talks for part of the convention – for the late August event.
The scramble began last week when Trump tweeted that the party would be “forced to find” another city if North Carolina officials could not guarantee that the nominating hall could be fully occupied.
Party officials proposed strict testing and screening of convention-goers, but no limits on numbers, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said last week that the state would not “sacrifice the health and safety of North Carolinians,” according to news reports.
NOW Arizona Gov @dougducey says there’s no trend on this bar graph showing rising CV cases. AZ No.3 in US for case spike over last week. #12News pic.twitter.com/gVB02KMVz3
— BrahmResnik (@brahmresnik) June 4, 2020
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Click here to read their biggest stories as soon as they’re published.
When Amira Chowdhury joined a protest in Philadelphia against police violence on Monday, she wore a mask to protect herself and others against the coronavirus. But when officers launched tear gas into the crowd, Chowdhury pulled off her mask as she gasped for air. “I couldn’t breathe,” she said. “I felt like I was choking to death.”
Chowdhury was on a part of the Vine Street Expressway that ran underground. Everyone panicked as gas drifted into the dark, semi-enclosed space, she said. People stomped over her as they scrambled away. Bruised, she scaled a fence to escape. But the tear gas found her later that evening, inside her own house; as police unleashed it on protesters in her predominantly black neighborhood in West Philadelphia, it seeped in.
“I can’t even be in my own house without escaping the violence of the state,” said Chowdhury, a rising senior at the University of Pennsylvania. On Wednesday, she said her throat still felt dry, like it was clogged with ash.
When Amira Chowdhury joined a protest in Philadelphia against police violence on Monday, she wore a mask to protect herself and others against the coronavirus. But when officers launched tear gas into the crowd, Chowdhury pulled off her mask as she gasped for air. “I couldn’t breathe,” she said. “I felt like I was choking to death.”
Chowdhury was on a part of the Vine Street Expressway that ran underground. Everyone panicked as gas drifted into the dark, semi-enclosed space, she said. People stomped over her as they scrambled away. Bruised, she scaled a fence to escape. But the tear gas found her later that evening, inside her own house; as police unleashed it on protesters in her predominantly black neighborhood in West Philadelphia, it seeped in.
“I can’t even be in my own house without escaping the violence of the state,” said Chowdhury, a rising senior at the University of Pennsylvania. On Wednesday, she said her throat still felt dry, like it was clogged with ash.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors has taken several steps in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Pima County, including voting on March 19 to close down all nonessential businesses, and later when the state reopened the economy, voting to implement and then revise new health regulations for restaurants and bars offering dine-in service once again.
The board’s decisions have been met with some criticism across the political spectrum, with some critics saying the county has not done enough and others saying it has gone too far, according to Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
Democratic supervisors Ramon Valadez, Sharon Bronson and Betty Villegas said they voted for the regulations to ensure public safety, while Republicans Steve Christy and Ally Miller say the new rules make it harder for beleaguered businesses to reopen. At the request of three GOP lawmakers, Attorney General Mark Brnovich investigated whether the county exceeded its legal authority by enacting the regulations but the AG’s Office dismissed the case on a legal technicality.
Tucson Weekly asked the candidates running for Board of Supervisors seats this year if they approved of those decisions and if they would have done anything differently. Here's what the District 4 candidates had to say.
In District 4, which includes eastern Pima County as well as Green Valley and Sahuarita, Supervisor Steve Christy is seeking a second term and facing a challenge from John Backer in the GOP primary. The winner of that race will face Democrat Steve Diamond in November in the Republican-leaning district.
Christy voted against the closure of nonessential businesses back in March. He believes there are ways to promote public safety precautions while also allowing businesses to operate
.Christy said the county’s actions were “excessive in their force and in their meaning” and that there was no attempt by the health department or the county as a whole to “proactively engage” with businesses and find ways to keep them open while also protecting public health.
The board’s decisions have been met with some criticism across the political spectrum, with some critics saying the county has not done enough and others saying it has gone too far, according to Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
Pima County Supervisor Steve Christy: “Certainly if a big box store like Walmart with its hundreds of thousands of square feet and hundreds of employees and thousands of customers going through on a weekly if not daily basis, certainly a mom-and-pop restaurant with a 30 or 40 seating capacity in a dining room can replicate similar safety features and operations to allow them to remain in business."
Tucson Weekly asked the candidates running for Board of Supervisors seats this year if they approved of those decisions and if they would have done anything differently. Here's what the District 4 candidates had to say.
In District 4, which includes eastern Pima County as well as Green Valley and Sahuarita, Supervisor Steve Christy is seeking a second term and facing a challenge from John Backer in the GOP primary. The winner of that race will face Democrat Steve Diamond in November in the Republican-leaning district.
Christy voted against the closure of nonessential businesses back in March. He believes there are ways to promote public safety precautions while also allowing businesses to operate
.Christy said the county’s actions were “excessive in their force and in their meaning” and that there was no attempt by the health department or the county as a whole to “proactively engage” with businesses and find ways to keep them open while also protecting public health.
More than 1,000 Tucsonans attended a rally held by March For Justice Tucson, a group founded and run by young Black women, on the University of Arizona mall, in front of Old Main, on Wednesday, June 3.
The peaceful event was an opportunity for Black members of the community to share their personal experiences with racism and create a healing space in the wake of the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other Black Americans.
The event was filled with stories of struggle and calls to action to confront racists coworkers, family members and friends, defund police departments, abolish prisons, and destroy and rebuild racist institutions.
The peaceful event was an opportunity for Black members of the community to share their personal experiences with racism and create a healing space in the wake of the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other Black Americans.
The event was filled with stories of struggle and calls to action to confront racists coworkers, family members and friends, defund police departments, abolish prisons, and destroy and rebuild racist institutions.
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Fox News Poll: Kelly "Trouncing" McSally by 13 Points in AZ Senate Race, Trump Trails Biden in State
This week's Skinny delves into appointed U.S. Sen. Martha McSally's campaign tailspin, but if you need more evidence, here's a new Fox News poll that hit yesterday after our deadline.
McSally is trailing former NASA astronaut Mark Kelly by 13 percentage points in Arizona, according the survey. Half of the voters surveyed say they plan to vote for Kelly, while just 37 percent say they will vote for McSally.
McSally, who was rejected by Arizona voters in 2018 in favor of Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, has struggled on win over hearts and minds since she was appointed to fill out the late Sen. John McCain's term.
In the presidential race, the Fox News poll shows 46 percent of voters favoring Democrat Joe Biden while 42 percent support President Donald Trump. The state is split when it comes to Trump's job approval; 46 percent of those surveyed approved of the job Trump is doing, while 52 percent disapprove. But only 28 percent strongly approve of Trump's job performance (with 17 somewhat approving), while 41 percent strongly disapprove (with 11 percent somewhat disapproving).
McSally is struggling across the board. A breakdown of the survey shows Kelly leads her among: men (51%-39%), women (50%-35%), white voters (48%-40%), Hispanic voters (61%-22%), voters who earn under $50K (51%-33%), voters who earn more than $50K (51%-38%), voters under 45 (52%-28%) and several other subgroups, McSally does better than Kelly among white evangelicals (59%-30%) 2016 Trump voters (73%-15%).
In other notes from the survey: 60 percent of voters are concerned they will catch COVID-19, while 39 percent are not concerned; 40 percent say that Gov. Doug Ducey is reopening Arizona too quickly, while 39 percent say it's the right pace and 15 percent say it's too slow; and 75 percent have a favorable opinion of people who wear face masks, while 12 percent have an unfavorable opinion. Gov. Doug Ducey got high marks in the survey, with 61 percent approving of his job performance and 33 percent disapproving.
This could be another yet another bad poll, but the trend is crystal clear among the surveys that have been released: McSally is falling further behind Kelly, the husband of Gabby Giffords, the former Southern Arizona congresswoman who stepped down from office after surviving a 2011 assassination attempt that left six dead and 13 wounded, including Giffords.
The Fox News poll was conducted by Beacon Research and Shaw & Company Research from May 30-June 2. It surveyed a random sample of 1,002 voters proportionately representative of voter makeup in Arizona. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
