Friday, August 20, 2021
Thursday, August 19, 2021
Wednesday, August 18, 2021
The team that conducted the troubled review of the 2020 election in Maricopa County will present a draft report of its findings to Senate President Karen Fann by Friday.
Randy Pullen, a spokesman for the self-styled audit, said the team will submit its report to the Senate by the end of the week. The Senate will then have the option of suggesting modifications before the final report is issued. The audit team will submit a separate report, also by Friday, on the machine tally it conducted to count the number of ballots cast in the general election.
Fann tweeted on Monday that the audit team is preparing its draft report. She wrote that the Senate’s team will review the report “for accuracy and clarity” before the final report is released to the public. It’s unclear when the final report will be available to the public.
And the final report may not be the last word on the election review.
Tuesday, August 17, 2021
Following advice from the Centers for Disease Control, the Pima County Health Department announced Tuesday that immunocompromised people should get a COVID booster shot.
Qualifying people, such as those taking an immune-suppressing medication, can get the third shot 28 days after completing the initial Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccines. People who are not deemed immunocompromised are yet not eligible for the booster.
The CDC recommends the third shot for moderately to severely immunocompromised individuals. On Friday, the CDC said the booster would benefit compromised people by building a stronger resistance to COVID-19.
The third dose has only been approved to follow the Pfizer/Moderna vaccines. It is also recommended people receive the same brand of vaccine and booster shots. If your brand is unavailable, the other booster shot can be used.
Pfizer vaccines have been approved for people 12 and older while Moderna is approved for people 18 and older.
Pima County will be offering the Pfizer and Moderna booster shots at the following locations:
Theresa Lee Public Health Center, 1493 W. Commerce Court- Monday, Tuesday: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Wednesday: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
- Friday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Monday: 8 a.m. to noon
- Wednesday, Friday: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Thursday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Monday, Thursday: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Tuesday: 8 a.m. to noon
- Friday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Monday-Saturday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Find a mobile vaccination event at pima.gov/covid19vaccine
Request a home vaccination through the Pima County at-home vaccine interest form online or call 520-222-0119.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate last week passed a massive bipartisan infrastructure bill and an even larger budget blueprint that would pave the way for historic changes in U.S. health, education, climate and tax policies.
The two measures are roped to each other, reflecting Democrats’ strategy to pass what could be bipartisan with Republicans—and to go it alone on the rest.
The Senate votes represented important steps for that approach—and the Biden administration’s priorities. But getting the packages to President Joe Biden’s desk will still require delicately balancing competing factions among congressional Democrats, who hold slim majorities in both chambers and are unlikely to get further GOP help.
Plus, the strategy is complicated.
Below are questions and answers about what happened, what the bills would do if they become law, and what we know about what will happen next.
What does the Senate infrastructure bill do?
The Senate passed a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill to upgrade the nation’s roads, bridges, transit, passenger rail, electric grid, water systems, broadband and more.
It includes record spending for items that have been underfunded for years, but doesn’t dramatically alter a transportation system that’s a major contributor to climate change.
Monday, August 16, 2021
The Catalina Foothills and Amphitheater school districts will require universal use of masks indoors effective Tuesday.
The district informed families and staff in a Monday email that it would require masking indoors, regardless of vaccination status, because of the ruling in the case against Phoenix Union High School District’s mask mandate.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Randall Warner ruled that the district did not violate a state law prohibiting schools from mandating masks, since it does not go into effect until Sept 29, 90 days after the legislative session adjourns.
Catalina Foothills updated their mitigation plan and said “it is aligned with federal, state and county public health guidance.”
Amphi will also require staff and students, regardless of vaccination status, to wear masks while indoors on school district property and on district buses, beginning Tuesday. Superintendent Todd Jaeger notified parents and staff of the new policy through a letter sent out on Monday afternoon.
Jaeger cited the recommendation of health officials that students should wear masks in schools, including guidance from the CDC, the Arizona Department of Health Services, the Pima County Health Department, and the American Association of Pediatrics. He also noted the increase in COVID-19 cases, particularly outbreaks in their schools. On Monday, one school in the district had 23% of the student body absent due to illness, Jaeger said.
Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ03) reacted today to the Taliban seizing power in Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul:
Twenty years of war, billions of dollars spent, and the policies of four different presidential administrations have utterly failed the Afghan people. It is abundantly clear today that a hyperfocus on military might with negligible diplomatic efforts left the Afghan military unable to defend itself and nascent democratic institutions too fragile to survive the Taliban insurgency. While Trump campaigned on ending our longest war, he never did and the status quo of keeping our service members in danger and away from their families with no clear mission has gone on for too long. Military contractors reaped billions in profits, and it's the Afghan people, particularly women and young girls, who will pay the price.
Those who helped American forces and diplomats must not be left behind. We must undertake every effort to get them out of the country as quickly as possible, fast-track their visas, and open our borders to Afghan refugees. We must keep our promise to them. We must reinvent diplomacy in this region with partners that are in a position to help the Afghan people - it is abundantly clear that a military solution does not exist.
