Day: June 3, 2020

US Job Losses in May Could Raise 3-Month Total to 30 Million

The Associated Press

The epic damage to America’s job market from the viral outbreak will come into sharper focus Friday when the government releases the May employment report: Eight million more jobs are estimated to have been lost. Unemployment could near 20%. And potentially fewer than half of all adults may be working.

Beneath the dismal figures will be signs that job cuts, severe as they are, are slowing as more businesses gradually or partially reopen. Still, the economy is mired in a recession, and any rebound in hiring will likely be painfully slow. Economists foresee unemployment remaining in double-digits through the November elections and into 2021.

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Rudy Giuliani Says Mayor Frey, Other ‘Progressive Democrats’ Should Resign for Handling of Riots

Anthony Gockowski

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani called on Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey to resign for failing to protect his citizens from a week of riots that left portions of his city in ruins.

In a Friday interview with Fox News, Giuliani said “progressive Democrats are incapable of keeping their people safe because they have criminal-friendly policies that are pathetic.”

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Commentary: Is China Threatening Taiwan, Hong Kong While the U.S. Is Weighed Down by Pandemic, Recession and Riots?

Minnesota Sun Staff

Is China on the precipice of an aggressive expansion into Taiwan and Hong Kong while the U.S. is bogged down with the Covid-19 pandemic, the worst recession in a generation with more than 23 million jobs lost and riots over the police killing of George Floyd?

Amid the global response to the China-originated coronavirus, in January, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen was reelected in a landslide, saying she supports the current political status of the island nation, which in her eyes is that Taiwan is so independent it doesn’t need to declare independence.

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Tennessee House Votes to Be Second Amendment Sanctuary Amid Nationwide Riots

Minnesota Sun Staff

Tennessee is now one step closer to becoming a Second Amendment sanctuary after the state House of Representatives passed a resolution Monday strengthening legal protections of gun ownership.

Resolution HJR074, drafted in March, requires the state to “[extend] a safe harbor to Virginians and other United States citizens whose constitutional rights are being violated by elected officials.” It also affirms that citizens have a right to maintain arms equivalent “to those of their government’s basic infantry unit.”

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No Evidence White Supremacists Are Derailing the Protests, Left-Wing SPLC Says

Minnesota Sun Staff

A researcher with the Southern Poverty Law Center said he had not seen evidence supporting the theory that white supremacist militia members were responsible for inciting violence at protests against police brutality last week.

“I have not seen any clear evidence that white supremacists or militiamen are masking up and going out to burn and loot,” Howard Graves, a research analyst at the SPLC, told The New York Times for a report published Sunday. The group, which tracks anti-government extremist groups, has been criticized for calling mainstream conservative organizations “hate groups.”

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Commentary: Trump’s Greatest Challenge Now

Minnesota Sun Staff

President Trump faces the greatest challenge of his very eventful life, and also an immense opportunity to silence his detractors. Not since Charles de Gaulle faced a prolonged general strike in France in 1968 has the leader of a large Western democracy faced something so closely approximating an insurrection as the situation President Trump faces now.

Fortunately, as de Gaulle demonstrated, in such circumstances there is almost always overwhelming support for the legitimate government as long as it restores order with no more force than is necessary and in the impartial national interest.

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Former President George W. Bush on Riots: ‘Protest Shows Strength’

Admin

Former President George W. Bush weighed in Monday on the riots that have torn across the United States, saying that “lasting justice will only come by peace.”

Bush spoke out following the seventh night of destructive riots following the demise of George Floyd, a black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for several minutes, according to footage of the incident.

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Music Spotlight: Adam Sanders

Bethany Bowman

Nashville, Tennessee –  A native of Lake City, Florida, Adam Sanders knew at an early age that music would be his life.

“My mom likes to say I could sing before I could talk. It was as far back as I could remember. My earliest memories were dressing up like Alan Jackson and singing ‘Chattahoochee’ and ‘Don’t Rock the Jukebox,’” he said.

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Police: Retired St. Louis Police Captain Killed Amid Unrest

The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS, Missouri (AP) — A retired St. Louis police officer was shot and killed early Tuesday by people who had broken into a pawn shop during the unrest that followed a peaceful protest over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, police said.

David Dorn, 77, was found dead on the sidewalk in front of Lee’s Pawn & Jewelry. Police have not released details of what led to the shooting about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday and no one has been arrested.

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Medicare to Ratchet up Enforcement Against Nursing Homes as Coronavirus Fatalities Exceed 25,000

Minnesota Sun Staff

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) unveiled enhanced enforcement actions on Monday against nursing homes after preliminary federal data shows that at least 25,923 nursing home residents across the country have died from coronavirus.

“This data, and anecdotal reports across the country, clearly show that nursing homes have been devastated by the virus,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma and Centers for Disease Control Director Robert Redfield wrote in a letter to U.S. governors on Sunday.

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George Floyd’s Brother Pleads for Peace

The Associated Press

George Floyd’s brother pleaded for peace in the streets Monday, saying destruction is “not going to bring my brother back at all.”

Terrence Floyd’s emotional plea came as the United States braced for another night of violence in response to Floyd’s killing a week ago.

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George Floyd Had ‘Fentanyl Intoxication’ and ‘Recent Methamphetamine Use,’ Autopsy Shows

Minnesota Sun Staff

George Floyd had fentanyl in his system and had recently used methamphetamine before his death, which was ruled a homicide, according to a county medical examiner autopsy released Monday.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s autopsy report said Floyd experienced “fentanyl intoxication” and “recent methamphetamine use” were “significant conditions” leading to his death. The report ultimately deemed his death a “homicide” due to law enforcement restraint and “neck compression” that contributed to a heart attack.

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Charges: Illinois Man Traveled to Minneapolis to Riot

The Associated Press

An Illinois man who allegedly traveled to Minneapolis to participate in riots after the death of George Floyd has been arrested and charged with federal counts, after prosecutors say videos posted to his Facebook page showed him handing out explosives and damaging property.

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Department of Human Rights Launches Civil Rights Investigation of Minneapolis Police Department

Anthony Gockowski

Gov. Tim Walz and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights announced Tuesday that the state will begin a civil rights investigation of the Minneapolis Police Department after one of its officers was charged with murder in the death of George Floyd.

The state agency has also filed a human rights complaint against the police department in relation to Floyd’s death.

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