October 15, 2021 - The Minnesota Sun

Federal Judge Finds DC Jail Officials in Contempt, Demands Civil Rights Inquiry

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

In a major rebuke of the Justice Department and D.C. Department of Corrections, District Court Judge Royce Lamberth today found the jail’s warden and director of the Department of Corrections in contempt of court for refusing to turn over records related to the care of Christopher Worrell, a January 6 detainee who suffers from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and a broken hand. He has been incarcerated under a pre-trial detention order sought by Joe Biden’s Justice Department and approved by the court’s chief judge since his arrest in March; Worrell has been in the D.C. jail used specifically to house January 6 defendants since April.

Lamberth scheduled the hearing on Tuesday after D.C. Jail Warden Wanda Patten and DOC Director Quincy Booth failed to comply with his October 8 order to submit the evaluation by an orthopedic surgeon, who determined in June that Worrell needed surgery for a broken hand he suffered in May, and also to submit Worrell’s medical requests related to needed cancer treatments. Jail officials and attorneys representing the department claimed the screw-up was a miscommunication but Lamberth rejected their argument. “I don’t accept that explanation,” Lamberth said. “No one noticed in jail that he’s sitting there in pain all the time? Does no one care?”

Commentary: America Might Be Headed for a Rome Versus Byzantium Scenario

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

In A.D. 286 the Roman emperor Diocletian split in half the huge Roman Empire administratively—and peacefully—under the control of two emperors.

A Western empire included much of modern-day Western Europe and northwest Africa. The Eastern half controlled Eastern Europe, and parts of Asia, and northeastern Africa.

John Kerry Invested $1 Million in Chinese Fund Supporting Company Blacklisted for Human Rights Abuses

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and his wife hold at least $1 million in a Chinese investment fund that owns a significant stake in a Chinese technology company that aided China’s human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims, records show.

Kerry reported holding an “over $1,000,000” stake in the investment fund, Hillhouse China Value Fund L.P., in his financial disclosure submitted in February. The fund is a part of the Hillhouse Capital Group, a private equity firm operated by Chinese billionaire Zhang Lei and known for its early investments in some of China’s top technology companies.

Commentary: The FDA’s Power over Food and Drug Approval

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Competition tends to bring about a better product or service, at a lower price, than does monopoly. This is a basic premise held by virtually all economists, disputed by pretty much no one in the profession. The entire antitrust edifice of the American system is built upon this foundational aspect of the dismal science.

And yet when push comes to shove, our society jettisons this insight, at least when it comes to assuring the quality of our food and drugs.

The Food and Drug Administration is a monopoly agency entrusted with this task. Its word is final concerning such matters. No competition is allowed. If a private agency set itself up as an alternative, it would first be subjected to raucous laughter, and then its creators jailed.

The FDA is a licensing agency. If it does not approve of a food or drug, it is illegal to offer it for sale. What is the non-monopolistic alternative to this sad state of affairs? This is called certification. How, pray tell, does this work? It is simple. Different firms set themselves up as evaluators of the quality of food and drugs, and each of them subjects these products to their examinations. They certify some as approved, and list others as not approved.

GOP Senators Pan McConnell Cave on Debt Ceiling as Gloating Schumer Adds Insult to Injury

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Republican senators are panning Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell’s surrender to Democrats on the short-term debt ceiling increase following a gloating floor speech by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer that added insult to GOP injury.

The debt ceiling increase of about $500 billion through Dec. 3 passed the Senate last week and the House on Tuesday.

Over 94,000 Migrants in Southern Texas Released into the U.S. with Notices to Report, Leaked Docs Show

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Just over 94,500 migrants who entered the U.S. illegally were encountered by border officials in southern Texas and released into the country with notices to report, according to data obtained by Fox News on Wednesday.

The migrants were encountered in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley and Del Rio sectors since March 20, according to Fox News. Notices to report (NTR) direct migrants to check in with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office within 60 days and are different from notices to appear (NTA), which require migrants to show up at an immigration court, according to the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project.

Senators to Introduce Bipartisan Antitrust Bill Taking Aim at Tech Platforms Prioritizing Their Own Services

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

A bipartisan group of senators will introduce legislation Thursday designed to prevent large technology platforms like Amazon and Google from giving their own services preferential treatment.

The bill, titled the American Choice and Innovation Online Act, accompanies legislation of the same name advanced through the House Judiciary Committee in June, and it seeks to prevent “discriminatory” conduct by major online platforms, according to multiple reports. The bill is sponsored by Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who chairs the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust issues, and Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, who serves as Ranking Member on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Weekly Jobless Claims Dip Below 300,000 for First Time Since March 2020

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Photo “Unemployment Insurance Claims Office” by Bytemarks. CC BY 2.0.

The number of Americans filing new unemployment claims decreased to 293,000 last week as companies are holding onto workers amid high demand for labor.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics figure released Thursday shows a 36,000 claim decrease in the number of new jobless claims compared to the week ending Oct. 2, when 326,000 jobless claims were reported.

Biden Administration Plans to Build Wind Farms to Power 10 Million Homes

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Biden administration laid out an ambitious plan Wednesday for government-funded wind farms along the east coast, which it said would sustain millions of Americans’ energy needs.

Multiple federal agencies are planning to collaborate on the project, which will be completed by 2030, Interior Department Secretary Deb Haaland said during a renewable energy conference in Boston on Wednesday. Overall, at least 30 gigawatts will be produced by offshore wind farms by decade’s end.

Majority of Americans Think Government Is Doing Too Much, Poll Shows

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Most Americans believe that the federal government is now doing too much, a new poll shows.

More than 50% of respondents in the Gallup survey, released Thursday, said that the government was too involved in things that should be left to individuals or private businesses, while 43% said that the government should involve itself more in trying to fix the country’s problems.

Commentary: I’m Leaving My California Teachers’ Union

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 RealClearWire

I have been a middle school special education teacher for 18 years. Every day I spend in the classroom is a joy – the work is hard, but so rewarding – and with almost two decades of experience, I know how my students learn best.

Imagine my surprise when the California Teachers Association – which spends zero days per year with students – tries to tell teachers how to run their classrooms.

NBC Host Katie Couric Says She ‘Protected’ Justice Ginsburg by Cutting Disparaging Remarks on Anthem Kneelers

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

In her new memoir “Going There,” former NBC “Today Show” host Katie Couric acknowledges “protecting” the late-Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for her criticism about Americans who kneel during the national anthem that the TV journalist thought would spark public backlash.

Couric writes that she cut from a 2016 interview with the justice part of the conversation in which Ginsburg said those who kneel during the anthem show “contempt for a government that has made it possible for their parents and grandparents to live a decent life.”

Steve Wariner Releases ‘Feels Like Christmas’ Today

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Bethany Bowman

Nashville, Tennessee – Multi-Grammy®, CMA, and ACM Award-winning performer Steve Wariner has released a new Christmas album, Feels Like Christmas Time, today, October 15. The album features newly imagined arrangements of Christmas classics including “Silent Night,” “The First Noel” and “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” as well as six original holiday tunes, all written by Wariner.

Border Patrol Agents Confiscate Counterfeit Vaccine Cards at Checkpoints Across U.S.

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 The Center Square

While much attention has been focused on the fallout of increased illegal immigration and crime at the southern border, Customs and Border Patrol agents also say they are routinely finding packages shipped from China containing fake COVID-19 vaccination cards.

CBP says its agents have seized more than 6,000 counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards in Chicago, Memphis, Anchorage and Pittsburgh in the past few months.

Minnesota Republican Lawmakers Critique Biden for Inflation Problems

October 15, 2021October 14, 2021 Hayley Feland

Several Republican lawmakers from Minnesota critiqued the recent inflation, blaming the Biden Administration. Minnesota Representatives Tom Emmer (R-MN-06), Jim Hagedorn (R-MN-01), and Pete Stauber (R-MN-08) called out the Biden Administration for their part in driving prices higher.