HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte yesterday afternoon visited the new Helena Food Share facility to support the organizations’ food drive ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. “We have so much to be grateful for as Montanans,” Gov. Gianforte said. “This Thanksgiving week, I encourage Montanans to give what they can, including the gift of their Read More…
(The Center Square) – The University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents has recommended a number of new and revised policies for its institutions, such as a commitment to institutional neutrality, the prohibiting of DEI tactics, and a mandatory education in America’s founding documents. The University System of Georgia (USG) is made up of Georgia’s Read More…
(The Center Square) – House Oversight Chair Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., has opened an investigation into the Federal Emergency Management Agency over reports that it discriminated against supporters of Donald Trump. Comer said whistleblower reports suggest anti-Trump discrimination is rampant and has been going on for years. “[O]n the condition of anonymity, a FEMA official Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump has begun appointing officials to top positions in his incoming administration, signaling a departure from the internal strife that marked his first term. This time, Trump is leaning heavily on loyalists to shape his government, even as some of his selections face the prospect of contentious Senate confirmation battles. Cabinet Appointments Treasury Read More…
Chief Justice John Roberts fell last month while walking, received stitches to close a wound on his head and spent the night in the hospital, a Supreme Court spokeswoman said on Tuesday. The episode was not announced at the time, but the court confirmed it late Tuesday after a query from The Washington Post. “The Read More…
(CNN)Several players have decided to opt out of the rescheduled Major League Baseball season due to health concerns amid coronavirus outbreak. Washington Nationals infielder Ryan Zimmerman and pitcher Joe Ross will not be playing the 2020 season, the team confirmed on Monday. Arizona Diamondbacks right-handed pitcher Mike Leake also has decided not to play this season, Read More…
Not wearing a mask in South Beach may cost you $50 beginning on Tuesday. Amid a rising number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Miami-Dade County, the mayor of Miami Beach announced Monday the city would begin issuing fines to those who ignore rules requiring the use of facial coverings indoors and outside if social Read More…
Checking temperatures at airports might not be the best way to weed out travelers with Covid-19, the head of the Transportation Security Administration said Tuesday. TSA and other industry officials urged all travelers to wear masks throughout the airport and onboard, but the federal government hasn’t determined if it will perform temperature checks on passengers. “No Read More…
Colin Kaepernick has long been a divisive figure in the NFL and beyond. But according to one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play in the league, the former San Francisco 49ers QB is a “hero.” In an interview with TMZ Sports, Hall of Famer Brett Favre said he suspects Kaepernick’s “hero status will be Read More…
Two public schools in Berkeley, California, will remove their names commemorating Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson amid renewed and widespread calls from the Black Lives Matter movement for racial equality. The Berkeley Unified School District approved a “Resolution in Support of Black Lives Matter” last week, following weeks of nationwide protests and riots denouncing systemic racism Read More…
Around 600 goats in two separate herds are currently grazing their way through parts of the Palos Verdes Peninsula — in an effort to reduce fire risk and remove non-native plants. About 300 goats are hard at work in Lunada Canyon, part of the 1,600 acres the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy has preserved. And Read More…
The Supreme Court decided on Monday that they will not reexamine a doctrine that protects law enforcement and government officials from being sued over their actions while on the job. The doctrine, which the justices created nearly 50 years ago, gives “qualified immunity” for law enforcement officers, which protects them from frivolous lawsuits CNN reported. READ FULL STORY
The rise in coronavirus cases seen in about half a dozen states across the U.S. isn’t the feared “second wave” — it’s still the first, scientists and infectious disease specialists say. To be defined as a second wave the virus would need to retreat and reappear, or a new variant would have to emerge, said Ian Lipkin, a professor Read More…
While covered head to toe in protective equipment, New York City officers appear to be neglecting one necessary item of protective gear: masks. And protesters feel it’s a snub to their safety in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. According to TIME, officers have been seen not donning the protective face coverings in the midst of Read More…
For the first day in months, New York City witnessed zero confirmed deaths due to coronavirus, current records show. The first confirmed COVID-19 death in the Big Apple occurred on March 11 with the death toll reaching its horrible peak at 590 on April 7, according to records put out by the city. Those same Read More…
Officials from the theme park, located in Orlando, Florida, announced their proposed phased reopening on Wednesday during a meeting with a local economic recovery task force. Jim McPhee, senior vice president of operations at Disney World, said that as part of the plan, Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom would reopen on July 11. Epcot and Hollywood Studios Read More…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Mike Pence’s chief spokeswoman said Tuesday that she has recovered from coronavirus and is back at work. President Donald Trump confirmed on May 8 that Katie Miller, Pence’s press secretary, had tested positive for COVID-19. She is one of two people working at the White House complex known to have tested positive for the virus. Miller Read More…
A lot will be riding on the 230-foot rocket that lifts off this week from Cape Canaveral: The lives of two NASA astronauts. The United States’ ambitions to reclaim its independence as a spacefaring nation. And hopes for a reimagined era of space travel in which private companies ferry humans to low-Earth orbit and beyond. Read More…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Food and Drug Administration announced Saturday that it has authorized an at-home sample collection kit that can then be sent to specified laboratories for COVID-19 diagnostic testing. Specifically, the FDA issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) to Everlywell, Inc. for the Everlywell COVID-19 Test Home Collection Kit. Everlywell’s kit is authorized to be Read More…
The coronavirus pandemic will cost states hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue in the upcoming fiscal year, according to an NBC News survey of 33 states and Washington, D.C. With most states starting their new fiscal year early this summer, the projections in many cases will serve as the basis for severe budget cuts states may have Read More…
Local governments across Wisconsin moved to implement new public health guidelines Thursday after the state’s highest court overturned a statewide stay-at-home order, prompting the governor to warn of “massive confusion.” Some businesses began reopening Thursday, but it wasn’t clear whether they would do so on a broad scale. Some that did reopen closed again within Read More…
New York is poised to reopen parts of the state on Friday, 75 days after the state reported its first coronavirus case. Governor Andrew Cuomo urged people to remain cautious as some businesses are allowed to open their doors for the first time in two months. “Phased reopening does not mean the problem has gone away,” Read More…
Starting Monday, Uber (UBER) will require its drivers and passengers to wear face coverings as the coronavirus crisis rages on around the world. Even as some countries and U.S. states debate relaxing lockdown orders, the ride-hailing giant is implementing new rules to protect both drivers and customers. The company plans to enforce the new policy using technology Read More…
Health officials and scientists across the world are racing to develop vaccines and discover effective treatments against the coronavirus, which has infected more than 4.2 million people worldwide in as little as four months, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. There are no proven, knockout treatments and U.S. health officials say a vaccine could take Read More…
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS/WVAH) —A former doctor at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Beckley, West Virginia has been indicted on seven counts, including sexual abuse charges. Dr. Jonathan Yates, 52, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Charleston on Tuesday. He is charged with five counts of depriving veterans of their civil rights under Read More…
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin encouraged Americans to focus on domestic travel this year as the international travel outlook for the rest of 2020 remains uncertain amid the coronavirus pandemic. In response to a question from Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business Network Monday about whether international travel will be opened up this year, he responded, “Too hard to tell at Read More…
More than one million people around the world have now recovered from the novel coronavirus, according to two trackers. As of Friday morning, Worldometer tracked 1,048,430 recoveries, while Johns Hopkins University recorded 1,1015,183. The two trackers use different sources and report at different times, which leads to a discrepancy in numbers. READ FULL STORY
(CNN)Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday he will allow his stay-at-home order for the Lone Star State to expire on Thursday, commencing a phased exit from the social distancing measures meant to mitigate the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Republican’s new order, which supersedes local orders, will allow businesses like retail stores, malls, restaurants and theaters to reopen Friday Read More…
Half the country has been personally economically impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, and overwhelming numbers of Americans do not think schools, restaurants or sporting events with large crowds should reopen until there is further testing, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. President Trump does not fare very well as far as his handling of the Read More…
Car-rental company Hertz is preparing for a potential bankruptcy filing, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, as the coronavirus pandemic brings nearly all travel to a standstill. People familiar with the matter told the paper that Hertz is working to reduce its debt payments and is in talks on a forbearance agreement that could help it Read More…
NORFOLK, Va. — The Navy hospital ship sent to relieve stressed New York City hospitals as coronavirus cases surged is set to leave this week and return to its homeport in Virginia, the U.S. Navy said. The USNS Comfort will set sail for Norfolk on Thursday, officials said in a statement Tuesday. The ship docked in Manhattan on March Read More…
As governors around the country weigh reopening their economies amid the fight against COVID-19, a patchwork of stay-home orders and other business restrictions exist. Some states are moving faster to reopen, like Georgia, where the governor is allowing nail salons, bowling alleys and other businesses to reopen Friday. Other states such as New Hampshire are Read More…
The central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the novel coronavirus first appeared late last year, revised its death toll sharply higher on Friday. Local authorities changed the previous figure of 2,579 to 3,869, China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. The change, 1,290 additional deaths, is an increase of almost exactly 50%. Officials also added another 325 Read More…
Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman expects the novel coronavirus outbreak to wipe out nearly a quarter of US economic output this year. “We have a GDP of somewhere around $21 trillion and we’re probably going to miss $5 trillion of it,” the chief of the private equity titan told Bloomberg on Tuesday. The pandemic is temporarily “putting Read More…
The UK plans to roll out “immunity passports” to Brits who have already contracted the COVID-19 disease in order to allow them to return to “normal life,” the Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Thursday. “We are looking at an immunity certificate,” Hancock told a Downing Street press conference. “How people who have had the Read More…
The FDA announced Thursday that it is relaxing some of the recommendations regarding blood donations to address “a dramatic reduction in donations” amid the COVID-19 pandemic — but the department still recommends that sexually active gay men should not give blood. According to a press release from the department, it is now recommending that male donors can Read More…
Washington — Americans who are eligible to receive one-time payments from the federal government as part of a massive coronavirus economic relief package will see that money deposited into their bank accounts “within three weeks,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Sunday. “We expect that within three weeks, that people who have direct deposit with information with us will Read More…
While families’ cats and dogs are enjoying the upside of spending days with their owners working from home during the coronavirus shutdown, wild coyotes in San Francisco are reportedly also taking advantage of the benefits of a suddenly empty city. There have been several recent fake stories circulating about unusual wildlife showing up in cities during the Read More…
Washington (AFP) – Just because there’s a pandemic going on, doesn’t mean the party has to stop. And one DJ has kept it going — for 10 hours at a time. The coronavirus has upended daily lives, with thousands of deaths around the world. Many people are staying at home in an effort to stem Read More…
Boeing on Monday said it is shutting down production at its factories in the Seattle area for two weeks as the manufacturer grapples with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. The company’s move to suspend its production at its facilities in the Puget Sound area comes as Washington state, where most of Boeing’s production is centered, Read More…
In the spring of 2018, the Yale psychology professor Laurie Santos unveiled a new course, Psychology and the Good Life. The subject was happiness. Santos’ course was a blend of abstract and concrete. It combined positive psychology with the real-life applications of behavioral science. It debunked popular notions of what makes people happy (like the Read More…
U.S. airlines are seeking government assistance of more than $50 billion, including a mix of direct aid and loan guarantees, as the industry reels from the coronavirus outbreak, a lobbying group that represents 10 U.S. passenger and cargo airlines said Monday. The aid, if received, would be the industry’s first bailout since the wake of Read More…
In an effort to contain the spread of Coronavirus, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is closing the Canadian border to all non-citizens. “We can still slow the spread of this virus,” Trudeau said. “It is time to take every precaution to keep people safe.” READ FULL STORY
Walmart said Tuesday it is deploying an emergency employee leave program as the retailer confirms one of its store associates in Cynthiana, Kentucky, has tested positive for the coronavirus. The infected employee is a woman and Walmart said she is improving with medical care. The new policy comes as the coronavirus spreads throughout many U.S. states where the Read More…