NBA star LeBron James is now focusing his increasingly political activism on allowing felons in Florida regain voting rights.
James, a Los Angeles Laker formerly with the Miami Heat, dumped $100,000 into the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition on Friday through his “More Than A Vote” organization, which is comprised of black athletes and artists working to <a href="https://www.morethanavote.org">combat &#8220;systemic, racist voter suppression</a>,&#8221; and promoted the cause via his large social media platform.
“This is a fight about their constitutional right to vote being denied,” James tweeted out, linking to the coalition.
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This is a fight about their constitutional right to vote being denied. Learn more about how you can help at <a href="https://t.co/ASKCSX9b9l">https://t.co/ASKCSX9b9l</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/morethanavote?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@morethanavote</a> <a href="https://t.co/LtGBRwo8LQ">https://t.co/LtGBRwo8LQ</a>
&mdash; LeBron James (@KingJames) <a href="https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1286745338464948225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 24, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The FRRC <a href="https://floridarrc.com">site</a> says it&#8217;s &#8220;committed to ending the disenfranchisement and discrimination against people with convictions.&#8221;
&#8220;The money is expected to help felons pay court-ordered financial obligations that keep them from completing all the terms of their sentences after they are released from prison,&#8221; the Tampa Bay Times <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2020/07/27/lebron-james-to-help-florida-felons-regain-right-to-vote/">reported</a>. &#8220;More than 65 percent of Florida voters in 2018 approved a constitutional amendment to restore the voting rights of felons who have completed their sentences.&#8221;
As noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lebron-james-group-pushes-to-turn-sports-arenas-into-mega-polling-cites-to-combat-racist-voter-suppression">The Daily Wire</a>, James has turned his left-wing activism into overdrive this year, &#8220;garnering <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lebron-launches-new-media-empire-with-100m-investment-intends-to-move-the-culture">$100 million</a> in seed money for his new media empire &#8216;designed to move the culture&#8217; and increasingly weighing in on the national socio-political scene, with the NBA following his lead in its newly announced social justice initiatives.&#8221;
The &#8220;More Than A Vote&#8221; initiative is seeking to utilize sports arenas as in-person balloting venues to bolster black turnout during the 2020 election.
Last week, James claimed there is <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lebron-on-black-lives-matter-in-america-there-aint-been-no-damn-movement-for-us">no &#8220;movement&#8221; for black Americans</a> in the U.S. “When you’re black, it’s not a movement. It’s a lifestyle,” he said, later adding, “I don’t like the word ‘movement’ because, unfortunately, in America and in society, there ain’t been no damn movement for us.”
“It’s just heartbreaking,&#8221; James said, <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29528067/lebron-james-calls-black-lives-matter-walk-life-advocates-breonna-taylor">according</a> to ESPN. &#8220;You guys don’t understand. Unless you’re a person of color, you guys don’t understand. I understand you might feel for us. But you will never truly understand what it is to be black in America.”
“A lot of people kind of use this analogy, talking about Black Lives Matter as a movement. It’s not a movement,&#8221; the NBA player continued. &#8220;When you’re black, it’s not a movement. It’s a lifestyle. We sit here and say it’s a movement, and, OK, how long is this movement going to last? ‘Don’t stop the movement.’ No, this is a walk of life. When you wake up and you’re Black, that is what it is. It shouldn’t be a movement. It should be a lifestyle. This is who we are. … I don’t like the word ‘movement’ because, unfortunately, in America and in society, there ain’t been no damn movement for us. There ain’t been no movement.&#8221;
According to Forbes, James’ net-worth is estimated at <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lebron-on-black-lives-matter-in-america-there-aint-been-no-damn-movement-for-us">$450 million</a>.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nba-to-paint-black-lives-matter-on-sides-of-disney-courts-allow-players-to-put-social-justice-messages-on-jerseys">NBA To Paint ‘Black Lives Matter’ On Sides Of Disney Courts, Allow Players To Put Social Justice Messages On Jerseys</a>
The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

LeBron James

LeBron James Donates Big Bucks To Give Felons Voting Rights

Florida

Federal lawmakers have approved the expenditure of trillions of dollars in taxpayer cash to shore up the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
With all that money pouring out — a trillion dollars in one-dollar bills stacked up would reach <a href="https://www.ehd.org/science_technology_largenumbers.php#:~:text=The%20height%20of%20a%20stack%20of%201%2C000%2C000%2C000%2C000%20(one%20trillion)%20one,dollar%20bills%20measures%206%2C786%2C616%20miles.">67,866 miles high</a>, more than a quarter of the way to the moon — how to oversee who got what is clearly a problem.
But the feds are apparently watching closely.
On Monday, a Florida man was arrested, with federal prosecutors saying he “fraudulently” obtained $3.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, which set aside at least $650 billion to help small businesses. It gets worse: He allegedly used some of the money to buy a Lamborghini sports car for more than $300,000.
David Hines, 29, of Miami, has been charged with bank fraud, making false statements to a financial institution and engaging in transactions in unlawful proceeds, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced in a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/florida-man-who-used-covid-relief-funds-purchase-lamborghini-sports-car-charged-miami-federal">press release</a> on Monday.
<blockquote>The complaint alleges that Hines sought approximately $13.5 million in PPP loans through applications to an insured financial institution on behalf of different companies.  The complaint alleges that Hines caused to be submitted fraudulent loan applications that made numerous false and misleading statements about the companies’ respective payroll expenses.  The financial institution approved and funded approximately $3.9 million in loans.
The complaint further alleges that within days of receiving the PPP funds, Hines purchased a 2020 Lamborghini Huracan sports car for approximately $318,000, which he registered jointly in his name and the name of one of his companies.  In the days and weeks following the disbursement of PPP funds, the complaint alleges that Hines did not make payroll payments that he claimed on his loan applications.  He did, however, make purchases at luxury retailers and resorts in Miami Beach.</blockquote>
PPP loans are allowed for qualifying small businesses and other organizations, but they must use the loans for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  &#8220;The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses,&#8221; the DOJ said.
In his loan applications, Hines said the money would be spent on at least 70 employees with a monthly payroll of $4 million, the DOJ said. But then he allegedly spent thousands of dollars on dating websites, jewelry and clothes, as well as stays at posh hotels in Miami Beach, the complaint said.
Federal investigators linked the sports car to Hines after he was involved in a hit-and-run incident on July 11, <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article244517772.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Miami Herald</a> reported.
&#8220;Miami police impounded his car, and now prosecutors plan to seize it,&#8221; The Herald reported. &#8220;Hines, 29, held over the weekend at the Federal Detention Center, was granted a $100,000 bond by Magistrate Judge John O’Sullivan and will be allowed to stay at his mother’s home with a GPS monitor. His defense attorney, Chad Piotrowski, declined to comment after Monday’s hearing. Hines’ arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 14.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/twitter-facebook-delete-viral-video-promoted-by-trump-on-covid-19-and-hydroxychloroquine">Twitter, Facebook Delete Viral Video Promoted By Trump On COVID-19 And Hydroxychloroquine</a>
The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

The Lamborghini Huracan Spyder

Florida Man Charged With Using COVID Stimulus Funds To Buy $300,000 Lamborghini

Coronavirus

COVID-19

Economy

Officials with Major League Baseball called an emergency meeting early Monday after 14 players on the Miami Marlins tested positive for coronavirus, canceling that team&#8217;s opening day game and putting the future of the MLB&#8217;s truncated 2020 season in jeopardy.
The Marlins played just two games &#8212; a short series against the Philadelphia Phillies &#8212; and were scheduled to have their first home game on Monday. That game has now been canceled after four players tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday and eight more players and two coaches tested positive for the virus on Monday, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/marlins-home-opener-canceled-players-coaches-test-positive-coronavirus-reports">according to Fox News</a>.
Unlike the NBA, which is secluding its players in a &#8220;bubble,&#8221; and hosting all games at Walt Disney World&#8217;s professional sports complex in Orlando, Florida, the MLB declared a short, but largely normal season for its players, allowing teams to compete in several cities outside of their home base, but in their select &#8220;region.&#8221;
The Marlins ventured as far as Philadelphia in the first week of play but also took part in an exhibition game against the Atlanta Braves in Georgia.
The team also played their second game against the Phillies Sunday afternoon, after two players revealed they were infected with the novel coronavirus.
Marlins manager Don Mattingly told reporters Sunday that he was &#8220;concerned&#8221; about the spread of coronavirus within his clubhouse &#8212; and that was before a remaining 10 team members also tested positive. It is not clear, at the moment, whether any players are experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19.
“It’s fair to say guys are concerned about things. They want how they’re feeling about the situation to be heard. I think it&#8217;s fair. We&#8217;re talking about health,” Mattingly said.
Major League Baseball responded to the outbreak on Monday morning with signs they may be planning to cancel the season after most teams played just two games. One reporter, on social media, said that the prevailing word among MLB leadership was that the 2020 season was in &#8220;jeopardy&#8221; and that the MLB could decide as early as Monday morning whether games will continue.
Commentator Eric Jackson added later Monday morning that the MLB had called an &#8220;emergency meeting&#8221; to discuss the situation.
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BREAKING: Major League Baseball to hold an emergency meeting today after 14 Miami Marlins have tested positive for COVID-19 following their weekend series with the Philadelphia Phillies.
&mdash; Eric Jackson (@ericjackson) <a href="https://twitter.com/ericjackson/status/1287750533638430723?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Apparently fearing that they have been exposed to the virus, the Phillies canceled their Monday afternoon game against the New York Yankees. The Phillies are also, reportedly, &#8220;fumigating&#8221; the visitors&#8217; clubhouse.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
BREAKING NEWS
Phillies Yankees game tonight at CBP has been canceled, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticPHI?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticPHI</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Phillies?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Phillies</a> <a href="https://t.co/rBMBtS9Lov">pic.twitter.com/rBMBtS9Lov</a>
&mdash; John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) <a href="https://twitter.com/JClarkNBCS/status/1287758167414374402?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
In a statement, the MLB announced just the Marlins cancelations and noted that all Marlins team members are now in self-quarantine awaiting full team test results.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Officially from MLB: <a href="https://t.co/3hpxf3FoEm">pic.twitter.com/3hpxf3FoEm</a>
&mdash; James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) <a href="https://twitter.com/ByJamesWagner/status/1287769570896490497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As a number of baseball reporters noted Monday morning, there is no secondary plan if the league experiences an outbreak, however, the MLB commissioner <a href="https://twitter.com/karlravechespn/status/1287741513787756545">retains the right to cancel the season</a> without any input or vote from team leadership, owners, or managers.
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Miami Marlins

MLB Season In Jeopardy, Emergency Meetings Called After 14 Marlins Players Test Positive For COVID-19

Baseball

Ninety-four Democratic field organizers tasked with helping to elect presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden in Florida have reportedly signed an internal letter to the state Democratic Party complaining about a “toxic” work environment, and an absence of a “fully functional field plan.”
According to <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/article244480437.html">the Miami Herald</a>, the field organizers made eight allegations ranging from dismissiveness of staff concerns, to an absence of campaign resources, to inexplicably moving Puerto Rican organizers who speak Spanish to areas of the state with fewer Hispanics.
“The [Coordinated Campaign of Florida] is suppressing the Hispanic vote by removing Spanish-speaking organizers from Central Florida without explanation, which fails to confront a system of white-dominated politics we are supposed to be working against as organizers of a progressive party,” said the letter, reports the news agency.
“We are roughly 100 days out from the election, and there is no functional targeted field outreach and organizing of the Hispanic/Spanish-speaking, Brazilian/Portuguese-speaking, and Haitian/Creole-speaking communities in our state,” the letter reads at another point. “There are no targets, scripts, data infrastructure, community outreach, or phonebanks established for this.”
The letter reportedly also asks for an apology for the way that field staff have allegedly been treated.
The Herald, which spoke with field organizers “on the condition of anonymity over fears of retaliation,” reports one organizer as saying that some of the younger staff members believe they hold “different views of workplace norms” than the older workers.
“The way you treat your lowest ranked employees says a lot about you as an organization,” said the organizer.
According to the Miami Herald, most of the organizers who signed the letter work for the party, and not directly for the Biden campaign, and as such, do outreach for a variety of Democratic candidates seeking office at various levels of government.
Jackie Lee, state director of Biden for President, told the Herald it was working with the field organizer’s union on the issues mentioned in the letter and hadn’t relocated anyone for the last six weeks.
“The stakes of this election are critical, and we are committed to working with our organizers and Florida Democrats at every level in order to build a strong, successful Coordinated Campaign,” said Lee.
The field organizers’ complaints about the Florida campaign effort come as polls suggest that Biden currently maintains a sizable lead in the swing state, which voted for Trump by a margin of 1.2 points in 2016.
According to <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/fl/florida_trump_vs_biden-6841.html">the RealClearPolitics</a> average, the presumptive Democratic nominee is hitting 49.7% in Florida while Trump is registering at 42.7%. 
However, a notable outlier in the bunch is a poll from the Trafalgar Group, which released a poll the day before the 2016 election that found Trump ahead in Florida by four points, as previously noted by <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2016/11/how-could-polling-be-so-wrong-2016-231092">Politico</a>.
The Trafalgar Group has the two candidates effectively tied in Florida, with Trump registering at 45.94% and Biden registering at 45.90%.
Also, the day before the 2016 election, the group found Trump leading by 2 points in Michigan, a state Republicans hadn’t carried in the electoral college since the 1980s.
The RealClearPolitics average in Michigan has Biden leading Trump 48.7% to 40.5%. The Trafalgar Group poll? Biden is up one point.
The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

Florida Holds Presidential Primary Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

Report: Florida Dems Allege ‘Toxic’ Work Environment, Worry Team Biden ‘Suppressing’ Hispanic Vote

2020 Election

Democratic Party

Joe Biden

Florida’s largest teachers union is suing the state and GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis for ordering schools to hold in-person classes five days a week starting next month.
The Florida Education Association, which represents 140,000 education employees across the state, filed the <a href="https://feaweb.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Complaint-FINAL.pdf">lawsuit</a> on Monday accusing DeSantis of violating a state constitutional mandate to keep schools “safe and secure,” according to <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/florida-teachers-union-sues-to-stop-school-openings-amid-virus-surge/">National Review</a>. The suit stems from a July 6 Education Department order <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/07/us/florida-schools-reopen-august-trnd/index.html">directing</a> schools to “ensure the quality and continuity of the educational process, the comprehensive wellbeing of students and families and a return to Florida hitting its full economic stride.”
“Gov. DeSantis needs a reality check, and we are attempting to provide one,” FEA President Fedrick Ingram said in a <a href="https://feaweb.org/news/news/fea-files-lawsuit-to-protect-health-and-well-being-of-students-educators-communities/">statement</a>. “The governor needs to accept the reality of the situation here in Florida, where the virus is surging out of control. He needs to accept the evolving science. It now appears that kids 10 and older may pass along the coronavirus as easily as adults. Everyone wants schools to reopen, but we don’t want to begin in-person teaching, face an explosion of cases and sickness, then be forced to return to distance learning. Florida’s Constitution demands that public schools be safe. Teachers and parents want our schools to meet that basic standard.”
The Florida Department of Education hit back at the teachers union, saying that the FEA “hasn’t read nor understands” the July 6 order. Department spokeswoman Taryn Fenske said that the order is a reminder to school boards and superintendents that Florida schools are constitutionally obligated to continue educating students amid the pandemic, <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2020/07/20/florida-teachers-sue-as-desantis-distances-himself-from-school-openings-1302355">Politico</a> reports.
The order also guarantees funding for school districts to find creative ways to continue educating students, according to Fenske.
&#8220;The FEA frequently states that schools are underfunded, and if this frivolous, reckless lawsuit, succeeds it will eliminate these funding guarantees — completely contradicting their normal outcry,&#8221; Fenske wrote.
DeSantis has advocated for schools reopening in the fall and letting parents make the choice of whether to send their children. On Monday at an event in Orlando, he distanced himself from his Education Department’s July 6 order.
“I didn’t do an executive order. That was the Department of Education,” he said, according to <a href="https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/20200720/as-covid-19-caseload-mounts-desantis-sued-by-teachers-over-school-reopening-plan/1">The Palm Beach Post</a>.
“Our guiding principles have been, number one, that ultimately parents need to be free to choose the best environment for their student, their kids,” DeSantis said. “That means if they prefer distance learning because they’re not comfortable with having kids in school, then that’s their decision as a parent.”
“If people want a hybrid, [school districts] can offer hybrid. And, obviously, those parents that believe kids need to be in school, we want to provide them with an option to do that as well,” he added.
Florida’s <a href="https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/usa/florida/">coronavirus</a> case numbers have <a href="https://polimath.substack.com/p/your-states-covid-numbers-in-context">skyrocketed</a> in the past month, though much of the surge is due to the state’s targeted testing strategy. Daily deaths from the coronavirus have also risen across the state, but at a rate much lower than the increase in cases.
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Ron DeSantis

Florida’s Largest Teachers Union Sues Gov. DeSantis Over School Reopenings

A Nashville man told his local news station last week that he received at least three calls from the state about apparently testing positive for the novel coronavirus.
The problem? He was never tested.
According to <a href="https://www.wsmv.com/news/mt-juliet-man-says-even-with-no-test-he-s-informed-he-is-covid-19/article_f8cf60e6-c886-11ea-8ae0-4ffb48dc9a46.html">News4 Investigates</a>, Brock Ballou, a resident of the Nashville suburb of Mount Juliet, said he was anticipating a call from a contact tracer after one of his coworkers tested positive for COVID-19. However, the tracer repeatedly told Mr. Ballou that he was positive for the virus, despite the fact that he was never tested, he says.
“She specifically said – I’m looking at it right here – you tested positive – this is a follow up call to see how your symptoms are,” Ballou told the news station.
Asked if he possibly misheard the woman on the phone, Ballou said she reiterated his supposedly positive test results multiple times.
“I’m 100 percent sure that’s what she said, she was looking right at it,&#8221; he recalled, &#8220;she told me I’m in the system – looking right at it that you’re showing positive.&#8221;
Over the following days, Ballou received more calls from the state about his COVID symptoms.
“(The contact tracer) said I’m still seeing that you’re positive. Courtesy call – checking your symptoms,” he said.
<a href="https://www.wsmv.com/news/mt-juliet-man-says-even-with-no-test-he-s-informed-he-is-covid-19/article_f8cf60e6-c886-11ea-8ae0-4ffb48dc9a46.html">News4 Investigates</a> said all three phone numbers used to reach out to Ballou have been confirmed by the news station to have come from workers with the state health department of Tennessee.
The apparent discrepancy has Ballou questioning the accuracy of the state&#8217;s COVID-19 case counts.
“I said I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s wrong. I’m just another number when I’m not.&#8221;
The Tennessee health department confirmed through a spokeswoman that they are investigating the discrepancy.
“I can also tell you there is no concern with our count of cases in regard to our reporting of those who test positive,&#8221; the spokeswoman said. &#8220;Those entries are based on lab results, not on information provided from the monitoring team.”
According to Ballou, he&#8217;s been told by the state that the calls made to him were done via a third party contracted by the health department.
As noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/florida-labs-found-significantly-inflating-positive-covid-testing-rate">The Daily Wire</a> last week, the Florida State Health Department confirmed that some testing laboratories in the state have not been disclosing their negative novel coronavirus testing results accurately, skewing the positivity rates dramatically. At least two labs were discovered to have inflated their positivity rates of the virus by a factor of ten.
“Countless labs have reported a 100 percent positivity rate, which means every single person tested was positive. Other labs had very high positivity rates,” <a href="https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/fox-35-investigates-florida-department-of-health-says-some-labs-have-not-reported-negative-covid-19-results">FOX 35</a> explained Tuesday.
It was uncovered that Orlando Veteran’s Medical Center’s reported positivity rate of 76% was actually around 6%, a spokesperson for the center revealed. FOX 35 added, “Orlando Health’s positivity rate is only 9.4 percent, not 98 percent as in the report.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/florida-labs-found-significantly-inflating-positive-covid-testing-rate">Florida Labs Found Significantly Inflating Positive COVID Testing Rate</a>
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coronavirus

Nashville Man Told By State He’s Positive For Coronavirus. He Was Never Tested.

Tennessee

Florida and Texas, the two states leading the current surge of coronavirus infections, are also seeing shocking increases in COVID-19 infections in nursing homes, similar to the increases seen in states affected by the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, like Michigan, New Jersey, and New York.
<a href="https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2020/07/15/florida-nursing-homes-see-infections-surge-as-workers-spread-virus-1301255">Politico reports</a> that Florida has seen a 74% increase in &#8220;coronavirus cases in the past month despite efforts by Gov. Ron DeSantis to isolate the elderly sick and avoid the kind of catastrophe that hit New York earlier in the pandemic,&#8221; and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/coronavirus-rapidly-spreading-texas-nursing-homes-state-figures-show-n1233909">NBC News notes</a> that Texas, where the virus has largely affected people under 35, is seeing its own uptick in nursing home cases.
&#8220;Across Texas, nearly 1,000 new infections of nursing home residents were reported in the week ending last Friday, July 10, NBC News found in an analysis of data from the Texas health department,&#8221; NBC News reported Thursday. &#8220;That’s the highest weekly increase since mid-May when the state began publishing the data, and it reflects record increases last week in the Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth and El Paso regions.&#8221;
&#8220;Deaths from the virus are also mounting: 1,173 nursing home residents have died in Texas so far, according to state data — including 224 deaths since July 1,&#8221; the outlet adds.
Those numbers are still far below those posted by New York, where more than 6,000 nursing home residents died after Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered nursing homes and other adult care facilities to take in recovering coronavirus patients, often without regard for whether those patients remained contagious, and while threatening those facilities that did not take in recovering COVID-19 patients with state action.
In recent weeks, Cuomo has tried to deflect blame for the deaths away from the state policy, suggesting that responsibility for the spike in deaths lies with everyone from President Donald Trump to nursing home workers who provided patient care while sick with the virus themselves. A report from the New York State Department of Health tried to back up Cuomo&#8217;s claims but experts largely consider that report flawed, according to <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2020-07-14/blame-game-cuomo-takes-heat-over-ny-nursing-home-study">U.S. News and World Report</a>.
Florida and Texas, unlike New York, say they&#8217;re taking measures to keep the virus out of nursing homes, but that facilities&#8217; elderly population is among the groups most vulnerable to the deadly virus, and workers can, in fact, bring in the virus from outside.
“We’ve done a lot to guard that door, to keep that virus from getting into our facilities,” a Florida official told Politico. “Our staff are human beings who have lives outside of those facilities.”
Patty Ducayet, Texas’ &#8220;long-term care ombudsman,&#8221; told NBC News that the state is trying to learn from where other states, like New York, went wrong.
“We had an opportunity to avoid what we’re experiencing right now,” she said. “We got this chance to see what other states did, what awful things they were experiencing, so we might be ahead of the crisis. Now I’m bracing for more deaths to come and more cases.”
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Caregiver supporting woman during corona outbreak

COVID-19 Spreading In Nursing Homes Again, This Time In Florida, Texas

Andrew Cuomo

Nursing homes

Texas

The quadrennial conventions held by Republicans and Democrats are really just big soirees for the party faithful, many of whom have spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars to get their presidential candidate elected.
But amid the COVID-19 pandemic, that&#8217;s all about to change.
Ronna Romney McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), on Thursday told party members that the convention in Jacksonville, Florida, will be heavily scaled back this time around.
For instance, the festivities will be limited only to official delegates for the first three days — Aug. 24-26 — which means just 2,500 people will attend.
On the fourth day, Aug. 27, when President Trump formally accepts the nomination, delegates will be allowed to bring one guest and alternate delegates will also be allowed to attend. That means about 6,000 or 7,000 people will be in attendance for the historic occasion.
&#8220;I want to make clear that we still intend to host a fantastic convention celebration in Jacksonville,&#8221; McDaniel wrote in a letter to Republicans. &#8220;We can gather and put on a top-notch event that celebrates the incredible accomplishments of President Trump&#8217;s administration and his re-nomination for a second term — while also doing so in a safe and responsible manner.&#8221;
McDaniel said the RNC will use numerous health protocols to ensure a safe event, including on-site temperature checks, available personal protective equipment, &#8220;aggressive&#8221; sanitizing protocols, and available COVID-19 testing.
Trump last month pulled out of North Carolina as a site for the full convention, bashing the state&#8217;s governor Roy Cooper by writing on Twitter that the Democrat &#8220;made it absolutely IMPOSSIBLE for the Republican Party to have its Convention” in Charlotte.
Then it was announced that the RNC would move much of the convention&#8217;s festivities to Florida, which has seen a recent spike in COVID-19 cases. And then the plan was changed to hold some events outside. The official business for the convention will still take place in Charlotte, but celebration has been moved to Jacksonville.
The RNC chairwoman also said the Jacksonville host committee plans to use both indoor and outdoor facilities in Florida for events during the week. Republican officials have been eyeing the possibility of moving the planned in-person nominating convention from the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville to one of two nearby outdoor sites — a minor league baseball park that seats about 11,000, or a football stadium that seats 65,000.
“I want to reiterate that the RNC is working around the clock to ensure the convention celebration in Jacksonville is still an exciting, premier event,” McDaniel said. “We are looking forward to a fantastic week in Jacksonville as we celebrate this historic moment in the life of our nation.”
The Democratic Party, on the other hand, plans to hold a virtual convention the week before the scheduled Republican convention, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-06-24/democrats-confirm-plans-for-nearly-all-virtual-convention">The Los Angeles Times</a> reported.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/2020-republican-convention-could-be-moved-outside-report-says">2020 Republican Convention Could Be Moved Outside, Report Says</a>
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Republican National Convention: Day Four

Republican National Committee Outlines Scaled-Back Convention In Jacksonville

Republican National Committee (RNC)

Ronna Romney McDaniel

The Florida State Health Department confirmed Tuesday that some testing laboratories in the state have not been disclosing their negative novel coronavirus testing results accurately, skewing the positivity rates dramatically.
Moreover, two labs were discovered to have inflated their positivity rates of the virus by a factor of ten.
&#8220;Countless labs have reported a 100 percent positivity rate, which means every single person tested was positive. Other labs had very high positivity rates,&#8221; <a href="https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/fox-35-investigates-florida-department-of-health-says-some-labs-have-not-reported-negative-covid-19-results">FOX 35</a> explained Tuesday, noting that one local Centra Care laboratory reported all 83 people tested were found to have the virus, and NCF Diagnostics in Alachua reported 88% of their tests were positive.
The news station investigated the suspect &#8220;astronomical&#8221; findings and found the data was skewed by the lack of reported negative tests.
For example, Orlando Veteran’s Medical Center&#8217;s reported positivity rate of 76% is actually around 6%, a spokesperson for the center revealed. The report added, &#8220;Orlando Health&#8217;s positivity rate is only 9.4 percent, not 98 percent as in the report.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
ERRORS FOUND: Florida&#39;s positivity rate is skewed. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FOX35?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FOX35</a> went through <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19</a> test reports &amp; found many clinics reporting 100% positivity. <a href="https://twitter.com/orlandohealth?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@orlandohealth</a> admits their number is wrong, saying it shows 98% positive, but it&#39;s actually 9.4%. <a href="https://twitter.com/fox35orlando?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@fox35orlando</a> <a href="https://t.co/NgFuXjw5OS">https://t.co/NgFuXjw5OS</a>
&mdash; Amy Kaufeldt (@Fox35Amy) <a href="https://twitter.com/Fox35Amy/status/1282982855430340610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Florida Department of Health confirmed Tuesday that &#8220;although private and public laboratories are required to report positive and negative results to the state immediately, some have not,&#8221; FOX 35 reported. &#8220;Specifically, they said that some smaller, private labs were not reporting negative test result data to the state.&#8221;
A spokesperson for the Florida Department of Health said the agency is working with the labs on &#8220;proper protocol&#8221; to ensure reporting on all testing results.
&#8220;The Department immediately began working with those labs to ensure that all results were being reported in order to provide comprehensive and transparent data,&#8221; the spokesperson said. &#8220;As the state continues to receive results from various labs, the Department will continue educating these labs on proper protocol for reporting COVID-19 test results.&#8221;
Florida has garnered dire media headlines over their recent surge in positive coronavirus test results. The Sunshine State hit a record high on Monday, with a reported 12,000 positive tests.
According to <a href="https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/coronavirus/2020/07/12/ongoing-coronavirus-coverage">Bay News 9</a>, Dr. Raul Pino with Florida Dept. of Health-Orange County theorized that the spike in positives tests was partly because of a &#8220;backlogged test results being added to the state&#8217;s data,&#8221; &#8220;added labs entering results electronically,&#8221; and &#8220;daily tests inside the so-called &#8216;Disney Bubble&#8217; for the NBA and the MLS.&#8221;
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, has been repeatedly criticized by Democrats and mainstream media outlets for refusing to dictate blanket, strict social distancing measures on his citizens, instead opting for a more targeted approach with a focus on the elderly, who are most vulnerable to the virus.
Though the state of Florida has not come close to the catastrophic results in liberal New York, where more draconian measures and deadly nursing home orders (which have since been rescinded) were imposed by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the media have frequently praised the Democrat for his handling of the crises while slamming DeSantis.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
New York City reports zero COVID-19 deaths for first time since pandemic hit. This is what competent govt. can accomplish. <a href="https://t.co/a2dHoW4yzd">https://t.co/a2dHoW4yzd</a>
&mdash; Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) <a href="https://twitter.com/JRubinBlogger/status/1282497128389062656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
According to data provided by the Florida Health Department on Tuesday, the state, which has a population of about 21.4 million, has had over <a href="http://ww11.doh.state.fl.us/comm/_partners/covid19_report_archive/state_reports_latest.pdf">4,400 deaths</a> attributed to the virus. New York, a state with an estimated population of 19.5 million, has had more than 32,000.
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A health department worker checks in a man wearing a mask to

Florida Labs Found Significantly Inflating Positive COVID Testing Rate

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis posted a clip to Twitter on Monday of a top doctor in the state explaining during an interview on CNN how the coronavirus outbreak in the Sunshine State is different than the epidemic that hit New York.
Dr. Charles Lockwood, Senior Vice President Of USF Health, told CNN&#8217;s John King that the situation in the state is complicated.
&#8220;We’ve had a 5, now 5.4-fold increase in cases since June 10th. We’ve had about 3-fold increase in hospitalizations, and about 2.5-fold increase in deaths,&#8221; said Lockwood.
&#8220;Each death is terrible, but it’s a different epidemic than hit New York,&#8221; he underscored. &#8220;We have a much younger population being diagnosed and we&#8217;re much better prepared. Obviously, we had three months to prepare, so we do have a lot of surge capacity. When you get those numbers about the ICU, they don&#8217;t really reflect all the emergency ICU capacity that hospitals have created.&#8221;
&#8220;For example, Tampa General has 87 additional ventilators available, which we haven&#8217;t even begun to use yet. But the most striking thing is our case fatality rate, which has dropped and dropped and dropped. It’s now to 1.5 percent – so that&#8217;s cases, deaths over cases,&#8221; Lockwood continued. &#8220;It&#8217;s one of the lowest in the country. And in fact in Tampa, in Hillsborough County, today, as of a few minutes ago, it dropped to actually less than 1 percent. We have a case fatality rate of less than 1 percent. So a lot of that&#8217;s reflecting the younger population. Most of the folks that we&#8217;re diagnosing are between the ages of 15 and 44.&#8221;
&#8220;Most of the folks in the hospital, in the ICUs, are between the ages of 55 and 85. So the other thing is we&#8217;re much better able to take care of them in the hospital. We have Remdesivir; we have Dexamethasone; we have Convalescent Plasma Therapy; we do a much better job of ventilating,&#8221; Lockwood continued. &#8220;There are couple of other reasons why I&#8217;m not as pessimistic as maybe some folks that you’ve heard. One is that we seem to have peaked about a week ago in the emergency department visits for COVID-like illnesses, and also for influenza-like illnesses.&#8221;
&#8220;The other is that our horrible test-positive rate, which was 20 percent 10 days ago, actually was 20 percent even on 7/8, July 8th, has now dropped to about around 11 percent. So that&#8217;s trending in the right direction,&#8221; Lockwood concluded. &#8220;The other thing that is driving the cases – clearly it’s spread because of the test-positive rate – but we did 143,000 tests on Saturday. When the Governor eight weeks ago said that we were going to triple the number of tests done per day in the state from 10,000 to 30,000 a day, people thought he was crazy.&#8221;
Video and transcript below:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Great context from Dr. Charles Lockwood, Senior Vice President of <a href="https://twitter.com/USFHealth?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USFHealth</a> <a href="https://t.co/nHLzDemwqV">pic.twitter.com/nHLzDemwqV</a>
&mdash; Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1282743622312566785?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote>CNN HOST JOHN KING: Hospitals are warning now that their ICU capacity is dangerously running low. Here with me to discuss [the] Florida situation is Dr. Charles Lockwood, a Senior Vice President of University of South Florida Health, also Dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. Doctor Lockwood, thank you so much for being with us.
I just – when you look at these numbers, 15,000 yesterday, 12,000 plus today, I know we have been told repeatedly by the experts it is not just the case count, but you&#8217;re starting to see the hospital stress as well. Where is Florida? How big of a problem, crisis? What&#8217;s the right word?
DR. CHARLES LOCKWOOD, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF USF HEALTH, TAMPA: Yeah, well, it’s complicated. We’ve had a 5, now 5.4-fold increase in cases since June 10th. We have had about three-fold increases in hospitalizations, and about 2.5-fold increase in deaths. Each death is terrible but it’s a different epidemic than hit New York.
We have a much younger population being diagnosed and we&#8217;re much better prepared. Obviously, we had three months to prepare, so we do have a lot of surge capacity. When you get those numbers about the ICU, they don&#8217;t really reflect all the emergency ICU capacity that hospitals have created.
For example, Tampa General has 87 additional ventilators available, which we haven&#8217;t even begun to use yet. But the most striking thing is our case fatality rate, which has dropped and dropped and dropped. It’s now to 1.5 percent – so that&#8217;s cases, deaths over cases.
It&#8217;s one of the lowest in the country, and in fact in Tampa, in Hillsborough County, today, as of a few minutes ago, it dropped to actually less than 1 percent. We have a case fatality rate of less than 1 percent, so a lot of that&#8217;s reflecting the younger population, most of the folks that we&#8217;re diagnosing are between the ages of 15 and 44.
Most of the folks in the hospital, in the ICUs, are between the ages of 55 and 85. So the other thing is we&#8217;re much better able to take care of them in the hospital. We have Remdesivir; we have Dexamethasone; we have Convalescent Plasma Therapy; we do much better job of ventilating.
There are couple of other reasons why I&#8217;m not as pessimistic as maybe some folks that you’ve heard. One is that we seem to have peaked about a week ago in the emergency department visits for COVID-like illnesses, and also for influenza-like illnesses.
The other is that our horrible test-positive rate, which was 20 percent 10 days ago, actually was 20 percent even on 7/8, July 8th, has now dropped to about around 11 percent. So that&#8217;s trending in the right direction.
The other thing that is driving the cases – clearly it’s spread because of the test-positive rate. But we did 143,000 tests on Saturday. When the Governor eight weeks ago said that we were going to triple the number of tests done per day in the state from 10,000 to 30,000 a day, people thought he was crazy.
We did 143,000 tests on Saturday. So, that will drive up cases because we’re picking up the pre-symptomatic and the asymptomatic cases, but we are spreading. There&#8217;s no doubt about it. The test-positive rate had been at 3 percent at one point and now it&#8217;s at, you know, 11 percent.
KING: Well, I certainly hope you&#8217;re correct in finding those data point that suggest maybe the worst there is over. At least it is manageable. We&#8217;ll keep in touch as it plays out. Dr. Lockwood, very much appreciate your insights today. And more importantly, best of luck as you battle this in the days and week ahead, sir, thank you.</blockquote>
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US-HEALTH-VIRUS-FLORIDA

Top Florida Doctor: Coronavirus Situation In FL Is ‘Different Epidemic Than Hit New York’

New York

On Saturday, a man from Marion Country drove into a Catholic Church and set it ablaze with parishioners inside, causing extensive damage to the Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Ocala, Florida.
In other incidents over the weekend, a Catholic church in California, the San Gabriel Mission Church, went up in flames, as did a Pentecostal church, the Faith Tabernacle Pentecostal Church in Limestone, Alabama.
In both of those incidents, it&#8217;s unclear what caused the fires.
&#8220;Officials with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said they were called to the Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Ocala Saturday morning after a man drove his vehicle into the front of the church and lit a fire,&#8221; reported <a href="https://www.wesh.com/article/ocala-church-fire-chase/33283070#">WESH 2 News</a>. &#8220;Deputies said the man then led them on a chase before being captured.&#8221;
Thankfully, no serious injuries were reported.
In an <a href="https://m.facebook.com/mcsoflorida/#!/story.php?story_fbid=3286399751380610&amp;id=108135359207081">updated post</a> from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday, the man charged in the attack was identified as a 24-year-old male whose name will not be printed, per Daily Wire policy.
According to <a href="https://www.wric.com/news/florida-man-accused-of-setting-catholic-church-on-fire/?utm_source=t.co&amp;utm_campaign=socialflow&amp;utm_medium=referral">The Associated Press</a>, the attacker told detectives on the case that he is mentally ill but had stopped taking his medication.
&#8220;[Redacted] told detectives what he did was &#8216;awesome,&#8217; and he smiled and laughed, the affidavit said,&#8221; the AP reported. &#8220;He told detectives he was &#8216;on a mission,&#8217; called himself &#8216;king&#8217; and that he has problems with the Catholic Church and referenced passages in the Bible’s Book of Revelations.&#8221;
A post from the sheriff&#8217;s office said the defendant &#8220;had intentionally crashed a vehicle through the front doors of the church, exited the vehicle and poured gasoline out into the foyer area and then lit it on fire. He then left in the vehicle.&#8221;
The attacker “has been charged with one count of Attempted Second Degree Murder, evidencing prejudice, a First-Degree Felony; one count of Arson to a Structure (where persons are normally present and which the Defendant had reasonable grounds to believe to be occupied by a human being), evidencing prejudice, a Life Felony; one count of Burglary of an Occupied Structure (with intent to commit a forcible felony, with assault while armed, using a motor vehicle as an instrumentality, and causing damage to the structure in excess of $1,000), while evidencing prejudice, a Life Felony; and one count of Felony Fleeing or Attempting to Elude,&#8221; the post added, noting that the perp is “being held in the Marion County Jail on no bond.”
<div class="text_exposed_show">
&#8220;Our freedom of worship granted in the Constitution is a freedom that we all hold dear,&#8221; said Sheriff Billy Woods. “My deputies and I are sworn to protect that right and will always ensure our citizens can worship in peace. I’m proud of my deputies for capturing this man so quickly and we appreciate the assistance from all of the state and federal agencies that worked alongside of us during this investigation.”
</div>
In California, the Roman Catholic San Gabriel Mission Church went up in flames on Saturday night.
Mourners &#8220;came from across the region to survey the destruction after a fire that ripped through the church of the 249-year-old mission, one of California’s most historic landmarks, sacred ground for the Catholic faithful but also a symbol of a system that enslaved and terrorized indigenous peoples,&#8221; the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-12/san-gabriel-mission-a-symbol-of-faith-history-oppression-bad-damaged-by-fire">Los Angeles Times</a> reported Sunday.
&#8220;Hundreds of parishioners from the San Gabriel Mission Roman Catholic community gathered all day in the parking lot to cry, grieve, pray, reminisce and talk about their faith,&#8221; the report added.
&#8220;A heartbreaking scene in San Gabriel after the 250 year old San Gabriel Mission caught fire early this morning,&#8221; reported CBS Los Angeles&#8217; Joy Benedict on Saturday. &#8220;Although still standing it is completely gutted.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
A heartbreaking scene in San Gabriel after the 250 year old San Gabriel Mission caught fire early this morning. Although still standing it is completely gutted. <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CBSLA</a> <a href="https://t.co/po0DQM3qUE">pic.twitter.com/po0DQM3qUE</a>
&mdash; Joy Benedict (@joybenedict) <a href="https://twitter.com/joybenedict/status/1281983538292592640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I know there are a lot of questions about the cause of the fire at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sangabrielmission?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1282048885049843712%7Ctwgr%5E&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.dailywire.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D128048action%3Dedit&amp;src=hashtag_click">#sangabrielmission</a>. Arson investigators are there, as is <a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/ATFHQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1282048885049843712%7Ctwgr%5E&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.dailywire.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D128048action%3Dedit" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-focusable="true">@ATFHQ</a>,&#8221; the reporter updated. &#8220;There is also a security camera facing the front of the building where a Father Serra statue once stood (and was taken down last week).&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I know there are a lot of questions about the cause of the fire at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sangabrielmission?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#sangabrielmission</a> Arson investigators are there, as is <a href="https://twitter.com/ATFHQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ATFHQ</a> There is also a security camera facing the front of the building where a Father Serra statue once stood (and was taken down last week). <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CBSLA</a> <a href="https://t.co/BoO207z2PO">pic.twitter.com/BoO207z2PO</a>
&mdash; Joy Benedict (@joybenedict) <a href="https://twitter.com/joybenedict/status/1282048885049843712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
While it remains unclear how the fire started, Benedict said that the church &#8220;was also under renovation recently.&#8221;
&#8220;It’s not clear if that could have played a factor in the fire,&#8221; she said. &#8220;The church was scheduled to reopen next weekend. That’s why everyone is investigating.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sangabrielmission?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#sangabrielmission</a> Church was also under renovation recently. It’s not clear if that could have played a factor in the fire. The church was scheduled to reopen next weekend. That’s why everyone is investigating. <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CBSLA</a> <a href="https://t.co/SfAU5XOiC5">pic.twitter.com/SfAU5XOiC5</a>
&mdash; Joy Benedict (@joybenedict) <a href="https://twitter.com/joybenedict/status/1282049534881759232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
In Alabama on Friday, first responders were called to the Faith Tabernacle Pentecostal Church in Limestone County after the sanctuary caught fire.
“There is a lot of things you can look at and be thankful for in times like this,” pastor Jeremy Hill told <a href="https://whnt.com/news/limestone-county-church-on-fire/">WHNT News 19</a>. “The good thing is no one was hurt, anything that was burnt can be replaced, and we are thankful for that.”
The fire destroyed the sanctuary, bathrooms, and fellowship hall, said Hill.
The cause of the fire remains unclear.
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Four-alarm fire tore through the church at Mission San Gabriel destroying the inside of the 245-year-old building

Man Allegedly Plows Car Into Florida Church, Sets It Ablaze With Parishioners Inside; Two Other Christian Churches Burned Same Weekend

Christianity

church

Protesters who were demonstrating in a crosswalk in St. Petersburg, Florida, were noted by the St. Petersburg Police Department because they refused to stop while a fire-rescue ambulance, which may not have had its lights and sirens on, was waiting to cross through the intersection.
The police department released a video of the incident in which the ambulance can be seen driving up behind a car waiting for the protesters, who were demonstrating in front of the St. Petersburg Police Department station, to let it through the intersection.
Police said the ambulance was attempting to get through the intersection; it can be seen in the video inching up to the car in front of it before the driver finally turns down another street.
“The entire length of the video is 39 seconds. During the incident, the fire-rescue vehicle does not appear to have lights and sirens on,” <a href="https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/protests/st-petersburg-protesters-fire-truck/67-1553a001-0683-4363-8b39-ab4a28930146">WTSP</a> noted, adding, “St. Pete Fire Rescue said the ambulance was not on an emergency call at the time.”
According to the St. Petersburg police, they have received 413 complaint calls to their Emergency Communications Center vis-à-vis protesters blocking traffic through July 7. They added, &#8220;This does not count the numerous phone calls and emails sent to individual police supervisors and officers and messages received through the department&#8217;s social media platforms.”
The police added that in the last three weeks almost 80 phone calls and emails have reached Mayor Rick Kriseman&#8217;s office regarding protesters blocking streets while the City Council got 15 complaints in the last 10 days.
On July 7, the police department announced on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/StPetePD">Facebook</a>:
<blockquote>Reminder- Pedestrians Must Follow the Law Too!
Pedestrians</blockquote>
<ul>
<li>
<blockquote>Must use sidewalk when possible, Florida Statute 316.130 (3)</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>May not obstruct or hinder traffic, Florida Statute 316.2045(1)</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>Must obey traffic signals, Florida Statute 316.075 (1) (C) 2b</blockquote>
</li>
</ul>
The department added, “You could be fined $62.50.”
Florida Statute §316.2045 <a href="http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&amp;URL=0300-0399/0316/Sections/0316.2045.html">states</a>, “It is unlawful for any person or persons willfully to obstruct the free, convenient, and normal use of any public street, highway, or road by impeding, hindering, stifling, retarding, or restraining traffic or passage thereon, by standing or approaching motor vehicles thereon, or by endangering the safe movement of vehicles or pedestrians traveling thereon; and any person or persons who violate the provisions of this subsection, upon conviction, shall be cited for a pedestrian violation, punishable as provided in chapter 318.&#8221;
RapidSOS <a href="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/549701/Documents/RapidSOS_Outcomes_White_Paper_-_2015_4.pdf">notes</a>:
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<blockquote>The evidence from the literature concludes that for every minute delay in primary response for certain life – threatening medical emergencies, there is a measurable effect on mortality. The research is conclusive especially for the first 5 minutes in the response interval, where rapid intervention makes the greatest difference. Critical medical intervention can be performed by professional responders or bystanders who receive instructions from 9-1-1 call takers over the phone. For critical medical incidents such as cardiac and neurological emergencies, together composing around 5% of 9-1-1 calls, a mere one minute delay in response time increases the mortality rate by 1 to 2%.</blockquote>
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Back of fire rescue ambulance truck

Florida Police Release Video Of Protesters Blocking Crosswalk While Non-Emergency Ambulance Waited

ambulance

Police in St. Petersburg, Florida, announced Thursday they will no longer send an officer for non-violent 911 calls.
Instead, the St. Petersburg Police Department (SPPD) said they would be creating a new division within the department – the Community Assistance Liaison (CAL). The SPPD said it planned to retain “a social service agency to respond to non-violent calls for service from the public.”
The new setup will begin on October 1, when CAL team members will respond to the following issues instead of police officers:
<ul>
<li>Disorderly intoxication</li>
<li>Drug overdose</li>
<li>Intoxicated person</li>
<li>Mental health crisis</li>
<li>Suicide crisis</li>
<li>Mental Health Transport</li>
<li>Disorderly juvenile/truancy</li>
<li>Disorderly Juvenile at Elementary Schools</li>
<li>Panhandling</li>
<li>Homeless complaints</li>
<li>Neighborhood dispute</li>
</ul>
A <a href="https://police.stpete.org/2020/july/09/significantChangeInPoliceResponse.html">press release</a> from the SPPD said that in 2019, “the Police Department responded to approximately 12,700 calls for service on the above issues (out of a total of 259,800 calls for service).”
The new CAL department will now handle the above calls instead of trained police officers. The new division will also replace a previous commitment to hire an additional 25 officers over the next two years.
The Police Department will lose $3,125,000 in federal grant funding awarded to pay for the new officers and $3,800,000 the City had earmarked in matching funds required by the grant. The City will instead use those funds to pay for this new service,” the SPPD said in its press release.
The SPPD said it would monitor calls where a member of the CAL was dispatched “for one year to determine whether this approach has been successful or whether officers were still required to respond to these issues in addition to the CAL team member.”
Law Enforcement Today – a police-centric news outlet – tweeted in response to the SPPD’s decision that “Not every 911 call starts violent &#8211; but many of them end that way. This is a catastrophe waiting to happen&#8230; and it&#8217;s spreading across America.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Not every 911 call starts violent &#8211; but many of them end that way. This is a catastrophe waiting to happen&#8230; and it&#8217;s spreading across America.<a href="https://t.co/V7IFpDDc8a">https://t.co/V7IFpDDc8a</a>
— LawEnforcementToday (@LawEnforceToday) <a href="https://twitter.com/LawEnforceToday/status/1281917435457740800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
At a <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/florida-police-department-cops-non-violent-calls">press conference</a>, Police Chief Anthony Holloway said the decision to create the CAL came after the police-involved death of Minneapolis resident George Floyd and discussions with community organizers, the police union, protesters, and faith leaders.
“Now after all those conversations, we had one common goal, and that common goal is very simple.  Our citizens is asking for change.  The city of St. Petersburg and the police department is ready for that change,” Holloway said.
“When a police officer responds to these calls, these are non-violent calls.  These are calls that people are asking for help.  Our police department is very young, the average age is about 25, and some of these men and women don’t even have kids at home, but we’re asked sometimes to help someone raise their kids,” he added. “We’re sometimes asked someone -to help someone, that has a mental issue.  Yes, we go to a lot of training, but we don’t have enough training.  We’re not experts in that.”
Holloway was asked about potential adverse effects of the decision not to hire 25 new police officers and replacing them with social workers to respond to non-violent 911 calls.
“If it gets to the point where the officers are responding to that, then that would be a conversation you’d have to have with the mayor again to see, this isn’t working, but we’re going to make this work, because this is what the community is asking for, this is the change that they are, part of the change that they’ve been wanting, this is the change that we’re going to give them,” Holloway said.
The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

St. Petersburg Police

Police In Florida Town Will No Longer Respond To ‘Non-Violent’ 911 Calls

Police

A Florida sheriff says he will deputize legal gun owners to “to stand in the gap between lawlessness and civility” if violent rioters come to his county.
Clay County Sheriff Darryl Daniels released a video statement on Tuesday warning that the scenes of violent riots, burning shops and police cars, and toppled statues would not be replicated in Clay County. Daniels said that he and his deputies would defend activists’ right to protest but warned demonstrators against stepping “out from under the protection of the Constitution” to harm the community.
“We’ll be waiting on you and we’ll give you everything you want. All the publicity, all the pain, all the glamour, and glory, for all that five minutes will give you,” Daniels said while standing in front of a line of his deputies. “Is it a threat? Absolutely not, but somebody has to step up in front of the camera and say enough is enough. Tearing up Clay County? That’s not going to be acceptable.”
“If we can’t handle you, you know what I’ll do? I will exercise the power and authority as a sheriff and I will make special deputies of every lawful gun owner in this county, and I’ll deputize them for this one purpose: to stand in the gap between lawlessness and civility. That’s what we’re sworn to do, and that’s what we’re going to do. You’ve been warned,” Daniels concluded.
The sheriff also criticized the media and Black Lives Matter for “making themselves a spectacle” and pushing a divisive and disruptive message that lacks &#8220;God.&#8221;
George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody on May 25 sparked protests against police brutality and perceived systemic racism among police departments across the country, many of which ultimately became riots.
The protests reignited a debate over the place of Confederate monuments and symbols on public property. Rioters have taken advantage of anger against Confederate symbols to justify vandalism and destruction against a wide array of public monuments including those to Founding Fathers George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, Catholic St. Junipero Serra, and Union general and former President Ulysses S. Grant.
In cities such as Seattle, Washington, D.C., and New York City, activists have set up protest zones meant to bar law enforcement from certain areas. In Seattle, city officials left the “Capitol Hill Occupied Protest” zone in place for weeks until the area suffered a string of fatal shootings.
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Read Daniels’ remarks in full:
<blockquote>Hey, folks. Me and the men and women of the Clay County Sheriff’s Office just want to weigh in on what we are seeing going on played out across the media, or mainstream media in this country. Look, folks. Don’t fall victim to subjecting yourself to this conversation that law enforcement is bad, that law enforcement is the enemy of the citizens that we are sworn to protect and serve. We swore and oath, and in that oath we swore to support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the government, and that we are duly qualified under the state’s constitution to hold office. That is for me as a sheriff and for these men and women as deputy sheriffs, and we end that with “so help me, God.” But God is absent from the media’s message or Black Lives Matter or any other group out there that’s making themselves a spectacle, disrupting what we know to be our quality of life in this country. In Clay County, we know we have a great quality of life. We have a great relationship with out community. But across this country, not so much. I just wanted to take a stand with these men and with these women who feel the same way that I do. Lawlessness, that’s unacceptable in this country. Lawlessness, that’s unacceptable in Clay County, and if you threaten to come to Clay County and think that for one second that we’ll bend our backs for you, you’re sadly mistaken. I know what happens when lawlessness prevails. And in this day and time, God is raising up men and women just like the folks you see standing behind me who will have strong backbones and will stand in the gap between lawlessness and the good citizenry that we are sworn to protect and serve. So you can threaten all you want. You can say, ‘Hey, let’s go to Clay County’ or let’s go to some other peaceful county where their problems don’t exist or not so much like across this country, where relationships are great and not strained, and where the people support their sheriff and support the men and women who wear the uniform, and you’ll have something waiting on you that you don’t want. Yes, we’ll protect your constitutional rights as long as you remain under the umbrella of peaceful protest or peaceful march, but the second that you step out from under the protection of the Constitution, we’ll be waiting on you and we’ll give you everything you want. All the publicity, all the pain, all the glamour and glory, for all that five minutes will give you. Is it a threat? Absolutely not, but somebody has to step up in front of the camera and say enough is enough. Tearing up Clay County? That’s not going to be acceptable. And if we can’t handle you, you know what I’ll do? I will exercise the power and authority as a sheriff and I will make special deputies of every lawful gun owner in this county, and I’ll deputize them for this one purpose: to stand in the gap between lawlessness and civility. That’s what we’re sworn to do, and that’s what we’re going to do. You’ve been warned.</blockquote>
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

Capitol Hill Organized Protest

Florida Sheriff Says He’ll ‘Deputize Every Lawful Gun Owner In The County’ To Control Violent Protests

Guns

Riots

As the media once again spreads fear and panic about COVID-19, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has said he will not lockdown his state despite the fact that coronavirus cases in Florida have begun to rise. As of Wednesday, the state has seen more than <a href="https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/96dd742462124fa0b38ddedb9b25e429">158,900 cases</a> and over 3,500 deaths.
Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, DeSantis said that the rise in COVID-19 numbers stem from the high number of social interactions, not stores or businesses being open.
“We&#8217;re not going back, closing things,&#8221; DeSantis said, as reported by <a href="https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/florida-ron-desantis-shutdowns-covid-19/2020/06/30/id/975037/">Newsmax</a>. &#8220;I don&#8217;t think that that, really, is what&#8217;s driving it. People going to business is not what&#8217;s driving it. I think when you see the younger folks, I think a lot of it is more just social interactions, so that&#8217;s natural.”
&#8220;We&#8217;re open; we know who we need to protect. Most of the folks in those younger demographics, although we want them to be mindful of what&#8217;s going on, are just simply much, much less at risk than the folks who are in those older age groups,&#8221; DeSantis continued.
Despite the negative news across the nation, there does appear to be at least a limited measure of hope going forward regarding herd immunity.
As <a href="https://reason.com/2020/07/01/covid-19-herd-immunity-is-much-closer-than-antibody-tests-suggest-say-2-new-studies/">Reason</a> reported on Wednesday:
<blockquote>The prevalence of immunity to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 may be much higher than previous research suggests according to an intriguing <a href="https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.06.29.174888">new study</a> by researchers associated with Karolinska Institute in Sweden. In addition, a new German <a href="https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-35331/v1">study</a> by researchers associated with the University Hospital Tübingen in Germany reports that people who have been previously infected with versions of the coronavirus that cause the common cold also have some immunity to the COVID-19 virus. If these reports stand up to further scrutiny, it would be very good news because they suggest that the pandemic could be over sooner and ultimately be less lethal than feared.</blockquote>
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said that states should not take locking down again off the table.
&#8220;They may have to do that. I think if you immediately say — in other words — these all-or-none phenomenon that just misleads us,&#8221; Fauci told Meg Tirrel on the Milken Institute Summer Series last week. &#8220;If you say you’re going to go back into lockdown, there will be an absolute push back on that. You might have to do it. You never take that off the table.&#8221;
That said, Dr. Fauci noted that a <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/dr-fauci-no-need-for-a-second-covid-lockdown">second lockdown</a> like the one America experienced in March and April is unlikely.
“New York, unfortunately, really got hit by surprise, because they had activity coming into this city from Europe when everybody was focusing on China. They all of a sudden found that they had a massive outbreak,” he said. “I don&#8217;t think that could happen under today&#8217;s circumstances of our full awareness of the potential of this virus, which is highly transmissible.”
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers with the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe"> member</a>.

Florida Governor DeSantis And Government Officials Give Hurricane Season Update At Miami-Dade Emergency Operations Center

Ron DeSantis: Florida Not Going Into Lockdown Again

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is pushing government officials and school administrators to allow students to return to class in the fall despite the coronavirus.
The AAP said in a Monday <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/notable-quotable-american-academy-of-pediatrics-11593469707">statement</a> that the cost to children of keeping them separated from school and their classmates may be worse than the disease and lead to abuse, drug use, and even suicide.
<blockquote>The AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school. The importance of inperson learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020. Lengthy time away from school and associated interruption of supportive services often results in social isolation, making it difficult for schools to identify and address important learning deficits as well as child and adolescent physical or sexual abuse, substance use, depression, and suicidal ideation. This, in turn, places children and adolescents at considerable risk of morbidity and, in some cases, mortality.</blockquote>
The child health professionals noted that keeping children from in-class instruction has already had a “substantial impact” on students’ physical health and nutrition, as miss consistent exercise and school meals. As for the threat of the pandemic, the AAP said that the coronavirus is much less dangerous to younger people, and students with healthy immune systems are less likely to spread the disease further, especially if precautions are taken such as wearing face masks in class.
<blockquote>SARS-CoV-2 appears to behave differently in children and adolescents than other common respiratory viruses, such as influenza, on which much of the current guidance regarding school closures is based. Although children and adolescents play a major role in amplifying influenza outbreaks, to date, this does not appear to be the case with SARS-CoV-2. Although many questions remain, the preponderance of evidence indicates that children and adolescents are less likely to be symptomatic and less likely to have severe disease resulting from SARS-CoV-2 infection. In addition, children may be less likely to become infected and to spread infection.</blockquote>
The number of coronavirus cases across states such as California, Florida, and Texas are beginning to rise as states have begun to exit lockdowns, orders that have generally coincided with mass protests that began after Memorial Day across the country. Some states have begun to backtrack on reopening and close down businesses, such as bars, that were recently allowed to restart operations.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/29/us/coronavirus-florida-texas-bars-second-shutdown/index.html">ordered</a> bars again after allowing the businesses to reopen. The governor <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000007212734/florida-governor-coronavirus.html">said</a> last week that while cases are spiking across the state, fatality rates are not seeing a similar upswing because the new cases are largely in younger people who are less vulnerable to the virus and more likely to socialize as restrictions are relaxed.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fauci-coronavirus-vaccine-unlikely-to-achieve-herd-immunity-because-of-anti-vaxxers">Fauci: Coronavirus Vaccine ‘Unlikely’ To Achieve Herd Immunity Because Of Anti-Vaxxers</a>
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

Kindergarten Zoom Class

American Academy of Pediatrics: Get Students Back To School In The Fall

California

A retired Florida County Sheriff’s Deputy who flew a &#8220;Blue Lives Matter&#8221; flag over his garage was told by his homeowners’ association to take it down.
The homeowners association sent a &#8220;violation notice&#8221; to Sean Kennedy that stated, &#8220;During a recent inspection, it was noted that you have an improper flag displayed on your property. While we support your patriotism, the American flag does need to be the traditional American flag. No lawn ornaments or freestanding flagpoles shall be placed or maintained on any Lot without the prior approval of the Architectural Review Committee. Please have this violation corrected within 14 days from the date of this letter. If the violation is not corrected within this timeframe, further action will be taken.&#8221;
Kennedy, a Pasco County Sheriff’s Deputy who has served 25 years on the police force, lives with his wife and kids in in New Port Richey. He told <a href="https://www.wfla.com/news/pasco-county/homeowners-association-tells-florida-man-to-take-down-blue-lives-matter-flag/?fbclid=IwAR1-u7EhsK1HaaekUPkPEJEPLFh_0TXCosHhp852BkMI114yBzTK3BLv2Hc">WFLA</a>, “People don’t really understand that flag. It’s nothing to do with police. It’s police that have been killed. The meaning of the flag is to support police that have been killed. Not police that are active right now working. “
James Adams, a neighbor of Kennedy’s, was perturbed by the HOA order, saying, “I understand that there are certain guidelines and bylaws that we all follow in our neighborhoods. But that’s a little much.”
Kennedy stated that someone with the homeowner’s association had complained. He said he has had the flag up for years, WFLA reported. Kennedy added, “I think it’s self-explanatory what’s going on in the world. The hatred of the police because of one horrible action by a guy in Minnesota just tarnishing everybody.” Pointing out that a number of his neighbors supported his position, he added, “I’m not taking it down. It’s something I’ve worked for for 25 years and I believe in, so, and it’s definitely not racist; it’s definitely not hatred. It’s a tribute to law enforcement officers and firefighters who died.”
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In January 2019, a group of University of California, Davis students took offense at a photograph of a 22-year-old female police officer who was shot to death on January 10. In the photo, which was taken from a series taken in 2016, officer Natalie Corona was holding a &#8220;Thin Blue Line&#8221; flag.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Officer Natalie Corona of <a href="https://twitter.com/cityofdavispd?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cityofdavispd</a> your life mattered. We stand with your family, <a href="https://twitter.com/cityofdavispd?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cityofdavispd</a>, the Davis community &amp; SPD Academy Class <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/18BR1?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#18BR1</a> and ours 💙s are broken. You are a hero Natalie &#8211; and we will never forget you <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/inthelineofduty?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#inthelineofduty</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sacpd?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#sacpd</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/officercorona?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#officercorona</a> <a href="https://t.co/QbwFHhJ5Mp">pic.twitter.com/QbwFHhJ5Mp</a>
&mdash; Sacramento Police (@SacPolice) <a href="https://twitter.com/SacPolice/status/1083740804294701056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2019</a></blockquote>
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As Todd Starnes of Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/todd-starnes-uc-davis-students-protest-photo-of-slain-police-officer-holding-blue-lives-matter-flag">reported,</a> California photographer Rich Laus took the pictures, in which Corona wore a blue gown as she carried the flag. Corona posted one on Facebook with the caption, “I would like this photograph to serve as my gratitude for all of those <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/us/crime/police-and-law-enforcement">law enforcement</a> men and women who have served, who are currently serving, and those who have died in the line of duty protecting our liberties in this great country.”
But the Associated Students, UC-Davis Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission, objected. In a post from a Facebook page that has since been deleted, they wrote, “The flag is blatantly anti-Black and disrespectful … We see it necessary to call-out all community members who continue to post and disseminate images of the Blue Lives Matter flag online. We would like to directly address that this flag represents an attempt by law enforcement to undermine the Black Lives Matter movement.”
<a href="https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article224520135.html">The Sacramento Bee</a> reported that Corona was on patrol alone on the evening of January 10, 2019. On the scene of a three-car collision near downtown Davis, she was in the midst of giving one of the motorists their driver’s license back when her 48-year-old assailant, who was riding his bicycle, left his bicycle in the shadows, then neared Corona and shot Corona in the neck, then continued shooting her after she had fallen to the ground.
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.
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Pro-Police Trump Supporters Rally At Minnesota Governors Mansion

Retired Florida Sheriff’s Deputy Flies ‘Blue Lives Matter’ Flag. HOA Tells Him To Pull It Down.

Blue Lives Matter

A <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/us/politics/trump-biden-poll-nyt-upshot-siena-college.html">New York Times/Siena College poll</a> out Thursday shows former Vice President Joe Biden opening up a wide lead among registered voters in six key states President Donald Trump won in 2016.
In some cases &#8212; particularly Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin &#8212; Biden leads the president by double digits, likely giving the Trump campaign some pause as they re-evaluate their campaign team and their campaign strategy.
&#8220;The surveys – conducted by Siena College for the New York Times – show the former vice president and presumptive Democratic nominee leading the GOP incumbent in the White House 47-36 percent among registered voters in Michigan, 50-40 percent in Pennsylvania, and 49-38 percent in Wisconsin,&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-trailing-biden-in-6-key-battleground-states-according-to-new-polling">Fox News reports</a>.
In addition, Biden now leads in Florida, Arizona, and North Carolina &#8212; three states Trump won by a solid margin in 2016, when facing off against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton &#8212; by comfortable margins.
All of the states listed were narrowly &#8220;blue&#8221; before Trump turned them red in the last election, and the campaign is likely to know that Trump needs to make a strong argument for his own continued employment within the Rust Belt, where manufacturing and industrial workers make up the vast majority of swing voters.
Although the New York Times leans left editorially, the NYT/Siena College polls have often been good predictors of electoral success and failure &#8212; and it was an NYT/Siena College poll, which showed that progressive 2020 contenders like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) losing dramatically to Trump in places like Florida and Arizona that drove many key Democrats to abandon the far left and embrace the more &#8220;moderate&#8221; Biden candidacy back in early 2020.
Fox News also notes that &#8220;most of the polls released on Thursday are pretty much in line with results from other recent surveys in the six key battleground states. An average of the latest polls in these states compiled by Real Clear Politics shows Biden with an 8.6 point margin in Michigan, 8 points in Wisconsin, 6.3 points in Pennsylvania, 6.2 points in Florida, 4 points in Arizona and 1.4 points in North Carolina.&#8221;
And while other polls have seemed to indicate voters currently see the 2020 election as a referendum on Trump&#8217;s performance, the NYT/Siena College poll specifically shows support for Trump eroding among white voters &#8212; the president&#8217;s key constituency. Although white voters approve of Trump&#8217;s handling of the economy &#8212; in this case, by a wide margin &#8212; they remain concerned about his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and of the widespread unrest that followed the death of George Floyd, a black man who perished while in the custody of the Minneapolis Police Department.
&#8220;Trump faces headwinds on his handling of the protests against police brutality and racial injustice as only 31% believe he has handled them well,&#8221; <a href="https://www.axios.com/biden-leads-trump-battleground-polling-nyt-5675f5ad-09ac-46ca-827b-406cdce28c34.html">Axios reports</a>. &#8220;55% of the battleground voters said they believe the federal government should be working to limit the spread of the coronavirus, even if it hurts the economy, while just 35% said the federal government needs to restart the economy.&#8221;
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

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POLL: Biden Leading Trump In Six Key Battleground States, Some By Double Digits

Donald Trump

Michigan

Wisconsin

Angered by the police chief of their Florida city kneeling with protesters, the entire SWAT team of Hallandale Beach <a href="https://miami.cbslocal.com/2020/06/12/hallandale-beach-swat-team-resigns/">resigned from the SWAT team</a>. The ten members, including eight officers and two sergeants, who sent their resignations in a memo that listed their grievances to City of Hallandale Beach Police Chief Sonia Quinones, stated they would remain on the police force but not the SWAT team.
The memo stated “The risk of carrying out our duties in this capacity is no longer acceptable to us and our families. The anguish and stress of knowing that what we may be lawfully called upon to do in today’s political climate combined with the team’s current situation and several recent local events, leaves us in a position that is untenable,” as <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article243510121.html">The Miami Herald</a> reported.
The Herald <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article243510121.html">reported</a> that the memo continued:
<blockquote>The team is minimally equipped, under trained and often times restrained by the politicization of our tactics to the extent of placing the safety of dogs over the safety of the team members. Regardless, the team has continued to operate under these conditions with a growing sense of hesitancy. This hesitancy creates officer safety issues that cannot be ignored or overlooked.
The City Administration has shown a clear disdain for our agency and the team with their lack of willingness to provide adequate budgets to address the above mentioned equipment and training concerns. Human resources recently attempted (under the guise of membership in the pension board) to thwart Officer DiStefano’s attempt to collect a disability pension for a debilitating injury suffered during an execution of his duties as a member of this team.</blockquote>
The memo continued, “The City Commission has openly disrespected officers individually, during campaigns and on the dais,” claiming that Vice-Mayor Sabrina Javellana had actively protested against them and compared them to the Minneapolis Police Department.
The memo concluded, &#8220;Until these conditions and sentiments are rectified and addressed, we cannot safely, effectively and in good faith carry out duties in this capacity without putting ourselves and our families at this needless increased level of risk,&#8221; <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/13/us/florida-hallandale-beach-swat-resignations/index.html">CNN</a> reported.
Hallandale Beach City Manager Greg Chavarria issued a statement saying, &#8220;The City of Hallandale Beach continues to have special weapons and tactics coverage through regional mutual aid, which the City has used for SWAT operations in the past. While the voluntary resignation of our officers from this assignment is unfortunate, our residents should be assured it has not had any impact on our commitment to protecting their safety. Also, while these officers have resigned from the SWAT Team, they have not resigned from the Department.”
Chavarria added, &#8220;They specifically mention their displeasure with the Chief joining members of our community in taking a knee against racism, hatred, and intolerance earlier this week. They have incorrectly stated the gesture was in support of an elected official. This is simply not true.”
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

A SWAT rescue police truck.

Angered By Police Chief Kneeling, City’s Entire SWAT Team Resigns From SWAT Duties

Jacksonville, Florida, is the frontrunner to host the GOP convention this year after Republican officials scrapped plans to hold the full affair in North Carolina.
GOP chairwoman Ronna McDaniel appeared on conservative broadcaster Hugh Hewitt’s radio show on Wednesday and said that Florida’s chances to host the quadrennial event looked promising. She and other officials have stipulated though that no final decision has been made.
“There’s a couple more things we need to do before we can announce that, but Jacksonville is absolutely in the front-running position,” McDaniel told Hewitt, according to the <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/article243428921.html">Miami Herald</a>.
Several other sites are still under consideration, however. Republican National Committee (RNC) spokesman Steve Guest told <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/06/10/rnc-washington-post-jacksonville-2020-convention-charlotte/">The Daily Caller</a> that along with Jacksonville, officials have also toured potential sites in Phoenix, Savannah, Georgia, and Dallas.
“We have been in conversations with several other potential locations,” Guest said.
The RNC has been making last-minute plans to move the bulk of the convention activities to a new location in the United States after North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said that the convention, originally expected to take place in Charlotte, must follow coronavirus guidelines and cut the amount of people allowed to attend. President Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-nc-governor-rejects-gop-convention-demand-trump-you-just-lost-your-state-hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars-jobs">announced</a> on June 2 that the convention would move to a new city.
“Had long planned to have the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, a place I love,” Trump began in a pair of tweets. “Now, [NC Gov.] Roy Cooper and his representatives refuse to guarantee that we can have use of the Spectrum Arena — [s]pend millions of dollars, have everybody arrive, and then tell them they will not be able to gain entry.”
“Governor Cooper is still in Shelter-In-Place Mode, and not allowing us to occupy the arena as originally anticipated and promised,” Trump said. “Would have showcased beautiful North Carolina to the World, and brought in hundreds of millions of dollars, and jobs, for the State. Because of [Cooper], we are now forced to seek another State to host the 2020 Republican National Convention.”
McDaniel also criticized Cooper’s decision in her Wednesday interview, saying that his decision was political and would not have happened to the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
“We were ready to go and fill their hotels and fill their restaurants, and he made a decision politically to not help us. I know that if I were the DNC it would have been a different decision,” McDaniel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItnMXs3XVtw">said</a>. “So shame on him because he put politics over the people of his state.”
Cooper sent a letter to McDaniel on June 2 saying that allowing the RNC to have a full convention in Charlotte would put the rest of the state at risk of the coronavirus.
“With the Nation, the State of North Carolina, and the city of Charlotte still under states of emergency, it’s important to conduct the RNC convention accordingly,” Cooper wrote. “As much as we want the conditions surrounding COVID-19 to be favorable enough for you to hold the Convention you describe in late August, it is very unlikely. Neither public health officials nor I will risk the health and safety of North Carolinians by providing the guarantee you seek.”
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

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Florida

LeBron James Donates Big Bucks To Give Felons Voting Rights

Florida Man Charged With Using COVID Stimulus Funds To Buy $300,000 Lamborghini

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Nashville Man Told By State He’s Positive For Coronavirus. He Was Never Tested.

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Republican National Committee Outlines Scaled-Back Convention In Jacksonville

Florida Labs Found Significantly Inflating Positive COVID Testing Rate

Top Florida Doctor: Coronavirus Situation In FL Is ‘Different Epidemic Than Hit New York’

Man Allegedly Plows Car Into Florida Church, Sets It Ablaze With Parishioners Inside; Two Other Christian Churches Burned Same Weekend

Florida Police Release Video Of Protesters Blocking Crosswalk While Non-Emergency Ambulance Waited

Police In Florida Town Will No Longer Respond To ‘Non-Violent’ 911 Calls

Florida Sheriff Says He’ll ‘Deputize Every Lawful Gun Owner In The County’ To Control Violent Protests

Ron DeSantis: Florida Not Going Into Lockdown Again

American Academy of Pediatrics: Get Students Back To School In The Fall

Retired Florida Sheriff’s Deputy Flies ‘Blue Lives Matter’ Flag. HOA Tells Him To Pull It Down.

POLL: Biden Leading Trump In Six Key Battleground States, Some By Double Digits

Angered By Police Chief Kneeling, City’s Entire SWAT Team Resigns From SWAT Duties

Jacksonville Is ‘Frontrunner’ For GOP Convention After North Carolina Rejected Trump Demands

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Florida

LeBron James Donates Big Bucks To Give Felons Voting Rights

Florida Man Charged With Using COVID Stimulus Funds To Buy $300,000 Lamborghini

MLB Season In Jeopardy, Emergency Meetings Called After 14 Marlins Players Test Positive For COVID-19

Report: Florida Dems Allege ‘Toxic’ Work Environment, Worry Team Biden ‘Suppressing’ Hispanic Vote

Florida’s Largest Teachers Union Sues Gov. DeSantis Over School Reopenings

Nashville Man Told By State He’s Positive For Coronavirus. He Was Never Tested.

COVID-19 Spreading In Nursing Homes Again, This Time In Florida, Texas

Republican National Committee Outlines Scaled-Back Convention In Jacksonville

Florida Labs Found Significantly Inflating Positive COVID Testing Rate

Top Florida Doctor: Coronavirus Situation In FL Is ‘Different Epidemic Than Hit New York’

Man Allegedly Plows Car Into Florida Church, Sets It Ablaze With Parishioners Inside; Two Other Christian Churches Burned Same Weekend

Florida Police Release Video Of Protesters Blocking Crosswalk While Non-Emergency Ambulance Waited

Police In Florida Town Will No Longer Respond To ‘Non-Violent’ 911 Calls

Florida Sheriff Says He’ll ‘Deputize Every Lawful Gun Owner In The County’ To Control Violent Protests

Ron DeSantis: Florida Not Going Into Lockdown Again

American Academy of Pediatrics: Get Students Back To School In The Fall

Retired Florida Sheriff’s Deputy Flies ‘Blue Lives Matter’ Flag. HOA Tells Him To Pull It Down.

POLL: Biden Leading Trump In Six Key Battleground States, Some By Double Digits

Angered By Police Chief Kneeling, City’s Entire SWAT Team Resigns From SWAT Duties

Jacksonville Is ‘Frontrunner’ For GOP Convention After North Carolina Rejected Trump Demands

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