Wednesday, August 4 top stories
It is Wednesday, August 4. Here are today’s top stories.
WHO wants pause on booster shots
The World Health Organization (WHO)’s director said there needs to be a moratorium on administering Covid-19 booster shots because there needs to be a focus on making sure low-income countries who are lagging with coronavirus vaccinations are able to receive them.
WHO said no one is safe from the coronavirus because new variants could emerge anywhere in the world and prolong the pandemic. WHO’s target is for every country to have at least 10% of their populations vaccinated.
AP News said Israel, France, Germany, and many Middle Eastern countries have already started administering boosters.
Abusive airline passenger taped to seat
A 22-year-old man from Ohio was seen in a video being taped to his seat on a Frontier Airlines plane enroute to Miami from Philadelphia. Frontier said the man, Maxwell Berry, groped two female flight attendants and punched a male attendant and had to be restrained until the plane landed.
News reports explained that Berry ordered three alcoholic beverages and spilled one of them on his shirt. He then went to the bathroom and emerged shirtless, then inappropriately touched flight attendants before punching another and being taped. He was charged in Florida with three misdemeanor counts of battery. It is possible that he will be fined by the Federal Aviation Administration and be banned from flying.
Wild deer found with Covid-19 antibodies
National Geographic reported that researchers found that blood samples of 152 wild white-tailed deer in several U.S. states showed it had antibodies against the virus that causes Covid-19. This means that deer may be contracting Covid-19 in the wild and the antibodies shows that their bodies were able to fight back against the virus. That means the coronavirus may be around in the wild. White-tailed deer live in every U.S. state except Alaska.
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Obama scales back 60th birthday bash
It is former president Barack Obama’s 60th birthday today. He planned to host a big party at his Martha’s Vineyard estate with hundreds of guests. The idea was criticized by many people because of the recent surges in Covid-19 cases. A spokesperson for Obama said the party was planned months ago but because of concerns with the Delta variant, the party was scaled back to include only family and close friends. News reports said many invited guests had already arrived on Martha’s Vineyard when Obama announced the changes and it’s not clear how many people will attend the scaled-back party.
NY Assembly prepared to impeach Cuomo
New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D) said the Democratic majority in the New York Assembly is preparing to start an impeachment investigation against Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) if he does not resign. On Tuesday the New York Attorney General released a report that said Cuomo engaged in a pattern of sexual harassment and violated state law. Cuomo has denied wrongdoing.
The New York legislature has a Democratic majority so if they remain united in impeaching Cuomo, then there will be no stopping them since the Republican minority also supports removing Cuomo.
Cuomo’s brother Chris, who is a popular host on CNN, is wrapped up in the controversy because the attorney general’s report said he helped the governor behind the scenes on how he could defend himself to the public. During Chris’ show last night on CNN, he did not discuss the controversy.
CNN as a channel has covered the controversy and said in the past that it has a policy that forbade Chris from covering Andrew because of conflicts of interest.
Missouri governor pardons gun-waving couple
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) pardoned Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the couple who was seen pointing firearms at group of Black Lives Matter protesters who were walking past their home last year. The couple has already pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of assault and harassment, and the pardon means they will not have to pay fines of $750 and $2,000.
The McCloskeys have the support of top conservative political figures including former president Donald Trump and Mark is going to run for a U.S. Senate seat.
Democratic leaders in Missouri criticized the governor’s pardon, saying it shows that justice only belongs to privileged elite people.
They said a pardon should be given to Kevin Strickland, who many believe was wrongfully convicted of murdering three people in 1978 during an unfair trial with an all-white jury. Prosecutors who convicted Strickland said they now believe he is innocent after a key witness, who was shot, recanted her previous statement that Strickland was the shooter. The witness said police pressured her to pick someone from a lineup. Gov. Parson said he did look at the case but decided not to pardon him because he was not convinced that he is innocent.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
Andrew Cuomo: https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2021/08/03/new-york-lawmakers-move-closer-to-impeaching-cuomo-1389441
Chris Cuomo: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/cnn-chris-cuomo-governor-investigation-1234992010/
McCloskeys: https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/politics/gov-parson-pardons-mark-patricia-mccloskey-pointing-guns-protesters/63-895be996-3566-47b6-8c3d-3b473d8e2319
https://people.com/crime/kevin-strickland-jailed-decades-after-triple-murder-innocent/
Plane incident: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/business/max-berry-frontier-airlines-flight-attendant-assault.html?referringSource=articleShare
WHO: https://apnews.com/article/health-coronavirus-pandemic-united-nations-0e7636c1bcf61e70d9e61ce70300aa78?utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_medium=AP
Deer: https://api.nationalgeographic.com/distribution/public/amp/animals/article/wild-us-deer-found-with-coronavirus-antibodies
Obama: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/obama-scales-back-60th-birthday-bash-amid-covid/story?id=79262047&cid=clicksource_4380645_1_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/04/us/politics/obama-cancels-60th-birthday-party.html