California COVID Cases Surge And Reach An All Time High

(Image Above) Californian citizens wear masks while walking in Del Mar, California

    During this previous weekend after Thanksgiving, COVID 19 cases and hospitalizations surged. On Sunday the 29th of November, California saw over 8,000 people hospitalized with COVID 19, and during the week of Thanksgiving there were nearly 3,000 new cases across the state, which is a 109% increase compared to a month ago. The virus is disproportionally affecting African-American and Hispanic residents, as they have been found to be more likely to die from the virus(according to the LA Times). 

    The new surge in cases has led Governor Gavin Newsom and other county and state leaders to enact new restrictions in order to keep the public safe. The new restrictions are not only just a response to the new surge in cases, but also because medical professionals in California project that the cases could exceed statewide hospital capacity if nothing is done by mid December, which is only a couple weeks away. 

    Due to the amount of family gatherings that took place during Thanksgiving, and the closure of some hospital functions due to the holiday, it is predicted that the current case count for California is higher than it is currently. Los Angeles, along with many other California cities, went into lockdown today in response to the rise in cases. In Los Angeles, residents are prohibited from gathering with people besides those who live with them for any reason except for political protests and religious services. 

    With the new surge in cases, it is important that we follow CDC guidelines. This includes wearing a mask in public at all times, maintaining social distancing, not gathering in large groups, and making sure to wash your hands frequently. Its important that we follow these closely especially now, as there is a much higher chance of contracting COVID since there are more cases present. 

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

San Mateos Curfew and How it will Affect us.

 San Mateo went into the Purple Tier on November 28th which means that we will have a curfew until our Covid-19 situation improves. What does this mean for us? We now have a curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. as a means of lowering the amount of unnecessary activities that raise the number of cases.

Things that are still allowed outdoors are gyms, entertainment centers like museums and movie theaters, and places to eat. From what I’ve seen the outdoor eating in San Mateo has been very successful from a business standpoint but safety is another story. As the weather is getting cooler, more and more restaurants are adding additional walls to their eating areas to get rid of the breeze. This might seem nice but by adding walls they essentially are creating indoor eating outside which spreads covid very easily. Keeping the virus inside a room is a big issue and I think it should be added to the Purple Tier of Covid.

Activities that are allowed indoors are retail, salons, and personal care services. Personally I do not believe that nail salons are a super necessary service that needs to occur during a massive pandemic such as Covid. Barber shops are definitely more necessary than nail salons, but if we are to get rid of the virus then I think barber shops should close as well. Hopefully in the next few months we can get rid of the virus and go back to our past lives.

link 1

President-elect Biden has started selecting cabinet members

 As Joe Biden prepares to enter the White House, he has had to choose who will help him in his Presidency. So far he has chosen Antony Blinken as Secretary of State, Alejandro Mayorkas as Secretary of Homeland Security, and obviously Kamala Harris as his Vice President. Over the next few months we will see the completion of President-Elect Biden’s cabinet. 

Biden has announced that he will have an all female communications team in the White House. Leading this team will be Jennifer Psaki as press secretary who is a veteran of the Obama administration. Biden believes that “communicating directly and truthfully to the American people is one of the most important duties of a president,” which contrasts significantly with Trump's administration where 7 are criminally charged. Biden plans to advocate for women during his presidency as seen by his White House communications team choices. Psaki sees her job as a way to rebuild the trust of the American People and that she plans to make the agenda of Biden and Harris more accessible to the public.

Each of Biden’s picks has great experience in government and many of his choices worked in Obama’s cabinet as well. Experience is what is important when holding government positions because you need to be trained in practice if you are to succeed.

Do you approve of Biden's cabinet decisions?

link 1

link 2

Trump pardons Michael Flynn

 On Wednesday, President Trump pardoned Michael Flynn from lying to the FBI. As controversial as this may be, it will not be the last of Trump's pardons. He plans to pardon Rick Gates as well as George Papadopoulos who were both convicted of lying about the Russia Investigation of the last election.

Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI twice and was pardoned regardless. Trump hinted that he would pardon Flynn back in March but has not mentioned it until he finalized the pardon this week. According to the Justice Department they concluded that Trump’s pardon was an appropriate use of the pardon power but they were not told ahead of time. This is definitely a little strange and displays how the president was not sure that his pardon would be approved if he had run it through the Justice Department beforehand. One of the department's officials announced that they would have rathered the pardon be done in court which may have been why he pardoned Flynn with no recent warning.

Personally I am not a fan of the presidential pardon being used in this way. I think that the pardon should be reserved for lesser known people or people that have been charged with drug charges. I do not think that someone should be let off the hook for the lying to the FBI

How do you feel about President Trump pardoning Flynn and potentially other criminally charged members of his cabinet?

Do you think that this kind of pardoning should be allowed?

link 1

link 2

Supreme Court temporarily blocks New York from limiting attendance in religious gatherings

New York Times: Easter service in Brooklyn last April 

    A day before Thanksgiving, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that New York City could not impose limits on the number of attendees of religious gatherings, setting a precedent for mayors and governors across the states. This ruling came after Governor Cuomo’s decision to place attendance caps on religious gatherings in areas of the city where infection rates were climbing, such as Queens and Brooklyn. In areas classified as "red" zones, no more than 10 people were allowed to physically attend gatherings, and in less infected “organe” zones, this number increased to 25. 
As COVID-19 surges with the commencement of the holiday season, the nation’s leadership is acting on steep measures to contain the spread. Some call into question whether or not such decisions impede on inalienable rights and freedoms that this country grants. In their process of judicial review, The Supreme Court decision deduced that some efforts to taper COVID-19, such as caps on religious gatherings, have sacrificed protected freedoms on the altar of protecting public health. In a statement about the ruling, Judge Gorsuch criticized Cuomo for limiting religious gatherings while placing no regulations on seemingly less essential activities like acupuncture. The Court’s statement also cited the first amendment, the basis on which they drew their conclusion about the decision’s constitutionality, stating "Even in a pandemic, the constitution cannot be put away and forgotten.” 
The decision brings attention to the new ideological balance of the court given the passing of Ruth Bader-Ginsburg and the installment of Coney-Barrett. Earlier in the year, a similar case involving California and Nevada was deliberated while Ginsburg was still on the Court, and the ruling upheld the governors' right to protect public safety.  
Gov. Cuomo accused the court of not acting independently and letting their partisan biases shroup their decision making. He went on to say that the decision “doesn’t have any practical effect” because the restrictions on religious services were relaxed after decreased positive test rates in part due to the overturned measure itself. This is best evidenced by the fact that the decision only directly impacted two places of worship.
However, the decision may have larger implications if religious groups in other states call upon this precedent to ease regulations on their own gatherings.

https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/11/26/939264852/supreme-court-says-new-york-cant-limit-attendance-in-houses-of-worship-due-to-co

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/26/nyregion/supreme-court-churches-religious-gatherings.html

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-court/u-s-supreme-court-backs-religious-groups-over-new-york-virus-curbs-idUSKBN2860CK

Joe Biden Expands COVID-19 Task Force

(Image Above) Joe Biden giving his Thanksgiving Speech," the US is at war with the virus, not each other"

     On Saturday November 28th, President-Elect Joe Biden announced that he will be adding new members to his COVID-19 Advisory Board/Task Force. The new additions to the task force will include Dr. Jill Jim who is the executive director of the Navajo Nation's department of health, Jane Hopkins, who is a Sierra Leone immigrant, a bedside nurse for 20 years, and a long time union worker, and Dr. David Michaels, who is a epidemiologist(basically a medical expert) at George Washington University. Their main job in the task force is to help contain and control the virus, as well as save as many American lives as possible. 

    Biden deciding to chose these three individuals for his COVID task force demonstrates his immediate desire to prevent the spread of the pandemic while bringing more diversity into the government workforce. Biden has been clear that one of his main goals as president would be to help save American lives by assembling a team to control the deadly virus that has held us in lockdown for nearly a year now. 

    This task force plans to tackle the pandemic by providing more testing availability and preparing to quickly distribute a vaccine once it is released. This task force has been expanded in part due to the rapid increase in cases that began in early November. Biden has been assembling this COVID task force since earlier this month, when he was announced as the President-Elect by most of the media outlets. 

    It is too early to say whether this task force will be successful or not, however the task force shows promise as it includes many top medical workers who seem dedicated to the job. This task force still has a few months before it can really start to make an impact, so as the cases of COVID continue to rise, it is important that we wear masks and keep a distance from others, as well as follow all health guidelines as directed by the CDC. 

Sources:

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

Source 4

(image credit)

Elon Musks becomes 2nd Richest Person

    A couple of days ago, the surge in Tesla's stock price made Elon Musk the second-richest person in the world, with a net-worth of $128 billion dollars. According to Bloomberg, $100 billion of these dollars was gained in 2020 alone, as Tesla's stock has sky rocketed during the pandemic. This can be attributed to the success of his electric cars, specifically the model 3, which is now the best selling luxury car in America. In addition, investors feel optimistic about the future of electric cars and renewable energy, especially with Biden's stance on working to combat climate change.

    $128 billions dollars is a large sum of money, and someone could be a real force for good in the world if they choose to put the money to positive use. Bill Gates has done a lot with philanthropy, but as of now Elon's #1 commitment seems to be rockets. Space X, which he has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in, aims to create a Plan B for human life on Mars, rather than work to improve human life on Earth. I know many people have strong opinions about the rich, and I would like to hear what you have to say about Elon Musk. Is a he a greedy billionaire who has an obligation to give away his money to create positive change in this world? Or is he a prime example of the American dream, someone who is making incredible strides to help our world combat global warming, and who has a right to invest his money as he wishes.

    I support the latter argument. I think it is amazing that he had a vision to create a better, cleaner world and that he is now making that happen. It's crazy that just several years ago he was on the verge of bankruptcy, but with passion and confidence, he kept his faith in SpaceX and Tesla, and made them massively successful companies. I want to hear your opinions, feel free to disagree with others, and converse in the comments section respectfully.

Source

U.S Court of Appeals Rejects Trump's Election Challenge in Pennsylvania

(Image Above) Election Workers In Pennsylvania counting ballots 

On November 27th, Philadelphia appeals court ruled that the Trump campaign cannot stop the counting of votes in Pennsylvania. The 21 page ruling states that Trump's legal efforts to stop the voting certification process are illegitimate. Judge Stephanos Bibas, a judge on the court, wrote ," charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here".

This is just one of many of Trump's attempts to try and de-legitimize votes and the voting process. Over the course of the last month, Trump and his team have tried to prevent swing states like Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, and Pennsylvania from counting votes that were sent in via mail in ballots or absentee ballots. However, Trump hasn't made any moves in these states that would make any huge impact on the election thus far. 

It appears that despite little to no success, Trump is still trying to use legal means in order to keep the presidency. Trump will likely continue to bring illegitimate cases of fraud to state and federal courts with little evidence, despite not having much success. However, on Thursday, Trump said that he will leave the White House if Biden is still in the lead in the Electoral College by December 14th. This is as close as he has come to conceding the election so far.

The states have until December 8th to figure out legal disputes. Legal Experts say that Trump will likely not win enough court cases to make a big effect on the election. Despite the lack of evidence of fraud in this election, a majority of Republicans still believe that Trump won the election and that Biden had used fraudulent methods to rig the election in his favor.

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

The Gettysburg “hearing”

The morning of Nov. 24, Pennsylvania certified its election results, with President-elect Joe Biden winning the state. On Nov. 25, mainly maskless Republican Pennsylvania senators hosted a meeting to hear testimonies from people who claim they are aware of voter fraud in affidavits. They primarily discussed voter irregularities in the state. It was in the Wyndham Hotel, in Gettysburg, the town of the tide-turning, gruesome Civil War battle. 

President Donald Trump was set to attend, but cancelled last minute as campaign adviser Boris Epshteyn tested positive for the coronavirus. Some advisers previously mentioned it would be beneath Trump to attend as a sitting president. 

Epshteyn was seen physically close to Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, leader of Trump’s voter fraud legal battles, and Jenna Ellis, a senior legal adviser to Trump’s campaign, at the Four Seasons Landscaping mishap press conference. Unlike Trump, Ellis Giuliani brought themselves to the hotel venue, despite possible infection of themselves and others (Giuliani’s son, Andrew, was also at the press conference and also tested positive for COVID-19, doubling Giuliani’s exposure, but he still showed up).

Ellis played what could be considered a large role: she held up her phone to her microphone as Trump rattled off more claims of voter fraud with no evidence on speaker. At one point Ellis’s phone started beeping with an incoming call interrupting Trump. Baseless claims of fraud and irregularities that have been denounced by state officials are beginning to break apart America’s democracy and are crying desperation. Trump’s focus on meetings such as these are taking executive and national attention away from the crippling record number of COVID-19 cases per day. 

Later in the day on Nov. 25, Trump invited some of the Republican lawmakers to the White House. Perhaps the next we’ll see him, Trump will be attending a similar event in Michigan, as the state certified its election results on Nov. 23.

PA Judge pulls the plug on mail in-vote certification

     A Pennsylvania State court Judge, Patricia McCullough, demanded for any further certification of mail in vote ballots to be halted. The case was brought by Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa and PA voters, and they allege a violation to the PA constitution, in which there are specific cases where "absentee voting" is allowed. And the complaints surround Act 77, a reform bill that allows mail in votes, signed in 2019 by Gov. Wolf. This law allows for people to still have the ability to vote despite being outside of their city, town, etc. This bill was also implemented in hopes of increasing voter turnout, since this increases the accessibility and convenience of voting.  

    The lawsuit claims that this law doesn't change the validity of mail in ballots, and that the ballots continue to be invalid. Adding that the passing of a bill doesn't change that, and to do so, a constitutional amendment would be required. And these are just the ballots that haven't been observed. Trumps campaign is working hard to decertify the mail in ballots that have been counted, claiming that "more that 680,000 ballots were counted without proper observation"(fox).    

    This is just another one of Trump's unnecessary moves, and that became even more clear when PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro tweeted, "the sitting president's remarks today were devoid of reality. The election is over. Pennsylvania has certified results and declared Joe Biden the winner of our Commonwealth. Lying through a cell phone at a fake hearing changes nothing"(twitter). There will be a hearing on Friday, we'll see what Trump tries to execute this time. 

LINK 1

LINK 2

LINK 3

How the U.S. is dreading this COVID-19 style Thanksgiving.

    Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and it's obvious that millions of Americans around the country are going to have some sort of family or friend get-together. And after hitting record numbers of cases this Tuesday (a 2100+ death toll) since May, this would be impairing and could cause  a potential wave which would overwhelm health care systems. And CNN medical analyst, Jonathan Reiner is calling this turkey holiday, the "mother of all super spreader events". 

   Reiner warns the consequences of millions and millions of Americans that are ignoring health guidelines, saying that it could evolve into chaos, an "explosion of Covid-19 infections". He uses the motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, that caused 849 deaths to be confirmed, and over 1000 infected. "Now imagine that on a massive scale - people leaving from every airport in the United States, and carrying the virus with them". He takes into account the damage that was done by a single motorcycle rally, and how many people were harmed. So imagine the harm that a single airport would do, what about 100 of them? 

    Covid-19 is not travel friendly, and implemented safety procedures at airports could only do so much. People aren't always social distancing, and tests only work when there is enough viral RNA that would make the virus detectable, which wouldn't be a possibility if someone contracted the infection and few days or so ago. The best and most responsible thing we could do as a society is to strengthen herd community and stay home, not travel, and implement health guidelines when out. Let's not be greedy and be a bit more patient until high cases subside. And have a Happy Thanksgiving!

LINK 1

LINK 2

    

    

    

    

Trump loses another legal battle yet again...It's getting old

 On Monday, Nov 23rd, the Pennsylvania SC disregarded Trump’s campaign and the desperate multiple lawsuits that would overturn PA’s presidential election. Their attempt to invalidate ballots that were incorrect or incomplete was turned down. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that “mail-in ballots cast in the state’s election can be counted even if a voter failed to completely fill out the envelope”. And you can probably guess that Trump's campaign was not happy with this. In response, the campaign claimed that the ballots that were "incomplete or "incorrect" were disqualifying ballots, and that they should be invalidated from Pennsylvania's ballot count.

Trump's Campaign continues to sought after a court victory in order to reverse or decrease votes for Biden. And despite losing countless times, Trump is determined to overturn the election. Trump has continued to reject the results that are right in front of him, and it's getting quite sad. Even Trump's confidant, Chris Christie, former NJ Gov., has advised Trump to accept what happened and concede. Christie commented on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," saying “They (Trumps campaign) allege fraud outside of the courtroom but when they go inside the courtroom they don’t plead fraud and they don’t argue fraud, you have an obligation to present the evidence, the evidence has not been presented”. It's evident that Trump has no actual case, and its demonstrated in all the legal battles he is losing left and right.      

It's safe to say Trump will continue to reject his losses, and he will continue to file lawsuits over vote counts and the voting process. Though this tantrum is "quite embarrassing" as  President elect Joe Biden says it, Biden reassures that this mishap “does not in any way change the dynamic of what we’re able to do.” And he makes the public aware that this meltdown won't stop the transfer of power for the following year.  

link 1

link 2

Trump isn’t the only Person Trying to Stay in Power

  

         Mr. Abiy, the current prime minister of Ethiopia, postponed Ethiopia’s national election in June because of the coronavirus. Now that cases are slowing down, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or the opposing party, are challenging the prime minister and declaring that he doesn’t hold power anymore. The TPLF hold power in the Tigray region. Mr. Abiy's administration has sent the military to the Tigray region, which has killed thousands and left a town “covered with corpses.” The main reason behind this is the government’s attempt to silence TPLF supporters. The effect of this fighting during a pandemic is catastrophic. Overwhelmed hospitals were just the beginning. 

This fighting has resulted in a refugee crisis. 33,000 have already crossed into Sudan and 200,000 more are expected to arrive in the next six months. Many transit centers and refugee villages are overcrowded, which is extremely dangerous during a pandemic. The World Food Programme currently has food for 60,000 people, which is less than the expected number of refugees. The European Commision has mobilized almost 5 million dollars in aid for this humanitarian crisis. However, this is only the beginning, as this fighting is quite recent, which means more and more Ethiopians from the Tigray Region will try to cross the border into Sudan as the fighting worsens.

            All of this horror is caused by one person who wants to stay in power. While it’s unrealistic to say something like this would happen in the U.S., it does say something about the inherent human characteristic that is shared between Trump and Mr. Abiy. Both are devoting a lot of time and money towards staying in power and don’t seem to care about the effect it has on other people. We all learned as children that being selfish is harmful, but this is proof of what it can do on a large scale.

CNN

BBC

New York City Public School Closure

On November 19, 2020, public schools in New York City were set to close for the second time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The city had passed their three percent positivity threshold that was set by the mayor and city unions. This three percent threshold has brought up many concerns of public interest. Many are wondering why restaurants and bars are left to stay open, whilst the schools are closed. Mayor Bill de Blasio was the first to reopen schools in a major city, only for them to close eight weeks later. This is a large disappointment for the entire city, including the mayor himself. De Blasio has stated on Twitter that the closure was due to "an abundance of caution.” Maintaining the health of the children is at the top priority of his agenda when it comes to the school system. The students have not been the most common spreaders of the virus and there hasn't been a three percent average within the schools. During a CNN interview, Bianna Golodryga, an American journalist, was quoted saying that the “positivity rate for school children is .17 percent.” Nevertheless, De Blasio is still pushing for the reopening of schools once the number of cases has lowered, commenting that he wants students to “come back as quickly as possible.” Personally, I see the second closing of the schools as an overall better option, rather than continuing in-person learning. Since New York City is so condensed, the virus can spread very easily, and still holding in-person learning only puts the students at a larger risk. One very interesting part of the whole situation is that the restaurants and bars are allowed to stay open.

governor.ny.gov

CNN

NYTimes

NY DailyNews

Why Trump is Withdrawing Troops from Afghanistan

Donald Trump has been suspiciously busy the last two weeks — from firing a election director that disagreed with him, to auctioning off Alaska, to ordering soldiers back to the US, it seems like Trump has been doing more now than before the election was called. Trump made big moves earlier this week by ordering the reduction of 2,500 personnel from Afghanistan.

Back in 2016, Trump promised his supporters he would end the “forever wars,” or the wars in the middle east by bringing all the soldiers back home. So far, Trump has brought back less soldiers than Obama. After Trump was elected, there wasn’t much talk about this and he took no action towards bringing back soldiers, so many wondered if this was just a campaign promise. Apparently, it seems as if it’s not just a promise — despite voiced warnings by many top officials, such as the NATO secretary general, and even Trump’s closest allies, such as Mitch McConnell, Trump is delivering this promise and has pushed forward in the steps to making this a reality. If everything goes to plan, these 2,500 personnel will be out of Afghanistan by January 15 — 5 days before Biden takes office.

So why does this even matter? Take it from Mitch McConnell: “The consequences of a premature American exit” from Afghanistan “would likely be even worse than President Obama’s withdrawal from Iraq in 2011, which fueled the rise of ISIS.” If Mitch McConnell, Trump’s right hand man in the Senate, is saying that something Trump is doing is worse than something Obama did, then something is seriously wrong. Trump’s removal of US support will leave the Afghan army vulnerable to attacks from the Taliban (the Afghan army is not strong enough to defend themselves on their own, which is why the US troops were there to train them in the first place). To top it all off, the inspector general from the pentagon released a report saying that al-Qaeda, the terrorist group, supports Trump’s plan. 

In the last 2 weeks after the election, Trump has done more than he has in at least the last 6 months. It’s hard to imagine what he has in store for his last 8 weeks in office. As to why he’s doing all this, I think it’s because Trump knows his presidency lives off his supporters, not on his policies. By refusing to concede, embracing the anti climate change values of his base, and keeping his promise to bring soldiers back, Trump is letting his supporters soak in all the maga-ness they can. So why is Trump rallying his base now? Is he trying to keep up the support for a different Trump presidency in the future? I think it’s because Trump knows that in a matter of months, reality will kick in and it’ll be all gone.

CNN

BBC

Vox

What “Auctioning off of the Arctic Refuge” Really Means

At this point, it’s fairly obvious that Trump is no friend of the environment. So far, he’s repealed over 125 environmental policies and 40 more are underway. Earlier this week, the Trump administration asked oil and gas companies to choose areas where they want to drill in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to lock in drilling rights before Joe Biden takes office. Is there a lot of oil under this area that can provide energy to many and millions to a few? Yes, probably. But at what cost?

This refuge is a home to more than 270 species, including the world’s remaining Southern Beaufort Sea polar bears, 250 musk oxen, and 300,000 snow geese. Trump’s plan also includes a narrower definition of what counts as a critical habitat for endangered species, which will cause species that are actually endangered to not be counted as endangered. This would allow large oil and gas companies to not be responsible when killing species. A piece in Trump’s plan addresses this exact idea by lessening the consequences when companies kill migratory birds.

Fortunately, there are a few reasons why this plan might not go through. The first problem is the tight schedule: Trump is either going to leave or be dragged out of office soon, which means that there isn’t enough time to finalize the deals. The second reason is that the quicker Trump tries to move forward the process, the more laws he would be breaking, which makes it much easier for Biden to reverse this plan in court. While it may seem like a shot in the dark, it is troubling to realize that this plan was passed by the Senate in 2017 and is now a serious possibility. 

Biden has made it clear he opposes drilling in this region through his environmental policy. The public has made it clear they oppose this plan through pushback from environmental groups. The native americans who live on this land have made it clear by filing official claims. It’s important to note that the only people who approve of this plan are the oil companies, some republicans, and the American Petroleum Institute. What’s the API? An interest group that paid $136,000 to republican campaigns in 2018 and $230,000 in 2016. Interesting.

NY Times

Washington Post

Open Secrets

What the Trump-Biden Transition Says About American Democracy

 

So far, the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election has not been pretty. Despite every national news outlet calling the election for Biden, Trump has been obstinate in his refusal to acknowledge the loss. From tweeting out misleading claims about the election being a Trump victory to suing state administrations for voter fraud, Trump’s rhetoric has cast doubts on the integrity of the electoral system for a growing population of Americans. Many Republican senators appear to be in support of Trump. Although few have attacked the election to the extent that Trump has, most Republicans remain unwilling to admit that the election is over.

Beyond spreading misinformation and forcing recounts, Trump has also been impeding Biden’s transition to power in other ways. It is a common belief that successful democracies require educated citizens. By that standard, the Trump administration has dealt a devastating blow to American democracy. However, educated leaders are even more important than educated citizens. So far, Trump has refused to grant President-Elect Biden access to the intelligence briefings that all Presidents-Elect are entitled to. When he takes office, Biden will have to lead America through one of its most troubled periods in history. In order to carry out his duties, he must stay informed and up to date on the political agenda’s most pressing issues. By denying Biden access to critical information, Trump is significantly lowering Biden’s ability to do his job come January.

Though Republicans are by and large still supporting Trump, it appears that this issue has started to move some of them. As of Thursday, November 12, 12 Republican senators have declared that Biden should be able to attend intelligence briefings. Despite their clear partisanship in refusing to call the vote, it seems that ultimately, lawmakers still have running the country as their first priority.

The same cannot be said for the current President. Since last week, when President-Elect Biden announced the formation of his COVID-19 Advisory Board and promising studies showed that a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer was over 90% effective, Trump has shown no signs of cooperating with his successor on a plan to eradicate the pandemic. In fact, he has ordered his government not to coordinate with the incoming administration, refusing to share information and funding. In a situation where millions of lives are at stake, the conclusion that President Trump’s actions amount to political sabotage is starting to look more and more reasonable.

In an era where amicable transitions of power have been the norm, Trump’s conduct is a clear deviation. Throughout his presidential term, he has tested the limits of American democracy, and this transition is no different. However, the way that Trump’s Republican supporters are slowly shifting away from him bodes well for the future of American politics. Biden’s administration will hopefully be a return to normalcy.

Links:

The Intelligencer

CNN

Esquire

Yemen is Being Starved...again

        While the rest of the world is focused on COVID-19, the vaccine, and US politics, Yemenis are dying because of a lack of food in the country. Famine in Yemen isn’t new — two years ago, widespread famine in Yemen was prevented through donation from the entire world. However, because of coronavirus and the reality TV show that is US politics, Yemen's new round of famine isn’t being brought in front of people eyes. While media attention may not seem like a big deal, the media is a big reason Yemen avoided complete famine two years ago — the media pushed the horrifying pictures of starving children in front of people and governments, which forced them to donate (if governments did not participate in the aid programs they would look extremely bad). However, this year, Yemen has received only half what it needed — about 1.5 billion dollars— when it received about 3 billion last year. 

    The UN describes Yemen as the single biggest humanitarian crisis in the world — over 80% of the population is in need of help as a result of the ongoing civil war, yet the majority of the world chooses to look away because it hurts to look at. To understand the true horrors of famine, one should understand what a lack of food does to the human body: “vital organs start to wither and ‘the body starts to devour its own muscles, including the heart.’” 30 million people are at risk of this torturous future. More than half are children. Over 85,000 children under the age of 5 have already died.

    Other than the ethical problem of leaving people to starve, this is important to the US because some of the countries that are involved in the blockade of goods into Yemen are U.S. allies. Should the U.S intervene to stop this humanitarian crisis or maintain relations with its allies in the middle east? It gets even messier when you factor in that these same countries are involved in other problems in the middle east (such as Al-Queda, etc), but in those cases, these countries are on the ethically “correct” side. Clearly, there isn't a perfect solution. But anything is better than turning a blind eye to human lives.

Donate at https://www.unicefusa.org/?form=HelpYemenChildren

UN News

Aljazeera

NY Times

NY Times 2

U.S. hate crimes reach highest level in decade, according to FBI report

As defined by the FBI’s report released on Nov. 16, a hate crime is a crime motivated by bias based on a person’s race, religion or sexual orientation, among other categories. The report shows the highest number of hate crimes in more than a decade. 

The FBI’s 2019 data includes 7,314 criminal incidents motivated by bias toward race, ethnicity or gender identity. 2019 had the highest number of hate-motivated crimes since the 7,783 FBI reported incidents in 2008. Overall, there was an increase in hate crimes against Hispanics and Jews. Hate crimes against Black people fell slightly (<1%), but they are still targeted more than any other group, as crimes reported are twice the level they represent in the U.S. population. 

In 2019, there were more hate-motivated murders than ever before, 51, according to the FBI report. The August 2019 mass shooting in an El Paso Walmart largely contributed to the increase, as authorities say the 21-year-old suspect killed 23 people and injured many more in an attempt to scare Hispanics into leaving the U.S. 

Only 2,172 law enforcement agencies out of about 15,000 nationwide reported hate crime data to the FBI. Because hate crime data is not mandatory to report, and because some victims may have chosen not to report incidents, the FBI’s number is most likely lower than in reality. 

Brian Levin, a California State University, San Bernardino professor and director of CSUSB’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, began studying 2020’s preliminary data. He found an overall decline of hate crimes from 2019, which could be pointed towards stay at home orders. In three cities, though, Los Angeles, Houston and San Antonio, there was no decline. 2020’s reported hate crimes had an increase in bias crimes mainly towards transgender people and Asian Americans.

Questions to consider:

1. Should law enforcement agencies be required to report hate crimes? What reasons are there for not reporting?

2. What has contributed to this increase? Trump’s rhetoric has been identified in a series of attacks, but could he be the only reason?

Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine 94.5% effective in early data

On Nov. 16, biotechnology firm Moderna announced the promising success of a recent coronavirus vaccine trial. The vaccine was created with researchers from the Vaccine Research Center, a part of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which Dr. Anthony Fauci directs. 

Following Pfizer and BioNTech’s announcement of a vaccine with an efficacy rate above 90% last week, Moderna’s vaccine comes when COVID-19 cases are increasing on the daily and stay at home orders and mask mandates are being reinstated by state and local governments. 

The Moderna trial included 30,000 volunteers; half got two injections of vaccine, and the other half received two injections of salt water. A total of 95 people contracted COVID-19, 90 of which received the placebo shot and five of which received the vaccine.

Besides the slight reported increase in effectiveness, Moderna’s vaccine poses another advantage over Pfizer’s: the vaccine can be stored at a warmer temperature. Pfizer’s must be kept at about minus 103 degrees Fahrenheit and only lasts five days in the refrigerator, while Moderna’s can be stored at minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit and can be kept for 30 days in a refrigerator that temperature and six months in a regular freezer. Most doctors’ offices and pharmacies have refrigerators that can accommodate Moderna’s vaccine, but not Pfizer’s, so nationwide distribution will be more manageable. In addition to not having low temperature storage readily available, warmer areas worldwide and areas with limited electricity may cause issues to store the vaccine.

After the announcement, current President Donald Trump tweeted taking credit for the vaccine development that “all took place on [his] watch.” 

In the coming weeks, both companies plan to apply for emergency authorization to the Food and Drug Administration to begin vaccinating the public. Both vaccines exceeded the FDA’s requirement of 50% efficacy to be approved. While officials say Pfizer and Moderna are working to produce vaccines for around 20 million by the end of December, widespread vaccination won’t be available until months from now. The first batch of vaccines will go to those at high risk, such as health care workers and the elderly. Dr. Fauci in a news briefing advises to keep a high guard, as vaccines are not readily available in the meantime.

Questions to consider:

1. Should Trump take any credit for his oversight of vaccine development?

2. How do you think vaccine announcements will affect people's commitment to other ways to mitigate spread of the virus, like hand washing, social distancing and mask wearing?

Why GOP Senators are Continue to back Trump’’s Claims of Fraud

  Even before Biden was officially declared President-Elect, Trump was already making claims about how he actually won the election and that there were massive amounts of fraud in several key swing states. As well as making several comments implying that he will not concede the election to Biden. And while there is no evidence of large scale fraud by Democrats in order to elect Biden, several senators are backing Trump's claims or simply ignoring them. 

Mitch McConnell in particular is putting a lot of support behind Trump’s claims. Saying that the president is “100 percent within his right” to pursue legal challenges to the election outcomes. Another senator Deb Fischer claims that Trump can “say whatever he wants” and that she has no problem with the statements he is making. The two potential Georgia senators are also claiming that the Georgia Secretary of State, who is also a republican should be removed for making the statement that there was no evidence of widespread fraud. 

All of these claims are very troubling and do not paint a good picture of senators for many people in the country. So why are they still backing Trump? The answer lies in who they represent. These senators represent states that go Republican, with the exception of Georgia this year. The people they represent like Trump, and if they are seen going against him they will lose support, and even though Mitch was re-elected for another six years, he is most likely still thinking of reelection. And the hopeful senators in Georgia are currently in a runoff. And if they are seen not backing Trump’s claims they could lose support from Trump supporters leading them to potentially lose their races. So many GOP senators may not actually believe that there is rampant fraud and that Trump really did win this election, but they have to think of their reelection and who they represent, and so they back Trump. 

cnn.com 

nytimes.com 

washingtonpost.com