Scott

Trump ex-adviser Bannon convicted of contempt of U.S. Congress Former U.S. President Donald Trump's White House chief strategist Steve Bannon departs after he was found guilty during his trial on contempt of Congress charges for his refusal to cooperate with the U.S. Conviction follows less than 3 hours of jury deliberations First contempt of Congress conviction in U.S. since 1974 Defense suggested Bannon's prosecution was political WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - Steve Bannon, a key associate of former President Donald Trump and an influential figure on the American right, was convicted on Friday of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the committee investigating last year's attack on the U.S. Capitol, a major victory for the Democratic-led panel. A jury found Bannon, 68, guilty of two misdemeanor counts for refusing to provide testimony or documents to the House of Representatives select committee as it scrutinizes the Jan. 6, 2021, rampage by Trump supporters who tried to upend the results of the 2020 presidential election. Each contempt of Congress count is punishable by 30 days to one year behind bars, as well as a fine of $100 to $100,000. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols set a sentencing date of Oct. 21. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/prosecutors-set-urge-conviction-trump-ex-adviser-bannon-2022-07-22/

Trump did nothing to stop his supporters as they attacked Congress, threatened Pence, witnesses tell Jan. 6 committee The Jan. 6 select committee’s latest public hearing went inside the White House to detail then-President Donald Trump’s hours long refusal to call for an end to the Capitol riot. The hearing marks the final scheduled presentation of the committee’s initial findings from its investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection until September. The nine-member committee, which is comprised of seven Democrats and two Republicans, has accused Trump of being at the center of a multi-pronged conspiracy to overturn his loss to Biden in the 2020 contest. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/21/jan-6-committee-hearing-live-coverage-and-latest-updates-day-8.html

Biden unveils extreme heat plan – but doesn’t declare climate emergency Facing the disintegration of his climate agenda as ferocious heatwaves hit large parts of the world, Joe Biden has unveiled a new plan to push billions of dollars to US cities and states to help them cope better with extreme heat. The president stopped short, however, of declaring a climate emergency. Biden outlined the new actions in a speech on Wednesday at a former coal plant in Massachusetts, which is now part of an offshore windfarm project. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jul/20/joe-biden-extreme-heat-plan-climate-speech?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=edit_2221&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter

By raft and on foot, migrants cross Rio Grande from Mexico to Texas EAGLE PASS, Texas, July 19 (Reuters) - Beneath a blazing sun, a record number of migrants seeking to enter the United States are crossing the Mexican border. Some wade or swim through the waters of the Rio Grande into Texas. Smugglers ferry groups of others on rafts. U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, promised a more humane border policy than that of his Republican predecessor Donald Trump, but the increase in numbers has challenged U.S. law enforcement and drawn criticism from both political parties. The U.S. Border Patrol made more than 1.6 million arrests through June in the fiscal year that started on Oct. 1, on pace to exceed the 1.7 million arrests during all of the last fiscal year, U.S. government data shows. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/by-raft-foot-migrants-cross-rio-grande-mexico-texas-2022-07-19/

40% of LGBTQ Adults Do Not Feel Safe on Social Media, GLAAD Survey Finds Advocacy group GLAAD issued new data finding that five major social media platforms — Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube — each fail to provide adequate policies to protect LGBTQ users’ safety, privacy and expression. GLAAD’s second annual Social Media Safety Index, released Wednesday, introduced a new Platform Scorecard analyzing LGBTQ user safety across the five platforms based on a proprietary scoring system. All five had scores under 50 out of 100. About 40% of all LGBTQ adults — and 49% of transgender and nonbinary people — do not feel welcomed and safe on social media, according to newly released findings from a May 2022 survey GLAAD conducted with Community Marketing & Insights. https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/40-lgbtq-adults-not-feel-143029956.html

Half of GOP Voters Ready to Leave Trump Behind, Poll Find Michael C. Bender Tue, July 12, 2022 at 4:37 AM Former President Donald Trump at a rally in Anchorage, Alaska, July 9, 2022. (Ash Adams/The New York Times) As Donald Trump weighs whether to open an unusually early White House campaign, a New York Times/Siena College poll shows that his post-presidential quest to consolidate his support within the Republican Party has instead left him weakened, with nearly half the party’s primary voters seeking someone different for president in 2024 and a significant number vowing to abandon him if he wins the nomination. By focusing on political payback inside his party instead of tending to wounds opened by his alarming attempts to cling to power after his 2020 defeat, Trump appears to have only deepened fault lines among Republicans during his yearlong revenge tour. A clear majority of primary voters younger than 35, 64%, as well as 65% of those with at least a college degree — a leading indicator of political preferences inside the donor class — told pollsters they would vote against Trump in a presidential primary. Trump’s conduct on Jan. 6, 2021, appears to have contributed to the decline in his standing, including among a small but important segment of Republicans who could form the base of his opposition in a potential primary contest. https://www.yahoo.com/news/half-gop-voters-ready-leave-113731959.html

Sydney is flooded, again, as climate crisis becomes new normal for Australia's most populous state NPR photo Brisbane, Australia (CNN)On a fine day, locals arrive on boats that motor up the Hawkesbury River in New South Wales to dine on the back deck of the Paradise Café. But for the fourth time in 18 months, café owner Darren Osmotherly is rushing to move his equipment to higher ground as floodwater rises across Greater Sydney after days of heavy rain. "Every six hours to eight hours (we're) trying to have a hot shower and get changed again and try to have a coffee break room or a short sleep in between," said Osmotherly, who says he's barely slept for three days. https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/04/australia/sydney-floods-damage-evacuation-climate-australia-intl-hnk/index.html

Minneapolis ex-cop Chauvin gets 21 years in prison for violating George Floyd's rights July 7 (Reuters) - Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, convicted last year of murdering George Floyd, was sentenced on Thursday to 21 years in prison on separate federal charges of violating Floyd's civil rights during the deadly May 2020 arrest, with the judge calling the ex-cop's actions unconscionable. Chauvin, who pleaded guilty to the federal charges in December, already is serving a sentence of 22-1/2 years in a Minnesota prison for Floyd's murder after a trial in state court last year. The federal sentence will run concurrently and will see Chauvin moved to a federal prison. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/minneapolis-police-officer-convicted-george-floyds-death-awaits-federal-2022-07-07/