Michael Cohen Says The DOJ Should Look Into Whether Trump Is Keeping Photocopies Of Classified Documents
Michael Cohen Says The DOJ Should Look Into Whether Trump Is Keeping Photocopies Of Classified Documents https://digitalalabamanews.com/michael-cohen-says-the-doj-should-look-into-whether-trump-is-keeping-photocopies-of-classified-documents-2/
Michael Cohen (left) once served as then-President Donald Trump’s lawyer and fixer.Getty Images
Michael Cohen is urging the DOJ to investigate if Trump kept photocopies of top-secret files.
He speculated that Trump has more files out there that the DOJ hasn’t found yet.
Cohen accused Trump of using “Art of the Deal” tactics to trade these files for other documents.
Michael Cohen, former President Donald Trump’s one-time personal lawyer and fixer, says the Department of Justice should investigate whether Trump photocopied and kept any top-secret files.
Cohen made the comment while speaking to MSNBC host Ali Velshi on Sunday morning.
During his appearance, Cohen responded to a report from The New York Times on how Trump had been angered by the National Archives and Records Administration’s refusal to provide him documents regarding the FBI’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
According to The Times, Trump told advisers he would give NARA the documents he had at Mar-a-Lago if they handed over what he wanted from them.
Commenting on Trump’s actions, Cohen said the former president appeared to be using a tactic from his book “The Art of the Deal” and trying to trade “this for that.”
“This whole issue is absolutely crazy. The fact that we have to sit there and play this game with a former president of the United States?” Cohen said, adding that Trump was not “entitled” to the documents he wanted.
“First and foremost, they are not his,” Cohen added. “Second of all, we know that he has more documents. We know that because, in the file folder, it would specifically state the number of documents in them. Well, there are more of them obviously out there.”
“On top of that, we should find out whether or not he photocopied any of the documents as well,” he added.
Cohen also wondered aloud why Trump — after being president for four years — didn’t attempt to get the documents while he was in office.
A spokesman at Trump’s post-presidential press office did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Cohen’s comments on Sunday echoed his remarks in September about Trump likely having kept copies of classified files at his children’s homes, his Bedminster golf course in New Jersey, and Trump Tower in New York.
During its search of Mar-a-Lago on August 8, the FBI seized classified documents, including some marked “top secret.” The DOJ is investigating whether Trump broke three federal laws — including the Espionage Act — by keeping the files at his Florida residence.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to felonies, including tax evasion, campaign finance violations, and bank fraud. He was sentenced in December 2018 to three years in prison and was disbarred in February 2019 by the New York Supreme Court.
Since his release, Cohen has become an outspoken critic of Trump and has gleefully weighed in on the former president’s many legal troubles. In September, he announced he was selling t-shirts depicting Trump behind bars to “celebrate the fall of the mango Mussolini.”
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Calling For New Representation https://digitalalabamanews.com/calling-for-new-representation/
At this critical time in American History, I write to advocate for new representation in the U.S. House of Representatives. Below are three of the many reasons why Bill Johnson must go:
1) Bill Johnson has voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act which would have adversely affected millions of Americans.
2) On 16 July 2018 in Helsinki, on an INTERNATIONAL stage and against the findings of at least 16 U.S. Intelligence agencies, Donald Trump accepted the word of Russian President Putin (against whom he’s never spoken an ill word) that Russia was not involved in attempts to influence the 2016 American election, saying, among other positive remarks about Putin: “Why would it be Russia?” Trump was castigated for these remarks by even members of his own party, so the next day he attempted to take back what he said in Helsinki by claiming that he meant to say: “Why wouldn’t it be Russia?” ANYONE who watches the clips of Trump’s remarks can see clearly that he was siding with Putin and his claims of non-interference, yet Bill Johnson totally accepted Trump’s explanation the day after. This lack of integrity and acceptance of an obvious lie is disgraceful, for Trump severely damaged American stature on the world-stage that day.
3) On 6 January 2021, the day that our Capitol was attacked by those who wanted to nullify by force a valid Constitutional election, and after all of the states’ Electoral Votes were certified by their state’s governors, and after more than 60 court challenges failed to show any fraud and thus with no real evidence. Johnson voted to object to the Electoral Votes of Arizona and Pennsylvania, thus hoping to disenfranchise the voters of those states. He no doubt would have voted to disenfranchise other states had the Senate done likewise. This blatant disregard for the Constitutional process of electing the President undermines our democratic process and the ideals of our Constitutional Republic, and all based on “the big lie” from the mouth of former President Trump. That Johnson cannot stand up to such irresponsibility, which continues to hurt our nation, shows his true character and puts party – or in this case a self-centered deluded man – above the country and Johnson’s Constitutional oath of office. This is evidence enough to disqualify him from continuing to serve in the House.
Therefore, for these reasons and many more, Bill Johnson must be voted OUT of office, so that we in Southeast Ohio can have someone of integrity representing us who is committed to the foundations of this great nation, established twelve score & six years ago!
Respectfully submitted,
Jeff Danner, M.A.
Marietta
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Auburn NFL Roundup: Carl Lawson Rough On Miami QB https://digitalalabamanews.com/auburn-nfl-roundup-carl-lawson-rough-on-miami-qb/
Already playing without Tua Tagovailoa, the Miami Dolphins lost his replacement at quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater, on their first snap of the game against the New York Jets on Sunday.
That put rookie Skylar Thompson under center for the Dolphins, and Jets defensive end Carl Lawson made the quarterback’s NFL debut miserable as New York posted a 40-17 victory.
Lawson made two tackles, recorded one sack that resulted in a fumble and rang up the highest number of quarterback hits by an NFL player in a game this season with seven. Since the NFL began tracking quarterback hits in 1999, Lawson’s seven is two more than any other Jets player had had in one game.
Lawson missed the 2021 season with a torn Achilles tendon. Entering Sunday’s contest, Lawson had 1.5 sacks and seven quarterback hits in the first four games this season.
“I’m extremely blessed,” Lawson said after Sunday’s game. “All glory to God. I’m thankful just to be back out there. It’s been a really, really tough road. My body’s still coming back to me. I’m not 100 percent there, but when I finally do get there, it could be even better, so I just got to keep working.”
Lawson’s strip-sack of Thompson gave New York possession at the Miami 5-yard line, and the Jets scored a touchdown on the next play to take a 33-17 lead with 9:08 remaining.
The victory ended a 12-game losing streak to AFC East rivals for New York as the Jets improved to 3-2 in 2022.
“It’s extremely important,” Lawson said, “and it’s something we’ve been working for, and this is the fruits of our labor.”
Lawson was among the 20 former Auburn players who got on the field on the fifth Sunday of the NFL’s 103rd season.
Four other former Auburn players were involved in the Miami-New York game:
· Dolphins defensive lineman Big Kat Bryant is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Dolphins cornerback Noah Igbinoghene (Hewitt-Trussville) made one tackle.
· Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood played but did not record any stats.
· Jets tight end C.J. Uzomah caught two passes for 12 yards.
In the other Sunday games:
New York Giants 27, Green Bay Packers 22
· Packers safety Rudy Ford (New Hope) made one tackle on special teams.
· Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton had six receptions for 79 yards. Slayton entered the game with one reception for 11 yards in the 2022 season.
Buffalo Bills 38, Pittsburgh Steelers 3
· Steelers defensive tackle Montravius Adams played but did not record any stats.
Los Angeles Chargers 30, Cleveland Browns 28
· Chargers long snapper Josh Harris handled the snaps for three field goals, three extra points and one punt.
· Browns wide receiver Anthony Schwartz was targeted once but did not have a reception.
Houston Texans 13, Jacksonville Jaguars 6
· Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas (Lee-Montgomery) made one tackle on special teams
· Jaguars wide receiver Seth Williams (Paul Bryant) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Minnesota Vikings 29, Chicago Bears 22
· Bears defensive tackle Angelo Blackson made one tackle.
New England Patriots 29, Detroit Lions 0
· Jonathan Jones started at cornerback for the Patriots. Jones made four tackles as New England shut out the team that had scored the most points in the NFL through the first four weeks of the season.
New Orleans Saints 39, Seattle Seahawks 32
· Saints safety Smoke Monday is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21, Atlanta Falcons 15
· Buccaneers inside linebacker K.J. Britt (Oxford) made one tackle on special teams.
· Falcons defensive lineman Marlon Davidson (Greenville) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Carlton Davis started at cornerback for the Buccaneers. Davis made four tackles and broke up a pass.
· Jamel Dean started at cornerback for the Buccaneers. Dean made four tackles.
Tennessee Titans 21, Washington Commanders 17
· Roger McCreary (Williamson) started at cornerback for the Titans. McCreary made two tackles.
· Malik Willis dressed for the game but did not play.
San Francisco 49ers 37, Carolina Panthers 15
· Derrick Brown started at defensive tackle for the Panthers. Brown made five tackles, recorded a tackle for loss and broke up two passes.
Philadelphia Eagles 20, Arizona Cardinals 17
· Jack Driscoll started at left offensive tackle for the Eagles. Driscoll made his first start at that position in his NFL career. His other starts had come at right guard and right tackle.
· Eagles punter Arryn Siposs averaged 47.0 yards on four punts, with a net average of 44.5. Siposs had a 45-yard punt for a fair catch at the Arizona 12-yard line, a 55-yarder returned 10 yards to the Arizona 43, a 45-yarder downed at the Arizona 7 and a 39-yarder downed at the Arizona 10.
· Cardinals linebacker Chandler Wooten is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Baltimore Ravens 19, Cincinnati Bengals 17
· Josh Bynes started at middle linebacker for the Ravens. Bynes made six tackles, recorded one sack and registered one tackle for loss. In his 12th NFL season, Bynes now has 8.5 sacks.
Week 5 started on Thursday night, when the Indianapolis Colts defeated the Denver Broncos 12-9 in overtime.
Week 5 concludes on Monday, when the Las Vegas Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. ESPN and ESPN Deportes will televise the game.
FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AmarkG1.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
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Alabama NFL Roundup: Derrick Henry Plays Like Himself
Alabama NFL Roundup: Derrick Henry Plays Like Himself https://digitalalabamanews.com/alabama-nfl-roundup-derrick-henry-plays-like-himself/
“How high’s my confidence level?” Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry said, repeating a question at his postgame press conference. “On me playing? I’m going to be me each and every Sunday, so, I mean, me.”
On Sunday, Henry was himself against the Washington Commanders as he ran for 102 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries and caught two passes for 30 yards in the Titans’ 21-17 victory.
Henry scored on a pair of 1-yard runs to become the 33rd player in NFL history to reach 70 rushing touchdowns.
Henry’s second touchdown came with 1:03 left in the third quarter and the Titans trailing 17-14.
Henry has had at least 28 rushing attempts in 15 games for Tennessee (13 regular season and two postseason), and the Titans have a 14-1 record in those contests.
Tennessee started the 2022 season with two losses in which the two-time NFL rushing ran for 107 yards and one touchdown on 34 carries and had no receptions. Sunday’s victory gave the Titans a three-game winning streak with Henry running for 301 yards and four touchdowns on 70 carries and catching 10 passes for 121 yards.
“We just got to play complementary football and put it all together on Sundays,” Henry said. “No matter how it goes or how we win, it’s a win. Just enjoy these three wins in a row. It’s hard to win in this league. Happy that we were able to turn things around.”
Henry was among the 46 former Alabama players who got on the field on the fifth Sunday of the NFL’s 103rd season.
Seven other former Alabama players were involved in the Tennessee-Washington game:
· Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Allen made two tackles, shared a sack and registered two quarterback hits.
· Titans defensive back Shyheim Carter is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Titans defensive end Da’Shawn Hand is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Commanders defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Daron Payne (Shades Valley) started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Payne made three tackles and shared a sack.
· Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. (Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa) led the team with 22 yards on nine rushing attempts. Robinson made his NFL debut after recovering from two gunshot wounds inflicted during an attempted carjacking on Aug. 29.
RELATED: BRIAN ROBINSON JR.: ‘ONE OF THOSE REMARKABLE FEELINGS’
· Cam Sims started at wide receiver for the Commanders. Sims had a 7-yard reception.
In the other Sunday games:
New York Giants 27, Green Bay Packers 22
· Giants safety Landon Collins is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Xavier McKinney started at free safety for the Giants. McKinney made three tackles and broke up a pass. McKinney blitzed on a fourth-and-1 snap at the New York 6-yard line and knocked Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ pass into the air for an incompletion with 1:02 left to play.
· Evan Neal started at right offensive tackle for the Giants.
· Jarran Reed started at defensive end for the Packers. Reed made three tackles and recorded a tackle for loss.
· Giants cornerback Aaron Robinson is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Buffalo Bills 38, Pittsburgh Steelers 3
· Steelers outside linebacker Ryan Anderson (Daphne) played but did not record any stats.
· Minkah Fitzpatrick started at free safety for the Steelers. Fitzpatrick made one tackle and registered a quarterback hit. Because of a knee injury, Fitzpatrick practiced fully only one day last week.
· Najee Harris started at running back for the Steelers. Harris ran for 20 yards on 11 carries and caught three passes for 16 yards.
· Steelers center J.C. Hassenauer played but did not record any stats.
· Levi Wallace started at left cornerback for the Steelers. Wallace made three tackles, intercepted one pass and had two passes defended before leaving the game to enter the concussion protocol. Wallace’s first interception with the Steelers and seventh of his career came in the end zone with 11:25 left in the second quarter. Wallace’s first six interceptions came while playing for Buffalo.
Los Angeles Chargers 30, Cleveland Browns 28
· Amari Cooper started at wide receiver for the Browns. Cooper caught seven passes for 76 yards and one touchdown. Cooper caught an 11-yard scoring pass from quarterback Jacoby Brissett as Cleveland took a 14-0 lead with 4:01 left in the first quarter.
· Browns running back Jerome Ford is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Browns tight end Miller Forristall was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Ronnie Harrison started at safety for the Browns. Harrison made two tackles.
· Chargers punter JK Scott punted once. Scott had a 37-yard punt that resulted in a fair catch at the Cleveland 28-yard line with 1:48 left in the first half. He also held for three field goals and three extra points.
· Jedrick Wills Jr. started at left offensive tackle for the Browns.
Houston Texans 13, Jacksonville Jaguars 6
· Texans linebacker Christian Harris is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· O.J. Howard (Autauga Academy) started at tight end for the Texans. Howard was targeted once but did not have a reception.
· Texans wide receiver John Metchie III is on reserve/non-football injury and not eligible to play.
· Cam Robinson started at left offensive tackle for the Jaguars.
Minnesota Vikings 29, Chicago Bears 22
· Eddie Jackson started at safety for the Bears. Jackson made nine tackles.
· Bears offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood is on reserve/non-football injury and not eligible to play.
· Vikings tight end Irv Smith Jr. caught four passes for 42 yards.
· Dalvin Tomlinson started at defensive tackle for the Vikings. Tomlinson made one tackle.
New England Patriots 29, Detroit Lions 0
· Christian Barmore started at defensive tackle for the Patriots. Barmore made four tackles.
· Isaiah Buggs started at defensive end for the Lions. Buggs made five tackles to tie his career high. He had reached five in two previous games.
· Damien Harris started at running back for the Patriots. Harris ran for 11 yards on four carries and caught a 1-yard pass before leaving the game because of a hamstring injury.
· Patriots linebacker Anfernee Jennings (Dadeville) made four tackles and registered a quarterback hit.
· Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was designated as a game-day inactive. Jones missed his second game in a row because of an ankle injury after starting the first 20 of his NFL career.
· Lions center Ross Pierschbacher is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Patriots defensive end LaBryan Ray (James Clemens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Saivion Smith started at safety for the Lions. Detroit elevated Smith from the practice squad to make him eligible for the game after he had not played in the Lions’ first four contests of the season. Smith made one tackle before he left the game after New England’s second offensive snap. Smith fell to the turf during the play and was transported from the field by ambulance to a hospital, where he was evaluated for a neck injury, the Lions announced. Smith later tweeted to former Alabama teammate Mack Wilson: “All good brother! Be back soon!” after Wilson had tweeted: “I pray you good bro.”
RELATED: SAIVION SMITH LEAVES NFL GAME IN AMBULANCE
· Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams is on reserve/non-football injury and not eligible to play.
· Patriots outside linebacker Mack Wilson (Carver-Montgomery) made one tackle on defense and one on special teams.
New Orleans Saints 39, Seattle Seahawks 32
· Saints running back Mark Ingram ran for 16 yards on nine carries. Ingram also ran in a 2-point conversion after New Orleans’ final touchdown. With his sixth 2-point conversion, Ingram is tied for second in NFL history. Marshall Faulk holds the league record with seven. Ingram is tied with Matt Forte, Willie Jackson and Terance Mathis.
· Seahawks long snapper Carson Tinker handled the snaps on five punts, three extra points and two field goals.
New York Jets 40, Miami Dolphins 17
· Raekwon Davis started at nose tackle for the Dolphins.
· C.J. Mosley (Theodore) started at linebacker for the Jets. Mosley tied for the team lead with 10 tackles.
· Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was designated as a game-day inactive. Tagovailoa is in the concussion protocol.
· Jaylen Waddle started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Waddle caught three passes for 23 yards.
· Quinnen Williams (Wenonah) started at defensive tackle for the Jets. Williams made three tackles, shared a sack, registered two quarterback hits and recovered a fumble. Williams returned the fumble 12 yards to the Miami 5-yard line, and New York scored on the next play to take a 33-17 lead with 9:08 remaining.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21, Atlanta Falcons 15
· Rashaan Evans (Auburn High) started at inside linebacker for the Titans. Evans made six tackles.
· Buccaneers wide receiver Julio Jones (Foley) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley is suspended by the commissioner and not eligible to play.
San Francisco 49ers 37, Carolina Panthers 15
· Panthers offensive lineman Bradley Bozeman (Handley) played but did not record any stats.
· Panthers guard Deonte Brown (Austin) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Philadelphia Eagles 20, Arizona Cardinals 17
· Landon Dickerson started at left guard for the Eagles. Dickerson missed part of the game because of a leg injury.
· Jalen Hurts started at quarterback for the Eagles. Hurts completed 26-of-36 passes for 239 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions and ran for 61 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Hurts scored on a pair of 1-yard runs as Philadelphia took a 14-0 lead in the first half.
RELATED: EAGLES GO TO 5-0, BUT DON’T MENTI...
Michael Cohen Says The DOJ Should Look Into Whether Trump Is Keeping Photocopies Of Classified Documents
Michael Cohen Says The DOJ Should Look Into Whether Trump Is Keeping Photocopies Of Classified Documents https://digitalalabamanews.com/michael-cohen-says-the-doj-should-look-into-whether-trump-is-keeping-photocopies-of-classified-documents/
Michael Cohen (left) once served as then-President Donald Trump’s lawyer and fixer.Getty Images
Michael Cohen is urging the DOJ to investigate if Trump kept photocopies of top-secret files.
He speculated that Trump has more files out there that the DOJ hasn’t found yet.
Cohen accused Trump of using “Art of the Deal” tactics to trade these files for other documents.
Michael Cohen, former President Donald Trump’s one-time personal lawyer and fixer, says the Department of Justice should investigate whether Trump photocopied and kept any top-secret files.
Cohen made the comment while speaking to MSNBC host Ali Velshi on Sunday morning.
During his appearance, Cohen responded to a report from The New York Times on how Trump had been angered by the National Archives and Records Administration’s refusal to provide him documents regarding the FBI’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
According to The Times, Trump told advisers he would give NARA the documents he had at Mar-a-Lago if they handed over what he wanted from them.
Commenting on Trump’s actions, Cohen said the former president appeared to be using a tactic from his book “The Art of the Deal” and trying to trade “this for that.”
“This whole issue is absolutely crazy. The fact that we have to sit there and play this game with a former president of the United States?” Cohen said, adding that Trump was not “entitled” to the documents he wanted.
“First and foremost, they are not his,” Cohen added. “Second of all, we know that he has more documents. We know that because, in the file folder, it would specifically state the number of documents in them. Well, there are more of them obviously out there.”
“On top of that, we should find out whether or not he photocopied any of the documents as well,” he added.
Cohen also wondered aloud why Trump — after being president for four years — didn’t attempt to get the documents while he was in office.
A spokesman at Trump’s post-presidential press office did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Cohen’s comments on Sunday echoed his remarks in September about Trump likely having kept copies of classified files at his children’s homes, his Bedminster golf course in New Jersey, and Trump Tower in New York.
During its search of Mar-a-Lago on August 8, the FBI seized classified documents, including some marked “top secret.” The DOJ is investigating whether Trump broke three federal laws — including the Espionage Act — by keeping the files at his Florida residence.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to felonies, including tax evasion, campaign finance violations, and bank fraud. He was sentenced in December 2018 to three years in prison and was disbarred in February 2019 by the New York Supreme Court.
Since his release, Cohen has become an outspoken critic of Trump and has gleefully weighed in on the former president’s many legal troubles. In September, he announced he was selling t-shirts depicting Trump behind bars to “celebrate the fall of the mango Mussolini.”
Read the original article on Business Insider
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Nevada Senate Race Tests Potency Of Abortion Focus For Dems
Nevada Senate Race Tests Potency Of Abortion Focus For Dems https://digitalalabamanews.com/nevada-senate-race-tests-potency-of-abortion-focus-for-dems/
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Democrats predicted abortion would be Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto’s saving grace.
But inside Nevada’s crowded union halls, across its sun-scorched desert towns and on the buzzing Las Vegas strip, there are signs that outrage over the Supreme Court’s decision to dismantle abortion rights may not be enough to overcome intensifying economic concerns.
That’s leaving Cortez Masto as the Senate’s most vulnerable Democrat in the final month of a volatile midterm election year. Her predicament is the starkest example of the challenge facing Democrats nationwide as they try to capitalize on anger over the abortion ruling while Republicans focus on crime and stubborn inflation. If Cortez Masto can’t turn things around, the GOP would be well on its way to netting the one seat they need to retake the Senate and blunt the final two years of President Joe Biden’s term.
In an interview, Cortez Masto sidestepped questions about her fragile political standing. She acknowledged “there’s more work to be done” on the economy in a working-class state in which gasoline remains over $5.40 per gallon, the unemployment rate is higher than the national average and spending at casinos has not kept pace with inflation.
“I know our families, the issues that are important to them are the kitchen-table issues,” she said, citing the recent passage by the Democratic-controlled Congress of the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, which lowered the cost of some prescription drugs and expanded health care coverage, among other Democratic priorities.
Former President Donald Trump applauds while attending a rally at the Minden Tahoe Airport in Minden, Nev., Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/José Luis Villegas, Pool)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/José Luis Villegas
Republican supporter holds a Save America sign at a rally for former President Donald Trump at the Minden Tahoe Airport in Minden, Nev., Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/José Luis Villegas, Pool)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/José Luis Villegas
Republican supporters attend a rally for former President Donald Trump at the Minden Tahoe Airport in Minden, Nev., Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/José Luis Villegas, Pool)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/José Luis Villegas
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“But I also know, talking with our families, the repeal of Roe v. Wade is having an impact,” she said. “We’re a pro-choice state, proudly. That’s why so many are outraged by the repeal.”
Democrats insist that Nevada remains a purple state, despite being led by a Democratic governor, two Democratic senators and a Democratic-controlled state legislature. Former President Donald Trump lost the state by less than 34,000 votes in 2020. And on Nov. 8, polls suggest, the GOP could take over several statewide offices.
Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville fears his party’s hyper-focus on abortion isn’t working.
“A lot of these consultants think if all we do is run abortion spots that will win for us. I don’t think so,” said Carville, a vocal Cortez Masto ally who has sent dozens of fundraising emails on her behalf. “It’s a good issue. But if you just sit there and they’re pummeling you on crime and pummeling you on the cost of living, you’ve got to be more aggressive than just yelling abortion every other word.”
Cortez Masto is facing Republican Adam Laxalt, a former state attorney general, failed 2018 gubernatorial candidate and the grandson of a former Nevada governor and U.S. senator. The 44-year-old Republican has avoided talking about his opposition to abortion in the election’s final weeks as his campaign works to avoid unscripted moments.
Laxalt’s campaign refused to make him available for this story. And he has declined to participate in any of the state’s traditional debates, although he called unsuccessfully for Cortez Masto to agree to at least two other meetings. Late last week, organizers canceled what would have been the only debate broadcast in Spanish because of Laxalt’s refusal to attend.
Laxalt instead spent his weekend campaigning with Trump, whom Laxalt has leaned on to revitalize his political career.
Laxalt co-chaired Trump’s state campaign in 2020 and spearheaded legal challenges to the vote-counting process. Earlier in the year, he began raising fears of voter fraud in the 2022 midterms as well.
With polls now showing he could defeat Cortez Masto, Laxalt avoided the topic of election fraud as he addressed thousands of Trump supporters gathered Saturday on the edge of a desert air field. Speaking an hour before Trump called 2020 “a fake and dirty and rigged election” on the same stage, Laxalt focused on the state’s economic woes and Cortez Masto’s support for Biden.
“She won’t mention the two words: ‘Joe Biden.’ Will Joe Biden come to Nevada anytime soon? I’m still waiting for that invite,” Laxalt snickered, speaking from a podium emblazoned with Trump’s name.
In the interview, Cortez Masto did not say whether she wanted the Democratic president to visit the state on her behalf.
“The president is always welcome in the state of Nevada. But really, my goal here is to make sure I’m addressing the needs of Nevadans,” she said, adding that she wasn’t surprised Trump was in the state campaigning for Laxalt.
Laxalt “was the face of the big lie for President Trump in the state,” Cortez Masto said. “In my view, he stands with the insurrectionists and not the people of Nevada.”
Vulnerable Democratic senators in Arizona, Georgia and New Hampshire are also fighting to overcome Biden’s weak standing, which is roughly equal to Trump’s in the 2018 midterms when the GOP lost 40 House seats. The party that occupies the White House almost always suffers major losses in a president’s first midterm election.
But there are reasons to believe that Cortez Masto’s situation is more dire than those of her colleagues elsewhere.
Nevada’s electorate is overwhelmingly working-class compared to voters in other battleground states, leaving the state’s 3 million residents more vulnerable to economic setbacks. Just 25.5% of the state graduated from college, compared to 35% nationally, according to the Census Bureau.
Nevada has among the highest gasoline prices in the country at an average of $5.44, almost 40% higher than the U.S. average, according to AAA. Higher gas prices have also translated into fewer drivers crossing into Nevada from California to go to Las Vegas. Nor has gaming revenue kept pace with annual inflation. Gaming revenue in Clark County, home to Las Vegas, rose just 2.9% in August from a year ago.
Gas prices may get worse before they get better. The Biden administration suffered a stinging setback last week when OPEC oil producers announced a major production cut.
At the same time, Laxalt has avoided some of the pitfalls that have undermined high-profile GOP Senate candidates in other key states.
In New Hampshire, Republican groups canceled millions of dollars in television ad reservations designed to benefit GOP nominee Don Bolduc in recent days, reflecting a growing sense that Bolduc’s hard-line conservative positions will make it difficult to defeat Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan.
Republicans have also pulled some money out of Arizona, despite first-term Sen. Mark Kelly’s apparent vulnerability in a state Biden carried by less than 1% in 2020. And in Georgia, Republican Senate nominee Herschel Walker’s prospects have been clouded by allegations that he paid for a girlfriend’s abortion.
Laxalt, by contrast, has sought to cast himself as a mainstream Republican with longstanding ties to the state, despite the best efforts of Democrats to highlight his loyalty to Trump. That may be good enough in a difficult political environment for Democrats as questions loom about the potency of the Democrats’ abortion message.
Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel, in Las Vegas late last week to promote the GOP ticket, said Democrats have “oversaturated” their abortion message.
“Voters are starting to come back to the things they wake up thinking about every day: Can I fill my car with gas? Can I pay for groceries? How are my kids doing?” she said. “And those are the issues that I think are really going to win, and that’s where Adam is focused.”
Nevada Republicans also note that abortion — in the state, at least — is settled because of a 1990 referendum that codified abortion access until 24 weeks of pregnancy into state law.
Yusette Solomon, a canvasser for the state’s powerful pro-Democrat Culinary Workers union, said he doesn’t hear much about abortion when talking to voters. Instead, the 47-year-old hotel utility porter said, the state’s economic challenges remain a constant concern.
“It’s hard for everybody,” he said. “It’s the supermarket. It’s gas. Inflation is something we need to deal with. Everyone’s feeling it.”
Solomon lost his job at a Las Vegas hotel for roughly two years because of the pandemic. He survived only by driving for Uber.
Still, he’s optimistic about Cortez Masto’s chances.
“I’m sure Democrats are going to win. This is a blue state. We’re going to continue to be a blue state,” Solomon said. “Every election is tough.”
___
Associated Press writer Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this report.
___
Follow AP for full coverage of the midterms at https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Taiwan Says War With China absolutely Not An Option But Bolstering Defenses
Taiwan Says War With China ‘absolutely’ Not An Option, But Bolstering Defenses https://digitalalabamanews.com/taiwan-says-war-with-china-absolutely-not-an-option-but-bolstering-defenses/
War between Taiwan and China is “absolutely not an option,” Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday, as she reiterated her willingness to talk to Beijing and also pledged to boost the island’s defenses including with precision missiles.
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Democratic Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, has come under increasing military and political pressure from Beijing, especially after Chinese war games in early August following a Taipei visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Any conflict over Taiwan could drag in the US, Japan and perhaps much of the world, as well as shatter the global economy, especially given Taiwan’s dominant position as a maker of semiconductors used in everything from smartphones and tablets to fighter jets.
Tsai, in her national day speech outside the presidential office under a gray sky, said it was “regrettable” that China had escalated its intimidation and threatened peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and region.
China should not think there is room for compromise in the commitment of Taiwan’s people to democracy and freedom, she said.
“I want to make clear to the Beijing authorities that armed confrontation is absolutely not an option for our two sides. Only by respecting the commitment of the Taiwanese people to our sovereignty, democracy, and freedom can there be a foundation for resuming constructive interaction across the Taiwan Strait.”
There was no immediate reaction from Beijing.
China calls Tsai – re-elected by a landslide in 2020 on a promise to stand up to Beijing – a separatist and refuses to speak to her.
Tsai said, to applause, that her government looked forward to the gradual post-pandemic resumption of healthy and orderly people-to-people exchanges across the strait, which would ease tensions.
But the broad consensus in Taiwan is that its sovereignty and free and democratic way of life must be defended, she added.
“On this point, we have no room for compromise,” she said.
Tsai has made strengthening Taiwan’s defenses a cornerstone of her administration to enable it to mount a more credible deterrence to China, which is ramping up an ambitious modernisation program of its own military.
Taiwan will show the world it is taking responsibility for its own defense, Tsai said.
Taiwan is increasing mass production of precision missiles and high-performance naval vessels, and working to acquire small, highly mobile weapons that will ensure Taiwan is fully prepared to respond to “external military threats”, she added.
The military tensions have raised concerns, especially in the US, about the concentration of chip making in Taiwan.
“I want to specifically emphasize one point to my fellow citizens and the international community, which is that the concentration of the semiconductor sector in Taiwan is not a risk,” she said.
“We will continue to maintain Taiwan’s advantages and capacity in leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing processes, and will help optimize the worldwide restructuring of the semiconductor supply chain, giving our semiconductor firms an even more prominent global role,” she added.
Read more:
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After Russia-Ukraine plan, Elon Musk offers proposal to resolve China-Taiwan tensions
Taiwan says it will not rely on others for defense
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NY Rep. Lee Zeldin Says 2 People Shot In Front Of His Home
NY Rep. Lee Zeldin Says 2 People Shot In Front Of His Home https://digitalalabamanews.com/ny-rep-lee-zeldin-says-2-people-shot-in-front-of-his-home/
NEW YORK — New York congressman and Republican candidate for governor Lee Zeldin says his family is safe after two teenagers were shot outside his Long Island home Sunday afternoon.
The boys, both 17, were walking with a third teenager on the street in Shirley, New York, where Zeldin lives when they were hit by gunfire from a moving car, Suffolk County Police said.
The wounded teens then tried to hide in Zeldin’s yard, ducking under his porch and into the bushes, while the person who was with them fled.
The congressman and his wife were not at home at the time of the shooting but their teenage daughters were in the kitchen doing homework when they heard gunshots and screaming, Zeldin said.
“One of the bullets was actually found 30 feet (9.14 meters) from where they sitting,” Zeldin said at a news conference late Sunday.
Police said the wounded teens’ injuries were not life-threatening. Both were treated at an area hospital. Authorities didn’t release their names but said the teens are from the nearby towns of Mastic and Mastic Beach.
“At this time investigators have no reason to believe there is any connection between the shooting and the residence,” the Suffolk County Police Department said in a statement.
Zeldin said he didn’t know the identities of the two people who were shot. He said his 16-year-old daughters locked themselves in a bathroom and called 911. The family is shaken but OK, he said. Zeldin and his wife were returning from a parade in the Bronx when the shooting occurred.
He said police officers were at his home investigating Sunday evening and were looking over the home’s security cameras.
Police had no information to release about who fired the shots, a department spokeswoman said.
Zeldin, who is running against Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, has made violent crime a focus of his campaign. He has called for the state’s bail laws to be toughened, among other measures.
“Like so many New Yorkers, crime has literally made its way to our front door,” Zeldin said Sunday.
He said later in a post on Twitter that his daughters were at the kitchen table when the shooting occurred and that one of the bullets was found 30 feet away from them.
It’s the second scare he’s had in several months. In July, he was assaulted while campaigning in upstate New York when a man approached him onstage and thrust a sharp object near his head and neck. He was uninjured and the man was arrested.
Hochul said in a statement posted on Twitter that she had been briefed on the shooting.
“As we await more details, I’m relieved to hear the Zeldin family is safe and grateful for law enforcement’s quick response,” the governor said.
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Trump Acknowledged Herschel Walker's 'complicated Personal History' But Said It's 'not A Problem' Because 'the World Is Changing'
Trump Acknowledged Herschel Walker's 'complicated Personal History' But Said It's 'not A Problem' Because 'the World Is Changing' https://digitalalabamanews.com/trump-acknowledged-herschel-walkers-complicated-personal-history-but-said-its-not-a-problem-because-the-world-is-changing/
Former President Donald Trump speaks as Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker listens during his Save America rally in Perry, Ga., on Saturday, Sept. 25, 2021.Ben Gray/Associated Press
Trump discussed Herschel Walker’s history during an interview last year with Maggie Haberman.
Trump said he didn’t think past allegations of domestic violence would be a problem for the candidate.
Walker, an abortion rights opponent, has been accused of paying for an abortion, which he denies.
Former President Donald Trump last year acknowledged Herschel Walker had a “complicated personal history” but said he thought it wouldn’t matter — though that was before the latest allegations against the Georgia GOP Senate candidate.
Trump made the comments in an interview with New York Times reporter and CNN analyst Maggie Haberman for her new book, “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America.” Haberman shared an audio clip from the interview, which took place about a year ago, on CNN Thursday.
The clip begins with Trump describing Walker as a great football player, saying he was the “best football player in the history of Georgia.” Walker, a former professional running back, played in the NFL for 12 seasons after winning the Heisman as a college football star at the University of Georgia.
Haberman can be heard cutting in to point out Walker has a “complicated personal history.” She clarified on CNN she was referring to past allegations of domestic violence, which Trump acknowledged.
“He does but, you know, it’s a personal history that, ten years ago, maybe it would’ve been a problem. Twenty years ago it would’ve been a bigger problem. I don’t think it’s a problem today,” Trump said.
When Haberman asked why that is, Trump replied: “Because the world is changing.”
CNN host Wolf Blitzer asked Haberman what she thought of Trump’s response.
“I think that Donald Trump is aware of his own role in the world changing, as he put it. Which is, he sees it as he survived all kind of scandals, other people can too,” she said.
Haberman added that Trump is a “unique figure” and others may not be able to survive scandals the same way the former president has. But she noted that Walker is also a former sports star and could benefit from that.
“We’re talking about allegations of domestic violence that were in his past,” Haberman said of Walker, adding: “Trump is essentially saying, ‘It doesn’t matter anymore.’ We’re going to find out if that’s true.”
Since Haberman’s interview with Trump, more allegations have emerged against Walker.
Prior to this year, Walker, a frequent critic of absentee fathers — especially in Black communities — had publicly acknowledged having only one son, Christian Walker. But The Daily Beast reported this summer that Walker has three other children he never mentioned, which Walker later confirmed.
On Monday, The Daily Beast reported that Walker, who is also a staunch opponent of abortion rights, paid for a former girlfriend he had gotten pregnant to get an abortion. The outlet later reported the woman also had a child with Walker. On Friday, The Times reported the woman said Walker had asked her to get a second abortion, but she refused.
Walker has denied her allegations, calling The Daily Beast’s reporting a “flat-out lie” and vowing to sue. He did however confirm to NBC on Friday that he dated the woman and that if he did send her a card or money it was not for an abortion, as she claimed.
On Tuesday, following the report about the abortion, Trump defended Walker in a post on Truth Social.
Walker is up against incumbent Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock in November in a race that is considered crucial to Republicans’ hopes of flipping the Senate.
A representative for Trump did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Read the original article on Business Insider
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2 Teenagers Shot Outside Home Of Lee Zeldin Candidate For New York Governor
2 Teenagers Shot Outside Home Of Lee Zeldin, Candidate For New York Governor https://digitalalabamanews.com/2-teenagers-shot-outside-home-of-lee-zeldin-candidate-for-new-york-governor/
New York|2 Teenagers Shot Outside Home of Lee Zeldin, Candidate for New York Governor
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/09/nyregion/lee-zeldin-shooting-long-island-home.html
The 17-year-old boys suffered injuries that were not life threatening and officials said there was no connection between the shooting and the residents of the home.
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Representative Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate for New York governor, said he did not know the two men who were wounded.Credit…Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press
Oct. 9, 2022Updated 11:50 p.m. ET
Two teenagers were wounded in a shooting on Sunday outside the home of Representative Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate for governor of New York, the candidate said on Twitter.
The Suffolk County Police Department said that detectives were investigating the shooting, outside a home in Shirley on Long Island at 2:20 p.m. The two 17-year-old boys, who are from Mastic and Mastic Beach, were taken to a hospital with injuries that were not life threatening, the department said.
At a news conference late Sunday, Mr. Zeldin said that the teenagers could be seen on security-camera footage hiding underneath his porch and near a bush in front of his porch. Mr. Zeldin said that they were likely shot before they entered the frame of his security cameras.
Mr. Zeldin said that he did not know the teenagers. The authorities also said there was no connection between the injured and the residents of the home.
Suffolk County police said late Sunday that three teenagers were walking on Saint George Drive West when someone in a dark-colored vehicle fired multiple gunshots and hit two of the teenagers. The police said the wounded boys tried to hide in the yard of a residence on the street and that the third teen fled the scene on foot.
Mr. Zeldin said that he and his wife, Diana, were not home at the time of the shooting and had just left the Bronx Columbus Day Parade in the Morris Park neighborhood. He said his 16-year-old daughters, Mikayla and Arianna, were in the house doing homework at the kitchen table when they heard gunshots and screaming.
“They ran upstairs, locked themselves in the bathroom and immediately called 911,” he said. “They acted very swiftly and smartly every step of the way and Diana and I are extremely proud of them.”
Mr. Zeldin, a conservative congressman, has made public safety the centerpiece of his campaign, traveling the state to highlight violent crimes while promising to tighten the state’s bail laws and crack down on crime, if elected.
He is considered an underdog against Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, who had a comfortable lead in recent polls. Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than two to one in New York, and the governor’s campaign has sought to highlight Mr. Zeldin’s opposition to abortion rights and his support for former President Donald J. Trump.
The shooting is the second time that violence has intersected with Mr. Zeldin’s campaign in recent months. In July, a man from Western New York was charged with assaulting a member of Congress after he physically confronted Mr. Zeldin onstage during a political event.
The man, who was identified as an Army veteran, was pointing a sharp keychain toward the congressman. He later said he had been drinking and did not know who Mr. Zeldin was. Mr. Zeldin placed the attack in the context of his anti-crime message.
The campaign increased security around Mr. Zeldin after the July incident. He hit the same note on Sunday, saying that his daughters were shaken by the shooting but otherwise unhurt.
Flanked by his family and standing in front of yellow police tape during a news conference, Mr. Zeldin rattled off a series of recent violent crimes in New York City and implored the state’s residents to not “surrender any street anywhere” to criminals.
When asked by a reporter whether this was an appropriate time to talk about politics, Mr. Zeldin became animated. “At what point are we supposed to talk about the crime on our own streets?” he said. “I’m standing in front of crime scene tape in front of my own house.”
Governor Hochul said on Twitter that she had been briefed on the shooting and was “relieved to hear the Zeldin family is safe and grateful for law enforcement’s quick response.”
Grace Ashford contributed reporting.
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Eagles Go To 5-0 But Dont Mention It To Jalen Hurts
Eagles Go To 5-0, But Don’t Mention It To Jalen Hurts https://digitalalabamanews.com/eagles-go-to-5-0-but-dont-mention-it-to-jalen-hurts/
The Philadelphia Eagles remain the NFL’s only undefeated team after downing the Arizona Cardinals 20-17 on Sunday.
The victory moved the Eagles to 5-0, and Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts doesn’t want to hear about it.
“We’re a really good football team,” Hurts said. “But we’re still growing. We’re still learning. We haven’t played our best yet, so it’s just a ton to learn from. I’m hungry and eager to get to that point, but it’s a process. Rome wasn’t built overnight.
“And these are the same things that I said when we were 2-5 (last season). Nothing changes. My mindset doesn’t change. I personally, honest, I hate hearing 5-0. I don’t like to hear it because nobody wanted to mention the record when we were 2-5. Nobody wanted to talk about that, so I don’t want to hear it now.
“Can we come in here and control the things we can, attack every day and just grow and climb? That’s what matters – the process. Not anything else.”
Hurts scored on a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs in the first half on Sunday. The touchdowns came on 11-play, 64-yard and 16-play, 87-yard drives as the Eagles took a 14-0 lead.
But the game came down to substitute kickers.
With 1:45 to play, Cameron Dicker connected on a 23-yard field goal to break a 17-17 tie. Regular kicker Jake Elliott missed the game because of an ankle injury.
“For him to come in, get that phone call and be ready to answer and play the way he played today, I have a lot of respect for him,” Hurts said. “He helped this team out a lot today, and he created a lot of value for himself.”
The field goal came at the end of a 17-play series that ate up 7:58. Hurts converted three third downs on the series before an incompletion on third-and-5 at the Arizona 5-yard line brought Dicker on the field.
During the drive, Hurts connected with tight end Dallas Goedert for a 16-yard gain on a third-and-12 snap. Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni credited Hurts for calling the right play.
“Jalen’s a stud,” Sirianni said. “That’s why we spend so much time together: Here’s what we like against this, here’s what we like against that. And Jalen’s a really smart player, and he got us into a great check right there. We were anticipating one certain coverage. It wasn’t that coverage. He got us to the correct play and stood in the pocket calmly and delivered a huge play to Dallas.”
The Cardinals rallied to move 50 yards in less than 90 seconds after Dicker’s tiebreaking kick. But Matt Ammendola missed a 43-yard field-goal attempt with 17 seconds to play to leave Arizona three points short. Ammendola was on the field because Matt Prater, the Cardinals’ regular kicker, was out with a hip injury.
As he waited out the closing seconds, Hurts was reminded of Clemson’s 35-31 victory over previously undefeated Alabama in the CFP national championship game for the 2016 season.
“I remember an experience of the national championship game my freshman year,” Hurts said. “We go out there and score. Great play and left under two minutes on the clock, and Deshaun Watson goes down – he goes and wins the game. Those were all things that were flashing through my head in that moment.
“But ultimately it comes down to the way you execute. It comes down to the trust you have on both sides of the ball. I don’t like putting the team in the position where their kicker has the opportunity to tie or win the game.”
Hurts has run for three touchdowns in one game and two touchdowns in six games in his NFL career. With seven games with more than one rushing touchdown in his career, Hurts is tied for second among all quarterbacks in NFL history. Former Auburn All-American Cam Newton had 10 games with multiple rushing touchdowns. Hurts is tied with Otto Graham, Jack Kemp, Steve McNair and Steve Young for second.
Hurts has 19 touchdowns runs since becoming the Eagles’ starting quarterback. On Sunday, he passed Newton for the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in his first 25 starts, and Hurts was in Start No. 24. Newton had 18 TD runs in his first 25 NFL starts.
Hurts credited the Eagles’ offensive line. On Sunday, former Auburn standout Jack Driscoll started at left tackle in the NFL for the first time, and left guard Landon Dickerson (like Hurts an Alabama alumnus) and center Jason Kelce got injured during the game.
“I draw a lot of respect toward that group we have,” Hurts said. “They work their tail off. They’re coached by the greatest to ever do it – Coach (Jeff Stoutland). Regardless of the pieces that go in and out, it’s interchangeable. Those guys played their tails off given the circumstances a lot of them were put in – Jack, (Sua) Opeta, Cam (Jurgens) having to be ready when his number was called. Everybody, so it’s a great example of accountability and everybody being ready when their number’s called.”
Hurts also completed 26-of-36 passes for 239 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions against Arizona.
The Eagles will square off with the Dallas Cowboys in an NFC East showdown at 7:20 p.m. CDT Oct. 16. The Cowboys have a 4-1 record.
FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
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Prosecutors Seek Prison For Rioter https://digitalalabamanews.com/prosecutors-seek-prison-for-rioter/
October 09, 2022 10:51 PM
Federal prosecutors on Sunday recommended a prison sentence of approximately four years for a Pennsylvania man who pleaded guilty to assaulting an Associated Press photographer and using a stun gun against police officers during a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol.
U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss is scheduled to sentence Alan Byerly on Oct. 21 for his attack on AP photographer John Minchillo and police during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in Washington.
Sentencing guidelines recommend a prison term ranging from 37 to 46 months. Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of at least 46 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Byerly’s attorney has until Friday to submit a sentencing recommendation.
The judge isn’t bound by any of the sentencing recommendations.
FILE – In this image from video, Alan William Byerly, center, attacks an Associated Press photographer during a riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. On Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022, federal prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of nearly four years for Byerly, of Pennsylvania, who pleaded guilty to assaulting the AP photographer and using a stun gun against police officers during a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol.
(AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
Byerly was arrested in July 2021 and pleaded guilty a year later to assault charges.
Byerly purchased a stun gun before he traveled from his home in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, to Washington for the “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6. Leaving the rally before then-President Donald Trump finished speaking, Byerly went to the Capitol and joined other rioters in using a large metal Trump sign as a battering ram against barricades and police officers, prosecutors said.
After that, he went to the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace, where he and other rioters attacked Minchillo, who was wearing a lanyard with AP lettering. Byerly is one of at least three people charged with assaulting Minchillo, whose assault was captured on video by a colleague.
Byerly then approached police officers behind bike racks and deployed his stun gun.
“After officers successfully removed the stun gun from Byerly’s hands, Byerly continued to charge toward the officers, struck and pushed them, and grabbed an officer’s baton,” prosecutors wrote.
Byerly later told FBI agents that he did just “one stupid thing down there and that’s all it was,” according to prosecutors.
“This was a reference to how he handled the reporter and nothing more,” they wrote.
Byerly treated Jan. 6 “as a normal, crime-free day, akin to the movie, ‘The Purge,’ when he could do whatever he wanted without judgment or legal consequence,” prosecutors said.
“He was mistaken,” they added.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
More than 100 police officers were injured during the Capitol siege.
Approximately 900 people have been charged with federal crimes for their conduct on Jan. 6. More than 400 of them have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanor offenses. Over 280 riot defendants have been sentenced, with roughly half sentenced to terms of imprisonment ranging from one week to 10 years.
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Trump Stumps In Arizona For Blake Masters Kari Lake And Down-Ticket Republicans
Trump Stumps In Arizona For Blake Masters, Kari Lake And Down-Ticket Republicans https://digitalalabamanews.com/trump-stumps-in-arizona-for-blake-masters-kari-lake-and-down-ticket-republicans/
MESA, Arizona — Former President Donald Trump, looking to boost his Republican picks for U.S. Senate and governor in this former GOP stronghold, on Sunday called on his supporters to flood the polls on behalf of Blake Masters and Kari Lake next month
Mr. Trump’s shadow looms large over the 2022 midterm elections, and nowhere is that more true than in Arizona. The state has served as ground zero for Mr. Trump’s stolen election claims, and as a test case for the Biden administration’s shift away from his predecessor’s hardline approach to immigration and border security.
“You can prove that Arizona is still a red state,” Mr. Trump said to the thousands who braved the scorching heat to see him in a dusty lot.
Saying Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly has been a failure, Mr. Trump said, “Arizona you need to vote this extreme radical leftist out of office.”
Mr. Trump, meanwhile, praised Mr. Masters.
“He is exactly the kind of new blood we need in the United States Senate,” Mr. Trump said. “Blake will make it his mission to restore the sovereign border of Arizona and protect the jobs, safety, and well-being of the people of your state.”
“He is a tireless champion for free speech, election integrity and for putting America first,” he said.
Mr. Trump’s endorsement of Mr. Masters played a major role in the candidate winning a competitive GOP primary.
Mr. Trump also touted Ms. Lake’s gubernatorial bid and urged his supporters to get behind other election-denying Republicans — most notably state Rep. Mark Finchem, the GOP nominee for secretary of state who will oversee Arizona elections if he wins.
Mr. Trump said Ms. Lake is going to be a star.
Saving his sharpest criticism for President Biden, Mr. Trump played a “Let’s Get Ready to Bumble” video showing various clips of Mr. Biden getting tongue-tied.
Mr. Trump said Mr. Biden has been an embarrassment and accused the administration of turning law enforcement against him, his family, his supporters, and pro-life activists.
Mr. Biden, he said, has “completely obliterated” everything he did to strengthen the southern border, opening the doors for the cartels and human traffickers.
“It all happened because of a rigged and stolen election,” Mr. Trump said. “We won it twice and did better the second time.”
The race for the U.S. Senate also features libertarian Marc J. Victor.
Mr. Kelly is running for a full-six-year term after winning a 2020 special election contest to fill out the remainder of late Republican Sen. John McCain’s term. He has had a massive fundraising advantage and held a steady, but slim, lead in the polls, which shows Mr. Victor is pulling some Republicans in his direction.
“I have a question for you, who is ready to send Mark Kelly back to space?” Mr. Masters said here Sunday after entering the stage to Kenny Loggins’ 80s anthem “Highway to the Danger Zone.” “That is exactly what we are going to do in 30 days’ time.”
Mr. Masters, a venture capitalist, is running behind Mr. Kelly in the polls and has faced doubts about the quality of his candidacy. Mr. Kelly has blanketed the television airwaves with attack ads for months.
Mr. Masters, though, proved some naysayers wrong in his first — and only — debate with Mr. Kelly last week, winning rave reviews from Republicans after repeatedly putting the Democrat on the defensive over his record.
Looking to keep the momentum going, Mr. Masters has accused Mr. Kelly of backing policies that have made inflation and gas prices worse and opened the door for illegal immigrants and drugs to come across the southern border.
On Sunday, Mr. Masters told the crowd Mr. Kelly and Mr. Biden “don’t care about our suffering.”
“His record is horrible,” Mr. Masters said, before vowing to fight to steer the nation in a different direction if elected.
“The future of the country is on the line, so vote like it,” he said. “We are going to make this country great again!”
Ms. Lake, meanwhile, is locked in a tightknit race with Katie Hobbs, the Democratic secretary of state.
Speaking here on Sunday, Ms. Lake said Ms. Hobbs is out of touch with what voters want.
“I don’t need to hire a bunch of out-of-town Washington, D.C., consultants to tell me where Arizona is, I think we are on the same page,” Ms. Lake said.
Ms. Lake said voters are clamoring for the next governor to push for “safe and secure” borders, address homelessness in a more serious manner, and provide kids a “real education — not an indoctrination.”
“I think it comes down frankly to one sentence: We want to replace the woke garbage with common sense,” Ms. Lake said, before urging the crowd to vote.
“We can do it together Arizona because God is with us,” she said. “That same God who parted the Red Sea — that is why he has put us all here in this moment in history — to save this country and create a red wave.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia also addressed the crowd, along with Reps. Debra Kay Lesko and Andy Biggs, the Arizona Republicans who represent the 8th Congressional District and 5th Congressional District, respectively. The three Republicans are expected to cruise to re-election this fall.
Mr. Biggs said Mr. Biden is “weak sauce” and said Democrats “are the extremists, they are the radicals.”
Ms. Lesko said, “I truly believe God has chosen each and everyone one of you and guided you here today — guided you here to save the country.”
Ms. Greene, arguably Mr. Trump’s fiercest supporter in Congress, said the “communist Democrats are destroying the very fabric” of the country. She said Mr. Biden’s immigration moves have opened the door for illegal immigrants who are “replacing your jobs and replacing your kids in your school” and “replacing your culture.”
“Joe Biden is a loser,” the Georgia Republican said, and later assured the crowd Mr. Trump would be the nation’s next president.
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Trump Knocks Pelosi Over Stalled Stock Trading Ban
Trump Knocks Pelosi Over Stalled Stock Trading Ban https://digitalalabamanews.com/trump-knocks-pelosi-over-stalled-stock-trading-ban/
Former President Trump on Sunday knocked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over Democrats’ failure to bring a bill that would ban lawmakers from trading stocks to the floor before the midterm elections.
“Look at her stocks. I mean, she did better than Warren Buffett. I don’t know about her husband. I don’t know who the hell’s running that deal,” Trump said of Pelosi at a rally in Mesa, Arizona.
“And now she doesn’t want to change it, where they’re allowed to get inside information.”
Pelosi last month hinted that the much-anticipated measure might be brought to the floor for a vote, but after sharing the draft legislation, leaders said more time was needed for members to review the bill. And Pelosi said it didn’t have the votes to pass.
Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) was among the Democrats who were furious that a vote was not held before the midterms in November.
“This moment marks a failure of House leadership — and it’s yet another example of why I believe that the Democratic Party needs new leaders in the halls of Capitol Hill, as I have long made known,” Spanberger said in a statement.
Pelosi came under criticism over reports earlier this year that her husband Paul Pelosi sold millions of dollars of shares in a chipmaker company as the House prepared to vote on a bill related to the industry.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) called on lawmakers to do a “thorough investigation and look at what is the proper role for members of Congress,” and said Pelosi should not be involved in writing the bill.
Pelosi had previously supported lawmakers’ participation in stock trading, but changed her position earlier this year and backed a ban.
Trump was in Arizona Sunday to stump for GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Senate candidate Blake Masters after attending a separate rally in Nevada the night before.
“We’re going to end the crazy Nancy Pelosi’s political career once and for all. She is crazy,” Trump said at the rally.
Pelosi has indicated that this will be her last session as speaker, regardless of whether Democrats keep control of the House in November, but is still running for re-election.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
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Tropical Storm Julia Emerges Over Pacific After Nicaragua No Fatalities Reported
Tropical Storm Julia Emerges Over Pacific After Nicaragua, No Fatalities Reported https://digitalalabamanews.com/tropical-storm-julia-emerges-over-pacific-after-nicaragua-no-fatalities-reported/
MEXICO CITY, Oct 9 (Reuters) – Tropical storm Julia emerged over the Eastern Pacific on Sunday evening after pummelling Nicaragua with rain and winds that damaged hundreds of homes but left no reported casualties, according to government officials.
The storm made landfall on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua early on Sunday near Laguna de Perlas and by 6 p.m. local time (0000 GMT) its center was over the Pacific around 135 miles (220 kilometers) southeast of El Salvador’s capital, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
It is expected to move north along the coasts of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala on Sunday and Monday, according to the NHC.
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About one million residents of Nicaragua’s coastal region lost power and internet due to fallen lines as well as a decision by the government to cut electricity for safety reasons, said Vice President Rosario Murillo, according to local media.
The Nicaraguan National Disaster System said in a tweet on Sunday that the entire country was under “red alert,” after heavy rains caused multiple rivers to flood.
Guillermo Gonzalez, director of Nicaragua’s disaster system, told a press conference that Julia had not caused any fatalities in the country but that more than 13,000 families had been evacuated, more than 800 houses had been flooded and many roofs had been damaged.
People get into a pickup truck to be transported to a safe zone while Hurricane Julia hits the coasts with wind and rain, in Bluefields, Nicaragua October 8, 2022. REUTERS/Maynor Valenzuela
“The event is not over,” Gonzalez said.
The NHC maintained its warning of the “risk of life-threatening flash floods and mudslides across Central America and Southern Mexico” through Tuesday.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on social media early on Sunday that Julia had left “light damage” in San Andres and Providencia, Colombian islands off the coast of Nicaragua.
In San Andres, heavy winds pulled tin roofs off houses, according to police captain Octavio Gutierrez. On Sunday, streets rang with the sound of handheld saws that police and locals used to clear fallen tree trunks and branches.
In high-risk zones in Honduras, authorities declared a red alert and called on residents to evacuate. Early on Sunday, Salvadorans prayed in city plazas after El Salvador President Nayib Bukele declared the day as a “National Day of Prayer,” calling on citizens to “come together to pray and ask for God’s protection.”
As Julia moved north, Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei said in a press conference late on Sunday that the storm had already resulted in three floods and one bridge collapse.
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Reporting by Jackie Botts and Aida Pelaez-Fernandez in Mexico City Additional reporting by Luis Echeverria and Enrique Garcia in Guatemala City, Gustavo Palencia in Tegucigalpa, Herbert Villarraga and Nina Lopez in San Andres; Writing by Frances Kerry; Editing by Barbara Lewis, Matthew Lewis and Ana Nicolaci da Costa
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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One Dead After Crash On I-235 Eastbound In Des Moines
One Dead After Crash On I-235 Eastbound In Des Moines https://digitalalabamanews.com/one-dead-after-crash-on-i-235-eastbound-in-des-moines/
One dead after crash on I-235 eastbound in Des Moines
NEWS COMES FROM DES MOINES POLICE… IN THE LAST HOUR WE’VE LEARNED SOMEONE DIED IN A CRASH ON I-235 NEAR 31ST STREET. KCCI’S AMANDA ROOKER IS LIVE NEAR THE SCENE… AMANDA, WHAT INFORMATION HAVE POLICE SHARED SO FAR? TODD – TRAGIC NEWS HERE IN DES MOINES TONIGHT WHERE POLICE CONFIRMED ONE HAS DIED. ?I’M HERE AT THE OVERPASS OF I-235 AND 31ST STREET – THIS EXIT HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY BUSY TONIGHT – WITH STOP & GO TRAFFIC ALONG THE HIGHWAY. AND IF YOU LOOK BEHIND ME YOU CAN SEE WHAT’S LEFT OF THE SCENE. A DEADLY CRASH AGAIN HERE EASTBOUND ON I-235 AND 31ST STREET. IT HAPPENED JUST BEFORE 7PM. THAT’S WHEN FIRST RESPONDERS ARRIVED TO A TWO-VEHICLE CRASH. POLICE SAY THERE WERE NO OTHER INJURIES. AS YOU CAN SEE EASTBOUND I-235 LANE REDUCTIONS ARE IN PLACE HERE AT 31ST STREET. THIS IS THE 16TH TRAFFIC-RELATED FATALITY OF 2022. FOR CONTEXT – LAST YEAR, DES MOINES HAD 13 TRAFFIC FATALITIES
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One dead after crash on I-235 eastbound in Des Moines
One person is dead after a crash on Interstate 235 in Des Moines. Police say that they responded to a crash around 6:54 p.m. on Sunday. First responders arrived to find a collision between to vehicles. One person has been confirmed deceased at the scene. No other injuries have been reported.Des Moines police say I-235 eastbound lanes at 31st Street will be temporarily reduced until approximately 10 p.m. Sunday.The DMPD Traffic Unit is investigating. This is a developing story. Stay tuned to KCCI on-air and online for updates.
DES MOINES, Iowa —
One person is dead after a crash on Interstate 235 in Des Moines.
Police say that they responded to a crash around 6:54 p.m. on Sunday. First responders arrived to find a collision between to vehicles. One person has been confirmed deceased at the scene. No other injuries have been reported.
Des Moines police say I-235 eastbound lanes at 31st Street will be temporarily reduced until approximately 10 p.m. Sunday.
The DMPD Traffic Unit is investigating.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned to KCCI on-air and online for updates.
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Hong Kong Stocks Drop More Than 2%; China Markets Lower After Golden Week Holiday
Hong Kong Stocks Drop More Than 2%; China Markets Lower After Golden Week Holiday https://digitalalabamanews.com/hong-kong-stocks-drop-more-than-2-china-markets-lower-after-golden-week-holiday/
The Chinese and Hong Kong flags flutter as screens display the Hang Seng Index outside the Exchange Square complex, which houses the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, on January 21, 2021 in Hong Kong, China.
Zhang Wei | China News Service via Getty Images
Shares in the Asia-Pacific fell on Monday, with Hong Kong stocks leading losses.
The Hang Seng index fell more than 2.64% in early trade, with the Hang Seng Tech index down more than 4%.
In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.64% on its return to trade after the Golden Week holiday and the Shenzhen Component dropped around 1.2%. The S&P/ASX 200 was 1.58% lower.
Markets in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia are closed for holidays Monday.
Later this week, the Bank of Korea will announce its benchmark interest rate decision, Singapore is set to announce its GDP estimate for the third quarter and China releases inflation data.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Japan’s Fast Retailing will report earnings and the U.S. will release inflation data for September.
On Friday in the U.S., major stock indexes dropped more than 2% after data showed the unemployment rate declined in September, sparking fear that the Federal Reserve would continue hiking rates aggressively.
Hong Kong shares of Chinese chipmaker SMIC drop 5% after U.S. export controls take effect
Shares of China’s biggest chipmaker SMIC fell after Washington announced new export controls that will limit Beijing’s ability to buy and manufacture high-end chips used in military equipment.
SMIC’s stock fell as much as 5.23% before recovering slightly. It last traded 2.91% lower.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said in a press conference on Saturday that the U.S. has been “abusing export control measures to wantonly block and hobble Chinese enterprises. Such practice runs counter to the principle of fair competition and international trade rules.”
— Abigail Ng
CNBC Pro: Porsche is now more valuable than VW: Here’s what the pros think of the carmakers
A week after its stock market debut, luxury automaker Porsche’s market cap raced past its former parent company Volkswagen Group’s.
Some fund managers are already comparing the German firm to Tesla, the largest electric carmaker in the world, saying Porsche’s electrification plan for its hot-selling Macan EV is expected to be an instant success.
Compared to its parent company VW, which makes nearly 10 million cars annually, Porsche manufactures just over 300,000 cars but accounts for a quarter of the profits at Volkswagen.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Ganesh Rao
Currency check: South Korean won weakens against the U.S. dollar
The Korean won were among those losing ground against the U.S. dollar in Asia’s morning trade.
The South Korean currency last changed hands at 1,427.76 per dollar after strengthening below the 1,400 level last week.
Japan’s yen weakened slightly to 145.46 against the greenback, while the Australian dollar strengthened to $0.6370.
The offshore Chinese yuan hovered around 7.1319 per dollar.
— Abigail Ng
CNBC Pro: Goldman says these ‘cheap’ global stocks are set to win in the short and long-term
As Europe struggles with soaring electricity and gas bills, Goldman Sachs says global companies focussing on energy efficiency are set to outperform.
“We think Energy Efficiency companies can outperform over the short term, with the focus on energy efficiency to tackle the current energy crisis that followed the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” the analysts wrote in a note on Oct. 3.
“[And] over the long term, with the focus on energy efficiency to tackle the climate change and reach the ambitious ‘net zero’ targets.”
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Weizhen Tan
Services activity in China contracted in September, private survey shows
The Caixin services purchasing managers’ index came in at 49.3 in September, according to a report published Saturday, a steep drop from 55 in August.
The 50-point mark separates growth from contraction. PMI readings compare activity from month to month.
The nation’s Covid curbs caused services activity in China to contract in September for the first time since May, the report said.
“Companies that reported reduced activity frequently commented that the pandemic and subsequent measures to contain the virus had restricted operations and weighed on demand in September,” the press release by Caixin said.
— Abigail Ng
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Tide Women's Hoops Star Among Five UA Homecoming Queen Candidates
Tide Women's Hoops Star Among Five UA Homecoming Queen Candidates https://digitalalabamanews.com/tide-womens-hoops-star-among-five-ua-homecoming-queen-candidates/
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TUSCALOOSA, AL — The University of Alabama on Sunday announced five candidates for Homecoming Queen who will appear on the student ballot Tuesday, Oct. 18.
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UA Homecoming is set for Oct. 22 for the Crimson Tide’s matchup with SEC foe Mississippi State.
Find out what’s happening in Tuscaloosawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Here’s a look at each candidate, along with the Statement of Intent they provided to the university.
Megan Abrams
Major: Business Administration
Find out what’s happening in Tuscaloosawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Classification: Graduate Student
Statement of Intent
“For me, Tuscaloosa has become a home away from home. When I was offered the opportunity to come back and play basketball for a 5th year, the decision was a no-brainer. Being able to wear the script A is not something that I take lightly, which is why I pride myself on contributing to our university and community in thoughtful ways. I often contribute by sharing my journey at UA with others and offering unique perspectives on my experiences here. I believe that diverse representation in a positive, influential role such as Homecoming Queen is crucial. As an athlete and black woman, I would be honored to provide representation that may inspire students like me to take on similar leadership roles. I have loved every moment that I have attended this university, and it hurts to say that I only have a few months left as a student. With the time that I have left, I want to continue making meaningful impacts on the community that provided me with the love and support that I needed to be where I am today. There’s no place in the country I’d rather be.”
Olivia Bruno
Major: Biology
Minor: Social Innovation & Leadership, General Business, and Psychology
Classification: Senior
Statement of Intent
“The University of Alabama facilitates not only great leaders on campus but in the community. Whether that be the community of Tuscaloosa or a student’s hometown, as members of this university we are charged to give back and seek ways to help and improve the world around us. This institution encourages its students to achieve great feats academically, personally, and philanthropically through its programs to further education, advocacy of inclusive groups and clubs on campus, and effort to make this campus a home to all who come here. I have always admired the opportunities the university has offered to help students achieve their goals and pursue their own personal interests. As a member of many organizations on campus, I intend to highlight the numerous opportunities that The University of Alabama provides for all students with diverse backgrounds and interests to get involved and grow in their scholarship, service, and leadership. This includes sharing ways that students can give back to the community of Tuscaloosa by serving with local organizations. I have been involved with several service organizations around the community that I plan to promote as places where students can give back to the community that gives so much to them.”
Olivia Burleson
Major: Elementary Education
Classification: Junior
Statement of Intent
“I am seeking candidacy as the UA Homecoming Queen because this is a respectful and reputable platform. To represent The University of Alabama as Homecoming Queen would truly be an honor. I could use this platform to spread awareness of Invisible Disabilities in young children and adults. This is extremely important in today’s educational system. I want to use this opportunity to utilize my voice and advocate for those individuals who are silently struggling. My passion for children has led me to pursue this position so that I can share my vision. If I were to serve as the 2022 UA Homecoming Queen, I would travel to local schools and speak on those students’ behalf. I hope that my love and belief in the University of Alabama’s education program would shine through this opportunity.”
Ellery Hill
Major: Finance
Minor: Women’s Studies
Classification: Senior
Statement of Intent
“My hometown is exactly what you would picture when listening to a country song. Cornfields line my dirt road, I spent my childhood camping in my backyard, and I graduated high school with only sixty other students. While I have since moved and established my independence here at The University of Alabama, growing up in my hometown taught me that love and support are the foundation of community. I am overwhelmed with gratitude as I look back on the love and support that this community has brought me. Through service opportunities here at UA, I have learned to be intentional in all that I do, ensuring that each role I take on is well suited to my strengths and that my efforts will result in an impact. Leadership opportunities granted to me in the last three years have encouraged responsibility and connection with mentees and other leaders across campus. The diverse perspectives and students that I have worked alongside have made my empathy more robust and well-suited to work with others. Finally, the educational and experiential opportunities at The University of Alabama have consistently fed – and fueled – my intellectual curiosity. It is through these four pillars that I will serve as homecoming queen.”
Bayley St. Clair
Major: English
Minor: Philosophy and Political Science
Classification: Senior
Statement of Intent
“Hi, my name is Bayley St. Clair and I am running for UA Homecoming Queen. I am passionate about The University of Alabama and the wider Tuscaloosa Community as I engage through organizations on campus and communities off campus. I intend to continue working with Deacon’s Deli food pantry at Canterbury Chapel that feeds families in Tuscaloosa. I am thankful to be a part of this ministry as it helps the Tuscaloosa community, our neighbors, and friends. I believe Homecoming is to recognize the familial bond we all share through this University we call home. Understanding this aspect of our community makes me proud to be a part of a legendary campus with extremally talented and passionate individuals. I want to continue to represent this spirit throughout my candidacy. I am thankful for this opportunity to represent my friends and loved ones.”
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Longtime Montgomery Radio Personality Mel Marshall Dies From Traffic Crash
Longtime Montgomery Radio Personality Mel Marshall Dies From Traffic Crash https://digitalalabamanews.com/longtime-montgomery-radio-personality-mel-marshall-dies-from-traffic-crash/
Montgomery Real-Time News
Published: Oct. 09, 2022, 8:50 p.m.
Longtime Montgomery broadcaster Melvin “Mel” Marshall died Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. (David Campbell/ASU)
Longtime Montgomery radio personality Melvin “Mel” Marshall, 69, died Thursday in a traffic crash.
According to Alabama State University, Marshall had just finished his early morning show on the Alabama State National Public Radio station. He had hosted a show on WVAS for more than 30 years.
WSFA reported that the crash happened on County Road 13, about six miles east of Shorter, when Marshall’s 2006 Ford F-150 left the roadway and overturned in a ditch, before hitting a utility pole. He died later at a hospital.
A native of Shorter, Marshall was a graduate of Tuskegee University and an Army veteran. He worked as a full-time announcer and assistant program director in Prattville and Tuskegee and later handled promotions for The Commodores.
In 1983, Marshall helped launch WVAS-FM, a jazz-oriented public radio station on the Alabama State campus. He was also the halftime show announcer for ASU’s Mighty Marching Hornets for 28 years.
“This is an immeasurable loss to WVAS, to our community, and to his listeners around the globe,” Station Manager Candy Capel said. “Our WVAS family will cherish every moment of music and laughter that we shared with our beloved Mel Marshall.”
Marshall was the third Black inducted into the Alabama Broadcaster’s Association Hall of Fame in 2013.
ASU President Quinton T. Ross, Jr. said “there really was no other voice like his.”
“We are grateful for his contributions to the industry and for his work with ASU’s student interns over the years. His voice and his radio presence will be greatly missed,” Ross said.
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Auburn Football Players Defend Fake Punt Decision Vs. UGA
Auburn Football Players Defend Fake Punt Decision Vs. UGA https://digitalalabamanews.com/auburn-football-players-defend-fake-punt-decision-vs-uga/
Auburn football Oct 8, 2022; Athens, Georgia, USA; Auburn Tigers tight end John Samuel Shenker (25) is tackled by Georgia Bulldogs defensive back Malaki Starks (24) during the first half at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry has come and gone in the 2022 season, and it was just as ugly as many Auburn football fans expected it to be. The Tigers lost 42-10 between the hedges, and the game was littered with mistakes and penalties that cost Auburn 60 yards.
It seemed like the game started off surprisingly well, mostly thanks to the lockdown defense. Of course, Auburn football’s offense looked chaotic and confused. Robby Ashford was never supposed to be in this situation as a young guy who didn’t play his first snap of collegiate football until this year.
Combine Ashford’s lack of experience with the disaster of an offensive line, and it pretty quickly became clear that the defense was going to be the reason that the Tigers had a fighting chance. And then Auburn football fake punted from their own 34-yard line and–it didn’t work. That seemed to be the turning point for the game, and fans and members of the media were outraged.
However, following the game, team leaders John Samuel Shenker and Derick Hall defended the decision to run the play, explaining that the issue all came down to execution (which seems to be a recurring theme in post-game press conferences for the Tigers this season). Turns out, if Jalil Irvin didn’t miss his block, Shenker would have gotten through to get the first down, per AL.com:
“We got the look we wanted,” Shenker said. “There were a few errors in the blocking scheme, and I wasn’t able to get through. It was a good play call, and they had the right defense out. We just weren’t able to execute it.”
Derick Hall went on to say that there were no hard feelings from the defense and they plan to protect the end zone at all costs, no matter where the other team gets field position:
“That’s just the operation of the game,” edge Derick Hall said. “We really don’t care where they start with the ball. We just try to defend every blade of grass. It doesn’t matter what kind of field position we’ve got. We just try to defend every blade of grass.”
It was certainly a tough game for all parties involved, but here’s hoping that the Tigers are able to turn things around and focus on beating Ole Miss next week.
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Michael Cohen Believes Trump Saw Mar-A-Lago Docs As A 'Get Out Of Jail Free' Card
Michael Cohen Believes Trump Saw Mar-A-Lago Docs As A 'Get Out Of Jail Free' Card https://digitalalabamanews.com/michael-cohen-believes-trump-saw-mar-a-lago-docs-as-a-get-out-of-jail-free-card/
Donald Trump took classified documents from the White House to his Mar-a-Lago estate as a “get out of jail free card” in the event the government should try to pursue charges against him after he left office, his former attorney Michael Cohen hypothesized.
“That’s exactly what he saw in those documents,” Cohen said on the “Salon Talks” podcast. ”‘You want to play with me? Really? I was the former president of the United States. I have documents that are so damaging to this country’s national security. Go ahead, indict me, try to throw me in prison. See what happens.’ What happens is he turns over all this classified information, not as if he hasn’t already done it, but he turns all his classified information over to our adversaries, right? ‘You want to play that game? No problem!’”
He said his former boss would do “anything and everything in order to protect himself, plain and simple.”
“He doesn’t care about this country. He doesn’t care about democracy. He doesn’t care about QAnon,” he added. “He doesn’t care about the independents. He doesn’t care about Republicans or Democrats. He cares about one thing and only one thing and that’s Donald J. Trump.”
Cohen and others have made similar predictions since the FBI executed a search warrant on Trump’s Florida compound on Aug. 8 to retrieve sensitive government documents he unlawfully took there. During a CNN interview later that month, Cohen said Trump likely viewed the documents as a bargaining chip should he be indicted.
“The second they would put him in handcuffs, he would turn around and say: ‘I have the documentation showing, for example, where our nuclear launch pads are,’” Cohen guessed.
Last month, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who serves on the armed services and foreign relations committees, said he had a similar gut feeling about Trump’s reasons.
“I spend a lot of time in secure Senate facilities. I know what this information is like,” he said on CNN. “The reason Trump took this with him to Florida was probably to try to either sell it or have it as a ‘get out of jail free’ card.”
During the Aug. 8 search of Mar-a-Lago, officials were able to recover at least 20 boxes and 11 pieces of pertinent documents. Trump was found to have had more than 300 classified documents in his possession, including 150 that he returned to the National Archives.
Last week, the New York Times reported that the Justice Department believes there are still more documents in Trump’s possession.
Cohen, who served time in prison after facilitating a hush money payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels to keep her from disclosing an alleged affair with Trump before the 2016 election, has since authored a second critical book about the president.
“Revenge: How Donald Trump Weaponized the Us Department of Justice Against His Critics” is due to be released this week.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
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Hurricane Julia Makes Landfall In Nicaragua https://digitalalabamanews.com/hurricane-julia-makes-landfall-in-nicaragua/
Hurricane Julia formed made landfall as a Category 1 storm in Nicaragua early Sunday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center.
As of 8 a.m., the system was located about 60 miles west-northwest of Bluefields, Nicaragua with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph moving west at 16 mph. Julia’s hurricane winds extend 30 miles while its tropical storm-force winds have a reach of 80 miles. It is not expected to impact Florida.
Hurricane warnings are in effect for San Andres, Providencia and the Santa Catalina Islands in Colombia, and in Nicaragua from Laguna de Perlas to Puerto Cabezas. A hurricane watch and tropical storm warning is in effect for Nicaragua south of Laguna de Perlas to Bluefields and north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border. A tropical storm watch is in effect for part of the Honduran coast.
Hurricane force winds and a dangerous storm surge is expected where the core of the system crosses the islands tonight. Life-threatening flash flooding and mud slides are expected across portions of Central America through the weekend. The system is expected to make landfall in Nicaragua on Sunday.
Julia becomes the fifth hurricane of the year. Models are in agreement showing Julia growing to a maximum sustained wind strength of 85 mph before making landfall potentially along San Andres, Nicaragua by Sunday morning, the NHC said.
San Andres and Providencia could receive between 6 and 12 inches of rain, the NHC warned, and portions of Central America could receive 15 inches, producing life-threatening flash floods and mudslides through this weekend. Julia’s storm surge will likely raise water levels by as much as 2 to 4 feet above normal tide levels along the immediate coast in areas of onshore winds on San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina Islands.
After landfall, the NHC is confident Julia and its remnants should turn northwest and remain over Central America and southern Mexico through Monday. After that, Julia should be no more.
So far, the 2022 hurricane season has produced nine named storms and one more tropical depression that spun up and fell apart while Ian was striking Florida. The NHC also tracked one other potential cyclone that never grew into a depression, so that is why the most recent tropical depression is named TD 12.
Initially, the season was off to a slow start with a quiet July and August, but the season has picked up the pace since Sept. 1 with the emergence of four hurricanes including Fiona and Ian in the last two weeks. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted the season to be an above-average year in storm production calling for 14-21 named storms. An average year has 14.
Hurricane season ends on Nov. 30.
Jpedersen@orlandosentinel.com
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Michigan GOP Statewide Candidates Stick To Far-Right Message
Michigan GOP Statewide Candidates Stick To Far-Right Message https://digitalalabamanews.com/michigan-gop-statewide-candidates-stick-to-far-right-message-4/
WARREN, Mich. — With voting underway in Michigan’s general election, the Republican nominee for secretary of state stepped on stage as a warm-up act for former President Donald Trump and hit hard on the main theme of her campaign.
Kristina Karamo repeated unfounded assertions about the 2020 presidential election that have been repeatedly debunked. She told the crowd at the recent rally at Macomb Community College that “authoritarians” are giving millions to her Democratic opponent — Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson — in an attempt to “corrupt battleground state election systems so they can control America.”
“If you look at history, it shows you what tyrants do,” said Karamo, a former community college professor. “History is telling us, history is screaming to us, that if we don’t step up and fight now, we will lose the greatest country in human history.”
It was an address designed to rev up the crowd of devoted Trump followers, some of whom have latched onto the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory.
While Karamo’s speech drew cheers, relying on a general election strategy that appeals to the most far-right voters is a gamble for Michigan Republicans.
Candidates who have to play to their party’s base during primaries or nominating conventions often shift toward the center, aiming to attract more voters for the general election. But that hasn’t happened this year for the Republicans seeking Michigan’s top three statewide offices — governor, attorney general and secretary of state.
The Nov. 8 election will test whether campaigns designed to resonate with the far-right and highlight strong ties to Trump will be enough to win in a traditional swing state, where the Republican incumbent lost the White House race to Democrat challenger Joe Biden by more than 154,000 votes in 2020.
All three GOP candidates stood behind Trump during the Oct. 1 rally at the college about 20 miles north of Detroit, joined by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has amplified Trump’s election falsehoods to audiences across the country.
Trump falsely claimed the 2020 election was “rigged and stolen” in Michigan, citing “evidence” he said first originated with Karamo and Matthew DePerno, a tax lawyer who is the nominee for state attorney general.
In his own address to the crowd, DePerno called Democrats “radical, cultural Marxists” who want to “silence you.”
“If that doesn’t work, they want to put you in jail,” DePerno told the crowd, which fell into chants of “Lock her up.” All three Democratic incumbents are women.
DePerno’s campaign also is clouded by an investigation into whether he should be criminally charged for attempting to gain access to voting machines after the 2020 election.
John DeBlaay, a Grand Rapids real estate agent and precinct delegate who attended the rally, said he was thrilled with the candidates. “We’ve got the best America First ticket all the way from top to bottom that we’ve had in a long time now,” he said.
Some moderate Republicans are skeptical that campaigns appealing mostly to base elements of the party will be enough to beat Democratic incumbents with wide name recognition and sizable fundraising advantages. The Democrats also are expected to benefit from having an amendment on the ballot that seeks to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution.
These Republicans say inflation, gas prices and economic anxiety should be the GOP’s main talking points, not a continued alignment with Trump and his false claims about widespread fraud costing him reelection.
They point to the unusual way Michigan selects its attorney general and secretary of state candidates, a process done through a party nominating convention rather than through a primary election in which voters make the choice.
The most conservative Republicans who are loyal to Trump dominated that convention in April. The party’s co-chair, Meshawn Maddock, was one of 16 Republicans who submitted false certificates stating they were the state’s presidential electors despite Biden’s certified victory in the state.
Three weeks before the convention, during another Trump rally, DePerno encouraged attendees — many of them precinct delegates — to “storm” the party gathering and said it was “time for the grassroots to unite.”
Delegates overwhelmingly voted to nominate Karamo. DePerno won a runoff over former legislative leader Tom Leonard, who lost in the 2018 attorney general’s race by 3 percentage points to Democrat Dana Nessel.
“Karamo and DePerno are among the most loyal to Donald Trump that you will find anywhere in the country,” said Jason Roe, a longtime Republican strategist. “That loyalty has been unshakable in this election process, regardless of how it might affect general election prospects.”
Roe, whose father served as the Michigan GOP’s executive director for 10 years, became executive director of the state party in spring 2021. Six months later, he stepped down due to a “difference in opinion on how many conspiracy theories we should tolerate.”
Soon after Roe left, Trump began calling party leaders to “force the party to embrace things formally that weren’t going to be helpful to the upcoming election,” Roe said.
The party’s candidate for governor, Tudor Dixon, won the nomination during the primary in August after receiving Trump’s endorsement. Dixon, a conservative news show host who once acted in low-budget horror films, also benefited from support of the wealthy DeVos family.
While seen as less extreme than Karamo and DePerno, Dixon indicated during debates that she thought the 2020 presidential election was stolen and she recently made light of a plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat. Dixon has since tried to pivot away from denying the results of the last election by focusing on topics such as inflation and education, but she also is repeating hard-right rhetoric on cultural issues.
She has called for banning “pornographic” books in schools and has pitched an education agenda modeled after the Florida policy that critics have labeled “Don’t Say Gay.”
While Democrats have attacked DePerno and Karamo for their continued denial of Biden’s victory in 2020, they have focused on what they describe as Dixon’s “extreme” abortion stance. Lackluster fundraising has made it difficult for her to push back.
As of Aug. 22, Dixon had $524,000 in the bank compared with Whitmer’s $14 million, according to the latest available campaign finance reports. Some of that gap has been closed by the super PAC Michigan Families United, which has received $2.5 million in donations, including from the DeVos family.
“I just don’t like that there’s no commercials on TV about Dixon. Everything you see is about the other people, and it’s all negative,” said Laura Bunting, an Ionia County resident who attended the Trump rally.
Karamo and DePerno had a combined $422,554 cash on hand as of Sept. 16 compared with the $5.7 million combined for their Democratic opponents, according to campaign finance reports.
Michigan-based pollster Bernie Porn said the Republican candidates have been defined by their extreme stances but that none has attracted enough money to get on TV and introduce themselves to a broader swath of voters. That, he said, “makes it difficult for folks to form a favorable opinion of you.”
Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Ralph Nader: Democrats Broaden Your Campaign Messages And Strategies OpEd
Ralph Nader: Democrats Broaden Your Campaign Messages And Strategies – OpEd https://digitalalabamanews.com/ralph-nader-democrats-broaden-your-campaign-messages-and-strategies-oped/
With just over four weeks to Election Day, the Democratic Party still has time to realize its limitations, which have led to them losing winnable races, or barely squeaking by at the federal and state levels. Imagine the worst, most corrupt, lying, dictatorial GOP since its creation in 1854 having their most dangerous and extreme candidates win elections.
To liberate the many policies, messages, strategies, rebuttals and ground-level ways to get out more votes, Democrats need to escape the controls of their incarcerating political/media consultants, who are too often conflicted by their ongoing corporate clients and their 15% commissions received from placing repetitive, vacuous video ads.
With their ample funds, the Democrats have to aggregate the case against the GOP’s morbid opposition to humanity and contrast it with the Democratic Party’s own lawmaking, votes and positions. For example, the Dems need to compare all their pro-children work with the GOP’s ugly record of cruelty to the little ones once they are born. (See my column: Big Campaign 2022 Issue: GOP’s Cruelty to Children). Trump’s GOP went out of its way to keep federal Medicaid funds from insuring children in GOP-dominated states, lunged to revoke an Obama rule to ban a pesticide, especially deadly to young children, and blocked all attempts to enact paid sick leave, family leave and daycare. In 2017 the Republicans also slashed the already low tax rates for their Rich and Powerful paymasters.
Dems should move fast with a winning “Protect and Nurture ALL Our Children” platform.
The GOP is chronically antagonistic to freedom and equality for women. Republican opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment, equal pay mandates, corporate marketplace discriminations and reproductive choice, and other serious biases can form the basis for a Democratic “Freedom for Women” platform plank.
With lives and public infrastructure being regularly destroyed by floods, ocean surges, winds, and wildfires from Global Warming, GOP candidates respond with a curled lip: NO! Republicans voted against, or successfully blocked the public works bills backed by Congressional Democrats, costing lives, jobs, community stability and using tax dollars not to benefit the people, but to the corporate greed hounds of Wall Street and its plutocrats.
Most Democrats have been reluctant to take on the 800 lb. gorilla in the political arena – the widely despised, by both liberal and conservative voters, Big Business controls coercions, bailouts and exploitations over people’s livelihoods. Over 70% of people, regardless of political labels, bear the brunt of abuses by corporate barons every day where they live, work and raise their children. Plenty of press reports, pointed studies, and litigation data make the case that Democratic candidates who commit to All the parents, All the workers, and All the consumers to make giant companies our servants, not our masters, will garner large majority voter support. People are tired of double standards. They want corporate crooks to go to jail. They want runaway CEOs to be held accountable. Such stands would immediately contrast with the GOP’s coverups of Wall Street, the big banks, insurance companies, and avaricious drug and health insurance companies. Many Democrats can point to their pending legislation holding these Goliaths to account that the Republicans have stifled.
The central point of these proposals – among others available – is to energize Democratic candidates and enliven their repetitive daily campaign routines and rhetoric. It is time for the Dems to go on the offensive against the GOP’s made-up fake accusations and give a hungry media compelling substance. Reporters are tired of covering campaigns as horse races, and mainly reporting on campaign contributions and polling results.
Headlines could emerge by injecting fresh issues and slogans to grab more of the 120 million eligible voters who are expected to stay at home. Some examples follow.
“Go vote for a raise to $15 per hour, you’ve earned it and it’s long overdue.” The GOP hates the very idea of a minimum wage and has frozen the federal minimum at $7.25 per hour, while letting the likes of Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, make $833 per MINUTE with low tax rates! Raising the minimum wage will help over 25 million voters.
“Go vote to extend the $300 a month child tax credit that reached 58 million children and cut the child poverty rates by a third, until the Congressional GOP blocked its extension in January 2022.”
Democrats who show they mean what they say, stay on the offensive, and hone debating skills to provide memorable contrasts with the GOP can win a working majority in the legislatures to get things done. Moreover, exposing the GOP’s Death Cult that can’t help opposing the concrete existing and proposed health, safety and economic rights of American families, will motivate voters.
GOP Florida Senator Rick Scott, in charge of electing Republican Senators, wants to sunset laws, including Social Security and Medicare as indicated in his “An 11 Point Plan to Rescue America” (https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000017f-1cf5-d281-a7ff-3ffd5f4a0000). Run against this outrage daily.
These contrasts can be summarized on a single-sheet Voter Self-Help Guides distributed in the tens of millions everywhere on paper (and online). One side can poll the voters on a dozen positions. The other side can show that the Democratic candidate is “On Their Side” and the GOP candidate is not (supported by the facts and their record).
Together with civic leader Mark Green and two dozen experienced and accomplished civic advocates, we compiled a collection of such policies, strategies and messaging to attract voters and retire GOP candidates who follow their leader, Herr Trump, in further wrecking our fragile climate, democratic institutions, voting procedures and public health with their early denial of the Covid pandemic.
The Winning America effort has been endorsed by Senator Edward Markey, Reps. Hakim Jeffries, John Larson, Jim McGovern, Peter DeFazio, Jamie Raskin, and Carolyn Maloney, among others.
There is still time for candidates to listen, learn and self-galvanize electoral energies. The question is: Will Democrats in the close House, Senate and state legislative races be willing to break out of their managed cocoons and become Winning Monarch Butterflies on November 8, 2022?
Will the Democratic Party stop the GOP Party of Anxiety, Dread, and Fear from anointing Trump lackey Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as Speaker of the House and the corporatist Mitch McConnell (“The Guardian of Gridlock” who says he “will tell you what we’re doing to do AFTER we win the Election”) to resume his control of the Senate?
Voter turnout will decide which future awaits America.
See https://winningamerica.net/
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Southern Baptist President Bart Barber On 60 Minutes: Church attacked Sex Abuse Victims
Southern Baptist President Bart Barber On ‘60 Minutes’: Church ‘attacked’ Sex Abuse Victims https://digitalalabamanews.com/southern-baptist-president-bart-barber-on-60-minutes-church-attacked-sex-abuse-victims/
Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber spoke on a range of topics with Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes Sunday, giving his views on the church’s response to its sexual abuse scandal, his stance on abortion and gay rights, and his views on American politics.
Cooper visited with Barber at his Texas farm and at his church. Barber was elected in June to lead the nation’s largest Protestant denomination in the wake of a blistering 288-page independent probe, detailing how the convention’s leaders stonewalled and denigrated survivors of clergy sex abuse over two decades.
In the wake of that report, the convention voted to track pastors and other church workers credibly accused of sex abuse and launch a new task force to oversee further reforms.
“I believe that the Southern Baptist Convention faces some unique challenges right now,” Barber said. “I felt like God was calling me to try to give leadership at this moment, to help Southern Baptists move forward.”
When Cooper suggested that the convention had ignored victims of sexual abuse, Barber said the word was inadequate.
“We didn’t just ignore them,” he said.
“Sometimes we impugned their motives. Sometimes we attacked them. The reason why I’m president of the Southern Baptist Convention is because our churches do not agree with that, and have taken action to correct those things….I’m not doing this to try to accomplish some PR objective for us. I’m doing this because I want to serve God well.”
Barber said he did not vote for President Donald Trump in 2016, but did vote for him in 2020 because he agreed with Trump’s support for sentencing reform and his opposition to abortion. He said he does not believe the 2020 presidential election was stolen, and does believe that Joe Biden was legitimately elected.
“Absolutely, I pray for him consistently as the President of the United States,” he said of Biden, and indicated Trump endangered the life of Vice President Mike Pence during the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. “I want to be driven by the principles of Jesus Christ, and that does not involve mob violence,” Barber said.
Barber stopped short of endorsing any candidate for president in 2024, saying he felt a responsibility to the churches in his convention.
Cooper asked Barber about the recent case of a 10-year-old Ohio girl who had to travel to Indiana for an abortion. Would he have advocated for the 10-year-old to have the child? Yes, he said.
“I wish we could put an end to 10-year-olds being raped,” he said. “I see it as horrible, but I see it as preferable to killing someone else.”
When asked if he believed gays or lesbians can be converted out of same sex attraction, Barber said, “I believe that sinners should be converted out of being sinners, and that applies to all of us.”
In response to Cooper’s question as to whether a person can be a good Christian, a Southern Baptist, and be gay or lesbian and married to a person of the same sex, Barber said simply, “No.”
Over the weekend, Barber tweeted about his interactions with Cooper:
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Putin To Chair Russia Security Council Meeting After Humiliating Explosion On Strategic Crimea Bridge | CNN
Putin To Chair Russia Security Council Meeting After Humiliating Explosion On Strategic Crimea Bridge | CNN https://digitalalabamanews.com/putin-to-chair-russia-security-council-meeting-after-humiliating-explosion-on-strategic-crimea-bridge-cnn/
CNN —
Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold an operational meeting of his Security Council on Monday, just two days after a massive explosion on a key strategic bridge linking Crimea and Russia.
The meeting itself isn’t out of the ordinary – Putin regularly holds operational meetings with the Security Council, usually on a weekly basis, according to TASS. However, it comes just days after a major humiliation for the Russian President, when an explosion severely damaged parts of the road and rail bridge between annexed Crimea and the Russian Federation early Saturday.
And while the agenda has not been made public, the meeting comes at a strategic crossroads for the Kremlin, which must make a series of unenviable choices after Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine has faltered after a month of military setbacks.
Some road traffic and train traffic has resumed on the estimated $3.7 billion bridge. On Saturday, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said repair works on the bridge would be carried out around the clock, with a damage survey to be completed within a day and divers scheduled to check all the supports of the bridge.
The first passenger services resumed travel across the bridge on Saturday, traveling from the Crimean Peninsula to Krasnodar Krai in southern Russia, Russia’s Ministry of Transport said in a statement.
Car traffic on the bridge has also restarted in two lanes, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Marat Khusnullin said on Sunday. “Traffic has already been launched along two lanes on the Crimean bridge,” he wrote in a Telegram post, adding that earlier, one lane was being used for cars traveling in alternate directions, slowing down traffic. Heavy trucks, vans and buses have been traveling by ferry since the blast.
Kyiv has not claimed responsibility for the blast on the enormous 19-kilometer (about 12-mile) bridge, which was built after Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, an annexation regarded by the West as illegal.” The crossing was opened by Putin himself in 2018, and Ukrainian reaction to the explosion has been gleeful and triumphant.
Putin called the explosions on the Crimean bridge a “terrorist attack” and said the organizers and executors were “Ukrainian special services.”
“Here, as reported, we have no doubts that this is a terrorist attack aimed at the destruction of the critical infrastructure of Russian Federation. And authors, executors, and masterminds are the secret services of Ukraine,” Putin said during a meeting with Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin on Sunday.
A round of Russian missile strikes on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia killed 13 people early Sunday, including one child, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
At least 89 civilians, including 11 children, were injured, Oleksandr Starukh, head of Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said Sunday.
According to Tymoshenko, the rescue and search operations are still ongoing, they continue to get people out from under the rubble.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Sunday dismissed the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons in retaliation for the explosion on the bridge, Russian state media RIA Novosti reported.
Peskov was asked by RIA whether the attack on the bridge could trigger an activation of Russia’s nuclear doctrine because it was “aimed at destroying critical civilian infrastructure of the Russian Federation.”
“No. It’s a completely wrong formulation of the question,” Peskov said.
Ukraine’s military has been making dramatic advances in a counteroffensive – the Ukrainian military has recaptured 2,400 square kilometers of territory in Kherson region in the south of the country “since the beginning of the full-scale war,” a senior Ukrainian official said Friday, and Ukrainian troops are preparing for further advances into Russian-held Luhansk in the east, according to Serhiy Hayday, head of the Luhansk region’s Ukrainian military administration.
Hayday acknowledged photographs of Ukrainian troops outside the Luhansk village of Stelmakhivka, less than 20 kilometers (12 miles) northwest of the crucial post of Svatove.
But with a sudden and successful Ukrainian offensive comes concerns Putin will escalate Russia’s war in Ukraine, with US President Joe Biden expressing fears of the possible use of weapons of mass destruction.
“First time since the Cuban missile crisis, we have a direct threat of the use (of a) nuclear weapon if in fact things continue down the path they are going,” Biden warned during remarks at a Democratic fundraiser in New York on Friday.
He added: “I don’t think there’s any such thing as the ability to easily (use) a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up with Armageddon.”
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Full Transcript Of “Face The Nation” On Oct. 9, 2022 https://digitalalabamanews.com/full-transcript-of-face-the-nation-on-oct-9-2022-2/
On this “Face the Nation” broadcast moderated by Major Garrett:
Anthony Salvanto, CBS News director of election and surveys
Kari Lake, Republican gubernatorial candidate in Arizona
Kate Hobbs, Democratic gubernatorial candidate in Arizona
Peter Baker, Susan Glasser, Nikole Killion, Scott MacFarlane
Mohamed El-Erian, Allianz Chief Economic Adviser
Click here to browse full transcripts of “Face the Nation.”
MAJOR GARRETT: I’m Major Garrett.
And this week on Face the Nation, we will dive into one of the most closely watched governor’s races in the country and examine problems facing America at home and abroad.
We have new CBS polls in Michigan, Wisconsin and Arizona. And, in back-to- back appearances, we will hear from Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Katie Hobbs, as they are running dead even to be Arizona’s next governor. Our political panel will track this unique Arizona event and the week’s news.
Then: Financial markets remain jumpy, and recession anxieties got more fuel after the OPEC cartel cut oil production. We will check in with top economist Mohamed El-Erian about the road ahead.
Finally, a key bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula with Russia is destroyed. Ukrainians celebrate, while Russia fumes. What are Vladimir Putin’s options? Could one be battlefield nuclear weapons? We will have a report from the region.
It’s all just ahead on Face the Nation.
Good morning. Welcome to Face the Nation. Margaret Brennan is off.
We have new CBS Battleground Tracker polls from several key states. In Michigan, Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer is leading her Republican challenger, Tudor Dixon, 53 percent to 47 percent.
In Wisconsin, we’re tracking two statewide races. The governor’s race between Democratic incumbent Tony Evers and his Republican challenger, businessman Tim Michels, is deadlocked, with both candidates at 50 percent. In the Senate race, incumbent Republican Senator Ron Johnson is polling at 50 percent against his Democratic rival, Mandela Barnes, who is at 49 percent.
We also learned last week in Arizona incumbent Democratic Senator Mark Kelly is narrowly ahead of his Republican challenger, Blake Masters, 51 percent to 48 percent.
Joining us now to discuss all of this is CBS News elections and surveys director Anthony Salvanto.
Anthony, good morning. Catch us up on the dynamics of these Senate races.
ANTHONY SALVANTO: Good morning, Major.
So, Wisconsin and Arizona are two Senate races out of, I think, five that will ultimately determine control the chamber. So, they’re both close for reasons that are across all of these races. And that is, it’s the economy against abortion, which is to say, Democrats are winning voters who are concerned about abortion.
That’s happening in Wisconsin. Mandela Barnes is getting almost three- quarters of those who say it’s very important. And then the economy. Republicans are winning voters who say the economy is most important, going to punish the party in power. And that’s the Democrats. He’s getting almost two-thirds of them.
Now, having said that, each party is sort of jockeying to try to add another set of issues to that list. And on the Republican side, one of those is crime. So, they’re running attack ads. They’re trying to tie Democrats to this unpopular position — and it is unpopular in Wisconsin — of defunding the police.
And when voters perceive, if they perceive that Barnes supports defunding the police — again, that’s their perception — then they aren’t voting for him. And he’s behind Johnson on the idea of, will your — will their policies keep you safe?
Now, Democrats, for their part, would like to add this issue of election integrity, threats to democracy after the attempts to overturn 2020.
MAJOR GARRETT: Under that banner of threats to democracy, some Republicans won their primaries by denying or questioning the 2020 election.
To what degree is that position either being embraced or backed away from or having an effect on the general elections they find themselves in now?
ANTHONY SALVANTO: Well, look, for Republicans, it was almost a litmus test in their primaries. And they’re still supporting their candidates regardless of their stance.
There’s a little bit of evidence that the position of trying to overturn 2020 hurts Republicans in this sense, if you look at independents who believe that Ron Johnson — again, their perception — was trying to overturn the election, they’re not voting for him.
And the way it also connects is on candidate qualities. Take a look at Arizona. A majority of people say that they’d prefer their elected officials say that Joe Biden won, which he did. Now, when you look at voters who say that they think that the candidates are — or a Republican candidate is talking about 2020, they’re more likely to label that candidate as extreme, as opposed to mainstream.
And that goes towards candidate qualities, where Democrats have tended to have an advantage. Those are the dynamics all at work here.
MAJOR GARRETT: Anthony Salvanto, thank you very much.
ANTHONY SALVANTO: Thank you.
MAJOR GARRETT: Now to the race for governor of Arizona.
Our latest poll shows Democrat Katie Hobbs and Republican Kari Lake tied at 49 percent. The two candidates have not scheduled a debate, but they are here to answer our questions. Each candidate will have about eight-and-a- half minutes.
We intend to cover the same issues with each candidate, issues identified by our own polling as of leading concern to Arizona voters. Our ability to cover this ground, of course, will be influenced in no small measure by the length of the candidates’ answers, first Republican Kari Lake, who joins us from Phoenix.
Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation.
KARI LAKE (R-Arizona Gubernatorial Candidate): Good morning, Major. Thank you so much for having me on.
Just to clarify, I have agreed to any and all debates, and I will be taking part in one without my opponent next week, on the 12th. I would love it if she would show up, because I think there’s a lot of important issues that the people of Arizona need to hear about.
MAJOR GARRETT: We’ll get to that, I promise.
Your Web site is detailed and specific on the question of immigration and border security. You call, if elected as governor, for Arizona to join other states to form what you call a compact to carry out border security separate from the federal government, including arrest and detention.
For the benefit of Arizona voters, can you explain the legal and practical application of this approach?
KARI LAKE: Well, of course, if you know the Constitution, you know that Article 4, Section 4 calls for the federal government to protect us from invasion.
And under Joe Biden’s lack of leadership, we just aren’t seeing that. And we have an invasion at our border. The cartels, these narco terrorist groups have operational control. And they’re using Arizona to smuggle people, to traffic children, and to traffic the most dangerous drug we’ve ever seen, fentanyl.
And so we’re going to invoke our Article 1, Section 10, basically, authority to take care of our own border and protect our own border. It’s right there in black and white in the Constitution. And we meet all three criteria. We have an invasion, our people are in imminent danger, and time is of the essence. There’s no time for delay.
So we’re going to have other states offer help. I have already got a couple other governors who are willing to help out. And I know that if you ask people in other states that are not border states, they deem this crisis on the border as one of the top issues facing our country…
MAJOR GARRETT: Would Arizona…
KARI LAKE: … with so many young people dying of fentanyl poisoning right now.
MAJOR GARRETT: Would Arizona go it alone if it didn’t get this compact agreement with other states?
KARI LAKE: Yes, we will.
But I believe we will get help. I have already talked to some other governors. And they’re — they’re vowing to help us out wherever they can, because they realize that what comes into Arizona, fentanyl, people coming here illegally, children being trafficked, doesn’t stay in Arizona. It goes to all 50 states.
And I just spoke last week to a mother and father who lost their son. And it’s just tragic. We’re losing more people to fentanyl in Arizona since Joe Biden took office than we lost in 9/11 or during COVID.
MAJOR GARRETT: If, as there would likely be, federal challenges were presented, would you, as governor, await for those federal challenges to this state compact be resolved? And would you respect them if they were to any way impinge upon or restrict or nullify the state compact approach?
KARI LAKE: We will — we will challenge the federal government, if they’re going to challenge us. I think we have the right to do this.
And we will have attorneys file lawsuits as well. But we’re not going to back down and let our people be overrun with drugs, watch our children die. We had a 16-year-old die here in the metro area last week from a fentanyl overdose. We can’t keep having this happen. We’re losing our young generation.
So I hope that Joe Biden doesn’t fight us, because then it would really look like he is on the side of the cartels. And I don’t think he wants the people to think that.
MAJOR GARRETT: Your Web site also says that Washington D.C. incentivizes illegal immigration to satisfy — quote — “big business lust for cheap labor.”
Does that big business lust reside in Arizona at all?
KARI LAKE: I think it resides everywhere.
And we saw it with Nancy Pelosi last week. I mean, it was the most racist thing, I think, I have heard her say, although she’s said quite a few things that are offensive. She said these people coming in illegally should go pick fruit in the South. I mean, I couldn’t believe my ears, Major, when I heard that.
We...
