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solarbirdA pretty big list today.
----- 1 -----
The religious right is seriously flipping out over the Supreme Court ruling in favor of LGBTQ rights
As the week has worn on, the claims from religious leaders and hate groups have become more and more extreme.
By Bil Browning Wednesday, June 17, 2020
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2020/06/religious-right-seriously-flipping-supreme-court-ruling-favor-lgbtq-rights/
After the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of LGBTQ employment nondiscrimination rights, conservative groups and politicians quickly issued statements condemning the decision.
The religious right, however, is gnashing their teeth and rending their clothes in horror at the notion that they won’t be able to discriminate in the name of God. As the week has worn on, the visions of doom have only grown even more hysteric.
E.W. Jackson
Far-right extremist E.W. Jackson was the GOP candidate for Lt. Governor in Virginia and his Facebook post about the ruling is completely unhinged. Describing the judges as “degenerate leftists,” he said they “are engineering sweeping social depravity and confusion through judicial tyranny.”
“It is a declaration of war on the American people, our businesses, culture, Constitution and our Judeo-Christian values,” Jackson continues, saying firing an LGBTQ person is just “protecting your business” from “some mentally ill person.”
“This is truly devastating for our country. We are under a vicious demonic spiritual attack and we had better put on the whole armor of God,” he threw in for good measure.
----- 2 -----
EPA drops regulation for contaminant linked to infant brain damage
Science Jun 18, 2020 2:25 PM EDT
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/epa-drops-regulation-for-contaminant-linked-to-infant-brain-damage
The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday ended an Obama-era drive to regulate a widespread contaminant in drinking water linked to brain damage in infants. The agency rejected warnings that the move will mean lower IQs for an unknown number of American newborns.
Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s announcement was the latest in a series of Trump administration rollbacks or eliminations of existing or pending public health and environmental protections, targeting Obama administration initiatives in particular. The Trump administration says the regulations are burdensome to business and are unnecessary.
In a statement, Wheeler said the decision to drop the introduction of federal limits for perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel, ammunition and explosives, “fulfills President Trump’s promise to pare back burdensome ‘one-size-fits-all’ overregulation for the American people.”
Perchlorate from runoff contaminates the drinking water of as many as 16 million Americans, the Obama administration said in 2011 when it announced the EPA would act to set maximum limits for perchlorate for the first time.
----- 3 -----
AltUSDA
twitter.com/altusda
19 June 2020
Wow. This is Big! twitter.com/IAGovernor, who has been pandering to Tyson Foods throughout #covid19 response, had planning calls with Tyson lobbyist who donated thousands to her campaign as well as Tyson employees who donated. https://kcci.com/article/kcci-investigates-who-was-involved-in-high-level-conversations-about-covid-19-outbreaks-at-meatpacking-plants/32907360
Great work by twitter.com/LaurenDonovanTV
[LINKS TO:
https://www.kcci.com/article/kcci-investigates-who-was-involved-in-high-level-conversations-about-covid-19-outbreaks-at-meatpacking-plants/32907360
KCCI Investigates: Who was involved in high-level conversations about COVID-19 outbreaks at meatpacking plants
Lauren Donovan
WATERLOO, Iowa —
KCCI 8 News investigated who was involved in conversations with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds following COVID-19 outbreaks at meatpacking plants across Iowa.
]
----- 4 -----
ACLU of Tennessee
twitter.com/aclutn
19 June 2020
https://twitter.com/aclutn/status/1273847252910514177
BREAKING: Tennessee lawmakers just passed an unconstitutional law effectively outlawing all abortion in our state.
Governor Lee, as promised, we will see you in court.
Our statement:
ACLU-TN Statement on Passage of Abortion Ban Legislation
[LINKS TO:
https://www.aclu-tn.org/tga-passes-abortion-ban-legislation/
]
----- 5 -----
The Burning of the Greenwood District
https://rollership.tumblr.com/post/621367451798683648/thesociologicalcinema-a-white-mob-bombed-and
A white mob bombed and burned 35 city blocks in the Greenwood district of Tulsa, which was composed of 1,256 residences. During the 16 hours of the assault, some 300 people were killed, over 800 people were admitted to local hospitals with injuries, and an estimated 10,000 were left homeless.
So intent was the white mob on destroying Greenwood that they stopped firefighters from getting to the blazes. Firefighters testifying in an insurance case several years later said they were threatened and even shot at when they arrived on the scene of the earliest fires. Later, they received orders from Fire Chief R.C. Alder not to respond to alarms from the black district because of the danger. That order remained in effect until the fires were out of control, 1921.
----- 6 -----
Scientists Warn Against Consumer Protection Nominee
June 16, 2020
Rebecca Hersher
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/06/16/876309425/scientists-warn-against-consumer-protection-nominee
President Trump's nominee to lead the Consumer Product Safety Commission is Nancy Beck, a toxicologist who currently leads chemical and pesticide regulation at the Environmental Protection Agency.
The CPSC is the top federal consumer watchdog in the country. Its five-member board, which Beck will lead for seven years if she is confirmed, is responsible for reviewing safety information and collecting injury reports for more than 15,000 types of products, from baby toys to sports equipment to home appliances.
The commissioners oversee product recalls and safety bulletins, as well as gather information about potentially dangerous products.
The Trump administration cited Beck's scientific training and long career working on science and health policy for the federal government in its nomination announcement. But many scientists and public health experts say Beck has not adequately protected the public from toxic chemicals and pollution over the course of her career.
"When I heard that Nancy Beck was nominated to head the CPSC, I was truly and profoundly concerned," says Rachel Weintraub, the legislative director for the Consumer Federation of America, which advocates for safe products. "[Beck's] record is one of thwarting consumer protections, mostly in the realm of toxic chemicals."
Last week, a group of more than 90 leading scientists, including the former head of the federal National Toxicology Program, signed a letter arguing that Beck's work at the EPA "consistently disregarded scientific best practices, favor[ed] chemical manufacturers, and put vulnerable people in harm's way."
----- 7 -----
How Trump plans to turn around his losing campaign
By Michael Warren, Dana Bash, Ryan Nobles and Jeremy Diamond, CNN
Updated 3:32 PM ET, Fri June 19, 2020
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/19/politics/trump-turn-around-losing-campaign/index.html
Washington (CNN)Earlier this month, several top Trump campaign advisers gathered for a virtual strategy session to address a political reality they could no longer ignore: The President was in serious trouble.
For weeks, the collective trauma of the coronavirus, the resulting recession and the simmering unrest over racism and police brutality had eroded Trump's approval rating and given his presumptive Democratic opponent Joe Biden a sizeable early lead.
It was clear that a reset was in order.
But as dire as things seemed, there was also a sense of cool confidence that pervaded the meeting, according to two people who were aware of the discussion. With a touch of gallows humor, strategist David Bossie joked that at this point in 2016, Trump hadn't even fired his then-campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. In other words, there was plenty of time for a turnaround.
The message that emerged from the meeting was simple -- Trump needed to get back on the road and show voters the country is ready to reopen. The campaign settled on pushing a clear message of America's comeback and distilled the idea into three words: "Renewing. Restoring. Rebuilding." That means leaning hard into Trump's economic track record, which polling shows remains his biggest strength among voters. The campaign will also take every opportunity to define Biden as weak, ineffectual and hiding in his basement.
...
But aides say Tulsa is about something far more important: giving Trump the adulation he craves and reenergizing him after weeks spent wallowing in sagging poll numbers and critical media coverage.
"I guarantee you after Saturday, if everything goes well, he's going to be in a much better mood," a Trump political adviser said. "He believes that he needs to be out there fighting and he feeds off the energy of the crowds."
----- 8 -----
Trump to visit Arizona, Wisconsin next week
By Brett Samuels - 06/19/20
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/503640-trump-to-visit-arizona-wisconsin-next-week
Oklahoma venue management asks Trump campaign for health plan ahead of rally
Pompeo slams Bolton account as spreading 'lies,' 'fully-spun half-truths' and 'falsehoods'
Twitter flags Trump tweet featuring fake CNN chyron as 'manipulated media'
MORE
will visit Arizona and Wisconsin next week, White House officials said Friday, traveling to a pair of swing states where recent polls show him trailing presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Trump will visit a section of border wall in Yuma, Ariz., on Tuesday along with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials before attending a "Students for Trump" event in Phoenix. The latter event is being hosted by Turning Point USA, a conservative group that has hosted the president at its gatherings multiple times.
Arizona has seen a spike in coronavirus cases in recent days, though it's unlikely Trump will focus on that during his visit.
On Thursday, Trump will travel to Wisconsin. He will visit a shipyard in Marinette that the Trump administration selected to build 10 new ships for a multi-billion dollar contract, according to local reports.
Both trips will be official White House events, though Trump is certain to touch on the 2020 race as he seeks to make his case to voters amid the sagging poll numbers.
----- 9 -----
Susan Rice: Trump administration 'has been racist to its core'
by Andrea Mitchell
19 June 2020
https://www.msnbc.com/andrea-mitchell-reports/watch/susan-rice-trump-administration-has-been-racist-to-its-core-85452869937
Susan Rice, former National Security Advisor and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. under Barack Obama, joins Andrea Mitchell to discuss the Trump administration's ability to address issues of race and police brutality in America, and respond to some of the revelations from John Bolton's book concerning the way the President Trump conducts foreign policy.
[VIDEO STORY - EMBEDDED VIDEO AT LINK]
----- 10 -----
Nashville police investigate anti-Semitic vandalism at Holocaust memorial as civil rights intimidation
Brinley Hineman
Nashville Tennessean
16 June 2020
https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2020/06/16/nashville-police-investigate-anti-semitic-vandalism-holocaust-memorial/3196443001/
After vandals left a vulgar, anti-Semitic message on the walls of the Nashville Holocaust Memorial at the Gordon Jewish Community Center on Saturday, the Metro Nashville Police Department has increased patrol and is investigating the defacement as civil rights intimidation.
The words, spray-painted in black on a white bed sheet, scrawled vulgar insults in a message of hate.
MNPD spokeswoman Kris Mumford said that the department's specialized investigation division was investigating.
Police received the call around 5:15 p.m. Saturday. Although it's not believed any witnesses saw the vandals, there is security video footage of the defacement, which authorities are reviewing.
"It happened in broad daylight," Mumford said.
- The religious right is seriously flipping out over the Supreme Court ruling in favor of LGBTQ rights
- EPA drops regulation for contaminant linked to infant brain damage
- Iowa governor Kim Reynolds had COVID-19 planning calls with Tyson lobbyist who donated thousands to her campaign
- Tennessee passes comprehensive abortion ban
- The Burning of the Greenwood District
- Scientists Warn Against Consumer Protection Nominee
- How Trump plans to turn around his losing campaign
- Trump to visit Arizona, Wisconsin next week
- Susan Rice: Trump administration 'has been racist to its core'
- Nashville police investigate anti-Semitic vandalism at Holocaust memorial as civil rights intimidation
----- 1 -----
The religious right is seriously flipping out over the Supreme Court ruling in favor of LGBTQ rights
As the week has worn on, the claims from religious leaders and hate groups have become more and more extreme.
By Bil Browning Wednesday, June 17, 2020
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2020/06/religious-right-seriously-flipping-supreme-court-ruling-favor-lgbtq-rights/
After the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of LGBTQ employment nondiscrimination rights, conservative groups and politicians quickly issued statements condemning the decision.
The religious right, however, is gnashing their teeth and rending their clothes in horror at the notion that they won’t be able to discriminate in the name of God. As the week has worn on, the visions of doom have only grown even more hysteric.
E.W. Jackson
Far-right extremist E.W. Jackson was the GOP candidate for Lt. Governor in Virginia and his Facebook post about the ruling is completely unhinged. Describing the judges as “degenerate leftists,” he said they “are engineering sweeping social depravity and confusion through judicial tyranny.”
“It is a declaration of war on the American people, our businesses, culture, Constitution and our Judeo-Christian values,” Jackson continues, saying firing an LGBTQ person is just “protecting your business” from “some mentally ill person.”
“This is truly devastating for our country. We are under a vicious demonic spiritual attack and we had better put on the whole armor of God,” he threw in for good measure.
----- 2 -----
EPA drops regulation for contaminant linked to infant brain damage
Science Jun 18, 2020 2:25 PM EDT
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/epa-drops-regulation-for-contaminant-linked-to-infant-brain-damage
The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday ended an Obama-era drive to regulate a widespread contaminant in drinking water linked to brain damage in infants. The agency rejected warnings that the move will mean lower IQs for an unknown number of American newborns.
Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s announcement was the latest in a series of Trump administration rollbacks or eliminations of existing or pending public health and environmental protections, targeting Obama administration initiatives in particular. The Trump administration says the regulations are burdensome to business and are unnecessary.
In a statement, Wheeler said the decision to drop the introduction of federal limits for perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel, ammunition and explosives, “fulfills President Trump’s promise to pare back burdensome ‘one-size-fits-all’ overregulation for the American people.”
Perchlorate from runoff contaminates the drinking water of as many as 16 million Americans, the Obama administration said in 2011 when it announced the EPA would act to set maximum limits for perchlorate for the first time.
----- 3 -----
AltUSDA
twitter.com/altusda
19 June 2020
Wow. This is Big! twitter.com/IAGovernor, who has been pandering to Tyson Foods throughout #covid19 response, had planning calls with Tyson lobbyist who donated thousands to her campaign as well as Tyson employees who donated. https://kcci.com/article/kcci-investigates-who-was-involved-in-high-level-conversations-about-covid-19-outbreaks-at-meatpacking-plants/32907360
Great work by twitter.com/LaurenDonovanTV
[LINKS TO:
https://www.kcci.com/article/kcci-investigates-who-was-involved-in-high-level-conversations-about-covid-19-outbreaks-at-meatpacking-plants/32907360
KCCI Investigates: Who was involved in high-level conversations about COVID-19 outbreaks at meatpacking plants
Lauren Donovan
WATERLOO, Iowa —
KCCI 8 News investigated who was involved in conversations with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds following COVID-19 outbreaks at meatpacking plants across Iowa.
]
----- 4 -----
ACLU of Tennessee
twitter.com/aclutn
19 June 2020
https://twitter.com/aclutn/status/1273847252910514177
BREAKING: Tennessee lawmakers just passed an unconstitutional law effectively outlawing all abortion in our state.
Governor Lee, as promised, we will see you in court.
Our statement:
ACLU-TN Statement on Passage of Abortion Ban Legislation
[LINKS TO:
https://www.aclu-tn.org/tga-passes-abortion-ban-legislation/
]
----- 5 -----
The Burning of the Greenwood District
https://rollership.tumblr.com/post/621367451798683648/thesociologicalcinema-a-white-mob-bombed-and
A white mob bombed and burned 35 city blocks in the Greenwood district of Tulsa, which was composed of 1,256 residences. During the 16 hours of the assault, some 300 people were killed, over 800 people were admitted to local hospitals with injuries, and an estimated 10,000 were left homeless.
So intent was the white mob on destroying Greenwood that they stopped firefighters from getting to the blazes. Firefighters testifying in an insurance case several years later said they were threatened and even shot at when they arrived on the scene of the earliest fires. Later, they received orders from Fire Chief R.C. Alder not to respond to alarms from the black district because of the danger. That order remained in effect until the fires were out of control, 1921.
----- 6 -----
Scientists Warn Against Consumer Protection Nominee
June 16, 2020
Rebecca Hersher
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/06/16/876309425/scientists-warn-against-consumer-protection-nominee
President Trump's nominee to lead the Consumer Product Safety Commission is Nancy Beck, a toxicologist who currently leads chemical and pesticide regulation at the Environmental Protection Agency.
The CPSC is the top federal consumer watchdog in the country. Its five-member board, which Beck will lead for seven years if she is confirmed, is responsible for reviewing safety information and collecting injury reports for more than 15,000 types of products, from baby toys to sports equipment to home appliances.
The commissioners oversee product recalls and safety bulletins, as well as gather information about potentially dangerous products.
The Trump administration cited Beck's scientific training and long career working on science and health policy for the federal government in its nomination announcement. But many scientists and public health experts say Beck has not adequately protected the public from toxic chemicals and pollution over the course of her career.
"When I heard that Nancy Beck was nominated to head the CPSC, I was truly and profoundly concerned," says Rachel Weintraub, the legislative director for the Consumer Federation of America, which advocates for safe products. "[Beck's] record is one of thwarting consumer protections, mostly in the realm of toxic chemicals."
Last week, a group of more than 90 leading scientists, including the former head of the federal National Toxicology Program, signed a letter arguing that Beck's work at the EPA "consistently disregarded scientific best practices, favor[ed] chemical manufacturers, and put vulnerable people in harm's way."
----- 7 -----
How Trump plans to turn around his losing campaign
By Michael Warren, Dana Bash, Ryan Nobles and Jeremy Diamond, CNN
Updated 3:32 PM ET, Fri June 19, 2020
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/19/politics/trump-turn-around-losing-campaign/index.html
Washington (CNN)Earlier this month, several top Trump campaign advisers gathered for a virtual strategy session to address a political reality they could no longer ignore: The President was in serious trouble.
For weeks, the collective trauma of the coronavirus, the resulting recession and the simmering unrest over racism and police brutality had eroded Trump's approval rating and given his presumptive Democratic opponent Joe Biden a sizeable early lead.
It was clear that a reset was in order.
But as dire as things seemed, there was also a sense of cool confidence that pervaded the meeting, according to two people who were aware of the discussion. With a touch of gallows humor, strategist David Bossie joked that at this point in 2016, Trump hadn't even fired his then-campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. In other words, there was plenty of time for a turnaround.
The message that emerged from the meeting was simple -- Trump needed to get back on the road and show voters the country is ready to reopen. The campaign settled on pushing a clear message of America's comeback and distilled the idea into three words: "Renewing. Restoring. Rebuilding." That means leaning hard into Trump's economic track record, which polling shows remains his biggest strength among voters. The campaign will also take every opportunity to define Biden as weak, ineffectual and hiding in his basement.
...
But aides say Tulsa is about something far more important: giving Trump the adulation he craves and reenergizing him after weeks spent wallowing in sagging poll numbers and critical media coverage.
"I guarantee you after Saturday, if everything goes well, he's going to be in a much better mood," a Trump political adviser said. "He believes that he needs to be out there fighting and he feeds off the energy of the crowds."
----- 8 -----
Trump to visit Arizona, Wisconsin next week
By Brett Samuels - 06/19/20
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/503640-trump-to-visit-arizona-wisconsin-next-week
Oklahoma venue management asks Trump campaign for health plan ahead of rally
Pompeo slams Bolton account as spreading 'lies,' 'fully-spun half-truths' and 'falsehoods'
Twitter flags Trump tweet featuring fake CNN chyron as 'manipulated media'
MORE
will visit Arizona and Wisconsin next week, White House officials said Friday, traveling to a pair of swing states where recent polls show him trailing presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Trump will visit a section of border wall in Yuma, Ariz., on Tuesday along with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials before attending a "Students for Trump" event in Phoenix. The latter event is being hosted by Turning Point USA, a conservative group that has hosted the president at its gatherings multiple times.
Arizona has seen a spike in coronavirus cases in recent days, though it's unlikely Trump will focus on that during his visit.
On Thursday, Trump will travel to Wisconsin. He will visit a shipyard in Marinette that the Trump administration selected to build 10 new ships for a multi-billion dollar contract, according to local reports.
Both trips will be official White House events, though Trump is certain to touch on the 2020 race as he seeks to make his case to voters amid the sagging poll numbers.
----- 9 -----
Susan Rice: Trump administration 'has been racist to its core'
by Andrea Mitchell
19 June 2020
https://www.msnbc.com/andrea-mitchell-reports/watch/susan-rice-trump-administration-has-been-racist-to-its-core-85452869937
Susan Rice, former National Security Advisor and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. under Barack Obama, joins Andrea Mitchell to discuss the Trump administration's ability to address issues of race and police brutality in America, and respond to some of the revelations from John Bolton's book concerning the way the President Trump conducts foreign policy.
[VIDEO STORY - EMBEDDED VIDEO AT LINK]
----- 10 -----
Nashville police investigate anti-Semitic vandalism at Holocaust memorial as civil rights intimidation
Brinley Hineman
Nashville Tennessean
16 June 2020
https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2020/06/16/nashville-police-investigate-anti-semitic-vandalism-holocaust-memorial/3196443001/
After vandals left a vulgar, anti-Semitic message on the walls of the Nashville Holocaust Memorial at the Gordon Jewish Community Center on Saturday, the Metro Nashville Police Department has increased patrol and is investigating the defacement as civil rights intimidation.
The words, spray-painted in black on a white bed sheet, scrawled vulgar insults in a message of hate.
MNPD spokeswoman Kris Mumford said that the department's specialized investigation division was investigating.
Police received the call around 5:15 p.m. Saturday. Although it's not believed any witnesses saw the vandals, there is security video footage of the defacement, which authorities are reviewing.
"It happened in broad daylight," Mumford said.
