thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--CDC Official Says She Was Ordered To Delete Email: Probe

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — A senior manager with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told congressional investigators she was ordered to delete an email suggesting attempted political interference by the Trump administration in coronavirus reports to the public , according to a transcript released Thursday .
Rep. James Clyburn , D-S.C. , who released the partial transcript , said the testimony of Dr. Charlotte Kent raises “ serious concern about what may be deliberate efforts by the Trump administration to conceal and destroy evidence that senior political appointees interfered with career officials ’ response to the coronavirus crisis.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Director Robert Redfield ordered the deletion of the email .
In a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar , Clyburn accused the administration of trying to obstruct his investigation and threatened to issue subpoenas to compel the release of documents .
Clyburn chairs a special House panel empowered to broadly examine the coronavirus crisis and the government ’ s response .
HHS also released a brief statement from Redfield in which he said he had instructed agency staffers to ignore the email but did not mention ordering its deletion .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to an email sent to the CDC from a now-departed HHS adviser , Dr. Paul Alexander .
Working with then-HHS top spokesperson Michael Caputo , Alexander was brought into the department at a time of high tension between White House officials and Azar .
Caputo and Alexander represented the White House at HHS , a bureaucracy that President Donald Trump was deeply suspicious of .
Kent occupies a high perch in that bureaucracy as CDC ’ s chief of scientific publications and editor-in-chief of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report , or MMWR , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interest to the medical community .
MMWR has become a flashpoint for controversy under Trump .
According to documents released by Clyburn ’ s committee , Alexander fired off an Aug. 8 email demanding that CDC go back into a scientific report it had already published about coronavirus risks to children and splice in new language , or “ pull it down and stop all reports immediately.
” The email went on to say that “ CDC tried to report as if once kids get together , there will be spread and this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ misleading by CDC and shame on them .
Their aim is clear .
… This is designed to hurt this Presidnet for their reasons which I am not interested in.
” Alexander apparently misspelled the word “ president.
” Kent told congressional investigators that the email was addressed to her , Redfield and possibly others .
She said she was ordered to delete it the following day , a Sunday .
But when she went to look for it , it was already gone .
Kent testified that she believed the order to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It was transmitted to her through another official .
Redfield said Thursday in a statement that “ regarding the email in question , I instructed CDC staff to ignore Dr. Alexander ’ s comments .
As I testified before Congress , I am fully committed to maintaining the independence of the MMWR , and I stand by that statement.
” The CDC director , a political appointee , has also been the target of blistering criticism from Trump , who once called Redfield “ confused ” for accurately saying a coronavirus vaccine might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Kent told congressional investigators she was fully aware that Alexander ’ s email was the type of communication that would normally be kept by the agency , not deleted .

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A senior manager with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told congressional investigators she was ordered to delete an email suggesting attempted political interference by the Trump administration in coronavirus reports to the public, according to a transcript released Thursday.
Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., who released the partial transcript, said the testimony of Dr. Charlotte Kent raises “serious concern about what may be deliberate efforts by the Trump administration to conceal and destroy evidence that senior political appointees interfered with career officials’ response to the coronavirus crisis.” Kent testified that she believed CDC Director Robert Redfield ordered the deletion of the email.
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In a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, Clyburn accused the administration of trying to obstruct his investigation and threatened to issue subpoenas to compel the release of documents. Clyburn chairs a special House panel empowered to broadly examine the coronavirus crisis and the government’s response.
HHS said in a statement that Clyburn’s committee is “not operating in good faith” and called its portrayal of the CDC official’s testimony “irresponsible.”
HHS also released a brief statement from Redfield in which he said he had instructed agency staffers to ignore the email but did not mention ordering its deletion.
The ranking Republican on the investigative panel, Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, said Democrats have found “zero evidence of actual interference in CDC scientific reports.”
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As required by law, federal officials are supposed to be scrupulous about retaining records.
At issue is what happened last summer to an email sent to the CDC from a now-departed HHS adviser, Dr. Paul Alexander. Working with then-HHS top spokesperson Michael Caputo, Alexander was brought into the department at a time of high tension between White House officials and Azar. Caputo and Alexander represented the White House at HHS, a bureaucracy that President Donald Trump was deeply suspicious of.
Kent occupies a high perch in that bureaucracy as CDC’s chief of scientific publications and editor-in-chief of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, or MMWR, a publication that tracks disease trends of interest to the medical community.
MMWR has become a flashpoint for controversy under Trump. According to documents released by Clyburn’s committee, Alexander fired off an Aug. 8 email demanding that CDC go back into a scientific report it had already published about coronavirus risks to children and splice in new language, or “pull it down and stop all reports immediately.”
The email went on to say that “CDC tried to report as if once kids get together, there will be spread and this will impact school reopening.
“Very misleading by CDC and shame on them. Their aim is clear. … This is designed to hurt this Presidnet for their reasons which I am not interested in.” Alexander apparently misspelled the word “president.”
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Kent told congressional investigators that the email was addressed to her, Redfield and possibly others. She said she was ordered to delete it the following day, a Sunday.
But when she went to look for it, it was already gone.
Kent testified that she believed the order to delete the email came from Redfield. It was transmitted to her through another official.
Redfield said Thursday in a statement that “regarding the email in question, I instructed CDC staff to ignore Dr. Alexander’s comments. As I testified before Congress, I am fully committed to maintaining the independence of the MMWR, and I stand by that statement.”
The CDC director, a political appointee, has also been the target of blistering criticism from Trump, who once called Redfield “confused” for accurately saying a coronavirus vaccine might not be widely available until next year.
Kent told congressional investigators she was fully aware that Alexander’s email was the type of communication that would normally be kept by the agency, not deleted.
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“I considered this to be very unusual,” she said, according to the partial transcript released by Clyburn.
Certain “persons in the agency, like center directors and the director, their email, you know, cannot be deleted,” she said.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine Passes Last Big Hurdle In FDA Review

A panel of independent experts advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday recommended overwhelmingly that the agency authorize Pfizer ’ s COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the U.S .
The panel spent the day reviewing data on Pfizer ’ s breakthrough vaccine , based on clinical trials that have been running this year .
In the trials , the vaccine reduced the incidence of symptoms and confirmed cases of the coronavirus by 95 % , with only “ mild to moderate ” side effects including arm pain , fatigue and temporary fever .
The final vote was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ abstention .
The main concern among those voting no was the recommendation to authorize use for those ages 16 and up .
Given the lack of data on 16- and 17-year-olds , some members of the committee thought the cutoff should begin at 18 .
The committee ’ s recommendation now goes to the FDA itself , which is expected to agree and authorize the vaccine ― most likely in the next few days .
Shipment and distribution of the shots would then begin immediately , federal officials have said .
If the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go-ahead , it will be through an “ emergency use authorization ” that allows for expedited review in cases of dire medical need ― something that is very much the case right now , with the U.S. setting daily records for hospitalizations and deaths .
“ We have been looking forward to presenting our robust data package to the committee of vaccine experts for the U.S. government since we began our efforts to develop a novel COVID-19 vaccine earlier this year , ” Albert Bourla , Pfizer ’ s chairman and CEO , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are pleased with the vote , and if the FDA issues an authorization , stand at the ready to bring this vaccine to people in the U.S. in an effort to help combat this devastating pandemic.
” Next week the advisory committee will review data from a similar vaccine , manufactured by Moderna , that has shown similar results .
It , too , is expected to get a recommendation and then authorization from the agency .
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are the first to use messenger RNA , or mRNA , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ material into the body of recipients , causing them to produce proteins that are part of the coronavirus .
The immune system reacts so that , when it encounters the full virus for real , it can fight off the disease .
The speedy development of these vaccines and several others represents a remarkable , unprecedented scientific achievement .
But distributing and then administering the vaccines are a whole separate challenge .
Health care workers and elderly residents of long-term care facilities will be the first to get the shots , followed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government has issued .
But as the supply ramps up , vaccines will become available to the rest of the population ― and it ’ s an open question how well federal , state and local authorities will be able to handle that kind of volume .
“ We are grateful to the scientists and public health experts who evaluated the safety and efficacy of this vaccine free from political influence , ” Biden said in a statement .
He continued : “ Vaccines don ’ t equal vaccinations .
Our challenge now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to distribute 100 million shots in the first 100 days of my administration .
”

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A panel of independent experts advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday recommended overwhelmingly that the agency authorize Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the U.S.
The panel spent the day reviewing data on Pfizer’s breakthrough vaccine, based on clinical trials that have been running this year. In the trials, the vaccine reduced the incidence of symptoms and confirmed cases of the coronavirus by 95%, with only “mild to moderate” side effects including arm pain, fatigue and temporary fever.
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The final vote was 17 yes, 4 no and 1 abstention. The main concern among those voting no was the recommendation to authorize use for those ages 16 and up. Given the lack of data on 16- and 17-year-olds, some members of the committee thought the cutoff should begin at 18.
The committee’s recommendation now goes to the FDA itself, which is expected to agree and authorize the vaccine ― most likely in the next few days. Shipment and distribution of the shots would then begin immediately, federal officials have said.
If the FDA gives Pfizer’s vaccine the go-ahead, it will be through an “emergency use authorization” that allows for expedited review in cases of dire medical need ― something that is very much the case right now, with the U.S. setting daily records for hospitalizations and deaths.
“We have been looking forward to presenting our robust data package to the committee of vaccine experts for the U.S. government since we began our efforts to develop a novel COVID-19 vaccine earlier this year,” Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement. “We are pleased with the vote, and if the FDA issues an authorization, stand at the ready to bring this vaccine to people in the U.S. in an effort to help combat this devastating pandemic.”
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Next week the advisory committee will review data from a similar vaccine, manufactured by Moderna, that has shown similar results. It, too, is expected to get a recommendation and then authorization from the agency.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are the first to use messenger RNA, or mRNA, technology, which delivers specially engineered genetic material into the body of recipients, causing them to produce proteins that are part of the coronavirus. The immune system reacts so that, when it encounters the full virus for real, it can fight off the disease.
The speedy development of these vaccines and several others represents a remarkable, unprecedented scientific achievement. But distributing and then administering the vaccines are a whole separate challenge.
Health care workers and elderly residents of long-term care facilities will be the first to get the shots, followed by essential workers, under guidelines the federal government has issued. But as the supply ramps up, vaccines will become available to the rest of the population ― and it’s an open question how well federal, state and local authorities will be able to handle that kind of volume.
President-elect Joe Biden said Thursday that the panel’s recommendation was a “bright light in a needlessly dark time.”
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--All These Countries Played A Part In Delivering The Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 Vaccine

The nurse who administered the first dose The company that financed the vaccine The people actually producing the vaccine The @ @ @ @ @ arrived from Belgium on Thursday , and must be kept at around -70C before they @ @ @ @ @ .
The window within which they remain viable is relatively narrow , placing increased pressure @ @ @ @ @ as many vaccines as possible within a tight timeframe .
The tiny town of Puurs @ @ @ @ @ worldwide distribution of a Covid-19 vaccine .
According to Politico , Brussels Airport was one @ @ @ @ @ certified by the International Air Transport Association for cargo transport of pharmaceuticals , and around @ @ @ @ @ s pharmaceutical production is exported outside of the EU .
The team who discovered the @ @ @ @ @ itself The scientists who discovered how to produce this type of vaccine

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All eyes were on Coventry Hospital early on Tuesday morning as 90-year-old Margaret Keenan became the first patient in the world to be injected with Pfizer/BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine.
“If I can have it at 90 then you can have it too,” she told the crowd of reporters who had gathered to capture the very start of the nation’s largest ever immunisation programme.
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The NHS has been widely praised for mobilising within a matter of days to start delivering jabs to some of the nation’s most vulnerable people, with plans for millions of people to have received the vaccine before Christmas.
But despite what Gavin Williamson and Alok Sharma say, the team behind its development, manufacturing, funding and delivery is a truly global one – relying on work that has been in progress for decades.
Here’s a look at the people around the world who have got us to this point:
The nurse who administered the first dose
On Tuesday morning May Parsons, who has worked for the NHS since arriving in the UK from the Philippines 17 years ago, became the first nurse ever to administer a Covid-19 vaccine to a patient.
She told ITV: “I’m really glad to be telling all the Filipinos in this country and everywhere in the world that we can make a difference and we do make positive contributions to humanity as it were.
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‘I was so proud to contribute to stopping the pandemic.’
May Parsons is the nurse to give the first Covid-19 vaccine in the world.
She’s worked at the trust in Coventry for 17 years since she arrived in the UK from the Philippines.
She speaks exclusively to @SwainITV. pic.twitter.com/sCL9VxDx8O — Good Morning Britain (@GMB) December 8, 2020
“I think it’s a historical event for Filipinos all across the globe, for making sure we’re all proud of what we’ve achieved, what we contribute to everyone and the care we give.
“I’m very proud to be saying to everyone that I’m a Filipino Briton today making history.”
There are more than 18,500 people of Filipino heritage currently working across the NHS, making up almost 2% of the total workforce – the third largest ethnic group following White British and Indian.
NHS workers from the Philippines have been disproportionally impacted by Covid-19, with a Nursing Times article from June quoting an estimate of around 50 coronavirus deaths among Filipino NHS staff.
The scientists who founded BioNTech
Özlem Tureci (l) and Ugur Sahin (r) shown on screen during an awards ceremony in early December. picture alliance via Getty Images
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Married couple Özlem Tureci and Ugur Sahin became billionaires in an instant after their startup BioNTech developed the successful vaccine being rolled out in the UK.
Both born into Turkish families who had emigrated to Germany, Tureci and Sahin met while working on an oncology ward in Homburg, and launched the company in 2008 after finding surprising gaps between medical advances and what was available to medical staff, the Washington Post reported.
With a team of 1,000 people working round the clock, within a month BioNTech had developed 20 candidate vaccines, before narrowing those down to four. Tureci and Sahin didn’t have the financial resources needed to fund trials, so turned to Pfizer, who they had already worked on flu vaccines with in the past.
The company also received a $442million (£331.3m) grant from the German government to help develop the vaccine, Forbes reported.
Speaking to the Washington Post before the rollout in the UK, Sahin said: “This is a new virus and a completely new situation for mankind.
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“That provides an opportunity to prove that the technology works and works faster than existing technologies.”
The company that financed the vaccine
A woman walks in front of Pfizer headquarters in New York City. VIEW press via Getty Images
While BioNTech produced the vaccine, the trials and production couldn’t have been facilitate without the financial support of a huge investor – which is where US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer comes in.
While the UK was the first country to approve the vaccine for use, as the New Scientist reports, the company has also applied for regulatory approval in the US, EU, Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand.
Founded in 1849 in New York City, the company produces a vast array of pharmaceutical products which are distributed worldwide. It used to employ 2,400 at a site in Sandwich, Kent, and still run a research unit in Cambridge, but its operations in the UK have been significantly scaled back in recent years.
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While several companies, such as Moderna, have secured government funding from the US government, Pfizer used $1billion of its own money to invest in the Covid-19 vaccine (£752m).
“A billion dollars is not going to break us,” CEO Albert Bourla told Forbes earlier in 2020.
The people actually producing the vaccine
Trucks are loaded at a Pfizer factory in Puurs, Belgium where Covid-19 vaccines are being produced for Britain. KENZO TRIBOUILLARD via Getty Images
Designed in Germany, funded by a US company, the vaccine itself is now being manufactured in Belgium at Pfizer’s Puurs factory.
According to the Brussels Times, the production of the jab has led to 150 new workers being employed by Pfizer at the site, where millions of doses have already been manufactured ready for shipping to the UK.
The first batch of vaccine vials arrived from Belgium on Thursday, and must be kept at around -70C before they are thawed ready for use. The window within which they remain viable is relatively narrow, placing increased pressure on the NHS to deliver as many vaccines as possible within a tight timeframe.
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In an interview with Politico, Pfizer spokesperson Koen Colpaert said Belgium had been picked as a site of investment by the company due its “high-tech expertise and training of its staff and the high level of academic research.”
The tiny town of Puurs is also conveniently located for worldwide distribution of a Covid-19 vaccine. According to Politico, Brussels Airport was one of the first to be certified by the International Air Transport Association for cargo transport of pharmaceuticals, and around half of the nation’s pharmaceutical production is exported outside of the EU.
The company has said it expects to produce up to 1.3bn doses of the vaccine by the end of 2021.
The team who discovered the genetic sequencing of the virus itself
Scientists in China were the first to discover the genome sequencing behind the virus itself, opening the door to scientists working to find a vaccine. STR via Getty Images
Within weeks of the first outbreak of Covid-19 in Wuhan, Chinese scientists had already discovered the genetic code of the virus itself.
Officials posted it publicly in January – before the virus was even known to have taken hold in Europe – allowing scientific research teams to get to work right away.
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With the genetic code in hand, scientists could start vaccine development work without needing a sample of the virus, buying teams around the globe extra time to start work.
During the deadly 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) outbreak, it took US scientists 20 months to go from genetic sequence to the first phase of human trials. By that time, the outbreak was under control.
But by January 2020, research groups worldwide were already executing plans to test vaccines, treatments and other countermeasures to stop Covid-19 from spreading globally.
While they were unable to contain the outbreak, the rapid identification of the genetic sequencing behind the virus helped scientists around the globe start on a vaccine much earlier than they were likely to have otherwise been able to.
The trial participants
A health care worker injects a syringe of the phase three Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine trial into a volunteer at the Ankara University Ibni Sina Hospital in Ankara, Turkey. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
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Unlike Oxford’s vaccine trials, none of Pfizer’s trials took place in the UK.
Instead, trials were set up at 150 different sites in the US Germany, Turkey, South Africa, Brazil and Argentina.
According to Pfizer’s most recent update on their website, 41,135 of the participants had received a second dose of the vaccine candidate as of November 13, in stage three of the clinical trials.
Approximately 42% of global participants and 30% of US participants were from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, and 41% of global and 45% of US participants are 56 to 85 – the age group amongst those at highest risk of developing serious complications after catching Covid-19.
The scientists who discovered how to produce this type of vaccine
The leading vaccine candidates to tackle Covid-19, including the Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford and Moderna jabs use a novel type of vaccine made from messenger RNA, known as mRNA.
Rather than injecting the viral protein, a method used in many typical vaccinations, an mRNA vaccine actually injects genetical material.
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When these genetic instructions are injected into body, usually through the upper arm, the muscle cells translate them to make the viral protein directly in the body.
The development of this approach was led by Hungarian scientist Katalin Karikó, who – as The Telegraph reports – has been working on the science behind mRNA vaccines for years decades.
It wasn’t until 2005 that her team, which she ran alongside colleague Drew Weissman, finally established how to stabilise mRNA and package it into small particles to deliver it as a vaccine.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Karikó described the emotional moment she heard the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was highly effective in protecting against Covid-19.
“Redemption!” she exclaimed.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--New Hampshire House Speaker Died From COVID-19, Ruling Finds

“ During this difficult time , the family has requested that their privacy continue to be respected , ” MacDonald @ @ @ @ @ a brief statement .
Hinch ’ s office did not initially disclose his cause of @ @ @ @ @ .
“ He was a loving husband , father , family man , and veteran @ @ @ @ @ public service , ” the office said .

“During this difficult time, the family has requested that their privacy continue to be respected,” MacDonald’s office said in a brief statement.
Hinch’s office did not initially disclose his cause of death or any other details.
“He was a loving husband, father, family man, and veteran who devoted his life to public service,” the office said.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Rhode Island, Smallest State In U.S., Now Leading The Country In COVID-19 Spread

Rhode Island , the smallest state in the U.S. , has seen the country ’ s fastest spread of the coronavirus in the last week .
The New England state recorded about 123 new cases per 100,000 people each day over the last week , marking the country ’ s highest average daily COVID-19 cases per capita , according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University .
By comparison , neighboring Connecticut has averaged about 76 new cases per 100,000 people each day in the last week .
There have been over 68,000 confirmed cases in Rhode Island since the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1,484 deaths .
Roughly 9,200 of those cases and at least 92 of those deaths were recorded in the last week .
Though Rhode Island is the smallest state by area , several other states ― including Wyoming and Vermont ― have fewer people .
In fact , Rhode Island is one of the most densely populated states in the U.S. , with about 1 million people living across its roughly 1,200 square miles .
“ We are the 2nd most densely populated state , with lots of multi-family and multi-generational homes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leads to fast spread , simply because people can ’ t distance from each other ... We also have a lot of poverty , a lot of essential workers , & a lot of immigrants .
And we know that economic & racial inequity are major drivers of transmission of the virus.
” The state ’ s disturbing surge on infections comes amid a two-week statewide “ pause ” imposed by Gov .
Gina Raimondo ( D ) in an effort to curb contagion .
The pause places new temporary restrictions on social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bars and recommends remote work for all employees .
Rhode Island opened at least two field hospitals in recent weeks after the state ’ s conventional hospitals announced they had reached their COVID-19 capacity .
Doctors and public health officials have warned hospitalizations will likely continue to surge in the weeks following Thanksgiving .
COVID-19 cases , deaths and hospitalizations have continued to climb at a devastating pace across the country in recent months .
The U.S. reported at least 3,124 coronavirus-linked deaths on Wednesday , a grim new record .

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Rhode Island, the smallest state in the U.S., has seen the country’s fastest spread of the coronavirus in the last week.
The New England state recorded about 123 new cases per 100,000 people each day over the last week, marking the country’s highest average daily COVID-19 cases per capita, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. By comparison, neighboring Connecticut has averaged about 76 new cases per 100,000 people each day in the last week.
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There have been over 68,000 confirmed cases in Rhode Island since the beginning of the pandemic and at least 1,484 deaths. Roughly 9,200 of those cases and at least 92 of those deaths were recorded in the last week.
Though Rhode Island is the smallest state by area, several other states ― including Wyoming and Vermont ― have fewer people. In fact, Rhode Island is one of the most densely populated states in the U.S., with about 1 million people living across its roughly 1,200 square miles.
Dr. Megan Ranney, a Brown University emergency room physician, suggested Rhode Island’s population density could be a major contributing factor to its rapid COVID-19 spread in recent weeks.
“We are the 2nd most densely populated state, with lots of multi-family and multi-generational homes,” Ranney tweeted Wednesday. “This leads to fast spread, simply because people can’t distance from each other ... We also have a lot of poverty, a lot of essential workers, & a lot of immigrants. And we know that economic & racial inequity are major drivers of transmission of the virus.”
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The state’s disturbing surge on infections comes amid a two-week statewide “pause” imposed by Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) in an effort to curb contagion. The pause places new temporary restrictions on social gatherings and indoor dining capacity, closes bars and recommends remote work for all employees.
Rhode Island opened at least two field hospitals in recent weeks after the state’s conventional hospitals announced they had reached their COVID-19 capacity. Doctors and public health officials have warned hospitalizations will likely continue to surge in the weeks following Thanksgiving.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Video Shows How Much Face Shields Protect Against A 'Sneeze Vortex'

On their own , face shields can help protect the wearer from the bulk of larger droplets caused by a @ @ @ @ @ distance away , but studies have found smaller aerosols can travel up and underneath the @ @ @ @ @ healthcare workers found wearing a face shield reduced exposure to flu by 96 % in @ @ @ @ @ cough – from 18 inches away .
But in the context of a smaller aerosol @ @ @ @ @ less effective , blocking only 68 % of the cough .
In the half an @ @ @ @ @ , during which the aerosol had dispersed throughout the room and larger particles had settled @ @ @ @ @ less effective , the study found ― with researchers concluding that people wearing face shields @ @ @ @ @ particles .
“ They can not be used as a substitute for respiratory protection when @ @ @ @ @ researchers said of face shields .

On their own, face shields can help protect the wearer from the bulk of larger droplets caused by a cough or sneeze a short distance away, but studies have found smaller aerosols can travel up and underneath the shield.
A study of healthcare workers found wearing a face shield reduced exposure to flu by 96% in the period immediately after a cough – from 18 inches away. But in the context of a smaller aerosol, the face shield was less effective, blocking only 68% of the cough.
In the half an hour period after a cough, during which the aerosol had dispersed throughout the room and larger particles had settled, the face shield was less effective, the study found ― with researchers concluding that people wearing face shields can still inhale infectious airborne particles.
“They cannot be used as a substitute for respiratory protection when it is needed,” researchers said of face shields.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--CNN Anchor Makes Bold Fashion Statement With Sweater Declaring 'Facts First'

CNN anchor Kate Bolduan declared “ facts first ” with her outfit on Thursday , prompting plenty of conversations on social media .
Bolduan was widely celebrated on Twitter after her sweater embroidered with the words “ facts first ” appeared prominently during the network ’ s morning broadcast .
HuffPost confirmed that the sweater is a custom order from Lingua Franca , a brand based in New York City .
Lingua Franca told HuffPost that “ this sweater was [ part ] of a corporate order from CNN.
” It is now available to order on the line ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reads : “ Facts are facts .
They aren ’ t colored by emotion or bias .
They are indisputable .
There is no alternative to a fact .
Facts explain things .
What they are , how they happened .
Facts are not interpretations .
Once facts are established , opinions can be formed .
And while opinions matter , they don ’ t change facts .
We stand with our friends at CNN who start with the facts first.
” Other customizable hand-embroidered sweaters retail on the site for $ 400 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Facts First ” has been a CNN marketing tagline since 2017 .
The phrase was created in an effort to combat the rhetoric used by President Donald Trump , who has repeatedly called CNN “ fake news ” over the years .
CNN Worldwide Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Allison Gollust said in a 2017 interview that the network was prompted to proclaim “ facts first ” because “ there ’ s a conversation happening around journalism and media and the First Amendment.
” “ It ’ s happening right now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that conversation with a brand campaign that reminds people who we are and what we do and why we do it , ” she said at the time .

CNN anchor Kate Bolduan declared “facts first” with her outfit on Thursday, prompting plenty of conversations on social media.
Bolduan was widely celebrated on Twitter after her sweater embroidered with the words “facts first” appeared prominently during the network’s morning broadcast.
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I am here for @KateBolduan sweater today.. pic.twitter.com/cuVrj3RmVn — Shannon in Ohio 4 (@ShannonFreshour) December 10, 2020
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HuffPost confirmed that the sweater is a custom order from Lingua Franca, a brand based in New York City.
Lingua Franca told HuffPost that “this sweater was [part] of a corporate order from CNN.”
It is now available to order on the line’s website, where its product description reads:
“Facts are facts.
They aren’t colored by emotion or bias.
They are indisputable.
There is no alternative to a fact.
Facts explain things.
What they are, how they happened.
Facts are not interpretations.
Once facts are established, opinions can be formed.
And while opinions matter, they don’t change facts.
We stand with our friends at CNN who start with the facts first.”
$100 from the purchase of each sweater goes to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Other customizable hand-embroidered sweaters retail on the site for $400 and are 100% cashmere.
“Facts First” has been a CNN marketing tagline since 2017. The phrase was created in an effort to combat the rhetoric used by President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called CNN “fake news” over the years.
CNN Worldwide Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Allison Gollust said in a 2017 interview that the network was prompted to proclaim “facts first” because “there’s a conversation happening around journalism and media and the First Amendment.”
“It’s happening right now. We felt compelled to participate in that conversation with a brand campaign that reminds people who we are and what we do and why we do it,” she said at the time.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Republicans Back Trump’s Election Lies To Please Their Base

The Republicans embracing Trump ’ s cause , and the nonsensical conspiracy theories used to justify it , come from every level of government .
They include prominent senators like Texas ’ Ted Cruz , ambitious attorneys general , well-known conservative bombthrowers and little-known state legislators .
They are egged on by a vocal portion of GOP voters who refuse to accept President-elect Joe Biden ’ s victory , and are unlikely to change their minds anytime soon .
“ This is going to be a long-term litmus test for some Republicans .
Even though Trump ’ s leaving office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ let go of the reins of the party , ” said Ryan Williams , a GOP operative who was a top spokesman for Mitt Romney ’ s 2012 presidential campaign .
He contrasted Trump with former Republican President George W. Bush : “ He ’ s not going to go back to Crawford , Texas , to paint portraits of dogs and foreign leaders.
” “ President Trump called me this morning to express his great appreciation for our effort to file an amicus brief in the Texas case on behalf of concerned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in an email to his fellow House Republicans , which was first obtained by CNN .
“ He specifically asked me to contact all Republican members of the House and Senate today and request that all join on to our brief .
He said he will be anxiously awaiting the final list to review.
” After being pressured by Trump to overturn Biden ’ s win in Pennsylvania , 64 elected state legislators there sent a letter to their congressional delegation urging them to reject the state ’ s Biden electors in January @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a Republican , did not see the letter in time to sign it , according to The New York Times , but suggested pressure from the base made it impossible for her to say if she would not have signed it .
Republican lawmakers in Arizona , Michigan and Pennsylvania felt the need to hold special hearings to allow the president ’ s lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis to air false conspiracy theories about supposed election fraud .
The hearings ultimately forced the closure of the Arizona and Michigan legislatures after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus after spreading it to legislators in both states .
One of the lawsuits promoted by Giuliani and Ellis was filed by Republican Rep. Mike Kelly ( Penn . )
and failed congressional candidate Sean Parnell .
After the suit failed at every level before reaching the U.S. Supreme Court , Cruz suggested , at Trump ’ s request , that he would offer his services to argue the case if the court took it up .
The court refused to take the case on Tuesday with no dissent .
Backing the overturning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of American democracy is just the latest in the Republican Party ’ s long history of litmus tests imposed by the furthest right flank of the party .
This dynamic was introduced into the party by the New Right political movement in the middle of the 20th century and became a routine feature after the movement took over the party after Ronald Reagan ’ s 1980 White House win .
These litmus tests also often ran along ideological lines related to contemporary positions on immigration or gun rights or free market economics .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ swept away these concerns and made the sole GOP litmus test fealty to Trump .
There are a handful of elected Republicans who are willing to publicly cross Trump .
And many of those who did hold office , like Sens .
Jeff Flake ( R-Ariz. ) and Bob Corker ( R-Tenn. ) and Speaker Paul Ryan ( R-Wisc . )
, retired .
Rep. Justin Amash ( I-Mich. ) left the party before retiring .
And some , like former Minnesota Gov .
Tim Pawlenty , lost party primaries because they weren @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s kneel-before-Trump litmus test also means that party members must either support the president ’ s worst actions or pretend not to see them .
Members who dared attack Trump after the release of the Access Hollywood tape where he jokingly boasted of sexually assaulting women were savaged by pro-Trump opponents , and many lost primary elections .
( More than two dozen women have accused Trump of sexual assault . )
Sen. Mitt Romney ( R-Utah ) was the only congressional Republican to vote to impeach Trump after the president tried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2020 election on his behalf .
And so now the Republican Party must defend Trump ’ s effort to steal the 2020 election and install himself as ruler to protect themselves from primary challenges .
Whether or not the defense is sincere is irrelevant .
By feeding their conservative base ’ s desire to believe that the election was stolen , elected Republicans are verifying those beliefs .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Hundreds of elected and appointed Republicans around the country are backing President Donald Trump’s false claims he won the 2020 presidential election, a widespread embrace that is likely to empower Trump’s grip over the GOP even after he leaves office and turn belief in Trump’s falsehoods into a litmus test for a significant segment of Republican voters.
The Republicans embracing Trump’s cause, and the nonsensical conspiracy theories used to justify it, come from every level of government. They include prominent senators like Texas’ Ted Cruz, ambitious attorneys general, well-known conservative bombthrowers and little-known state legislators. They are egged on by a vocal portion of GOP voters who refuse to accept President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, and are unlikely to change their minds anytime soon.
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“This is going to be a long-term litmus test for some Republicans. Even though Trump’s leaving office, he’s not going to let go of the reins of the party,” said Ryan Williams, a GOP operative who was a top spokesman for Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign. He contrasted Trump with former Republican President George W. Bush: “He’s not going to go back to Crawford, Texas, to paint portraits of dogs and foreign leaders.”
The efforts have zero chance of actually overthrowing the election. Almost every Republican with the power to somehow impact the result has declined to indulge Trump’s delusions, and many have subsequently faced vociferous criticism from other members of their party.
“I make the distinction between what’s professional wrestling and what’s a serious attempt to undermine democracy,” said Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a Democrat who has repeatedly worked to shoot down conspiracy theories about Biden’s narrow win in the state. He noted GOP leaders in Pennsylvania’s state Legislature “have never made an actual move to overthrow the election result.”
President Donald Trump has attacked elected Republicans, including Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who have declined to assist in his efforts to overturn the results of the presidential election. SAUL LOEB via Getty Images
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The most recent evidence of the GOP’s decision to back Trump’s claims came on Wednesday afternoon, when 17 state attorneys general submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court backing a spurious lawsuit from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton seeking to throw out the election results in four states won by Biden: Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan and Georgia.
Trump, meanwhile, is actively asking congressional Republicans to sign on to a similar amicus brief, written by Louisiana GOP Rep. Mike Johnson, backing the Texas lawsuit.
“President Trump called me this morning to express his great appreciation for our effort to file an amicus brief in the Texas case on behalf of concerned members of Congress,” Johnson wrote in an email to his fellow House Republicans, which was first obtained by CNN. “He specifically asked me to contact all Republican members of the House and Senate today and request that all join on to our brief. He said he will be anxiously awaiting the final list to review.”
One hundred and five House Republicans, more than half of the party caucus, signed on to Johnson’s brief, which was filed Thursday afternoon.
Paxton’s suit illustrates the self-interested game many elected Republicans are playing. Paxton, who is facing a federal investigation for securities fraud, is thought to be lobbying for a pardon from Trump before the president leaves office.
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Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson also announced Wednesday that he would hold a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on “irregularities in the 2020 election” next week, though it’s unclear who the witnesses will be.
After being pressured by Trump to overturn Biden’s win in Pennsylvania, 64 elected state legislators there sent a letter to their congressional delegation urging them to reject the state’s Biden electors in January. State Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, a Republican, did not see the letter in time to sign it, according to The New York Times, but suggested pressure from the base made it impossible for her to say if she would not have signed it.
“If I would say to you, ‘I don’t want to do it,’” Ward told the Times, “I’d get my house bombed tonight.”
Republican lawmakers in Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania felt the need to hold special hearings to allow the president’s lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis to air false conspiracy theories about supposed election fraud. The hearings ultimately forced the closure of the Arizona and Michigan legislatures after Giuliani and Ellis tested positive for the coronavirus after spreading it to legislators in both states.
One of the lawsuits promoted by Giuliani and Ellis was filed by Republican Rep. Mike Kelly (Penn.) and failed congressional candidate Sean Parnell. After the suit failed at every level before reaching the U.S. Supreme Court, Cruz suggested, at Trump’s request, that he would offer his services to argue the case if the court took it up. The court refused to take the case on Tuesday with no dissent.
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“There isn’t going to be a Republican that’s going to run on the platform that Joe Biden won the election fair and square.” - Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman
Meanwhile, in Washington, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Senate Rules Committee Chairman Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) voted to block the congressional inauguration committee from recognizing Biden as the president-elect.
A slew of public surveys indicate a majority of Republican voters believe Trump’s unsupported claims about widespread election fraud. An NPR/PBS Newshour/Marist College poll released Wednesday morning found just 24% of Republicans trust the results, compared to 61% of Americans overall and 67% of independent voters. (An overwhelming 95% of Democrats said they trusted the results.)
Backing the overturning of the election result and the end of American democracy is just the latest in the Republican Party’s long history of litmus tests imposed by the furthest right flank of the party. This dynamic was introduced into the party by the New Right political movement in the middle of the 20th century and became a routine feature after the movement took over the party after Ronald Reagan’s 1980 White House win.
Since then, elected Republicans have been consistently pressured from the right to take increasingly extreme positions in order to fend off primary challengers from their conservative movement base.
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This played out when Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) pressured House Republicans to impeach President Bill Clinton after the party lost seats in the 1998 midterm elections. “Besides, the DeLay camp says, a vote to impeach the President is the perfect inoculation for moderate Republicans under assault from conservatives in their districts,” CNN reported at the time.
After President Barack Obama’s election, Republicans had to meet the litmus test of not supporting Obama — or even hugging him, as then-Republican Florida Gov. Charlie Crist learned. Appearing at an event to promote stimulus spending in his state, Crist hugged Obama — leading to a primary loss to Marco Rubio in the 2010 Senate race. Crist is now a Democratic House member.
These litmus tests also often ran along ideological lines related to contemporary positions on immigration or gun rights or free market economics. But Trump’s election has mostly swept away these concerns and made the sole GOP litmus test fealty to Trump. There are a handful of elected Republicans who are willing to publicly cross Trump. And many of those who did hold office, like Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), retired. Rep. Justin Amash (I-Mich.) left the party before retiring. And some, like former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, lost party primaries because they weren’t pro-Trump enough.
“The Republican Party has shifted,” Pawlenty said after losing his state’s Republican Party gubernatorial primary to a Trump supporter in 2018. “It is the era of Trump and I’m just not a Trump-like politician.”
The party’s kneel-before-Trump litmus test also means that party members must either support the president’s worst actions or pretend not to see them. Members who dared attack Trump after the release of the Access Hollywood tape where he jokingly boasted of sexually assaulting women were savaged by pro-Trump opponents, and many lost primary elections. (More than two dozen women have accused Trump of sexual assault.) Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) was the only congressional Republican to vote to impeach Trump after the president tried to pressure Ukraine to interfere in the 2020 election on his behalf.
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And so now the Republican Party must defend Trump’s effort to steal the 2020 election and install himself as ruler to protect themselves from primary challenges. Whether or not the defense is sincere is irrelevant. By feeding their conservative base’s desire to believe that the election was stolen, elected Republicans are verifying those beliefs.
Kemp is facing Trump’s wrath after certifying President-elect Joe Biden's win in his state. Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, both Republicans, are already facing Trump’s wrath after they both certified Biden’s wins in their respective states. Trump tweeted that the two Republican governors “fight harder against us than do the Radical Left Dems.” He suggested that retiring Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) primary Kemp in 2022.
And while the midterm elections are a long way away, attacks on Kemp and Ducey could hurt GOP chances in key races in 2022. Democratic rising star Stacey Abrams, whose organizing has been credited with helping secure Biden’s victory in Georgia, plans to run for governor again. She’d almost certainly rather face the arch-conservative Collins than Kemp, an incumbent.
Ducey is term-limited, but Senate Republicans are likely to try to persuade him to challenge Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, who will be running for a full term after winning a special election last month. Trump’s antagonism toward Ducey could encourage other Republicans to run for the party’s nomination.
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In Pennsylvania, meanwhile, Fetterman ― who is openly considering his own bid for Senate ― predicted almost every Republican running for office in the Keystone State would need to embrace Trump’s conspiracies.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Ryan Zinke’s Official Portrait A Final Slap In The Face To Native American Tribes

When then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke traveled to southern Utah in May 2017 to visit a pair of protected national monuments , he surrounded himself with advocates for dismantling , if not entirely erasing , those sites .
He toured Bears Ears National Monument not with members of the Native American tribes that consider the landscape sacred , but staunch opponents of the Obama-era monument .
He gave representatives of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition , made up of the five tribes that petitioned for the monument ’ s designation , just a one-hour meeting .
And when an indigenous woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t spent more time talking with tribal leaders as part of his review , he shook his finger in her face and forcefully ordered her to “ be nice ” and “ don ’ t be rude.
” True to form , Zinke commemorated his scandal-plagued tenure atop the federal agency this week with a portrait of himself riding a paint horse beneath a towering butte in Bears Ears shortly before he and President Donald Trump gutted protections .
It is based on a picture of Zinke during his 2017 visit and was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Interior Department headquarters in Washington , D.C. Attendees , including Zinke ’ s wife and former Navy intelligence officer Donald Bramer , posted pictures of the event to social media .
Zinke was secretary of Interior from 2017 to late 2019 , when he resigned under a cloud of ethics scandals .
His replacement , David Bernrhardt , is a former oil , mining and agricultural lobbyist who has furthered the administration ’ s assault on environmental rules .
Named after a pair of buttes and home to thousands of Native American archeological @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first monument established at the request of tribes to honor and protect Native American heritage .
In December 2017 , on Zinke ’ s recommendation , Trump shrunk the 1.35 million-acre Bears Ears boundary by 85 % and the nearby 1.87 million-acre Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument roughly in half , opening the door for oil , gas and other development across large areas of previously protected lands .
Brent Cotton , the Montana artist and “ dear friend ” of the Zinke family who painted the portrait , told Billings radio station @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nod to [ Zinke ’ s ] respect of the native Americans tribes ” ( sic ) in the band of the hat .
( Aaron Weiss of the Center for Western Priorities pointed out the hat appears to be on backwards ― something Zinke famously did in real life . )
Zinke ’ s supposed respect for tribes was no doubt lost on the tribes that pleaded with him to leave Bears Ears alone .
When Zinke recommended in July 2017 that Trump dismantle the monument , the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the face to the members of our Tribes and an affront to Indian people all across the country.
” And when Trump followed through and signed a proclamation to shrink the site , Ethel Branch , the attorney general for the Navajo Nation , slammed the move as “ absolutely shocking ” and totally “ disrespectful ” of the decades of work that went into establishing Bears Ears .
In many ways , the portrait perfectly captures what is widely seen as Zinke ’ s most controversial action and his lasting legacy : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the benefit of extractive industries and undermining tribal sovereignty .
In addition to the official portrait that will join those of other former agency secretaries displayed at Interior headquarters , Wednesday ’ s event included the unveiling of a second unofficial one depicting Zinke once again atop a horse and wearing a cowboy hat , but this time riding through flames , wielding a battle ax and fighting a massive serpent .
That prank piece , simply Zinke ’ s face pasted onto fantasy artist Frank Frazetta painting titled “ Death Dealer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reference to the Trump administration ’ s pledge to “ drain the swamp ” of lobbyists in Washington ― something that absolutely did not happen at Interior under Zinke ’ s watch .
After resigning from the Interior post , Zinke quickly found work with a blockchain investment firm , a lobbying group and a mining exploration company .
Numerous other officials at Trump ’ s Interior Department have similarly stepped through the revolving door , landing jobs with fossil fuel interests , lobbying firms or other private companies after leaving the agency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Zinke fancies himself a rugged cowboy and Rooseveltian conservationist , he is likely to be remembered not as a steward of America ’ s natural resources but a loyal strongman for Trump ’ s “ energy dominance ” agenda who racked up nearly 20 federal investigations during his stint as Interior chief .
As for the rollbacks of protected wild places that he is so clearly proud of , they appear unlikely to survive the incoming Biden administration .

When then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke traveled to southern Utah in May 2017 to visit a pair of protected national monuments, he surrounded himself with advocates for dismantling, if not entirely erasing, those sites.
He toured Bears Ears National Monument not with members of the Native American tribes that consider the landscape sacred, but staunch opponents of the Obama-era monument. He gave representatives of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, made up of the five tribes that petitioned for the monument’s designation, just a one-hour meeting. And when an indigenous woman confronted Zinke about why he hadn’t spent more time talking with tribal leaders as part of his review, he shook his finger in her face and forcefully ordered her to “be nice” and “don’t be rude.”
True to form, Zinke commemorated his scandal-plagued tenure atop the federal agency this week with a portrait of himself riding a paint horse beneath a towering butte in Bears Ears shortly before he and President Donald Trump gutted protections. It is based on a picture of Zinke during his 2017 visit and was unveiled during a ceremony Wednesday at the Interior Department headquarters in Washington, D.C. Attendees, including Zinke’s wife and former Navy intelligence officer Donald Bramer, posted pictures of the event to social media.
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(We’ll get to that fiery snake battle pic in a minute.)
Defense contractor lobbyist says he enjoyed catching up with former Interior Secretary Zinke and his wife "at the unveiling of his official and 'un-official' portrait(s)" https://t.co/BcBZaMuoJp
So, um, which portrait is the official one? pic.twitter.com/aHoxXfyAfN — Corbin Hiar (@CorbinHiar) December 9, 2020
Zinke was secretary of Interior from 2017 to late 2019, when he resigned under a cloud of ethics scandals. His replacement, David Bernrhardt, is a former oil, mining and agricultural lobbyist who has furthered the administration’s assault on environmental rules.
Named after a pair of buttes and home to thousands of Native American archeological and cultural sites, Bears Ears was the first monument established at the request of tribes to honor and protect Native American heritage. In December 2017, on Zinke’s recommendation, Trump shrunk the 1.35 million-acre Bears Ears boundary by 85% and the nearby 1.87 million-acre Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument roughly in half, opening the door for oil, gas and other development across large areas of previously protected lands.
Brent Cotton, the Montana artist and “dear friend” of the Zinke family who painted the portrait, told Billings radio station KBUL that the piece includes “a nod to [Zinke’s] respect of the native Americans tribes” (sic) in the band of the hat. (Aaron Weiss of the Center for Western Priorities pointed out the hat appears to be on backwards ― something Zinke famously did in real life.)
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Definitely the north end of a southbound hat. pic.twitter.com/PS7BRUJpHa — Aaron Weiss (@aweiss) December 9, 2020
Zinke’s supposed respect for tribes was no doubt lost on the tribes that pleaded with him to leave Bears Ears alone. When Zinke recommended in July 2017 that Trump dismantle the monument, the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition condemned it as a “slap in the face to the members of our Tribes and an affront to Indian people all across the country.” And when Trump followed through and signed a proclamation to shrink the site, Ethel Branch, the attorney general for the Navajo Nation, slammed the move as “absolutely shocking” and totally “disrespectful” of the decades of work that went into establishing Bears Ears.
In many ways, the portrait perfectly captures what is widely seen as Zinke’s most controversial action and his lasting legacy: rolling back public land and environmental protections to the benefit of extractive industries and undermining tribal sovereignty.
In his statement to KBUL, Cotton said he hoped the portrait “will be well received by all.”
Not surprisingly, the response has been anything but positive.
“Zinke’s official portrait is the last gasp of a fading swamp creature,” Shaun Chapoose, a member of the Ute Indian Tribe Business Committee and representative of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, told HuffPost. “He testified to Congress that tribal ‘sovereignty means something’ while he ignored the clear statements of five sovereign tribal governments that the Bears Ears landscape needs and deserves protection.”
“His official portrait,” Chapoose added, “is another desperate attempt to rewrite history. What you don’t see, what he doesn’t tell you, is that we are still here defending and protecting our lands. If you look real close, we are there waving goodbye as he is run out of Bears Ears on the horse he rode in on.”
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In a scathing statement Tuesday, Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, called the portrait “a petty monument to a petty man,” “an intentional final insult to tribes he disrespected” and “entirely consistent with his smug, unethical, condescending tenure” at the agency.
Then-Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke talks to reporters during his 2017 visit to Utah to tour Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. George Frey via Getty Images
In addition to the official portrait that will join those of other former agency secretaries displayed at Interior headquarters, Wednesday’s event included the unveiling of a second unofficial one depicting Zinke once again atop a horse and wearing a cowboy hat, but this time riding through flames, wielding a battle ax and fighting a massive serpent. That prank piece, simply Zinke’s face pasted onto fantasy artist Frank Frazetta painting titled “Death Dealer 6,” appears to be a reference to the Trump administration’s pledge to “drain the swamp” of lobbyists in Washington ― something that absolutely did not happen at Interior under Zinke’s watch.
After resigning from the Interior post, Zinke quickly found work with a blockchain investment firm, a lobbying group and a mining exploration company. Numerous other officials at Trump’s Interior Department have similarly stepped through the revolving door, landing jobs with fossil fuel interests, lobbying firms or other private companies after leaving the agency, as HuffPost previously reported.
While Zinke fancies himself a rugged cowboy and Rooseveltian conservationist, he is likely to be remembered not as a steward of America’s natural resources but a loyal strongman for Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda who racked up nearly 20 federal investigations during his stint as Interior chief. As for the rollbacks of protected wild places that he is so clearly proud of, they appear unlikely to survive the incoming Biden administration.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Hunter Biden Prosecutor Convicted A Fundraiser Who Talked Up His Joe Biden Ties

The Trump-appointed U.S. attorney who is overseeing the federal investigation of Hunter Biden , son of President-elect Joe Biden , is a longtime Justice Department veteran not known as partisan , but he does have a history of prosecuting Biden-adjacent crimes .
Nearly a decade ago , David C. Weiss , then a top official in the U.S. Attorney ’ s Office for Delaware , oversaw the prosecution of liquor executive Christopher Tigani , who was sentenced to two years in prison after he pleaded guilty to making illegal campaign contributions and committing tax violations .
Tigani was convicted in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ use political donations to gain favor with then-Sen. Biden .
Tigani told authorities that he never actually gained the type of access to Biden ’ s circle that he wanted , and Biden ’ s team has maintained that Biden did not know about Tigani ’ s criminal activity .
Weiss ’ history with a criminal probe that intersected Biden ’ s circle is relevant given his key role now overseeing a highly sensitive investigation into the son of the incoming president , while the incoming president is on the verge of naming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donald Trump appointed Weiss as the top federal prosecutor in Delaware in 2018 .
But that doesn ’ t mean Weiss is considered partisan .
He has worked steadily at the U.S. Attorney ’ s Office in Delaware since 2007 , and as a younger man served there as a line prosecutor , aka an assistant U.S. attorney .
Delaware Sens .
Tom Carper and Chris Coons , both Democrats , supported Weiss as Trump ’ s pick for U.S. attorney , with Carper labeling him “ an excellent choice ” and Coons @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dedicated public servant.
” During Barack Obama ’ s presidency , Weiss served in top positions at the U.S. Attorney ’ s Office , including as interim U.S. attorney in the early days of the administration and as first assistant U.S. attorney from December 2010 to March 2017 .
Weiss became acting U.S. attorney that month after the Trump administration dismissed Obama-appointed top federal prosecutors , including Charles Oberly in Delaware .
The Tigani prosecution is one of Weiss ’ highest-profile political cases .
His name is on a 2012 sentencing memo that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political process , rationalizing that his illegal conduct was just another example of the ‘ Delaware Way , ’ and that , like others , he was entitled to receive political favors for his business and his industry.
” Weiss and another prosecutor wrote that Tigani “ illegally contributed $ 72,700 to [ Biden ’ s presidential ] campaign in 2007 ” and reimbursed company employees who “ acted as conduit contributors.
” Tigani even bragged in a 2008 email to the president of Anheuser-Busch that he was “ the number one fundraiser @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and will play a role in his new campaign as well as his son ’ s role as a future Senator , ” according to Weiss ’ memo .
It ’ s unclear whether Tigani was referring to Joe Biden ’ s late son Beau , who was then serving as the attorney general of Delaware , or to his son Hunter , who was then working as a Washington lobbyist but quit the same month that Tigani sent the Anheuser-Busch email .
Tigani told Politico this year that his father and stepmother @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the early 1980s , and that ’ s how he got to know the Biden brothers .
While their broader social circles were connected , Tigani told Politico they were never particularly close .
“ I ’ m in the alcohol business , and Beau didn ’ t drink , ” Tigani said .
“ They are very good and close friends and I know that we can take advantage of that relationship as needed , ” Tigani wrote in 2008 , referring to Biden and one of his sons .
Weiss ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to agents that he made those political contributions in an effort to gain access , but that he never actually received such access or sought to take advantage of the relationship.
” Weiss and his fellow prosecutor later wrote in the memo that Tigani ’ s actions “ impacted all of those political candidates to whom he contributed , even those completely unaware of his illegal conduct.
” In its July story , Politico reported that Tigani wore a wire for the FBI and recorded conversations with Biden ’ s former finance chief @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and a lobbyist who was a former Biden aide .
None of the recordings resulted in federal charges , and Tigani showed Politico a letter that called the information he provided “ not actionable.
” Biden ’ s team has repeatedly denied that he had knowledge of what Tigani was up to .
The investigation complicates his father ’ s choice of attorney general , which the president-elect previously indicated he ’ d announce this week .
While most elected Republicans dismissed Trump ’ s blatant misconduct and corruption and didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump ’ s family , they ’ ve been deeply interested in Hunter Biden .
Joe Biden ’ s attorney general nominee will undoubtedly face plenty of questions about how they ’ ll ensure there ’ s no improper political interference in an ongoing criminal investigation of a member of the first family .
( Although , again , that ’ s something the vast majority of elected Republicans have had no interest in since early 2017 . )
The nominee might even be asked to commit to appointing a special prosecutor ― @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Attorney Weiss to stay in place ― for the course of the Hunter Biden investigation .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
The Trump-appointed U.S. attorney who is overseeing the federal investigation of Hunter Biden, son of President-elect Joe Biden, is a longtime Justice Department veteran not known as partisan, but he does have a history of prosecuting Biden-adjacent crimes.
Nearly a decade ago, David C. Weiss, then a top official in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Delaware, oversaw the prosecution of liquor executive Christopher Tigani, who was sentenced to two years in prison after he pleaded guilty to making illegal campaign contributions and committing tax violations. Tigani was convicted in a scheme that included an effort to use political donations to gain favor with then-Sen. Biden.
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Tigani told authorities that he never actually gained the type of access to Biden’s circle that he wanted, and Biden’s team has maintained that Biden did not know about Tigani’s criminal activity.
Weiss’ history with a criminal probe that intersected Biden’s circle is relevant given his key role now overseeing a highly sensitive investigation into the son of the incoming president, while the incoming president is on the verge of naming his nominee for attorney general.
President Donald Trump appointed Weiss as the top federal prosecutor in Delaware in 2018. But that doesn’t mean Weiss is considered partisan. He has worked steadily at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware since 2007, and as a younger man served there as a line prosecutor, aka an assistant U.S. attorney. Delaware Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, both Democrats, supported Weiss as Trump’s pick for U.S. attorney, with Carper labeling him “an excellent choice” and Coons calling him a “career prosecutor and dedicated public servant.”
During Barack Obama’s presidency, Weiss served in top positions at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including as interim U.S. attorney in the early days of the administration and as first assistant U.S. attorney from December 2010 to March 2017. Weiss became acting U.S. attorney that month after the Trump administration dismissed Obama-appointed top federal prosecutors, including Charles Oberly in Delaware.
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The Tigani prosecution is one of Weiss’ highest-profile political cases. His name is on a 2012 sentencing memo that states Tigani attempted to “influence the political process, rationalizing that his illegal conduct was just another example of the ‘Delaware Way,’ and that, like others, he was entitled to receive political favors for his business and his industry.”
Weiss and another prosecutor wrote that Tigani “illegally contributed $72,700 to [Biden’s presidential] campaign in 2007” and reimbursed company employees who “acted as conduit contributors.” Tigani even bragged in a 2008 email to the president of Anheuser-Busch that he was “the number one fundraiser for [Biden’s] bid and will play a role in his new campaign as well as his son’s role as a future Senator,” according to Weiss’ memo. It’s unclear whether Tigani was referring to Joe Biden’s late son Beau, who was then serving as the attorney general of Delaware, or to his son Hunter, who was then working as a Washington lobbyist but quit the same month that Tigani sent the Anheuser-Busch email.
Tigani told Politico this year that his father and stepmother socialized with Joe and Jill Biden in the early 1980s, and that’s how he got to know the Biden brothers. While their broader social circles were connected, Tigani told Politico they were never particularly close. “I’m in the alcohol business, and Beau didn’t drink,” Tigani said.
But 12 years ago, Tigani was telling the president of Anheuser-Busch something different.
“They are very good and close friends and I know that we can take advantage of that relationship as needed,” Tigani wrote in 2008, referring to Biden and one of his sons. Weiss’ team wrote that Tigani “later explained to agents that he made those political contributions in an effort to gain access, but that he never actually received such access or sought to take advantage of the relationship.”
Weiss and his fellow prosecutor later wrote in the memo that Tigani’s actions “impacted all of those political candidates to whom he contributed, even those completely unaware of his illegal conduct.”
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In its July story, Politico reported that Tigani wore a wire for the FBI and recorded conversations with Biden’s former finance chief, a businessman close to Biden, and a lobbyist who was a former Biden aide. None of the recordings resulted in federal charges, and Tigani showed Politico a letter that called the information he provided “not actionable.” Biden’s team has repeatedly denied that he had knowledge of what Tigani was up to.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, citing Justice Department policy, has said it won’t comment on the current investigation into Hunter Biden.
The investigation complicates his father’s choice of attorney general, which the president-elect previously indicated he’d announce this week. While most elected Republicans dismissed Trump’s blatant misconduct and corruption and didn’t care much about allegations against members of Trump’s family, they’ve been deeply interested in Hunter Biden.
Joe Biden’s attorney general nominee will undoubtedly face plenty of questions about how they’ll ensure there’s no improper political interference in an ongoing criminal investigation of a member of the first family. (Although, again, that’s something the vast majority of elected Republicans have had no interest in since early 2017.) The nominee might even be asked to commit to appointing a special prosecutor ― or, at least, allowing U.S. Attorney Weiss to stay in place ― for the course of the Hunter Biden investigation.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Minnesota City Grants Permit To Church That Openly Refuses To Admit Black People

MURDOCK , Minn. ( AP ) — The city council in a small Minnesota farming community has voted to grant a permit that allows a controversial Nordic heritage church that has been identified as a white supremacist group to gather at an abandoned church .
The vote Wednesday night came after the council in the Swift County community of Murdock was advised by the city attorney that rejecting the Asatru Folk Assembly ’ s request could violate its religious rights .
The AFA wants to turn the former Lutheran church into a Midwest regional gathering hall .
Council members , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , kept video cameras turned off and refused to identify who voted for or against the permit .
It was passed on a voice vote without a roll call , the Star Tribune reported .
One member of the five-person council could be heard voting no .
City Attorney Don Wilcox told council members that they faced possible legal action if they voted against the AFA based on its beliefs .
“ There are certain constitutional protections that apply to religions , ” Wilcox said .
“ I haven ’ t seen any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are a religion , whether you agree with it or not .
“ There ’ s not a compelling interest in keeping that building from being used for meetings , ” he added .
“ Just because you don ’ t like it doesn ’ t mean they can ’ t do it.
” The group has sparked a wave of activism in Murdock , a community of about 300 about 115 miles ( 185 kilometers ) west of the Twin Cities .
After the AFA purchased the church earlier this year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a group called the Murdock Area Alliance Against Hate and have held several protests .
AFA board member Allen Turnage has said the church would not admit a Black person “ because they ’ re not of northern European descent.
” The AFA is among groups that seek to practice a pre-Christian , European spirituality and , according to a statement on its website , it ’ s pro-white .
The Southern Poverty Law Center has added the AFA to its list of hate groups .
Turnage said the AFA has about 500 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in and around Minnesota .

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MURDOCK, Minn. (AP) — The city council in a small Minnesota farming community has voted to grant a permit that allows a controversial Nordic heritage church that has been identified as a white supremacist group to gather at an abandoned church.
The vote Wednesday night came after the council in the Swift County community of Murdock was advised by the city attorney that rejecting the Asatru Folk Assembly’s request could violate its religious rights. The AFA wants to turn the former Lutheran church into a Midwest regional gathering hall.
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Council members, meeting online because of the coronavirus pandemic, kept video cameras turned off and refused to identify who voted for or against the permit. It was passed on a voice vote without a roll call, the Star Tribune reported. One member of the five-person council could be heard voting no.
City Attorney Don Wilcox told council members that they faced possible legal action if they voted against the AFA based on its beliefs.
“There are certain constitutional protections that apply to religions,” Wilcox said. “I haven’t seen any evidence sufficient to overcome the presumption that they are a religion, whether you agree with it or not.
“There’s not a compelling interest in keeping that building from being used for meetings,” he added. “Just because you don’t like it doesn’t mean they can’t do it.”
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The group has sparked a wave of activism in Murdock, a community of about 300 about 115 miles (185 kilometers) west of the Twin Cities. After the AFA purchased the church earlier this year for $45,000, area residents formed a group called the Murdock Area Alliance Against Hate and have held several protests.
AFA board member Allen Turnage has said the church would not admit a Black person “because they’re not of northern European descent.”
The AFA is among groups that seek to practice a pre-Christian, European spirituality and, according to a statement on its website, it’s pro-white. The Southern Poverty Law Center has added the AFA to its list of hate groups.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Sen. David Perdue Sold Home To Finance Industry Official Whose Organization Was Lobbying Senate

Though an appraisal provided to ProPublica by the buyer found that Perdue sold for slightly under market value , four local real estate experts disagreed , telling ProPublica that the almost $ 1.8 million sale price Perdue garnered seemed high .
Their estimates of the premium ranged from a few thousand dollars to as much as about $ 140,000 .
A fifth expert said the price was squarely fair market value .
“ Determining fair market value is always a gray area , unless the sales are done in a competitive open market , ” said Craig Holman with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the purchase and sale of this property by Sen. Perdue was not done on the open market , it raises serious suspicions as to whether the sale was in fact at fair market value.
” Perdue has faced multiple allegations that he has mixed his private financial interests with his official work .
The most prolific stock trader in the Senate , he bought and sold shares in companies that the committees he sits on have jurisdiction over .
Some of his trades came at fortunate times .
Earlier this year , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for possible insider trading .
Perdue denied the allegations .
Prosecutors ultimately decided not to bring charges against him .
A FINRA spokesman said the organization has not lobbied Perdue specifically .
In a statement , Sale said she learned of the home though her real estate agent and never interacted with Perdue .
She provided ProPublica with an appraisal from her lender showing the home was valued at $ 1.8 million , $ 11,000 over the amount she paid .
Samer Kuraishi , who leads a real estate agency in Washington , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is agreed to , and that they typically are engineered to match the sales price .
Perdue ’ s Capitol Hill home and many of those around it were built in the early 2000s by EYA , a developer that specializes in luxury townhomes that maintain the look and feel of historic buildings but come with amenities typically reserved for more suburban locales .
They have individual garages and private courtyards .
Perdue ’ s home featured a rentable separate unit , connected to the main house through interior stairs .
At the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lobbying the Senate , according to its disclosure forms , and earlier that year its lobbyists were specifically focused on a bill that would have required the organization to establish a relief fund to provide investors with arbitration awards that went unpaid by FINRA ’ s brokerage firms and brokers .
The bill was authored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren , D-Mass.
, and fell under the jurisdiction of the Senate Banking Committee .
Ethics experts are generally troubled when politicians enter into transactions with people who have business before them .
The legality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ home was purchased at fair market value .
If it was purchased for more than that , it would be considered a gift .
Gifts of significant value to senators are required to be publicly disclosed .
Perdue did not disclose any such gifts .
Earlier this year , ProPublica reported that Sen. Richard Burr , R-N.C. , sold his Washington townhouse to a donor and powerful lobbyist who had business before him .
Burr ’ s office said the lawmaker notified the Senate Ethics Committee before the sale .
Perdue ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ similar steps .
The committee does not typically make such guidance public , and it did not respond to questions about whether Perdue sought advice in this case .
One agent , assuming Perdue did not make significant improvements to the property while living there , priced the home at around $ 1,650,000 .
That would mean Perdue sold for about 8 % over market .
His office declined to say whether he had made those kinds of upgrades , but photos , the agent said , suggest he did not .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high , but only about 2 % over market value .
The agent said prominent officials selling homes in private deals will often get a premium .
“ Buyers don ’ t haggle at that point .
If it ’ s a senator , you ’ re not going to go back and say , ‘ Actually , I ’ ll give you 1.7.
’ They either pay the price or don ’ t buy it.
” A third agent said it seemed slightly above market .
A fourth said the expected range @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been between $ 1.75 million and $ 1.785 million , a shade under Perdue ’ s $ 1.789 million sale price .
A fifth agent said the price Perdue got was squarely at fair market value .
All of the agents asked that their names not be used so as not to affect their ability to continue buying and selling homes in the neighborhood .
“ Absolutely nothing about the purchase or sale of the property had anything to do with the senator ’ s official role , since they did not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could be no conflict of interest whatsoever , ” the spokesperson said .

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Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., sold his Washington, D.C., home last year to a brokerage industry official whose organization is under the purview of a committee Perdue sits on.
The deal was made off market, without the home being listed for sale publicly.
Though an appraisal provided to ProPublica by the buyer found that Perdue sold for slightly under market value, four local real estate experts disagreed, telling ProPublica that the almost $1.8 million sale price Perdue garnered seemed high. Their estimates of the premium ranged from a few thousand dollars to as much as about $140,000. A fifth expert said the price was squarely fair market value.
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Ultimately, congressional ethics experts said, their concern was that Perdue sold privately and to someone whose organization that he oversaw as a senator.
“Determining fair market value is always a gray area, unless the sales are done in a competitive open market,” said Craig Holman with the watchdog group Public Citizen. “Since the purchase and sale of this property by Sen. Perdue was not done on the open market, it raises serious suspicions as to whether the sale was in fact at fair market value.”
If the price was above fair market value, Holman said, “this would be a violation of his ethical obligations and an opportunity for those with business pending before Perdue’s committee to curry favor.”
A Perdue spokesperson said that the senator and his wife sold the townhouse at fair market price, and that the lender appraisal confirmed that.
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“None of this had anything to do with the senator’s official role,” the spokesperson said. “The Perdues did not know any of the individuals, and they used the same realtor during the purchase and sale of the property.”
Perdue’s office provided a statement from the couple’s real estate agent, Justin Paulhamus: “Since inventory was so limited at the time of the sale, we priced it at market value and were fortunate to get an offer.”
Perdue’s spokesperson said the senator’s real estate agent “floated it off market first, and they would have put it on market, but got an offer at their asking price which was fair market value.”
Perdue is locked in a runoff campaign against Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff. Along with fellow Georgia Republican Kelly Loeffler’s race against Raphael Warnock, his contest could determine which party controls the Senate and with it, whether President-elect Joe Biden can implement much of his agenda.
Perdue has faced multiple allegations that he has mixed his private financial interests with his official work. The most prolific stock trader in the Senate, he bought and sold shares in companies that the committees he sits on have jurisdiction over. Some of his trades came at fortunate times. Earlier this year, the Justice Department investigated him and other lawmakers for possible insider trading. Perdue denied the allegations. Prosecutors ultimately decided not to bring charges against him.
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Perdue’s home buyer in October 2019 was Hillary Sale, a board governor for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a privately funded self-regulatory body for the securities industry. The organization falls under the purview of the Senate Banking Committee, which Perdue sits on. Earlier in 2019, FINRA was lobbying on a bill out of the banking committee that would have required the organization to establish a fund to pay investors bilked by brokers.
A FINRA spokesman said the organization has not lobbied Perdue specifically. In a statement, Sale said she learned of the home though her real estate agent and never interacted with Perdue. She provided ProPublica with an appraisal from her lender showing the home was valued at $1.8 million, $11,000 over the amount she paid. Samer Kuraishi, who leads a real estate agency in Washington, said appraisals are done after a price is agreed to, and that they typically are engineered to match the sales price.
Perdue may have saved thousands by not putting his house on the open market.
Sen. David Perdue listens during the Senate's Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing examining the quarterly CARES Act report to Congress on Capitol Hill, on Sept. 24, 2020, in Washington. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kuraishi and other experts said that when doing off-market deals, sellers can negotiate to pay their agents a smaller commission.
“In that scenario, an agent spends less on staging, less on marketing, less on open houses, less on virtual tours,” he said. “It’s typically an easier sale.”
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Perdue’s spokesperson said the senator paid broker fees, but did not respond to questions about whether the fees were discounted.
Perdue’s Capitol Hill home and many of those around it were built in the early 2000s by EYA, a developer that specializes in luxury townhomes that maintain the look and feel of historic buildings but come with amenities typically reserved for more suburban locales. They have individual garages and private courtyards. Perdue’s home featured a rentable separate unit, connected to the main house through interior stairs.
At the time of the sale, FINRA was lobbying the Senate, according to its disclosure forms, and earlier that year its lobbyists were specifically focused on a bill that would have required the organization to establish a relief fund to provide investors with arbitration awards that went unpaid by FINRA’s brokerage firms and brokers. The bill was authored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and fell under the jurisdiction of the Senate Banking Committee.
The committee had also held hearings that included harsh assessments of how well FINRA was policing its own. In 2018, an AFL-CIO official charged that FINRA was failing as a regulator because it was not forcing its members to pay the arbitration settlements.
Perdue’s office declined to answer questions about where the senator stood on the bill, which did not pass, or whether he took any actions on it.
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Ethics experts are generally troubled when politicians enter into transactions with people who have business before them. The legality of this sale hinges on whether the home was purchased at fair market value. If it was purchased for more than that, it would be considered a gift. Gifts of significant value to senators are required to be publicly disclosed. Perdue did not disclose any such gifts.
Earlier this year, ProPublica reported that Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., sold his Washington townhouse to a donor and powerful lobbyist who had business before him. Burr’s office said the lawmaker notified the Senate Ethics Committee before the sale. Perdue’s office declined to say if he took similar steps. The committee does not typically make such guidance public, and it did not respond to questions about whether Perdue sought advice in this case.
In order to avoid the appearance of a conflict, members of Congress who are buying or selling properties should do so on the open market to help ensure the price paid is fair and to avoid deals with people who have business before them, ethics experts say.
The five local real estate agents who reviewed the transaction for ProPublica had somewhat differing opinions about whether Perdue got an inflated price and, if so, how inflated. All cautioned that valuing a property is not an exact science.
One agent, assuming Perdue did not make significant improvements to the property while living there, priced the home at around $1,650,000. That would mean Perdue sold for about 8% over market. His office declined to say whether he had made those kinds of upgrades, but photos, the agent said, suggest he did not.
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A second agent said the price also seemed high, but only about 2% over market value. The agent said prominent officials selling homes in private deals will often get a premium. “Buyers don’t haggle at that point. If it’s a senator, you’re not going to go back and say, ‘Actually, I’ll give you 1.7.’ They either pay the price or don’t buy it.”
A third agent said it seemed slightly above market. A fourth said the expected range for that property at the time would have been between $1.75 million and $1.785 million, a shade under Perdue’s $1.789 million sale price. A fifth agent said the price Perdue got was squarely at fair market value. All of the agents asked that their names not be used so as not to affect their ability to continue buying and selling homes in the neighborhood.
The agents said that the price Perdue purchased the home for in 2015, $1.6 million, was about market rate at the time. That sale was made on the open market.
In that case, Perdue bought from Bill Cheney, the outgoing president of the trade group lobbying for credit unions; Cheney is currently president of a California-based credit union. Perdue has received donations from the trade group and, as a senator, has helped loosen regulations on credit unions.
One of the real estate agents who spoke with ProPublica noted the short time the home spent on the market before Perdue bought it. The home was put on the market on a Wednesday and Perdue agreed to a deal to buy it that Friday before there could be a weekend open house. The agent said it was atypical for a seller to commit to Perdue without holding an open house to find backup options.
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Cheney and his wife told ProPublica they had an open house for brokers only before the home was put on the market. Perdue got no special treatment, they said, and they had no direct contact with him.
Perdue’s spokesperson said the senator bought the townhouse above asking price.
“Absolutely nothing about the purchase or sale of the property had anything to do with the senator’s official role, since they did not know the buyers or sellers, there could be no conflict of interest whatsoever,” the spokesperson said.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-12-10--Trump Finalizes Sweeping Asylum Restrictions In Last-Minute Immigration Crackdown

WASHINGTON , Dec 10 ( Reuters ) - The Trump administration finalized a regulation on Thursday that greatly restricts access to asylum in the United States , part of a last-minute immigration crackdown that incoming President-elect Joe Biden will likely try to reverse .
The final rule cuts off asylum access for most migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border through a series of changes to eligibility criteria , according to experts and advocates .
In addition , it directs immigration judges and asylum officers to deny broad types of asylum claims , such as those based on domestic abuse and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The new policy will almost certainly face legal challenges , which have sidelined other immigration initiatives put in place by Republican President Donald Trump .
The latest restrictions are set to take effect on Jan. 11 , just nine days before Biden , a Democrat , takes office .
The Biden transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding its stance on the measure , but the incoming president has pledged to restore asylum protections and undo many Trump-era measures .
The asylum restrictions are part of a broader @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump administration to implement tougher immigration rules , a central focus of his four years in office .
The blitz to finalize rules previously announced could slow efforts by Biden to unravel them .
The new rule instructs asylum officers and judges to weigh negatively applications from migrants who crossed into the United States illegally , used fraudulent documents , or passed through other countries without seeking refuge elsewhere first .
The rule will “ eviscerate ” migrant protections if it remains in place , said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick , policy counsel at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put asylum out of reach for all but the lucky few .
”

WASHINGTON, Dec 10 (Reuters) - The Trump administration finalized a regulation on Thursday that greatly restricts access to asylum in the United States, part of a last-minute immigration crackdown that incoming President-elect Joe Biden will likely try to reverse.
The final rule cuts off asylum access for most migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border through a series of changes to eligibility criteria, according to experts and advocates. In addition, it directs immigration judges and asylum officers to deny broad types of asylum claims, such as those based on domestic abuse and gang violence, with some exceptions.
The new policy will almost certainly face legal challenges, which have sidelined other immigration initiatives put in place by Republican President Donald Trump.
The latest restrictions are set to take effect on Jan. 11, just nine days before Biden, a Democrat, takes office. The Biden transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding its stance on the measure, but the incoming president has pledged to restore asylum protections and undo many Trump-era measures.
The asylum restrictions are part of a broader push in the last weeks of the Trump administration to implement tougher immigration rules, a central focus of his four years in office. The blitz to finalize rules previously announced could slow efforts by Biden to unravel them.
The new rule instructs asylum officers and judges to weigh negatively applications from migrants who crossed into the United States illegally, used fraudulent documents, or passed through other countries without seeking refuge elsewhere first.
The rule will “eviscerate” migrant protections if it remains in place, said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy counsel at the pro-immigrant American Immigration Council, and “put asylum out of reach for all but the lucky few.”
(Reporting by Ted Hesson in Washington and Mimi Dwyer in Los Angeles; Editing by Bill Berkrot)