This week has been tough. From the very real suffering of the global pandemic to wildfires to Hurricane Laura to the continued onslaught of racial injustice to the nonstop propaganda spewed by the RNC. A lot of news, a lot to take in. Here are some stories you might have missed.
Trevor Noah: 'Enough with this militia bullshit,' they're 'dudes threatening people with guns'
By Walter Einenkel
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah continues to be filmed remotely as our country’s COVID-19 pandemic continues unabated. On Thursday, Noah used the opening of his show to address the shooting by police of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
The 29-year-old Black security guard was paralyzed from the waist down when police officers fired at him at least seven times in front of his three children this past Sunday. Noah discussed the deadly double standard faced by Black citizens, and talked about the perverse reporting on
Kyle Howard Rittenhouse—the 17-year-old domestic terrorist who shot three people and killed two of them during Kenosha protests.
Noah opens the show by saying how no matter how many times he watches clips like the one of Blake, he will never understand the insistence by some that there seem to be only two options for law enforcement to follow when dealing with Black people. “Like, are we really meant to believe that the only two options a cop has is do nothing, or shoot somebody in the back seven times? That's all we have?” Even literal wild animals on the loose in communities are given less lethal treatment, with authorities frequently using tranquilizers and even nets to subdue them.
“I never thought I would wish for Black people to be treated at least like a wild bear, but here we are.”
Warning: The opening 1:02 of the clip embedded in that story includes footage of the Blake incident with Kenosha police.
Senate Democrats slam Chad Wolf's official nomination: He 'must be held accountable, not rewarded'
By Gabe Ortiz
It doesn’t even matter if his remaining at DHS may be dwindling down, Unlawful Chad certainly doesn’t deserve to get rewarded with a permanent title to tout, legislators who will be facing him in any confirmation hearings said in reaction to his official nomination.
“Chad Wolf played a direct role in implementing the Admin's cruel family separation policy, & now the President is nominating him to permanently be @DHSGov Secretary,” tweeted U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada. In fact, Wolf lied under oath to her last year, claiming that he had no part in developing the administration’s family separation policy. “Did you help develop that policy?" she asked. “No ma'am," he replied, claiming that he learned of the policy “through discussions with staff, leading up to the attorney general's announcement, I believe in April of 2018.” But that was a lie.
“In December 2017, Wolf sent an email to then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ counsel in his capacity as then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen’s chief of staff that outlined 16 options for curbing undocumented immigration,” watchdog group Restore Public Trust said. “Among the list was ‘separate family units,’ as well as expediting the deportation of children and requiring migrants to seek asylum in Mexico.”
Lied under oath, is serving in an unlawful capacity, and still feels he’s entitled to keep his job, other outraged Democrats also echoed.
Racists take page from white supremacist playbook and criminally charge Black leaders taking a stand
By Lauren Floyd
A vice mayor is the latest of 14 Black people targeted with criminal charges in Virginia after speaking out about racism following the removal of a Confederate monument. A local news station was with Portsmouth Vice Mayor Lisa Lucas-Burke Monday when she was served two summons initiated by—get this—a resident of the city. Thomas Dubois accused Lucas-Burke of violating a city code when she twice called for Portsmouth Police Chief Angela Greene to be fired, WAVY-TV reported. Several community members had also pushed for Greene to resign or be fired, but Greene may be bound by an outdated city charter preventing city council members from influencing the city manager’s hiring or firing decisions.
The document not only prevents city council members from interfering in the "removal" or "employment" of any employee the city manager hires, but it attaches punishments of a class three misdemeanor and removal from office. “I don’t understand their purpose behind that because I was only expressing my opinion to a group of citizens who were out there for a rally,” Lucas-Burke told WAVY.
Screams about the 'radical left' aren't having the effect Republicans expected
By Kos
So yeah, radical left radical left radical left radical left.
There are several problems for Republicans trying to make that case.
One: Joe freakin’ Biden. We just spent a whole primary season where the “radical left” was supposedly represented by Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. And sure, Republicans can try to work around it by saying stupid shit like “Biden is a captive of the left,” but it simply falls flat. No one sees Biden as a radical leftist because quite frankly, he’s not a radical leftist.
We can argue (credibly) that even Sanders and Warren aren’t “radical left.” But Biden? Zero people actually believe that. Not even Republicans.
Two: Compare the conventions. The Democratic one seemed to have as many Republicans as it did Democrats. The real left of the party wasn’t represented. The closest we might’ve come to it—Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez—got a little over a minute to speak. Meanwhile, Republicans like Colin Powell and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich got prime-time featured slots.
The Republican one? Where do we even start?
And that’s it for this week!
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Let me know in the comments: Did you watch the RNC? What moment sticks out in your mind?
Looking forward to chatting with you all below!
