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The national implications of Virginia’s gubernatorial election

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(RICHMOND, Va.) — Virginia voters had a choice: They could continue the commonwealth’s more than a decade-long streak of backing Democratic candidates at the statewide level, or they could reestablish Virginia as a battleground where Republicans can not only compete — but win.

Tuesday’s election determines three statewide officeholders and which party controls the state legislature’s lower chamber. The stakes, as defined by the candidates at the top of the ticket, extend far beyond one state.

“The eyes of the nation are on us. Why? … We all know that as Virginia goes, so goes the nation,” Glenn Youngkin, the Republican nominee for governor, said at a rally over the weekend. “We are going to send a shockwave across this country, and there’s not going to be a Democrat in any seat anywhere in this nation who’s going to think that his or her seat is safe.”

The gubernatorial race was the marquee race of the year. It was the first competitive contest since Joe Biden replaced Donald Trump in the Oval Office, and both men loom large over the race.

Months ago, it looked like Terry McAuliffe, the Democratic nominee who first served as Virginia’s governor between 2014 and 2018, was on his way to a comfortable win in a state that trended blue under Trump’s presidency and delivered Biden a win by a 10-point margin. But going into Election Day, the matchup is a dead heat.

McAuliffe, who has pledged to build on Democrats’ progress over the last eight years, told ABC News’ Jonathan Karl in October that he hopes his race will “set the tone” for the Democratic Party heading into the midterms when its members have to defend their slim majorities in the House and Senate.

Rather than trying to divorce its fate from the off-year election, the national party has gone all in for the Democratic ticket, investing a record $5 million and sending top surrogates to campaign with McAuliffe. Those surrogates, which include President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Barack Obama, have made it clear: Virginia is a political bellwether.

“What happens in Virginia will, in large part, determine what happens in 2022, 2024 and on,” Harris said, stumping for McAuliffe on Friday. “Don’t let Virginia be an experiment.”

Youngkin, a former private equity executive who ran as a political outsider, opted for a different strategy, mocking his opponent for bringing in “fellow career politicians” as he mostly campaigned alone.

Mark Rozell, the dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, said McAuliffe’s strategy is indicative of the enthusiasm gap polls have consistently shown exists between Republican and Democratic voters.

“The McAuliffe campaign is bringing in all these big-name national figures to try to drive up the Democratic turnout,” Rozell said in an interview. “(They’re) worried that the Democratic base is asleep right now.”

State Sen. Creigh Deeds, who beat McAuliffe in the 2009 gubernatorial primary, told ABC News that Tuesday’s contest is “a turnout election.”

“Terry was an energetic and effective governor for four years. He left office popular. I think it’s still his race to lose,” Deeds said. “It’s just about our turning people out. The votes are out there. If they get them out, he’ll win, but it’s on all of us to make sure that it happens.”

Former Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy lost to McAuliffe in the June Democratic primary, but she’s since rallied around McAuliffe’s campaign and through her political action committee, Virginia For Everyone, has contributed to the Democrats’ voter engagement efforts.

“Running for office, it’s all about the ground game,” she said in an interview. “We are mobilizing a multiracial, multigenerational coalition of supporters and voters. … We all are committed to making sure that we get the Democratic ticket statewide and down ballot races elected because failure is not an option.”

Youngkin, however, was banking on Democratic failure.

His campaign’s momentum can be traced back to the final debate in September when McAuliffe said, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.” Youngkin pounced, launching a “Parents Matter” mobilization effort and centering his closing message around this issue by defining himself as an advocate for parents and McAuliffe as someone who isn’t.

Sarah Isgur, a GOP strategist and ABC News contributor, said the schools issue is an enthusiasm driver for voters, and even if Youngkin doesn’t win, Republicans have already learned it’s an effective message going into the midterms.

McAuliffe has pushed back on Youngkin’s narrative of him on this issue, accusing his opponent of using education “to divide Virginia” and using students as “political pawns.”

Painting Youngkin as a divisive and extreme candidate has been central to McAuliffe’s attacks against Youngkin. He’s done that by linking the GOP nominee to Trump, who’s deeply unpopular in Virginia, and warning he will bring Trump’s policies to the commonwealth.

The tactic forced Youngkin to perform a delicate dance of embracing Trump enough so as not to alienate the former president’s base, but not so much that he turned off moderates and independents. Trump endorsed Youngkin after he secured the nomination, but he never appeared with the nominee on the trail. While Youngkin campaigned heavily on “election integrity” — an issue inextricably tied to Trump — during the primary, he’s since pivoted to other issues with appeal beyond the base.

“Unfortunately for McAuliffe, I suppose, Donald Trump is a somewhat diminished figure. … he isn’t the threat that he was the previous four years in which Democratic turnout in Virginia was off the charts,” Rozell said.

Rozell said Youngkin has also benefited from an amenable Trump base: “They’re not pushing him to go all in 100%, 100% of the time on their issues.”

Trump’s willingness to mostly sit this race out, has “unquestionably allowed Youngkin to consolidate the Republican vote and focus on the independents — something that a lot of other Republicans haven’t had the luxury to do,” Isgur said.

If McAuliffe’s strategy of tying Youngkin to Trump fails, she added, the silver lining for Democrats is that they have the opportunity to rethink messaging ahead of the midterms.

After ending Ethiopia’s trade status, US weighs sanctions, genocide designation over Tigray war

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The Biden administration is ending Ethiopia’s special trade status under U.S. law — the latest penalty imposed on the Ethiopian government amid its ongoing war with the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front, the regional force that once controlled the federal government.

The decision, announced Tuesday by the White House, comes amid an expansion in the conflict, which has its anniversary Wednesday. The U.S. special envoy for the Horn of Africa warned it could spill out into a wider civil war, threatening even more suffering for the Ethiopian people and more instability in the region.

To halt that expansion and push both sides to negotiate, the administration has prepared targeted U.S. sanctions against figures on all sides, according to two sources familiar with the plans.

The State Department has also prepared a declaration that the Ethiopian government’s atrocities against Tigrayans constitute a genocide, both sources said, although it’s unclear whether Secretary of State Antony Blinken will sign it and when.

A State Department spokesperson declined to speak to a possible genocide declaration, but told ABC News they are “deeply alarmed by the continuing violence in northern Ethiopia” and “undertaking a review of available facts to assess whether atrocity crimes have been committed.”

Every side in the conflict was been accused of atrocities, including rape and sexual assault, executions, displacement and the destruction of hospitals, farms and food stores.

On Nov. 3, 2020, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a campaign against Tigrayan forces after weeks of tension over regional elections and years of animosity. The TPLF, the Tigray region’s powerful political party and military force, dominated Ethiopian politics for decades until Abiy’s election in 2018.

Federal troops under Abiy were joined by forces from the neighboring country Eritrea, also long at odds with Tigrayan forces, and the neighboring region Amhara — a regional conflict that soon escalated ethnic tensions across Africa’s second most populous country and among its diaspora around the world.

The Biden administration has tried to use diplomatic tools to ease tensions and urge negotiations, deploying visa restrictions against officials in May and launching a sanctions regime in September without targeting any officials just yet.

While those first sanctions could come soon, it’s the suspension of Ethiopia’s trade status under the African Growth and Opportunity Act on Tuesday that marked a new step. In a message to Congress, President Joe Biden said Ethiopia’s “gross violations of internationally recognized human rights” made it ineligible for AGOA under the law.

The suspension is required under U.S. law, but it is also seen as another warning shot across Abiy’s bow — with a potentially strong economic impact on the country, which exports between $100 million and $200 million to the U.S. each year, according to various estimates.

But it won’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2022, so Ethiopia can still reverse the decision before its implementation, according to Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman, U.S. special envoy for the Horn of Africa.

“It’s not too late to retrace our steps toward the path not taken, but the change in direction must occur in days, not weeks,” he said Tuesday.

Events on the ground, however, show the war is heading in the opposite direction. Abiy’s government declared a national state of emergency Tuesday amid concern that the Tigrayan Defense Forces may move on the capital Addis Ababa after seizing towns just 160 miles to the northeast, according to the Associated Press.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration criticized the Biden administration’s decision, saying that it was “extremely disappointed” and that the move will “reverse significant economic gains in our country and unfairly impact and harm women and children.”

“We urge the United States to support our ongoing efforts to restore peace and the rule of law — not punish our people for confronting an insurgent force that is attempting to bring down our democratically elected government,” it added in a statement.

But Feltman made clear the U.S. sees Abiy’s government as part of the problem here, in particular because its “unconscionable” blockade on the Tigray region since June has led to shortages of food, medicine, fuel, and cash. Some 900,000 people are facing famine-like conditions in the region, according to U.S. estimates.

The United Nations has estimated that 2,000 trucks of aid are needed per month to deal with the humanitarian crisis, but just 1,100 trucks have entered in total since the beginning of July — 13% of what’s required — per Feltman.

“Without question, the most serious obstacles are intentional government delays and denials,” he added during remarks at the U.S. Institute of Peace. “This unfortunately suggests an intentional effort by the authorities to deprive Ethiopians who are suffering of life-saving assistance. … No government should be adopting policies or allowing practices that result in mass starvation of its citizens.”

Feltman was also quick, however, to condemn the TPLF, especially for its “unacceptable” offensives into neighboring Afar and Amhara regions that have worsened the humanitarian situation. He urged them not to march on Addis, too.

That delicate balance — calling out each side without appearing to take sides — may have hampered the U.S. response to this fast-evolving conflict. In June, the then-top U.S. diplomat for Africa, Robert Godec, told Congress the State Department was conducting a review for a genocide determination.

“We have this fact and law-based review underway. We have pushed it at a very accelerated pace, and it is far advanced. The Secretary needs to make a decision, and when he’s ready, I’m sure that will happen,” acting Assistant Secretary Godec told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a statement.

Since then, however, there has been no determination. That’s in part, according to one source, because of U.S. concerns about Tigrayan Defense Forces’ atrocities since it launched counter-offensives in June — and about a perception in Addis that the U.S. supports the group over the federal government.

Feltman declined to speak to a genocide determination Tuesday, but he rejected that perception forcefully.

“This could not be further from the truth. We have consistently condemned the TPLF’s expansion of the war outside Tigray, and we continue to call on the TPLF to withdraw from Afar and Amhara,” he said.

The UN human rights office will issue a joint report with the Ethiopian government’s human rights commission on Wednesday — the only official investigation into possible war crimes that Abiy’s government has allowed, although it has already been accused of trying to limit the report, according to the Associated Press.

Feltman said the U.S. would look to the report as it makes its own determinations about possible war crimes or genocide, adding, “The Ethiopian people who have suffered are going to want to see some kind of justice, some kind of reckoning for the horrors that they’ve been through because of this needless conflict, and we will be looking to encourage the type of accountability and justice that the Ethiopian people have every right to expect.”

He was clearer that the U.S. has sanctions ready to go against figures from each side: “The United States is prepared to pursue the first sanctions… against those fueling this crisis and obstructing humanitarian operations, and we will be targeting all parties implicated,” he said.

To date, the U.S. has only sanctioned Eritrea’s top military official, Gen. Filipos Woldeyohannes, for his forces’ human rights abuses. Feltman said Tuesday Eritrean troops have played an “extremely damaging and destructive role” and are responsible for “some of the absolute worst, most horrifying human rights violations.”

But it’s unclear what kind of impact these diplomatic tools will have on either side. While Feltman said the conflict will end in talks no matter what — and the leaders should spare the Ethiopian people by talking now — it seems clear from the continued blockade and the TPLF offensive that each side still believes they can win a military victory.

Senators push Justice Department to crack down on illegal gun modifications

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — They’re cheap, easy to produce and can make guns more dangerous in minutes.

Gun modifications are becoming a problem for the country as the number of shooting incidents linked to automatic weapons is on the rise, according to two U.S. senators.

Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) are pushing the federal government to take action and sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland last week voicing their concerns.

Specifically, they are looking for the Department of Justice to investigate the sale and distribution of “auto sears” and other conversion devices. When an auto sear is installed into a semi-automatic firearm, the weapon will fire multiple rounds as long as the trigger is pulled instead of just one round.

The modifications can be done in under a minute and require “little technical expertise,” according to the senators who cited a Minneapolis Star Tribune article that included interviews with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives about the mods.

Klobuchar and Booker expressed concern about how easy it is for one to acquire or make these modification devices, “in part due to the ease and accessibility of 3-D printing and the availability of cheap imported conversion devices from countries like China, which can be purchased for as little as $19 each.”

The letter noted that Minneapolis has seen a spike in the use of automatic weapons in the last year. The Minneapolis Police Department’s data found that there have been 72 incidents involving automatic weapon discharge in 2021 so far compared to five during the same time last year, according to the senators.

The Minneapolis Star Tribute reported that seven people were injured in a shooting in August where an automatic weapon was used. Over 100 bullets were fired during the incident, according to the police.

Klobuchar and Booker asked the Department of Justice to provide them with the agency’s current plans to address the rise of gun modification devices, as well as any strategies at curbing illegal sales the agency is considering.

The senators are also looking for responses from the Department of Justice in addressing the availability of 3-D printing technology for auto sears as well as information on its coordination with local law enforcement on the issue.

A spokesperson for the Department of Justice told ABC News the office received the senators’ letter but didn’t have an immediate comment.

ABC News’ Alexander Mallin contributed to this report.

New theory about mysterious LAX ‘jet pack man’ released by police

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(LOS ANGELES) — Following nearly two years of reported sightings of a man flying at relatively high altitudes around aircrafts landing at Los Angeles International Airport, the police department released a new theory — there may not have been a man after all.

A helicopter crew captured images of a life-sized balloon flying over Century City last November, near where earlier sightings had been reported, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The balloon reportedly resembles the fictional character “Jack Skellington” from Tim Burton’s 1993 movie “A Nightmare Before Christmas.”

The first reported sighting of a possible jetpack flier was made on Aug. 30, 2020, after two different commercial airline pilots reported seeing a man in a jet pack hovering near LAX, ABC News reported.

The second report was made on Oct. 14, 2020, and the third was made on July 28, 2021, all in the same surrounding area as the first.

Federal authorities said that none of the theories surrounding the sightings have been confirmed, and they are continuing to investigate the situation with the Federal Aviation Administration.

“The FBI has worked closely with the FAA to investigate reported jetpack sightings in the Los Angeles area, none of which have been verified,” the FBI said in a statement to ABC News on Tuesday. “One working theory is that pilots might have seen balloons.”

CDC advisory committee votes to recommend Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5-11

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(ATLANTA) — A committee of independent experts advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted unanimously on Tuesday to recommend the Pfizer vaccine for children 5-11, checking off one of the last boxes in the authorization process.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky is expected to issue the final recommendation as soon as Tuesday evening, capping off the process and allowing the first shots to be administered by Wednesday morning.

But vaccinations are not expected to kick into high-gear until Nov. 8, when the White House says Pfizer’s pediatric vaccines will be more widely accessible across the nation.

About 15 million doses are expected to ship out over the next week. The majority, about 10 million, will be available at pediatrician’s offices, children’s hospitals, community centers and mass vaccination sites. About 5 million doses will go to pharmacies.

Many parents are anxious to protect their children after the delta surge over the summer led to increased cases and hospitalizations among kids. Though the variant is not more deadlier, it is more transmissible — and because kids are unvaccinated, the variant rocketed through schools and camps.

The most recent data from Pfizer’s clinical trials found that the vaccine for children ages 5-11 was nearly 91% effective against symptomatic illness.

For kids, the vaccine will be given at a smaller, one-third dose.

The vaccine also appears safe. The company says none of the children in clinical trials experienced a rare heart inflammation side effect known as myocarditis, which has been associated with the mRNA vaccines in very rare cases, mostly among young men.

The CDC’s expert on myocarditis, Dr. Matt Oster, a pediatric cardiologist at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, said unequivocally at Tuesday’s meeting that he believes the benefits of the vaccine for 5-11 year-olds outweighs the potential risks of vaccine-related myocarditis.

“The bottom line is getting COVID I think is much riskier to the heart than getting this vaccine, no matter what age or sex you have,” Oster told the committee.

Meanwhile, the risks of not getting vaccinated loom far larger than the rare and mostly mild vaccine side effects seen in some adolescents, CDC’s Dr. Sarah Oliver said.

For every million pediatric vaccinations, more than 18,500 COVID cases and 80 hospitalizations could be prevented, Oliver estimated, using a model based on cases throughout the pandemic so far. If cases returned to the peak seen during the delta variant, over 58,200 COVID cases and over 220 hospitalizations could be prevented.

“There could also be possible prevention of transmission and a greater confidence in a safer return to school and social interactions,” Oliver said. “Wide use of an effective vaccine would reduce the public health burden of COVID in children five through 11 years of age.”

Other CDC committee members agreed.

“I think the data supports that we have one more vaccine that saves lives of children and that we should be very confident to employ it to the maximum,” said Dr. Sarah Long, a member of the CDC’s committee and professor of pediatrics at Drexel University.

Last week, all of the efficacy and safety data was reviewed by a panel of experts at the Food and Drug Administration, which then voted nearly unanimously to authorize the vaccine.

Then, last Friday, the vaccine was authorized by FDA acting commissioner Janet Woodcock.

Whether parents will embrace the vaccine for their kids is still a question. In an October poll, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that about a third of parents with kids ages 5-11 were willing to vaccinate their kids right away, while another third wanted to “wait and see.” The figures represented a slight uptick in vaccine acceptance among parents of elementary-school-aged kids since July, but they have stayed steady since September.

Woodcock told reporters on Friday that she hoped parents would quickly see the benefits.

“We certainly hope that as people see children getting vaccinated and being protected, being able to participate in activities without concern, that more and more people will get their kids vaccinated,” she said.

And she emphasized the urgency of preventing the conditions that can come with COVID diagnoses in kids.

“As a parent, if I had young children this age group I would get them vaccinated now. I would not want to take the risk that they would be one of the ones who would develop long COVID, who would develop multi-system inflammatory syndrome or have to be hospitalized from from the virus,” Woodcock said.

ABC News’ Anne Flaherty contributed to this report.

COVID-19 live updates: CDC panel votes ‘yes’ on Pfizer vaccine for young kids

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 747,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

Just 67.9% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

Nov 02, 5:08 pm
CDC panel votes ‘yes’ on Pfizer vaccine for young kids

An independent CDC advisory panel voted “yes” Tuesday to recommend the Pfizer vaccine for the roughly 28 million children ages 5 to 11 in the U.S.

The vote was unanimous.

“The data supports that we have one more vaccine that that saves lives of children and that we should be very confident to employ it to the maximum,” panel member Dr. Sarah Long said.

“I think we I feel that I have a responsibility to make the vaccine available. If I had a grandchild, I would certainly get that grandchild vaccinated as soon as possible,” said panel member Dr. Beth Bell.

Next, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky must sign off; no pediatric vaccinations will start until Walensky gives the green light. If that happens Tuesday evening, shots could start going into younger children’s arms beginning Wednesday.

Nov 02, 3:58 pm
COVID more risky to heart than vaccine: Expert

The CDC’s expert on myocarditis, a rare heart inflammation condition that’s been linked to the vaccine, said Tuesday that he believes the benefits of the vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds outweighs the potential risks of myocarditis.

“The bottom line is: getting COVID, I think, is much riskier to the heart than getting this vaccine, no matter what age or sex,” Dr. Matt Oster said.

None of the more than 3,000 children in the age 5 to 11 clinical trials developed myocarditis from the vaccine, which has been seen in a rare number of cases, mostly among young men.

Oster said, “I believe it’s less likely that the 5- to 11-year-olds will have myocarditis. Although we will watch and see for sure, and they may have some, but I don’t think it’s going to be nearly to the extent of the older adolescents and young adults.”

-ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett

Nov 02, 1:51 pm
New study reaffirms need for additional vaccine shots for immune-compromised people

A new study finds mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are 77% effective against hospitalizations among people with immune compromised conditions, compared to 90% effective among hospitalizations among people without such conditions.

This study — a multistate analysis of nearly 90,000 hospitalizations from January to September 2021 — adds more evidence that vaccines don’t work as well among people with compromised immune systems. Also, people with certain immune compromised conditions are more at-risk than others.

-ABC News’ Sony Salzman

Nov 02, 1:27 pm
Daily case average rising, hospitalizations declining

The daily case average in the U.S. has jumped by 13.3% in the last week, according to federal data.

Alaska currently has the country’s highest infection rate, followed by Montana, North Dakota and Wyoming. Puerto Rico, Florida and Hawaii have the lowest infection rate.

Hospitalizations are declining. About 48,000 patients are currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in the U.S., down by nearly 104,000 patients from eight weeks ago.

Hospital admissions are also down by 11.7% in the last week, according to federal data.

-ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos

Nov 01, 8:28 pm
Major pharmacy chains to offer Pfizer vaccine to children 5-11

Several major pharmacy chains told ABC News they are gearing up to offer the Pfizer vaccine to 5- to 11-year-olds within days of its approval by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency is expected to give the green light as early as Tuesday night. If approved, roughly 28 million children would be eligible for the mRNA vaccine.

“We expect to be able to provide vaccinations for this age group shortly after November 3,” Rite Aid said in a statement.

Walgreens said in a statement that, “appointments will open as we receive supply to stores, beginning this week.”

A spokesperson for CVS said the chain will share more specifics about its vaccine rollout once the authorization is made, and will provide customers with information on its website.

“We have played a prominent role in administering third doses to the immunocompromised and authorized booster shots, and are prepared to expand vaccine eligibility to ages 5-11 as soon as authorized to do so by public health agencies,” CVS said in a statement.

Nov 01, 4:33 pm
Details on vaccine mandates for businesses expected in coming days

A federal rule on vaccine mandates for businesses will be released this week, according to the Labor Department.

The rule will require employers with 100 employers or more to mandate the vaccine or weekly testing. It also will require large businesses to provide paid time off to workers to get the shot and recover from side effects from the vaccine.

The department said in a statement, “On November 1, the Office of Management and Budget completed its regulatory review of the emergency temporary standard. The Federal Register will publish the emergency temporary standard in the coming days.”

It’s not clear when the rule will take effect.

President Joe Biden first announced the rule in September and it’s since been making its way through the regulatory process.

Nov 01, 3:52 pm
Pediatric cases continue to decline

The U.S. reported about 101,000 child COVID-19 cases last week, marking the eighth consecutive week of declines in pediatric infections since the pandemic peak of nearly 252,000 cases in early September, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association.

The rate of pediatric hospital admissions is also declining.

Approximately 45.3% of adolescents ages 12 to 17 have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to federal data.

Severe illness due to COVID-19 remains “uncommon” among children, AAP and CHA said. However, AAP and CHA continue to warn that there is an urgent need to collect more data on the long-term consequences of the pandemic on children, “including ways the virus may harm the long-term physical health of infected children, as well as its emotional and mental health effects.”

Nov 01, 3:15 pm
What to expect at Tuesday’s CDC panel meeting on vaccinating young kids

An independent CDC advisory panel will convene at 11 a.m. Tuesday to debate and hold a nonbinding vote on whether to recommend the Pfizer vaccine for the roughly 28 million kids ages 5 to 11 in the U.S.

The CDC panel is expected to vote around 4:15 p.m.

If the panel decides to move ahead, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky must sign off on those specific recommendations, which would likely happen Tuesday evening.

No pediatric vaccinations will start until Walensky gives the green light. If that happens Tuesday evening, shots could start going into younger children’s arms beginning Wednesday.

The White House has purchased 65 million Pfizer pediatric vaccine doses — more than enough to fully vaccine all American children in this age group.

Kyle Rittenhouse trial begins: Key takeaways from Day 1

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(KENOSHA, Wisc.) — A jury heard two wildly different scenarios of how two men were killed and another was wounded allegedly by teenager Kyle Rittenhouse during a chaotic 2020 protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

In opening statements presented Tuesday morning to the Kenosha County Circuit Court panel, a prosecutor said the evidence will show Rittenhouse, 18, was an “active shooter” whose reckless behavior led to the deadly incident. But a defense attorney countered that the same evidence indicates that it was “reasonable” for the teenager to use deadly force to defend himself from what he claims was a mob attacking him.

Rittenhouse has pleaded not guilty to felony charges of first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree intentional homicide and attempted first-degree intentional homicide. He has also pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of possession of a firearm by an individual under the age of 18, and an infraction of violating a curfew that was imposed on the city at the time.

‘The only person who killed anyone was the defendant’

“Out of the hundreds of people that came to Kenosha during that week, the hundreds of people that were out on the streets that week, the evidence will show that the only person who killed anyone was the defendant, Kyle Rittenhouse,” Thomas Binger, a Kenosha County assistant district attorney, told the jury multiple times during his presentation.

The chaos unfolded on Aug. 25, 2020, after protests erupted in Kenosha over a police officer shooting Jacob Black, a 29-year-old Black man, paralyzing him. Riots, vandalism and looting broke out, prompting an online call for armed “patriots” to come to the city to protect lives and property.

Rittenhouse, who was then 17, answered the call to help, his attorney, Mark Richards, told the jury. Richards used a series of photos and videos in his statement appearing to show Rittenhouse being kicked, hit in the head with a skateboard and having a gun aimed near his head when he shot and killed one man, Anthony Huber, 26, and severely wounded another, Gaige Grosskreutz, 27.

But Binger told the jurors that the fatal face-off started minutes earlier when Rittenhouse chased an unarmed protester, Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and shot him four times, including a fatal shot to the back, in a used car lot Rittenhouse claimed to have been protecting.

Binger argued there was nothing reasonable about the behavior of Rittenhouse that night and suggested that the teenager from Antioch, Illinois, who was armed with an AR-style semiautomatic rifle with a 30-round clip, was the aggressor who sparked the deadly confrontation.

“Based on all of that evidence, I think you will agree with me that the defendant is guilty of all of these charges,” Binger told the 11 women and nine men of the jury.

‘Privileged under the law of self-defense’

Richards, who gave his statement after Binger, blamed Rosenbaum for escalating the violence that led to his death as well as the killing of Huber and the wounding of Grosskreutz, who is expected to testify at the high-profile trial.

“Mr. Rosenbaum is ultimately the individual who lit the fuse that night,” said Richards, who — during a hearing out of the presence of the jury — claimed Rosenbaum was discharged from a hospital that day after allegedly attempting suicide.

Richards said the evidence will show Rosenbaum had threatened to kill Rittenhouse and others who were attempting to protect property earlier in the evening. He claimed Rosenbaum, who was allegedly setting garbage cans on fire, seized on his promise when he found Rittenhouse isolated from his cohorts and that he attempted to “steal” the teenager’s gun and use it on him.

He said the case “isn’t a whodunit” and that Rittenhouse’s actions were “privileged under the law of self-defense.”

Richards displayed photos and video that he said show Rittenhouse using restraint from shooting people approaching him with their hands up, including Grosskreutz when he initially approached Rittenhouse after he had been knocked to the ground and kicked. He claimed Rittenhouse only shot Grosskreutz when the man aimed a gun near his head.

He then said Rittenhouse fatally shot Huber after Huber allegedly hit him in the head with a skateboard twice, the second time after the teen was on the ground and kicked in the face by an unidentified individual he referred to as the “jump-kick man.”

“The defendant believes that the amount of force which he used or threatened to use was necessary to prevent or terminate interference and that his belief was reasonable,” Richards told the jury. “You as jurors will end up looking at it from the standpoint of a 17-year old under the circumstances as they existed on Aug. 25.”

First prosecution witness

The prosecution called its first witness, Dominick Black, the boyfriend of Rittenhouse’s sister, who allegedly purchased the rifle for Rittenhouse and joined Rittenhouse in Kenosha on the night of the killings.

Under questioning from both Binger and Richards, Black said that during the protest he was positioned on the roof of the car dealership they were protecting. He claimed protesters were throwing rocks and at least one gas bomb at him, but he said neither he nor anyone on the roof with him retaliated.

“Did you feel that by these people throwing rocks at you or throwing a gas bomb at you that you were in danger?” Binger asked.

Black, 20, replied, “I mean pain, yes, but not danger. I knew it wasn’t going to kill me.”

“So, you felt like it wasn’t enough to use deadly force?” Binger asked.

“Correct,” answered Black, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of intentionally giving a dangerous weapon to a person under the age of 18, causing death, and is scheduled to go on trial in January.

Under cross-examination from Richards, Black said that during the protest he witnessed Rittenhouse providing first aid to injured protesters and confirmed that he told investigators “the only person I saw helping anyone was Kyle.”

The trial is scheduled to last a little over two weeks. Twenty jurors were chosen to hear the case, and 12 will be picked at the end of the evidence portion of the trial to decide Rittenhouse’s fate.

Schumer says Democrats reach deal on lowering prescription drug costs

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Tuesday that Democrats have reached a deal on a measure aimed at lowering the cost of prescription drugs as part of President Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better” package.

This is one of the last major remaining hurdles for agreement on the reconciliation effort to pass the sweeping social and climate policy measure, and Schumer said that Arizona Democratic Sen. Sinema, a holdout on prescription drugs, supports this new plan.

The deal includes: Direct government negotiation on the price of insulin and a smaller universe of drugs that are no longer protected from competition; a cap on out of pocket prescription drug expenses for seniors at $2,000 annually; if the cost of a drug rises faster than inflation, that manufacturer would pay a rebate penalty to Medicare (this penalty would apply to all drugs both in Medicare and in commercial insurance.

“We’ve heard this from people across the country who have serious illnesses and can’t afford their medicine,” Schumer said. “What a painstaking position to be in, it’s horrible. Today we’ve taken a massive step forward in helping to alleviate that problem. “

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Biden predicts Manchin, despite complaints, will support his domestic agenda

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(GLASGOW, Scotland) — President Joe Biden’s spent his last hours on his overseas trip with a news conference to tout U.S. climate policies and close out what he called “significant progress” made at the COP26 summit — but he was also forced to respond to Democratic infighting over his climate change policies at home.

“Mister President, you’re touting on this visit the $1.7 trillion plan that includes climate but your party is still not united behind it,” a reporter said, raising progressives battling with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., over the social spending package Democrats seek to pass through reconciliation — which would need every Democratic Senate vote. “Today, he said he never signed off on the framework. So, do you have a specific commitment from Senator Manchin to support your Build Back Better bill — yes or no — and how do you respond to those criticisms?”

“Number one, I’m not going to talk about the specifics of my conversations,” Biden replied. “He will vote for — in this proposal what he has anticipated and that is looking at the fine print and the detail of what comes out of the house in terms of the actual legislative initiative. I believe that Joe will be there.”

Although there’s no definite sign a vote on the already Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill will pass the House soon, progressives say they trust Biden to deliver 51 Senate votes he promised on the larger social spending bill, and the president offered an optimistic outlook, despite Manchin’s new concerns that it would cost a lot more than claimed.

“Seventeen Nobel laureates and economists said it’s going to lower inflation and raise wages and increase competition and create two million jobs in a year, et cetera, and so I think that Joe is looking for the precise detail to make sure nothing got slipped in — in terms of how the legislation got written that is different than he acknowledged he would agree to, but I think we’ll get this done,” Biden said.

He took the same tone when asked about election day in Virginia — where the race for governor is being considered a litmus test for former President Donald Trump’s influence on voters while Democrats’ agenda is stalled.

Asked if a Democratic loss could signal real losses for the party in the midterms, Biden said, “We’re going to win.”

“The race is very close. It’s about who shows up, who turns out, and grant it, I did win by a large margin, but the point of the matter is that I think, this is going to be what we all knew from the beginning. This is going to be a tight race,” he said, acknowledging results may be slow because of the stiff competition. “I think we’re going to win New Jersey as well.”

“The off-year is always unpredictable, especially when we don’t have a general election going on at the same time,” he added. “But having said that, I don’t believe, and I’ve not seen any evidence that whether or not I am doing well or poorly, whether or not I’ve got my agenda passed or not is going to have any real impact on winning or losing. Even if we had passed my agenda, I wouldn’t claim we won because Biden’s agenda passed,” Biden said.

In brief remarks ahead of taking questions, Biden touted the U.S. as leading the way with initiatives such as reducing methane emissions and deforestation.

He said investing in a clean energy future will take a whole society effort and is both an economic and “moral imperative.”

Earlier in the day, the president emphasized innovation of new technologies, and the adoption of existing ones, to galvanize the fight against climate change. He talked about deforestation and how the U.S. will meet carbon emission goals after the White House announced a new plan for methane reduction which he said more than 100 countries have signed, too.

Facebook to shut down facial recognition system

November 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Meta, the newly named parent company of Facebook, announced Tuesday that it was shutting down its use of a facial recognition system on its social media platform.

The announcement comes after mounting pressure from advocacy groups concerned about privacy issues, allegations of racial bias in algorithms and additional concerns related to how artificial intelligence technology identifies people’s faces in pictures. It also notably comes amid renewed scrutiny of the tech giant from lawmakers and beyond.

“We need to weigh the positive use cases for facial recognition against growing societal concerns, especially as regulators have yet to provide clear rules,” Jerome Pesenti, the vice president of artificial intelligence at Meta, said in a company blogpost Tuesday. “In the coming weeks, we will shut down the Face Recognition system on Facebook as part of a company-wide move to limit the use of facial recognition in our products.”

“As part of this change, people who have opted in to our Face Recognition setting will no longer be automatically recognized in photos and videos, and we will delete the facial recognition template used to identify them,” Pesenti added.

Pesenti said that more than a third of Facebook’s daily active users have opted in to use facial recognition, and its removal “will result in the deletion of more than a billion people’s individual facial recognition templates.”

Looking ahead, Pesenti said Meta still sees facial recognition technology as a tool that could be used for people needing to verify their identity or to prevent fraud or impersonation, and said the company will continue to work on these technologies while “engaging outside experts.”

“But the many specific instances where facial recognition can be helpful need to be weighed against growing concerns about the use of this technology as a whole,” Pesenti added. “There are many concerns about the place of facial recognition technology in society, and regulators are still in the process of providing a clear set of rules governing its use. Amid this ongoing uncertainty, we believe that limiting the use of facial recognition to a narrow set of use cases is appropriate.”

Removing the Facebook’s facial recognition system will lead to a number of changes for users, Pesenti noted, including that the platform will no longer automatically recognize if people’s faces appear in photos or videos, and people will no longer be able to turn it on for suggestions on whom to tag in photos. The company also intends to delete the template used to identify users who have employed the setting.

The change will affect the automatic alt text feature, which creates image descriptions for blind and visually impaired people, Pesenti added, saying the descriptions will no longer include the names of people recognized in photos but will function normally otherwise.

The announcement comes amid mounting controversies for the tech giant. A company whistleblower, Frances Haugen, testified before lawmakers just weeks ago, alleging blatant disregard from Facebook executives when they learned their platform could have harmful effects on democracy and the mental health of young people.

Some digital rights advocacy groups welcomed Facebook’s recognition of the pitfalls of facial recognition technology, though still urged for an all-out ban.

“Facial recognition is one of the most dangerous and politically toxic technologies ever created. Even Facebook knows that,” Caitlin Seeley George, campaign director for the nonprofit advocacy group Fight for the Future, told ABC News in a statement shortly after the announcement was made.

“From misidentifying Black and Brown people (which has already led to wrongful arrests) to making it impossible to move through our lives without being constantly surveilled, we cannot trust governments, law enforcement, or private companies with this kind of invasive surveillance,” she added. “And even as algorithms improve, facial recognition will only be more dangerous.”

The tech could allow governments to target and crack down on religious minorities or political dissenters, create new tools for stalking or identity theft and more, Seeley George added, saying simply: “It should be banned.”

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