(NEW YORK) — The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 617,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and over 4.2 million people have died worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 58.7% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s how the news is developing Tuesday. All times Eastern:
Aug 10, 8:59 am
Dallas, Austin school districts to require masks
The Dallas Independent School District, the second largest in Texas, said it’s temporarily requiring face masks for all students, staff and visitors as of Tuesday.
It’s not clear how long the mask mandate will last.
In the Austin Independent School District, students, staff and visitors must wear face masks beginning Wednesday.
This comes after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott imposed a ban on mask mandates.
In Houston, Texas’ biggest school district, the board of education will vote this week on a proposed mask requirement, according to ABC Dallas affiliate WFAA.
Aug 10, 8:29 am
Pediatrician warns parents and governors: Don’t ‘underestimate’ the virus
Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former acting director of the CDC, said parents should not get to choose if their kids wear masks in school.
“Allowing it to be an issue of personal choice is fine if it only affected your child, but it doesn’t. It affects everyone around your child as well,” Besser told “Good Morning America” Tuesday.
“There’s a lot we don’t know about this virus,” Besser said. “I urge parents, I urge schools, I urge governors, not to underestimate what we’re dealing with.”
Aug 09, 7:27 pm
No ICU beds available at top Mississippi hospitals: Official
Mississippi’s top health official warned Monday that the state’s top-level hospitals have no ICU beds left, and things are going to get worse.
Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs cited the latest stats on the growing number of COVID-19 cases, stating there were 6,912 new cases and 28 deaths recorded.
“Keep in mind – this will translate into around 500 new hospitalization in coming days, and we have ZERO ICU beds at Level 1-3 hospitals, and we have
Aug 09, 7:06 pm
Abbott seeks out of state health care personnel to help Texas
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced several measures Monday to curb the state’s growing COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.
Health care personnel from other states will be coming to Texas to assist the Texas Department of State Health Services with their recent wave of cases, Abbott said.
The governor sent a letter to the Texas Hospital Association urging them to suspend elective surgeries.
He also announced the health department will open more antibody fusion centers and vaccine sites for residents.
Aug 09, 5:38 pm
Arkansas hospitalizations reach record high, 8 ICU beds left
Arkansas saw its highest number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus since the pandemic began, according to state health data.
The number of hospitalizations rose by 103, its biggest one-day increase, to 1,376, which is five hospitalizations higher than the previous record set in January, the state health data showed.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson tweeted that only eight ICU beds remained in the entire state. He encouraged more people to get a vaccine.
As of Monday, 49.3% of eligible residents in Arkansas have received one vaccine shot, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Aug 09, 4:43 pm
Washington governor issues vaccine mandate for state employees
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced Monday that he has ordered that all state employees must be vaccinated or face termination.
Inslee cited increased hospitalizations and cases throughout the state, which have mostly affected the unvaccinated, as the factor for his executive order.
“We do so to protect our vulnerable communities, to prevent further calamity to our state and to be further on the path to recovery,” he said at a news conference.
The deadline for the vaccine mandate is Oct. 18. Inslee’s executive order does provide medical and religious exemptions.
As of Aug. 2, 69.6% of Washingtonians 12 and older have received at least one dose of a vaccine, according to the state’s health department.
“We need more people to roll up their sleeves,” Inslee said.
(NEW YORK) — Dominion Voting Systems on Tuesday morning filed three $1.6 billion defamation lawsuits against two pro-Trump media networks and an outspoken Trump ally, the latest in a string of suits from the company against those it says pushed false accusations that the company helped rig the 2020 election.
The complaints were filed against Newsmax and One America News Network, as well as against former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne, who is an outspoken supporter of the former president.
Newsmax and OAN “helped create and cultivate an alternate reality where up is down, pigs have wings, and Dominion engaged in a colossal fraud to steal the presidency from Donald Trump by rigging the vote,” Dominion wrote in each of its complaints against the two networks.
Specifically, Dominion alleges that two networks “manufactured, endorsed, repeated, and broadcast a series of verifiably false yet devastating lies about Dominion.” OAN, they allege, was motivated by a “quest for profits and viewers” in competition with leading conservative network Fox News. They say both outlets helped spread these lies by promoting other figures such as Byrne, who they say “pushed lies” in collaboration with “other Trump-connected individuals.
“Byrne continues to stick to his manufactured, inherently improbable, profitable, and demonstrable lies,” the complaint against him says.
The complaints include dozens of statements by the networks and Byrne repeating conspiracy theories about the company, and claiming “evidence” to back them up.
A Newsmax spokesperson said in a statement, “While Newsmax has not reviewed the Dominion filing, in its coverage of the 2020 Presidential elections, Newsmax simply reported on allegations made by well-known public figures, including the President, his advisors and members of Congress — Dominion’s action today is a clear attempt to squelch such reporting and undermine a free press.”
Earlier this year, however, Newsmax retracted some its reporting surrounding the 2020 election as part of a settlement after it was sued by a Dominion employee last year. Referring to allegations that Dominion had schemed to rig the election in favor of President Joe Biden, the network reported that it “subsequently found no evidence that such allegations were true.”
OAN and Byrne did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Dominion’s latest complaints were filed in Delaware by the Denver-based voting company, which became the subject of false far-reaching conspiracy theories fueled largely by right-wing figures close to then-President Donald Trump as part of efforts to overturn the results of the election
Dominion has in recent months filed similar billion-dollar defamation suits against other Trump allies for what the company said was their role in pushing the false allegations, including Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal attorney; Sidney Powell, a member of the Trump’s legal team who was later removed; and Mike Lindell, the Trump-aligned pillow magnate.
All of those parties have denied the allegations against them and have asked a judge to dismiss the lawsuits. Those motions are still pending.
The litigation comes amid a wave of renewed scrutiny of the 2020 election results, as Democrats in Congress have ramped up their investigation into the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6 by Trump supporters who believed the election was tainted by fraud, while Republicans in some states have renewed calls for additional audits of the 2020 returns.
After pushing baseless allegations of election fraud, Byrne was one of the key figures who helped fund a partisan audit of the 2020 election in Arizona’s Maricopa County, ABC News has previously reported.
Byrne, who previously said he’d been funding his own team of “hackers and cybersleuths and other people with odd skills” to search for voter fraud, has so far raised over $1.5 million to support the audit, according to the website created by his new nonprofit organization, The America Project. The former CEO also claims to have donated at least $500,000 of his own money to fund the audit.
(WASHINGTON) — Fresh off one of the most expensive presidential elections in modern American history, wealthy donors from both sides of the aisle are already back pumping big checks into supporting Donald Trump and Joe Biden’s political efforts.
Campaign disclosure reports filed last week showed Team Trump’s aggressive post-White House fundraising efforts raising more than $50 million over the past six months, with more than $100 million on hand heading into the second half of the year. Trump’s post-election fundraising operation has mainly focused on small-dollar online contributions through his newly formed political action committee, Save America, and his presidential campaign committee-turned PAC, Make America Great Again PAC — both of which are limited by federal campaign regulations to contributions of $5,000 per person.
In comparison, Team Biden — which hasn’t been soliciting donations as aggressively or extensively as Trump’s multi-entity fundraising team and instead has mainly been raising money through his presidential campaign committee — reported bringing in $10 million in the first six months of the year, with $4.7 million on hand. Much of Biden’s campaign committee’s fundraising — limited by federal regulations to contributions of $2,800 per person — has also focused on small online donations.
As a result, contributions from wealthy donors who want to show bigger support are coming through outside entities like super PACs, which can solicit an unlimited amount of money from a single donor — unlike a presidential campaign or a regular PAC.
A newly formed pro-Trump super PAC, led by former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, took in more than $3 million in the two months since it started accepting donations, its first financial disclosure report shows.
The super PAC, called Make America Great Again Action (MAGA Action), received donations ranging from $5,000 to $1 million from three dozen donors between May 10 and June 30, after reportedly hosting a fundraising dinner at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, with a price tag of $250,000 per person.
The $1 million donation came from Nevada-based businessman Don Ahern, who had fundraised for Trump during Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign. Waste management tycoon Anthony Lomangino, who had previously given big checks to Trump’s various fundraising committees during Trump’s presidency, also gave $500,000 to the super PAC.
Former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who was unseated by Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock last November, also wrote a $250,000 check to the super PAC, while MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has continued to push false claims of a rigged election, also gave $100,000 to the group.
The MAGA Action committee is reportedly going to serve as the main pro-Trump super PAC in his post-White House era, a role that another super PAC, America First Action, had played during his time in office. America First donated an additional $1.8 million in monetary and in-kind contributions to MAGA Action during the first half of this year, according to its disclosure report.
MAGA Action has already begun supporting pro-Trump political efforts, spending more than $417,000 to support coal industry lobbyist Mike Carey in a GOP special election primary in Ohio’s House race. Carey, who was endorsed by Trump, won the primary last week.
Biden’s big-dollar supporters are already in action as well, writing five-figure and six-figure checks to super PACs that have been supporting his campaign and political efforts, according to disclosures.
Unite the Country, a super PAC formed last year with the main purpose of supporting Biden during the 2020 presidential election, brought in just over $1 million from a handful of big and small donors in the first half of this year.
Major labor unions were among Unite the Country’s biggest donors, with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC contributing $500,000, the Amalgamated Transit Union’s super PAC giving $250,000, and the ironworker union’s PAC contributing $100,000.
Wayfair CEO Niraj Shah also contributed $95,000, while several attorneys made five-figure donations.
The American Bridge 21st Century PAC, another major Democratic super PAC that backed Biden during the 2020 election and is also involved in numerous other pro-Democratic political efforts, reported taking in nearly $9 million already this year. Among the big checks the organization received was $2 million from Lone Pine Capital partner Stephen Mandel and $1 million from Sequoia Capital partner Michael Moritz, disclosure filings show.
Unite the Country and American Bridge have yet to report any 2021 expenditures supporting specific candidates, but they have reported other advertising, fundraising and consulting expenditures.
(NEW YORK) — At least 150 million Americans are at risk for severe weather as a triple threat of extreme events stretches across the country.
While there are more than 100 fires burning throughout the United States — including the Dixie Fire, which has become the 2nd largest in California history — other severe weather is also on its way.
A tornado outbreak hit the Midwest with more storms headed to the area, record temperatures are possible in both the Northeast and Northwest, and a tropical system is likely to become Tropical Storm Fred later Tuesday.
Tornadoes in the Midwest
After a tornado outbreak on Monday in the Midwest, several more rounds of severe weather are expected in that region through at least Thursday.
There were 16 reported tornadoes in the Midwest, with 14 of them happening in Illinois alone.
The severe weather will pick up again Tuesday from Kansas to Michigan, including parts of already hard-hit Illinois and Wisconsin. While brief tornadoes will be possible, widespread damaging winds are the main concern.
Summer heat waves
The severe weather is being fueled in part by extreme heat. A heat wave is already developing across the Mississippi River valley with temperatures that will feel like over 100 degrees Fahrenheit from Texas to Illinois. The heat index may reach over 105 degrees in cities like Little Rock, Arkansas, and Memphis, Tennessee.
Record high temperatures will be challenged in both the Northwest and Northeast later this week.
In the Northwest, temperatures will exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of Oregon, Idaho and Northern California. Portland, Oregon, could see temperatures top 107 degrees by Thursday
In the Northeast, temperatures are soaring into the 90s from Washington, D.C., to Boston. Of particular concern will be parts of New Jersey, where the heat index may reach 110 degrees on Thursday.
Tropical system in Caribbean
A tropical system is brewing in the Atlantic and is currently affecting the Caribbean; the current forecast shows that it could begin affecting Florida as soon as this weekend.
This system will likely become Tropical Storm Fred sometime Tuesday. Tropical storm alerts have been issued for parts of the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The system will likely weaken a little bit over the Dominican Republic, and while it’s too early to determine the magnitude and location of exact impacts, ABC News’ forecast models in the last 24 hours have seemed to indicate that a restrengthening tropical system may head toward Florida by the end of this week.
This system could continue to be a nuisance — particularly to the southeast U.S. — through early next week.
(NEW YORK) — If impeachment proceedings against embattled New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo were to take place, the process would likely begin in early September, according to a tentative hearing schedule set by state lawmakers.
The New York State Assembly Judiciary Committee said it will hold hearings through the remainder of the month to review evidence against Cuomo, as well as hear expert testimony surrounding sexual harassment and the standards for impeachment.
“These sessions will conclude with the potential for a vote on articles of impeachment if necessary and appropriate,” the committee’s chairman, Charles Lavine, said Monday.
A report released by State Attorney General Letitia James last week found that Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women, including current and former state employees. In at least one instance, the investigation determined that the governor sought to retaliate against a woman who leveled accusations against him.
Cuomo has denied all allegations of sexual misconduct or harassment.
Lavine said Cuomo has until Friday to submit exculpatory evidence which he promised the committee would consider.
“The governor has clearly lost the confidence of the majority members,” Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said Monday, reiterating what he said last week in the wake of the state attorney general’s report being released.
“Our goal is to bring the matter to a close with all haste,” Heastie added.
The impeachment investigation includes the sexual harassment allegations and allegations the governor inappropriately used state resources to write a book, as well as further concerns raised surrounding COVID-19 and nursing homes and accusations that Cuomo provided preferential access to COVID-19 testing to friends and relatives, according to Lavine.
“Just on the nursing home question alone there are a half million pages of documentation,” Lavine said in noting the volume of evidence.
On Aug. 16 and Aug. 23, outside counsel is set to update investigative findings and the Judiciary Committee members will review the evidence in a secure environment. After Aug. 23, public hearings for expert testimony on sexual assault and harassment and on the impeachment process itself are set to take place. The committee will then issue a recommendation on whether the Assembly should approve articles of impeachment.
If the governor resigns beforehand, Lavine conceded “impeachment would be moot” but said there is a procedure to establish a prohibition on Cuomo that prevents him from holding elective office in the state.
Earlier Monday, Lavine called the findings of the state attorney general’s report “deeply disturbing” as he ushered the committee into executive session to discuss next steps in the impeachment investigation.
“We commend the attorney general on her work and her agreement to provide relevant materials to this committee,” Lavine said. “The findings, the content, of the report are deeply disturbing.”
If impeachment proceedings are initiated, it would mark the first impeachment of a New York governor in more than a century.
(NEW YORK) — Quentin Tarantino said he has made good on a vow he made as a child never to give money to his mother.
In an interview with “Billions” co-creator Brian Koppelman for “The Moment” podcast, Tarantino said that because his mother was not supportive of his writing career when he was young, he’s never felt obligated to share his riches with her.
Tarantino said that as a child, he struggled academically and that his mother was frustrated that he’d write screenplays instead of doing his schoolwork.
“in the middle of her little tirade, she said, ‘Oh, and by the way, this little writing career — with the finger quotes — this little writing career that you’re doing, that s— is f—— over,'” he recalled. “When she said that to me in that sarcastic way, I was in my head and I go, ‘OK lady, when I become a successful writer, you will never see penny one from my success. There will be no house for you. There’s no vacation for you, no Elvis Cadillac for mommy. You get nothing because you said that.'”
The “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” director added that despite his success, he’s never purchased a car or a house for his mother, who is still living. However, he added, “I helped her out of a jam with the IRS.”
Throughout his career, Tarantino, 58, has won two Academy Awards for screenwriting; one for “Pulp Fiction” and the other for “Django Unchained.” When Koppelman tried to persuade him to buy his mother something extravagant, Tarantino remained resolute.
“There are consequences for your words,” he said with a laugh. “As you deal with your children, remember there are consequences for your sarcastic tone [about what’s] meaningful to them.”
(WASHINGTON) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will request approval for the COVID-19 vaccine to become mandatory for all U.S. military service members by mid-September, according to a memo he sent to all Defense Department employees.
“I want you to know that I will seek the President’s approval to make the vaccines mandatory no later than mid-September, or immediately upon the U.S. Food and Drug Agency (FDA) licensure, whichever comes first,” Austin wrote in the memo.
A U.S. official initially confirmed Austin’s decision to ABC News before it was later made public in a written message to all U.S. military service members.
“By way of expectation, public reporting suggests the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine could achieve full FDA licensure early next month. The intervening few weeks will be spent preparing for this transition,” Austin wrote.
Given the rising coronavirus case numbers amid the increasing spread of the highly transmissible delta variant, Austin noted that “I will not hesitate to act sooner or recommend a different course to the President if l feel the need to do so.”
In a statement released shortly after Austin’s memo was sent out, the president said, “I strongly support Secretary Austin’s message to the Force today on the Department of Defense’s plan to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of required vaccinations for our service members not later than mid-September. Secretary Austin and I share an unshakable commitment to making sure our troops have every tool they need to do their jobs as safely as possible. These vaccines will save lives. Period. They are safe. They are effective.”
“We cannot let up in the fight against COVID-19, especially with the Delta variant spreading rapidly through unvaccinated populations. We are still on a wartime footing, and every American who is eligible should take immediate steps to get vaccinated right away,” Biden’s statement continued.
Because the COVID-19 vaccines are currently only being used under an emergency use authorization from the FDA, Biden will have to grant a waiver to enable the Pentagon to make vaccinations mandatory.
According to the Pentagon’s latest statistics more than 70% of all active-duty service members have received at least one dose.
Until Austin’s recommendation for a mandate, the U.S. military could only recommend to service members that they should take the vaccination. However, Pentagon officials had said that once the FDA approved a COVID vaccine that they would begin a review of whether it should be made mandatory for U.S. military personnel, just like the 17 other vaccines that are mandatory for U.S. military personnel.
Austin’s decision follows Biden’s announcement two weeks ago that federal employees would be required to provide proof of vaccination or face regular testing. Biden also ordered the Pentagon to explore “how and when” it could require service members to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
In addition to the recommendation to make the vaccine mandatory Austin wrote that “we will comply with the President’s direction regarding additional restrictions and requirements for unvaccinated Federal personnel.”
“I strongly encourage all DoD military and civilian personnel — as well as contractor personnel — to get vaccinated now and for military Service members to not wait for the mandate,” he wrote.
“All FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines are safe and highly effective,” said Austin. “They will protect you and your family. They will protect your unit, your ship, and your co-workers. And they will ensure we remain the most lethal and ready force in the world. Get the shot. Stay healthy. Stay ready.”
(NEW YORK) — An alleged victim of deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein filed a lawsuit against Prince Andrew of Britain on Monday, accusing the embattled 61-year-old royal of sexually abusing her at Epstein’s Manhattan mansion and elsewhere when she was under the age of 18, according to court records.
The lawsuit, filed by Virginia Roberts Giuffre in federal court in New York, comes almost two years to the day that Epstein died in a New York jail while he was awaiting trial on conspiracy and child sex trafficking charges. The legal action also comes just days before the expiration date of a New York state law that permits alleged victims of childhood sexual abuse to file civil claims that might otherwise be barred by statutes of limitations.
“If she doesn’t do it now, she would be allowing him to escape any accountability for his actions,” Giuffre’s attorney, David Boies, chairman of Boies, Schiller Flexner, told ABC News. “And Virginia is committed to trying to avoid situations where rich and powerful people escape any accountability for their actions.”
The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages and accuses Andrew of sexual assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
“Twenty years ago, Prince Andrew’s wealth, power, position, and connections enabled him to abuse a frightened, vulnerable child with no one there to protect her. It is long past the time for him to be held to account,” the lawsuit states.
Reached late Monday, a U.K.-based spokesperson for Prince Andrew said there would be no comment on the suit.
“I am holding Prince Andrew accountable for what he did to me. The powerful and the rich are not exempt from being held responsible for their actions. I hope that other victims will see that it is possible not to live in silence and fear, but one can reclaim her life by speaking out and demanding justice,” Giuffre said, via her lawyers, in a statement to ABC News.
“I did not come to this decision lightly. As a mother and a wife, my family comes first. I know that this action will subject me to further attacks by Prince Andrew and his surrogates. But I knew that if I did not pursue this action, I would be letting them and victims everywhere down,” the statement said.
Giuffre, now a 38-year-old mother living in Australia, first accused the prince of sexual abuse in public court filings in December of 2014, in a case brought by alleged Epstein victims against the U.S. Department of Justice. That lawsuit challenged Epstein’s lenient deal with federal prosecutors in Florida in 2008.
Giuffre alleged in those court submissions that she was directed by Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell to have sex with Andrew on three occasions in 2001, in London, New York and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Her claims were met then with vehement denials from Maxwell and from Buckingham Palace on behalf of the prince, the second son of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
“It is emphatically denied that [Prince Andrew] had any form of sexual contact or relationship with [Giuffre]. The allegations made are false and without any foundation,” the Palace statement said.
Since that time, Giuffre’s lawyers contend they have made multiple attempts to engage with Andrew or his advisers in discussions about her allegations in an effort to avoid litigation. But those efforts, Boies said, have been ignored.
“Since 2015, we’ve been trying to have a dialog with Prince Andrew or his lawyers,” Boies said. “We have given him every opportunity to provide any explanation or context that he might have. We’ve tried to reach a resolution without the necessity of litigation. Prince Andrew and his lawyers have been totally non-responsive.”
The most recent letter to the prince’s presumed legal team was sent last month and warned that a lawsuit would soon be filed unless the prince agreed to enter into discussions for an alternative resolution, according to the court filing Monday.
“If she had simply failed to sue now, it would have validated the stonewalling tactics that Andrew and his advisers have employed,” Boies said.
For nearly a decade, the prince has been under scrutiny for his association with Epstein, a multi-millionaire financier and the subject of state and federal investigations since the mid-2000s for allegedly recruiting underage girls for illicit massages and sex.
Epstein initially avoided federal charges involving allegations of abuse of nearly three dozen girls by agreeing to plead guilty to two comparatively minor charges in Florida state court in 2008. He served just 13 months of an 18-month term in a county jail.
Prince Andrew, who said he’d first met Epstein in 1999, became embroiled in the controversy in late 2010 when he was photographed walking with the convicted sex offender through New York’s Central Park shortly after Epstein’s sentence ended in Florida.
Epstein was charged again, in July 2019, in a two-count federal indictment for child sex trafficking and conspiracy for alleged crimes in New York and Florida between 2002 and 2005. He died in prison on Aug. 10 from an apparent suicide.
Following those new charges against Epstein, the prince again found himself under scrutiny from the press and prosecutors for his association with Epstein both before and after the wealthy financier was designated as a sex offender.
In a rare television interview with the BBC in November 2019, Andrew categorically denied Giuffre’s allegations that he had sexual contact with her. He claimed to have no memory of ever meeting her and suggested that a widely-circulated photograph of him with his arm around the waist of then 17-year-old Giuffre, allegedly taken by Epstein in the London home of Maxwell in 2001, might have been doctored.
“I don’t believe that photograph was taken in the way that has been suggested,” he said. “I think it’s, from the investigations that we’ve done, you can’t prove whether or not that photograph is faked or not, because it is a photograph of a photograph of a photograph. So it’s very difficult to be able to prove it, but I don’t remember that photograph ever being taken.”
The prince also contended that he had an alibi for the date of the alleged encounter, claiming he was home with his daughter, Beatrice.
“I was at home,” the prince said. “I was with the children, and I’d taken Beatrice to a Pizza Express in Woking for a party at, I suppose, sort of 4 or 5 in the afternoon. And then, because the Duchess was away, we have a simple rule in the family that when one is away the other one is there. I was on terminal leave at the time from the Royal Navy, so therefore I was at home.”
The prince’s interview was harshly criticized in the British press and, within days, he released a new statement conceding that his “former association” with Epstein had become a major distraction for the royal family, and he stepped back from official duties.
He vowed in that statement that he would be willing “to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations.”
But Geoffrey Berman, then the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, publicly called out the prince a few months later for failing to live up to his stated promise. At a press conference in front of Epstein’s New York mansion early last year, Berman said Prince Andrew has provided “zero cooperation.”
Giuffre’s court filing Monday contains a copy of the photograph of her standing beside Andrew, along with references to flight records from Epstein’s private planes that indicate Giuffre was a frequent passenger to destinations in the United States and abroad while she was under 18.
Giuffre contends in her lawsuit that the prince engaged in the alleged sexual acts with her “knowing that she was a sex-trafficking victim being forced to engage in sexual acts with him” and that he was aware of her age. She contends she did not consent to engaging in sexual acts with the prince.
“[Giuffre] was compelled by express or implied threats by Epstein, Maxwell, and/or Prince Andrew to engage in sexual acts with Prince Andrew, and feared death or physical injury to herself or another and other repercussions for disobeying Epstein, Maxwell, and Prince Andrew due to their powerful connections, wealth, and authority,” the suit alleges.
Giuffre has previously settled two federal lawsuits she filed in connection with her allegations that she was recruited by Maxwell and Epstein into a life of sexual servitude to Epstein and other powerful men. She settled with Epstein in 2009 and reached an out-of-court settlement in her defamation claim against Maxwell in 2017. There were no admissions of wrongdoing in either case, and the financial terms of the settlements were not disclosed.
Maxwell, in deposition testimony in the defamation case, denied Giuffre’s allegations and described her accuser as an “absolute liar.”
“She has lied repeatedly, often, and is just an awful fantasist,” Maxwell said during a 2016 deposition.
Maxwell, who is currently awaiting trial on charges she aided Epstein’s alleged abuse of four underage girls, denied recruiting Giuffre for sexual activities with Epstein and denied instructing Giuffre to have sex with the prince or other men.
“I never saw any inappropriate underage activities with Jeffrey ever,” Maxwell said.
Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against her. She has not been charged in connection with Giuffre’s allegations of sexual abuse, though she is facing two perjury charges for alleged false statements in the 2016 depositions.
Boies told ABC News on Monday that it is his hope that the lawsuit finally leads to Prince Andrew agreeing to answer questions under oath.
“It’s one thing to ignore me. It’s another thing to ignore the judicial process of the state of New York and the United States,” Boies said. “If Prince Andrew does not take seriously the rule of law in this country, he is being very ill-advised. This is a serious lawsuit, and the court will take it seriously. We take it seriously. If he doesn’t take it seriously, it is at his peril.”
(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — Public health experts and state officials are raising alarms about a surge in COVID hospitalizations among children — now at their steepest and seeing the most significant increase since the onset of the pandemic.
After declining in the early summer, child COVID-19 cases have steadily increased again in recent weeks — just as many kids head back to the classroom.
In a newly released weekly report, which compiles state-by-state data on COVID-19 cases among children, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) found that nearly 94,000 new child COVID-19 cases were reported last week, a continued “substantial” increase.
Some of the worst numbers are in Louisiana and Florida but could get worse elsewhere fast as public health officials express concerns with the highly contagious delta variant amid continued vaccine hesitancy.
“This is not your grandfather’s COVID,” Dr. Mark Kline, the physician in chief of Children’s Hospital New Orleans told ABC’s “Good Morning America” Monday. Louisiana is facing the nation’s highest rate of new COVID-19 cases with the Children’s Hospital in New Orleans describing what they’re seeing as “an epidemic of very young children.”
“We are hospitalizing record numbers of children,” Kline continued. “Half of the children in our hospital today are under two years of age. Most of the others are between five and ten years of age — too young to be vaccinated just yet.”
In Florida, the state with the highest number of confirmed pediatric COVID-19 hospitalizations in the country, 179 patients are receiving care, according to federal data. As of Monday morning, Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami had one child on a ventilator.
Dr. Marcos Mestre, the hospital’s vice president and chief medical officer, told ABC News that in recent weeks, his teams have seen a “significant uptick” in pediatric COVID-19 cases. He said some children are alone in the hospital because their parents, also unvaccinated, are battling COVID-19 at another hospital.
“It’s tough,” he said, and places “undue social stress on the child, as you can imagine, not having the parents around.”
Texas follows Florida closely behind with 161 confirmed pediatric patients hospitalized across the state, and in California, there are 98 confirmed pediatric patients receiving care.
It comes as the country’s daily case average for Americans increased to nearly 100,000 cases a day for the past four days — up by 31.7% in the last week and nearly nine times higher than the average was in mid-June. For children 17 and under, the rate of pediatric hospital admissions per capita is 3.75 times higher than it was just a month ago — now equal to its highest point of the pandemic, in January 2021.
While severe illness due to COVID-19 remains “uncommon” among children, experts say the increased trend is concerning.
“While severe outcomes of COVID-19 infection in pediatric populations continue to be relatively low compared to adults, the current exponential growth in hospitalizations is a very worrisome trend,” explained Dr. John Brownstein, an epidemiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital and an ABC News contributor. “As the remaining population ineligible for the vaccine, children will, unfortunately, be the main vectors of virus spread creating risk to both themselves and the rest of the population.”
The Food and Drug Administration has not yet approved vaccines for children under 12, leaving a large youth population susceptible to COVID-19. But following data released by the AAP last week showing the massive increase in COVID-19 cases among kids, the organization wrote a letter to the head of the FDA urging authorization of vaccines for 5-11-year-olds as fast as possible.
“We understand that the FDA has recently worked with Pfizer and Moderna to double the number of children ages 5-11 years included in clinical trials of their COVID-19 vaccines. While we appreciate this prudent step to gather more safety data, we urge FDA to carefully consider the impact of this decision on the timeline for authorizing a vaccine for this age group,” wrote Dr. Lee Savio Beers, president of the AAP.
“Simply stated, the delta variant has created a new and pressing risk to children and adolescents across this country, as it has also done for unvaccinated adults,” she said.
Beers told ABC News Live’s “The Breakdown” Monday that hospital workers are inundated with the massive increase in COVID-19 cases among kids particularly in areas where vaccinations are low.
“They’re seeing just a lot of kids who are very ill with COVID. They’re seeing children in their ICUs. They’re seeing children who are in pretty significant distress,” she said, reiterating the organization’s position that the FDA could approve vaccines for 5 to 11 years olds based on previous trials.
“We know that [COVID] can be severe in children, and so we should do those things that we need to do to help prevent the spread and help keep our kids and our whole community safe,” she added.
Dr. Ashish Jha, who supports expanding vaccinations for those 5 to 11, reiterated on ABC’s “Good Morning America” Monday the position widely shared by public health experts that the first step to getting kids back to school safely is with vaccinations for everyone who is eligible.
“Kids who can’t get vaccinated, you protect them by making sure everyone around them is vaccinated,” he said.
A recent CDC national immunization survey from late July found that among parents of children 13 to 17, 49.8% had children vaccinated or definitely plan to vaccinate, 25.4% were “probably will get their children vaccinated or are unsure”, and 24.8% are reluctant, “probably or definitely will not get children vaccinated.”
Despite the delta surge, a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll found among unvaccinated adults, nearly half, 46%, say they definitely won’t get a shot, 15% call it very unlikely and 10% somewhat unlikely. In another question, one in five of the unvaccinated say news about variants has made them more apt to get a jab.
As pediatric hospitalizations rise, especially where vaccination rates are low, Dr. Peter Hotez of Baylor College of Medicine called what’s unfolding in the South a “humanitarian catastrophe.”
“As schools act as an accelerant you should assume we’re going to see pediatric intensive care units all across the South completely overwhelmed and even a possibility of small tent cities of sick adolescents and kids,” he told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” adding the slope is “going up and up.”
Less than 30% of Americans ages 12 to 15, and only 41% of Americans 16 to 17 are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
“And now schools are going to be an extraordinary accelerant,” he added. “If your adolescent kid is unvaccinated, you should assume there’s a high likelihood that that child is going to get COVID.”
The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, hopes that full approval to the coronavirus vaccine will be granted by the end of August, he said Sunday, and predicted the move will encourage and new wave of vaccinations.
“I hope — I don’t predict — I hope that it will be within the next few weeks. I hope it’s within the month of August,” Fauci said of full FDA approval on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “If that’s the case, you’re going to see the empowerment of local enterprises, giving mandates that could be colleges, universities, places of business, a whole variety and I strongly support that. The time has come.”
But there’s opposition — and it could be heard by the Supreme Court.
A group of eight unvaccinated University of Indiana students made an 11th-hour appeal to the Supreme Court last week to block the school’s vaccination mandate for anyone on campus this fall. They put forth various arguments for why the mandate allegedly violates their constitutional rights and heightened legal scrutiny, including that it’s contrary to FDA’s emergency use authorization terms for the vaccines — which public health experts are hoping changes soon. The students asked for a decision by Friday.
ABC News’ Gary Langer, Cheyenne Haslett and Devin Dwyer contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — The dangerous wildfires erupting across large portions of the Western U.S. are bringing major health risks to the residents.
The Dixie Fire near the Feather River Canyon in Northern California is now the second-largest fire in state history after it sparked last month. Whether you live in California, Oregon or Montana, here are some tips from doctors:
Dr. Zab Mosenifar, a lung specialist at Cedars-Sinai medical director of the Women’s Guild Lung Institute, says those in immediate danger are the residents within 25 miles of a fire.
Small particles in the air can travel hundreds of miles, and depending on the winds, particles can float for up to two weeks after a fire has been extinguished, Mosenifar warned.
Those especially in danger are children, the elderly and people with chronic respiratory problems, Mosenifar said.
“Breathing in smoke, spot and particulate matter in high concentration and/or for prolonged periods of time can result in short or long term lung damage,” said ABC News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton.
“People who smoke, vape or have asthma are at higher risk for problems,” Ashton said.
“I recommend that anyone in the area wear an N95 particulate mask if possible,” she added.
Ashton urges residents with persistent coughing, shortness of breath, wheezing or chest tightness to seek medical attention and to wear goggles for eye protection.
“If your eyes are hurting or vision is impaired, seek medical attention immediately and do not rub your eyes as this could cause more damage,” she said.
Mosenifar recommends that residents use an air filter in their home or set their air conditioner to recirculate the air.
