The Wendy Williams Show lives on. On Wednesday, it was announced that the show will return in January with a variety of celebrity guest hosts as Wendy Williams continues to deal with ongoing health issues.
“‘The Wendy Williams Show’ Returns with All-New Episodes in the New Year!” the show’s official Instagram page shared in a post.
Fat Joe and Remy Ma are scheduled to kick off the hosting duties, taking over January 3-7. Michael Rapaport will hop in the purple chair from January 10-14 before handing the reins over to Kym Whitley and Finesse Mitchell for the week of January 17. Ending the month hosting January 24-28 will be guest host Sherri Shepherd.
Last month, Wendy gave fans a much needed update on her health and assured them that she’s working toward a return.
“HOW YOU DOIN’? I MISS YOU ALL! As everyone knows, my health has been a hot topic,” the November 8 statement read. “I’m making progress but it’s just one of those things that’s taking longer than we expected.”
Williams continued, “I’m a woman of a certain age, and I know enough to listen to my doctors and will return to my purple chair as soon as we all agree I’m ready. I want to thank all of my staff and our guest hosts for stepping up and stepping in while I can’t be there.”
Tom Holland is “excited” about his role as Fred Astaire in an upcoming biopic about the film legend, but he admits he’ll have to brush up on his dancing skills.
“I’m going to dust off the old tap shoes and go back to Pineapple Dance Studios [in London] and start taking tap lessons,” the Spider-Man: Far From Home star told Variety while promoting the film with his co-stars Zendaya and Jacob Batalon.
“I’m quite a good tap dancer,” Holland added. “It’s something I’ve done for a very, very long time so it’s something I’m sure I’ll be able to pick up.”
The 25-year-old actor first showcased his dancing skills when he played the titular role in the West End production of Billy Elliott the Musical from 2008-2010, but mastering Astaire’s style will be a challenge.
“Fred Astaire does have a very particular style,” Holland explains. “Billy Elliot” was very much a kind of like scuffy boot kind of tap dancer, whereas [Astaire] is very elegant and graceful so I’ll probably have to learn how to do that. But it’s something I’m gonna practice, something I’m very excited for and I think it will be a fantastic film.”
Spider-Man: No Way Home will open in theaters December 17.
For the first time in over a decade, Britney Spears has “the power to do whatever she wants.”
On Wednesday, Britney’s lawyer, Matthew Rosengart, appeared on the pop star’s behalf for the latest court hearing and afterwards revealed that a judge granted the “Toxic” singer the power to execute documents herself.
“She had the power to do whatever she wants to do,” Rosengart said outside of the courthouse after the brief hearing, according to Variety.
Just last month, Britney’s 13-year-long conservatorship was terminated, however, there are still some small details to wrap up. The next hearing, which is scheduled for January 19, will deal with accounting matters. Currently, John Zabel has limited administrative powers to execute the estate trust and transfer assets into it.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Sen. Bob Dole — a decorated World War II veteran and presidential candidate who served in Congress for 36 years — lay in state at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday as the nation honored the late American statesman.
Dole died Sunday in his sleep at the age of 98.
Dole’s longtime wife, Elizabeth, and daughter, Robin, were escorted by service members and alongside lawmakers for the formal arrival of Dole’s casket ahead of a congressional tribute ceremony with remarks from President Joe Biden, who worked alongside Dole in the Senate for more than 20 years and called him “a man of extraordinary courage, both physical and moral courage.”
The Capitol ceremony began with an invocation by the House Chaplain who said Dole has “revealed to us what moral and faithful service should be.”
“In extolling Sen. Dole’s unequal integrity, disarming humor, and deep compassion, may we be inspired to reach into the depths of our own small-town virtues or our big city bravado to immolate this plain spokesman statesman, this decorated war hero, this, your, humble servant,” she said in an opening prayer.
Biden, in his remarks, first thanked Dole’s daughter and wife of 46 years, Elizabeth, who also served in the Senate, representing North Carolina, for allowing the ceremony to take place. He then said, “America has lost one of our finest patriots.”
“We meet here in the very heart of American democracy, the capital of the United States of America, to receive a hero of that democracy for a final time,” Biden began. “Robert Joseph Dole belongs here in this place, in this temple of liberty to liberty and temple to possibilities.”
“He, too, was a giant of our history, and that’s not hyperbole,” Biden said, after listing great leaders in American history, including George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Dwight Eisenhower and Martin Luther King Jr. “It’s real. Of wit and grace, of principle and persistence, of courage and conviction.”
The president shared a light-hearted, personal story before reading a portion of Dole’s final message to the nation.
“They once asked him, why in God’s name did he vote to continue to fund Amtrak. He said because if he didn’t, Biden would stay overnight and cause more trouble,” Biden said to laughter. “Bob and I, like many of us here, we disagreed on a number of things, but not on any of the fundamental things. We still found a way to work together.”
“As divided as we are, the only way forward for democracy is unity, consensus,” Biden said. “We can find that unity again.”
He will also deliver a eulogy at Dole’s memorial service on Friday at Washington National Cathedral, which will air on ABC News and ABC News Live.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell offered words on Dole’s management in the Senate, having served twice as majority leader for Republicans, and got laughs when describing Dole’s “trademark wit.”
“‘If I’d known, he said, we were going to win control of the Senate, we’d run better candidates,'” McConnell recalled. “I swear, Bob could have made it as a stand-up comic. But in that maiden speech, Bob was earnest. He was already championing a signature cause, helping Americans with disabilities,” McConnell said, garnering a nod from Vice President Kamala Harris, who sat in the socially-distanced audience.
Thursday’s ceremony at the Capitol was open only to invited guests, lawmakers said, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the public can watch online as he lies in state in the Capitol Rotunda until 8 p.m. — an honor reserved for the most revered American officials.
Honor guards greeted the body of the late senator shortly after 9:45 a.m. on Thursday and carried his casket up the steps of the building Dole served in for nearly four decades. The last senator to lie in state at the Capitol Rotunda was the late Sen. John McCain in 2018. Twelve U.S. presidents have also had the honor.
Dole was severely wounded in action while serving as an Army officer in World War II and left with limited mobility in his right arm — but he persevered. From humble beginnings, Dole went on to graduate law school, serve in the Kansas state legislature and then four terms in the House of Representatives and five terms in the Senate. He also led the Senate Republican Conference for more than a decade and was the longest-serving Republican leader until recently surpassed by Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
In Congress, Dole helped shape tax, social security and foreign policy, as well as government farm and nutrition programs. He was an advocate for the rights of veterans and Americans with disabilities, instrumental in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.
He was known as one of the “last lions of the Senate.”
Dole ran for president three times, losing primaries in 1980 to Ronald Reagan and in 1988 to George H.W. Bush. After winning the Republican party nomination in 1996, he lost the general election to Bill Clinton, who later presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In a USA Today op-ed Dole finished on pen and paper less than two weeks before his death, he said Congress needs teamwork now more than ever, and wrote, “Those who suggest compromise is a sign of weakness the fundamental strength of our American democracy.”
A formal departure ceremony from the Capitol will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Friday ahead of a funeral at Washington National Cathedral and ceremony at the World War II Memorial with remarks from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley.
Dole’s body will then be flown to Kansas for services in his home state.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Sen. Bob Dole — a decorated World War II veteran and presidential candidate who served in Congress for 36 years — will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday as the nation honors the late American statesman.
Dole died Sunday in his sleep at the age of 98.
A formal arrival ceremony will begin at 9:45 a.m. on Thursday followed by a congressional tribute ceremony at 10 a.m. including remarks from President Joe Biden, who worked alongside Dole in the Senate for more than 20 years and called him “a man of extraordinary courage, both physical and moral courage.”
“Our nation owes Bob Dole a debt of gratitude for the remarkable service and a life well-lived,” Biden said on Wednesday in his first public comments about Dole since the senator’s death.
“Like all true friendships, regardless of how much time has passed, we picked up right where we left off, as though it were only yesterday that we were sharing a laugh in the Senate dining room or debating the great issues of the day, often against each other, on the Senate floor,” Biden, who last saw Dole at the White House in February, wrote on Sunday in a statement.
The president will also deliver a eulogy at Dole’s memorial service on Friday at Washington National Cathedral, which will air on ABC News and ABC News Live.
Thursday’s ceremony at the Capitol will be open only to invited guests, lawmakers said, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the public can watch online as he lies in state in the Capitol Rotunda until 8 p.m. — an honor reserved for the most revered American officials.
Dole was severely wounded in action while serving as an Army officer in World War II and left with limited mobility in his right arm — but he persevered. From humble beginnings, Dole went on to graduate law school, serve in the Kansas state legislature and then four terms in the House of Representatives and five terms in the Senate. He also led the Senate Republican Conference for more than a decade and was the longest-serving Republican leader until recently surpassed by Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
In Congress, Dole helped shape tax, social security and foreign policy, as well as government farm and nutrition programs. He was an advocate for the rights of veterans and Americans with disabilities, instrumental in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.
He was known was known as one of the “last lions of the Senate.”
Dole ran for president three times, losing primaries in 1980 to Ronald Reagan and in 1988 to George H.W. Bush. After winning the Republican party nomination in 1996, he lost the general election to Bill Clinton, who later presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In a USA Today op-ed Dole finished on pen and paper less than two weeks before his death, he said Congress needs teamwork now more than ever, and wrote, “Those who suggest compromise is a sign of weakness the fundamental strength of our American democracy.”
A formal departure ceremony from the Capitol will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Friday ahead of a funeral at Washington National Cathedral and ceremony at the World War II Memorial with remarks from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley.
Dole’s body will then be flown to Kansas for services in his home state.
(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.2 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 793,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
Just 60.4% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Dec 09, 9:30 am
US processing 1 million PCR tests per day
The U.S. is processing 1 million PCR tests each day, CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told ABC News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton during an interview Wednesday at the CDC’s Emergency Operation Center.
“That gives us a really good window as to test positivity,” Walensky said. “It also gives us the samples we need in order to sequence, because we can’t sequence from a rapid test.”
“The rapid tests, I think, have another important role, and that is to empower people to help make smart decisions,” Walensky said. “Don’t do a test that you’re not going to do anything with the information. Most people now who do a rapid test are doing so either to protect themselves or somebody who they’re about to go see or some family member. And so they are generally motivated, I would say, to do the right thing with the result.”
-ABC News’ Eric M. Strauss, Sony Salzman
Dec 09, 5:57 am
Omicron spreads but severe cases remain low in South Africa, WHO says
The World Health Organization said Thursday that preliminary data indicates hospitalizations in South Africa remain low, offering “signs of hope,” despite the fact that the omicron variant is spreading rapidly and weekly COVID-19 cases on the African continent have surged by 93%.
In the week ending on Dec. 5, southern Africa recorded a 140% hike in COVID-19 cases, the highest of any region on the continent for that period, mainly driven by an uptick in South Africa, according to the WHO. While researchers are still working to determine whether omicron is fueling the surge, the WHO said that emerging data from South Africa indicates the new variant may cause less severe illness. Data on COVID-19 hospitalizations across South Africa between Nov. 14 and Dec. 4 show that intensive care unit occupancy was only 6.3%, which the WHO said is very low compared with the same period when the country was facing the peak linked to the delta variant in July.
Furthermore, data from the same two-week period from one of the South African health districts most impacted by omicron show that out of more than 1,200 hospital admissions related to COVID-19, there were 98 patients receiving supplemental oxygen and only four on ventilators. The WHO cautioned that the data is “very preliminary with a small sample size and most of the people admitted to the health facilities were under the age of 40.”
Since omicron was first identified in southern Africa in November, confirmed cases of the variant have been reported in 57 countries around the world. In an effort to prevent the spread of the new variant, more than 70 countries have imposed travel bans that are mainly targeting southern African nations, some of which have yet to report any omicron cases, according to the WHO.
“With Omicron now present in nearly 60 countries globally, travel bans that mainly target African countries are hard to justify,” Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, said in a statement Thursday. “Through the diligent surveillance efforts of African scientists, the new variant of concern was first detected on this continent, but it’s unclear if transmission was taking place silently in other regions. We call for science-based public health measures to counter the spread of COVID-19. The travel restrictions come at the height of the end-of-year tourist season, ravaging Africa’s economies, with a knock-on impact that is potentially devastating to the health of Africans.”
Dec 08, 9:44 pm
FDA authorizes antibody cocktail for use before COVID-19 exposure
The Food and Drug Administration has authorized the first monoclonal antibody therapy for use before COVID-19 exposure.
AstraZeneca’s Evusheld antibody cocktail can now be given to certain people for preventative use against the virus, including those who are moderately to severely immunocomromised due to a medical condition or medication, and those who have a history of severe adverse reactions to a COVID-19 vaccine. People also must not be currently infected with COVID-19 or have been recently exposed to the virus.
In a recent Phase III clinical trial, AstraZeneca found that the therapy reduced the risk of developing symptomatic COVID-19 infections by 83% in people who did not have the virus, had not been exposed to it and were unvaccinated, when compared to the placebo group.
AstraZeneca told ABC News it is testing the product against the new omicron variant and is “hopeful” that it will hold up against it. Results are expected to become available “within weeks,” the company said. So far, Evusheld has been found to neutralize all previous COVID-19 variants of concern, it said.
AstraZeneca said it has agreed to supply the U.S. government with 700,000 doses of Evusheld, which will be distributed to states and territories at no cost and on a pro-rata basis.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik
Dec 08, 9:40 pm
New Hampshire deploying National Guard to hospitals amid surge
New Hampshire will be deploying National Guard members to hospitals statewide to provide support as the state sees a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, Gov. Chris Sununu announced Wednesday.
Seventy members will be deployed in the coming week and assist with food service and clerical work, officials said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will also be sending a team of 30 paramedics to help the hospitals with the highest COVID-19 burdens, the governor said.
There are 462 current COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state, the highest since the pandemic began.
Dec 08, 8:48 pm
Senate votes to repeal Biden mandate; won’t affect rule due to objection in House
The Senate passed a repeal of President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate on private businesses with over 100 employees by a vote of 52-48 Wednesday night, but the mandate is not threatened due to opposition in the Democrat-controlled House.
Two Democrats crossed party lines and voted with Republicans to repeal the mandate. The votes cast by Sens. Joe Manchin, . and Jon Tester, D-Mont., were expected.
While the legislation has now passed the Senate, it will almost certainly not impact the mandate.
It’s unclear if the Senate-passed repeal will even be brought up in the House. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is not required to bring it up for a floor vote, and at least 218 signatures would be needed to force consideration. Even then, if the House were to pass it, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that Biden would veto it should it land on his desk.
The mandate faces stiffer opposition in ongoing legal challenges from several Republican-led states.
(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.2 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 793,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
Just 60.4% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Dec 09, 5:57 am
Omicron spreads but severe cases remain low in South Africa, WHO says
The World Health Organization said Thursday that preliminary data indicates hospitalizations in South Africa remain low, offering “signs of hope,” despite the fact that the omicron variant is spreading rapidly and weekly COVID-19 cases on the African continent have surged by 93%.
In the week ending on Dec. 5, southern Africa recorded a 140% hike in COVID-19 cases, the highest of any region on the continent for that period, mainly driven by an uptick in South Africa, according to the WHO. While researchers are still working to determine whether omicron is fueling the surge, the WHO said that emerging data from South Africa indicates the new variant may cause less severe illness. Data on COVID-19 hospitalizations across South Africa between Nov. 14 and Dec. 4 show that intensive care unit occupancy was only 6.3%, which the WHO said is very low compared with the same period when the country was facing the peak linked to the delta variant in July.
Furthermore, data from the same two-week period from one of the South African health districts most impacted by omicron show that out of more than 1,200 hospital admissions related to COVID-19, there were 98 patients receiving supplemental oxygen and only four on ventilators. The WHO cautioned that the data is “very preliminary with a small sample size and most of the people admitted to the health facilities were under the age of 40.”
Since omicron was first identified in southern Africa in November, confirmed cases of the variant have been reported in 57 countries around the world. In an effort to prevent the spread of the new variant, more than 70 countries have imposed travel bans that are mainly targeting southern African nations, some of which have yet to report any omicron cases, according to the WHO.
“With Omicron now present in nearly 60 countries globally, travel bans that mainly target African countries are hard to justify,” Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, said in a statement Thursday. “Through the diligent surveillance efforts of African scientists, the new variant of concern was first detected on this continent, but it’s unclear if transmission was taking place silently in other regions. We call for science-based public health measures to counter the spread of COVID-19. The travel restrictions come at the height of the end-of-year tourist season, ravaging Africa’s economies, with a knock-on impact that is potentially devastating to the health of Africans.”
Dec 08, 9:44 pm
FDA authorizes antibody cocktail for use before COVID-19 exposure
The Food and Drug Administration has authorized the first monoclonal antibody therapy for use before COVID-19 exposure.
AstraZeneca’s Evusheld antibody cocktail can now be given to certain people for preventative use against the virus, including those who are moderately to severely immunocomromised due to a medical condition or medication, and those who have a history of severe adverse reactions to a COVID-19 vaccine. People also must not be currently infected with COVID-19 or have been recently exposed to the virus.
In a recent Phase III clinical trial, AstraZeneca found that the therapy reduced the risk of developing symptomatic COVID-19 infections by 83% in people who did not have the virus, had not been exposed to it and were unvaccinated, when compared to the placebo group.
AstraZeneca told ABC News it is testing the product against the new omicron variant and is “hopeful” that it will hold up against it. Results are expected to become available “within weeks,” the company said. So far, Evusheld has been found to neutralize all previous COVID-19 variants of concern, it said.
AstraZeneca said it has agreed to supply the U.S. government with 700,000 doses of Evusheld, which will be distributed to states and territories at no cost and on a pro-rata basis.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik
Dec 08, 9:40 pm
New Hampshire deploying National Guard to hospitals amid surge
New Hampshire will be deploying National Guard members to hospitals statewide to provide support as the state sees a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, Gov. Chris Sununu announced Wednesday.
Seventy members will be deployed in the coming week and assist with food service and clerical work, officials said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will also be sending a team of 30 paramedics to help the hospitals with the highest COVID-19 burdens, the governor said.
There are 462 current COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state, the highest since the pandemic began.
Dec 08, 8:48 pm
Senate votes to repeal Biden mandate; won’t affect rule due to objection in House
The Senate passed a repeal of President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate on private businesses with over 100 employees by a vote of 52-48 Wednesday night, but the mandate is not threatened due to opposition in the Democrat-controlled House.
Two Democrats crossed party lines and voted with Republicans to repeal the mandate. The votes cast by Sens. Joe Manchin, . and Jon Tester, D-Mont., were expected.
While the legislation has now passed the Senate, it will almost certainly not impact the mandate.
It’s unclear if the Senate-passed repeal will even be brought up in the House. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is not required to bring it up for a floor vote, and at least 218 signatures would be needed to force consideration. Even then, if the House were to pass it, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that Biden would veto it should it land on his desk.
The mandate faces stiffer opposition in ongoing legal challenges from several Republican-led states.
(WASHINGTON) — Ali Alexander, a prominent conservative activist who organized “Stop the Steal” rallies after the 2020 election, is cooperating with the House Jan. 6 select committee and is scheduled to appear behind closed doors on Thursday morning.
Alexander, who was banned from Twitter over his posts about the presidential election, is expected to tell investigators that he had “nothing to do” with any violence that occurred on Jan. 6 at the Capitol, according to a prepared opening statement obtained by ABC News.
“I had nothing to do with the planning. I had nothing to do with the preparation. And I had nothing to do with the execution,” he said in the prepared statement.
Alexander’s cooperation with the committee was first reported by The New York Times.
“As a Black and Arab man, an American, it is common for people who look like me to be blamed for things we did not do,” he said.
Alexander said he attended President Donald Trump’s address to supporters on the National Mall as a guest. Hinting at disagreements with activists in his circle, he is expected to tell the committee that other organizers removed information from the program that would have instructed rallygoers where to go after the event — which could have prevented Trump supporters from marching to the Capitol.
Lawmakers issued subpoenas to Alexander and other conservative activists and organizers who were involved in setting up the post-election rallies in support of Trump’s challenges to the election results.
Investigators are interested in any communications between organizers, Trump White House officials and congressional Republicans — and whether the potential for violence was raised before the assault on the Capitol.
In a statement announcing its subpoena to Alexander in November, the committee said Alexander repeatedly referenced the potental for violence at “Stop the Steal” events following the election.
Ahead of the attack on the Capitol, Alexander was in communication with some Republican lawmakers and aides as he organized rallies around the country on Trump’s behalf. He spoke at a Jan. 5 rally in Washington with far-right and pro-Trump extremist groups, leading chants of “Victory or death!”
In his opening remarks, Alexander said he had spent more than 100 hours working to gather records to comply with the committee’s requests, and called the ordeal “extremely difficult and burdensome.”
“But I am voluntarily here to do the patriotic thing,” he is expected to tell the panel in his opening remarks.
Ahead of Alexander’s appearance, former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows sued the committee and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over the subpoenas issued for his documents and phone records, after he declined to appear for a deposition and Democrats vowed to hold him in contempt of Congress.
The committee has interviewed more than 275 witnesses, issued dozens of subpoenas and collected thousands of pages of records, along with social media, cell phone and communications data. The panel is expected to start a new round of public hearings as soon as next month.
Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Mississippi, said the committee has also questioned state election officials in key battleground states about efforts to challenge their work and any potential contacts from the Trump administration.
(WASHINGTON) — By gathering leaders Thursday from 112 of the world’s democracies — some healthy, some challenged — President Joe Biden has done the easy part of a campaign promise: He’s held a summit for democracy within his first year in office.
But to actually make meaningful progress pushing back on the global “democratic recession,” as his administration has warned of, will require far more than speeches, video meetings, and even a joint statement, which it’s unclear his summit will yield.
“Here in the United States, we know as well as anyone that renewing our democracy and strengthening our democratic institutions requires constant effort,” Biden said in opening remarks at the first “Summit for Democracy” Thursday morning.
In front of two video panels with 80 world leaders participating virtually, Biden declared democracy as “the defining challenge of our time,” citing “outside pressure” from autocrats.
“They seek to advance their own power, explore and expand their influence around the world and justify their repressive policies and practices as a more efficient way to address today’s challenges. That’s how it’s sold. By voices that seek to fanned the flames of social division and political polarization,” he said.
The president has cast the fight between democracies and authoritarian governments like China and Russia’s as pivotal to the 21st century — and said his administration will prove that democratic governments can still deliver for their publics.
Activists around the world are pressing the administration, along with their own governments, to demonstrate that this week — taking or announcing concrete steps like strengthening free and fair elections, countering corruption, bolstering a free press and combating disinformation, among other things.
While the guest list has drawn lots of attention, especially for some illiberal heads of government, it’s what the attendees agree on that will really matter, according to many experts — with some skeptical that there will be impactful commitments.
“The Biden administration is conceptually approaching it from the right lens in terms of looking inward and outward and being humble about the challenges that we’re facing” in the U.S., according to Marti Flacks, director of the Human Rights Initiative at the think tank CSIS. But “in practice, translating that into concrete commitments and actions that resonate domestically is very challenging.”
Those commitments will be tested over the next “year of action,” according to the administration, with a second summit the White House plans to hold in-person next year to take stock.
“The interval period between these two events — the virtual and hopefully the in-person — really gives us, I think, a rare opportunity to translate into action commitments that are going to be put on the table,” said Uzra Zeya, the top U.S. diplomat for democracy and human rights. “This is not a one-off event, but it’s really an ongoing engagement process that we hope will culminate in an in-person summit with new platforms and coalitions working together meaningfully.”
Democracy has been deteriorating consistently for the last 15 years, according to Freedom House, a Washington think tank that analyzes and rates governments. Its annual survey found this year that less than 20% of the global population lives in a country considered “free” in their analysis — the lowest percentage since 1995.
That includes the U.S., but there are worrying signs that American democracy is slipping, including partisan attacks on elections, dark money in politics and racial disparities, according to Freedom House — which ranks Belize, Mongolia and Romania’s democracies as stronger.
The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, a Swedish think tank, has gone even further, issuing a report last month that said the U.S. has fallen “victim to authoritarian tendencies itself, and was knocked down a significant number of steps on the democratic scale.”
Biden has leaned into that reality, urging the passage of voting rights legislation or historic investments in social programs. But more politically, he’s also gone after supporters of former President Donald Trump, who continued to spread unfounded conspiracies about election fraud, with a senior administration official blaming “Republican legislators” in particular for a “systematic assault.”
“The president has been forthright and clear about the challenges facing democracy here at home throughout his presidency, and I think you can expect him to do so as well at the summit,” the official said Tuesday.
The administration has also announced a series of steps in advance of the meetings — an indication of what kind of action it wants other countries to take. For example, the administration is collecting a group of countries that will commit to stop exporting and sharing technology that could be used to violate human rights, like artificial intelligence.
The Treasury Department is also moving to implement a policy that requires the disclosure of who controls shell companies and has proposed increased oversight of all-cash real estate deals — both of which corrupt foreign officials and other bad actors often use to hide money in the U.S. made illicitly overseas.
The White House also unveiled the first-ever strategy to counter corruption, laying out steps to do so that if “matched with appropriate resources… has the power to fundamentally change the calculus for kleptocrats,” according to Gary Kalman, director of the U.S. office of Transparency International, a German-based nonprofit advocacy group.
“In a world where corruption fuels authoritarianism, today’s strategy provides a forward-looking blueprint for bolstering government integrity and advancing democracy,” he added in a statement Monday.
But the strength of these public commitments will be heavily scrutinized. Already, there’s been criticism that some countries crafted theirs without any input from civil society.
“Having worked with parties and NGOs around the world, I was inundated with emails and calls pleading for advice as to how they could influence their own country’s democracy plan,” Laura Thornton, director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy, a bipartisan U.S. advocacy group, wrote.
Biden will address the summit twice, with opening remarks Thursday and closing remarks Friday. The heads of the other 111 invited governments will make their own speeches, which are expected to include some announcements of how they’re strengthening democracy in their country.
But some of those leaders have checkered records when it comes to doing so.
Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte, for example, has weaponized a war on drugs and terrorism to crack down on dissent and journalists and to rule with violent impunity.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has sowed doubts about the country’s presidential election next year and threatened to not accept the results, along with attacking the judiciary, political opponents and the free press.
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan will speak, but it’s the military that rules as “political arbiter — more powerful than either the judiciary or the elected government — and sets the constraints within which civilian politics play out,” according to Freedom House.
The Biden administration has defended its invitation list by saying it included a “regionally diverse set” of “established and emerging” democracies, according to Zeya, who added, “The invitation to join us at the summit — it’s not a mark of approval, nor is non-invitation from the summit a sign of disapproval from the United States.”
But if the administration invited them anyway because new “progress and commitments” from these countries “would advance a more just and peaceful world,” as Zeya said, it’s notable then that allies like Turkey and Hungary or neighbors in Central America’s “Northern Triangle” were left off the list.
Certain countries with authoritarian leaders will instead have their opposition leaders participate, including Belarus’s Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and Venezuela’s Juan Guaido, who the U.S. still recognizes as the country’s interim leader.
The administration also invited civic leaders, lawmakers and parliamentarians, journalists, and activists outside of government to address the summit outside of the leader speeches with dozens of side events. So while Duterte will get to pontificate, Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, who shared this year’s Nobel Peace Prize and has been jailed and harassed by Duterte’s government, also spoke Wednesday.
ABC News’ Justin Gomez contributed to this report.
(BROOKLYN CENTER, Minn.) — As the trial of former police officer Kim Potter begins in Minnesota, the Brooklyn Center City Council has officially backed the formation of a new public safety department that will reimagine how traffic stops in the city are handled.
Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was fatally shot by Potter during a traffic stop in April. He was initially stopped for an expired registration tag, and when officers discovered he had an outstanding warrant for a gross misdemeanor weapons charge, they tried to detain him.
That’s when things turned deadly: During a struggle, Potter shot Wright, and he drove off and crashed the car a few blocks away, according to officials. Wright has said she accidentally grabbed her firearm instead of her stun gun when she shot him.
Potter is charged with first-degree and second-degree manslaughter. She has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The city council has now designated $1.3 million to fund the promises made in a police reform resolution that was passed back in May 2021 following Wright’s death.
“This is a real landmark moment,” Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott, who is also a council member, said in an interview with ABC News. “This is a start, and it is still a big step forward in doing this work.”
Wright’s death spurred a movement
Elliott created and presented the Daunte Wright and Kobe Dimock-Heisler Community Safety and Violence Prevention Act less than a month following Wright’s death. Dimock-Heisler was a 21-year-old man on the autism spectrum who was fatally shot by Brooklyn Center officers during a domestic disturbance call last year. Charges were not filed against the officers.
The city council quickly voted unanimously to pass the resolution in honor of the two men.
“We’re taking a bold step here, this city,” Elliott said at a May 15 city council session discussing the vote. “But we can do it. We’re gonna do it.”
On Monday, the Brooklyn Center city council voted in favor of reducing police funding by about 1.6% in the upcoming year and shifting funds to create the new Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention. Brooklyn Center police will still be funded more than they were in 2020, according to budget documents shown at the meeting.
Along with the Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention, which will be responsible for “overseeing all city agencies and city efforts regarding community health and public safety,” according to the resolution, there will be a new Community Response Department composed of unarmed, trained medical and mental health professionals and social workers to assist with medical, mental health and disability-related calls.
An unarmed, civilian Traffic Enforcement Department will also be created to response to “non-moving” traffic violations.
“[Police departments] are coming around and seeing how valuable this type of transformation is, and how much it frees them up from having to respond to mental health calls and calls related to social work,” Elliott said.
A New York Times investigation found that in the last five years, police killed more than 400 people during traffic stops, all of whom were not displaying a gun or a knife, or were under pursuit for a violent crime when they were killed. LINK?
The city will also implement a “citation and summons” policy requiring officers to only issue citations and ban “custodial arrests or searches of persons or vehicles for any non-moving traffic infraction, non-felony offense or non-felony warrant,” the resolution reads.
“This is what could happen in many small cities across this country,” said Jaylani Hussein, the executive director of the local Islamic civil liberties and advocacy group CAIR-Minnesota. “The merits of this resolution is to do less harm and evaluate the amount of workload that police officers have to engage in that can create very volatile and dangerous situations for the public.”
The resolution also seeks to create new use of force policies and establish a new Community Safety and Violence Prevention Committee, composed of mostly city residents with direct or close experience with arrests, detention or contact with Brooklyn Center police.
The Brooklyn Center Police Department deferred to City of Brooklyn Center representatives for comment, who did not respond to ABC News’ requests. Elliott said BCPD officials are supportive of the compromises made on the resolution.
Still more to do, activists say
The ambitions of the initial proposal for the new department have been somewhat muted in the final revision of the budget.
Funds for 14 open police department positions were initially supposed to support the department’s creation, but the council approved freezing only three currently vacant police positions and instead will use lodging taxes and grants to assist in paying for the public safety changes for now.
Although the goal is to have 24/7 service to completely replace officers in traffic enforcement, according to Elliott, it’s not set in stone.
“I am fully committed to continuing to work with the community to make sure that the rest resolution is Public Safety Act and the programs and are fully funded in the year 2022,” Elliott said.
Katie Wright, Wright’s mother, was among many during the Dec. 6 city council budget meeting who expressed concern that this proposal would fall short of the original vision passed in April — a proposal named for her son.
“I don’t want my son’s name on a resolution that is not going to be effective, that is going to cause so much adversity in the community and that people are not in support of,” she said.
Local activists, who have been involved in the police reform efforts, say this is the first step toward fixing what they say is a broken criminal justice system. However, the over $9 million budget given to police — the most funding given to any government initiative in Brooklyn Center by a wide margin — is a point of contention for some.
“We know that anytime something is funded, that’s what gives it its power,” said Toshira Garraway, founder of support group Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence, which is working with Wright’s family.
Citing the four fatal civilian shootings by law enforcement in Brooklyn Center since Wright’s death, she said that treading lightly on reform initiatives is not the way to go.
“We have to start doing what makes sense and we have to try a different avenue,” Garraway said. “We can’t go about things the same way and think that we’re gonna get a different outcome.”
ABC News’ Adia Robinson contributed to this report.
