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“We take this type of targeting very seriously.”The FBI said it “is aware of the offensive and racist text messages sent to individuals around the country and is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter,” according to a statement Thursday. At least some appear to have been sent through TextNow in what the company believes “is a widespread, coordinated attack,” it told CNN on Friday. Texts addressed recipients by nameScreenshots of the texts shared with CNN and appearing on social media show the racist messages addressed the recipients by name. Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland said in a statement Thursday that some of its students received the racist texts. CNN affiliates have also reported instances of students receiving the racist texts in South Carolina, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, among other states.

Persons: Derrick Johnson, ” Donald Trump’s, Karoline Leavitt, Orangeburg , South Carolina –, Jessica Rosenworcel, ”, “, Liz Murrill, ” Murrill, Murrill, Cori Faklaris, ” Faklaris, Letitia James, ” Kenneth Gray, Alysa, Arleta McCall, ” McCall, Nimrod, ” Megan Shafer, ‘, ’, Jackie Bradley, WISN, ” Bradley, Bradley, you’re, ” Talaya Jones, Talaya Jones, ” Jones, —, Jim Crow, Johnson, Jones, Tasha Dunham, WCVB, wasn’t, ” Dunham Organizations: CNN, Federal, District of Columbia, NAACP, stoke, Black Colleges, Universities, Hampton University, Fisk University, Claflin University, Federal Communications Commission’s, FBI, Justice Department, & Safety, General’s, Louisiana Bureau, Investigation, University of North, Associated Press, New York, University of New, Montgomery County Public Schools, ”, University of Alabama, Missouri State University, Missouri NAACP, Lower, Lower Merion School District, Milwaukee, WISN Locations: New York, California, Hampton , Virginia, Nashville , Tennessee, Orangeburg , South Carolina, TextNow, Louisiana, Poland, Napoleonville , Louisiana, Washington , DC, Virginia , New Jersey , Illinois, Maryland, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, University of New Haven, Montgomery County, Missouri, South Carolina , Massachusetts , Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Lower Merion, Montgomery County , Pennsylvania, Piscataway , New Jersey, United States, Lodi , California, North Carolina

☆ She was accused of murder after losing her pregnancy. SC woman now tells her story
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-23 | by ( Lauren Sausser | Kff Health News | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Orangeburg, South Carolina KFF Health News —Amari Marsh had just finished her junior year at South Carolina State University in May 2023 when she received a text message from a law enforcement officer. South Carolina state Rep. Seth Rose, a Democrat in Columbia and one of Marsh’s attorneys, called it a “really tragic” case. But at the hospital, Marsh learned that her infant, a girl, had not survived. Historically, birth outcomes for Black women in Orangeburg County, where Marsh lost her pregnancy, have ranked among the worst in South Carolina. She is taking classes at a local community college and hopes to reenroll at South Carolina State University to earn a four-year degree.

Persons: Amari Marsh, ” Marsh, Marsh, ”, Amari's, Herman Marsh, Regina, “, ’ ” Sam Wolfe, KFF, James Clyburn, ’ ” Clyburn, ‘, ’, “ I’ve, I’ve, Seth Rose, Zipporah, Amari, ” Sumpter, Sam Wolfe, Marsh “, y’all, David Pascoe, Pascoe, Dana Sussman, Court’s Dobbs, Dobbs, Holly Gatling, Michele Heisler, ” Chelsea Daniels, ” Daniels, Sumpter, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, God, Daniel Chang Organizations: South Carolina KFF Health, South Carolina State University, Calhoun Regional Detention, KFF Health, U.S, Supreme, Jackson, Health Organization, White, Rep, Carnegie Hall, Democrat, Regional Medical, South Carolina’s Republican, South, Judicial, Pregnancy, Local, The Times, South Carolina Citizens, Life, National, Physicians, Human Rights, Medical University of South, CNN, CNN Health, Health News, Health, KFF Locations: Orangeburg, South Carolina, Calhoun, “, Columbia, South, South Carolina’s, Miami, Florida, Montana , Missouri, Maryland, Medical University of South Carolina, Orangeburg County, Health News Florida

☆ They Know Haley’s Chances Against Trump, but They’re Voting for Her Anyway
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Jazmine Ulloa | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Everything about Nikki Haley’s latest barnstorm through South Carolina was intended to evoke a candidate on the upswing. She had a sleek, new navy-blue campaign bus with her name on it. Her campaign, backed by a fresh infusion of funds, pumped $2 million more into ads, for a total $6 million buy. And she had fresh lines of attack to deploy against former President Donald J. Trump. Almost everywhere she went, even staunch supporters excited to see her speak conceded that her chances were slim.

Persons: Nikki Haley’s, Donald J, Haley, Donald Trump, ”, Robert Zangara Organizations: Trump Locations: South Carolina, Charleston, Orangeburg

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Nikki Haley is launching a bus tour before South Carolina's Republican presidential primary on Feb. 24, hoping the two-week push will show the former governor's commitment to her home state heading into the first-in-the-South vote. Haley's bus tour kicks off Saturday, with its first stops planned in Newberry, Greenwood, Lexington and Orangeburg counties. The tour is aiming to ramp up interest in South Carolina's early-voting period, which begins Monday, according to Haley's campaign. It's also a complement to her repeated critiques of Trump for not spending time in the state, as she's crisscrossed it, holding nearly a dozen campaign events across South Carolina in the past two weeks. She's poked fun at Trump for declining to debate her, a tack also taken by a super political action committee supporting her bid.

Persons: — Nikki Haley, Donald Trump, Haley, It's, Trump, Conway, Nancy Mace, Russell Fry, William Timmons, she's, She's, Meg Kinnard Organizations: COLUMBIA, South, Republican, GOP, Trump, Reps, United Nations Locations: Newberry , Greenwood, Lexington, Orangeburg, Bamberg, Clemson, South, South Carolina, Conway —, Myrtle Beach

☆ Kamala Harris Bolsters Biden for 2024 and Lays Groundwork for 2028
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Reid J. Epstein | Maya King | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For decades, ambitious politicians with eyes on a future presidential run made pilgrimages to Iowa and New Hampshire, casually popping in at fairs and local fund-raising dinners as if they just happened to be in the area. When President Biden pushed Democrats to place South Carolina first on their presidential primary calendar, the geography for the party’s political strivers changed. They are now working to build support not in mostly white Northern places but in a Southern state with a predominantly Black primary voting base that better represents the modern Democratic Party. So when Vice President Kamala Harris arrived on Friday in Orangeburg, S.C., for her ninth visit to South Carolina since taking office, she came as a known quantity. While she and Mr. Biden are running for renomination without serious challengers, the relationships she has developed in the state are expected to play a part in lifting their ticket to a comfortable triumph on Saturday in the party’s first recognized primary election.

Persons: Biden, Kamala Harris Organizations: South Carolina, Democratic Party, Democratic, Black Locations: Iowa, New Hampshire, Southern, Orangeburg, S.C, South Carolina

☆ South Carolina primary kicks off Biden’s march to 2024 Democratic nomination
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Eric Bradner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —South Carolina, the state that launched Joe Biden to the Democratic nomination four years ago, is set Saturday to deliver the president his first official primary victory of the 2024 campaign. Fifty-five delegates are at stake in Saturday’s primary in South Carolina. This year marks the first time South Carolina has appeared at the front of the official Democratic nominating calendar — a change made largely due to Biden’s urging. DNC elevates South Carolina over Iowa and New HampshireFor decades, Iowa and New Hampshire had cast the first votes in Democratic presidential primary battles. Attendees cheer as Biden speaks at a South Carolina Democratic Party event in Columbia on January 27, 2024.

Persons: Joe Biden, Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson, Biden, Kamala Harris, “ You’ve, I’ve, ” Biden, won’t, Kent Nishimura, Jim Clyburn —, Jimmy Carter, Nikki Haley’s, Donald Trump’s, Betsy Klein, Terence Burlij, Ethan Cohen Organizations: CNN, Democratic, Minnesota, Democratic National Committee, Iowa Democratic, New, Republican, Palmetto State, South Carolina State University, Brookland Baptist Church, South Carolina Democratic Party, Getty, South Carolina, Republicans, Black, GOP, South Carolina Gov, Monmouth University, Washington Post, Trump Locations: South Carolina, Carolina, Iowa, New Hampshire, Granite State, Orangeburg, Columbia, Southern California, Nevada, AFP, Georgia, Michigan , Pennsylvania, Wisconsin

☆ South Carolina Primary Tests Biden Support With Black Voters
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

By Trevor Hunnicutt, Jarrett Renshaw and Liliana SalgadoCOLUMBIA, South Carolina (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's re-election bid goes before voters for the first time on Saturday, when Democrats hold their inaugural 2024 primary in South Carolina. Harris said on Friday in Orangeburg, South Carolina. Some South Carolina voters said Biden's re-election bid left something to be desired. South Carolina plays host to the next major Republican presidential nominating battle as well, on Feb. 24. In a recent speech to state Democrats, Phillips said he expects 95% of the state will go for Biden in the primary.

Persons: Trevor Hunnicutt, Jarrett Renshaw, Liliana Salgado COLUMBIA, Joe Biden's, Biden, Kamala Harris, Harris, Donald Trump, Biden's, Martin Orr, Trump, Biden reordered, Joe Biden, Kirk Randazzo, Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson, Phillips, Liliana Salgado, Heather Timmons, Will Dunham Organizations: U.S ., Democratic, Reuters, Republican, South, South Carolina voters, Trump, South Carolina, University of South, Democrats, U.S, Biden Locations: South Carolina, U.S, Orangeburg , South Carolina, Carolina, McConnells , South Carolina, Iowa, New Hampshire, South, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina's, In New Hampshire, Washington

The GOP’s South Carolina primary won’t be held until Feb. 24. Arguing that voters of color should play a larger role in determining the Democratic presidential nominee, Biden championed a calendar beginning in South Carolina. South Carolina was also where Biden reversed his fortunes with a resounding victory during the 2020 Democratic primary after defeats in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. “I wouldn’t be here without the Democratic voters of South Carolina, and that’s a fact,” Biden said at the state's Democratic Party’s “First-in-the-Nation” celebration dinner last weekend. Associated Press writer Ayanna Alexander in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this report.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson, ” Harris, Jill Biden, Barack Obama, Jim Clyburn, “, ” Biden, Donald Trump, ”, LaJoia Broughton, Charles Trower, Still, don’t, Phillips, it's, Harris, Trump, ” Trump, ___ Weissert, Ayanna Alexander Organizations: COLUMBIA, South, Democratic, Black, Minnesota Rep, Democratic National Committee, South Carolina, AP VoteCast, Black Democrats, DNC, Republican, America, —, Capitol, Associated Press Locations: Iowa, South Carolina, GOP’s, Carolina, South Carolina State, Orangeburg, Nevada, Michigan, Iowa , New Hampshire, Columbia, Blythewood , South Carolina, ” New Hampshire, Florida, North Carolina, Washington, Columbia , South Carolina

☆ South Carolina Democrats head to the polls, where Biden is expected to notch a primary win
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Peter Nicholas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Biden stands as the overwhelming favorite to win the South Carolina primary against comparatively weak opposition: U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota and Marianne Williamson, an author who ran unsuccessfully in 2020. In drawing up the official primary calendar, Democratic officials put South Carolina first. Biden hopes to win South Carolina by a whopping margin, which might infuse his candidacy with more energy and help deflect attention from his low standing in public opinion polls. A total of 55 delegates are at stake Saturday in South Carolina. South Carolina Democrats want a huge turnout to justify the party's decision to bump the state to the front of the line.

Persons: Joe, Biden, Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson, James Clyburn, Donald Trump, Jamie Harrison, Tierra Albert, Nikki Haley, Haley —, —, Clyburn, Haley, I've Organizations: Democratic, South Carolina, U.S . Rep, Dean Phillips of Minnesota, South, New, New Hampshire, GOP, Democratic National, Democratic National Committee, Democratic Party, Israel, Hamas, Claflin University, Trump, Republican, South Carolina Democrats, NBC News Locations: South Carolina, New Hampshire, New, Charleston, South, Columbia, Iowa, Carolinians, , Iowa, Spartanburg, Carolina, Israel, Gaza, Orangeburg

☆ Black voters stood with Biden in 2020. Four years later, he needs their help again
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Arit John | Eva Mckend | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

South Carolina’s primary will be the first opportunity Black voters have to voice their support – or displeasure – with Biden since that election. In 2020, Biden won 61% of the Black vote, which made up 56% of the Democratic primary electorate, according to CNN exit polling. Vice President Kamala Harris also spoke at a get out the vote event at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg Friday, the last day of early voting. “South Carolina, you are the first primary in the nation, and President Biden and I are counting on you,” Harris said. “And for me personally, and our team here, we don’t live in that space of being passive.”Mimi Striplin, founder of The Tiny Tassel in Charleston, South Carolina, speaks with CNN's Eva McKend.

Persons: Mimi Striplin, Striplin, she’s, Joe Biden, “, ” Striplin, Biden, Striplin –, –, Harris, ”, Antjuan Seawright, Jim Clyburn, Donald Trump, Trump, Clyburn, Kamala Harris, ” Harris, Jaime Harrison, – Biden, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama –, ” Harrison, Kent Nishimura, Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson, what’s, Juanita Hamilton, Hamilton, he’d, “ I’m, Auntie Juanita, ’, George McCray, Eutawville, he’s, didn’t, Obama, ” McCray, That’s, Gabriel Fant, Fant, Valerie Wilson, hasn’t, she’d, CNN's Eva McKend, Ebony Davis Organizations: Charleston CNN, CNN, White House, Biden, Democratic, GOP, Black, Democrats, Democratic National Committee, New, South Carolina State University, “, South Carolina Democrats, New Hampshire voters, American, South Carolina State Fairgrounds, Minnesota Rep, Hilton, Charleston, Economic Policy Institute, Bureau of Labor Statistics Locations: Charleston, American, South Carolina, Iowa, New Hampshire, Columbia, Israel, Gaza, Orangeburg, “ South Carolina, Spain, Walterboro, Black, Hartsville, Columbia , South Carolina, AFP, Summerville, Charleston , South Carolina

Biden's support among Black voters has waned considerably since he assembled his winning coalition four years ago. Lackluster turnout among Black voters in South Carolina’s primary could signal a broader dip in enthusiasm. Biden will need to energize Black voters in the key swing states of Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. South Carolina school districts reported over 1,600 teacher vacancies at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year, a 9% increase from the year before, according to a report from the South Carolina Education Association. Joshua Singleton, a 19-year-old sophomore at South Carolina State, shared the sentiment: “We should have, you know, younger presidents to represent us."

Persons: Democrats ’, Joe Biden, What’s, Biden, That’s, Donald Trump, Kamala Harris, Moore, “, Olivia Ratliff, ”, Ratliff, Kailyn Wrighten, Wrighten, —, we’ve, Sheridan Johnson, Johnson, Laverne Brown, there’s, — Biden, Charles Trower, Joshua Singleton, Seth Whipper, ” Biden, Harris, Tony Thomas, Saundra, Austin Nichols, ” Nichols, ” LaJoia Broughton, Broughton, don’t, Dr, Byron L, Benton, Joseph Biden, Emily Swanson, Jonathan Logan Organizations: —, Democrats, Democratic, Black, AP, Associated Press, NORC, for Public Affairs Research, Republican, South Carolina State University, Supreme, South Carolina Education Association, Biden, South Carolina State, Trump, America, Moriah Missionary Baptist Church, Mother Emanuel AME Church, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Locations: CHARLESTON, S.C, South Carolina, South, Georgia , Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Columbia, Orangeburg, Charleston, Carolina, American, U.S, Blythewood , South Carolina, “, Blythewood, North Charleston

☆ Kamala Harris Rallies Democrats, Pumps Up Biden and Warns of Trump
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Reid J. Epstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On the final day before South Carolina’s primary election officially kicks off the Democratic presidential nominating contest, Vice President Kamala Harris urged supporters not to ignore a contest that is widely expected to be uncompetitive but where she and President Biden are hoping for a morale-lifting rout. “South Carolina, you are the first primary in the nation, and President Biden and I are counting on you,” Ms. Harris told a crowd on Friday at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg. “Are you ready to make your voices heard? Do we believe in freedom? Standing before two banners bearing the slogan “First in the Nation” — with the word “First” underlined — Ms. Harris highlighted the Biden administration’s achievements, including expanding high-speed internet access, increasing federal funding for historically Black colleges and universities, and reducing prescription drug costs.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Biden, Ms, Harris, Harris’s, Biden’s Organizations: Democratic, South Carolina State University, Biden Locations: “ South Carolina, Orangeburg, “, South Carolina

☆ Opinion | The Miseducation of Nikki Haley
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Elizabeth Spiers | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After her failure to identify slavery as the cause of the Civil War generated a wave of criticism last month, Nikki Haley assured her potential constituents that she had Black friends, and that she understood the war’s origins. By 1975, the number of private schools in South Carolina grew more than tenfold, enrolling as many as 90 percent of the white children in some majority Black counties. Ms. Haley graduated in 1989 from Orangeburg Preparatory School. Orangeburg was the product of a merger between Wade Hampton and Willington Academy, also segregation academies, the former of which was named after one of the largest slaveholding families in South Carolina. The year Ms. Haley graduated, her high school yearbook featured at most a handful of Black students.

Persons: Nikki Haley, “, Haley, Wade Hampton Organizations: Gov, Education, Orangeburg Preparatory School, Willington Academy, Hampton, Confederate Locations: South Carolina, Brown, Black, Orangeburg

And Biden isn’t the only candidate trying to line up support among young voters. Former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination in his comeback bid for the White House, visited Iowa State University last weekend. “And that’s not happening so far.”Biden won 61% of voters between the ages of 18 and 29 in 2020, according to AP VoteCast, making young voters a critical part of his coalition. The White House has worked with online influencers to reach people who don't rely on traditional media. On Thursday, Harris repeatedly tried to demonstrate that she understood young voters’ concerns.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Jaden Clemons, Layth Carpenter, Harris, ”, Joe Biden, Clemons, Biden, they're, Donald Trump, “, Trump, John Brabender, Isaac Gavin, ” Sen, Mitt Romney, ” Biden, ” Harris, Kevin Munoz, isn’t, John Della Volpe, “ It’s, Della Volpe, Destiny Humphreys, they’re, Carpenter, ___ Price, Ayanna Alexander, Farnoush Amiri Organizations: —, Hampton University, Howard University, White, Republican, Iowa State University, Alpha Gamma Rho, University of Iowa, YouTube, Drake University, Utah Republican, U.S . Capitol, AP, North Carolina, Democratic National Committee, Biden, Democrats, Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics, South Carolina State University, U.S, Supreme Locations: HAMPTON, Va, Hampton, Las Vegas, Des Moines, Utah, United States, Greensboro, N.C, —, New York, Beaumont, Des Moines , Iowa, Orangeburg, S.C, Washington

“It is a crisis situation,” Ms. Hochul acknowledged on Tuesday. “There’ll be literally thousands more individuals coming across the border and ultimately find their way up to the State of New York.”Counties near the city are now bracing for overflow, some more willingly than others. The executive of the Democratic stronghold of Westchester County, just to New York City’s north, is open to welcoming some undocumented migrants from the city’s overflowing shelter system. “We are not a sanctuary county,” Mr. Blakeman said. Deputies with the Rockland County Sheriff’s Department sat a few yards away in cream-colored cruisers, ready to block the entrance of any approaching bus.

☆ New York Mayor Eric Adams to bus asylum seekers upstate, much like Texas Gov. Greg Abbott bussed asylum seekers to New York City
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Eric Adams is sending asylum seekers in New York City to upstate New York, drawing criticism from local officials. Greg Abbott for sending migrants from Texas to New York City. In doing so, Adams appears to be passing asylum seekers off – just as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott did when he had migrants bussed from his state to New York, the Associated Press reported. In the last year, some 60,000 asylum seekers have arrived in New York City, the mayor's office said in Friday's press release.

A 5-year-old girl missing since Thanksgiving, when the body of her mother was discovered at their residence in South Carolina, was found safe Friday, authorities said. Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office"Aspen is fine, and —she’s okay," Orangeburg County, South Carolina, Sheriff Leroy Ravenell announced at a news conference Friday. Authorities soon realized Aspen, as well as her father, Antar Jeter, were missing. Authorities allege the 2015 Mazda 6 Antar Jeter was driving was stolen. Asked about her fate, he said the family's goal is to keep her in the hands of relatives in South Carolina and away from Child Protective Services.

And we still do.”A recent study of small business owners by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce found that inflation and supply chain issues are the top challenges entrepreneurs face today. One in three small business owners call inflation their highest concern and 67% of them have raised prices in response to inflation. “The Paycheck Protection Program continues to be disadvantageous to smaller businesses, businesses owned by people of color, and businesses without employees. According to NBC Bay Area, searches for “Black-owned businesses near me” peaked in June 2020, with companies like Yelp making it easier for people to find and support Black-owned businesses, per data from Google. She said that during the height of the social justice movement, corporations and financial institutions pledged to support Black-owned businesses.

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