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☆ Mike Pence is set to launch his presidential campaign next week
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Former US Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the Nixon National Energy Conference at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum in Yorba Linda, California, on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. Mike Pence plans to enter the GOP presidential nomination fray June 7 with a campaign video and a kickoff speech in Des Moines, Iowa, according to a person familiar with his launch schedule. Redefining himself to Republican voters, most of whom know him primarily as Trump's vice president, will be a challenge. The former vice president will campaign in all 99 Iowa counties before the caucuses, the person said, adding that the campaign "will do the things that put Mike Pence in an advantageous position." A pro-Trump mob sacked the U.S. Capitol that day in an effort to stop the certification, and some of the rioters chanted "hang Mike Pence."

Persons: Mike Pence, Richard Nixon, Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Pence, Pence's, Mike Pence's, Jan, Trump, Reagan, —, Chris Christie, Doug Burgum, That's, He'll Organizations: US, Nixon National Energy Conference, Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum, Florida Gov, Republican, Iowa GOP, Trump, Trump mob, U.S . Capitol, Social Security, New, New Jersey Gov, North Dakota Gov Locations: Yorba Linda , California, Des Moines , Iowa, Indiana, Iowa, Ukraine, New Jersey, Des Moines

☆ Ex-Minneapolis police officer found guilty of aiding in George Floyd killing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Thao had opted to allow Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill decide whether he was guilty or not guilty, waiving his right to a trial by jury. Derek Chauvin, a white officer captured on cellphone video kneeling on the handcuffed Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes, was found guilty of murdering Floyd in 2021. With Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck, and Lane and Kueng restraining his knees and buttocks, Floyd pleaded for his life before falling limp. Two other former officers, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng, pleaded guilty last year to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter, the same charge Thao faced. At a federal trial last year, Keung, Lane and Thao were found guilty of violating Floyd's civil rights.

☆ Appeals court affirms conviction of Chauvin for George Floyd murder
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 17 (Reuters) - The Minnesota Court of Appeals on Monday upheld the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd during a 2020 arrest, rejecting Chauvin's request for a new trial. In December 2021, Chauvin pleaded guilty in federal court to charges he violated George Floyd's civil rights. The most serious state crime for which Chauvin was convicted was second-degree unintentional murder involving third-degree assault. Writing for the appeals court panel, Judge Peter Reyes disagreed. "Chauvin crossed that line here when he used unreasonable force on Floyd."

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, April 12 (Reuters) - Local government officials in Memphis, Tennessee, voted on Wednesday to return the second of two Democratic state lawmakers who were expelled last week for protesting gun violence on the chamber floor. Seven of the board's 13 councilors were present for the meeting, and all seven voted in favor of Pearson's return. He is expected to return to the State Capitol in Nashville on Thursday to be sworn back in. Democrats in the U.S. Senate have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate whether the expelled lawmakers' constitutional rights were violated. Before marching with supporters to the commissioners' meeting, Pearson, joined by Jones and Johnson, addressed a crowd of about 500 outside the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis.

☆ Memphis may send second expelled Tennessee lawmaker back to statehouse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

April 12 (Reuters) - Local officials will meet in Memphis, Tennessee, on Wednesday to decide whether to return the second of two Democratic state lawmakers who were expelled last week for protesting gun violence on the chamber floor. In a rare rebuke, Republicans who control the state House of Representatives voted to kick out Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, two Black men who had recently joined the legislature, over their rule-breaking protest on the House floor on March 30. "I believe the expulsion of State Representative Justin Pearson was conducted in a hasty manner without consideration of other corrective action methods," Lowery said in a statement. Johnson, who unlike Jones and Pearson did not use a megaphone during the protest, narrowly escaped also being expelled. Tennessee's House Republicans, who have a supermajority, have said this week they will "welcome" back any expelled state lawmakers returned by county-level governments, so long as those members follow the legislature's rules.

Prosecutor Chris Conroy said: "The defendant Donald J. Trump falsified New York business records in order to conceal an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 presidential election and other violations of election laws." SOCIAL MEDIA POSTSProsecutors during the arraignment said Trump made a series of social media posts, including one threatening "death and destruction" if he was charged. "They can't beat us at the ballot box so they try to beat us through the law," Trump said. The false records included invoices from Cohen, entries in a ledger for Trump maintained by the Trump Organization, and check stubs, according to the indictment. "Under New York state law, it is a felony to falsify business records with intent to defraud and intent to conceal another crime.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social profile shortly after arriving in New York from Florida on Monday, urging supporters to donate to his campaign. The arraignment, where Trump will be in court to hear charges and have a chance to enter a plea, was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Citing a single source briefed on Tuesday's arraignment procedures, Yahoo said none of the charges against Trump were misdemeanors. PROTESTS AND POPULARITYPolice over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower - where Trump arrived on Monday after flying in from Florida - and the Manhattan Criminal Court building, with demonstrations expected at both sites on Tuesday. On the Manhattan case, Trump in 2018 initially disputed knowing anything about the payment to Daniels.

Trump, the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, is due to be arraigned, fingerprinted and photographed at the downtown Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday. A court official said the arraignment is planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Trump then will return to Florida and deliver remarks at Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said. Other courtrooms on the courthouse's higher floors will be shut down ahead of the arraignment as part of the security precautions, a court official said. U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted an invitation on Sunday to join her at a protest near the courthouse on Tuesday, saying "They’re not coming after President Trump, they’re coming after us, he’s just in their way."

☆ Death toll from US storms rises to 29
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 2 (Reuters) - The death toll from a violent storm that whipped up tornadoes in the Southern and Midwestern regions of the United States rose to at least 29 over the weekend, according to officials and media reports. In Memphis, Tennessee, two children and an adult were found dead on Saturday after the storm's heavy winds knocked trees onto several houses, according to the Memphis Police Department. In Tennessee's McNairy County, officials reported that an additional two people had died, having reported seven deaths earlier on Saturday, according to local media. U.S. President Joe Biden declared a "major disaster" in Arkansas on Sunday, ordering federal aid to help with the recovery. loadingSimilarly severe weather, including thunderstorms, was forecast for Tuesday in much of the Midwest between Chicago and Little Rock, Arkansas, the center said.

REUTERS/Bing Guan/File PhotoNEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - New York City police have thrown up metal barriers around Trump Tower and blocked roads near Manhattan Criminal Courthouse as they brace for potential protests ahead of Donald Trump's expected surrender to prosecutors on Tuesday. The downtown courthouse, home to criminal and supreme courts, will shut down some courtrooms ahead of Trump's expected appearance, a court official said. However, many Trump supporters online have expressed wariness about public demonstrations, even after Trump called for them, concerned they could be arrested. Trump is expected to fly to New York on Monday from Florida and spend the night at Trump Tower, before arriving early Tuesday morning at the courthouse, a Trump adviser said. A court official told Reuters that courtrooms on higher floors of the courthouse will be closed at 1 p.m., shortly before Trump's expected 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) arraignment.

☆ After school shooting, some trans Tennesseans face backlash
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Mykul Coscia, who performs drag as Eazy Love at Play, a night club, poses for a portrait after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. March 29, 2023. Even before the shooting, many transgender Tennesseans felt villainized by their state's efforts to regulate the lives of gay and trans people, and were increasingly fearful for their safety. Police identified the Nashville shooter as Audrey Elizabeth Hale, and initially referred to Hale as female. Every time there is a school shooting, Story VanNess said she has sleepless nights: she was a special education teacher in a Knoxville school for several years before becoming the director of trans and non-binary programs at Knox Pride. "We've had another school shooting but, because this shooter was trans, that's taken a back seat so politicians can demonize trans people.

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, March 30 (Reuters) - Protesters flooded Tennessee's statehouse on Thursday to demand lawmakers stiffen gun laws following a school shooting in Nashville that left six people dead, three of them 9-year-old children. Demonstrators held aloft placards reading "No More Silence" and "We have to do better" while chanting "Do you even care?" In the latest incident, the shooter killed three pupils and three staff members at Nashville's Covenant School. Republican lawmakers in Tennessee this week delayed hearings on gun legislation that would expand access to firearms. [1/5] Counter protesters hold anti-trans signs outside the Tennessee State Capitol to call for an end to gun violence and support stronger gun laws after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. March 30, 2023.

☆ Tennessee governor says his wife, 2 school shooting victims were friends
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Juliet, held for the victims of a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., March 28, 2023. It will take place at a public park in the heart of Nashville, the Tennessee state capital. The governor's wife Maria, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak and the head of the school Katherine Koonce previously taught together at another school, he said. The assailant, Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, went to the Covenant School armed with two assault-style weapons and a handgun. Monday's violence marked the 90th school shooting – defined as any incident in which a gun is discharged on school property – in the United States this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, a website founded by researcher David Riedman.

☆ Former Christian school student kills 3 children, 3 staff in Nashville shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sandra Stojanovic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

He said the Covenant School was singled out for attack but that the individual victims were targeted at random. [1/5] A still image from surveillance video shows what the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department describe as mass shooting suspect Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, entering The Covenant School carrying weapons in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. March 27, 2023. Also shot dead were staffers Mike Hill, 61, a school custodian, Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher, and Katherine Koonce, 60, listed on the Covenant website as "head of school." "We have to do more to stop gun violence," Biden said at the White House. Monday's violence in Nashville marked the 90th school shooting – defined as any incident in which a gun is discharged on school property – in the U.S. so far this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, a website founded by researcher David Riedman.

☆ Footage shows police killing Nashville school shooter as investigators seek motive
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sandra Stojanovic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department began receiving calls about a shooter at 10:13 a.m., police spokesperson Don Aaron told reporters. Investigators were examining a "manifesto" written by the 28-year-old former student at the Covenant School, hoping to learn what motivated the latest U.S. mass shooting. Monday's violence marked the 90th school shooting – defined as any incident in which a gun is discharged on school property – in the United States this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, a website founded by researcher David Riedman. He said the Covenant School was singled out for attack but that the individual victims were targeted at random. Also shot dead were Mike Hill, 61, a school custodian; Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher; and Katherine Koonce, 60, listed on the Covenant website as "head of school."

☆ Three children, 3 adults shot dead by ex-student at Tennessee Christian school
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Kevin Wurm | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, March 27 (Reuters) - A heavily armed 28-year-old fatally shot three children and three adult staffers on Monday at a private Christian school the suspect once attended in Tennessee's capital city before police killed the assailant, authorities said. Drake said the school was singled out for attack but the individual victims were targeted at random. [1/6] Students from The Covenant School hold hands after getting off a bus to meet their parents at the reunification site following a mass shooting at the school in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., March 27, 2023. Reacting in Washington to the latest school shooting, U.S. President Joe Biden urged the U.S. Congress again to pass tougher gun reform legislation. Nashville Mayor John Cooper expressed sympathy for the victims and wrote on social media that his city "joined the dreaded, long list of communities to experience a school shooting."

☆ Three children, 2 adults killed in Nashville school shooting, suspect dead
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 27 (Reuters) - At least three children and two adults were killed in a shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday morning. Police "engaged" the suspected attacker, leaving the suspect dead, local officials said. The shooting happened at The Covenant School, where the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said in a statement that the suspect was dead but did not specify what led to the death. Three children were pronounced dead after arriving at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt with gunshot wounds, John Howser, a hospital spokesperson, said in a statement. The Covenant School, founded in 2001, is a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Nashville with about 200 students, according to the school's website.

☆ Actor Jonathan Majors arrested in New York on assault charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - The actor Jonathan Majors was arrested in New York City over the weekend on assault and harassment charges, leading to the U.S. Army pulling new advertisements featuring the "Creed III" star. A 30-year-old woman suffered minor injuries to her head and neck and was taken to a hospital in stable condition, the New York Police Department said. Majors, 33, appeared in court for an arraignment later on Saturday and was released without bail. Priya Chaudhry, Majors' defense lawyer, said in a statement that Majors was innocent and that he was "provably the victim of an altercation with a woman he knows." She said that the episode occurred in a vehicle, and that the driver who witnessed it would help exonerate Majors.

☆ Awaiting possible indictment, Trump rallies in Waco and vows to 'destroy the deep state'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Former U.S. President Donald Trump at first rally since announcing his 2024 presidential campaign, at the Waco Regional Airport on March 25, 2023 in Waco, Texas. "Either the deep state destroys America or we destroy the deep state," Trump said of the stakes of his bid for a return to the Oval Office. In comments to reporters on his plane after the rally, Trump further tore into DeSantis saying, "He's got no personality. Former US President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event in Waco, Texas, US, on Saturday, March 25, 2023. Former US President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event in Waco, Texas, US, on Saturday, March 25, 2023.

☆ How drag was pushed back into the shadows in Tennessee
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Now, a Tennessee law restricting drag in front of minors is due to come into force on April 1. Several planned drag events were canceled over the winter after protests, and many venues felt forced to make previously family-friendly drag shows into adults-only events. Drag performers and venue owners say they are worried about their livelihoods and their rights of free expression. The Starbucks say there is no such thing as family-friendly drag; drag performers cite Bugs Bunny, Shakespeare's cross-dressing comedies and the Robin Williams film "Mrs. Doubtfire" among counterexamples. Outside of public Pride events, most Tennessee drag performers largely work in clubs and bars that admit only those over 18.

Trump has said he would stay in the race if he is indicted. Trump, meanwhile, is making a forward-looking pitch to voters, NBC News’ Allan Smith and Jonathan Allen report. And the Washington Post reports Friday that prosecutors investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot have obtained a report commissioned by Trump’s campaign that undercut his falsehoods about the election. Santos mulls re-election: New York GOP Rep. George Santos told the Associated Press he is a “maybe” on running for re-election. Sparks fly in the Windy city: Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., endorsed Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson in Chicago’s mayoral race on Thursday.

☆ Ron Klain credits Rep. Jim Clyburn for pushing Biden to put the first Black woman on the Supreme Court
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ron Klain gave credit to Rep. Jim Clyburn for the appointment of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. Clyburn urged Biden in 2020 to promise voters he would put the first Black woman justice on the court. That promise was important to Clyburn, whose endorsement played a big role in Biden becoming president. But he defended Jackson during confirmation battles, urged "strong bipartisan support" for her, and said she "will make an extraordinary Supreme Court Justice" when she was sworn in. She was a finalist when President Barack Obama selected now-Attorney General Merrick Garland for a Supreme Court nomination, he said.

☆ Tennessee governor will sign bills restricting drag, transgender youth treatment
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Feb 28 (Reuters) - Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said he would sign into law bills that passed the legislature last week banning gender-affirming treatment for transgender youth and restricting drag performances in public. Lee said the drag bill, which comes into effect April 1, would protect children from being "potentially exposed to sexualized entertainment, to obscenity." Modern drag performances, which have long flourished in LGBT venues before becoming a more mainstream entertainment in recent years, typically do not involve nudity. One of the bills Lee will sign bans doctors from providing gender-affirming medical treatment, such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgery, for transgender minors. The Tennessee bills are part of an upswing in recent months in Republican efforts to regulate the conduct of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people.

☆ Tennessee takes lead in Republican effort to restrict drag shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Feb 23 (Reuters) - Tennessee lawmakers will debate on Thursday whether to restrict drag performances in public or in front of children, one of more than a dozen bills limiting drag advanced by Republican politicians in at least 15 states in recent months. They see the bills as part of a Republican effort to advance laws limiting LGBT people's conduct across the country. Drag performances typically do not involve nudity or stripping. Established in 2015, Drag Story Hour, in which costumed drag performers read to children, has expanded to at least 20 states. Drag performers say they are just as able to tailor their act to their audience as other artists, like an actor who might appear in both a sexually explicit R-rated movie and in a children's movie.

Reuters/Mike SegarFeb 21 (Reuters) - A daughter of Malcolm X, the civil rights activist assassinated 58 years ago to the day on Tuesday, has filed notices that she intends to sue the FBI, the CIA, New York City police and others for his death. Ilyasah Shabazz accused various federal and New York government agencies of fraudulently concealing evidence that they "conspired to and executed their plan to assassinate Malcolm X." "For years, our family has fought for the truth to come to light concerning his murder," Shabazz said at a news conference at the site of her father's assassination, now a memorial to Malcolm X. Malcolm X rose to prominence as the national spokesman of the Nation of Islam, an African-American Muslim group that espoused Black separatism. Soon after, some associates of Malcolm X said they believed various government agencies were aware of the assassination plan and allowed to it happen.

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