Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin speaks with a large crowd in Alexandria, Virginia, on importance of education and family in final days of the race.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – In a tight race for gubernatorial victory, Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin has pulled ahead in recent polls and Virginia voters claim his stance on family and education are a leading factor.
At an early Saturday morning campaign stop in Alexandria, Virginia, supporters for Youngkin told Fox News that family and education are top ticket items in their decision to back the GOP candidate.
“We’re young and we’re married,” one supporter told Fox News, adding they are hoping to start a family soon. “Thinking about having kids up here in northern Virginia is really scary. They’ll be in school in four years.”
“You have to start caring about those things,” he added.
But not all Youngkin supporters who champion his stance on family and education policy have children in the Virginian school system.
“We’re here to do something so that we can afford to live – raise our kids here,” one young Virginia voter told Fox News.
The Youngkin supporter said that even though he doesn’t yet have a family, he’s looking at Virginia’s future.
“Having a state where I feel comfortable raising children where I know I’m in charge of my child’s education, where I can keep some money in my pocket to invest in their future is really important for me,” he added.
Youngkin touted his rising popularity amongst Virginia voters in recent polls.
“What’s at the heart of this are these issues that are most important to all Virginians,” the GOP candidate told reporters. “Our most recent polling that we’ve all seen shows that I’m winning with parents in a huge degree.”
Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe has found himself in hot water following his second and final debate last month, when he said parents should not have a direct say in school curriculum.
His statement was in response to Youngkin who criticized his opponent for vetoing a bill that would have required parental knowledge of all books available to students in school libraries.
McAuliffe’s remarks sparked outrage amongst conservative voters and pushed education to the forefront of the Virginia race for governor.
Virginians will head to the ballot box in less than four days to elect their next governor on Nov. 2.
People with tiki torches posed by Glenn Youngkin’s bus in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Friday.
The Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump Republican group, later admitted to being behind the stunt.
They said it was to remind Virginians of the 2017 white supremacist “Unite the Right” rally.
A group of people carrying tiki torches turned up to an event for Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Friday, posing in front of his tour bus.
Turns out, they were sent by the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump Republican group.
The tiki torches were a nod to the 2017 “Unite the Right rally” in Charlottesville, when white supremacists and neo-Nazis marched with tiki torches in hand, with some chanting “Jews will not replace us.”
People online quickly began to suspect there was something strange about it, and Youngkin’s campaigneven accused his opponent, Virginia Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe, of being behind the stunt.
Vice News identified one of the people in the photo as a “low-level Democratic operative” and said the Lincoln Project admitted it was responsible for the stunt.
“Today’s demonstration was our way of reminding Virginians what happened in Charlottesville four years ago, the Republican Party’s embrace of those values, and Glenn Youngkin’s failure to condemn it,” the conservative group said in a statement.
The statement also said if Youngkin “will denounce Trump’s assertion that the Charlottesville rioters possessed ‘very fine’ qualities, we’ll withdraw the tiki torches. Until then, we’ll be back.”
McAuliffe’s campaign condemned the stunt on Friday evening.
“What happened today in Charlottesville is disgusting and distasteful and the McAuliffe campaign condemns it in the strongest terms. Those involved should immediately apologize,” Terry for Virginia Campaign Manager Chris Bolling said in a tweet.
The 53-year-old actress took to Twitter on Friday to address the fake “Unite the Right” members that were planted in front of Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin’s campaign bus by the anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project.
She retweeted a parody article claiming that one of the conservative stand-ins – depicted as a member of the Ku Klux Klan in the parody – was actually Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam.
“Wait WHAT???” Messing wrote in her response, sparking many commenters to point out that the article was, in fact, fake.
“Oh I didn’t fall for it, nor do I approve of it, but the POINT is Republicans still defend the Nazis with tiki torches at #Charlottesville,” Messing tweeted. “& now there is faux outrage bc they don’t want voters reminded of their most loyal ( and welcomed) supporters.”
The star was referencing the “Unite the Right” white supremacist rally that was held in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. It was attended by many alt-right political groups.
A counter-protester was killed when a man drove his car into a crowd of people while another man was badly beaten.
On Friday, The Lincoln Project admitted to planting five people dressed in white shirts and khakis while holding tiki torches in front of Youngkin’s campaign bus. The group’s outfits were similar to those worn by some attendees of the 2017 rally.
Debra Messing said Republicans were “still defending” Nazis. (Reuters)
“Today’s demonstration was our way of reminding Virginians what happened in Charlottesville four years ago, the Republican Party’s embrace of those values, and Glenn Youngkin’s failure to condemn it,” The Lincoln Project said in a news release.
“The Lincoln Project has run advertisements highlighting the hate unleashed in Charlottesville as well as Glenn Youngkin’s continued failure to denounce Donald Trump’s ‘very fine people on both sides,'” the group said. “We will continue to draw this contrast in broadcast videos, on our social media platforms, and at Youngkin rallies.”
Mr. Biden said he was confident that Democrats would unite behind the framework after months of turbulent negotiations. But it still has not passed Congress, and it is still unclear whether Mr. Biden has the votes.
Administration officials, who have made it their goal to end the global practice of profit-shifting, celebrated the international tax provisions this week and said they would be significant steps toward Mr. Biden’s vision of a global economy where companies invest, hire and book more profits in the United States.
But they also conceded that infighting among congressional Democrats had left Mr. Biden short of fulfilling his promise to make corporations pay their “fair share,” disappointing those who have pushed Mr. Biden to reverse lucrative tax cuts for businesses passed under Mr. Trump.
The framework omits a wide range of corporate tax increases that Mr. Biden campaigned on and pushed relentlessly in the first months of his presidency. He could not persuade 50 Senate Democrats to raise the corporate income tax rate to 28 percent from 21 percent, or even to a compromise 25 percent, or to eliminate incentives that allow some large firms — like fossil fuel producers — to reduce their tax bills.
“It’s a tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, step,” Erica Payne, the president of a group called Patriotic Millionaires that has urged tax increases on corporations and the wealthy, said in a statement after Mr. Biden’s framework announcement on Friday. “But it’s a step.”
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Minnesota is under a solar storm watch for Saturday night, meaning you might be able to see the northern lights.
NOAA categorized this particular solar storm watch as G3, which is a stronger chance to see the northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis. The area covers much of the northern part of the United States — including all of Minnesota — and much of Canada.
“Like a severe thunderstorm watch, (a solar storm watch means) the ingredients are there for this to develop, but we don’t know if it’s going to happen yet,” meteorologist Mike Augustyniak said.
(credit: CBS)
It might be tough to see the northern lights in the Twin Cities due to light pollution.
The 53-year-old actress took to Twitter on Friday to address the fake “Unite the Right” members that were planted in front of Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin’s campaign bus by the anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project.
She retweeted a parody article claiming that one of the conservative stand-ins – depicted as a member of the Ku Klux Klan in the parody – was actually Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam.
“Wait WHAT???” Messing wrote in her response, sparking many commenters to point out that the article was, in fact, fake.
“Oh I didn’t fall for it, nor do I approve of it, but the POINT is Republicans still defend the Nazis with tiki torches at #Charlottesville,” Messing tweeted. “& now there is faux outrage bc they don’t want voters reminded of their most loyal ( and welcomed) supporters.”
The star was referencing the “Unite the Right” white supremacist rally that was held in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. It was attended by many alt-right political groups.
A counter-protester was killed when a man drove his car into a crowd of people while another man was badly beaten.
On Friday, The Lincoln Project admitted to planting five people dressed in white shirts and khakis while holding tiki torches in front of Youngkin’s campaign bus. The group’s outfits were similar to those worn by some attendees of the 2017 rally.
Debra Messing said Republicans were “still defending” Nazis. (Reuters)
“Today’s demonstration was our way of reminding Virginians what happened in Charlottesville four years ago, the Republican Party’s embrace of those values, and Glenn Youngkin’s failure to condemn it,” The Lincoln Project said in a news release.
“The Lincoln Project has run advertisements highlighting the hate unleashed in Charlottesville as well as Glenn Youngkin’s continued failure to denounce Donald Trump’s ‘very fine people on both sides,'” the group said. “We will continue to draw this contrast in broadcast videos, on our social media platforms, and at Youngkin rallies.”
ROME, Oct 30 (Reuters) – The heads of the world’s 20 biggest economies kicked off two days of talks on Saturday where they were set to acknowledge the existential threat of climate change, but stop short of radical new commitments to tame global warming.
A draft communique seen by Reuters shows major countries are only likely to slightly toughen their pledges on climate action, while failing to set tough new targets that activists say are vital to prevent environmental catastrophe.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi greeted leaders from an array of countries, including U.S. President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for the first face-to-face G20 summit in two years as the COVID-19 pandemic starts to ebb.
However, the Chinese and Russian presidents stayed away because of their continued concerns over COVID, dimming hopes of major progress in climate diplomacy ahead of the forthcoming COP26 summit in Glasgow, which is seen as vital to tackling the threat of rising temperatures. read more
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged the talks in Rome and Glasgow would be difficult, but warned that without courageous action, world civilisation could collapse as swiftly as the ancient Roman empire, ushering in a new Dark Age.
“It’s going to be very, very tough to get the agreement we need,” he told reporters early on Saturday.
The draft of the final communique said G20 countries, which account for up to 80% of the world’s carbon emissions, will step up their efforts to limit global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius – the level scientists have said is necessary to avoid disastrous new climate patterns.
The statement also said the leaders recognised “the key relevance” of achieving net zero carbon emissions by the middle of this century – a goal some of the world’s largest polluters have still not committed to.
VACCINES AND TAXES
While the climate debate will dominate in Rome, much of the first day of the summit, which is being held in a futuristic convention centre called “The Cloud”, will be given over to discussing the COVID-19 health crisis and economic recovery.
Fears over rising energy prices and stretched supply chains will be addressed. Leaders were also expected to endorse plans to vaccinate 70% of the world’s population against COVID-19 by mid-2022 and create a task force to fight future pandemics.
Biden will urge the major G20 energy producers with spare capacity to boost production, notably Russia and Saudi Arabia, to ensure a stronger global economic recovery, a senior U.S. administration official told reporters. read more
Biden’s hopes of showing that his country was at the forefront of the fight against global warming took a knock after he failed to convince fellow Democrats this week to unify behind a $1.85 trillion economic and environmental spending package.
However, John Morton, the top climate adviser at the U.S. Treasury, said the fact that climate had vaulted to the top of the G20 agenda marked a remarkable shift.
“Obviously, this administration has come back in guns blazing on the issue in really important ways.” he told Reuters.
There was also expected to be a lot of diplomacy on the sidelines in Rome, with numerous bilateral meetings planned, while the leaders of the United States, Britain, Germany and France were due to hold four-way talks on Iran.
Rome has been put on high security alert, with up to 6,000 police and about 500 soldiers deployed to maintain order.
Two protest rallies have been authorised during the day, but demonstrators will be kept far from the summit centre, located in a suburb built by the 20th Century fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
DENVER (CBS4) – Colorado will be on the border of seeing Northern Lights for the Halloween weekend after a huge solar flare.
The U.S. Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a strong Geomagnetic Storm Watch for the weekend after a large solar flare happened Thursday morning around 9:35 mountain time. The energy from the flare will arrive at Earth Saturday with effects lasting into Halloween.
Northern lights (Aurora borealis) are photographed on Unstad’s bay in the arctic circle, on September 22, 2017, on the eve of the opening of the Lofoten Masters 2017, the world’s most northerly surf competition. (Photo credit: OLIVIER MORIN/AFP/Getty Images)
It’s not expected to impact any technology but the energy is strong enough to push the aurora, or Northern Lights, away from the North Pole and towards the far Northeast, upper Midwest and Washington state.
The lower edge will be close to Colorado but CBS4 Meteorologist Ashton Altieri our chances of a light show are slim. He points to our geographic location and the forecast for clouds and rain this weekend.
“The likelihood of clear skies Saturday night is very small,” Altieri said. “Clouds should be on the increase and it could be overcast by midnight.”
If you are in a border area, Altieri said there are better viewing opportunities in Kansas and Nebraska but clouds are still a concern in both of those states.
WASHINGTON — Barring an unforeseen breakthrough, intelligence agencies won’t be able to conclude whether COVID-19 spread by animal-to-human transmission or leaked from a lab, officials said Friday in releasing a fuller version of their review into the origins of the pandemic.
The paper issued by the Director of National Intelligence elaborates on findings released in August of a 90-day review ordered by President Joe Biden. That review said that U.S. intelligence agencies were divided on the origins of the virus but that analysts do not believe the virus was developed as a bioweapon and that most agencies believe the virus was not genetically engineered.
China has resisted global pressure to cooperate fully with investigations into the pandemic or provide access to genetic sequences of coronaviruses kept at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which remains a subject of speculation for its research and reported safety problems. Biden launched the review amid growing momentum for the theory –initially broadly dismissed by experts – that the virus leaked from the Wuhan lab.
Former President Donald Trump and his supporters long argued that a lab leak was possible as they sought to deflect criticism of his handling of the pandemic.
China remains an exceedingly difficult place for intelligence operations and has fought back against allegations that it mishandled the emergence of the pandemic, which has killed 5 million people worldwide. Senior officials involved in the full report’s drafting said they hoped it would better inform the public about the challenges of determining the virus’s origins.
“We don’t think we’re one or two reports away from being able to understand it,” said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.
The full report notes that the Wuhan Institute of Virology “previously created chimeras, or combinations, of SARS-like coronaviruses, but this information does not provide insight into whether SARS Cov-2 was genetically engineered by the WIV.”
Information that lab researchers sought medical treatment for a respiratory illness in November 2019 “is not diagnostic of the pandemic’s origins,” the report said.
Four agencies within the intelligence community said with low confidence that the virus was initially transmitted from an animal to a human. A fifth intelligence agency believed with moderate confidence that the first human infection was linked to a lab.
Prior to writing the report, analysts conducted what the report describes as a “Team A/Team B” debate to try to strengthen or weaken each hypothesis.
The report identifies types of data that investigators still want China to provide access to, including records and tissue samples from several markets in Wuhan, including the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, Qiyimen Live Animal Market, Dijiao Outdoor Pet Market and others. Scientists originally believed the virus emerged from animals sold at the Huanan market, which they have since ruled out.
Confirming with 100% certainty the origin of a virus is often not fast, easy or always even possible.
In the case of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS – a disease caused by a beta coronavirus, like the current coronavirus – researchers first identified the virus in February 2003. Later that year, scientists discovered the likely intermediary hosts: Himalayan palm civets found at live-animal markets in Guangdong, China. But it wasn’t until 2017 that researchers traced the likely original source of the virus to bat caves in China’s Yunnan province.
Associated Press writer Christina Larson in Washington contributed to this report.
Antonio Spadaro, a Jesuit priest in Rome and a confidante of Francis, said that if Mr. Biden’s version of his exchange with the pope about communion was accurate, it was nevertheless “not a political statement,” as Francis’s entire goal was avoiding the politicization of the eucharist and the church, which he views as disastrous. Instead, Father Spadaro said, the pope would have been speaking as a pastor to a member of his flock. “This is pastoral to the person,” he said.
But, politically speaking, that distinction would make little difference to Mr. Biden, who has been a target of conservative American bishops, many apparently supportive of former President Donald Trump. They have argued that a Catholic politician, and especially a president, who supported abortion rights should not receive communion.
The Vatican had warned the American bishops not to pursue such a campaign, but they have pushed ahead anyway.
Since becoming president, Mr. Biden has declined to explain at length how he reconciles his Catholic beliefs with a conflicting view that abortion rights should be upheld as law. But he can now point to the highest authority in his church when challenged on his faith.
“You essentially have to take on not only Biden but also the pope,” John Carr, the co-director of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University, said of the American conservative bishops who campaigned to have Mr. Biden’s rights to receive the sacrament denied.
Mayor Bill de Blasio lauded Albany law enforcement officials Friday for charging disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo with forcible touching for allegedly groping a subordinate in the governor’s mansion last winter — one in a slew of scandals that forced him from office.
“Here’s a guy, who’s incredibly powerful, who’s now being held accountable,” de Blasio said Friday. “Eleven women were harassed and abused and mistreated and they stood up, and now they’re getting justice.
“They deserved real action,” he added.
He offered the remarks in a brief appearance before the cameras set up outside the famous Junior’s restaurant in downtown Brooklyn, where a stalwart of the Kings County Democratic Party was holding court over his well-attended annual breakfast.
De Blasio was among at least a half-dozen high-powered New York politicians who stopped by to shake hands and chat with the wheelers and dealers of the Brooklyn machine over coffee and a spread of lox and bagels as they eye Tuesday’s general election and the coming June primary for state races.
Albany police recently charged former NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo with allegedly groping Brittany Commisso.EPA
Gov. Kathy Hochul stopped by and received a polite reception as she offered a few brief remarks to the crowded room, in what will decidedly be Attorney General Letitia James’ territory.
“I feel the weight of history on my shoulders because it’s my responsibility to demonstrate that a woman can govern with strength, but with heart and compassion,” she said.
James — a veteran of Brooklyn politics, who once represented the borough on the City Council — showed up roughly an hour later and received a rousing introduction from the chairwoman of the Kings County party, Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn.
“Our rights are being threatened each and every day,” James said in short remarks that felt like they could easily be incorporated into a stump speech, though she did not address her specific plans for 2022.
De Blasio lauded Albany law enforcement officials Friday for charging disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo with forcible touching for alleged groping.Paul Martinka
“I urge all of you to walk into those polls and think about all those individuals who are struggling now, particularly women, whose reproductive rights are being threatened,” she added, in a veiled reference to the coming federal court fights over abortion. “Think about the environmental threats, think about those who have divided us.”
Just hours later, she tweeted a video announcement in which she formally jumped into the governor’s race.
“If there’s one thing I’m clear on, I’m not going to win being in Junior’s this morning. I have to hit the streets,” Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, the heavy favorite to be elected New York’s next mayor on Tuesday, said in brief remarks, beseeching the regulars to turn out at the polls before he left for a rally in Midtown.
“We’re going to go out and do what’s needed to bring the voters home,” the BP continued. “You don’t win a baseball game in the eighth inning, no premature celebrations. There’s a ninth inning that takes place on Nov. 2 [Tuesday].”
Hizzoner, the man Adams seeks to succeed, stopped by as well to shake hands and offer his own brief remarks — even as he continues to refuse to allow reporters to attend his daily briefings in person — as he eyes his own 2022 gubernatorial bid.
“First of all, we need to keep Brooklyn in control of City Hall,” the mayor joked, reiterating his support for Adams, and then quickly added: “By the way, shouldn’t Brooklyn be in charge maybe farther north as well?”
Authorities say Cuomo will face “an overwhelming amount of evidence” in court.Carlo Allegri/Pool Photo via AP
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli and Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez came by, too.
The breakfast’s organizer — longtime district leader Steve Cohn — introduced Gonzalez by joking to the audience they need not worry about parking tickets they might incur from their presence.
“Don’t worry, we’ll take care of it,” Cohn quipped to laughs.
Oct 29 (Reuters) – A group of mostly Republican critics of former U.S. President Donald Trump claimed responsibility on Friday for a demonstration in the Virginia governor’s campaign that recalled an infamous 2017 rally in the state.
The Lincoln Project said it was behind the use of tiki torches outside a Republican candidate’s bus that mimicked the rally by white supremacists in Charlottesville. The earlier event turned deadly when a car driven into a crowd by a self-described neo-Nazi killed a counter-protester.
Tuesday’s close vote between Republican former private-equity executive Glenn Youngkin and Democrat Terry McAuliffe, a former governor, is widely seen as a foretaste of next year’s midterm elections.
“Today’s demonstration was our way of reminding Virginians what happened in Charlottesville four years ago, the Republican Party’s embrace of those values and Glenn Youngkin’s failure to condemn it,” the Lincoln Project said in a statement.
On Friday morning, five people wearing white shirts, khaki pants, dark sunglasses and baseball caps and carrying tiki torches approached Youngkin’s campaign bus. They reportedly said, “We’re all in for Glenn,” and remained in front of the bus during his campaign event.
Youngkin said the demonstrators were sent by his opponents. The Democratic Party of Virginia denied involvement.
Trump, who was president during the Aug. 11, 2017 “Unite the Right” rally, was criticized for initially saying there were “fine people on both sides” of the dispute between neo-Nazis and their opponents at the rally.
Recent polls show McAuliffe slightly ahead or in a statistical dead heat in a state where President Joe Biden beat Trump by 10 percentage points last year. read more
The two parties have spent heavily on the race, a test of how Republicans will fare when Trump is not on the ballot and whether they have momentum in their bid to win back control of the narrowly divided houses of Congress next year.
It’s no surprise that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo was criminally charged with a sex-related rap, but actually nailing him on it will be tricky, legal experts told The Post on Friday.
Karen Friedman-Agnifilo, who used to lead the sex-crimes unit in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, described the damning report on Cuomo issued by the state attorney general in August “very thorough.”
“I’m not surprised criminal charges were filed, given the report,’’ she said, noting that Cuomo’s account of what happened between him and a younger female former underling was deemed “not credible” by James’ investigators.
Meanwhile, the report found accuser Brittany Commisso credible, making her claims a “prosecutable case,’’ Friedman-Agnifilo explained.
“It boils down to, ‘Do you believe her?’ ” the former top prosecutor said.
Commisso, 33, filed a report with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office in August alleging that Cuomo, 63, groped her under her blouse.
A source noted that New York City’s subways have been plagued for years by forcible-touching cases — to the point where Cuomo, while still in office in January 2020, pushed to have serial perverts banned from the transit system.
“This is not unusual. It just doesn’t get a lot of press,” said the source. “We prosecute many, many cases of subway perverts.”
AG Letitia James’ report found Brittany Commisso credible, making her claims a “prosecutable case.”
The sheriff’s office filed a misdemeanor criminal complaint against Cuomo on Thursday based on Commisso’s claims — which were part of a slew that had been made by women against the then-governor. Cuomo is required to appear in court for his first hearing involving Commisso’s case Nov. 17.
Top defense lawyer Peter Frankel told The Post that the disgraced ex-governor’s history at the helm of the state for a decade could complicate things.
“Generally, any time you have a high-profile defendant, there are always extra challenges for the prosecution,’’ Frankel said.
“Sometimes jurors find it more difficult to convict individuals when they have positive, preconceived notions or feelings about them that are not identified during jury selection.
“The flip side is that in this case, I do believe that the government has a strong case supported by a very credible witness and other corroborating evidence,’’ Frankel said.
“Accordingly, I do think this is something he needs to take seriously.”
Kevin Kearon, a former Nassau County prosecutor on Long Island, said Cuomo’s stance as a public figure could actually hurt him, too.
“There might be pressure on a prosecutor not giving favorable treatment to a former governor,” Kearon said.
Albany City Court, where former Gov. Andrew Cuomo will appear on Nov. 17 to face criminal charges.Cindy Schultz for New York Post
But the lawyer noted that Cuomo would be a first-time offender if convicted, so that could help him negotiate a plea leading to a non-criminal infraction.
Julie Rendelman, a former Brooklyn assistant district attorney who handled sex crimes as a prosecutor, agreed, saying that while she expects Cuomo to initially plead not guilty, it’s “always possible to get a resolution before trial.
“This is a first arrest for a forcible touching, and in normal circumstances, it is not unusual to see a plea to a non-criminal resolution, a violation that’s not a crime or an ACD, and adjournment in contemplation of dismissal,’’ Rendelman told The Post.
“That’s not to say this is going to happen in this case,’’ she said. “One could imagine a scenario where he wouldn’t admit to any wrongdoing whatsoever.
Albany County Sheriff Craig D. Apple updates the media on the criminal charges facing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo during a news conference on Oct. 29, 2021.Cindy Schultz for New York Post
“If he does not plead to something, the next step would be … to hand over all discovery, all police reports, everything.
“Look, it’s on the prosecution to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, and at the end of the day, it really is going to be about her word.”
Prominent defense lawyer Jeffrey Lichtman, whose clients include the wife of notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo’’ Guzman, asserted that sadly, “The chances of a conviction are very low.”
“These he said/she said sex cases are extremely difficult for a prosecutor to win, exacerbated by the likelihood of at least some Cuomo supporters on the jury,’’ Lichtman said.
“This is a political prosecution, period — and I detest Andrew Cuomo.”
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday decided it would not step in to block a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for health care workers in Maine, which does not offer religious exemptions.
Most U.S. states with vaccine requirements for health care workers do provide opportunities for religious exemptions, a point some health care workers who legally contested the requirement raised in their request for the Supreme Court to step in ahead of the state’s vaccination deadline.
In the opinion, Gorsuch contrasted Maine’s lack of religious exemptions with those offered by other states and said those who would prefer a religious exemption option believe the state’s requirement “violates foundational principles of their religious faith.”
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday rejected a request to block a requirement for health care workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in Maine, a state that does not offer religious exemptions for its mandate. Above, the U.S. Supreme Court is photographed on October 5, in Washington, D.C. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Maine Governor Janet Mills introduced the state’s requirement for all health care workers to be vaccinated against the virus in August. Health care workers initially had until October 1 to comply, a deadline that Mills’ office said it would begin enforcing on October 29.
The state noted it “has long required the immunization of employees” at health care facilities in an effort to prevent the spread of dangerous or easily transmissible contagions. “Maine CDC amended the existing rule to include the COVID-19 vaccine to protect the health and lives of Maine people, safeguard Maine’s health care capacity, and limit the spread of the virus,” according to the state government’s website.
The mandate did not provide religious exemptions for health care workers, per a decision made by the state legislature in September 2019 that “eliminated religious exemptions to vaccination requirements for health care workers and mandated the removal of religious exemptions from all Department vaccination requirements.”
In light of Mills’ vaccine mandate, some health care workers argued it violated their right to exercise their religion and filed legal challenges. As those legal challenges began making their way through the court system, the health care workers’ legal representatives filed an emergency request asking the Supreme Court to intervene before Maine’s vaccination deadline went into effect.
The request argued that most other U.S. states do offer religious exemptions for vaccines, while the health care workers in Maine who cited religious reasons for not getting vaccinated were faced with “immediate termination” once the deadline passed. It argued the mandate “completely removes any protections for Plaintiffs’ sincerely held religious beliefs,” and “subjects them to especially harsh treatment,” and violates the First Amendment.
In his dissenting opinion, Gorsuch said the case raised “a serious error” and a constitutional question that he said was worthy of consideration.
In Maine, “healthcare workers who have served on the front line of a pandemic for the last 18 months are now being fired and their practices shuttered. All for adhering to their constitutionally protected religious beliefs,” Gorsuch wrote. “Their plight is worthy of our attention,” he added.
Newsweek reached out to Mills’ office for comment.
“China is at a significant disadvantage because Xi is a two-dimensional image on a screen and Joe Biden is his back-slapping, lapel-grabbing, arm-twisting self,” said Danny Russel, vice president for international security and diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute and a former State Department and National Security Council official. “The guy joining on Zoom can’t read the room, can’t interact, and can’t wheel and deal with others during the coffee break.”
“The G-20 has to show that it can work and deliver despite Xi’s and Putin’s snub,” a senior Italian diplomat said.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan predicted “you’ll see the U.S. and Europe front and center at this G-20” given the absence of Xi and Putin, telling reporters aboard Air Force One that it will be “interesting” to watch that dynamic unfold. “It’s been the U.S. and Europe together driving the bus,” he said.
Whether the bus goes anywhere useful will depend in part on Biden being able to reach a truce with French President Emmanuel Macron when the pair meet bilaterally Friday evening. If that happens, “the G-20 is likely to further strengthen U.S. partnerships and leadership,” Russel said.
Words, words, words
G-20 sherpas are continuing to work on the summit communique.
With Covid killing more than 7,500 people daily worldwide, and preparations for the COP26 climate conference badly off-track, the draft seen by POLITICO leans heavily on expanding global access to Covid vaccines and treatments, and general commitments to climate action.
The text does not yet include language on a deal to implement a 15 percent global corporate minimum tax, which was agreed by G-20 finance ministers in October. “I am sure President Biden will make some noise on the tax deal,” said Pascal Saint-Amans, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) official responsible for shepherding the deal.
Biden’s climate problem
The Biden administration has touted its climate credentials as one of the key differences between it and the Trump administration, which withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement in 2017.
Biden’s problem now is that Congress has not backed up the diplomacy of his climate envoy John Kerry, who has urged other countries to match Biden’s promise to halve carbon emissions by 2030 compared to 2005 levels, and reach net zero emissions by 2050.
In the absence of a national American carbon price and market, Biden will need a solid commitment from his 50 Democratic Senate votes to $500 billion or more funding for climate initiatives to remain credible this weekend, experts said. That’s the price range for funding an American transition to clean energy consistent with Biden’s targets.
A sign of how far the global climate debate has shifted in recent years: President Barack Obama’s 2009 stimulus package contained $90 billion for clean energy, at the time the largest-ever government investment in emissions reductions.
G-20 as the climate last chance saloon
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called climate negotiations set to take place in Rome and Glasgow “a question of survival of mankind on this planet” at a Thursday news conference.
This weekend leaders will likely agree to end international coal financing, and acknowledge significantly worse impacts if governments fail to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees, but disagreements remain over what actions need to be taken to keep to the 1.5 degree Celsius goal of the Paris Agreement.
As the only venue bringing together the U.S., Chinese, Indian and Russian leaders together at an intimate level, the G-20 should have been a critical staging post for getting those climate negotiations back on track — even Alok Sharma, the British official in charge of COP26 admits that “unless we act immediately, the 1.5-degree limit will slip out of reach.”
Beijing this week released its carbon neutrality pathway — a 40-year plan to get to net zero emissions which includes raising the share of non-fossil fuels in China’s energy mix and higher reforestation goals — but it disappointed climate activists, who hoped the Chinese regime would move up the timeline on its plan to peak carbon emissions by 2030.
India this week ruled out setting a net zero emissions target. Environment secretary R.P. Gupta told reporters that because the U.S. and China are by far the biggest current emitters, setting the same date for reaching net zero emissions (most countries are suggesting 2050 or 2060) would be unfair to India.
“It is how much carbon you are going to put in the atmosphere before reaching net zero that is more important,” he said, suggesting India should be allowed more time to transition, because it emits less.
Biden, meanwhile, arrived in Rome with only his existing targets, rather than detailed legislation and money to implement it. “It’s obvious that he would be strengthened to go to COP26 with something in hand,” said Senate Foreign Relations Chair Bob Menendez (D-N.J.).
G-20 success thresholds
With around half of the world’s adult population still lacking a second Covid vaccine dose, or having no immunity at all, John Kirton, head of the University of Toronto-based G-20 research group, identified five tests for leaders.
The first is to guarantee vaccination for 70 percent of the world’s adults against Covid-19 by the end 2022. The others are: approve global tax reform plans; end fossil fuel subsidies; meet a 2015 promise to give developing countries at least $100 billion annually in climate finance; and direct new IMF Special Drawing Rights assets toward poorer countries.
Canada and Germany this week published a joint $100 billion plan to provide more climate finance to developing countries.
Is the G-20 working?
Cambridge University’s Tristen Naylor, a G-20 specialist, said the G-20 squandered its opportunity to lead when the Covid pandemic hit in 2020. He described last year’s G-20 meetings as a “failure of leadership” that largely restated existing national pandemic plans.
Naylor argues that the G-20 is making progress on technocratic issues and long-standing problems like gender inequality, but is failing to confront faster-moving crises like Covid and its promise to provide “the top tier of global economic governance.”
“This was a global crisis that the G-20 could have met as a crisis committee, as it did in the wake of the global financial crisis (2008-9), but it didn’t,” Naylor said.
The one clear success this year for the G-20 is the agreement reached by finance ministers to reform global taxation. That success hinged not on G-20 officials, but on the OECD, which brokered the deal. “The OECD is becoming the de facto secretariat of the G-20,” Taylor said.
Sunset on the Biden honeymoon
G-7 leaders could not conceal their delight at working with Biden when they met in Cornwall, England, in June. Then came the messy Afghanistan withdrawal, and wounded French pride over the AUKUS defense and trade agreement. Patience among allies is now running out.
One quality that might help keep that patience alive: experience.
Last year, 35-year-old Mohammed bin Salman — who steered the G-20 under its Saudi presidency — and a disruptive President Trump failed to lead the forum to useful outcomes.
This year Biden’s five decades of international experience, and that of summit host Mario Draghi — former head of Europe’s central bank — will provide more ballast to discussion.
Outgoing German chancellor, Angela Merkel, who is preparing to retire after 16 years in office is also bringing her successor and finance minister Olof Scholz to Rome to help smooth the transition.
If this weekend’s summit falls flat, you can expect plenty of summit re-dos in 2022: “The world needs many and more summits,” to govern its biggest challenges, John Kirton said.
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