As coronavirus cases surge across the US and states throttle back on economic reopenings, experts and advocacy groups are warning that low-income families could face utility shutoffs as moratoriums on disconnections lift — with Black families especially at risk. In Kansas, Colorado, Mississippi, and Iowa, state-mandated emergency bans on disconnections have been lifted. And some…… MORE
President Donald Trump considered the idea of selling Puerto Rico in 2017 after the island was devastated by Hurricane Maria, the former acting Homeland Security secretary told The New York Times in an interview published Friday. “The President’s initial ideas were more of as a businessman, you know,” Elaine Duke, who was serving as DHS’…… MORE
President Donald Trump on Sunday defended what he described as his “exercise” regimen, tweeting a justification for his frequent golf outings and claiming them as sufficient physical activity. “My ‘exercise’ is playing, almost never during the week, a quick round of golf. Obama played more and much longer rounds, no problem,” Trump tweeted. CNN has…… MORE
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Sunday refused to say whether schools should follow guidelines from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on reopening, saying those guidelines are meant to be “flexible.” “The CDC guidelines are just that, meant to be flexible and meant to be applied as appropriate for the situation,” DeVos told…… MORE
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said President Donald Trump has “crossed a bridge” on mask wearing, calling his action while on a Saturday visit to wounded service members at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center “an admission” that mask wearing can help stop the spread of the coronavirus. “I’m so glad that he obeyed…… MORE
The “Nigerian Nightmare” might not have given his opponent a terribly bad dream but he still eased to victory in the main event on the debut of UFC’s “Fight Island.” Kamaru Usman improved to 17-1 with a unanimous decision over late replacement Jorge Masvidal to retain his welterweight crown in UFC 251. The 33-year-old —…… MORE
If you asked Alec Mahon one month ago whether he believed in love, he’d probably tell you he had “given up.” When coronavirus first hit in March, the freelance production manager paid about $30 for a three-month premium subscription on the dating app Hinge — and he figured he’d just keep swiping until that ended.…… MORE
Mary Daniel visited her husband Steve every day at his Florida memory care center until they stopped allowing visitors in March because of the coronavirus pandemic. The virus kept them apart for 114 days. Daniel said the isolation took a toll on her 66-year-old husband, who has Alzheimer’s. So when the facility offered her a…… MORE
Three teachers who shared a summer classroom at a school in Arizona all contracted coronavirus last month, leaving one of them dead. Kimberley Chavez Lopez Byrd, 61, died June 26, less than two weeks after she was hospitalized. The other two teachers — Jena Martinez and Angela Skillings — said they’re still struggling with the…… MORE
An altercation at a Michigan apartment complex ended with five people shot Sunday morning, Lansing Police Chief Daryl Green said. Officers responded to a call of shots fired outside the complex in the 4900 block of Dunckle Road around 3 a.m., police said. The shooting victims included three women, ages 19, 21, 26, and two…… MORE
