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TexasTowelie's JournalRussia moves blood supplies near Ukraine, adding to U.S. concern, officials say
WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Russia's military buildup near Ukraine has expanded to include supplies of blood along with other medical materials that would allow it to treat casualties, in yet another key indicator of Moscow's military readiness, three U.S. officials tell Reuters.
Current and former U.S. officials say concrete indicators -- like blood supplies -- are critical in determining whether Moscow would be prepared to carry out an invasion, if Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to do so.
The disclosure of the blood supplies by U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, adds another piece of context to growing U.S. warnings that Russia could be preparing for a new invasion of Ukraine as it masses more than 100,000 troops near its borders.
These warnings have included President Joe Biden's prediction that a Russian assault was likely and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's remarks that Russia could launch a new attack on Ukraine at "very short notice."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/exclusive-russia-moves-blood-supplies-near-ukraine-adding-us-concern-officials-2022-01-28/
Gov. Walz proposes legalizing marijuana and spending $2.3 billion on health and public safety
Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan unveiled a sweeping package of health and public safety proposals Wednesday that would cost nearly $2.3 billion over three years.
Walz and Flanagan’s supplemental budget recommendations include a slew of policies the governor says will lower crime rates and improve health outcomes. They include creating grants for preventive policing, legalizing marijuana for adults and establishing a public health insurance option.
“This is a comprehensive, modern approach to public safety that was built with every neighborhood in mind,” Walz said in a news release.
With the 2022 legislative session just days away, Walz and legislative leaders this week have been rolling out their funding wish lists and gearing up for tough negotiations over how to spend the state’s projected $7.7 billion budget surplus. Walz’s full slate of recommendations, spanning infrastructure to public safety, total more than $12 billion over three years.
Read more: https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/gov-walz-proposes-legalizing-marijuana-and-spending-2-3-billion-on-health-and-public-safety/
DFL, GOP lawmakers announce different COVID precautions for upcoming legislative session
The DFL-led House and Republican-led Senate outlined divergent approaches to how each chamber will work during the upcoming legislative session, which starts Monday.
House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, issued a memo Friday saying they will continue to limit public access to the House chamber and lawmakers’ offices.
“Only elected members of the House and House staff essential to daily proceedings will be allowed on the House floor during session,” the memo reads.
Reporters will be relegated to the House gallery. Additionally, masks will be required on the House floor.
Before the pandemic, credentialed journalists could be on the House floor during session, allowing reporters access to lawmakers during lengthy floor debates. The House will also continue conducting committee hearings virtually.
Read more: https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/dfl-gop-lawmakers-announce-different-covid-precautions-for-upcoming-legislative-session/
Investigation into 'Storm the Capitol' rally was closed within a week
Last year, the speaker of the Minnesota House promised a broad investigation into a rally at the Capitol in St. Paul where pro-Trump activists lodged violent rhetoric and alleged widespread voter fraud.
But the investigation called for by House Speaker Melissa Hortman petered out within a week, public documents show. Documents obtained through a public records request show the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s cyber crime unit investigated the complaint — tracking down additional comments on social media and calling one person who made questionable statements — and closed the case a week later.
The Brooklyn Park Democrat called for an investigation into the “Storm the Capitol” rally after some speakers talked about “casualties,” civil war and made veiled threats toward the governor. The rally was held on the same day that a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., briefly delaying the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.
Hortman said the investigation could lead to criminal charges and would be led by the BCA, which did look into comments made by Alley Waterbury, a Republican Party leader from Plymouth. She warned of casualties and said “I will be the first casualty. I don’t care.”
Read more: https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/investigation-into-storm-the-capitol-rally-was-closed-within-a-week/
Judge allows Minneapolis' vaccine-or-test mandate to stand for restaurants and bars
A Hennepin County judge denied a request from a group of Minneapolis restaurant and bar owners for the court to temporarily halt enforcement of the city’s new requirement that customers show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination or a recent negative test.
In a ruling filed on Friday, Judge Laurie Miller rejected the claim from the seven business owners that the requirement would be so economically devastating that it must be immediately blocked as their lawsuit proceeds.
“The economic harm feared by Plaintiffs does not outweigh the City’s documented public health concerns,” Miller wrote. “The Court recognizes that the pandemic has had a devastating economic impact on bars and restaurants, but the City cannot be held responsible for general pandemic-related business losses.”
The judge called the business owners’ claims of lost revenue because of the requirement “speculative.”
“Perhaps some patrons are staying away because they fear the rapid spread of the Omicron variant. Perhaps some patrons are staying home due to the weather. Perhaps some patrons have chosen to stay away from Plaintiffs’ establishments solely due to their desire to avoid having to comply with (the requirement), but that has not been shown on the record before the Court,” Miller wrote.
Read more: https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/judge-allows-minneapolis-vaccine-or-test-mandate-to-stand-for-restaurant-and-bars/
Evers surplus plan combines tax rebates, education funding boost
With a mix of direct rebates to taxpayers, tax credits and education funding increases, Gov. Tony Evers rolled out a plan Thursday for more than one-third of the state’s projected $3.8 billion revenue surplus.
The $1.7 billion proposal, detailed in draft legislation, includes $815.7 million to send checks of $150 to every resident and a $611 million boost to public education. It provides $111 million to the university system and $28 million to technical colleges.
The plan also includes doubling the state’s child care tax credit and a new tax credit for the expenses borne by family caregivers for elderly or disabled people. Combined, the tax credits would be valued at $131.8 million, according to preliminary estimates.
At a Capitol press conference, Evers billed the surplus as a sign of the state’s economic rebound in the COVID-19 pandemic. But he also suggested it was an opportunity to support businesses and households confronting pandemic-related challenges. And he drew attention, by contrast, to statements from Republican leaders in the Legislature who have indicated they would wait until the 2023 budget cycle to allocate the money.
Read more: https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2022/01/28/evers-surplus-plan-combines-tax-rebates-education-funding-boost/
Kansas Man Charged With Threatening Biden Held in Md. Jail
Source: AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Kansas man who was traveling to Washington was being held Saturday on charges of threatening President Joe Biden, authorities said.
Scott Merryman was in the Washington County Detention Center in Hagerstown, Maryland, awaiting a court appearance set for Monday, a detention center official said.
A court filing in the case said Merryman phoned police in Independence, Kansas, on Tuesday and told them that he was going to the nation's capital to see the president.
In a telephone interview with a U.S. Secret Service agent on Wednesday, Merryman said that God told him to go to Washington to cut off “the head of the serpent in the heart of the nation," the filing states.
Read more: https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2022-01-29/kansas-man-charged-with-threatening-biden
Wisconsin AG seeks to block subpoenas of Tony Evers' administration as Republican election review wi
MADISON – Assembly Republicans are seeking a swath of records from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' administration as they review the 2020 election — a move that the attorney general tried to block in court on Friday.
The day's developments marked the latest escalation in a dispute over a presidential election that recounts and courts determined Joe Biden won more than a year ago.
Wisconsin taxpayers are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on the election review and the various legal fights it has spawned.
The existence of the subpoenas to the state Department of Administration was revealed Friday when Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul asked a Dane County judge to block or narrow them.
Read more: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2022/01/28/kaul-seeks-block-gableman-subpoenas-evers-administration/9260665002/
Republican lawmakers plan legislation to break up MPS, expand vouchers to all students in a proposal
MADISON – Republican lawmakers plan to propose a sweeping package of legislation to overhaul K-12 education in Wisconsin that would break up the state's largest school district within two years and expand private-school vouchers to every student, regardless of family income.
The proposal is part of a package that expands taxpayer-funded alternatives to public schools, including increasing the number of charter schools and giving parents money to pay for additional learning opportunities outside of the normal school day, including college courses.
"These bills are in response to a number of issues parents and children are seeing as COVID-19 and failed school leadership are eliminating educational opportunities in our schools," Senate Education Committee chairwoman Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, said in an email to colleagues on Friday with summaries of each bill.
"Our package of bills promotes school performance transparency and accountability, as well as re-asserts parental choice and rights."
Read more: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2022/01/28/republican-lawmakers-plan-legislation-break-up-mps-expand-vouchers/9257138002/
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
Washington State Trooper Who Quit Over Vaccine Mandates Reportedly Dies Of COVID
Washington State Trooper Robert LaMay, who grabbed headlines when he blew up at Gov. Jay Inslee (D) over vaccine mandates last year, has died of COVID-19, KIRO news radio reported Friday.
He was 50.
LaMay published a video he recorded on his last day in which he said, “Jay Inslee can kiss my ass.”
https://twitter.com/BNODesk/status/1487241972410683397
LaMay started his career in 1999, and worked all over the state. He retired last October instead of getting vaccinated.
“We don’t do vaccines,” he told Fox News in an interview last year after he quit, referring to himself and his family. “We don’t do flu shots or any of that stuff.”
Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/robert-lamay-gov-jay-inslee-vaccine-mandates-covid-19-washington_n_61f4d1d4e4b04f9a12bd8084
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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Current location: Bryan, Texas
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