Happy birthday to trains.

Friday, April 30, 2021
BY SARAH LAZARUS & CROOKED MEDIA


** -Joe Biden ([link removed]) on the birthday of his good friend, trains
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The White House has announced plans to restrict travel from India, as a horrifying coronavirus surge continues to overwhelm the country’s hospitals with record infections.

* The Biden administration said that the travel ban, implemented on advice from the CDC, will take effect on Tuesday ([link removed]) . It will not apply to American citizens or lawful permanent residents of the U.S. (who will still need to test negative and quarantine after traveling). Earlier this week, the State Department issued a Level 4 Travel Advisory ([link removed]) , the highest level they’ve got, urging all Americans in India to hit the road as soon as possible.

* The first of several aid shipments from the U.S. has arrived in New Delhi ([link removed]) , containing supplies of oxygen cylinders, N95 masks, and rapid diagnostic tests. Exports of raw materials for vaccines won’t be far behind. Roughly 40 countries have arranged to send medical supplies as the situation continues to worsen: India set a new global record on Friday with nearly 383,000 new cases, and experts say the real infection and death numbers are far higher ([link removed]) than reported.

* The crisis unfolding is staggering. As of Friday, there were just six ICU beds available ([link removed]) for coronavirus patients in New Delhi, a city of 17 million people. India’s Supreme Court says the country’s health care system has reached a “breaking point,” Mumbai has paused all vaccinations ([link removed]) for three days after running out of supplies, and overwhelmed moratoriums have forced cities to convert public spaces into makeshift crematoriums ([link removed]) . Meanwhile, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose mass political rallies helped create a false sense of security, has...urged people to go gather at the polls
([link removed]) .

Variants have almost certainly played a role in fueling the surge, but there’s not yet enough data to know how much of one.

* There are (at least) two worrying variants making the rounds in India: B.1.1.7, the highly transmissible strain first identified in the U.K., and B.1.617, which was first detected in India in October—sometimes referred to as the “double mutant” because of two genetic changes that could make it more contagious. But India ranks 102nd ([link removed]) in the world for genomic sequencing, looking at just 0.06 percent of its daily cases to check for mutations. Is one variant wreaking havoc? Are both? Are there others flying under the radar? Health experts: “¯\_(ツ)_/¯”

* All of that stands in stark contrast to the much rosier situation in the U.S. Caseloads have subsided ([link removed]) across most of the country over the past two weeks—though the Pacific Northwest is still facing a bad surge ([link removed]) —and hospitalizations and deaths are also trending downwards. Over 100 million Americans are now fully vaccinated ([link removed]) , about 39 percent of the country’s adult population. That’s nowhere near herd immunity, but it may mean we’ve turned an important corner ([link removed]) .

The pandemic won’t truly be over here until it’s over everywhere, and the U.S. can’t withhold life-saving aid in the face of a growing humanitarian crisis. Whether to waive vaccine patents is still a contested issue ([link removed]) within the Biden administration, but the stakes are getting higher with each passing day.

The trailer for season three of America Dissected just dropped! In this new season, Dr. Abdul El Sayed sits down with scientists, culture makers, and policy leaders to discuss topics like mental health, climate change and new scientific discoveries. Guests will include Representative Cori Bush, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and more.

Listen to new episodes of America Dissected every Tuesday—subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts ([link removed]) →
[link removed]

This week on Crime Geniuses: Matt Gaetz’s indicted friend Joel Greenberg wrote a confession letter to Roger Stone stating that he and Gaetz paid a 17-year-old girl for sex ([link removed]) , as part of an effort to obtain a pardon from then-President Donald Trump. (As any lawyer will tell you, when facing federal charges, your best bet is to write down a list of your crimes and hand it to the career criminal with a Richard Nixon back tattoo.) Screenshots of Stone’s Signal messages show that he solicited a $250,000 bribe for the presidential pardon. In a truly awful detail, Greenberg wrote that he “confronted” the underage girl after his shocking discovery that she was 17 (for sure) and guilted her for “endangering” him and his predatory adult friends—then went right back to her after her 18th birthday. Anyway, it’s now been a full day since that report came out, and Matt Gaetz sure
is still on the House Judiciary Committee.
* Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) told reporters that he does not support the bill to grant Washington, DC, statehood ([link removed]) , saying he thought a constitutional amendment would be required.(Counterpoint: Literally every existing state, including West Virginia ([link removed]) .) To quote Crooked Media DC Statehood Czar Michael Martinez, “Boooooooooooooooo.”

* At least 45 people were killed in a stampede at a religious festival in northern Israel ([link removed]) , and some 150 others were injured. The State Department confirmed ([link removed]) on Friday that the death toll included multiple U.S. citizens.

* The FBI warned Rudy Giuliani in 2019 that he was the target of a Russian influence operation ([link removed]) , after which he went gallivanting around Ukraine to collect disinformation from Russian agents anyway.

* Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) announced she won’t run for reelection in 2022 ([link removed]) , opening up another opportunity for the GOP to pick up a seat.

* The number of unaccompanied migrant children in CBP custody dropped nearly 84 percent in the span of a month ([link removed]) , and the average time that kids spend there has gone down to 28 hours.

* The pro-Biden group Building Back Together will start airing ads in Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, and Wisconsin next week ([link removed]) , highlighting Biden’s coronavirus response and economic plans.

* Los Angeles police have charged five people in connection with the violent kidnapping of Lady Gaga’s dogs ([link removed]) , including the woman who returned the dogs to the police.

* The White House cat is incoming ([link removed]) . Major has been briefed. A nation holds its breath.

The Florida legislature has passed a sweeping, Georgia-style voter-suppression bill ([link removed]) , after more Florida Democrats than Republicans voted by mail for the first time in 2020. The bill would add ID requirements for voters requesting a mail-in ballot, force voters to request mail-in ballots much more frequently, and place new constraints on drop boxes. It would also limit who can return a completed mail-in ballot, and ban private funds for elections. An extra-special partisan touch: After 51 years of Florida voters filling local office vacancies through special elections, the new law would instead give Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) the authority to appoint replacements. DeSantis, who previously bragged ([link removed]) about how easily Floridians were able to vote in 2020, naturally plans to sign the
bill. Florida-based corporations haven’t made much of a peep ([link removed]) , but voting access shouldn’t hinge on corporate interests anyway: votesaveamerica.com/forthepeople.
[link removed]

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The Biden administration ([link removed]) has launched its new vaccine-finding website, vaccines.gov, along with a Spanish-language version (vacunas.gov), text messaging tool, and phone hotline.

The Texas House ([link removed]) has overwhelmingly passed two bills that would expand the state’s medical marijuana program, and lower the penalties for possession of recreational marijuana.

Hawaii ([link removed]) is poised to become the 49th state to recognize Juneteenth as a holiday. (Your move, South Dakota.)

Germany ([link removed]) has agreed to return a number of its Benin Bronzes, artifacts that British soldiers looted in 1897, to Nigeria.
[link removed]

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