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đ THE NEWSSTAND
(Hint: go Incognito to fight dem paywalls).
Coronavirus cases rise in several states and prominent government officials have tested positive for the virus including Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt. This just as 45 announced he is stripping the CDCof its control of virus data, bypassing the federal agency to go directly from hospitals to a central database set up by 45 himself. This has alarmed health experts with fears the data will be politicized and hidden from the public. CDC experts who have acted across past presidents have come out condemning the current administrationâs politicizing of the health agency and its risk for public health.
This exemplifies an ongoing leadership style by 45 that demands loyalty from federal agencies and its agents, including the Pentagon.Â
Joe Biden releases his plan for reopening schools if he were to be elected president.Â
Fox News host Tucker Carlson took an unexpected âplanned vacationâ days after his top writer resigned after being unmasked for racist and derogatory remarks under an online pseudonym. This, a familiar sudden action by Carlson and other Fox News hosts during times of scrutiny or backlash.Â
The decades-long battle for our nationâs capital NFL team to change its name from its considerably derogatory term the âRedskinsâ has finally come to an end. The Washington D.C. football team is now in a hunt for its new team name and mascot. This quickly became overshadowed though by a sweeping number of allegations of sexual assault and harassment in the organization.
Former Attorney General under the current administration Jeff Sessions was humiliated in the Alabama Senate race by the most recent 45 loyalists Tommy Tuberville who is best known for his role as the head football coach for the Auburn Tigers.
The further clash between police and protestors in the racial justice fight has continued in cities around the country. And what began as peaceful protests have transformed into violence. In Chicago,16 police officers were injured by violent protestors throwing rocks, fireworks, and frozen bottles as they attempted to take down a statue of Christopher Columbus being guarded by the Chicago police.Â
In Portland, Oregon where protestors have resorted to violence at times were met with the federal response. The Department of Homeland Security sent unmarked federal agents to arrest protestors on the streets. In several incidents, people were detained without probable cause leading to an investigation by the Oregon Department of Justice.
Twitter witnessed a major hacking incident where several high-profile accounts, including Barack Obama and Elon Musk, were hijacked, luring followers to donate Bitcoin to a link with an offer to receive double the amount in return. The hacking resulted in over $100,000 in Bitcoin transfers.
SCOTUS dealt a major blow this week to Florida inmatesâ rights, in a decision that prevents hundreds of thousands of inmates from voting in this Novemberâs election.
An ongoing record-breaking heatwave in Siberia reaching temperatures of 100 degrees Fahrenheit is alarming the science community who have noted it is nearly impossible for it to occur without the existence of climate change.
On the Democratic Primary front, progressive candidates continue to make their presence known to put pressure on the party in the coming election as progressive candidate Jamaal Bowman toppled incumbent US Representative Eliot Engel in New York.Â
Newly released bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department of the killing of George Floyd shows the fullest view of the officersâ negligence that led to the killing to the public since the incident occurred.Â
The Pentagon banned Confederate flags and symbols on military bases through means that avoid the wrath of 45 through a carefully worded policy that does not mention the word ban or flag specifically.Â
đAround the Globe
China is the first major global economy to experience growth since the pandemic, seeing a 3.2% growth this quarter.Â
Other economic news from the Far East as China vows to retaliate against the United States after 45 ended Hong Kongâs special economic status in response to the Politburo's imposing a security law on Hong Kong citizens.Â
You heard it one way now have it the other way. Sign up for The Flipside for a bipartisan view of daily events as they unfold.
đ§ WEEKLY MIXTAPE
Sophisticated jazz pianist, Christian Sands releases his latest album Be Water with soothing sounds that fit the warmth of a summer day spent on the balcony or in the garden.
Texas singer-songwriter, David Ramirez brings new slow ballads that serenade the soul and make for some easy listening on his My Love Is A Hurricane.
Lane 8 and Kasablanca team up on this new single that offers a melodic build-up perfectly titled for your next âRunâ around the neighborhood.Â
New Yorker rapper, Joey Bada$$ brings a new pack of poetic truth on The Light Pack.
Another New York-based album from Rockaway Beach experimental pop duo Lewis Del Mar releases another single in anticipation of an upcoming August 15 album release. Listen to âDo You Need Me.â
Yet one more New York-based duo, Bob Moses teams up with ZHU on late night darker electronic track âDesire.â
And our favorite tropical house and pop remix DJ, Kygo returns with a remix of Tina Turnerâs classic âWhatâs Love Got to Do with It.â
đ˝ THE KITCHEN
Bushwick Dog
This homemade recipe comes from a hot summer barbecue in Bushwick that involved gathering all of the available ingredients in the pantry and refrigerator to produce what might be the most versatile hot dog yet. The Bushwick Dog.
Ingredients
1 pack of classic beef dogs
6 bacon strips
6 brioche hot dog buns
JalapeĂąos
Potato chips
Dijon Mustard
Directions
Prepare your grill.
Wrap one strip of bacon around each hot dog, poking with toothpicks as needed.
Grill, covered, over medium heat until bacon is crisp and hot dogs are heated through, turning frequently.Â
Place jalapeĂąos directly on the grill to get charred while heating.
Discard toothpicks. Serve hot dogs in buns with potato chips and dijon mustard on top.
đĽ THE CABINET
Aperol Spritz
Despite what the New York Times might have told you, the Aperol Spritz is a good drink. And it is quite literally the spritz you need a long, hot summer day like today.
Ingredients
3 pitted green olives
2 oz. Aperol
3 oz. Prosecco
Splash of club soda  Â
Directions
Thread olives onto a swizzle stick.Â
Pour Aperol and Prosecco into a rocks glass filled with ice.Â
Top off with soda and gently stir with swizzle stick with olives.
đFIRESIDE CHAT
âI need loyalty, I expect loyalty.â
These, the words from the leader of the free world spouted to then head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation a week after being initiated to the Office of the President. Words that shocked the man on the other side of the table, âgiven the FBIâs traditionally independent status in the executive branch.â
To hear these words then, one might have ascribed them to simple bravado by a man obsessed with public adoration. Words of a showman coming off the back of years starring on reality TV. Or reactionary words of a precarious leader being investigated in one of the most divisive elections in American history. But fast forward three years later and these words have become the recurring theme if not, creed of this presidency.
In these short three years, the commander in chief has at times become a stand-in for a mob boss who demands nothing but respect and loyalty from the purists of his self invented church and ideology.Â
âI value loyalty above everything elseâmore than brains, more than drive and more than energy,â
âDonald J. Trump
We now look back at actions taken over the course of this president with much more scrutiny and clarity of their intrinsic link to his creed of loyalty.Â
The humiliation of his once-beloved Attorney General for refusing to testify for him in the FBI Russian probe; the banishment of his puppeteer chief strategist for embarrassing quotes released in a tell-all book; and the firing of his Secretary of State for attempting to conduct normalized negotiations with the dictator of North Korea.Â
These actions fit a pattern of behavior that traces back to a familial lesson of loyalty touted by the late Fred Trump.Â
This family trait had been signaled as dangerous by the media, political left, and even exiles from within his own administration. His admiration of the authoritarian leadership style by once US political foes now allies, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jung Un, point to more than a mere unconventional approach to foreign policy, but a fixation with the idea of ultimate authority over and loyalty from oneâs government.
This is Trumpism. It demands loyalty. It demands respect. And it comes at the expense of science, health, social justice, civil rights, peace, and even prosperity.Â
As his niece Mary Trump recently pointed out in her damning tell-all book, 45 is willing to stop at close to nothing to get loyalty from his government and even if it means the tearing down of its institutions.
The idyllic portrayal of his ruthless attorney Roy Cohn known for his involvement in the McCarthy trials was a precursor to his devotion to the loyalty creed. As an acolyte of the late Roy Cohn, 45 looked up to this hustler mentality and modus operandi.Â
Today what might be considered Trumpism is in fact a perverse reincarnation of Cohnism. But it doesnât really matter what form of -ism is being displayed at the highest level of office, what should concern the American public more is itâs leaders obsession with loyalty, even if that loyalty is at odds with the very ideals of the government and Constitution he was sworn to protect, preserve and defend.
That my friend is the price of loyalty.
We're in this together
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