December 15, 2020

Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church got $4.4 million in federal PPP loans

Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church is among the large local congregations that received multi-million dollar loans as part of the federal government’s COVID-19 stimulus package.

Lakewood received a $4.4 million loan through the Paycheck Protection Program, a part of the federal CARES Act that provided loans to pay employee wages or for other basic operational costs such as utilities.

The program marked the first time federal lawmakers allowed for direct financial assistance to houses of worship.


Lakewood officials said earlier this year that they had not applied for a loan through the PPP, and the church was not included on the list of recipients released by the Small Business Administration early in the summer. The SBA later reopened the program, and its most recent data shows that Lakewood’s loan was approved in mid-July.


https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/religion/article/Joel-Osteen-s-Lakewood-Church-got-4-4M-in-15800887.php

December 14, 2020

Bill Barr resigned

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1338614499981602819?s=20

Just had a very nice meeting with Attorney General Bill Barr at the White House. Our relationship has been a very good one, he has done an outstanding job! As per letter, Bill will be leaving just before Christmas to spend the holidays with his family...


https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1338614514493878273?s=20

...Deputy Attorney General Jeff Rosen, an outstanding person, will become Acting Attorney General. Highly respected Richard Donoghue will be taking over the duties of Deputy Attorney General. Thank you to all!

December 14, 2020

Florida basketball player, Keyontae Johnson, is in a medically induced coma

Florida men's basketball player Keyontae Johnson is in a medically induced coma after collapsing during a game over the weekend, his grandfather, Larry DeJarnett, told USA TODAY Sports on Monday.

DeJarnett said in a phone interview that his grandson was transported to Gainesville, Florida on Monday after receiving his initial treatment in Tallahassee, where he collapsed early in Saturday's game between the Gators and Florida State.

DeJarnett said doctors hoped to bring Johnson out of the coma Monday afternoon.

"They’re just not sure," DeJarnett told USA TODAY Sports. "He may have had activity in the brain, so they induced the coma. They put him on medication to keep him sedated."



https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaab/sec/2020/12/14/florida-keyontae-johnson-medically-induced-coma-collapse/6545308002/


Here's the post with video the day he collapsed. https://www.democraticunderground.com/100214701462

His grandfather said he wasn't sure if Keyontae had ever had COVID. Members of his team were quarantined and that's all he knows.



Does anybody know what this means "he may have had activity in the brain, so they induced the coma"?

December 13, 2020

Live in Florida? You might be seeing this around a lot - Stone for Senate

https://twitter.com/reedgalen/status/1338187868087304192?s=20

December 9, 2020

I wonder how tall General Austin is? He towers over everybody!

I prefer a civilian SecDef but Joe says Austin is going to have civilian advisors and staff and this is the way they both want it. He strikes me as a stellar person.

December 9, 2020

On the contrary, everything adds up about Giuliani's coronavirus. It's called privilege.

https://twitter.com/ShimonPro/status/1336428716642226184?s=20


Giuliani said he had exactly the same treatment as the president.

“Exactly the same. His doctor sent me here, talked me into it. I didn’t really want to go to the hospital and he said don’t be stupid, we can get it over in three days if we send you to the hospital.”




The average American wouldn't even be given a hospital bed unless they were in extremely bad condition. Regeneron is available but your doctor has to approve it and be able to get it.

December 6, 2020

Omg, California had 26, 575 new cases of COVID today

Every other state has 8,000+ on down. I don't know if it's because they're testing more or what. On previous days California and Texas have been about the same but today Texas had 7, 664 new cases.


https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

December 4, 2020

Think PBS NewsHour did this on purpose?

https://twitter.com/NewsHour/status/1334647362195759105?s=20


Heidi Stirrup, an official serving as eyes and ears at the DOJ, has been banned from the building after trying to pressure staffers to give up sensitive information about election fraud, three people familiar with the matter tell the AP.

December 3, 2020

Boris Johnson losing grip on 'red wall' seats, poll shows

Boris Johnson is losing his grip on many of the seats in the English north and midlands that won him his parliamentary majority last year, a new poll has found.

Battered by perceptions of mishandling coronavirus and his decision to stand by embattled aide Dominic Cummings, the prime minister would lose 36 out of the 45 seats he took the last election, according to the survey by JL Partners. The constituencies are seen as a key battleground at the next election, set for 2024, because they were the source of most Tory gains last year.

Mr Johnson himself has a slightly negative rating of -2 per cent in the so-called "red wall" constituencies, compared to his chancellor Rishi Sunak who has +33 per cent. Labour leader Keir Starmer had a corresponding score of +7 per cent.

While the prime minister is a slight drag on support for his party, the least popular members of the prime minister's cabinet in the seats are Home Secretary Priti Patel (-34 per cent), followed by the PM's former Vote Leave comrade Michael Gove (-28 per cent).


https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-red-wall-poll-b1765961.html?utm_content=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1607026262

December 3, 2020

This is banana republic stuff but it's par for the course with an authoritarian leader

WASHINGTON (AP) — The last throes of Donald Trump’s presidency have turned ugly — even dangerous.

Death threats are on the rise. Local and state election officials are being hounded into hiding. A Trump campaign lawyer is declaring publicly that a federal official who defended the integrity of the election should be “drawn and quartered” or simply shot.

“I do not think this goes away on January 20,” Eric Coomer, security director for Dominion Voting Systems, said from the secret location where is hiding out from death threats. “I think it will continue for a long time.”

Far-right chat rooms posted his photo, details about his family and address. “The first death threats followed almost immediately,” he told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “For the first couple days it was your standard online Twitter threats, ‘hang him, he’s a traitor.’” But then came targeted phone calls, text messages and a handwritten letter to his father, an Army veteran, from a presumed militia group saying: “How does it feel to have a traitor for a son?” Even now, weeks later and relocated to a secret locale, Coomer is getting messages from people saying they know what town he has fled to and vowing to find him.

“It’s terrifying,” he said. “I’ve worked in international elections in all sorts of post-conflict countries where election violence is real and people end up getting killed over it. And I feel that we’re on the verge of that.”


https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-donald-trump-georgia-state-elections-elections-d928eb8507518e622114481a54216d73