More than 300 executives at major U.S. corporations signed an open letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday, urging him to set a stricter federal emissions goal to curb climate change. “We, therefore, call on you to adopt the ambitious and attainable target of cutting [greenhouse gas] emissions by at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030,” the letter stated. The signatories, which include Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, McDonald’s, Starbucks and Walmart, represent $3 trillion in annual revenue, the coalition said. More than 300 executives at major U.S. corporations signed an open letter to President Joe Biden, urging him to set a stricter federal emissions goal to curb climate change. The 310 executives asked Biden to increase federal standards and put the U.S. on track to cut emissions 50% below 2005 levels within a decade and reduce emissions to net-zero by 2050, according to a coalition press release . The letter was sent to Biden on Tuesday and was organized by the We Mean Business Coalition and the nonprofit organization Ceres. “To restore the standing of the U.S. as a global leader, we need to address the climate crisis at the pace and scale it demands,” the executives wrote . “Specifically, the U.S. must adopt an emissions reduction target that will place the country on a credible pathway to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.” “We, therefore, call on you to adopt the ambitious and attainable target of cutting [greenhouse gas] emissions by at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030,” the letter said. (RELATED: Democrats Keep Getting Their Climate Change Doomsday Predictions Wrong) The executives pointed to recent “extreme weather” including California’s wildfires and hurricanes as the reason for their urgent call to action. They called the human and economic losses of the past year “profound.” Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and members of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, applaud during a news conference ...
Whitaker asked about pardons
New York AG asked to investigate if Cuomo used state resources on his book
The New York state attorney general has received a referral to open an investigation into Gov. Andrew Cuomo Andrew Cuomo New York AG asked to investigate if Cuomo used state resources on his book On The Money: Treasury creates hub to fight climate change | Manchin throws support behind union-backed PRO Act | Consumer bureau rolls out rule to bolster CDC eviction ban Cuomo: Congress must include SALT cap repeal in future legislation MORE ’s (D) possible use of state resources for his recent pandemic memoir, allegations that come as the embattled state executive deals with multiple other scandals. A spokesperson at New York State Attorney General Letitia James 's office confirmed to The Hill that she has received the referral but would not comment further, citing an ongoing investigation. New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, i n a letter to James dated April 13, pointed to allegations that “public resources may have been used in the development and promotion” of Cuomo’s book “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic.” ADVERTISEMENT In the letter, which was obtained by The Hill, DiNapoli asked for James to “investigate the alleged commission of any indictable offense or offenses in violation of the law" which relate to "the use of property, services or resources of the state for personal purposes, private business purposes or other compensated non-governmental purposes by the Executive Chamber.” He requests that the investigation include, but not be limited to, “the drafting, editing, sale and promotion of the Governor’s book and any related financial or business transactions.” The Hill has reached out to Cuomo for comment. Allegations had emerged that junior staff members and senior aides in Cuomo’s office worked on the memoir. According to The New York Times , the staffers reportedly did everything from editing early drafts and sitting in on pitch meetings, to smaller tasks ...
Reporters Without Borders: Press Freedom Globally in Decline
A global decline in press freedom, hastened by repressive laws introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, has resulted in only 12 countries being deemed as having a "good" environment for the media, a report published Tuesday found. During the pandemic, nearly 75% of countries blocked the media to some degree, media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) found. The biggest decline came in Malaysia, where a controversial fake news law and other restrictive regulations, coupled with arrests, prosecutions and raids, led to a 18-point decline in RSF's annual press freedom index. "The RSF index basically indicates that the situation in Malaysia has actually gone from bad to worse," Farah Marshita Abdul Patah, president of National Union of Journalists Peninsular Malaysia (NUJM), told VOA. Patah said the situation for the media was better before the change in government. "We had hopes. We were actually able to sit down and talked about establishing our very own media council and also abolishing some draconian laws, but since then things have actually went downhill," Patah said. Globally, emergency regulations introduced to contain the virus but used instead to target critical reporting, as well as attacks on and arrests of reporters, resulted in marked declines in several countries, RSF found. "COVID-19 had a chilling effect on press freedom," Anna Nelson, executive director of RSF USA, told VOA. "We saw authorities downplaying the severity of the virus, issuing mixed messages about it — in some cases, accusing the media of inflating information about COVID-19 and its spread," Nelson said. The annual index measures indicators of a free press based on 87 questions focused on laws, self-censorship, media pluralism, independence and transparency, along with an assessment of attacks and arrests. Each country is then assigned a rank, with 1 being the most free and 180 the most repressive. Overall, the pandemic was used as an excuse to restrict access to ...
Attorney General Merrick Garland Says ‘Racism Is an American Problem’
President Joe Biden’s Attorney General Merrick Garland said, “racism is an American problem,” during an ABC News interview with Pierre Thomas. Garland did not directly mention any ongoing cases in the interview when he was asked to do so on the Derek Chauvin trial, saying , “I intend to wait until the verdict before I will say anything, and I would urge the American people to do the same.” When asked by Thomas if he “believes there is bias and pockets of racism in law enforcement,” Garland answered, “Racism is an American problem. I think that.. umm.. it’s plain to me that there has been and remains discrimination against African Americans and other communities of color, and other ethnic minorities.” “I think it’s reflected in discrimination in housing and employment and the justice system. … We do not yet have equal justice under law,’ said Garland. Concerning the social unrest in 2020, Garland remarked, “I also saw the videos last summer, all through the summer.” Garland added, “I felt that beginning last summer, at least, there was a chance to bring this to the fore of the national consciousness, to create a moment in which we could change.” “And like many Americans, I was shocked. But many black Americans were not shocked because they have known of this kind of treatment before,” he continued. “And part of the reason that I wanted to be attorney general was I wanted to help bring that change,” he added . “All of us in our family feel an obligation – public service – and try to protect other people the way the country protected us.” Garland also said about his ambitions that he has an “opportunity to do some very important things. I have the opportunity now to lead a Justice Department in pursuit of civil rights.” “I have a chance to lead a Justice Department in pursuit of the rule of law and ensuring the independence of the department, and its independence — particularly — from any kind of partisan influence in the way we ...
Pope Francis Calls for Rosary ‘Prayer Marathon’ for End to Coronavirus Pandemic
ROME — Pope Francis has called for a month-long prayer marathon to ask God for a swift end to the coronavirus pandemic, the Vatican announced Wednesday. By wish of the Holy Father, “the month of May will be dedicated to a prayer marathon with the theme ‘Prayer to God rose incessantly from the whole Church (Acts 12:5),’” reads a Vatican communiqué sent to Breitbart News. “The initiative will involve in a special way all the shrines of the world so that they will promote the recitation of the rosary among the faithful, families, and communities to invoke the end of the pandemic,” states the Italian-language text sent by the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. “Thirty representative shrines, scattered all over the world, will lead the Marian prayer, which will be broadcast live on the official channels of the Holy See at 6:00pm (Rome time) every day,” it declares. “Pope Francis will open this great prayer on May 1 and conclude it on May 31,” the text states. During his weekly General Audience in the Vatican Wednesday, the pope underscored the importance of vocal prayer in the Christian tradition. “The first human prayer is always a vocal recitation,” he said. “The lips always move first. Although we are all aware that praying does not mean repeating words, vocal prayer is nevertheless the surest, and can always be practised.” “Therefore, we must not disregard vocal prayer,” the pontiff continued. “One might say, ‘Ah, this is for children, for ignorant folk; I am seeking mental prayer, meditation, the inner void so that God might come to me…’” “Please! Do not succumb to the pride of scorning vocal prayer,” he said. “It is the prayer of the simple, the prayer that Jesus taught: Our Father, who is in heaven.” “Jesus did not leave us in a fog. He told us: ‘Pray then like this.’ And he taught the Lord’s Prayer,” he concluded. Follow @tdwilliamsrome ...
