WEATHER ALERT
Landlords sue 36th District Court in Detroit over decision to halt evictions
Read full article: Landlords sue 36th District Court in Detroit over decision to halt evictionsThe current ban on evictions will last until October 3.Now two landlords are suing saying it is equivalent to the court taking private property. Legal challenges were expected here.
Donations pour in for families of Atlanta shooting victims
Read full article: Donations pour in for families of Atlanta shooting victims(AP Photo/Ben Gray)Shortly after his mother was killed in the Atlanta-area shootings, Randy Park launched a GoFundMe page asking for $20,000 to pay for funeral expenses. For now, donors to victims of the Atlanta shootings must scour individual GoFundMe accounts. A page for Yong Yue’s family drew more than $115,000. AdPark's family was the first to launch a GoFundMe page. This is simply a change in my life,” Park wrote to the 70,000 people who had contributed as of Sunday afternoon.
Whitmer proposes funds to ban guns from the Michigan Capitol
Read full article: Whitmer proposes funds to ban guns from the Michigan CapitolGretchen Whitmer's proposed $67 billion state budget proposes a $5 million allocation for improving Capitol security. The Michigan Capitol Commission, which is responsible for making decisions concerning the upkeep of the Capitol building and grounds banned open carry firearms on Jan. 11 after months of reluctance to take on that responsibility. Armed protesters entered the state Capitol in April demanding to be allowed into legislative chambers in opposition to Whitmer's COVID-19 restrictions. “It’s important for people to feel safe inside the Michigan Capitol building, especially the thousands of elementary students who visit each year," Leddy said. "The Republican-led Legislature and the Michigan Capitol Commission said that a lack of funds has prevented them from taking action to ban weapons, which is why Governor Whitmer included this funding in her budget.
Michigan House Oversight Committee to hear testimony on winter sports ban
Read full article: Michigan House Oversight Committee to hear testimony on winter sports banLANSING, Mich. – The Michigan House Oversight Committee will hear testimony Thursday about the state’s ban on high school sports due to the coronavirus pandemic. Committee members including Chairman Steve Johnson (R-Wayland), Michigan High School Athletic Association Director Mark Uyl, Let Them Play Michigan Director Jayme McElvany, Olivet High School Athletic Director Matt Seidl, and concerned parents and athletes are expected to testify during the session Thursday morning. “Families throughout the state have reached out to their elected legislators about the governor’s abrupt decision to extend the ban on certain high school winter sports,” reads a statement from the House committee. “The House Oversight Committee will listen to testimony in an effort to provide answers to concerned residents regarding the extension.”AdLate last week, Gov. Michigan House Republicans on Wednesday proposed a $3.5 billion coronavirus recovery plan but threatened to withhold billions to K-12 schools unless Whitmer cedes her administration’s power to prohibit in-person instruction and sports to local health departments.
Demoralized health workers struggle as virus numbers surge
Read full article: Demoralized health workers struggle as virus numbers surgeDoctors and nurses around the U.S. are becoming exhausted and demoralized as they struggle to cope with a record-breaking surge of COVID-19 patients that is swamping hospitals and prompting governors to clamp back down to contain the virus. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)Doctors and nurses around the U.S. are becoming exhausted and demoralized as they struggle to cope with a record-breaking surge of COVID-19 patients that is overwhelming hospitals and prompting governors to clamp back down to contain the virus. “We’re constantly looking for beds,” said Cassie Ban, an intensive care nurse at Indiana University Health. Health care workers will be among the first to start getting the nation’s first COVID-19 vaccine in the coming days after the Food and Drug Administration gave it the final go-ahead Friday. Each one of those numbers is the death of a person who wasn’t ready to go yet.”Although concerns remain about getting enough beds, masks and other equipment, many frontline health workers are most worried about staff shortages.
US banning WeChat, TikTok downloads for national security
Read full article: US banning WeChat, TikTok downloads for national securityWASHINGTON – The Commerce Department will roll out a ban of transactions in the U.S. using TikTok and WeChat starting Sunday. The order Friday was put into place, according to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, to “combat China’s malicious collection of American citizens' personal data.”Aug. 14, 2020: Trump orders Chinese owner of TikTok to sell US assetsThe government previously said that using and downloading the app to communicate won’t be a banned transaction, although messaging on the app “could be directly or indirectly impaired” by the ban, and people who use it for messaging won’t be subject to penalties. Some security experts have raised concerns that ByteDance Ltd., the Chinese company that owns TikTok, would maintain access to information on the 100 million TikTok users in the United States, creating a security risk. Read the Commerce Department release here.
US bans WeChat, TikTok from app stores, threatens shutdowns
Read full article: US bans WeChat, TikTok from app stores, threatens shutdownsTikTok won't face the most drastic sanctions until after the Nov. 3 election, but WeChat users could feel the effects as early as Sunday. The order, which cited national security and data privacy concerns, follows weeks of dealmaking over the video-sharing service TikTok. Trump had said this week that he does not like the idea of ByteDance keeping majority control of TikTok. The administration, however, has provided no specific evidence that TikTok has made U.S. users’ data available to the Chinese government. Some cybersecurity experts question whether the administration's efforts are more political than rooted in legitimate concerns about Chinese threats to data security.
Report: Canada, US extend border restrictions to Aug. 21
Read full article: Report: Canada, US extend border restrictions to Aug. 21TORONTO, ONT The U.S. and Canada are extending their agreement to keep their shared border closed to non-essential travel to Aug. 21, according to a report from CTV News. The restrictions were announced on March 18 and were extended in April, May and June. The U.S. has more confirmed cases and deaths from COVID-19 than any country in the world while Canada has flattened the epidemic curve. Essential cross-border workers like healthcare professionals, airline crews and truck drivers are still permitted to cross. Truck drivers are critical as they move food and medical goods in both directions.
Michigan’s ban on evictions extended until July 15
Read full article: Michigan’s ban on evictions extended until July 15Michigan’s ban on evictions amid the coronavirus pandemic has been extended until July 15. Gretchen Whitmer’s order to temporarily ban evictions was set to expire June 30, but on Friday her office announced she signed Executive Order 2020-134 to extend the temporary suspension of evictions until July 15. Tenants whose back rent is not completely covered by the Eviction Diversion Program will be entered into manageable payment plans facilitated by Supreme Court Administrative Order 2020-17, according to Whitmer’s office. The program was created following the passage of Senate Bill 690, which passed unanimously out of both the Michigan House and Senate on June 17. The legislation appropriated $60 million in Coronavirus Relief Funding to the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity for the creation of a rental assistance program to assist tenants and landlords after the eviction moratorium concludes.
Canada, US border closure: Heres what to know
Read full article: Canada, US border closure: Heres what to knowDETROIT Non-essential between the United States and Canada has been banned since March amid the coronavirus pandemic. The border remaining closed to non-essential travel through at least June 21. Now, there are reports the ban on non-essential travel between the two countries could last until late July. In the more populated United States, cases are rising at vastly different paces depending on the state. The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel has been closed to non-essential travel since March 21, seemingly making it easier to complete a renovation of the tunnel.