Daily Digest for April 20, 2020 Posted at 6:45 a.m. by Cody Nelson |
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Florida and Texas respond to President Trump and protester's calls to ease public health and safety measures. Via the AP : "Stores in Texas can soon begin selling merchandise with curbside service, and hospitals can resume nonessential surgeries. In Florida, people are returning to beaches and parks. And protesters are clamoring for more. Governors eager to rescue their economies and feeling heat from President Trump are moving to ease restrictions meant to control the spread of the coronavirus, even as new hot spots emerge and experts warn that moving too fast could prove disastrous. Adding to the pressure are protests against stay-at-home orders organized by small-government groups and Trump supporters. They staged demonstrations Saturday in several cities."
They protested in Minnesota on Friday and we had a photographer, donning a mask, on the scene. Hundreds of people gathered in close quarters outside the governor's mansion as a highly contagious, deadly respiratory disease continued spreading across the world. Their message: "Liberate Minnesota."
Vice President Amy Klobuchar? The Star Tribune takes another look at the senator's chances on joining the Joe Biden ticket: "With apparent Democratic nominee Joe Biden committed to selecting a woman as his running mate, influential Democrats and national pundits see Klobuchar as a top contender for the No. 2 spot, where she could presumably help deliver Minnesota and other Midwestern battleground states expected to be pivotal in November. But the competition is stiff. Competitors include Sens. Kamala Harris of California and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan; and Stacey Abrams, the 2018 candidate for governor of Georgia. Another dozen or more members of Congress, governors and other political players are likely to round out Biden’s initial list. A Biden campaign spokeswoman confirmed that the selection process is already underway but declined to share additional details."
The coronavirus is making ballot access difficult for minor parties. MinnPost reports : "The most fertile places for Minnesota’s minor political parties to gather signatures to get their candidates on the ballot are lakes and festivals. But COVID-19 has made both off-limits for party petitioners — and going door-to-door isn’t a viable alternative. So the leaders of Minnesota’s Libertarian, Green and Independence-Alliance parties have asked state lawmakers for emergency relief to let them gather those signatures electronically."
The U.S.-Canada border is closed to nonessential travel for another month. NPR reports: "Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday the U.S. and Canada have agreed to keep their border closed to nonessential travel for another 30 days, and he said it will be undoubtedly longer before the restriction is removed."
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