January 1, Time’s Up leader resigns after alleged efforts to discredit Cuomo accuser

Good morning Americans,

Distinguished lawyer and chairwoman of the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund, Roberta Kaplan, resigned from her position with the organization amid the revelation of her alleged efforts to discredit one of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s accusers. Kaplan stepped down on Monday, saying that her work as a lawyer conflicted with her work with the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund, which she co-founded in the wake of the #MeToo movement. A group of sexual harassment survivors penned an open letter to the Time’s Up board expressing dismay at the situation. “Time’s Up has abandoned the very people it was supposed to champion. The board continues to fail to heed the outcry from survivors. Time’s Up is failing all survivors,” the letter read.

Former President Barack Obama faced harsh criticism over the “blatant hypocrisy” on COVID-19 after hundreds of people attended his maskless birthday party on Martha’s Vineyard. “The blatant hypocrisy from Democrat leaders on COVID restrictions has been astounding,” said Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel via Twitter. Obama’s birthday bash took place amid the CDC’s revamped guidelines to accommodate the recent spike in COVID-19 cases. “As Biden and the Democrats try to force mask mandates on vaccinated Americans and 3-year-olds in school, this weekend Barack Obama was dancing the night away with dozens of rich liberal celebrities at his birthday party in Martha’s Vineyard,” RNC Rapid Response Director Tommy Pigott wrote in an email.

The Pentagon will require all military personnel to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Sep. 15. “I will not hesitate to act sooner or recommend a different course to the President if l feel the need to do so. To defend this Nation, we need a healthy and ready force,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wrote in a memo to troops. The Pentagon could accelerate the deadline depending on when the vaccine receives final approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The vaccine currently remains under the FDA emergency use authorization, which is why the Pentagon had not yet mandated the shot.

The Taliban gained control of two more of Afghanistan’s provincial capitals, according to officials. As of Monday, the militant group controlled five of the country’s 34 provincial capitals. The latest victory comes after President Joe Biden ordered the final withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, despite stark warnings from military officials. UNICEF said it was shocked by the increasing number of child casualties, with 27 children killed over the past three days. “These atrocities are also evidence of the brutal nature and scale of violence in Afghanistan which preys on already vulnerable children,” UNICEF said.

Officials in liberal haven Austin, TX are warning of a “catastrophe” as the state becomes a focus of the pandemic. Austin Public Health elevated its risk-based guidance to stage 5, the highest possible designation. “The situation is critical,” Desmar Walkes, Austin-Travis county health authority, said in a statement. “Our hospitals are severely stressed and there is little we can do to alleviate their burden with the surging cases.” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott banned vaccine and mask mandates, limiting local officials who want to use the measures to curb the spread.

Dozens of Chicago police officers turned their backs on Mayor Lori Lightfoot at a local hospital where an officer is in critical condition. One officer, Ella French, was shot and killed over the weekend, and her partner currently fights for his life at the University of Chicago Medical Center. “As the Mayor stated yesterday, now is not the time for divisive and toxic rhetoric or reporting. This is a time for us to come together as a city. We have a common enemy and it is the conditions that breed the violence and the manifestations of violence, namely illegal guns, and gangs,” the mayor’s office said in a statement. Shooting incidents in the city over the weekend left 13 people dead and 73 injured.

Be well,

Fraser Dixon

Sources

• Time’s Up boss Roberta Kaplan resigns after alleged efforts to discredit Cuomo victim
• Republicans blast Obama for ‘blatant hypocrisy’ of throwing maskless birthday party
• Pentagon to require all troops to get coronavirus vaccine by mid-September
• Taliban press on, take 2 more Afghan provincial capitals
• Austin warns of ‘catastrophe’ as Texas again becomes center of pandemic
• Chicago cops turn their backs to Mayor Lightfoot at hospital after two officers shot