The iconic host of NBC News is out. Lester Holt announces his departure.
NBC Nightly News host Lester Holt announces he will leave the position to focus on Dateline and NBC News Documentaries.
Another shocking event at Comcast/Spinco.
Also Katie Phang, Jonathan Capehardt, Ayman Moyhadian and Alex Wagner are out as well. The concerns are the people of color are being sacked.
They are silencing prominent critics of Israel.
They are placing former Biden officials in and trying to be the Democratic Party's version of Fox.
Fox is the propaganda of President Donald J. Trump, Republicans and Israel.
MSNBC revamps by giving Jen Psaki the 9pm spot. Symone Sanders-Townsend, Alicia Menandez and Michael Steele will get the 7pm spot.
Holt who led the NBC News in the first five years at No. 1. Then ABC News and its host David Muir surpassed him. Holt has been at No. 2 for the remaining but a strong showing.
The NBC News veteran plans to step away in early summer from his anchor duties on “NBC Nightly News,” which he has held since 2015. After that, he plans to devote himself full time to NBC News’ “Dateline,” which he has anchored since 2011.
“After 10 years, 17 if you include my years on the weekends, the time has come for me to step away from my role as anchor of ‘Nightly News.’ It has truly been the honor of a lifetime to work with each of you every day, keeping journalism as our true north and our viewers at the center of everything we do,” Holt said in a memo to staffers Monday. “But before we play the walk off music, I have another announcement. I’m excited to report I will be continuing as anchor of ‘Dateline NBC,’ but for the first time in a full time capacity whereby I will be expanding my footprint on the broadcast and crafting ‘Dateline ‘hours on subjects I care deeply about. I am thrilled to be able to work more closely with my enormously talented friends at Dateline as the broadcast continues to grow and attract new viewers in new places.”
Holt’s exit is the latest in a parade of departures of senior TV-news personnel in recent months as the industry grapples with new economic pressures brought about by the rise of streaming, and contends with a harsh climate for media outlets in the early days of the second Trump administration. Chuck Todd, the veteran political director and “Meet the Press” moderator, left NBC News in January, and Andrea Mitchell, the longtime international affairs and politics reporter, recently ended her decades-long tenure on MSNBC’s daytime schedule. Hoda Kotb recently left her duties at NBC News’ “Today.”
NBC News isn’t the only news outlet parting ways with veterans. Neil Cavuto recently exited Fox News Channel, where he has held forth since 1996, and Chris Wallace parted ways with CNN after a short tenure.
Holt has been a calming presence at NBC News, where his unflappable and low-key demeanor helped the news division move forward after a period of tumult. He took over “Nightly” duties after his predecessor, Brian Williams, was removed following scrutiny of claims the latter made about the details of a reporting trip to Iraq.
Holt has tried to stretch new muscles, always conscious that traditional TV viewers, once wed to watching evening news after coming home from work on a set in the living or family room, were interacting with such content in different ways. “A year or two from now, people might be watching us on their toaster,” Holt told Variety in 2015, “and we’ve got to be there to put butter on the bread.”
In 2020, he launched a “Kids’ Edition” of “Nightly.” During some broadcasts, Holt talked to Sesame Street characters about mental health awareness, and looked at the birth of a rare antelope at the Oregon Zoo. He has also tinkered with the “Nightly” ‘closing, delivering in somber national moments something more reflective and nuanced than the typical anodyne sign off. One day before the 2020 presidential election, he told viewers, “democracy is messy, but we’ve got to let it work,” particularly for “our children, who you know are watching us.” During Holt’s tenure, “Nightly” also tried to focus on news in different parts of the country, including Florida and California, and not just on events in New York and Washington, D.C.
“Because of Lester’s steady and thoughtful leadership, ‘Nightly News’ has sustained its perch as a trusted and top news destination for millions of viewers across America. He has led the network during some of the country’s most fraught and challenging times in the past decade, most notably during the early days of the pandemic when Lester’s voice was a source of comfort each night for so many,” said Janelle Rodriguez, the NBC News executive vice president who oversees the evening newscast. “He’s taken viewers to the frontlines of every major story and sat down with world leaders, skillfully eliciting answers on consequential issues.”
NBC News did not comment on potential successors for Holt at “Nightly.” Hallie Jackson was recently made the anchor of the Sunday broadcast of program, and Tom Llamas, who came to NBC News from ABC News in 2021, has been seen as a candidate for the job. Peter Alexander, NBC News’ chief White House correspondent and a co-anchor of “Today” on weekends, could also be considered a candidate.
Holt has been with NBCUniversal for a quarter century, joining MSNBC in 2000, then gaining roles as a substitute anchor for “NBC Nightly News” and a weekend anchor at “Today.” Before that, he spent nearly 20 years working for CBS-owned TV stations.
He will step away from “Nightly” as the overall evening-news format seems to be in flux. Norah O’Donnell, who anchored “CBS Evening News” for five years, recently left her duties at the program before it was retooled to focus on enterprise and issue reporting and less on the breaking news of the day. Meanwhile, ABC’s “World News Tonight,” which leads among the three main broadcast networks in winning overall audience, remains tied closely to anchor David Muir.
“We’re lucky to have our jobs. I mean, it’s 30 minutes, 23 outside commercials is not a lot of time to try and curate all the complicated issues of the day in that period is a testament to the talented people we get to work with every day who can help us put this in a concise manner. Sometimes I think about our short attention spans these days, it’s like the evening news show were kind of ahead of their game. Now, 30 minutes is actually a pretty good time,” Holt told Variety in 2017. “Beyond that, we’re like, I’ve gotta move on.”
Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer and pianist whose intimate vocal and musical style made her one of the top recordings artists of the 1970s and an influential performer long after, died Monday. She was 88.
She died at home surrounded by her family, publicist Elaine Schock said in a statement. Flack announced in 2022 she had ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and could no longer sing,
Little known before her early 30s, Flack became an overnight star after Clint Eastwood used “The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face” as the soundtrack for one of cinema’s more memorable and explicit love scenes, between the actor and Donna Mills in his 1971 film “Play Misty for Me.” The hushed, hymn-like ballad, with Flack’s graceful soprano afloat on a bed of soft strings and piano, topped the Billboard pop chart in 1972 and received a Grammy for record of the year.
“The record label wanted to have it re-recorded with a faster tempo, but he said he wanted it exactly as it was,” Flack told The Associated Press in 2018. “With the song as a theme song for his movie, it gained a lot of popularity and then took off.”
In 1973, she matched both achievements with “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” becoming the first artist to win consecutive Grammys for best record.
She was a classically trained pianist discovered in the late 1960s by jazz musician Les McCann, who later wrote that “her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known.” Versatile enough to summon the up-tempo gospel passion of Aretha Franklin, Flack often favored a more reflective and measured approach.
For Flack’s many admirers, she was a sophisticated and bold new presence in the music world and in the social and civil rights movements of the time, her friends including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Angela Davis, whom Flack visited in prison while Davis faced charges — for which she was acquitted — for murder and kidnapping. Flack sang at the funeral of Jackie Robinson, major league baseball’s first Black player, and was among the many guest performers on the feminist children’s entertainment project created by Marlo Thomas, “Free to Be ... You and Me.”
Roberta Cleopatra Flack, the daughter of musicians, was born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, and raised in Arlington, Virginia. A gospel fan as a child, she was so talented a piano player that at age 15 she received a full scholarship to Howard, the historically Black university.
Flack’s other hits from the 1970s included the cozy “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and two duets with her close friend and former Howard University classmate Donny Hathaway, “Where Is the Love” and ”The Closer I Get to You” — a partnership that ended in tragedy. In 1979, she and Hathaway were working on an album of duets when he suffered a breakdown during recording and later that night fell to his death from his hotel room in Manhattan.
“We were deeply connected creatively,” Flack told Vibe in 2022, upon the 50th anniversary of the million-selling “Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway” album. “He could play anything, sing anything. Our musical synergy was unlike (anything) I’d had before or since.”
She never matched her first run of success, although she did have a hit in the 1980s with the Peabo Bryson duet “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love” and in the 1990s with the Maxi Priest duet “Set the Night to Music.” In the mid-90s, Flack received new attention after the Fugees recorded a Grammy-winning cover of “Killing Me Softly,” which she eventually performed on stage with the hip-hop group.
Overall, she won five Grammys (three for “Killing Me Softly”), was nominated eight other times and was given a lifetime achievement Grammy in 2020, with John Legend and Ariana Grande among those praising her.
“I love that connection to other artists because we understand music, we live music, it’s our language,” Flack told songwriteruniverse.com in 2020. “Through music we understand what we are thinking and feeling. No matter what challenge life presents, I am at home with my piano, on a stage, with my band, in the studio, listening to music. I can find my way when I hear music.”
In 2022, Beyoncé placed Flack, Franklin and Diana Ross among others in a special pantheon of heroines name-checked in the Grammy-nominated “Queens Remix” of “Break My Soul.”
Flack was briefly married to Stephen Novosel, an interracial relationship that led to tension with each of their families, and earlier had a son, the singer and keyboardist Bernard Wright. For years, she lived in Manhattan’s Dakota apartment building, on the same floor as John Lennon and Yoko Ono, who became a close friend and provided liner notes for a Flack album of Beatles covers, “Let It Be Roberta.” She also devoted extensive time to the Roberta Flack School of Music, based in New York and attended mostly by students between ages 6 to 14.
Flack had taught music in D.C.-area junior high schools for several years in her 20s, while performing after hours in clubs. She sometimes backed other singers, but her own shows at Washington’s renowned Mr. Henry’s attracted such celebrity patrons as Burt Bacharach, Ramsey Lewis and Johnny Mathis. The club’s owner, Henry Yaffe, converted an apartment directly above into a private studio, the Roberta Flack Room.
“I wanted to be successful, a serious all-round musician,” she told The Telegraph in 2015. “I listened to a lot of Aretha, the Drifters, trying to do some of that myself, playing, teaching.”
Flack was signed to Atlantic Records and her debut album, “First Take,” a blend of gospel, soul, flamenco and jazz, came out in 1969. One track was a love song by the English folk artist Ewan MacColl: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” written in 1957 for his future wife, singer Peggy Seeger. Flack not only knew of the ballad, but used it while working with a glee club during her years as an educator.
“I was teaching at Banneker Junior High in Washington, D.C. It was part of the city where kids weren’t that privileged, but they were privileged enough to have music education. I really wanted them to read music. First, I’d get their attention. (Flack starts singing a Supremes hit) ‘Stop, in the name of love.’ Then I could teach them!” she told the Tampa Bay Times in 2012.
“You have to do all sorts of things when you’re dealing with kids in the inner-city,” she said. “I knew they’d like the part where (‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’) goes ‘The first time ever I kissed your mouth.’ Ooh, ‘Kissed your mouth!’ Once the kids got past the giggles, we were good.”
Jerry Butler, a premier soul singer of the 1960s and after whose rich, intimate baritone graced such hits as “For Your Precious Love,” “Only the Strong Survive” and “Make It Easy On Yourself,” has died at age 85.
Butler’s niece, Yolanda Goff, told The Associated Press that Butler died Thursday of Parkinson’s disease at his home in Chicago. A longtime Chicago resident, Butler was a former Cook County board commissioner who would still perform on weekends and identify himself as Jerry “Ice Man” Butler, a show business nickname given for his understated style.
Butler, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a three-time Grammy Award nominee, was a voice for two major soul music hubs: Chicago and Philadelphia. Along with childhood friend Curtis Mayfield, he helped found the Chicago-based Impressions and sang lead on the breakthrough hit “For Your Precious Love,” a deeply emotional, gospel-influenced ballad that made Butler a star before the age of 20. A decade later, in the late ‘60s, he joined the Philadelphia-based production team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, who worked with him on “Only the Strong Survive,” “Hey Western Union Man” and other hits. His albums “Ice on Ice” and “The Ice Man Cometh” are regarded as early models for the danceable, string-powered productions that became the classic “Sound of Philadelphia.”
Butler also was an inspired songwriter who collaborated with Otis Redding on “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” a signature ballad for Redding; and with Gamble and Huff on “Only the Strong Survive,” later covered by Elvis Presley among others. His other credits included “For Your Precious Love,” “Never Give You Up” (with Gamble and Huff) and “He Will Break Your Heart,” which Butler helped write after he began thinking about the boyfriends of the groupies he met on the road.
“You go into a town; you’re only going to be there for one night; you want some company; you find a girl; you blow her mind,” Butler told Rolling Stone in 1969. “Now you know that girl hasn’t been sitting in town waiting for you to come in. She probably has another fellow and the other fellow’s probably in love with her; they’re probably planning to go through the whole thing, right? But you never take that into consideration on that particular night.”
The son Mississippi sharecroppers, Butler and his family moved moved north to Chicago when he was 3, part of the era’s “Great Migration” of Black people out of the South. He loved all kinds of music as a child and was a good enough singer that a friend suggested he come to a local place of worship, the Traveling Souls Spiritualist Church, presided over by the Rev. A.B. Mayfield. Her grandson, Curtis Mayfield, soon became a longtime collaborator. (Mayfield died in 1999.)
In 1958, Mayfield and Butler along with Sam Gooden and brothers Arthur and Richard Brooks recorded “For Your Precious Love” for Vee-Jay Records. The group called itself the Impressions, but Vee-Jay, anxious to promote an individual star, advertised the song as by Jerry Butler and the Impressions, leading to estrangement between Butler and the other performers and to an unexpected solo career.
“Fame didn’t change me as much as it changed the people around me,” Butler wrote in his memoir “Only the Strong Survive,” published in 2000.
One of his early solo performances was a 1961 cover of “Moon River,” the theme to “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Butler was the first performer to hit the charts with what became a pop standard, but “Moon River” would be associated with Andy Williams after the singer was chosen to perform it at the Academy Awards, a snub Butler long resented. His other solo hits, some recorded with Mayfield, included “He Will Break Your Heart”, “Find Another Girl” and “I’m A-Telling You.”
By 1967, his formal style seemed out of fashion, but Butler was impressed by the new music coming out of Philadelphia and received permission from his record label (Mercury) to work with Gamble and Huff. The chemistry, Butler recalled, was so “fierce” they wrote hits such as “Only the Strong Survive” in less than an hour.
“Things just seem to fall into place,” Butler told Ebony magazine in 1969. “We lock ourselves in a room, create stories about lovers, compose the music, then write the lyrics to match the music.”
By the 1980s, Butler’s career had faded and he was becoming increasingly interested in politics. Encouraged by the 1983 election of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first Black mayor, he ran successfully for the Cook County Board in 1985 and was re-elected repeatedly, even after supporting a controversial sales tax increase in 2009. He retired from the board in 2018.
Butler was married for 60 years to Annette Smith, who died in 2019, and with her had twin sons. Many of his generational peers had struggled financially and he worked to help them, while also supporting various family members. He chaired the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, which offers a wide range of assistance to musicians, and pushed the industry to provide medical and retirement benefits. Butler considered himself lucky, even if he did pass on the chance to own a part of Gamble and Huff’s Philadelphia International recording company.
“You know, I have lived well. My wife probably would say I could’ve lived better,” Butler told the Chicago Reader in 2011. “Did I make 40, 50 million dollars? No. Did I keep one or two? Yes. The old guys on the street used to say, ‘It’s not how much you make. It’s how much you keep.’”
Israel launches its latest hasbara campaign to insult supporters of the resistance.
Hamas is a militant..... Hamas is a nationalist.... Hamas is a terrorist.... Hamas is....
Hamas seeks death and destruction....
When Hamas comes to your home....
None of the things Israel and the United States says are true.
For years, I was to believe Hamas was an evil that was out to get me. Nope.
Israel for years had claim that Hamas was antisemitic and only mission was to destroy Jews across the world. Operating out a small enclave in the Middle East, Hamas seems to be growing stronger despite Israel bombardment and intentional deprivement of resources.
Israel has been exposed as a coloninalizer. It has been exposed as an apartheid ethnostate. It has been exposed as an instigator of most of the conflicts America's gotten into.
Israel claimed Hamas had 1,200 individuals. In reality Israel used the Hanibal Directive. Israeli newspapers including Haaretz, ABC News and the UN's Commission of Inquiry have pointed out that during the 2023 Hamas reistance on Israel the IDF ordered the Hannibal Directive to be used. The IDF was ordered to prevent "at all costs" the abduction of Israeli civilians or soldiers, possibly leading to the death of a large number of Israelis.
Hamas only targets the IDF. They do not kill civilians.
The world has seen Hamas fighters treating Israeli prisoners humanely, contradicting decades of Israeli claims. The viral trend further proved that support for Palestine is growing, and Israel’s propaganda is losing its grip.
“When Hamas visits my family” represents a shift in global consciousness, where people no longer blindly accept Israel’s narrative. Instead, they celebrate resistance and refuse to be intimidated.
Those fucking hypocrites sit in silence as Israel is killing women and children.
They can fuck themselves.
Israel has killed Americans. No one was held accountable.
The killing of Rachel Corrie did not move George W. Bush to cut Israel loose.
The deaths of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, Tawfiq Abdel Jabbar, Mohammad Khdour, Omar Assad, Shireen Abu Akleh, Jacob Flickinger and Kamel Ahmad Jawad were never investigated by the U.S. Justice Department.
Mask off.
Resistance is not terrorism.
Occupation of oppressed people is not peace.
A two state solution is "separate but equal" and a de facto apartheid.
Telling other countries to take Palestinians is ethnic cleansing.
A sovereignty seizing land in a violent conflict is a war crime.
The double standard in media coverage is the Israelis are hostages and the Palestinians are prisoners. Some of the Palestinians held in Israeli custody are children under the age of 14.
When Russia seized Ukrainian land and Crimea, the U.S. pushed for sanctions.
When Israel seized Lebanese and Syrian land, the U.S. recognized it as Israeli sovereignty. They have actively rejected sanctions imposed on Israel.
Hamas stated the reasons for the attack on occupation forces. It has nothing to do with the Jewish religion or Iran.
The IDF has the weapons to destroy everything. All on the American taxpayer, Israel has killed civilians, their own citizens and the status quo.
Holding these lawmakers accountable is not just a pledge, but a promise. You need to learn who represents your community. Your local community member, your school board member, your mayor, your state representative, your state senator, your governor, your U.S. Representative, your U.S. Senator and the president need to be held accountable for their actions.
Israel must be held accountable for war crimes and the U.S. must end its aid. Our taxpayer money should not help Israel any further.
Israel is the red line. If any lawmaker, entertainer, athlete or social media influncer backs the apartheid ethnostate, they face a boycott.
Regardless of political affiliation, if you are supporting Israel, you are not getting donations or a vote from me.
I will hold President Donald J. Trump and Vice President JD Vance accountable.
The call number to the White House and US Capitol is now going to be used. This is the official White House numbers 202-456-1111 and 202-456-1414. This is the Congress official phone number, 202-224-3121. Please be respectful to operators, staff members and elected leaders. Your calls are monitored by the US Secret Service and US Capitol Police.
Let them know that "thoughts and prayers," "hearts going to", "illegal immigrants" and "good guys with guns" are no longer acceptable and you want legislation to focus on ending gun violence, lowering costs, improving healthcare and building relationships with other nations. Let them know that we are tired of police officers using immunity when committing death of suspects in custody. Let them know that you are tired of private equity firms getting away with destroying small businesses and long established companies. Let them know that you are tired of your taxpayer money going to foreign nations like Israel. You are tired of hearing about "Israel having a right to..." and the bogus claims of being anti-Semitic or in support of terrorism.
We have bigger issues at home and our tax dollars should solve the housing crisis, lowering food prices, fixing roads, bridges, helping reinvest in struggling urban and rural communities. We have hospitals closing, big box retailers leaving communities and television programs dying. There are bigger issues in the country than Israel. You want an immediate ceasefire and accountability for war crimes done by Israel. You want no more foreign influence in American elections. You also want to make sure future presidents and legislators avoid influence from lobbyists.
A venomous snake was spotted in a grocery store's box of bananas in New Hampshire.
President Donald J. Trump allowed Elon Musk to run the Department of Government Efficiency and so far it's a disaster.
What would have protected the animal and those who saw it would be the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Department of Transportation.
But firing these workers allow things like this to happen.
Again, watching wildlife from a distance is safer than going near.
Can we do a Darwin Award for the most stupidest people on the planet?
You can't fix stupid!
You can't change minds!
You are completely trapped in stupid.
You are wrapped and emboldened in stupid.
Again, why do white people always treat wild animals like they're domesticated?
I would never touch a wild animal.
I am guessing the first of 2025.
An employee at Market Basket in Manchester, New Hampshire found a snake inside the package, according to Mack Ralbovsky, the Vice President of Rainforest Reptile Shows. Rainforest Reptile Shows hosts presentations about reptiles and took the snake into its custody after the store called officials.
The snake was found either Friday or Saturday, according to Ralbovsky and the New Hampshire Fish and Game Law Enforcement Division and Operation Game Thief, who first posted about the snake on Sunday morning.
According to the division, the store employee found the snake in a banana shipment. The employee was not injured, Ralbovsky said
“The hitchhiker turned out to be an Ornate Cat-eyed Snake, a mildly venomous snake species native to Ecuador,” the division said.
A bite by such a snake is not fatal to humans, but can cause some pain and swelling, said Ralbovsky.
An officer from the division picked up the snake on Saturday, then handed it over to Rainforest Reptile Shows, said Ralbovsky from Rainforest Reptile Shows.
Ralbovsky wasn’t able to say where the shipment came from and the grocery store chain did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
"The snake is doing great," Ralbovsky wrote in an email to USA TODAY. The snake has a temporary habitat while the organization works with its nonprofit, RRS Oasis, to create a permanent space for it.
The nocturnal species eats mainly lizards and frogs, he added. The organization plans to either adopt a specialty diet for the snake or try to get the snake to eat small, frozen thawed mice.
“We are asking for monetary support to assist in creating a more naturalistic and suitable space for our new hitchhiker friend,” Ralbovsky wrote, adding that the agency houses over 300 reptiles, birds and more.
The organization often works with animals that were previously owned illegally, confiscated by law enforcement, or neglected or abused, he said.
Among the animals RRS Oasis and Rainforest Reptile Shows houses, over 60 of them are venomous reptiles like the one found at the grocery store. They house snake species such as cobras, rattlesnakes, taipans and vipers, the agency said in its post Sunday.
“Every single one comes from situations like this, rescued with the help of law enforcement,” the organization wrote on Facebook. “We work to rehabilitate and improve their health, giving them the best life possible.”
The Ornate Cat-eyed Snake can be found throughout the Chocoan lowland, foothills of the Andes, as well as in areas such as eastern Panama, Colombia and Ecuador and northern Peru, according to www.Reptilesofecuador.com.
The snakes can live in multiple ecosystems such as rainforests, seasonally dry forests and pastures. They are commonly found along marshes, swamps and lagoons, the website reported.
According to the website, the snakes are "calm and rarely attempt to bite" but when they do bite, humans experience intense pain, edema and hemorrhagic blistering. The snakes are also known for emitting a foul-smelling odor.
Also, please understand this.
What to do if you are bitten by a venomous snake.
Do not panic. It drives up the heart rate.
Do not suck out the venom.
Apply ice to the wound.
Make sure you keep a phone on you to contact 9-1-1.
Get anti-venom as soon as possible.
If you are within a snake's path. In the case of a rattlesnake, cobra, taipan, manba, puff adder, krait; remain calm.
Back away from the snake if the animal gets into a defensive position.
Carry a shovel or a bottle of rubbing alcohol in case of defending yourself.
If you have a venomous snake as a pet, make sure you are trained in handling.
Stay away from venomous snakes. Do not approach them.
To prevent a bite, stay back 30 feet and give the animal its space.
Do not try to capture the snake without proper training.
If you try to kill a venomous snake, do not play with the decapitated head or body.
Do not allow children, pets or elderly people get near venomous snakes.
It's the unfortunate cause and effect of animals and people.
I've said it before and I stand by what I say: "Wild animals are......well you know!"
If you want to be a thrill seeker, you might want to get life insurance.
A series of deadly shootings killing three police officers.
So as expected, the so called Back the Blue crowd will automatically blame Black men or immigrants for the shootings of police officers.
Public servants who dedicate their lives to serving their communities.
Virginia Beach, an independent city in metropolitan Hampton Roads, Virginia is the largest community. It has a population of 495,000 residents.
Hampton Roads consists of the independent cities of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, Newport News, Poquoson, Williamsburg, the town of Smithfield in Virginia and Elizabeth City in North Carolina.
The population of the region is 2.8 million residents. The two other large cities are Chesapeake with a population of 312,000 and Norfolk population with a population of 268,000.
In York, Pennsylvania the population of 57,000 is located 25 miles from Harrisburg.
The Susquehanna/Hershey Valley includes York, Harrisburg, Hershey, Carlisle, Lancaster and Gettysburg.
How many mass shootings?
48 mass shootings
How many school shootings?
2 school shootings
How many police shooting or police involved accidents that killed suspects?
138 people killed
How many police officers killed by suspects or other events?
12 police officers and canine officers killed
Let's go down the list of many deadly encounters for police and first responders.
1. Routine traffic stop.
2. Answering a domestic violence or a mentally ill call.
3. Animal (cat, dog, coyote, bear or rabid animal attack).
4. Water rescue (ice, high water or flash flooding).
5. Mass shooting.
6. Friendly fire.
7. Traffic control.
8. High speed pursuits.
9. Exposure to biohazards/pathogens (HIV, STDs, food, blood, vomit or COVID-19).
10. Swatting (including making false statements, hostage negotiations and criminal damaging).
11. Weather (tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires and blizzards).
12. Stress (suicide, domestic issues at home, alcohol abuse, corruption, racism or harassment).
Domestic violence calls are extremely dangerous for police. They don't know what they're walking into. Usually, the aggressor may be armed or mentally ill and the police have to risk their lives to save others.
President Donald J. Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were notified.
Virginia Beach mourns the loss of two officers killed in a traffic stop.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and U.S. House members of Virginia were notified.
A convicted felon allegedly "executed" two Virginia police officers at point-blank range as they were already lying on the ground wounded and defenseless following a weekend traffic stop, authorities said.
Virginia Beach Police Officers Cameron Girvin, 25, and Christopher Reese, 30, were both pronounced dead early Saturday after being shot multiple times in a "horrific" encounter that was caught on the officers' body cameras and their squad car dashboard camera, according to Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate.
"I can tell you from the video that after he executed our officers, he calmly walked away," Neudigate said of the suspect, identified as 42-year-old John McCoy III of Virginia Beach, who police said they found dead from an apparent suicide.
Neudigate said it was the first time in 16 years that the Virginia Beach Police Department has lost an officer in a line-of-duty shooting. He said every member of his department "is hurting."
"We asked them to go out in this community and keep us safe from evil. And last night, evil found them," Neudigate said during a news conference on Saturday.
Girvin and Reese were partnered up Friday night and were assigned to the midnight shift traffic car, Neudigate said. At about 11:27 p.m. on Friday, the officers attempted to stop a blue Hyundai Sonata after noticing it had expired license plate tags. The driver, according to Neudigate, failed to pull over.
The chief said the officers followed the car to a dead-end street, where the suspect pulled over and stopped.
Neudigate said Girvin and Reese approached the car, which had two people inside, and requested the driver, identified as McCoy, to get out.
"The male driver was immediately argumentative, refused to exit the vehicle at the officers' request," Neudigate alleged. "They made numerous requests for him to exit. At some point, he complied with the request, stepped out of the the vehicle."Once out of the car, a "tussle" ensued between McCoy and the officers, Neudigate said.
"This individual pulled a pistol from his pocket and immediately shot both VBPD officers," Neudigate said. "Those officers fell to the ground. While on the ground defenseless, he shot them each a second time."
Neudigate said responding officers began conducting a grid search for the suspect and found his lifeless body just after midnight Saturday in a shed behind an apartment complex near where the officers were shot.
The mayor and police chief of Virginia Beach denounced the shooter as a purely evil man.
"I can say from our preliminary investigation at this point in time, with everything that we know, leaves us to believe that this is a self-inflicted gunshot wound," Neudigate said of the suspect. "At no time did any of our officers fire shots."
The mortally wounded Reese was taken to Sentara Princess Anne Hospital in Virginia Beach, where he was pronounced dead shortly after midnight Saturday, Neudigate said. Girvin was pronounced dead at Virginia Beach General Hospital around 4:30 p.m. Saturday, the chief said.
Both officers were surrounded by immediate family, close friends and fellow officers when they succumbed to their injuries, Neudigate said.
"Officers Girvin and Reese, they were dedicated, determined peace officers and public servants," an emotional Neudigate said. "They had stellar reputations in our department, and their work ethic was beyond reproach."
He said Reese had been a member of the police department since 2022, having previously worked for the Virginia Beach Sheriff's Office between 2019 and 2022. Neudigate said Girvin joined the police department in 2020.
Neudigate said investigators are trying to determine a motive for the double homicide. He said McCoy had one felony conviction stemming from 2009, but had the officers found the gun on him, he would have faced a new felony charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
"I think we all want to know that," Neudigate said of the motive. "But I think only one person does, and that individual is deceased."
He said the person in the car with McCoy at the time of the shooting was not arrested and is not facing any charges.
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer led a moment of silence for Reese and Girvin at the start of Saturday's news conference, calling the officers "heroes."
"Today our city is heartbroken," Dyer said. "We mourn the loss of two of our own brave Virginia Beach police officers, who made the ultimate sacrifice. Their dedication to protecting our community will never be forgotten."
West York Borough Police officer shot during a hostage standoff at a York hospital.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), Sen. David McCormick (R-PA) and U.S. House members of Pennsylvania were notified.
Anguish and anger at the very recent loss of a loved one apparently spurred on the man who would target the intensive care unit at a Pennsylvania hospital Saturday morning, a senior law enforcement official briefed on the investigation told ABC News.
One officer was killed and at least five others were shot in the hostage situation that unfolded at a hospital in York County according to state officials.
The suspect, Diogenes Archangel-Ortiz, entered UPMC Memorial in West Manchester Township with a semi-automatic handgun and zip ties at around 10:30 a.m. He then went to the ICU and took several hospital staff hostage, officials said at a press conference Saturday afternoon.
Ortiz shot a hospital doctor, nurse and custodian, all of whom are now stable, officials said. Three police officers were shot during the incident and one died.
West York Borough police officer Andrew Duarte was killed in the shooting, the borough confirmed. The other two officers were hospitalized in stable condition.
Archangel-Ortiz was upset over what he perceived was a lack of care for a family member who had just been in the hospital's ICU, the senior official said. That family member was terminal -- something Archangel-Ortiz had difficulty accepting, the official added.
The family member had died within the last week.
UPMC York Campus.
When Archangel-Ortiz entered the hospital Saturday, he headed for the ICU where there was a small medical team, including one doctor who had treated his family member, the senior official said.
Archangel-Ortiz is believed to have acted alone in the incident.
"This is a huge loss to our community," York County District Attorney Tim Barker said. "Officer Duarte gave his life protecting others."
Law enforcement from multiple agencies, including West York Borough Police, Pennsylvania State Police, and the York County Quick Response Team, responded to the situation. Officers attempted to negotiate with Ortiz, but he emerged from the ICU holding a hospital staff member at gunpoint, her hands bound by zip ties.
"The officers were left with no recourse," Barker said. "They opened fire, killing Ortiz and preventing further loss of life."
"After reviewing surveillance footage and witness statements, it is absolutely clear and beyond any doubt that the officers acted lawfully in using deadly force," he said. "Quite frankly, they needed to—because by doing so, they potentially saved even more lives."
UPMC said no patients were injured in the shooting.
These murderers don't have mental illness. They are calculated and prepared. It happened to be a moment where they have the opportunity to take out lives.
There's no sickness in the head. Most mass shooters legally obtain their assault rifles without little background checks. They have likely no criminal history and they are willing to use the assault weapon in the only thing it's good for: Killing numerous lives.
I dismiss this ridiculous notion that criminals are the problem, not the guns.
Firearms are often obtained through legal purchases.
Again, having more security, teachers being armed and offering safe rooms are not solving the problem. The problem is lawmakers not willing to stop gun violence.
According to the far right: White shooters are mentally ill. Black shooters are unrepentant thugs and criminals. Gay shooters are active groomers. Muslim shooters are terrorists. Hispanic and Asian shooters are illegal immigrants. According to the far right, almost all white [or non-white] mass shooters are registered Democrats [or some progressive activist] because they have liked or done one thing common to the left. Of course, they often share or post disinformation by using the "Sam Hyde" meme or make bogus social media platforms with the shooter's image as a way to denounce most mass shooters being white or associated with conservative causes. The far right says a white person should "protect" themselves from thugs, terrorists or protesters. They believe the use of firearms are "justified" if they are protesting or even instigating a conflict. The far right believes if a shooter is a police officer, an active military member, a veteran or a citizen who supports conservative causes, they are considered a "heroes" and use of firearms are justified. If the shooters are teens in urban communities, the far right automatically assumes the gunmen are Black.
The Republicans usually amplify white victims. Anytime a person of color kills a white victim, it is often wall-to-wall coverage on Fox, Twitter and they force it into national news. They make the case to blame Black Lives Matter, Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, Democrats, Rev. Al Sharpton and rap music for Black on whatever violence. Republican legislators who do not live in urban neighborhoods often troll social media to talk about gun violence or crime in Chicago, Baltimore, Milwaukee and New York City while not doing a damn thing to stop it. If a white person shoots a Black person, the shooter is given the benefit of doubt. White shooters are given glowing profiles about their perfect lives and how friends noticed something but refused to do something. When it comes to Black shooters, automatic vilification. They don't see mental illness. They see it as gang violence, allegedly fatherless homes, Democratic policies or the need for more firearms.
Never stops.
The far right and Republicans exploit gun violence in the Black community for culture wars and racism.
Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Lifeline) at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or 988, or text the Crisis Text Line (text HELLO to 741741). Both services are free and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The deaf and hard of hearing can contact the Lifeline via TTY at 1-800-799-4889. All calls are confidential. Contact social media outlets directly if you are concerned about a friend's social media updates or dial 911 in an emergency. Learn more on the Lifeline's website or the Crisis Text Line's website.
The call number to the White House and US Capitol is now going to be used. This is the official White House numbers 202-456-1111 and 202-456-1414. This is the Congress official phone number, 202-224-3121. Please be respectful to operators, staff members and elected leaders. Your calls are monitored by the US Secret Service and US Capitol Police.
Let them know that "thoughts and prayers," "hearts going to" and "good guys with guns" are no longer acceptable and you want legislation to curb gun violence. Let them know that we are tired of police officers using immunity when committing death of suspects in custody. Let them know that you are tired of private equity firms getting away with destroying small businesses and long established companies. Let them know that you are tired of your taxpayer money going to foreign nations like Israel. You are tired of hearing about "Israel having a right to..." and the bogus claims of being anti-Semitic or in support of terrorism.
We have bigger issues at home and our tax dollars should solve the housing crisis, lowering food prices, fixing roads, bridges, helping reinvest in struggling urban and rural communities. We have hospitals closing, big box retailers leaving communities and television programs dying. There are bigger issues in the country than Israel. You want an immediate ceasefire and accountability for war crimes done by Israel. You want no more foreign influence in American elections. You also want to make sure future presidents and legislators avoid influence from lobbyists.
President Donald J. Trump claims another critic. A prominent Black woman who was unapologetic, fearless and competent.
Looks like DEI is becoming a villain in MAGAland.
Conservatives are happy to see her off the air. They were rooting for her to be off since 2020 when she was promoted to hosting primetime duties.
Many media personalities who often were in Trump’s way are being forced out.
It is a cowardly way of trying to appease him for interviews and bigger ratings.
Joy Reid may be out of MSNBC.
MSNBC declined to make executives available for comment. Puck previously reported on some of the aforementioned plans.
The moves come quickly after Rebecca Kutler, a former senior executive at CNN who is known for her facility in developing new talent and programming concepts, was named MSNBC’s new president. She takes the helm of the network as it faces unique challenges, including the pressures of working with the Trump White House and being spun off along with other NBCU cable networks into a new publicly-traded company. “Our jobs are hard on a normal day, and these are not normal times,” she told employees on the day that her new role was announced by Mark Lazarus, the NBCU executive who will lead the new spin-off.
Like other cable networks, MSNBC is facing significant business challenges. More of the viewers who settle in each evening to watch a few hours of commentary on MSNBC are migrating elsewhere. MSNBC is projected to shed approximately 10.5% of its subscribers between the end of 2023 and the end of 2025, according to estimates from Kagan, a market-research firm that is part of S&P Global Intelligence. Rivals Fox and CNN are seen experiencing similar erosions in that period. MSNBC could be left with an average of 61.3 million viewers at the end of 2025, compared with 68.5 million in 2023 — and this with an election year, an event that brings viewers back to news, between the two milestones.
Kutler has described plans to build an independent newsgathering apparatus for MSNBC, which will lose its ties to NBC News after the new company is formed. She wants to launch a separate MSNBC Washington bureau, and to add a new roster of international and domestic correspondents. She also wants to hire a new head of talent, a Washington bureau chief and a head of content strategy. Yet she has articulated a plan to hew close to the network’s progressive leanings, not trying to steer it to the center.
MSNBC has been working to bring viewers back after the results of the 2024 presidential election. Both MSNBC and CNN saw significant erosion following Donald Trump’s return to the White House and the national conversation, and both have unveiled programing shake-ups in recent weeks. At MSNBC, Rachel Maddow returned to hosting the 9 p.m. hour Monday through Friday, compared to the Monday-only schedule (with various special appearances) she has enjoyed in recent years. Since the inauguration, MSNBC’s overall viewership has surged in primetime and across the day, though its audience levels remain well below that of Fox.
Kutler helped create “The Weekend,” the show led by Sanders-Townsend, Melendez and Steele, which has run early Saturday and Sunday mornings. In its first year on air, the program has seen audience for its time slot improve noticeably in both overall viewership and among people between 25 and 54, the demographic most preferred by advertisers in news programs. Psaki, meanwhile, has been a favorite of MSNBC executives since the former Biden White House press secretary joined its Sunday lineup in March of 2023.
Kutler may have more changes in store, and has been looking at MSNBC’s daytime and weekend schedule as well. The network has yet to announce a formal replacement for Andrea Mitchell, the NBC News veteran who anchored a noon program for decades, and recently left. Staffers are curious whether the daytime anchors, who are affiliated with NBC News, will stay with MSNBC over the longer haul.
Mabel "Dolly" Landry Staton broke barriers as being the only woman competing in the Olympics in Helsinki, Finland.
A legendary Olympic runner had passed away.
CBS News confirms Mabel "Dolly" Staton has passed away.
At 92, Mabel "Dolly" Landry Staton remains an icon in the track and field world, a trailblazer who broke barriers for both women and African Americans in the sport.
In 1952, she made history as the only American woman to compete in the long jump at the Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. She defied both racism and the limitations of gender in athletics.
Growing up during the Great Depression, Staton faced the challenges of segregation and a society that didn't always believe in women's sports. But from a young age, she showed the world that nothing could hold her back.
"I am not an expert on the Olympics, but I played my part," Staton said from her home in South Jersey.
Her journey to greatness began with a simple walk in the park with her father. As they watched a local race, her father challenged her to race. Staton won after taking up the challenge, setting her on a path leading to Olympic glory.
At 16, Staton recalls being discriminated against on a trip to Texas, where she was forced to sit with "the other colored people" on the train.
She still managed to triumph at the track meet.
"I won the 50 and the long jump," Dolly said. "That's when the girls came and asked if they could join my team. I said, 'Team? I don't have a team.'"
Her dominance on the track led to a historic achievement: Staton joined the first integrated Chicago track team, which opened doors for other athletes.
Staton's ambitions grew as she enrolled at DePaul University to study physical education. DePaul did not have a women's track program. Despite this, she continued to train independently, driven by her Olympic dreams.
After just one year at DePaul, in 1952, Staton qualified for the Olympic Trials in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where she secured her spot as the only American woman in the long jump at the Helsinki Olympics.
"It was not about winning," Staton said. "Being on the Olympic team was not about winning; it was about taking part."
Staton's performance at the Olympics was nothing short of remarkable. In the preliminary rounds, her jump of 5.88 meters broke the Olympic record, for a short time.
"For about 13 minutes, I had the record by myself. That was funny," Staton said with a laugh.
Sorority sister to the end.
Staton finished seventh out of 160 athletes, but her legacy was already cemented as a trailblazer.
In 2008, DePaul University recognized Staton as one of its greatest athletes more than half a century after her Olympic appearance.
Reflecting on her legacy, Staton humbly said, "I just wanted to earn the credit that people had given me."
At 92, Staton remains an inspiration. Her achievements are a testament to the power of perseverance and the breaking of barriers, which continue to resonate in the world of athletics today.
Her legacy is one of courage, determination and the power to change the world. One jump at a time.
Staton, the Black track and field standout who broke through racial barriers and became the only woman to compete for the United States in the long jump at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, died Thursday.
Staton, who went by the name of Mabel Landry when she attended DePaul in the 1950s, before the school had a women's track team, was inducted into the university's athletic Hall of Fame in 2011. Senior associate athletic director Thad Dohrn said Landry's daughter notified the school of her mother's death, which came after a long battle with cancer.
Staton was the only American woman to meet the Olympic qualifying standard in the lead up to the Helsinki Games, where she finished seventh. Her best jump at those Olympics was 5.88 meters (19 feet, 3 1/2 inches) in qualifying, which made her the Olympic record holder for 13 minutes.
Republican lawmaker Cory Mills of Florida caught up in a sex scandal.
Married Florida Republican lawmaker caught up in a domestic violence incident involving a far right media agitator.
Zionism is also exploiting lawmakers with honeytraps.
Elon Musk has his latest child with Ashley St. Clair.
Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) allegedly had an ongoing affair with Sarah Raviani, an Iranian American far right media agitator who unapologetically supports the apartheid ethnostate of Israel.
The two had a violent encounter inside his Washington, DC apartment.
The Metropolitan Police confirm an incident involving a lawmaker and a victim.
Mills is Catholic. He is married to his wife Rana Al Saadi, an Iraqi refugee who gained naturalized American citizenship and served in the first Trump administration. They were married at the Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Virginia, by Sheikh Mohammed Al-Hanooti in 2014. They have a son together and live in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. Mills has a second son.
On February 21, 2025, the Metropolitan Police Department announced they were investigating an alleged physical assault of a woman by Mills. According to the police report of the incident, the alleged victim stated that Mills "grabbed her, shoved her, and pushed her out of the door." Mills was not arrested, because the alleged victim recanted details of the incident. Mills denied any wrongdoing in the matter.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police Department said officers "were called to the 1300 block of Maryland Avenue, Southwest around 1:15 p.m. Wednesday for the report of an assault," adding that an "active criminal investigation" is underway.
A spokesperson for MPD confirmed to NBC News that Mills is the subject of the investigation. The spokesperson added that Mills had not been arrested and that no charges had been filed against him.
According to a statement from his spokesperson, Mills denied wrongdoing.
“This week, law enforcement was asked to resolve a private matter at Congressman Mills’ residence," the statement read. "Congressman Mills vehemently denies any wrongdoing whatsoever, and is confident any investigation will clear this matter quickly.”
Mills with wife and son.
The alleged victim told NBC News in a text message that she "reached out to law enforcement to address a personal matter."
"While the personal matter in question was emotionally charged, there was no physical altercation," the alleged victim said.
Raviani, 27 is an Iranian-American far right agitator who often tries to include herself into the elite circles of the GOP. She is vehemently supportive of Israel, calling for a violent regime change in Iran, calling pro-Palestinian supporters "terrorist sympathizers" and has taken pictures with prominent Republicans.
Somehow, I can only imagine that he was trying to establish a relationship. If she gets pregnant, he would either force a termination or sidechick payments to keep her quiet if he runs for governor, senator or president one day.
I can only imagine how many of these Zionist spies are working in our government or enticing our lawmakers into selling out our country for the interest of Israel.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) was demonized by the far right because of Christine Fang. Fang was a Chinese spy who tried to use her influnce to win support for Chinese interest.
The United States government accused China of attempting to unlawfully acquire U.S. military technology and classified information as well as trade secrets of U.S. companies in order to support China's long-term military and commercial development. Chinese government agencies and affiliated personnel have been accused of using a number of methods to obtain U.S. technology (using U.S. law to avoid prosecution), including espionage, exploitation of commercial entities, and a network of scientific, academic and business contacts.
Mills feel for a thirst trap who supports Zionism and MAGAland.
With Mills and Raviani, according to a police report obtained by NBC News, officers are investigating the case as a "simple assault," saying the weapon used was "Personal weapons (hands/feet)." The report listed the modus operandi as “force used — forced to another location."
Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a news conference Friday that there was also an internal MPD investigation into the way the situation was handled.
U.S. Capitol Police directed inquiries about the investigation to the Metropolitan Police.
NOTUS was first to report that police were investigating Mills over an alleged assault.
Mills, 44, is in his second term representing Florida's 7th Congressional District. He had said he plans on running for the Senate in 2026.
If Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) does run for a full term, she and Mills will have a bitter fight. Mills got caught up with the honeytrap. If Trump, Pete Hegseth, Robert F. Kennedy, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Herschel Walker can commit sexual abuse and managed to be appointed to federal jobs, Mills will have no problems. I mean Republicans parade themselves on family values. Yet, they elected morons and charlatans just to "own the libs."
The Holy See (the Vatian) confirms that 88 year old Pope Francis is in critical condition at a Rome hospital.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, British King Charles III, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, members of Congress and the junk food media were notified.
Former presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton were informed also.
Biden and Trump will be the last U.S. presidents to greet the Pope of the Holy See.
The Pope is the head and chief leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
Francis was in critical condition Saturday after he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis while being treated for pneumonia and a complex lung infection, the Vatican said.
The pope, who remains conscious, received “high flows” of oxygen to help him breathe. He also received blood transfusions after tests showed low counts of platelets, which are needed for clotting, the Vatican said in a late update.
“The Holy Father’s condition continues to be critical, therefore, as explained yesterday (Friday), the pope is not out of danger,” the statement said. It was the first time “critical” had been used in a written statement to describe Francis’ condition since he was hospitalized Feb. 14.
The statement alsrso said that the pontiff “continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair although in more pain than yesterday.” Doctors declined to offer a prognosis, saying it was “reserved.”
Doctors have said Francis’ condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease.
Doctors warn of the possible onset of sepsis
They have warned that the main threat facing Francis would be the onset of sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia. As of Friday, there was no evidence of any sepsis, and Francis was responding to the various drugs he is taking, the pope’s medical team said in their first in-depth update on the pope’s condition.
Saturday’s blood tests showed that he had developed a low platelet count, a condition called platelopenia or thrombocytopenia. Platelets are cell-like fragments that circulate in the blood that help form blood clots to stop bleeding or help wounds heal. Low platelet counts can be caused by a number of things, including side effects from medicines or infections, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Francis, who has chronic lung disease and is prone to bronchitis in winter, was admitted to Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14 after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened.
Doctors first diagnosed the complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and then the onset of pneumonia in both lungs. They prescribed “absolute rest” and a combination of cortisone and antibiotics, along with supplemental oxygen when he needs it. Saturday’s update marked the first time the Vatican has referred to Francis suffering an “asthmatic respiratory crisis of prolonged magnitude, which also required the application of oxygen at high flows.”
Dr. Sergio Alfieri, the head of medicine and surgery at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, said Friday the biggest threat facing Francis was that some of the germs that are currently located in his respiratory system pass into the bloodstream, causing sepsis. Sepsis can lead to organ failure and death.
“Sepsis, with his respiratory problems and his age, would be really difficult to get out of,” Alfieri told a news conference Friday at Gemelli. “The English say ‘knock on wood,’ we say ‘touch iron.’ Everyone touch what they want,” he said as he tapped the microphone. “But this is the real risk in these cases: that these germs pass to the bloodstream.”
“He knows he’s in danger,” Alfieri added. “And he told us to convey that.”
Vatican hierarchy tamps down speculation Francis might resign
Meanwhile, the Vatican hierarchy went on the defensive to tamp down rumors and speculation that Francis might decide to resign. There is no provision in canon law for what to do if a pope becomes incapacitated. Francis has said that he has written a letter of resignation that would be invoked if he were medically incapable of making such a decision. The pope remains fully conscious, alert, eating and working.
The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, gave a rare interview to Corriere della Sera to respond to speculation and rumors about a possible resignation. It came after the Vatican issued an unusual and official denial of an Italian media report that said Parolin and the pope’s chief canonist had visited Francis in the hospital in secret. Given the canonical requirements to make a resignation legitimate, the implications of such a meeting were significant, but the Vatican flat-out denied that any such meeting occurred.
Francis did a dress rehearsal for his immediate passing.
Parolin said such speculation seemed “useless” when what really mattered was the health of Francis, his recovery and return to the Vatican.
“On the other hand, I think it is quite normal that in these situations uncontrolled rumors can spread or some misplaced comment is uttered. It is certainly not the first time it has happened,” Parolin was quoted as saying. “However, I don’t think there is any particular movement, and so far I haven’t heard anything like that.”
White House is ‘praying for the pope’
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Saturday that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the pope’s condition and was working on his own statement that will be released later.
“We’re praying for the pope,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt is one of three administration officials who face a lawsuit from The Associated Press on first- and fifth-amendment grounds. The AP says Leavitt and two others are punishing the news agency for editorial decisions they oppose. The White House says the AP is not following an executive order to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
Deacons, meanwhile, were gathering at the Vatican for their special Holy Year weekend. Francis got sick at the start of the Vatican’s Holy Year, the once-every-quarter-century celebration of Catholicism. This weekend, Francis was supposed to have celebrated deacons, a ministry in the church that precedes ordination to the priesthood.
In his place, the Holy Year organizer will celebrate Sunday’s Mass, the Vatican said. And for the second consecutive weekend, Francis will skip his traditional Sunday noon blessing, which he could have delivered from Gemelli if he were up to it.
“Look, even though he’s not (physically) here, we know he’s here,” said Luis Arnaldo López Quirindongo, a deacon from Ponce, Puerto Rico, who was at the Vatican on Saturday for the Jubilee celebration. “He’s recovering, but he’s in our hearts and is accompanying us, because our prayers and his go together.”
