Via The Hill:

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) communications director has resigned amid the latest shake-up involving the governor’s staff.

Peter Ajemian’s last day working for the governor was on Friday, and he will be replaced by Cuomo’s longtime chief adviser Rich Azzopardi, according to an announcement from the governor’s office. Cuomo’s office said Ajemian accepted a job outside government.

“After nearly four years, and with this year’s budget done and vaccine eligibility open to everyone, I decided now is the time to pursue opportunities in the private sector,” Ajemian said in a statement reported by Spectrum News.

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Via Reuters:

JERUSALEM, May 8 (Reuters) – Israel said it was beefing up security forces on Saturday in anticipation of more confrontations with Palestinian protesters, a day after fierce clashes at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Tensions have mounted in the city, the occupied West Bank and Gaza throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, amid growing anger over the potential eviction of Palestinians from Jerusalem homes on land claimed by Jewish settlers.

On Friday, police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades towards rock-hurling Palestinian youths at the mosque in the walled Old City on the Noble Sanctuary/Temple Mount plaza sacred to both Muslims and Jews.

At least 205 Palestinians and 18 Israeli officers were injured in Friday’s confrontations, which drew international condemnations and calls for calm.

Police Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai said more officers were heading to Jerusalem on Saturday, in the build-up to the sacred Muslim night of Laylat al-Qadr.

“The right to protest will be preserved, but riots will be answered firmly and with zero tolerance. I call on everyone to act responsibly and with restraint,” Shabtai said in a statement.

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@PlanoMayorHarry @cityofplanotx @PlanoPoliceDept @PIODavidTilley @PlanoFireRescue @ShelbyForPlano @lilyforplano @mtulaw @PlanoFFs2149 @LilyBaoTX @KCPrinceTexas @leachfortexas @ShelbyHWilliams @RickGrady @PlanoEM @PlanoTXChamber pic.twitter.com/ERnfy3I4T3

— I’mAnAmerican 🇺🇸💯🇺🇸 (@jse_amor) May 8, 2021

Via WSJ:

ALBANY, N.Y.—The state attorney general’s office has expanded its investigation of sexual-harassment allegations against Gov. Andrew Cuomo to look at whether one of his top advisers linked access to Covid-19 vaccines to support for the governor, according to people familiar with the matter.

Investigators have interviewed at least three Democratic county executives who said they were surprised to receive calls from Larry Schwartz, a volunteer adviser who oversaw vaccine distribution for the state, asking whether they would be calling for Mr. Cuomo’s resignation, the people said.

Mr. Schwartz contacted more than a half-dozen executives in early March, executives said, as Mr. Cuomo faced mounting calls for his resignation from members of his own political party and was personally contacting state lawmakers to shore up support.

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Via DNYUZ:

A cyberattack forced the shutdown of one of the largest pipelines in the United States, in what appeared to be a significant attempt to disrupt vulnerable energy infrastructure. The pipeline carries refined gasoline and jet fuel up the East Coast from Texas to New York.

The operator of the system, Colonial Pipeline, said in a statement late Friday that it had shut down its 5,500 miles of pipeline, which it says carries 45 percent of the East Coast’s fuel supplies, in an effort to contain the attack on its computer networks. Earlier Friday, there were disruptions along the pipeline, but it was unclear whether that was a direct result of the attack.

Colonial’s pipeline transports 2.5 million barrels each day, taking refined gasoline, diesel fuel and jet fuel from the Gulf Coast up to New York Harbor and New York’s major airports. Most of that goes into major storage tanks, and with energy use depressed by the pandemic, the attack was unlikely to cause any immediate disruptions.

In the statement, the company said that it learned on Friday that it “was the victim of a cybersecurity attack,” but it provided no details. Such an attack could involve malware that shut down its operations or ransomware demanding payment to unlock computer files or systems.

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Texas Residents At Breaking Point: Citizens angry with BLM protesters blocking traffic. pic.twitter.com/MvITK943UW

— New Granada (@NewGranada1979) May 7, 2021

Via USA Today:

Washington, D.C. resident and bride, Shakira Tobin’s father died in a car accident three years ago. To honor her father in her wedding reception, Tobin had planned to dance with her mother as they both held a photo of him.

However, D.C.’s Mayor Muriel E. Bowser’s recent ban on dancing at weddings put a pause on Tobin’s tribute to her father.

“For others, dancing at their wedding maybe is just dancing, but this is more than an inconvenience. This ban takes away a special moment with my mother and dead father,” Tobin told USA TODAY.

Keep reading…

Via USA Today:

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden was fielding his fourth question from a reporter after delivering remarks on the pandemic last week when he apologized to the press corps.

“Look, I’m sorry. This is the last question I’ll take,” Biden said. “I’m really going to be in trouble.”

In trouble? Really?

In fact, yes, White House press secretary Jen Psaki divulged in a podcast interview this week.

Psaki told CNN’s David Axelrod that the communications shop frowns on Biden’s willingness to engage with reporters who shout questions during Biden’s public appearances.

“That is not something we recommend,” Psaki said. “In fact, a lot of times we say `Don’t take questions.’ ”

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heh…

Via The Sun:

One passage of the book – a fantasy blueprint for a human expedition to Mars – details that “a Martian government was created, led by ten men”.

Those men worked under a leader “elected by universal suffrage for five years under the name or title of Elon.”

Von Braun was one of the most influential scientists of the 20th century and a key figure in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany.

Following World War 2, he was secretly moved to the United States and became a pioneer of space technology for Nasa.

Project Mars may have been science fiction, but it included scientific calculations for how humans might travel to Mars.

The book’s spooky prediction was unearthed a few years ago but resurfaced this week on social media.

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Via CNBC:

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Friday that April’s lower than expected job growth reveals that the U.S. economy is still struggling to recover from the Covid pandemic, and that his massive infrastructure and family support bills are needed now more than ever.

“This month’s job numbers show we are on the right track,” said Biden. “But we still have a long way to go. My laser focus is on growing the nation’s economy and creating jobs. My laser focus is on vaccinating, and my laser focus is on one more thing: making sure that hard working people in this country are no longer left out in the cold.”

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Via ABC:

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s population fell by more than 182,000 people in 2020, marking the first year-over-year loss ever recorded for the nation’s most populous state.

State officials announced Friday that California’s population dipped 0.46% to just under 39.5 million people from January 2020 to January 2021.

The news comes one week after the U.S. Census Bureau announced a paltry population growth for California, resulting in the state losing a congressional seat for the first time because it grew more slowly than other states over the past decade.

But the census numbers reflect the state’s population in April 2020. The new state numbers released Friday reflect the state’s population as of January 2021.

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Via CNS:

(CNSNews.com) – Federal, state and local governments in the United States increased their employment by a combined 48,000 workers in April, according to the numbers released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

From March to April, the number of workers employed by government in the United States climbed from 21,543,000 to 21,591,000.

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Via Taiwan News:

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Chinese military turboprop flew into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone on Thursday afternoon (May 6), marking the third intrusion this month.

A single People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare plane entered the southwest corner of Taiwan’s ADIZ, according to the Ministry of National Defense (MND). In response, Taiwan sent aircraft, issued radio warnings, and deployed air defense missile systems to track the PLAAF airplane.

Since September of last year, Beijing has stepped up its gray zone tactics by regularly sending planes into Taiwan’s ADIZ, with most instances taking place in the southwest corner of the zone.

Keep reading…

If your messaging is being repeated by Democrats, maybe it’s not great.

ICYMI, @RepLizCheney in the @washingtonpost: "(W)e Republicans need to stand for genuinely conservative principles, and steer away from the dangerous and anti-democratic Trump cult of personality." https://t.co/ktDodK5b4n

— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) May 6, 2021

President Biden: "This month's job numbers show we're on the right track." https://t.co/Lz5glG7gWi pic.twitter.com/YgyMmXhY7S

— The Hill (@thehill) May 7, 2021

This is the time of the year when ad revenue takes a nose dive and we really count on our generous readers to keep the lights on.

If you can help please use the “Bail Money” donation icon on the top right sidebar for PayPal (email for PayPal is [email protected]).

If you want to send a check email me at [email protected] for an address.

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Update: Thanks to everyone who donated, can’t thank you enough.

Lmao…

The April jobs report was so bad @CNBC had to double check the number to make sure they read it correctly. pic.twitter.com/I7AHf1jUP2

— Mike Berg (@MikeKBerg) May 7, 2021

No it’s not.