Trump arraignment:Â Barricades have been put up and security is tight around the Prettyman Federal Court House in Washington D.C. where Donald Trump is scheduled to be booked and arraigned this afternoon. Trump is charged with four felonies in connection with his efforts to steal the 2020 Presidential Election after having lost to Joe Biden. Six of Trump’s alleged co-conspirators are described but not named in the indictment or charged. While Trump’s defenders have claimed that what he did was just free speech, the indictment describes actions that it alleges he undertook to overturn the will of the people and seize power.
Barr blasts Trump:Â William Barr, who served as attorney general in the Trump Administration, told CNN in an interview that Trump “knew well he lost the election.” Barr, who had been a Trump loyalist, characterized the actions of his former boss as described in the indictment as being “nauseating” and “despicable.” Barr said that someone who did what Trump did shouldn’t be anywhere near the oval office.
Vehicle recall:Â Hyundai and Kia have issued recalls affecting 92,000 vehicles because there is a risk they could catch fire. The problem is in an oil pump’s electronic controller, which can overheat. Owners are being told to keep the vehicles outside and park them away from any structures until repairs can be made. Affected are some 2023 and 2024 Hyundai Palisades models and some 2023 Tucson, Elantra, Sonata and Kona models. Kias involved in the recall include 2023 Soul and Sportage models and 2023 and 2024 Seltos vehicles.
Jury acquits Louisiana state trooper:Â A federal jury in Louisiana has acquitted Jacob Brown, a Louisiana state trooper who is White of beating a Black motorist he had pulled over in a traffic stop in 2019. The jury saw a video that showed Brown beating Aaron Bowman 18 times with a flashlight. Bowman suffered injuries that included broken ribs and a broken jaw. Brown had been charged with violating Bowman’s civil rights.
Body at barrier:Â Mexico as of this morning had not identified the two dead bodies recovered a few days ago from the Rio Grande River, one of which was at the floating barrier installed in the middle of the river on orders of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott at the community of Eagle Pass, Texas. Abbott ordered the barrier put in place to stop migrants from entering Texas at that spot. The federal government is suing to force Abbott to remove the barrier.
Unemployment claims:Â The number of people filing new unemployment claims rose to 227,000 for the week ended July 29, an increase of 6,000 from the week before, according to statistics released this morning by the Department of Labor. Both New York and Connecticut were among the top 10 states with the highest insured unemployment rates for the week ending July 15. In New York it was 1.8% and in Connecticut it was 2.1%.
