Houston Chronicle November 23 2020

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MONDAY,NOVEMBER23,2020  HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM  VOL.120,NO.41  $2.00HH
Cruz digs in for battle with Big Tech
Associalmediacompaniesattempttocontrol members of the committee had “What a moment,” right-wing As social media companies
subpoenaedtoaddresswhatthey commentator Dinesh D’Souza crackeddownonmisinformation
misinformation,Republicansclaimcensorship
view as “censorship” and “sup- tweeted, sharing a clip from the duringtheelection—underpres-
pression”byBigTechduringthe hearing with his 1.9 million fol- suretopreventarepeatof2016’s
ByBenjaminWermund moment senators crave from 2020election. lowers. Russian meddling — they found
suchhigh-profileexchanges. “Yourpoliciesareappliedina “This is almost TOO GOOD,” themselvesincreasinglytargeted
WASHINGTONBUREAU
“Facebook and Twitter and partisan and selective manner,” tweeted Dan Bongino, another by conservatives such as Cruz,
WASHINGTON—U.S.Sen.Ted Googlehavemassivepower.They Cruz said, demanding that Dor- conservative commentator, urg- whocallitcensorshipwhenTwit-
CruzsetconservativeTwitteron have a monopoly on public dis- seyandZuckerbergproducedata ing his 2.7 million followers to ter flags President Donald
fire as he tore into Jack Dorsey, courseintheonlinearena,”Cruz showing how often they flag or “WatchTwitterCEOJackDorsey Trump’s posts that falsely claim
the platform’s CEO, during a re- told Dorsey and Facebook CEO blockRepublicancandidatesand absolutelysquirminhischairas hewonre-electionorwhenFace-
centSenateJudiciaryCommittee MarkZuckerberg,whomtheTex- elected officials as opposed to TedCruzgoesfulltriallawyeron book tries to stop its users from
hearing,creatingthesortofviral as Republican and other GOP Democrats. him.” CruzcontinuesonA13
Trump’s
NURSING HOME PREPARES
next fight:
FOR THE WORST — AGAIN
Control
of GOP’s
machinery
ByJonathanMartin
andMaggieHaberman
NEWYORKTIMES
As President Donald Trump
seekstodelaythecertificationof
theelectioninhopesofoverturn-
inghisdefeat,heisalsomounting
alesshigh-profilebidtokeepcon-
trol of the Republican National
Committee even after he leaves
office.
Ronna McDaniel, Trump’s
hand-picked chair, has secured
thepresident’ssupportforherre-
electiontoanotherterminJanu-
ary,whenthepartyisexpectedto
gatherforitswintermeeting.But
herintentiontorunwithTrump’s
blessinghasincitedabehind-the-
scenes proxy battle, dividing Re-
publicansbetweenthosewhobe-
lieve the national party should
notbeapoliticalsubsidiaryofthe
outgoing president and others
happy for Trump to remain in
controlofit.
While many Republicans are
hesitant to openly criticize the
presidentatamomentwhenheis
refusingtoadmithehaslost,the
PhotosbyElizabethConley/Staffphotographer debate crystallizes the larger
“It’sthetoughestthingI’veeverbeenthrough,”saidTedThornell,theexecutivedirectorofFocusedCareatWestwood. questionabouttheparty’sidenti-
tyandwhetheritwilloperateasa
ByEmilyFoxhall After24residentsdiedfromCOVID-19 homeintheHoustonregionso vessel for Trump’s ambitions to
farthisyear. runagaininfouryears.
STAFFWRITER inspring,theAlieffacilitykeepsfighting
Nowherehasthetragedyof Trumpwillhavenopoliticalin-
Ted Thornell was working toavoidawinteroutbreak COVID-19 been more clear frastructureonceheleavesoffice
at his desk when the worst thanatthenation’snursingfa- exceptforapoliticalactioncom-
possible news arrived: A hos- cilities, which primarily care mittee he recently formed. Ab-
pitalized resident from his for the elderly or disabled. sent a formal campaign, he is
nursinghomehadtestedposi- More than 65,000 residents hopingtoleanontheRNCtoef-
tiveforCOVID-19. acrossthecountryhavedied. fectivelygivehimone,peoplefa-
ItwasMay22.FocusedCare The federal government miliarwithhisthinkingsaid.
at Westwood, the facility bannedvisitorsinmid-March The continuing influence of
ThornellrunsinAlief,hadn’t toprotectavulnerablepopu- Trump could also have implica-
previously detected a single lationbuttookmonthstodis- tions for some of the national
caseofthenewcoronavirus. tributetestingmachines,and committee’s most critical assets:
Crushed, Thornell won- thevirusstillgotin. Itsvoterdataanddonorlistscon-
dered:Whoelsehasit? As hospital doctors and tain thousands of names of con-
Though he didn’t know it nurseswerepraisedforheroic tributors and detailed informa-
yet,thecoronaviruswasram- efforts last spring, nursing tionaboutsupporters.Thevoter
pantatWestwood.Itwouldin- home staffs felt under siege. datainparticularisafocusofat-
fectatleast65ofsome80resi- Individual facilities reported tention, after distrust arose be-
dents.Twenty-fourwoulddie Whensomestaffersquitbecausetheywereconcernedfor staggering case counts. Nurs- tween the committee and the
— more than at any nursing theirsafetyintheoutbreak,nurseGraceEmukahstayed. WestwoodcontinuesonA14 Trumpcampaignoverthedata’s
useinthefinalmonthsofthecam-
TrumpcontinuesonA12
As sea level rises, satellite helps
Texans blowthelidoff Patriots
map the changes along coastline
ByAndreaLeinfelder Josh Willis, lead NASA scientist warmer — it absorbs more than
for the mission that launched 90percentoftheheattrappedby
STAFFWRITER
Saturday. greenhousegases—itsmolecules
Thenextgenerationofsea-lev- The Sentinel-6 Michael Freil- take up more space, and water
elmonitoringsatellitesisnowin ichsatellite,ajointU.S.-Europe- begins encroaching on homes
space, building upon nearly 30 an mission, launched atop a andbusinesses.
yearsofdatathathashelpedre- SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Butthisaccountsforonlyone-
searchersmeasuretheaccelerat- Vandenberg Air Force Base in thirdofthereasonwhywateris
ingrateatwhichtheoceanisris- Californiaat11:17a.m.Saturday.It rising. The other two-thirds
ingandthreateningcoastalcom- is the fifth satellite since1992 to come from melting glaciers and
munities. follow a carefully selected orbit icesheets(glacialicethatcovers
“These satellites measure us, idealformeasuringsealevel. large landmasses, found in Ant- BrettCoomer/Staffphotographer
literally, changing the shape of Morethan2billionpeoplelive arctica and Greenland, is called TheTexansbeatthePatriots27-20SundayatNRGStadium,with
two-thirds of our planet,” said nearthecoast.Astheoceangets SatellitecontinuesonA16 theroofopenforthefirsttimesince2014.CoveragebeginsonC1.
Index
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HARRISCOUNTY AROUNDTHEREGION HARRISCOUNTY
Construction Westchase gets greener Improvements to
worker found road just in time
shot to death for golf tourney
with two planned parks
Aconstructionworker The2020U.S.Women’s
wasfoundshottodeath OpenGolfTournamentis
Saturdaymorningata comingtotheChampions
constructionsitein GolfCoursenextmonth,
northwestHarrisCoun- andwithit,anexpected
ty,officialssaid. increaseintrafficalong
Severalworkersar- ChampionsDrive.
rivedaround7:30a.m. HarrisCountyPrecinct
attheirconstructionsite 4andtheChampions
inthe31700blockof MunicipalUtilityDistrict
HarmonyHeightsLane startedupgradingthe
nearHockleyandfound roadin2018,intendingto
theirco-workerdead, havetheimprovements
saidCapt.JoeAmbrizof completeaheadofthe
theHarrisCountySher- event.Aftertwoyearsof
iff'sOffice.Thevictim work,aribbonwascuton
hadbeenshotmultiple theprojectNov.19,justin
times. timeforthetournament.
Themanwhodied ChampionsDrive,from
wasnotscheduledto FM1960toCypress
workSaturday,hisco- Creek,hasbeenupgraded
workerstoldauthorities. fromasphalttoconcrete
Hewaslastseenaround pavement.Theproject
5:30p.m.Friday,Am- alsoinvolvedlandscaping
brizsaid. anddrainageimprove-
TheHarrisCounty ments.
medicalexaminerhad Theconcretemakes
notyetidentifiedthe WestchaseDistrict theroadmoredurable,
WilcrestParkwillhavea30,000-square-footactivitylawnandaperformancepavilion.
victimbySaturdayafter- whileimproveddrainage
noon. wasinstalledintheform
The district, determined tobe oneof the mostpoorareas interms
of13,335crateswrapped
NORTHTEXAS ofoutdoor spacesinthe city, willsoonaddmoreforresidents infabric.
Sign covered “We’reusingsome-
after official thingthatlookslikeamilk
Houston’s Westchase District ByElliottLapin torLouisJullien.“Notjusttoraise crate,aplasticstructure,”
speaks out willsoonbecomegreener. STAFFWRITER thefundsfortheproject,buttoal- Precinct4Commissioner
WAXAHACHIE—A The4.2-squaremileWestHous- lowtheopportunityforlocalbusi- JackCaglesaid.“Itisthe
BlackofficialinNorth tonDistrict—whichisboundedby willincludea30,000-squarefoot nessestohaveastakeinthegame sameconceptualconvey-
Texasisgettingaprivate Westheimer Road to the north, activity lawn, a performance pa- so to speak, of being able to ancesystemsthatthe
officeafterspeakingout Westpark Tollway to the south, vilion,abotanicalgardenandan proudlyrepresenttheircompany ancientRomansusedso
aboutaleftover“Ne- GessnerRoadtotheeastandWest outdoorreadingroom. andprovidethecommunitywith wellforroadsthatpeople
groes”signlocatednear HoustonCenterBoulevardtothe The cost for Wilcrest Park is somegreatgreenspace.” stilldriveon.”
west — is getting two new parks, $14.7million,ofwhich$11.5million Julliensaidtheplanistoclose
hisformeroffice.
EllisCountyCon- oneinJuly2021andanotherinDe- has been allocated between the theremaining$2.2milliongapby NEWCANEY
stableCurtisPolkJr.,42, cember2022. Houston Parks Department, early summer of 2022, and he is Superintendent
TheTrustforPublicLandranks Westchase District 380 funds confidentthatwillhappen.
istheonlyBlackperson resigns, citing
Westchase District as one of the (from an agreement between Hesaidthedistrictistalkingto
andDemocratservingin
mostpark-poorareasofHouston, WestchaseDistrictandtheCityof some of the larger foundations, personal reasons
anelectedcounty-level
andthecityofHoustonhasmade Houstontofundcity-approvedin- such as the Kinder Foundation,
position.Hesaiditwasa Thesuperintendentof
thedevelopmentofparkstherea frastructureprojects)andagrant the Cullen Foundation, the Wor-
“disgrace”toseethe NewCaneyISDformore
toppriority. from the Texas Parks & Wildlife tham Foundation and the Fon-
signeverydayandalso thanadecaderesigned
Houston officials purchased Department. dren Foundation as well as com-
upsettingthathewas lastweek,citingpersonal
twoparksitesandenteredintoan Westchase launched a “Green panieswithinthedistrict.
theonlyelectedofficial reasons.
agreement with the Westchase SpaceforWestchase”fundraising All of the Westchase District
inthecountywithouta KennFranklin’sresig-
District,whichwillprogram,op- campaigninlate2019toraisethe Board members have given indi-
privateoffice. nationwasacceptedat
erateandmaintaintheparks. remaining $3.2 million for Wil- vidualdonations.
OnTuesday,Ellis theNov.17.boardmeet-
crest Park in coordination with
CountyJudgeToddLittle ing.DeputySuperin-
WoodchasePark thedistrict’scharitablearm—the Fillinganeed
saidthatthesignis tendentMattCalvertwas
The first space, Woodchase Westchase District Community Westchase district is home to
locatednearanareathat namedinterimsuperin-
Park,islocatedona1.7-acreparcel Fund. more than 31,000 residents and
usedtohavetheonly tendent.
of land on Woodchase Drive just Sofar,thecampaignhasraised 55,000 people who commute
waterfountainBlack Accordingtothedis-
northofWestparkTollwayandis around$1millionwiththelargest thereforworkwhocurrentlyhave
peoplewereallowedto trict’swebsite,Franklin
scheduledtoopennextsummer. donations coming from The noaccesstoanareapark.
useinthecourthouse. servedassuperintendent
The land for Woodchase Park Brown Foundation, CenterPoint Thatwillsoonchange.
Nearthesign,aplacard inMarshallISDandMarfa
hasalreadybeencleared,andthe Energy,H-E-BandPhilips66. The565,000residentswholive
explainsthatthesign ISDbeforestartingatNew
concretehasbeenpouredforthe “Thereisagapthatweneeded withinfivemilesofoneofthetwo
waskeptafteritwas Caneyin2009.Hehad
pavilion. tofillforremainingconstruction parks will also benefit from the
uncoveredduringa over25yearsofexperi-
SomeofthefeaturesofWood- costs,anditwasalwaysplanned publicparks,whichwillbeopen
courthouserestoration enceineducation.Frank-
chaseparkincludea7,500-square thatwewouldgooutforsomesort toeveryone.
almosttwodecadesago lin’swebpageonthe
foot activity lawn, a multi-pur- of fundraising campaign,” said
toremindpeopleofthe district’ssitewasremoved
posepavilion,adogpark,acom- WestchaseDistrictProjectsDirec- [email protected]
evilsofsegregation. by12:30p.m.onNov.17.
munity garden and food truck
Littlesaidthecom- “Iappreciatetheconfi-
slots.
missioners’goalswere denceandsupportofthe
It will host activities year-
“nevertooffendCurtis BoardofTrustees,which
round, such as arts and crafts,
orhispeople.”However, isareflectionoftheconfi-
bookclubs,gardeningworkshops
headmittedthattheir denceandsupportour
andmovienights.
officerelocationplans Boardhasforthepeople
ThecostforWoodchaseParkis
“werenotwellthought ofNewCaneyISD,”Cal-
projectedatabout$5million.
out.” vertsaidinanemail.“Itis
Thatsignhasbeen anhonorandprivilegeto
WilcrestPark
coveredupandPolkhas servethisschooldistrict.
The second park, Wilcrest
beengivenanewoffice. Wewillcontinuetostay
Park,islocatedona3.4-acrepar-
“Itwasgoodtowork focusedontheworkof
cel of land at the intersection of
togethertomovefor- ourdistrictand,most
WilcrestDriveandRichmondAv-
ward,”Polksaid.“He importantly,toputour
enueandisscheduledtoopenin
waswillingtomake kidsfirst.”
December2022. WilcrestParkwillbelocatedattheintersectionofWilcrest
thingsright.” Fromstaffandwirereports
The features of WIlcrest Park DriveandRichmondAvenue.
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CITY STATE
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HOUSTONCHRONICLE  MONDAY,NOVEMBER23,2020  PAGE A3 HH
Mowing bill for buyout lots soars
POLITIFACT
Fraud tied
to voting
early not
common
ByBrandonMulder
POLITIFACTTEXAS
Theclaim:“Wedon’tneedto
havethisearlyvoting.Theelec-
tiondayshouldbeanational
holiday,butwhenyouhear
peopletalkabout,wecanex-
tend(theearlyvotingperiodby)
twodays,sevendays,twoweeks
…itjustopensitupforthis
chicaneryandthisfraudthat
we’reseeing.” PhotosbyElizabethConley/Staffphotographer
TexasRepublicanPartyChair- AHarrisCountygroundscrewworkslastweekonpropertyinafloodplainthatthecountyhadpreviouslyboughtout.
manAllenWestmadethisre-
markduringaradioappearance Countymaintains Theflood
inwhichhesuggestedthatearly controldistrict
areaswhereowners
votingshouldbeeliminated. currentlymows
PolitiFactrating:False. soldoverfloodfears 2,562buyout
There’snoevidenceindicating lots,split
thatearlyvotingisanymoreor ByZachDespart between10
lessriskythanElectionDay contractsfor
STAFFWRITER
voting. about$425,000
Adatabaseofdocumented Agroundscrewmowedat4114 annually.The
voterfraudcasesmaintainedby Cypress Grove Lane, careful to district’sturf
theright-leaningHeritageFoun- trimclosetothetreesbythecurb. management
dationshowsthatfraudtiedto They come by monthly from coordinatorsaid
in-personearlyvotingisexceed- AprilthroughNovember. thesefigures
inglyrare.Amongthe1,298 Theprocessmayseemodd,as haveincreased
instancesoffraudrecordedsince noonehaslivedherefor16years. sharplysince
1982,208casesinvolvedabsen- TheHarrisCountyFloodControl voterspasseda
teeballotsandaround10cases District purchased the property $2.5billion
weredirectlytiedtoearlyin- in2004throughoneofitsbuyout floodbond
personvoting. programs and razed the home program.
thatsatonit.
Discussion Much of Arbor Oaks, along
OnthedayafterElectionDay, White Oak Bayou, is well inside Hurricane Harvey three years bond program two years ago, them. Homes inmanyofthe 70
Westjoinedconservativetalk the100-yearfloodplain.Thedis- ago,itslawnmowingbillhasbal- which included $730 million for buyout zones have flooded re-
radiohostRickRobertsonthe trictwantstodigadetentionba- loonedaswell. up to 3,600 buyouts. Through peatedly, trapping homeowners
airtoexpressconcernsaboutJoe sinhere,andhaspurchased269 Thefloodcontroldistrictcur- October,602hadbeencomplet- in a dreary cycle of using insur-
Biden’sleadoverPresidentDon- lotsinthepasttwodecades,buta rently mows 2,562 buyout lots, ed. ancepayoutstorepairproperties
aldTrumpaftermail-inballotsin handfulofholdoutsremain. split between 10 contracts for “Iusedtogetthree,four,five whose market value has plum-
severalbattlegroundstateswere As a courtesy to the few re- about$425,000annually. new lots a month,” Jowell said. meted.
tallied. maining residents, the district Jeff Jowell, the district’s turf “NowI’mgettingupwardsof30.” Thebuyoutprogramsofferto
West’sgrievancesoverabsen- continues to mow buyout lots it management coordinator, said The district reserves buyouts purchase homes at their pre-
teeballotsweresimilartothe has acquired. Since the county these figures have increased forhomesthataresodeepinthe floodmarketvalueandthrowina
claimsmadebysomeRepub- has significantly increased fund- sharplysinceHarrisCountyvot- flood plain no reasonable flood stipend to help residents relo-
licanssinceElectionDay—that ing for buyouts in the wake of ers passed a $2.5 billion flood mitigation project can protect MowingcontinuesonA11
therecordnumbersofmail-in
ballotsledtowidespreadvoter
fraudthatallowedDemocratsto
Human trafficking cases spike in Texas
stealtheelectionfromTrump.
(Noevidencehasyetbeenun-
coveredprovingtheseclaims.)
ButWesttakestheclaimsof ByOliviaP.Tallet TheLoneStarStateisonlysec- ing the hotline activity in three or coerced into prostitution,
fraudfurtherbynotjustcasting ondtoCaliforniawith2,455vic- periods this year to 2019 indi- forced labor, or domestic servi-
STAFFWRITER
aspersionsonmail-invoting.He tims and survivors identified in catesthatcrisishasworsenedby tude.
goesontosay,withoutciting Texas,alreadythehometothe Texas from over 2,000 calls to about 40 percent, and that the “Calls have more to do with
evidence,thatearlyin-person second highest number of sex thehotline,whichnowincludes pandemichasimpactedthevic- people on the ground knowing
votingalsoinvitesfraud. traffickingcases,isseeingasteep textsandothermeansforvictims tims’ vulnerabilities, as well as aboutthehotlineasaresource,”
It’snotthefirsttimeWest increaseincrisiscallsrelatedto to communicate,according to a themannerofsextraffickingop- said Ayan Ahmed, a Polaris
attackedearlyvoting.InSeptem- theillegalactivitybecauseofthe reportreleasedlastweekbythe erationsnationwide. spokesperson. “It’s more about
ber,heandahandfulofRepub- coronavirus pandemic. What’s Polaris Project. The calls led to The number of cases identi- awareness.”
licanofficialssuedGov.Greg more, trafficking activities are the identification of 515 traffick- fiedthroughthehotlineisonlya Because Houston is consid-
Abbottoverhisdecisiontoex- exploding online, as criminals ersand240businessesinvolved fractionoftheprevalenceofhu- eredahubforhumantrafficking,
tendearlyvotingbysixdays adapt to the changing environ- inthisillegaltrade. mantrafficking,whichisdefined the issue has gained significant
amidthecoronaviruspandemic. ment,expertssaid. AnanalysisbyPolariscompar- as an individual being deceived TraffickingcontinuesonA10
WestandtheotherRepub-
licansarguedthatAbbott’smove
defiedtheTexasElectionCode,
whichstatesthat“earlyvoting NATIVETEXAN Q&A
bypersonalappearancebegins
Patrick’s ‘dangerous’ Austin Finalist
onthe17thdaybeforeElection
Dayandcontinuesthroughthe
fourthdaybeforeElectionDay.” wouldn’t scare this early resident for top
Thesuit,whichwasrejected
bythestateSupremeCourt,did
notsuggestthatextendingearly CCISD job
votingwouldopenthevoting AUSTIN—Lt. thesafestbigcitiesinthena-
processtofraud,asWest Gov.DanPat- tion,buttherewasatime
talks ideas
claimedrecently. rick’srecent whenPatrick’swarnings
Claimsthatvotingbymailhas warningthat wouldhaveresonated.Itwas
ledtowidespreadvoterfraud thecapitalof someyearsback.
havealsobeenwidelyscrutiniz- Texasis“oneof One-timeAustinresident ByShelbyWebb
edandrepeatedlydebunked. themostdan- JOE WilliamAlexanderAnderson STAFFWRITER
“Oftheminusculelevelof gerouscitiesin HOLLEY Wallacecomestomind.The
voterfraudcasesthathavebeen Americaand youngVirginianwhowouldbe ClearCreekISD’sboardof
documented,moreareassociat- definitelyin knownformostofhislifeas trusteesvotedunanimouslyNov.
edwithabsentee/votingbymail Texas”worriedmesomuch BigfootventuredintoTexasin 9tonameEricWilliamsasits
thanwithearlyin-personvoting thatIrushedonlinetoprice 1837toavengethedeathofan lonefinalisttoleadthe42,000-
andwithprecinctplacevoting,” oneofthosearmoredvehicles olderbrotherwholosthislife studentschooldistrict.Minutes
saidPaulGronke,aprofessor wealthyMexicanandBrazilian intheGoliadMassacre.After aftertheannouncementwas
andthedirectoroftheEarly residentsbuytoprotectthem- hangingaroundSanAntonio postedonFacebook,avocal
PolitiFactcontinuesonA10 selvesagainstdrug-cartelkid- foracoupleofyears,Wallace groupofparentsfromWilliams’
nappings. madehiswayupthetrailto currentdistrictinLoudoun
IdiscoveredthatIcanpick thebrand-newcapitalofthe County,Va.,beganposting
About PolitiFact oneupfromacompanyinSan CourtesySloanRogers brand-newRepublic.Thereon claimsthatWilliamswouldclose
Antoniothatcombines“be- WilliamA.A.“Bigfoot” thepicturesquebanksofthe CCISDschoolsbecauseofCO-
PolitiFactisafact-checking
spokemanufacturing”and Wallacewasasoldier, Coloradohediscovereda VID-19andimplementso-called
projecttohelpyousortout
“vehicleconversion”tooutfit surveyor,TexasRangerand raggedfrontiersettlementthat “criticalracetheory”intolocal
factfromfictioninpolitics.
myBMW,Audi,JeeporRange mailman. was,inthewordsofbiogra- schools.TheCCISDboardhas
Truth-O-Meterratingsare
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NATION
HOUSTONCHRONICLE  MONDAY,NOVEMBER23,2020  PAGE A4 HH
Army will review thousands of discharges
ByJohnIsmay 2017bytwoArmyveterans Getting help formental health lyreviewsandassessescas- he received a general dis-
from Connecticut, Steve es in a manner that is fair charge, not an honorable
NEWYORKTIMES Ifyouarehavingthoughtsofsuicide,calltheNational
Kennedy, 34, of Fairfield, and equitable to soldiers, one.
SuicidePreventionLifelineat1-800-273-8255(TALK).
TheU.S.Armywouldre- and Alicia Carson, 32, of formersoldiersandtheAr- According to the legal
YoucanfindalistofadditionalresourcesatSpeakingOf-
view the cases of thou- Southington. my.” clinicatYale,theArmyhas
Suicide.com/resources.
sands of former soldiers Their lawsuit alleged “As the U.S. District discharged about 150,000
who were separated from that the Army Discharge Court for the District of soldiers since the Sept. 11,
the service after Oct. 7, Review Board had system- Connecticuthasnotyetap- 2001,attackswithso-called
2001,withless-than-honor- atically failed to follow compel the Army to auto- wanted to keep it to my- proved a settlement, and bad paper discharges like
abledischargesandpoten- guidancesetbythen-Secre- matically review the cases self,” Kennedy said of his Kennedy v. McCarthy re- Kennedy, many of whom
tiallyupgradetheirservice tary of Defense Chuck Ha- ofabout3,500formersol- general discharge. In the mainsinlitigation,”headd- showedsymptomsofmen-
paperworktoread“honor- gelin2014thatrequiredthe diers who have displayed years since being forced ed, “any comment regard- talhealthdisorderslikede-
able,” under a settlement servicetoconsidermental symptoms of, or claimed, outoftheArmy,heearned ing a proposed settlement pressionandpost-traumat-
agreement filed this week health conditions when mental health and behav- a bachelor’s degree and is wouldbepremature.” ic stress or suffered from
in U.S. District Court in veteransrequestthattheir ioral disorders or who ex- nowstudyingforalawde- Messages left with law- traumaticbraininjuriesfol-
Connecticut. dischargestatusbeupgrad- perienced sexual trauma gree at the University of yersrepresentingtheArmy lowing their combat ser-
The agreement, which ed. on active duty and had Connecticut. in the settlement agree- vice.
requires a judge’s approv- Kennedy was granted a their applications for dis- “The board in my case ment on Thursday were When a soldier, sailor,
al, could result in thou- dischargeupgradein2018, charge upgrades rejected directly reconsidered and notimmediatelyreturned. airman, Marine or Coast
sands of veterans gaining after being denied twice bytheArmyDischargeRe- approved my honorable Following a 14-month Guardsman is discharged
access to the full array of before,hesaid.Carsonalso viewBoard. discharge,” Kennedy said. tour as an infantry soldier from the military, the ser-
DepartmentofVeteransAf- had her discharge upgrad- As many as 50,000 to “Themostimportantthing in Iraq, Kennedy said, he vice is characterized as
fairs benefits, which they edtohonorablein2017,af- 100,000 additional former tomeisthateveryoneelse committed aminorinfrac- honorable, general under
were previously not guar- terthelawsuitwasfiled,ac- soldiersmaybeeligiblefor getsthatsamereview.” tion in 2009 and was sent honorableconditions,oth-
anteed because of minor cordingtotheVeteransLe- upgrade reviews as mem- InastatementThursday, toamentalhealthclinicat er-than-honorable, bad
misconduct while in uni- gal Services Clinic at Yale bersoftheclass-actionsuit, Alexander Conyers, depu- Fort Bragg, N.C., where conduct, or dishonorable.
form. University, which repre- accordingtotheYaleclinic. tyassistantsecretaryofthe doctors found he had de- Only the first, honorable,
The agreement, which sentstheplaintiffstogether “Ithinkformeandalot Army,said,“TheArmyRe- pression and recommend- guarantees the new veter-
wasfiledTuesday,wasare- with the firm of Jenner & ofpeopletherewasalotof viewBoardsAgency,which edhimforseparation,say- an access to the Depart-
sultofaclass-actionlawsuit Block. shame associated with it, actsonbehalfofthesecre- ingtheycouldnotprovide ment of Veterans Affairs’
filed against the service in The agreement would and it was something I taryoftheArmy,impartial- adequatecare.Asaresult, fullarrayofbenefits.
Police Biden to select
arrest
longtime aide as
teen in
secretary of state
Wis. mall
shooting ByTylerPager,
JenniferEpstein
andSalehaMohsin
BLOOMBERGNEWS
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
WASHINGTON — Presi-
WAUWATOSA,Wis.— dent-elect Joe Biden in-
A15-year-oldboywasar- tendstonamehislongtime
restedinconnection to ChrisMachian/AssociatedPress adviser Antony Blinken as
a shooting at a subur- Alawenforcementofficerdustsforfingerprints,wheretwopeoplewere secretary of state, accord-
ban Milwaukee mall killedandtwoothershurtinashootingataSonicrestaurantinNebraska. ingtothreepeoplefamiliar TribuneNewsServicefilephoto
that injured eight peo- withthematter,settingout AntonyBlinkenissaid
Man, 23, arrested in attack
ple, authorities said to assemble his Cabinet tobeBiden’spickasthe
Sunday. evenbeforeDonaldTrump nation’stopdiplomat.
Wauwatosa Police that killed 2 at Neb. eatery concedesdefeat.
Chief Barry Weber said In addition, Jake Sulli- ersacrosstheglobe.
the shooting happened van,formerlyoneofHillary The president’s national
duringadisputeFriday Clinton’s closest aides, is security adviser is one of
afternoonbetweentwo ASSOCIATEDPRESS inskesaidBellevuepolice after Silva was arrested likely to be named Biden’s the most important and
groups. He said four receivedacallat9:23p.m. outside of the restaurant national security adviser, powerfuljobsintheWhite
“innocent bystanders” BELLEVUE,Neb.—Au- Saturdayaboutapossible after allegedly using accordingtotwopeoplefa- House, leading a staff of
suffered injuries that thorities arrested a 23- bomb in a U-Haul truck someoneelse’sSonicapp miliar with the matter. An dozens of experts drawn
werebelievedtonotbe year-oldmaninanattack parkedoutsideoftheres- account to buy a total of announcementisexpected fromthegovernment’smil-
life-threatening. Inves- ataNebraskafastfoodres- taurantintheOmahasub- $57 worth of hamburgers Tuesday,thepeoplesaid. itary,diplomaticandintelli-
tigatorssaidthesuspect taurantinwhichtwopeo- urb. A minute later, the andcorndogsinfoursep- Biden’s incoming White gence agencies who devel-
ran out of the mall ple were shot and killed, callwasupdatedtoapos- aratepurchasesatthatlo- House chief of staff Ron opU.S.foreignandmilitary
alongside other other twowerewoundedandof- sibleshooting,hesaid. cation, the World-Herald KlainsaidSundaythepresi- policy.
people. ficers responding to a re- Officers who arrived reported. Silva was re- dent-elect would be mak- BlinkenandSullivandid
“We do know there portofapossiblebombin- found the moving truck leasedfromjailonThurs- ing his initial Cabinet an- notimmediatelyrespondto
was some sort of alter- sideamovingtruckinthe burning and four people day after posting 10 per- nouncements on Tuesday, requestsforcomment.ABi-
cation,andthat’swhen parkinglotarrivedtofind who had been shot. Two cent of his $1,500 bail. At but he declined to specify denspokesmandeclinedto
the bullets started fly- thevehicleonfire. weresenttotheUniversi- thetimeofthatarrest,po- which positions would be comment.
ing,”Webersaidduring RobertoCarlosSilvaJr., ty of Nebraska Medical lice seized three firearms filled first. The people fa- Blinkenhasbeenregard-
apressconferenceSun- ofOmaha,wasbookedin- Center for treatment and from Silva, Jashinske said miliar with Biden’s selec- edasoneoftheleadingcan-
day. toSarpyCountyjailearly the other two were de- Sunday. tionsaskednottobeidenti- didatestoruntheStateDe-
Thenameofthesus- Sunday on suspicion of clared dead at the scene, SonicDrive-In,whichis fied because he hasn’t yet partment. After serving as
pect has not been re- first-degree murder and Jashinske said. The vic- based in Oklahoma City, madetheannouncements. thevicepresident’snation-
leased, and authorities first-degreearsoninSatur- tims’ names were with- issuedastatementSunday BothSullivan,whois43, al security adviser, he was
didn’t announce daynight’sattackataSon- heldsothattheirfamilies saying the company was and Blinken, 58, served elevated to deputy secre-
chargesSunday.Investi- ic Drive-In restaurant in couldbetoldfirst. “stunned and saddened stintsasBiden’snationalse- tary of state under Presi-
gatorssaytheyhavere- Bellevue, the Omaha The Omaha Police De- by what occurred at the curityadviserwhenhewas dentBarackObama.
coveredafirearm. World-Herald reported. partment’s bomb squad Bellevue,Nebraska,Sonic vicepresident. WhenBidenwasasena-
The mall was closed Silvawasbeingheldwith- wasatthesceneearlySun- Saturdaynight.Ourheart- The secretary of state is tor, Blinken served as his
Saturday,andinvestiga- out bond Sunday before daytocheckona“device,” feltcondolencesgooutto regardedasoneofthemost staffdirectorontheSenate
torswereonsceneover- makinghisinitialcourtap- as a precaution to make the franchise owner and prestigious Cabinet posts, Foreign Relations Commit-
night. Shoppers were pearance. sure the area was safe, the families and friends serving as the nation’s top tee before leaving to work
allowed back on Sun- In a news release early Jashinskesaid. impacted by this horrific diplomat and conducting on Biden’s 2008 presiden-
day,policesaid. Sunday, Lt. Andy Jash- The attack came days tragedy.” meetingswithforeignlead- tialcampaign.
BRIEFS NORTHCAROLINA study.
Scientists study cause Trumpandmilitaryofficials
EDUCATION of whale calf’s death havearguedthatbarringtrans-
U.S. Rhodes Scholars genderpeoplefromserving
CAPELOOKOUT,N.C.—The wouldimprovereadinessand
designated virtually
NationalParkServicesaysscien- strengthenunitcohesion.Buta
TheU.S.RhodesScholarsfor tistsaretryingtodiscoverthe studypublishedbythePalm
2021wereelectedvirtuallythis causeofdeathofawhalecalf Center,aresearchinstitutethat
yearforthefirsttimeasthecoro- belongingto“oneoftherarest studiesLGBTQpersonnelissues
naviruspandemicsweptacross marinemammals”onEarthafter inthemilitary,saidtheopposite
theglobe,thoughthatdidn’t itwasfoundstrandedonabeach hasoccurred.
extinguishenthusiasmamongthe onNorthCarolina’sOuterBanks. Pentagonofficialsdidnot
32studentswhowonscholar- Rightwhalesarecritically provideacommentonFriday
shipstoOxfordUniversity. endangered.Theparkservice afterreceivingacopyofthe
TheRhodesTrustannounced saysonlyabout360oftheani- MaryAltaffer/AssociatedPress study,whichwasobtainedbythe
thewinnersearlySunday,which malsarestillaliveandaboutfive PresidentDonaldTrumpfiledanappealafterajudgeissueda WashingtonPostaheadofits
include22studentsofcolor.Ten orsixcalvesareborneachyear. scathingorderrejectingclaimsoffraudwithmail-inballots. releasethisweek.
areBlack,whichtiestherecord
forthemostBlackstudentselect- ATLANTICOCEAN anortheastwarddirection. ularitieswithmail-inballots.The VIRGINIA
edinasingleyear. Tropical disturbance Trumpcampaignhasalsore- Man seen exhaling on
may grow into storm PENNSYLVANIA questedarecountofvotesinthe women faces charges
FLORIDA Trump appeals ruling Georgiapresidentialrace.
Fatal shooting of teens Withajustalittlemorethana in certification fight STERLING,Va.—Amanseen
by deputy is probed weekleftinhurricaneseason,the U.S. forcefullyexhalingontwowom-
NationalHurricaneCenteris HARRISBURG,Pa.—President Study: Trans ban hurt enoutsidePresidentDonald
TheFloridaDepartmentof onceagainmonitoringanareaof DonaldTrumpisappealinga military’s readiness Trump’sVirginiagolfcoursehas
LawEnforcementisinvestigating lowpressurethathasresurfaced federaljudge’sdismissalofhis beenchargedwithassault.
thefatalNov.13shootingoftwo intheAtlanticbasin. campaign’sefforttoblockthe PresidentDonaldTrump’s RaymondDeskins,61,was
Blackteenagerswhowereina Thedisturbance,locatedtothe certificationofvotesinPenn- orderbanningmanytransgender chargedwithmisdemeanoras-
movingcarduringanencounter northeastoftheCaribbeanon sylvania. peoplefromservinghaseroded saultafteraprivatecitizenob-
withlawenforcement.Theteen- Sunday,hasa20percentchance Thepresidentandotherplain- themilitary’sabilitytofightand tainedawarrantthroughacoun-
agers,AngeloCrooms,16,and ofdevelopinginthenextfive tiffsfilednoticeofappealtothe winwarsbynarrowingitsrecruit- tymagistrate,theLoudounCoun-
SincerePierce,18,bothofCocoa, days,likelysomewherebetween 3rdU.S.CircuitCourtofAppeals ingpoolandloweringmorale tySheriff’sOfficesaidSunday.
Fla.,wereshotbyaFloridasher- theBahamasandBermuda,ac- onSunday,adayafterthejudge amongtransgendertroopsex- Deskindidnotimmediatelyre-
iff’sdeputy,saidJessicaCary,a cordingtotheNationalHurricane issuedascathingordershooting emptfromthepolicy,formertop turnarequestforcomment.
departmentspokesperson. Center.Itisexpectedtomovein downclaimsofwidespreadirreg- militaryphysicianssaidinanew Fromwirereports
HH HoustonChronicle|HoustonChronicle.com | Monday,November23,2020 | A5
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WORLD
HOUSTONCHRONICLE  MONDAY,NOVEMBER23,2020  PAGE A6 HH
G-20 summit ends, backs vaccines for all
ByAyaBatrawy plunged millions into ex- to ensure their affordable gent appeal by U.N. Secre- Europe secures vaccines, mit, which was originally
tremepoverty. andequitableaccessforall tary-General Antonio Gu- as the European Union is intendedtobeheldin-per-
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
The virus “revealed vul- people, consistent with terres,whosaid$28billion doingnow,but…thatitis son in Riyadh before the
DUBAI, United Arab nerabilities in our pre- members’commitmentsto in additional investment is important for the entire pandemic.DuringtheSau-
Emirates — Leaders of the paredness and response incentivizeinnovation,”the needed for mass manufac- world” to have access to diking’sspeech,smallvid-
world’s most powerful na- andunderscoredourcom- statementsaid. turing, procurement and vaccines. eo squares showed the
tions wrapped up the mon challenges,” the G-20 TheG-20expressedsup- delivery of new COVID-19 Saudi Arabia’s King Sal- leaders of Germany,
Group of 20 summit on saidinafinalstatementthat portforeffortslikeCOVAX, vaccinesaroundtheworld, manroundedoutthesum- France, the U.K., Canada,
Sunday,vowingtospareno focusedheavilyonbattling aninternationalinitiativeto including $4 billion imme- mit,sayingtheG-20’sfinal South Korea, China, India
effort to protect lives and thecoronavirus,enhancing distribute COVID-19 vac- diately. statement “succeeded in and South Africa watching
ensureaffordableaccessto environmental protections cines to countries world- There is also concern sending out a message of the final remarks. Trump
COVID-19 vaccines for all and supporting the global wide. The U.S., however, thatcountriessuchasBrit- hope and reassurance to participatedinthesummit
people. economy. has declined to join under ain, the U.S., France and ourcitizensandallpeople with prerecorded speech-
The two-day summit of The group vowed “to PresidentDonaldTrump. Germany have directly ne- aroundtheworld.” es, but was not in atten-
headsofstatewasheldvir- spare no effort to protect German Chancellor An- gotiated deals with phar- “This is what the world dance for the virtual sum-
tually due to the coronavi- lives.” gela Merkel told reporters maceutical companies, has been expecting from mit’sconclusion.
rus pandemic, which has The G-20, which in- Sunday in Berlin after the meaning that the vast ma- us.Thisachievementtoday It appeared all G-20
killed at least 1.38 million cludestheU.S.,India,Chi- virtualsummitthatGerma- jorityoftheworld’svaccine isaculminationofourjoint countriesagreedtothefull
people globally, with the na, the U.K., France, Ger- nyhadgivenfinancialsup- supplynextyearisalready efforts throughout this content of the final state-
world’s highest death tolls many,Japanandothers,al- port to the COVAX initia- reserved. challenge-fraughtyear,”the ment,withtheexceptionof
recorded in seven of the sostressedtheimportance tive, but that more money “Fortunately, there’s Saudimonarchsaid. Turkey, which was due to
G-20 countries. The virus ofglobalaccesstoCOVID-19 wasneeded. now hope for vaccines,” Saudi Arabia presided giveapressconferencelat-
haswipedouthundredsof vaccines,drugsandtests. The G-20 statement did Merkelsaid,addingthat“it overtheG-20thisyearand er Sunday explaining fur-
millionsofjobsgloballyand “We will spare no effort not directly address an ur- is important that not only washostofthevirtualsum- ther.
Lebanon Probe
military of subs
courts
roils
trying
Israeli
civilians
accord
By Amir-Hussein
Radjy ASSOCIATEDPRESS
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
JERUSALEM—Israel’sde-
BEIRUT — A year after fenseministeronSundayap-
mass protests roiled Leba- pointed a committee to in-
non, dozens of protesters vestigate the government’s
are being tried before mili- controversial purchase of
tary courts, proceedings Germansubmarinesseveral
that human rights lawyers years ago — a step that fur-
saygrosslyviolateduepro- ther strained his already
cessandfailtoinvestigateal- poor relationship with
legations of torture and Prime Minister Benjamin
abuse.Defendantstriedbe- Netanyahu.
forethemilitarytribunalsay The$2billionpurchaseof
thesystemisusedtointimi- the submarines and war-
JohanOrdonez/AFPviaGettyImages
dateprotestersandpropup ships made by Thyssenk-
Lebanon’ssectarianrulers. UnrestinGuatemala ruppisthefocusofasweep-
Around90civilianshave ing corruption scandal in
beenreferredtothemilitary Anicecreamseller, which seven businessmen,
justicesystemsofar,accord- above,passesinfrontof including confidants of Ne-
ing to Legal Agenda, a hu- theCongressonSunday, tanyahu, have been named
man rights group based in adayafteritwas assuspects.
Beirut. partiallyburnedduring Netanyahu,whoisontrial
“We expect many more aprotestdemandingthe forhisinvolvementinthree
people to be prosecuted,” resignationof othercorruptionscandals,is
saidGhidaFrangieh,alaw- GuatemalanPresident notasuspectinthesubma-
yerwiththegroup. AlejandroGiammattei, rinecase.Butcritics,includ-
Thetrialsunderscorethe inGuatemalaCity.The ing his defense minister at
growingperilsofactivismin passageofabudgethas thetimeofthepurchasein
Lebanon,whereastringof sparkedoutrageinthe 2015, have said Netanyahu
court cases and judicial in- impoverishedCentral behaved improperly and
vestigationsagainstjournal- Americannation.Police mayhavehadaconflictofin-
ists and critics has eroded onSaturdayarrested terest.
thecountry’sreputationfor morethan20people, Defense Minister Benny
freespeechandtolerancein andalmost50weresent Gantz, who is Netanyahu’s
a largely autocratic Arab tothehospitalinjured, maincoalitionpartner,said
world. oneoftheminaserious he had decided to appoint
Justice Minister Marie- condition.Protests, thecommitteeafterweeksof
Claude Najm did not re- right,continuedSunday. consultationswithlegaland
spondtoarequestforcom- defenseofficials.Hesaidthe
ment. Lebanese officials committee,tobeheadedby
typicallydonotaddressthe a retired judge, would re-
Pandemic threatens total eclipse watch
questionofwhyciviliancas- leaseitsfindingswithinfour
esarebeingtriedinthemil- months.
itarycourtsystem.Security Gantz and Netanyahu
forces have denied beating ByMatthewCappucci gree band of amber sur- preparing for leading up choff, a professor of as- formedapower-sharingdeal
andtorturingprotestersand rounds you on the hori- to a Dec. 14 total solar tronomy at Williams Col- in May after battling to a
WASHINGTONPOST
activistsindetention. zon, while occasional eclipse that will track lege, say this year’s deadlock in three consecu-
Frangiehsaidthatsecuri- Imagine standing be- green meteors streak across Chile and Argenti- eclipse is far from a rou- tiveelections.Buttheirgov-
ty forces arrested around tween active volcanoes, throughthetwilight.The na. tine venture for those ernment has been plagued
1,200peoplefromthebegin- lookingupwardinaweas breezeflatlinesascrickets But virtually none will evenabletogo. byinfightingandparalysis.
ningoftheanti-government a perfect circle of black chirpinthesuddennight- beabletogo,thankstothe “Thisyearistheworst,” Iftherivalscannotreacha
uprising in October 2019 hangsintheskyabove.It’s fall. ongoingcoronaviruspan- saidPasachoff. budgetdealbyDec.23,the
through the end of June. surroundedbywispyten- Ifitsoundslikeanoth- demic. Both countries Astateofemergencyin countrycouldbeforcedinto
Lebanese authorities have drils of light fanning out- erworldly experience, havesealedtheirborders Chile exists until at least another election next
prosecuted around 200 of ward like luminous hair, that’sbecauseit’ssureto tointernationaltourism. Dec. 11, and Americans spring,rightaroundthetime
them, including those re- pinprick stars freckling be.Andit’sonethatthou- Even veteran eclipse aren’t permitted to enter the investigative committee
ferred to the military judi- the azure sky. A 360 de- sands have eagerly been chasers, like Jay Pasa- untilfurthernotice. issettoreleaseitsfindings.
ciary,themonitoringgroup
hasfound.
“Military courts have no BRIEFS indeedcarriedlivebul- thismonth,NewtonAh-
business trying civilians,” lets. medBarry,presidentof
said Aya Majzoub, a re- NIGERIA theNationalIndependent
searcherwithHumanRights Army admits BURKINAFASO ElectoralCommission,
Watch. The international Militant attacks toldanewsconference
soldiers had live
rights group has called on prevent voting Sunday.
bullets at protest
Lebanon’s parliament to
in many towns
end the troubling practice LAGOS,Nigeria—The TAIWAN
bypassingalawtoentirely NigerianArmyhasad- OUAGADOUGOU,Bur- Thousands
remove civilians from the mittedforthefirsttime kinaFaso—Fearsofat- protest lifting
militarycourt’sjurisdiction. thatsoldiersweregiven tacksbyextremistspre-
ban on U.S. pork
Lawyers, rights activists livebulletswhenthey ventedvotinginmany
anddefendantsdescribethe wenttodispersealarge partsofBurkinaFasoon TAIPEI,Taiwan—
military tribunals’ prosecu- crowdattheLekkiToll Sunday,asthecountry Thousandsofpeople
tionofprotestersandother PlazainLagos,whereat wenttothepollsfor marchedinTaipei’s ChiangYing-ying/AssociatedPress
civiliansasanothernodein least10peopleprotesting presidentialandleg- streetsonSundayde- PeoplewaveimagesofTaiwanesePresidentTsai
thewebofLebanon’ssectar- policebrutalitywere islativeelectionsmarred mandingthereversalofa Ing-wenataprotestSundayonU.S.porkimports.
iansystemthatprotectsthe killed. byongoingviolence decisiontoallowU.S.
power of its top politicians ThedeadlyOct.20 linkedtoal-Qaidaandthe porkimportsintoTai- moveseenasoneofthe ractopamine,adrug
ratherthanthecitizens. shootingsdrewinterna- IslamicStategroup. wan,allegingfoodsafety firststepstowardpos- addedintoanimalfeed
Manyofthejudgesatthe tionaloutrage.Brig.Gen. Sometownsweren’t issues. siblynegotiatingabilater- thatpromotesthegrowth
military tribunal are ap- AhmedTaiwo,Com- abletoconductvotingat PresidentTsaiIng- altradeagreementwith ofleanmeatthatsome
pointedbythedefensemin- manderofthe81Military all,includingBartiebou- wen’sadministration theU.S.Thebanisdueto farmersuseinpigs.The
istry,whichunderminesthe IntelligenceBrigade,told gouandTinAkoff,where liftedalong-standingban beliftedinJanuary. drugisbannedbythe
tribunal’s judicial indepen- ajudicialcommittee 14soldierswerekilledin onU.S.porkandbeef Thenewpolicyallows EuropeanUnion,butis
dence, according to rights Saturdaythatthesoldiers anambushbyISISearlier importsinAugust,ina importsofporkwith legalintheUnitedStates.
activists. acceptableresiduesof Fromwirereports
HH HoustonChronicle|HoustonChronicle.com | Monday,November23,2020 | A7
CORONAVIRUS
HOUSTONCHRONICLE  MONDAY,NOVEMBER23,2020  PAGE A8 HH
Inequality seen in access, cost of fast tests
ByChristineFernando “IfI’manhourlyworker,Ican’t lation.
andCarolynThompson takeoffsixhoursjustsoIcangeta Rapid testing may help with
testsoIcangobacktowork,”said mitigation,shesaid.
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
Shrime, who needed a test to “Peoplewhoaregettingtested
The day after Amanda Serul- avoid a 14-day quarantine after lesstendtobethesamewhoare
neck found out she might have traveling from Boston. “Another disadvantaged,”shesaid.“Idon’t
been exposed to COVID-19, she option was another place 10 reallyseehowanexpensivetest-
visited a rapid testing center in blocks away from me where I ing option helps a testing infra-
NewJerseybutwasturnedaway couldpay250buckstogetarapid structurethatisthinandunder-
becauseitranoutoftests. test,sothestructurethatweset resourced.”
Shereturnedat7a.m.thenext upforpeopletobeabletokeep Thesiteshaven’thadadiscern-
day.Afterwaitingforanhour,of- themselves safe from COVID ible effect in New York City,
ficialssaidtheyhadrunoutagain. bakedintothosestructuresisan thankstoaggressivetestingstrat-
Onherthirdtry,Serulneckanda inequity.” egiesbyGov.AndrewCuomoand
friend called several testing cen- Serulneck says it’s been frus- MayorBillDeBlasio,saidMaxine
tersbeforedrivingforanhourto tratingtowatchpeopledorapid Golub, spokesperson for the In-
onewithavailability. testssotheycangotopartiesor stitute for Family Health, which
Lines for free COVID-19 tests travelfortheholidays. servesunderservedcommunities
stretchforblocksandhoursincit- “Somepeoplewhoneedrapid JasonAndrews/NewYorkTimes in the New York metropolitan
ies where people feel the dual testing to work can’t afford it,” PeoplewaitinlinetoreceiveaCOVID-19testThursdayin area.
strain of the coronavirus surge shesaid.“It’snotfair.Themajor- Washington,D.C.Linesforfreetestsforthecoronaviruscan The institute partners with
and the approaching holidays. ityofpeopleareinmyposition.“ stretchforblocksandhoursinU.S.cities. governmenttosetupregulartest-
Butanincreasingnumberofpop- Asnumbersofinfectionscases ingsitesinareasofneed,suchas
upclinicspromisevisitorsinstant climbintheU.S.andthecountry en at Esperanza — the Spanish partmentofPublicHealth. HarlemorpartsoftheBronx,Go-
results — at a cost. Some charge faceswhathealthexpertssaywill wordfor“Hope”—fromupto150 Officialsalreadystruggletoin- lubsaid.
$150ormoreforaspotatthefront be a dark winter because of the inthesummerto400now. terpretreamsofdatafromdiffer- But many people don’t have
oftheline. uncontrolledspreadofthevirus, “I’mlessworriedaboutpreda- entteststhatcanproducediffer- thoseoptions.
While her friend, who lacked thedemand fortestingbecomes torypricingthanIamconcerned entresults,saidGerardin,anas- KorriWilliams,apublicschool
insurance,hadtopay$125forthe greater. The U.S. has had more aboutaccess,”Fulwilersaid.“Our sistantprofessoratNorthwestern teacher in Virginia, is mulling
test, Serulneck’s price was only than 12 million reported cases clientswillwalkamiletogetatest University’s Feinberg School of whethertogetarapidtesttogive
$35. She said the real cost came and more than 255,000 deaths forfreeratherthanpay$15here. Medicine. New sites may not re- herpeaceofmindtovisither78-
fromthetwodaysshehadtotake from the coronavirus since the A $150 test won’t be an option, portethnicity,outbreaksandin- year-oldmotherafterfindingout
offfromwork. startofthepandemic. and even at $30, they’ll think comelevelsnecessarytomonitor thatco-workerstestedpositive.
“People are just trying to get Dan Fulwiler, president and hardaboutit.” a pandemic that already dispro- There are limited options for
by, and they can’t be taking off CEOofEsperanzaHealthCenters It’snotjustthecostandaccess portionately affects Hispanics rapidtestinginherWilliamsburg
work for a week to wait for re- inChicago,saidcostlyrapidtest- that are raising questions about andAfricanAmericans,shesaid. area,andwithoutsymptoms,she
sults,”saidSerulneck,whoworks ing centers won’t help the com- rapidtests. Gerardin says there are three worriesatestwon’tbecoveredby
ataspa.“Peopleneedrapidtest- munities that his nonprofit Rapidtestingsitescouldcreate goalsoftesting:Individualswant herinsurance.
ing to be available and afford- serves. About 70 percent of the “alotofheadachesforthoseofus toknowifthey’reinfected;health “All of it comes down to eco-
able.” center’sclientsliveinpoverty,ac- whoaretryingtounderstandsur- andgovernmentofficialswantto nomicsinthepocketbookatthe
Dr.MarkShrimesaidhiswork cordingtohisestimate. veillancedata,”saidJalineGerar- understandtrendsandmakepol- endoftheday,”shesaid.“It’snot
gavehimtheflexibilitytowaitin Fulwiler laments the lack of a din,anepidemiologistandinfec- icy decisions based on those thatIcan’tpurchasethetest.But
line six hours for a test in New nationaltestingstrategythat’sled tiousdiseasemonitorwhohelps trends;andtestresultsprovidea you know, sometimes you don’t
YorkCityrecently,butheknows to the proliferation of pop-up compileweeklyforecastsofpan- waytomeasuremitigationefforts havethatextra$100togooutand
noteveryonecandothesame. clinics.Dailydemandalsohasris- demic trends for the Illinois De- suchasquarantinesandself-iso- getarapidtest.”
Ancient Madrid market reopens amid debate over virus
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
MADRID—Madrid’sancientand
emblematicRastrofleamarketre-
openedSundayafteracontentious
eight-month closure because of
the COVID-19 pandemic that has
wallopedtheSpanishcapital.
WithmanymajorEuropeanflea
markets still shut down, the Ras-
tro’s return seems to be another
example of Madrid’s bid to show
that heavy coronavirus restric-
tions may not be necessary even
amongthelatestsurgeofthevirus
andsomesortofnormalitycanre-
sumewithprecautions.
Thatstancehasbeenbothcrit-
icizedandlauded.
Afterlengthynegotiations,city
authorities agreed the Rastro
couldopenat50percentcapacity,
withhalfits1,000stallsalternating
each Sunday for a maximum
crowdof2,700people.
Policewithbackupdronesmon-
itored the market to avoid over-
crowding.
Dating back to the 1700s, the
Rastrosellstheusualfleamarket
mixofantiques,clothes,furniture,
bric-a-bracandcuriosinstallsthat
snakedownthroughawarren-like
district next to Madrid’s majestic
PlazaMayorsquare.
Longatraditionalmeetingand PaulWhite/AssociatedPress
drinking place, the bustling Sun- MadridauthoritiesagreedtheRastromarketcouldopenat50percentcapacity,withhalfits1,000stallsalternatingeachSunday.
day morning market used to at-
tractthousandsoftouristsandres- Diaz Ayuso insists draconian aredown,Madrid’s15,000public
identsalike.Ifyouarrivedafter11 measuresaren’ttheanswerandin- health workers “are saturated.”
a.m., it was almost impossible to steadoptsforlighter,morelocal- About1,500areonCOVID-19sick
move. ized limitations, leaving bars and leave and normality in hospitals
Eventhoughnotpacked—with restaurants open for most of the “isalongwayaway,”hesays.
one-way pedestrian flows to pre- dayandcinemasandtheaterstoo, Manyhealthworkersarepartic-
ventgrouping—theRastro’sreap- albeitwithreducedcapacity,com- ularlyfuriousoverDiazAyuso’sde-
pearanceislikelytobewelcomed, pulsorymasksandsocialdistanc- cision to pour an estimated $59
another example of Madrid’s bid ing. millionintoa1,000-bedhospitalto
tokeepthingsgoing. Althoughnooneknowsforsure help deal with coronavirus, in-
“Hereweare,weareinanopen whysomeregions’figuresgoupor steadofshoring upasystemrun
space,”saidSaraGarcia,a44-year- down,healthdatathesedaysap- downbyspendingcuts.
old owner of a jewelry stall. “We pear to back Diaz Ayuso, leading TheNurseIsabelZendalemer-
fullycomplywithalltherulesthey some German newspapers last gency hospital, built in less than
toldustofollow.Wehavemorese- weektotalkofthe“Madridmira- six months, is supposed to open
curitythanindoorplaces,soitis cle.” shortly,butit’sstillnotclearwho
thebestplace,soIsaytoeveryone The region’s 14-day infection willstaffit.
VisitorsentertheRastrofleamarketinMadrid,Spain,asit
tocometotheRastrobecauseitisa rateisbelow300per100,000in- Diaz Ayuso hopes personnel
reopenedonSundayafterbeingclosedforeightmonths.
safeplace.” habitants—highstillbutbelowna- fromotherhospitalswillcomevol-
Backatthestartofthepandem- tionalandEuropeanaveragesand er, time-consuming but more ac- creeing the closure of dozens of untarily,buthasn’texplainedwhat
ic,Madrid’shospitalsandmorgues way down from the 500-plus fig- curatelabtests. companies,” adding that Madrid the already strained centers they
weresaturated.ThateasedinMay, ures Madrid was posting just Evenifthatwouldslightlyskew was currently producing one in comefromwilldowithfewerstaff.
but a second wave this summer weeksago. theinfectiondata,thestraight-for- threenewjobs. “Ithinkwearetheonlyonesin
puttheregionbackinthespotlight Someexpertsexplainthedrop wardratesofhospitalizationhave Butsomehealthworkersareun- the world to have done such a
asinfectionssoared. by the fear factor that has made alsobeengoingdownward. convinced. thing,andthatsaysitall,”Garcia
Nevertheless, conservative re- Madrid residents more cautious COVID-19 patients occupy “Speakinglikethatisnotappro- Ramossaid.
gionalPresidentIsabelDiazAyuso amid increasing media scrutiny, around14percentand32percent priatewhenwehavebetween20 “Itwouldhavebeenmoreuse-
hasconsistentlycriticizedtheleft- butalsobecauseregionalauthori- ofhospitalandintensivecareunit and30COVIDdeathsadayinMa- fultofitoutthoseareas,improve
istnationalgovernment’sattempts tieshavebeenfavoringrapidanti- beds, respectively, better than drid,” said Jesus Garcia Ramos, the infrastructures we already
to curb the virus, constantly ob- gen tests that are cheaper but manySpanishregions. spokesman for the Satse nurses’ have and reinforce them with
jecting to preventative measures mostly detect symptomatic cases DiazAyusosayssheis“proudto unioninMadrid. nursesandotherhealthworkers,”
beingappliedintherestofSpain. whileconductinglessoftheprici- beimprovingtherateswithoutde- Garciasaysthatwhilenumbers hesaid.
Coronavirusataglance
58,542,174 12,224,322 1,126,008 1,386,454 256,741 20,673
Statenumbers
asofFridaynight.
Source:
Confirmed Confirmed Confirmed Deaths Deaths Deaths WHO,CDC,
casesworldwide casesinU.S. casesinTexas worldwide inU.S. inTexas JohnsHopkinsUniversity
HH HoustonChronicle|HoustonChronicle.com | Monday,November23,2020 | A9
CORONAVIRUS
Rules about masks for officers vary widely
BRIEFS
VACCINES
Official: Change ByMargaretStafford ago, disciplinary proceed-
ings have begun against
at top won’t affect ASSOCIATEDPRESS
oneofficerfornotwearing
vaccine program
LIBERTY, Mo. — Al- a mask, and other investi-
Effortstospeedilyde- though authorities have gationsareunderway,city
velopanddistributea been encouraging people spokesman Howard Lud-
coronavirusvaccineinthe to wear masks to slow the wigsaid.
U.S.won’tbederailedby spreadofthecoronavirus, The refusal to wear
achangeinadministra- many police departments masksalsoisasymptomof
tion,saidtheheadof leaveituptoofficerstode- low morale among police
OperationWarpSpeed, cidewhethertocovertheir officerswhohavebeenre-
thefederalgovernment’s faces while interacting peatedlyattackedandvili-
programaimedatacceler- withthepublic. fied, particularly since ra-
atingCOVID-19vaccina- Some cities, including cial injustice protests
tions. Chicago, Los Angeles and erupted following the
“Alldecisionsaremade, New York, require police death of George Floyd in
thetrainisrunning. towearmasksinmostsitu- Minneapolis in May, said
Whetheroneadministra- ations, but law enforce- Eugene O’Donnell, a for-
tionortheotherdoesn’t, ment officers elsewhere mer New York City police
frankly,makeadiffer- areexemptfromsuchpro- officer and a professor at
ence,”MoncefSlaouisaid tocols. the John Jay College of
onNBC’s“Meetthe InKansasCity,Mo.,two CriminalJustice.
Press.” speakersataPoliceBoard “You can’t ignore that
Theoperation“has ofCommissionersmeeting CharlieRiedel/AssociatedPress the culture war is central
KansasCity,Mo.,PoliceChiefRickSmithandotherofficersdon’twearmasksas
beenisolatedfromthe earlier this month criti- to this,” O’Donnell said.
theylistentoademonstratorduringaJune3protestagainstpolicebrutality.
administration,fromthe cizedofficersforroutinely “The government has
politicalenvironment, notwearingmasksinpub- kicked the stuffing out of
andthepoliticalcontext,” lic,sayingtheyevenhadto In Minnesota, residents lastthingyouaregoingto why,” Harris said. “If police and used the issue
saidSlaoui,aformerhead handoutmaskstosomeat arerequiredtowearmasks think about is putting a there’s not a reason they as political mechanics.
ofGlaxoSmithKline’s thatevent. in indoor businesses or maskon,”Mortensensaid. can’t and shouldn’t wear Theyhavehadnoconcern
vaccinesoperation. At the time, the city ex- public spaces, and people Other police union offi- masks, why not wear about the lives of officers,
empted essential workers workingoutsidemustwear cialseitherdeclinedtodis- them?” and they are seen as pre-
HOLIDAYS suchaspoliceofficersand them when social distanc- cusstheissueorsaidlocal MayorsinNewYorkand tending to have concern
Strict limits set first responders from ingisnotpossible. policedepartmentsshould Chicago have said officers withthemaskissue.…It’s
wearing masks, while re- But police and other take the lead on masking will be disciplined for not notarealgoodtimetoask
on Christmas
quiringeveryoneelsetodo firstrespondershavebeen decisions. Mik Shanks, complyingwithmaskordi- policeforanything.“
in Bethlehem so outside the home. But exempt “in situations president of the Kansas nances following com- Andit’sunreasonableto
Mayor Quinton Lucas re- where wearing a face cov- State Lodge of the Frater- plaintsfromthepublic. expect officers to worry
RAMALLAH,WestBank
moved that exemption ering would seriously in- nalOrderofPolice,saidin- With COVID-19 cases on about wearing a mask
—ThePalestinianHealth
Nov.16asheissuedaseries terfereintheperformance dividual departments theriseinChicago,Mayor while also carrying weap-
Ministryhasrecommend-
ofstricterguidelinesciting of their public safety re- must determine how the Lori Lightfoot has threat- ons and complying with
edstrictlimitsonChrist-
asurgeinCOVID-19cases. sponsibilities.” officersareequipped. ened disciplinary action other responsibilities, he
mascelebrationsinBeth-
TheCentersforDisease Jim Mortenson, execu- It’sreasonabletoexpect for officers who ignore a said.
lehemthisyearduetothe
Control and Prevention tive director for the Law police to wear masks dur- city requirement to wear “It’sgamedayoutthere.
coronavirusoutbreak.
says masks help slow the EnforcementLaborServic- ing more routine work, masksondutywhensocial Youhavetotakeitserious-
Celebrationsinthe
spread of the coronavirus es, a Minnesota police saidDavidA.Harris,alaw distancingisnotpossible. lyandtuneinallthetime,”
biblicaltownreveredby
byinhibitingtheflowofre- union,saidreasonableex- professor and expert on Thecityhasescalatedits O’Donnellsaid.“Someoffi-
ChristiansasJesus’birth-
spiratorydropletsthatcar- emptionsarenecessary. policeissuesattheUniver- efforts to ensure officers cerslegitimatelyjustthink
placeareusuallyattended
ry the virus. The CDC “If you come across sityofPittsburgh. comply, with department adding to a long checklist
bythousandsofpeople
guidelinesforlawenforce- somebody and someone “Whentherequirement directives, public aware- ofto-dosmightbedistrac-
fromaroundtheworld.
ment officers essentially starts firing a weapon on saystheydon’thaveto,pe- ness campaigns, internal tivetofocusingonthejob,
Butthisyear,themin-
mirrors safety guidance your vehicle as you’re riod, it is understandable messagingandcompliance whichcanquicklygetseri-
istryhasrecommended
formembersofthepublic. cominguponascene,the the public is going to ask checks. As of two weeks ous.”
theupcomingChristmas
treelightingceremonyin
MangerSquarebelimited
to50people,withthe
lightsofthetreeandarea
restaurantsclosedat9
p.m.throughoutthe
Christmasseason.Inits
recommendationsSatur-
day,itsaidreligiousser-
vicesonChristmasEve
shouldalsohavelimited
attendance.
Palestinianofficialsare
expectedtomakeafinal
decisiononChristmas
celebrationsinthecoming
days.
TheWestBankisinthe
midstofaspikeincorona-
viruscases,whileIsraelis
onlyslowlyemerging
fromalockdownimposed
inSeptembertocontrola
ragingoutbreak.The
northernIsraelitownof
Nazareth,reveredby
Christiansastheplaceof
Jesus’childhood,hasbeen
designateda“restricted”
zonebyauthorities,lim-
itingmovementinandout
oftheareaforatleastthe
nextfewdays.
INITIATIVE
Clergy leaders
join program
to fight virus toll
NEWYORK—Black
clergyleadersarejoining
forceswiththeUnited
WayofNewYorkCityfor
anewinitiativedesigned
tocombatthecoronavi-
rus’outsizedtollonAfri-
canAmericansthrough
ramped-uptesting,con-
tacttracingandtreatment
management.
Detailsofthenewef-
fort,sharedwiththeAsso-
ciatedPressinadvanceof
itsMondaylaunch,reston
harnessingtheon-the-
groundinfluenceof
churchleaderstocirculate
resourcesthatcanbetter
equipBlackAmericansin
safeguardingagainstand
treatingthevirus.
Itsrolloutwillbeginin
fivemajorcitieswith
initialseven-figurefund-
ing,focusingonexpanded
testingandpublichealth
education,withagoalof
furtherexpansionand
ultimatelyreachingsever-
alhundredthousand
underinsuredorunin-
suredBlackAmericans.
TheRev.CalvinButts,
pastorofAbyssinianBap-
tistChurchinNewYork
City,saidparticipating
churcheswerestepping
forwardtoserveasa“first
lineofdefense”forthe
Blackcommunityagainst
thevirus.
Fromwirereports
A10 | Monday,November23,2020|HoustonChronicle.com | HoustonChronicle HH
CITY|STATE
TRAFFICKING Amapshows
locationsofillegal
FrompageA3 brothelsin
Houstontwo
awareness in the city, said Ann yearsago.
Johnson, former human traffick- Thepandemichas
ingprosecutorinHarrisCounty. driventrafficking
Shesaidhotlinesmightgetmore victimsfurther
calls here “because our general undergroundand
populationismoreonalert.” madethemmore
ElaineAndino,adirectorwith vulnerableas
thenonprofitUnitedAgainstHu- businessesin
manTraffickinginHouston,said industrieswhere
theprevalenceofhumantraffick- humantrafficking
ing is hard to gauge because it’s thrives,suchas
mostlyahiddencrimethatflour- hospitality,
ishesinbusinessesposingaslegal restaurantsand
enterprises or exploits victims bars,haveshut
whoaretoovulnerabletoreport down.
them.
Andino said the most reliable
study available in Texas about
thisillegaltradewaspublishedby
theUniversityofTexasatAustin
in 2016, which estimated that
there are 310,000 victims of hu- Stafffilephoto
mantraffickingatanygivenmo-
ment in the state. Most are vic-
timsoflabortrafficking,234,500, port,titled“CrisisinHumanTraf- “Alotofvictimizationhasjust moreofascarysituationfortraf- commontheme,isvulnerability,”
while 79,000 are minors and fickingDuringthePandemic.” moved online,” said Andino. ficking victims” vulnerability to saidJohnson.
youthinsextrafficking. “Thereareroughlyabout500 “Therearelotsandlotsoftraffick- abuse,Andinoadded. Johnson insists that tackling
bedsintheentirecountryfortraf- ingvictimswhoareforcedtohave The pandemic’s effect has in- humantraffickingwillrequirein-
Pandemiceffect ficking victims,” Andino said. “A sexoncameranow;wesawalot creased the very vulnerabilities creasing services to victims and
Victims have been driven fur- lot of these shelters are restrict- ofthatreally,reallyspikeduring that put victims in the hands of prosecutingexploiters,including
ther underground and have be- inghowmanypeoplecomeinto COVID.”Severalreportspointtoa traffickersinthefirstplace,said sellerswhoprofitfromthebusi-
come more vulnerable as the the shelters to prevent COVID significant increase in porn con- prosecutor Johnson. For exam- nessandtheconsumerwhopay
pandemic forced the closure of fromspreading.” sumption during the pandemic, ple,someminorswhoaretrying fortheabuse.
businesses,sawmanyemployees While the pandemic closed with modalities such as cam sex to escape abusive parenting get “You need to continue the
letgo,andpromptedaneconom- businesses in industries where and3Dservicesgainingtraction. suckedintotrafficking.Also,im- awarenessconstantly,”saidJohn-
iccrisis,Andinosaid. human trafficking thrives, such With social distancing, many migrantsaremorelikelytogetco- son. “This is not like turning off
Many agencies providing ser- as hospitality, restaurants and men have avoided paying for in erced by employers to work in thewaterfaucetatonce.”
vicestovictimswerealsoimpact- bars, the criminal enterprise personsex,butthosewhocontin- direconditionsforlittleornopay.
edandunabletoreceivenewcli- adapted by moving heavily on- ue tend to be the most reckless “EveryvictimI’veseen,wheth- [email protected]
ents,accordingtothePolarisre- line. and violent, “so it became even erit’sage,race,background,the twitter.com/oliviaptallet
POLITIFACT waysinwhichfraudiscommit- mailinganabsenteeballotand becamethe30thstatetojoin Earlyvotingreturnedduring
ted.” thenvotingagaininperson. theconsortium. theCivilWar,whenPresident
FrompageA3 Between1982and2020,the Buttherearesafeguards “ERICdoesverysophisticated AbrahamLincolnextended
foundationhasrecorded1,298 againstsuchmeasures,Gronke matching,”Gronkesaid.“It absenteevotingtosoldiersinhis
VotingInformationCenterat instancesofvoterfraudthat said.Modernelectionsystems checksdeathrecords,itchecks 1864raceagainstGeorgeMcClel-
ReedCollege.“ButIhaveto haveresultedin1,121criminal assignabsenteeballotswitha nationalchange-of-addressre- lan.Absenteevotingpractices
stressthattheoveralllevelis convictions.Fewerthan100 uniqueidentifierandbarcode cordsfromthePostalService, expandedduringthe20thcen-
minuscule,andnearlyallthe werereportedinTexas.The tyingtheballottoavoter.Ifthat thenitcompares(voterinforma- turyasstatesadoptedmail-in
documentedcaseshavetodeal categorywiththemostcasesis voterattemptedtovoteagainin tion)acrossstates.” votinglaws.
withtensofballotsandinlocal ineligiblevoting,with269cases person,theirnamewouldbe Intheyearsafterthefoun- Texasbecameoneofthe
elections.” recorded,followedby208cases flagged.InTexas,eachcountyis dingoftheU.S.,votingwasheld pioneeringstatesforearlyin-
TheHeritageFoundation,a involvingabsenteeballots. responsibleforsecuringmail overseveraldaystogiverural personvotingwhentheLeg-
conservativethinktank,main- Around10cases,orabout1 ballotsthisway. citizenstimetotraveltothe islaturealloweditin1987in
tainsanElectionFraudData- percentofallcasesdocumented Statescanalsosecureelec- polls.Butin1845,thefederal additiontoabsenteevoting.In
base—acompendiumofvoter inthedatabase,weredirectly tionsagainstinterstateduplica- governmentrestrictedpresi- the1988presidentialelection,
fraudcasesthathaveresultedin tiedtotheexploitationofearly tivevotingbyjoiningtheElec- dentialvotingtoasingledayto about20percentofvotesin
convictions.Althoughthelistis in-personvoting. tronicVoterRegistrationIn- preventpeoplefromcrossing Texaswerecastearly.Itspop-
notexhaustive,thefoundation Twocommonwayspeople formationCenter,aconsortium statelinestovotemorethan ularityhasgrownsteadilysince.
saysitis“intendedtodemon- attemptedfraudviaearlyvoting ofstatesthatshareandcross- once,accordingtoUniversityof Thisyear,arecord57percentof
stratethevulnerabilitiesinthe wasbycrossingstatelinesto referencevoterregistration FloridapoliticalscientistMi- registeredvoterscastearlybal-
electionsystemandthemany submitduplicateballotsorby information.Thisyear,Texas chaelMcDonald. lots.