7. Another bombshell report by the New York Times falls apart when you actually read it
— A few weeks ago, President Donald Trump’s tax returns were huge news as an innuendo-laden exposé in the “paper of record” told the story of financial ruin that Trump told two decades ago himself. Now, the huge story is that management at Deutsche Bank ignored their junior money laundering detectors and dismissed their concerns, with the implication being money laundering totally happened. As usual, the text of the story betrays the narrative because the article clearly states, “Real estate developers like Mr. Trump and Mr. Kushner sometimes do large, all-cash deals, including with people outside the United States, any of which can prompt anti-money laundering reviews. The red flags raised by employees do not necessarily mean the transactions were improper. Banks sometimes opt not to file suspicious activity reports if they conclude their employees’ concerns are unwarranted.”
6. Congressman Justin Amash (R-MI) becomes the first Republican to hint at President Trump’s impeachment
— Taking to the president’s favorite medium, Amash tweeted out a 13-tweet thread that concluded that he believed the president “engaged in impeachable conduct” and that Attorney General William Barr was misleading the public. This enraged the president and his supporters, with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) saying that this was attention seeking by Amash. Trump’s adversaries like Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said Amash “showed more courage than any other Republican in the House or the Senate.”
5. Former Vice President Joe Biden has started off his campaign rallies by declaring we shouldn’t question people’s intentions and then doing just that
— On Saturday, Biden launched his 2020 presidential campaign by calling for the country to put aside angry politics, and then went on to attack President Trump. Biden said, “Our politicians, politics today traffics in division and our president is the divider-in-chief, but he’s not the only one, far from it. He’s just the worst practitioner of politics that singles out, scapegoats and demonizes.” Biden also said that some Democrats don’t want to hear about unity, and he thinks that we don’t need to elect an “angry” candidate. The campaign rally was Biden’s attempt to show that his campaign will be about unity and calm politics.
4. Governor Kay Ivey says, “I am proud to be from Alabama the Beautiful,” but remains silent as the media backlash surrounds her state
— Governor Ivey hasn’t said much about the abortion bill that she signed that helped set off a weekend of attacks on her home state. But on Friday, she announced the dispersion of funds made possible by the Gulf of Mexico Energy and Security Act Program which was formed after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Ivey announced the 15 projects and 22-plus million dollars of funding saying, “With projects like these, we’re able to restore and conserve our state’s natural beauty.”
3. Alabama has had another record-breaking month for employment
— According to the latest report from the Alabama Department of Labor for the month of April, 32,335 more people were working this year in April than last year, and there were also 6,379 more people working in April than in March. This is the fourth month in a row that Alabama has seen record-breaking employment. The largest gains were seen in the leisure and hospitality industry, construction and professional and business services.
2. President Trump has warned that war with Iran will be the end of Iran
— Hours after a rocket landed less than a mile away from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad’s Green Zone, President Trump tweeted, “If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!” Tensions have been rising between the United State and Iran in recent weeks after Iran threatened attacks against U.S. interests. The Trump administration responded by sending warships and bombers to the Middle East. Sunday’s attack is the first of its type since September.
1. Everyone has an opinion on the abortion ban in Alabama and they’re making sure their voices are heard
— The national and local media have given plenty of attention to the abortion ban, with AL.com alone publishing at least two dozen articles about the ban within the last 48 hours. Even President Donald Trump weighed in on the issue, saying, “As most people know, and for those who would like to know, I am strongly Pro-Life, with the three exceptions – rape, incest, and protecting the life of the mother – the same position taken by Ronald Reagan.” “Saturday Night Live” also had a field day with the issue, performing skits that focused on the bill and even called out Alabama state senators by name that voted for the bill. On the SNL segment “Weekend Update,” Leslie Jones said, “You can’t control women because I don’t know if y’all heard, but women are the same as humans. And how is Alabama’s woman governor going along with this? What?” A lot of people against the abortion ban in Alabama seem to be struggling to understand how a woman could be pro-life.
