7 Things: Brooks ready to vote ‘no’ on Electoral College, COVID-19 vaccine won’t be widely-available any time soon, some Alabama hospitals suspend elective surgeries and more …

7. Trump’s latest on why Biden can’t be president

• President Donald Trump put out a video statement on social media, once again claiming that the General Election was rigged, and he said that “lots of bad things happened” during the election, deeming this statement “the most important speech I’ve ever made.”
• Trump said that the election system is “under coordinated assault and siege,” and he stated, “The mail and voting scam is the latest part of their four-year effort to overturn the results of the 2016 election. And it’s been like living in hell.” Trump also vowed to make sure that no “illegal votes” are counted.

6. Democrat civil war intensifies

• Former President Barack Obama has recently criticized the slogan of “defund the police” saying that people lose support for any change they’re actually trying to bring when using a “snappy” slogan like that. Obama went on to ask the question “do you want to actually get something done, or do you want to feel good among the people you agree with?”
• Now, U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) has said, “We lose people in the hands of police. It’s not a slogan but a policy demand. And centering the demand for equitable investments and budgets for communities across the country gets us progress and safety” in response to Obama’s comments.

5. CDC has reduced quarantine time

• Those who have come into close contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus, but they themselves don’t have any symptoms, may only have to quarantine for 10 days now, or 7 days and a negative test, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• The CDC COVID-19 Incident Manager Dr. Henry Walke has said that this decision was made to “encourage more people” to quarantine, “especially when they may not be able to work during quarantine time.” Fourteen days is still recommended, but these are “alternative” options. He warned that people should still monitor themselves for possible symptoms if they quarantine for less than 14 days.

4. Merrill gives out awards

• The entities that assisted in making the general election on November 3 run smoothly have been awarded by Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill at the State Capitol for their efforts in restoring power to voting precincts after Hurricane Zeta.
• Those who were awarded were the Alabama Office of Information Technology, Alabama Power Company, Alabama Emergency Management Agency, Electric Cities of Alabama, Alabama Rural Electric Association and PowerSouth Energy Cooperative.

3. North Alabama cutting back on elective surgeries

• Coronavirus cases across the state, and especially in North Alabama, continue to increase and Madison County in particular is still considered high risk. Hospitals in the area have decided to scale back or suspend elective surgeries as hospitals see more cases.
• Huntsville Hospital System CEO David Spillers said that the Huntsville and Marshall County facilities will pause elective surgeries and space at the hospitals will be used “for patients who vitally need it.”

2. Dr. Harris says ‘not enough [vaccine] to go around’

• Alabama’s State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris is urging patience for people suffering from coronavirus fatigue and feeling excited about the promise of a vaccine.
• If approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Alabama will receive 40,000 doses of Pfizer’s vaccine. But Harris says, “even though a vaccine is almost here and it’s going to be a great day when it is, there is not enough to go around and there will not be for several weeks.”

1. Brooks will challenge the Electoral College vote

• U.S. Representative Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) has said that he will not vote to ratify the Electoral College vote on January 6 to confirm that former Vice President Joe Biden is the president-elect.
• Brooks has repeated this stance since the General Election took place and recently told Politico that the “election was stolen by the socialists engaging in extraordinary voter fraud and election theft measures.”