Pelosi, McConnell homes vandalized after Congress fails increase stimulus checks
02 January 2021
Vandals defaced the homes of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) with graffiti after Congress failed to pass a standalone measure to increase coronavirus relief, AP reports.
Why it matters: Senate Republicans refused to allow debate on a bill passed by the House to increase the amount of stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000 despite calls from President Trump for increased payments.
Details:Vandals spray painted, “WERES MY MONEY" and “MITCH KILLS THE POOR” on McConnell’s door in Louisville early Saturday, according to AP.
- On New Year's Day, someonespray-painted "“$2K,” “Cancel rent!” and “We want everything" on Pelosi’s home in San Francisco and left a pig’s head and fake blood, KGO-TV reports.
- Police officers in both cities are investigating the incidents.
What they're saying: “I’ve spent my career fighting for the First Amendment and defending peaceful protest,” McConnell said in a statement.
- “I appreciate every Kentuckian who has engaged in the democratic process whether they agree with me or not. This is different. Vandalism and the politics of fear have no place in our society.”
- “We just hope our neighbors in Louisville aren’t too inconvenienced by this radical tantrum.”
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.