Page 6 - Florida Sentinel 4-5-19

Political News
Some On Mueller’s Team Say Report Was More Damaging Than Barr Revealed
Chicago Elects First Black Female Mayor
Attorney General Bill Barr and special counsel Robert Mueller.
Investigators for special counsel Robert Mueller have told associates that At- torney General William Barr inadequately charac- terized the findings of their inquiry, which they say could be worse for President Donald Trump than Barr suggested, according to re- ports.
The New York Times re- ported Wednesday that some members of Mueller's team thought that Barr should
have included more of their material in the four-page summary of the investigation that he released March 24.
Some of Mueller's in- vestigators have told associ- ates that Barr "failed to adequately portray the find- ings of their inquiry and that they were more troubling for President Trump than Mr. Barr indicated," The Times said, citing government offi- cials and others familiar with the investigators' complaints.
Lori Lightfoot has won Chicago's mayoral election, which capped a historic cam- paign between two African- American women who branded themselves as pro- gressive and independent in a city known for its political ma- chine.
After eight years of rule by Rahm Emanuel — a centrist Democrat who previously was a White House chief of staff and congressman — the results of Tuesday's balloting mean Chicago will now be led by a mayor who has never held elected office.
Lightfoot — a former fed- eral prosecutor who has worked in police oversight — easily defeated Cook County
Lori Lightfoot waves to supporters at her election night party in Chicago on Tuesday.
Board President and county Democratic Party leader Toni Preckwinkle. With 98 per- cent of precincts reporting, Lightfoot had won 74 percent of the vote, according to the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.
"Thank you, Chicago. From the bottom of my heart, thank you," a beaming Lightfoot told her supporters in a speech punctuated by fist pumps and waves to the crowd.
"In this election, Toni and I were competitors, but our dif- ferences were nothing com- pared to what we can achieve together. Now that it's over, I know we'll work together for the city we both love," she said. "Today, you did more than make history. You created a movement for change."
Regardless of who won, the nation's third most populous city would get its first black fe- male mayor. Lightfoot also becomes the city's first openly gay mayor.
Under Trump’s Ban, Transgender Troops Must Decide: Come Out or Hide
Trumps’ Black Advocates Get Push Back In Tallahassee
Tallahassee residents ques- tion the legitimacy of the effort
By DESTINI WEBSTER
--The Urban Revitalization Coalition, a contingent of African American ministerial advocates of President Don- ald Trump, launched their “urban revitalization tour” in Tallahassee, at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center. A host of speakers and about75 atten- dees gathered to press the coalition for details surround- ing the urban economic devel- opment plan that is supposed to invest in urban, low-income areas across the nation.
The big question of the night was “How?” Many attendees questioned the legitimacy of the program and its ability to acquire millions to help fund urban areas and businesses in “opportunity zones.”
The Urban Revitalization Coalition, appointed by the Trump Administration, is traveling the nation recruiting people to participate and en- couraging investment in busi- nesses. In return, investors are offered several capital gains ex- emptions. Daniel Kowalski, Rep. (Rev.) Kimberly Daniels of Jacksonville along with Coalition Chairman Rev. Darrell Scott, a prominent pitchman for Trump, said the effort was part of the Tax Cut, and Jobs Act passed in 2017, that offers capital gains and tax incentives for businesses lo- cated in opportunity zones in urban low-income areas.
"We are here to help, we have many investors on board to work with many of you, and I promise this will be a benefit," says Kareem Lanier, co- founder of the Urban Coali-
tion.The Urban Revitalization Coalition actually received quite a bit of push back from community leaders and atten- dees who wondered who the investors were and proof of the $180 million investment.
Reverend Darrell Scott may have got more than he bar- gained for from Tallahassee residents suspicious of the Urban Revitalization Coali- tion.
Many attendees felt the coali- tion was part of a campaign ef- fort to convert African Americans to the Trump camp.
“I believe the coalition has great ideas but let’s just see them actually put them to work. It seems like they get
Long lines of Tallahassee residents with loaded ques- tions about help for Opportu- nity Zones.
more of the benefit in the end and that doesn’t really sit well with me, profiting off of the urban areas downfall,” says 56- year-old Tallahassee native Sela Parker.
One Coalition spokesperson defined the effort saying, “This is not government assistance or a welfare fund” and they are traveling to these many com- munities to “help.”
The transgender troop ban will be like a door slamming shut.
When the policy goes into effect on April 12, openly trans- gender people won’t be able to get into the military—and many who are already inside will have to hide who they are, forced to pick between seeking medical treatment for gender dysphoria and keeping their jobs.
Mental health experts warn that will be a terrible double bind for transgender troops.
“We certainly have data to suggest that living with gender dysphoria or any kind of dis- tress—just the day in, day out chronic stress of having an in-
congruence between one’s identity and one’s biological sex at birth—causes a range of physical and mental health problems,” Dr. Ashli Owen- Smith, a behavioral scientist at Georgia State University’s School of Public Health, told The Daily Beast.
Those problems include de- pression, anxiety, and in- creased suicidal ideation. As for treatment, the evidence is clear: transition-related med- ical care can have a positive im- pact on transgender mental health, as several studies have shown, and having that care withheld can have a negative impact, exacerbating other mental health problems.
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