Part 1. Scott Braddock
We speak with Scott Braddock, editor of the Quorum, in Texas. We discuss the situation in Texas, in the wake of confusion caused by the inconsistent messages sent by the president, the governor, county judges (who administer counties), and the mayors of cities and towns. The confusion centers around whether residents are supposed to continue to shelter in place, or to ‘open’ the economy by returning to ‘normal’. No additional testing is available to indicate whether the pandemic has stabilized, or is growing. Because of the vagueness of the governor’s orders, the county judge of Montgomery County has threatened to open up completely. Governor Abbot has suspended some state laws defining the power he has. There are many inequities and problems surrounding the reopening. Workers will be required to return to work, with no guarantees of their safety or even safety equipment. It appears that the population at large is considered expendable for the sake of the economy.
The prison in neighboring Fort Bend County has been designated as a receiver of prisoners from other prisons who have tested positive for Corona virus. This prison is located near Houston. The people who will be caring for these prisoners are likely not to be medical professionals, but ordinary prison staff, untrained. About 400 prisoners are scheduled to be moved at present.
The situation in Texas is fraught with dangers.
Part 2: Bill Curry, former advisor to Pres. Clinton and contributor to Salon.com discusses the allegations by Tara Reade against Joe Biden.
Curry is not persuaded, because she has changed her story multiple times about events that allegedly occurred more than 20 years ago. Biden has had a reputation as a ‘good guy’ among politicians in Wshington, D.C. Curry does not want to shame the accuser, but there is no record of her reporting the alleged assault at the time. However, Biden needs to make more of an answer to the allegations. It is, however, hard to prove a negative. Biden also has problems with regard to his son, Hunter, who could be viewed as an example of soft corruption. The DNC needs to consider whether to choose another candidate. The best choice would not be a progressive, but would be a woman.
Note: the interview was recorded on April 30. On May 1, Biden was interviewed on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. He denied Reade’s allegations, “this never happened”.
