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VOLUME 5 ISSUE 4
WWW.NSJONLINE.COM |
the Wednesday
NEWS BRIEFING
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, 2020
‘UNPRECEDENTED TIMES’ North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper speaks during a press briefing on the COVID-19 virus, Tuesday, March 17, 2020 in Raleigh. By the day, hour and minute, the coronavirus pandemic has profound impacts on daily life in North Carolina. To stay up to date on the latest developments visit www.nsjonline. com/covid-19.
Biden commits to picking woman as running mate if nominated Columbia, S.C. Former Vice President Joe Biden committed to naming a woman as his running mate if he’s the Democratic presidential nominee. Biden made that assertion during Sunday night’s debate with Sen. Bernie Sanders in response to a video question from a voter about how he would handle women’s health issues. Biden has previously said he would seriously consider naming a woman or a person of color as his running mate. Also Sunday night, he repeated a previous pledge to nominate a black woman to the U.S. Supreme Court if given the chance to do so as president. During last month’s debate in Charleston, South Carolina, ahead of that state’s primary — where a victory gave Biden momentum that propelled him into Super Tuesday wins just days later — Biden said he was “looking forward” to making that a reality. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Amazon seeks to hire 100,000 to keep up with surge in orders New york Amazon said it needs to hire 100,000 people across the U.S. to keep up with a crush of orders as the coronavirus spreads and keeps more people at home, shopping online. The online retailer said it will also temporarily raise pay by $2 an hour through the end of April for hourly employees who work at its warehouses, delivery centers and Whole Foods grocery stores. “We are seeing a significant increase in demand, which means our labor needs are unprecedented for this time of year,” said Dave Clark, who oversees Amazon’s warehouse and delivery network. Amazon said that a surge of orders is putting its operations under pressure. It warned shoppers that it could take longer than the usual two days to get packages. It also said it was sold out of many household cleaning supplies and is working to get more in stock. The company said the openings are for a mix of full-time and part-time jobs and include roles such as delivery drivers and warehouse workers, who pack and ship orders for shoppers. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Biogen donates $10M to fight the coronavirus pandemic Boston Biogen Inc., the Massachusetts biotech company linked to a cluster of COVID-19 cases stemming from a meeting last month at a Boston hotel, is donating $10 million to fight the pandemic. “This donation will be used to help expand testing options, ease the strain on medical systems, provide training for front line health workers and support access to necessities like food,” the Cambridgebased company said in a statement. The money, donated through the Biogen Foundation, is designed to help nonprofits in Massachusetts and North Carolina, as well as Italy and other countries affected by the pandemic, the company said. There have been about 200 cases of COVID-19 in Massachusetts, about half of which have been linked to the Feb. 26-27 conference.
ROBERT CLARK | NORTH STATE JOURNAL
NORTH
STATE
JOURNaL ELEVATE THE CONVERSATION
Questions on teacher pay, instruction hours as NC schools shutdown By David Larson North State Journal RALEIGH — Last Saturday afternoon, Gov. Roy Cooper released Executive Order No. 117 effectively closing all public schools in North Carolina for two weeks amid the global coronavirus pandemic. Many school districts, though, were left frustrated by the timing of the announcement and clarity of directions provided by state officials. The answers school districts were getting from the state “are about as clear as mud,” the superintendent of Stanly County Schools, Dr. Jeff James, told NSJ. “We’re waiting for the governor to clarify several questions that were asked [March 15].” One major concern is how teachers will be compensated during the shutdown. “There’s no clear direction on how to go about paying teachers,” James said In Stanly County, they are declaring teacher workdays through-
out the shutdown as this will allow them to pay the staff. James said the other option they considered was asking teachers to use their annual leave. But the district didn’t want to force teachers to use up an earned benefit. A top official in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, who wished to remain anonymous, said their district had similar problems. After pushing the state hard for three days, “We could not get anyone to approve our online plan so teachers could get paid.” Another source of frustration was the quick change of direction on whether the state was going to require the schools to close down. As late as Friday afternoon, superintendents were hearing they would not be, then a day later, without much warning, the governor released the executive order to close public schools. Some districts, like Orange County Schools, had already decided to close and keep students See SCHOOLS page A2
ROBERT CLARK | NORTH STATE JOURNAL
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Erik A. Hooks, Secretary of the N.C. Dept. of Public Safety at a briefing on the COVD-19 virus, Tuesday, March 17, 2020 in Raleigh.
Government issues historic restrictions amid virus outbreak By Tim Sullivan The Associated Press SHUTDOWNS SWEPT across the United States, with nearly 7 million people in the San Francisco area all but confined to their homes Tuesday, even as spring break crowds flooded a Florida beach and dozens lined up to pose for pictures in front of the world-famous “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign. The official reaction to the coronavirus emergency varied dramatically from place to place in the U.S., despite new, more urgent warnings from the Trump administration, which called on Americans not to gather in groups of more than 10 and advised older people to stay home. Three states pressed ahead with their presidential primaries Tuesday. Ohio called off its primary
hours before the polls were to open. Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator for the federal response to the virus, called on the “army of millennials” to lead the charge. Birx said on ABC’s “Good Morning America” that the nation needs young adults doing everything they can to avoid infection, but also protecting their parents and grandparents. Birx has said that millennials, those born in the 1980s and early ‘90s, are vital to stopping the spread of the virus, in part because they grew up with social media and understand how to work and communicate without meeting in person. But not all those millennials were listening. With beaches on Florida’s Gulf coast near Tampa still open, at least one was full See VIRUS page A2
Proposed Catawba Indian casino in King’s Mountain moves forward By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — On March 12, the Catawba Indian Nation held a press conference to present renderings and construction plans for a new destination casino on a site in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. According to a press release, the U.S. Department of the Interior has taken the land in question into trust and, as a result, the Catawba Indian Nation can now move forward with the proposed project. “The Nation is very thankful for the Department’s decision to take this land into trust, enabling us to achieve the promise of self-determination though economic development,” said Chief Harris in a statement. “The Department has a very rigorous process for reviewing proposed trust land acquisitions. We are very thankful for the hard work of the Department’s solicitors and staff on our application, who carefully reviewed our history, including our historic land settlement, ensuring that it is consistent with the Supreme Court’s Carcieri decision,” Harris said. The proposed destination casino and resort is projected to bring as many as 5,000 construction jobs and 4,000 permanent jobs to the King’s Mountain area. Supporters of the casino estimate it will bring $350 million in potential revenue to the town, which is
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located just 35 miles west of Charlotte. The Catawba Indian Nation statement said that the tribe plans to “begin working closely with Gov. Cooper’s office so that the state of North Carolina can also benefit from the project in Kings Mountain.” The proposed casino project, which was first discussed during See CASINO page A2