VOLUME 4 ISSUE 47
SPORTS
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WWW.NSJONLINE.COM |
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020
Injuries hindering NC’s ACC teams
SENATE TELEVISION VIA AP
In this image from video, White House counsel Pat Cipollone, stands and waits to be recognized by presiding officer Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020.
the Wednesday
NEWS BRIEFING
Agents in NC seize $460K in counterfeit goods Federal agents seized nearly half a million dollars’ worth of counterfeit shoes, handbags and watches at a Greensboro flea market, according to the N.C. Secretary of State. Knock-off Rolex watches, Gucci purses, Air Jordan sneakers and Ugg boots were among the merchandise recovered by agents with the Anti-Counterfeiting Task Force during a raid last weekend at The Flea in Greensboro. The fake designer products were estimated to be worth a retail value of about $460,000 collectively.
Supreme Court stays out of dispute over grand jury secrecy The Supreme Court refused Tuesday to get involved in a dispute about judges’ authority to order the disclosure of secret grand jury material in rare circumstances. The court turned away an appeal from an 82-yearold researcher who is seeking grand jury records from the late 1950s. The justices’ order does not affect an ongoing court battle over House Democrats’ quest for access to grand jury materials from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. The Mueller grand jury fight turns on the House’s argument that it is entitled to the records as part of President Donald Trump’s impeachment inquiry, which it contends is a judicial proceeding. Rules that govern the federal courts specifically allow disclosure for a judicial proceeding.
Lilly to build NC plant, create over 460 jobs Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co. will build a new manufacturing facility in North Carolina, generating over 460 new jobs, officials announced on Tuesday. The firm will make a $470 million investment in the Durham County portion of Research Triangle Park. Average pay for the new jobs at the plant — which in part will produce injectable drugs to treat diabetes — will exceed $72,000 and include scientists, engineers and plant operators. North Carolina was competing with Indianapolis and Philadelphia for the plant, according to the Commerce Department.
NORTH
STATE
JOURNaL ELEVATE THE CONVERSATION
Annual March for Life rallies in Raleigh against abortion Counter-protestors use bullhorn, chants to disrupt event By David Larson North State Journal RALEIGH — North Carolina Right to Life’s annual March for Life gathered at 1 p.m. on Jan. 18 in Bicentennial Plaza, directly across Jones Street from the State Legislative Building. The organization and its march trace their roots to the 1970s when the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision made abortion legal in all 50 states. The group and the broader prolife movement draw support from a variety of faith communities, especially Catholic and Evangelical Christians, which made up much of the support for the Raleigh event. Msgr. Jeffrey Ingham, pastor of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Raleigh, has been a priest in the diocese for 45 years and told NSJ, “I’ve been coming as long as I can remember.” Ingham says showing up to the march is important because “It’s a visible sign of our respect for life and our insistence upon life ... to show that we’re not alone and, in fact, most of the country agrees with us.” While large crowds of pro-life supporters gathered, a group of approximately 10 counter-protesters also gathered directly behind the stage and chanted us-
ing a bullhorn. Those on stage, whether during prayers, the Pledge of Allegiance or speeches, were often drowned out by chants, including: “We will fight. We will win. Throw the fetus in a bin;” “Racist, sexist, anti-gay — Christian fascists go away;” “Get your rosaries off our ovaries;” “Fetuses aren’t people;” “Abort all parasites in human bodies;” and “My body, my choice.” Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama, leader of the Catholic Diocese of Raleigh and a native of Colombia, told the crowd, “Don’t pay attention to them [the protesters]. We are looking around and saying, ‘They are noisy.’ Yes, but we are bigger, and we can be noisier.” After a loud cheer from those gathered, Zarama said, “But our noise needs to a joyful noise, with love. We are not fighting. We are loving.” President of NC Right to Life, Bill Pincus, also addressed the crowd, calling President Donald Trump “the most pro-life president in American history,” who was able to give the pro-life movement two conservative justices, adding that if he is reelected, he would likely get another pick. If a pro-life Supreme Court were to overturn Roe v. Wade, Pincus said abortion “will become a state issue,” and that North Carolina Right to Life is See MARCH FOR LIFE page A2
The impeachment trial of Donald Trump begins The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Tuesday morning, Chief Justice John Roberts donned his black robe and oversaw two arguments at the Supreme Court before heading across the street to the U.S. Capitol where he presided over the trial in the Senate chamber. Roberts, the chief justice for the past 14 years, is tasked with a new public role as the presiding officer over the Senate trial. Supreme Court proceedings aren’t televised as they are in the Senate. It is only the third presidential impeachment trial in U.S. history, coming just weeks before the first primaries of the 2020 election season.
House Democrats impeached the president last month on two charges: abuse of power by withholding U.S. military aid to Ukraine in exchange for an investigation and obstruction of Congress by refusing to comply with their investigation. The president’s legal team has argued that Trump did “absolutely nothing wrong” and urged the Senate to swiftly reject the “flawed’’ case against him. On the eve of the impeachment trial, Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) proposed a compressed calendar for opening statements but adjusted the proposed rules Tuesday to add a third See IMPEACHMENT page A2
Court of appeals upholds 2016 special session By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press RALEIGH — The N.C. Court of Appeals on Tuesday affirmed a lower court ruling that upheld the legality of a legislative session Republicans called in December 2016 to pass laws weakening the power of incoming Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. The unanimous decision of three judges on the intermediate-level appeals court affirmed a 2018 trial-court decision that declined to declare as unconstitutional the procedures used in calling and passing legislation during the three-day session. The group Common Cause and several citizens who sued in 2017 argued that the rushed session — announced and convened mere hours after another legislative session on Hurricane Matthew relief — violated their right in the See NCGA page A2