Community Tea

President Joe Biden has invoked the Defense Production Act to increase U.S. manufacturing of solar panels while declaring a two-year tariff exemption on panels from Southeast Asia. The White House says the moves are being implemented using executive actions and presidential proclamations and follows months of complaints by industry groups, which argue that the solar sector is being slowed by supply chain problems due to an ongoing Commerce Department inquiry into possible trade violations involving Chinese products. White House officials said Biden’s actions aim to increase domestic production of solar panel parts, building installation materials, high-efficiency heat pumps, and other components like cells used for clean energy-generated fuels.

Georgia U. S. Senator  Jon Ossoff introduced a bipartisan Senator Johnny Isakson VA Regional Office Act of 2022, which would designate the VA facility in Decatur, Georgia, as the “Senator Johnny Isakson Department of Veterans Affairs Atlanta Regional Office” to honor the late Senator for his work to relentlessly advocate for our nation’s veterans and service members. Isakson served Georgia in the U.S. Senate from 2005 to 2019, and he served as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs from 2015 to 2019, where he continuously worked to improve benefits and services for veterans and their families.

A panel of independent vaccine experts recommended last week that the Food and Drug Administration authorize a vaccine developed by Novavax, paving the way for a fourth coronavirus shot in the United States. The timing of when doses will be available is not clear. A decision by the agency is unlikely to happen immediately because a review of manufacturing data is ongoing. The Novavax shot, a protein-based vaccine, is based on a traditional technology used against influenza and shingles. Many experts are eager to add another vaccine in the U.S., particularly because the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is now recommended only for people who can’t or won’t take messenger RNA vaccines because of a rare risk of a potentially life-threatening side effect.

The Georgia Department of Public Health confirmed last week that a man suspected of having monkeypox is positive for the virus. The DPH said days earlier that a man who lives in metro Atlanta had shown symptoms, but more testing was needed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to confirm the case. The Georgia man, with a history of international travel, had tested positive for orthopoxvirus, which is a family of viruses monkeypox belongs to. The agency is tracing his recent contacts but said there are no other suspected cases in the state at this time. This is the first-ever confirmed case of monkeypox in Georgia, according to DPH. State officials said they wouldn’t be surprised to see more cases here and in other states, but they emphasized the overall risk to the general public is low, and it is nothing like coronavirus.

Northside Hospital just became the first hospital in the country to be fined over transparent health care price information. The fine surrounds a rule that requires hospitals to post the prices of services on their websites. That rule just went into effect last year. The rule is intended to allow patients to shop and plan for the costs of medical care. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees that rule, said the hospital did not have a “machine-readable” list of prices. It also said Northside Hospital Atlanta did not have a searchable list for consumers in a prominent manner that clearly identified the location of the hospital concerned. It claimed it could not find a consumer-friendly list of standard charges at Northside Hospital Cherokee. In total, the hospital was fined more than $1 million for the violations.

Speaking this past week at an educators’ conference in Athens, Gov. Brian Kemp asked for a moment of silence for the 19 elementary school students and two teachers who were killed last month in Uvalde, Texas. Kemp supports boosting security in schools but sees no need to bring guns into the discussion. The governor, who recently signed legislation to eliminate the need for a permit to carry a concealed weapon in the state, made no mention of limiting access to firearms. Kemp’s opponent in November, Democrat Stacey Abrams, told a crowd of new high school graduates that the governor’s refusal to support new limits on guns makes their lives more dangerous. “I don’t believe we should have guns everywhere,” she said. “And while I don’t have an issue with responsible gun owners, we can’t figure out who they are if we don’t have background checks.”

A man carrying a gun, a knife, and zip ties was arrested Wednesday near Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s house in Maryland after reportedly threatening to kill the justice. Nicholas John Roske of Simi Valley, California, who was identified in a criminal complaint charging him with the attempted murder of a Supreme Court justice, was dressed in black when he arrived by taxi just after 1 a.m. outside Kavanaugh’s home in a Washington suburb. Roske, 26, had a Glock 17 pistol, ammunition, a knife, zip ties, pepper spray, duct tape, and other items that he told police he would use to break into Kavanaugh’s house and kill him, according to a criminal complaint and affidavit filed in federal court in Maryland. The suspect reportedly found the Maryland address of Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh online Roske reportedly told police he was upset by a leaked draft opinion suggesting the Supreme Court is about to overrule Roe v.Wade, the landmark abortion case. He also said he was upset over the school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, and believed Kavanaugh would vote to loosen gun control laws, the affidavit said.

Rudy Giuliani, one of former President Donald Trump’s primary lawyers during failed efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, must now answer to professional ethics charges, the latest career slap after law license suspensions in New York and the District of Columbia. The Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the disciplinary branch of the District of Columbia Bar, filed the charges against the former federal prosecutor and New York mayor alleging that he promoted unsubstantiated voter fraud claims in Pennsylvania. The action was filed on June 6 and became public Friday.

Cobb County Elections and Registration Director Janine Eveler has been subpoenaed by the Fulton County special grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia. Grand jury proceedings are secret, so Eveler’s testimony will not be publicized. Eveler was also the target of a lawsuit filed by Trump, his campaign, and Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer alleging fraud and irregularities. The suit was withdrawn in January after Biden’s victory was certified by Congress. Eveler said that her registration manager, Erica Hamilton, has also been subpoenaed, because of her former role as the head of DeKalb County elections.

Some Republicans say it’s time to close Georgia’s primaries, meaning only registered party members could choose who would gain its nominations. The call comes after about 67,000 voters participated in May’s Republican primary after casting ballots in the 2020 Democratic primary. Georgia is one of 15 states with open primaries, which allow voters to choose either a Democratic or Republican ballot without having to register with a political party, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Closing Georgia’s primaries would require the General Assembly’s approval, which means state House Speaker David Ralston could help determine its fate. Right now, he doesn’t seem to be on board.

The Food and Drug Administration investigated reports that as many as nine children have died since early 2021 after consuming baby formula produced at an Abbott Nutrition plant in Michigan — seven more than previously acknowledged by the FDA, according to newly released documents. The FDA previously said two children had died and two were sickened after consuming formula from the Sturgis plant that contained the bacterium Cronobacter sakazakii. But the agency acknowledged Friday that it had received additional reports of children dying or being sickened after allegedly drinking formula made there.

Singer Justin Bieber is suffering from facial paralysis due to Ramsay Hunt syndrome. According to the Mayo Clinic, Ramsay Hunt syndrome occurs when a shingles outbreak affects the facial nerve near one of your ears. It can cause facial paralysis and hearing loss in the affected ear. Ramsay Hunt syndrome can occur in anyone who has previously had chicken pox. The varicella-zoster virus remains in the body long after chickenpox has passed and can later reactivate as shingles. In rare cases, shingles flare-ups can lead to Ramsay Hunt syndrome.

Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles and dozens of other women who say they were sexually assaulted by Larry Nassar are seeking more than $1 billion from the FBI for failing to stop the sports doctor when the agency first received allegations against him. A lawyer representing them said There’s no dispute that FBI agents in 2015 knew that Nassar was accused of assaulting gymnasts, but they failed to act, leaving him free to continue to target young women and girls for more than a year. Nassar pled guilty in 2017 and is serving decades in prison.

Atlanta-based OneTrust is cutting about one-quarter of its workforce, jettisoning 950 jobs worldwide. OneTrust is a software company specializing in privacy that had been an Atlanta tech highflyer. It was forced into slashing jobs by the recent changes in capital markets that have moved money away from rapidly growing companies, according to a written statement by Kabir Barday, the company’s chief executive officer.

The Waltons, heirs to the Walmart fortune and America’s richest family, have won the bidding to purchase the Denver Broncos in the most expensive deal for a sports franchise anywhere in the world. The Broncos announced last week that they had entered into a sale agreement with the Walton-Penner ownership group led by Rob Walton, his daughter, Carrie Walton Penner, and her husband, Greg Penner. Terms of the sale weren’t disclosed, but KUSA-TV in Denver reported it was for $4.65 billion. Walton, 77, was chairman of Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, from 1992 to 2015, when he retired. Walton said Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments and chairwoman of Starbucks, has agreed to join the ownership group. Hobson is Black. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has made minority ownership a point of emphasis in the league. Hobson is also married to filmmaker and creator of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, George Lucas.

The Starbucks store on Howell Mill Road has become the first of the company’s stores in metro Atlanta to unionize. In a vote conducted by the National Labor Relations Board, nonmanagement employees at Starbucks voted 10-1 in favor of being represented by a union. The company, which has aggressively fought a series of union campaigns that began last year, has long portrayed itself as a worker-friendly chain, providing generous benefits. But workers speaking out during the recent organizing drive have told a somewhat different story, often arguing that the company’s compensation and benefits had not kept up with those provided by many other employers. Starbucks workers have asked for better pay and more reliable hours. The company has responded with a threat to provide higher wages and benefits only in stores that are not unionized. At least 85 of Starbucks’ 9,000 company-operated stores in the U.S. have voted to unionize since December, and at least 10 stores have rejected unions, according to the NLRB.

Former Georgia residents and reality stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were found guilty on all counts of bank fraud and tax evasion by a federal jury last week in Atlanta. Federal prosecutors said the Chrisleys deliberately “swindled” at least $30 million from community banks from 2007 to 2012 by inflating their net worth to get loans, purposely targeting smaller banks that did less due diligence than larger ones. Then Todd Chrisley filed for bankruptcy in 2012, erasing $20 million in loan debt. Prosecuting attorney Annalise Peters alleged the Chrisleys then actively hid millions they made from the reality show, which began in 2014, as well as $500,000 in taxes Todd owed in 2009. Prosecutors alleged the couple actively evaded taxes going back to 2009. The Chrisleys were living in metro Atlanta during most of the alleged illegal activity but moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2016. Todd and Julie were not remanded to jail after being found guilty on all counts. A sentencing hearing has yet to be set, but the Chrisleys could face up to 30 years in prison.

An investigation by the U.S. into Tesla vehicles operating on partially automated driving systems that have crashed into parked emergency vehicles has moved a step closer to a recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday it is upgrading the probe to an engineering analysis, another sign of increased scrutiny of the electric vehicle maker and automated systems that perform at least some driving tasks.

Volkswagen Group of America is recalling 72 2022 Audi A6 Sedan, A4 Sedan, Q5 and Q5 Sportback vehicles. The semiconductor inside the engine control unit may short-circuit and cause an engine stall.

General Motors is recalling 1,534 2022 GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado pickups equipped with a manual passenger seat. The front passenger seat may have a hook attachment that was not properly welded, allowing it to separate from the inboard track of the seat frame.

Nineteen years after the last one was made, Goodyear has agreed to recall more than 173,000 of the G159 recreational vehicle tires that the U.S. government says can fail and have killed or injured 95 people

Have a great week…