Georgia Republicans oppose measure condemning spa shootings
WASHINGTON — All eight Republicans who represent Georgia in the U.S. House voted against a resolution condemning the Atlanta spa shootings.
The 244-180 vote included every House Democrat plus several dozen Republicans. The resolution’s text includes the names and biographical details about the eight victims of the March 16 attack plus language “reaffirming the House of Representatives’ commitment to combating hate, bigotry and violence against the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.”
Five of Georgia’s six House Democrats voted in favor of the measure; U.S. Rep. David Scott was not present for the vote.
None of the Georgia Republicans could be immediately reached for comment.
U.S. Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux hosted a delegation of lawmakers 12 days after shootings, and they visited each of the three Asian spas that were targeted. Bourdeaux, a Democrat from Suwanee, said the resolution would send a message to the loved ones of the eight victims, including six women of Asian descent.
“It is a step in the right direction, but only a step,” she said. “America is and has always been a nation of immigrants, a fact that deserves to be celebrated.”
The vote on the resolution comes a day after the House passed anti-hate crimes legislation, which is now ready to be signed into law by President Joe Biden. The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act gained momentum after the spa shootings.
—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Florida expands gambling, but hurdles remain
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida joined the dozens of states that have authorized mobile sports betting Wednesday as legislators wrapped up their special session and ratified an agreement with the Seminole Tribe in the broadest expansion of gambling in a decade in Florida.
But don't expect to start wagering on your favorite sports teams for a while.
Federal regulators must approve the deal, which expands the gambling monopoly in Florida for the Seminole Tribe, to make sure its guarantee of $500 million in revenue sharing with the state is fair to the tribe and legal for the state.
The measure, negotiated with the tribe by Gov. Ron DeSantis, is fraught with precedent-setting implications for the nation and Native American tribes, and a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality is anticipated.
If the state clears those hurdles, anyone in Florida over age 21 can start playing the games on their cellphone on Oct. 15. The Seminole Tribe's Hard Rock casinos in Broward and Hillsborough counties also will have full Las Vegas-style casinos with the addition of roulette and craps, and mobile sports betting will be allowed through online apps managed by the tribe as well as Florida's existing racetracks and jai-alai frontons.
The biggest winner is the Seminole Tribe, which has used its operation of the Hard Rock Casino and resort to build a gambling empire that is becoming one of the largest gaming operators in the world. The tribe will continue to operate slot machines, black jack and chemin de fer and raffles and drawings at its existing casinos and will now have the ability to build three new casinos at its existing property near Hollywood in Broward County.
—The Miami Herald
China's Mars rover sends first images
In a day of exciting firsts and temporary setbacks, China managed to get a rover onto Mars, even as it had to delay some plans for its first space station.
China's Zhurong rover transmitted its first images from Mars to Earth on Wednesday, just days after China made history by becoming the second country to send a probe to the Red Planet's surface.
All systems were operating normally, state media reported. The images showed the rover briefly after landing on Mars, while another shows Zhurong separating from the orbiting Tianwen-1 spacecraft, according to China’s space agency.
The landing module touched down on the surface of Mars on Saturday, making China only the second country after the United States to land a vessel successfully on Earth's neighbor.
Tianwen-1 took off from Earth on July 23 and reached orbit in February.
Beijing has steadily expanded its space program over the past few years and has missions planned for decades into the future. Work began on that project at the end of April when the 22-ton Tianhe, which is to form the core module of the space station, was sent up on a rocket.
But Chinese space authorities canceled the launch of a Long March 7 rocket, scheduled for early Thursday, at the last minute, citing technical problems. A new date will be set.
—dpa
Pittsburgh moves closer to seeing its first Black mayor
PITTSBURGH — Beating a two-term incumbent in a race centered on equity, state Rep. Ed Gainey won the Democratic primary on Tuesday, which should pave the way to becoming Pittsburgh's first Black mayor.
Gainey was beating incumbent Mayor Bill Peduto 46% to 39% as of just before 9 a.m. Wednesday, with retired police Officer Tony Moreno garnering 13% of the vote and local ride-share driver Michael Thompson registering 1%. Nearly 99% of precincts have reported their results.
“I just called (Ed Gainey) and congratulated him on earning the Democratic endorsement for Mayor of the city of Pittsburgh. Wishing him well. Thank you Pittsburgh for the honor of being your Mayor these past 8 years. I will remain forever grateful,” Peduto tweeted shortly before 10:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Gainey, a 51-year-old state lawmaker representing a district stretching from Highland Park to Wilkinsburg, frequently asked, "For whom is Pittsburgh most livable?" — a question that he backed with facts from the many task forces and reports Peduto commissioned to identify problems. His message seemed to match the moment, and he thanked God, his wife, his children, his mother, his stepfather and all of his campaign staff after Peduto conceded Tuesday.
"One person can't change a city. A city is changed with all of us," Gainey told his supporters. "A city is changed when we all come together to improve the quality of life for everybody. That's why I ran for mayor: because I believe we can have a city for all."
—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
