What we’re reading: Eight dead in Atlanta shootings, Biden weighs in on Cuomo investigation

By Tristen Smith

Published Mar 17, 2021

FILE – In this Sept. 14, 2018 file photo, Gov. Andrew Cuomo listens during a news conference in New York. President Joe Biden said Tuesday, March 16, 2021, that Cuomo should resign if the state attorney general’s investigation confirms the sexual harassment allegations against him. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

President Biden breaks silence on Cuomo

President Joe Biden said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo should resign if the sexual assault allegations against him are confirmed, according to the Washington Post.

The comments were made Tuesday during an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, in which the president gave his approval of the ongoing investigation and that the governor will “probably” face prosecution.

Cuomo has been accused of sexual harassment by six women, five of them made by former employees, with the latest surfacing last Wednesday.

Many members of the New York congressional delegation along with state officials have called for Cuomo’s resignation, including Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and Sen. Kristen Gillibrand.

All allegations made have been denied by the governor. The ongoing investigation is currently being handled by Letitia James, the New York state attorney general.

Intelligence report reveals Putin attempted election influence

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting via video conference with officials and government cabinet members in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, March 11, 2021. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

A recently declassified report from the National Intelligence Council found that President Vladimir Putin of Russia authorized efforts to influence the 2020 election, according to The New York Times.

The report stated that members of the Russian state attempted to harm Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy through covert operations to influence close allies of former President Donald Trump.

These findings, coupled with a companion report from the Justice and Homeland Security Department, refuted Trump and his allies’ claims of widespread voter fraud and challenged claims of any wrongdoing by the Biden family in Ukraine.

The report also found that other countries, including Iran, attempted to influence the vote, while China decided to not interfere after consideration.

Intelligence officials did not specifically name any potential Trump allies that were influenced, nor any explanation to their conclusion of Russian involvement.

Shootings in Atlanta area leave eight dead

An official walks into a massage parlor after a shooting, late Tuesday, March 16, 2021, in Atlanta. Shootings at two massage parlors in Atlanta and one in the suburbs left multiple people dead, many of them women of Asian descent, authorities said. A 21-year-old man suspected in the shootings was taken into custody in Southwest Georgia hours later after a manhunt, police said. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

A string of shootings at three separate massage parlors in the Atlanta, Georgia area killed eight people yesterday, according to Reuters.

The first shooting happened in Cherokee County, north of downtown Atlanta, killing four victims and wounding one.

The subsequent two happened in Atlanta, both in massage parlors right across the street from each other.

Six of the eight victims were of Asian descent, prompting authorities to question if the shootings were racially motivated.

The suspect, 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long, was taken into custody roughly 150 miles south of Atlanta.

The FBI is currently assisting local law enforcement in the investigation.

Texas PUC Chairman Resigns

DeAnn Walker, former Chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, testifies as the Committees on State Affairs and Energy Resources holds a joint public hearing to consider the factors that led to statewide electrical blackouts, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Austin, Texas. The hearings were the first in Texas since a blackout that was one of the worst in U.S. history, leaving more than 4 million customers without power and heat in subfreezing temperatures. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Public Utility Commission Chairman Arthur D’Andrea resigned Tuesday night after Gov. Abbot asked for him to step down, according to The Dallas Morning News.

The resignation comes just two weeks after D’Andrea was made chairman, in the wake of mass power grid failure due to winter storms across Texas.

The former chairman is stepping down after information surfaced on Tuesday regarding comments made in a March 9 phone call with Bank of America Securities.

In the call, D’Andrea admits to using the power of the commission to prevent the repricing of $16 billion in power charges across the state during the winter storm.

Gov. Abbot announced that he will be naming a replacement chairman in the coming days.