Thursday Morning Scoop: Backfiring at the Border

Welcome to the Morning Scoop for June 21. The past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster for everyone following the family separation controversy, and we want to get the hell off this ride. 

Yesterday, our team of student journalists got down into the details of World Refugee Day, and appropriately, Trump’s executive order requiring families to stay together at the border. It was a newsworthy day. 

Anti-Separation Order Remains Largely Ineffective

Critics of the border detention centers separating immigrant families rejoiced yesterday following President Trump’s executive order vowing to end the practice. After weeks of pressure from all sides, the order felt like a major victory for families seeking asylum at the U.S. border.

But as of this morning, the order faces a harsh reality. The Department of Health and Human Services has pointed out that the executive order may not be capable of grandfathering existing cases, leaving the separation policy in place until further notice. In the meantime, legal experts say that it is highly unlikely that courts will agree to comply with the executive order, possibly dooming the fate of the 2,300 children without their families.

Michael Bloomberg To Spend $80 Million on Midterm Elections

Michael R. Bloomberg, billionaire and former New York City Mayor, plans to spend at least $80 million in the 2018 midterm elections.  Using his political background, and personal fortune, Bloomberg plans to put power back into the hands of the Democratic Party.

His long term goal: Flipping 23 Republican seats over to the Democrats, in the House of Representatives, in order to win the majority.

Sources have confirmed, that Bloomberg could easily surpass his starting budget of $80 million by the end of the midterm spending season. An advocate for left-of center policies surrounding gun control, immigration and the environment, could be exactly what Democrats need. Up until this point, Republicans had many of the financial dynamics in their favor; however Bloomberg’s generous support could easily flip the scale.

Check out Danielle Germain’s full report here. 

Artist Spotlight: SHEAFS Tells All at The Electric Ballroom

SHEAFS is made up of Lawrence Feenstra on vocals, Charlie Eastap on drums, Chris Goodacre on guitar, Charles Mellor on guitar and Callum Wright on bass, although when I spoke to the band, we all agreed that Callum looked a little too busy for the interview.

He stood about fifteen feet away, chatting with a group that I couldn’t decipher as either fans or friends, and I wasn’t going to be responsible for dragging him away. Based in Sheffield, the group has been around the UK music scene for two and a half years, releasing the EP Nobody’s Watching in 2016, as well as multiple singles in 2017 and 2018, according to their Soundcloud.

Read more about this up and coming British band in Nicole Kitchens’ interview here. 

Today in a Tweet: Happy Summer!

Today marks the first day of summer, and Twitter is celebrating, as it should. 

Last But Not Least: Koko the Gorilla Passes Away at 46

Koko, the gorilla most famous for learning sign language and communicating with humans, died earlier this week according to the Gorilla Foundation. At 46 years old, Koko dedicated her life to making an impact on human understanding of the animal world. In 1978, she became famous for her National Geographic cover with Penny Patterson, animal psychologist at the San Francisco Zoo. In 2001, Koko became close friends with comedian Robin Williams after his visit to the zoo, and grieved his death in 2014.

With Koko’s passing, the Gorilla Foundation says it will honor her legacy, working on wildlife conservation in Africa, a great ape sanctuary in Maui, and a sign language app. The foundation says those who want to share condolences can do so by emailing kokolove@koko.org.

Wednesday’s Morning Scoop was made possible by Danielle Gemain, Nicole Kitchens and the CMN Staff. Why is it impressive for a gorilla to communicate with humans, but when we try to talk with people we get ignored? Is it something we said?