Uncommon Knowledge
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Texas
Major Texas newspaper endorses Joe Biden
A number of Republican and MAGA figures have reacted angrily after The Houston Chronicle, one of the biggest newspapers in Texas, endorsed President Joe Biden.
The Houston Chronicle‘s editorial board said they would be backing Biden in the Democratic primary and for re-election so he can “make life better” for the American people as well as prevent the “chaos, corruption and danger to the nation” that would accompany his presumed 2024 Republican challenger Donald Trump returning to the White House.
The Houston Chronicle‘s praise for Biden will be a boost for the Democrat as he seeks re-election in November. It remains to be seen how much of a difference the endorsement will make, seeing as Texas has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate for nearly 50 years, with Trump beating Biden in 2020 by six points in the red state.
In their editorial, the paper’s board admit that Biden “has his shortcomings,” but what his administration has achieved during his time in office is a “potent reminder to his fellow Democrats, to independents and to those Republicans who have somehow resisted Trump’s cultish appeal that the nation has a viable alternative.”
Anna Moneymaker
The editorial notes how the U.S. economy is now “healthier” than any other advanced nation having recovered from the pandemic, unemployment is approaching a 50-year low and that inflation is falling.
The board cites other achievements from Biden’s presidency, such as seeking a “modest effort” to address gun safety, introducing a price cap on insulin, leading an allied response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “brutish” invasion of Ukraine as well as seeking a “path to peace and stability in the post-October 7 conflagration involving Gaza, Iran and Israel and the desperate Palestinian people.”
“We are well aware that the Biden administration has not been successful on every front,” the board wrote.
“The calamitous withdrawal from Afghanistan was the most obvious failure. The administration’s inability to quell chaos at the border is another, although blame primarily belongs to caviling and cynical MAGA Republicans in the House.
“In servility to Trump, they torpedoed a bipartisan border-security plan painstakingly crafted in the Senate. Biden can’t solve the crisis by executive order; he needs Congress to act.”
In response, a number of Trump supporters lashed out at the paper for their endorsement of Biden on social media.
Steve Guest, a former spokesperson for Texas Senator Ted Cruz, posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Untethered from reality. REMINDER: the economy is a mess, our country is being invaded and the border is wide open, and the world is on fire from the Middle East to a ground war in Europe due to Joe Biden’s policies.”
Talk show host Joe Pagliarulo wrote: “O M G—I just LOVE this parody account for the Houston Chronicle. Kudos!!”
Comedian and political commentator Tim Young posted: “Fill the Houston Chronicle office with illegal immigrants. They endorse it, they can house it.”
Robert Bowlin, who frequently supports Trump on social media, added: “So, do you just not care about the fact that he can barely speak and he appears to be on the verge of tears in every press hearing?”
The Houston Chronicle board did note the concerns about the age and cognitive ability of Biden, who will be 82 by the start of his potential second term in office, and said that he may not be the “energetic, garrulous, occasionally even eloquent” public speaker of previous years.
However, the board suggested the president has “forgotten more than his presumed Republican rival will ever know. That’s not saying much, and at the same time, it says it all.”
Trump’s office has been contacted for comment via email.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
A day off at the pool — and a little sunburn — didn’t stop the Minnesota Twins’ momentum.
Brooks Lee hit a three-run homer as Minnesota scored multiple runs in the first inning for the third consecutive game, and the Twins went on to complete a series sweep of the Texas Rangers with a 9-3 win Thursday.
Minnesota has won four games in a row and scored 25 runs in the three-games series in Texas. The two teams had a rare, mid-series day off on Wednesday with the England-Croatia World Cup game being played in Arlington.
“We’re locked in every day,” Lee told Audra Martin on the team’s broadcast. “Yesterday, taking time off, lay out by the pool, get a little burnt and then right back to it. We did a good job getting focused. I feel like we do that with rain delays, too, just lock back in and we’re doing it.”
Lee’s 12th homer capped a four-run first off Jack Leiter (3-7). Trevor Larnach made it 6-0 in the fourth with a two-run shot to straightaway center that just cleared the extended glove of leaping Alejandro Osuna. Larnach’s third hit was an RBI single in the fifth, and Ryan Kriedler hit a two-run homer in the eighth.
Joe Ryan (5-3) struck out seven but needed 97 pitches to get through five scoreless innings while allowing three singles. Leiter was done after the fourth, and has given up 17 runs while losing three starts in a row.
The Twins never trailed in the sweep that extended their winning streak to four, matching their longest this season. Their 14-5 record at Globe Life Field is the best for any American League opponent since the ballpark opened in 2020.
Wyatt Langford, Ezequiel Duran and Justin Foscue hit solo homers for the Rangers, who have lost five of six games. They are 0-15 when giving up multiple runs in the first inning.
Twins DH Josh Bell, who was born in nearby Irving and grew up in the area, had an RBI single before Lee’s homer. Bell hit a three-run homer in the first inning of the series-opening 4-2 win Monday, and had an RBI single for a 2-0 lead in the first of a 12-2 win on Tuesday.
“We’re just passing the baton each time,” Lee said of the offensive output. “Our guys are hot. They feel good and they came out swinging today. It was awesome to see. We’ve done that for a while now.”
Up next
Twins rookie left-hander Connor Prielipp (2-4, 5.26 ERA) starts Friday at Arizona. The Diamondbacks are scheduled to start right-hander Michael Soroka (8-3, 3.11).
Watch CBS News
A Texas state trooper was killed in a crash in the Panhandle, becoming the 244th Texas Department of Public Safety officer to die in the line of duty since 1823, according to the agency.
Sergio Romero, 27, died Wednesday after a semi-truck pulled in front of him as he attempted a traffic stop around 4 p.m. on U.S. 287 in Childress County, DPS said.
In a statement, Col. Freeman F. Martin praised Romero’s courage, integrity, and service.
“Today, we grieve the loss of one of our own,” Martin said. “… Our hearts break alongside his family, friends, fellow troopers, and all who loved him. We will never forget the ultimate sacrifice he made in service of his fellow Texans.”
Romero previously served with the Hall County Sheriff’s Office before joining DPS as part of Class B-2025 in Childress, the agency said.
He is survived by his wife, Francisca, and their two young sons.
Funeral arrangements are pending. The crash remains under investigation.
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