Feb 25, 2018

Florida House Speaker and 73 Republicans want sheriff to step down

Scott Israel, Sheriff of Broward County, and Florida Governor Rick Scott. Photo: Joe Raedle / Getty Images

Speaker of the Florida House Richard Corcoran and 73 other state Republicans are asking Gov. Rick Scott to suspend Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel for “his incompetence and neglect of duty” leading up to the recent Parkland school shooting that left 17 dead.

The backdrop: Their request, sent in a letter to Scott on Sunday, comes as Israel faces mounting backlash over his office's handling of the warning signs brought to their attention before the massacre. Scott, who said on Fox News Sunday that the local Sheriff's Department needs to be held accountable, declined the request from Republicans. But he did ask the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to probe the office's response to the Feb. 14 mass shooting, Politico reports.

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Stef W. Kight

11 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Amid racial unrest, a test at the polls

Photo: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Eight states plus D.C. are holding primary elections today following a week of intense protests across the country over the brutal police killing of George Floyd.

Why it matters: It's the first major test for voting since the national outcry. Concerns over civil unrest and the police — as well as the coronavirus and expanded absentee voting — could reduce the number of voters showing up in person but heighten tensions for those who do.

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Margaret Talev

40 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Axios-Ipsos poll: America’s big racial divide on police, virus

Data: Ipsos/Axios survey; Note: ±3.2% margin of error; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

A new Axios-Ipsos poll finds that America has a massive racial gulf on each of our twin calamities — trust in police, and fear of the coronavirus.

77% of whites say they trust local police, compared with just 36% of African Americans — one of many measures of a throbbing racial divide in Week 11 of the Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index, taken the week George Floyd was killed by a white policeman in Minneapolis.

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Rebecca Falconer

Updated 50 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Updates: George Floyd protests nationwide

Police officers wearing riot gear push back demonstrators outside of the White House on Monday. Photo: Jose Luis Magana/AFP via Getty Images

Protests over the death of George Floyd and other police-related killings of black people continued for a seventh day across the U.S., with President Trump threatening on Monday to deploy the military if the unrest continues.

The latest: Four police officers were struck by gunfire while standing near a line in St Louis on Monday after a peaceful demonstration, Police Chief John Hayden said early Tuesday. They were all taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries. He said a small group of people had thrown rocks and fireworks at police officers.

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