Jul 14, 2019

Trump official Ken Cuccinelli blames Congress for border crisis

Acting U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ken Cuccinelli blamed Congress for the conditions of border detention facilities.

"I have a lot of respect for our ICE officers. They're loyal and compassionate, but they have a job to do and it's a tough one. It's made a lot tougher when you have a lot of people in Congress throw the vitriol at them that they are when they're just doing their jobs and following the laws that Congress put in place. "
— Cuccinelli on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday.

The big picture: President Trump has announced ICE raids will begin today, while Cuccinelli refused to comment on whether they had. "I can’t speak to operational specifics and won’t," he told CNN's Jake Tapper.

  • Ultimately Cuccinelli turned the blame back on Congress: "When Congress provides the professionals at the border what they need, success happens. The conditions, he added, are "a reality of facilities not designed to handle the swamping at the border."

Go deeper: Trump isn't matching Obama deportation numbers

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Minneapolis unrest as hundreds protest death of George Floyd

Tear gas is fired as police clash with protesters demonstrating against the death of George Floyd outside the 3rd Precinct Police Precinct in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Tuesday. Photo: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Minneapolis police used tear gas during clashes with protesters demanding justice Tuesday night for George Floyd, an African American who died in police custody, according to multiple news reports and images shared to social media.

Driving the news: The FBI is investigating Floyd's death after video emerged of a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on his neck for several minutes, ignoring protests that he couldn't breathe. Hundreds of protesters attended the demonstration at the intersection where Floyd died, per the Guardian.

Go deeper (1 min. read)ArrowUpdated 27 mins ago - Politics & Policy

World coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

The number of deaths from the novel coronavirus surpassed 350,000 globally on Wednesday morning, per Johns Hopkins data.

By the numbers: More than 5.9 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 and over 2.2 million have recovered from the virus. The U.S. has reported the most cases in the world (over 1.6 million from 14.9 million tests).

Go deeper (2 min. read)ArrowUpdated 57 mins ago - Health

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3:00 a.m. ET: 5,594,175 — Total deaths: 350,531 — Total recoveries — 2,288,579 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3:00 a.m. ET: 1,681,418 — Total deaths: 98,929 — Total recoveries: 384,902 — Total tested: 14,907,041 — Map.
  3. Federal response: DOJ investigates meatpacking industry over soaring beef prices — Mike Pence's press secretary returns to work.
  4. Congress: House Republicans to sue Nancy Pelosi in effort to block proxy voting.
  5. Business: How the new workplace could leave parents behind.
  6. Tech: Twitter fact-checks Trump's tweets about mail-in voting for first time — Google to open offices July 6 for 10% of workers.
  7. Public health: Coronavirus antibodies could give "short-term immunity," CDC says, but more data is needed— CDC releases guidance on when you can be around others after contracting the virus.
  8. What should I do? When you can be around others after contracting the coronavirus — Traveling, asthma, dishes, disinfectants and being contagious — Masks, lending books and self-isolating — Exercise, laundry, what counts as soap — Pets, moving and personal health — Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — How to minimize your risk.
  9. Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it, the right mask to wear.

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Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy