“This Week In Health” offers some highlights from the world of health news and wellness tips that you may have missed this week:
This week, the Alzheimer’s Association’s International Conference unveiled new advances in understanding the disease. Recent findings offer insight into factors that can offset genetic disposition, including diabetes, activity levels, and high blood pressure. Continuing studies on two experimental treatments will also be presented at the Washington, D.C. conference.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) a recent outbreak of salmonella can be attributed to people kissing and cuddling their chickens. Eighty-six percent of those infected who were interviewed by the CDC had had close contact with poultry before infection.
A baby girl known as “Big Head Baby” in her Chinese village received titanium scalp implants in order to treat a rare disorder known as hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus caused fluid retention in the brain, leading to ulcers, optic nerve damage, and a swollen cranium. Diagnosed at 6 months old, the baby, Han Han, was having trouble lifting her head and was nearly blind. The operation took 17 hours and Han Han is expected to make a full recovery.
Lastly, armadillos are believed to be responsible for a rash of leprosy cases in Florida. Though the average numbers of infected per year is typically between two and 12, Florida doctors have already reported nine cases in 2015. The spike in leprosy cases is believed to be caused by the growth in housing development and building construction, which has displaced armadillos and pushed them into further contact with humans.
Photo by David Foltz via Flickr
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Cheney, who narrates the entire spot but never appears, opens with, "Donald Trump is the only president in American history who has refused to guarantee the peaceful transfer of power."
Amid original footage of Trump's "Stop the Steal" speech that day, Cheney continues, "He lost the election and he knew it. He betrayed millions of Americans by telling them the election was stolen."
As attendees proceed toward the Capitol, Cheney says, "Rather than accept his defeat, he mobilized a mob to come to Washington and march on the Capitol."
Over scenes of rioters clashing with police, breaching the barricades, and breaking into the Capitol lobby, Cheney continues, "Then he watched on television while the mob attacked law enforcement, invaded the Capitol, and hunted the vice president."
Cheney notes that Trump refused to tell his followers to leave for three hours.
"There has never been a greater dereliction of duty by any president," Cheney states.
Even though Trump was warned his plans were illegal, she says, he ignored those warnings and still celebrates the insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol.
Trump has proven he's unfit for office, Cheney says, warning, "Donald Trump is a risk America can never take again."
The ad relays a story most reality-based Americans already know but is unique in presenting such a clear and succinct narrative all in one place. The rapid progression from Trump's incitement to the violent assault on law enforcement officers and the U.S. seat of government still shocks anyone with a conscience and lick of patriotism.
The CNN town hall is also an ideal venue for Cheney to reach her target audience—both voters who support Trump but overwhelmingly want to win next year, and Republicans who plan to vote for the GOP nominee and are assessing Trump's viability. In short, both groups contain people who plan to vote Republican but are open to or prefer someone besides Trump. The spot takes aim at anyone in need of a nudge to peel away from Trump.
Cheney has yet to announce whether she plans to run for president. But traditionally speaking, it would be weird for anyone planning a 2024 bid to, in their own voice, narrate an ad directly attacking a rival. A much safer bet would be so-called voice-of-god narration funded by Cheney's super PAC. In that sense, Cheney's self-narration makes for an interesting choice.
In many ways, the ad appears to be the culmination of Cheney's efforts on the Jan. 6 panel—as if she had long envisioned making this spot in the event of another Trump run and was laying the groundwork all along.
On May 15, 2021, shortly after being ousted from her House Republican leadership post, Cheney stood before a gaggle of reporters and pledged, "I will do everything I can to ensure that the former president never again gets anywhere near the Oval Office."
Cheney won't make a vanity run for president just to feed her ego. The only way she enters the contest is if she truly believes it's the best path to destroying Donald Trump. For now, Cheney is committed to that outcome and that outcome alone. Her CNN debut spot is the perfect embodiment of a precision strike designed to inflict maximum damage.
United States Representative George Santos (R-NY) was criminally indicted by the Justice Department on Wednesday, CNN exclusively reported.
"Santos is expected to appear as soon as Wednesday at federal court in New York’s eastern district, where the charges have been filed under seal," correspondents Mark Morales and Evan Perez learned from insider sources.
"The exact nature of the charges couldn’t immediately be learned but the FBI and the Justice Department public integrity prosecutors in New York and Washington have been examining allegations of false statements in Santos' campaign finance filings and other claims," they explained.
Santos' tenure has been stained by numerous allegations of fraud, dishonesty, and alleged illegal practices prior to and during his campaign for Congress in 2022. Santos is also being probed by the House Ethics Committee.
The accusations include "breaking campaign finance laws, violating federal conflict of interest laws, stealing cash meant for an Iraq War veteran’s dying dog, masterminding a credit card fraud scheme, and lying about where he went to school and worked," CNN noted," adding that "Santos has admitted to making some misleading claims about his education and financial status, but continues to deny the more serious allegations."
