Good morning. It’s Friday and your three-day weekend might have already started.
If that’s the case, 1) I’m jealous, and 2) why are you reading this? Go back to sleep. Put down the phone and go outside. Do whatever it is people do when they go on vacation.
I wouldn’t know.
Though most people are probably planning to do a host of things to usher in the summer season – cookouts, picnics, lake days, beach going, pool lounging etc. – let us take a moment to recall why, exactly, this holiday exists.
The official purpose of Memorial Day is to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to this country, protecting its interests and fighting for small-d democracy.
After the Civil War ended in 1865, Americans across the country began holding ceremonies – known at the time as Decoration Day – to honor the nearly 620,000 Union and Confederate soldiers who had died in the conflict.
One of the earliest of these – as far as we’re able to trace back – took place in Charleston, SC, in May 1865, when a group of freed slaves gathered to commemorate fallen Union soldiers, who were buried at a local country club/racecourse-turned war prison.
Officially, the Washington Race Course and Jockey Club was used by the Confederate Army to hold Union captives towards the end of the war. A Yale University professor determined that some 260 Union soldiers died at the site and were buried in a mass grave.
That same year, a well-known druggist named Henry Welles in the City of Waterloo, NY put forward the idea of a formal ceremony that would memorialize soldiers who had been killed in action.
A year later, Waterloo held a village-wide event on May 5, with flag flown at half-mast and trees draped in black. Villagers also marched to the local cemetery and decorated veterans’ graves with flowers and flags.
This became an annual occurrence, and eventually was moved to May 30, along with other observances across the nation at the time. (Some continue to observe on that day, though a 1971 federal law changed it officially to Monday in May and extended the honor to all soldiers who died in American wars).
In March 1966, then-Gov. Nelson Rockefeller officially designated Waterloo as the “The Birthplace of Memorial Day”. President Lyndon Johnson followed suit by signing congressional resolutions bestowing the same designation.
(To be clear, there are a number of communities that claim to be the “first” to have held a precursor to what we now know as Memorial Day.
The first national observance of Memorial Day (still called Decoration Day at the time) occurred in 1868 at Arlington National Cemetery. That tradition continues to this day, where an annual remembrance ceremony takes place, featuring a performance by the U.S. Air Force Band and a wreath-laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (usually placed by the president).
The holiday weekend is shaping up to be really lovely, with temperatures warming from the mid-70s (today) through the mid-80s (Monday). Skies will be mostly sunny to fully sunny, and there’s no rain (currently) in the forecast…though, you know, it’s upstate, so that could very well change in a moment’s notice.
In case you’re planning on hitting the road this weekend, know that temporary lane closures pertaining to road and bridge construction will be suspended from today to Tuesday, May 30, compliments of Gov. Kathy Hochul, to make your trip a little smoother.
A programming note: There will be no Rise and Shine Monday in honor of the holiday. We’ll be back at it bright and early Tuesday morning. Enjoy the weekend, and be safe out there.
In the headlines…
Days from a deadline, President Biden and House Speaker McCarthy are narrowing in on a two-year budget deal aiming to curb federal deficits in exchange for lifting the nation’s debt ceiling and staving off an economically devastating government default.
People familiar with the potential agreement said that negotiators were looking to finalize the agreement in the coming days, ahead of a looming deadline of June 1 deadline when the US could run out of cash to pay all of its financial obligations.
The details were not finalized, but negotiators were discussing a compromise that would allow Republicans to point to spending reductions and Democrats to say they had prevented large cuts.
Seeking to strike a reassuring tone despite days of negotiations, Biden publicly said he’s had several “productive conversations” with McCarthy and their teams are “making progress” on debt ceiling talks as the country inches closer to default.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the New Yorker who succeeded rep. Nancy Pelosi this year as the House’s top Democrat, is getting a trial by fire, thanks to the debt crisis.
Biden vetoed a GOP-led measure that would overturn DC police reforms, writing it “would overturn commonsense police reforms,” such as chokehold bans, standards for use of force, rules around the use of body cameras and officer training programs.
Biden wielded his veto pen on H.J. Res. 42, passed by both the House and Senate that would repeal the Comprehensive Policing And Justice Reform Amendment Act, which the council passed on an emergency basis after the 2020 killing of George Floyd.
“It is a core policy of my administration to provide law enforcement with the resources they need for effective, accountable community policing,” Biden said in a statement.
Three years after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd, Biden said there is still work to be done on police reform.
Biden’s ’24 bid begins with a wide advantage over his declared Democratic opponents, but he faces declining favorability and a widespread view that his reelection would be more negative than positive for the country, a new poll found.
Just a third of Americans say that Biden winning in 2024 would be a step forward or a triumph for the country (33%). At the same time, the survey finds a decline in favorable views of Biden over the past six months, from 42% in December to 35% now.
Biden unveiled his administration’s new “whole of society” plan to combat antisemitism, which he called the “most ambitious and comprehensive US government-led effort to fight antisemitism in American history.”
“The past several years, hate has been given too much oxygen, fueling a rapid rise in antisemitism,” Biden said in a prerecorded message. “It’s simply wrong. It’s not only it’s immoral, it’s unacceptable. It’s on all of us to stop it.”
Stewart Rhodes, the leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia, was sentenced yesterday to 18 years in prison for his conviction on seditious conspiracy charges for the role he played in helping to mobilize the pro-Trump attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The sentence, handed down in Federal District Court in Washington, was the most severe penalty so far in the more than 1,000 criminal cases stemming from the Capitol attack — and the first to be increased for fitting the legal definition of terrorism.
A maintenance worker for former President Donald Trump recounted helping to move boxes into a storage room at Mar-a-Lago a day before a Justice Department official came seeking the return of classified material.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, now officially a candidate for president, is no longer tiptoeing around Trump – nor is he being shy about his plans to flex the powers of the presidency like never before if he wins the White House.
After months of largely avoiding criticizing Trump directly, DeSantis unloaded yesterday during a media blitz following his entry in the presidential race, slamming Trump’s COVID-19 response and criticizing his statements on guns and abortion.
DeSantis raised $8.2 million in his first 24 hours as a presidential candidate, his campaign said yesterday, a huge sum that cements his standing as the leading Republican rival to Trump.
Stephen K. Bannon, a longtime adviser to Trump, is scheduled to stand trial in May of next year for what prosecutors say was his role in defrauding Americans who paid money toward the construction of a southern border wall, a judge said yesterday.
Trump praised LIV Golf yesterday and defended his business relationship with the controversial Saudi-funded tour during a pro-am event at Trump National Golf Club.
Whether LIV Golf can outrun Trump’s shadow, and whether it even wants to, could do much to shape how the league is perceived in the years ahead, particularly in the United States.
A clearer picture of what’s become known as long COVID-19 is starting to emerge, which should eventually allow researchers to treat symptoms that can devastate people’s lives for months or years after an infection.
In a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health, researchers identified symptoms that are the most distinctive to long COVID, including: fatigue, especially after exercise; brain fog; dizziness; gastrointestinal symptoms; heart palpitations; and more.
China is bracing for a new wave of Covid infections that could see as many as 65 million cases per week by the time the surge peaks at the end of June.
Forty New York state lawmakers released a letter to Biden urging him to back an expedited process to allow migrants with asylum status to work.
Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt said in a letter to Hochul raised concerns with plans to potentially house migrants north of New York City at State University of New York campuses as well as hotels and motels.
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said he didn’t know that 40 migrant families were being bused from New York City to a local Ramada Inn last week until his police force told him about the move. No city or state official gave him a heads up, he maintains.
New York City is now temporarily housing asylum seekers in several respite centers which have been popping up around the city with little notice to their surrounding communities.
City Hall abruptly ceased sending out detailed counts on New York City’s migrant population in the weeks leading up to reporting a skyrocketing rise in the number of new arrivals, according to two elected officials.
Mayor Adams defended his stance on the migrants crisis, saying he “did not write” the laws that some say are aiding the deluge of new arrivals, punted on the ongoing controversy over Jordan Neely’s death, and applauded himself for running a “complicated city.
Daniel Penny, who has been charged will killing Neely in a minutes-long chokehold that was captured on video, plans to tell his story before a grand jury in an attempt to avoid a manslaughter indictment, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
New York Republicans want whole milk and 2% milk back in school lunches.
New York legislators are vowing to terminate a lucrative state tax break for film and TV productions if they replace humans with artificial intelligence.
“With the advent of AI, we want to make sure that we continue to protect workers and create jobs for New Yorkers,” state Sen. Lea Webb (D-Binghamton) said in a statement about the bill she introduced yesterday.
The City Council voted to vastly expand access to rental vouchers in hopes that it’ll help low-income New Yorkers move out of homeless shelters faster — but the bill’s fate was not immediately clear as Adams has affirmed his opposition to it.
“This is a solution to help reduce homelessness, stabilize communities, free up space for asylum seekers, and others, all while saving money on costly emergency shelters that skew far more expensive than traditional shelter models that are offered in New York City,” Speaker Adrienne Adams said.
Adams’ administration estimates that the bills will cost more than $17 billion over the next five years, and could make it harder for homeless New Yorkers to secure a voucher by forcing them to compete with people who already have homes.
A Legal Aid Society lawyer who’s set to lead the court fight against Adams’ proposed right-to-shelter rollback said the mayor’s plan contains a “bizarre” contradiction that could draw scrutiny from a judge — providing a preview of how arguments may play out.
The action on the field at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field will soon be supplemented by games of chance in the grandstands, after Adams signed legislation to permit 50/50 raffles at professional and collegiate sporting venues.
Under the legislation, venues such as Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, and Madison Square Garden can be used to conduct these raffles, allowing sporting organizations to team up with charities to increase their philanthropic work.
Italian-American lawmakers are livid over remarks recently made by Brooklyn Councilman Chi Ossé and are accusing him of anti-Italian bias — an accusation he denies.
The NYPD is slashing its school crossing guard workforce by 18% for the next fiscal year as a cost-cutting move.
Emine Yilmaz Ozsoy has been partially paralyzed and is in critical condition, surrounded by an improvised web of support. Her story embodies New York’s post-pandemic fears and challenges.
The family of Christina Yuna Lee, who was fatally stabbed in her Chinatown apartment last year, is suing the NYPD for negligence, claiming their delayed response to the attack led to her death.
The city Parks Department has come under fire for awarding $40 million in tree service contracts to a firm convicted of insurance fraud.
Taxpayer-funded CUNY is facing calls to crack down on its vetting of adjuncts after since-fired professor Shellyne Rodriguez — who proudly displays anti-cop tattoos — was arrested for holding a machete to a Post reporter’s neck.
Citi Bike, operated by the ride-share company Lyft, is turning 10 today.
The owner of a New York adventure park on Long Island admitted that he fraudulently obtained more than $3 million in federal coronavirus aid and spent it on himself, including buying a home on the Massachusetts island of Nantucket.
The Hebron man accused of shooting and killing a 20-year-old woman after the SUV she was in turned around in his driveway last month allegedly told police that he was “in bed since 8:30 p.m.” and suggested the gunfire could have been the work of hunters.
Alan Chartock, 81, has retired as president and CEO of WAMC Northeast Public Radio, the public radio station he has led since 1981, the station reported.
RPI athletic director Lee McElroy, who shepherded the University at Albany into Division I before leading the Engineers program, is retiring.
Menands Village Hall turned heated this week as dozens of frustrated residents questioned the company planning to open an addiction treatment clinic.
Dennis Drue, the intoxicated Northway motorist who caused a crash killing two teenagers and seriously injured two others Dec. 1, 2012, in Halfmoon, was released on parole yesterday after serving more than nine years in prison.
