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Trump Admin Approves Largest Solar Power Project in U.S. History, Will Offset Emissions of 83,000 Cars

The billion dollar Gemini project will produce enough energy to power 260,000 homes.

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The Trump administration has approved the largest solar power project in United States history.

The proposal that issues a permit for the construction and operation of an enormous solar facility just north of Las Vegas was officially approved on Monday.

The billion dollar Gemini project will produce enough energy to power 260,000 homes in the Las Vegas area and Southern California. It is expected to generate renewable electricity that would annually offset greenhouse emissions of about 83,000 cars.

Funded by billionaire Warren Buffett’s NV Energy, the project will span across a massive 7,100 acres of Nevada’s federal land.

“The energy storage component — at least 380 megawatts of four-hour lithium-ion batteries, capable of storing solar power for use after dark — would also be one of the largest facilities of its kind,” the Los Angeles Times reports.

Though President Donald Trump has personally been critical of solar power, referring to it as “very, very expensive,” Project Gemini is the third solar farm on public lands approved by federal officials since he took office. The others are the 80-megawatt Sweetwater project in Wyoming and the 500-megawatt Palen project in California.

Tim Smith, the Bureau of Land Management’s district manager for Southern Nevada, said in a statement that the Gemini project “would represent a significant increase in renewable energy capacity for Nevada and the West.”

“The Trump Administration remains committed to its America First, all of the above approach to domestic energy production as the Department of the Interior (Department) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced today the approval of a proposal to construct and operate the largest solar project in United States history,” the BLM statement began.

“As our economy rebounds from the invisible enemy, President Trump is working to make the United States stronger than ever before. Our economic resurgence will rely on getting America back to work, and this project delivers on that objective,” said U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.

Project Gemini is expected to be completed by 2022.

“Despite the challenges of the coronavirus, we’re pleased to see that Nevada will soon be home to one of the biggest solar projects in the world,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association. “The solar industry is resilient and a project like this one will bring jobs and private investment to the state when we need it most. We appreciate the work that the Trump Administration has done to make this historic project a reality.”

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Twitter’s Comms Director — Kamala Harris’ Former Press Secretary — Says Platform Has Ordered Trump Campaign to Delete Tweet

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The communications director for Twitter, who happens to be Kamala Harris’ former press secretary, tweeted on Wednesday that the platform has required President Donald Trump’s campaign delete a tweet containing an interview with the president from their official account.

Communications Director Nick Pacilio wrote that “the original Tweet from @TeamTrump is in violation of the Twitter Rules on COVID-19 misinformation, and we’ve required removal.”

The removal order comes after President Donald Trump quote tweeted their post, which was a video that they say contained “coronavirus misinformation.” During the interview, President Trump stated that kids are “almost immune” to Covid-19.

“The Tweet you referenced is in violation of the Twitter Rules on COVID-19 misinformation. The account owner will be required to remove the tweet before they can tweet again,” Twitter said in a statement to USA TODAY.

Facebook has also removed the video, citing a similar reason.

“This video includes false claims that a group of people is immune from COVID-19 which is a violation of our policies around harmful COVID misinformation,” Facebook said in a statement.

The interview in question was with Fox & Friends and aired Wednesday morning.

When asked during the White House briefing later that day about his assertion, Trump said: “If you look at children, they are able to throw it off very easily and it’s an amazing thing, because some flus they don’t, they get very sick. … They seem to be able to handle it very well, and that’s according to every statistic.”

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War is Peace: Twitter Trending Page Features Live Video of Portland Burning Under ‘Peaceful Protest’ Headline

Portland has been dealing with riots and aggressive protests for seven days.

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The Twitter trending tab went full Orwellian on Thursday evening while featuring the Portland “protests.”

The trending page was showing a live video with the headline “US Protests:  Thousands march in peaceful demonstrations through Portland.” The footage, contrary to the title, was a large fire just blocks away from the Justice Center, where mobs had gathered.

Multiple dumpsters and other structures were reportedly lit ablaze in the city around this time.

Shortly after a screen grab of the bizarre headline choice was tweeted by District Herald founder Cassandra Fairbanks, it was changed to “US protests: Thousands march in demonstrations through Portland.”

“A tow truck drives by with a wounded police vehicle, and people cheer raucously. One person shouts ‘burn that car,'” a journalist named Robert Evans tweeted from the protest.

Protests, riots, and general crime have taken over the United States for the last nine days following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis Police custody last week. There have been reported kidnappings, murders, attacks on police, widespread looting, arson and countless businesses vandalized and destroyed.

Portland has been dealing with riots and aggressive protests for seven of those days.

On Thursday, thousands of people gathered in Tom McCall Waterfront Park for what was largely a peaceful protest until nightfall.

“We’re going to be here every day. We don’t have an end date,” one of the speakers told the crowd at the park, according to a report from the Oregonian.

Around 9 p.m. local time, rumors began circulating of a confrontation between protesters and police, causing the crowd to disperse in different directions. Many headed to the Burnside Bridge or the Chapman Square park across the street from the Multnomah County Justice Center.

By 9:30 p.m., the Portland Police were reporting that they were seeing “criminal activity” with one of the groups of protesters.

The department repeatedly Tweeted throughout the night that “we support everyone’s First Amendment rights and want this to stay peaceful.”

“Those handing out fireworks, this is a peaceful crowd. We want it to remain peaceful. Do not throw fireworks at the crowd or officers. We have children in the crowd,” the department tweeted around 11:30 p.m.

 

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German Official Invites Twitter to Move to Germany Following Trump’s Executive Order

Germany, of course, is not exactly known for their respect for free speech.

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A German official has invited Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to move his company there following President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at protecting free speech on social media.

Germany, of course, is not exactly known for their respect for free speech, as they ban anything “capable of inciting popular hatred.” It actually sounds like a perfect match for a platform that arbitrarily bans accounts for edgy banter.

Thomas Jarzombek of Germany’s Economic Affairs Ministry tweeted on Thursday, “Hey @Twitter & @jack, this is an invitation to move to Germany! Here you are free to criticize the government as well as to fight fake news. We have a great startup and tech ecosystem, your company would be a perfect fit and I will open any doors for you!”

He also tagged President Trump in the tweet in an attempt to make sure that his dig would be noticed.

Earlier in the day, President Trump signed an executive order that aims to increase government regulation of the “new public square” by challenging their Section 230 protection from being held liable for content posted by users

Under Section 230, platforms that are not publishers cannot be held liable for most posts by users on their sites. By censoring certain opinions, the platform has crossed the line into acting as a publisher with an editorial line, which is not protected.

“Trump’s directive now could set the stage for federal regulators to write new rules and issue new punishments for companies deemed to exhibit political bias,” the Washington Post explained.

The order also established a council to probe allegations of censorship of users based on their political views and asked the Federal Trade Commission to probe whether or not content-moderation is falling in line with their pledges of neutrality to users.

“In a country that has long cherished the freedom of expression, we cannot allow a limited number of online platforms to hand pick the speech that Americans may access and convey on the internet.  This practice is fundamentally un-American and anti-democratic.  When large, powerful social media companies censor opinions with which they disagree, they exercise a dangerous power.  They cease functioning as passive bulletin boards, and ought to be viewed and treated as content creators,” the order read.

“The growth of online platforms in recent years raises important questions about applying the ideals of the First Amendment to modern communications technology.  Today, many Americans follow the news, stay in touch with friends and family, and share their views on current events through social media and other online platforms.  As a result, these platforms function in many ways as a 21st century equivalent of the public square.”

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