Audio: CNN’s Colin Jones chats with Jon Gilliam about the violence in Baltimore and the context.
Have a good week, in case you missed it! We have reports on violence in Baltimore, Philadelphia and in the South Bronx and more bad news from Michigan.
Here’s our 2018 “Week in Review” edition of the weekend briefing:
Violence in Baltimore
There were more than 100 shootings in Baltimore last week, according to the latest statistics from city police.
More than 30 percent of the shootings occurred in the northeast area of the city, and the incident involving Prince George’s County, Maryland, police officer Peter DeAngelo that night has touched off debate over whether race is playing a role in these shootings, writes CNN’s Hugh Aynesworth.
And in the wake of the incident, President Donald Trump blamed Baltimore’s “slow” reaction to police killings of African Americans.
Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, police say they thwarted a plan by a pair of 14-year-old boys to ambush cops, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Finally, unrest broke out in the South Bronx, killing two and injuring another outside a department store, reports CNN.
Trump’s VA nominee issues ‘genuine apology’
Emails sent by Army veteran and Kansas doctor Andrew Puzder before his confirmation hearings paint a picture of the nominee’s “sinister” desire to privatize the Veterans Affairs Department, writes Brian Stelter.
At least two Democrats in the Senate questioned whether Puzder, who’s due to be questioned Thursday by Senator Jon Tester, a Democrat from Montana, would be able to pursue the stated goal of replacing the veterans system with a private one, per the New York Times.
Critics are questioning the health record of Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat from Texas, who’s said Puzder faces conflict of interest claims in his private businesses.
In hopes of addressing this concern, Puzder is saying he’ll divest his personal stakes in Uber and three other corporations in the year he assumes the post.
A fiery ‘Trump Win’ column from @ColinJJones highlights how one strategist predicts a victory for Trump in Florida and the Midwest this weekend. (Good luck, America!)
Michigan: Your Friday Briefing, Part 2
State lawmakers are introducing bills that would let police carry pepper spray, a move that followed the killing of two unarmed black men by police officers last week.
The violence is adding urgency to the public debate over police use of deadly force in the United States, as seen last week in Arizona, in Cincinnati and across the country.
Police unions are advising police officers not to carry pepper spray. The bill has opponents ranging from the police union to those serving on the commissions responsible for training police officers, the Detroit Free Press reports.
What does the change mean for you?