- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION
Navajo Nation: 24 new COVID cases, no deaths for a 4th day
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — The Navajo Nation on Thursday reported 24 new COVID-19 cases, but no additional deaths for the fourth consecutive day. Tribal health officials say the total number of coronavirus-related cases on the vast reservation that covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah is 31,067 since the pandemic began more than a year ago. The total number of known deaths remained at 1,357. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez says the rise in case numbers was because some tribal family members traveled to Las Vegas recently and brought the virus back to their homes.
- NAVAJO RELIEF-DONATION
Relief fund partners to donate shoes to Navajo children
SHIPROCK, N.M. (AP) — Hundreds of children from several Navajo communities in northwestern New Mexico soon will have new kicks. A relief fund created by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and former Navajo Nation President Peterson Zah teamed up with four-time PGA Tour winner Notah Begay III and his foundation to deliver 300 pairs of Nike shoes. They gathered Thursday at the Dream Diné Charter School in Shiprock to distribute the goods. With no shoe stores on the Navajo Nation, organizers say they're already receiving messages of appreciation from Navajo moms. The relief fund was started last year to help get essential supplies and equipment to the tribe during the pandemic.
- GALLUP HOSPITAL-JOB CUTS
Gallup hospital shedding nearly 80 jobs; patient counts drop
GALLUP, N.M. (AP) — A Gallup hospital is eliminating nearly 80 jobs as it responds to reduced patient counts following a $14 million loss in 2020. The job cuts announced Tuesday by Rehoboth McKinley Christian Health Care Services include 27 layoffs made in May when it closed WellSpring Recovery Center plus elimination of 27 currently vacant positions. The Gallup Independent reports that other moves include severing 18 contracts with temporary or traveling workers and laying off six local physicians and staff. Interim CEO Don Smithburg said federal pandemic-relief funding provided "only a temporary reprieve from financial challenges that have been persistent for years."
- POLICE SHOOTING-SANTA FE COUNTY
Person killed in encounter with Santa Fe County deputies
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Authorities say a suspect was killed during an encounter with Santa Fe County sheriff's deputies responding to a reported stabbing in a residential area. The shooting occurred Wednesday in an area north of Santa Fe and was under investigation by the New Mexico State Police. The agency said information on the person killed and circumstances of the incident were not immediately available. Officer Dusty Francisco, a state police spokesman, confirmed a suspect was killed and said no deputies were injured.
- AP-US-BORDER-WALL-FUNDRAISER
'We Build The Wall' co-founder indicted on another charge
PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — The co-founder of the "We Build The Wall" project aimed at raising money for a border wall has been indicted on a second tax charge in Florida, adding to an earlier tax charge and fraud charge. A federal grand jury in Pensacola indicted Brian Kolfage on a charge of filing a false tax return Tuesday. The original indictment handed down in May claimed that between January 2019 and July 2020, Kolfage engaged in a scheme to defraud the government in relation to his 2019 federal income tax returns. Kolfage is facing additional federal charges in New York, where prosecutors say Kolfage diverted money raised for the wall project for his own personal use.
- LATINO OUTREACH
Democrats bet on early Latino outreach to avoid '20 pitfalls
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) — Even as Joe Biden flipped heavily Hispanic Arizona to Democratic, clinching the presidency, he underperformed with Latino voters in many other parts of the country. And his party lost seemingly winnable congressional seats in Florida, Texas and California. Top Democrats say a key problem was waiting until just before the election to intensify outreach to Latino communities . That's a pattern the party is now trying to break, raising and spending money on engagement with Latinos and other voters of color earlier than ever. The Democrats are attempting to build presences that can endure even when elections aren't looming. Republicans, meanwhile, are looking to capitalize on gains they made with Latinos in 2020.