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Good morning news: Gonzalez gets fined, Biden unveils free OTC birth control and your carb cravings explained.

Monicel
Good morning news: Gonzalez gets fined, Biden unveils free OTC birth control and your carb cravings explained.

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Good morning, Portland! We’re in for a mostly sunny day with a high of 61 degrees and a low of 41. Savor the few good hair days that remain while they last. The rain is back this weekend.

In local news:

• On Monday, the Portland Auditor’s Office issued a redetermination letter in the investigation into alleged campaign finance violations by City Commissioner Rene Gonzalez. At issue was whether Gonzalez was illegally using taxpayer funds to fuel his current mayoral campaign. After receiving new documents and taking another look at the case, auditors determined that the $6,400 Gonzalez spent trying to edit his Wikipedia page constituted an illegal campaign contribution. His campaign was fined $2,400. Ummm… When is the other $4,000 coming?

• The researchers concluded that the Wiki edits were part of a larger campaign strategy to assert that Gonzalez is a Democrat, a point emphasized in campaign materials. What is most remarkable about Gonzalez’s deception is his attempt to “obstruct and interfere” with the Office of the Auditor General’s investigation. Among other problems, the Audit Office noted that Gonzalez’s staff initially withheld key documents and lied to investigators about the existence of certain email attachments. Gonzalez reportedly called the investigation politically biased and his chief of staff “verbally chastised” an Elections Division staff member. 🤨

• Speaking of local politics, election day is only two weeks away. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favor and check out our latest special edition, the 2024 Mercury Electoral guide We’ve vetted all the candidates for City Council and Mayor, researched state and local measures, reviewed our picks for state and federal representatives, and organized it all into a helpful and informative guide. WELCOME! Check it out in print at hundreds of locations around town or online.

• Renting often hurts. It’s expensive and it’s always exploitative, to some extent. For some, it’s a battle just to take care of basic repairs or maintenance. That was the case for tenants at The Russell Apartments in Northeast Portland. With the help of some local organizing groups, the residents of the apartment complex banded together and created a group similar to a tenant union. The group has had mixed results, but says the grouping gave them an influence they didn’t have before. Check out Abe Asher’s latest article on this.

• The Portland Police Bureau’s Major Crash Team is investigating not one, but two deaths of bicyclists struck by cars within a 10-hour period. Shortly after 2:30 a.m. Monday, a bicyclist was killed by a hit-and-run driver near NE 128th and NE Glisan. Around 9 a.m., another driver hit and killed a bicyclist in the Parkrose neighborhood, but stayed at the scene. The two cyclists were male adults, PPB reported. The fatal crashes have renewed calls for improved bicycle safety and infrastructure.

• Disappointing news for restaurant enthusiasts: Oregon no longer has a Shari’s restaurant. The diners, best known for their pies and 24-hour service, have been shuttered in Oregon. The news came via the Oregon Lottery, which previously operated lottery machines at Shari’s restaurants.

• Sneak a peek at Us Weekly or People magazine at the grocery counter, not wanting to turn the pages, but compelled enough by the salacious headlines to be curious? Do you find yourself clicking on entertainment news from few people every now and then? You are often stunned by how awful it is real the news is You’re not alone, but you don’t have to waste your time trying to get caught up in the dumpster fire that is…the world. Each week, our lovely and hilarious columnist, Elinor Jones, digs through the trash heap of celebrity, entertainment, local and national news. He explains it to you, dear reader, in a digestible and fun-to-read column. The latest trash report is now available! 🍿

In national/world news:

• In news that should surprise no one, a nonpartisan budget group reports that Donald Trump’s proposed tax cuts “will bankrupt Social Security in just six years,” CNBC reports. The Social Security program is already projected to run out of money by 2035, meaning future payments to retirees could be drastically reduced. Trump’s plans to cut corporate taxes, impose high tariffs and cut taxes on other things like personal wages and Social Security are expected to cause the program to collapse in 2031.

@kiera.ln Halloween costume drop #trump #kamala2024 #politics #liberal #vote #election ♬ original sound – Skippy

• The Biden administration wants birth control to be free and available without a prescription. A proposal by the US Department of Health and Human Services, along with the Treasury and Labor departments, would require health insurance companies to “cover all recommended over-the-counter contraceptive products, including condoms, spermicides and emergency contraceptives , without a medical prescription”. and at no cost, according to senior administration officials,” reports NPR. The goal is to expand access to contraceptives as states pass restrictive abortion policies.

• Why do we consume and like carbohydrates and starches? Thanks to DNA sequencing and the latest research, we know that the human body adapted to be able to digest and extract more energy from starchy foods like wheat and yams. In fact, ancient humans had very few salivary amylase genes, called AMY1. Humans now have several copies of this gene, which allows our saliva to break down sugars and starches. Basically, the rise of agriculture resulted in an evolutionary adaptation (err…addiction?) to starches. People with more copies of the AMY1 gene are more likely to thrive on wheat and other starches.

Personally, my favorite carb is the puffer pig.

@lindseybakedthis Moo Deng as a cupcake? Too cute to eat! 🦛🩶🦛🩶 • • • #cupcake #moodeng #moodenghippo #hippo #babyhippo #moodengcupcake #cupcakedecorating ♬ Cute – Aurel Surya Lie

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