US ‘going in the wrong direction’ on COVID as cases almost triple – Fauci

Published

4 years ago

July 26, 2021

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The US is “going in the wrong direction” on coronavirus as cases soar due to the Delta variant and a large proportion of unvaccinated people, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert has said.

Dr Anthony Fauci said the nation is “practically pleading” with people to get vaccinated as coronavirus cases surge once again in areas with low uptake.

Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world

COVID-19 cases have nearly tripled in the US over the last two weeks, driven by the explosion of the Delta variant, especially in pockets of the South where vaccine hesitancy is high.

Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Florida and Nevada – where vaccine rates are below the national average – are reporting the highest daily average of new cases per capita over the past week, all of which are at least double the overall US rate.

“This is an issue predominantly among the unvaccinated, which is the reason why we’re out there, practically pleading with the unvaccinated people to go out and get vaccinated,” Dr Fauci said.

“We’re going in the wrong direction”, he added, and described himself as “very frustrated” over the situation.

The US has seen an average of about 43,700 new cases per day over the past week – 65% over the previous seven days and nearly three times as high as the level two weeks ago, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University shows.

The Delta variant, first found in India and which has since been blamed for a rapid uptick in COVID cases in the UK, is causing 83% of new cases.

Dr Fauci, who also serves as President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, told CNN’s State of the Union that he has taken part in conversations about altering the guidelines on masks.

He said recommending that the vaccinated wear masks is “under active consideration” by the government’s leading public health officials as a way of turning the tide on infections.

He noted that some local jurisdictions where infection rates are surging, such as Los Angeles County, are already calling on individuals to wear masks in indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status.

Back in April, America’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidance to say that fully vaccinated people no longer had to wear masks in many settings.

Booster jabs may also be suggested for people with suppressed immune systems, Dr Fauci said. The UK is already considering such a plan for those most vulnerable to COVID ahead of autumn and winter.

Dr Fauci said government experts are reviewing early data but that some of the most vulnerable, such as organ transplant and cancer patients, are “likely” to be recommended for booster shots.

More than 163 million people, or 49% of the total US population, are fully vaccinated, according to CDC data. Of those eligible for the vaccine, aged 12 and over, the figure rises to 57%.

However, rates are lower than the national average in some states, predominately Republican ones, where fewer than half of residents have received their first dose in some cases.

Florida, which has seen hospitalisations and cases jump 65% this week, has a vaccination rate of around 60%, on par with the national average. But some strongly conservative counties in the north of the state have a vaccination rate as low as 30%.

Republican lawmakers are under increasing pressure to persuade vaccine sceptics to roll up their sleeves and take the shots.

Dr Fauci praised some Republicans, including governors Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas and Ron DeSantis of Florida, and the second-ranking US House leader, Steve Scalise of Louisiana, for encouraging their constituents to get vaccinated but said more needed to speak out.

“What I would really like to see is more and more of the leaders in those areas that are not vaccinating to get out and speak out and encourage people to get vaccinated,” Dr Fauci said.

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Suspect in shooting of Minnesota politicians captured after two-day manhunt

Published

9 hours ago

June 16, 2025

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Suspect in shooting of Minnesota politicians captured after two-day manhunt

A man has been taken into custody two days after a US politician and her husband were shot dead in Minnesota, law enforcement officials have said.

Authorities had urged the public not to approach Vance Boelter, 57, who they warned could be armed, and who was reportedly posing as a police officer.

A massive manhunt was launched on Saturday after Melissa Hortman and Mark Hortman were shot dead at their home in Minneapolis in what Minnesota governor Tim Walz called a “politically motivated assassination”.

Police said the same gunman that killed the Hortmans had earlier shot and wounded Democrat senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, at their home nine miles away.

Boelter was arrested on Sunday evening in a rural area in Sibley County, southwest of Minneapolis.

He faces two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder in the deaths of the Hortmans and the wounding of Hoffman and his wife.

Police said they responded to gunfire reports at the Hoffmans’ Champlin home shortly after 2am on Saturday and found them with multiple gunshot wounds.

They then checked on the Hortmans’ home, in the nearby Brooklyn Park suburb, and saw what appeared to be a police car and a man dressed as an officer leaving the front door.

“The individual immediately fired upon the officers, who exchanged gunfire, and the suspect retreated back into the home” and escaped on foot, said Brooklyn Park police chief Mark Bruley.

Authorities believe Boelter wore a mask as he posed as a police officer, and also used a vehicle resembling a squad car.

Several AK-style firearms and a list of about 70 names, which included politicians and abortion rights activists, were allegedly found inside the vehicle.

‘We are both incredibly lucky to be alive’

Senator Hoffman was shot nine times and is having multiple surgeries, according to a text message shared on Instagram by fellow senator Amy Klobuchar on Sunday.

The text from Yvette Hoffman added: “I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive.”

She said her husband “is closer every hour to being out of the woods”.

Records show Boelter – a father of five – is a former political appointee who served on the same state workforce development board as Mr Hoffman.

However, it’s unclear to what extent they knew each other, if at all.

Mr Hoffman, 60, was first elected in 2012 and runs a consulting firm called Hoffman Strategic Advisors.

Melissa Hortman, a 55-year-old mother of two, was first elected in 2004 and was the top house Democratic leader in the state legislature.

She also served as speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives.

Mrs Hortman used her position to champion protections around abortion rights, including laws to cement Minnesota’s status as a safe refuge for people from restrictive states, who travel there for an abortion.

Her work also sought to introduce protections for services that provide abortions.

US

Minnesota manhunt continues for gunman who ‘posed as cop’ to kill Melissa Hortman and her husband

Published

12 hours ago

June 16, 2025

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Minnesota manhunt continues for gunman who 'posed as cop' to kill Melissa Hortman and her husband

A manhunt is continuing after the gunning down of a Democrat politician and her husband – with police saying they’re acting on the assumption he is still alive and dangerous.

Melissa Hortman and Mark Hortman were shot dead at home in a Minneapolis suburb on Saturday in what governor Tim Walz called a “politically motivated assassination”.

Democrat senator John Hoffman and his wife were also shot multiple times at their home nine miles away, but survived.

A search is under way for Vance Boelter, 57, who authorities believe wore a mask as he posed as a police officer, and also used a vehicle resembling a squad car.

Several AK-style firearms and a list of about 70 names, which included politicians and abortion rights activists, were found inside.

Boelter was last caught on camera wearing a cowboy hat – a similar hat was found near another vehicle belonging to him on Sunday.

Authorities said at their latest news conference they assume he is still alive.

Hundreds of police officers are searching for Boelter, who escaped from the Hortmans’ house on foot after an exchange of gunfire.

Senator Hoffman was shot nine times and is having multiple surgeries, according to a text message shared on Instagram by fellow senator Amy Klobuchar on Sunday.

The text from Mr Hoffman’s wife, Yvette, added: “I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive.”

She said her husband “is closer every hour to being out of the woods”.

“We believe [Boelter’s] somewhere in the vicinity and that they are going to find him,” Senator Klobuchar told NBC’s Meet the Press.

“Everyone’s on edge here,” she added, “because we know that this man will kill at a second.”

Police said they responded to gunfire reports at the Hoffmans’ Champlin home shortly after 2am on Saturday and found them with multiple gunshot wounds.

They then checked on the Hortmans’ home, in the nearby Brooklyn Park suburb, and saw what appeared to be a police car and a man dressed as an officer leaving the front door.

“The individual immediately fired upon the officers, who exchanged gunfire, and the suspect retreated back into the home” and escaped on foot, said Brooklyn Park police chief Mark Bruley.

Another vehicle belonging to Boelter was searched on Sunday in Minnesota’s Faxon Township. A cowboy hat similar to the one seen in the police appeal was found nearby.

It’s been revealed that the suspect texted friends around 6am on Saturday to say he had “made some choices” and was “going to be gone for a while”.

According to AP, which has seen the messages, he reportedly said: “May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn’t gone this way… I’m sorry for all the trouble this has caused.”

Records show Boelter – a father of five – is a former political appointee who served on the same state workforce development board as Mr Hoffman.

However, it’s unclear to what extent they knew each other, if at all.

Mr Hoffman, 60, was first elected in 2012 and runs a consulting firm called Hoffman Strategic Advisors.

Melissa Hortman, a 55-year-old mother of two, was first elected in 2004 and was the top house Democratic leader in the state legislature.

She also served as speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives.

Her work also sought to introduce protections for services that provide abortions.

US

‘It feels like a bad dream’: Minnesota mourns victims of ‘politically motivated assassination’

Published

15 hours ago

June 16, 2025

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'It feels like a bad dream': Minnesota mourns victims of 'politically motivated assassination'

“Holy, holy, holy” they sang at the Church of St Timothy in Blaine, Minnesota.

But the congregation is struggling to comprehend an act of evil – the brutal murder of one of their own.

Melissa Hortman grew up here. The former state speaker and her husband Mark were shot dead in their home on Saturday morning.

Her friend and party colleague, Erin Koegal, was among those attending mass.

“It still feels like a bad dream. I woke up this morning and was like, okay, so that was real,” she said.

“It’s hit me in waves, the grief, and the anger, and the sadness. She was a leader, a true definition of a leader.

“I’ve never known our party without Melissa as the leader and so I can’t, I don’t even know how we’re going to go forward as a caucus without her.”

State senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette had already been shot and wounded.

Police sent to check on his colleague, Melissa Hortman, didn’t get there in time.

They named the suspect as Vance Boelter, a 57-year-old former Christian missionary.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called it a “politically motivated murder”.

Friends of Ms Hortman have told Sky News that her two children feared for their mother’s life after reading divisive rhetoric directed at her online.

Matt Norris, another political colleague of Ms Hortman, was also at church, reflecting on the rise of political violence in America.

“We’ve going to have to do some serious introspection as a state, as a country, and figure out how do we get beyond this,” he said.

“How have we been laying the seeds that have led to horrific acts of violence against public servants like this?

“And it’s going to be incumbent upon us as leaders to set a different tone, to set a different direction for our state and our country so that horrific tragedies like this never occur again.”