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<title>06 September, 2023</title>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Individual and spatial determinants of mortality during the Covid-19 pandemic: The case of Belgium in 2020</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Context. The year 2020 was marked by the Covid 19 pandemic. In Belgium, it led to a doubling in deaths, mainly grouped into two periods. This article aims to compare the relative importance of predictors and individual and spatial determinants of mortality during these two waves to an equivalent non-pandemic period and to identify whether and to what extent the pandemic has altered the sociodemographic patterns of conventional mortality. Methods. The analyses relate to all-cause mortality during the two waves of Covid-19 and their equivalent in 2019. They are based on matching individual and exhaustive data from the Belgian National Register with tax and population census data. A multi-level approach was adopted combining individual and spatial determinants. Results. Mortality patterns during the pandemic are very similar to those observed outside the pandemic. As in 2019, age, sex, and household composition significantly determine the individual risk of dying, with a higher risk of death among the oldest people, men, and residents of collective households. However, their risk of death increases during the Covid period, especially in the 65/79 age group. Spatial information is no more significant in 2020 than in 2019. However, a higher risk of death is observed when the local excess mortality index or the proportions of isolated or disadvantaged people increase. Conclusions. While the Covid pandemic did not fundamentally alter conventional mortality patterns, it did amplify some of the pre-existing differences in mortality.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.04.23295014v1" target="_blank">Individual and spatial determinants of mortality during the Covid-19 pandemic: The case of Belgium in 2020</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Emerging Links Between COVID-19 and Cardiovascular &amp; Cerebrovascular Thromboembolic Events: A Systematic Review</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, initially identified as a respiratory illness, has increasingly been linked to a broader range of organ complications. This systematic review explores the impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health, focusing on thromboembolic events in post-COVID patients. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in PubMed and Google Scholar databases up to July 2023, utilizing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Studies meeting eligibility criteria were analyzed for outcomes and associations between COVID-19 and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. The review includes 6 studies involving over 12 million patients, demonstrating a strong connection between COVID-19 and elevated risks of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular thromboembolic events. The risk of these events is evident in conditions such as ischemic heart disease, stroke, and cardiac arrhythmias. The burden of these events beyond the acute phase of the disease is concerning, warranting further exploration of long-term implications. Variability in event rates among different cohorts and healthcare settings underscores the need for understanding underlying factors influencing these differences. Potential mechanisms behind these events include endothelial dysfunction, systemic inflammation, and viral invasion. Implications for public health policies, clinical guidelines, and future research directions are discussed. This review serves as a valuable resource for healthcare providers, policymakers, and researchers to enhance patient care, outcomes, and preparedness for future waves of COVID-19 infections. However, there remain unexplored aspects of the COVID-19 and thromboembolic events relationship, urging further investigations into mechanistic insights and potential therapeutic interventions.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.05.23295067v1" target="_blank">Emerging Links Between COVID-19 and Cardiovascular &amp;amp; Cerebrovascular Thromboembolic Events: A Systematic Review</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Psychotherapies and Psychological Support for Individuals Facing Psychological Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
In this scoping review, we investigated psychotherapies and psychological support provided during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic to clarify its recipients and the methods employed. We used Scopus and PubMed as the search engines on October 18, 2022, employing specific search terms (″COVID* ″ AND (″Psychotherap<em>″ OR ″psychological support</em>″) AND ″psychological distress*″). The initial search yielded 153 articles, of which 18 met the eligibility criteria after two rounds of screening. The distribution of participants ranged from the general population to patients with COVID-19 and those who had recovered. However, no studies of patients with post-COVID-19 sequelae were found. The distribution of the types of psychotherapies and psychological support varied and the use of new technology was suggested. Online interventions comprised the majority of the means of psychotherapies and psychological support. This study suggests that psychotherapies and psychological support during the COVID-19 pandemic were influenced by the social situation.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.04.23295013v1" target="_blank">Psychotherapies and Psychological Support for Individuals Facing Psychological Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Differentiation of COVID-19 from other emergency infectious disease presentations using whole blood transcriptomics then rapid qPCR: a case-control and observational cohort study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background. The overlapping clinical presentations of patients with acute respiratory disease can complicate disease diagnosis. Whilst PCR diagnostic methods to identify SARS-CoV-2 are highly sensitive, they have their shortcomings including false-positive risk and slow turnaround times. Changes in host gene expression can be used to distinguish between disease groups of interest, providing a viable alternative to infectious disease diagnosis. Methods. We interrogated the whole blood gene expression profiles of patients with COVID-19 (n=87), bacterial infections (n=88), viral infections (n=36), and not-infected controls (n=27) to identify a sparse diagnostic signature for distinguishing COVID-19 from other clinically similar infectious and non-infectious conditions. The sparse diagnostic signature underwent validation in a new cohort using reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and then underwent further external validation in an independent in silico RNA-seq cohort. Findings. We identified a 10-gene signature (OASL, UBP1, IL1RN, ZNF684, ENTPD7, NFKBIE, CDKN1C, CD44, OTOF, MSR1) that distinguished COVID-19 from other infectious and non-infectious diseases with an AUC of 87.1% (95% CI: 82.6%-91.7%) in the discovery cohort and 88.7% and 93.6% when evaluated in the RT-qPCR validation, and in silico cohorts respectively. Interpretation. Using well-phenotyped samples collected from patients admitted acutely with a spectrum of infectious and non-infectious syndromes, we provide a detailed catalogue of blood gene expression at the time of hospital admission. The findings result in the identification of a 10-gene host diagnostic signature to accurately distinguish COVID-19 from other infection syndromes presenting to hospital. This could be developed into a rapid point-of-care diagnostic test, providing a valuable syndromic diagnostic tool for future early pandemic use.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.03.23294989v1" target="_blank">Differentiation of COVID-19 from other emergency infectious disease presentations using whole blood transcriptomics then rapid qPCR: a case-control and observational cohort study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Correlation of myeloid-derived suppressor cell expansion with upregulated transposable elements in severe COVID-19 unveiled in single-cell RNA sequencing reanalysis</strong> -
<div>
Some studies investigated the potential role of transposable elements (TEs) in COVID-19 pathogenesis and complications. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is no study to examine the possible association of TEs expression in cell functions and its potential role in COVID-19 immune response at the single-cell level. In this study, we reanalyzed single-cell RNA seq data of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples obtained from six severe COVID-19 patients and three healthy donors to assess the probable correlation of TE expression with the immune responses induced by the SARS-CoV-2 virus in COVID-19 patients. Our findings indicated that the expansion of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs (may be a characteristic feature of COVID-19. Additionally, a significant increase in TEs expression in MDSCs was observed. This upregulation of TEs in COVID-19 may be linked to the adaptability of these cells in response to their microenvironments. Furthermore, it appears that the identification of overexpressed TEs by Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) in MDSCs may enhance the suppressive capacity of these cells. Thus, this study emphasizes the crucial role of TEs in the functionality of MDSCs during COVID-19.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.04.556192v1" target="_blank">Correlation of myeloid-derived suppressor cell expansion with upregulated transposable elements in severe COVID-19 unveiled in single-cell RNA sequencing reanalysis</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Neutralization Escape by SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Subvariant BA.2.86</strong> -
<div>
The continued evolution of SARS-CoV-2 may lead to evasion of vaccine immunity and natural immunity. A highly mutated Omicron variant BA.2.86 has recently been identified with over 30 amino acid changes in Spike compared with BA.2 and XBB.1.5. As of September 4, 2023, BA.2.86 has been identified in 37 sequences from 10 countries, which is likely an underestimate due to limited surveillance. The ability of BA.2.86 to evade NAbs compared with other currently circulating Omicron variants remains unknown. Our data show that NAb responses to BA.2.86 were lower than to BA.2 but were comparable or slightly higher than to the current circulating recombinant variants XBB.1.5, XBB.1.16, EG.5, EG.5.1, and FL.1.5.1.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.04.556272v1" target="_blank">Neutralization Escape by SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Subvariant BA.2.86</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Enhanced protective efficacy of a novel, thermostable, RBD-S2 fusion immunogen against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants</strong> -
<div>
With the rapid emergence of variants of concern (VOC), the efficacy of currently licensed vaccines has reduced drastically. VOC mutations largely occur in the S1 subunit of Spike. The S2 subunit of SARS-CoV-2 is conserved and thus more likely to elicit broadly protective immune responses. However, the contribution of the S2 subunit in improving the overall efficacy of vaccines remains unclear. Therefore, we designed, characterized, and evaluated the immunogenicity and protective potential of a stabilized SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) fused to a stabilized S2. Designed immunogens were expressed as soluble proteins with approximately fivefold higher purified yield than the Spike ectodomain and formulated along with Squalene-in-water emulsion (SWE) adjuvant. S2 immunization failed to elicit a neutralizing immune response but significantly reduced lung viral titers in mice challenged with the heterologous Beta variant. In hamsters, SWE-formulated RS2 showed enhanced immunogenicity and efficacy relative to corresponding RBD and Spike formulations. Despite being based on the ancestral Wuhan strain of SARS-CoV-2, RS2 exhibited broad neutralization, including against Omicron variants (BA.1, BA.5 and BF.7), as well as the clade 1a WIV-1 and SARS-CoV-1 strains. RS2 sera also showed enhanced competition with both S2 directed and RBD Class 4 directed broadly neutralizing antibodies, relative to RBD and Spike elicited sera. When lyophilized, RS2 retained antigenicity and immunogenicity even after incubation at 37 {degrees}C for a month. The data collectively suggest that the RS2 immunogen is a promising modality to combat SARS-CoV-2 variants.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.03.19.533338v2" target="_blank">Enhanced protective efficacy of a novel, thermostable, RBD-S2 fusion immunogen against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Bivalent mRNA vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 infections, hospitalisations and deaths in Portugal: a cohort study based on electronic health records, September 2022 to May 2023</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background In Portugal, a bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster was recommended for those with complete primary COVID-19 vaccination, starting on September 6 2022. This study aims to estimate the mRNA bivalent vaccine effectiveness (VE) against COVID-19 infection, hospitalisation and death in the Portuguese population aged 65 and more years with a follow-up of more than six months. Methods We used a cohort approach to analyse six electronic health registries using deterministic linkage. The follow-up period comprehend September 2022 to May 2023. The outcomes included SARS-CoV-2 infection, COVID-19-related hospitalisation and death. Individuals were considered vaccinated 14 days following a bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine uptake. For each outcome, COVID-19 bivalent VE was estimated as one minus the confounder adjusted hazard ratio of bivalent vaccine vs no bivalent vaccine, estimated by Cox regression with time-dependent vaccine exposure. Results In the ≥ 80 year-olds, bivalent VE was 23.2 (95%CI: 20.1 to 26.2), 41.3 (95%CI: 34.5 to 47.5) and 50.3 (44.6 to 55.3), against infection, COVID-19-related hospitalisation and death, respectively. In the 65-79 year-old, bivalent VE against infection was 37.7 (35.5 to 39.8), 58.5 (95%CI: 51.9 to 64.2) against hospitalisation and 65.1 (95%CI: 59 to 70.4) against death. Vaccine effectiveness decay was observed for both age groups and in all outcomes, up to 6 months of vaccine uptake. Conclusions In a population with a high risk of SARS-CoV-2 complications, we observed moderate bivalent VE estimates against severe COVID-19 and low protection against infection. The lower VE estimates observed in the ≥ 80 year-olds should be interpreted in light of the reference group used for the estimation, i.e., individuals with high vaccine coverage (both primary series and multiple boosters). Significant VE decay was observed up to six months of vaccine uptake, which should be considered when preparing future vaccination campaigns.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.05.23295025v1" target="_blank">Bivalent mRNA vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 infections, hospitalisations and deaths in Portugal: a cohort study based on electronic health records, September 2022 to May 2023</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Contact patterns of older adults with and without frailty in the Netherlands during the COVID-19 pandemic</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing measures were imposed to protect the population from exposure, especially older adults and people with frailty, who have the highest risk for severe outcomes. These restrictions greatly reduced contacts in the general population, but little was known about behaviour changes among older adults and people with frailty themselves. Our aim was to quantify how COVID-19 measures affected the contact behaviour of older adults and how this differed between older adults with and without frailty. Methods In 2021, a contact survey was carried out among people aged 70 years and older in the Netherlands. A random sample of persons per age group (70-74, 75-79, 80-84, 85-89, and 90+) and gender was invited to participate, either during a period with stringent (April 2021) or moderate (October 2021) measures. Participants provided general information on themselves, including their frailty, and they reported characteristics of all persons with whom they had face-to-face contact on a given day over the course of a full week. Results In total, 720 community-dwelling older adults were included (overall response rate of 15%), who reported 16,505 contacts. During the survey period with moderate measures, participants without frailty had significantly more contacts outside their household than participants with frailty. Especially for females, frailty was a more informative predictor of the number of contacts than age. During the survey period with stringent measures, participants with and without frailty had significantly lower numbers of contacts compared to the survey period with moderate measures. The reduction of the number of contacts was largest for the eldest participants without frailty. As they interact mostly with adults of a similar high age who are likely frail, this reduction of the number of contacts indirectly protects older adults with frailty from SARS-CoV-2 exposure. Conclusions The results of this study reveal that social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic differentially affected the contact patterns of older adults with and without frailty. The reduction of contacts may have led to the direct protection of older adults in general but also to the indirect protection of older adults with frailty.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.05.09.23289550v3" target="_blank">Contact patterns of older adults with and without frailty in the Netherlands during the COVID-19 pandemic</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 quarantine mandated by contact tracing: burden and infection rate among close contacts in Zurich, Switzerland, 2020-2021</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Objectives Before vaccines and effective treatments were available, quarantine of close contacts was important to limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2. To evaluate potential benefits and harms of quarantine, we aimed to estimate infection rates and describe experiences and mental health among persons in mandated quarantine during the early SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Methods We invited adults in mandated quarantine after an exposure to SARS-CoV-2 identified through contact tracing of the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland, between August 2020 and January 2021. Participants completed two questionnaires and received up to two SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction tests, during and at the end of quarantine. Results Among 395 participants, quarantine duration ranged from 2 to 20 days. By day 11 since the last contact, 11.1% [95% CI 8.4%-14.7%] were infected with SARS-CoV-2. The proportion of participants with symptoms of depression doubled from 9.3% before quarantine to 18.9% during quarantine, and 12.1% reported quarantine was very or extremely difficult. Conclusions Although quarantine was only moderately burdensome for most participants, some experienced significant difficulties and burden. Policymakers need to balance infection control with potential harms placed on individuals.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.03.23294798v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 quarantine mandated by contact tracing: burden and infection rate among close contacts in Zurich, Switzerland, 2020-2021</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>A Literature Review and Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Lockdowns on COVID-19 Mortality - II</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to determine the effect of lockdowns on COVID-19 mortality based on available empirical evidence. Lockdowns are defined as the imposition of at least one compulsory, non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI). We employ a systematic search and screening procedure in which 19,646 studies are identified that could potentially address the purpose of our study. After three levels of screening, 32 studies qualified. Of those, estimates from 22 studies could be converted to standardized measures for inclusion in the meta-analysis. They are separated into three groups: lockdown stringency index studies, shelter-in-place-order (SIPO) studies, and specific NPI studies. Stringency index studies find that the average lockdown in Europe and the United States in the spring of 2020 only reduced COVID- 19 mortality by 3.2%. This translates into approximately 6,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 4,000 in the United States. SIPOs were also relatively ineffective in the spring of 2020, only reducing COVID-19 mortality by 2.0%. This translates into approximately 4,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 3,000 in the United States. Based on specific NPIs, we estimate that the average lockdown in Europe and the United States in the spring of 2020 reduced COVID-19 mortality by 10.7%. This translates into approximately 23,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 16,000 in the United States. In comparison, there are approximately 72,000 flu deaths in Europe and 38,000 flu deaths in the United States each year. When checked for potential biases, our results are robust. Our results are also supported by the natural experiments we have been able to identify. The results of our meta-analysis support the conclusion that lockdowns in the spring of 2020 had little to no effect on COVID-19 mortality. This result is consistent with the view that voluntary changes in behavior, such as social distancing, did play an important role in mitigating the pandemic.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.08.30.23294845v1" target="_blank">A Literature Review and Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Lockdowns on COVID-19 Mortality - II</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Identifying resilience factors of distress and paranoia during the COVID-19 pandemic</strong> -
<div>
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic outbreak has affected all countries with more than 100 million confirmed cases and over 2.1 million casualties by the end of January 2021 worldwide. A prolonged pandemic can harm global levels of optimism, regularity, and sense of meaning and belonging of people, yielding adverse effects on individual’s mental health as represented by worry, paranoia, and distress. Here we studied resilience, a successful adaptation despite risk and adversity, in five countries: Brazil, Colombia, Germany, Israel and Norway. In April 2020, over 2500 participants were recruited for an observational study measuring protective and obstructive factors for mental health. More than 800 of these participants also completed a follow-up study in July. We found that thriving, keeping a regular schedule, engaging in physical exercise and less procrastination served as factors protecting mental well-being. Risk factors were financial worries and a more negative mindset, e.g. feeling a lack of control. Longitudinally, we found no increase in distress or paranoia despite an increase in expectation how long the outbreak and the restrictions will last, suggesting respondents engaged in healthy coping and adapting their life to the new circumstances. Thus, our data shines some light on the mostly depressive news during the pandemic. Humans adapt and despite adversity there are protective factors that policy makers should leverage on.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/2e3n5/" target="_blank">Identifying resilience factors of distress and paranoia during the COVID-19 pandemic</a>
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<li><strong>Emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 NSP10 highlight strong functional conservation of its binding to two non-structural proteins, NSP14 and NSP16</strong> -
<div>
The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 protects its RNA from being recognized by host immune responses by methylation of its 5’ end, also known as capping. This process is carried out by two enzymes, non-structural protein 16 (NSP16) containing 2’-O-methyltransferase and NSP14 through its N7 methyltransferase activity, which are essential for the replication of the viral genome as well as evading the host’s innate immunity. NSP10 acts as a crucial cofactor and stimulator of NSP14 and NSP16. To further understand the role of NSP10, we carried out a comprehensive analysis of &gt;13 million globally collected whole-genome sequences (WGS) of SARS-CoV-2 obtained from the Global Initiative Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) and compared it with the reference genome Wuhan/WIV04/2019 to identify all currently known variants in NSP10. T12I, T102I, and A104V in NSP10 have been identified as the three most frequent variants and characterized using X-ray crystallography, biophysical assays, and enhanced sampling simulations. In contrast to other proteins such as spike and NSP6, NSP10 is significantly less prone to mutation due to its crucial role in replication. The functional effects of the variants were examined for their impact on the binding affinity and stability of both NSP14-NSP10 and NSP16-NSP10 complexes. These results highlight the limited changes induced by variant evolution in NSP10 and reflect on the critical roles NSP10 plays during the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle. These results also indicate that there is limited capacity for the virus to overcome inhibitors targeting NSP10 via the generation of variants in inhibitor binding pockets.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.12.23.521761v3" target="_blank">Emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 NSP10 highlight strong functional conservation of its binding to two non-structural proteins, NSP14 and NSP16</a>
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<li><strong>Meisoindigo: An Effective Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Revealed by Yeast System</strong> -
<div>
The COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has had a significant impact on global health and economy. Despite the availability of vaccines, their limited accessibility and vaccine hesitancy pose challenges in controlling the spread of the disease. Effective therapeutic strategies, including antiviral drugs, are needed to combat the future spread of new SARSCoV- 2 virus variants. The main protease (Mpro) is a critical therapeutic target for COVID-19 medicines, as its inhibition impairs viral replication. However, the use of substances that inhibit Mpro may induce selection pressure. Thus, it is vital to monitor viral resistance to known drugs and to develop new drugs. Here we have developed a yeast system for the identification of Mpro inhibitors as an alternative to costly and demanding high biosecurity procedures. The system is based on stable expression of Mpro and does not require selection media. Yeast can be cultured on a rich carbon source, providing rapid growth and screening results. The designed tool was subsequently used to screen the FDA-Approved Drug Library. Several chemicals with Mpro inhibitory properties were identified. We found that meisoindigo not previously known for its potential to inhibit Mpro, was highly effective. Our results may promote development of new derivatives with therapeutic properties against SARS-CoV-2 and other beta-coronaviruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.03.555867v1" target="_blank">Meisoindigo: An Effective Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Revealed by Yeast System</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Antigenicity and infectivity characterization of SARS-CoV-2 BA.2.86</strong> -
<div>
The recently identified SARS-CoV-2 variant, BA.2.86, which carries a substantial number of Spike mutations, has raised a global alarm. An immediate assessment of its antigenic properties and infectivity is necessary. Here, we reveal the distinct antigenicity of BA.2.86 compared with previous variants including XBB.1.5. BA.2.86 significantly evades convalescent plasma from XBB breakthrough infection (BTI) and reinfections. Key mutations that mediate the enhanced resistance include N450D, K356T, L452W, A484K, V483del, and V445H on the RBD, while BA.2.86's NTD mutations and E554K on SD1 also largely contribute. However, we found that BA.2.86 pseudovirus exhibits compromised efficiency of infecting HEK293T-hACE2 cells compared to XBB.1.5 and EG.5, which may be caused by K356T, V483del, and E554K, and could potentially limit BA.2.86's transmissibility. In sum, it appears that BA.2.86 has traded its infectivity for higher immune evasion during long-term host-viral evolution. Close attention should be paid to monitoring additional mutations that could improve BA.2.86's infectivity.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.01.555815v1" target="_blank">Antigenicity and infectivity characterization of SARS-CoV-2 BA.2.86</a>
</div></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Phase 2/3 2nd Generation E1/E2B/E3-Deleted Adenoviral COVID-19 Vaccine: The TCELLVACCINE TRIAL</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: hAd5-S-Fusion+N-ETSD;   Biological: Placebo (0.9% (w/v) saline)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   ImmunityBio, Inc.<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>KAND567 Versus Placebo in Subjects Hospitalized With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: KAND567;   Drug: Microcrystalline cellulose<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Kancera AB<br/><b>Terminated</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Aerobic Training for Rehabilitation of Patients With Post Covid-19 Syndrome</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Post-COVID-19 Syndrome;   Long-COVID-19 Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: Aerobic Exercise Training<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   University of Witten/Herdecke;   Institut für Rehabilitationsforschung Norderney<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Pilot Clinical Evaluation of Astepro® Nasal Spray for Management of Early SARS-CoV-2 Infection</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Experimental: Primary Cohort;   Other: Placebo Comparator: Primary Cohort - Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   University of Chicago<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Comparative Immunogenicity of Concomitant vs Sequential mRNA COVID-19 and Influenza Vaccinations</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Influenza;   COVID-19;   Influenza Immunogencity;   COVID-19 Immunogenicity<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: Simultaneous Vaccination (Influenza Vaccine and mRNA COVID booster);   Biological: Sequential Vaccination (Influenza vaccine then mRNA COVID booster);   Biological: Sequential Vaccination (mRNA COVID booster then Influenza vaccine)<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Duke University;   Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;   Arizona State University;   University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center;   University of Pittsburgh;   Washington University School of Medicine;   Valleywise Health;   VA Northeast Ohio Health Care;   Senders Pediatrics<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bronchoalveolar Lavage in Recovered From COVID-19 Pneumonia</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Bronchoalveolar Lavage<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Procedure: Bronchoalveolar Lavage<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Mohamed Abd Elmoniem Mohamed;   Marwa Salah Abdelrazek Ghanem;   Mohammad Khairy El-Badrawy;   Tamer Ali Elhadidy;   Dalia Abdellateif Abdelghany<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial of the Efficacy and Safety of Tianeptine in the Treatment of Covid Fog Symptoms in Patients After COVID-19.</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Nervous System Diseases<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Tianeptine;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Military Institute od Medicine National Research Institute;   ABM Industries<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effects of Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for Insomnia in Nurses With Post Covid-19 Condition</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Cognitive Behavioral Therapy<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: cognitive behavioral therapy<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Tri-Service General Hospital<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Effectiveness of Natural Resources for Reducing Stress</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Distress, Emotional;   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Combination Product: Balneotherapy plus complex;   Combination Product: Combined nature resources treatment;   Other: Nature therapy procedure<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Klaipėda University;   Research Council of Lithuania<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Pre-probiotic Supplementation for Post-covid Fatigue Syndrome</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Long COVID<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Dietary Supplement: Dietary Supplement: Experimental;   Dietary Supplement: Dietary Supplement: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sport and Physical Education<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Study of Healthy Microbiome, Healthy Mind</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Critical Illness;   COVID-19;   PICS;   Cognitive Impairment;   Mental Health Impairment;   Weakness, Muscle;   Dysbiosis<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: Fermented Food Diet<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Mayo Clinic<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Radiologists’ experiences and perceptions regarding the use of teleradiology in South Africa</strong> - CONCLUSION: It is important to address structural barriers to the implementation of teleradiology. Clear communication strategies and multistakeholder engagement are also required.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Increased Fungal Infection Mortality Induced by Concurrent Viral Cellular Manipulations</strong> - Certain respiratory fungal pathogen mono-infections can cause high mortality rates. Several viral pathogen mono-infections, including influenza viruses and coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2, can also cause high mortality rates. Concurrent infections by fungal pathogens and highly manipulative viral pathogens can synergistically interact in the respiratory tract to substantially increase their mortality rates. There are at least five viral manipulations which can assist secondary fungal…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A wild boar cathelicidin peptide derivative inhibits severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 and its drifted variants</strong> - The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) poses a clear threat to humanity. It has infected over 200 million and killed 4 million people worldwide, and infections continue with no end in sight. To control the pandemic, multiple effective vaccines have been developed, and global vaccinations are in progress. However, the virus continues to mutate. Even when full vaccine coverage is achieved, vaccine-resistant mutants will likely emerge, thus requiring new annual vaccines…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inhibition of the SREBP pathway prevents SARS-CoV-2 replication and inflammasome activation</strong> - SARS-CoV-2 induces major cellular lipid rearrangements, exploiting the host’s metabolic pathways to replicate. Sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs) are a family of transcription factors that control lipid metabolism. SREBP1 is associated with the regulation of fatty acids, whereas SREBP2 controls cholesterol metabolism, and both isoforms are associated with lipid droplet (LD) biogenesis. Here, we evaluated the effect of SREBP in a SARS-CoV-2-infected lung epithelial cell line…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SELEX based aptamers with diagnostic and entry inhibitor therapeutic potential for SARS-CoV-2</strong> - Frequent mutation and variable immunological protection against vaccination is a common feature for COVID-19 pandemic. Early detection and confinement remain key to controlling further spread of infection. In response, we have developed an aptamer-based system that possesses both diagnostic and therapeutic potential towards the virus. A random aptamer library (~ 10^(17) molecules) was screened using systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) and aptamer R was identified as…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>High-CBD cannabis extracts inhibit the expression of proinflammatory factors via miRNA-mediated silencing in human small intestinal epithelial cells</strong> - The incidence of chronic inflammatory disorders and autoimmune diseases is rapidly growing. To date, the COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has killed over 6,209,000 people globally, while no drug has been proven effective for the disease. Screening natural anti-inflammatory compounds for clinical application has drawn much attention. In this study, we showed that high-CBD cannabis extracts #1, #5, #7, #169, and #317 suppressed the levels of expression of proinflammatory cyclooxygenase 2…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Plant flavonoid inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 main protease and viral replication</strong> - Plant-based flavonoids have been evaluated as inhibitors of β-coronavirus replication and as therapies for COVID-19 on the basis of their safety profile and widespread availability. The SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro) has been implicated as a target for flavonoids in silico. Yet no comprehensive in vitro testing of flavonoid activity against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro has heretofore been performed. We screened 1,019 diverse flavonoids for their ability to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 Mpro. Multiple…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Combating pan-coronavirus infection by indomethacin through simultaneously inhibiting viral replication and inflammatory response</strong> - Severe infections with coronaviruses are often accompanied with hyperinflammation, requiring therapeutic strategies to simultaneously tackle the virus and inflammation. By screening a safe-in-human broad-spectrum antiviral agents library, we identified that indomethacin can inhibit pan-coronavirus infection in human cell and airway organoids models. Combining indomethacin with oral antiviral drugs authorized for treating COVID-19 results in synergistic anti-coronavirus activity. Coincidentally,…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Assessing the outcomes of prescribing angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers for COVID-19 patients</strong> - CONCLUSION: Inhibition of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone-system had no effect on the mortality of patients with COVID-19 and on their overall disease progression. However, it may be beneficial not to stop these medications as they decrease inflammation in the body and the levels of troponin, which are related to increased stress on the heart.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Deadly interactions: synergistic manipulations of concurrent pathogen infections potentially enabling future pandemics</strong> - Certain monoinfections of influenza viruses and novel coronaviruses, including severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are significant threats to human health. Concurrent infections by influenza viruses and coronaviruses increases their threat. Influenza viruses have eight manipulations capable of assisting SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses, and several of these manipulations, which are not specific to viruses, can also directly or indirectly boost dangerous secondary…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An evolutionarily conserved strategy for ribosome binding and host translation inhibition by β-coronavirus non-structural protein 1</strong> - An important pathogenicity factor of SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses is Non-structural protein 1 (Nsp1), which suppresses host gene expression and stunts antiviral signaling. SARS-CoV-2 Nsp1 binds the ribosome to inhibit translation through mRNA displacement and induces degradation of host mRNAs. Here we show that Nsp1-dependent host shutoff is conserved in diverse coronaviruses, but only Nsp1 from β-Coronaviruses (β-CoV) inhibits translation through ribosome binding. The C-terminal domain…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein induces necroptosis and mediates inflammatory response in lung and colon cells through receptor interacting protein kinase 1</strong> - SARS-CoV-2 Envelope protein (E) is one of the crucial components in virus assembly and pathogenesis. The current study investigated its role in the SARS-CoV-2-mediated cell death and inflammation in lung and gastrointestinal epithelium and its effect on the gastrointestinal-lung axis. We observed that transfection of E protein increases the lysosomal pH and induces inflammation in the cell. The study utilizing Ethidium bromide/Acridine orange and Hoechst/Propidium iodide staining demonstrated…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Structure and function of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 main proteases and their inhibition: A comprehensive review</strong> - Severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) identified in 2003 infected ∼8000 people in 26 countries with 800 deaths, which was soon contained and eradicated by syndromic surveillance and enhanced quarantine. A closely related coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19 identified in 2019, has been dramatically more contagious and catastrophic. It has infected and caused various flu-like symptoms of billions of people in &gt;200 countries, including &gt;6 million…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Antimicrobial effect of oral care gel containing hinokitiol and 4-isopropyl-3-methylphenol against intraoral pathogenic microorganisms</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that oral care gel-containing hinokitiol and IPMP has strong biofilm formation inhibitory activity, as well as antifungal and antimicrobial effects against Candida fungi and multiple intraoral pathogenic microorganisms. Therefore, it may be a promising treatment option for oral infections.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inhibition of the Cellular Deubiquitinase UCHL1 Suppresses SARS-CoV-2 Replication</strong> - No abstract</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Virtual-Reality School as the Ultimate School Choice</strong> - The conservative education activist Erika Donalds envisions a world where parents unsatisfied with their public schools can opt out by putting their kids in a headset. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-education/virtual-reality-school-as-the-ultimate-school-choice">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Twilight of Mitch McConnell and the Spectre of 2024</strong> - On the dangerous reign of the octogenarians. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/the-twilight-of-mitch-mcconnell-and-the-spectre-of-2024">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How a Man in Prison Stole Millions from Billionaires</strong> - With smuggled cell phones and a handful of accomplices, Arthur Lee Cofield, Jr., took money from large bank accounts and bought houses, cars, clothes, and gold. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-the-south/how-a-man-in-prison-stole-millions-from-billionaires">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Life and Death in America’s Hottest City</strong> - Carolyn Kormann on how climate change threatens to increase the high incidence of heat-related deaths in and near Phoenix, Arizona. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/science/elements/life-and-death-in-americas-hottest-city">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Can Teachers and Parents Get Better at Talking to One Another?</strong> - Families are more anxious than ever to find out what happens in school. But there may be value in a measure of not-knowing and not-telling. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-education/can-teachers-and-parents-get-better-at-talking-to-one-another">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>The criminal justice system is broken. Restorative justice can help fill the gap.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="The New York County Supreme Court building against sunset, in lower Manhattan, New York City." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2TiXIj-0k1FU_fW41pNmsbbdktY=/0x0:4608x3456/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72616073/GettyImages_1179449026.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Restorative justice can offer an alternative to the punitive criminal justice system. | Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Inside a movement that aims to bring accountability and healing to the justice system.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SnCHwl">
What was happening in the courtroom that day in New York City was unusual. The judge was set to sentence a young man to prison for shooting a gun and killing a bystander. Court hearings for this type of crime are understandably charged: Typically, the relatives of the victim sit on one side of the gallery, as far away as possible from the family of the person who killed their loved one. Harsh words are often exchanged; sometimes, fights break out.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PtOWq5">
Besides that tension, there is almost no actual accountability. The defendant passively answers “yes” or “no” when asked if they plead guilty, while the victim’s family may at most have the chance to make a victim impact statement, which is the moment when victims can tell the court how the crime has affected them. (I’m using the terms “victim” and “defendant” for clarity, but in the restorative justice movement that I’m a part of, we avoid using such labels because they can obscure nuance. We also promise confidentiality to people who participate in the system, which is why I’ve made all parties in this case anonymous.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3sqORZ">
Rarely, however, will a defendant take any meaningful responsibility for their actions, and rarely, too, will a victim’s family get any type of closure. Once the person has been found guilty, we simply send them to prison without a word.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Jj1PfJ">
On the day in question, it was different. I arrived at the courthouse with the husband of the person who had been killed, and remained glued to his side throughout the unbearable day. Soon after, the mother of the defendant arrived with her younger child in tow and other members of her family.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4ND4Es">
And this is where the court hearing became unusual. The defendant’s mother beelined over to us to hug me, and then she proceeded to hug the victim’s husband too. The man who had lost his husband received the mother of his killer with warmth and appreciation. When the lawyers finally arrived, they found us all standing together instead of in our respective corners.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RpMIBZ">
The coming together of both parties before sentencing is nearly unheard of — particularly in violent cases of this kind. Our system is designed to be adversarial and combative; one side wins and one side loses. But in this case, I watched as the prosecutor spoke to the defendant’s mother, who profusely thanked him for the opportunity to participate in a restorative justice process, while the defense attorney spoke kindly with the victim’s husband.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="12z2Qm">
When the judge was ready, we all walked inside and sat together — the families of the victim and defendant in one row. The prosecutor explained to the judge that through a restorative justice program, the defendant had taken real accountability for what he had done.
</p>
<h3 id="4A6gND">
The origins of restorative justice
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Y3XhCy">
Over the last decades, many communities have been shifting to the promise of <a href="https://ncorj.org/">restorative justice</a> as a way to respond to conflict and violence. Restorative justice is inspired by teachers from various <a href="https://www.atjrc.org/circle-peacemaking/">Indigenous traditions</a> such as <a href="https://courts.navajo-nsn.gov/indexpeacemaking.htm">peacemaking</a>, who have been practicing a sacred approach to justice for generations. A prominent restorative justice thinker, the criminologist Howard Zehr, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817594.Changing_Lenses">describes the approach as moving away</a> from looking at which law is broken and toward an inquiry into who was harmed, what that person needs to heal, and whose obligation it is to meet those needs.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SHZU2R">
Over the last decade — after a brief foray as a prosecutor in Canada, which revealed to me so many of the insufficiencies of the conventional criminal justice system — I have been exploring how restorative justice can shift relationships, respond to conflict, and even help chart a path forward in the aftermath of devastating harm. My role in these cases is as a facilitator — working with both sides and their loved ones — to understand the needs at the heart of the matter and to help people find their own footing to move forward.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6D8Jkp">
In the case above, I designed a restorative justice process that took the better part of a year. My first step — as it always is — was to meet with the victim’s husband to ask him what he needed to begin the healing process. He repeatedly expressed the need to meet with the defendant, a young man in his early 20s. He wanted to understand what had happened that day; he thought he may even want to forgive. Either way, the kind of faceless prosecution that is the norm in the criminal justice system wasn’t enough for him.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="btMxvG">
I then began to meet with the young man, to understand whether he would be open to this kind of process. This took time. Over many months, he and I, as well as my co-facilitator, tried to unearth how he had ended up at this terrible crossroads. We talked about all kinds of things, sharing information about our lives and developing a real connection. Eventually, we had built enough trust to begin the process of exploring how he might accept responsibility for his actions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ov4Vyl">
Finally, almost nine months after the start of the process, after he had pleaded guilty in court but before his formal sentencing, we all came together for a facilitated dialogue; one without any lawyers present, one where the young man was able to witness the husband’s grief and share his own remorse. The defendant’s mother was there too, supporting her son’s willingness to take responsibility and sharing her overwhelming regret for what had transpired.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9AEPs2">
When we had finished, the police officer in charge outside the door — who had, earlier that day, rolled his eyes at our “kumbaya meeting” — said to my co-facilitator and me, “In nearly 40 years of working homicides, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mc0QNb">
Back in the courtroom, at the moment of sentencing, the prosecutor suggested that the court impose a lower sentence in light of the defendant’s efforts toward transformation. But first he invited the victim’s husband to share his victim impact statement. The husband walked to the podium and began to speak:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VuR6ye">
“I would like the court to know that I forgive this young man. Not because I’m a minister, not because I have to, but because of the heartfelt conversation that we had in the restorative justice program.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="h64dHx">
The judge imposed a lower sentence, and that was it.
</p>
<h3 id="5P6rxJ">
Bringing reconciliation to the courtroom
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dmiymH">
The softening we had witnessed between the parties will never change what happened, nor make it okay in any way. And this process cannot be used for victims who choose not to seek that type of connection, nor for people who choose not to accept any responsibility for their actions. Of course, some could try to use it to manipulate people and systems in their favor. But in my experience, it takes an unparalleled level of grit and bravery to sit and face the person you harmed, or their deepest loved one, and tell the truth about yourself.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lduxsk">
Despite the enormity of the loss at issue in this case, the question animating a restorative process is not about trying to change the past; rather, in the words of the Navajo peacemaking tradition, it asks: What do we need to move forward in a good way?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WKmAr5">
In the criminal legal system, many defendants deny what they’ve done. They deny it throughout the legal proceedings, where they’re advised to remain silent and plead not guilty. Over time, this may even encourage them to believe they didn’t do anything wrong. But this course of action, even if it’s an accepted part of the criminal justice system, does nothing for a person’s growth or capacity to change, which requires at minimum an honest acknowledgment of how one behaved in the first place.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="39cxB0">
Meanwhile, the private, searing pain felt by victims of harm becomes <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/23636088">an object of the state</a>, which gets to determine the method of resolution. But victims, like everyone else, are individuals. Some of them need answers to burning questions. Others want to understand the circumstances that sparked the moment of harm. And for many, the unending incarceration of the defendant does little to bring them peace, especially given <a href="https://newjimcrow.com/">the glaring racial disparities</a> in the prison system that tend to undermine the system as a whole.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XKayZb">
It doesn’t have to be this way. We know that mass incarceration at the gargantuan annual cost of <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/end-mass-incarceration/social-economic-harm">$270 billion</a> in the United States has done little to reduce violent crime or create healthy communities; in fact, for the most part, it has <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555719/#:~:text=It%20directly%20and%20indirectly%20affects,critical%20social%20determinant%20of%20health.">done the opposite</a>. Yet politicians capitalizing on overhyped fears of violent crime are pushing for a return to an even more punitive criminal justice system.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8RsVZo">
Undeterred, in communities around the country, people are working to build new strategies for responding to harm focused on safety, healing, and accountability. There are opportunities to create <a href="https://www.ahimsacollective.net/">dialogue centered in community</a>, without any system involvement, and others that create <a href="https://www.commonjustice.org/">off-ramps</a> for people embroiled in <a href="https://oag.dc.gov/public-safety/restorative-justice-program">the justice system</a>, all while centering — not forgetting — the victims of crime in the process.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WEOoDJ">
After the sentencing was over and we had all turned to leave, the victim’s husband was stopped at the door by two family members of the defendant. They thanked him for what he’d said to the court and hugged him.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SJaJfG">
“I didn’t do anything,” he replied. “It’s just the truth.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>“Never underestimate them”: A Holocaust historian’s warning about Germany’s far right</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A speaker in the background stands at a lectern, while blurred phones recording him block the foreground." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hWAuZ1H7fpjCdihk0Ci57NczjSc=/333x0:5668x4001/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72616010/1645158007.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Tino Chrupalla, AfD federal chairman and AfD parliamentary group leader, gives a press statement at the start of his party’s parliamentary group meeting in the Bundestag, September 4, 2023. | Kay Nietfeld/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
How Germany’s far right is making a comeback using an old playbook.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SrSBIC">
BERLIN — In Germany, as in a number of European countries, support for <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/alternative-for-germay-far-right-surge-warning-bells-election-polls/">the far right is surging</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4EdOiu">
Buoyed by discontent over the economy and energy policy, Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) has been gaining in the polls ahead of regional elections in East Germany in 2024 and in Bavaria later this fall. An anti-migration, <a href="https://www.vox.com/climate">climate change</a>-denying party, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/26/far-right-afd-wins-local-election-watershed-moment-german-politics">AfD won its first district council election</a> in Sonneberg — a town in eastern Germany — this past June and holds 78 seats (a little more than 10 percent) in the national legislature.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="C45Ut8">
The backing it has picked up is notable: National polling averages currently <a href="https://www.politico.eu/europe-poll-of-polls/germany/">show the party with 21 percent support</a>, higher than that of the 18 percent held by Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD). And in recent polls of specific German states, AfD has become one of the most popular political parties in some regions, <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/afd-alternative-for-germany-deutschland-immigration-economy-decline-climate-change-right-wing-populism-opinion-mathias-dopfner/">getting up to 34 percent support in Thuringia</a>, for example.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="B0ZlBf">
AfD’s gains have <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/alternative-for-germay-far-right-surge-warning-bells-election-polls/">raised alarms among historians and political leaders,</a> given the country’s history with Nazism. The AfD says it is not interested in neo-Nazism and has publicly tried to distance itself from neo-Nazi organizations. Its <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/dangerous-liaisons-the-true-proximity-of-germany-s-afd-to-neo-nazis-a-e69c51d3-4b3c-49d2-8d54-d7b0a19c3f9a">ties to right-wing extremists are deep</a>, however, and, as with the Nazis, nationalism and the scapegoating of minorities — including Muslim migrants — are key to its ideology.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6mGfHC">
Thus far, the major German political parties — the center-left SPD, the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the environmentalist Greens — have declined to work with AfD at the federal level. But there is concern that mainstream parties may begin to normalize the AfD in order to build governing coalitions and to consolidate power.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EY9BrT">
“One thing is: never underestimate [the AfD]. Never,” says Christoph Kreutzmüller, a Holocaust historian and former curator at the Jewish Museum in Berlin.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9eQg3m">
Vox sat down with Kreutzmüller, who now chairs the Aktives Museum, which is dedicated to confronting the history of Nazis in Berlin, to discuss the lessons we should take from Germany’s past and the reasons the right is seeing this resurgence now.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xkyyOK">
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
</p>
<h4 id="vNTNaX">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M6awWg">
Could you start by talking about some of the political and economic factors that fueled the rise of the Nazis?
</p>
<h4 id="zLlxsh">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lgo7lw">
I think the most important is a general wariness, dissatisfaction of a huge part of the population with … the Republic, seen as the one who kind of lost the war.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P7pYCe">
[And] in the mid-1920s, the feeling, “Hey, we are getting somewhere, we are moving,” was quite broad. But then, of course, came the economic catastrophe. And this small party, which had been tolerated by too many for far too long, became a serious threat.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kYZC7w">
This is something we want to think about because, <a href="https://www.vox.com/trump-investigations/2023/8/25/23845591/donald-trump-charges-january-6-trial-hitler-putsch-trial">in 1923, this small radical party tried to putsch</a>. And instead of, you know, prohibiting this party, which was against the rule of law, which was against the Constitution, they were only disbanded for a short time. Adolf Hitler, the head of the putsch, was given a very honorary prison treatment, in which he was able to write his fake news book, which became an international bestseller.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="z82uK1">
They missed the chance in 1923 to say “full stop.” They missed a chance in saying “full stop” when … the Nazis rose to power with brawls and violence. [There were] a series of lost chances to enforce the rule of law. And, of course, then it’s the Depression. And in times of fear, anxiety, and millions unemployed, lots of people look for a strong figure.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wT16z6">
[Additionally], anti-Semitism was one of the core political messages. After World War I, a quite big portion of the population seemingly needed something like a scapegoat. And Jews were then in Europe, in a Christian-based society, the easy scapegoat to pick.
</p>
<h4 id="ScweQY">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2Chl6Y">
Was there a sense that other parties helped normalize Nazi leadership?
</p>
<h4 id="kldwrM">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1s1QpK">
In the state of Thuringia, there was a Nazi minister in a coalition party as of 1931. There were quite a few of those states Germany consisted of then that had established the Nazi form of government or had let Nazis come to power. So that normalized it, of course.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dqMJ6v">
And that’s the question that is debated [about the AfD] right now. Can you form a coalition with those people and make them accepted as normal partners? And there’s a huge understanding right now, or was a huge understanding: No, you may not, because they don’t play according to the rules. And the rules are the content of our Constitution and the rule of law.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xynafM">
There’s real concern. And the head of the CDU right now is not as adamant as his predecessors.
</p>
<h4 id="DRd2bD">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sHURM2">
What parallels do you see now with the rise of AfD and the current far right and that of the Nazis?
</p>
<h4 id="HnhcLp">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="temt3I">
In times of anxiety, people tend to become more extreme because they’re afraid to lose [what they have].
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sRrVQg">
We all know now that there’s big changes coming [on climate and other issues] and we are afraid of these big changes. The other thing you got now … is you [have] this fascist revival all over Europe. They are supporting each other, of course.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JQaDLy">
[There is also] scapegoating again, and it’s forgetting that … Germany needs the influx of new people because we are a dying <a href="https://www.destatis.de/EN/Press/2023/03/PE23_124_12.html">society, we are too old</a>. And without people coming in, it will be an even huger recession. And <a href="https://www.destatis.de/EN/Press/2022/12/PE22_511_124.html">in 10 years, we don’t have the workforce anymore</a>. So we do need them now. We do need everyone who wants to come right now. And every economist will tell you that.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ow8RcJ">
[It’s] a very, very old pattern. Antisemitism was rooted in this Christian society. Now it’s against foreigners, and of course, it’s connected to this anti-Muslim attitude that lots of people share.
</p>
<h4 id="vXiC4o">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="A0nFKd">
In a way, it felt somewhat surprising to see the resurgence of the far right in Germany given the country’s recent history and attempts to reckon with it. I’m curious if you have found it surprising.
</p>
<h4 id="fLeyGx">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CmIzqb">
No, I mean, there’s more than one factor. One is that history is long gone now. People have forgot what it really [was] like in Europe. The witnesses are dying — the eyewitnesses — and so the impact is dying. It’s not just like the witnesses of the persecuted, it’s the people… who can say, “Look, my village has been bombed, and it was dreadful.” That is kind of receding, this acute knowledge of destruction and murder.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="s9mZJB">
And the other thing is that you can certainly see that the AfD is stronger in the East, and one of the reasons for it is that in West Germany, the talk, like the bottom up talk about Nazi perpetrators, about Nazi ideology, about the persecution of the Jews. This bottom-up process is really grassrooted in society, and … that really helped. And that process didn’t happen in the GDR (German Democratic Republic, occupied by the Soviet Union), [at least not until] much later, and then … not so rooted in society.
</p>
<h4 id="Wh1g4q">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ot4zOl">
What are the arguments you’re seeing AfD make that are resonating with voters?
</p>
<h4 id="Mq6Ruj">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6xMps4">
One of the main arguments of the AfD is that they are not a real party. They are different: “We don’t do it like the big ones.” [They say that to] voters forgetting that after [existing for] 10 years, they are an established party.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZLfqu9">
The other is a very strong nationalistic argument, that us Germans have to find ourselves again, and that resonates quite well, especially in the East, because as strange as it may, it’s something that still lingers in the corners there, which has got something to do with not really talking about the perpetratorship in Nazi Germany.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mD4UAP">
In the course of the reunification, the people in the East tend to think that they have been neglected and not heard, and they should be heard. And that’s another bit of it, which I find quite understandable because they were really not heard in the early years and <a href="https://www.iza.org/publications/dp/6/the-mortality-crisis-in-east-germany">lost lots of their lives</a>. I see that. But of course, it’s not a justification to supporting Nazis or neo-Nazis.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eDa9hw">
And, of course, [they support] disbanding the <a href="https://www.vox.com/european-union">EU</a> because people don’t understand what the EU is and that one of the greatest benefactors of the EU is Germany.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hCXyX6">
But the main argument is nationalism, and we are different.
</p>
<h4 id="rVszlR">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OOFM8y">
Was there more Germany, either politically or societally,<strong> </strong>could have done to stop the progression of AfD?
</p>
<h4 id="1roDSV">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pq50mZ">
The <a href="https://www.bmi.bund.de/EN/topics/security/protection-of-the-constitution/protection-of-the-constitution.html">Office of the Protection of the Constitution</a> [which is meant to protect the German government from anti-democratic extremism]<strong> </strong>actually opened an investigation. And it’s becoming clearer and clearer that [the AfD] is in huge parts, or in part, against the Constitution, and could [therefore] be prohibited. And you know, the case hasn’t been solved yet. (Editor’s note: <a href="https://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/EN/Verfahren/Wichtige-Verfahrensarten/Parteiverbotsverfahren/parteiverbotsverfahren_node.html#:~:text=So%20far%2C%20the%20Federal%20Constitutional,Deutschlands%20(KPD)%20in%201956.">German law has a formal process for banning political parties</a> found to be a danger to the state, in order to prevent anti-democratic extremists from using parties to take control of the country.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mfvifw">
But this is a question that is widely debated right now in Germany. And maybe it comes a bit late. I think if you think about the chances we. as a society, missed in saying, full stop, “You are not playing according to the rules, so you don’t play with us anymore. You are fascist and you are against our Constitution, and our beliefs on <a href="https://www.vox.com/life">how to live</a> together, you are to be prohibited.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6QNPvT">
Those chances are kind of fading, even though the arguments are growing. [It’s] ever more difficult to really prohibit this party because they’re gaining so much support. I mean, how do you then prohibit a party that has got, and will gain 30 percent of the votes?
</p>
<h4 id="KnXNjA">
Li Zhou
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dpYOmq">
What lessons do you think are important for people watching the rise of the AfD to keep in mind from German history?
</p>
<h4 id="joAolV">
Christoph Kreutzmüller
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lQFuS5">
One thing is: Never underestimate them. Never. And do enforce the rule of law. I mean, that’s what we’ve got, for God’s sake. That’s the only thing we’ve got as a society.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dOYjfS">
We’ve got the Constitution, which I see as part of the rule of law. Apply it. And that applies for the Federal Republic of Germany, as well as the United States of America.
</p></li>
<li><strong>The impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, explained</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2lArC0OBQqwLn6EWildkKhA8Flc=/917x0:8256x5504/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72614902/1435726385.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaking at the “Save America” rally on October 22, 2022, in Robstown, Texas. | Brandon Bell/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The right-wing warrior may soon see his legal issues catch up with him. It could shape the future of the Texas GOP.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4FqYdG">
Ken Paxton, Texas’s Republican attorney general and an ally of former President Donald Trump, may soon see his long-running legal problems catch up with him.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OobZMM">
The Texas House voted to impeach Paxton in May, and on Tuesday, the Republican-controlled Texas Senate began Paxton’s impeachment trial, which focuses on <a href="https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/HR02377I.htm">allegations</a> including dereliction of duty, bribery, and disregard of official duty. The trial represents an opportunity for moderate state Republicans to neutralize the powerful far-right wing that Paxton represents, and the result could help decide the state party’s trajectory in one of the nation’s biggest GOP trifectas.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pWk5x1">
Paxton, who made his name filing high-profile lawsuits against the Obama and Biden administrations, has rallied some prominent Republicans behind him, including US Sen. Ted Cruz, former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon, and the former president’s son, Donald Trump Jr. 
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5ny1W0">
“Today marks another milestone in Ken Paxton’s career of fighting the Austin Swamp and Establishment,” Trump Jr. <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1699065639984677035?s=20">tweeted</a> Tuesday. “Ken will survive and will continue to combat the Swamp in Texas to put America First.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="o70sNm">
Many of Paxton’s right-wing allies have sought to cast his impeachment in the same light as the prosecution of Trump, and while Paxton himself has not been so direct, he has warned about <a href="https://twitter.com/KenPaxtonTX/status/1686882021199511553?s=20">“the weaponization of state power”</a> — against the former president and, implicitly, himself. In that sense, the trial could become a microcosm of the national discourse around Trump’s presidential candidacy and reveal just what it might take for Republicans to break with a leader plagued with legal and political problems.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QUm4Nt">
While Paxton has his supporters, other Republicans — including former Bush administration adviser <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-end-is-near-for-texas-attorney-general-ken-paxton-impeachment-gop-mistress-charges-6d756be1">Karl Rove</a> and former Texas Republican Gov. <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ken-paxton-and-the-texas-constitution-ag-rule-of-law-impeachment-4da7792c">Rick Perry</a> — have supported the impeachment trial given the evidence that has piled up against Paxton.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="f9TzJj">
For years, the state party appeared willing to overlook Paxton’s legal problems so long as he was winning elections. That seems to have changed after he sought to <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/13/legislature-ken-paxton-whistleblower-settlement/">use taxpayer funds to pay out a whistleblower settlement</a> to his former deputies, respected Federalist Society lawyers who accused him of corruption. There have also been new revelations about Paxton’s alleged misdeeds that are difficult to defend: Lawmakers investigating him found that he took great pains to <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/17/ken-paxton-impeachment-new-allegations/">hide his mutually beneficial relationship</a> with real estate investor Nate Paul, whom he allegedly helped shield from an FBI investigation using the powers of his office. Paxton has denied any wrongdoing and unsuccessfully petitioned the Texas Senate to dismiss all of the impeachment charges.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yaUua1">
Paxton was suspended from his duties back in May after winning a third four-year term. Lawmakers (excluding his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton) will decide whether to convict and permanently remove him from office in the coming weeks. They need a two-thirds majority in both chambers to do so following the trial.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OslPDo">
But this is Texas, where there is an enthusiastic Republican base, and the impeachment trial is an inherently political proceeding. The outcome of the trial may therefore hinge more on Republican senators’ political calculus than on justice.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rx3lPY">
“Legislators are thinking about their electoral prospects, which is essentially their self-interest, and that is part of the process,” said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin.
</p>
<h3 id="ty4TsL">
Who is Ken Paxton?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="McGnp9">
Paxton is among the most prolific state attorneys general in the country, known for leading splashy, multi-state lawsuits against policies of the Obama and Biden administrations and wading into culture war battles. That includes lawsuits seeking to end the Obama-era <a href="https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/south-texas-el-paso/news/2023/02/02/texas-ag-paxton-leads-coalition-of-states-again-seeking-to-end-daca-">Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals</a> (DACA) program and <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2021/06/17/supreme-court-affordable-care-act-texas/">challenging the Affordable Care Act</a>, as well as an <a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-transgender-hospital-investigation-greg-abbott-dce466dcaa7be541c009a2fdc0b4a286">investigation</a> he spearheaded into a hospital that provided gender-affirming care to trans youth for unspecified “potential illegal activity.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vv4bGB">
Those lawsuits — some of which were successful — allowed him to rise to a level of national prominence that most state attorneys general do not have, earning him powerful allies. Last year, he won Trump’s coveted endorsement in his reelection fight, and also addressed a crowd of Trump’s supporters just before the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RuLur5">
In June, Cruz <a href="https://www.ktsm.com/news/ted-cruz-talks-paxton-impeachment-debt-ceiling-vote-during-visit-to-tyler/">told KETK</a> that he thought the Texas House’s vote to impeach Paxton was a “travesty” and that the legal issues at stake should have been resolved in court instead: “We have a system in the court of law that can resolve those issues but every bit as importantly, these allegations were before the voters.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eyGwha">
Bannon also told listeners on his podcast that the impeachment trial was just another witch hunt akin to what he believes Trump is facing with the four criminal indictments against him. “We want the entire MAGA movement to understand that what’s going on in Texas is not just about Texas,” he <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/conservative-push-save-ken-paxton-122019007.html">said</a> earlier this month.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="f9YUPr">
These kinds of figures have long cocooned Paxton from the consequences of his alleged misdeeds, which span more than a decade. Indeed, the basic contours of the misconduct alleged by the Texas House panel that investigated him were already known to the public, well before any murmurs of impeachment. Voters still twice reelected him, albeit after a hard-fought primary last year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nNpccp">
The question is whether the impeachment trial will change their minds.
</p>
<h3 id="srK7jP">
Why was Paxton impeached?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7fycwZ">
The impeachment charges center on Paxton’s improper quid pro quo with Paul, an Austin real estate mogul who was<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/06/09/nate-paul-federal-charges/"> indicted in June</a> on eight felony counts of making false statements to financial institutions to obtain billions of dollars in loans.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iHCTVs">
Paxton allegedly issued a last-minute legal opinion to help Paul avoid foreclosure sales on several of his properties during the pandemic and ordered his staff not to help law enforcement in investigating Paul’s business. He is also accused of sharing confidential records about a 2019 FBI raid on Paul’s properties with him. In return, Paxton allegedly got Paul’s help with a <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2021/02/11/lawsuit-texas-ag-ken-paxton-swapped-political-favors-for-home-remodel-job-for-alleged-mistress/">home remodel</a> and with finding Paxton’s <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/investigations/2020/11/05/deposition-reveals-new-links-between-texas-attorney-general-ken-paxton-and-developer-nate-paul/">alleged mistress</a> a job.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hbF8I9">
Paxton, meanwhile, allegedly sought to hide his relationship with his alleged mistress and with Paul, leaving behind his security detail and using a burner phone, secret email accounts, and an alias on his Uber account. Those sordid details could prove particularly damaging for Paxton among the religious conservative voters he has long relied on.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VrdMDU">
Lawmakers investigating Paxton have amassed<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/18/ken-paxton-impeachment-evidence/"> almost 4,000 pages of evidence</a> and promised additional revelations during the trial.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pv4ZTe">
Nominally, Paxton’s trial is about corruption. But behind the scenes, it’s also a showdown between warring factions of the Texas GOP.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EwyKlN">
House Speaker Dade Phelan led more traditional Republicans in pursuing Paxton’s impeachment, perhaps perceiving that he could strike the state attorney general at a moment of weakness and reclaim power for himself and like-minded colleagues. How that power struggle plays out could determine whether the state party, which seems likely to maintain control in Texas for the foreseeable future, embraces the more moderate conservatism championed by the Texas speaker of the House, or Paxton’s far-right style of politics.
</p>
<h3 id="tYOxYc">
Paxton has many other legal troubles
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MM6aOX">
The impeachment trial is only the latest episode in Paxton’s long list of legal troubles.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eMFQW0">
Perhaps the most pressing case against him involves a 2015 accusation leveled by Byron Cook, a former Republican state legislator, and Florida businessman Joel Hochberg. They claim Paxton encouraged them to invest $100,000 or more in a technology company called Servergy Inc., without notifying them that he would earn a commission if they did so. This is alleged to have <a href="https://apnews.com/article/aa0f20ad59b0492782225ff5798102ec">happened in 2011</a>, while Paxton was a <a href="https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2016-65">member of the Texas House</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lgYK3L">
The indictment in that case alleges that Paxton “<a href="https://www.star-telegram.com/opinion/editorials/article29898781.html">intentionally fail[ed] to disclose</a>” that he had been given compensation in the form of 100,000 shares of Servergy stock, charging him with two counts of securities fraud. He was also charged with a <a href="http://www.texastribune.org/2014/04/21/paxton-campaign-reviewing-disclosure-lapses/">failure to register with the state securities board</a>. Paxton has denied the allegations in the case, which is still making its way through the courts all these years later.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="igDwHA">
In 2020, the FBI opened a <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/11/17/texas-ken-paxton-fbi/">criminal investigation</a> into the whistleblower claims that are the subject of the settlement that Paxton has pushed in the legislature.<strong> </strong>Paxton has said that he’s done nothing wrong and has accused the FBI of <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2022/02/14/texas-ag-ken-paxtons-opponents-are-attacking-him-over-fbi-investigation-is-it-a-winning-strategy/">infiltrating his office</a>. No criminal charges have been filed yet, but a federal grand jury in San Antonio <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/10/ken-paxton-grand-jury/">called witnesses close to Paxton </a>earlier this month.
</p>
<h3 id="xBUrTi">
What the trial reveals about the Republican Party
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="R7uKPE">
Paxton’s approval ratings have <a href="https://utexas.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=743c19c8799aea8f9ffafabe2&amp;id=2d13b70496&amp;e=1aed5421a2">fallen</a> in recent months, though less so among Republicans, who are still on the fence about the impeachment trial, according to the latest August polling by the Texas Politics Project: 47 percent <a href="https://utexas.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=743c19c8799aea8f9ffafabe2&amp;id=c3c10232c7&amp;e=1aed5421a2">said </a>investigations of Paxton were based “mostly on the facts,” 28 percent said they were based “mostly on politics,” and a quarter offered no opinion.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qIMAjK">
As far as the Republican state senators charged with deciding Paxton’s fate are concerned, those numbers create a problem: They don’t provide a slam-dunk political case for either removing him from or keeping him in office.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hIf620">
“Those calculations are very hard to make,” Henson said. “It would be one thing if you could say, ‘70 to 80 percent of Republicans in the state love Ken Paxton and say it was wrong to impeach him and would be wrong to remove him.’ That’s not what the data is telling them.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mbcJGt">
That’s left state senators facing a conundrum in terms of determining what Republican voters actually want from the trial. Choosing wrong could mean facing an unwelcome primary challenger in the next election.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rvQX8R">
Complicating matters is Republicans’ broader “fundamental distrust of institutions,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a GOP strategist in Texas. “Republican voters and activists don’t trust the media that is covering the stories around Trump and Paxton. They don’t trust the investigative bodies, the Department of Justice, the FBI. They don’t trust the prosecutors or judges, even if some of those were appointed by Republican presidents or got elected in Texas.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="beB2Hy">
While Trump has been able to use that distrust to increase his base of support in the GOP primary, Paxton’s support hasn’t proved as durable in the leadup to the impeachment trial, Henson said. But the choices that Republicans, nationally and in Texas, make with respect to Trump and Paxton will reveal the extent to which the party is capable of holding its own to account.
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Mojito and Son Of A Gun excel</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Indian men’s team loses in the semifinals</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Three players who started with a bang but finished in their 20s</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bangladesh wins toss, opts to bat against Pakistan in Super 4 match of Asia Cup</strong> - Bangladesh made one change with fit-again Litton Das replacing in-form Najmul Hossain Shanto</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bhaichung Bhutia says open to joining Chamling’s Sikkim Democratic Front</strong> - The 46-year-old former international footballer confirmed that he was ‘open to joining the SDF’</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Book released</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Govt okays ₹3,760 cr for up to 40% viability gap funding for 4,000 MWh battery energy storage system</strong> - India is meeting its 25% of energy demand from renewable energy, including from large hydro plants.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Researchers discover ‘white’ sambar in Cauvery wildlife sanctuary</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Idukki, Cheruthoni dams opened for public till October 31</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Vaiko condemns attempts to rename India as Bharat</strong> -</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece streets turn to rivers in deadly floods</strong> - Flooding caused by heavy rain leads to at least 10 deaths in Turkey, Bulgaria and Greece.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Germany charges intelligence ‘mole’ with treason in Russia spying case</strong> - The intelligence officer is accused of passing state secrets about the Ukraine war to Russia.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine war: Deadly new Russian attack reported on Izmail port area</strong> - A Russian attack on port facilities in the Izmail area killed one person, the local governor says.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Jorge Vilda sacking: Ex-Spain manager on his exit after World Cup win</strong> - Former Spain head coach Jorge Vilda says being sacked weeks after winning the Women’s World Cup is “unfair”.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Dead Sea reveals four 1,900-year-old Roman swords in cave</strong> - The excellently preserved weapons are believed to have been hidden by Judean rebels 1,900 years ago.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Conservative judges revive case on FDA’s “you are not a horse” ivermectin posts</strong> - You are still not a horse, but FDA will go to court over its authority to advise you. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1965629">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Here’s what we know about a mysterious launch from Florida this week</strong> - The Pentagon is mum about this test launch from Cape Canaveral. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1965563">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Seeing this Pong chip has me finding excuses to visit Rochester’s Strong Museum</strong> - A peek inside the Strong Museum of Play’s latest history-focused expansion. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1965440">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>4 Okta customers hit by campaign that gave attackers super admin control</strong> - Attackers already had credentials. Now, they just needed to bypass 2FA protections. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1965548">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>YouTube under no obligation to host anti-vaccine advocate’s videos, court says</strong> - YouTube had the discretion to take down content that harmed users, judge said. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1965538">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An anti-Establishment joke from India</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A vagrant, finding no place on the pavement, parked himself at the feet of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi. At midnight he was woken up by someone gently tapping him with his stick. It was the Mahatma himself. ‘You Indians have been unfair to me,’ complained the benign spirit. “You put my statues everywhere that show me either standing or walking. My feet are very tired. Why can’t I have a horse like the one Shivaji (an Indian king) has? Surely, I did as much for the nation as he! And you still call me your Bapu (father).”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Next morning the vagrant went round calling on the ministers. At long last he persuaded one to join him for a night-long vigil at the feet of the Mahatma’s statue. Lo and behold, as the neighboring police station gong struck the midnight hour, the Mahatma emerged from his statue to converse with the vagrant. He repeated his complaint of having to stand or walk and his request to be provided a mount like Shivaji .
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Bapu,’ replied the vagrant,”I am too poor to buy you a horse, but I have brought this minister from the Government for you. He …" Bapu looked at the minister and remarked: “I asked for a horse, not a donkey.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/moonpie269"> /u/moonpie269 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16bg6li/an_antiestablishment_joke_from_india/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16bg6li/an_antiestablishment_joke_from_india/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A lawyer calls up a plumber to come out to his house…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The plumber takes a look and says, OK, I can fix it today, and it will be $800.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The lawyer raises an eyebrow and asks, how long will it take? The plumber responds, “well, I need about an hour round trip to the supply house for a part, and then it should take me about an hour for the repair”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The lawyer smirks and says, “two hours? For $800? Thats $400 per hour! I’m a lawyer and my hourly rate is $350 / hour!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The plumber nods and says, “yes, sir, I understand. Why is it you think I gave up my law practice?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/FactsEyeJustMadeUp"> /u/FactsEyeJustMadeUp </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16at02c/a_lawyer_calls_up_a_plumber_to_come_out_to_his/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16at02c/a_lawyer_calls_up_a_plumber_to_come_out_to_his/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A woman gets married for the fourth time.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
On their honeymoon night, she says to her husband, “I just want you to know that I’m a virgin. I thought you should be aware of that.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“But you’ve been married three times before!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Well, my first husband was a lovely man, but he was injured, and just couldn’t perform. We were together for a while, but I wanted a change. My second husband, well, it turned out that he just wasn’t really attracted to women that way. I don’t think we ever should have gotten married. And my third husband, he was a Democrat.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“And?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Mainly he would just sit on the side of the bed and kept telling me how great it was gonna be.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/LadeeAlana"> /u/LadeeAlana </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16bexao/a_woman_gets_married_for_the_fourth_time/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16bexao/a_woman_gets_married_for_the_fourth_time/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>One weekend, the husband is in the bathroom shaving when the kid he hired to mow his lawn, a local kid named Bubba, comes in to pee. The husband slyly looks over and is shocked at how immensely endowed Bubba is. He can’t help himself, and asks Bubba what his secret is.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Well,” says Bubba, “every night before I climb into bed with a girl, I whack my penis on the bedpost three times. It works, and it sure impresses the girls!” The husband was excited at this easy suggestion and decided to try it that very night. So before climbing into bed with his wife, he took out his penis and whacked it three times on the bedpost. His wife, half-asleep, said, “Bubba? Is that you?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/YZXFILE"> /u/YZXFILE </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16allxl/one_weekend_the_husband_is_in_the_bathroom/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16allxl/one_weekend_the_husband_is_in_the_bathroom/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sam said to Fred, “I put £20 on a horse last week, and he came in at twenty-five to one.”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Wow! you must be loaded,” said Fred. “Not really,” said George. “The rest of the field came in at twelve-thirty.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Mr_Anonymous_I"> /u/Mr_Anonymous_I </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16b6zx4/sam_said_to_fred_i_put_20_on_a_horse_last_week/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/16b6zx4/sam_said_to_fred_i_put_20_on_a_horse_last_week/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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