Derek Chauvin Guilty on All Counts, Right-Wing Media Melts Down
The David Pakman Show - April 21, 2021
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Derek Chauvin GUILTY on All Counts, Faces 40 Years in Prison
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty on all counts for his involvement in the death of George Floyd last May. Chauvin was convicted by the jury yesterday of 2nd degree unintentional murder, 3rd degree murder, and 2nd degree manslaughter for pressing his knee on the neck of Floyd for 9 minutes and 29 seconds. The disgraced former police officer was stoic when the verdict was read and, after getting his bail revoked, was taken away in handcuffs. The sentencing stage of the case will take place in two months, with the maximum sentence available to the judge being 40 years in prison. Chauvin is not likely to spend anywhere close to that amount of time behind bars, but the judge could still come back with a significant prison sentence.
This guilty verdict was crucial for rebuilding Americans’ trust in the legal system. Too often cases of clear police brutality and racially motivated attacks go unpunished by society. Luckily in this case, the prosecution had a rock-solid argument for conviction, including the cell phone video evidence that the world watched in horror. If Chauvin was acquitted, or if he only got convicted on the manslaughter charge, it could have resulted in an irreparable break between the police and the civilians of this country. Instead, Chauvin’s conviction could be the start of a new chapter in the United States. This verdict will help send the message that police officers are not above the law and that people need to be treated with dignity and have fundamental human rights.
Tucker Carlson Has Psychotic Break on Live TV
Tucker Carlson, on his Fox News show yesterday, had an apparent psychotic break during a segment with a former New York City corrections officer. At one point, Tucker started maniacally laughing in a way that was reminiscent of Jack Nicholson's Joker from the 1989 Batman movie. Carlson’s guest, Ed Gavin, argued that Derek Chauvin’s killing of George Floyd was “excessive and shouldn’t happen.” This really should not have been that shocking of a take, since the vast majority of the country, including many police officers, were appalled by Floyd’s death. Tucker responded by saying “the guy who did it, looks like he’s going to spend the rest of his life in prison. So I’m kind of more worried about the rest of the country which, thanks to police inaction, in case you haven’t noticed, is like boarded up.” He then forced a bizarre laugh before kicking Gavin off the show.
Right-wing media reached yet another new low by defending Derek Chauvin over the past year. While some conservatives did consider what happened to George Floyd to be murder, others tried to explain his death away as being the result of a heart attack or drug overdose. They argued that Chauvin was simply following his training and that he was being persecuted by a left-wing mob. Tucker was one of the people offering lip service to the idea that Chauvin ought to be acquitted, saying Floyd “almost certainly died of a drug overdose.” Now that Chauvin has been found guilty on all counts, many on the right don’t know how to react. Perhaps Fox hosts like Tucker realize their grip on power is slipping away. Maybe he wanted to cover violent protests and riots, but realized they wouldn’t be happening because people are pleased with the guilty verdict. In any case, the American right’s defense of Derek Chauvin demonstrates that there is no bar too low for these people.
From yesterday’s show:
EVERY ADULT is Now Eligible for COVID Vaccine
As of Monday, April 19th, everyone over 16 years old in the United States is eligible for a coronavirus vaccine. This is a landmark moment in the vaccination program and one that came a lot earlier than anticipated. Originally, full eligibility was expected to come by the summer and then more recently, President Biden moved up the date to May 1st. Later, the date became April 19th with many states opening up to full eligibility days or even weeks ago. The United States is still averaging nearly 3.2 million shots administered per day, often surpassing 4 million daily doses during the weekends. These are excellent numbers which suggest that the country could reach herd immunity reasonably soon. The program has a chance at being even more successful if the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can soon return to market and help even more people get immunized.
--More on the show:
--The Derek Chauvin guilty verdicts are accountability, but they are not the end of racism in America, just as Barack Obama's presidency did not end racism
--Right-wing pseudo-intellectual Candace Owens is absolutely off the rails in response to the Derek Chauvin guilty verdict in the killing of George Floyd
--Right-wing media melts down over the Derek Chauvin guilty verdict, including Ben Shapiro, Candace Owens, as well as other Newsmax and Fox News hosts
--Donald Trump gave a $1.3 billion contract to the company ApiJect for COVID vaccine syringes, but with nearly hundreds of millions of doses already injected, there is no sign of syringes from ApiJect in the latest apparent grift
--Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz is in full damage control mode, wildly spending money in a variety of ways
--Former New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie is believed to be preparing to run for president in 2024
--Voicemail caller asks that we not take any more phone calls
--On the Bonus Show: Democrats block resolution to censure Maxine Waters, US senators seek ban on private ownership of lions and tigers, MyPillow's Mike Lindell's social media platform has rough start, much more...
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