HC Wake-Up Call: Trump’s Tweets About Wildfires, Mummified Cats Discovered, Florida Mail-In Ballots Won’t Count

Good morning Her Campus! With a break-neck news cycle, there is no possible way for you to stay on top of every story that comes across your feeds — we’re all only human, after all. 

But, life comes at you fast. So grab a cup of coffee and settle in for this quick and dirty guide to stories you might’ve been sleeping on (like, literally. It’s early.) 

Trump’s Tweets About The California Wildfire’s Blamed The Victims 

Intense wildfires raged in California since Thursday night, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes and more than 100,000 acres of land destroyed.

In a series of tweets on Saturday, Trump blamed the  California wildfires as a result of “poor” forest management and threatened to cut federal aid. 

“There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor,” Trump tweeted. “Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!” 

It was the first time the president had commented on the fires. He received outrage and criticism all over social media, and he still blamed forest management in a second tweet on Sunday. “With proper Forest Management, we can stop the devastation constantly going on in California. Get Smart!” he tweeted.

The California Professional Firefighters condemned Trump’s tweet: “The President’s message attacking California and threatening to withhold aid to the victims of the cataclysmic fires is ill-informed, ill-timed and demeaning to those who are suffering as well as the men and women on the front lines,” said CPF President Brian K. Rice in a statement. “The president’s assertion that California’s forest management policies are to blame for catastrophic wildfire is dangerously wrong.”

Twenty-three people have been killed and over 100,000 acres of land across California have been destroyed, according to CNN. 

Dozens Of Mummified Cats Were Discovered In Egyptian Tombs

Archaeologists found dozens of mummified cats in a 4,500-year-old tomb, according to NPR.  Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities announced on Saturday that a team of archeologists made the discovery in Saqqara, which used to be the site of a necropolis in the ancient city of Memphis. 

The tombs were from the Fifth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, NPR reports. Another sealed door was discovered, leaving the possibility of other untouched contents. 

The Ministry of Antiquities said their goals in announcing the discoveries was to attract visitors to Egypt’s heritage sites. According to NPR, there has been a significant drop in tourists since the 2011 mass protests to overthrow dictatorial president Hosni Mubarak. 

Florida Mail-In Ballots Won’t Count In The Recount

More questions have popped up about what will happen to the ballots found in Miami-Dade County mail facility ever since the announcement of the Florida recount. Now, country election officials have said they won’t count those ballets. 

The Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections spokesperson, Suzy Trutie, told CNN that they received a total of 266 mail-in ballots. The ballots reportedly kept in a mail sorting facility in Opa-locka, and are believed to be mail-in or absentee ballots that were mailed too late. Trutie said that those ballots won’t be counted in the current recount as they didn’t arrive by 7 p.m. on Election, which is required by Florida state law.

Reports erupted earlier this week that ballots were still in the Opa-locka facility.The Sun Sentinel reported that a spokesperson for the USPS South Florida District said they had “no information to suggest any ballots were not properly handled and provided to local election officials, per our established process.” The Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections also said there was “zero” chance the ballots were made invalid via USPS, according to The Miami Herald. All ballots are collected even those past the deadline. 

According to CNN, the ballots won’t be thrown away and preserved for up to 22 months.

What to look out for… 

Meghan Markle’s assistant reportedly resigned, so a new position on the royal staff might be available. Apply away ladies!