Five big stories from this weekend you might have missed

PHOENIX — We get it, you’re busy on the weekend.

Whether it be utilizing your free time by hanging out with friends or leaving technology alone as you attempt to pitch the tent camping with the family, you might have missed a few things this weekend.

Now that it’s Monday, it’s time to catch up on the happenings around the Valley and the world with the five biggest stories from the weekend.

1. Tropical Storm Harvey

Originally labeled Hurricane Harvey, the big storm hit the Texas Gulf Coast Friday afternoon.

It made landfall about 35 miles from Corpus Christi, the city that was expected to be the closest to the center of the storm, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph.

Harvey was downgraded to a tropical storm Saturday, but that didn’t lessen the damage felt in Texas.

One fatality was confirmed and Houston police and fire departments had rescued more than 1,000 people. Many of these rescues were of people trapped on their roofs or in their attics.

Turner said 22 aircrafts were working to help identify people stranded on roofs.

In addition, 35 boats and 93 dump trucks were being used by the city for high water rescues.

Many citizens became rescuers, traveling from house to house and vehicle to vehicle on boats to pick up people and pets stuck in the floods.

2. Video Music Awards

Like a lot of things surrounding the nation lately, the MTV Video Music Awards were very political.

Host Katy Perry and other speakers made numerous references to President Donald Trump’s rhetoric, the election, and his comments following the violent protests in Charlottesville.

The Rev. Robert Wright Lee IV, a descendent of Gen. Lee, told the audience: “As a pastor it is my duty to speak out against racism, America’s original sin.”

Heather Heyer’s mother, whose daughter was killed in Charlottesville, entered the stage and told the audience: “Only 15 days my ago, my daughter Heather was killed as she protested racism. I miss her but I know she’s here tonight.”

Kendrick Lamar was the king of the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards, winning six awards. His song “Humble” won video of the year, best hip-hop video, direction, cinematography, art direction and visual effects.

Phoenix native Chester Bennington, the lead singer for rock band Linkin Park, received a special tribute from Jared Leto.

“When I think about him, Chester, I see his face, which was always smiling,” Leto said. “I think about his heart which he wore on his sleeve. I think how kindly he treated me, my brother, Tomo, our band. I think about his wife and his six, six incredible children. I think about his family. I think about his band, who were really his brothers, and I remember his voice. At once ferocious and delicate, that voice will live forever.”

Leto closed by telling the crowd and viewers across the world to never give up on themselves and to never give in to depression. He said no one is alone in this world, and the darkest days often yield special moments.

3. Arizona Politician Dies

A politician from Mesa, Arizona, died Saturday.

Wil Cardon, 46, reportedly committed suicide.

Cardon ran against Jeff Flake in the primary in 2012 and lost a bid for Arizona Secretary of State in 2014.

Flake in a Twitter tribute called Cardon a friend who called to check on him after a Washington baseball game shooting left a congressman wounded.

Cardon’s family said the man with a smile “as wide as Arizona” suffered from depression, a disease that he battled with “openness and honesty.”

4. Trump Pardons Arpaio

OK, we know Nos. 4 and 5 technically happened Friday night, but we’re lumping them into this weekend’s stories because typically people hit the road for trips that evening.

President Donald Trump announced Friday evening he was pardoning former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, after hinting he would do so at a Phoenix rally.

It was the first pardon of Trump’s administration.

Arpaio was found guilty in late July of misdemeanor contempt when he continued his immigration sweeps for 17 months after a judge ordered him to stop.

His sentencing was scheduled for Oct. 5 and could have faced up to six months in jail. The pardon made him an innocent man.

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton called the pardon a slap in the face to Maricopa County’s Latino community, and the move drew a strong positive and negative reaction from many other Arizona lawmakers.

5. Gorka Gone

Also on Friday, Trump lost a national security aide.

Sebastian Gorka, whose hardline views on immigration and terrorism caused discord inside and outside the White House, resigned from his position. A White House official contradicted Gorka’s statement, saying he did not resign but “no longer works at the White House.”

Gorka declined to discuss the reasons he left the White House, but pointed toward excerpts from his resignation letter that were posted Friday evening by The Federalist website.

Gorka wrote that “the individuals who most embodied and represented the policies that will ‘Make America Great Again,’ have been internally countered, systematically removed, or undermined in recent months.”

He criticized Trump’s recent speech on Afghanistan, writing, “The fact that those who drafted and approved the speech removed any mention of Radical Islam or radical Islamic terrorism proves that a crucial element of your presidential campaign has been lost.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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