PoliticsYahoo NewsBiden touts plan to help restaurants hurt during pandemic
President Biden boosted his administration's multibillion-dollar program for the hard-hit restaurant industry, a sector that has sustained significant coronavirus-related losses. The White House said the $28.6 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund established as part of the administration's COVID-19 relief bill has already received applications from more than 186,000 restaurants, bars and other food and drink establishments. The White House has also set side $9.5 billion for small restaurants and bars, especially those that generate under $50,000 in revenue annually.
PoliticsAxios"Greatest tool in the Democrats' arsenal": Pollster says Trump may cost GOP the House in 2022
Former Republican pollster Frank Luntz tells Kara Swisher on her New York Times podcast "Sway" that Donald Trump's lies about the 2020 election "could cost the Republicans the majority in the House in 2022." Why it matters: The former president is still the most popular figure in the Republican Party, but his baseless claims about the election have alienated moderates and key GOP leaders — including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Republican Conference Chair Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.). Luntz: "More than two-thirds of Republicans believe that the election was stolen."
WorldBBCAustralia to resume India repatriation flights after backlash
Australia will resume repatriation flights for some citizens in India after a controversial ban on arrivals from the country ends on 15 May. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has faced criticism for failing to help citizens trapped in the Covid-ravaged nation. The ban sparked further anger after the government said Australians seeking to fly home could face jail or fines.
WorldReutersFormer Maldives president treated for wounds after blast outside home
MALE (Reuters) -The speaker of parliament in Maldives, former President Mohamed Nasheed, was being treated for shrapnel wounds and in stable condition after a blast outside his family home on Thursday, a spokesman for his governing Maldivian Democratic Party said. Two close family members, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the situation, told Reuters Nasheed was talking and responsive before being treated under anaesthesia at the hospital. President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, a close ally of Nasheed, said an investigation into the explosion was under way.
WorldAssociated PressGaza reporter says she was beaten for not wearing headscarf
A female Palestinian reporter said Thursday that a member of the Hamas-run border patrol in Gaza beat her with a tree branch for not wearing an Islamic headscarf last month, an incident that sparked a public outcry. The Islamic militant group has promised an apology and said it would punish the man. The incident highlighted Hamas' occasionally heavy-handed treatment of both reporters and women in Gaza, where it seized power in 2007 from the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority.
HealthThe WeekNew Jersey infectious disease expert dies in India of COVID-19
Dr. Rajendra Kapila, an infectious disease expert and professor at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, died of COVID-19 last month while in India. Kapila, 81, died on April 28, three weeks after testing positive for COVID-19, ABC News reports. India is the world's biggest COVID-19 hotspot, and Kapila went to the country to help care for relatives, his ex-wife, Dr. Bina Kapila, told WABC.
WorldReutersU.S. among first foreign countries to join EU defence project, diplomats say
The European Union will allow the United States, Norway and Canada to join a project to overcome delays in moving troops across Europe, diplomats said on Wednesday, which NATO sees as vital in the event of a conflict with Russia. While NATO has spearheaded efforts to reduce conflicting regulations across 27 EU countries for transfers of U.S. troops, the EU has a budget to back the reconstruction of bridges too weak for tanks and has more power over changing bloc-wide rules. The decision, to be formally taken by EU defence ministers on Thursday, means NATO members Norway, Canada and the United States also become the first foreign countries to collaborate in the EU's Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) pact, which aims to deepen defence ties.
WorldArchitectural Digest9 Sleeper Sofas That’ll Make You Want to Hit Snooze (in a Good Way)
From reclining futons to pull-out beds, these double-duty pieces often get a bad rep Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- PoliticsYahoo News Video
Republicans promote Biden's pandemic relief they voted against
Every Republican in Congress voted against the sweeping pandemic relief bill that President Biden signed into law three months ago. But since the early spring votes, Republicans from New York and Indiana to Texas and Washington state have promoted elements of the legislation they fought to defeat.
WorldAssociated PressUS sends more warplanes to protect pullout from Afghanistan
The United States has deployed a dozen additional warplanes to bolster protection of American and coalition troops making a final withdrawal from Afghanistan as Taliban insurgents step up pressure on Afghan government forces, top Pentagon officials said Thursday. Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said F-18 attack planes have been added to a previously announced package of air and sea power — including the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the North Arabian Sea and six Air Force B-52 bombers based in Qatar — that can be called upon as protection for withdrawing troops. U.S. officials said before the withdrawal began that they expected the Taliban to attempt to interfere, even as the insurgents continue pressuring government forces, especially in Helmand and Kandahar provinces in southern Afghanistan.
WorldBBCBrazil: At least 25 killed in Rio de Janeiro shootout
At least 25 people including a police officer have been killed in a shootout in Rio de Janeiro, according to local media. The shootout took place during a police operation in a favela in the Jacarezinho area of the city. Police launched the operation after receiving reports that drug traffickers were recruiting children for their gang.
HealthThe WeekMore studies show Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines protect against worrisome variants
The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is extremely effective against two dangerous variants of the coronavirus, the B.1.1.7 strain first found in the United Kingdom and the B.1.351 variant discovered in South Africa, researchers reported Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet. Moderna also reported Wednesday that, according to early results from its booster shot trial, a third dose of its vaccine given six to eight months after the first two doses boosted antibodies to protect against the South African B.1.351 variant and other worrisome strain found in Brazil. Moderna is testing its original vaccine and a version modified to target the B.1.351 variant.
WorldReutersFrance delaying EU order for COVID-19 vaccine: Germany's Welt
France is delaying a European Union order for 1.8 billion doses of the BioNTech/Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine planned for the next two years, Germany's Die Welt daily newspaper reported on Friday, citing EU diplomats. The paper said it was unclear what the reason was for hesitation from Paris, but diplomats had speculated that it might want French companies to play a bigger part in the vaccine production. The paper reported that at recent meetings about vaccine orders, French representatives had held up decision-making by posing technical questions and requests for clarifications.
PoliticsAssociated PressCheney challenger Stefanik says GOP must work with Trump
Rep. Elise Stefanik stated her case Thursday for replacing Rep. Liz Cheney as the No. 3 House Republican leader, implicitly lambasting Cheney's battles with former President Donald Trump by saying, “We are one team and that means working with the president." The remarks by Stefanik, R-N.Y., a one-time moderate who's evolved into an ardent Trump champion, came as Cheney seems likely to be tossed from her leadership post next week. Cheney, R-Wyo., has repeatedly rejected Trump's false insistence that he lost the 2020 election because of widespread fraud, and has blamed him for inflaming followers who assaulted the Capitol on Jan. 6.
U.S.Kansas City StarEmployee fatally shot man ‘causing a disturbance’ in business, Kansas City police say
Kansas City police say a 32-year-old man killed late Wednesday night was armed with a gun and “causing a disturbance” when he entered a business and was fatally shot by one of its employees. After reviewing video surveillance and interviewing witnesses, investigators determined Davis was involved in an altercation with employees inside a business, Sgt. Jake Becchina, a spokesman with the Kansas City Police Department, said in a statement. Davis was one of three people killed in Kansas City within the span of 10 hours between late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning.
ScienceBBCJeff Bezos sets date for space sightseeing flight
Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos is now ready to take people into space. The US entrepreneur's Blue Origin company says it will launch a crew aboard its New Shepard rocket and capsule system on 20 July. The astronauts are likely to include company personnel, but one seat is being auctioned online.
WorldReutersJapan to extend state of emergency by three weeks to May 31
TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan's government is set to extend on Friday a state of emergency in Tokyo and three other areas by about three weeks until the end of May to curb a surge in novel coronavirus cases just months before the start of the Tokyo Olympics. The government had hoped a "short and powerful" state of emergency would contain a fourth wave of infection, but new cases in the capital Tokyo and second-city Osaka are still at high levels, said economy minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, who is also in charge of pandemic measures. Extending the state of emergency to May 31 from May 11 will leave a margin of less than two months before the July 23 start of the Games, which were postponed a year due to the pandemic.
WorldAssociated PressFlash mobs in Myanmar's biggest city avoid deadly response
A flash mob of mostly young people in Myanmar's biggest city staged a brief protest march Thursday against military rule, the latest in a series of actions aimed at reducing the chances of a deadly response by the authorities. In the five-minute protest in Yangon, about 70 marchers chanted slogans in support of the civil disobedience movement that opposes February's army coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Protests also took place in other cities and towns including Mandalay, the country's second biggest city, where Buddhist monks marched, and Dawei in the southeast, where the demonstrators included engineers, teachers, university students and members of LGBT groups.
U.S.Business InsiderRudy Giuliani has reportedly shed his entourage and hired a part-time driver to cut costs as his legal fees mount
Rudy Giuliani has reportedly sacked most of his entourage to cut costs as his legal troubles - and fees - mount. Politico reported that Giuliani fired as many as five people since the FBI raided his properties. Rudy Giuliani has drastically reduced the size of his entourage and reportedly fired as many as five people since the FBI raided his properties last week, Politico reported.
LifestyleArchitectural Digest27 College Graduation Gifts They'll Need (and Actually Want) This Year
Uncertain times call for gifts you know they'll love Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
WorldAssociated PressIndia's virus surge pressures Modi to impose strict lockdown
With coronavirus cases still surging to record levels, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing growing pressure to impose a harsh nationwide lockdown amid a debate whether restrictions imposed by individual states are enough. Many medical experts, opposition leaders and some of the Supreme Court judges have suggested the lockdown seems to be the only option with the virus raging in cities and towns, where hospitals are forced to turn patients away while relatives scramble to find oxygen. On Friday, India recorded a new record of 414,188 confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, Its tally has risen to more than 21.4 million since the pandemic began with faint hopes of the curve going down quickly.
ScienceReutersU.S. Space Command tracks Chinese rocket for uncontrolled re-entry from orbit
Remnants of a large Chinese rocket launched last week are expected to plunge back through the atmosphere this weekend in an uncontrolled re-entry being tracked by U.S. Space Command, the U.S. military said on Wednesday. The Long March 5B rocket blasted off from China's Hainan island on April 29 carrying the Tianhe module, which contains what will become living quarters for three crew on a permanent Chinese space station. The Tianhe launch was the first of 11 missions needed to complete the station.
WorldThe IndependentUS will ‘respond’ to ‘reckless or aggressive’ actions by Russia, vows Antony Blinken
Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, has warned Moscow that Washington will “respond” to any acts of aggression or recklessness carried out by the Russian government. Speaking during a meeting of G7 ministers in London, America's top diplomat attacked Vladimir Putin's administration over its treatment of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and interference in US presidential elections. Mr Blinken also spoke out against what he said was Russia's “cyber intrusion” during the hacking of the US tech company SolarWinds last year.
U.S.Associated PressCommendations, minor reprimands for officer in Wright death
The service file of a suburban Minneapolis police officer charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of Daunte Wright includes a commendation for safely resolving an incident involving a suicidal man, as well as a handful of reprimands for driving mishaps. The city of Brooklyn Center late Wednesday released more materials from the service file of Kim Potter, the white officer who shot Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, during a traffic stop April 11. Potter received a chief's commendation in 2007 for her handling of a “suicidal homicidal suspect” and his 2-year-old daughter.
U.S.Miami HeraldFlorida COVID update for Thursday: 4,504 cases, 71 deaths as state positivity dips below 5%
COVID-19 in Florida ▪ Miami-Dade County reported 759 new cases and 11 deaths — putting its pandemic totals at 488,303 cases and 6,218 deaths. In Miami-Dade, 397,524 people have received the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna; additionally, 887,225 people have either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer or Moderna. Percent positivity decreased from 4.88% to 4.7%.
“Every college has a public health responsibility to require its students to be vaccinated.”
“While the vast majority of students will likely get the vaccine, schools should honor the decisions of the few who object.”
“A vaccinated campus could be the step toward normality that college leaders are seeking.”
“College students are mobile and spread COVID-19 with them whenever they travel.”
“There almost certainly are going to be legal challenges because the anti-vaccine movement is already preparing for them.”