U.S.Yahoo NewsMarjorie Taylor Greene escalates LGBTQ rights debate with attack on colleague's transgender daughter
A debate on the House floor over the Equality Act, a bill that would extend civil rights protections to the LGBTQ community, spilled over into the halls of Congress on Wednesday. During the floor debate on the Equality Act, Greene made a motion to adjourn in an effort to block consideration of the bill because she claimed it would put the rights of transgender Americans above those of women and children, particularly when it comes to sports.
HealthYahoo NewsWhy experts like Dr. Fauci think 'there's a really good chance' the worst of the U.S. pandemic is behind us
According to a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll, two-thirds of Americans are either somewhat or very worried about the “newer, potentially more contagious” COVID-19 variants that have triggered huge overseas outbreaks and are now spreading in the United States. To be clear, worrying less about variants doesn't mean abandoning precautions; nothing will suppress cases and shorten the U.S. pandemic like wearing a mask, avoiding indoor gatherings, staying 6 feet apart and getting vaccinated. Asked if the worst of the pandemic was behind the U.S., Fauci told Yahoo News Tuesday that “it might be.”
PoliticsThe WeekHusband of Hitler-quoting GOP congresswoman parked his militia-stickered truck outside Capitol Jan. 6
Illinois state Rep. Chris Miller (R), the husband of freshman U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.), acknowledged Thursday that his pickup truck was parked in a restricted area outside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot, but he said the "Three Percenter" militia sticker on the back window doesn't mean anything. "Army friend gave me decal," Miller told The Daily Beast in an email late Thursday. The Three Percenters, founded in 2008, are a "radical militia group" implicated in leading the Jan. 6 siege along with the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers,and other far-right extremist groups, the FBI said in an affidavit filed in the case against alleged rioter Robert Gieswein.
PoliticsReutersU.S. Senator Manchin to back Biden pick for interior secretary
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin will throw his support behind Congresswoman Deb Haaland to lead the Biden administration's Interior Department, he said in a statement on Wednesday, likely securing her confirmation to become the first Native American in a cabinet position. Manchin's "yes" vote is seen as crucial to Haaland's confirmation because he is a supporter of fossil fuel development who wields significant power in a U.S. Congress split 50-50 among Democrats and Republicans, meaning every Democratic backer counts. "While we do not agree on every issue, (Haaland) reaffirmed her strong commitment to bipartisanship, addressing the diverse needs of our country and maintaining our nation's energy independence," Manchin said in a statement.
PoliticsThe WeekThe U.S. Ad Council's new national COVID-19 vaccine ad campaign goes for the soft sell
Many people are counting the hours until they can get their COVID-19 vaccination, and a much smaller number will never get the shot, but about 40 percent of Americans say they are on the fence — and that's the group the Ad Council is targeting with its new ad campaign, launching Thursday. The ad campaign's tagline is "It's Up to You" — specifically, it's up to you to learn about the vaccines, says Ad Council president and CEO Lisa Sherman. The Ad Council directs viewers to a new website, GetVaccineAnswers.org, with information about the vaccines and where they can get inoculated.
WorldBBCNorth Korea: Russian diplomats leave by hand-pushed trolley
A group of Russian diplomats and their families made an unusual exit out of North Korea on a hand-pushed rail trolley due to strict Covid measures. The Russian diplomats were thus left with little choice. "Since the borders have been closed for more than a year and passenger traffic has been stopped, it took a long and difficult journey to get home," Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a Facebook post.
PoliticsThe WeekNewly confirmed Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is 'obsessed' with creating 'clean-energy jobs'
The Senate on Thursday confirmed former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, 64-35, to lead the Energy Department, with 14 Republicans joining all 50 members of the Democratic caucus to give President Biden his 10th Cabinet-level appointee (plus one deputy secretary). After her confirmation, Granholm tweeted that she's "obsessed with creating good-paying clean energy jobs in all corners of America in service of addressing our climate crisis" and "impatient for results." Granholm repeated her priorities on MSNBC Thursday night.
U.S.The IndependentCollege library shut down after discovery of venomous ‘Mediterranean recluse’ spiders
The University of Michigan shut down its library after venomous spiders were found in the building's basement. University officials discovered a trio of Mediterranean recluse spiders in the building, as well as "remote areas" on other parts of the campus, located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. "Mediterranean recluse spiders prefer basement spaces, tunnels and other hideaways where there is a decrease in foot traffic," she added.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestNo Need to Call an Architect—These 9 Room Dividers Elegantly Get the Job Done
From ornate to subtle, these beautiful screens double as functional art Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden nominee Neera Tanden’s tweet about Joe Manchin’s daughter may come back to haunt her
Neera Tanden, Joe Biden's nominee to head the Office of Management and Budget, previously criticised Democratic Senator Joe Manchin's daughter, a slight that might factor into whether or not she is confirmed for the position. Ms Tanden tweeted an image of an article about Mr Manchin's daughter, Heather Bresch, taking aim at a significant increase in her pay while she was CEO of Mylan. In the tweet, Ms Tanden pointed out that the company's board was justifying the pay raise by saying Ms Bresch had "contributed significantly to the company's growth in recent years".
U.S.INSIDERA Texas border patrol officer was charged after she used a coworker's login to bring her children's nanny into the US from Mexico
A Customs and Border Protection officer was charged with bringing in an undocumented immigrant. Prosecutors allege Rhonda Lee Walker used a coworker's computer to scan the woman's documents. Walker admitted to hiring the immigrant as a live-in nanny and housekeeper for her mother and kids.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderThe $15 minimum wage is struck from the Democratic stimulus plan
The $15 minimum wage was struck from the Democratic rescue plan, per a Senate Democratic aide familiar with the decision. It means the Democratic package will not have a wage increase included for hourly workers. The Senate parliamentarian ruled on Thursday evening that a $15 minimum wage provision cannot stay in the President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus package, according to a Senate Democratic aide familiar with the decision.
- ScienceFOX News Videos
Laid-off Keystone XL worker reacts to Biden’s climate pledge with Canada
Kolten Walker weighs in on President Biden's climate change policies on 'Fox and Friends First.
U.S.TheGrioFemale track star on lawsuit to stop trans athletes from competing: ‘Biological males are taking our medals’
Less than 48 hours into his presidency, Joe Biden took steps towards protecting the rights of transgender athletes looking to participate as their identified gender in both high school and college sports. But now a Connecticut high school track athlete has come forward to say she's disappointed that the Justice Department withdrew from a lawsuit aiming to prevent transgender athletes from competing in girls' high school sports. Wednesday, Alanna Smith, who filed the lawsuit with fellow athletes Selina Soule and Chelsea Mitchell, appeared on Fox News with her lawyer to denounce the actions of the current administration.
U.S.The IndependentFox anchor suspended after saying he was ‘annoyed’ at obese people getting Covid vaccine
A Fox news station suspended its anchor following social media outrage for his tweet expressing annoyance over obese people getting the Covid-19 vaccine on priority. Blake McCoy made the controversial remark on Tuesday afternoon and later deleted his tweet, issuing an apology for his “insensitive and offensive” comment. “I'm annoyed obese people of all ages get priority vaccine access before all essential workers,” he said in the now-deleted tweet.
PoliticsUSA TODAY OpinionTrump lost because 'character counts.' That's why his CPAC speech won't change anything.
Many dispirited Republicans, still struggling to accept Donald Trump's decisive and legitimate defeat in last November's election, have begun pondering what they might have done differently to have produced a different result. After all, their nominee needed to draw only an additional 65,013 votes, distributed strategically in four close races — Georgia, Arizona, Wisconsin and the second Congressional district of Nebraska — to have eked out another Electoral College victory (270-268) while still losing the popular vote by a margin of 7,000,000. — that would have all-but-guaranteed a comfortable GOP victory.
WorldBusiness InsiderBiden orders airstrikes against infrastructure used by 'Iranian-backed militant groups' in Syria
The US launched airstrikes Thursday night against "Iranian-backed militant groups" in Syria. The Defense Department said the strikes were carried out at the direction of President Joe Biden. The strikes came after rocket attacks targeting US forces in Iraq.
U.S.INSIDERA triple murder suspect told police he killed his neighbor and tried to feed his family her heart 'to release the demons'
An Oklahoma man reportedly cut out his neighbor's heart and tried to feed it to his aunt and uncle. Lawrence Anderson, 42, now faces three first-degree murder charges. An Oklahoma man confessed to killing three people and cutting out one of their hearts to cook with potatoes, The Oklahoman reported on Tuesday.
PoliticsPoliticoHistoric LGBTQ rights bill passes — after exposing GOP divisions
The House passed sweeping legislation on Thursday to ban discrimination against people based on sexual orientation and gender identity, delivering a major victory to the LGBTQ community — while exposing an ugly rift in the GOP. The Equality Act, which would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to provide protections for LGBTQ individuals, garnered unanimous support from House Democrats on its way to approval on a 224-206 vote. Three Republicans crossed party lines to join Democrats to endorse the bill, less than half of the number of GOP votes the measure got the last time it came to the floor.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderWhile President Biden visits storm-torn Texas, Sen. Ted Cruz will be giving a speech on 'cancel culture' in Florida
Cancel culture appears to be a major theme of the conference; former President Donald Trump will give a speech on Sunday entitled "America Uncancelled." Though it's typical for senators to travel with the president when visiting their states, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that there were "limitations on space" on Air Force One, making it impossible for Cruz or his fellow GOP Sen. John Cornyn to join. Instead, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott will accompany the president.
- WorldReuters Videos
Iraqi Christians prepare for Pope Francis' visit
The minority community of several hundred thousand was decimated first by al Qaeda's rise in the early 2000s and later by Islamic State, which brutally persecuted them and other minority faiths and sects. For many of those who remained, or have returned to Iraq where free worship is again possible, Pope Francis' visit from March 5-8 is welcome recognition of how they have suffered for their beliefs. The trip by the 84-year-old leader of the world's Catholics was announced in December, and will take in the capital Baghdad, as well as Ur, a city linked to the Old Testament figure of Abraham, and Erbil, Mosul, and Qaraqosh in the plain of Nineveh.
U.S.INSIDERA woman in North Carolina is accused of using a $149,000 COVID-19 relief loan to go shopping at luxury stores
Jasmine Johnnae Clifton is accused of fraudulently obtaining a $149,000 COVID-19 relief loan. Prosecutors say she spent the loan at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Louis Vuitton, and other stores. A 24-year-old woman in North Carolina has been accused of spending a $149,000 COVID-19 relief loan at Louis Vuitton, diamond stores, and other luxury spots.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderStephen Miller, the architect of Trump's migrant-family-separation scheme, called Biden's immigration policies 'cruel' and 'inhumane'
In a Fox News interview, Stephen Miller weighed in on Biden's reopening of a child-migrant facility. "What we're seeing here is the cruelty and inhumanity of Joe Biden's immigration policies," he said. Stephen Miller, the Trump administration official who masterminded the policy of separating migrant children from their families at the US-Mexico border, described President Joe Biden's immigration policies as "cruel" and "inhumane" during an appearance on Fox News' "Ingraham Angle" on Wednesday night.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBernie Sanders says Democrats will try to devise a backdoor to implement a $15 minimum wage after major stimulus setback
A federal minimum wage hike was struck from the stimulus package on Thursday. Sen. Bernie Sanders said Democrats instead will propose to strip tax deductions from large corporations who don't pay workers at least $15 an hour. Sen. Bernie Sanders said Democrats would try to devise a backdoor to implement a $15 minimum wage after a pay hike was struck from the $1.9 trillion stimulus package on Thursday evening - a major setback for progressives.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderTrump-appointed federal judge indefinitely blocks the Biden administration's 100-day deportation freeze
A federal judge blocked the Biden administration from enforcing a 100-day deportation freeze. The ruling does not mandate that deportations have to return to their previous rate. Democrats are hoping to pass a large-scale immigration overhaul in Congress this year.
“How about we skip ‘he won’t win’ cycle and not do 2016 all over again. Trump can absolutely win another presidential election.”
“With independents deserting him, there is simply no path for Trump to get back into the White House — except as a tourist.”
“They might as well cancel the 2024 primaries...because there is no way he can lose.”
“The next Republican presidential primary will be heavily shaped by Trump — whether or not he decides to run again.”
“Donald Trump will not be running for president again. He will, however, continue to tease the possibility of a 2024 run.”