Recommended Stories
- The Independent
White House admits Biden cannot force people to wear masks or get vaccines as Texas and Mississippi drop safeguards
With Republican governors in Texas and Mississippi rolling back Covid-related public health safeguards, the Joe Biden administration has recognised the stark reality when it comes to overseeing the pandemic response: There’s only so much the White House can do. On Wednesday, Mr Biden was highly critical of Governors Greg Abbott of Texas and Tate Reeves of Mississippi, who have both decided to dispense with mask mandates in their states and limitations on businesses, including restaurants that had previously been forced to operate at reduced capacity.
- The Independent
‘Always up for a fight’: Mike Pompeo refuses to rule out presidential run on Hannity
‘I’m always up for a good fight,’ says Trump ally
- The Independent
Netanyahu says SNL joke about Israel vaccine discrimination is ‘so outrageous’
Israel lead the world in vaccinations per capita, but isn’t vaccinating Palestinians
- Reuters Videos
Pope calls for release of Myanmar political prisoners
At least 30 people have been killed since the coup on Feb. 1. The pope visited Myanmar in 2017.Francis, speaking at the end of his general audience, appealed directly to Myanmar's military authorities "so that dialogue prevails over repression and harmony over discord."He also appealed to the international community "to see to it that the hopes of the people of Myanmar are not suffocated by violence".
- Reuters
U.S officials have met Yemen's Houthis as Washington seeks end to war - sources
Senior U.S. officials have held a first direct meeting with officials from the Iran-aligned Houthi movement that controls Yemen's capital, two sources familiar with the matter said, as the new U.S. administration pushes to end a six-year war. The discussions, which have not been officially made public by either side, took place in the Omani capital Muscat on Feb. 26 between U.S. Yemen envoy Timothy Lenderking and the Houthis' chief negotiator Mohammed Abdusalam, the sources said.
- Business Insider
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez blasts Democrats' last-minute compromise on stimulus checks as an 'own-goal'
Other progressives criticized "Senate silliness." Biden struck a deal with Senate Democrats pushing to lower income thresholds for direct payments.
- The Independent
‘Textbook voter suppression’: How Trump’s stolen election lies are shaping the future of democracy
Republicans in 43 states have introduced more than 250 bills restricting voting rights, underscoring urgency in Congress to pass sweeping elections legislation, Alex Woodward reports
- Reuters
Ireland says UK not behaving like a 'respectable country'
Britain's decision to make unilateral changes to Northern Irish Brexit arrangements is "not the appropriate behaviour of a respectable country" and will erode trust with the European Union, senior Irish ministers said on Thursday. The EU promised legal action on Wednesday after the British government unilaterally extended a grace period for checks on food imports to Northern Ireland, a move Brussels said violated terms of Britain's divorce deal.
- The Independent
GOP senator to force 600-page Covid bill to be read out loud before vote
‘Yes, it could take 10 hours but the American people deserve to know what’s in it,’ claims Ron Johnson
- Business Insider
Federal investigators are zeroing in on potential communications between lawmakers and Capitol mob in lead-up to the insurrection
The report added that Democrats were pushing investigators to review footage to determine whether lawmakers toured organizers before the riot.
- INSIDER
Fox Sports reportedly gave Skip Bayless a $32 million contract to keep him from going back to ESPN
Skip Bayless is reportedly staying at Fox Sports for a reported $8 million per year after ESPN pursued him with offers in the same salary range.
- Reuters
Civil War: Trump attacks Republican strategist Rove, who fires back
Former President Donald Trump intensified his war with the Republican establishment on Thursday by attacking Karl Rove, a longtime Republican strategist who criticized Trump's first speech since leaving office for being long on grievances but short on vision. "He’s a pompous fool with bad advice and always has an agenda," Trump complained in a statement issued by his office in Palm Beach, Florida. Rove, the architect of Republican George W. Bush's presidential victories in 2000 and 2004, wrote in an opinion article in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday that Trump's speech last Sunday to the Conservative Political Action Conference was wanting.
- Associated Press
By slimmest of margins, Senate takes up $1.9T relief bill
The Senate is beginning debate on a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, after Democrats made eleventh-hour changes aimed at ensuring they could pull President Joe Biden’s top legislative priority through the precariously divided chamber. Democrats were hoping for Senate approval of the package before next week, in time for the House to sign off and get the measure to Biden quickly. After the Senate voted by the slimmest of margins Thursday to begin the debate, Democrats were encountering opposition from Republicans arguing that the measure’s massive price tag ignored promising signs that the pandemic and wounded economy were turning around.
- INSIDER
A New Orleans police officer groomed and raped a 14-year-old girl he was assigned to take to a rape kit exam, a lawsuit alleges
The lawsuit alleges the officer began grooming the girl as they sat in the waiting room of a New Orleans children's hospital.
- Business Insider
Some Cuomo staffers are 'waking up to the fact that we were in a cult' amid sexual-harassment scandal, according to a new report
One former aide described Cuomo as a "micromanager to the 100th degree" and said he preferred his events cooled to 67 to 71 degrees.
- Business Insider
Biden supports making a temporary $3,000 payment to parents in the stimulus bill permanent going forward
Senate Democrats want to make the larger tax credit permanent and give families an option to receive monthly checks. Biden wants a permanent one too.
- Business Insider
Biden changed his plan for the strike on Iran-backed militias at the last minute to avoid killing a woman and children
Intelligence came in that a woman and children were in the strike area as F-15E Strike Eagles were in the air and on their way.
- The Daily Beast
Report: Ten Aides Ready to Testify in Meghan Markle Bullying Investigation
Charles McQuillan/Getty ImagesAt least ten former staffers who worked for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are “queuing up” to cooperate with an investigation ordered by the queen into allegations that Meghan bullied her staff, it was claimed Thursday evening.The claim was made in the British newspaper the Mirror and is likely to be taken seriously as it was made by well-sourced royal reporter Russell Myers.Sources connected to the group, who have been assured of confidentiality as the investigation continues, said the staffers were considered to be “hugely professional and proud of their efforts” while working at Kensington Palace.One source told The Mirror, “A group of people are queuing up to be involved. They have been silent for too long and there is much to talk about.”Meghan Markle Dismisses Bullying Allegations as Pre-Oprah ‘Calculated Smear Campaign’It came after a report in the Daily Mail said that some alleged victims of workplace bullying by Meghan dub themselves the “Sussex Survivors Club” and are believed to be suffering a form of post-traumatic stress.The paper’s royal reporter Rebecca English said that during a royal tour in Fiji, “I witnessed Meghan turn and ‘hiss’ at a member of her entourage, clearly incandescent with rage about something, and demand to leave. I later saw that same—female—highly distressed member of staff sitting in an official car, with tears running down her face. Our eyes met and she lowered hers, humiliation etched on her features.”A bombshell report in The London Times Tuesday said that Meghan systematically bullied members of the staff and that her head of communications, Jason Knauf, was so appalled by Meghan’s behavior that he put his concerns in writing to his superiors. That email was leaked to The Times.Buckingham Palace responded by ordering a full investigation into the bullying claims.Meghan’s camp has been keen to point out that the complaints raised by Knauf were dropped. However, the Mirror’s source said, “The complaint was considered and those members of staff were spoken to and given the option of taking it further. For whatever reason, they decided not to, possibly because they were still in their job and they were worried about the implications.”A source close to the Sussexes told the Mirror of the palace probe: “The first we heard about this was via the press—this is a whole tit-for-tat scenario. It’s not a complaint we haven’t heard anything but it’s very hard to know what the process is. If this was a private company, we’ve effectively already been fired and I’m not entirely sure what any process could be.”A spokesperson for Meghan and Harry declined to comment to The Daily Beast.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
- The Week
Capitol riot's 'QAnon Shaman' defends himself by claiming he 'stopped somebody from stealing muffins'
A suspect charged in the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol building is speaking from jail in a new interview — and offering a unique defense positioning himself as simply a savior of baked goods. Jacob Chansley, the Capitol riot suspect who refers to himself as the "QAnon Shaman" and was photographed during the insurrection wearing fur and horns, spoke with 60 Minutes in an interview broadcast Thursday, in which he claimed his "actions were not an attack on this country" as he faces up to 20 years in prison for them. "I sang a song, and that's a part of shamanism," he said. "...I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate, okay. I actually stopped somebody from stealing muffins out of the break room." Chansley neglected to mention the fact that, during the deadly insurrection, he allegedly left a threatening note for former Vice President Mike Pence warning, "It's only a matter of time, justice is coming." He was charged with "knowingly entering or remaining in" a restricted building and "violent entry and disorderly conduct," and prosecutors noted he carried around "a spear, approximately 6 feet in length," during the riot. Prosecutors have also said he "incited fellow Trump supporters rioting inside the Capitol building and disobeyed police orders," The Wall Street Journal reports. Despite this, Chansley, who said he regrets "entering that building," bemoaned the fact that former President Donald Trump never pardoned him or any of the other Capitol rioters, telling 60 Minutes this "wounded me so deeply" and "disappointed me so greatly." Still, Chansley added that even though he didn't get the pardon he wanted, he still doesn't regret his loyalty to Trump. The "QAnon Shaman" of the January 6th attack on the Capitol tells his story for the first time from jail, as he faces up to 20 years behind bars. Jacob Chansley spoke with @60minutes+'s @LaurieSegall pic.twitter.com/uhUuFNHRvf — CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) March 4, 2021 More stories from theweek.comThe Republican grievance perpetual motion machine7 scathingly funny cartoons about Trump's CPAC appearanceWhy the Dr. Seuss 'cancellation' is chilling
- LA Times
These are the 18 'problematic' classic films TCM will examine in a new series
"Gone With the Wind," "Psycho" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's" are among the classic films that TCM will air and reconsider in its new series "Reframed."