Biden to reinstate Covid-19 travel bans, impeachment article heads to Senate and Super Bowl set

Petra Cahill
Updated ·4 min read
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Good morning, NBC News readers.

More Covid-19 travel restrictions, the article of impeachment heads to the Senate and Tom Brady is going to yet another Super Bowl.

Here is what we're watching this Monday morning.

Biden to put in place more Covid travel bans

President Joe Biden plans to sign additional travel restrictions Monday to mitigate Covid-19 transmission in the United States, two White House officials confirmed Sunday.

A new ban would prevent most non-U.S. citizens from entry if they have recently been in South Africa, where a new more virulent strain of Covid-19 has been identified.

Biden is also expected to reinstate an entry ban on nearly all non-U.S. citizens traveling from the United Kingdom, Ireland, 26 countries in Europe and Brazil. Those restrictions have been in effect during much of the past year but had been rescinded by former President Donald Trump days before his term ended.

Since taking office last Wednesday, Biden has promised to take an aggressive approach toward combating the virus that has killed more than 419,000 people and infected upward of 25 million across the U.S., according to an NBC News tracker.

More of our coverage of the pandemic:

Article of impeachment heads to Senate

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to send the article of impeachment charging former President Donald Trump with "incitement of insurrection" to the Senate Monday evening.

That move will set the stage for the trial to begin the week of Feb. 8 under a deal struck between both parties, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Friday.

Democrats will need at least 17 Republicans to join them in order to convict Trump.

But several Senate Republicans threw cold water on the suggestion that the chamber could convict the former president over the weekend.

"Well first of all, I think the trial is stupid," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said on "Fox News Sunday." "I think it's counterproductive."

Speaking on NBC News' "Meet the Press," Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., called the trial "a moot point."

If he is convicted, the Senate could then weigh whether to prohibit Trump from a future bid for office.

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Plus

THINK about it

Trump's amoral presidency has helped galvanize the religious left, Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons and Maggie Siddiqi write in an opinion piece.

Live BETTER

Take care of yourself today: Tips to help you manage your mental health during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Shopping

How an essential oil diffuser has helped one writer find calm during this stressful time.

Quote of the day

"It only took one man."

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians said Sunday attributing his team's win over the Green Bay Packers that will send them to the Super Bowl to quarterback Tom Brady.

One fun thing

Wharton Business School student Ben Berman spends his Sundays making pizza after pizza in his Philadelphia apartment oven.

Making the pies is a form of catharsis for him. He's always loved cooking, but after his grandmother died from Covid-19, he worked through his grief by turning his love of cooking into a cause for kindness he calls "Good Pizza."

What started as just a few pizzas has turned into 20 a week. He gives the pies away for for free, but encourages those who receive them to donate to local charities fighting hunger and homelessness.

"For me, it was a chance to make something out of tragedy," says Berman. "To have a purpose every morning. Something to look forward to. Something to feel like you were having an impact on the world."

Thanks for reading the Morning Rundown.

If you have any comments — likes, dislikes — send me an email at: petra@nbcuni.com

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Thanks, Petra