Geoff Duncan: ‘Republicans don’t need election reforms to win, [they] need leadership’
Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan (R-Ga.) tells Chuck Todd that the Republican Party needs new leadership and new focus, during an exclusive interview with Meet the Press.
The lawmakers voted with a majority of 92 against 6 in the Senate
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott may have been overly optimistic Sunday when he said on Fox News that his state could be “very close” to herd immunity — the point where so much of the population is immune to COVID-19, either from being vaccinated or previously infected, that the virus can no longer spread. “When you look at the senior population, for example, more than 70% of our seniors have received a vaccine shot, more than 50% of those who are 50 to 65 have received a vaccine shot,” Abbott, a Republican, told Chris Wallace. Wallace had asked why statewide infection, hospitalization and death rates were more under control than in other states, despite Texas reopening many activities and eliminating mask mandates. “I don’t know what herd immunity is," Abbott said, "but when you add that to the people who have immunity, it looks like it could be very close to herd immunity.” Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times Michael Osterholm, a public health researcher and director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, said, “There is no way on God’s green earth that Texas is anywhere even close to herd immunity.” He added: “Look no further than Michigan and Minnesota, which have much higher rates of vaccination than Texas. And we’re already seeing widespread transmission.” About 19% of people in Texas are fully vaccinated, while the numbers are 22% in Michigan and 24% in Minnesota. Estimates of what it would take to reach herd immunity have edged up since the pandemic began, ranging from requiring immunity in 60% to more than 90% of the population to halt transmission. No one is sure what the level should be, Osterholm said. “Anybody who will tell you exactly what the level of herd immunity is is also likely to want to sell you a bridge.” He predicted that within a few weeks or a month, Texas and other parts of the U.S. south and west would see rising case rates like the levels now occurring in the Upper Midwest and Northeast. A major factor in the relentless spread of the virus is the increasing proportion of cases caused by the coronavirus variant first identified in Britain and known as B.1.1.7, which is more contagious than the form of the virus that first emerged. That variant “surely resets the meter” and makes herd immunity harder to achieve, Osterholm said. Additional variants could further complicate the forecast. “These variants are game changers,” he said. “They really are. It’s really remarkable.” This article originally appeared in The New York Times. © 2021 The New York Times Company
The scheme was devised to grant a dying man's wish to avoid a ban on traditional burials.
The "Rain On Me" singer responded to praise of the album on Twitter and addressed requests to release a sequel to the 2013 project.
Kristen Clarke would be first Black woman to lead crucial Justice Department division amid rise in white supremacist violence and threats to voting rights
The bill aims to expand the number of Supreme Court justices from nine to 13
The company’s revenue has tripled since the change was implemented
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg says the alliance has agreed to withdraw its roughly 7,000 non-American forces from Afghanistan to match U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision to pull all American troops from the country starting on May 1. Stoltenberg said the full withdrawal would be completed “within a few months” but did not mention the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks set as a goal by Biden. There are between 7,000 and 7,500 non-U.S. NATO troops currently in Afghanistan.
China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province, but many Taiwanese people want a separate nation.
Rioters were seen searching for the House Speaker on 6 January
The 2014 student abductions led to a plan backed by the UK but little has come of it seven years on.
PARIS (Reuters) -The European countries party to the Iran nuclear deal told Tehran on Wednesday its decision to enrich uranium at 60% purity, bringing the fissile material closer to bomb-grade, was contrary to efforts to revive the 2015 accord. But in an apparent signal to Iran's arch-adversary Israel, which Tehran blamed for an explosion at its key nuclear site on Sunday, European powers Germany, France and Britain added that they rejected "all escalatory measures by any actor". Israel, which the Islamic Republic does not recognise, has not formally commented on the incident at Iran's Natanz site, which appeared the latest twist in a long-running covert war.
‘The Senate race was a rigged election – wake up and see it,’ attorney says during gathering
Hornets get back Terry Rozier, but lose third in a row, this time to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Mark Giordano had a goal and an assist, Jacob Markstrom stopped 26 shots and the Calgary Flames beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 Wednesday night. Noah Hanafin, Josh Leivo and Sean Monahan also scored, and Chris Tanev had two assists. The Flames have won three straight to pull four points behind the Canadiens for the fourth and final playoff spot in the North Division, though Montreal has three games in hand.
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Days before attack, law enforcement officials were warned Stop the Steal campaign could attract ‘white supremacists, militia members’ and other violent groups
The Irish Data Protection Commission is to launch an investigation into whether it broke GDPR rules.
The bill intends to establish a 13-person commission to study the lasting impacts of slavery
Almost all new antibiotics brought to market in recent years are variations of drug classes discovered decades ago, according to a WHO report released on Thursday, underscoring just how insufficient they may be in tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Drug resistance is driven by the misuse and overuse of antibiotics and other antimicrobials, which encourages bacteria to evolve into "superbugs" and find new ways to beat the medicines. Out of the 43 antibiotics in development, the WHO said 26 drugs target the 13 most dangerous "superbugs".