Impeachment trial, coronavirus, Equifax breach: 5 things you need to know Wednesday

Editors, USA TODAY

Trump impeachment trial to resume Wednesday afternoon

Early Wednesday morning, the Senate – in a party-line vote of 53-47 – adopted a resolution that outlines basic rules for how President Donald Trump's impeachment trial will operate. The marathon hearing resulted in both House managers and Trump's defense team being admonished by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. "Those addressing the Senate should remember where they are," Roberts told the panels, advising them to "use language conducive to civil discourse." Each of the 11 amendments offered by Senate Democrats, which included measures subpoenaing a variety of entities and officials – including the White House and John Bolton – were defeated by the Republican-held Senate. The resolution calls for opening arguments to begin Wednesday at 1 p.m. House managers and the president's counsel will be given 24 hours over three days to argue the case.

Prefer to listen? Hit play on the audio player below to hear the 5 Things podcast:

WHO gathering experts in Geneva to discuss coronavirus outbreak

The World Health Organization announced it is gathering a panel of experts on coronavirus Wednesday in Geneva, Switzerland, to determine whether the outbreak warrants being declared a global health emergency and how it can be managed. In China, hundreds of people have been diagnosed with the virus, and now officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that the virus was confirmed in Washington state. Previous global emergencies have been declared for the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Congo, the emergence of Zika virus in the Americas in 2016 and the West Africa Ebola outbreak in 2014. The spread of coronavirus comes as the country enters its busiest travel period for the Lunar New Year holidays.

Weinstein trial: Lawyers set for opening statements

Opening statements are expected to begin Wednesday in the sex crimes trial of Harvey Weinstein. The fallen movie mogul has pleaded not guilty to five sex crimes stemming from encounters with two women, one who says Weinstein raped her in 2013 and the other who says he sexually assaulted her in 2006. On Tuesday, a lawyer for Weinstein told the court his opening statement would include excerpts from "dozens and dozens and dozens of emails" between Weinstein and his accusers that his lawyers argue are too friendly to reflect a relationship of assailant and victim.

Supreme Court case to weigh school choice, religious freedom

Three moms from Montana will be at the Supreme Court on Wednesday in a case that could decide if state funds can be used to help pay for tuition at religious schools. The case, Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, centers on a small state scholarship program, but the stakes could be huge in the national debate over religious school choice. Conservatives, having long sought legislative backing for voucher and tax credit programs, see the case as a judicial promised land. Teachers unions and civil rights advocates, meanwhile, say a ruling for the Montana moms would violate the Constitution and open the floodgates for religious school funding, which they say would hurt public schools.

Equifax breach settlement: Time is running out to file a claim

If you were affected by the Equifax 2017 data breach, Wednesday is the deadline to file a claim for free credit monitoring or compensation. Equifax has agreed to pay up to $700 million to settle federal and state investigations into how it handled a data breach that compromised the personal information of nearly 147 million people. The landmark data breach was the largest-ever in U.S. history. To confirm you are eligible to file a claim, you can use a tool posted on the Equifax Data Breach Settlement website.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump impeachment trial, coronavirus, Equifax: 5 things to know