Making the Grade: Education week at the Idaho Statehouse

Michelle Edmonds and Kevin Richert discuss the latest in Idaho education news.

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    ‘We have to start breaking down systemic racism and barriers that have held people of colour back and especially African Americans’

  • Harry and Meghan invoke Diana in first Oprah clip and say ‘fear of history repeating itself’ forced them to leave UK

    Couple to discuss ‘breaking point’ in decision to step back from royal life

  • Donald Trump CPAC speech - read the full transcript OLD

    It was the ex-president’s first major public appearance since leaving the White House

  • Rooster kills Indian man during banned cockfight

    A man was killed by a rooster with a blade tied to its leg during an illegal cockfight in southern India, police said, bringing focus on a practice that continues in some Indian states despite a decades-old ban. The rooster, with a 3-inch knife tied to its leg, fluttered in panic and slashed its owner, 45-year-old Thangulla Satish, in his groin last week, police inspector B. Jeevan said Sunday. According to Jeevan, Satish was injured while he prepared the rooster for a fight.

  • Lawmaker breaks down confronting Ercot officials over death of boy in Texas freeze

    CEO of energy supplier said ‘I don’t believe I would’ do anything differently, despite deaths

  • Trump teases a 2024 run and commands GOP loyalty to his holy name in first signature post-presidency speech

    ‘I may even decide to beat them for a third time,’ president says, perpetuating his lie about a ‘stolen election’

  • NASCAR at Homestead live updates: William Byron takes checkered flag

    The NASCAR Cup Series hits its first intermediate track of the year at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

  • Trump at CPAC 2021: Ex-president to taunt his enemies and underscore commitment to leading Republican party

    Trump movement is ‘far from over,’ ex-president will tell supporters at CPAC

  • Trump privately received the coronavirus vaccine while he was president in January

    Trump and former first lady Melania Trump got the COVID-19 vaccine at the White House, according to multiple reports.

  • New Orleans Archdiocese Asks Catholics to Avoid Johnson & Johnson COVID Vaccine

    The Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans is asking Catholics to avoid the recently-approved Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, which it says is “morally compromised” by its “extensive use of abortion-derived cell lines.” In a statement on Friday, the archdiocese noted that while deciding whether to receive the vaccine is an individual choice, that “the latest vaccine from Janssen/Johnson & Johnson is morally compromised as it uses the abortion-derived cell line in development and production of the vaccine as well as the testing.” While a number of COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers have used cells originally derived from an aborted fetus in the 1970s, the archdiocese argues that Johnson & Johnson “extensive use” is worse than that of Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, which used the cells lines only to test their vaccines, according to Religion News Service. This makes the “connection to abortion … extremely remote,” in the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, the statement argues, recommending that Catholics choose one of those instead, if provided a choice. While the archdiocese claims the decision is in line with guidance from the Vatican, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the National Catholic Bioethics Center, none of the three have issued statements denouncing the new vaccine. In December, the Vatican issued general guidelines regarding vaccines in which the Holy See said it was “morally acceptable” for Catholics to receive shots that used the HEK293 cells for research. While the HEK293 cells are reportedly originated from an aborted fetus from the 1970s, ethicists have said that the cells and similar cell lines are clones and not the original fetal tissue. The Vatican has made the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine available for all Vatican City residents. Pope Francis reportedly received the shot in January. The Archdiocese of New Orleans’ statement comes after leaders of the USCCB and leaders from other religious organizations sent a letter to the commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last spring regarding ethical concerns over the COVID-19 vaccines. “We are aware that, among the dozens of vaccines currently in development, some are being produced using old cell lines that were created from the cells of aborted babies,” the letter read. “For example, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a substantial contract from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and is working on a vaccine that is being produced using one of these ethically problematic cell lines.” However, a USCCB memo written by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, who chairs the USCCB’s Committee on Doctrine, and Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, who chairs the organization’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, argued that the vaccines are moral.

  • Canada vaccine committee advises against use of AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots for 65 years and above

    Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization released new guidelines on Monday that advise against vaccinating people who are 65 years and older with AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, citing lack of information about efficacy in that age group. The vaccine was authorized for people who are 18 and older by drug regulator Health Canada on Friday. Health Canada's decision noted that available clinical trial data was too limited to reliably estimate how well the vaccine worked in people 65 and older.

  • Hilaria and Alec Baldwin welcome 6th baby together nearly 6 months after birthing their son Eduardo

    The baby was born nearly sixth months after Hilaria Baldwin gave birth to her son Eduardo "Edu" Pao Lucas.

  • Trump reportedly quietly got his COVID-19 vaccine in January

    Former President Donald Trump never ended up getting his COVID-19 vaccine publicly before he left office — but he reportedly did so off camera. At the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday, Trump encouraged supporters to get their COVID-19 vaccine, renewing questions over whether the former president has done so himself. Numerous officials, including former Vice President Mike Pence, got vaccinated on live television as part of an effort to demonstrate to Americans that it's safe. Trump never did so. But The New York Times' Maggie Haberman on Monday reported that according to an adviser, Trump actually did get vaccinated at the White House in January, as did former first lady Melania Trump, even though they didn't say so publicly at the time. The report was confirmed by CNN and Axios. The Los Angeles Times' Chris Megerian noted it was "noteworthy that the former president didn't do this publicly to boost public confidence in the vaccine." Trump yesterday, at CPAC, said for the first time that "everyone" should get the coronavirus vaccine developed while he was in office. An adviser tells me both Trump and Melania Trump got vaccinated at the White House in January. — Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) March 1, 2021 In December, then-Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Trump had a "medical reason" for not getting the vaccine yet, as he "received monoclonal antibodies" when he had COVID-19, "and that is actually one scenario where we tell people, 'Maybe you should hold off on getting the vaccine, talk to your health provider to find out the right time.'" CNN's Betsy Klein notes the White House had repeatedly declined to comment when asked if Trump had gotten the vaccine or intended to do so, even "as recently as January 18." After Trump's CPAC speech, The Washington Post's Aaron Blake flagged his comments encouraging his supporters to get vaccinated as "perhaps the most significant thing he said," noting this was "something he avoided forcefully advocating for when he actually commanded the most powerful office in the world." More stories from theweek.comTrump is back. Did anyone miss him?Trump still has the Republican Party by the throatMost awkward awards show ever?

  • Are your tires among the 440,000 across 9 brands that have just been recalled?

    Problems with tires made by Cooper and sold by eight other brands — sidewall problems in particular — caused two recalls of approximately 442,955 tires last week.

  • A man who refused to wear a mask at a high-school basketball game killed a police officer following a confrontation, authorities say

    The police officer, Martinus Mitchum, was fatally shot while trying to break up an altercation between a man and a school employee over face masks.

  • Why Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine is probably the best shot

    Some people might prefer Johnson & Johnson's shot because it was tested on variants, has milder side effects, and is easier to get.

  • Senate Democrats prepare to advance the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan without a $15-an-hour minimum wage

    Democratic efforts to salvage the wage increase with a new tax plan collapsed over the weekend as Senate Democrats gear up to pass the stimulus bill.

  • Are your tires among the 440,000 across 9 brands that have just been recalled?

    Problems with tires made by Cooper and sold by eight other brands — sidewall problems in particular — caused two recalls of approximately 442,955 tires last week.

  • Marcus Flowers to run for Congress against Marjorie Taylor Greene

    The military veteran announced his campaign on social media as Georgia Democrats aim to oust the freshman representative. Sgt. Marcus Flowers has announced his official campaign against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for her seat in Georgia’s 14th Congressional district. In his newly released campaign video shared on social media, the military veteran laid out his case as a Democratic candidate.

  • The White House says it never wants an assassination like Khashoggi's again, but won't punish MBS for ordering the killing

    Biden's White House has essentially leaned on the importance of the diplomatic relationship with Saudi Arabia in defense of its actions.