PoliticsNBC NewsBiden showed his years of Senate experience by winning a filibuster fight without saying a word
When the dust settled from the first round of the Senate battle over the filibuster, one man had clearly won: President Joe Biden. The new president, a 36-year veteran of the Senate, has long believed in the principle of unlimited debate. In sidestepping the fight publicly, Biden protected his political capital while reassuring both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., that he could see both of their divergent points of view — and, more important, their political needs.
U.S.The TelegraphFar-Right 'Proud Boy' leader arrested ahead of Capitol riots revealed to have been police informer
The leader of the Proud Boys extremist group has been unmasked as a "prolific" former FBI informant. Enrique Tarrio, 36, worked undercover exposing a human trafficking ring, and helped with drug and gambling cases, according to court documents. Tarrio's documented involvement with law enforcement related to the period 2012 -2014.
PoliticsReutersExplainer: Why Trump's post-presidency perks, like a pension and office, are safe for the rest of his life
The impeachment proceeding against Donald Trump on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has fueled speculation online that he could lose some of the benefits extended to former presidents. But according to legal experts, under the laws currently in effect, Trump will retain perks including a pension, office space and security detail even in the unlikely event that he is convicted by the Senate in its impeachment trial. Trump can thank a relatively obscure law, the Former Presidents Act.
HealthThe ConversationWhy it takes 2 shots to make mRNA vaccines do their antibody-creating best – and what the data shows on delaying the booster dose
With the U.S. facing vaccination delays because of worker shortages and distribution problems, federal health officials now say it's OK to push back the second dose of the two-part vaccine by as much as six weeks. As an infectious disease doctor, I've been fielding a lot of questions from my patients as well as my friends and family about whether the COVID-19 vaccine will still work if people are late receiving their second dose. Two doses, separated by three to four weeks, is the tried-and-true approach to generate an effective immune response through vaccination, not just for COVID but for hepatitis A and B and other diseases as well.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden news – live: Republican Party suffers ‘mass exodus’ as FBI thwarts plot against California governor
As Joe Biden marks his first full week in office, a new report suggests that more than 30,000 registered Republican voters have left the GOP in response to the events of 6 January when a mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in protest at the Democrat's election win, leaving five people dead. The US remains on high alert over the threat posed by “violent domestic extremists”, with California governor Gavin Newsom believed by the FBI to have been the target of a planned attack by a Trump supporter charged with weapons offences in Napa County.
HealthThe TelegraphDoctor with terminal cancer kills paediatrician in hostage siege a childrens clinic
A doctor with terminal cancer killed a female paediatrician and then himself after taking hostages at a children's clinic in Austin, Texas. Dr Bharat Narumanchi held hostages in a five-hour siege before killing Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson. Narumanchi had applied for a volunteer position at the clinic a week ago and was declined.
U.S.TimePutting Harriet Tubman on the $20 Bill Is Not a Sign of Progress. It's a Sign of Disrespect
A congressional staffer departs holding a visual aid following a news conference regarding the redesigned $20 bill meant to honor Harriet Tubman, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on June 18, 2019. The Biden Administration announced its plan to return to an Obama-era initiative to put Harriet Tubman's face on the U.S. $20 bill. Her image would replace Andrew Jackson, the notoriously racist President, known both for owning hundreds of slaves and for his brutal and genocidal policy of Indian removal. Based on current designs, a statue of Jackson would remain on the back of the bill, while Harriet Tubman would grace the front.
PoliticsNational ReviewJohn Kerry Suggests Oil Workers Laid Off Due to Biden Policies Should Make Solar Panels
White House climate czar John Kerry on Wednesday recommended that oil and gas workers should pivot to manufacturing solar panels if their jobs are eliminated as a consequence of the Biden administration's environmental policies. During a press briefing at the White House on Wednesday, Kerry, who is serving as the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, was asked what his message is to workers who are “seeing an end to their livelihoods” as a result of President Biden's plan to move away from traditional fuels and towards renewable energy.
U.S.Charlotte Observer‘Dangerous’ 70-year-old sought in slaying of two duck hunters, Tennessee officials say
A 70-year-old man wanted for the murders of two duck hunters on a lake in Tennessee is still at large, according to state investigators. Law enforcement is looking for David Vowell in connection with the deaths of 26-year-old Chance Black and 25-year-old Zachery Grooms on Monday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said. Warrants for his arrest on two counts of first-degree murder were issued Tuesday.
PoliticsThe WeekJohn Kerry: American workers 'fed a false narrative' that shift to clean energy is 'coming at their expense'
President Biden on Wednesday turned his attention to climate issues, signing executive orders that seek to halt new oil and gas leases on public lands and waters, conserve 30 percent of federal lands and waters by 2030, and find ways to double wind production by the same year. John Kerry, the first-ever United States Climate Envoy, championed the actions, reiterating his belief that the climate crisis is "existential" and "failure, literally, is not an option." While briefing reporters, Kerry was asked about potential job losses in the fossil fuel industry, and whether he had a message for workers who believe they are witnessing the end of their livelihoods.
- ScienceReuters Videos
'Manta' boat takes on world's ocean trash
SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCO-SWISS SKIPPER AND FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF "THE SEACLEANERS" NGO, YVAN BOURGNON, SAYING: ''With three or four hundred of those boats you could collect a third of the world's pollution. This boat recycles ocean trash on board By 2024 it could turn into a working prototype and help clean up debris polluting the world's seas (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCO-SWISS SKIPPER AND FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF "THE SEACLEANERS" NGO, YVAN BOURGNON, SAYING:"The Manta is a sea giant which is 56 meters long, which can collect over a width of 46 meters and which weighs close to 2 thousand tonnes.
PoliticsTimeWhat Rand Paul’s Procedural Failure Says About Donald Trump’s Survival
Sen. Rand Paul attends the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the nomination of Linda Thomas-Greenfield to be the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, on Capitol Hill on Jan. 27, 2021. Sen. Rand Paul lost the very first procedural vote of former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial. “The impeachment trial is dead on arrival,” the Kentucky Republican and regular Trump ally declared yesterday after his attempt to short-circuit the impeachment trial on the grounds it is unconstitutional failed by a 55-45 vote.
TechnologyBBCJoe Biden's tech - what can the president use?
You might think the world's most powerful man would have access to any gadget he chooses - but when it comes consumer tech, Joe Biden may be sorely disappointed. The electronic devices around the US president are perhaps the most prominent hacking targets in the world. "The odds are zero, that [Russia] aren't targeting world leaders," Harvard Kennedy School lecturer Bruce Schneier says.
PoliticsThe New York TimesMcConnell Was Done With Trump. His Party Said Not So Fast.
Three times in recent weeks, as Republicans grappled with a deadly attack on the Capitol and their new minority status in Washington, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky carefully nudged open the door for his party to kick Donald Trump to the curb, only to find it slammed shut. Far from repudiating Trump, as it appeared they might in the days after the Jan. 6 rampage at the Capitol, Republicans have reverted to the posture they adopted when he was in office — unwilling to cross a figure who continues to hold outsize sway in their party. “Anybody surprised by that vote wasn't paying attention before yesterday,” said Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, a close ally of the Republican leader.
WorldReutersIran will take steps next month to curb short-notice IAEA inspections: official
Iran threatened on Tuesday to block short-notice inspections of its nuclear facilities, demanding Washington reverse economic sanctions before it returns to compliance with a nuclear deal that President Joe Biden aims to restore. Biden, who took office last week, aims to reverse a decision by his predecessor Donald Trump to pull out of the 2015 agreement between Iran and world powers. The agreement lifted sanctions on Iran in return for curbs to Iran's nuclear programme, but after Trump quit and reimposed sanctions, Iran violated its conditions.
U.S.Business InsiderA reporter was kicked out of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's town hall and threatened with arrest for asking a question
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene held a town hall in Dalton, Georgia, Wednesday evening. A reporter said she was kicked out for trying to ask a question and threatened with arrest. A spokesperson for Greene said the reporter was a "disruption" at the event.
U.S.Miami HeraldIt began as a typical eviction case in Miami. Then it turned into a nightmare
When Linda Mallard's tenant stopped paying his $650 in monthly rent last February for an efficiency he leases on Northeast 80th Terrace, she hired a private company to begin eviction proceedings. Mallard's desperation — she's 66, retired and depends on the rent from four local modest properties she and her father, John Palmer, own — illustrates the frustration shared by landlords stuck with fraudulent tenants who cannot be removed due to the ongoing COVID eviction moratorium. “Right now there are probably hundreds of people like Mickens running around Miami doing the same thing,” said Armando Alfonso, a Miami-based attorney who represents landlords and tenants in eviction cases.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestHere Are The Brightest Decor Buys of the Season
Let's get loud Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsTime‘He’s Saying One Thing and Then He’s Doing Another.’ Rep. Madison Cawthorn Peddles a Different Kind of Trumpism in a Post-Trump World
Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R.N.C., speaks as the House debates the objection to confirm the Electoral College vote from Pennsylvania, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. early on Jan. 7, 2021. As the Trump Administration drew to a close, Republican legislators and aides were forced to choose a side. Longtime Trump faithfuls, including Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. Tom Rice have chosen Option 1, rebuffing their former leader, calling for rule of law and returning, at least rhetorically, to the storied principles of conservatism that once guided the Grand Old Party.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderGOP group invests $700,000 into backing Sen. Josh Hawley after he was scrutinized for inciting Capitol riot
A political action committee has put $700,000 behind Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley after he was criticized for his role in inciting the January 6 Capitol insurrection, Axios reported. Hawley continued with his effort to dispute the electoral votes even after Trump supporters breached the Capitol. Critics have called on him to resign, and several Democrats have asked for an ethics probe into his and Sen. Ted Cruz's actions.
- ScienceReuters Videos
Argentinean dinosaur remains could be world's largest
These fossils could be from the largest dinosaur ever Locator: Neuquen Province, Argentina Palaeontologists say they unearthed bones belonging to a huge plant-eating titanosaur the largest dinosaur to ever roam the planet some 98-million years ago
BusinessThe IndependentGameStop: Reddit users claim victory as $13bn hedge fund closes position, accepting huge losses
A $13bn hedge fund has been left with huge losses after an army of amateur investors coordinating via social media pumped up the price of video game retailer GameStop tenfold in just a few weeks. Melvin Capital had bet against GameStop by short-selling its shares, meaning it stood to gain if the price went down and lose if it went up. Members of the Reddit thread “wallstreetbets” decided to pile in to GameStop with the aim of pushing up the share price to inflict losses on short-sellers including Melvin Capital.
WorldBusiness InsiderPutin warns against a fight of 'all against all' as the walls close in around him
The Russian leader's remarks came as he faced unrest at home and a new, more assertive US president. Facing escalating challenges at home and abroad, Russian President Vladimir Putin in a speech on Wednesday expressed alarm about the potential for a world war. Addressing a virtual meeting of the World Economic Forum (typically held in Davos, Switzerland), the Russian leader said the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing tensions in the international community.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderDemocrats are setting the stage to propose $300 monthly direct payments for families with children under 17
Democrats are drafting legislation to have the IRS send monthly payments of up to $300 to millions of families, sources told Insider. People could opt to receive a monthly check or a lump sum after filing taxes, according to an early version of the plan. Biden supported an identical measure during the presidential race, and Democrats are expected to lobby heavily for it.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderSecretary of State Antony Blinken says he stands by Mike Pompeo's designation that China committed genocide against the Uighurs
Antony Blinken, President Joe Biden's newly-confirmed secretary of state, said Wednesday that he stands by his Republican predecessor's designation of China as committing genocide against the Uighur Muslims. In his most extreme rebuke of Beijing as secretary of state, Mike Pompeo said on January 19 that "we are witnessing the systematic attempt to destroy Uighurs by the Chinese party-state" in the western Chinese region of Xinjiang. Later that day Blinken said he agreed with Pompeo's designation, and on Wednesday - one day after being sworn in as the new secretary of state - he reiterated that support.
“By encouraging this act of terror on our capital, Trump’s legacy is destroyed.”
“Both backers and critics of Trump agreed that he remade the federal judiciary — a change that will impact America for decades.”
“He was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.”
“I do know what the future should hold for this country. That is to say, a policy of Trumpism without Trump.”
“It will be decades before the consequences of his tenure are fully known.”