HealthYahoo NewsWhy Black Americans aren't being vaccinated for COVID-19 at the same rate as whites
Early data on the rollout of the vaccines for COVID-19 shows that minority populations in the United States already disproportionately affected by the pandemic are not being immunized at the same rate as white Americans. Yahoo News Medical Contributor Dr. Uché Blackstock believes there are multiple factors contributing to this disparity. “One of the problems that I saw very early on is that if you're going to have mostly hospitals and pharmacies dispensing the vaccine, we're going to miss a lot of people,” Blackstock said.
PoliticsAssociated PressBiden replaces White House doctor with longtime physician
President Joe Biden has brought back Dr. Kevin O'Connor as his physician, replacing President Donald Trump's doctor with the one who oversaw his care when he was vice president. The White House confirmed that Dr. Sean Conley, the Navy commander who served as the head of the White House Medical Unit under Trump and oversaw his treatment when he was hospitalized with COVID-19, will assume a teaching role at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. O'Connor, a retired Army colonel, was Biden's doctor during his entire tenure as vice president, having remained in the role at Biden's request.
WorldReutersYemen's Houthis protest against Trump's terrorist label
Tens of thousands of Yemenis marched in Sanaa on Monday, heeding a call by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement to condemn the United States for labelling it a terrorist group and backing the Saudi-led military coalition that is battling it. The protesters filled a wide avenue in the Houthi-held capital, many holding banners that read: "America is the mother of terrorism". The Trump administration's designation of the group as a foreign terrorist organisation took effect on Jan. 19 but is being reviewed by the new administration of Joe Biden.
PoliticsReutersU.S. Supreme Court spurns former New York lawmaker Silver's appeal
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal by Sheldon Silver, the once-powerful New York State Assembly Speaker, of his conviction on corruption charges that resulted in a 6-1/2-year prison sentence. Silver, 76, began serving his sentence last August despite being in poor health. He had appealed the portions of his 2018 conviction that were upheld in January 2020 by the Manhattan-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
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Female student athletes speak out against Biden executive order on transgender competition
Three Connecticut female student athletes who filed a discrimination complaint over transgender competition argue that the president's new executive order is not fair.
PoliticsAssociated PressPets are back: Biden's 2 dogs settle in at White House
The patter of paws is being heard in the White House again following the arrival of President Joe Biden's dogs Champ and Major. The two German shepherds are the first pets to live at the executive mansion since the Obama administration. Major burst onto the national scene last year after Biden, then president-elect, broke his right foot while playing with the dog at their home in Wilmington, Delaware.
WorldAssociated PressNavalny's team calls new protests in Russia for his release
Allies of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who faces years in prison, called for new protests next weekend to demand his release, following a wave of demonstrations that turned out tens of thousands across the country in a defiant challenge to President Vladimir Putin. Mass rallies took place Saturday in over 100 cities in what observers said was the largest outpouring of anger in years, and Navalny's supporters urged protesters to keep up the pressure. During Saturday's protests, over 3,700 people were detained, according to OVD-Info, a human rights group that monitors political arrests.
U.S.Miami HeraldTrump’s clemency freed Esformes, but he still faces pending Medicare fraud charges
At his federal trial in Miami, one of the nation's biggest Medicare fraud cases, Esformes was found guilty of 20 counts of bribery, money laundering and obstruction of justice, resulting in a 20-year prison sentence that was commuted by Trump. But the jury also deadlocked on six counts, including the main charge of conspiring to commit healthcare fraud, in the $1 billion case against Esformes, who owned a chain of skilled-nursing and assisted-living facilities in Miami-Dade.
WorldReutersBoycott 'wildcat' Scottish independence vote, says Scottish Conservative leader
Backers of the union of the United Kingdom's four nations should boycott any "wildcat" independence referendum for Scotland, the leader of the Scottish Conservative Party said on Monday, after the nation's first minister pressed ahead with plans for a vote. Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said on Sunday she was hoping a strong performance by her Scottish National Party (SNP) in an election in May would give her the mandate to hold a second referendum. To get a legal referendum, any such vote must be approved by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has ruled out doing so.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden to have sign interpreter at every press briefing
Joe Biden will have a sign language interpreter at the daily White House press briefings, it had been announced. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that the president wants an American Sign Language interpreter to become a regular part of the re-instituted news conferences. It is the first time in history that a sign language interpreter will be added to the daily briefing.
HealthAssociated PressAsia Today: Taiwan quarantines 5,000 after hospital cluster
Health authorities in Taiwan are quarantining 5,000 people while looking for the source of two new coronavirus cases linked to a hospital. Officials said on Monday that they have not been able to identify how the husband and wife became infected after a brief hospital stay in the Taoyuan General Hospital, located in the city of Taoyuan just outside Taiwan's capital city. The man had stayed at the hospital for three days for health problems unrelated to COVID-19, while his wife looked after him.
U.S.Associated PressHigh court orders continued look at Texas death row case
The Supreme Court on Monday ordered a further review by a lower court of a lawsuit brought by a Texas death row inmate who objects to a policy that bars a chaplain from accompanying him into the death chamber. The justices ordered Ruben Gutierrez's case sent back to a federal trial-level court for additional proceedings. The justices in June had blocked Gutierrez's execution after Texas changed its policy and barred all spiritual advisers from the death chamber.
WorldReutersVietnam's Communists tout pandemic, economic successes at Party congress
Vietnam's ruling Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong hailed booming economic development and containment of the COVID-19 pandemic as major achievements on Tuesday as he presided over the opening of a key party congress in Hanoi. Over nine days of meetings, mostly behind closed doors, delegates will pick a new leadership team, aiming to bolster Vietnam's ongoing economic success - and the legitimacy of the Party's rule. Party congresses take place once every five years.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump reportedly furious he can't lash out at Dr Fauci on Twitter
Donald Trump, no longer in power and muzzled online, is reportedly furious that he can't use social media to lash out at Dr Anthony Fauci. Dr Fauci, the Director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the face of the White House health response to the coronavirus pandemic, has been appearing on cable news shows and holding press briefings during which he is not exactly shy about his time working for Mr Trump. On Friday, Dr Fauci said the former president "very likely" cost American lives by spreading lies and misinformation about the pandemic.
U.S.TheGrioAlleged Capitol rioter’s brother was head of Michelle Obama’s security detail
A man who has been accused of participating in the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol Building is reportedly the brother of a Secret Service agent. That agent, Preston Fairlamb III, once led the security detail of former First Lady Michelle Obama. In Becoming, her 2018 memoir, Mrs. Obama references him by name, writing: “All of us grew close to our agents over time.
U.S.Associated PressEpstein's ex-girlfriend seeks dismissal of charges she faces
A British socialite charged with recruiting teenage girls for financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse in the 1990s asked a judge Monday to dismiss the case on multiple grounds, including that a deal years ago not to prosecute Epstein and others should shield her from prosecution. Lawyers for Ghislaine Maxwell said the indictment against their client was obtained unjustly and doesn't allege crimes specific enough to bring before a jury. The agreement sought to protect Epstein and those around him, but Maxwell was not identified by name in the document that was signed as Epstein agreed to plead guilty to state charges in Florida that forced him to register as a sex offender afterward.
PoliticsReutersDemocrats may try to pass Biden's COVID bill with majority vote: Schumer
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Monday that Democrats may try to pass much of President Joe Biden's coronavirus relief bill using a process that would bypass a Republican filibuster and could pass with a majority vote. Biden wants Congress to pass a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief proposal, but many Republicans have balked at the price tag. The Senate is split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris holding the tie-breaking vote.
PoliticsThe TelegraphSarah Sanders announces pro-Trump bid for Governor of Arkansas
Sarah Sanders, Donald Trump's former press secretary, announced on Monday that she is running to be governor of Arkansas, setting up a potential Republican primary battle centered around Mr Trump and his legacy. Ms Sanders left the White House in 2019 to return to her home state and is still a strong supporter of the former president. She launched her campaign for governor less than a week after the end of Mr Trump's time in office and as he faces an impending impeachment trial.
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COVID-19 vaccine theft charge dismissed against Texas doc
A judge on Monday dismissed a theft charge against a Houston area health department doctor who had been accused by prosecutors of stealing nine doses of coronavirus vaccine from a damaged vial and administering them to family and friends. Authorities had alleged that Hasan Gokal, who worked for Harris County Public Health, stole a vial of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine while working at a vaccination site at a suburban Houston park on Dec. 29. But Harris County Court-At-Law Judge Franklin Bynum found there was no probable cause to charge Gokal with theft.
PoliticsReutersBiden signs 'Buy American' order, pledges to renew U.S. manufacturing
President Joe Biden vowed on Monday to leverage the purchasing power of the U.S. government, the world's biggest single buyer of goods and services, to strengthen domestic manufacturing and create markets for new technologies. The Democratic president signed an executive order aimed at closing loopholes in existing "Buy American" provisions, which apply to about a third of the $600 billion in goods and services the federal government buys each year. The order will make any waivers more transparent and create a senior White House role to oversee the process.
U.S.The IndependentNew threats of a second attack on the US Capitol loom over lawmakers ahead of Trump’s second impeachment trial
A surge in threats against lawmakers and the US Capitol have forced National Guard troops to remain in Washington ahead of former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial. The troops will remain on Capitol Hill as the US Senate trial begins on 8 February, marking the first time in American history in which a former president has faced an impeachment trial after leaving office. The House voted to impeach Mr Trump for fomenting a deadly insurrection at the Capitol as Congress convened to certify his electoral defeat in the 2020 elections, citing his speech held just before the deadly attacks and conduct during the riots, which left at least five people dead, including United States Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick.
U.S.ReutersCalifornia to lift stay-at-home orders on Monday: report
California Governor Gavin Newsom's office has decided to lift the orders as ICU availability in the regions that remained under the stay-at-home order, including the Bay area and Southern California are projected to rise above the 15% threshold that triggered the lockdown measures, according https://bit.ly/3sSPOfp to San Francisco Chronicle. California has reported over 3.1 million cases and 36,745 deaths so far, a Reuters tally showed. Strict stay-at-home orders were renewed for much of California in December to avert a crisis in hospitals.
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Lebanese in impoverished north protest virus lockdown
Dozens of Lebanese protesters, enraged at a nearly month-long lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus, took to the streets of the country's second largest city on Monday and pelted security forces with stones. The security forces responded with tear gas to break up the protesters, who gathered in central Tripoli despite a strict lockdown in place since mid-January aimed at containing a major surge in infection in the small Mediterranean country. Protesters in Tripoli were complaining that their region, the most impoverished in Lebanon, is unable to cope with the nearly month-long lockdown with little to no government assistance.
WorldReutersFive arrested as Australia Day protests draw thousands
Five people were arrested in Sydney in largely peaceful Australia Day protests on Tuesday with thousands defying public health concerns and rallying across the nation against the mistreatment of the Indigenous people. The Jan. 26 public holiday marks the date the British fleet sailed into Sydney Harbour in 1788 to start a penal colony, viewing the land as unoccupied despite encountering settlements. But for many Indigenous Australians, who trace their lineage on the continent back 50,000 years, it is "Invasion Day".
PoliticsBusiness InsiderRudy Giuliani admits Biden is president hours after being sued for $1.3 billion by voting machine company
Rudy Giuliani acknowledged Monday that Joe Biden is the president and Kamala Harris is vice president. The statement came hours after Dominion Voting Systems sued Giuliani for $1.3 billion. Giuliani spent months peddling conspiracy theories about the company's role in the 2020 election.
“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.”