McManus: McConnell wants to use the filibuster to block Biden's agenda. Here's how Biden can outfox him

Now the measure, in all likelihood, will go to the Senate to die. Under the rules of the 100-member Senate, it takes 60 votes to end debate and move most bills to a vote. A filibuster used to mean a senator actually had to stand and speechify, refusing to give up the floor and thus keeping a bill from coming to a vote.

Austria suspends AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine batch after death

Austrian authorities have suspended inoculations with a batch of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine as a precaution while investigating the death of one person and the illness of another after the shots, a health agency said on Sunday. "The Federal Office for Safety in Health Care (BASG) has received two reports in a temporal connection with a vaccination from the same batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the district clinic of Zwettl" in Lower Austria province, it said. One 49-year-old woman died as a result of severe coagulation disorders, while a 35-year-old woman developed a pulmonary embolism and is recovering, it said.

Floyd's cause of death, ex-cop's force will be keys at trial

A Minneapolis police officer was swiftly fired and charged with murder after bystander video showed him pressing his knee into George Floyd's neck, ignoring the Black man's cries that he couldn't breathe. Jury selection begins Monday in Derek Chauvin's trial, which is expected to come down to two key questions: Did Chauvin's actions cause Floyd's death, and were his actions reasonable? “It's hard not to watch the video and conclude that the prosecutors will not have any trouble with this case,” said Susan Gaertner, the former head prosecutor in neighboring Ramsey County.

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  Key players in trial of ex-officer charged in Floyd's death

  Associated Press
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  Key events since George Floyd's arrest and death

  Associated Press

Myanmar coup: Party official dies in custody after security raids

An official from Aung San Suu Kyi's party has died in custody in Myanmar after being arrested during raids by security forces in Yangon. On Sunday the body of U Khin Maung Latt was released to his family, who were reportedly told that he had died after fainting. The UN says more than 50 people have been killed since the military detained Ms Suu Kyi, Myanmar's democratically elected leader, on 1 February.

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  Myanmar protests, after death of Suu Kyi official

  Reuters Videos
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  Unions call for total strike in Myanmar; Suu Kyi party official dies in custody

  Reuters

Aerials show huge blaze after oil facility strike in Syria

A suspected missile strike on an oil-loading facility used by Turkey-backed opposition forces in northern Syria sparked a massive blaze across a large area where oil tankers are normally parked, aerial and satellite images show. Syrian opposition groups and at least one war monitor blamed Russia for the strike Friday night near the towns of Jarablus and al-Bab, near the border with Turkey. In a report, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Britain, said Russian warships in the Mediterranean had fired three missiles that struck primitive oil refineries and tanker trucks in the region.

U.S. Senator Manchin says filibusters could be made more 'painful'

Centrist Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, a pivotal vote in the U.S. Senate, on Sunday advocated making the procedural maneuver called the filibuster more "painful" to do, with Democrats concerned about Republicans obstructing President Joe Biden's legislative agenda. Some Democrats have advocated eliminating the filibuster to prevent Republicans from blocking Biden's initiatives. White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield made clear on Sunday that the president is not calling for ending the filibuster.

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  Joe Manchin Signals Openness To Filibuster Reform As Push For Abolishing It Grows

  HuffPost
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  Manchin says he’s open to tweaking Senate filibuster rules

  MarketWatch

India sets up holding center for Rohingya in Kashmir

Authorities in Indian-controlled Kashmir have sent at least 168 Rohingya refugees to a holding center, police said Sunday, in a process that they say is for the deportation of thousands of the refugees living in the region. The move began Saturday following a directive from the region's home department to identify Rohingya living in the southern city of Jammu, said Inspector-General Mukesh Singh. “All of them are illegally living here and we have begun identifying them,” Singh said.

Myanmar coup: India asked to return police officers who crossed border

Myanmar has asked neighbouring India to return several police officers who crossed the border seeking refuge after refusing to carry out orders. Indian officials said the officers and their families had crossed the border in recent days. In a letter, Myanmar authorities asked for their return "in order to uphold friendly relations".

Russia scores points with vaccine diplomacy, but snags arise

Russia's boast in August that it was the first country to authorize a coronavirus vaccine led to skepticism at the time because of its insufficient testing. Six months later, as demand for the Sputnik V vaccine grows, experts are raising questions again — this time, over whether Moscow can keep up with all the orders from the countries that want it. Slovakia got 200,000 doses on March 1, even though the European Medicines Agency, the European Union's pharmaceutical regulator, only began reviewing its use on Thursday in an expedited process.

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  EU regulator urges caution on Sputnik COVID-19 vaccine

  Reuters
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  Vaccine diplomacy: Putin seeks to leverage Sputnik V to build Russia’s global influence

  MarketWatch

French billionaire politician killed in helicopter crash

French billionaire Olivier Dassault was killed on Sunday in a helicopter crash, a police source said, with President Emmanuel Macron paying tribute to the 69-year old conservative politician. Dassault was the eldest son of late French billionaire industrialist Serge Dassault, whose namesake Dassault Aviation, builds the Rafale war planes and owns Le Figaro newspaper. "Olivier Dassault loved France.

The mystery American woman wanted in the UK

Anne Sacoolas, a US citizen, has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving in the UK, but returned home under the protection of diplomatic immunity. In August 2019, Anne Sacoolas collided with motorcyclist Harry Dunn while driving on the wrong side of the road in the UK. Sacoolas returned to the US, claiming diplomatic immunity, and an extradition request was blocked.

Poll: Scots do not think Nicola Sturgeon has been totally honest about Alex Salmond scandal

Scottish voters do not think Nicola Sturgeon has been honest in the Alex Salmond scandal and she must resign if an independent inquiry finds she broke the ministerial code, according to a poll. Ms Sturgeon last week  refused to provide any guarantee she would quit, instead telling MSPs "we can debate in this chamber" what her punishment should be. Support for independence in Holyrood's constituency vote declined five points since January, although Ms Sturgeon is still just on course to win a majority in May, with 65 seats out of 129.

At Dubai airport, travelers' eyes become their passports

Dubai's airport, the world's busiest for international travel, can already feel surreal, with its cavernous duty-free stores, artificial palm trees, gleaming terminals, water cascades and near-Arctic levels of air conditioning. It's the latest artificial intelligence program the United Arab Emirates has launched amid the surging coronavirus pandemic, contact-less technology the government promotes as helping to stem the spread of the virus. Dubai's airport started offering the program to all passengers last month.

China at least 30 years away from becoming manufacturing 'great power': former minister

China is at least 30 years away from becoming a manufacturing nation of "great power", a former industry minister said on Sunday, despite boasting the world's most complete industrial supply chains. In recent years, China has become the world's top manufacturing nation, accounting for over a third of global output, driven by domestic demand to produce everything from motor vehicles to industrial machinery. "Basic capabilities are still weak, core technologies are in the hands of others, and the risk of 'being hit in the throat' and having 'a slipped bike chain' has significantly increased," said Miao Wei, who was Minister of Industry and Information Technology for a decade before stepping down last year.

Biden signs executive order to expand voting rights: ‘If you have the best ideas, you have nothing to hide’

President Joe Biden marked the 56-year anniversary of the “Bloody Sunday” march in Selma, Alabama by signing an executive order to protect and strengthen nationwide voting access, while calling on states to expand voting rights for all eligible Americans. The order was described by the White House as an “initial step” towards securing voting rights just days after the passage of HR1, legislation focusing on expanding access to mail-in voting and making it easier for Americans to register to vote. The right to vote is sacred and fundamental — and H.R. 1 is urgently needed to protect that right, to safeguard the integrity of our elections, and to repair and strengthen our democracy.

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  On Bloody Sunday Anniversary, Biden Signs Executive Order To Promote Voting Rights

  HuffPost
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  Biden signs order to expand voting access

  Reuters Videos

B-52s again fly over Mideast in US military warning to Iran

A pair of B-52 bombers flew over the Mideast on Sunday, the latest such mission in the region aimed at warning Iran amid tensions between Washington and Tehran. The flight by the two heavy bombers came as a pro-Iran satellite channel based in Beirut broadcast Iranian military drone footage of an Israeli ship hit by a mysterious explosion only days earlier in the Mideast. While the channel sought to say Iran wasn't involved, Israel has blamed Tehran for what it described as an attack on the vessel.

Thousands of people who visited a COVID-19 vaccination site in California received the wrong dosage, report says

An estimated 4,300 people received less of the Pfizer vaccine than they should have, KTVU reported. Too little of the vaccine was administered due to a problem with new syringes, the media outlet said. California health officials have said patients will be informed "immediately" if they need a booster.

China says it's ready to provide vaccines to overseas Chinese, Olympians

China said on Sunday it has plans to set up COVID-19 vaccination stations to vaccinate Chinese citizens abroad and is also ready to work with the International Olympic Committee to help provide vaccines to Olympic athletes for upcoming events. China has developed several vaccines domestically and has begun its own vaccination drive, with plans to vaccinate 40% of its population by July. China's top government diplomat Wang Yi made the comments during his annual news conference held on Sunday.

'Lesson fully received': An 18-year-old charged in the Capitol riot says he was 'wrong' and begged a judge to release him

The youngest suspect charged in the Capitol riots wrote a letter begging a judge to release him. Bruno Joseph Cua, 18, previously boasted on Instagram of storming the Capitol and fighting inside. Bruno Joseph Cua, 18, faces a slew of federal charges related to the January 6 insurrection, including assault on a federal officer, engaging in physical violence, violent entry or disorderly conduct, and civil disorder.

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  ‘I will not step one foot out of line’: 18-year-old charged in Capitol riot begs for release

  The Independent
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  18-year-old Capitol rioter wants to go home to his ‘loving family’ who drove him to DC

  NY Daily News

With virus aid in sight, Democrats debate filibuster changes

With President Joe Biden on the verge of his first big legislative victory, a key moderate Democrat said Sunday he's open to changing Senate rules that could allow for more party-line votes to push through other parts of the White House's agenda such as voting rights. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin stressed that he wants to keep the procedural hurdle known as the filibuster, saying major legislation should always have significant input from the minority party. One example: the “talking filibuster,” which requires senators to slow a bill by holding the floor, but then grants an “up or down” simple majority vote if they give up.

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  U.S. Senator Manchin says filibusters could be made more 'painful'

  Reuters
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  Manchin says he’s open to tweaking Senate filibuster rules

  MarketWatch

Rights groups call for investigation into killings of Philippine activists

Human rights groups called on the Philippine government to investigate what they said was the use of "lethal force" during police raids on Sunday that left at least nine activists dead. The raids in four provinces south of Manila resulted in the death of an environmental activist as well as a coordinator of left-wing group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, among others, and resulted in the arrest of four others, activist groups said. "These raids appear to be part of a coordinated plan by the authorities to raid, arrest, and even kill activists in their homes and offices," Human Rights Watch Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson said in a statement.

Who truly was the most dishonest president?

Former President Donald Trump was often accused of having a complete disregard for the truth. When Saddam Hussein invaded the oil-rich emirate of Kuwait in August 1990, President George HW Bush snarled: "This will not stand." The Kuwaiti government-in-exile promptly hired a US public relations firm, Hill & Knowlton, whose Washington DC office was run by Bush's former chief of staff.