- U.S.Associated Press
Idaho man indicted on 4 counts in US Capitol attack case
An Idaho man who posted online videos of himself bragging about taking part in the violent siege on the U.S. Capitol last month has been charged by a federal grand jury with four crimes related to the insurrection. Boise resident Josiah Colt, 34, turned himself in to law enforcement in Boise on Jan. 12 after learning he was wanted on a U.S. Marshal's warrant. On Wednesday, he was indicted on four counts, including obstructing official proceedings and aiding and abetting, which carries a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
PoliticsThe IndependentRepublican senators seek to ban all undocumented immigrants from new round of stimulus payments
Republican senators have introduced an amendment to the 2021 budget resolution seeking a ban on any direct stimulus payments from being distributed to undocumented immigrants, as lawmakers debated the sweeping relief measures on Thursday afternoon. Senators Todd Young (R—IN) and Tom Cotton (R—AR) announced the amendment ahead of what's known on Capitol Hill as a budget vote-a-rama, in which lawmakers vote on a series of amendments in a procedure that can last hours long and well into the nighttime, expected to begin at 2:30pm ET. Undocumented immigrants have not been included in congressional relief payments, and recipients of the direct stimulus checks sent under the CARES Act were required to possess a valid Social Security number.
WorldReutersWest concerned by closer Russia-China ties, top NATO general says
The United States and its Western allies are increasingly concerned about growing cooperation between Russia and China in areas of common interest, NATO's top general said on Wednesday. The Pentagon has put countering China and Russia at the centre of its strategy since 2018, even though U.S. defence spending outstrips that of Moscow and Beijing. In 2018, China and Russia held their largest-ever joint military exercises, featuring 300,000 Russian troops.
WorldThe TelegraphSweden to develop 'vaccination passports' that allow you to travel and meet friends
Sweden is to follow its neighbour Denmark and develop digital 'vaccination certificates' residents can use to travel overseas, to meet an elderly relative in a care home, or even just eat in a restaurant. "A vaccination certificate is probably as desirable as getting vaccinated," Sweden's health minister, Lena Hallengren, said at a press conference announcing the measure. She said that certificates, which will be held on residents' phones, could be used as a vaccine passport, "to travel abroad on holiday or to meet a loved one".
WorldAssociated PressIran receives its first batch of foreign coronavirus vaccine
Iran on Thursday received its first batch of foreign-made coronavirus vaccines as the country struggles to stem the worst outbreak of the pandemic in the Middle East. The shipment consists of 500,000 doses of Russian-made Sputnik V vaccines which arrived at Tehran's Imam Khomeieni International Airport from Moscow, the semi-official Fars news agency reported. Also Iranian state TV quoted Tehran's ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, as saying that Iran has ordered 5 million doses from Russia.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden press secretary apologises for Space Force jibe – but is it just a bizarre Trump era project?
Joe Biden's top spokesperson apologised for her Space Force jibe as the president confirmed his administration remains firmly behind it. White House press secretary Jen Psaki had come under fire from Republicans who claimed she had been dismissive of the newest branch of the armed forces earlier this week. “I did send a tweet last night, maybe they're not on Twitter, that said we invite the members of Space Force here to give an update to you on all the important work they are doing and we certainly look forward to seeing continued updates from their team,” she said during her daily briefing on Wednesday.
- HealthYahoo News Video
COVID vaccines and relative effectiveness: Yahoo News Explains
On Thursday, Johnson & Johnson submitted it's COVID-19 vaccine for Emergency Use Authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. If greenlit by the Food and Drug Administration, it could be the nation's third COVID vaccine producer, joining Pfizer and Moderna. Johnson & Johnson said last week that its one-dose vaccine has an overall 66% efficacy rate, not as high as Pfizer or Moderna's two-dose vaccines with nearly 95% efficacy.
WorldReutersGuyana nixes Taiwan office after Beijing criticizes 'mistake'
Guyana on Thursday abruptly terminated an agreement with Taiwan to open an office in the South American country, hours after China urged Georgetown to "correct their mistake." Taiwan's foreign ministry earlier on Thursday said it had signed an agreement with Guyana on Jan. 11 to open a Taiwan office, effectively a de facto embassy for the island that China claims as its sovereign territory with no right to diplomatic ties. Guyana's foreign ministry on Thursday afternoon said it was rolling back the agreement and that it continued to adhere to the "One China" policy.
WorldAssociated PressCrime, conflict, chaos crushing Afghan hopes for tomorrow
There's also been a string of targeted killings, like the bomb planted on the car of a prominent cleric that detonated Tuesday in the middle of busy morning traffic, killing him and his driver — one of four such bombings that day. The tensions are increased because it's not clear who is behind the attacks. Some are claimed by the Islamic State group, who took responsibility for the cleric's killing and the killing of a judge Wednesday in eastern Nangarhar province.
WorldAssociated PressGulf Arab states launch new restrictions over virus fears
Gulf Arab states on Thursday launched new restrictions over fears of the coronavirus resurging across their countries. With populations including largely young and healthy foreign laborers, many Gulf countries have avoided the higher death tolls seen elsewhere around the world. In Saudi Arabia, where authorities already have banned travel to the kingdom from 20 countries, including the U.S., officials also ordered all weddings and parties suspended.
WorldReutersTurkish minister says U.S. behind 2016 failed coup: Hurriyet
Turkey's interior minister accused the United States on Thursday of being behind a 2016 failed coup that Ankara has blamed on a U.S.-based Muslim preacher, the Hurriyet daily reported, at a time when Turkey is seeking improved ties with its NATO ally. The U.S. State Department said the accusation was "wholly false." More than 250 people were killed in the attempt to overthrow President Tayyip Erdogan and his government on July 15, 2016, when rogue soldiers commandeered warplanes, helicopters and tanks to seize state institutions.
WorldAssociated PressIsrael's Arab parties split in boost for Netanyahu
An alliance of Arab parties in Israel finalized its breakup on Thursday, setting up the possibility that a small Islamist party could hold the key to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remaining in office and avoiding prosecution on corruption charges. The Joint List, an alliance of four Arab parties that won a record 15 seats in elections held last year, finalized the split overnight in which three will run together and the United Arab List, an Islamist party led by parliament member Mansour Abbas, will strike out on its own. One of the main points of division was Abbas' openness to working with Netanyahu or other Israeli leaders to address longstanding issues like crime and housing in Israel's Arab community, which makes up around 20% of its population.
WorldReutersPalestinian cave-dwellers worry over Israeli settler incursions
Home for Palestinian Barakat Mour is a hillside cave in the West Bank, which he says is often under threat from Israeli settlers in the occupied territory. "You'll be sitting with your wife in the cave and the settlers will raid it without any notice," Mour, 60, told Reuters about his family's dwelling near the West Bank city of Hebron. The Israeli military said that in recent weeks "there have been several reports of friction between settlers and Palestinians in caves near the village of (At-Tuwani)" and that troops worked to "separate the participants and restore order".
WorldAssociated PressProminent Lebanese Hezbollah critic found killed in his car
A prominent Lebanese publisher and vocal critic of the Shiite militant Hezbollah group was found shot dead in his car on Thursday morning, a brazen killing that sparked fears of a return to political violence in this country gripped by social and economic upheaval. The body of 58-year-old Lokman Slim, a longtime Shiite political activist and researcher, was slumped over on the passenger seat with multiple wounds from gunshots fired at close range, security and forensic officials said. To his friends, Slim was a fearless critic of Lebanon's powerful politicians, Hezbollah and its allies Iran and Syria, and a major resource on the history of Lebanon's civil war.
U.S.Associated PressImmigrants in sanctuary in churches hope Biden offers relief
For over three years, Maria Macario has been too afraid to leave the white steepled First Parish church just outside Boston. The 55-year-old Guatemala native moved in to avoid deportation, living in a converted Sunday school classroom with a kitchenette. Gone are the regular church gatherings and volunteers stationed around the clock in case immigration officials come.
WorldReutersU.S. calls for dialogue to resolve India's farmers' protests
The U.S. embassy in New Delhi urged India's government on Thursday to resume talks with farmers whose months-long protests over agricultural reforms erupted into violence last week. India's Foreign Ministry said it had "taken note" of the comments and underlined ongoing efforts between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government and farmers groups to resolve the situation. "We encourage that any differences between the parties be resolved through dialogue," a U.S. embassy spokesperson said in a statement that also offered general support for the government's efforts to "improve the efficiency of India's markets and attract greater private sector investment".
LifestyleArchitectural Digest27 Best Desk Lamps to Brighten Up 2021
Let there be light Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
U.S.Business InsiderProsecutors seek new arrest warrant for Kyle Rittenhouse, whose whereabouts are unknown
Prosecutors in Wisconsin are demanding that Kyle Rittenhouse, the teenage vigilante charged with murdering two people at a Black Lives Matter protest, be arrested for failing to inform authorities of his whereabouts, which are currently unknown. Court records show that, on January 28, mail sent to Rittenhouse's stated address in Antioch, Illinois, was returned to sender. In a motion filed Wednesday, the Kenosha County District Attorney's office asks a judge to issue an arrest warrant for the defendant and increase his bail by $200,000 - bringing it to $2.2 million - for failing to provide his current address.
PoliticsAssociated PressDem-led House, drawing a line, kicks Greene off committees
A fiercely divided House tossed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene off both her committees Thursday, an unprecedented punishment that Democrats said she'd earned by spreading hateful and violent conspiracy theories. Underscoring the political vise her inflammatory commentary has clamped her party into, nearly all Republicans voted against the Democratic move but none defended her lengthy history of outrageous social media posts. The chamber's near party-line 230-199 vote was the latest instance of conspiracy theories becoming pitched political battlefields, an increasingly familiar occurrence during Donald Trump's presidency.
WorldAssociated PressIn thrice-demolished village, a Mideast battle of wills
This is what remains of the herding community of Khirbet Humsu in the occupied West Bank, after Israeli forces demolished it for the third time in as many months. On Wednesday, just minutes after the army left, Palestinian residents were at work repairing their fences — hoping to gather their sheep before dark, knowing the army might return the next day. We build it up and they tear it down,” said Waleed Abu al-Kbash as he stretched fencing between two posts.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBiden supports canceling $10,000 in student loan debt, but Democrats are calling on him to forgive $50,000 through executive action
Press Secretary Jen Psaki said he wants Congress to pass a bill and send it to his desk. Congressional Democrats are urging Biden to forgive $50,000 per borrower through executive action. President Joe Biden supports relieving some federal student loan debt to help tackle the economic crisis caused by COVID-19, but congressional Democrats are urging him to raise the bar.
PoliticsReutersSpecial Report: Stolen election? Republican lawmakers paralyzed by Trump's false fraud claims
On Jan. 6, right after the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, 147 Republican lawmakers voted the way then-president Donald Trump and the rioters had demanded - to overturn his election loss, after months of Trump's baseless claims that the election had been stolen. Fully 133 of those lawmakers, or 90%, are now declining to either endorse or repudiate Trump's continuing insistence that he was cheated by systemic voter fraud, according to a Reuters survey of all 147 lawmakers and a review of public statements they made to explain their votes against certifying the Electoral College results. Just two of those lawmakers told Reuters they believed the election was stolen through fraud; two others who did not respond to repeated inquiries made similar public statements previously.
HealthAssociated PressUS virus deaths surpass 450K; daily toll is stubbornly high
Coronavirus deaths in the United States surpassed 450,000 on Thursday, and daily deaths remain stubbornly high at more than 3,000 a day, despite falling infections and the arrival of multiple vaccines. Infectious disease specialists expect deaths to start dropping soon, after new cases hit a peak right around the beginning of the year. New COVID-19 deaths could ebb as early as next week, said the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
PoliticsBusiness Insider'She doesn't answer to you': Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's staffer scolds reporters ahead of her vote to be stripped from committees
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Thursday ignored questions from reporters after she gave a speech on the House floor about her past support on social media for conspiracy theories and political violence. The Georgia Republican, who is likely to be stripped from her committees in an upcoming House vote, has repeatedly dodged speaking with the press this week.
PoliticsReutersTrump rejects call to testify at his impeachment trial
Former President Donald Trump's lawyers on Thursday rejected a request from Democrats to testify at his impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate next week, dismissing their invitation as a "public relations stunt." Democrats in the House of Representatives accuse Trump of inciting insurrection when he urged supporters to "fight" his election defeat before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, fought with police and sent lawmakers scrambling for safety. In an open letter, Trump's attorneys, Bruce Castor and David Schoen, called the request a "public relations stunt."
“We need to reverse this catastrophic choice to keep kids at home by ensuring the health and safety of our teachers.”
“It is decades of disinvestment in the public education of our most vulnerable students that’s keeping students out of classrooms.”
“We ultimately have to choose: bars and gyms or schools and daycares? Choose wisely.”
“Labor groups are continuing to flex their political muscle, most often pushing for a more conservative approach.”
“The terrible and mounting toll of the pandemic has caused positions to harden on both sides of the reopening debate.”