U.S.NextSharkBoy Killed By Father After Vaccination Dispute in Heartbreaking Murder-Suicide in SF
A boy who was killed in an alleged murder-suicide by his father has been identified as 9-year-old Pierce O'Loughlin. Family tragedy: The boy and his father, Stephen O'Loughlin, 49, were both found dead at their home on Scott Street, Marina District in San Francisco on Wednesday afternoon, SF Chronicle reports. The boy's mother, Lesley Hu, asked authorities to check on her son after learning that he did not show up for school that day.
PoliticsThe IndependentBidens will be greeted to White House by former Trump hotel worker in historic snub by president
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania are eschewing the tradition of meeting the incoming first family – instead leaving Joe and Jill Biden to be greeted by White House chief usher Timothy Harleth. Traditionally, the outgoing president and first lady invite their successors into the White House for coffee ahead of the inauguration and travel to the ceremony together. Indeed, Mr and Mrs Trump were hosted by former president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama following a bitterly fought election campaign that saw Mr Trump lambast the Obama administration.
U.S.The WeekFar-right extremists have reportedly discussed posing as National Guard members in D.C.
The FBI on Monday shared with law enforcement agencies an intelligence report warning that far-right extremists have talked about going to D.C. for the inauguration and posing as National Guard members, The Washington Post reports. The Post obtained a copy of the document, which said "lone wolves" and QAnon followers — including some who participated in the mob that stormed the Capitol earlier this month — have indicated they intend on traveling to Washington for the inauguration. The report also said people have been observed downloading and distributing maps of sensitive locations in D.C.
PoliticsAxiosDominion sends cease and desist letter to My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell
Dominion Voting Systems on Monday sent a cease and desist letter to My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell over his spread of misinformation related to the 2020 election. Why it matters: Trump and several of his allies have pushed false conspiracy theories about the company, leading Dominion to take legal action. It's suing pro-Trump lawyer Sydney Powell for defamation and $1.3 billion in damages, and a Dominion employee has sued Trump himself, OANN and Newsmax.
U.S.The TelegraphWoman who 'took laptop' from Pelosi's office in Capitol riot 'planned to sell it to Russian spies'
A woman identified as having taken part in the storming of the US Capitol is accused of stealing a laptop belonging to top Democrat Nancy Pelosi which she hoped to sell to a Russian spy agency, according to the FBI. There is no indication Riley June Williams, a 22-year-old careworker from Pennsylvania, took a laptop from Ms Pelosi's office. The FBI, which is working off a tip, said in the court record the "matter remains under investigation."
PoliticsTheGrioRep. Cohen admits he saw Boebert giving tour before Capitol riot
During an interview, he recalls his colleague 'taking a group of people for a tour sometime after the 3rd and before the 6th.' Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) revealed he witnessed Congresswoman Lauren Boebert leading a group through the Capitol building in the days before the riot. “We saw Congressman Boebert taking a group of people for a tour sometime after the 3rd and before the 6th,” Cohen remarked on CNN.
PoliticsNational ReviewLindsey Graham Warns That Pardoning Capitol Rioters Would ‘Destroy’ Trump
Senator Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) on Sunday advised the president not to grant presidential pardons to the rioters who stormed the Capitol this month, warning that doing so would “destroy” Trump. “There are a lot of people urging the president to pardon folks who participated in defiling the Capitol, the rioters,” Graham continued. On Wednesday, a large group of Trump supporters overpowered Capitol Police and forced their way into the halls of Congress.
WorldAxiosThe WHO warns of "catastrophic moral failure" over coronavirus vaccine access
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned Monday the world is "on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure" because of unequal COVID-19 vaccine distribution. Why it matters: Tedros noted during an executive session that 39 million vaccine doses had been administered in 49 higher-income countries, while one lowest-income nation had "just 25 doses." Of note: The WHO itself faced criticism in an interim report on Monday for being slow to respond to the outbreak after it was first detected in late 2019 in China, which was also singled out for failings early on.
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Congresswoman's spokesman quits less than 2 weeks into term
The spokesman for Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert has quit less than two weeks after she was sworn into office, saying he felt like he need to due to the insurrection at the nation's Capitol.
HealthThe TelegraphPfizer vaccine may prevent transmission of coronavirus to others, Israeli study suggests
Pfizer vaccine recipients are unlikely to transmit the virus to others, according to the author of an Israeli study. Participants in the survey developed up to 20 times more antibodies within a week of receiving the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. The survey, which reviewed data from 102 of about 1,000 of the Sheba Medical Centre's medical staff who have received both shots, showed that only two subjects have developed low amounts of antibodies - one of the subjects suffered from a compromised immune system.
U.S.The IndependentWoman arrested at DC checkpoint after telling police she is an officer and cabinet member
A woman has become the second known person to be arrested at a Washington DC checkpoint put in place for Joe Biden's inauguration, after telling officers she was one of them. Authorities said 63 year-old Linda Magovern was arrested on Saturday near Union Station after she showed police a military challenge coin – used by service members to prove they had been on active duty. According to NBC News, she went on to say that she was “a part of the presidential cabinet” as well as a member of the police.
PoliticsThe GuardianTrump administration to deport man to Haiti who has never been there
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) is to carry out a final deportation flight of the Trump era on Tuesday, with a plane bound for Haiti whose passengers include a man who is not a Haitian citizen, and who has never been there. Paul Pierrilus, a 40-year-old financial consultant from Rockland County, New York, was born in the French Caribbean territory of Saint Martin, according to a birth certificate supplied by his family, who said he came to the US with his parents when he was five. According to his sister, Neomie, he was seized when he went to an immigration office on Federal Plaza in Manhattan on 11 January, for what he thought would be a routine visit.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump news – Armed groups dwarfed by security at state capitals as president’s approval at new low
President Donald Trump's approval rating has plummeted to an all-time low as the US leader prepares to exit the White House. In the wake of the deadly Capitol riots on 6 January, the president has seen his approval rating dive, with the change in perception being largely among Republicans. The worst polling came from Pew Research Center, which found Mr Trump's disapproval rating to be at 68 per cent, with his approval rating falling to 29 per cent, the lowest yet, in a poll of 5,360 adults conducted between 8-12 January.
HealthINSIDERA plastic surgeon died from COVID-19 after giving lip filler to a patient who later tested positive for the virus
Well-known Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Payman Simoni died on Friday from a brain hemorrhage potentially related to COVID-19. Simoni, who appeared on the television show "The Doctors," may have contracted the virus from a patient while giving her lip injections. Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Payman Simoni died from a brain hemorrhage on Friday after testing positive for coronavirus, his longtime friend Katy Amiri-Younesi told CBS News.
U.S.Business InsiderThe man accused of breaking the window Ashli Babbitt tried to climb through when she was shot during the Capitol insurrection has been arrested
Chad Barrett Jones, 42, of Coxs Creek, Kentucky, was arrested in Louisville on Saturday, the FBI said in a news release. Jones is accused of breaking a window of the Capitol building moments before Ashli Babbitt was fatally shot during the insurrection earlier this month. He's facing multiple charges, including assault on a federal officer, destruction of government property, obstruction of justice, unlawful entry on restricted building or grounds, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
PoliticsThe IndependentBill Barr told Trump that ‘clownish’ legal team was lying to him about ‘bull***’ voter fraud claims, reports say
President Trump's former Attorney General Bill Barr called Mr Trump's legal team "clownish" and the president's claims that the election had been stolen from him "bull****," according to reporting by Axios. This was during a December meeting in the White House that Mr Trump had asked Mr Barr to attend after seeing a story by the Associated Press that quoted Mr Barr as saying "we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election". Mr Barr had been one of the most loyal members of Mr Trump's administration, supporting his executive power at every turn and spinning the release of the Mueller report on Russian interference in the 2016 election in the best way possible for the president.
WorldThe IndependentFlight passenger who assisted dying man with Covid-19 says he was given $200 credit for ‘inconvenience’
An emergency medical technician who administered CPR on a fellow passenger on a United Airlines flight said that the $200 voucher and phone call he received from the airline for the "inconvenience" felt like a "slap in the face". The passenger later died of Covid-19, causing Tony Aldapa to fear that he had contracted the virus after experiencing symptoms, Fox News reported. Mr Aldapa was one of three passengers who helped a man experiencing a medical emergency on the Orlando to Los Angeles flight on 14 December.
U.S.TheGrioWhat happens when white Americans have no moral arc to bend?
On May 10, 1967, while facing growing white backlash for demanding an end to the Vietnam War, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke to America's greatest shame and Black Americans' most significant burden — racial injustice. Read More: 7 inconvenient truths white people must understand about Martin Luther King Jr. Today, as many are celebrating the life and legacy of King on what would have been his 92nd birthday, many are also still incensed at the white insurrectionist attacks at the Capitol that occurred just two weeks ago.
PoliticsINSIDERDonald Trump Jr. reportedly told associates he doesn't believe he'll need a presidential pardon from his father
Donald Trump Jr. has reportedly told associates that he isn't expecting a pardon from his father and doesn't think he needs one. President Donald Trump is expected to hand out at least a hundred pardons before the end of his term at noon on Wednesday, and for the past several months, pundits have questioned whether he'll put himself and family members on the list. Trump Jr. hasn't been charged with any crimes, but was under intense scrutiny during the Mueller investigation into his family's ties with Russia.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderCuomo asked Pfizer to sell its COVID-19 vaccine directly to New York, as the head of the WHO warns of mounting inequities in vaccine distribution
On Monday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called on pharmaceutical company Pfizer to sell doses of its coronavirus vaccine directly to New York state. The proposal to work directly with New York's state government would require Pfizer to bypass the federal government's Operation Warp Speed campaign to vaccinate hundreds of millions of Americans. "The distribution of any doses obtained directly from Pfizer will follow the rigorous guidance the State has established, while enabling us to fill the dosage gap created this week by the outgoing federal administration," Cuomo wrote in a letter to Pfizer.
HealthBusiness InsiderAll 4 nurses in a Kansas county's health department refused to give out COVID-19 vaccines
All four nurses in one Kansas county's health department refused to give patients COVID-19 vaccines. The health department administrator shared debunked vaccine misinformation as part of their reasoning. The county will contract with other nurses to distribute the vaccine.
U.S.INSIDERA National Guard member in DC for the inauguration is pulling double duty as a band elementary school teacher in between guard shifts
A National Guard member, who is currently in Washington DC as security for Inauguration Day, has managed to do double duty as a teacher during breaks in service, the Washington Post reported. Sgt. Jacob Kohut is a band teacher who teaches elementary and middle schoolers from a Humvee on Zoom, according to WTOP News. "The last thing these students need is a disruption in their teaching," Kohut told the Washington Post.
PoliticsThe IndependentBlack Lives Matter protesters near White House have one final message for Trump – you should be arrested
Karen did not have to think too long about the message she wanted to send to Donald Trump. Yes, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were set to take over, and perhaps correct course. Karen, who asked to be identified by just her first name and who said she was part of a group called “The Resistance”, was among a handful of protesters at Black Lives Matter plaza, a city street close to the White House that was established and named last year amid demonstrations for racial justice that swept the country.
HealthBusiness InsiderFauci predicts that people will be able to go back to singing in church by mid-fall, when an 'overwhelming proportion' of the US has been vaccinated
Church services that resemble pre-coronavirus worship should resume in mid-fall, Dr. Anthony Fauci predicted Monday. Churches have been the sites of super-spreader events, since the virus spreads easily indoors when people are speaking loudly or singing in close quarters. Dr. Anthony Fauci predicts church services - with hugging, praising, and music-making - will be able to resume safely in mid-fall, if the US vaccinates people "appropriately, effectively, and efficiently."
U.S.INSIDERA man who lived at a Chicago airport for 3 months before being discovered said he was too scared to fly because of COVID-19, prosecutors say
A 36-year-old California man lived at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport for three months before being discovered, according to multiple reports. Prosecutors said the man arrived at O'Hare from Los Angeles in October, but told police he was too scared to fly because of COVID-19. He was discovered Saturday when two United Airlines employees asked him for identification and he displayed a badge that had been reported missing in October.
“If you’re looking to win elections, it is probably best not to urge your supporters not to vote.”
“Warnock’s portrayal of himself as a dog lover, a means of overcoming white suspicions of Black men, smacked of pure genius.”
“Trump has done damage to the Republican brand among suburban voters that goes well beyond just races where he is on the ballot.”
“Once more, Democrats must profusely thank activist Stacey Abrams.”
“Overall, demographic trends show that the state’s electorate is becoming younger and more diverse each year.”