PoliticsNational ReviewPerdue Changes Course, Won’t Run for U.S. Senate in Georgia in 2022
Former Senator David Perdue (R., Ga.) announced Tuesday that he will not enter the race for U.S. Senate in Georgia next year, one week after filing paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to be a candidate. “This is a personal decision, not a political one,” Perdue said in a statement. “I am confident that whoever wins the Republican Primary next year will defeat the Democrat candidate in the General election for this seat, and I will do everything I can to make that happen.”
PoliticsThe GuardianBiden is already backtracking on his promises to provide student debt relief
Biden absolutely has the legal authority to use executive power to cancel all federal student debt. Congress granted this authority decades ago as part of the Higher Education Act. It's even been put to the test: in response to the Covid pandemic, Donald Trump and his former education secretary, Betsy DeVos, used that authority three times to suspend payments and student loan interest.
WorldReutersChina approves two more domestic COVID-19 vaccines, increasing number to four
China's National Medical Products Administration said on Thursday that it had approved two more COVID-19 vaccines for public use, increasing the number of domestic vaccines approved in China to four. The two newly approved vaccines are made by CanSino Biologics Inc and Wuhan Institute of Biological Products, an affiliate of China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm). They join a vaccine from Sinovac Biotech approved earlier this month, and another from Sinopharm's Beijing unit approved last year.
CelebrityThe IndependentWho is Heidi Cruz? The high-powered Goldman Sachs executive and wife to ‘disgraced’ Texas senator Ted Cruz
Heidi Cruz, the wife of Texas senator Ted Cruz, is reportedly on the hunt for the neighbour who leaked her text messages about their much criticised trip to Cancun during a snow-storm that left thousands without heat or electricity. “Ritz Carlton Cancun $309 plus tax,” she allegedly wrote in messages passed to The New York Times last week, that demonstrated the family was planning to violate government guidelines and the recommendations of her own husband. In 2000, when the pair met whilst working on George W Bush's presidential campaign before marrying the next year and moving into government positions, Heidi Nelson wasn't necessarily destined to be window dressing to someone else's ambitions.
- PoliticsAssociated Press
Virginia GOP to choose nominees at convention in Lynchburg
Virginia Republicans have opted to hold an in-person convention at Liberty University in May to choose their nominee for governor, again rejecting an effort to hold a more inclusive firehouse primary. Liberty University officials, though, threw some cold water on the idea Friday. Party officials said at a virtual meeting Tuesday night they will make accommodations to ensure their convention does not violate pandemic restrictions against mass gatherings, and that participants could stay in their car and vote.
TechnologyConsumer ReportsThe Best Ways to Block Robocalls
For Android phones: To turn on Block Calls From Unidentified Callers, tap the phone icon usually found at the bottom of your home screen > at top right corner of the screen, tap the three dots > tap Settings > tap Blocked Numbers > enable Block Calls From Unidentified Callers by tapping the toggle switch on the right. Google's Pixel phones: These smartphones have a tool called Call Screen that's built in and works automatically. When you receive a call from any number, you can tap Screen Call on your home screen and Google Assistant will answer it for you and ask the caller to identify theirself and the reason for calling.
PoliticsReutersU.S. Senate confirms Tom Vilsack as Biden's agriculture secretary
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Tom Vilsack to head the Department of Agriculture, returning the former Iowa governor to the job he held under ex-President Barack Obama. The 100-member Senate approved Vilsack 92-7. As secretary of the sprawling department, Vilsack will oversee about 100,000 employees responsible for food stamps, crop insurance, land conservation and other missions at a time U.S. farmers are benefiting from high soybean and corn prices but hunger is on the rise throughout America.
PoliticsThe Independent‘Zero respect’: Ted Cruz pictured scrolling through phone during harrowing opening testimony into Capitol riot
Texas senator Ted Cruz has been filmed scrolling through his phone during the harrowing opening testimony at the Senate hearing into the Capitol riots, less than a week after his controversial trip to Mexico. The US Capitol's three former top security officials have been testifying on Tuesday before the Senate Homeland Security and Rules committees about how Congress was breached during the riots on 6 January. Steven Sund, who was serving as the chief of the Capitol Police at the time of the insurrection, gave a harrowing account of the actions of that day in front of the committees on Tuesday.
BusinessBBCNpower app attack exposed customers' bank details
Energy firm Npower has closed down its app following an attack that exposed some customers' financial and personal information. "We've contacted all affected customers to make them aware of the issue, encouraging them to change their passwords and offering advice on how to prevent unauthorised access to their online account." It also advised customers to change passwords on other accounts if using the same one.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden nominee Neera Tanden’s tweet about Joe Manchin’s daughter may come back to haunt her
Neera Tanden, Joe Biden's nominee to head the Office of Management and Budget, previously criticised Democratic Senator Joe Manchin's daughter, a slight that might factor into whether or not she is confirmed for the position. Ms Tanden tweeted an image of an article about Mr Manchin's daughter, Heather Bresch, taking aim at a significant increase in her pay while she was CEO of Mylan. In the tweet, Ms Tanden pointed out that the company's board was justifying the pay raise by saying Ms Bresch had "contributed significantly to the company's growth in recent years".
BusinessReutersExclusive: Ant investor Boyu Capital targets $6 billion for new private equity fund: sources
Chinese private equity firm Boyu Capital, an investor in Chinese technology titans including billionaire Jack Ma's Ant Group, is raising a new, China-focused fund targeting as much as $6 billion, three people with knowledge of the matter said. Boyu did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The fundraising by a firm widely associated with tech startups amounts to a high-profile test of investor appetite at a time when heightened oversight of China's tech giants clouds the near-term outlook of those companies.
U.S.INSIDERChristopher Cantwell, known as 'The Crying Nazi,' sentenced to 41 months in prison on extortion charges
Christopher Cantwell, known as "The Crying Nazi," was convicted on a felony charge. The Keene, New Hampshire, man was sentenced to 41 months in prison. Christopher Cantwell, who was dubbed the "The Crying Nazi" following the 2017 "Unite the Right" rally, was sentenced to 41 months in prison on Wednesday after being convicted on charges of extortion and threatening rape.
PoliticsThe IndependentAngry Democrat Gerry Connolly tells Trump ally he ‘will not be lectured’ by someone who tried to overturn election
Virginia Democratic Representative Gerry Connolly blasted Ohio Republican Representative and staunch Trump ally Jim Jordan, telling him during a hearing on the postal service that he "will not be lectured" about partisanship by people who voted to overturn the election. The hearing before the House Oversight Committee included questioning of the president of the American Postal Workers Union Mark Dimondstein and the Postmaster-General, Trump appointee Louis DeJoy. Mr Jordan defended Mr DeJoy who he argued had been unfairly criticised by Democrats during the lead-up to the 2020 election, saying: "They accused you of things, they said you were restricting overtime - False.
BusinessBusiness InsiderTexas Lt. Gov. says that people getting huge energy bills 'gambled on a very, very low rate' - but suggests they won't have to pay the full amount
Texas Lt. Gov, Dan Patrick said that Texans getting huge energy bills took a gamble and lost. In Texas, some energy deals are linked to wholesale prices, exposing consumer to sudden spikes. After last week's devastating storm, some Texans faced energy bills as high as $16,000.
- WorldWABC – NY
Woman grabbed from behind, attacked at NYC subway station
The victim's daughter says her mother is still too shaken up to speak about the attack publicly.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestNo Need to Call an Architect—These 9 Room Dividers Elegantly Get the Job Done
From ornate to subtle, these beautiful screens double as functional art Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
TechnologyBBCApple users targeted by 'mysterious' malware
About 30,000 Mac devices have been infected with a mysterious piece of malware. It was discovered by researchers at security company Red Canary, who have yet to determine its purpose. Apple says it has taken steps to restrict the potential damage the malware, which targets devices with its new M1 chip, could cause.
U.S.Fort Worth Star-TelegramJPS worked to get COVID-19 vaccines out during winter storm, but hundreds expired
More than 300 COVID-19 vaccines in Tarrant County went to waste due to the winter storm that left millions in the state without electricity. As temperatures dropped and power went out in North Texas, John Peter Smith Hospital hustled to get as many shots in arms as possible. At the Diamond Hill Health Center, an outage left hundreds of doses at risk of squandering.
U.S.The IndependentFox anchor suspended after saying he was ‘annoyed’ at obese people getting Covid vaccine
A Fox news station suspended its anchor following social media outrage for his tweet expressing annoyance over obese people getting the Covid-19 vaccine on priority. Blake McCoy made the controversial remark on Tuesday afternoon and later deleted his tweet, issuing an apology for his “insensitive and offensive” comment. “I'm annoyed obese people of all ages get priority vaccine access before all essential workers,” he said in the now-deleted tweet.
U.S.Business InsiderAn ex-girlfriend tipped off the FBI about an alleged US Capitol rioter after he called her a 'moron'
Richard Michetti has been charged with entering restricted grounds at the US Capitol. The Pennsylvania man was turned in by his ex-girlfriend after he called her a 'moron'. A Pennsylvania man was outed by his ex-girlfriend after trying to stop Congress from recognizing President Joe Biden's election victory, according to court documents.
U.S.Miami HeraldWhen and where will millions of mosquitoes be released? Here are details for Florida Keys
The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District announced this week a wide and vague planned range of deployment for the lab-designed mosquitoes — neighborhoods from mile marker 10 to 93. The trial is being conducted by British biotech company Oxitec. It's a method approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the state of Florida, and the mosquito control district's five-member board, to try to eradicate or significantly reduce the local population of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderA close associate of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene participated in the Capitol riots, according to a report
Conservative activist Anthony Aguero posted on social media saying he had been among the mob that entered the Capitol building. Aguero said in a January 7 video that it was "Trump supporters" who stormed the Capitol. An ally whom Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene described as "one of my closest friends" admitted to participating in the Capitol riots on January 6, CNN's KFile reported.
WorldINSIDERA Chinese couple paid $155,000 in fees to have 7 children in violation of the country's 2-child policy
A Chinese couple has paid $155,000 in fees in order to have seven children in violation of the law that limits couples to having two children, Mandy Zuo reported for the South China Morning Post. Zhang Rongrong, a 34-year-old businesswoman, and her 39-year-old husband have five boys and two girls between one and 14 years old, Zhang told the Post. In flouting China's two-child policy, the couple had to pay their local government "social support fees."
- ScienceReuters Videos
Wild sheep freed from his own wool
This wild sheep had a much-needed shearing relieving him of over 78 lbs of fleece That's nearly half the weight of an adult kangaroo Baarack Location: Lancefield, Australia Rescuers say he used to have an owner but was found wandering in a forest Baarack is now settling in with other rescued sheep in a farm sanctuary
U.S.The Daily BeastTeen Accused of Killing Disabled Sister as Parents Slept
Claire Elaina Miller, 14, has been charged with homicide after calling authorities on Feb. 22 to admit she stabbed her older sister, 19-year-old Helen Miller, while her parents were asleep, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's office. According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by The Daily Beast, the Manheim Township Police Department arrived at the home just after 1 a.m. to find Miller, a ninth-grader at a local private school, standing in front of the house close to “what appeared to be blood on the snow near the driveway.”
“How about we skip ‘he won’t win’ cycle and not do 2016 all over again. Trump can absolutely win another presidential election.”
“With independents deserting him, there is simply no path for Trump to get back into the White House — except as a tourist.”
“They might as well cancel the 2024 primaries...because there is no way he can lose.”
“The next Republican presidential primary will be heavily shaped by Trump — whether or not he decides to run again.”
“Donald Trump will not be running for president again. He will, however, continue to tease the possibility of a 2024 run.”