U.S.The IndependentLocal newspapers turn on Lauren Boebert as 68 state politicians demand investigation into Capitol riot role
The demand for an investigation into Lauren Boebert gained traction after 68 elected officials from Colorado wrote to House speaker Nancy Pelosi, condemning the representative's alleged association with “right-wing groups that supported the insurrection of Capitol Building." Ms Boebert is the representative for Colorado's third congressional district in Congress. “We have heard overwhelmingly from our constituents, therefore her constituents, that there is deep concern about her actions leading up to and during the protests that turned into a violent deadly mob," said the letter signed by officials, including mayors, county commissioners and town council members, reported the Steamboat Pilot & Today newspaper.
U.S.Associated PressWhite Army vet charged in shooting Black girl at Trump rally
A white military veteran shot and wounded a 15-year-old girl when he fired his gun into a car carrying four Black teenagers during a tense confrontation at a rally in support of President Donald Trump near the Iowa Capitol last month. Michael McKinney, 25, is charged with attempted murder in the Dec. 6 shooting in Des Moines. McKinney, who was heavily armed and wearing body armor, told police he fired the shot in self-defense.
PoliticsNextSharkGeorgia's First Vietnamese American State Rep Wears Áo Dài to Swear-In
Bee Nguyen, Georgia's first Vietnamese American state representative, donned an áo dài to her swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday. Regarded as the most popular national costume of Vietnam, the áo dài for women is a long dress with a contoured top that flows over loose-fitting trousers that reach the sole of the feet. Nguyen, 39, decided to wear the garment in response to the Capitol siege on Jan. 6, in which rioters carried the South Vietnamese flag.
PoliticsThe WeekThe White House said it was unlocking a vaccine reserve — but it was reportedly already empty
A reserve of second-dose COVID-19 vaccines set to be repurposed as first doses is already empty, state and federal officials briefed on distribution plans tell The Washington Post. Both the coronavirus vaccines currently authorized in the U.S. require two doses to be fully effective. Amid a massive demand for more doses, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar announced earlier this week that the department would begin doling out those reserved doses to more people, saying increased production speed would make up for the soon-to-be-depleted reserve.
WorldReutersDo not break with Merkel, Bavarian leader warns before CDU leadership vote
Breaking with Chancellor Angela Merkel's policies is not the way to win Germany's federal election in September, the leader of her Bavarian sister party said as her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) prepares to elect a new leader on Saturday. Merkel, who steps down after September's elections, is heading into the last months of her tenure with her conservative CDU squabbling over how to position the party following 15 years of rule marked by her instinct to compromise. Markus Soeder, leader of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the CDU's Bavarian sister party, said it would be a mistake to break with her popular brand of politics, which is consensus orientated and centrist.
U.S.Associated PressWisconsin teen charged with killing infant daughter in woods
A 16-year-old boy has admitted fatally shooting his newborn daughter and leaving her body inside a fallen tree in the woods in southern Wisconsin, according to prosecutors. Logan Kruckenburg-Anderson, of Albany, is charged as an adult with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse. According to a criminal complaint, the teen took the infant shortly after she was born Jan. 5 to a wooded area in Albany, about 80 miles (129 kilometers) southwest of Milwaukee, placed her inside a fallen tree and shot her twice in the head.
U.S.TheGrioBiden nominates Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to DNC post
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has been nominated by President-elect Joe Biden as a vice chair of the Democratic National Committee. In the role, Bottoms would be in charge of civic engagement and voter protection. Mayor Bottoms is the only Mayor in Atlanta's history to have served in all three branches of government, serving as a judge and City Councilmember before being sworn in as Mayor,” the DNC said in press release Thursday night.
PoliticsThe WeekPence has reportedly called Harris to offer congratulations for the 1st time
Less than a week before the inauguration, Vice President Mike Pence has reportedly called Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to offer his congratulations. Pence and Harris spoke over the phone Thursday, with Pence congratulating the incoming vice president and offering "his belated assistance," The New York Times reported on Friday and The Associated Press confirmed. This is the first time Pence and Harris have spoken since their debate in October, and the call was "described as gracious and pleasant," the Times writes.
U.S.The WeekSecret Service reportedly had to use Obama's bathroom after being barred from Ivanka Trump's
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have spent the past few years living in a six bedroom, 6.5 bathroom rented home in Washington, D.C.'s exclusive Kalorama neighborhood. The family could count high-profile officials and even one former president among their neighbors — as well as their own Secret Service detail, who had to rent a nearby apartment to use the bathroom because they weren't allowed inside the Kushner-Trump home, neighbors and law enforcement sources tell The Washington Post. It's not unusual for Secret Service agents to stay out of the typically expansive homes they're guarding, instead using a garage or auxiliary building as their home base, the Post notes.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump administration staffers reportedly getting snubbed while looking for new jobs
Trump administration staff are reportedly getting snubbed for jobs, amid the fallout of the end of Donald Trump's presidency and the Capitol riots. After a mob of pro-Trump rioters stormed the US Capitol last week, several businesses turned on the Trump Organisation, as New York City announced on Thursday that it was ending all ties with the company. The rioters attacked the Capitol after attending a rally led by Mr Trump, who urged supporters to “walk down to the Capitol” and told them: “You have to show strength, and you have to be strong.”
U.S.TheGrioCapitol officer Eugene Goodman must not fade into history — it’s happened before
However, I'm actually talking about another Black man who saved Democracy, Frank Wills, who stopped the 1972 Watergate break-in, which changed the course of American history. Yet for such a momentous accomplishment, Wills died relatively unknown and penniless, while others, almost entirely white men, came to fame and fortune from the Watergate scandal. Black people are often praised as heroes for saving a country that treats us like third-class citizens, yet when it comes to the fame, fortune, even historical reverence associated with those great deeds, we're left by the wayside.
U.S.Business InsiderTucker Carlson mocks Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for thinking she might die during the Capitol riot in which 5 people died
Fox News primetime host Tucker Carlson lashed out at one of his favorite targets on Thursday night: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Carlson mocked the Democrat's claim that many lawmakers and staffers "narrowly escaped death" during the violent riot, during which five people died and dozens of police officers were injured. "When the most harrowing thing you've done in life is pass freshman sociology at Boston University, every day is a brand new drama," Carlson said.
BusinessPoliticoTax filing season start delayed until Feb. 12
Tax filing season won't start until Feb. 12 to give the IRS more time to adjust to changes Congress made late last year in the tax code and the second round of coronavirus-related stimulus payments lawmakers approved, the agency said Friday. Filing usually starts in January, and the delay "allows the IRS time to do additional programming and testing of IRS systems following the Dec. 27 tax law changes that provided a second round of Economic Impact Payments and other benefits," the agency said in a statement. Urging electronic filing: The IRS said it anticipates 9 out of 10 taxpayers will get their refunds within 21 days of when they file — if they file electronically, have direct deposit of their payments and there are no issues with their return.
- ScienceReuters Videos
Peru's 'Paddington' bears spotted at Machu Picchu
A couple of spectacled bears, mother and cub, were seen wandering around the ruins of Machu Picchu on Wednesday (January 14), taking advantage of the ruins that are largely free from large tourist numbers. Video footage of the pair was taken by worker from Peru's Culture Ministry at the empty looking ruins. Spectacled bears, also known as the Andean bear, are the only surviving species of bear native to South America.
PoliticsThe Daily BeastPeyote-Loving ‘QAnon Shaman’ Vowed to Attend Inauguration, Left Chilling Note for Pence: Docs
The so-called QAnon Shaman who stormed the U.S. Capitol last week in Viking garb before sitting in Vice President Mike Pence's chair on the Senate dais admitted to federal agents he intended to return to D.C. to “protest” President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. “I'll still go, you better believe it,” Jacob Chansley bragged in an interview with FBI agents the day after the violent insurrection. The admission by Chansley, also known as Jake Angeli, is one of several that prosecutors detailed in an 18-page detention memo arguing for the 33-year-old Arizona man to be held before trial.
PoliticsThe WeekMelania Trump is reportedly more than ready to leave the White House
First lady Melania Trump is spending her final days in the White House packing, making photo albums, and counting down the minutes until she can move out, CNN reports. Since November, she has been overseeing the Trump family's move, deciding what will go to Mar-a-Lago in Florida and what will go into storage. With the help of White House staffers, she has been doing this stealthily, as to not upset President Trump — the official told CNN he really didn't think they would be moving, and it's a sensitive subject.
U.S.USA TODAY'Do you need help?': Florida restaurant manager's note helps child escape 'torture,' police say
A four-word note was all Flaviane Carvalho needed to help a child out of a dangerous situation. Carvalho, a Florida restaurant manager who was working as a server on New Year's Day, saw a small child with bruises on his face and arms sitting at the table she waited on, according to the Orlando Police Department. “Do you need help?” Carvalho wrote in black on a piece of paper, holding the note out of view of the child's parents.
EntertainmentArchitectural DigestMore Inside Artist Jorge Pardo's Transformed Bushwick Carriage House
When it came to the lighting in his home, Pardo drew inspiration from the insides of fruits, nuts, and seeds, as well as sea creatures and machine parts. Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump is back in contact with Steve Bannon and ‘asking him how to overturn election’
Donald Trump is reportedly back in touch with his former chief strategist Steve Bannon who he has been speaking to several times over the phone in the recent weeks, seeking advice on how to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential elections. Mr Bannon is considered one of the main architects of Mr Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and had joined him as an adviser in the White House after the elections. Mr Bannon quit the position in August 2017 after he fell from the good books of the president due to a controversy related to his book.
- NewsFOX News Videos
Biden unveils $1.9T COVID-19 relief package with $1,400 checks
President-elect announces plans for additional economic relief to help those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
HealthBusiness InsiderThere are no extra COVID-19 vaccines doses left to send to states, despite Trump's health officials promising to release more 3 days ago
Federal officials promised earlier this week to stop stockpiling second doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, and instead use them to get more people their first shots. That statement prompted many states to open up vaccine distribution to a wider swath of the public this week. But a new report from the Washington Post says that the government hasn't actually been holding back any vaccines for second doses, and they've already been sent out.
PoliticsUSA TODAYFreshman GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville: Biden inauguration should have been delayed because of COVID-19
Days before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said the event should have been postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, even though Jan. 20 is enshrined in the Constitution as the date for the transfer of presidential power. The Constitution's 20th Amendment requires that the terms of a new president and vice president begin “at noon on the 20th day of January.” Tuberville, a freshman who was sworn into office Jan. 3, was one of six Republican senators who objected on Jan. 6 to the affirmation by Congress of Biden's Electoral College win – a vote that took place hours after a violent pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol.
PoliticsThe IndependentCan Trump officials take souvenirs? White House aides slammed over ‘illegal’ removal of government artwork
A top aide to President Donald Trump was seen leaving the White House with a large framed photograph, stirring controversy as former officials alleged that the move was “illegal” and said the artwork belonged to the National Archives. Peter Navarro, a top trade official in the Trump administration, was photographed by a Reuters journalist leaving the White House grounds earlier this week with the image of Mr Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. It is not immediately clear whether or not Mr Navarro paid the US government for the photograph before removing it from the White House.
PoliticsUSA TODAYThe members of Congress who objected to Joe Biden's Electoral College win amid Capitol riot
With President Donald Trump continuing to erroneously claim he won the election in the lead-up to Jan. 6, several Republican allies planned to fight the results when Congress met to formally count the votes of the Electoral College. States had already certified their Electoral College results, and Biden secured the election with 306 votes to Trump's 232. In the next step of the certification process, the Constitution requires both chambers of Congress to meet before the inauguration to count the electoral votes from every state.
PoliticsTheGrioTrump struggling to find legal team as impeachment trial approaches
Outgoing President Donald Trump is having a hard time finding representation for his upcoming impeachment trial. Experts are claiming that many attorneys don't want an affiliation with Trump because it may tarnish their own business reputation in the future. They also say it will be a challenge to defend Trump for inciting the Jan. 6th deadly riots at the U.S. Capitol.
“Governors are being WAY too precious about who gets this vaccine.”
“The federal government needs to give states strict parameters for when their vaccine allocation must be administered.”
“While public health leaders know what must be done, their critical work could be supported by a national COVID-19 Vaccine Corps.”
“The US vaccine campaign is not a disaster. Rather, I think it is predictably mediocre.”
“The best option may be to rely more on private industry.”