PoliticsNational ReviewRand Paul Warns One-Third of Republicans Will Leave Party if GOP Senators Back Impeachment
Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) warned Friday that one-third of Republican voters could leave the party if GOP senators vote in impeachment proceedings to convict President Trump. The senator's remarks come amid an increasing divide between congressional Republicans who oppose impeaching the president and a smaller number who support the measure following the riots at the Capitol on January 6. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) is reportedly hopeful that Republicans can use impeachment to purge Trump from the GOP, although he would need the support of at least 16 additional Republican senators to vote to convict.
BusinessReutersGitHub apologizes for firing Jewish employee who warned of Nazis in U.S. Capitol: TechCrunch
Technology company GitHub has apologized for firing a Jewish employee who cautioned his colleagues about the presence of Nazis in Washington on the day of the assault of the U.S. Capitol earlier this month, TechCrunch reported. After a probe found "significant errors of judgment and procedure" in the termination of the employee, GitHub's head of human resources resigned, GitHub Chief Operating Officer Erica Brescia said on Sunday. "In light of these findings, we immediately reversed the decision to separate with the employee and are in communication with his representative," Brescia said in a blog https://bit.ly/2KnkVhI, adding that the company apologized to that employee.
ScienceThe TelegraphColombia's rapidly breeding 'cocaine hippos' must be stopped, scientists say
Scientists forecast that the number of hippos will swell to almost 1,500 by 2040. They conclude, that at that point, environmental impacts will be irreversible and numbers impossible to control. Nobody likes the idea of shooting a hippo, but we have to accept that no other strategy is going to work,” ecologist Nataly Castelblanco-Martínez told The Telegraph.
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Illegal caravans headed to border due to Biden's 'open door policy': Mark Morgan
Acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan weighs in on changing immigration policy under President-elect Joe Biden.
HealthThe WeekIsrael may be starting to show 'herd effects' of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, expert suggests
Israel has vaccinated at least 25 percent of its population against the coronavirus so far, which leads the world and makes it "the country to country watch for herd effects from" the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, says infectious disease expert David Fishman. Recently, the case rate in Israel appears to have declined sharply, and while there could be a few reasons for that, it's possible the vaccination effort is beginning to play a role. One study from Clalit that was published last week reports that 14 days after receiving the first Pfizer-BioNTech shot, infection rates among 200,000 Israelis older than 60 fell 33 percent among those vaccinated compared to 200,000 from the same demogra...
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.
HealthThe IndependentFauci: Two more Covid vaccines just ‘weeks’ away from US distribution
Two more Covid vaccine candidates are likely just around the corner, a development that would provide a much-needed boost to the US programme to vaccinate millions of its citizens, Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, has said. A pair of vaccines from the drugmakers AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson have wrapped up their clinical trials and could be cleared for use in the US within “a few weeks” pending the government review process, Dr Fauci said in an interview on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday. The drug companies' own safety monitoring boards will first need to ensure the data from their clinical trials is sound and proves they have a safe, effective vaccine.
HealthThe TelegraphAlmost a third of recovered Covid patients return to hospital in five months and one in eight die
Almost a third of recovered Covid patients will end up back in hospital within five months and one in eight will die, alarming new figures have shown. Research by Leicester University and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found there is a devastating long-term toll on survivors of severe coronavirus, with many people developing heart problems, diabetes and chronic liver and kidney conditions. Out of 47,780 people who were discharged from hospital in the first wave, 29.4 per cent were readmitted to hospital within 140 days, and 12.3 per cent of the total died.
PoliticsThe WeekTrump reportedly began 'choreographing' premature victory speech weeks before election
President Trump is known for going off script, but his premature presidential election victory declaration in the early hours of the morning on Nov. 4 wasn't a completely spur-of-the-moment decision, Axios' Jonathan Swan reports. In the first installment of a reported series on Trump's final two months in office, Swan writes that Trump began "choreographing election night in earnest" during the second week of October following a "toxic" debate with President-elect Joe Biden on Sept. 29 and a bout with COVID-19 that led to his hospitalization. At that point, Trump's internal poll numbers had reportedly taken a tumble, Swan notes.
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.
PoliticsINSIDERBiden's incoming chief of staff says the administration is prepared to tackle the 'huge mess' it's inheriting in COVID-19 vaccine rollout
Incoming chief of staff Ronald Klain told CNN's Jake Tapper the Biden administration is inheriting a 'huge mess' from the Trump team when it comes to the vaccine rollout. Klain said the Biden administration has a plan to fix it and speed up the delivery of the vaccine. Incoming White House chief of staff Ronald Klain said Sunday President-elect Joe Biden's administration is gearing up to address the "huge mess" it is inheriting from the Trump administration regarding the coronavirus vaccine rollout.
U.S.The Guardian'I had no qualms': The people turning in loved ones for the Capitol attack
When Alison Lopez discovered her uncle's sister had been part of the mob that breached the Capitol doors on 6 January, she immediately reported her to the FBI. Lopez found out about her in-law's participation when the woman in question called her aunt from inside the Capitol to brag about “taking back the election”. In the week after the attacks on the Capitol, there has been a concerted effort to “unmask” rioters online, with self-styled detectives investigating who's who in videos and photos posted from the attack.
WorldBusiness InsiderEvery single passenger on board 2 international flights to Canada informed that they were potentially exposed to COVID-19
All passengers on board two Air Transat flights from Haiti to Montreal have potentially been exposed to COVID-19, the Toronto Sun reported. Passengers seated in "all rows" have been notified by the Canadian government's exposure tracking system that they need to monitor their symptoms. The Canadian government announced on January 7 that a negative coronavirus test is required to fly.
PoliticsThe IndependentKayleigh McEnany leaves White House after final two-minute press briefing following deadly Capitol riot
Donald Trump's press secretary Kayleigh McEnany has packed up her office at the White House, days before president-elect Joe Biden is sworn into office, though she is expected to remain in the role until the president's term ends on 20 January. The press secretary took no questions from the reporters in the room. Following a career in right-wing cable news commentary, Ms McEnany was named the Republican National Committee's national spokesperson in August 2017 before joining the Trump campaign as its national press secretary in 2019.
U.S.NBC NewsOff the grid, heavily armed and radicalized: He's a law enforcement nightmare
These are the people who keep law enforcement up at night,” said Clint Van Zandt, a former FBI criminal profiler and an NBC News analyst. I used to go to bed thinking, 'Did I do everything I could? Have I looked for this?
U.S.INSIDERA couple of Capitol rioters told the FBI an officer shook their hands and said 'it's your house now' as insurrectionists stormed the US Capitol
Two Capitol rioters claim an officer told them "It's your house now" as hundreds stormed the Capitol on January 6. Bobby Bauer and a relative were identified as among those who breached the US Capitol after an unknown caller tipped the FBI's National Threat Operations Center. Bauer told authorities an officer "grabbed his hand, shook it, and said, 'It's your house now."
U.S.Business InsiderThe Florida data scientist who claims she was fired by the health department for refusing to alter COVID-19 data said she'll turn herself into police after a warrant was issued for her arrest
Rebekah Jones, the Florida data scientist, last year fired by the Department of Health, said Saturday she would turn herself in to authorities Sunday after they last week issued a warrant for her arrest. Jones, who worked on the state's COVID-19 dashboard, was fired in May after she said she refused to alter data related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the state. Florida authorities in December executed a warrant on her property, seizing computers, phones, and external storage drives after she continued to publish Florida's COVID-19 data through her own dashboard.
PoliticsThe IndependentJoe Scarborough says he might sue Donald Trump for repeatedly accusing him of murder
Joe Scarborough has considered legal action against Donald Trump, who wrongly accused the MSNBC host of murder last year. Mr Scarborough said on Sunday that he had lost patience with Mr Trump since the storming of the US Capitol by his supporters, many of whom alleged the 2020 election was “stolen”, and that he could sue the US President over allegations levelled against him. Mr Trump, whose presidency ends on Wednesday, will no longer be protected against legal action.
U.S.Miami HeraldSuspect seen crushing police officer during Capitol riot is wanted by the FBI
Authorities have released photos of a suspect who they say crushed a police officer in a doorway as rioters tried to enter the U.S. Capitol last week. A video shows officer Daniel Hodges of the Metropolitan Police Department screaming in agony and bleeding as police and rioters squared off on Jan. 6. Police say the suspect “assaulted and used a clear police shield to pin” Hodges in a door jamb.
U.S.INSIDERPolice say Oregon man who stole a car with a child in the backseat came back and 'lectured' the mom about parenting
A carjacker in Beaverton, Oregon returned a child to their mother after realizing they were in the backseat of the car he was stealing. "He actually lectured the mother for leaving the child in the car and threatened to call the police on her," Beaverton police spokesman Officer Matt Henderson told the Oregonian. The carjacking took place outside of a grocery store in Beaverton, Oregon on Saturday when the mom left the car running with the child in the backseat, local authorities said.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump news: McEnany departs White House as McConnell calls impeachment ‘vote of conscience’
President Donald Trump is said to be planning a final trip on Air Force One to Mar-a-Lago during the inauguration, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell reportedly discusses impeachment with colleagues as the administration ends in history-making ignominy. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who entered the role in April 2020, joined a growing list of administration officials who left the president before his term officially ended. The president's top economic adviser Larry Kudlow has criticised his boss in The Wall Street Journal over his response to the deadly insurrection at the Capitol.
PoliticsBusiness Insider'What the hell's the matter with them?': Biden scorches GOP lawmakers who didn't wear masks in secure areas during Capitol riots, saying they need 'to grow up'
President-elect Joe Biden on Friday excoriated Republicans who refused to wear masks while huddled with other lawmakers during the Capitol riots, saying they needed "to grow up." "Quite frankly, it was shocking to see members of the Congress while the Capitol was under siege by a deadly mob of thugs refuse to wear masks while they were in secure locations," he said. At least three Democratic House members who were in locations with a select number of maskless Republicans have now tested positive for COVID-19, including Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, and Brad Schneider of Illinois.
U.S.Business InsiderParler's CEO fled his home and went into hiding after receiving death threats and security breaches, a court filing says
Parler CEO John Matze Jr. and his family have fled their homes after receiving death threats, a new court filing says. Parler was recently removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, and Amazon Web Services stopped hosting the platform after it deemed Parler a "risk to public safety." Trump supporters flocked to the platform after the president was banned from Twitter following the siege at the Capitol on January 6.
U.S.INSIDERIllinois mayor who attended Trump's DC rally apologizes after claiming the media lied about Capitol riot
Thomasboro, Illinois Mayor Tyler Evans Issued a statement Thursday apologizing for his comments accusing the media of lying about the violence that took place at the Capitol on January 6. In a now-deleted video, Evans described being at the Capitol building as "the most exhilarating thing." As of Jan 15, the FBI has identified more than 270 suspects involved in criminal activity related to the Capitol riot and taken more than 100 individuals into custody.
BusinessBusiness InsiderBitcoin owner whose story went viral after he lost his wallet password says he has 'made peace' with potential $220 million loss
German-born programmer Stefan Thomas made headlines this week after a lost password rendered his bitcoin stash worth $220 million inaccessible. As Insider earlier reported, the secure hard drive, on which 7,002 bitcoins were stored, was an IronKey device. It gives owners 10 chances to guess their password before encrypting the contents.
“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.”