Former President Donald Trump's “big lie” about a stolen election may have been discredited over and over in the courts, and disgraced by the attack on the U.S. Capitol, but the corrosive effect of his dishonesty will linger on, complicating efforts to strengthen American elections. One of the Democrats' top priorities in the new Congress is a package of election reforms, including provisions that experts say would make it harder to cheat but easier to vote. Many of these provisions are ones that Republicans have historically resisted for ideological reasons.
Dr Biden tapped former US Ambassador to Uruguay Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon to serve as her chief of staff before Inauguration Day could even arrive. The political strategist and prominent attorney who previously worked under former President Barack Obama would help the new first lady roll out her agenda, which included the relaunch of Joining Forces, an initiative she co-founded with former First Lady Michelle Obama providing support for military families. Whereas the national gaze is typically cast on the new president during their first days in office, the first lady's presence could be felt in a recently unfamiliar way.
The leader of the Proud Boys extremist group has been unmasked as a "prolific" former FBI informant. Enrique Tarrio, 36, worked undercover exposing a human trafficking ring, and helped with drug and gambling cases, according to court documents. Tarrio's documented involvement with law enforcement related to the period 2012 -2014.
The impeachment proceeding against Donald Trump on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has fueled speculation online that he could lose some of the benefits extended to former presidents. But according to legal experts, under the laws currently in effect, Trump will retain perks including a pension, office space and security detail even in the unlikely event that he is convicted by the Senate in its impeachment trial. Trump can thank a relatively obscure law, the Former Presidents Act.
Russian lawmakers on Wednesday quickly approved the extension of the last remaining nuclear Russia-U.S. arms control treaty, a fast-track action that comes just days before it's due to expire. Both houses of parliament voted unanimously to extend the New START treaty for five years, a day after a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin said they agreed to complete the necessary extension procedures in the next few days.
A doctor with terminal cancer killed a female pediatrician and then himself after taking hostages at a children's clinic in Austin, Texas. Dr Bharat Narumanchi held hostages in a five-hour siege before killing Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson. Narumanchi had applied for a volunteer position at the clinic a week ago and was declined.
Steve Krakauer, editor at Fourth Watch, says 'it shouldn't be contingent' on one reporter to ask Biden tough questions.
A woman who was "overjoyed" to be outside again after receiving the Covid-19 vaccine was killed when a driver in Portland ploughed into a group of people. Jean Gerich, 77, was killed after Paul Rivas, 64, drove his vehicle into a group of people in Portland, according to KGW News. The grandmother had just received her Covid-19 vaccine and was enjoying some return to normalcy when she was killed.
A congressional staffer departs holding a visual aid following a news conference regarding the redesigned $20 bill meant to honor Harriet Tubman, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on June 18, 2019. The Biden Administration announced its plan to return to an Obama-era initiative to put Harriet Tubman's face on the U.S. $20 bill. Her image would replace Andrew Jackson, the notoriously racist President, known both for owning hundreds of slaves and for his brutal and genocidal policy of Indian removal. Based on current designs, a statue of Jackson would remain on the back of the bill, while Harriet Tubman would grace the front.
The European Union failed to make a breakthrough in crisis talks with AstraZeneca on Wednesday and demanded the drugmaker spell out how it would supply the bloc with reserved doses of COVID-19 vaccine from plants in Europe and Britain. The EU is making more comprehensive checks on vaccines before approval, which means a slower rollout of shots than former EU member Britain and growing public frustration. The issue has been exacerbated by Anglo-Swedish AstraZeneca and Pfizer of the United States both announcing delivery hold-ups in recent weeks.
Let's get loud Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
A US pharmacist has agreed to plead guilty to tampering with Covid vaccine vials because he believed the jabs could harm people, prosecutors say. Steven Brandenburg, 46, is accused of removing from cold storage 57 vials with 570 doses of the Moderna vaccine in Grafton, Wisconsin, in December. Without refrigeration, the vaccine becomes ineffective.
Donald Trump's real estate empire appears to be feeling the heat of his divisive presidency, with Trump-branded properties in Manhattan losing half their value since he took office, according to a new report. Data from UrbanDigs, analysed by the real estate website Curb, suggested that even Trump properties that have removed his name from their branding saw their value drop by as much as 17 per cent since 2016. The changes represent reductions in value significantly greater than the shift in property values across Manhattan as a whole, estimated to have fallen 9 per cent.
Russia and the United States traded documents Tuesday to extend their last remaining nuclear arms control treaty days before it is due to expire, the Kremlin said. A Kremlin readout of a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin said the two leaders voiced satisfaction with the exchange of diplomatic notes about extending the New START treaty. “In the nearest days, the parties will complete the necessary procedures that will ensure further functioning of this important international legal nuclear arms control tool," the Kremlin said.
A geophysicist allegedly caught on video dragging a Capitol police officer down a set of stairs during the Capitol insurrection on 6 January claims he was just giving the officer a supportive pat on the back. Mr Sabol was arrested last week north of New York City and charged with attempting to interfere with law enforcement during a civil disorder. FBI documents claim Mr Sabol can be seen multiple times in a video bringing a police baton down across the back of a Capitol police officer's neck and using his other hand to control the officer.
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration supports a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians and will overturn several Trump administration decisions, the acting U.S. envoy to the United Nations assured the Security Council on Tuesday. The Palestinians want a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with east Jerusalem as its capital, all territory captured by Israel in 1967. However, under a failed peace proposal by former President Donald Trump, Washington would have recognized Jewish settlements in occupied territory as part of Israel.
President Joe Biden's American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter reportedly manages a pro-Trump Facebook group that provides sign language accompaniments to right-wing videos. ASL interpreter Heather Mewshaw was introduced by press secretary Jen Psaki as “today's interpreter, Heather” on Monday, as the administration announced it would be adding a sign language interpreter to its daily press briefings. However, on Wednesday, Time magazine reported that Ms Mewshaw manages the Hands of Liberty Facebook page, which has featured ASL interpreters providing sign language accompaniments to videos featuring former President Donald Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.
A political action committee has put $700,000 behind Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley after he was criticized for his role in inciting the January 6 Capitol insurrection, Axios reported. Hawley continued with his effort to dispute the electoral votes even after Trump supporters breached the Capitol. Critics have called on him to resign, and several Democrats have asked for an ethics probe into his and Sen. Ted Cruz's actions.
The daily number of new coronavirus infections in France stayed above 20,000 on average for the fourth straight day on Tuesday while hospitalisations reached an eight-week high of 27,041, increasing fears of a third national lockdown. President Emmanuel Macron still hopes a 6 p.m. curfew put in place 11 days ago will be enough to rein in the surge in new cases caused by the emergence of more contagious variants of the virus. Despite calls from some doctors and medics for a new lockdown, government minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher said earlier there was no need to make a decision on such a measure at this stage.
When Linda Mallard's tenant stopped paying his $650 in monthly rent last February for an efficiency he leases on Northeast 80th Terrace, she hired a private company to begin eviction proceedings. Mallard's desperation — she's 66, retired and depends on the rent from four local modest properties she and her father, John Palmer, own — illustrates the frustration shared by landlords stuck with fraudulent tenants who cannot be removed due to the ongoing COVID eviction moratorium. “Right now there are probably hundreds of people like Mickens running around Miami doing the same thing,” said Armando Alfonso, a Miami-based attorney who represents landlords and tenants in eviction cases.
Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R.N.C., speaks as the House debates the objection to confirm the Electoral College vote from Pennsylvania, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. early on Jan. 7, 2021. As the Trump Administration drew to a close, Republican legislators and aides were forced to choose a side. Longtime Trump faithfuls, including Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. Tom Rice have chosen Option 1, rebuffing their former leader, calling for rule of law and returning, at least rhetorically, to the storied principles of conservatism that once guided the Grand Old Party.
The condo board of West Palm Beach's Trump Plaza voted unanimously to remove Trump from the name. The board of the Trump Plaza condominium complex in West Palm Beach has voted unanimously to remove Trump from its name, The Palm Beach Post reports. The vote comes after a violent insurrection by Trump supporters left five dead in early January.
Singapore's approach to preventing the spread of COVID-19 is one of the most successful in the world. My husband and I are currently confined to a hotel room, unable to go out into the city until we've quarantined for a full two weeks and received negative COVID tests. Singapore's stringent COVID prevention rules and policies would likely outrage many Americans who believe that personal liberty is at the core of what it means to live in the US.
President Joe Biden removed Dr. Sean Conley, Trump's White House physician. Dr. Kevin O'Connor, Biden's longtime physician, will assume the role. Conley was accused of concealing information about Trump's condition after he got COVID-19.
Ricki Lake is speaking out about her struggles with hair loss. The former talk show host, who revealed in an Instagram post last year that she's been dealing with hair loss since 1988 when she shot “Hairspray,” says it was a hard decision to go public. "I was afraid of coming out," Lake added about dealing with hair loss by shaving her head and being so honest about her hair.
“By encouraging this act of terror on our capital, Trump’s legacy is destroyed.”
“Both backers and critics of Trump agreed that he remade the federal judiciary — a change that will impact America for decades.”
“He was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.”
“I do know what the future should hold for this country. That is to say, a policy of Trumpism without Trump.”
“It will be decades before the consequences of his tenure are fully known.”