What’s next for the US under a Biden administration?

President Joe Biden is entering the White House at a time of deep division among Americans and record deaths from the coronavirus. ABC News contributors discuss where we go from here.

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    Trashed on social media and censured by Louisiana Republicans, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy described himself Wednesday as “at peace” with his vote to convict former President Donald Trump at his impeachment trial and dismissed the scorching GOP backlash he's received. Cassidy joined six other Senate Republicans in voting with Democrats on Feb. 13 to convict Trump of inciting the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in an impeachment trial that saw the former president acquitted.

  • Eddie Murphy says Ryan Coogler tried to make a 'Coming to America' sequel starring Michael B. Jordan - but he didn't like the idea

    Eddie Murphy said that Ryan Coogler's idea had Michael B. Jordan playing his son, "looking for a wife."

  • Federal Judge Indefinitely Blocks Biden Administration’s 100-Day Deportation Moratorium

    A federal judge on Tuesday indefinitely banned the Biden administration from enforcing a 100-day pause on deportations of most illegal immigrants in response to a lawsuit from Texas, which argued that the moratorium violated federal law and could saddle the state with additional costs. U.S. district judge Drew Tipton issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday, dealing a blow to President Biden’s efforts to follow through on his campaign promise to pause most deportations. The pause would not have applied to those who have engaged in terrorism or espionage or who pose a danger to national security. It would also have excluded those who were not present in the U.S. before November 1, 2020, those who agreed to waive the right to remain, and those whom the ICE director individually determined need to be removed by law. Tipton first ruled on January 26 that the pause violated federal law on administrative procedure and that the U.S. failed to show why a deportation pause was justified. He issued a temporary two-week restraining order, which was set to expire Tuesday. Texas attorney general Ken Paxton argued that Biden’s January 20 memorandum violated federal law and an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security that Texas be consulted before reducing immigration enforcement or pausing deportations. As part of the agreement, DHS must give Texas 180 days notice of any proposed change on any matter that would reduce enforcement or increase the number of “removable or inadmissible aliens” in the United States. However, the ruling does not require deportations to resume at their previous pace and immigration agencies have broad discretion in enforcing removals and processing cases. In the wake of the first ruling, authorities deported hundreds of people to Central America and 15 people to Jamaica. The administration has also continued deportations that began under the Trump administration due to a public-health law in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

  • Myanmar's hardened Chinese population takes stand against Beijing

    The chorus of banging pots and pans begins in Chinatown at about 8pm. The district in Myanmar's commercial city of Yangon is normally festooned with bright red lanterns to celebrate Chinese New Year. But when the Year of the Ox arrived in mid-February, the usual festive atmosphere was gone - replaced by a tension in the air. Here, and across the country, swelling ranks of young ethnic Chinese protesters are joining mass rallies against the brutal junta that abruptly deposed Aung San Suu Kyi's government. Many are united by rumours, circulated widely among the protest movement, that China is helping the regime install a repressive new internet system akin to one across the border that severely restricts online freedoms behind a 'Great Firewall'.

  • 'Matilda' star Mara Wilson pens essay slamming treatment of child stars, Britney Spears

    Mara Wilson details the perils of child stardom and draws a line between her experiences with those of Britney Spears.

  • Meghan Markle and Prince Harry never intended to leave the royal family

    The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they will continue to support their royal patronages despite not being allowed to do so as royals.

  • Forget Giuliani and the impeachment crew. This is how a real Trump defense would look.

    'What you need to know is that my client believes he won Georgia, the Electoral College and the presidency. As crazy as that sounds, he believes it.'

  • Sinopharm unit, CanSinoBIO apply in China for COVID-19 vaccines' public use approval

    While China has yet to approve vaccines developed by Western drug makers, it has granted authorisation to domestic products for use in select groups or by the wider public, which have also gained ground in developing countries battling a surge in coronavirus infections. Sinopharm affiliate Wuhan Institute Of Biological Products said on Wednesday its vaccine has an efficacy rate of 72.51% against the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus, citing interim analysis of late-stage clinical trial data, without offering more details.

  • Instagram Influencer Sparks Outrage After Posing Naked on Top of Endangered Elephant in Bali

    A 22-year-old Russian social media influencer is facing heavy criticism online for posing naked on top of an endangered elephant in Bali, Indonesia for her 553,000 Instagram followers. Alesya Kafelnikova received backlash for the short video she posted on Feb. 13, where she was filmed lying naked on top of a “critically endangered” Sumatran elephant, according to The Sun. In a follow-up post, Kafelnikova shared an image presumably with the same elephant and said in the caption, “To love nature is human nature.”

  • Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher are one of Hollywood's most private couples. Here's a timeline of their 20-year relationship.

    Fisher has said being with Cohen is like "winning the lottery" ... even if she has to deal with his many shenanigans.

  • Three held on suspicion of supplying bomb that killed Malta journalist

    Three men suspected of having supplied the bomb which killed Maltese anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017 were arrested on Tuesday, police said. Their arrest came as a man accused of carrying out the killing agreed to a plea deal, accepting his responsibility for the assassination in return for a reduced, 15-year jail term instead of possible life behind bars. A legal source said Vince Muscat had provided police with vital information about the case, which has shone a spotlight on corruption in the European Union's smallest country.

  • Republican leaders want to avoid a party civil war. Trump might have other ideas.

    In a two-page memo addressed to GOP donors, voters, leaders, and activists, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) declared: "The Republican Civil War is now canceled." It isn't clear if his fellow Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, are listening. Scott is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and in the memo, first obtained by Fox News, he writes that Democrats control the White House, Senate, and House, but Republicans have a path to victory in 2022. To win, the GOP must move on from the "impeachment show" and stop with the infighting, he said, adding that a Republican Civil War "does not need to be true, should not be true, and will not be true." While Scott wants unity, not all Republicans are on the same page. After Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), the No. 3 House Republican, voted to impeach Trump last month, she was censured by the Wyoming Republican Party and asked to resign. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) voted to acquit Trump, but still said there is "no question that former President Trump bears responsibility" for the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. This remark roused Trump, who had been flying under the radar during the trial. He called McConnell a "dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack," and said if Republican senators "are going to stay with him, they will not win again. Where necessary and appropriate, I will back primary rivals who espouse Making America Great Again." Three GOP senators are retiring in 2022 — Richard Burr (N.C.), Pat Toomey (Pa.), and Rob Portman (Ohio) — and Scott has said the NRSC will support the remaining incumbents from primary challenges. Trump is letting people know he isn't done with McConnell, New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman tweeted Tuesday. Last week, Trump and former Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) met for golf and dinner, and people briefed on the day told Haberman "it did not go well." Trump reportedly had "retribution" on his mind, and was focused on McConnell and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R), who did not go along with Trump's plot to overturn Georgia's election results. Perdue had been contemplating running again in 2022, but said Tuesday he won't. Although no longer in office, Trump still has the support of a majority of Republicans. A Suffolk University/USA Today poll of 1,000 Trump supporters conducted last week found that 46 percent would ditch the Republican Party and join a Trump party if he started one, with 27 percent saying they wouldn't and the rest undecided. A majority said they had more loyalty to Trump than the GOP, and 50 percent said the Republican Party should become "more loyal to Trump." More stories from theweek.comThe MyPillow guy might be Trump's ultimate chumpLate night hosts laugh at Rudy Giuliani literally running from his $1.3 billion lawsuit, tie in CPACFDA confirms Johnson & Johnson vaccine prevented all deaths and hospitalizations in trial

  • 'Superman & Lois' showrunner and star paid homage to the superhero's first comic appearance in the series premiere

    Showrunner Todd Helbing and star Tyler Hoechlin tell Insider what it was like paying homage to Superman's early days in the comics and cartoons.

  • Amy Klobuchar shuts down Ron Johnson's conspiracy mongering at Capitol attack hearing

    On Tuesday, the former leaders of the Capitol Police and other authorities entrusted with protecting the Capitol building testified about the Jan. 6 attack, telling conflicting stories about what happened that day. One thing that clearly didn't happen was what Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) shared during his chance to question the law enforcement leaders: An account of the day published in the conservative publication The Federalist alleging those who broke into the Capitol were seemingly professional provocateurs and not the "working-class" people seen protesting outside early in the day. Ron Johnson is using his questioning time during the Capitol security hearing to promote a conspiracy theory that the January 6 insurrectionists weren't actually Trump supporters, but were "provocateurs" and "fake Trump protesters" pic.twitter.com/t72QkHDbaG — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 23, 2021 That suggestion flew in the face of testimony from former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, who said Tuesday that the attack was "pre-planned," and insurgents were "well equipped, coordinated, and prepared to carry out a violent insurrection at the United States Capitol." And when the hearing ended, Rules Committee Chair Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) made it clear that Johnson's allegations weren't correct. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) closes out the Capitol insurrection hearing with what appears to be a nod to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI): “There is clear agreement that this was a planned insurrection, and I think *most* members here very firmly agree with that.” pic.twitter.com/dyfeBCBcvZ — The Recount (@therecount) February 23, 2021 At around the same time Johnson was sharing the conspiracy theory, federal prosecutors unsealed a case against a Capitol attacker who, in the weeks after the attack, had made it clear left-wing provocateurs weren't behind the siege, HuffPost reports. Jose Padilla, prosecutors said, used online forums to detail his experiences at the insurrection, making it clear that "the guy breaking the windows weren't antifa," but rather "patriots." More stories from theweek.comThe MyPillow guy might be Trump's ultimate chumpLate night hosts laugh at Rudy Giuliani literally running from his $1.3 billion lawsuit, tie in CPACFDA confirms Johnson & Johnson vaccine prevented all deaths and hospitalizations in trial

  • Daniel Kaluuya said he wasn't invited to the 'Get Out' world premiere: 'that's the industry'

    Kaluuya said he was shooting "Black Panther" and even cleared his schedule to attend the premiere but no one invited him.

  • ‘Zero respect’: Ted Cruz pictured scrolling through phone during harrowing opening testimony into Capitol riot

    Senator caused controversy last week after he flew to Mexico while a winter storm battered Texas

  • A bakery in the tiny town where 'Schitt's Creek' was filmed managed to stay in business through the pandemic partly thanks to a star's glowing review

    "Schitt's Creek" fans and Annie Murphy's glowing review of Annina's Bakeshop & Cafe have kept the store's sales at pre-pandemic levels.

  • Wild sheep freed from his own wool

    This wild sheep had a much-needed shearingrelieving him of over 78 lbs of fleeceThat's nearly half the weight of an adult kangarooBaarackLocation: Lancefield, AustraliaRescuers say he used to have an ownerbut was found wandering in a forestBaarack is now settling in with other rescued sheep in a farm sanctuary

  • Defying court order, Malaysia deports more than 1,000 Myanmar nationals

    Malaysia sent more than 1,000 Myanmar nationals back to their strife-torn homeland on Tuesday despite a court order to halt the deportation, a move rights groups said could endanger the deportees' lives. The 1,086 Myanmar citizens were sent back on three navy ships sent by Myanmar's military, which seized power in a Feb. 1 coup, sparking weeks of protests from pro-democracy activists. Malaysia had initially said it would deport 1,200.

  • Perdue ditches Senate run after Trump Mar-a-Lago meeting

    Reports suggest meeting with former president last week ‘did not go well’