With so many crazy things happening, sometimes things fall through the cracks. Here are some headlines that you may find interesting and worth discussing.
Biden Administration:
- Biden’s Obamacare Do-Over: Another Chance to Sign Up, This One More Publicized
Congress:
- Don’t piss off Nonna:
- Democrats are discussing a path to bypass Republicans and approve an aggressive Covid-19 relief package on a party-line basis as prospects for bipartisan support for President Joe Biden’s top priority diminish.
- “The sentiment is this: We would like Republicans to work with us to be part of the solution to deliver emergency help, but we can’t wait, it’s urgent, and we need to double-track this process,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who was on the call, told reporters. “So we will continue to reach out to Republicans, but I’m a big supporter of having an insurance policy in place through reconciliation.”
- Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who gained national attention as one of former President Trump’s most ardent defenders during his first impeachment, said Thursday he will not run for retiring Sen. Rob Portman’s (R-Ohio) seat in 2022.
- Marjorie Taylor Greene penned conspiracy theory that a laser beam from space started deadly 2018 California wildfire
COVID-19 Updates:
- The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment claims fell slightly to 847,000 last week, according to data released Thursday by the Department of Labor. Economists had predicted a total of 875,000 claims for the week ended Jan. 23.
- Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Thursday that he supports re-opening schools amid the coronavirus pandemic under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines.
- “I would back the CDC recommendations because that is really based on data… we need to try and get the children back to school and that’s the goal of President Biden that in the next one hundred days to get the K to eights back in school,” Fauci said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
- Time to double or upgrade masks as coronavirus variants emerge, experts say.
Impeachment:
- Former President Donald Trump may submit a written letter in his defense for the Senate impeachment trial, contemplating the move as he expands his legal team less than two weeks before the proceedings are set to begin, according to two people familiar with the matter.
- And while he is considering such a statement, Trump is not planning to appear in person to defend himself against the charge that he incited the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, the people familiar with the matter said — effectively ending any speculation of a possible cameo by the former president.
Riots/White ISIS/Wing Nut Watch:
Other headlines:
- General Motors said Thursday that it would phase out petroleum-powered cars and trucks and sell only vehicles that have zero tailpipe emissions by 2035.
- The state attorney general, Letitia James, said it’s likely that the Cuomo administration failed to report thousands of Covid-19 deaths of nursing home residents.
- 6 Are Killed in Liquid Nitrogen Leak at Poultry Plant
- The authorities said five people were found dead at a Foundation Food Group plant in Gainesville, Ga., and a sixth person died at a hospital.
- A near-total ban on abortion has taken effect in Poland and triggered a new round of nationwide protests three months after the constitutional court ruled that the abortion of congenitally damaged fetuses is unconstitutional.
- Led by a women’s rights group, Women’s Strike, people poured onto the streets of Warsaw, where they demonstrated in front of the court, and in other cities and towns on Thursday for the second evening in a row.
