Dec 20 2nd COVID-19 vaccine authorized in US is shipped out By Associated Press The trucks left the Memphis-area factory with the vaccine developed by Moderna Inc. and the National Institutes of Health. The much-needed shots are expected to be given starting Monday, just three days after the Food and Drug Administration authorized their emergency rollout. Continue reading
Dec 20 Racism targets Asian food, business during COVID-19 pandemic By Christine Fernando, Cheyanne Mumphrey, Associated Press As the coronavirus spread throughout the U.S., bigotry toward Asian Americans was not far behind, fueled by the news that COVID-19 first appeared in China. Continue reading
Dec 20 Deal on Fed removes obstacle to agreement on virus aid bill By Andrew Taylor, Christopher Rugaber, Associated Press Top congressional lawmakers struck a late-night agreement on the last major obstacle to a COVID-19 economic relief package costing nearly $1 trillion, clearing the way for votes as early as Sunday. Continue reading
Dec 19 UK nixes Christmas gatherings, shuts London shops over virus By Sylvia Hui, Associated Press British Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed a new, stricter level of coronavirus restrictions on London and much of southern England on Saturday to curb rapidly spreading infections. In announcing the more restrictive category, Johnson said that a fast-moving new variant… Continue reading
Dec 19 Tight supplies for virus gear cost U.S. states billions By David Lieb, Camille Fasset, Associated Press The AP tallied more than $7 billion in purchases by states this spring for personal protective equipment, or PPE, and high-demand medical devices such as ventilators and infrared thermometers. Much of the buying happened outside normal competitive bidding procedures, and… Continue reading
Dec 19 Watch Why Native Americans are celebrating Rep. Haaland’s nomination By PBS NewsHour President-elect Joe Biden is nominating Representative Deb Haaland to lead the Department of Interior. If confirmed, she would become the first Native American to lead the agency, which is responsible for public lands, including land taken from Indigenous people. Julian… Continue watching
Dec 19 Watch 9:21 A major battle is brewing over abortion rights in Poland By Malcolm Brabant, Ivette Feliciano A major battle is underway over abortion rights in Poland. The country’s constitutional court, whose legitimacy has been questioned by some, has made it even harder for Polish women to get abortions. The move has been condemned by the European… Continue watching
Dec 19 Biden introduces his climate team, says ‘no time to waste’ By Kevin Freking, Associated Press President-elect Joe Biden on Saturday rolled out an environmental team that he hopes will steer America toward greater action to curb climate change and protect the nation’s air and water. Continue reading
Dec 19 1 in 5 prisoners in the U.S. has had COVID-19, 1,700 have died By Beth Schwartzapfel, Katie Park, The Marshall Project, Andrew DeMillo, Associated Press One in every five state and federal prisoners in the United States has tested positive for the coronavirus, a rate more than four times as high as the general population. Now the rollout of vaccines poses difficult decisions for politicians… Continue reading
Dec 19 Trump downplays Russia in first comments on cyberattack By Matthew Lee, Associated Press President Donald Trump on Saturday suggested without evidence that China — not Russia — may be behind the cyberattack against the United States and tried to minimized its impact. Continue reading