Pfizer says its booster shot can protect against Omicron
The companies said a third dose appears to provide a similar number of antibodies as a two-dose series against the original virus and other variants.
Today's Liberal News
‘It’s a sore spot’: Why officials are raising questions about Biden’s vaccine donations
Despite promises to distribute shots based on need alone, U.S. negotiations with Myanmar and Taiwan have fanned fears that the administration is mixing politics and public health.
Judge blocks Biden’s vaccine mandate for federal contractors
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit from several contractors and seven states.
Opinion | How the Return to Office Work Is Impoverishing the Middle Class
The middle class is facing serious economic hardship with little of the workplace flexibility now afforded to the well-off. Here’s how employers — and government — can help.
Powell: Fed may pull back economic support more quickly as prices spike
Powell’s comment came after the Fed already announced earlier this month that it would slow the pace at which it buys U.S. government debt and mortgage-backed securities.
Why Biden picked Powell
In the end, President Joe Biden did what many close to him expected: He took a longer-than-anticipated amount of time to arrive at a reasonable, moderate decision that thrilled few but carried limited risk.
Raimondo: Commerce ‘war room’ seeing improvements on supply chain woes
The Commerce secretary said in an interview that the Biden administration sees trading partners in Asia as part of the solution.
Opinion | Don’t Learn the Wrong Lesson on Inflation
Aggressive action to deliver pandemic relief was the right call — and withdrawing support now would only hurt American workers.
Compassion Is Not a Crime: Animal Rights Activist Avoids Jail After Conviction for Baby Goat Rescue
Animal rights activist Wayne Hsiung has been convicted on felony charges of burglary and larceny for removing a sick baby goat from a goat meat farm in North Carolina in 2018. Hsiung is the co-founder of the animal rights organization Direct Action Everywhere. He was given a suspended sentence and 24 months probation.
What Is the Point of Boris Johnson?
By April 1968, Charles de Gaulle was bored. “None of this amuses me anymore,” the French president told his aide-de-camp, Admiral François Flohic. “There is no longer anything difficult or heroic to do.
News Roundup: Trump’s sedition allies scramble to refuse testimony; Dems fed up with Boebert stunts
In the news today: The economic news continues to be surprisingly bright, considering that we’re still knee-deep in a worldwide pandemic.
Pastor who performed in drag on HBO docuseries loses job at Indiana church
Here in the United States (and, really, globally) there are plenty of LGBTQ+ people and allies who are religious. This might sound surprising as religion can be harmful, oppressive, and isolating for queer people, but it can also be a space of affirmation, care, and community. There is no one-size-fits-all approach.
Taylor Energy billionaire used oil spill cleanup to avoid taxes for over a decade
In 2004, Hurricane Ivan tore through the Gulf of Mexico. One of the worst disasters wrought by Ivan’s wrath was damage to an offshore oil rig, owned by Louisiana-based company Taylor Energy, which fell over—uncapping the well beneath. Crude oil began to fill the Gulf.
Taylor Energy first lied and said that only a few gallons of oil were leaking every day out of the broken well, while they worked to plug the holes created by Ivan and their rig.
‘Appropriate use of state’s constitutional power’: Court dismisses challenge to Illinois’ ICE ban
Two Illinois counties went straight to court after lawmakers passed into law legislation that effectively ends immigration detention in the state. Their plan was to deal the Illinois Way Forward Act a death blow, and continue reaping in millions from federal contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
But that legal effort by McHenry and Kankakee Counties has failed for now, because a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit.
Senate Democrats are determined to ‘restore the Senate,’ if only Manchin will let them
On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer notified Senate Democrats he is prioritizing an effort to “restore the Senate,” and do something about the filibuster in order to pass voting rights legislation. Politico has a bit more information on what “restore the Senate” means, and also why Schumer is so intent on trying to get the budget reconciliation for President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better (BBB) plan done before Christmas.
Mark Meadows Did Not ‘Properly’ Turn Over Documents To National Archives
The National Archives said it is working with Meadows, who is also clashing with a House panel over records related to the Capitol riot.
Appeals Court Denies Trump’s Request To Keep Jan. 6 Records Hidden
The former president is trying to stop the release of hundreds of records related to the White House’s involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
The 16 Best TV Shows of 2021
Last year, TV became essential. When the stages we used to go to—concert halls, movie theaters, sports arenas—closed amid the pandemic, the small screen became the only outlet for safe viewing entertainment. Things have begun to change this year: Artists are announcing tours, people have trickled back into cinemas, and even the Summer Olympics happened. (Sort of.)But TV, thankfully, hasn’t stopped keeping us enthralled.
We Know a Lot More About Omicron Now
Sign up for Derek’s newsletter here.The flood of Omicron news can be overwhelming. The endless data, anecdotes, and studies are hard enough to synthesize. But what makes the information even harder to parse is that so much evidence (i.e., what people are seeing) is intertwined with opinion (i.e., what people are hoping and fearing).
The Pandemic of the Vaccinated Is Here
Even before the arrival of Omicron, the winter months were going to be tough for parts of the United States. While COVID transmission rates in the South caught fire over the summer, the Northeast and Great Plains states were largely spared thanks to cyclical factors and high vaccination rates. But weather and the patterns of human life were bound to shift the disease burden northward for the holidays—and that was just with Delta.
New York Attorney General Letitia James Withdraws From Governor’s Race
James, a progressive whose investigation of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) pushed him out of office, is running for reelection as attorney general.
FDA authorizes Pfizer Covid booster for 16-, 17-year-olds
Eligible teens will be able to get the shot once they are at least six months past their second dose.
New York Attorney General To Subpoena Trump In Fraud Investigation: Reports
Attorney General Letitia James wants the former president to sit for a deposition related to the Trump Organization.
How Europe’s “Shadow Immigration System” Pays Libyan Militias to Jail Migrants in Brutal Conditions
An explosive new investigation details how the European Union has created a shadow immigration system that captures migrants arriving from Africa before they reach Europe and sends them to brutal militia-run detention centers in Libya. “This is a climate migration story,” says Ian Urbina, investigative journalist and director of The Outlaw Ocean Project, who authored the report for The New Yorker magazine.
“Your Debt Is Someone Else’s Asset”: Calls Mount to Cancel Debt & Halt Wealth Transfer to the Rich
As calls grow for Biden to extend the moratorium on student debt, we speak with the Debt Collective’s Astra Taylor and feature her new film for The Intercept, “Your Debt Is Someone Else’s Asset,” animated by artist Molly Crabapple. The $15 trillion in U.S. household debt is “a form of wealth transfer” from the poor to the rich, Taylor says. “People are in debt by design.
“An Outrage”: House Passes Largest Military Budget in Generations Despite End of Afghanistan War
President Biden may soon approve the largest military spending bill since World War II, which ramps up spending to counter China and Russia. Separately, the Senate voted down a bipartisan bid by Senators Bernie Sanders, Rand Paul and Mike Lee to halt $650 million in U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia amid the devastating ongoing war in Yemen.
Texas, Florida see uptick in Obamacare enrollment
Enrollment is up 20 percent in Texas and 9 percent in Florida compared to this time last year.
Tucker Carlson’s Jan. 6 ‘Agent Provocateur’ Is A Big Tucker Fan And An Amateur Cardinals Mascot
“If I’m wrong, so be it, bro,” Carlson’s guest said after he’d told Fox News viewers that the St. Louis baseball booster was “clearly a law enforcement officer.
Judge blocks Biden’s vaccine mandate for federal contractors
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit from several contractors and seven states.
Lawmakers rush to avert looming Medicare cuts
“A pandemic is not the time to be cutting access to doctors for patients on Medicare,” Kim Schrier, (D-Wash.) who introduced the bill along with Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), said in a statement.