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Biden inauguration: Donald Trump's last full day as US president – live updates Biden inauguration: Donald Trump's last full day as US president – live updates
(32 minutes later)
President expected to issue 100 pardons as Covid cases reach 24 million – follow all the latest news on Trump’s final full dayPresident expected to issue 100 pardons as Covid cases reach 24 million – follow all the latest news on Trump’s final full day
The mayor of New York said the city is on track to run out of coronavirus vaccine doses by Friday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city will start running out of vaccine doses on Thursday and will “have literally nothing left to give as of Friday”.
“It means if we don’t get more vaccine quickly, a new supply of vaccine, we will have to cancel appointments and no longer give shots after Thursday for the remainder of the week at a lot of our sites,” de Blasio said.
The mayor noted the city distributed more than 220,000 doses last week, meaning a New Yorker was vaccinated every three seconds.
State and local leaders have been warning recently that vaccine supply is not meeting expectations. Joe Biden has promised that 100 million Americans will be vaccinated over his first 100 days in office.
As we keep an eye on the White House during Donald Trump’s final full day in office, there also important hearings happening on Capitol Hill today.
Five of Joe Biden’s cabinet nominees will receive confirmation hearings today, before the Senate votes on whether or not to confirm them.
Alejandro Mayorkas, who would lead the department of homeland security if confirmed, is already testifying before a Senate committee, and hearings for Janet Yellen, the treasury secretary nominee, and Avril Haines, who was nominated to serve as director of national intelligence, are also underway.
Hearings for Anthony Blinken, Biden’s nominee to lead the state department, and Lloyd Austin, who would become defense secretary if confirmed, will also take place later today.
The president-elect will host a virtual memorial service this evening to honor Americans who have died of coronavirus.The president-elect will host a virtual memorial service this evening to honor Americans who have died of coronavirus.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will participate in a lighting around the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool to honor coronavirus victims. The reflecting pool will be surrounded by 400 lights, representing the nearly 400,000 Americans who have lost their lives to the virus.Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will participate in a lighting around the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool to honor coronavirus victims. The reflecting pool will be surrounded by 400 lights, representing the nearly 400,000 Americans who have lost their lives to the virus.
Biden and Harris are expected to speak at the event. They will be joined by Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington; Yolanda Adams, a well-known gospel singer; and Lori Marie Key, from the Saint Joseph Mercy Health System in Michigan.Biden and Harris are expected to speak at the event. They will be joined by Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington; Yolanda Adams, a well-known gospel singer; and Lori Marie Key, from the Saint Joseph Mercy Health System in Michigan.
Some of America’s most iconic buildings, like the Empire State Building and the Seattle Space Needle, will also be lit up tonight as a tribute to coronavirus victims.Some of America’s most iconic buildings, like the Empire State Building and the Seattle Space Needle, will also be lit up tonight as a tribute to coronavirus victims.
“The inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris represents the beginning of a new national journey — one that renews its commitment to honor its fallen and rise toward greater heights in their honor,” Tony Allen, the CEO of the presidential inaugural committee, said in a statement yesterday.“The inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris represents the beginning of a new national journey — one that renews its commitment to honor its fallen and rise toward greater heights in their honor,” Tony Allen, the CEO of the presidential inaugural committee, said in a statement yesterday.
“In that spirit, it is important that we pay tribute to those we have lost — and their families — and come together to unite our country, contain this virus, and rebuild our nation.”“In that spirit, it is important that we pay tribute to those we have lost — and their families — and come together to unite our country, contain this virus, and rebuild our nation.”
Donald Trump is hardly unique in his controversial use of presidential pardons, which have been a sometimes sordid feature of US politics for well over two centuries.Donald Trump is hardly unique in his controversial use of presidential pardons, which have been a sometimes sordid feature of US politics for well over two centuries.
In his final hours in office, Trump is expected to pardon more than 100 people, including political allies, friends and cronies. He has already granted clemency to principal figures from his 2016 campaign.In his final hours in office, Trump is expected to pardon more than 100 people, including political allies, friends and cronies. He has already granted clemency to principal figures from his 2016 campaign.
In seeking to promote his self-interest, Trump is merely following in the footsteps of White House predecessors. Under article two of the US constitution, presidents enjoy broad and unchallengeable powers to pardon individuals for federal crimes. This right is “without limit”, the supreme court has ruled.In seeking to promote his self-interest, Trump is merely following in the footsteps of White House predecessors. Under article two of the US constitution, presidents enjoy broad and unchallengeable powers to pardon individuals for federal crimes. This right is “without limit”, the supreme court has ruled.
This is Joan Greve in Washington, taking over for Martin Belam.This is Joan Greve in Washington, taking over for Martin Belam.
Today is Donald Trump’s final full day in office, and Washington is waiting in nervous anticipation to see what he will do before leaving the White House tomorrow.Today is Donald Trump’s final full day in office, and Washington is waiting in nervous anticipation to see what he will do before leaving the White House tomorrow.
There have been reports that the president will issue a flurry of pardons and commutations before leaving office tomorrow. Trump has also reportedly considered preemptively pardoning himself to avoid prosecution after exiting the White House, but it’s unclear whether such a move would hold up in court.There have been reports that the president will issue a flurry of pardons and commutations before leaving office tomorrow. Trump has also reportedly considered preemptively pardoning himself to avoid prosecution after exiting the White House, but it’s unclear whether such a move would hold up in court.
The blog will be keeping an eye on that today, so stay tuned.The blog will be keeping an eye on that today, so stay tuned.
Chris Kenning at the Louisville Courier Journal has been interviewing Republican supporters in three rural Kentucky counties where nearly 90% voted for Trump, and has been hearing that the president’s election fraud claims have sunk lasting roots, and that Joe Biden’s appeals for national unity may face an uphill struggle. He writes:Chris Kenning at the Louisville Courier Journal has been interviewing Republican supporters in three rural Kentucky counties where nearly 90% voted for Trump, and has been hearing that the president’s election fraud claims have sunk lasting roots, and that Joe Biden’s appeals for national unity may face an uphill struggle. He writes:
Read more here: Louisville Courier Journal – In deepest-red corners of Kentucky, Trump’s election fraud claims sink lasting rootsRead more here: Louisville Courier Journal – In deepest-red corners of Kentucky, Trump’s election fraud claims sink lasting roots
Secretary of state Mike Pompeo appears to be signing off from his role on social media with typical understatement.Secretary of state Mike Pompeo appears to be signing off from his role on social media with typical understatement.
When Joe Biden is sworn in as president on Wednesday, he plans to trigger a range of executive orders aimed at solving two of the biggest crises facing the country: the economic downturn and the coronavirus pandemic.When Joe Biden is sworn in as president on Wednesday, he plans to trigger a range of executive orders aimed at solving two of the biggest crises facing the country: the economic downturn and the coronavirus pandemic.
The president-elect’s team has been floating its ideal scenario for how Biden’s first hundred days in office will go. That includes almost a dozen executive orders and pushing for a massive $1.9tn coronavirus and economic stimulus plan. The Biden team is also planning another proposal aimed at reinforcing the economy.The president-elect’s team has been floating its ideal scenario for how Biden’s first hundred days in office will go. That includes almost a dozen executive orders and pushing for a massive $1.9tn coronavirus and economic stimulus plan. The Biden team is also planning another proposal aimed at reinforcing the economy.
The executive orders concern fighting climate change, battling Covid, pausing payments on student loans, rejoining the Paris climate agreement, and ending the travel ban from Muslim-majority countries. He also plans to quickly take steps to change the country’s criminal justice system and expanding healthcare to low-income Americans.The executive orders concern fighting climate change, battling Covid, pausing payments on student loans, rejoining the Paris climate agreement, and ending the travel ban from Muslim-majority countries. He also plans to quickly take steps to change the country’s criminal justice system and expanding healthcare to low-income Americans.
“President-elect Biden is assuming the presidency in a moment of profound crisis for our nation. We face four overlapping and compounding crises: the Covid-19 crisis, the resulting economic crisis, the climate crisis, and a racial equity crisis,” Biden’s incoming chief of staff, Ron Klain, circulated in a memo the campaign released to the public over the weekend.“President-elect Biden is assuming the presidency in a moment of profound crisis for our nation. We face four overlapping and compounding crises: the Covid-19 crisis, the resulting economic crisis, the climate crisis, and a racial equity crisis,” Biden’s incoming chief of staff, Ron Klain, circulated in a memo the campaign released to the public over the weekend.
Klain added: “All of these crises demand urgent action. In his first 10 days in office, President-elect Biden will take decisive action to address these four crises, prevent other urgent and irreversible harms, and restore America’s place in the world.”Klain added: “All of these crises demand urgent action. In his first 10 days in office, President-elect Biden will take decisive action to address these four crises, prevent other urgent and irreversible harms, and restore America’s place in the world.”
On immigration, Biden is aiming to end some of the hardline immigration policies of the Trump administration. He plans to unveil proposals that will offer a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and foreign aid to countries in Central America. At the same time, however, a Biden official cautioned to NBC that did not mean the next administration would grant entry to all asylum seekers coming to the country.On immigration, Biden is aiming to end some of the hardline immigration policies of the Trump administration. He plans to unveil proposals that will offer a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and foreign aid to countries in Central America. At the same time, however, a Biden official cautioned to NBC that did not mean the next administration would grant entry to all asylum seekers coming to the country.
In laying out his agenda, Biden has worked to frame it as more of a moment for the nation to rally and forget partisan divides. “It’s not hard to see that we’re in the middle of a once-in-several-generations economic crisis with a once-in-several-generations public health crisis,” Biden said during a press conference over the weekend.In laying out his agenda, Biden has worked to frame it as more of a moment for the nation to rally and forget partisan divides. “It’s not hard to see that we’re in the middle of a once-in-several-generations economic crisis with a once-in-several-generations public health crisis,” Biden said during a press conference over the weekend.
“Unity is not some pie-in-the-sky dream, it’s a practical step to getting the things we have to get done as a country get done together.”“Unity is not some pie-in-the-sky dream, it’s a practical step to getting the things we have to get done as a country get done together.”
Read more of Daniel Strauss’ analysis here: Biden to target Covid and the economy amid stack of orders in first 100 daysRead more of Daniel Strauss’ analysis here: Biden to target Covid and the economy amid stack of orders in first 100 days
Attorneys for former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder have told prosecutors that the Flint water case should be dismissed because he was charged in the wrong county.Attorneys for former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder have told prosecutors that the Flint water case should be dismissed because he was charged in the wrong county.
Snyder was charged last week with two misdemeanor counts of willful neglect of duty. He was indicted by a Genesee County judge who sat as a grand juror and considered evidence presented by prosecutors.Snyder was charged last week with two misdemeanor counts of willful neglect of duty. He was indicted by a Genesee County judge who sat as a grand juror and considered evidence presented by prosecutors.
“Neither of these allegations of non-feasance, or failure to act, occurred while the former Governor was in the City of Flint. At all times set forth in the Indictment, our client was the presiding governor of the State of Michigan with the Executive Office of the Governor located at the Romney Building in downtown Lansing,” attorney Brian Lennon said in a letter to prosecutors.“Neither of these allegations of non-feasance, or failure to act, occurred while the former Governor was in the City of Flint. At all times set forth in the Indictment, our client was the presiding governor of the State of Michigan with the Executive Office of the Governor located at the Romney Building in downtown Lansing,” attorney Brian Lennon said in a letter to prosecutors.
Associated Press report that the letter was attached to a request for documents and other evidence possessed by prosecutors, a typical step by the defense in a criminal case. Lennon indicated in the letter that he soon would formally ask Judge William Crawford to dismiss the case against the former Republican governor.Associated Press report that the letter was attached to a request for documents and other evidence possessed by prosecutors, a typical step by the defense in a criminal case. Lennon indicated in the letter that he soon would formally ask Judge William Crawford to dismiss the case against the former Republican governor.
Snyder was one of nine people charged in a new investigation of the Flint water crisis. The catastrophe in the impoverished, majority-Black city has been described as an example of environmental injustice and racism.Snyder was one of nine people charged in a new investigation of the Flint water crisis. The catastrophe in the impoverished, majority-Black city has been described as an example of environmental injustice and racism.
The city, under Snyder-appointed emergency managers, used the Flint River for drinking water in 2014-15 without properly treating it to reduce corrosion. Lead from old pipes contaminated the system. Separately, the water was blamed by some experts for an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, which killed at least 12 people in the area and sickened dozens more.The city, under Snyder-appointed emergency managers, used the Flint River for drinking water in 2014-15 without properly treating it to reduce corrosion. Lead from old pipes contaminated the system. Separately, the water was blamed by some experts for an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, which killed at least 12 people in the area and sickened dozens more.
By the way, aside from the expected issuing of a list of pardons – including to rapper Lil Wayne – the total extent of Donald Trump’s official diary engagements for his last full day in office reads: “President Trump will work from early in the morning until late in the evening. He will make many calls and have many meetings.”By the way, aside from the expected issuing of a list of pardons – including to rapper Lil Wayne – the total extent of Donald Trump’s official diary engagements for his last full day in office reads: “President Trump will work from early in the morning until late in the evening. He will make many calls and have many meetings.”
It is the same precise wording that has been used for pretty much every single day in January so far.It is the same precise wording that has been used for pretty much every single day in January so far.
One problem that will immediately land in Antony Blinken’s in-tray is the US-Uganda relationship, which has been tested this week in the aftermath of last week’s Uganda’s disputed election.One problem that will immediately land in Antony Blinken’s in-tray is the US-Uganda relationship, which has been tested this week in the aftermath of last week’s Uganda’s disputed election.
Reuters report this morning that Uganda accused the US ambassador in the country of seeking to subvert the presidential election by trying to visit the main opposition candidate at his home, which has been surrounded by security forces since the vote.Reuters report this morning that Uganda accused the US ambassador in the country of seeking to subvert the presidential election by trying to visit the main opposition candidate at his home, which has been surrounded by security forces since the vote.
Troops prevented pop star-turned-legislator Bobi Wine from leaving his house shortly after he returned from voting in Thursday’s presidential election, in which he ran against incumbent Yoweri Museveni. On Tuesday Wine said he and his wife had run out of food, and milk for her 18-month-old niece.Troops prevented pop star-turned-legislator Bobi Wine from leaving his house shortly after he returned from voting in Thursday’s presidential election, in which he ran against incumbent Yoweri Museveni. On Tuesday Wine said he and his wife had run out of food, and milk for her 18-month-old niece.
The US embassy said late on Monday that Ambassador Natalie Brown had been stopped from visiting Wine, who it referred to by his real name, Robert Kyagulanyi, at his residence in a suburb in the northern outskirts of the capital. The mission said Brown wanted to check on his health and safety given that he was effectively unable to leave his home.The US embassy said late on Monday that Ambassador Natalie Brown had been stopped from visiting Wine, who it referred to by his real name, Robert Kyagulanyi, at his residence in a suburb in the northern outskirts of the capital. The mission said Brown wanted to check on his health and safety given that he was effectively unable to leave his home.
Government spokesman Ofwono Opondo said Brown had no business visiting Wine, who the army says is being held to prevent potential unrest breaking out in the wake of the result. “What she has been trying to do blatantly is to meddle in Uganda’s internal politics, particularly elections, to subvert our elections and the will of the people,” he said. “She shouldn’t do anything outside the diplomatic norms.”Government spokesman Ofwono Opondo said Brown had no business visiting Wine, who the army says is being held to prevent potential unrest breaking out in the wake of the result. “What she has been trying to do blatantly is to meddle in Uganda’s internal politics, particularly elections, to subvert our elections and the will of the people,” he said. “She shouldn’t do anything outside the diplomatic norms.”
Opondo said, without providing any evidence, that Brown had a track record of causing trouble in countries where she has worked in the past. The government was watching her, he said.Opondo said, without providing any evidence, that Brown had a track record of causing trouble in countries where she has worked in the past. The government was watching her, he said.
The US embassy has said last week’s vote was tainted by harassment of opposition candidates, suppression of media and rights advocates and a nationwide internet shutdown. “These unlawful actions and the effective house arrest of a presidential candidate continue a worrying trend on the course of Uganda’s democracy,” it said in the statement.The US embassy has said last week’s vote was tainted by harassment of opposition candidates, suppression of media and rights advocates and a nationwide internet shutdown. “These unlawful actions and the effective house arrest of a presidential candidate continue a worrying trend on the course of Uganda’s democracy,” it said in the statement.
The public rebuke to the United States from the Ugandan government is relatively unusual as the two nations are allies. Washington supports Ugandan soldiers serving in an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia and has donated about $1.5 billion to Uganda’s health sector in the past three years.The public rebuke to the United States from the Ugandan government is relatively unusual as the two nations are allies. Washington supports Ugandan soldiers serving in an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia and has donated about $1.5 billion to Uganda’s health sector in the past three years.
The man whose responsibility it will be to try and re-build some of those bridges with Europe is Antony Blinken, Joe Biden’s pick for secretary of state, who will be up before a Senate committee today as part of his confirmation process. Humeyra Pamuk writes for Reuters this morning that Blinken will use the opportunity to vow to revitalize those alliances and US leadership:
Read more here: Reuters – Biden’s top diplomat, Blinken, vows to revitalize alliances, US leadership
A majority of Europeans believe America’s political system is broken, that China will be the world’s leading power within a decade, and that Joe Biden will be unable to halt his country’s decline on the world stage, according to a report.
While many welcomed Biden’s victory in November’s US election, more Europeans than not feel that after four years of Donald Trump the US cannot be trusted, according to the study by the European Council on Foreign Relations.
“Europeans like Biden, but they don’t think America will come back as a global leader,” said the thinktank’s director, Mark Leonard. “When George W Bush was president, they were divided about how America should use its power. With Biden entering the White House, they are divided about whether America has power at all.”
The survey of 15,000 people in 11 European countries, conducted at the end of last year, found that the shift in European sentiment towards the US in the wake of the Trump presidency had led to a corresponding unwillingness to support Washington in potential international disputes.
At least half of respondents in all 11 countries surveyed felt, for example, that their government should remain neutral in any conflict between the US and China, while no more than 40% in any country said they would back Washington against Russia.
Just over 32% of all respondents – and a startling 53% of respondents in Germany – felt that after voting for Trump, Americans could not be trusted.
“It’s clear that the tumultuous Trump presidency has left an indelible imprint on Europe’s attitude towards the US,” said Ivan Krastev, chair of the Centre for Liberal Strategies, an NGO in Sofia, and an ECFR board member. “The majority of Europeans are now sceptical about the capacity of the US to shape the world. It makes many, rightly or wrongly, want to opt for a more independent role for the EU in the world.”
Read more of Jon Henley’s report here: Majority of Europeans fear Biden unable to fix ‘broken’ US
One feature of the ceremonies leading up to Joe Biden taking his oath tomorrow has been the ‘Field of flags”. Intended to represent the American people who were unable to travel to Washington, nearly 200,000 flags are on display at the National Mall.
Last night, the Presidential Inaugural Committee lit up the “Field of Flags” with 56 pillars of light that represent the 50 states and US territories.
Let’s not forget that hot on the heels of the Biden inauguration on Wednesday we are likely to see the spectacle of Donald Trump’s unprecedented second impeachment trial. Andrew Desiderio and Kyle Cheney at Politico have pulled out five things to look out for, including:
Can the Senate even hold a trial for an ex-president? Opinion is of course divided.
Republican Sen. Tom Cotton, says no: “The Founders designed the impeachment process as a way to remove officeholders from public office — not an inquest against private citizens.”
Steve Vladeck, a University of Texas law professor, disagrees, saying the Constitution doesn’t just provide for removal but also for the Senate to bar that former president from ever holding federal office again.
How likely is a conviction? Desiderio and Cheney point out one element that is very different from Trump’s previous impeachment trial:
They also point out the disarray on the president’s legal team. Desiderio and Cheney write:
Read more here: Politico – 5 things to watch at Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial
Poppy Noor reports for us this morning on Rep. Cori Bush’s first two weeks in the House. She tells of what it was like to be in the Capitol during the attack, getting booed for denouncing white supremacy, and the Republicans who mistook her for Breonna Taylor:
Being mistaken for Breonna Taylor was … Disappointing. We had just arrived to the auditorium, people were getting settled, walking around and introducing themselves. I was wearing a Breonna Taylor mask. Someone walked up to me and said “Hello Breonna,” and it stunned me. I paused, thinking, did I hear them correctly? I turned my head to make sure no one else was standing there. And then it happened again, and again, and again.
That told me a lot. [The Republican party] dismissed the Black Lives Matter protests publicly, and yet [these representatives] didn’t even understand why we were protesting. Shouldn’t they be paying attention to what’s happening around the country?
Being in the Capitol when white supremacists stormed it was … What I was trained for. I come from the movement – we’ve faced tanks, police dogs, teargas, rubber bullets, you name it. We came here to fight for the people of St Louis, and we were not going to be intimidated by these insurrectionists. We locked ourselves in the office and got to work.
Calling to expel the Republicans who tried to overturn the election was … something I never thought would be my first piece of legislation. This is a sad moment in our nation’s history, but it calls for us to act urgently in defense of democracy. Section 3 of the 14th amendment is clear: no person who works in rebellion against the United States government can hold the office of representative, senator or president. I’m proud to lead my colleagues in holding them accountable.
Read more here: ‘We weren’t intimidated’: A diary of Cori Bush’s first two weeks in the House
Five of president-elect Joe Biden’s cabinet nominees will be up before Senate panels today, in the first step of the confirmation process. Biden will take office tomorrow without key members of the cabinet in place, after the Republican controlled Senate has dragged its heels over scheduling confirmation hearings.
One hearing planned for last week for the appointment of Avril Haines as National Intelligence director was cancelled after one Senator refused to hold the process remotely.
Today’s plan sees nominees for secretary of state, secretary of the treasury, director of national intelligence, defense secretary and secretary of Homeland Security.
At 10am ET (that’s 3pm GMT if, like me, you are in London), Janet Yellen will appear before the Senate Finance Committee, Avril Haines will appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee and Alejandro Mayorkas will appear before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Then at 2pm, Antony Blinken, Biden’s proposed replacement for Mike Pompeo as secretary of state will appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Finally, at 3m, retired Gen. Lloyd Austin will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee to be considered for secretary of defense.
That may be the testiest of sessions, as Austin has not been retired long enough to count as a civilian – and it is quite rare for a non-civilian to be placed at the head of the Pentagon. Having said that, Republican Senators recently granted Donald Trump dispensation to appoint Gen. James Mattis into the same role, so it would be seen as hypocritical to now object to Austin on these grounds.
It is possible, though not guaranteed, that some of these could be confirmed in their roles by the Senate tomorrow.
Music stars including Alicia Keys, Mary J Blige and TI have called for the establishment of a US government commission on racial justice within 100 days of the start of the Biden administration.
In 2016, Keys led a video entitled 23 Ways You Could Be Killed By Being Black in America, in which celebrities such as Beyoncé and Bono recited the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Black Americans including Sandra Bland and Philando Castile.
A new video entitled 17 Ways Black People Are Killed in America follows the same format, with musicians including Khalid, Summer Walker and Migos rappers Quavo and Offset describing the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and more.
The video asks for the establishment of a commission first proposed in the US House of Representatives in June 2020 by northern California representative Barbara Lee, entitled the United States Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation. Lee’s proposal was that the commission would “properly acknowledge, memorialise, and be a catalyst for progress, including toward permanently eliminating persistent racial inequities”.
Keys and others call for the commission to be established within 100 days of Biden taking office on Wednesday, to bring about “restorative and reparative action in order to achieve racial justice”.
Keys campaigned with incoming vice-president Kamala Harris at a rally in Arizona in October, telling the crowd: “We’re the bosses of these candidates, which is a 100% true. We hire them! We are allowed to feel the joy in all the rights that have been fought for for so many years.”
Read more of Ben Beaumont-Thomas’ report here: Music stars led by Alicia Keys call for Biden commission on racial justice
Some delicious gossip in Politico’s Playbook this morning which may raise a smile. It appears that Sean Spicer, who was press secretary and White House communications director at the start of Trump’s reign, has applied to join the White House Correspondents’ Association:
It’s a bold step from a man who opened his time as White House mouthpiece by arguing with reality about the size of the crowd that came to Donald Trump’s inauguration. We are not anticipating the first Joe Biden administration press call with Jen Psaki to go the same way.
California has become the first US state to record more than 3 million known coronavirus infections, as the embattled state grapples with an unprecedented surge of cases that has left hospitals overwhelmed. If California was a country, it would have the sixth highest total caseload in the world, behind only the US, India, Brazil, Russia and the UK.
That remarkable figure, which comes from Johns Hopkins university, was not entirely unexpected for the nation’s most populous state – but the speed at which it arrived has been stunning.
The first coronavirus case in California, home to 40 million people, was confirmed on 25 January 2020. It took 292 days to get to 1 million infections, on 11 November, and then just 44 days to hit 2 million, a milestone reached on 24 December. The state hit 3 million just weeks later.
The count is also far ahead of other large states, such as Texas, with more than 2 million, and Florida, which has topped 1.5 million.
So far more than 33,600 Californians have died due to Covid-19.
Southern and central California have been the hardest hit. In Los Angeles county, the nation’s most populous and the current center of the state’s pandemic, scientists estimate that one in three residents have been infected with Covid-19 at some point since the beginning of the pandemic.
Air quality regulators have recently lifted the limits on the number of cremations that can be performed in Los Angeles county, citing a death rate that is more than double the pre-pandemic norm and an unmanageable backlog of dead bodies.
On average, California has seen about 500 deaths and 40,000 new cases daily for the past two weeks. Although hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions remained on a slight downward trend, officials have warned that could reverse when the full impact from transmissions during Christmas and New Year’s Eve gatherings is felt.
Read more here: California is first state to pass 3m Covid cases
A quick Covid snap from Reuters here, that grocery retailer Aldi has said today it would give US employees up to four hours of pay if they get a Covid-19 vaccination, nearly a week after retailer Dollar General provided a similar incentive.
The German supermarket chain, which has more than 2,000 stores in 37 states, said it would cover costs associated with vaccine administration and implement on-site vaccination clinics at its warehouse and office locations.
Dollar General Corp said last week it would offer frontline employees four hours worth of pay after they get the vaccine. Walmart has agreements with states to administer the vaccine to its employees should they choose to receive it once they are eligible.