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More countries are banning travelers from the UK in an effort to contain a mutated variant of Covid-19 that could spread even faster. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to chair an emergency meeting today on the new variant. Scientists in the US and the UK are still waiting for the vaccine to work against the variant, saying they should know more in a few days. In the U.S., the first doses of Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine are likely to be given this morning, and those people will be in line. Despite the good news, cases and deaths are skyrocketing in much of the United States and things will get worse before they get better.
3. White House Transition
President Donald Trump continues to try to annul the election result, even though there is only a month left until President-elect Joe Biden takes office. But the latest turn in the effort has alarmed even some White House officials, people accustomed to Trump’s inflammatory and anti-democratic rhetoric. At a recent meeting in which Trump heard arguments about invoking martial law to stay in office, some officials sounded the alarm to the press. Trump dismissed reports of the martial law discussion and it is unclear whether he supported the idea. But even mentioning it could spark flames among many supporters clinging to the belief that the election result was fraudulent.
4. Pan Am bombing
Thirty-two years ago, 270 people, mostly Americans, died when Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed over Lockerbie, Scotland. Today, the United States plans to announce new criminal charges against a former Libyan intelligence officer for his alleged involvement in the 1988 terrorist attack. Attorney General William Barr announced the first allegations in the investigation during his initial stage in the paper almost three decades ago. The latest charges, which will be one of Barr’s final acts at the head of the Justice Department, make his term a full circle. Last year, Barr said he had long been frustrated by the U.S. response to the attack.
5. Iraq
The rocket attacks on Sunday targeted the Green Zone in Baghdad, home to the U.S. embassy in Iraq and other foreign missions. Eight rockets were fired at the heavily fortified area, which often sees these attacks. The Iraqi military said most of the rockets struck the neighborhood near the U.S. embassy, damaging several buildings and injuring at least one Iraqi soldier. The Iraqi president called the attack a “terrorist act” and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blamed Iranian-backed militias. There had been concerns before – sources said earlier this month that the US was temporarily withdrawing staff from its embassy for fears of retaliation around the anniversary of the assassination of a powerful Iranian military commander.
PASSING LATER
The bidens are vaccinated today
President-elect Joe Biden and incoming first lady Jill Biden will receive the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine in Delaware, according to their transition team.
EXPLORE BREAKFAST
Paul McCartney now has a quarantine record
And the first single is a jam.
Ariana Grande seems to be engaged
Rohingya children will be able to be seen at the new Sesame Workshop Muppets
Meet Noor and Aziz, Muppets twins living in a refugee camp in Bangladesh.
A father who died years ago left his son $ 10 to buy his first beer when he turned 21
Thanks to the thoughtful gesture of a father.
Pythons could become a new menu item in Florida if scientists can confirm they are safe to eat
… We will have to transmit it, regardless of what the scientists say.
TODAY’S ISSUE
$ 5,600
It’s the amount of tips a customer at an Ohio restaurant left for all the staff to split up. Each employee received a surprise $ 200 Christmas gift.
TODAY’S BUDGET
“We want to hand them over to the next administration and make sure the United States never has to go through what we’ve been through again.”
Paul Mango, deputy director of policy cabinet of the Department of Health and Human Services, on plans to replenish and improve the federal supply reserve.
TODAY’S WEATHER
Check out the local forecast here >>>
AND FINALLY
It’s sleigh season!
Running through the snowy hills is a blast, but sometimes we fall head over heels. Here are some particularly epic failures.
