Wednesday, February 17th, 2021
Second Winter Storm, Trump vs. McConnell & Spring Training Begins
All the news you need in 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by BLUblox.com/newsworthy and Fitbod.me/newsworthy
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Next Winter Storm
About 115 million Americans from Texas to Massachusetts are in the path of the second winter storm this week. It started in the southern plains overnight. There, another one to six inches of snow is expected today, even in the already hard-hit state of Texas, where this kind of weather is rare. Next, the storm moves to the mid-Atlantic and northeast. Through it all, the country is dealing with dangerously cold temperatures. At least 20 cities suffered their coldest weather in history yesterday and many more record-breaking temperatures are expected this week.
Read More: Weather Channel, CNN, ABC News, USA Today, NWS
Power Outages Update
At last check, there are still more than three million Texas homes and businesses without power. Some have been stuck in the dark and cold for days now. The state’s top elected officials are calling for an investigation into the power grid and the governor said the state legislature will work on reform as a top priority this year. In the meantime, energy officials say more Texans could still lose power this week since the demand is still higher than ever.
Read More: Texas Tribune, Reuters, KHOU, PowerOutage.us
Storm Disrupts COVID-19 Vaccinations
The winter storm is putting a freeze on COVID-19 vaccine distribution. In Texas, several cities canceled vaccination appointments. The CDC stopped sending Texas vaccine supplies for now since travel conditions are so dangerous in the state. At least 17 other states have also delayed or canceled some vaccinations too and more could be affected this week. That said, states might be able to make up for it next week. A lot of clinics say they’ll have extended hours after the storm passes.
Read More: WaPo, Politico, NPR
Vaccine Shipments Increase
The White House says it will start sending 13.5 million COVID-19 doses to states every week. That’s up from 11 million. With that, it’s also doubling the number of doses sent directly to pharmacies. Of course, there are still long waitlists for shots. USA Today says there are hundreds of thousands of Americans on waitlists now. Who qualifies depends on things like where you live, your age, your job, or whether you have any pre-existing conditions.
Read More: USA Today, CNBC, The Hill
Trump Slams McConnell
Former President Trump is lashing out at his one-time ally in Congress, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Over the weekend, McConnell called Trump “morally responsible” for the Capitol riot. Trump fired back in a scathing statement yesterday. It says, “Mitch is a dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack.” Trump blamed McConnell for losing two key Senate seats in Georgia’s special election last month and he said, “If Republican senators are going to stay with him, they will not win again.” So far, McConnell hasn’t commented on the recent criticism.
Read More: Politico, NY Times, NBC News, FOX News
NAACP Suing Trump and Giuliani
Former President Trump is facing more new legal troubles. The NAACP is suing him, his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and two extremist groups: the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. In the lawsuit, the civil rights group claims they all conspired to incite last month’s Capitol invasion. It says doing so violated the Ku Klux Klan Act. That law was passed in the 1800s to protect people, like lawmakers, from white supremacist violence. One Trump adviser responded to the lawsuit, saying, “President Trump did not incite or conspire to any violence at the Capitol.”
Read More: NY Times, Reuters, Politico, Axios, NAACP
Vegas Airport Name Change
The busy Las Vegas airport will likely get a name change soon. Since it opened in the 1940s, it’s been named after former U.S. Sen. Patrick McCarran, from Nevada. He was known for his contributions to aviation, but also for having some anti-immigrant and anti-Semitic views. So the Clark County Commission voted unanimously to rename the airport after former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid. He served a total of 30 years in the Senate until he retired in 2016. Now that the commission has signed off, the name change goes to the FAA for final approval.
Read More: AP, WaPo, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Bitcoin Cost Exceeds $50,000
Bitcoin has surged past $50,000 for the first time. The original cryptocurrency and leader in the digital currency space hit the new high yesterday. This means Bitcoin has doubled in value in less than two months. It comes as more major companies are warming up to cryptocurrencies. For example, Mastercard said it would integrate Bitcoin into its payments network this year. Still, some critics worry cryptocurrency is too volatile and it could swing up and down in the future too.
Read More: AP, WSJ, Ars Technica
New World’s Richest Person
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos reclaimed his spot as the world’s richest person. He overtook Tesla founder Elon Musk this week when Tesla’s stock slumped and Musk lost a chunk of his net worth. Now, Forbes says Bezos is worth more than $190 billion. Musk is now in second place with $173 billion. Musk’s stint as the world’s richest person only lasted about a month. Until recently, Bezos held the title since 2017.
Read More: CNBC, Cnet, Forbes
MLB Spring Training Starts
Major League Baseball’s spring training begins today. Just like they do every year, players are heading to Florida and Arizona to begin practicing for the upcoming season. Pitchers and catchers from 15 teams start things off by reporting to their first official workouts today. By Friday, the rest of the MLB teams will be practicing too. This year, fan attendance will be limited to between 20-25% capacity. Fans will have to stay socially distanced and wear masks. The regular season is set to begin on April 1st.
Read More: NY Times, USA Today, MLB.com, CBS Sports
Skier Wins 6th Championship
American skier Mikaela Shiffrin landed in the record books. The 25-year-old skiing phenomenon won a record-breaking 6th world championship. This means she’s overtaken American records she once shared with Lindsey Vonn and Ted Ligety. In Italy this week, she won the super combined, a combination of downhill races. Shiffrin has the chance for two more wins this week. Then, expect to hear more about her in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. They begin in about a year.
Read More: AP, NY Times, NBC Sports
Work Wednesday: More Young People Enlist in Military
More young people than usual are signing up to serve their countries. As The Wall Street Journal reports, the military is seen as an especially attractive option these days since the pandemic has meant fewer job opportunities. In Canada, there was a 37% surge in military applicants during the last nine months of 2020 compared to one year earlier. When it comes to the American military, it looks like more service members want to stay in. Last year, 92% of Army soldiers eligible to reenlist did so. That’s up from 83% in 2019.
Read More: WSJ