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1. Ukraine
Russia’s Defense Ministry said after a round of peace talks in Istanbul yesterday that the country would “drastically reduce” military activity in the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Chernihiv. However, US officials are skeptical of the claims, and the situation on the ground shows a Russian offensive in full force. Ukrainian officials say there has been no overnight reduction in hostilities and no area of the country has been without sirens while the siege continues. New images and video from cities like Irpin and Mariupol show the extent of the destruction, with entire blocks wiped out. US leaders are under pressure to form a united front against Russia and its neighboring allies, but a well-backed bill to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus lies in the Senate over divided priorities and a looming hiatus.
2. Uprising in the Capitol
Official White House records show a gap of more than seven hours in then-President Donald Trump’s call logs on Jan. 6, 2021, as violence was unfolding on Capitol Hill, The Washington Post and CBS News reported. That’s a massive communications hiatus at a critical time, and now House investigators are looking into whether Trump communicated through other means during those hours — through burner phones, for example, or other people’s devices. The call logs were part of the records turned over by the National Archives earlier this year to the House Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. Meanwhile, in an interview with JustTheNews, Trump continued a pattern of soliciting foreign aid for domestic affairs when he urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to release any damaging information he has about the Biden family.
3.Coronavirus
As expected, the FDA has approved a second Covid-19 booster shot for adults over 50 just four months after their first booster dose. The CDC has also given the move a permissive recommendation, meaning the agency doesn’t directly recommend it, but recognizes it’s something people can do if they want to. There is general scientific agreement that third doses of Covid-19 help boost immunity against serious illness from the virus, but science is far from decided when, or even if, a fourth dose might be needed. Complicating matters further is the rise of the extremely contagious BA.2 variant, which is the dominant strain of coronavirus in the United States today.
4. Residential Schools
Indigenous Canadian leaders and Canadian boarding school survivors met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Monday to seek a papal apology for the Catholic Church’s role in the deadly and damaging residential school system. Hundreds of unmarked graves were discovered last year on the grounds of former boarding schools in British Columbia and Saskatchewan, and Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission has reported that more than 4,000 Indigenous children have died from either neglect or abuse in the schools, many of which operated were by the Catholic Church. During this week’s meeting, the delegation asked the pope to consider whether the church should use its resources to help with the work involved in discovering unmarked graves on school grounds.
5. Electoral Laws in Georgia
A controversial Georgia election overhaul has stalled after a state Senate committee gutted the massive bill following complaints from both parties that it was making their job more difficult in an election year. The bill was hurled through the GOP-led state house earlier this month, but now faces a time crunch as the Georgia General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn next Monday. The initial revision would give the state investigative agency the power to investigate voter fraud, require public inspection of original paper ballots, and limit third-party donations to election administration. The only part of the bill the Senate Ethics Committee voted in favor of was a requirement that employers give employees time off during the early voting period to allow them to vote. The decision was praised by voting rights activists, who have criticized repeated attempts by the state’s conservative leadership to change the state’s election law, including a restrictive election law passed last March.
BROWSE BREAKFAST
Questlove slapped Will Smith across the face for meditating
We should all strive to be that undisturbed.
Prenuptial agreements aren’t just for the super rich. should you get one
Sure, it’s not exactly highly romantic, but planning for every eventuality is an attractive trait.
A Thriller by Dolly Parton and 4 other books to add to your reading list from Jake Tapper’s book club
The only thing more fun than a Dolly Parton thriller would be an interpretation of Dolly Parton’s “Thriller.”
Katy Perry split her pants during a performance of Teenage Dream
“You make me feel like I’m wearing an unfinished seam!”
TODAY’S NUMBER
4.4 million
So many Americans quit their jobs last month as the “great resignation” continues.
THE TODAY QUOTE
“Lynching was pure terror to enforce the lie that not everyone belongs…in America, not all are created equal.”
President Joe Biden, who signed legislation making lynching a federal hate crime. The law, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act of 2022, is named for the 14-year-old black boy from Chicago who was brutally murdered by a group of white men in Mississippi in 1955 for allegedly referencing a white woman.
TODAY’S WEATHER
Check your local forecast here>>>
AND FINALLY
Surprise!
Truly a classic moment in the history of classical performance: A nervous listener surprised by a sudden appearance in the North State Symphony’s performance of Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite. AH! (click here to view)
