VIRUS OUTBREAK
Cases increase in new COVID hotspots in Michigan and Minnesota
Hospitals in Michigan and Minnesota are reporting a wave of COVID-19 patients not seen for months. Beds are filling with unvaccinated people, and health care providers are warning staff are exhausted by yet another increase. Michigan had just over 3,000 COVID-19 patients in hospitals this week for the first time since spring. Almost all of the hospital beds were occupied in Minnesota. Meanwhile, some states are ignoring federal guidelines and expanding boosters. Arkansas joined California, Colorado and New Mexico this week to offer them to anyone 18 or older. Michigan has the nation’s highest seven-day COVID-19 case rate at 503 per 100,000 people.
KENOSHA PROTESTS-DRAWS
Jury begins deliberating at Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial
KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) – The jury began deliberating on Kyle Rittenhouse’s murder trial after two weeks of testimony in which they received very different portrayals of his actions the night he shot three men on the streets from Kenosha. Prosecutors said Rittenhouse was an “aspiring soldier” who provoked a confrontation, while defense said he feared for his life and acted in self-defense after being ambushed by a “person. crazy”. Eighteen jurors heard the case; the 12 who will decide Rittenhouse’s fate and the six who have been designated alternates were determined by a raffle drum draw. Rittenhouse, then 17, shot dead two men and injured a third on a tumultuous night of protests against racial injustice in the summer of 2020.
RACIAL INJUSTICE-ELIJAH MCCLAIN
Police reforms boosted by advance of Elijah McClain death
AURORA, Colo. (AP) – A Denver suburban police department whose officers have been charged in the death of Elijah McClain will revamp its use of force policies and launch new training programs in a bid to combat against prejudices. It’s part of a deal announced on Tuesday following an investigation that revealed a pattern of racist policing and excessive force. The investigation was launched amid outrage over the death of McClain, a black man who was suffocated by police and injected by paramedics with ketamine in 2019. The agreement was signed by the Colorado attorney general and city officials, but still remains relevant. after approval by the municipal council.
BIDEN
Biden touts infrastructure bill on snowy and rusty bridge in NH
WOODSTOCK, NH (AP) – Battling sagging polls, President Joe Biden has embarked on a nationwide tour to persuade ordinary Americans of the benefits of his newly signed grand infrastructure plan. First stop: A snow-covered and rusty bridge in New Hampshire, a state that gave him no love in last year’s presidential primaries. He returned on Tuesday as president, eager to talk about the infrastructure deal and what all that money can do for Americans. Biden is down in the polls and he hopes to use the successful deal to turn the political tide in his direction. The president signed the infrastructure bill on Monday in a booming bipartisan ceremony on the White House lawn.
CONGRESS-GOSAR
AP source: House to vote on censorship of Gosar by video
WASHINGTON (AP) – Republican Representative Paul Gosar of Arizona faces censorship in the House for a violent video he posted online. The House will vote on a resolution on Wednesday that would censure Gosar for tweeting an animated video of him hitting New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with a sword. This is according to a person familiar with the planning who was not authorized to discuss it publicly. The person also said the House would vote on removing Gosar from one of his committee missions. Gosar says the video was “a symbolic representation of a fight over immigration policy.” Democratic lawmakers called the video “beyond the pale.”
AP-MARCHES-FINANCIERS
Stocks soar on Wall Street after retail sales post big gain
Stocks closed higher on Wall Street on Tuesday as investors looked at strong earnings reports from retailers and an encouraging update on consumer spending. The S&P 500 rose 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq rose 0.8%. The Home Depot rose 5.7% after the home improvement retailer reported strong sales and earnings growth in the last quarter in a buoyant real estate market. New data also showed that Americans sharply increased their spending last month. Tech and healthcare companies have also grown. Communications companies have lagged behind the market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bill was 1.64%.
AP-US-MED-VIRUS-EPIDEMIC-BOOSTER-SHOTS
Boosters for all adults in the United States closer with group reunion set
NEW YORK (AP) – An influential U.S. advisory group will discuss expanding eligibility for booster injections of the COVID-19 vaccine to all adults on Friday, a move that could make injections available as early as this weekend. The panel advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in establishing vaccination recommendations for U.S. physicians and the general public. Some cities and states already allow all adults to receive Pfizer vaccine boosters, but that is not yet official US policy.
CAPITAL OF NATIONS VIRUS EPIDEMIC
DC to drop most indoor mask requirements next week
WASHINGTON (AP) – The District of Columbia will lift its indoor mask requirement starting next week, as local cases of COVID infection continue to decline. From Monday November 22, masks will no longer be mandatory in many interior spaces. A statement from the city’s health department said masks will still be required in some settings, including schools, libraries, public transportation, carpool vehicles and group living facilities like nursing homes. nurses, dormitories and prisons. Private companies will still be able to require customers to wear masks. The nation’s capital initially lifted its indoor mask requirement for fully vaccinated people in May, but reinstated it in late July as cases started to rise again.
AP-US-MED-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-COVID-PILL-PFIZER
Pfizer calls on U.S. officials to approve promising COVID-19 pill
WASHINGTON (AP) – Pfizer is asking the United States for approval of its experimental COVID-19 treatment pill. Tuesday’s filing paves the way for the likely launch of a promising treatment that can be taken at home. Pfizer’s pill has been shown to significantly reduce the rate of hospitalizations and death in people infected with the coronavirus. The Food and Drug Administration will review the company’s data on the safety and effectiveness of the pill before making a decision. The FDA is already reviewing a competitor drug from Merck. Several smaller drugmakers are also expected to seek approval for their own antiviral pills in the coming months.
AP-US-UNITE-THE-RIGHT-RALLY-TRIAL
Lawyer: Charlottesville organizer sought to deceive police
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia (AP) – Messages presented in federal court Monday appear to show an organizer of the murderous Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville ordering supporters to mislead law enforcement as to the potential scale of the protest of 2017. The Washington Post reports that Jason Kessler is one of two dozen defendants who have testified in a federal civil lawsuit to determine whether they have engaged in a conspiracy to commit racially-motivated violence. The weekend turned deadly when a self-proclaimed Hitler admirer slammed his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing one and injuring dozens. Lawyers for the plaintiffs have shown jurors leaked messages that appeared to show the organizers and their supporters were planning the violence.
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