News: An eleventh-hour signature

Monday, December 28, 2020

An eleventh-hour signature

Trump signs a Covid-19 relief and government funding bill at the last minute; a mutated strain of the coronavirus appears to be spreading.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Cameron Peters.

TOP NEWS

Covid-19 relief and government funding bill gets an eleventh-hour Trump signature

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

On Sunday, President Donald Trump signed a combined omnibus government funding bill and coronavirus relief package at the last minute, heading off a government shutdown and renewing expanded unemployment benefits. [Vox / Emily Stewart]
The relief package includes $600 direct checks, a $300-per-week unemployment benefit, rent relief, and an eviction moratorium extension, among other components. [NYT / Tara Siegel Bernard and Ron Lieber]
Before Sunday, the bill's fate was in doubt following a surprise broadside by Trump demanding larger direct stimulus checks and attacking spending on foreign aid — all after Congress had already passed the measure last Monday. [NPR / Benjamin Swasey and Barbara Sprunt]
Despite signing the bill, Trump has indicated he will send a rescission request to Congress asking that some spending be pared back, though it's highly unlikely Congress will do so. [Politico / Burgess Everett, Sarah Ferris, Marianne LeVine, and Melanie Zanona]
Trump's vacillating has already had consequences: His delay in signing the bill means that millions of out-of-work Americans could miss out on a week of much-needed unemployment insurance checks. [Business Insider / Kelsey Vlamis and Joseph Zeballos-Roig]
Separately, a new push for $2,000 relief checks is ostensibly still alive and the House is set to vote on it Monday. It's unclear if or when the Republican-controlled Senate will take it up, however. [CNBC / MacKenzie Sigalos]
Trump appears to be all for more direct coronavirus relief. "$2000 + $2000 plus other family members. Not $600. Remember, it was China's fault!" he tweeted Saturday. [Twitter / Donald J. Trump]
Trump on Sunday also continued his push for Congress to repeal Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which pertains to liability for online platforms, and address his false allegations of widespread election fraud. [CNN / Kevin Liptak, Kate Bennett, Tami Luhby, Kaitlan Collins, Jason Hoffman, Phil Mattingly, and Jeremy Diamond]
Trump vetoed the NDAA, an annual must-pass defense policy bill, last week over the absence of a Section 230 repeal, among other complaints, but a veto override — the first of Trump's presidency, if it passes — is likely on the way, with the House set to vote on Monday. [CBS News / Melissa Quinn]

As vaccinations begin, a new strain of Covid-19 is spreading

A new strain of Covid-19, first identified in the United Kingdom earlier this month, appears to be spreading across the globe. Cases have already been identified in Canada, France, and Japan, among other countries. [Axios / Rebecca Falconer]
According to UK officials, the mutated version of the virus could be as much as 70 percent more infectious. However, experts caution that more experimental data is needed to have a better idea of its actual transmissibility. [NYT / Apoorva Mandavilli]
In response to the new Covid-19 strain, the US on Monday imposed new restrictions on travel from the UK. To enter the country, travelers will need to have tested negative for the virus within 72 hours of taking off. [Washington Post / Miriam Berger]
There's some good news, though: Experts believe vaccines will be equally effective against the mutated virus, and the European Union on Sunday kicked off a large-scale vaccination campaign, joining the US, UK, and other countries. [NPR / Joanna Kakissis]
For more about the new coronavirus strain, read Vox's explainer. [Vox / Brian Resnick and Umair Irfan]

MISCELLANEOUS

As of Saturday, 1 in every 1,000 Americans has died of Covid-19.

[CNN / Travis Caldwell]

Investigators have identified the perpetrator of the Christmas Day bombing in Nashville, Tennessee. Anthony Warner, 63, died in the blast after allegedly detonating his RV early Friday morning. [NYT / Rick Rojas, Adam Goldman, and Jamie McGee]
Georgia Democratic Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have each raised more than $100 million for their races in the past two months, obliterating the previous fundraising record for a Senate candidate. [Politico / James Arkin and Zach Montellaro]
Saudi Arabia sentenced women's rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul, who spearheaded a push to allow Saudi women to drive, to almost six years in prison Monday. [NPR / Bill Chappell]

VERBATIM

"Sidney Powell is a crazy person. Michael Flynn suggesting martial law is tantamount to treason. It is shameful. We understand, Mr. President, that you're angry that you lost. But to continue down this road is ruinous."

[The pro-Trump editorial board of the New York Post in an editorial calling for Trump to drop his efforts to overturn the election results / NY Post]