3 Things To Know Today

1 Let The Vaccines Begin

The first Americans could begin receiving COVID-19 vaccinations as soon as today. This, as the CDC is giving its official recommendation to the vaccine from drug makers Pfizer and BioNTech. CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said in a statement the move by his agency "comes at a critical time." Distribution of the Pfizer vaccine began over the weekend, and it’s expected to take months to vaccinate everyone who wants the shot. Healthcare workers and nursing home residents are expected to have top priority. Considering we’re coming up on a year since the coronavirus became a ‘thing,’ the head of the Food and Drug Administration says Americans can have "trust and confidence" the newly authorized vaccine meets the FDA's high standards for safety and effectiveness. Commissioner Steve Hahn says although the vaccine was prepared in record time, there were no corners cut. He also called the emergency authorization of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine a "significant milestone.” The FDA is making available information on their data review process as well as vaccine ingredients, benefits, uses and risks.

2 Trump, Supporters Rage After SCOTUS Rejects Texas Lawsuit

As the Electoral College meets today to certify the election, Rudy Giuliani is clear: he and President Trump are "not finished" after the Supreme Court shut down Texas' request to overturn Joe Biden's victory in four swing states. The President's attorney says ‘Team Trump’ plans to bring the case to the district Court.The Texas lawsuit was the latest in a series of suits filed by Trump and his supporters claiming voter fraud in an effort to turn the election in his favor, but with no success. What was the Supreme Court’s reasoning for turfing the case? Quite simply, “lack of standing.” In other words, Texas has no business telling other states how to run their elections. For his part, Mr. Trump is blaming the U.S. Supreme Court for “chickening out” after it refused to hear a challenge to election results in battleground states he lost. He called the high court decision absurd and said it's "so bad for our country."

3 Report: Treasury, Commerce Dept. Systems Hacked

The FBI is investigating a hacking of systems of the U.S. Treasury and Commerce Departments. And we’re not talking about a garden variety hack – officials say intrusion was pretty broad. The hacking even prompted an emergency meeting of the NSC on Saturday. But worse than a hack reaching higher levels of government? The group behind the cyber-attack is linked to the Russian government. A spokesperson for the National Security Council says the U.S. government is working to remedy any possible issues related to the threat. As National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot puts it, investigators “are taking all necessary steps to identify and remedy any possible issues related to this situation.” It's believed that this breach is the most significant in years.


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