1 Massive Snowstorm Buries Much Of Eastern U.S.
Millions of people spent yesterday beginning to deal with the aftermath of weekend storms. The worst being from North Carolina up into New England, where a massive winter storm dumped two-feet of snow on some areas. How bad was it? Ashtabula, Ohio got more than two-feet, Buffalo, New York, got about the same – with snow falling at a rate of four inches an hour at some points – and Banner Elk, North Carolina, who reported 20 inches of snow piled up. Winter storm warnings are still out in parts of more than a dozen states from South Carolina to Maine with nearly 50-thousand homes and businesses in six states from still having no electricity as of last night. As part of that mess, more than 12-hundred flights were canceled, leaving thousands stranded. FlightAware says more than three-thousand flights within, into, or out of the U.S. were delayed or canceled yesterday along.
2 Senate Debate On Voting Rights Bill Begins, While It’s Sure To Fail
The Senate is hours away from starting debate on a new voting rights bill – even though there’s little chance it’ll pass. This, because it's got no apparent GOP support and two of the necessary Democrat votes are against it as well. Still, President Biden was again demanding action as the nation celebrated the memory of Martin Luther King Jr. yesterday. In his MLK Day remarks, Biden said it's important to finish Dr. King’s work of "delivering jobs and justice, and protecting the sacred right to vote." King's oldest son echoed that – as did Dr. King’s granddaughter, Yolanda Renee King. She spoke at the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. Miss King said she inherited her grandfather's passion for equality and that the right to vote is under attack. She added that even as a 13-year-old, she has seen voting rights weaken since she was born. “My family and I have been working on getting two major bills passed that can make it easier for people to vote,” she offered. “Because one of the fundamental rights is the right to vote. Everybody needs to have access to voting,”
3 Fauci: It's Too Soon To Tell Whether Omicron Marks Last Wave
Dr. Anthony Fauci says it's still too soon to say whether the Omicron Covid variant will be the final wave of the pandemic. The omicron variant is highly transmissible and less severe than other variants, so it's sparked hope that it could bring Covid down to the level of a seasonal flu. The White House chief medical advisor said it's an "open question" whether omicron would be the "live virus vaccination" some are hoping for. As part of that, the mild symptoms associated with Omicron has people hosting – or attending – Covid parties. Why? Because some believe now is the time to catch it as a way to develop natural immunity. Dr. John Carlo with the Texas Medical Association says that's risky - and nothing the like the "chicken pox parties" many people grew up with. Why? He says the problem with COVID is natural immunity doesn't amount to much. That's why doctors are urging everybody to get the shots and the booster.