1 The Manhunt Is On As WA Store Shooting Leaves One Dead, One Injured
Police in Richland, Washington say one person is dead, one is wounded – and the hunt is on for the suspect following a shooting inside a Fred Meyer grocery store in the city. Richland is about 200 miles southeast of Seattle. The suspect has not been named, but police say they have a person of interest. Beyond that, the big question is what happened – and no one’s really explaining. What officials are confirming? That there was some kind of altercation in the store that preceded the shooting. Meantime, the suspect, has only been identified as a white man who is still believed to be armed.
2 Biden: U.S., Germany United On Ukraine, Russia…Mostly
When it comes to Russia, President Biden says there can be "no business as usual" if there's an invasion of Ukraine. During a White House news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz , Biden said the U.S. and Germany are united in their opposition to a Russian invasion. He stressed that the U.S. and its allies are willing to continue diplomatic talks with Russia to avert a war. Biden said diplomacy is the best path forward. But then there were the questions about the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline – that runs from Russia to Europe. Biden said the U.S. and its allies will "bring an end" to the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline – but did not elaborate what he meant by that. And therein lies a chink in the armor between Germany and the United States. During the press conference, Scholz refused to even name the project, and when asked, declined to commit to ending the pipeline if an invasion moves ahead.
3 Mask Mandates, Restrictions Dropping In Five States
More states are ending their mask mandates as the COVID surge begins to drop off. Delaware will stop on Friday with the school requirements to expire March 31st. That's also the date for Oregon at schools and indoor spaces. Meanwhile, California will stop its mandate next week while Connecticut wants to call it for schools at the end of the month. New Jersey confirmed that will happen for students on March 7th. Experts predict omicron cases will continue to fall over the next couple of weeks. On a related note, Japan and Israel are joining the CDC's list of highest COVID-19 risk countries. The two countries were moved to the level four list along with Cuba, Armenia, Libya, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The CDC says if travel cannot be avoided to these destinations travelers must be fully vaccinated before embarking on their trip.