VIRUS OUTBREAK-BIDEN
Biden highlighting federal ‘surge’ to help weather omicron
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is highlighting the federal government’s efforts to “surge” COVID-19 testing and medical personnel to help overwhelmed medical facilities. The effort comes amid the upswing in coronavirus cases and staff shortages due to the omicron variant. Starting next week, 1,000 military medical personnel will begin arriving to help mitigate staffing crunches at hospitals. Biden on Thursday will announce military medical teams being deployed to Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio and Rhode Island. The White House says Biden also will announce he’s directing his team to double its procurement of rapid COVID-19 tests to be delivered for free to Americans through a federal website.
AP-US-UNEMPLOYMENT-BENEFITS
U.S. jobless claims rise by 23,000 to 230,000
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level since mid-November. U.S. jobless claims climbed by 23,000 last week to 230,000, still low by historic standards. The four-week moving average, which smooths out week-to-week blips, was up nearly 6,300 to almost 211,000. The weekly applications, a proxy for layoffs, have now risen four of the last five weeks, possibly a sign that the omicron variant is having an impact on the job market, which has bounced strongly from last year’s coronavirus recession.
PRODUCER PRICES
Wholesale prices jumped a record 9.7% in 2021
WASHINGTON (AP) — Prices at the wholesale level surged by a record 9.7% for all of 2021, setting an annual record and providing further evidence that inflation is still present at all levels of the U.S. economy. The Labor Department reported Thursday that its producer price index, which measures inflation before it reaches consumers, did slow on a monthly basis, rising just rose 0.2% in December compared to November, when prices had shot up 1%.
BC-MORTGAGE RATES
US average long-term mortgage rates jump; 30-year now 3.45%
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates jumped again this past week, reaching their highest level since March 2020, just as the coronavirus pandemic was breaking in the U.S. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan rose to 3.45% this week from 3.22% last week. A year ago, the 30-year rate stood at 2.79%. Mortgage rates have been expected to rise this year after the Federal Reserve announced last month that it would begin dialing back its monthly bond purchases — which are intended to lower long-term rates — to slow accelerating inflation.
AP-US-CONGRESS-VOTING-BILLS
Dems switch strategy on voting bill as Biden pushes action
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are trying to force a public showdown over their sweeping elections legislation. They’re aiming to launch debate on a key party priority even though there’s no assurance the bill will come to a vote. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer outlined the plan in a memo obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press — one day before President Joe Biden is to meet with Democrats at the Capitol. The Democrats plan to launch debate on the legislation even though it is now blocked by a Republican filibuster. Schumer hopes to shine a spotlight and push senators to say where they stand.
FEDERAL PRISONS
Thousands of federal inmates to be released under 2018 law
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department will begin transferring thousands of inmates out of federal prisons this week as part of a sweeping criminal justice overhaul signed by President Donald Trump more than three years ago. The department is now spelling out how “time credits” for prisoners will work. The bipartisan measure is intended to encourage inmates to participate in programs aimed at reducing recidivism, which could let them out of prison earlier. It also eases mandatory minimum sentences and gives judges more discretion in sentencing. While the transfers are expected to begin this week, it isn’t clear how many inmates will be released. The department would only say that “thousands” of inmates are being affected.
FATAL FARGO SHOOTINGS
Man accused in deadly Fargo factory shooting will have exam
FARGO, N.D. (AP) — A man accused of killing two co-workers at a North Dakota plastics factory in November will undergo a mental health exam to determine whether he is competent to stand trial. Cass County Judge Wade Webb signed a commitment order Wednesday so that Anthony Reese Jr. can be evaluated at the North Dakota State Hospital as requested by his attorneys. Radio station KFGO reports that the 35-year-old Moorhead, Minnesota, man is charged with three counts of murder for the Nov. 17 shooting deaths of 43-year-old Richard Pittman and Pittman’s pregnant girlfriend, 32-year-old April Carbone, at Melet Plastics, a Fargo manufacturer that is also known as Composite America. Reese remains in custody on a $2 million bond.
MISSING TRAVELER
Probe finds ‘unintentional mistakes’ in Petito police stop
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — An investigation has found that Utah police made “several unintentional mistakes” when they stopped Gabby Petito and her boyfriend before she was killed in what became a high-profile missing person case. The independent report released Wednesday examines a stop by police in the tourist town of Moab on Aug. 12. They allowed the couple to leave after requiring them to spend a night apart. Body camera video of a visibly upset Petito was widely viewed as the investigation unfolded and raised questions about whether a more robust police response could have prevented her death.
AP-EU-RUSSIA-US-NATO
Russia won’t rule out military deployment to Cuba, Venezuela
MOSCOW (AP) — A senior Russian diplomat has refused to rule out a Russian military deployment to Cuba and Venezuela if tensions with the United States mount. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, who led the Russian delegation in Monday’s talks in Geneva, said in televised remarks Thursday that he could neither confirm nor exclude the possibility that Russia could deploy military assets in Cuba and Venezuela. The negotiations in Geneva and Wednesday’s NATO-Russia meeting in Vienna failed to narrow the gap on Moscow’s security demands amid a buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine. Speaking in an interview with Russian RTVI TV, Ryabkov noted that “it all depends on the action by our U.S. counterparts.”
KAZAKHSTAN-PROTESTS
Kazakhstan: Russia-led alliance’s troops prepare to pull out
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian Defense Ministry says troops that are part of a Russia-led security alliance are preparing to pull out of Kazakhstan. The withdrawal announced on Thursday comes only a week after they were deployed to the ex-Soviet nation on the request of its president, who was seeking to quell violent mass protests. The demonstrations started on Jan. 2 in western Kazakhstan, triggered by a sharp rise of fuel prices, and quickly spread nationwide, descending into violence. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has blamed the unrest on foreign-backed “terrorists” and requested assistance from the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russia-led military alliance of six ex-Soviet states. On Tuesday, Tokayev declared their mission accomplished.
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