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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering whether to recommend yet another Covid booster shot this spring, especially for people most at risk for severe complications of the illness. A spring booster would be the same vaccine that was approved last fall, which was formulated to target the XBB.1.5 subvariant. The vaccine is also very effective against the JN.1 subvariant, which is causing almost all Covid infections in the U.S. right now. While it's unlikely that the majority of Americans would opt for another dose — just 21.9% of adults received the latest version of the vaccine —...

The White House sent an angry letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland a day before the Special Counsel report on President Joe Biden's mishandling of classified information was released. White House Counsel Ed Siskel complained in a letter on February 7 that Special Counsel Robert Hur's report included 'multiple denigrating statements' about Biden's memory. Details of the White House letters between Justice Department officials were first published by Politico. 'A global and pejorative judgment on the President's powers of recollection in general is uncalled for and unfounded,' the letter read. The latest development in the special counsel saga as Congress...

Greek lawmakers voted on Thursday to legalize same-sex marriage in a landmark decision that will make it the first Orthodox Christian country to do so. The passage of the law — which was drafted by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ center-right government and had support from four left-wing parties — makes the nation the 16th within the European Union and the 35th worldwide to legalize same-sex nuptials, according to a tally from the LGBTQ advocacy group Human Rights Campaign. Gay marriage is also legal in the territories of Taiwan and Greenland. A cross-party majority of 176 lawmakers in the 300-seat...

A key exchange of letters viewed by NBC News shows frustration from Biden’s legal team over the findings and tone of special counsel Robert Hur’s report.President Joe Biden’s legal team is frustrated over the findings and tone of special counsel Robert Hur's report, several letters leaked Thursday between Biden’s attorneys and top Justice Department officials show. A key exchange of letters viewed by NBC News occurred the day before the Justice Department released Hur’s report, in which Hur explained his decision not to prosecute Biden over his handling of classified documents after he left office as vice president even while...

The animal will also be tested for rabies after the incidents at an Arlington park. A coyote that Texas officials think bit three children at a park is set to be "humanely euthanized," leaders in Arlington said Thursday. Arlington Animal Services captured the coyote Thursday morning after the bites at Parkway Central Park in north Arlington, a city between Dallas and Fort Worth. The animal will be tested for rabies at the Texas Health and Human Services in Austin, the city said on X. An animal control officer and a police officer were at the park because of “aggressive coyote...

Ahigh school student in California was arrested and is facing attempted murder charges in a plot to carry out a shooting on campus that was uncovered after a classmate expressed concerns the teen was “fixated on school shootings and had access to weapons,” police said. Sebastian Villasenor, 18, was arrested Saturday and at his home investigators found seven rifles, two revolvers, a handgun and a shotgun, along with more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, Ontario Police Chief Mike Lorenz said at a news conference Wednesday. Villasenor had five intended victims – all students – and was considering a sixth, Lorenz...

Millions of Americans awaiting their refund checks could be disappointed, as early data shows that average workers are receiving 29 percent less in tax refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) this year. The average refund check through February 2 is worth $1,395, according to statistics published by the IRS on Thursday. This amount is significantly less compared to the $1,963 received on average last year. Despite the noticeable reduction in the average refund issued this year so far, the IRS does not appear alarmed, noting that the average refund amount is likely to change in the coming months. The...

My latest song. One lump or two?

Smoking has surpassed injecting as the most common way of taking drugs in U.S. overdose deaths, a new government study suggests. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called its study published Thursday the largest to look at how Americans took the drugs that killed them. CDC officials decided to study the topic after seeing reports from California suggesting that smoking fentanyl was becoming more common than injecting it. Potent, illicit versions of the painkiller are involved in more U.S. overdose deaths than any other drug.

<p>JOHNSON CITY — Blanco County authorities are investigating the death of Angela Chao, CEO of shipping company Foremost Group, who died Sunday after authorities were called to perform a water rescue on a private ranch, the sheriff's office said in a statement Thursday.</p>

The US government is spending $1million of American taxpayer money to fund gain-of-function experiments on dangerous bird flu viruses in collaboration with Chinese scientists. The research involves infecting ducks and geese with different strains to make them more transmissible and infectious, and study the viruses' potential to 'jump into mammalian hosts,' according to the research documents. It is being funded through the US Department of Agriculture and will take place at sites in Georgia, Beijing and Edinburgh in Scotland. It comes despite such research being restricted in 2022 and growing concerns that dubious Chinese research may have started the Covid...

While much of the attention in discussions about climate change often focuses on areas such as the Arctic or small island nations, the effects on regions such as the Middle East, and particularly Iraq, is often overlooked. Yet, the consequences of climate change in Iraq are profound and far-reaching, affecting not only the environment but also exacerbating existing social, economic and political challenges. As the world grapples with the wider existential threat, it is critical that we shed light on the plight of Iraq and outline the actions both the country and the international community must take to address this...

Dan Partland's documentary examines the rise of Christian Nationalism as a political movement in America.It’s not surprising that Dan Partland’s documentary about the increasing influence of Christian Nationalism begins and ends with footage from Jan. 6., 2021. Christian Nationalists were among the principal organizers of the insurrection that occurred that day, which featured a trespasser carrying a Christian flag onto the Senate floor. God & Country, which counts Rob Reiner among its producers, delivers a bracing primer on the rise of this political movement that should thoroughly scare the large majority of American adults who don’t embrace it. And,...

The subscription video-on-demand service's staff was let go, and the app will shutter later in the year.Noggin, Paramount Global‘s subscription video-on-demand service targeted at young kids, is shutting down. The platform is a casualty of a round of layoffs that saw 800 staffers across Paramount lose their jobs. CEO Bob Bakish said the layoffs are part of “streamlining costs” at the conglomerate. Noggin’s entire staff is among the 800 layoffs. The app will stop taking on new subscribers and will shutter sometime later this year, as first reported by trade publication Kidscreen. Noggin features a library of educational games, books...

A legal analyst appearing on MSNBC argued that special prosecutor Nathan Wade’s testimony on Thursday seriously hurt the credibility of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, putting the case against former President Donald Trump in jeopardy. Wade’s testimony revealed that he and Willis, who were romantically involved with each other, were not being truthful in legal documents, which has created additional scrutiny over her ability to work truthfully in the court of law. Caroline Polisi, a federal and white-collar defense attorney, stated Thursday that Willis’s credibility being “shot” is the biggest takeaway from Wade’s “bombshell” testimony, especially regarding her work...

The Mises Caucus — a more radical libertarian faction organized around the work of Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises — has been a power center within the party since its endorsed candidate, Angela McArdle, won the national committee chairmanship in a 2022 landslide victory with nearly 70 percent of the vote. It controls the majority of the delegates who will vote on the party’s presidential nominee at the national convention in May. While McArdle has suggested that the party may be open to a Kennedy bid, last weekend the Mises Caucus came out formally in opposition to his candidacy, making...

The National Archives Rotunda and galleries in Washington, DC, closed to the public today after two individuals dumped red powder on the encasement protecting the U.S. Constitution at approximately 2:30 pm. They were immediately detained by security personnel. Officials are investigating the incident.

The coroner overseeing an inquest into the death of a man at a retreat involving kambo frog poison ceremonies says she hopes the message "getting through" is the importance of calling triple-0. The inquest in Byron Bay is examining the death of Jarrad Antonovich at the Dreaming Arts Festival held at Collins Creek near Kyogle in October 2021. Mr Antonovich used kambo and the psychedelic substance ayahuasca while at the retreat, the court has heard, although the cause of death was a perforated oesophagus. The inquest is examining whether the excessive vomiting often associated with ayahuasca and kambo ceremonies caused...

Look, I am not automatically inclined to tell a business owner how to run their operation. It is their money, their venture— run things as you see fit. If anything, I have encouraged this brand of self-reliance. Often, when leftist activists command that a business cater to a particular group or forcibly demand particular levels of inclusion, I have stated that if they feel that strongly about this being a viable plan, then they should back their thoughts with their own cash and sweat equity and go for it. ... Such is the case with the rather Bohemian-themed business in...

While Special Counsel Robert K. Hur has raised the issue of mental deterioration in explaining why he declined to prosecute 81-year-old Joe Biden for illegal retention and sharing of classified documents, the president chose another rationale to declare himself not culpable: He shifted the blame to the staffers who boxed up his records as he left the vice president’s office in 2017.At a press conference hastily assembled after the report’s release, Biden said he assumed his aides had shipped “all" the documents to the National Archives in College Park, Md. “I wish I had paid more attention to how the...