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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Janet Yellens Confirmation Hearing Provides a Glimpse Into the Biden Era</strong> - Three topics are set to dominate the Administrations economic agenda: the pandemic, spending and taxes, and China. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/janet-yellens-confirmation-hearing-provides-a-glimpse-into-the-biden-era">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Alexey Navalnys Fearless Return to Russia</strong> - The Russian dissidents superpower is his ability to show people what they have always known about the Putin regime but had the option of pretending away. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/alexey-navalnys-fearless-return-to-russia">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Obituary for a Failed Presidency</strong> - In the end, Donald Trump was everything his haters feared—a chaos candidate who became a chaos President. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/obituary-for-a-failed-presidency">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The New COVID-19 Variant Sends Britain into a Crisis</strong> - Scientists believe that the new strain will cause death tolls to continue to climb. “Things are going to get really bad,” a senior lecturer in mathematical biology said. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-the-uk/the-new-covid-19-variant-sends-britain-into-a-crisis">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>“A Broken Land”: Biden and the True Costs of Unity</strong> - In launching his Presidency around the pursuit of unity, Biden will immediately face the hard political calculations of making it concrete. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/a-broken-land-biden-and-the-true-costs-of-unity">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How will Trump handle life without Twitter and Facebook? Ask Alex Jones.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Donald and Melania Trump walk from the White House to the Marine One helicopter." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/BKEUdC3A5dvu9T4rhF0OyBHrK10=/503x0:5494x3743/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68698959/1230689042.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Eric Thayer/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
What happens when the former leader of the free world gets deplatformed? Were going to find out.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CZPDKl">
Donald Trump is out of the White House. And hes been kicked off of the worlds biggest tech platforms. Now what?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ak7WYo">
We dont yet have any idea what Trump really plans to do now that hes a private citizen (he probably doesnt either). We also dont know what will happen to Trumps reach and power without access to Twitter and the rest of his social media bullhorns.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jSIG7L">
In the past, weve seen big — but compared to Trump, comparatively tiny — right-wing figures diminish considerably once theyve been deplatformed. But none of them used to be the leader of the free world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VUnFAy">
“Trump is going to be an interesting case because he is so prominent,” says Renee DiResta, a researcher at the <a href="https://cyber.fsi.stanford.edu/io/content/io-landing-page-2">Stanford Internet Observatory</a>. “Hes not a fringe figure popular within a passionate-yet-small audience. He [was] the president of the United States.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JmuU45">
So it may be useful to look at the experiences of some of the fringe figures who have had their social media plugs pulled over the last few years, like Milo Yiannopoulos and Alex Jones — who, not coincidentally, helped set the stage for Trump and the post-truth world he created for the last four years. For now, though, we can only make guesses about what happens to Trump without a platform.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fiKeEU">
A few things we <em>are</em> certain about right now: Trump is unlikely to command an audience — at least, directly — on mainstream social media services for a long time.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Etybpu">
Although <a href="https://twitter.com/jack/status/1349510769268850690">Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey posted a mournful thread</a> last week about his companys decision to boot Trump in the aftermath of the Capitol riot, Twitter says the ban is permanent. (A Twitter comms rep did suggest to me, perhaps cheekily, that Trump could try the companys <a href="https://help.twitter.com/forms/general">appeals page</a>.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dmKQBw">
Mark Zuckerberg hasnt said Trump would be banned from Facebook and Instagram forever; instead, he has said the ban would last at least “until the peaceful transition of power is complete.” But informed people Ive talked to at the company say there wont be any change now that Joe Biden is the 46th president, and they cant imagine a scenario where something does change.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oLZryO">
YouTube, which waited several days after its Big Tech peers to ban Trump, and initially announced a ban that would run through the inauguration, has in theory given Trump the most hope: On Tuesday, the company said it would extend the ban another week instead of indefinitely banning him. But its hard to imagine YouTube breaking from the rest of its peers and letting Trump back in.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sbTfMW">
More to the point, while Trumps campaign spent heavily on YouTube, and he used it to broadcast his farewell address (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6h5_d3DUdR4&amp;feature=youtu.be">via the official White House account</a>, which YouTube said was okay), Donald Trump has yet to show any real interest in the video site. The same goes for Snapchat — which has officially banned Trump. TikTok, meanwhile, didnt officially ban Trump, but it pulled lots of Trump-related content off the service (which, <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/9/14/21437060/tiktok-trump-us-oracle-bytedance-china">despite Trumps efforts to ban it</a>, is still very much alive in the US).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="k3zF10">
We also know that, in the past, deplatforming particular figures from social media does indeed appear to have decreased their overall presence and power.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FnlRCz">
Both Yiannopoulos (a self-styled provocateur banned from Twitter after a string of racist tweets in 2016; Facebook followed up in 2019) and Jones (a conspiracy theorist best known for arguing that the Sandy Hook school shootings were were a hoax and who was banned from most of mainstream social media in 2018) downplayed the consequences of getting kicked off social media, but both have clearly suffered.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DVnZ7l">
A year after he lost Twitter, <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/12/5/18125507/milo-yiannopoulos-debt-no-platform">Yiannopoulos complained</a> that his ability to make a living trolling libs had vanished. Jones is still yelling loudly about wild-eyed conspiracies, but he appears to have lost a significant slice of his audience to the <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/21499485/qanon-facebook-twitter-bans-republican-politics">QAnon cult</a>, which is why his most public appearance in years came after the Capitol Hill riot, when he raved <a href="https://twitter.com/AndyGrewal/status/1348072426899460102?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1348072426899460102%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newsweek.com%2Falex-jones-qanon-rant-viral-infowars-1560394">(in a viral Twitter video he didnt post</a>) that QAnons warped conspiracies were a bridge too far.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vxAvZ0">
Just as telling: While <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/alex-jones-and-donald-trump-how-the-candidate-echoed-the-conspiracy-theorist-on-the-campaign-trail/">Trump used to embrace Jones publicly</a>, over the last year he became <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/10/16/qanon-trump-conspiracy/">publicly affectionate for QAnon</a>, and ended up <a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-off-the-rails-descent-into-madness-fd169833-9052-473d-87f5-7a1a4ffffb8f.html">peddling the cults conspiracy theories</a> after he lost his election last fall.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4GOFC2">
And yes, its possible that Trump, like Jones and Yiannopoulos, could take up residence on the barely moderated social network Parler (which itself has been <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/13/22228675/amazon-parler-takedown-violent-threats-moderation-content-free-speech">deplatformed</a>, at least for now, by Amazon, Apple, and Google). He could also head over to messaging apps like <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22226618/what-is-signal-whatsapp-telegram-download-encrypted-messaging">Signal and Telegram</a>, which have been booming in recent days, but those arent likely to be satisfying replacements for him.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5ndMDp">
Thats in part because Signal and Telegram are fundamentally built for individual or group messaging, as opposed to the broadcast blast to millions that Trump loved. And Parler has been marketed as a <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/11/24/21579357/parler-app-trump-twitter-facebook-censorship">safe haven for angry conservatives</a> and Trump fans — which means that, in the best-case scenario, Trump could use it to reach his hardcore supporters but not the rest of the world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cl0YGK">
Which is terrible news for Trump and anyone else who craves attention, said Jared Holt, a visiting research fellow at the Atlantic Councils Digital Forensic Research Lab: You cant pick a fight with the libs (or the media, or John Bolton, or anyone else) if theyre not around to fight.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="17ax7w">
“Trump has really emerged as a deity to his most devoted supporters, and one of the things they like about him so much is that he fights the culture war alongside them,” he says. “Losing the platform where that war happens takes away that thrill.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RajQJ2">
That lack of conflict also underlines the knock-on effect of deplatforming for Trump: While hell still command some degree of attention from the press — especially if he appears to be a credible candidate for a second White House run or demonstrates the ability to help Trump-friendly candidates win their local races — a provocation on Parler isnt the same as a tantrum on Twitter. If the tree doesnt fall in the mainstream media forest, its easier to pretend it didnt make a sound, and its easier to not assign a reporter to write it up. (Also: The person knocking down the tree is no longer the most powerful man in the world.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GEj3t3">
One flip side to all of this: While deplatforming can reduce Trumps overall reach, it could certainly make his remaining followers more ardent. Watching the most powerful technology companies in the world act at the same time, if not in unison, against Donald Trump has, for his followers, likely bolstered his claim that tech companies were working against him — and his followers.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PoG3LZ">
In this case, Holt says, “A base of voters thats been told that theres a global tech industry conspiracy against them will likely be more hardened in their beliefs” when they see whats happened to Trump. “And if Trump was right about that, was he right about the election stuff?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="j07sWi">
Which gets at what we really ought to care about when we make predictions about what happens to Trumps reach in his post-Twitter era: What happens to the people he used to reach? Regardless of whether they follow him to a different platform, theyre still going to hear from … somebody on mainstream social media. And if its not Trump, whos going to fill that void?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AXTkT5">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cXFlWf">
</p>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bidens new national plan to fight Covid-19, explained</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VXGYZc1vLlecQNvapX3YVlAd0NE=/333x0:3000x2000/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68698781/AP_21020589643866.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, arrive at the Capitol for his swearing-in as the 46th president of the United States. | Patrick Semansky/AP
</figcaption>
</figure></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Bidens first- and second-day executive actions take aim at the coronavirus.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OzucQZ">
President Joe Biden already announced a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22232082/joe-biden-economic-stimulus-plan-covid-19-coronavirus">$400 billion Covid-19 plan</a> as part of his <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/22231808/joe-biden-economic-stimulus-proposal">$1.9 trillion economic relief proposal</a>. But while he waits for Congress to act on those proposals, Biden is taking a dozen executive actions to tackle the USs most pressing public health crisis.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="anrdZd">
Behind the executive actions is Bidens “<a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22248564/National_Strategy_for_the_COVID_19_Response__and_Pandemic_Preparedness_press.pdf">National Strategy for the Covid-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness</a>,” announced Thursday. The plan aims to restore public trust, scale up vaccination, expand testing and masking, reopen schools and businesses safely, and more — all with an eye on equity in terms of race, ethnicity, and urban-rural divides.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LZZM9O">
The Biden team emphasized that itll need Congress — particularly for funding — as well as state, local, and private actors to fully implement the plan. But Biden is doing what he can for now.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vyg1YT">
The bulk of these actions will <a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22248563/2._FACT_SHEET__COVID_19_EOs_1_21_21.pdf">come on Thursday, Bidens second day in office</a>. Hell leverage the Defense Production Act to try to make more vaccines, tests, and protective equipment such as masks. Hell establish a pandemic testing board in order to expand testing supplies, access, and the public health workforce. Hell provide guidance to help schools and businesses reopen safely. Hes directing the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) to start establishing community vaccination centers. And thats just for starters.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ajfn3m">
Those actions follow on Bidens <a href="https://www.vox.com/e/22004658">more limited first-day executive actions</a> — requiring masks on federal property, committing the US to rejoin the World Health Organization, and creating (or reestablishing) federal positions and agencies to handle Covid-19 and broader disease outbreak response.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qCKH5u">
Bidens first- and second-day actions are on top of the plans his team released last week, including a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22232082/joe-biden-economic-stimulus-plan-covid-19-coronavirus">$400 billion Covid-19 plan</a> that will require Congresss approval and a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22233466/biden-covid-19-coronavirus-vaccine-plan">national vaccine plan</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="t7xeUL">
The steps vary in their significance, from the more symbolic to the more substantial. A mask mandate on federal property wont affect much of the population, but it signals that the government takes this issue seriously. At the same time, the federal government supporting and building mass vaccination centers could really help get Covid-19 vaccines out to many more Americans — helping end this pandemic sooner, if its done correctly.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="z5pPVt">
More broadly, the national plan and executive actions mark a clear shift from the previous administration. President Donald Trump generally took a hands-off approach to the pandemic — leaving the bulk of the work on masks, testing, contact tracing, and vaccines on states to figure out. Bidens plans and actions signal thats going to change, starting immediately.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="G886q0">
It comes at a crucial time. As Americas Covid-19 vaccine campaign <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22213208/covid-19-vaccine-rollout-coronavirus-distribution">continues to falter</a>, the country <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2021/1/11/22220827/covid-19-pandemic-coronavirus-usa-europe-canada-trump">is experiencing</a> some of the highest numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world. Whether Biden fixes all of this could decide the trajectory of his presidency — and may help prevent potentially tens or hundreds of thousands of more American deaths.
</p>
<h3 id="IIbVbs">
What Bidens plan and executive actions will do
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mh8mMT">
For much of the past year, a major complaint from experts was that there was no national plan for Covid-19. To the extent any plan was communicated at all, its that Trump and his administration didnt see a larger federal role in response to the pandemic — such as when the Trump administration <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/4/28/21239729/coronavirus-testing-trump-plan-white-house">put forward an outline</a> describing the federal government as merely a “supplier of last resort” on testing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="N2UiUz">
Now Biden is releasing a national plan. Its a broad outline, but the general idea is that the federal government should take a more hands-on strategy: providing reliable guidance to the public; proactively supplying states with the resources they need to test, contact trace, and vaccinate; taking a stronger global role on pandemic response; and emphasizing equity in all aspects of the administrations work.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V6Zvg6">
At the top of the agenda is the overarching goal: 100 million vaccine shots in 100 days. Some experts argue that goal doesnt go far enough, but the Biden administration says its faster than the current vaccination rate and only the start of a process that will span months.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dYA6HP">
Bidens team repeatedly acknowledged to reporters that theyll need Congresss support to get all of this done, including meeting the administrations vaccination goal. But Biden is trying to get the ball rolling with a suite of executive actions that, in the administrations view, chip away at some of the current gaps in the federal response.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="34pgZD">
Here are some of the major points of Bidens executive actions:
</p>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1ZMrXx">
<strong>More vaccines:</strong> The Biden administration is taking a series of actions to boost the distribution of vaccines: FEMA will build vaccination centers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will launch a new federal pharmacy program, and states will have new “Covid Response Liaisons to foster more cooperation, similar to those used during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NtBGoC">
<strong>Leverage the Defense Production Act:</strong> Whether its for testing or vaccines, supply chains have repeatedly broken down during Americas response to Covid-19. Biden has promised to fix that, leveraging a federal law known as the Defense Production Act to prioritize and boost the production and distribution of supplies that are necessary to combat the virus.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9tPvTm">
<strong>Reimburse states for some personnel and supplies:</strong> With the economy still weak, states and local governments have seen revenues drop throughout the pandemic, leaving them unable to pay for all they need to combat Covid-19. The Biden administration has promised a bit of relief by offering to reimburse states through FEMA for the use of the National Guard and some supplies.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hot9yA">
<strong>Set up a pandemic test board:</strong> A year after the coronavirus was discovered, America still doesnt have the testing infrastructure that experts argue is needed to properly contain the disease. Biden will set up a board that will attempt to track down what the hold-ups are here and recommend how to fix them.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="F8uZz5">
<strong>Improve data collection and sharing:</strong> Local and state officials have complained they often dont know how many vaccine doses theyre getting from the federal government and when. Biden will try to ameliorate that through an executive order and other actions trying to improve data collection and sharing with all levels of government and the broader public.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bq4UMf">
<strong>More support to schools and workers:</strong> Through various federal agencies, Biden will move to provide more guidance and regulations to help schools and businesses reopen safely.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sOxvH7">
<strong>New federal roles for pandemic response:</strong> Biden created a new position of Covid-19 response coordinator, who “will report directly to the President and be responsible for coordinating all elements of the COVID-19 response across government.” And he reestablished the National Security Councils Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense, which will oversee, in part, pandemic response for the White House.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VeSk7v">
<strong>Rejoining the World Health Organization:</strong> Biden also rescinded Trumps withdrawal from the World Health Organization, promising to rejoin and help reform the group. Anthony Fauci will attend the organizations January 21 meeting while acting as head of the delegation.
</li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zgWynJ">
For more details, the administration has put up fact sheets for its actions on its <a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22247605/1._FACT_SHEET__Inauguration_Day_EOs_1_20_21.pdf">first</a> and <a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22248563/2._FACT_SHEET__COVID_19_EOs_1_21_21.pdf">second day</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UezPxC">
In part, the actions undo some of Trumps moves. Thats most obviously true for rejoining the WHO. But its also true for the Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense, which the Trump administration disbanded before the Covid-19 outbreak; Obamas administration had set up the team after the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa to help the country prepare for future disease threats.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UFbraS">
The actions also signal Bidens broader agenda on Covid-19. Hes pushing against the limits of his executive powers to boost the production of vaccines, tests, and other supplies in a fight against Covid-19. Hes also effectively created a Covid-19 czar role to oversee future efforts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eHpQFm">
Its part of a more involved approach to Covid-19 than Trump took. That also includes potential legislation, which will have to be passed by Congress, pumping $400 billion into Covid-19 efforts — like a boosted vaccine campaign, scaled-up Covid-19 testing, and a new public health workforce of 100,000.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="I5MY9y">
Bidens executive actions lay some of the groundwork toward actually achieving what hes promised on Covid-19. The questions now are if he will succeed — and if it will be enough to turn around one of the worlds worst coronavirus outbreaks.
</p>
<h3 id="0GIUco">
Biden is embracing a bigger federal role on Covid-19
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UMRj1D">
Underlying Bidens plans on Covid-19 is a concept that the Trump administration rejected: a larger federal role to fight the coronavirus.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VKoWN9">
To that end, none of what Biden is proposing is new or particularly radical. Theyre the kinds of things that experts have been putting forward for a year now. Theyre in many ways what one would expect the federal government to do in response to a disease outbreak — indeed, some of the steps Biden has taken simply revive policies from past administrations.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="s8xeqx">
But the Trump administration rejected more aggressive steps on Covid-19. Whether it was protective equipment, testing, or contact tracing, Trump and his team repeatedly insisted that the federal government would only play a supplemental role to the states. Trump never came up with anything resembling a national plan on Covid-19, pushing the states to do the bulk of the heavy lifting.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wsFlzb">
As Trumps last days in office counted down, that culminated in a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22213208/covid-19-vaccine-rollout-coronavirus-distribution">messy vaccine rollout</a>. While there are <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-is-covid-vaccine-going-in-usa_n_600050a4c5b66f3f79647702">many factors</a> contributing to Americas slow vaccine efforts — including the countrys size, sprawl, and segmented health care system — a key contributor <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22213208/covid-19-vaccine-rollout-coronavirus-distribution">is the lack of federal involvement</a>. In effect, the Trump administration purchased tens of millions of doses of the vaccines, shipped them to the states, and then left the states to figure out the rest.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mVVYlz">
This was clear in the funding numbers. State organizations asked for $8 billion to build up vaccine infrastructure. The Trump administration <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2020/12/29/public-health-experts-grow-frustrated-with-pace-of-covid-19-vaccine-rollout/">provided</a> $340 million. Only in December did Congress finally approve the $8 billion states requested, but experts say that money comes late, given that vaccination efforts are already well underway and the funds couldve helped in the preparation stages.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xadZl5">
When asked about the botched vaccine rollout, the Trump administration stuck to its anti-federalist stance — arguing that its on states and localities to figure out how they can vaccinate more people. Brett Giroir, an administration leader on Covid-19 efforts, <a href="https://twitter.com/mitchellreports/status/1344098443598442498">argued</a>, “The federal government doesnt invade Texas or Montana and provide shots to people.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V0XYHB">
Characterizing greater federal support for Covid-19 efforts as a federal invasion is absurd, but its emblematic of the Trump administrations approach to the coronavirus as a whole.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l2KuAH">
Thats what Biden is pushing to change.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2zSPNp">
Much of Bidens agenda will require congressional approval — particularly parts that require more money — and its possible Congress, now barely held by Democrats, could scoff at a high price tag.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VqJyZt">
And a lingering question has been how much of the USs failure on Covid-19 is on Trump and a lack of federal involvement versus longstanding, broader structural problems (not least the countrys fragmented style of government and health care systems). Biden may show that weak federal governance was the problem — or he may not.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gZOX39">
It all begins, though, with Bidens executive actions during his first two days.
</p>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Biden will pause deportations for 100 days</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/5uySm-Qtd6smnlMrGYXcH1ivFfU=/219x0:3718x2624/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68698511/1230457031.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A Guatemalan migrant deported from the United States, hugs with a relative upon his arrival outside the Air Force Base in Guatemala City on January 6, 2021.  | ORLANDO ESTRADA/AFP via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Biden is delivering on a key campaign promise on immigration policy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5NrHzq">
The Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday night that it would pause deportations of certain noncitizens for 100 days starting on January 22, delivering on one of President Joe Bidens key campaign promises on immigration policy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="H2hibv">
The agency said in a statement that the moratorium will allow it to “review and reset enforcement priorities” after the Trump administration sought to ensure that no undocumented immigrants — including families and longtime US residents — were safe from deportation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2mmFQa">
“The pause will allow DHS to ensure that its resources are dedicated to responding to the most pressing challenges that the United States faces, including immediate operational challenges at the southwest border in the midst of the most serious global public health crisis in a century,” the agency said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NvgIIQ">
Given that immigration enforcement agencies have limited resources, presidents typically identify what classes of immigrants should be prioritized for deportation. Under former President Barack Obama, that included people who posed a threat to national security, immigrants convicted of serious crimes, and recent border crossers.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lyzxTE">
Trump essentially eliminated those priorities. The moratorium is supposed to give Biden a chance to reevaluate where the immigration agencies should dedicate resources.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P4Qm6o">
According to a <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/21_0120_enforcement-memo_signed.pdf">memo</a> from Acting DHS Secretary David Pekoske, the moratorium will apply to any noncitizen in the US who has been ordered deported by an immigration judge, unless they arrived after November 1, or if they voluntarily gave up their right to stay in the US with full knowledge of the consequences and the opportunity to obtain legal representation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yXOlsT">
Noncitizens can still be deported if they have engaged in terrorism or espionage or are suspected of doing so, or if they otherwise pose a threat to national security. The head of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement can also intervene in an individual case to order their deportation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pkpX66">
Its not clear how broadly the Biden administration intends to apply those carve-outs, but they leave much up to agency discretion. Some immigration attorneys have <a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelGKagan/status/1352111479948939266?s=20">expressed concern</a> that people who relinquish their right to remain in the US often do so under duress from ICE officials and could be unfairly excluded from deportation relief.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P6Rk8T">
The memo also outlines the Biden administrations preliminary enforcement priorities, which seem to reflect the presidents promises on the campaign trail that he would only deport people who have been convicted of a felony and explicitly not people with a DUI. Obama, by contrast, had deported immigrants with DUIs and minor offenses.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ONsxpS">
Bidens position on a moratorium on deportations evolved over the course of his campaign. In November 2019, he <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2019/11/22/joe-biden-tells-immigration-activist-you-should-vote-trump/4273814002/">snapped at an immigration activist</a> who asked him at a South Carolina town hall whether he would support the policy. He said that he would prioritize deportations only of those who have committed a felony or a serious crime, telling the activist to “vote for Trump” if that wasnt good enough.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="j4gnFu">
Under pressure from immigrant advocates, he eventually <a href="https://twitter.com/latinovictoryus/status/1231351458332860418?s=20">pledged</a> to implement the moratorium last February. It was a signal that Biden, who had once <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/9/12/20863665/joe-biden-immigration-obama-democratic-debate">struggled to answer criticism</a> of record-high deportations while he served as vice president, would not simply revert to the status quo on immigration enforcement under Obama.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="v4Uhpx">
“This 100 day pause is a sigh of relief for so many people,” Lynn Tramonte, director of the immigrant advocacy group Ohio Immigrant Alliance, said in a statement. “After four brutal years of cruel and truly incomprehensible deportations, the US Government seems ready to inject some common sense into the enforcement of civil immigration laws.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="R8H3u4">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1o4eZ4">
</p>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Data | Beginners pluck: winning at the Gabba with the least experience</strong> - After the end of the fourth Test, India's bowlers -- Siraj, Natarajan, Thakur, Sundar, and Saini -- had a combined average Test match experience of 1.6 matches</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Victorious Team India arrives home after series win against Australia</strong> - Members of the triumphant Indian cricket contingent, including stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane and coach Ravi Shastri, returned to the country on Thur</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Dhoni comparisons amazing but Pant wants a name for himself in Indian cricket</strong> - “You feel amazing when you are compared to someone like MS Dhoni and you compare me with him,” Rishabh Pant said after landing in New Delhi from Australia</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>India have left me with egg on my face, says Michael Vaughan after wrong prediction</strong> - Vaughan had earlier predicted that India will be whitewashed 4-0 in the Test series</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Real Madrid sent packing from Copa del Rey by tiny Alcoyano</strong> - Third-division club Alcoyano defeated Real Madrid 2-1.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>BJPs Odisha farmer rally protests halt in paddy procurement</strong> - Farmers from 37 Assembly segments participate in massive demonstration against fully manmade crisis</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu urges Centre to consider Telanganas request for vaccine testing, certification lab in Hyderabad</strong> - Request will be examined from all angles, Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan assures.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Coronavirus | Health Minister assures people on safety, efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines</strong> - The Minister urged everyone to counter the “vested campaigns of untruth and misinformation”.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Telangana announces decision to implement 10% quota for economically weaker sections</strong> - Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said an official meeting, presided by him, will discuss the issue in a couple of days and issue orders</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>HC allows MTP for seven minors in six months</strong> - Girls supposed to be victims of sexual assaults during lockdown</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Coronavirus: Hungary first in EU to approve Russian vaccine</strong> - Its health authorities give preliminary approval to the Russian-developed Sputnik V coronavirus jab.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>UK and EU in row over bloc's diplomatic status</strong> - The EU's top representative in London is not being given the same privileges as other ambassadors.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Italian coastguard recover huge whale carcass</strong> - They were led to the dead mammal by a young whale calf in distress.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Madrid explosion leaves three dead</strong> - At least three people have died in a suspected gas blast that destroyed four floors of a building.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Alcoyano 2-1 Real Madrid: Third division side cause huge upset</strong> - European giants Real Madrid are handed a humiliating Copa del Rey last-32 defeat by third division side Alcoyano.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ars online IT roundtable today: Whats the future of the data center?</strong> - Join Sean Gallagher, Dell's Ivan Nekrasov, and me today, January 21, at 3:15pm Eastern! - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1736075">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Three rows, 37mpg, and under $34,000? The 2021 Kia Sorento Hybrid</strong> - We think the Sorento Hybrid will be in high demand. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1736427">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Treasury nominee Yellen is looking to curtail use of cryptocurrency</strong> - Yellen argues many cryptocurrencies are used "mainly for illicit financing." - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1736413">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>New metamaterial merges magnetic memory and physical changes</strong> - A mix of actuator and bit-level memory. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1736452">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Twitchs Trump ban sustained after leaving office</strong> - Video-streaming account launched in 2019, faced first suspension in 2020. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1736414">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>How do you buy a kitten when the pet store is closed? (Joke from my 10 yr old)</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
You order it from the Cat-alogue
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Bagabus"> /u/Bagabus </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1oy8g/how_do_you_buy_a_kitten_when_the_pet_store_is/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1oy8g/how_do_you_buy_a_kitten_when_the_pet_store_is/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>I wanted an Australian Visa. They asked if I had a criminal record.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Didn't know you still need it.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/jobanchahall"> /u/jobanchahall </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1o61v/i_wanted_an_australian_visa_they_asked_if_i_had_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1o61v/i_wanted_an_australian_visa_they_asked_if_i_had_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>What starts with "Fuck" and ends with "You"?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Your mother's pregnancy.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/bruhbruhbruhbruh12"> /u/bruhbruhbruhbruh12 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1jp87/what_starts_with_fuck_and_ends_with_you/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1jp87/what_starts_with_fuck_and_ends_with_you/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>Whats the difference between hungry and horny?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Where you put the cucumber.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/OldOdds"> /u/OldOdds </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1a0k8/whats_the_difference_between_hungry_and_horny/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1a0k8/whats_the_difference_between_hungry_and_horny/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A lost dog strays into a jungle. A lion sees this from a distance and says with caution "this guy looks edible, never seen his kind before".</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
So the lion starts rushing towards the dog with menace. The dog notices and starts to panic but as he's about to run he sees some bones next to him and gets an idea and says loudly "mmm...that was some good lion meat!".
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The lion abruptly stops and says " woah! This guy seems tougher then he looks, I better leave while I can".
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Over by the tree top, a monkey witnessed everything. Evidently, the monkey realizes the he can benefit from this situation by telling the lion and getting something in return. So the monkey proceeds to tell the lion what really happened and the lion says angrily "get on my back, we'll get him together".
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
So they start rushing back to the dog. The dog sees them and realized what happened and starts to panic even more. He then gets another idea and shouts "where the hell is that monkey! I told him to bring me another lion an hour ago..."
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/IdeaCafe"> /u/IdeaCafe </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1sc5y/a_lost_dog_strays_into_a_jungle_a_lion_sees_this/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/l1sc5y/a_lost_dog_strays_into_a_jungle_a_lion_sees_this/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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