February 5 top news briefs

This early morning, Vice President Kamala Harris came into the Senate chamber to break a 50-50 tie between Democrats and Republicans on a vote to advance the budget resolution for President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. It is the first time that Harris has acted to break a tie.

The budget resolution includes $1,400 in stimulus payments, but does not include a $15 minimum wage increase that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) wanted. 99 senators agreed that the stimulus payments should not go to those with high incomes. The resolution went to the House, which approved the bill in a first step that is expected to lead to full passage by the end of the month. We’ll know more about who qualifies for the stimulus checks and what other things will be included in the package.

In central Iowa, a blizzard caused a massive pileup on I-80 that involved 40 vehicles. A police officer said it took only a few minutes for cars to pile up in a chain reaction. Two Iowa State Patrol cars were among the wreckage, with one of them crushed by a semi truck. Several drivers had injuries ranging from minor to serious but the two police officers are okay.

In Wisconsin, 66 people who were ice fishing were stranded when the ice they were on split apart and started to float away. This is called an “ice floe.” The U.S. Coast Guard and other first responders used ice boats and helicopters to rescue them in an operation that took four hours to complete. Here are some images from the U.S. Coast Guard.

[Sponsored Video from Sorenson: www.sorenson.com]

The NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has informed President Biden that he would make all NFL stadiums available for mass Covid-19 vaccinations. Journalists have applauded the NFL for navigating through the Covid-19 pandemic with all 256 regular season games played with no cancellations, making it to the Super Bowl. There were many instances of players or staff testing positive for Covid-19, which required the personnel to be sidelined or facilities to be shut down, sometimes forcing games to be postponed, but no games were cancelled.

The FBI has arrested a woman named Rachel Powell and accused her of using a bullhorn to direct the mob attacking the U.S. Capitol on January 6. She surrendered to police in Pennsylvania. The FBI said videos showed Powell telling the mob to break windows and work together to take the building.

The FBI also arrested a Texas man named Nicholas DeCarlo for being a part of the Capitol mob. He is the man with the white hat. Behind him, on the door, is a carving that says, “Murder the Media.” The man standing next to him is Nicholas Ochs, who the FBI said is a founding member of Hawaii’s Proud Boys chapter. He was charged as well. The FBI said the two carved the statement on the door and stole flex handcuffs from a Capitol police officer.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-Ny) is being accused by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) of grossly exaggerating her experience of being terrified when she heard banging on her office door on the day of the Capitol attack, which she later found to be from a Capitol police officer who seemed to be angry at her. Mace said she was two doors down from her office at a building across the street from the Capitol and that no insurrectionists stormed their hallway. Ocasio-Cortez responded that this was a disgusting attack and pointed out that Mace herself said a few weeks ago that her office was evacuated and that it was a dangerous situation. The back-and-forth has turned into a bigger political battle between Republicans and Democrats.

The Super Bowl is on Sunday. We’ll see if Tom Brady wins his seventh Super Bowl, but this time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It is his 10th time playing in the Super Bowl in 20 years. He is 43 years old. He’ll have to beat the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, who is the defending champion. The show will be on CBS. I hope they will show the National Anthem signer, Warren “Wawa” Snipe, throughout the song, unlike in years past when the broadcast would only show one or two seconds.

Have a good weekend and please stay safe and healthy.

https://www.axios.com/senate-budget-resolution-advances-43b5f08b-bc93-470d-827e-0a1818b026cd.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/04/us/politics/biden-stimulus-senate-vote.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimes

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/feds-arrest-woman-accused-using-bullhorn-direct-rioters-during-capitol-n1256861

https://www.fox4news.com/news/fbi-says-burleson-man-carved-murder-the-media-on-capitol-door-during-riot

https://www.axios.com/nfl-stadiums-vaccines-biden-44355d94-8d13-495f-8e8a-2a51f1c18df7.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2021/02/05/iowa-winter-weather-rain-snow-cover-roads-thursday-morning-commutes/4401745001/

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/66-people-rescued-ice-floes-adrift-wisconsin-bay-75705812

https://twitter.com/USCGGreatLakes/status/1357503688139497478/photo/1

https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Outrage-in-Newtown-after-Republican-congresswoman-15891270.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Hook_Elementary_School_shooting

https://nypost.com/2021/02/05/rep-marjorie-taylor-greene-warns-gop-over-betrayal/

https://www.vox.com/2021/2/4/22266869/nancy-mace-aoc-insurrection-hallways

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/aoc-attacks-gop-rape-survivor-nancy-mace-for-silencing-rape-survivors

https://boston.cbslocal.com/2021/02/05/tom-brady-legacy-beyond-the-scope-of-understanding-super-bowl/