Winter storm leaves 400,000 Texans in the dark

Deadly winter storm blasts the South and heads Northeast; the US deepens military ties with the Philippines.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin.

Winter storm puts much of the US on ice

Matthias Bein/picture alliance via Getty Images

• Over 400,000 customers in Texas were without power Thursday amid a fierce winter storm that has led to the deaths of at least 10 people. [Associated Press / Paul J. Weber and Ken Miller]
• Airlines canceled more than 700 flights across the US Thursday; ice, sleet, and frigid temperatures have forced thousands of flight disruptions since Monday. [USA Today / Marina Pitofsky, Ashley R. Williams, Jorge L. Ortiz]
• Austin faced the most power outages Thursday as emergency crews worked to restore electricity after accumulating ice brought down trees and power lines. [Austin American-Statesman / Luz Moreno-Lozano]
• The storm will soon exit the southern US; however, officials have urged the public to use caution as travel conditions will remain dangerous. [NBC News / Chantal Da Silva]
• Friday, subzero temperatures and record-breaking wind chills are expected to blast the Northeast where 15 million people are under winter weather warnings until Sunday. [CNN]

The US expands its Philippines presence

• The Philippines agreed to grant US troops access to four additional military camps, strengthening the American presence in Southeast Asia. [Associated Press / Jim Gomez and Ellen Knickmeyer]
• With the Philippines deal secured, the US has formed a military alliance of Indo-Pacific countries that extends from South Korea to Australia — and gained the ability to better respond to defense-related challenges. [BBC / Rupert Wingfield-Hayes]
• The US military can now build facilities and store equipment at nine sites including on the northern island Luzon, which could help the US put additional pressure on China, particularly in the event of an invasion of Taiwan. [New York Times / Sui-Lee Wee]
• Filipino officials said the government would consult with local governments and consider potential climate change impacts before choosing the final camp locations. [Washington Post / Karen DeYoung and Rebecca Tan]

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House Republicans on Thursday removed Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) from the House Foreign Affairs Committee; the move comes after Democrats ousted far-right members from committees in the last Congress. [Vox / Li Zhou]

• Oil giant Shell recorded a record $42 billion profit in 2022, largely tied to higher energy prices amid the war in Ukraine. [NYT / Stanley Reed]
• A Singapore man filed a lawsuit seeking $2.3 million in damages from a woman who rejected his romantic overtures, claiming she caused him emotional trauma. [Washington Post / Bryan Pietsch]
• Republican council member Eunice Dwumfour was shot and killed outside her New Jersey residence Wednesday in what authorities believe was a targeted attack. [NBC News / Marlene Lenthang]

“This is an epic, generational Arctic outbreak. The air mass descending on the area ... is the coldest air currently in the Northern Hemisphere.”

[National Weather Service in Caribou, Maine / CNN]

The Biden policy that could change your neighborhood

One of the most important pieces of civil rights legislation in American history is the Fair Housing Act of 1968. It is also a piece of legislation that has rarely been properly enforced. So, in early January, the Biden administration released a proposal that would give the FHA a new set of teeth. Vox senior policy reporter Rachel Cohen explains.

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