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The South African coronavirus variant has arrived in the U.S., adding just a teensy bit of urgency to the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion relief bill and its funds for vaccination and coronavirus genome surveillance.
- South Carolina health officials announced on Thursday that they had confirmed two cases of the South African coronavirus variant, the first report of that variant being identified in the U.S. Neither person infected with the strain had traveled to South Africa or had any connection with each other, suggesting that the variant, known as B.1.351 (catchy; memorable; Elon Musk has added it to his list of baby names), is already spreading around the state. This strain is 50 percent more contagious than your garden-variety coronavirus, has caused a large and rapid increase of new cases in South Africa, and has now been found in at least 32 countries.
- The sudden arrival of extra-spreadable new variants has exposed yet another weak spot in the late-stage Jenga tower that is U.S. pandemic preparedness: We have no way to track these suckers. The U.S. has no nationwide system for checking coronavirus genomes for new mutations; researchers at a patchwork of labs across the country currently conduct genome sequencing on just a few-thousands samples per week, out of roughly 1.4 million positive tests. Scaling up genome surveillance is part of President Biden’s coronavirus-relief plan, one of the big reasons Democrats need to get the bill passed quickly without waiting around for Republicans to quit stalling.
- “Why are all these spooky new strains showing up all of a sudden?” you ask, slightly muffled by your double-mask situation. The specifics are still unclear, but the basic answer is evolution. The virus has been mutating all along, and thanks to our global failure to contain it, it’s had ample time to wind up with significant genetic diversity. Some of those mutations have provided an adaptive advantage enabling strains to spread faster—which is why we’re now faced with variants that are better at infecting people or at dodging the human immune system in similar ways. It’s possible (but not yet proven) that the coronavirus has evolved in response to increasing human immunity: A variant that’s good at evading antibodies wouldn’t have had an advantage at the beginning of the pandemic, when everyone’s immune system was totally defenseless. In places where many people had been infected and developed some level of immunity, though, those variants could quickly become dominant.
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All of which is to say: Ramping up the pace of vaccinations is more urgent than ever.
- The good news is, the vaccines we have appear to be effective against the emerging variants we know about, and can be quickly updated. The bad news is, we can’t ask the virus to stop evolving, please. Just like antibody-dodging variants didn’t have an evolutionary advantage until lots of people had antibodies (again, hypothetically), a variant that’s just a little better at sneaking past vaccine-provided immunity could pop out of the woodwork in a partially vaccinated population. That variant may already be out there, waiting tables and dreaming of its big break, or it may yet evolve under selection pressure. All we can do to hold it at bay is to get the whole population vaccinated as quickly as possible.
- Congress passing that relief bill, with its $160 billion for a national vaccine program, will be a big step. In the meantime, FEMA has allocated more than $1.2 billion to states, territories, and tribes for vaccination expenses, and on Thursday asked the Pentagon for military support with distribution. That may involve sending up to 10,000 troops to vaccination megahubs.
There’s reason to hope we’re at a turning point: New coronavirus cases in the U.S. have fallen sharply in the last three weeks, and deaths have at least stabilized. Whether those trends hold will depend on whether we can accelerate vaccinations and stay vigilant in the face of contagious new variants before they spin out of control.
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This week on With Friends like These, Ana will be joined by Crooked favorite Rebecca Traister to discuss current events through her always progressive, feminist lens. Make sure not to miss it by subscribing to With Friends like These wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are out every Friday! →
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The stonk journey continues: Popular online brokerages Robinhood and Ameritrade have blocked purchases of GameStop and AMC shares (plus a handful of other companies), after Reddit investors banded together to drive up share prices and destroy some hedge funds. Robinhood, whose mission is “democratize finance for all,” informed users that they could close out their positions in the restricted companies, but not buy new shares. Hedge funds, meanwhile, were still able to trade freely. That move drew swift criticism from people who couldn’t help noticing that it sure looked like market manipulation to protect the Wall Street establishment. Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called for an investigation, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) agreed and got reminded no one wants to hear what he thinks, and Robinhood users filed a class-action lawsuit. Robinhood announced it would allow “limited buys” on Friday, but shares of GameStop and AMC have already plunged more than 40 percent. AOC will be discussing all of this on Twitch tonight, for further Stonk Week analysis.
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- The U.S. economy shrank by 3.5 percent in 2020, marking the worst year for economic growth since 1946. New unemployment claims fell slightly last week to 847,000, which is still much higher than any weekly number before the pandemic hit.
- A 71-year-old MAGA supporter was arrested near the U.S. Capitol with a gun, 20 rounds of ammunition, and “Stop the Steal” paperwork with a list of lawmakers.
- In other active threats, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rebuked House Republican leaders for cuddling up to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and acknowledged that the security threat members of Congress face isn’t just the old weirdo parked outside with a gun: “The enemy is within the House of Representatives.”
- Today in Is This Enough to Get Marjorie Taylor Greene Expelled, Or…? In 2018, Greene wrote a lengthy Facebook conspiracy theory claiming that California’s deadly Camp fire that year was caused by a space laser controlled by a nefarious group, including a vice chairman at “Rothschild Inc,” in order to clear space for a high-speed rail project.
- New York health officials have undercounted the number of coronavirus deaths in nursing homes by up to 50 percent in some cases, according to a new report from New York Attorney General Letitia James.
- Redistricting delays caused by overdue Census data have resulted in delays for the midterm election process: Both parties are stuck in a weird limbo of trying to recruit House candidates for undefined, imaginary districts.
- Two of the three Kenosha police officers involved in the Jacob Blake shooting are back on the job. Rusten Sheskey, the officer who shot Blake seven times in the back, is still on administrative leave.
- Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) has been named the new DSCC chair. (Revs motorcycle.)
- Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) will not run for Sen. Rob Portman’s (R-OH) seat in 2022. (Revs motorcycle again, why not.)
- Subway’s tuna is allegedly not tuna, but rather, “a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by [Subway] to imitate the appearance of tuna,” according to a recent lawsuit. Legally, a concoction of various mixtures is fine, but if you can prove it’s a mixture of various concoctions, they’re fucked.
- Legendary actor Cicely Tyson has died, at age 96. The New York Times Magazine published a great interview with her earlier this month.
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We regret to inform you that the GOP-controlled Florida legislature is back on its bullshit. Back in November, over 60 percent of Florida voters approved a $15 minimum wage amendment. Much like the time a supermajority of Floridians voted to restore voting rights to formerly incarcerated people in 2018, Republicans have decided to treat those voters with contempt. On Wednesday, a state Senate Republican unveiled a resolution that would modify the wage amendment, allowing legislators to set a reduced pay rate for workers under 21, those with felony convictions, people incarcerated in state prisons, and “other hard-to-hire employees.” If it passes, it would still need the approval of 60 percent of Florida voters in order to take effect. An atrocious move, but a timely argument for Congress to pass that minimum wage increase by whatever means necessary, rather than leaving it up to the state.
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Add Your Name to Demand Voting Rights Protections in Biden’s First 100 Days
It is imperative that President Biden’s administration take ambitious action to protect the right to vote and to champion new federal protections for voting rights. Here are the ACLU’s key recommendations:
The Biden administration must take executive action to enforce federal voting rights laws. This includes designating special assistant U.S. attorneys for voting rights to investigate and enforce potential violations of federal voting rights laws and provide the critical federal oversight of local redistricting efforts to ensure such actions are not racially discriminatory.
They must also upgrade federal voter registration services, focusing on improving ballot access for voters with disabilities and protecting the rights of eligible or soon-to-be eligible incarcerated individuals. Sign our petition if you agree that action on voting rights can’t wait.
The incoming administration must also help advance legislation to protect voting rights. This includes the support of the Voting Rights Advancement Act which will help to restore many of the protections that were lost when the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013. Additionally, baseline federal rules to reduce or eliminate needless barriers to voting are long overdue.
The ACLU is demanding the Biden administration take action on these issues and much more in the first 100 days. Are you with us? Add your name to make sure our voting rights are protected. Click here to make your voice heard.
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Novavax announced that its coronavirus vaccine candidate is 89.3 percent effective.
Joe Biden has repealed the Trump-era anti-abortion “global gag rule,” which banned international groups receiving U.S. funding from providing or even discussing abortion
Oregon public health workers who got stuck in the snow went car to car offering coronavirus vaccines, so they wouldn’t go to waste.
Dekalb County, GA will replace a Confederate monument with a memorial honoring John Lewis.
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