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California has nation's 2nd confirmed case of virus variant
California on Wednesday announced the nation's second confirmed case of the new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus, offering a strong indication that the infection is spreading more widely in the United States.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the infection found in Southern California during an online conversation with Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
"I don’t think Californians should think that this is odd. It’s to be expected," Fauci said.
Newsom did not provide any details about the person who was infected.
The announcement came 24 hours after word of the first reported U.S. variant infection, which emerged in Colorado. That person was identified Wednesday as a Colorado National Guardsman who had been sent to help out at a nursing home struggling with an outbreak. Health officials said a second Guard member may have it too.
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Census Bureau to miss deadline, jeopardizing Trump plan
The Census Bureau plans to announce it will miss a year-end deadline for handing in numbers used for divvying up congressional seats, a delay that could undermine President Donald Trump’s efforts to exclude people in the country illegally from the count if the figures aren’t turned in before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.
It will be the first time that the Dec. 31 target date is missed since the deadline was implemented more than four decades ago by Congress. A census official who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter confirmed the delay to the Associated Press on Wednesday.
Internal documents obtained earlier this month by the House Committee on Oversight and Reform show that Census Bureau officials don’t see the apportionment numbers being ready until days after Biden is inaugurated on Jan. 20.
Once in office, Biden could rescind Trump’s presidential memorandum directing the Census Bureau to exclude people in the country illegally from numbers used for divvying up congressional seats among the states. An influential GOP adviser had advocated excluding them from the apportionment process in order to advantage Republicans and non-Hispanic whites.
"The delay suggests that the census bureau needs more time to ensure the accuracy of census numbers for all states," said Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former congressional staffer who specializes in census issues.
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China clamps down in hidden hunt for coronavirus origins
MOJIANG, China (AP) — Deep in the lush mountain valleys of southern China lies the entrance to a mine shaft that once harboured bats with the closest known relative of the COVID-19 virus.
The area is of intense scientific interest because it may hold clues to the origins of the coronavirus that has killed more than 1.7 million people worldwide. Yet for scientists and journalists, it has become a black hole of no information because of political sensitivity and secrecy.
A bat research team visiting recently managed to take samples but had them confiscated, two people familiar with the matter said. Specialists in coronaviruses have been ordered not to speak to the press. And a team of Associated Press journalists was tailed by plainclothes police in multiple cars who blocked access to roads and sites in late November.
More than a year since the first known person was infected with the coronavirus, an AP investigation shows the Chinese government is strictly controlling all research into its origins, clamping down on some while actively promoting fringe theories that it could have come from outside China.
The government is handing out hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to scientists researching the virus’ origins in southern China and affiliated with the military, the AP has found. But it is monitoring their findings and mandating that the publication of any data or research must be approved by a new task force managed by China’s cabinet, under direct orders from President Xi Jinping, according to internal documents obtained by the AP. A rare leak from within the government, the dozens of pages of unpublished documents confirm what many have long suspected: The clampdown comes from the top.
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GOP-led Senate rejects vote on Trump's push for $2K checks
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell shut the door Wednesday on President Donald Trump's push for $2,000 COVID-19 relief checks, declaring Congress has provided enough pandemic aid as he blocked another attempt by Democrats to force a vote.
The GOP leader made clear he is unwilling to budge, despite political pressure from Trump and even some fellow Republican senators who demanded a vote. Trump wants the recently approved $600 in aid increased threefold. But McConnell dismissed the idea of bigger "survival checks," saying the money would go to plenty of American households that don't need it.
McConnell's refusal to act means the additional relief Trump wanted is all but dead.
"We just approved almost a trillion dollars in aid a few days ago," McConnell said, referring to the year-end package Trump signed into law.
McConnell added, "if specific, struggling households still need more help," the Senate will consider "smart targeted aid. Not another firehose of borrowed money."
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Police on report man was making bombs: 'Hindsight is 20/20'
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — More than a year before Anthony Warner detonated a Christmas Day bomb in downtown Nashville, officers visited his home after his girlfriend told police he was building bombs in a recreational vehicle at his residence, according to documents. But they did not make contact with him, or see inside his RV.
Those revelations, contained in a newly disclosed 2019 incident report, put Nashville's police chief on the defensive Wednesday as he said his officers did nothing wrong and that they had handled the situation properly. He added that other than a 1970s marijuana-related arrest, Warner was "squeaky clean."
"I believe the officers did everything they could legally. Maybe they could have followed up more, hindsight is 20/20," Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said at a news conference.
Officers were called to Pamela Perry’s Nashville home on Aug. 21, 2019, following a report from her attorney that she was making suicidal threats while sitting on her front porch with firearms, the police department said in a statement.
According to the incident report, when officers arrived, police said she had two unloaded pistols beside her on the porch. She told them the guns belonged to "Tony Warner" and she did not want them in the house any longer. Perry, then 62, was taken for a psychological evaluation after speaking to mental health professionals.
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AP PHOTOS: Louisiana residents struggle months after storms
LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) — Well after Hurricanes Laura and Delta ravaged southwest Louisiana, the state and its people are still far from recovered, with many living in tents and cooking their meals over open fires while they slowly work to rebuild their destroyed homes.
Ricky and Cristin Trahan are among those still struggling, months after Hurricane Laura roared through the region as a Category 4 storm in August, followed by Category 2 Hurricane Delta in October.
From a relative's house where they had taken refuge, the Trahans watched as Laura flipped over and destroyed their mobile home. When they returned, any possessions that hadn't been looted were strewn about their property.
Since then, they have been living as a family in tents, only recently acquiring a camper for their son, Ricky Jr.; his fiancée, Katelyn Smith; and their 1-year-old boy; and a propane water heater that has allowed them to take hot showers.
The Trahans have received used clothing, occasional meals and other help from volunteers, but they still confront daily challenges. A recent cold front with strong winds and rain knocked out their gas generator, while extension cords plugged into a power strip lying in the wet mud had to be covered with plastic to protect them from the elements. Volunteers had given them a Christmas tree and lights to help them celebrate the holiday, but the rough weather forced them to stow the gifts in a storage tent.
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Missouri senator to contest Electoral College win for Biden
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said Wednesday he will raise objections next week when Congress meets to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the election, forcing House and Senate votes that are likely to delay — but in no way alter — the final certification of Biden's win.
President Donald Trump has, without evidence, claimed there was widespread fraud in the election. He has pushed Republican senators to pursue his unfounded charges even though the Electoral College this month cemented Biden’s 306-232 victory and multiple legal efforts to challenge the results have failed.
A group of Republicans in the Democratic-majority House have already said they will object on Trump’s behalf during the Jan. 6 count of electoral votes, and they had needed just a single senator to go along with them to force votes in both chambers.
Without giving specifics or evidence, Hawley said he would object because "some states, including notably Pennsylvania" did not follow their own election laws. Lawsuits challenging Biden's victory in Pennsylvania have been unsuccessful.
"At the very least, Congress should investigate allegations of voter fraud and adopt measures to secure the integrity of our elections," Hawley said in a statement. He also criticized the way Facebook and Twitter handled content related to the election, characterizing it as an effort to help Biden.
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EXPLAINER: Scientists trying to understand new virus variant
Does it spread more easily? Make people sicker? Mean that treatments and vaccines won’t work? Questions are multiplying as fast as new variants of the coronavirus, especially the one moving through England and now popping up in the U.S. and other countries.
Scientists say there is reason for concern and more to learn but that the new variants should not cause alarm.
Worry has been growing since before Christmas, when Britain’s prime minister said the coronavirus variant seemed to spread more easily than earlier ones and was moving rapidly through England. On Tuesday, Colorado health officials said they had found it there.
Here are some questions and answers on what’s known about the virus so far.
Q: WHERE DID THIS NEW VARIANT COME FROM?
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'Gilligan's Island' star Dawn Wells dies, COVID-19 cited
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dawn Wells, who played the wholesome Mary Ann among a misfit band of shipwrecked castaways on the 1960s sitcom "Gilligan's Island," died Wednesday of causes related to COVID-19, her publicist said. She was 82.
Wells died peacefully at a residential facility in Los Angeles, publicist Harlan Boll said. "There is so much more to Dawn Wells" than the "Gilligan's Island" character that brought her fame, Boll said in a statement.
Besides TV, film and stage acting credits, her other real-life roles included teacher, motivational speaker and conservationist, Boll said.
Tina Louise, 86, who played Ginger the movie star, is the last surviving member of a cast that included Bob Denver as the title character; Alan Hale Jr. as the Skipper; Jim Backus and Natalie Schafer as wealthy passengers Thurston and Lovey Howell, and Russell Johnson, known as the Professor.
"I will always remember her kindness to me," Louise said in a statement. "We shared in creating a cultural landmark that has continued to bring comfort and smiles to people during this difficult time. I hope that people will remember her the way that I do — always with a smile on her face."
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Coastal Carolina's Jamey Chadwell is AP coach of the year
Coastal Carolina’s Jamey Chadwell is The Associated Press college football coach of the year after leading the Chanticleers to a surprising, near-perfect season.
Chadwell received 16 first-place votes and 88 points from the AP Top 25 panel to finish ahead of Indiana’s Tom Allen, who was second with 14 first-place votes and 66 points. Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell was third (5, 44) and Alabama's Nick Saban was fourth (8, 42).
Chadwell is the first Sun Belt Conference coach to win the AP award, which was established in 1988, and the third coach to earn it with a team from outside the Power Five leagues. UCF’s Scott Frost was AP coach of the year in 2017 and Gary Patterson won the first of his two AP awards with TCU in 2009 when the Horned Frogs were competing in the Mountain West.
San Jose State's Brent Brennan finished fifth, meaning Group of Five teams had three of the top five coaches in this year's voting.
The 43-year-old Chadwell directed a breakout season for No. 9 Coastal Carolina (11-1) in his third year leading the program.