Need 2 Know: Second Migrant Child Dies, Bizarre Kevin Spacey Video
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know.
* **Shutdown: Day 5:** Hundreds of thousands of government workers are either working without pay or on an unplanned vacation as the partial shutdown over border wall funding continues. On Christmas, President Trump showed no signs of compromising, saying “it’s a disgrace what’s happening in our country … But other than that I wish everybody a very Merry Christmas.” Read more [here](https://www.npr.org/2018/12/26/680121969/shutdown-continues-as-president-and-democrats-remain-at-odds-over-funding-for-wa).
* **HIV Exposure:** More than 3700 patients at a New Jersey surgery center were potentially exposed to HIV and hepatitis B and C. The state’s health department attributes the possible exposure at HealthPlus Surgery Center in Saddle River to “lapses in infection control” and sterilization. No infections have been reported. Read more [here](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/more-3-000-patients-new-jersey-surgery-center-possibly-exposed-n951791).
* **Death at the Border:** An eight-year-old Guatemalan boy died in U.S. custody at the border, the second migrant child to die under the care of Customs & Border Protection officials in a month. The boy’s cause of death has not been released. Read more [here](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/migrant-child-dies-in-border-patrol-custody-today-2018-12-25/).
* **Kevin Spacey:** On the same day it was announced that Kevin Spacey is being charged with felony sexual assault, the actor posted a video on YouTube, titled “Let’s Be Frank,” speaking in the voice of the House of Cards character he played, Frank Underwood. The bizarre video has millions of views. Read more [here](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/kevin-spacey-video-racks-up-45-million-views-1171616).
* **Thai Medical Marijuana:** Thailand has approved the use of medical marijuana, thus becoming the first country in Southeast Asia to do so. The region has some of the most draconian drug laws in the world. Read more [here](https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/25/health/thailand-medical-marijuana-bn/index.html).
* **Meltdown:** The Dow dropped 653 points on Christmas Eve, breaking the 1918 record for worst Christmas Eve performance. Stocks went into a tailspin after Treasury Sec. Steve Mnuchin put out a statement intended to calm markets that instead spooked investors. Read more [here](https://www.cheddar.com/videos/dow-plunges-650-points-on-christmas-eve-amid-d-c-chaos).
* **LeBron Injured:** LeBron James will get an MRI today for a groin injury he suffered during the Lakers’ Christmas win over the Warriors. James left the game in the third quarter, saying he “felt a pop” after he lunged for a loose ball. Read more [here](https://sports.yahoo.com/lebron-james-exits-lakers-christmas-game-apparent-groin-injury-025219028.html?guccounter=1).
* **Ya Gotta Believe:** The seven-year-old South Carolina girl who spoke with President Trump by phone on Christmas Eve says she still believes in Santa, despite Trump telling her that “at 7, that’s marginal.” Collman Lloyd says she didn’t know what “marginal” meant, but is sure that Santa exists after she got the American Girl doll she asked for. Read more [here](https://people.com/politics/child-trump-questioned-santa-shocked-by-call/).
* **Spotted:** The Bush family, including sisters Jenna and Barbara, and former President George W. Bush and his wife Laura, celebrating their first Christmas without former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara Bush. See the pic [here](https://www.instagram.com/p/BryxIbSBWYr/).
* **Miley Married?:** Social media users have been buzzing that Miley Cyrus may have gotten married to Liam Hemsworth ー though the stars haven’t confirmed the vows took place. The speculation began after a friend posted a photo that shows Cyrus in a white dress cutting a cake. Read more [here](https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/miley-cyrus-liam-hemsworth-married_us_5c20ef0ae4b0407e907d6a9c).
Cheddar's Hena Doba gets into the latest.
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Terrell Jermaine Starr, senior fellow with the Atlantic Council and host of the Black Diplomats podcast joins Cheddar News to discuss Russia's attempt to invade Ukraine.
With an increasing number of teachers and staff calling out sick by the day, the state of Oklahoma is turning to an unusual solution. Republican Governor Kevin Stitt has issued an executive order that permits state employees to work as substitute teachers. Shaily Baranwal, founder and CEO of Elevate K-12, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
On Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed the stance of the U.S. and its allies should Russia make any forays into Ukraine, a seeming response to President Biden's remarks that should Putin engage in something short of a full invasion, there might be some indecision among allied nations regarding what to do. Ariel Cohen, a senior fellow at the think tank Atlantic Council, joined Cheddar to discuss the difficulty faced by Blinken wrangling unity as tensions run high in the region. "There'll be a smaller incursion, and the president implied, there'll be a weaker response because our European allies have created this horrible situation where they are dependent on Moscow for their gas supply," Cohen explained.
During a nearly two-hour press conference on Wednesday, President Biden spoke on his accomplishments and challenges from the first year of his presidency, and what his administration hopes to accomplish in the coming year. However, his approval ratings are underwater as COVID remains a big concern for voters — as does inflation, noted Tom Bevan, co-founder and president of polling aggregator RealClearPolitics. "The public thinks [inflation] is priority number one, and the administration is concerned about it, they talk about it, but they're not spending enough time on it as far as the public is concerned," said Bevan.
The drama surrounding tennis star Novak Djokovic continues after he was deported from Australia over the weekend due to the nation's COVID-19 vaccine requirements. Djokovic was forced to leave the country on the eve of what was to be his first match in defense of his Australian Open title after three judges ruled in favor of his removal and revealed their reasoning for doing so. Adding to his woes, a law recently passed in France is putting his chances of defending his French Open title in jeopardy. The director of Marist's Center for Sports Communication, Jane McManus, joined Cheddar to discuss the ongoing fallout.
As the midterm elections get ever closer, candidates have been getting creative with their campaigns to stick out and to connect with voters. Gary Chambers, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate from Louisiana, has definitely attracted attention with an advertisement featuring him smoking a blunt, making a point about the inequity of anti-cannabis laws. "We wanted to bring the seriousness of the moment," he said of the ad. "But we also wanted to make sure that people understand that there are 19 states that are legal right now but Black people and brown people are being over-incarcerated in mostly Southern and Midwestern states in America for cannabis possession."
If some members of Congress have their way, there might finally be a 'TLDR' on sites' terms of service, introduced by the terms-of-service labeling, design, and readability act – or TLDR for short. With this act, users will actually understand what they're agreeing to or the many ways in which their data is being used before pressing 'accept.' J.D. sat down with co-sponsor of the bill and Senator Bill Cassidy, to discuss.
President Joe Biden's first year in office is wrapping up. What has he achieved, and what else remains on the table while the Democrats have control of Washington? Amid an ongoing pandemic and rising inflation, Biden's approval rating is at an all-time low and his party is plagued by infighting. Will he be able to continue pushing key parts of his agenda? Paul Glastris, former Bill Clinton speechwriter & Editor-in-chief of 'Washington Monthly,' joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss the president's achievements in his first year, where he's fallen short, and what he must do in order to get more of his agenda signed into law.
Tech giants Meta, Amazon, Alphabet, and Apple are faced with a bipartisan antitrust legislation effort underway in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The companies stand accused of promoting their own goods and services over smaller competitors on their platforms, holding too much monopolistic power via their app stores and services. Adam Kovacevich, founder and CEO of Chamber of Progress, a technology industry trade group, joined Cheddar to argue that the bills that are being debated currently could end up hurting consumers, rather than helping.