Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Tuesday, December 22, 2020:
N2K Self-Care Reminder: The Winter Solstice is behind us, and the days now start to get longer. Today will be brighter than yesterday, and tomorrow will be brighter than today. A brand new year is just around the corner. And there is much to be thankful for, even in this season of discontent.
STIMULUS PASSES
Congress has passed the $900 billion economic stimulus bill, sending it to President Trump to be signed into law today. The money could start flowing as soon as early next week, according to Treasury Sec. Mnuchin. The 5,600 page legislation is one of the longest bills in history and one of the biggest economic rescue packages ever passed. The votes were delayed because of printing and computer file issues, given the size of the document. In the end, the bill passed the Senate, 92-6, with six Republicans voting against. POLITICO
STIMULUS: WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU
The $600 direct cash payments for adults and children and $300 additional weekly unemployment benefits are only part of this catch-all package. Small businesses can tap $285 billion in new Paycheck Protection funds. Art venues, from nightclubs to Broadway theaters, can access $15 billion in relief. There’s significant changes to higher education, too: The ban on Pell grants for prisoners is being reversed, the notoriously confusing FAFSA application is being simplified, and the eligibility requirements for federal financial aid are being expanded. It also includes legislation that will ban most “surprise” emergency medical bills from out-of-network specialists. BLOOMBERG
COVID-19: BAD OLD DAYS
The last couple of days have offered some unsettling callbacks to the spring: surprise lockdowns, travel bans, volatile financial markets, rocketing case numbers. The UK has been all but sealed off from the rest of Europe due to the mutated coronavirus strain that’s rapidly spreading through the greater London region. (Britain is also 10 days away from a deadline to reach a post-Brexit trade deal with the continent, adding to everything else.) In the U.S., the pandemic is out of control in California. The state is likely to break New York’s April record for hospitalizations - 18,825 - today or tomorrow. New projections suggest California could see 100,000 hospitalized patients in a month. CBS NEWS
ANTISEMITISM ON THE RISE
A far-right extremist has been sentenced to life in prison for an attack on a German synagogue on Yom Kippur last year that killed two people. That was not an isolated incident; antisemitic attacks have been on the rise, with the ADL reporting a 12 percent jump in its annual audit last year. Combined with troubling polls about Holocaust denial among young people, some American Jews say they feel less secure now than they ever have, writes Cheddar’s (and N2K founder) Jill Wagner. OP-ED
HOLIDAY TRAVEL
More than one million people have passed through TSA checkpoints for three consecutive days, the first time that’s happened since March. The three million or so passengers that flew last weekend was down from the 7.6 million who flew the same weekend last year, but it’s significantly more traffic than airports have been seeing, and comes as the CDC continues to advise Americans not to travel over the holidays. In order to keep checkpoints moving, the TSA recommends leaving presents unwrapped and remembering the golden rule for packing: if you can spray it, spread it, pump it or pour it, put it in a checked bag. WASH POST
APPLE CAR
Apple is reportedly jump-starting its plans to build a self-driving car from scratch. The iPhone maker is said to be targeted 2024 for the launch of an autonomous vehicle that will include a supposed breakthrough in battery technology. Apple’s self-driving car strategy, codenamed Project Titan, has gone through fits and starts over the past several years, but the company is reinvigorating the project thanks to a “radical” new battery design. REUTERS
NBA OPENING NIGHT
It was barely two months ago that the Lakers won the Finals, but the new NBA season is already here. The shortened 2020-21 season tips off tonight with the Warriors at the Nets, featuring Kevin Durant in his first regular-season game since coming to Brooklyn, playing against his old team. The NBA is attempting to play this season under somewhat normal circumstances, out of the bubble and at team arenas. But every team has different protocols and policies in place. Some teams aren’t allowing any fans, some are allowing just families and friends of players, and some are allowing limited attendance. SEASON PREDICTIONS
BEATLES DOC
Peter Jackson has released a sneak peek of his highly anticipated Beatles documentary. The Lord of the Rings director has been working on a doc made from more than 55 hours of unreleased footage from the Let It Be sessions. The Beatles: Get Back was set to debut in September but has been pushed back indefinitely due to the pandemic: WATCH
SPOTTED...
...President-elect Biden, rolling up the sleeve of his black turtleneck to get his coronavirus vaccine shot on live TV. Biden credited the Trump administration for its work on the vaccine and urged Americans to get inoculated when the option becomes available: WATCH
…Jupiter and Saturn, appearing closer than they have in centuries. A news chopper in L.A. was able to capture the so-called Christmas Star in the night sky: WATCH
LEFTOVERS: ZOOM ESCAPE HATCH
You know the feeling: your video call just ended, now you’re racing to find the cursor and close the program lest you be the last one in the room, your tired-looking visage reflected back in your screen, a cruel reminder of the isolation in the era of the virtual workplace. Just us? Anyway, a crafty developer has created a way to leave a Zoom meeting just by pulling on a physical lamp cord. Brian Moore wrote the code, 3D printed the mechanism and uploaded the instructions on GitHub if you’re savvy enough to try it yourself. THE VERGE
Listen to the N2K Podcast! Looking for more context and analysis on the big stories of the day? Check out our podcast! Hosts Jill and Carlo break down the headlines, every weekday morning Listen on Apple or Spotify, or watch on YouTube, and send us your feedback!
