Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Wednesday, April 14, 2021:
COVID-19: VAX SETBACK
WHAT HAPPENED: The CDC’s advisory committee is meeting today to deliberate over the handful of rare blood clots reported in people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Federal health agencies have called for a “pause” on administering that vaccine while the clots are investigated, and many states have temporarily stopped giving those shots in response. Six women between the ages of 18 and 48 developed the clotting disorder one to three weeks after they were vaccinated; one died and another was hospitalized. The J&J one-shot vaccine has been given to about seven million Americans. STAT
WHAT TO DO: Depending on where you live, if you have an appointment scheduled to receive the J&J shot, it may be either rescheduled or a different vaccine will be made available. Health officials are urging people NOT to cancel their appointments. If you have received the J&J vaccine within the last month, officials say to watch for the following rare symptoms: increasing shortness of breath, abdominal or leg pain that doesn’t go away, or a headache that doesn’t go away. CNN
AFGHAN WAR
President Biden will announce today that he is pulling all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan by Sept. 11, 20 years since the attacks that launched this country’s longest war. The exit is not expected to be conditional -- meaning the American mission in Afghanistan will end regardless of the security situation on the ground. The announcement will keep troops past the May 1 deadline negotiated with the Taliban -- which the Taliban has opposed -- but not much longer. WASH POST
POLICE BRUTALITY
WRIGHT KILLING: The officer who shot Daunte Wright has resigned from the Brooklyn Center police force, as has the police chief, in an attempt to de-escalate the tensions in the Minneapolis suburb where Wright was killed. Protests continued outside the heavily fortified police HQ for a third night but dissipated after police declared the gathering unlawful and dispersed the crowd. USA TODAY
CHAUVIN TRIAL: Several miles away, Derek Chauvin’s defense team began its case by shifting the focus of the trial to George Floyd’s drug use and suggesting that Floyd may have been faking a panic attack when he was first confronted by Chauvin and other officers. The judge has put limits on how much testimony there can be about Floyd’s past. NY TIMES
IRAN NUKES
Iran is responding to the sabotage of its key atomic facility by moving to enrich uranium at 60 percent, a level that puts the country closer to being able to make a nuclear bomb. Iranian President Rouhani called the escalation an answer to the “evilness” of Israel, which is suspected of carrying out the hit on the Natanz facility. The Israelis have not commented one way or another. At the same time, Rouhani said Iran is still open to making a new deal with the U.S. on the nuclear program. AP
T.P. SALES
American consumers appear to have finally stopped hoarding toilet paper. Sales of t.p. were down 33 percent in the first quarter from a year prior, according to the market research firm NielsenIQ. Paper towel and wet wipe sales were down double digits, too. Despite the supply chain issues that are still impacting some consumer products, there is now plenty of toilet tissue on store shelves due, in part, to the fact that many people are still working through their pandemic stockpiles. CNN
SPAC-TACULAR
The ride-hailing startup Grab -- a Southeast Asian “superapp” that’s basically Uber on steroids -- is merging with a special purpose acquisition company to go public in the U.S. at a $40 billion valuation. That would make it the largest SPAC deal yet, and a sign that the SPAC boom -- in which companies bypass the traditional IPO process to list shares -- is not losing steam. Grab will list on the Nasdaq when the deal is completed. REUTERS
PERFECT PERFECT GAME
The University of North Texas softball team made it into the record books last weekend, when pitcher Hope Trautwein completed the first truly perfect seven-inning game in NCAA D-1 history, in which every out was a strikeout. Trautwein retired 21 batters from Arkansas Pine Bluff in order, with no one even putting a ball into play. Trautwein told reporters she didn’t even realize the magnitude of her feat until the game was over. DENTON RECORD CHRON
'BRIDGERTON' RENEWED
Netflix is clearly not too worried about all the calls to boycott season 2 of Bridgerton after it was announced that Regé-Jean Page wouldn’t return to the show. With production underway on the second season of the hit period romance, Netflix has greenlit seasons 3 and 4, based on the third and fourth books in the series. There are eight books in all. AV CLUB
SPOTTED...
...the young daughter of slain Capitol Police Officer Billy Evans, wiping away her mom’s tears as Evans’ body lay in honor in the building he died protecting: SEE PIC
…Justin Bieber, hanging by his feet on the cover of GQ’s May issue. The singer opens up in the profile about his relationship with Hailey Baldwin, calling the first year of their marriage “really tough”: READ IT
LEFTOVERS: YOUR STATE RANKED
Americans consider Hawaii to be the best place in the United States and Washington D.C. to be the worst, according to a survey conducted by YouGov. The survey asked people to choose between states (plus D.C.) in head-to-head matchups: Hawaii won 69 percent of its matchups for the top ranking, followed by Colorado and Virginia. D.C. came in dead last with a 35 percent win percentage, behind Alabama and Mississippi (38 percent each) and New Jersey (39 percent):SEE RANKINGS
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