What A Day

President Biden announced yesterday that the US will have enough doses to vaccinate all Americans by the end of July. We talk to Dr. Anthony Fauci about the vaccines on the way, what they’ll mean as we start to face new variants, and mask guidance in the meantime.And in headlines: House managers wrapped up their final arguments in Trump’s second impeachment trial, queer and trans Americans will be protected under the Fair Housing Act, and Jeep pulls Bruce Springsteen’s ad after reports of his November DUI.Show Links:Youtube.com/crookedmediaInstagram.com/whatadayFor a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

The House Impeachment managers began to make their case against Trump yesterday, showing graphic and never-before-seen video footage that illustrated the scale and severity of the attack on the Capitol. We talk about our key takeaways from the day.The CDC updated its information on masks, saying that double masking can greatly reduce Covid transmission. Meanwhile, the Biden administration announced its plan to organize new mass vaccination sites that are meant to serve communities of color.And in headlines: the White House imposes sanctions on the military regime in Myanmar, Britney Spears’s conservatorship case will return to courts, and the NBA finalizes its position on singing the national anthem.Show Links:"Improve How Your Mask Protects You"https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/effective-masks.htmlFor a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

The second impeachment trial began yesterday, with Senators voting 56 to 44 to uphold the trial as constitutional and move forward. House managers presented video of the siege on the Capitol paired with Trump’s inflammatory speech to rally-goers beforehand, while Trump’s lawyers tried and failed to frame Trump’s impeachment after leaving office as a “slippery slope.”A team from the World Health Organization has been in China investigating the origins of the coronavirus and they released preliminary findings yesterday. One prominent conspiracy theory they ruled out was the idea that the virus emanated from a Chinese lab, and they also said the virus had been circulating in Wuhan before its discovery at a seafood market.And in headlines: hate crimes committed against Asian-Americans in the US is skyrocketing, the CEO of Riot Games faces a lawsuit for gender discrimination and misconduct, and the world’s first 3D printed T-bone steak.Show Links:"WATCH: Rep. Raskin presents graphic video timeline of Jan. 6 attack on U.S. Capitol"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otfPps9s8HMFor a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

Trump’s Senate impeachment trial begins today. Trump’s team continues to argue that the trial itself is unconstitutional… that’s what they’ll be debating with House managers today.Many of the country’s largest retail and grocery chains have suspended “hero pay” to essential workers, despite having a profitable 2020. Now cities and counties are trying to increase wages with local ordinances, but the businesses are fighting back.And in headlines: rescuers in India are working to find people after a Himalayan glacier disaster, inmates in a St. Louis prison call for better protections against COVID, and Facebook to remove vaccine misinfo.Show Links:"Local COVID-19 hazard pay mandates are doing what Congress and most corporations aren’t for essential workers"https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2021/01/27/local-covid-19-hazard-pay-mandates-are-doing-what-congress-and-most-corporations-arent-for-essential-workers/amp/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

Coronavirus cases in the US are in decline from last month, and the daily speed of vaccinations has picked up. But concerns over variants continue. A new study supports the idea that the new, more contagious strain first discovered in the UK could become the dominant strain the US by March.Democrats are working to include expanded child tax credits in the Covid relief bill. The inclusion of a minimum wage hike to $15 an hour is in question, with Biden saying he’s not sure the rules of the Senate will allow it.And in headlines: Haiti faces a constitutional crisis surrounding its president’s term, SCOTUS rules that California can resume indoor church service, and Amazon uses AI to monitor its delivery drivers.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday. 

The House voted to strip Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of her committee assignments for spreading conspiracy theories and endorsing violence against Democrats on social media. President Biden announced that the United States will end its support of Saudi Arabia’s military campaign in Yemen. A war that has helped create what the UN calls the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. We spoke to California Representative Ro Khanna about the decision, what led to it, and what it means for progressives and activists who want their voices heard on issues of US foreign policy.And in headlines: McKinsey to pay states nearly $600 million for its role in the opioid crisis, another voting tech company sues conspiracy-mongering Trump allies, and Trump won’t testify in his Senate impeachment trial.

Amazon faces its first unionization vote in the country in seven years next week in Bessemer, Alabama, and if the workers decide to unionize, it could spark waves of action across the country.We interviewed Christian Smalls, a former Amazon employee, who led a walkout last March at a warehouse in Staten Island and was subsequently fired. He told us about his experience, his thoughts on the union push in Alabama, and what's next for essential workers.And in headlines: Andrew Cuomo signs a bill to repeal the “walking while trans” ban in New York, Canada designates the Proud Boys as a terrorist organization, and country music’s Morgan Wallen gets dropped after using the n-word.Show Links:"Amazon to face first U.S. unionization vote in seven years next month"https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/01/15/amazon-union-alabama-vote/The Congress Of Essential Workershttps://tcoew.org/Follow Christian Smalls on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/Shut_downAmazon

Trump’s second impeachment trial starts next week in the Senate, and yesterday we got a preview of the arguments both sides will be making. We go through the details of legal filings from the House Managers, and the response from Trump's team.Democrats in the Senate voted yesterday to get the budget reconciliation process started, which they could use to pass coronavirus relief. Meanwhile, Biden signed three executive orders focused on immigration, including one to reunite families that were separated by Trump's immigration policies.And in headlines: Russia’s COVID vaccine is highly safe and effective, Wikipedia rolls out new code of conduct, and Jeff Bezos steps down as Amazon’s CEO.

The daily pace of vaccinations is picking up, with some states working faster than others. We talk about states that have given the most shots per capita, and what’s led them to succeed relative to the country at-large.Following the 2020 election, Republicans at the state level are doing all they can to pass laws to suppress the vote, particularly vote-by-mail. It’s also a redistricting year. We explain.And in headlines: police in Rochester pepper sprayed a Black 9-year-old girl while she was handcuffed, Facebook and Apple feud over data privacy, and Robinhood got 2.4 billion in funding yesterday.Show Links:Subscribe to Hysteria! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hysteria/id1399025196"After Record Turnout, Republicans Are Trying to Make It Harder to Vote"https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/30/us/republicans-voting-georgia-arizona.html

A group of Republican Senators are sending Biden a counter-proposal on Covid relief. They want to slash the bill by over a trillion dollars, and limit the size and scope of stimulus checks. They’re framing it as a bipartisan solution, but Democrats are reportedly planning to move forward with their own plan using budget reconciliation.The average number of new cases in the US has dropped off significantly since peaking three weeks ago, but January was still an awful month in the pandemic, and the presence of new variants has the potential to disrupt progress. Johnson & Johnson released data for their one-shot vaccine candidate last Friday. We explain what to make of it.And in headlines: several members of Myanmar’s ruling party were detained in a possible military coup, Hong Kong residents can now apply to become permanent British citizens, and Trump hires two new attorneys for his Senate impeachment trial.