VOL. 45 | NO. 2 | Friday, January 8, 2021
December 2020 real estate trends for Davidson County, as compiled by Chandler Reports.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. long-term mortgage rates declined this week to new record lows for the first week of 2021.
TENNESSEE TITANS
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Jets interviewed Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith on Monday for their head coaching vacancy.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Derrick Henry ran the Tennessee Titans all the way to the AFC championship game a year ago.
But can they make it 3 in a row?
The Ringo Starr classic “It Don’t Come Easy” might be a fitting theme song to the Tennessee Titans’ 2020 season.
Can the Titans make it three consecutive wins against the Ravens in less than a full year? The Ravens opened as a field goal favorite, but they also were favored in their last two losses to Tennessee.
Lamar Jackson has an NFL MVP Trophy, two 1,000-yard rushing seasons and a 30-7 regular-season record as the Baltimore Ravens starting quarterback.
NEWSMAKERS
Adams and Reese has elected six attorneys across the firm to partnerships, including Clayton Byrd of Nashville.
BRIEFS
Franklin-based Acadia Healthcare has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its operations in the United Kingdom to Waterland Private Equity.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
The Chevrolet Corvette and the Porsche 911 are closer competitors than they’ve ever been before. Both cars were redesigned for 2020 with big changes for the Corvette and small but effective evolutions for the 911.
BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW
One. That’s all you need. One more hour magically crammed into your day and you’d be set. No more moving today’s tasks over to stress you out tomorrow. And if there was an extra hour wedged into tomorrow, great, that’d help, too.
PERSONAL FINANCE
After the train wreck that was 2020, you might well question whether it’s worth trying to plan anything. But knocking off a few financial tasks early in the year can better prepare you for whatever 2021 has in store.
CAREER CORNER
If last year taught us anything, it’s that things can change in an instant. Even small things we took for granted can become complex and unknown.
MILLENNIAL MONEY
Holiday spending always gets the best of me. The gifts, the food, the Christmas tree and decorations – sandwiched between two monthly rent payments – siphon money from my bank account. Every year I feel the sticker shock, briefly tuck my tail between my legs, then carry on like it never happened.
UT SPORTS
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Running back Ty Chandler is transferring to North Carolina for his final season of eligibility after graduating from Tennessee.
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt has hired Kevin Steele as a defensive assistant coach, bringing him back to the program where the former Auburn defensive coordinator started his coaching career.
STATEWIDE
MEMPHIS (AP) — Miriam DeCosta-Willis, the University of Memphis' first Black professor and a participant in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, has died, the school said. She was 86.
STATE GOVERNMENT
Lt. Governor Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) today announced state Senate committee assignments for the 112th General Assembly. McNally was re-elected Speaker of the Senate on Tuesday.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers voted Wednesday to reelect the secretary of state and treasurer and pick a new comptroller.
MEDIA
LONDON (AP) — Any EU country can take legal action against companies like Facebook over cross-border violations of data privacy rules, not just the main regulator in charge of the company, a top court adviser said Wednesday.
HONG KONG (AP) — YouTube has suspended U.S. President Donald Trump's channel for at least a week amid concerns over "ongoing potential for violence," making it the latest platform to limit the president's online activities.
AUTO INDUSTRY
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — German automaker Volkswagen said its global sales fell 15.2% during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but showed significant recovery toward the end of the year. The company more than tripled its sales of battery-only vehicles.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
LONDON (AP) — Britain's coronavirus vaccine program will operate around the clock seven days a week "as soon as we can," Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged Wednesday as the U.K. accelerates efforts to inoculate millions of its most vulnerable people against coronavirus.
Waning trust in governments and all types of media is threatening to limit the rollout of coronavirus vaccines around the world, particularly in the United States, according to a survey conducted by communications firm Edelman.
LONDON (AP) — England's health care system may move patients into hotels to ease pressure on hospitals struggling to handle rising COVID-19 admissions.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks closed mixed on Wall Street after major indexes spent the day drifting up and down, not far off the record highs they reached last week.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Federal Reserve survey of U.S. business conditions has found modest economic gains at the start of the year, although some parts of the country saw slowdowns stemming from a renewed surge of COVID-19 cases.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government's deficit in the first three months of the budget year was a record-breaking $572.9 billion, 60.7% higher than the same period a year ago, as spending to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic surged while revenue declined.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government announced Wednesday that it will halt imports of cotton and tomatoes from the Uighur region of China in its most sweeping action yet to pressure the Communist Party over its campaign against ethnic minorities.
BORING, Ore. (AP) — A line formed out the door during the lunch rush at the Carver Hangar, a family-owned restaurant and sports bar, and waitresses zipped in and out of the kitchen trying to keep up with orders as customers backed up in the lobby.
NEW YORK (AP) — Airbnb says it will be blocking and cancelling all reservations in the Washington, D.C. area during the week of the presidential inauguration.
Intel is replacing its CEO after only two years in what had been a rough stretch for the chipmaker.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer prices rose 0.4% in December, led by a sharp rise in gasoline prices.
NEW YORK (AP) — Target's strong sales streak extended through a pandemic-shrouded holiday season after a hard push online and an increased effort to provide alternatives to customers who are trying to minimize risk.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate Finance Committee announced Tuesday that it will hold a confirmation hearing for Treasury Secretary-nominee Janet Yellen on Jan. 19.
LONDON (AP) — The U.K.'s biggest supermarket chains warned Wednesday that food supplies in Northern Ireland face disruption because of new checks imposed by Britain's departure from the European Union.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — His place in the history books rewritten, President Donald Trump endured his second impeachment largely alone and silent.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer vows there will be an impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, even if it's after he leaves office and Democrat Joe Biden is inaugurated.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday blocked a quick Senate impeachment trial for President Donald Trump but did not rule out that he might eventually vote to convict the now twice-impeached president .
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ten Republican House members — including the No. 3 House GOP leader — voted to impeach President Donald Trump over the deadly insurrection at the Capitol. The GOP votes were in sharp contrast to the unanimous support for Trump among House Republicans when he was impeached by Democrats in December 2019.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Corporations and industry groups have donated at least $170 million in recent years to Republicans who rejected President-elect Joe Biden's victory over President Donald Trump, according to a new report by a government watchdog group.
O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, facing waning support from longtime backers and donors in the wake of the attack at the U.S. Capitol last week, defended himself in a newspaper column Wednesday, accusing the media and "Washington establishment" of deceiving Americans into calling him an "insurrectionist."
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House impeachment debate on Wednesday heard a distorted account of President Donald Trump's remarks to his supporters a week ago when he exhorted them to "fight like hell" before they swarmed the Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he opposes violence in a statement read on the House floor as members debate impeaching him for his role in fomenting the violent insurrection at the Capitol last week.
NEW YORK (AP) — Tom Hanks will host a 90-minute primetime TV special celebrating the inauguration of Joe Biden as president of the United States, with performances by Justin Timberlake, Jon Bon Jovi, Demi Lovato and Ant Clemons.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger is predicting more Republicans will join him in voting to impeach President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is expected to impeach President Donald Trump for his encouragement of supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol, a vote that would make him the first American president to be impeached twice.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's fiery speech at a rally just before the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol is at the center of the impeachment charge against him, even as the falsehoods he spread for months about election fraud are still being championed by some Republicans.
WASHINGTON (AP) — This time the fury enveloping the U.S. Capitol comes not from an insurgent mob but from within.
WASHINGTON (AP) — As a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol last week clamoring to overturn the result of November's presidential election, photographs captured a man in the crowd wearing a shirt emblazoned with "Camp Auschwitz," a reference to the Nazi concentration camp.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI warned law enforcement agencies ahead of last week's breach of the U.S. Capitol about the potential for extremist-driven violence, U.S. officials said, contradicting earlier statements that they were caught off guard by the assault by supporters of President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he has picked Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President Barack Obama, to run the agency overseeing American foreign humanitarian and development aid.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 12
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — Former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are participating in a new initiative at Vanderbilt University focused on bridging the partisan divide in the U.S., officials said Tuesday.
STATE GOVERNMENT
MEMPHIS (AP) — A group of Tennessee doctors that has been pushing Gov. Bill Lee for a statewide mask mandate turned its attention to the legislature Tuesday, the first day of the 2021 legislative session.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers gathered to start their annual session Tuesday in Nashville amid a pandemic and an FBI probe that drew searches of multiple legislative offices by federal agents last week.
STATEWIDE
GATLINBURG (AP) — Great Smoky Mountains National Park is looking for volunteers to monitor visitor use patterns in several of the park's most popular locations, according to a Monday news release from the park.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday wrestled with whether to revive a lawsuit brought by a Georgia college student who sued school officials after being prevented from distributing Christian literature on campus.
Prosecutors have brought dozens of cases after the deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol and more charges are expected in the coming days as investigators identify more members of the pro-Trump mob.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — The market for battery-powered delivery vehicles and equipment has so much potential that General Motors is forming a new business unit to serve it, a move that lifted the automaker's stock to a multiyear high.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Europe's push into electric cars is gathering speed — despite the pandemic.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte extended his country's tough five-week lockdown by a further three weeks Tuesday amid concerns that infection rates are not falling quickly enough and fears about the new more transmissible variant first detected in the United Kingdom.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barely a month into a mass vaccination campaign to stop the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration unexpectedly shifted gears Tuesday to speed the delivery of shots. The move came after widespread concern over a slow start even as coronavirus cases and deaths reach alarming new highs.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Within a span of about 24 hours, three House Democrats announced they tested positive for COVID-19, prompting concern that last week's insurrection at the Capitol has also turned into a super-spreader event threatening the health of lawmakers and their staffs.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks shook off a midday slide and ended broadly higher on Wall Street.
The IRS said that after initial problems, it is getting more of the second round of relief payments to taxpayers.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Layoffs spiked in November compared with the previous month and the number of job openings slipped, signaling that the job market has stalled as the resurgent coronavirus has brought about another wave shutdowns of restaurants and bars and hobbled consumer spending.
BERLIN (AP) — German prosecutors said Tuesday that they have taken down what they believe was the biggest illegal marketplace on the darknet and arrested its suspected operator.
LONDON (AP) — Social media platforms are continuing to crackdown on fringe groups and conspiracy theories following last week's deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Airbnb said Monday that it's reviewing reservations in the Washington, D.C., area ahead of next week's presidential inauguration and will bar any guests associated with hate groups or violent activity.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Top House Republicans are telling rank-and-file lawmakers they won't be pressuring them to vote a particular way when the chamber considers impeaching President Donald Trump for a second time.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors are considering sedition charges against at least some of the Trump loyalists who stormed the U.S. Capitol last week and will be examining the movement and money flow of the rioters who converged on Washington, officials said Tuesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI says it notified other law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Capitol Police, the day before the riot at the Capitol about an online message about a "war" and storming the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has canceled what would have been his final official trip abroad as concerns grow over potential violence at next week's presidential inauguration, the State Department said Tuesday.
ALAMO, Texas (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday took no responsibility for his part in fomenting a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol last week, despite his comments encouraging supporters to march on the Capitol and praise for them while they were still carrying out the assault.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday accused Iran of having secret ties with the al-Qaida network and imposed new sanctions on several senior Iranian officials.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire mogul and power broker who built a casino empire spanning from Las Vegas to China and became a singular force in domestic and international politics has died after a long illness.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. House pressed swiftly forward Tuesday toward impeachment or other steps to forcibly remove President Donald Trump from office, even as Trump blamed Democratic foes and not himself for last week's deadly attack on the Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — This time, they'll be ready. The inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden will be held on the same risers in the same spot at the U.S. Capitol where a violent, pro-Trump mob descended last week.
WASHINGTON (AP) — In the aftermath of the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol last week, questions are being raised about why the District of Columbia National Guard played such a limited role as civilian law enforcement officers were outnumbered and overrun.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's days in office are numbered. But he's already stopped doing much of his job.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence appear to have come to a détente after nearly a week of silence, anger and finger-pointing.
WASHINGTON (AP) — After days out of sight following the Capitol siege, President Donald Trump travels to Texas to trumpet one of the pillars of his presidency: his campaign against illegal immigration.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's acting head of the Department of Homeland Security abruptly resigned Monday, leaving the post ahead of schedule as the nation faces a heightened terrorism threat from extremists seeking to reverse the election.
MONDAY, JANUARY 11
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee is urging seniors who contract COVID-19 to ask their health care providers about certain drugs that could prevent them from getting so sick that they wind up in the hospital.
NASHVILLE (AP) — U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann of Tennessee said Sunday he has tested positive for the coronavirus after coming into contact with another member of Congress with whom he shares a residence in Washington, D.C.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday formally refused to put on a fast track election challenges filed by President Donald Trump and his allies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is declining to get involved in a case about free speech outside a Pittsburgh abortion clinic.
DALLAS (AP) — A retired Air Force officer and a man from Tennessee were charged Sunday for being part of the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol, federal prosecutors said.
AUTO INDUSTRY
SAO PAULO (AP) — Ford Motor said on Monday it will close three plants in Brazil and stop producing automobiles in the South American country.
TECHNOLOGY
Every January, huge crowds descend on Las Vegas for the CES gadget show, an extravaganza of tech and glitz intended to set the tone for the coming year in consumer technology. CES kicks off this week, but thanks to the pandemic, it will be in a radical new format — a "virtual" show taking place only in cyberspace.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization's chief scientist warned that even as numerous countries start rolling out vaccination programs to stop COVID-19, herd immunity is highly unlikely this year.
The U.S. is entering the second month of the biggest vaccination drive in history with a major expansion of the campaign, opening football stadiums, major league ballparks, fairgrounds and convention centers to inoculate a larger and more diverse pool of people.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California's coronavirus catastrophe reached a staggering new level Monday as Johns Hopkins University data showed the nation's most populous state has recorded more than 30,000 deaths since the pandemic started nearly a year ago.
BEIJING (AP) — Experts from the World Health Organization are due to arrive in China this week for a long-anticipated investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, the government said Monday.
TOKYO (AP) — More than 80% of people in Japan who were surveyed in two polls in the last few days say the Tokyo Olympics should be canceled or postponed, or say they believe the Olympics will not take place.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Monday as trading cools in markets around the world following record-setting runs.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A growing number of Wall Street banks and businesses have cut ties with President Donald Trump's campaign and financial arms, as well as the broader Republican Party, following last week's riots and insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Think your dog deserves dessert? So does Ben & Jerry's.
LONDON (AP) — The maker of Dr. Martens boots, the chunky-soled footwear once championed by rebellious young people but now favored by celebrities like Rihanna, plans to sell shares to the public as the existing owners seek to profit from growth of the iconic brand.
Businesses are rethinking political contributions in the wake of the deadly Capitol siege by President Donald Trump's supporters on Wednesday.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI is warning of plans for armed protests at all 50 state capitals and in Washington in the days leading up to President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, stoking fears of more bloodshed after last week's deadly siege at the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday re-designated Cuba as a "state sponsor of terrorism," in a move that hits the country with new sanctions shortly before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Poised to impeach, the House sped ahead Monday with plans to oust President Donald Trump from office, warning he is a threat to democracy and pushing the vice president and Cabinet to act first in an extraordinary effort to remove Trump in the final days of his presidency.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, one of the outgoing president's fiercest GOP allies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The theme for President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration will be "America United," an issue that's long been a central focus for Biden but one that's taken on added weight in the wake of the violence at the U.S. Capitol last week.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday sanctioned more than a half-dozen associates of a Ukrainian lawmaker blamed by U.S. officials for interfering in the 2020 presidential election by releasing edited audio recordings of President-elect Joe Biden.
WASHINGTON (AP) — William Burns, a well-known figure in diplomatic circles around the world, is President-elect Joe Biden's choice to lead the CIA, a selection likely to be embraced by the rank and file at the nation's premier spy agency.
WASHINGTON (AP) — They came from across America, summoned by President Donald Trump to march on Washington in support of his false claim that the November election was stolen and to stop the congressional certification of Democrat Joe Biden as the victor.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Under battle flags bearing Donald Trump's name, the Capitol's attackers pinned a bloodied police officer in a doorway, his twisted face and screams captured on video. They mortally wounded another officer with a blunt weapon and body-slammed a third over a railing into the crowd.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Under battle flags bearing Donald Trump's name, the Capitol's attackers pinned a bloodied police officer in a doorway, his twisted face and screams captured on video. They mortally wounded another officer with a blunt weapon and body-slammed a third over a railing into the crowd.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump enters the last days of his presidency isolated and shunned by former allies and members of his own party as he faces a second impeachment and growing calls for his resignation after his supporters launched an assault on the nation's Capitol in an effort to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Social media companies decided this past week they had finally seen enough from President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the House will proceed with legislation to impeach President Donald Trump as she pushes the vice president and the Cabinet to invoke constitutional authority to force him out, warning that Trump is a threat to democracy after the deadly assault on the Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden appeared on television last week as a bipartisan group of lawmakers huddled in an undisclosed location to protect them from a violent mob that was ransacking the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — At the heart of the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was a lie, one that was allowed to fester and flourish by many of the same Republicans now condemning President Donald Trump for whipping his supporters into a frenzy with his false attacks on the integrity of the 2020 election.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will present one of the nation's highest civilian honors to Bill Belichick, the football coach of the New England Patriots and the only coach to win six Super Bowl titles.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 8
UT SPORTS
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Tennessee has signed Virginia Tech quarterback Hendon Hooker as a graduate transfer, bolstering the position after a pair of Volunteers decided to transfer.
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — The six first responders who evacuated residents before the Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville will be the "Honorary 12th Titans" for Tennessee's home game on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens.
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — Federal prosecutors in Tennessee said Friday that FBI agents have searched the homes and offices of several state lawmakers.
HEALTH CARE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee has become the first state in the nation to be approved to receive funding in a lump sum for its Medicaid program through a block grant program, Gov. Bill Lee said Friday.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit against lawyer Sidney Powell on Friday, seeking at least $1.3 billion for Powell's "wild accusations" that the company rigged the presidential election for Joe Biden.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — A widening global shortage of semiconductors for auto parts is forcing major auto companies to halt or slow vehicle production just as they were recovering from pandemic-related factory shutdowns.
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is changing its corporate logo and launching an electric vehicle marketing campaign to reshape its image as clean vehicle company, rather than a builder of gas-powered pickups and SUVs.
DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government's auto safety agency has rejected a request to investigate unintended acceleration in Tesla electric vehicles, saying the acceleration was caused by drivers pushing the wrong pedal.
MEDIA
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The presses at the Courier Journal building in downtown Louisville are stopping for good.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Neil Sheehan, a reporter and Pulitzer Prize-winning author who broke the story of the Pentagon Papers for The New York Times and who chronicled the deception at the heart of the Vietnam War in his epic book about the conflict, died Thursday. He was 84.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — With COVID-19 surging and vaccinations off to a slow start, President-elect Joe Biden will rapidly release most available vaccine doses to protect more people, his office said Friday, a reversal of Trump administration policies.
The desperately awaited vaccination drive against the coronavirus in the U.S. is running into resistance from an unlikely quarter: Surprising numbers of health care workers who have seen firsthand the death and misery inflicted by COVID-19 are refusing shots.
ORANGE, Calif. (AP) — The U.S. topped 4,000 coronavirus deaths in a single day for the first time, breaking a record set just one day earlier, with several Sun Belt states driving the surge.
LONDON (AP) — London's mayor declared the capital's COVID-19 situation to be critical Friday, reflecting deteriorating conditions for beleaguered hospitals, as the country recorded its highest daily death toll in the pandemic.
New research suggests Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine can protect against a mutation found in the two more-contagious variants of the coronavirus that have erupted in Britain and South Africa.
LONDON (AP) — Britain has authorized a coronavirus vaccine developed by Moderna, the third to be licensed for use in the country as it ramps up a vaccination program critical to lifting the country out of the pandemic.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Wall Street notched more milestones Friday as the market largely shrugged off another discouraging jobs report amid expectations that the incoming Biden administration will pump more aid into the pandemic-ravaged economy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer borrowing rose 4.4% in November, its strongest showing in five months, led by strong gains in auto and student loans that offset a drop in credit card borrowing.
NEW YORK (AP) — Deutsche Bank agreed Friday to pay fines and penalties of about $130 million to avoid a criminal prosecution on charges it participated in a foreign bribery scheme to win business in Saudi Arabia.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Newly released transcripts show that many Federal Reserve officials had concerns in late 2015 over whether they were making a mistake in raising a key interest rate for the first time in nearly decade.
LONDON (AP) — Some businesses said Friday that costs and paperwork are hampering trade between Britain and the European Union as the reality of the U.K.'s post-Brexit trading relationship with the bloc takes hold.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers shed jobs last month for the first time since April, cutting 140,000 positions, clear evidence that the economy is faltering as the viral pandemic tightens its grip on consumers and businesses.
NEW YORK (AP) — For Nancy Sinoway, a second coronavirus relief loan would increase the chances that her dressmaking business will survive.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — First it went through $20,000. Then 10 days later, it broke through $25,000, and then, with barely taking a breath, it crossed $30,000. Now only a few days into 2021, the price of bitcoin has crossed $40,000.
Boeing will pay $2.5 billion to settle a Justice Department investigation and admit that employees misled regulators about the safety of its 737 Max aircraft, which suffered two deadly crashes shortly after entering airline service.
PARIS (AP) — France's government breathed a sigh of relief Friday after the U.S. indefinitely delayed tariffs on French wine, cosmetics and other goods designed as retaliation for a French tax on technology giants.
BEIJING (AP) — The former chairman of the main Chinese state bank behind Beijing's initiative to build railways and ports across dozens of Asian countries has been sentenced to life in prison on corruption charges, a court announced.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden said Friday that President Donald Trump isn't "fit for the job," but he repeatedly refused to endorse growing Democratic calls to impeach him a second time.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday he will skip President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, refusing to fulfill the outgoing president's traditional role in the peaceful transition of power and undercutting his own message just one day earlier on the need for "national healing and unity."
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's concern about President Donald Trump potentially ordering the launch of a nuclear weapon in his final days in office highlights a little-known fact: Launch authority rests with the president alone.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is distorting how he responded to the chaos at the Capitol this week, falsely stating that he acted immediately to bring in the National Guard.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is rejecting suggestions that the United States is a "banana republic" following the assault on the Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump. It's a highly unusual defense to criticism that hasn't previously warranted an riposte from America's top diplomat.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats laid plans Friday for impeaching President Donald Trump, even as he's headed out of the White House, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she had spoken to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff about preventing an "unhinged" Trump from ordering a nuclear strike in his final days.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With 12 days left in his term, President Donald Trump has finally bent to reality amid growing talk of trying to force him out early, acknowledging he'll peacefully leave after Congress affirmed his defeat.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden has denounced the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol as "domestic terrorists" and he blamed President Donald Trump for the violence that has shaken the nation's capital and beyond.
NEW YORK (AP) — A large Washington, D.C.-based law firm is asking other lawyers to join in a call for President Donald Trump's cabinet to oust him after rioting supporters of the president attacked and occupied the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A steady stream of Trump administration officials are beating an early path to the exits as a protest against the deadly siege of the U.S. Capitol this week even as others wrestling with the stay-or-go question conclude that they owe it to the public to see things through to the end.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol is intensifying scrutiny over security at the upcoming inauguration ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden, which already has been reshaped by the coronavirus pandemic and President Donald Trump's decision not to attend.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A police officer has died from injuries suffered as President Donald Trump's supporters stormed the Capitol, a violent siege that is forcing hard questions about the defeated president's remaining days in office and the ability of the Capitol Police to secure the area.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Three days before supporters of President Donald Trump rioted at the Capitol, the Pentagon asked the U.S Capitol Police if it needed National Guard manpower. And as the mob descended on the building Wednesday, Justice Department leaders reached out to offer up FBI agents. The police turned them down both times, according to senior defense officials and two people familiar with the matter.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Rev. and Sen.-elect Raphael Warnock shares more than a party with President-elect Joe Biden: Both Democrats made faith a central part of their political identity on the campaign trail — and their victories are emboldening religious liberals.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 7
UT SPORTS
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Josiah-Jordan James and Victor Bailey scored 17 points apiece and Tennessee hit eight free throws in the final minute as the No. 9 Volunteers pulled out a 79-74 victory over Arkansas on Wednesday night.
PREDATORS
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Nashville Predators have signed forward Luke Kunin to a two-year, $4.6 million contract.
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee panel conditionally approved a license for a fifth sportsbook operator Wednesday under the state's online-only sports betting program.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Two Tennessee lawmakers held a prayer rally Wednesday timed to coincide with a protest in the nation's Capitol in support of President Donald Trump.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
The U.S. registered more COVID-19 deaths in a single day than ever before -- nearly 3,900 -- on the very day the mob attack on the Capitol laid bare some of the same, deep political divisions that have hampered the battle against the pandemic.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan declared a state of emergency in Tokyo and three nearby areas on Thursday as coronavirus cases continue to surge, hitting a daily record of 2,447 in the capital.
BERLIN (AP) — A German company that is in the advanced stages of producing a vaccine against COVID-19 is linking up with pharmaceutical giant Bayer to help develop and distribute the product.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Wall Street rallied to more record highs as investors hope the Democratic sweep of Washington means more stimulus is on the way for the economy.
Didn't get your second relief check yet? You aren't alone.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden has picked Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo to lead the Commerce Department, helping set trade policy and looking to promote U.S. opportunities for growth domestically and overseas.
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — The U.S. services sector, where most Americans work, grew for the seventh consecutive month in December even as coronavirus cases surged through the holidays.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit jumped to $68.1 billion in November, the highest monthly deficit in 14 years, as a surge in imports overwhelmed a smaller increase in exports.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell slightly last week to 787,000, a historically high number that points to a weak job market held back by the viral pandemic.
Walgreens Boots Alliance lost $308 million in its first fiscal quarter due to a big charge tied to its ownership stake in the drug wholesaler AmerisourceBergen.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday she has spoken to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff about preventing President Donald Trump from initiating military actions or a nuclear strike.
WASHINGTON (AP) — One day later, the violent siege of the U.S. Capitol by President Donald Trump's supporters forced painful new questions across government — about his fitness to remain in office for two more weeks, the ability of the police to secure the complex and the future of the Republican Party in a post-Trump era.
After years of treating President Donald Trump's inflammatory rhetoric with a light touch, Facebook and Instagram are silencing his social media accounts for the rest of his presidency. The move, which many called long overdue following Wednesday's deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, is also a reminder of the enormous power that social-media platforms can wield when they choose.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's role in inciting violence at the Capitol and his refusal to acknowledge his election defeat is prompting some lawmakers to urge his removal from office through the 25th Amendment.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao is resigning effective Monday, becoming the highest ranking member of President Donald Trump's administration to resign in protest after the pro-Trump insurrection at Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Defense Department has formally activated roughly 6,200 members of the National Guard from six northeastern states to help support the Capitol Police and other law enforcement in Washington in the wake of the deadly riot Wednesday that rocked the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden will introduce Merrick Garland as his pick for attorney general on Thursday along with three others he has selected for senior Justice Department positions to "restore the independence" of the agency and faith in the rule of law.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress confirmed Democrat Joe Biden as the presidential election winner before dawn Thursday after a violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in a stunning attempt to overturn the election, undercut the nation's democracy and keep Trump in the White House.
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden called Wednesday for the restoration of "simple decency" as a mob incited by his predecessor stormed the U.S. Capitol and delayed Congress from certifying the results of November's election.
PARIS (AP) — As the world watched American institutions shaken to the core by an angry mob, officials and ordinary citizens wondered: How fragile is democracy, and how much stress could their own political systems withstand?
WASHINGTON (AP) — "Where are they?" a Trump supporter demanded in a crowd of dozens roaming the halls of the Capitol, bearing Trump flags and pounding on doors.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the U.S. Capitol Police defended his department's response to the storming of the Capitol, saying Thursday that officers "acted valiantly when faced with thousands of individuals involved in violent riotous actions." Washington's mayor called the police response "a failure."
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump for the first time acknowledged his defeat in the Nov. 3 election and announced there would be an "orderly transition" on Jan. 20, Inauguration Day, after Congress concluded the electoral vote count early Thursday certifying President-elect Joe Biden's victory.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Mike Pence defied President Donald Trump early Thursday morning as he affirmed President-elect Joe Biden's November victory, putting an end to Trump's futile efforts to subvert American democracy and overturn the results of the election.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A sober, shaken Senate returned to its hallowed chamber Wednesday night to slap away a frivolous election challenge, but its secondary purpose seemed to be to rise from the wreckage of a shocking day in which they were forced to flee the Capitol by a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump pressed his hopeless case for overturning the election to a crowd of supporters Wednesday, fueling the grievances of a mob that then stormed the Capitol and disrupted the confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden's victory.
ELECTION 2020
ATLANTA (AP) — President Donald Trump came to the north Georgia mountains Monday night to gin up turnout in conservative strongholds and stave off the Democratic challengers who threatened the GOP's Senate majority in two runoff elections.
ATLANTA (AP) — As a teenager, Jon Ossoff was inspired by the pivotal role John Lewis played in the fight for racial equality when the civil rights icon was in his early 20s.