Here’s what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.
(You can get “5 Things You Need to Know Today” delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.)
1. Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will deliver a virtual address this morning to members of the House and Senate, a speech that comes as the US is under pressure from Ukraine to supply more military assistance to the embattled country. Following the speech, President Biden is expected to unveil a new $800 million assistance package for Ukraine. Officials familiar with the plan said the aid will include anti-tank missiles and other defensive weapons, bringing the total to $1 billion announced in just the last week. Meanwhile, Russian forces are stepping up their attacks in Ukraine as intense shelling continues near central Kyiv. Since the start of the Russian invasion, more than three million refugees have fled the region, according to the UN, with the majority arriving in Poland. While widespread evacuations are ongoing, some people — including a wave of women — are journeying back across the border to help defend Ukraine. Follow CNN’s full coverage of Russia’s attack on Ukraine here.
2. Pandemic
Pfizer and BioNTech have applied for emergency use authorization of a fourth booster dose of their Covid-19 vaccine. The additional dose is for adults 65 and older who have gotten a booster dose of any of the authorized or approved vaccines, the companies said yesterday. To date, more than 960,000 people have died from Covid-19 in the US since the pandemic began. In an effort to help, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has disbursed more than $2 billion in funeral assistance to those who have lost loved ones to the virus. The funds were distributed to more than 300,000 applicants, according to FEMA, with the average amount of assistance totaling roughly $6,500. Separately, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday. It is the first known case of coronavirus among the first or second families since President Joe Biden and Harris took office in January 2021.
3. Capitol riot
The House select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the US Capitol is poised to receive data from the Republican Party’s email communications platform Salesforce today. The Republican National Committee rushed to court last night to try to block the handover. The RNC has alleged that the House’s subpoena to Salesforce seeking information about 2020 election communications, including those related to former President Donald Trump, would give the committee “unprecedented access to the RNC’s internal political strategies and to private, personal information regarding its supporters.” In addition, the committee and the Justice Department are also now in possession of hours of raw footage from a documentary film crew that followed Proud Boys leader Enriquo Tarrio on the day before the US Capitol riot, according to a source familiar with the matter.
4. Daylight Saving
In hopes to eliminate confusion around changing clocks back and forth, the Senate passed a bill yesterday that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent across the United States. The potential law would mean no more falling back for Americans every fall. The legislation soared through the chamber by unanimous consent, but still needs to pass the House and be signed by President Joe Biden to become law. The bill has bipartisan backing, including several Republican and Democratic cosponsors. Once passed, the changes will not be implemented until November 2023, officials say, because the transportation industry has already built schedules based on the existing time and has asked for additional months to make the adjustment.
5. Tokyo
Tokyo schools have dropped their controversial dress code on students’ hair and underwear color after decades of maintaining rules that were criticized as outdated. Under the public school system’s dress code, all students had to dye their hair black, certain hairstyles were prohibited and even students’ underwear had to be a designated color. A total of five rules will be dropped by nearly 200 public schools across the Japanese capital, and the policy changes are scheduled to go into effect at the start of the new academic year on April 1, the city’s authorities said. Tokyo isn’t the only Japanese city with a strict dress code — similar rules are in effect around the country, with many schools requiring students to wear shoes and socks of a designated color.
BREAKFAST BROWSE
Starbucks is planning to phase out its iconic cups
Enjoy the holiday-themed cups while they last! The coffee chain is aiming to eliminate all disposable cups by 2025.
Airfares are going up
It’s probably a good time to buy tickets for that trip you have in mind. Prices are heading up, up and away…
A tech company is bringing VR headsets into cars
For obvious safety reasons, the virtual reality system will be limited to backseat passengers only. (Whew, thank goodness.)
High fashion meets functional footwear
Manolo Blahnik and Birkenstock. This is a collab we weren’t expecting — but gladly welcome. What do you think about the new collection?
Are you a fan of the popular podcast ‘Serial?’
If so, here’s a new development: A judge has approved additional DNA testing in the case of Adnan Syed. The mystery lives on.
TODAY’S NUMBER
52%
That’s how many registered voters in the US don’t believe President Joe Biden will run for a second term in 2024. The shocking statistic from a new Wall Street Journal poll suggests there are doubts as to whether Biden, who be 81 in two years, will seek another four years in office.
TODAY’S QUOTE
“There is no question to me that these murders were deliberate acts of hate.”
— Rep. Judy Chu, a California Democrat and chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, calling for a hate crime designation for suspect Robert Aaron Long’s role in the March 16, 2021 Atlanta spa shootings. A year ago today, the then-21 year-old gunman stormed into three spas across the Atlanta area, killing 8 people who were mostly Asian women. Long has pleaded guilty to four of the shootings and was sentenced to life in prison. So far, federal authorities have not filed hate crimes against Long, prompting officials to renew calls for greater attention on anti-Asian violence on the anniversary of the shootings.
TODAY’S WEATHER
AND FINALLY
Coffee: A hug in a mug
This one is for all my fellow coffee lovers! Check out what different coffees look like around the world. (Click here to view.)
