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Sunday, February 6th, 2022 

Russian diplomat mocks American ‘madness’ and ‘scaremongering’ over Ukraine A Russian invasion of Ukraine could cause 50,000 civilian casualties and capture the capital city of Kyiv within days, Biden administration officials told lawmakers at briefings that became public Saturday. The officials said they could not confirm whether Russian President Vladimir Putin had made up his mind to order the invasion, but said they believe approximately 70 percent of the forces needed for an invasion are already in place. Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, dismissed the American intelligence assessment as “madness” and “scaremongering.” He tweeted Sunday, “[W]hat if we would say that US could seize London in a week and cause 300K civilian deaths?” THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Queen Elizabeth II celebrates 70 years on the throne Queen Elizabeth II began her reign 70 years ago when her father, King George VI, died on Feb. 6, 1952. She is now the fourth-longest-reigning monarch in world history, behind Louis XIV of France, Johann II of Lichtenstein, and Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand. On Saturday, the queen hosted a small reception for her Platinum Jubilee at her country estate, Sandringham. She also announced in an address that she wants Duchess Camilla of Cornwall — the wife of her son and heir, Prince Charles — to have the title of queen consort when Charles becomes king. The queen has met 13 American presidents and been served by 14 prime ministers. BBC 

Joe Rogan apologizes for N-word use Podcast host Joe Rogan posted an apology video, his second in less than a week, to Instagram early Saturday morning, addressing a viral compilation video that showed him repeatedly using the N-word on his show. Rogan clarified that he only used the word in quotations or when discussing its sociolinguistic significance. “I haven’t said it in years. But for a long time, when I would bring that word up, if it would come up in conversations, instead of saying ‘the N-word,’ I would just say the word,” Rogan said. He offered his “sincere, deepest apologies” and said watching the compilation made him feel “sick.” FOX NEWS 

Spotify pulls over 70 episodes of Joe Rogan’s podcast Spotify removed over 70 episodes of Joe Rogan’s podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, on Friday. Rogan has drawn criticism for interviewing Drs. Peter McCullough and Robert Malone — both of whom have been accused of spreading COVID-19 misinformation — on his show. After several musicians removed their music from the streaming service in protest, Spotify announced it would add content advisories to future episodes that discuss COVID. Spotify has not commented on why those episodes were removed. The Malone interview is still up, but interviews with comedians Bull Burr, Nick Swardson, and Tom Segura — all of which were released years before the pandemic — no longer appear on Spotify.  THE DAILY BEAST 

Host nation China wins its first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics Host nation China won its first gold medal of the Beijing Winter Olympics on Saturday when the Chinese team claimed victory in the short track speedskating mixed team relay. The mixed team relay, a new event at the 2022 Winter Olympics, features teams made up of both men and women. China’s gold-winning team includes male skaters Wu Dajing and Ren Ziwei and female skaters Qu Chunyu and Fan Kexin. Italy won silver, while Hungary took bronze. REUTERS 

Norway, Sweden, and Russia lead Olympic medal count Since the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics opened Friday, Norway has taken the lead with two gold medals — in the mixed relay biathlon and women’s cross-country skiing — and a bronze in men’s speed skating. In second place is Sweden, which has taken gold in men’s moguls freestyle skiing and men’s speed skating. Russia — competing as the Russian Olympic Committee or ROC due to a four-year ban the World Anti-Doping Agency handed down in 2019 — has won one gold, two silver, and two bronze medals. INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE 

Runoff likely as Costa Ricans choose among 25 presidential candidates Costa Ricans go to the polls Sunday to choose their country’s next president, but the day’s voting is unlikely to produce a victor. If no candidate wins more than 40 percent of the vote, the top two will advance to a runoff election to be held in April. 25 candidates are seeking the presidency, and none of them is polling anywhere near 40 percent. Centrist former President Jose Maria Figueres, who governed from 1994 to 1998, leads in the polls with around 17 percent of the vote, while center-right candidate Lineth Saborio, a former vice president, is polling in second place at around 13 percent. Costa Ricans will also elect a new National Assembly. REUTERS 

Populist Pierre Poilievre seeks leadership of Canada’s Conservative Party Canadian Member of Parliament Pierre Poilievre announced Saturday that he is running to become the leader of Canada’s Conservative Party and to replace Justin Trudeau as prime minister. “Governments have … caused inflation by borrowing and printing a half trillion dollars, which has ballooned the assets of the billionaires, the debts of our children, and the cost of living of the working class,” Poilievre said in his announcement video. He also accused Trudeau’s government of “[u]sing COVID as a political opportunity.” Poilievre, a right-wing populist and supporter of the ongoing trucker convoy protest, has been working for months to position himself as the natural successor to Erin O’Toole, who was ousted from party leadership Wednesday. THE GLOBE AND MAIL 

NFL commissioner says league has fallen short on diversity commitments National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell issued a memo to all NFL teams Saturday saying that the continued lack of diversity among the league’s coaches and coordinators is “unacceptable.” Only one of the 32 teams that make up the NFL has a Black head coach. Goodell wrote in the memo that “and any form of discrimination is contrary to the NFL’s values.” The memo was prompted by a lawsuit former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, who is Black, filed earlier this week. Goodell promised to “re-evaluate and examine all policies, guidelines, and initiatives relating to diversity, equity and inclusions.” REUTERS 

Prince Andrew’s deposition set for March 10 News broke Saturday that Prince Andrew is set to give evidence under oath in London on March 10. The Duke of York is being sued in a United States district court by Virginia Giuffre. Giuffre alleges that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her and forced her to have sex with Andrew while she was still a minor. Andrew has denied all allegations. The prince’s lawyers argued last month that, under the terms of a recently unsealed 2009 settlement between Giuffre and Epstein, the lawsuit against Andrew ought to be dismissed. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan disagreed and allowed the case to move forward. THE TELEGRAPH 

Republicans say they’ll probe GoFundMe over Freedom Convoy donations Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and multiple Republican state attorneys general have announced plans to investigate whether GoFundMe violated state laws by refusing to distribute funds raised to support the “Freedom Convoy,” a group of truckers and other demonstrators protesting Canada’s COVID-19 policies. GoFundMe said it deleted the fundraiser after concluding  “that the previously peaceful demonstration has become an occupation.” The company initially said donors would have to apply for refunds and that remaining funds would go to charities approved by GoFundMe, but later reversed course and made refunds automatic. The Republican attorneys general of Missouri, West Virginia, Ohio, and Louisiana all said they plan to investigate GoFundMe on behalf of donors from their states. THE HILL 

Saturday, February 5th, 2022 

Dutch journalist dragged away as Beijing Olympics begin The 2022 Beijing Olympics officially kicked off Friday, and there’s already footage of a reporter being physically pulled away from his live shot while covering them. Sjoerd den Daas, a journalist with Dutch broadcaster NOS, was reporting on the opening ceremony when Chinese officials could be seen coming up to him to physically remove him from the area. It wasn’t clear why the guards were pulling the reporter away, but NOS editor-in-chief Marcel Gelauff told Algemeen Dagblad that this incident was a “painful illustration” of how China treats journalists. The Olympics began Friday despite diplomatic boycotts from countries including the United States over what the White House described as China’s “ongoing genocide … in Xinjiang” THE WEEKNOS 

Tomato’s last flight: Shaun White to retire after 2022 Olympics Three-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White, the world’s most recognizable snowboarder, announced Saturday that he plans to retire after this year’s Olympic Games. “In my mind, I’ve decided this will be my last competition,” the 35-year-old White said. He attributed his decision in part to injuries to his ankle, knee, and back but said he still plans to “lay it out there” during his final Olympic appearance. The snowboarding halfpipe opens for training Sunday. White previously won gold medals at Turin in 2006, at Vancouver in 2010, and at Pyeongchang in 2018. ESPN 

Biden restores sanctions relief in attempt to keep Iran nuclear deal alive The Biden administration restored a sanctions waiver for Iran’s nuclear program Friday, but the Iranian foreign minister says it won’t be enough to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal. A senior State Department official said the sanctions relief “is not a concession to Iran” but that it will “enable some of our international partners to have more detailed technical discussions to enable cooperation that we view as being in our non-proliferation interests.” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was less optimistic. “Lifting some sanctions in a real and objective manner could be interpreted as the good will that Americans talk about,” he said Saturday but added that the Biden administration’s waiver is “not sufficient.” CNN 

A pair of Tu-22M3 bombers are seen flying across Belarus amid tensions between Russia and Ukraine. (AP) 

Protesters gather in Kharkiv, Ukraine, to protest Russian aggression. (VOA) 

Twenty Baloch Nationalist Army separatists and nine Pakistani soldiers are killed during raids in Panjgur and Nushki, after the BNA attacked two security posts two days ago, killing four soldiers and a civilian. (Al Jazeera) 

Russia reports a record for the 16th consecutive day of 177,282 new COVID-19 cases, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 12.63 million. (TASS) 

New Zealand snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott wins a gold medal in women’s slopestyle, winning New Zealand its first ever gold medal at the Winter Olympics. (Forbes) (RNZ) 

New Zealand reports a record 243 new community transmitted COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. (RNZ) 

Hong Kong reports a record 351 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 15,066. (The Standard) 

South Korea reports a record for the third consecutive day of 36,362 new COVID-19 cases, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 971,018. (The Korea Herald) 

The End Sunday 

Savannah 

Mike Pence says ‘Trump is wrong’: ‘I had no right to overturn the election’ Former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday rebuked assertions made by former President Donald Trump late last week, in which the ex-president alleged Pence had the power to overturn the results of the 2020 election. “President Trump is wrong,” Pence said while speaking before conservative legal organization the Federalist Society. “I had no right to overturn the election.” He added, “The presidency belongs to the American people, and the American people alone. And frankly, there is no idea more un-American than the notion that any one person could choose the American president.” THE NEW YORK TIMES 

January jobs report significantly beats expectations despite surge in Omicron cases Some experts were bracing for a disappointing January jobs report — but it ended up significantly beating expectations. The Labor Department said Friday the U.S. economy added 467,000 jobs in January as the unemployment rate increased slightly to 4 percent. This number was much higher than expected, as economists were expecting about 150,000 jobs to be added. The better-than-anticipated report came despite the recent surge in Omicron COVID-19 cases in the United States. CNBC 

GoFundMe will refund donations to Canadian trucker protest In a statement released Friday, fundraising website GoFundMe said it will refund any donations made to support the “Freedom Convoy” protesting the country’s COVID-19 policies. Around 1 million Canadian dollars have already been released to the organizers of the protests, which have blocked streets in Ottawa and kept residents awake with loud honking. About 10 million Canadian dollars ($7.9 million American) will be automatically refunded. Elsewhere in Canada, the convoy is gaining ground. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Thursday he will announce early next week “a firm date to end” the province’s vaccine passport policy. One opinion writer accused Kenney of “caving in to the truckers and their illegal blockade” of an Alberta-Montana border crossing. BBC 

Staffers on Capitol Hill launch unionization effort Congressional staffers launched a unionization push on Friday under the name the Congressional Workers Union. “While not all offices and committees face the same working conditions, we strongly believe that to better serve our constituents will require meaningful changes to improve retention, equity, diversity, and inclusion on Capitol Hill,” the group wrote in a statement released online. The official unionization announcement also arrived after a spokesperson for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday tweeted that unionizing staff would have the speaker’s “full support.” A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also noted he would “support that effort.” POLITICO 

RNC censures anti-Trump Reps. Cheney and Kinzinger Following the passage of a draft resolution on Thursday night, the Republican National Committee on Friday voted to formally censure GOP Reps. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) for their participation on the Jan. 6 committee investigating the Capitol riot. The whole process took just about a minute, and the resolution was not read or presented. There was no debate or discussion. Both Cheney and Kinzinger have drawn ire from fellow Republican lawmakers for their repeated criticism of former President Donald Trump. Both also voted to impeach Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. CNN 

Michael Avenatti convicted of stealing from Stormy Daniels Michael Avenatti has again been found guilty in a criminal trial, this time for stealing from his former client, Stormy Daniels. Avenatti, the attorney who rose to fame after representing Daniels in a lawsuit against then-President Donald Trump, was convicted of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft on Friday after allegedly defrauding Daniels out of almost $300,000 from a book deal. Prosecutors said Avenatti directed payments meant to go to Daniels to an account he controlled, sending a letter to her literary agency that included her falsified signature. He faces up to 22 years in prison. CNN 

Friday,  February 4th, 2022 

Savannah 

Rotterdam to temporarily dismantle landmark bridge so Bezos yacht can reach open waters The Dutch city of Rotterdam has agreed to dismantle — then reassemble — its historic Koningshaven Bridge so a 417-foot-long, three-masted mega-yacht being built for Amazon founder Jeff Bezos can reach the open ocean this summer. The boat is too tall to get under the bridge, which has a 130-foot clearance. Boatmaker Oceano asked the city to temporarily remove the center of the span, known locally as “De Hef,” promising to reimburse the city for the cost. Rotterdam officials said the project was important because the city prides itself on being “the maritime capital of Europe,” and shipbuilding is crucial for the local economy, especially protecting jobs. “The municipality considers this a very important project,” municipal project leader Marcel Walravens reportedly said. NEW YORK POST 

The 2022 Winter Olympics begin in Beijing. (CNN) 

Beijing Winter Olympics launch under Western diplomatic boycott The Beijing Winter Olympics officially start Friday with the Opening Ceremony, making the Chinese capital the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games. These Olympic Games are among the most controversial in decades. The United States and some other Western governments have declared a diplomatic boycott to protest China’s “genocide and crimes against humanity” in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, where the Chinese government has cracked down on Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic minorities. China also has been stamping out pro-democracy activism in Hong Kong. China halted ticket sales for Olympic events due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is only allowing some groups of invited spectators to view in person under strict coronavirus-prevention measures. ABC NEWS 

Biden approves sending 3,000 troops to back allies in Ukraine crisis President Biden has approved sending 3,000 more U.S. troops to Poland, Germany, and Romania as tensions rise with Russia over Ukraine, the Pentagon announced Wednesday. About 2,000 of the soldiers will go to Poland and Germany. The other 1,000 are based in Germany but will be deployed to Romania. The troops are expected to move “in the coming days” to support the defenses of European allies, Defense Department officials said. But Pentagon press secretary John Kirby stressed that the soldiers “are not going to fight in Ukraine.” The U.S. has placed 8,500 troops on heightened alert recently as the U.S. and its NATO allies have warned that Russia has massed 100,000 of its forces near the Ukraine border and is preparing to invade. CNN 

U.S. says Russia planning video of fake Ukrainian attack to justify invasion The Biden administration on Thursday said Russia was planning to produce a fake video purporting to show Ukrainians attacking inside Russia or targeting Russian-speaking people in Ukraine, to give Russian forces an excuse to invade Ukraine. “The production of this propaganda video is one of a number of options that the Russian government is developing as a fake pretext to initiate and potentially justify military aggression against Ukraine,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said. A spokesman for the Kremlin, which claims the U.S. and its allies are the ones trying to force a war, dismissed the claims, saying Americans have made similar allegations before, “but nothing ever came of them.” CNN 

Putin and Xi show solidarity in Beijing after U.S. warning over Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in Beijing on Friday in a show of solidarity just hours after the Biden administration warned China not to help Russia evade potential sanctions over the Ukraine crisis. Russia has massed more than 100,000 troops near the Ukrainian border in what the U.S. and its allies say is preparation for an invasion. Western nations are threatening sanctions, and State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the U.S. and its allies “have an array of tools” to target “foreign companies, including those in China” that try to get around them. Putin is attending the Friday opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics. The U.S. is observing a diplomatic boycott of the Games. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, the leader of the Islamic State, dies during a U.S. Joint Special Operations Command raid and battle in Atme, Idlib Governorate, Syria. al-Qurashi detonated a bomb that killed himself. 13 civilians died in the raid. (BBC News) 

Biden says ‘horrible’ ISIS leader died in Syria raid President Biden said Thursday that Islamic State leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi blew up himself and members of his family during a counterterrorism raid by U.S. Special Forces in northwestern Syria. “This horrible terrorist leader is no more,” Biden said at the White House. There were no U.S. casualties during the operation. U.S. forces had to destroy a disabled helicopter before leaving the ISIS safe house. The operation came as concerns rise about a possible resurgence of the Islamist extremist group. The raid was the second that has targeted an ISIS leader in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province. Then-ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi died after detonating a suicide belt during an October 2019 U.S. raid on his compound. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Kanye West accuses Kim Kardashian of trying to kidnap their daughter  Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s divorce drama just significantly escalated to the point that he’s openly accusing her of attempted kidnapping. It all started Friday with West having a meltdown about his estranged wife creating a joint TikTok account with their 8-year-old daughter North, writing on Instagram, “WHAT I SHOULD DO ABOUT MY DAUGHTER BEING PUT ON TIK TOK AGAINST MY WILL?” Kardashian argued his “constant attacks on me in interviews and on social media is actually more hurtful than any TikTok North might create.” West responded by claiming “America saw you try to kid nap my daughter,” referring to his claims that she wouldn’t give him the address to their daughter Chicago’s birthday party last month (a party he did end up being able to attend). And he wasn’t done: he also claimed Kardashian “put security on me inside of the house to play with my son then accused me of stealing” and that he “had to take a drug test after Chicago’s party cause you accused me of being on drugs.” Yikes, any chance you could take this offline, guys? It’s getting hard to watch.  PAGE SIX 

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen signs a law that makes the country the first in the European Union to mandate that people over the age of 18 years receive the COVID-19 vaccine after the Bundesrat voted 47–12 yesterday to approve the law. (The Guardian) 

Russia reports a record for the 15th consecutive day of 168,201 new COVID-19 cases, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 12.45 million. (Interfax) 

Iceland announces it will end the practice of whaling by 2024, citing the decreasing price of whale meat. (Al Jazeera) 

The Government of Zdravko Krivokapić is ousted after a motion of no confidence passes 43–11. (Deutsche Welle) 

An American visa is denied for an Iranian national wrestling team that had a coach who advocated Death to America. (Fox News) 

Facebook-parent Meta suffers $250-billion stock crash Meta Platforms shares plummeted 26 percent Thursday following a disappointing earnings report, erasing more than $250 billion in market value in the biggest one-day loss ever for a U.S. company. The Facebook parent reported weaker-than-expected earnings after the market closed Wednesday. The last quarter was the first ever in which Facebook lost users. Analysts said the painful quarter reflected tough competition from Tiktok and other rivals, while the magnitude of the stock’s plunge demonstrated how much mammoth tech companies have to lose if they run out of room to grow. Bloomberg noted that Mega’s Thursday loss exceeded the market value of 470 of the companies in the S&P 500. BLOOMBERG 

New Zealand announces easing of anti-COVID border restrictions New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday that her country would soon start phasing out border restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19. Beginning Feb. 27, fully-vaccinated New Zealand citizens, residents, and certain visa holders will be allowed in from Australia, and will not need to undergo a 10-day quarantine at a government-run facility. Travelers will still have to self-quarantine. Two weeks later, vaccinated people from anywhere in the world will be allowed entry, with self-quarantine. By October, after nearly two years of shuttered borders, all pandemic travel restrictions should be lifted. “We must turn to the importance of reconnection,” Ardern said. “Families and friends need to reunite. Our businesses need skills to grow.” BBC NEWS 

Biden details measures to fight gun violence  President Biden met with New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday to discuss ways to fight gun violence, about two weeks after two New York Police Department officers were shot and killed by a man who had an illegal gun. The Justice Department will work with state and local law enforcement to address “drivers of violence,” Biden said. The department also is sending more resources to task forces working to shut down the Iron Pipeline, the route used to illegally funnel guns from the South to the northern United States. “The answer is not to defund the police,” Biden said. “It’s to give you the tools, the training, the funding to be partners, to be protectors and community leaders.” ABC7 

Amazon profits nearly doubled in critical holiday quarter Amazon on Thursday reported that its profits nearly doubled in the crucial holiday quarter despite higher costs from labor and supply crunches stoked by the Omicron coronavirus variant surge. The online retail giant also got a $12 billion operating-income boost from its investment in electric-vehicle maker Rivian, and from gains in its cloud-computing and advertising businesses. The company’s quarterly revenue reached $137.4 billion, up from $125.6 billion in the same period last year. Profit came in at $14.3 billion, up from $7.2 billion a year earlier. Amazon shares jumped by more than 14 percent in after-hours trading following the report. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

Facebook-parent Meta suffers $250-billion stock crash Meta Platforms shares plummeted 26 percent Thursday following a disappointing earnings report, erasing more than $250 billion in market value in the biggest one-day loss ever for a U.S. company. The Facebook parent company reported weaker-than-expected earnings after the market closed Wednesday. The last quarter was the first ever in which Facebook lost users. Analysts said the painful quarter reflected tough competition from Tiktok and other rivals, while the magnitude of the stocks plunge demonstrated how much mammoth tech companies have to lose if they run out of room to grow. Bloomberg noted that Mega’s Thursday losses exceeded the market value of 470 of the companies in the S&P 500. BLOOMBERG 

Snap stock soars after company reports 1st quarterly profit Snap shares jumped 53 percent on Thursday after the company reported its first quarterly net profit. The company’s quarterly earnings, revenue, and user growth all exceeded analysts’ expectations. Earnings per share reached 22 cents, compared to the 10 cents analysts surveyed by Refinitiv expected. Snap’s guidance for the current quarter also was slightly better than analysts had estimated, with forecasts of up to 330 million daily users of its chat app, compared to the 327.8 million analysts expected, according to StreetAccount. Snap faces some of the same hurdles as Meta, which warned that Apple privacy changes would make targeting users with ads harder. SNAP 

4 of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s top aides resign Four top aides to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigned on Thursday, adding to a political crisis over a series of parties at Johnson’s Downing Street office and residence in apparent violation of the government’s own coronavirus lockdowns. Johnson’s head of policy, Munira Mirza, chief of staff Dan Rosenfield, principal private secretary Martin Reynolds, and communications director Jack Doyle quit just days after a damning report that blamed the scandal on a “failure of leadership.” News of the parties fueled angry calls for Johnson to step down. He said he was staying but apologized, and promised change. Mirza said she was resigning over what she called an inappropriate comment Johnson made about the opposition Labour Party, Keir Starmer. REUTERS 

Four senior aides to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson resign, including Downing Street Chief of Staff Dan Rosenfield, Principal Private Secretary Martin Reynolds, Downing Street Director of Communications Jack Doyle, and political adviser Munira Mirza, amid controversy over the Prime Minister’s handling of the Partygate scandal. (Reuters) 

Winter storm heads toward Northeast after hammering South, Midwest A winter storm system hit a large swath of the South and the Midwest with rain, sleet, ice, and snow on Thursday, leaving at least three people dead and more than 300,000 without power from Texas to the Ohio Valley. Airlines canceled thousands of flights, and more than 91 million people were under winter weather warnings or advisories. The bad weather also triggered tornado threats. One part of New Mexico got more than three feet of snow. Several Midwestern states got one foot. The storm was expected to move into the Northeast on Friday and blanket northern New York and northern New England with ice and up to a foot of snow. CNN 

Lindsay Lohan puts her ‘past to bed once and for all’ in Super Bowl ad Will 2022 officially be the year of the Lohanaissance? Lindsay Lohan stars in a new Super Bowl commercial for Planet Fitness released Friday, which makes fun of her past scandals and tabloid headlines. The ad depicts a present-day Lohan crushing it on Jeopardy!, getting plenty of sleep, and generally doing just dandy, “which the paparazzi aren’t thrilled about,” narrator William Shatner declares. She’s also “trading DUIs for DIY” by bedazzling an ankle monitor worn by Danny Trejo. As you might imagine, the ad suggests this radical transformation is somehow all because Lohan has been going to Planet Fitness. Lohan, who really did have to wear an ankle monitor while on house arrest for stealing jewelry, told People it was “refreshing to put my past to bed once and for all and share with people how I am living my life today.” Lohan got engaged last year and is set to star in an upcoming Christmas movie, and says she’s excited for “all of the things that the future holds.” If only the future could involve alleged “Super Bowl ads” actually debuting during the Super Bowl. ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY 

David Lynch cast in Steven Spielberg’s next film It’s a Friday once again, and if yoooooooouuuu can believe it, David Lynch will star in a Steven Spielberg film! The acclaimed Mulholland Drive director and Twin Peaks co-creator has joined the cast of Spielberg’s upcoming film The Fabelmans, Variety reports. The movie is loosely based on Spielberg’s own childhood and is also set to star Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, and Paul Dano, and it will mark the first time Spielberg and Lynch have ever collaborated. Outside of directing, Lynch has had a limited number of acting roles throughout his career, including in his own Twin Peaks, on Louie, and, weirdly enough, in The Cleveland Show. It’s unclear how big a role he’ll have on The Fabelmans. The film is likely to be an Oscar contender in 2023, though, and Lynch getting overlooked for Best Director his entire career only to win Best Supporting Actor feels just weird enough to happen. VARIETY 

Josh Gad was accidentally on sleep medication in ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Josh Gad nearly literally sleepwalked through his performance on Curb Your Enthusiasm. Gad guest starred on the HBO comedy this past season as a chiropractor Larry David visits, but he revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! he was “on drugs without my permission” when the episode was filmed. The morning of the shoot, Gad explains, he took three Advils for some neck pain, only to feel like something wasn’t “right” when he got to set. He soon found out why: it turns out — cue the Curb theme song — he inadvertently took Advil PM rather than regular Advil. “I took three Advil PM and shot an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm,” Gad said. “I was not there that day!” Kimmel assured Gad it didn’t affect his performance, but Gad disagreed, shooting back, “It did!” Don’t be surprised if David incorporates this debacle into a future Curb season.  YAHOO 

Robin Thicke apparently didn’t walk off ‘The Masked Singer’ over Rudy Giuliani After jaw-dropping reports this week revealed Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke stormed off the set of Fox’s The Masked Singer when Rudy Giuliani was revealed as a contestant, writer Hunter Harris summed up a common reaction by tweeting, “Lord when even Robin Thicke is doing the right thing.” Well, maybe not so fast. A new report from People on Friday cited sources as confirming Jeong “was super upset and indeed stormed out” of the taping when Giuliani showed up, as he “felt disrespected and was livid to see Rudy was under the mask.” As for Thicke, though? “Robin actually followed him because he and Ken are very close friends and he wanted to check on him,” a source said. “Robin didn’t storm out because of Giuliani.” So there you have it: your feelings toward Thicke can return to what they were when the week began.  PEOPLE 

Jeff Zucker resigns as CNN president over ‘consensual’ affair CNN President Jeff Zucker resigned Wednesday after admitting he failed to disclose a romantic relationship with one of his chief lieutenants. Zucker, 56, said the information about his “consensual relationship” with his “closest colleague,” CNN Executive Vice President Allison Gollust, came out during an internal investigation into Chris Cuomo, the CNN host fired in December over his involvement in the response of his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, to sexual harassment allegations that forced him from office. Zucker said he was required to disclose the relationship “when it began but I didn’t. I was wrong.” Both Zucker and Gollust are divorced. Gollust, who plans to continue working at CNN, said she and Zucker were friends for 20 years but their relationship “changed during COVID.” THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Thursday, February 3th, 2022 

CoC Live

Atlanta 

The United States Embassy in Kyiv calls on Russia to “fully comply” with the ceasefire in Donbas after pro-Russian forces shelled the strategic Hnutove entry-exit checkpoint and a humanitarian road corridor. (Ukranews) 

Russia withdraws the press credentials of all Deutsche Welle staff and closes the German media organization’s studio in Moscow in response to German regulators blocking the Russian television channel RT Deutsch. (Deutsche Welle) 

Lady Gaga could be the new Best Actress Oscar frontrunner We’re far from the shallow now. Lady Gaga might just be the new frontrunner to win Best Actress at the Oscars in light of Thursday’s British Academy Film Awards nominations. The British equivalent of the Oscars are a key Academy Awards precursor — last year, all the BAFTA acting winners won at the Oscars, too — so it was notable that Nicole Kidman, Kristen Stewart, Jessica Chastain, Olivia Colman, Penélope Cruz, and Jennifer Hudson were all snubbed in the lead actress category. Gaga, though, did get nominated for House of Gucci. Pundits quickly pointed out this means she’s the only person in the Best Actress race to earn nods at the four key precursors. It sounds like Gaga’s strange Oscar campaign, which has involved sharing increasingly bizarre anecdotes about method acting and getting chased around by flies, may just pay off. Now can we retroactively give Bradley Cooper an Oscar for A Star Is Born, too?  THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 

The oil tanker Trinity Spirit catches fire and explodes off the coast of Nigeria. (Newsweek) 

France surpasses 20 million COVID-19 cases. (Reuters) 

The Standing Committee on Vaccination issues a recommendation for the approval of the protein-based Novavax COVID-19 vaccine for use in adults. (Deutsche Welle) 

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency approves the use of the protein-based Novavax COVID-19 vaccine for use in adults over the age of 18 years. (The Guardian) 

India surpasses 500,000 deaths from COVID-19, becoming the third country to do so after the United States and Brazil. (The Times of India) 

Japan surpasses three million COVID-19 cases after a record 104,270 new cases in the past 24 hours. (Anadolu Agency) 

Brazil reports a record 298,408 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 26.09 million. (Reuters) 

South Africa’s Afrigen Biologics uses the publicly available sequence of the mRNA-based Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to make its own version of the vaccine, which will become the world’s first vaccine based on an existing vaccine once it is tested on humans later this year. (Al Jazeera) 

Twenty people die and 74 others are hospitalized in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after consuming cocaine laced with poison or “cut” with another substance. Nine people are arrested. (BBC News) 

Professional baseball team Caimanes de Barranquilla defeats the Gigantes del Cibao 4–1 to win the 2022 Caribbean Series and becoming the first Colombian team to win the tournament. (MLB) 

Dakota Johnson to join the ‘Spider-Man’ universe Actually, no, that’s not the truth, Spider-Man. Dakota Johnson is set to lead her own Spider-Man spinoff film, with the actress reportedly in talks to play Madame Web in a movie of the same name at Sony. For the non-Marvel fans out there, we promise we didn’t make “Madame Web” up — in the comics, that’s a character associated with Spider-Man who can see into the future, usually depicted as an old woman kept alive by a life support system that looks like a web. So, you know, 32-year-old Dakota Jonhson sounds perfect! Madame Web will be a part of Sony’s mission to somehow make an entire film universe just out of Spider-Man characters, giving a bunch of obscure ones their own movies that don’t actually have Spider-Man in them. In a sign that Sony definitely isn’t just randomly throwing things at the wall to see what sticks, Deadline cryptically writes the Madame Web project “could turn into something else.”  DEADLINE 

A sequel to the ‘Scream’ sequel ‘Scream’ is in the works Let’s face it: these days, you gotta have a sequel! A sixth Scream film is officially in the works following the success of the recent fifth entry just called Scream. The same team will return to make it. It wasn’t announced who will be back, but presumably Melissa Barrera will be the lead again, and Neve Campbell has said she’s open to returning as Sidney. The film is reportedly set to begin production this summer. Now, perhaps the most important question becomes what the heck the title will be after the fifth one was given the exact same name as the first, despite being a direct sequel. Screams, perhaps? Scream Again? Scream Kills? Or maybe they’ll annoy the heck out of everyone by just straight up calling it Scream for a third time. After all, it’s the 2020s — titles are incidental.  THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 

Netflix offers a very small glimpse of ‘Knives Out 2’ Star Wars fans might not be getting the Rian Johnson trilogy they wanted, but a Rian Johnson trilogy is happening at Netflix thanks to the Knives Out franchise. Netflix on Thursday dropped a 3-minute video previewing all the major films it has slated for this year, which involves actual characters bizarrely addressing the camera to say things like “tonight is movie night!” It all builds to a brief tease of the highly-anticipated Knives Out sequel. A quick shot shows the cast of characters, including those played by Dave Bautista and Kathryn Hahn, boarding a boat before Daniel Craig’s Detective Benoit Blanc dramatically turns to the camera. The sequel is expected to essentially be a completely new mystery that happens to feature the return of Craig’s character, e.g. Agatha Christie and Hercule Poirot. “Just a tiny glimpse of the next Benoit Blanc mystery,” Johnson tweeted, promising there’s “much MUCH much more to come.” As in, more than this eight second shot? We’d certainly hope so! AV CLUB 

Biden unveils plan to ‘supercharge’ cancer ‘moonshot’ campaign President Biden on Wednesday unveiled a plan to boost cancer prevention, screening, and treatment to reduce the death rate by at least half in the next 25 years. The push is designed to “supercharge” the “cancer moonshot” Biden started and spearheaded when he was vice president under former President Barack Obama, Biden said as he announced the campaign. Biden said he would create a “cancer cabinet” to lead the effort. Biden embraced the cause after his son Beau died from brain cancer in 2015 at age 46. Biden and first lady Jill Biden were joined Wednesday by Vice President Kamala Harris, whose mother, a cancer researcher, died of the disease. Some details of the plan were not immediately clear, including how to pay for it. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Army says it will start discharging unvaccinated soldiers The U.S. Army announced Wednesday that it will immediately begin discharging 3,300 soldiers who have refused orders to get vaccinated against COVID-19. According to an Army memo dated Jan. 31, commanders must immediately begin “involuntary administrative separation proceedings” against any soldier who “has received a lawful order to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19,” “has been provided a reasonable opportunity to receive the COVID-19 vaccination,” “has made a final declination of immunization,” and “does not have a pending or approved medical or administrative exemption.” The Army will be the last branch of the armed forces to begin discharging unvaccinated service members. The Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force have discharged a combined total of almost 600 troops, according to The Associated Press. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

U.S. says Syria counterterrorism raid was successful, but locals say civilians died U.S. special forces conducted a major counterterrorism raid in northwestern Syria near the Turkish border on Thursday. First responders said 13 people were killed, including six children, in what appeared to be the largest such U.S. operation since the assault that killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019 during the Trump administration. Residents told The Associated Press that the raid involved helicopters, explosions, and machine-gun fire at a house in rebel-held Idlib province, an area where there are many camps for Syrians displaced by the country’s civil war. Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said “the mission was successful” with “no U.S. casualties.” The target was believed to be an al Qaeda leader. USA TODAY 

NY judge’s son pleads guilty to Jan. 6 riot charges Aaron Mostofsky, a New York judge’s son who was among the first people to enter the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack, pleaded guilty Wednesday to theft of government property, entering a restricted building, and civil disorder, a felony. During the riot, he carried a bulletproof vest and riot shield he picked up at the Capitol. Mostofsky admitted that he participated in the riot “dressed as a caveman and carrying a walking stick,” according to a statement of offense. He had told a friend that “the fraud in the 2020 Presidential Election was so obvious, even a caveman would know the election was stolen” from former President Donald Trump. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg accepted the plea and scheduled sentencing for May. NBC NEWS 

FBI identifies 6 juveniles as persons of interest in HBCU bomb threats The FBI on Wednesday identified six “tech-savvy” juveniles as persons of interest in apparently racially motivated bomb threats made against more than a dozen historically Black colleges and universities this week. Howard University in Washington, D.C., was the first school to issue a shelter-in-place order early Tuesday, the first day of Black History Month. The university issued an all-clear notice later in the day. Howard and other schools received threats on Monday and Tuesday. Investigators said persons of interest around the country are suspected of using sophisticated methods to hide the source of the threats. NBC NEWS 

Prosecutors charge 4 over actor Michael K. Williams’ fatal drug overdose Federal prosecutors in New York said Wednesday that authorities had arrested four people in connection with the fatal overdose of actor Michael K. Williams, the Emmy-nominated actor best known for his role in The Wire. Irvin Cartagena, 39; Hector Robles, 57; Luiz Cruz, 56; and Carlos Macci, 70, were charged with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl analog, fentanyl, and heroin. Cartagena was also charged with selling Williams the drugs that caused his death. Williams, who was 54, was seen on surveillance video appearing to buy from Cartagena the day before he died. Williams was found dead at his Brooklyn home on Sept. 6, wearing the clothes he had on in the video. The Medical Examiner found he accidentally died of an overdose of fentanyl, p-fluorofentanyl, heroin, and cocaine. CBS NEWS 

Washington Football Team picks Commanders as new name The Washington Football Team announced Wednesday that it has selected the Commanders as its new name. The franchise has been called the Washington Football Team for two years as it searched for a permanent replacement for its former name of 87 years, the Washington Redskins, which it dropped following steady complaints that it was offensive and racist. Team president Jason Wright and coach Ron Rivera said during the 20-month selection process that the new name probably would refer to the military because the team is based in the nation’s capital. “We are excited to rally and rise together as one under our new identity while paying homage to our local roots,” team owner Dan Snyder said as the team unveiled its new logo and uniforms. ESPN 

Facebook lost daily users for 1st time last quarter Facebook lost daily users for the first time in its 18-year-history last quarter, the social media giant’s parent company, Meta, said Wednesday. Meta also reported a larger-than-expected decline in profits and middling revenue forecasts, sending its stock price plummeting more than 20 percent in after-hours trading. The drop in stock price at least temporarily erased nearly $200 billion in Meta’s market value — “a figure greater than the size of the entire Greek economy,” The Associated Press noted. The decline in Facebook’s daily users was fairly modest — fewer than a million people worldwide — and the number of people logging into Facebook each month actually grew a bit, as did daily use of all Meta apps combined, including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Biden administration objects to Postal Service contract to buy gas-powered trucks The Biden administration on Wednesday launched a last-minute effort to prevent the U.S. Postal Service from spending $11.3 billion on up to 165,000 new gasoline-powered delivery trucks over the next decade. The planned purchases by the Postal Service, which makes up a third of the government’s fleet, would mark a huge setback for Biden’s goal of converting all federal government vehicles to clean power. The Environmental Protection Agency told the Postal Service last fall that its decision to buy more gas-powered vehicles was based on a dated and flawed analysis of the environmental impact. “The Postal Service’s proposal as currently crafted represents a crucial lost opportunity to more rapidly reduce the carbon footprint of one of the largest government fleets in the world,” wrote Vicki Arroyo, the EPA’s associate administrator for policy. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Sebastian Stan gives Jimmy Kimmel the fake testicles he wore in ‘Pam & Tommy’ What do you get the man who has everything? While chatting on On Jimmy Kimmel Live! about his role in the new Hulu series Pam & Tommy, Sebastian Stan revealed he wore prop metal balls — balls of steel, if you will — in his underwear “for the duration of the shoot” to simulate the experience of being Tommy Lee. “Tommy was a big man,” Stan delicately put it, adding that even though it sounds “insane,” he had to do this to “feel like a man.” Lily James, who stars opposite Stan as Pamela Anderson, was shocked by the revelation, as she had no idea he did this. “I’m so glad I didn’t know,” she said. But Stan turned this anecdote into a bit of a show-and-tell presentation, pulling the metal balls out of his pocket and dropping them on Kimmel’s desk as a gift. “So just in case you need a little weight when you walk into a room,” Stan said. “Wear them with pride, baby!”  VULTURE 

The End