Money floods the race for control of Congress
A dizzying amount of money is already pouring into the battles for the House and Senate more than a year before the 2022 elections, as Republicans are bullish on their chances to take over both chambers in the first midterm election under President Joe Biden. The two parties’ main war chests for the House total a combined $128 million. Top House members are now raising $1 million or more per quarter, and more than two dozen senators and Senate candidates topped that threshold. Candidate after candidate and the parties themselves are posting record-breaking sums, even as the shapes of most House districts nationwide remain in flux.
FDA panel explores mixing and matching vaccine doses
When an advisory panel to federal regulators endorsed boosters for Johnson and Johnson’s one-dose COVID-19 vaccine Friday, the committee’s scientists discussed a question many are asking: Is it a good idea to mix and match vaccines? The question arose after the panel heard a presentation about a study showing the mix-and-match approach gives patients who received the J&J vaccine a stronger antibody response. Dr. Peter Marks, who oversees the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine division, told the panel that the agency might consider allowing JandJ recipients to receive a booster shot of the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, but he gave no timetable for that decision.
Minnesota governor calls in National Guard to ease hospital crowding
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said Friday he would call upon the state’s National Guard to help ease staffing shortages that have kept hospitals from transferring COVID-19 patients for stepped-down care at long-term care facilities. Walz said the National Guard will be given the training necessary to provide long-term care. He did not say how many soldiers will provide that relief but said it will be “a fairly large contingent.” The state is facing another surge of cases. Patients infected with coronavirus are nearing 1,000 in the state’s hospitals. Cases in Minnesota are up 20% in the last two weeks, as are hospitalizations.
NASA’s Lucy launches on 12-year mission to Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids
NASA embarked on a 12-year mission to study a group of asteroids with the launch of Lucy, a robotic explorer, on Saturday. Lucy will meander through the unexplored caverns of deep space to find new clues about the creation of our solar system. The 5:34 a.m. EST liftoff from Kennedy Space Center in Florida atop an Atlas 5 rocket from United Launch Alliance was the first step of Lucy’s 4-billion-mile path into the orbital neighborhood of Jupiter.
More lead-tainted water in Michigan
In scenes reminiscent of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan officials have told Benton Harbor residents not to drink, cook or brush their teeth with tap water. Elected officials came to town Thursday promising help. And so many cars turned out for bottled water giveaways that traffic was snarled in a place with 9,100 residents. The problems are extreme examples of a broader, national failure of water infrastructure experts say requires immediate investment to solve.
By New York Times