HHS buys 66 million doses of updated Moderna vaccine for 'early fall' campaign
The Biden administration announced that it is buying 66 million doses of updated Moderna COVID-19 vaccine targeting the omicron variant ahead of a planned booster campaign starting in “early fall.” The updated vaccine will specifically target the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of omicron which are currently circulating and fueling a new increase in hospitalizations. The Moderna purchase comes on top of an order placed last month for 105 million doses of Pfizer’s updated vaccine. The first deliveries of the updated vaccines from both companies will beg
Read MoreCalifornia man sentenced to 6 months home confinement for threatening Gaetz
A California man was sentenced to six months of home confinement on Thursday for threats he made against Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.). Eugene Huelsman, 59, threatened to kill Gaetz in a voicemail left at the representative’s congressional district office in Pensacola, Florida, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). He pleaded guilty to a count of transmission of a threat in interstate commerce. “The free exercise of speech is central to our democracy,” U.S. Attorney Jason R. Coody said. "However, the communication of threats of physical violence, in this case by an in
Read MoreBiden administration to convene outside lawyers on abortion rights
The White House and Justice Department on Friday will host their first meeting with outside lawyers to discuss how to protect those who seek abortions from legal repercussions after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. Attorney General Merrick Garland, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, White House counsel Stuart Delery and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who is himself a lawyer, will all participate in Friday afternoon’s meeting with attorneys and members of the abortion rights community, the White House said. The outside participants were not immediately named.
Read MoreHow to stop Putin in Ukraine
Six months after invading Ukraine, not much has gone right for Russian strongman Vladimir Putin. But it’s dangerous for despots to admit defeat, so he’s doubling down on death and destruction in hopes of salvaging something he can call a win. Having failed to topple Ukraine’s government or overwhelm its highly motivated defense forces on the ground, Putin is settling into a grinding war of attrition, featuring World War II-style leveling of cities and terror attacks on civilians. His aim is to seize more land along Ukraine’s eastern and southern borders that
Read MoreThe Hill's Morning Report — US economy shrinks, recession fears grow
One day after the Federal Reserve reminded everyone that it’s trying to slow the economy to tame inflation, the government reported that gross domestic product had indeed slowed — to the point of contraction. Slower growth helps pull high prices downward, but zero growth induces nervous hand-wringing about recession, which is what happened on Thursday when the government said GDP in the second quarter shrank at an annual rate of 0.9 percent (
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