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Stories from December 14, 2020

William Barr to step down as attorney general before Christmas

William Barr to step down as attorney general before Christmas

President Donald Trump said he and Attorney General William Barr had a "very nice meeting" Monday and that their "relationship has been a very good one." Barr started out as a loyalist, but his relationship with the president frayed.
by Ryan Lucas

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The first shipments of COVID 19 vaccine have arrived, but won't go into arms yet

The first shipments of COVID 19 vaccine have arrived, but won't go into arms yet, as providers ready the process for giving the shots and monitoring people that get them. This is an evening news update from MPR News, hosted by Tim Nelson. Music by Gary Meister.

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Crunch time for COVID-19 relief as bipartisan bills unveiled

Crunch time for COVID-19 relief as bipartisan bills unveiled

A bipartisan group of lawmakers is unveiling a proposal for COVID-19 relief as Congress searches for a final agreement. The proposal includes billions of dollars for businesses, the unemployed and for schools, along with money for vaccine distribution.
by The Associated Press

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Electoral College affirms Biden victory as Trump continues baseless challenges

Electoral College affirms Biden victory as Trump continues baseless challenges

Supporters of President-elect Joe Biden hoped the milestone would end President Trump's false allegations of widespread fraud and unsuccessful attempts to overturn the results — but that is unlikely.
by Miles Parks

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'Democracy prevailed': Biden aims to unify divided nation

'Democracy prevailed': Biden aims to unify divided nation

President-elect Joe Biden told Americans on Monday that “democracy prevailed” as electors nationwide cast votes affirming his victory in last month’s election, saying the country's governing principles were “pushed, tested, threatened” but did not crumble.
by The Associated Press

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Ep. 2: Some hope and fun for holidays 2020

Ep. 2: Some hope and fun for holidays 2020

This week's mellow vinyl pick, by co-host Sean McPherson and Brittany Lind from The Current's Duluth outpost was Nick Drake's 1972 album "Pink Moon." Plus, our Silver Lining Story for this episode was about a couple taking on food insecurity this holiday season. Co-host Nina Moini talked about the dire situation with Shawn and Jamie Morrison of nonprofit "Good in the 'Hood."
by Nina Moini and Sean McPherson

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U.S. COVID-19 deaths top 300,000 just as vaccinations begin

U.S. COVID-19 deaths top 300,000 just as vaccinations begin

The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus has eclipsed 300,000, just as vaccinations begin across the country. It is equivalent to repeating a tragedy on the scale of Hurricane Katrina every day for 5 1/2 months. It is more than five times the number of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. 
by The Associated Press

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Canada administers its 1st COVID-19 vaccine shots

Canada administers its 1st COVID-19 vaccine shots

Canada joins the United Kingdom and the United States as the first Western countries to provide the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, as the coronavirus pandemic rages toward winter.
by Emma Jacobs

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Toledo Zoo discovers Tasmanian devils that glow

Toledo Zoo discovers Tasmanian devils that glow

A conservation technician at the Toledo Zoo recently discovered the Tasmanian devils had biofluorescent ears, eyes and snout. It's not exactly clear what purpose the trait serves in mammals.
by Ryan Benk

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How do we grieve 300,000 lives lost?

How do we grieve 300,000 lives lost?

Eleven months into the COVID-19 crisis, an unimaginable death toll has been reached. NPR spoke to doctors, nurses and the bereaved about how they face loss every day.
by Will Stone

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Latino Minnesotans: What issues are most important to you?

Latino Minnesotans: What issues are most important to you?

Make our reporting better by sharing what you care about. Your answers will help raise the voice of the Latino community in Minnesota and help us do more relevant reporting for Latinos in the state.
by Kathryn Styer Martinez

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What does Mpls. police reform look like when staffing levels stay the same?

What does Mpls. police reform look like when staffing levels stay the same?

Host Angela Davis checked in with reporter Brandt Williams about what the Minneapolis police budget means for reform efforts. Then later in the hour, Davis spoke with MPR senior economics contributor Chris Farrell about the latest news on the economy.
by Angela Davis

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Minnesota casts 10 electoral votes for Biden and Harris ticket

Minnesota casts 10 electoral votes for Biden and Harris ticket

Democrats Joe Biden and Kamala Harris won Minnesota’s 10 electoral votes for president and vice president Monday after defeating Donald Trump and Mike Pence by more than 233,000 votes in the state in November.
by Brian Bakst

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Wisconsin Supreme Court tosses Trump election lawsuit

Wisconsin Supreme Court tosses Trump election lawsuit

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has rejected President Donald Trump’s lawsuit attempting to overturn his loss to Democrat Joe Biden in the battleground state.
by The Associated Press

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Women and burnout: 2020 was in a league of its own. How can we make 2021 better? 

Women and burnout: 2020 was in a league of its own. How can we make 2021 better? 

In their groundbreaking 2019 book, “Burnout,” Emily and Amelia Nagoski outlined how women can fight the burnout that’s pervasive in American culture. But 2020 takes burnout to a whole new level. How can women prevent the burnout from worsening in 2021?
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Ohio-based Huntington Bank announces $22 billion merger with TCF Bank

Ohio-based Huntington Bank announces $22 billion merger with TCF Bank

A major merger between an Ohio-based bank and TCF National Bank has just been announced, but what this will mean for the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium name is up in the air. 
by Hannah Yang

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First doses of COVID-19 vaccine land in Minnesota

First doses of COVID-19 vaccine land in Minnesota

Days after the Food and Drug Administration approved the first COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, doses of the Pfizer shot have arrived in Minnesota. The state expected 183,000 doses by the end of the month.
by Catharine Richert

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From the coldest air of the season back to mild by midweek

The same cold front that brought snow Sunday is now making Monday the coldest day so far this fall, but temperatures rebound quickly.
by Nicole Mitchell

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Three recommendations to add a bit more poetry to your collection

Three recommendations to add a bit more poetry to your collection

Kerri Miller brings us books we might have overlooked in this topsy-turvy year. This week she has poetry for even the most poetry-skeptic people you know.
by Kerri Miller

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U.S. begins COVID-19 vaccinations: 'Relieved,' says nurse

U.S. begins COVID-19 vaccinations: 'Relieved,' says nurse

The largest vaccination campaign in U.S. history got underway Monday as health workers in select hospitals rolled up their sleeves for shots to protect them from COVID-19 and start beating back the pandemic — a day of optimism even as the nation's death toll neared 300,000.
by The Associated Press

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Gmail, YouTube down briefly as Google suffers brief outage

Gmail, YouTube down briefly as Google suffers brief outage

Google users in the U.S., Europe, India and other parts of the world were briefly unable to access their Gmail accounts, watch YouTube videos or get to their online documents during an outage Monday.
by The Associated Press

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Minnesota Capitol stirs with COVID-19 relief deal, electors

Minnesota Capitol stirs with COVID-19 relief deal, electors

Minnesota’s Electoral College members meet to send the state’s 10 votes Joe Biden’s way. Later, state lawmakers convene to vote on an aid package tied to COVID-19 fallout.
by Brian Bakst

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Monday brings the coldest day this season

Noticeably colder weather has settled across Minnesota, making Monday the coldest day so far this season for parts of the state.
by Nicole Mitchell

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Endangered-species decision expected on beloved butterfly

Endangered-species decision expected on beloved butterfly

America's beloved monarch butterfly is facing possible listing as a threatened species. The Trump administration is expected to announce this week if it supports protecting the monarch under the endangered species act.
by The Associated Press

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152 more deaths over the weekend

Minnesota health officials reported 152 more COVID-19 deaths over the weekend, pushing the overall pandemic death toll in the state to 4,444. Over the past week, Minnesota has been averaging nearly 66 COVID deaths each day — the highest on record. This is an MPR News morning update for Monday, December 14, 2020. Hosted by Phil Picardi. Our theme music is by Gary Meister.

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Trump says he's nixing plan for early vaccine at White House

Trump says he's nixing plan for early vaccine at White House

President Donald Trump said Sunday that he was reversing an administration directive to vaccinate top government officials against COVID-19, while public distribution of the shot is limited to front-line health workers and people in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
by The Associated Press

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What you need to know as electors across the country vote for president

What you need to know as electors across the country vote for president

Typically, the Electoral College vote is broadly overlooked. But because of President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the election, every step is being closely watched and analyzed.
by Barbara Sprunt

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Report: Cleveland Indians changing name after 105 years

Report: Cleveland Indians changing name after 105 years

The New York Times reported Sunday night that the team is moving away from a name considered racist for decades. The franchise had been internally discussing a potential name change for months.
by The Associated Press

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White House, other top officials to get early vaccine access

White House, other top officials to get early vaccine access

Senior U.S. government officials will be offered coronavirus vaccines as soon as this week, while its public distribution is limited to front-line health workers and people in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
by The Associated Press

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