Stories from December 27, 2020

Trump reluctantly signs COVID aid, sparks fresh fight in GOP
Dropping his objections, President Donald Trump has signed a $2 trillion-plus COVID-19 and annual federal spending package into law. But Congress returns Monday to confront the White House on remaining priorities in a rare end-of-session showdown.
Minnesota program will help some residents losing federal unemployment benefits
Some Minnesotans who are out of work will continue to receive extended unemployment benefits, even after President Donald Trump's refusal to sign a COVID relief bill that extends federal benefits for people who lost their jobs during the pandemic.
Federal officials: Suspect in Nashville explosion died in blast
The man believed to be responsible for the Christmas Day bombing that tore through downtown Nashville blew himself up in the explosion, and appears to have acted alone, federal officials said Sunday.
Fauci: U.S. taking 'intensive' look at variant of coronavirus
U.S. health officials believe the coronavirus mutation that set off alarms in parts of Britain is no more apt to cause serious illness or be resistant to vaccines than the strain afflicting people in the United States but it still must be taken “very seriously,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said.
Do-it-yourself contact tracing is a 'last resort' in communities besieged by COVID-19
The coronavirus is spreading so fast that cases are outpacing the contact-tracing capacities of some local health departments around the U.S. Some have asked people who test positive to do their own contact tracing.
Baseball Hall of Famer, knuckleballer Phil Niekro dies at 81
Phil Niekro, whose knuckleball carried him to more than 300 wins and earned him a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame, has died after a long fight with cancer at age 81. He’s the seventh member of the Hall of Fame to pass away in 2020.
Officers give harrowing account of Nashville RV bombing
Police officers on Sunday provided harrowing details of responding to a Christmas morning explosion in downtown Nashville, at times getting choked up reliving the moments that led up to the blast and offering gratitude that they were still alive.
Man charged in Illinois bowling alley shooting that killed 3
A U.S. serviceman from Florida has been charged in an apparently random shooting at an Illinois bowling alley that left three people dead and three wounded, authorities said Sunday.
Dec. 27 update on COVID in MN: Test positivity rate over past week drops below 5 percent
Sunday’s update from state health officials included two days’ worth of data — but the numbers weren’t much different than recent single-day reports. The average test positivity rate in Minnesota over the past week has dropped below 5 percent.
Sunday flakes; Tuesday snowstorm update
It sure looks and feels like late-December, with light snow falling and near normal temps. We have an update on today’s weather, plus a look at the week ahead. Who will see the most snow from the Tuesday/early Wednesday snowstorm?
From polio to the COVID vaccine, Dr. Peter Salk sees great progress
In the 1950s, at age 9, Peter Salk was one of the first to get the polio vaccine invented by his father. Salk, now 76, says he's hugely impressed by the rapid development of the COVID vaccine.
If you’re ready for a fresh coating of snow, you’re in luck. We’ll have periods of snow today, and temps that are fairly typical for late December.
'Believe in science': EU kicks off COVID-19 vaccine campaign
Doctors, nurses and the elderly rolled up their sleeves across the European Union to receive the first doses of the coronavirus vaccine Sunday in a symbolic show of unity and moment of hope for a continent confronting its worst health care crisis in a century.
Canada reports its first cases of new coronavirus variant
Officials in Ontario have confirmed the first known Canadian cases of a more contagious variant of the coronavirus that was first identified in the United Kingdom.