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Trump signs sweeping stimulus measure
Bill averts government shutdown, restores unemployment benefits Tribune Content Agency WASHINGTON — Under intense bipartisan pressure, President Donald Trump on Sunday signed a sweeping coronavirus relief and spending bill – the denouement of a dayslong drama over whether he would allow millions of Americans to endure a devastating cut to unemployment benefits and force a chaotic shutdown of the
federal government in the final weeks of his administration. The retreat came as converging crises of Covid19, economic suffering, the looming government shutdown and the president’s ongoing fight to overturn the election drew expressions of alarm Sunday from lawmakers. One Republican senator voiced worry earlier in the day that the president could leave a legacy of “chaos, misery
and erratic behavior” if he failed to sign the measure. In a White House statement announcing his action, Trump said it was his “responsibility to protect the people of our country from the economic devastation and hardship that was caused by” the coronavirus. He clearly signed the bill grudgingly, saying he would send a “redlined” version to Congress seeking the removal of such spending from
the legislation. Trump had spent the day golfing at his resort in Florida and lashing out at members of his own party even as millions of people lost unemployment benefits because the president had, so far, refused to sign a bipartisan coronavirus relief and spending bill that Congress passed last week by overwhelming majorities. Trump delegated negotiations to his Treasury secretary, who earlier
Suspended road tests give teens easier route to driver’s licenses Stateline.org Teens across the country waiting anxiously to get their driver’s licenses were disappointed when most state motor vehicle depa r t ments suspended road testing for weeks – and sometimes for months – after the Covid-19 pandemic struck in March. While many states have since returned to road testing, several others have opted to waive that requirement and allow teens to get their license anyway, at least for a time. That’s only fair, state officials say. The teens typically have completed many hours of classroom instruction and supervised driving time. They need a license to get to jobs and help their families by running errands. In some states, new drivers ages 18 and over also can get waivers. The biggest impact, though, is on teenagers, since among new drivers, they take most of the road tests. But road test waivers and suspensions have alarmed some highway safety organizations, because teens – inexperienced behind the
wheel – have the highest crash rates of any age group. Teens’ driving abilities should be assessed by an impartial examiner take off on their own, safety advocates say. “At a moment of national crisis like this, safety can’t take a back seat,” Maureen Vogel, spokesperson for the National Safety Council, an Itasca, Illinois-based organization focused on eliminating preventable deaths, said in an interview with Stateline. “We understand the states’ intentions were good. A lot of this was driven by trying to find solutions to the pandemic. But we feel that for safety’s sake, when it comes to our most vulnerable and crash-prone drivers, removing any guardrails around their licensure is ill-advised.” The issue of waiving or suspending road tests for young people during the pandemic has been fraught with controversy in some states. In Georgia, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order in April that allowed most people applying for a regular driver’s license to See Road, Page A8
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Because of the pandemic, some states are allowing teens to get their licenses without having to take a road test.
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than 332,000 Americans, said on CNN’s “State of the Union” that the president “should have weighed in eight months ago” if he wanted bigger stimulus checks included in the relief measure he was now excoriating. “Sign the bill – get it done,” the governor urged. Trump had ignored such appeals, remaining singularly focused See Trump, Page A8
‘a true Christmas miracle’ in vallejo
Courtesy photo
UqUq and Pakak are an early Christmas present at Vallejo’s Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.
Walruses return to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
Amy Maginnis-Honey
amaginnis@dailyrepublic.net
VALLEJO — Six Flags Discovery Kingdom has welcomed two walruses, Pakak and UqUq, to its collection animals in the park’s care. Pakak (pronounced “puckuck”), a male walrus, comes to the park from the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington. UqUq (pronounced “uk-uk”), a female walrus, returns to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom after finding a temporary home at SeaWorld San Diego.
“It is a true Christmas miracle to have UqUq home and Pakak join our family,” said Animal Care Director Dianne Cameron in a press release. “With only 14 walruses in the United States, we understand the privilege of being able to share these magnificent animals with our guests.” Pakak was stranded and rescued at approximately a month old in 2012 by local fishermen after he was found tangled in some nets near Barrow, Alaska. The walrus calf was cared for at the Indianapolis Zoo in Indianapo-
lis, Indiana, after a few months of rehabilitation before moving to the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in 2019 in order to be reunited with another young male walrus that was rescued around the same time. Pakak’s continued maturation and growth presented the opportunity to bring the more than 1,700-pound walrus to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom to be paired with UqUq. UqUq was orphaned as a calf in 1994 near Gambell, Alaska, when she was just a few months old. See Walruses, Page A8
Top US health officials warn of post-holiday coronavirus surge Tribune Content Agency
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told lawmakers the president intended to sign it. “I just gave up guessing” what the president might do next, Maryland’s Republican Gov. Larry Hogan said on ABC’s “This Week” as bipartisan calls, led by Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, mounted for presidential action on the bill. who has Hogan, been cr it ical of Trump’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has killed more
Current and former U.S. health officials took to the airwaves Sunday to warn Americans of a potential jump in Covid-19 cases after the holidays. “A surge upon a surge” may be on the way after the Christmas and New Year’s period, Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease doctor, warned on CNN’s
“State of the Union.” Former U.S. Food and Drug Administration chief Scott Gottlieb said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that “we have a grim month ahead of us” after a recent increase in cases, with hospitalizations rising on a lag of a few weeks. The comments came as the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. approach 19 million and deaths are more than
332,000. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases warned that the U.S. is at a “very critical point” in combating the pandemic after many Americans ignored guidance to avoid travel. Flying has picked up recently while remaining well below year-ago levels. Figures from the Transportation Security Administration show more than 1 million
people moved through U.S. airport checkpoints on five of the past nine days heading into and through the holidays. Admiral Brett Giroir, a member of the White House coronavirus task force, said the risks entailed by traveling depend mostly on what people do once they get to their destinations, as actually being in an airplane is typically safe. See Surge, Page A8