Updated Day 393

Author: mkiser

_posts/2022-02-16-day-393.markdown

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ todayInOneSentence: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there's been "no mean
   to help Trump stay in office; the EPA will reinstate California’s authority to adopt
   its own, stricter tailpipe emission standards; Trump’s former Interior Department
   secretary misused his position to advance a development project in his hometown;
-  and the CDC expected to loosen its indoor masking guidelines.
+  and the CDC is expected to loosen its indoor masking guidelines.
 ---
 
 1/ **Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there's been "no meaningful pullback" of Russian forces at the Ukrainian border**, disputing the Kremlin's claim that it was withdrawing some troops. Blinken added that Russian troops “remain massed in a very threatening way along Ukraine’s borders. It would be good if they follow through on what they said. But so far, we haven’t seen it.” The NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, agreed with the U.S. assessment, saying that Russia remains capable “of a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine without any warning time.” U.S. analysts estimate that more than 150,000 Russian troops have amassed near the Ukrainian border. ([New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/16/world/russia-ukraine-news/russia-announces-more-troop-withdrawals-offering-tenuous-hope-for-ukraine) / [Politico](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/02/16/blinken-pullback-russian-troops-ukraine-00009367))
@@ -23,6 +23,6 @@ todayInOneSentence: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there's been "no mean
 
 5/ **Trump’s former Interior Department secretary misused his position to advance a development project in his hometown and then lied about it to an ethics official**. Inspector General Mark Greenblatt’s report found that Ryan Zinke repeatedly broke federal ethics rules by improperly participating in real estate negotiations, including directing his staff to assist on the project. Despite sending dozens of emails and text messages and meeting with developers in his office at Interior Department, Zinke told an ethics official in 2018 that he had done nothing improper. The Justice Department declined to bring charges. ([Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/02/16/zinke-inspector-general-report/) / [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/business-montana-billings-ryan-zinke-bf26ed5e11cc2b9d21c028f7fbf6cd0f))
 
-6/ **The CDC expected to loosen its indoor masking guidelines** as a growing number of states have eased mask mandates following the Omicron wave. Speaking during a White House coronavirus task force briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the agency was working on guidance that was “relevant” and that it would be based on the level of severe disease and hospitalizations in a given community. "We want to give people a break from things like mask wearing when these metrics are better, and then have the ability to reach for them again should things worsen," Walensky said. The U.S. reported an average of about 136,000 new daily Covid-19 cases over the last week – down 83% from the record high average set on Jan. 15. About 85,000 people with Covid-19 remain hospitalized nationwide – down from a peak of nearly 160,000 on Jan. 20. Biden, meanwhile, is set to deliver his State of the Union address on March 1 and is expected to lay out a new nationwide strategy to move past the pandemic. ([New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/16/world/covid-19-tests-cases-vaccine/as-more-states-loosen-mask-policies-the-cdc-director-says-the-agency-is-working-on-relevant-guidance) / [ABC News](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/cdc-loosen-mask-guidance-early-week-covid-case/story?id=82929192) / [NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-masks-cdc-expected-update-mask-guidance-early-week-rcna16331) / [Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/02/16/covid-omicron-variant-live-updates/#link-5LY7DXWHDRAZ7CK3FOZXQD66BE) / [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/16/cdc-wants-to-give-people-a-break-from-wearing-masks-as-pandemic-improves-director-says.html))
+6/ **The CDC is expected to loosen its indoor masking guidelines** as a growing number of states have eased mask mandates following the Omicron wave. Speaking during a White House coronavirus task force briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the agency was working on guidance that was “relevant” and that it would be based on the level of severe disease and hospitalizations in a given community. "We want to give people a break from things like mask wearing when these metrics are better, and then have the ability to reach for them again should things worsen," Walensky said. The U.S. reported an average of about 136,000 new daily Covid-19 cases over the last week – down 83% from the record high average set on Jan. 15. About 85,000 people with Covid-19 remain hospitalized nationwide – down from a peak of nearly 160,000 on Jan. 20. Biden, meanwhile, is set to deliver his State of the Union address on March 1 and is expected to lay out a new nationwide strategy to move past the pandemic. ([New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/16/world/covid-19-tests-cases-vaccine/as-more-states-loosen-mask-policies-the-cdc-director-says-the-agency-is-working-on-relevant-guidance) / [ABC News](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/cdc-loosen-mask-guidance-early-week-covid-case/story?id=82929192) / [NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-masks-cdc-expected-update-mask-guidance-early-week-rcna16331) / [Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/02/16/covid-omicron-variant-live-updates/#link-5LY7DXWHDRAZ7CK3FOZXQD66BE) / [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/16/cdc-wants-to-give-people-a-break-from-wearing-masks-as-pandemic-improves-director-says.html))
 
 poll/ **49% of voters want states to rescind mask mandates**, while 43% say it's too early. 65% of Democrats think it's too early for states to rescind mask mandates, compared to 20% of Republicans and 42% of Independents. ([Politico](https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2022/02/16/exclusive-poll-answers-to-the-midterms-2-big-questions-00009342))