Author: nuwuser

British Columbia’s death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed 1,000, marking the latest grim milestone for a pandemic that continues to rage across the province. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced on Monday that 22 more people had died from the disease since Friday, bringing the total since March to 1,010. “These of course are our grandparents, our friends, our aunts, our uncles, our sons and daughters,” Henry said. “We know that this has been a challenging time.” The weekend also saw 1,475 new cases confirmed in B.C. — 538 on Saturday, 507 on Sunday and another 430 on Monday. Nine of those cases are epidemiologically linked, meaning they have not been confirmed by laboratory testing. The number of active cases fell by nearly 1,000 to 5,220, Henry said. Of those, 358 were in hospital, a number unchanged from Friday. Three patients were able to leave intensive care during the weekend, bringing that number down to 72.

Lisa Montgomery could be the first woman to face the death penalty in nearly 70 years. She was convicted for murdering a pregnant woman Bobbie Jo Stinnett and taking her unborn child, trying to pass the baby girl off as her own. In spite of her gruesome crime her supporters say she doesn’t deserve to die. As a child Montgomery was a victim of severe abuse. Her lawyers say she suffered incest, gang-rape and brain damage. The 52-year-old is being held in a prison in Indiana. She’s scheduled to die by lethal injection on January 12th. Multiple courts have rejected her appeals. Only outgoing President Donald Trump could stop the execution. Under Trump, the US restarted federal executions for the first time in almost two decades. Montgomery is one of three inmates scheduled to die before his term ends. Trump’s successor Joe Biden once supported the death penalty but has now pledged to end its use.

CNN’s Jake Tapper presses National Guard Chief Daniel Hokanson for answers as to why the National Guard took so long to arrive at the Capitol riot.

The UK government and its scientific advisers have warned that the nation is facing the “worst” and “most dangerous” point in the pandemic, with hospitals under severe pressure. They have warned that lockdown rules may have to be tightened further.

A move by Democrats in the United States House of Representatives requesting unanimous consent on a resolution calling on Vice-President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove President Donald Trump from office was blocked by Republicans on Monday, forcing the House to reconvene Tuesday for a floor vote on the resolution.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that she was ready to begin the second impeachment proceedings against US President Donald Trump if his cabinet fails to remove him from office under the 25th Amendment. The Democratic lawmaker said that the House will try to pass legislation on Monday urging Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and “declare the president incapable of executing the duties of his office.” If that fails — which is considered the most likely outcome — Pelosi said that the House would move ahead with impeachment proceedings, although she did not say when that would be. “In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both,” the House speaker said.

Former California governor and Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger condemned last week’s attack on the Capitol building in Washington DC, comparing it to the events of Kristallnacht in Germany, 1938.