JUDY WOODRUFF: In the day's other news: The Congressional Budget Office projected
that President Biden's call for raising the federal minimum wage
to $15 an hour would help and hurt. CBO analysts estimated it would lift
900,000 people from poverty, but cost 1.4 million jobs by 2025.
The White House said whether it is part of the COVID relief package or not,
it is a priority for Mr. Biden.
JEN PSAKI: The president is -- remains firmly committed to
raising the minimum wage to $15. That's why he put it in his first legislative proposal. And he
doesn't -- he believes any American working a full-time job, trying to make ends meet,
should not be at the poverty level. And it's important to him that the minimum wage is raised.
JUDY WOODRUFF: The federal minimum wage has been set at $7.25 an hour since 2009.
Texas Republican Ron Wright has become the first sitting member of Congress to die of COVID-19.
The two-term lawmaker passed away on Sunday. He
had battled lung cancer in the last year. Ron Wright was 67 years old.
In December, Louisiana Republican Luke Letlow died of COVID before taking his seat in the U.S. House.
There is also word that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg
will quarantine for 14 days after one of his security guards tested positive.
Coronavirus vaccinations in the U.S. are gaining momentum. The CDC reported today that more than
four million people were inoculated over the weekend. But there were fresh concerns
that vaccines may fall short against variants of COVID.
The World Health Organization said that vaccine makers will have to adjust.
TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, WHO Director General: We know viruses mutate, and we know we
have to be ready to adapt vaccines so they remain effective. This is what happens with flu vaccines,
which are updated twice a year to match the dominant strains.
JUDY WOODRUFF: New infections across the U.S. have fallen to their lowest levels
since November. But the average daily death toll remains near all-time highs.
In Israel, the corruption trial of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resumed today,
after being delayed by the pandemic. He showed up just long enough to plead not guilty to accepting
gifts from wealthy friends and offering favors to get positive news coverage.
Myanmar's new military rulers are moving to stop protests against last week's coup.
They imposed a curfew today and banned gatherings of more than five people.
Large crowds marched again in Yangon today, chanting slogans and giving salutes that symbolize
resistance. Elsewhere, police fired water cannons at protesters in the capital, Naypyidaw.
The death toll from a disaster in India's Himalayas rose to 26 today,
with 165 people missing. A glacier broke apart in the country's north on Sunday,
sending a wall of water down a mountainside. Rescue teams worked today to find more than three
dozen workers trapped in a power plant tunnel. One man described the moment that the deluge hit.
PURAN SINGH RANA, Eyewitness (through translator):
I witnessed something that looked like a scene from a Bollywood film. About 50 to 100 people
were running for their lives, but could not be saved. And they were engulfed by the river.
JUDY WOODRUFF:
Officials said the potential causes of the disaster range from climate change to earthquakes.
Back in this country, the U.S. Senate moved to confirm Denis McDonough today
as secretary of Veterans Affairs. He had served as deputy national
security adviser and as White House chief of staff during the Obama administration.
Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama says that he will not seek reelection
in 2022. Shelby is 86 and has served six terms. He is the fourth Senate Republican
whose term is up in two years to announce that he won't run for office again.
The last U.S. House race from 2020 is finally over. New York Republican Claudia Tenney
was certified today as the winner in her contest by 109 votes. Once she's sworn in,
the House will be at 221 Democrats and 211 Republicans, with three seats unfilled.
And on Wall Street, major indexes hit new highs on stronger corporate earnings
and economic stimulus hopes. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 237 points
to close at 31385. The Nasdaq rose 131 points, and the S&P 500 added 28.
Still to come on the "NewsHour": the CEO of Baltimore City Schools discusses the challenges
of returning to in person classes; we report from inside Taliban territory in Afghanistan,
as the U.S. troop withdrawal deadline remains in doubt; remembering influential
former Secretary of State George Shultz, who passed away at 100 years old; and much more.