10 things you need to know today: February 4, 2021 Harold Maass
1.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced Wednesday that they had reached a power-sharing deal for the chamber, which is split 50-50 with Vice President Kamala Harris tie-breaking vote giving Democrats a narrow majority. The agreement cleared the way for the full body of the Senate to approve the organizing resolution, which Schumer said meant that committees can promptly set up and get to work with Democrats holding the gavels. The deal was expected to be like one used in 2001, the last time the Senate was evenly split. That arrangement let bills and nominations go to the floor even when committee votes were tied. The Senate had been deadlocked since Jan. 20, when Democrats took over the majority but Republicans remained in control of committees. [
Los Angeles Area Pediatricians Call For Schools to Immediately Reopen, Despite State COVID Guidelines
On 2/3/21 at 1:44 PM EST
A group of pediatricians in Southern California have called for the immediate reopening of Los Angeles County schools, in a move that goes at odds with current coronavirus state guidelines.
A Wednesday statement from the Southern California Chapter 2 of the American Academy of Pediatrics encouraged school campuses to reopen after nearly a year of lockdown orders and school closures. Schools should open immediately, Dr. Alice Kuo, Executive Board member of the Southern California Chapter and Professor of Pediatrics at UCLA said in the statement reviewed by
Introduction
In December 2020, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra was
announced to be President-Elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr. s
pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. The
California Attorney General s Office is the second largest
Justice Department in the United States, second only to the U.S.
Department of Justice, and California Attorney General Xavier
Becerra was the first Latino Attorney General in California s
history. Before becoming the Attorney General of California,
Becerra had a 24-year career in the U.S. House of
Representatives.
1 In 2017, Governor Jerry Brown
appointed Becerra to the last two years of Kamala Harris s term