Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Trump’s lawyers couldn’t answer this: “Moderate GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine asked Trump’s defense team: ‘Exactly when did President Trump learn of the breach at the Capitol? What specific actions did he take to end the rioting, and when did he take them?’”
* CDC: “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced a long-awaited roadmap for opening the nation’s schools on Friday, saying that in-person learning can be done safely amid the pandemic. The CDC strongly urges states to vaccinate teachers, although it’s not a requirement for schools to reopen.”
* Shouldn’t he have been fired? “A White House press aide was suspended for a week without pay on Friday, the administration announced, after a report detailed allegations that he verbally harassed and threatened a female reporter from Politico.”
* I don’t imagine we’ve heard the last of this one: “New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s top aide told Democratic lawmakers that his administration took months to release data on the coronavirus death toll among nursing home residents because officials ‘froze’ over worries the information was ‘going to be used against us.’”
* There’s obviously a lot going on, but this is going to have a huge impact for many families: “The Biden administration on Friday will notify states it plans to revoke Medicaid work requirements, starting the process of dismantling one of the Trump administration’s signature health policies.”
* Progress: “The slow start to the Covid-19 vaccine rollout in the United States has been no secret: Seniors have waited in long lines for a dose, vaccine registration websites have crashed and public health resources were tied up during the country’s biggest surge yet in early January. But health officials say that while current vaccine supply levels still limit how many vaccines they can administer, states are becoming more efficient at immunizing people as shipments arrive.” * Jan. 6 arrests aren’t over: “A former Topeka City Council candidate was arrested without incident Friday on a federal warrant charging him with seven crimes linked to the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol, where he acknowledged being present last month.” * The Paxton story just keeps getting worse: “Late last year, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton fired multiple senior aides who accused him of accepting a bribe. A court filing obtained by The Texas Tribune reveals for the first time what four of those aides believe Paxton received in exchange for helping a donor with his business affairs.” Have a safe weekend.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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