Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Obviously, this is a major story: “The drug company Pfizer said Monday that early analysis showed its vaccine candidate for Covid-19 is more than 90 percent effective at preventing infection.”
* It’s been a few years since Americans heard a leader speak this way: “President-elect Joe Biden on Monday pleaded with Americans to wear masks, kicking off his presidential transition with a message declaring the practice the most effective tool to control the Covid-19 pandemic until a vaccine is distributed. Biden, in his first public remarks since his Saturday night victory speech, also tied mask-wearing, which can stem the spread of Covid-19, to his campaign message of unity.”
* A tragedy gets worse: “Lawyers working to reunite migrant families separated by the Trump administration before and during its “zero tolerance” policy at the border now believe the number of separated children for whom they have not been able to find parents is 666, higher than they told a federal judge last month, according to an email obtained by NBC News.”
* Team Trump’s latest infection, Part I: “Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson has tested positive for Covid-19, a department spokesperson confirmed to NBC News on Monday.”
* Team Trump’s latest infection, Part II: “David Bossie, who was recently tasked to head President Trump’s re-election legal challenges, tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday, two sources familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News.”
* Team Trump’s latest infection, Part III: “White House chief of staff Mark Meadows tested positive for Covid-19, a source familiar with the diagnosis told NBC News on Friday.”
* During a recent debate, Trump insisted the stock market “will crash” if Biden wins, but that apparently wasn’t true: “Wall Street surged on Monday, propelling all three major indices to record highs after Pfizer said its vaccine was 90 percent effective in protecting people against Covid-19…. Monday’s rally was the biggest since February, and built on post-election gains, which came as former Vice President Joe Biden emerged on Saturday as victor in the presidential race, according to NBC News Decision Desk projections.” * Law-enforcement stories like these are scary: “An Arkansas police chief has resigned after he posted messages on a right-wing social media site that appeared to urge people to assault ‘Marxist’ Democrats over the presidential election, the mayor said.” * Attending Sturgis 2020 was really unwise: “After the crowds streamed home like some huge exhalation, coronavirus cases tied to the rally began popping up as far away as New Hampshire. Infection numbers climbed in the Dakotas and in the neighboring states of Wyoming and Nebraska, where thousands of residents had returned from Sturgis.” See you tomorrow.
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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