Good morning. It's Monday, Feb. 15, and we're covering the conclusion of the Senate impeachment trial, the push to reopen schools, and more. Have feedback? Let us know at [email protected].

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NEED TO KNOW

Trump Acquitted

The Senate acquitted former President Donald Trump over the weekend of charges that he incited the Jan. 6 storming of the US Capitol building. The 57-43 vote fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to convict. Seven Republican senators—Sens. Bill Cassidy (LA), Richard Burr (NC), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Susan Collins (ME), Mitt Romney (UT), Ben Sasse (NE), and Pat Toomey (PA)—joined all 50 Democrats in voting to convict. 

The vote came after the former president's defense team rested their case Friday, using roughly three of their 16 allotted hours. The defense primarily relied on constitutional and free speech arguments, including a nine-minute montage (w/video) of past fiery rhetoric from Democrats—an effort to draw a parallel with a Jan. 6 speech by Trump that preceded the storming of the Capitol building. 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) voted to acquit, while following the decision with a speech (watch here) asserting Trump was "morally responsible" for the events of Jan. 6. McConnell said he believed the Constitution prohibited the Senate from convicting a president who had already left office. 

See former President Trump's statement following his acquittal here.

CDC Calls to Reopen Schools

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a much-anticipated roadmap for reopening schools. The recommendations state that with proper mitigation measures, including face masks and social distancing, elementary schools may safely reopen regardless of the level of community transmission of the coronavirus. Middle and high schools may safely reopen except in the highest levels of viral spread. Dig into the details of the report here.

The news comes as the average of new daily cases in the US fell below 100,000 for the first time since Nov. 4 (see data). Test positivity—the share of total tests returned as positive—is just under 6%, down from nearly 14% in early January (see data).

A record 5,436 deaths were reported in the US Friday, bringing the total to 485,336, though the number of patients hospitalized with illness is just under 70,000, down 45% since mid-January (see data). More than 52 million vaccine doses have been administered—including a record 2.2 million given Saturday alone—with 14 million people receiving their second shot. 

Newsom Recall

A push to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom has collected enough signatures to potentially trigger a special election, organizers announced over the weekend. The drive surpassed the nearly 1.5 million name threshold, though the signatures must now be validated by the California secretary of state—a previous review yielded a 25% disqualification rate. Organizers have until March 17 to collect enough valid signatures. 

Newsom's critics argue the state's COVID-19 response has been overly restrictive, and the governor drew backlash late last year for violating the measures during an upscale dinner at Napa Valley's French Laundry. If the recall drive is successful, a special election would likely be held in May or early June. 

On the other side of the country, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faces new allegations his administration obscured data on nursing home deaths early in the pandemic. A recent report found patients who died from COVID-19 after being taken from nursing homes to hospitals were not tallied in the state's breakout of nursing home deaths. 

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IN THE KNOW

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

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> The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, announce they’re expecting their second child (More)

> Justin Timberlake offers apology to Janet Jackson and Britney Spears for past mistreatment stating, “I failed” (More) | What’s going on with the #FreeBritney movement? (More)

> Michael McDowell wins his first-ever Daytona 500 after navigating past a fiery multicar wreck in the final lap (More) | Around 30,000 fans attended the race, the most for a US sporting event since the pandemic began (More)

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Science & Technology

> Stonehenge may have been built from a similar disassembled monument in ancient Wales, new study suggests (More)

> Appetite-regulating drug shows unprecedented success in reducing obesity; the study, published in the prominent New England Journal of Medicine, saw one-third of trial participants lose more than 20% of their body weight (More)

> Lemur study reveals the brain circuitry responsible for monogamous behavior in some animals varies widely from species to species; only 3%-5% of mammal species practice the behavior (More)

Business & Markets

> Group of 21 retail and pharmacy chains, including Walmart, CVS, and Walgreens, begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines under a new federal government program (More)

> Coupang—known as the “Amazon of South Korea”—files for initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange; analysts expect company could raise $1B at near a $50B valuation (More)

> American gun manufacturer Colt, founded in 1855, acquired by Czech firearm company for $220M (More)

Politics & World Affairs

> A 7.3 magnitude earthquake strikes off the coast of Fukushima, Japan; an estimated 900,000 homes damaged, but no deaths reported (More) | See photos (More)

> Ebola outbreak declared in Guinea, with at least three people killed so far; the West African country was the origin of a 2013-16 outbreak that killed more than 11,000 people (More)

> White House Deputy Press Secretary TJ Ducklo resigns following reports he threatened a female journalist for reporting on his relationship with a separate journalist (More) | Background here (More)

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ETCETERA

How Nat King Cole integrated a Los Angeles neighborhood.

Tip battle raises $34K for Cincinnati restaurant workers.

Girl born without arms chases dream as a ballerina.

Sixteen-foot pregnant python found in family's drainage pipe.

Six skeletons were recovered from an 18th-century pirate ship.

... and archaeologists unearthed an ancient Egyptian brewery.

Documenting the life of a Norwegian fisherman. (via TikTok)

Bad lip-reading—NFL 2021 edition.

Clickbait: ​Florida man steals ring from one girlfriend to propose to another.

Historybook: Astronomer Galileo Galilei born (1564); Women's rights activist Susan B. Anthony born (1820); RIP musician Nat King Cole (1965); Soviet-Afghan War ends as all Soviet troops depart Afghanistan (1989); Millions of people in 600 cities protest Iraq War (2003).

"People don't slip. Time catches up with them.”

- Nat King Cole

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