clarissa ward team shelling paramedics
See the moment CNN crew gets caught in active Russian shelling
06:00 - Source: CNN
CNN  — 

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    The wild home-selling blitz is cooling down in the US, but home prices are still ludicrously high. The average home price last month was up 14.9% from a year ago.

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    1. Coronavirus

    President Joe Biden unveiled tough new sanctions against Moscow yesterday in response to Russian military actions currently unfolding in Ukraine. Calling the events “the beginning of a Russian invasion,” Biden laid out sanctions that would effectively cut off Russia’s financial institutions and oligarchs from Western finance. Biden also announced he is moving additional troops and equipment to “strengthen” US allies in the region. US officials say they’re holding out hope for the possibility of diplomacy to avert an all-out war, but also made it clear Biden is ready to go much further should an invasion of Ukraine escalate. The UK, Japan and Australia also plan to impose sanctions against Russia, and Germany has stopped the progression of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline – the $11 billion project that would boost deliveries of gas directly from Russia to Germany.

    2. Debt ceiling

    Twitter said yesterday it will sell itself to Elon Musk in a roughly $44 billion deal. The agreement, which was unanimously approved by Twitter’s board, is expected to close later this year pending approval from shareholders and regulators. In a statement yesterday, Musk reiterated his proposed changes for the platform, including his goal to bolster free speech. He said in a tweet yesterday that he hopes “even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means.” Many people are wondering whether Musk plans to restore former President Donald Trump’s account, which was suspended early last year for violating Twitter policies against inciting violence following the Capitol Riot. Such a move could have significant ramifications for the upcoming 2024 US presidential election.

    CNNMoney Trump Musk split
    Trump says he won't return to Twitter even if he's reinstated by Musk
    02:38 - Source: CNN

    3. Immigration

    A federal judge in Louisiana yesterday temporarily blocked the Biden administration from ending a Trump-era pandemic restriction on the US-Mexico border that allows authorities to turn migrants back to Mexico or their home countries. The public health authority, known as Title 42, was on track to end on May 23, but this latest ruling may throw a wrench in the administration’s plans moving forward. The decision to lift Title 42 has been criticized by Republicans and Democrats alike because border authorities say a massive surge of migrants would follow. More than 20 states had asked the court to block the administration from ending the restriction and last week asked the court to immediately intervene. 

    Migrants and asylum seekers march to protest against Title 42 policy heading to the Mexican side of the San Ysidro Crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on March 21, 2022. Title 42 is a policy from Donald Trump's administration that stopped most arrivals at the southern border on the grounds that migrants could spread Covid-19.
    Avlon: Title 42 'is not evidence of open borders, it is just the opposite'
    04:07 - Source: CNN

    4. Policing

    China is battling its biggest Covid-19 wave yet amid widespread lockdowns and increased restrictions. Yesterday, Beijing rolled out mass coronavirus testing for nearly 20 million residents in most of the city as authorities race to contain a fresh Omicron outbreak that has sparked panic buying as citizens fear a mass lockdown is imminent. Since Friday, Beijing has reported a total of 80 cases. Although the caseload is still relatively low, authorities are not taking any chances, especially after seeing how fast the Omicron outbreak in Shanghai spiraled into tens of thousands of new cases. Dozens of residential compounds across eight districts in Beijing are already under strict lockdowns, in which residents are banned from leaving their homes or community grounds.

    china lockdown culver vpx
    This is the video Chinese censors don't want you to see or share
    03:53 - Source: CNN

    5. France

    CNN has obtained 2,319 text messages that former President Donald Trump’s White House chief of staff Mark Meadows sent and received between Election Day 2020 and President Joe Biden’s January 20, 2021 inauguration. The text messages, which Meadows selectively provided to the House committee investigating the Capitol riot, show how Trump’s inner circle, supporters and Republican lawmakers worked behind the scenes to try to overturn the election results. The messages also reveal how Trump’s family members reacted to the violence at the US Capitol during the insurrection. Separately, a New York judge is holding Trump in civil contempt for failing to comply with document subpoenas as part of an investigation into the former President’s company. The judge yesterday said Trump will be fined $10,000 a day until he complies.

    FILE - Then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Oct. 30, 2020. An elections board in a North Carolina county has removed Meadows from its list of registered voters after documents showed he lived in Virginia and voted in the 2021 election in that state. Questions arose about Mark Meadows last month, when North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein's office asked the State Bureau of Investigation to look into Meadows' voter registration in Macon County in western North Carolina. In announcing his removal, the Macon County Board of Elections said it has received no formal challenge and is referring the matter to the SBI, the state Board of Elections said Wednesday, April 13, 2022. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
    See text messages Mark Meadows gave to Jan. 6 committee
    08:13 - Source: CNN

    Uganda has proposed steep penalties for anti-vaxxers that include fines and imprisonment as the country doubles down on its coronavirus vaccine mandate. The proposed bill states that those who do not get vaccinated against Covid-19 will be fined 4 million Ugandan shillings (around $1,137) or receive a jail term of six months. A parliamentary health committee said yesterday it is considering the proposed legislation to “ensure mandatory COVID-19 vaccination.” The East African country of around 45 million people has grappled with a series of lockdowns to manage the pandemic amid misinformation and hesitancy toward vaccines. Uganda has recorded more than 163,000 cases of coronavirus and 3,500 deaths, according to the latest government figures.

    BREAKFAST BROWSE

    After an 8-year wait, the US men’s soccer team will once again compete in a World Cup

    Props to the festival-goers who stood on their feet for hours baking in the desert sun! They came, they saw, they hydrated.

    Amazon’s proposed new building looks like this emoji

    The internet is undefeated… Trolls pounced on the opportunity to joke about this, well, imaginative design

    How 15 minutes of mental health hygiene can change your whole day

    Breathe in, breathe out. Check out these tips to make your day a little better.

    The Chevrolet Corvette is officially going electric

    Add this to the list of electric sports cars we can’t wait to see on the road!

    Burger King is giving away free fries

    But there’s a catch… 

    TODAY’S NUMBER

    That’s the percentage of LGBTQ adults who identify as transgender. Today, March 31, is International Transgender Day of Visibility, a day for allies to show support for the transgender community and consider the state of trans representation. This year’s observance comes at an especially important time for advocates and activists who are fighting against rising numbers of anti-LGBTQ laws that specifically target trans people. 

    That’s how many tornadoes the Jackson, Mississippi, area has experienced in less than five weeks. It has been an above-average tornado season for much of the Southeast this year, according to meteorologists. So far, the US has had 562 preliminary tornado reports since January. On average, we typically see 426 at this point in the year.

    TODAY’S QUOTE

    “I’m still kind of processing what happened, so at some point I’ll talk about that s***. And it’ll be serious and it’ll be funny, but right now I’m going to tell some jokes.”

    – Kane Tanaka, the world’s oldest person, shared this message on Twitter earlier this year before passing away on April 19, according to Guinness World Records. Tanaka died in Japan at the age of 119, according to the country’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. She was born on January 2, 1903, survived cancer twice and lived through a multitude of historical events, including two world wars and the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic – as well as the Covid-19 pandemic.

    TODAY’S WEATHER

    hrrr temps
    Rain and storms along the East Coast as central US sees fire threat
    02:16 - Source: CNN

    Check your local forecast here>>>

    AND FINALLY

    Pickle sandwich. Pickle sandwich? Pickle sandwich! 

    Have fun testing your eyes with this video! Which of these objects is actually a cake? (Click here to view)