AZ-SEN: Arizona Gov. Ducey says he won't run against Mark Kelly for Senate

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) closed the door on a potential Senate run in 2022 amid rumors that he could challenge Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly (D).

“I’m not running for the United States Senate. It’s a no. I’m 100 percent focused on being the governor of the state of Arizona,” he said in an interview with The New York Times that was published Saturday. “I’ve accepted the role as the chairman of the [Republican Governors Association]. So I’ve got a full-time job and then I’ve got a full-time job beyond that. And that’s what my focus is.”

Kelly’s seat, which he won in a special election in November and is up again in 2022 for a full term, is a top priority for Republicans in the midterms. The party is eager to make up ground in the state after ceding both of its Senate seats to Democrats and losing the presidential race to President Joe Biden, marking the first time a Democratic presidential nominee has won Arizona since 1996.

Republicans had speculated that Ducey would be a strong candidate given his proven ability to win statewide in a state that has gradually shifted to the left.



https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/535535-arizona-gov-ducey-says-he-wont-run-against-mark-kelly-for-senate

Pop star Jimmie Rodgers, singer of 1950s hit 'Honeycomb,' dies

PALM DESERT, Calif. — Jimmie Rodgers, singer of the 1957 hits “Honeycomb” and “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine” whose career in music and movies was disrupted by a severe head injury a decade later, has died at age 87.


Rodgers died from kidney disease on Jan. 18 in Palm Desert, California, and had also tested positive for COVID-19, publicist Alan Eichler said Saturday, citing family.

Rodgers performed for $10 a night around Nashville while stationed there with the U.S. Air Force after the Korean War. He appeared on a talent show and got an audition with Roulette Records, which signed him after hearing him perform “Honeycomb,” a song by Bob Merrill.

With a style of singing and playing guitar that included elements of country, folk and pop, the Camas, Washington native recorded many other Top 10 hits during the late 1950s, including “Secretly," “Oh-Oh, I'm Falling in Love Again,” and “Are You Really Mine?”



https://www.ajc.com/news/pop-star-jimmie-rodgers-singer-of-1950s-hit-honeycomb-dies/GG4KGUD5O5BGTK5UKWLHA7YDJI/?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot

Biden Raises Daily Vaccination Target and Extends Travel Bans

WASHINGTON — President Biden, under pressure to speed up the pace of coronavirus vaccination, said on Monday that he was now aiming for the United States to administer 1.5 million vaccine doses a day — a goal that is 50 percent higher than his initial target but one that the nation already appears on track to meet.

The president made his comments just hours after he banned travel by noncitizens into the United States from South Africa because of concern about a coronavirus variant spreading in that country, and moved to extend similar bans imposed by his predecessor on travel from Brazil, Europe and Britain. Those bans were set to expire on Tuesday.

Mr. Biden has vowed to get “100 million Covid-19 shots in the arms of the American people” by his 100th day in office. Because two doses are required, and some Americans have already been vaccinated, his promise would cover about 67 million Americans. To realize it, the United States would have to administer one million shots a day.

The pace of vaccinations is already picking up, and the United States already seems to be vaccinating well over a million people per day, according to a New York Times analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The current average is about 1.2 million over the past six days.



https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/us/politics/biden-coronavirus-vaccinations.html

Chairman (As of tonight)

Dogs are officially back in the White House

Dogs have officially returned to the White House.

The administration released photos of President Biden’s German shepherds, 12-year-old Champ and 2-year-old Major, on the White House grounds.

Champ is enjoying his new dog bed by the fireplace in Washington, and Major is taking in the grass on the South Lawn, which has become his favorite running place for now, according Michael LaRosa, press secretary for first lady Jill Biden.

Major, the first shelter dog to live in the White House, was adopted by the Bidens in 2018.

“Today is Major’s lucky day!” the Delaware Humane Association posted on Facebook at the time. “Not only did Major find his forever home, but he got adopted by Vice President Joe Biden & Dr. Jill Biden!”



https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/01/25/biden-dogs-champ-major-white-house/

Tweet of the Day

Rob Portman will not seek re-election in 2022

Breaking on my phone via HuffPost.

Korean actress Song Yoo-jung passes away at 26.

Korean actress Song Yoo-jung passed away on Jan. 23, according to her agency. She was 26.

Sublime Artist Agency announced on Jan. 25 that “Song Yoo-jung died suddenly on the 23rd.”

Song Yoo-jung appeared on the MBC weekend drama “Golden Rainbow’ in 2013 and became a full-fledged actress.

Afterwards, she appeared in the dramas “Make Your Wish” in 2014 and “School 2017” in 2017. She was also in the web drama “To My Name” in 2019. She also became a commercial model. She signed an exclusive contract with Sublime Artist Agency last year.

Her wake is at the Seoul Medical Center funeral hall and her funeral ceremony is scheduled today, Jan. 25. Her final resting is at the Seoul Memorial Park.





https://mb.com.ph/2021/01/25/korean-actress-song-yoo-jung-passes-away/

Joe Biden's new secretary of state Antony Blinken will allow US embassies to fly Pride flags again

Antony Blinken, who will lead the Biden-Harris administration’s Department of State, made the comments at his confirmation hearing with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday (19 January), according to CNN.

He outlined changes he would make to ensure that the US government was “standing up for and defending” the LGBT+ community once Biden is in office.

The position of LGBT+ envoy, which was created to oversee US government efforts to support LGBT+ human rights, was left vacant during Trump’s presidency.


https://www.google.com/amp/s/uk.news.yahoo.com/amphtml/joe-biden-secretary-state-antony-175832167.html

China Sends Warplanes to Taiwan Strait in a Show of Force to Biden

HONG KONG — China sent warplanes into the Taiwan Strait over the weekend, a show of force to the Biden administration that signals Beijing’s plans to maintain pressure on Taiwan even as it calls for a reset with the United States.

Taiwan’s military said that four Chinese fighter jets, eight bombers and one anti-submarine aircraft entered its southwestern air defense identification zone and crossed the midline that divides the Taiwan Strait on Saturday. That was followed by 12 fighters, two anti-submarine aircraft and a reconnaissance plane on Sunday.

While such drills have been common and sometimes larger in recent years, the timing of this effort, just days after a new American administration took office, drew notice in both Taipei and Washington.

Taiwan’s military said it sent radio warnings to the Chinese planes, put defense missile systems on alert and dispatched patrol aircraft to monitor them.



https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/24/world/asia/china-taiwan-strait-exercise-biden.html