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Covid: Biden says to beat Omicron variant ‘we have to shut it down worldwide’ – as it happened

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Joe Biden explained that his raspy voice was nothing to worry about: ‘It’s just a cold.’
Joe Biden explained that his raspy voice was nothing to worry about: ‘It’s just a cold.’ Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
Joe Biden explained that his raspy voice was nothing to worry about: ‘It’s just a cold.’ Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA

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Thanks for reading along this Friday evening. Here’s some of what we covered:

  • The new Covid variant Omicron may have picked up genetic material from the virus that causes the common cold during one of its mutations, a new study shows. The study is not yet peer-reviewed and more research is needed to better under the strain.
  • Former Trump ally Jeffrey Clark claimed a medical condition is making him unable to testify before the House select committee investigating the 6 Jan Capitol attack.
  • Omicron has now been documented in 11 US states. The strain spreads quickly but health officials say Delta is still the top concern going into the winter holiday season.

See you next time!

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Uncertainty about the fast-spreading Omicron variant showed up on Wall Street today, and the major indexes closed lower as a result, Reuters reports.

Following the Labor Department report that showed promising job growth and a drop in the unemployment rate, the CBOE Market Volatility index — which is looked at for indications of investor jitters — was the highest it’s been since late January.

With the release of the November jobs report and growing concern about the omicron variant in the U.S., the stock sell-off continues. What do five experts have to say about the state of markets today? https://t.co/h3piokbDqO pic.twitter.com/q7vl6pK3KQ

— CNBC (@CNBC) December 3, 2021

The new Covid virus strain also caused the International monetary Fund to consider lowering its global economic growth estimates.

“A new variant that may spread very rapidly can dent confidence, and in that sense, we are likely to see some downgrades of our October projections for global growth,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said at the Reuters Next conference on Friday.

Omicron now detected in 11 states

The new Covid variant — which some scientists say spread twice as fast as Delta — has now been reported in 11 states. New cases were also confirmed in New Jersey, Missouri, Utah, Nebraska, Maryland, and Pennsylvania on Friday. The new strain had already been detected in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Minnesota and New York.

“The Omicron variant is among us and we need to take steps to stop its spread,” New Jersey governor Phil Murphy said in a statement Friday confirming the state’s first case — reportedly a fully-vaccinated woman who recently traveled to South Africa. “It is vital that residents remain as vigilant as possible as we await more information about the variant,” he added urging residents to get vaccinated and continue wearing masks in public.

We have confirmed our first case of the Omicron variant in New Jersey.

There is no reason for alarm, but it is vital that residents remain as vigilant as possible.

Get vaccinated. Get boosted. Wear a mask.https://t.co/DpwxnEAPpS pic.twitter.com/Goq62JnAC5

— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) December 4, 2021

New Jersey has seen a spike in cases recently, reaching the highest number of daily infections in the last eight months.

The Delta variant still accounts for almost all of the cases in the country and health officials said that that version of the virus is still the top concern.

Omicron has been spreading quickly in South Africa, where it was first discovered by scientists, offering a glimpse into how it might travel through populations around the world, the Associated Press reports. South African scientists also found that it has greater potential to reinfect people who have already gotten Covid than previous strains.

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Hugo Lowell
Hugo Lowell

The House select committee investigating the Capitol attack announced that former Trump justice department official Jeffrey Clark would not testify on Saturday, after he claimed a medical condition precluded him from appearing at a deposition.

Just in: Former Trump DOJ official Jeffrey Clark, after agreeing to testify to Jan. 6 committee on Saturday, conveniently now announces he has a medical condition that means he can’t appear tomorrow after all

— Hugo Lowell (@hugolowell) December 3, 2021

The move by Clark comes days after the select committee granted him a last minute reprieve and held off recommending him for criminal prosecution for ignoring a subpoena in exchange for testifying before House investigators.

But the night before his scheduled deposition date, Clark informed the select committee that he could not appear after all.

“Through his attorney, Mr Clark has informed the select committee of a medical condition that precludes his participation in tomorrow’s meeting,” Tim Mulvey, a spokesman for the select committee said in a statement. “He has provided ample evidence of his claim.”

The select committee said Clark’s deposition would be postponed until 16 December.

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The extensively mutated Omicron variant possibly picked up some genetic material from the virus that causes the common cold during one of its mutations, according to a new study that has yet to be peer-reviewed.

There are competing scientific theories about the mutations and more research is needed to better understand the new variant, but Reuters reports that researchers of this study believe the mutation could have come from an individual infected with both viruses and it could help the virus evade immune system attacks. The genetic sequence found in this version of the virus – but not in previous ones – also appears in the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the human genome.

Health officials have been alarmed by the number of mutations observed in the Omicron variant, which has far more than its predecessors. Questions still remain about how easily the new version of the virus will spread and how severe the symptoms caused by it will be. But the new research suggests it might move more quickly but do less damage.

  • This post was updated to provide additional context about the study.
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Hello! I am Gabrielle Canon checking in from the west coast to take you through the rest of the evening’s news.

Even with the latest discovery of the Omicron variant – which has been documented in eight states across the US as of Friday – health officials still consider Delta to be the top concern going into the winter holidays.

Today Missouri, Nebraska, Maryland, and Pennsylvania each reported cases of the new strain, Reuters reports, joining California, New York, Minnesota, and Hawaii.

Omicron is believed to be more contagious but initial reports indicate it may be less severe than previous variants of Covid.

More from Reuters:

Nebraska had six confirmed cases, the state’s health department said. Only one of the six people was vaccinated and none have needed to be hospitalized with Covid-19, the department added.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced the first three cases of the Omicron variant in his state, adding that none of the three individuals were hospitalized. And in Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia man in his 30s tested positive for Omicron, city health officials said.

Walensky and other health experts said the best way to fight the spread of Covid-19, regardless of the strain, remains to get vaccinated.

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Afternoon summary

It was a slow close do the work week in Washington. Here’s where things stand so far this afternoon.

  • Biden signed into law a bill that will fund the government through February, averting a government shutdown – at least for now.
  • Biden’s doctor said the president’s raspy voice was the result of a “frog in one’s throat”. In a memo, Dr Kevin O’Connor, affirmed that Biden was tested three times for Covid-19 and each result was negative.
  • Psaki said the White House was preparing a range of options to deter Russian aggression as tension escalate at the border with Ukraine. She said a call between Biden and Putin was under consideration.
  • Biden is scheduled to depart for Camp David on Friday evening and return on Sunday to attend the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony.

And here’s a video of Biden cheekily blaming his affectionate baby grandson for giving him a cold.

'It's just a cold': Biden explains coughing during speech – video
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Democrats and abortion rights advocates are promising a showdown over the issue in next year’s midterms as the Supreme Court appears poised to undermine – and possibly overturn – longstanding legal precedent enshrining a constitutional right to the procedure.

Already, vulnerable Democrats running in competitive races next year are highlighting the issue as strategists point to polling that strong majorities want Roe, the 1973 supreme court ruling, to remain the law of the land.

For Democrats, it’s something of a political silver lining in an otherwise nightmare scenario. But a decision weakening or overruling Roe could also be a galvanizing force in next year’s midterm elections, as Democrats promise to defend abortion rights against Republican-led efforts to eliminate them.

“It’s earth-shattering,” said Jenny Lawson, vice-president of organizing and engagement campaigns for Planned Parenthood Action Fund. “The court’s actions are going to change the way people think about reproductive freedom and how essential it is. It will be a driving force of the election, undoubtedly.”

Joe Biden reassures reporters that his raspy voice is ‘just a cold’:

'It's just a cold': Biden explains coughing during speech – video

Trump official to plead the fifth to Capitol attack committee

Former Trump lawyer John Eastman, who was connected to efforts to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s presidential election win on 6 January, will plead the fifth amendment protection against self-incrimination before the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack, writes Hugo Lowell.

The move by Eastman, communicated in a letter to the select committee by his attorney, is an extraordinary step and appears to suggest a growing fear among some of Trump’s closest advisers that their testimony may implicate them in potential criminality.

“Dr Eastman has a more than reasonable fear that any statements he makes pursuant to this subpoena will be used in an attempt to mount a criminal investigation against him,” Eastman’s lawyer, Charles Burnham, told the select committee in a letter on Wednesday.

The select committee issued a subpoena to Eastman last month as they sought to uncover the extent of his role in Trump’s scheme to prevent Biden from being certified as president and return himself to office for a second term despite losing the 2020 election.

House investigators also took an interest in Eastman after it emerged that he played an integral part in a 4 January Oval Office meeting where he presented a memo advising then vice-president Mike Pence about ways to stop and delay Biden’s certification from taking place.

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The iPhones of 11 US state department officials were hacked using technology from the NSO Group spyware, according to a report in the Associated Press, which built on a report from Reuters.

The employees were all located in Uganda and included some foreign service officers, a person familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing investigation told the AP.

Guardian reporter Stephanie Kirchgaessner, who has reported doggedly on the NSO Group, says the reports raise “serious questions about the use of Israeli surveillance tools against US government officials around the world.”

The claim, which was reported by Reuters, comes just weeks after the Biden administration placed NSO on a US blacklist and said the surveillance company acted “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the US”.

In a hearing related to the defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump, lawyers for the former president argued that the US government should “take his place as the defendant” in the case brought by writer E Jean Carroll, who has accused him of rape.

According to his lawyers, Trump isn’t trying to skirt responsibility, hardly. Instead, his interest lies in protecting future presidents.

The former president’s attorneys told the judges he isn’t trying to dodge personal liability in the lawsuit by Carroll, who has spoken publicly about her allegations. He just wants to keep future presidents from being burdened by legal claims, they said.

This is not political. This is not about being a Democrat or a Republican. It is solely to protect the presidency as an institution,” attorney Alina Habba said.

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