By Dan Donahue, NBC Nightly News |
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Good Tuesday afternoon. The Biden administration is admitting the U.S. will likely not hit the president’s July 4 vaccination target, the Senate is set for a showdown over voting rights, and a California school district is apologizing for a racist taunt. |
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Here is what’s in our Nightly Rundown. |
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White House: U.S. will fall short of Biden’s July 4 vaccination goal |
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The White House Covid task force conceded today the nation will likely fall short of President Biden’s goal to administer at least one vaccine dose to 70 percent of adults by July 4. |
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Jeff Zients, the White House Covid response coordinator, said the July 4 target was “aspirational,” and that by the holiday, 70 percent of Americans 27 and older will have received at least one dose. |
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But Zients said it will take a “few extra weeks” to reach that threshold among Americans ages 18 to 26. |
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Biden also set a second goal of having 160 million Americans fully vaccinated by July 4, a target Zients says the U.S. will now hit “no later than mid-July.” |
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Despite missing Biden’s goal, Zients maintained the administration has “succeeded beyond our highest expectations.” |
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“We have built an unparalleled, first-of-its-kind, nationwide vaccination program,” Zients said. “And as a result, we have successfully executed the most complex, logistical task in history — administering 300 million shots in 150 days.” |
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Delta variant accounts for 20 percent of new U.S. cases |
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The highly contagious Delta Covid variant now accounts for 20.6 percent of new cases in the U.S., Dr. Anthony Fauci said today at the White House Covid task force briefing. |
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Fauci said the Delta variant is now the “greatest threat,” and cases of it are doubling about every two weeks. |
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The “good news,” Fauci said, is “our vaccines are effective” against the Delta variant. |
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Pfizer’s vaccine was found to be 88 percent effective against symptomatic infection from the Delta variant, two weeks after the second dose, Fauci said. |
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He made no mention of the Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccines, though last week the CDC said two doses of mRNA vaccines like Pfizer’s and Moderna’s are “effective” against the Delta variant and other variants currently circulating around the country. |
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Colorado now has the second highest number of Delta variant cases in the country, behind Missouri, officials said. The highly contagious variant now accounts for 40 percent of new cases in Colorado.Walgreens is now offering $25 in cash rewards to people who get the Covid vaccine, today through Saturday.The Manatee County administration building has reopened in Florida after two employees died, and three others tested positive, in a Covid outbreak. All of the employees who tested positive were not vaccinated, county officials said.Nursing home deaths surged 32 percent amid the pandemic in 2020, a new government watchdog report finds.Nearly 900 Secret Service agents tested positive for Covid from March 1, 2020 to March 9, 2021, according to a new report from a nonpartisan watchdog.Children’s birthday parties may have contributed to a rise in Covid transmission rates, according to a new study.India administered a record 8 million doses on the first day of the country’s new vaccination program.More than 47 million Americans are expected to travel for the Fourth of July, a nearly 40 percent increase compared to last year, AAA said. |
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Senate GOP poised to block voting rights act with filibuster |
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A critical Senate vote is expected today on Democrats’ sweeping election overhaul legislation, but Republicans stand ready to block it with a filibuster. |
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The Senate will hold a procedural vote on the amended version of the House-passed “For The People Act.” |
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But in order to reach the 60-vote threshold needed to break the filibuster, it would require the support of all 50 Democrats and at least 10 Republican senators. |
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Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the measure a response to restrictive voting laws and bills in GOP-lead states like Georgia, Florida, and Texas. |
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“There is a rot at the center of the modern Republican party,” Schumer said today. “Donald Trump’s Big Lie has spread like a cancer and threatens to envelop one of America’s major political parties.” |
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Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called the bill a “transparently partisan plan to tilt every election in America permanently” in the Democrats’ favor. |
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School district apologizes for ‘racism’ after tortilla throwing incident |
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A California school district is apologizing after tortillas were thrown on the court after a basketball game against a mostly-Latino rival school. |
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Predominately white Coronado High School beat Orange Glen High School, which is more than 80 percent Latino, in a regional championship on Saturday. |
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A video, widely seen on social media, captured what happened after the game — at least two players from Coronado appeared to throw tortillas at Orange Glen players. |
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“That's beyond disrespect,” said Orange Glen head coach Chris Featherly. |
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The Coronado Unified School District Governing Board, in a letter to the Orange Glen community Monday afternoon, called the acts “egregious, demeaning and disrespectful.” |
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“We fully condemn the racism, classism, and colorism which fueled the actions of the perpetrators, the board said. |
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NFL voices support for first openly gay active player |
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Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib is receiving an outpouring of support after coming out as the NFL’s first openly gay active player, including from the league itself. |
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The athlete, speaking from his home in Pennsylvania, said he had wanted to come out for a while, and he finally feels “comfortable enough to get it off my chest.” |
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"I actually hope that one day videos like this and the whole coming out process are just not necessary, but until then, I am going to do my best and do my part to cultivate a culture that is accepting, that is compassionate,” Nassib said. |
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Nassib announced he’s donating $100,000 to the Trevor Project, a LGBTQ youth suicide prevention organization. |
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The NFL applauded Nassim’s generosity, tweeting a link to the Trevor Project with the message, “You can be that person who saves a life.” |
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What else we’re watching: |
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New York City voters are casting their ballots in Democratic mayoral primary, the first ranked-choice primary election in the city’s history.Three people were killed in a shooting in St. Louis. Two victims were found outside a convenience store, the third at an elementary school.Dating app Bumble is giving all of its more than 750 employees a week off to combat burnout.Connecticut’s governor signed a law today making it the 19th state to legalize recreational marijuana.Music superstar Billie Eilish has apologized after an old video resurfaced of her mouthing along to a song that contains an anti-Asian slur.Today’s your last chance to score Amazon Prime Day deals. Here are some of the best sales for under $100. |
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Watch us this evening at 6:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. CT on NBC, or check your local NBC station listing. After the broadcast, access Nightly News video on NBCNightlyNews.com or the NBC News app. |
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