The global tally of confirmed cases of COVID-19 rose above 168 million on Thursday, as China hit back at President Joe Biden's push to have U.S. intelligence investigate the origins of the coronavirus, amid renewed concerns it may have come from a laboratory in Wuhan.
Updated Jan. 13, 2021 1:17 pm ET
President-elect Joe Biden has chosen more women for his cabinet than his six predecessors had at the start of their administrations, according to new research from the Brookings Institution, after women played a key role in his November election win.
The research from the Washington think tank, which was shared with The Wall Street Journal, also found that Mr. Biden’s planned cabinet nominations are on par with those of former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton when it comes to minority representation. Overall, Mr. Biden is on track to have the most diverse group of nominees for Senate-confirmed positions, including those that aren’t in the cabinet, the Brookings report said.
Updated Jan. 12, 2021 5:03 pm ET
WASHINGTON At least three lawmakers who sheltered in a secure room during last week’s storming of the Capitol said they have since tested positive for Covid-19, adding to fears about the virus’s spread during the attack.
The lawmakers, all Democrats, said they had fled during the attack to the room where Republican lawmakers refused to wear masks. A video posted by Punchbowl News shows Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D., Del.) in the room offering masks to a group of House Republicans, who decline to put them on.
The Capitol’s physician told lawmakers and staff this weekend that those who were in the room might have been exposed to someone infected with Covid-19.