AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — When an unusually heavy winter storm blanketed much of Texas with snow, knocking out electricity to millions of homes and leaving many struggling to find clean water, one sector of the population was particularly vulnerable: inmates at the state’s largest county jail. Raul Carreon, a pretrial inmate at the Harris County Jail, said it…… MORE
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Taking the stage for the first time since leaving office, former President Donald Trump on Sunday called for GOP unity, even as he exacerbated intra-party divisions by attacking fellow Republicans and promoting lies about the election in a speech that made clear he intends to remain a dominant political force. Speaking…… MORE
DALLAS (AP) – Texas reported 197 more deaths from COVID-19 Sunday following a steady decline in the number of people hospitalized with the disease caused by the coronavirus. The Texas Department of State Health Services also reported 2,921 new confirmed cases of the virus Sunday and another 715 probable cases. The state has reported more…… MORE
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Massive fraud in the nation’s unemployment system is raising alarms even as President Joe Biden and Congress prepare to pour hundreds of billions of dollars into expanded benefits. A government watchdog agency says that as of December, nearly two dozen states had not started using a key system to block fraud.…… MORE
Washington (AP) – The Justice Department says it will appeal a judge’s ruling that the federal government’s eviction moratorium is unconstitutional. Prosecutors filed a notice in the case on Saturday evening, saying that it is appealing the matter to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge J. Campbell…… MORE