The Daily Dive

The first test of unity and bipartisanship in Congress has presented itself. President Joe Biden has supported a $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill that could be passed without Republican support, but 10 GOP senators have presented their own slimmed down bill in an effort to get something passed. Will a compromise be made? Also, a week out from Trump's impeachment trial, the legal team has not been set. A weekend shakeup has left the former president with no defense team as of yet. Ginger Gibson, deputy Washington digital editor at NBC News, joins us for this and how Congress intends to look into the Gamestop buying frenzy on Wall Street.

Next, childhood obesity is an ongoing problem that has only been made worse by the pandemic. The huge disruptions to the regular school year has impacted the amount of movement schools kids are engaging in as well as their diets, and it could have a lasting effect on their health. Kids tend to gain weight over summer when there is no school and for many, the pandemic has been similar to a 10-month summer break. Furthermore, some of the most nutritious meals many kids were eating were in school settings. Sam Bloch, staff writer at The Counter, joins us for more.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s called vaccine tourism… and it’s how the super rich are beating you to the vaccine. In Florida, there were reports of rich Canadians and Venezuelans crashing the state to get their shots, but in London, there is an exclusive lifestyle and travel service called Knightsbridge Circle that has been organizing trips to Dubai and Abu Dhabi for their clients to get vaccinated. Oscar Rickett, contributor to Vice World News, joins us for how money can buy vaccines.

Next, CDC officials have said that it might be time to reopen schools. The most available evidence says that in-person instruction can be safely carried out if the proper precautions like mask wearing is followed and a community willing to impose restrictions on other settings like bars and indoor dining. Roni Rabin, health writer at the NY Times, joins us for why schools may be on the path to opening back up.

Finally, even as vaccines roll out and expectations are that people will want to get back out and start spending, some experts are predicting that as many as 10,000 retail stores could close in 2021. Apparel retailers are taking the biggest hit with people skeptical about getting out there in public. Lauren Thomas, retail reporter at CNBC, joins us for more.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

GameStop has been killing it on Wall Street this week as thousands of small investors are buying stock and driving up the market value of the company. These investors are gathering in places like the r/Wallstreetbets subreddit and targeting short sellers by buying up what are called “meme stocks.” While GameStop is the current beneficiary of this plan, other companies like BlackBerry and AMC have also been bought up, sending shares soaring. The big question becomes… what happens when people stop buying or try to offload their shares to cash in? James Surowiecki, columnist for online business magazine Marker, joins us for how it all works.

Next, California and other states have begun rolling back some of their strict coronavirus restrictions as new Covid strains are beginning to circulate. New cases and hospitalizations are declining causing governors like Gavin Newsom to let some businesses open at limited capacity again. Some say politics may be at play since he is facing a recall effort, but Newsom says that has no merit. Businesses and restaurants are happy at the chance to reopen, but some urge caution that it could be too soon. Emma Court, health reporter at Bloomberg News, joins us for more.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How have people finances held up during the pandemic? In many cases, not well, but many households have been saving and economists hope that these savings and pent-up demand will push economic growth this year when businesses open back up. 36% of people have saved their stimulus checks, 35% paid down debt, and 29% spent it right away. Harriet Torry, economics reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Next, on his first day in office, President Joe Biden submitted an immigration bill signaling it was a top priority to him. Hoping to avoid missteps from the Obama administration, he put his full wish list in the bill and is willing to break it down piece by piece if necessary to get things passed. Anita Kumar, WH correspondent and associate editor at Politico, joins us for Biden’s immigration plan.

Finally, Houston-based company, Axiom Space, is planning to send private citizens to the International Space Station next year and on Tuesday, revealed who will be making the historic trip. A former astronaut will serve as commander of the mission and three wealthy men who each paid $55 million for their ticket. They will fly on the SpaceX Dragon and have an 8-day stay at the space station. Christian Davenport, reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for these citizen astronauts are in for.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With an uneven vaccine rollout, high demand, and stories of vials being thrown away, how many vaccines doses are going to waste? It is hard to tell. The CDC requires that states report how many shots are discarded, but many states are not even counting the number. It is important to know so we can fix issues in the supply chain or in storage deficiencies, but data collection and enforcement varies by state. Caroline Chen, healthcare reporter at ProPublica, joins us for more.

Next, the new strains of coronavirus have been very concerning when it comes to vaccine efficacy, but Moderna, maker of one of the approved vaccines in the U.S. has said that their shots are effective against South African and U.K. variants. Still, they are exploring making a booster shot and a new version of the vaccine to combat the South African strain, in which scientists see sharp declines of antibody levels in people. Peter Loftus, healthcare reporter at the WSJ, joins us for Moderna's vaccine plans.

Finally, the troubling pattern emerging among the new coronavirus variants is that they are all more transmissible and they are becoming the dominant strains in their respective areas. Mutations in the virus are making the spike protein stickier, allowing people to become infected more easily. This leads many scientists to believe that the changing virus will require updated annual vaccines similar to the flu shot. Sarah Zhang, staff writer at the Atlantic, joins us for more on these new covid variants.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

First week in office and Joe Biden has signed a number of executive orders and also given his support to two major bills, a $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill and an immigration bill with a pathway to citizenship for many immigrants. In a sign of what to expect for the next few years, we are already seeing opposition from Senate Republicans. Despite controlling the House, Senate, and the White House, the narrow margins will make it tough to pass anything. Ginger Gibson, deputy Washington digital editor at NBC News, joins us for this and what to expect from Trump's second impeachment trial.

Next, we unfortunately have very little control over what we see in our social media feeds. It is mostly left to the algorithms that dictate how and what is featured first. Gone are the days of posts in chronological order, now we see mostly content that the system thinks we want to see...and that can push us further into our own bubbles which can lead to voices of misinformation being amplified. Joanna Stern. senior personal tech columnist at the WSJ, joins us for some ideas on how we can take charge of our own social media again.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.