JASON SMITH

The variant was identified in South Africa and is labeled as a variant of concern by the the World Health Organization.

Democrats have brushed aside monthslong divisions and are approaching House passage of their expansive social and environment bill.

One Philadelphia detective says the shootings are as brutal as they are brazen: "They will empty an entire magazine into someone's torso or their head."

Gun violence is killing an increasing number of American children, from toddlers caught in crossfire to teenagers gunned down in turf wars, drug squabbles or for posting the wrong thing on social media.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has moved a vote on a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill to later in the week as Democratic leaders shore up support for the measure.

Democrats have pushed a $3.5 trillion, 10-year bill strengthening social safety net and climate programs through the House Budget Committee.

Republicans accuse Pelosi of holding bipartisan infrastructure package 'hostage'

In Missouri, country voters apparently count more than city ones.

Trump met with the Missouri Congressman in Florida a few weeks ago.

The funding cuts would take effect in 2022 and last for several years. The cuts may automatically increase fees on federal student loans, for example, according to the Office of Management and Budget. As a result, Medicare funding would be trimmed by 4%, or $36 billion, starting next year, said Swagel. Rep. Jason SmithRep. Jason Smith, ranking member of the House Budget Committee, suggested Medicare cuts would harm consumers. Ironically, consumers would likely see cheaper premiums, said Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus package advanced out of the House Budget Committee on Monday and is now set for a full House vote later this week. Then it will move to the House floor, where Democrats led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., are expected to pass it along party lines Friday or Saturday. Notwithstanding House GOP objections, the bill is widely expected to advance to the Senate after the House vote later this week. The GOP has also opposed Democrats' efforts to include the minimum wage hike as an extraneous, job-killing measure that ought to be considered separately from pandemic relief. If it is ruled acceptable, then supporters of the minimum wage, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., will work to persuade moderate Democrats who are skeptical of the wage hike, namely Sens.

The House on Monday moved forward with its $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, setting the stage for passage later this week. The chamber's Budget Committee advanced the bill in a 19-16 vote as Democrats rush to beat a March 14 deadline to extend key unemployment programs. "Without additional resources, we will never get where we need to be," said House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth, D-Ky., at the start of the markup hearing Monday afternoon. "This is the wrong plan at the wrong time and for all the wrong reasons," Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri, the top Republican on the Budget panel, said in the hearing. Congress' failure to renew pandemic-era unemployment programs — from when they expired last summer until lawmakers passed another relief bill in December — contributed to millions of Americans falling into poverty.

Mark Lennihan | ReutersThe United States on Monday administered the first shots of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine to health-care workers, marking a pivotal moment in the country's long march to bring the virus under control. With limited doses available, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has advices states prioritize distribution to frontline health-care workers and long-term care residents, who are among the most vulnerable to the disease. With distribution challenges ahead and the outbreak still raging, officials and health-care workers took time Monday to celebrate the arrival of the vaccine, and the hope it represents. Across the country, images flowed in of health-care workers receiving their first shots and the first doses arriving at more than one hundred distribution sites. At the event, Cuomo thanked health-care workers for serving on the frontline of what he called a "modern-day battlefield."

SyFy has released a trailer for its TV adaptation of "Vagrant Queen," Magdalene Visaggio and Jason Smith's creator-owned Vault Comics title. Scheduled for 10 episodes, the series follows Elida, a child queen who goes on the run from her own kingdom as she grows older. It's described as a "fun, violent, snarky, space opera." Syfy's "Vagrant Queen" debuts on March 27. (Image credit: SyFy)"Vagrant Queen" premieres March 27 on SyFy.