News Editor’s Roundup: AstraZeneca Vaccine Safe; Leaked Photos Show Inside of Overcrowded Border Patrol Facility

BY JACK CROWE

March 22, 2021

Good morning and welcome to the News Editor's Roundup, a weekly newsletter that will ensure you're up to date on the developments in politics, business, and culture that will shape the week's news cycle — as well as those that might escape mainstream attention.

AstraZeneca Vaccine Safe, 79 Percent Effective in U.S. Trial

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine was 79 percent effective in preventing symptomatic disease and 100 percent effective against severe disease and hospitalization in a new U.S.-based clinical trial, the company announced on Monday.

Experts did not find any safety concerns related to the vaccine, including any increased risk of rare blood clots that have raised concern in Europe.

Photos Leaked by Texas Dem Reveal Inside of Overcrowded, Makeshift Border Patrol Facility

New photos of a U.S. Customs and Border Protection temporary overflow facility in Donna, Texas reveal severe overcrowding in the makeshift shelter as the Biden administration struggles to handle a growing crisis at the border.

Representative Henry Cuellar (D., Texas) shared a series of photos of the soft-sided facility with Axios, telling the outlet that while each of the eight "pods" there has a 260-person occupancy, one pod held more than 400 unaccompanied male minors as of Sunday.

Cuellar, who recently visited a shelter for children but did not tour that specific facility nor capture the photos himself, called them "terrible conditions for the children." He called for the children to be moved more quickly into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Current Cuomo Aide Is Eighth Woman to Allege Harassment

An eighth woman has come forward with allegations of sexual harassment against New York governor Andrew Cuomo, in an interview with the New York Times published on Friday.

Alyssa McGrath, an executive assistant in the governor's office, said that Cuomo repeatedly made suggestive remarks about her looks and body, and in one instance "blatantly" stared down her shirt. McGrath also said she spoke with an unidentified woman, also a current aide, after that woman alleged Cuomo groped her underneath her blouse, in allegations reported by the Times Union.

CBP Asks to Fly Migrants to Canadian Border for Processing amid Surge: Report

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have requested airplanes to fly migrants to the U.S.-Canadian border for processing amid a surge in illegal crossings at the southern border, the Washington Post reported on Friday.

Border officials asked CBP to make the request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after 1,000 migrants, including unaccompanied minors, crossed the Rio Grande into South Texas on Friday morning, while another 1,000 who crossed on Thursday night were still waiting to be processed, according to an email reviewed by the Post.

The agency has not determined which northern states would receive the migrants. Two Department of Homeland Security officials confirmed that the action was under consideration.

ICE Books Hotel Rooms for Six Months to House Migrant Families at Border

The Biden administration has entered an $86 million contract to house members of migrant families in hotel rooms at the U.S.-Mexico border, Axios reported on Saturday.

The contract was awarded to Texas non-profit Endeavors for a period of six months, although it may be extended if the immigration crisis continues. The terms will allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to find hotels near the southern border to hold up to 1,200 migrant family members, officials at the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Axios.

ICE holds custody over migrant families and adults who enter the U.S. illegally and are allowed to remain following processing by Border Patrol agents. Almost 19,000 migrant family members made the crossing in February, up from 7,000 in January, according to the agency's most recent data.

Louisiana Republican Julia Letlow Wins House Seat Husband Won before COVID Death

Republican Julia Letlow won a special election to replace her late husband Luke Letlow in Congress on Saturday after he died from COVID complications in December.

Luke Letlow, a Republican, was elected in a special race in December but died on December 29 at age 41, five days before he was set to be sworn in.

Julia Letlow defeated eleven candidates to become the first Republican congresswoman from Louisiana.

Homeland Security Secretary Says 'Border Is Closed' but U.S. Won't Expel 'Vulnerable Children'

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Sunday underscored the Biden administration's messaging to migrants that the southern border is closed, though he noted that it would not expel "vulnerable children."

"Our message has been straightforward and simple and it's true: The border is closed," Mayorkas said on NBC's Meet the Press. "We are expelling families, we are expelling single adults and we've made a decision that we will not expel young vulnerable children."

Arkansas Governor: Trump Supporters' Vaccine Hesitancy Stems from 'Natural Resistance to Government'

Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, said Sunday that vaccine hesitancy among supporters of former President Trump is the result of a "natural resistance to government," calling the reluctance to get the vaccine "worrisome."

"Well I've thought a lot about that and I think it's a natural resistance to government and skepticism of it," Hutchinson said on CNN's State of the Union when asked what she believed explained the vaccine hesitancy. "But you look at the breadth of support here in Arkansas for President Trump, and you have rural voters, you have minority voters and their hesitancy is worrisome, not just here but all across the country."

"And I expect, as a country, we'll get the 50 percent vaccination rate of the population, but we're going to have a harder time getting from 50 percent to 70 percent, and it's about overcoming the skepticism," he added.