Bedugul Coffee: Thursday Briefing: Biden to tackle COVID and immigration in first White House news conference

Today's top stories

Biden faces the press, another eye-popping NFT sale, and an apology from Jay Leno

President Joe Biden is expected to lay out a new goal for COVID-19 vaccinations at his first formal White House news conference, where topics will likely include immigration, infrastructure, gun control and foreign relations.

As Biden names Vice President Kamala Harris to lead efforts to try to stem the flow of migration, we explain why thousands of children are arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The United States squandered both money and lives in its response to the pandemic, and it could have avoided nearly 400,000 deaths with a more effective health strategy, according to research papers released at a Brookings Institution conference.

With the suspect in the Colorado shooting rampage due in court today, a survivor spoke to us of the physical and emotional toll of hiding in terror as gunshots rang out.

Television host Jay Leno has apologized for more than a decade of jokes about Asian Americans, saying he had committed a “legitimate wrong.”

↑ U.S. Women's National Soccer Team players Margaret Purce and Megan Rapinoe peek over President Joe Biden’s shoulder as he signs an Equal Pay Day proclamation at the White House, March 24, 2021

WORLD

↑ University students and LGBT groups march against the ongoing coup in Dawei, Myanmar, March 25, 2021

As thousands of pro-democracy activists take to the streets in Myanmar, we reveal that former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rejected a U.S. effort to declare 'genocide' in the country on the eve of the coup. And we take a look at the secret network of activists and volunteers helping spirit hundreds of defecting Myanmar policemen into India.

North Korea launched two suspected ballistic missiles into the sea near Japan, underscoring steady progess in its weapons program and ramping up pressure on the new U.S. administration as it reviews North Korea policy.

The Suez Canal has temporarily suspended traffic as efforts to dislodge a 400m long container vessel that has blocked the waterway continue, with eight tugs working to straighten the ship. The ship's owner and insurers face millions in claims.

Greece celebrated 200 years since the start of its struggle for independence from the Ottoman Empire with a ceremony that was to mark a new beginning after years of financial crisis but which had to be pared back amid coronavirus restrictions.

Business

The U.S. securities regulator has opened an inquiry into the blank check acquisition frenzy and is seeking information on how underwriters are managing the risks involved. Wall Street's biggest gold rush of recent years, SPACs have surged globally to a record $170 billion this year.

Nike and Adidas came under fire on Chinese social media after Beijing's propaganda offensive against Swedish fashion brand H&M sparked by the company's expression of concern about labor conditions in Xinjiang.

In 2020, as the world convulsed under COVID-19 and the global economy faced its worst recession since World War II, billionaires saw their riches reach new heights. Now they're bracing for the backlash.

A digital artwork by humanoid robot Sophia sold at auction for $688,888 in the form of a Non-Fungible Token, the latest sign of a frenzy in the NFT art world.