US confirms ‘high-altitude object’ taken down over Alaska – as it happened

Senator Fetterman has been released from the hospital

Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has been discharged from the hospital after a several-day stay for concerns over light-headedness.

Fetterman, who suffered a near-fatal stroke during his election campaign last year, was taken in for observation to ensure he was not suffering any related health issues.

His communications director confirmed in a statement that the senator’s medical testing had ruled out a stroke and that he is in good health.

“John is looking forward to spending some time with his family and returning to the Senate on Monday,” the spokesman said.

US sanctions six Chinese tech companies for supporting spy balloon programs

The US has sanctioned six Chinese aerospace technology companies in connection with the surveillance balloon that was shot down on Saturday, CNBC is reporting.

Deputy secretary of commerce Don Graves confirmed the move in a statement, saying the would not hesitate to use its “entity list”, which designates governments and companies subject to sanctions, “to protect US national security and sovereignty”.

The Entity List is a powerful tool for identifying and cutting off actors that seek to use their access to global markets to do harm and threaten American national security. We will not hesitate to use the Entity List and our other regulatory and enforcement tools to protect US national security.

The sanctions come after a high altitude Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday, and a second high-altitude object was taken down over Alaska this week.

It is not yet clear which Chinese companies have been targeted by the new sanctions.

Biden administration to end national Covid emergency in May

The Biden administration confirmed in a statement on Friday it anticipates ending the national Covid emergency on 11 May. The proclamation had been in place since the president declared a national emergency concerning the Covid-19 pandemic on 13 March 2020.

“Today, we are in a different phase of the response to that pandemic than we were in March of 2020, and my Administration is planning for an end to the national emergency, but an orderly transition is critical to the health and safety of the Nation,” Biden said in the statement.

Experts have expressed concern that once it is lifted Americans will have less access to the Covid treatments, vaccines, and tests that have been made more widely available under the state of emergency.

Once the order is lifted most Americans will still be able to get vaccines at no cost but fewer free tests will be available. See our full story on what health experts are saying about the end of the national state of emergency here.

Family of Tyre Nichols urges the United Nations to condemn his killing

Attorneys for the family of Tyre Nichols, the man who was fatally beaten by Memphis police last month, have filed an urgent appeal before the United Nations asking it to condemn the killing.

Civil rights attorney and international legal counsel Jasmine Rand and Yetunde Asika released the following statement on behalf of the family:

Today, we filed an Urgent Appeal before the United Nations asking it to condemn the tragic killing of Tyre Nichols, to demand transparency from the police department, and to demand that Officer Preston Hemphill and all officers that participated in the incident are criminally charged. The video evidence shows that all who were involved in Tyre’s death committed reprehensible acts that require international condemnation.

The family has also urged the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, reform legislation introduced by Democrats that is stuck on Capitol Hill, and made an appearance at Joe Biden’s State of the Union address to the nation on Tuesday night.

Hello readers, Kari Paul here on the West Coast taking over the blog for the next couple hours. Stand by for updates.

Here’s more information on Biden’s upcoming trip to Poland, from a statement released by the White House.

From February 20^th – 22^nd, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. will travel to Poland. He will meet with President Andrzej Duda of Poland to discuss our bilateral cooperation as well as our collective efforts to support Ukraine and bolster NATO’s deterrence.

He will also meet with the leaders of the Bucharest Nine (B9), a group of our eastern flank NATO Allies, to reaffirm the United States’ unwavering support for the security of the Alliance.

In addition, President Biden will deliver remarks ahead of the one year anniversary of Russia’s brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, addressing how the United States has rallied the world to support the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and democracy, and how we will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes.

The FAA closed off an area near Deadhorse, Alaska, in the state’s northern area, as the US military took action against a high-altitude object.

From CNN correspondent Jim Sciutto:

The Pentagon is now providing more information about the high-altitude object that was shot over US territorial water in Alaska.

The object was shot at 1.45 pm eastern time and was at around 40,000ft, said a spokesperson during a Pentagon briefing.

A Pentagon spokesperson added that an F22 fighter aircraft assigned to NORTHCOM shot down the “high altitude airborne object”.

The Pentagon reiterated that it is unsure about the origin of the object, but is hoping to learn more after assessing any recovered debris.

The knowledge about the object came last evening, said Kirby.

Kirby misspoke at one point, calling the object a balloon. Kirby quickly clarified that officials are not sure of what the object is and that the object’s debris could help get more knowledge on what the object was.

In response to questions about if the US has spoken to Chinese officials about the recently discovered object, Kirby said: “We don’t know who owns this object.”

Kirby noted that a pilot assessment of the object, prior to it being shot down, found that the object was unmanned.

Kirby also added that the the object was at 40,000 ft, noting that the object could have posed a threat to civilian aircrafts.

Kirby also said that the object did not appear to have maneuvering capabilities, compared to the Chinese surveillance balloon, and was largely steered by the wind.

Unlike the object that was shot down, the Chinese surveillance balloon was on a flight path that took it over sensitive military sites, added Kirby.

More details are emerging on the high-altitude object that was taken down within the last hour.

Kirby confirmed that Biden ordered the object be taken down at the advice of Pentagon leaders and that a fighter aircraft was used for the operation.

The object is being called an “object” as officials are unsure of who owns it. Kirby added that officials are unsure if the object is state owned or private owned, and that the purpose of the object has not been determined.

Kirby also noted that the object is “much smaller” than the Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down last week.

The object that was taken down within the house is “roughly the size of a car”, said Kirby.

The White House press briefing with press security Karine Jean-Pierre has begun.

The briefing opened up with an announcement that Biden will travel to Poland on 20 February to 22 February to meet with Poland president Andrzej Duda and discuss the situation in Ukraine.

John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the National security council in the White House, is giving remarks ahead of Biden’s visit with Brazil president Lula.

Kibry also announced that the US plans to increase aid to support those impacted by the deadly earthquake in Syria and Turkey.

Kate Bedingfield, the White House Communications director, will leave her job at the end of February, reported the White House earlier today.

In a statement, the White House confirmed Bedingfield’s departure and said that Ben LaBolt will succeed her as Communications director.

Biden commented on Bedingfield’s departure in the statement:

Since my time as Vice President, Kate has been a loyal and trusted adviser, through thick and thin…She was a critical strategic voice from the very first day of my presidential campaign in 2019 and has been a key part of advancing my agenda in the White House.

The country is better off as a result of her hard work and I’m so grateful to her – and to her husband and two young children – for giving so much. Ben has big shoes to fill.

Trump has received his 5th Senate endorsement ahead of his 2024 presidential run.

Republican senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma endorsed the former president on Friday, calling Trump “the strongest president of my lifetime” in a statement.

“Not only am I proud to endorse President Trump, I’m proud to call him my friend,” said Mullin.

Mullin was elected to the Senate through a special election and received Trump’s endorsement, reported NBC News.

Four other senators have endorsed Trump, including Ohio senator JD Vance, Alabama senator Tommy Tuberville, and South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham.

It looks as though Joe Biden won’t be doing the traditional presidential pre-Super Bowl TV interview.

There has been much chatter about the annual interview between the US president and the channel airing the Super Bowl. Fox is broadcasting the Super Bowl, so some people had assumed the interview would be with Fox News, likely Brett Baier.

But now the White House press secretary has tweeted that Biden will not be doing an interview – and it looks like it was supposed to be with Fox Soul, a Fox streaming service.

Last night and this morning, various outlets were abuzz with chatter about how the US president had been “ghosting” Fox News, as, if the traditional interview was going ahead they would have been making arrangements ages ago, but were experiencing radio silence. Variety magazine did a story yesterday afternoon, headlined “Fox news believes interview with President Biden won’t take place.”

CNN’s Reliable Sources news letter chimed in, quoting “a source at Fox News” who told the outlet that they had “not heard back on whether Biden will grant it the traditional pre-Super Bowl interview, and that at this point the outlet is proceeding as if it is not going to take place. ‘We don’t have a formal no, but we are operating like it’s not happening’,” the source explained to CNN, which goes on: “Bret Baier first hinted at the possibility of a potential Biden rebuff during State of the Union coverage on Tuesday, telling viewers that Biden had yet to commit to an interview. At the time, he had signaled that he hoped the White House would ultimately agree to a sit-down.

“Biden has sat down for at least two interviews this week, one with PBS NewsHour and another with Telemundo, which would make the possible snub all the more notable. It goes without saying that Biden has had a frosty relationship with Fox News … If Biden were to agree to an interview with Fox News, it would almost certainly be conducted by Baier.”

We’ll no doubt hear more from Jean-Pierre at the White House press briefing due at 1.30pm. Fox Soul is the Fox Corp-owned streaming service geared towards a Black audience, and we assume if the interview had gone ahead it would be with a Black anchor, not Baier. Eagerly awaiting clarifying details!

Biden and Harris are currently in a meeting with several governors as apart of the annual National Governors Association meeting, which includes a bipartisan group of governors.

A stream of the meeting is available here.

Jill Biden has cancelled her events for the day, with a White House official reporting that Biden is not feeling well but has tested negative for Covid.

From Daily Mail reporter Emily Goodin:

Trump and E. Jean Carroll have jointly filed a plan for their April trial, where Carroll is suing Trump for rape and defamation.

The plan outlines potential witnesses, exhibits, and statements for the April trial. Included in Trump’s list of witnesses is himself and Anderson Cooper, the first person to interview Carroll after she accused Trump of rape.

E. Jean Carroll’s trial against Trump is set to start on 23 April and should last a week.

Carmel city police reportedly arrived at Pence’s Indiana home and blocked off his driveway, reports Fox News.

It is unclear what the police presence is related to. But an FBI search of Pence’s Indiana residence and Washington DC office for additional classified documents was expected.

Last month, classified documents were found in Pence’s Indiana home and turned over to federal authorities by Pence’s attorney.

Pence acknowledged the discovery, noting that he “[takes] full responsibility” and that “mistakes were made”.

Pence’s team does not believe that the former vice president has any additional classified documents, reported CNN, as his team has already carried out an extensive search.

Marc Short, Pence’s former chief of staff, also told CNN last week that a search for additional documents was “not too far off into the future.”

“There have been conversations about a consensual search to be conducted, and I presume that’s not too far off into the future,” said Short.

Meanwhile, a number of investigations related to Trump are underway.

Trump faces probes into his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago residence.

Trump also could soon face criminal charges in Georgia related to interfering with the 2020 election, with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis saying on Monday that her decision is “imminent” on whether to indict Trump, reported Bloomberg.

Here’s more on Willis’ decision to pursue criminal charges and its potential impact from Bloomberg.

That decision will have a ripple effect on the Justice Department’s special counsel probe and other investigations circling Trump.

If Willis goes first, that case would road-test possible testimony, helping to determine what evidence holds up in court and providing a blueprint for prosecutions involving other battleground states where Trump and his supporters tried to undermine President Joe Biden’s win.

Legal experts say nothing stops a US special counsel overseeing the federal Trump probe from pursuing similar charges at the federal level, regardless of what Willis ultimately does.

Read the full article here (paywall).

Pence faces limited options on how to respond to a subpoena issued in relation to January 6 but may evoke executive privilege, experts say.

CNN reported that Pence’s team may choose to argue that at least some of the sought testimony is covered by executive privilege:

Pence’s attorney Emmet Flood is known as a hawk on executive privilege, and people familiar with the discussions have said Pence was expected to claim at least some limits on providing details of his direct conversations with Trump. Depending on his responses, prosecutors have the option to ask a judge to compel him to answer additional questions and override Trump’s executive privilege claims.

But others have pointed out that Pence has already divulged privileged information in his book, “So Help Me God”.

From the Guardian’s Hugo Lowell:

Read the full article here.