Monday morning news - May 17, 2021

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington.

Walensky defends CDC mask guidance changes » Mask confusion in the United States. That’s what some say the CDC created last week when it made an abrupt pivot and changed its mask guidance.

On Sunday, the agency’s director, Rochelle Walensky, worked to set the record straight.

She explained why she defended the CDC’s previous position on masks in public just days before changing it.

WALENSKY: I can tell you it certainly would’ve been easier if the science had evolved a week earlier and I didn’t have to go to Congress making those statements, but I’m delivering the science as the science is delivered to the medical journals. And you know it evolved over this last week.

She said the latest data showing new cases and hospitalizations dropping, and deaths falling to the lowest level in about a year, prompted the change.

But some states and businesses have complained there’s no way to know which people walking around in public are vaccinated and that the CDC’s announcement makes it tougher to get people to comply with local mask mandates.

Walensky said Sunday that more guidance is coming.

WALENSKY: This had to be the first foundational step that we made in order to update all of our guidance, thousands of pages of guidance. We need to update our school guidance, our childcare guidance, our camp guidance, our travel guidance.

The agency is now clarifying its guidance with regard to schools. It notes that children under 12 remain unvaccinated. And there isn’t enough time left in this school year to put systems in place to determine which older kids are or are not vaccinated. For those reasons, the CDC says schools should keep mask mandates in place through the summer break.

GOP’s new No.3 House leader says Republicans are united » Congresswoman Elise Stefanik insisted on Sunday that despite media reports to the contrary, the Republican Party is united.

She replaced Congresswoman Liz Cheney as the party’s No.3 leader in the House last week. In her new role as conference chair, Stefanik is in charge of guiding the party's messaging. She said that’s an easy job because, on the issues, Republicans are on the same page.

STEFANIK: We want to focus every day on exposing the border crisis, the economic crisis, and the national security crisis in the Middle East. Our focus is on safely reopening our economy getting people back to work, rather than the intent of being to stay out of work ...

Republicans voted Stefanik into the House leadership role on a vote of 134 to 46. The New York lawmaker has a moderate voting record but had strong backing from former President Trump and party leaders.

Cheney says GOP must denounce Trump election claims » House Republicans ousted Liz Cheney from leadership last week because they said her ongoing rift with Donald Trump was distracting from the party’s message.

Privately, many also feared alienating Trump supporters ahead of next year’s election.

On Sunday, Cheney said she will not stop speaking out against former President Trump’s claims that the last presidential election was stolen.

CHENEY: What’s happening right now with Donald Trump and his continued attacks on the Constitution and the rule of law is dangerous, and we all have an obligation to stand up against that.

She countered the arguments of House Republican leaders. She said the party can’t win next year if it’s embracing the—quote—“big lie” that the 2020 election was stolen. That’s a term she co-opted from Trump, who has called the last election the “big lie.”

Death toll mounts in Middle East conflict »

SOUND: ROCKET

Rocket fire continued into Israel on Sunday as Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City flattened three buildings and killed at least 42 people, according to Palestenian medics.

SOUND: GAZA NATS

It’s not clear how many of the dead were militants and how many were civilians. Nearly 200 people have now died through a week of fighting.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Irsraeli military’s making every effort to avoid civilian injuries and casualties. But he said Hamas militants are using civilians as human shields.

NETANYAHU: We are doing everything we can to hit the terrorists themselves, their rockets, their rocket caches and their arms, but we’re not just going to let them get away with it, and neither would you. You just imagine what would happen if you had 2,900 rockets fired on Washington and New York ...

He also addressed the targeting of a building that housed an Associated Press office. Israeli officials gave advance warning to those inside the building to evacuate before the missiles rained down.

Netanyahu said he has shared intelligence with the United States showing that the building housed a Hamas intelligence office. He said it was a legitimate target.

Meantime, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Al-Malki claimed missile strikes against Israel were justified.

Al-MALKI: Our people will never surrender or forego their rights. Palestinian freedom is the only path to peace.

Hamas began firing rockets toward Jerusalem last Monday, triggering the Israeli assault on Gaza. The fighting is the fiercest seen since a 2014 Israeli-Palestinian war.

I’m Kent Covington. For more top news, along with features, and commentary, visit us online at wng.org.

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