Thursday morning news - February 17, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

Western allies: No evidence of Russian troop drawdown » The United States and NATO allies say there’s no sign that Russia is pulling troops away from Ukraine’s border. U.S. State Dept. spokesman Ned Price said despite Moscow’s claims of a drawdown…

PRICE: We have seen the opposite in recent weeks and even in recent days. More Russian forces, not fewer, are at the border. And they are moving, concerningly, into fighting positions. This is cause for profound concern.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg also said that he welcomes further diplomacy, but he sees no evidence that Russia is taking steps to de-escalate the crisis.

STOLTENBERG: Moscow has made it clear that it is prepared to contest the fundamental principles that have underpinned our security for decade...

ZELENSKY: [Speaking in Ukrainian]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking at a military base, said his nation is not afraid and will defend itself.

Ukrainians defied pressure from Moscow with flag-waving demonstrations celebrating a ‘national unity day’ on Wednesday.

Biden to release Trump White House visitor logs to Congress » President Biden is rejecting former President Trump’s executive privilege claim and is ordering the release of Trump White House visitor logs. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN, REPORTER: The House panel investigating last year’s Capitol riot wants access to a trove of data from the National Archives.

That includes visitor logs showing appointment information for people allowed to enter the White House on the day of the Capitol siege. Donald Trump said Congress has no right to those records, citing executive privilege.

But the Biden White House rejects that claim.

By law, presidential records must be preserved in the National Archives, and an outgoing president must turn over those records when leaving office. Trump tried but failed to withhold White House documents from the House committee. But the Supreme Court ultimately said no to that.

President Biden has also waived executive privilege for much of the other information the committee has requested.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

White House: U.S. moving closer to post-crisis phase of pandemic » Top U.S. health officials say with COVID-19 cases falling, we’re moving closer to a nationwide return to normalcy. That as cities and businesses continue to lift restrictions.

During a White House briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday…

WALENSKY: Omicron cases are declining, and we are all cautiously optimistic about the trajectory we are on.

But for now she said we must remain vigilant. That means no changes to the CDC’s mask guidance yet. But she said the government is looking at changing that guidance in the coming weeks.

New cases have plummeted to about 100,000 a day, down from more than 800,000 just one month ago.

White House virus response coordinator Jeff Zients told reporters…

ZIENTS: We’re moving toward a time when COVID isn’t a crisis, but is something we can protect against and treat.

Disney World and Universal Studios in Orlando just lifted their mask mandates.

Pro sports teams, including the Utah Jazz and the Washington Wizards and Capitols have stopped requiring proof of vaccination from fans.

And Philadelphia is among the cities easing some restrictions.

Retail sales surge in January despite omicron and inflation » Americans sharply ramped up their spending at retail stories last month despite the omicron wave and surging inflation.

Pay raises, solid hiring, and enhanced savings, helped retail sales jump 3.8 percent from December to January.

That according to the Commerce Department on Wednesday.

That was a much bigger increase than expected. Though inflation helped boost that figure, most of January’s gain reflected more purchases, not higher prices.

Last month’s increase was the largest in nearly a year. Robust spending is good news for the economy, but analysts caution it could also further accelerate inflation.

Investigation: Zinke misused position as Interior secretary » Former U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is facing abuse of power allegations after an investigation by the Interior Department's inspector general. WORLD’s Anna Johansen Brown has that story.

ANNA JOHANSEN BROWN, REPORTER: The inspector general’s report found that Zinke, upon taking office, wrongly continued working with a foundation on a commercial project in his hometown of Whitefish, Montana.

It also said Zinke directed his staff to assist him with the project in a misuse of his position and that he lied to an agency ethics official about his involvement.

Zinke helped establish The Great Northern Veterans Peace Park Foundation in 2007. He and his wife were reportedly negotiating with private developers for the use of foundation land for a commercial project that included a microbrewery.

Zinke is a candidate in the June Republican primary for a U.S. House seat in Montana—a position he held prior to joining Trump’s cabinet.

Investigators referred the matter to the Justice Department for potential prosecution but it declined to pursue a criminal case.

Zinke’s campaign dismissed the report as “a political hit job.”

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Anna Johansen Brown.

I’m Kent Covington. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org. 

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.