Wednesday morning news - May 5, 2021

Biden aims for vaccinating 70% of adult Americans by July 4 » President Biden on Tuesday set a new vaccination goal to deliver at least one shot to 70 percent of adults by the 4th of July.

BIDEN: That means giving close to 100 million shots, some first shots, others second shots, over the next 60 days.

The new goal comes as demand for vaccines has dropped off markedly nationwide with some areas turning away vaccine supplies.

Biden’s new goal is a tacit acknowledgment of the declining interest in shots. Already more than 56 percent of adult Americans have received at least one shot.

The White House is now trying to tackle the challenge of waning demand, in part by making the shots more convenient to get.

BIDEN: Starting this week, we’re also going to direct all federal pharmacy partners to begin to provide walk-in hours. You’ll soon be able to get vaccinated without an appointment at that vast majority of our 40,000 pharmacy locations across the country.

He also said his administration is ready to make some 20,000 pharmacy sites available to adolescents age 12-to-15 to get vaccinated as soon as the FDA gives the green light.

Florida bans COVID-19 restrictions » Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a freshly passed bill into law this week to suspend all remaining COVID-19 restrictions across the Sunshine State. Those include rules imposed by local governments, though businesses can still impose requirements. The law takes effect July 1st.

Speaking to reporters, DeSantis said his state has fared well in comparison to many other states with tighter restrictions.

DESANTIS: We wanted people going back to work. We wanted our kids to be in school. We thought that that was very important the parents had the ability to send their kids to school. And we wanted our economy to be healthy. We wanted our society to be healthy.

He said with vaccines now available to all adults, now is the time for Florida to get back to normal.

DeSantis also signed a pair of executive orders this week to move those restriction rollbacks along more quickly.

But critics, including Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber, said the governor is moving too quickly. Gelber said, “It feels like he’s spiking the ball on the 10-yard line.”

India crisis worsens as official cases pass 20 million » While the United States leads all major nations in vaccinations, in India, only 2 percent of the population is fully vaccinated.

And infections and deaths are continue to mount with alarming speed in India with no end in sight to the crisis.

India's official count of coronavirus cases surpassed 20 million Tuesday, nearly doubling in the past three months. But the true numbers are believed to be far higher with many uncounted cases.

Dr. Sumit Ray with Holy Family Hospital New Delhi said Tuesday,

RAY: The government has to intervene in more ways than just providing oxygen. Oxygen is only one thing. What we need is surge capacity building. Quickly build up prefabricated hospitals with beds, ventilators, ICUs, staffing.

The Indian government was caught completely off guard by the recent surge largely fueled by more contagious variants.

McCarthy: rank and file Republicans concerned about Cheney » House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy stepped up pressure on No. 3 House Republican Liz Cheney on Tuesday. He said some GOP lawmakers aren’t sure that she can continue to lead given her very public rift with former President Trump.

MCCARTHY: There’s no concern about how she voted on impeachment. That decision has been made. I have heard from members concerned about her ability to carry out the job as conference chair, to carry out the message. We all need to be working as one if we’re able to win the majority.

McCarthy stood by Cheney during a failed effort to oust her in February. But his remarks on Tuesday suggest her leadership position is in peril.

Former President Trump wrote this week, “The Fraudulent Presidential Election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as THE BIG LIE!”

And some Trump supporters are stepping up pressure on Republicans, like Cheney, who have been critical of Trump.

Cheney fired back, saying, “The 2020 presidential election was not stolen. Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system,” she tweeted.

At least 24 dead in Mexico rail accident » Dozens of families are mourning in Mexico today after a Mexico City Metro overpass collapsed killing at least 24 people. WORLD’s Anna Johansen Brown reports.

ANNA JOHANSEN BROWN, REPORTER: Crews labored on Tuesday to untangle train carriages from the steel and concrete wreckage that fell onto a roadway. A crane carefully lowered a train car containing four bodies to the ground.

Twenty-one people died at the scene, while the others died at hospitals. Another 77 people were injured when the support beams collapsed about 10:30 p.m. Monday as a train passed along the elevated section.

Mexican Foreign Relations Secretary Marcelo Ebrard called the collapse “the most terrible accident we have ever had in mass transportation.”

The rail line has been plagued by allegations of poor design and construction. Some have speculated that a 7.1-magnitude earthquake in 2017 could have weakened structures along the rail line.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Anna Johansen Brown.

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