In our news wrap Wednesday, Larry Summers is leaving his teaching post at Harvard after his name appeared hundreds of times in the recent batch Epstein files, rescue teams in Brazil are searching for dozens of people after intense rains and floods and Cuba’s Interior Ministry says soldiers killed four people aboard a speedboat registered in Florida that they say had opened fire in Cuban waters.
Geoff Bennett:
We start the day’s other headlines with ongoing fallout from the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Larry Summers is leaving his teaching post at Harvard University. The former Treasury secretary appeared hundreds of times in the most recent batch of files related to the late sex offender. In a statement, Summers called his departure a difficult decision, saying he’ll step down at the end of the school year.
Another academic in Epstein’s sphere, Nobel laureate Richard Axel of Columbia University’s Brain Institute, says he too will resign. And Bill Gates reportedly apologized to staff at his foundation and insisted he didn’t participate in Epstein’s crimes. That was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. Gates denies doing anything illicit, and none of the men have been charged with any crimes.
A new round of winter weather is sweeping through the northeastern U.S., even as millions cope with the lingering effects of Monday’s blizzard. Forecasters expect another one to three inches of snow throughout the region today.
In New Jersey, the National Weather Service warned drivers to watch out for snow and black ice on the roads, while, in New York, streets and sidewalks were mostly clear after officials used huge amounts of salt and hired thousands of emergency shovelers to clear up the mess. Meantime power is being restored for hundreds of thousands in places like Delaware, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
In Brazil, rescue teams are searching for dozens of people still missing after intense rains and floods killed at least 46 people. Workers retrieved bodies from debris and thick mud, with officials saying the sheer size of the affected area was complicating the search.
Also today, mourners gathered for the funeral of an 11-year-old boy who was killed in the floods. His father remembered him as a boy with a big heart.
Ricardo Dutra, Victim’s Father (through interpreter: I’m trying to pick up the pieces because my wife and daughter are still in the hospital, but I only have good memories of my son. It’s about living and loving intensely.
Geoff Bennett:
Authorities say at least 3,000 residents were forced to evacuate as of this morning, with officials warning that there could be more landslides from another bout of heavy rain expected tonight.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the Trump administration’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro today. Rubio was in Saint Kitts and Nevis for meetings with leaders of the 15-member Caribbean community bloc.
According to a State Department transcript, he told the group that — quote — “Venezuela is better off today than it was eight weeks ago.” It comes amid rising concerns over President Trump’s policies in the Western Hemisphere that includes a series of boat strikes against alleged drug traffickers that have killed more than 150 people and a crippling oil blockade of Cuba that has paralyzed that country’s economy.
Meantime, Cuba’s Interior Ministry says its soldiers killed four people aboard a speedboat registered in Florida that they say had opened fire on officers in Cuban waters. Officials provided few details, but say the incident took place about one mile off of Cuba’s north coast. They say six others were wounded. It’s unclear if any U.S. citizens were on the boat.
In a social media post, Florida’s attorney general said that he’s ordered prosecutors to work with federal, state and law enforcement to begin an investigation, adding that the Cuban government cannot be trusted.
A U.S. federal judge is blocking the Justice Department from an unsupervised wholesale search of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson’s electronic devices. In his ruling, Magistrate Judge William Porter said that allowing officials to do so would be a restraint on her First Amendment rights and called it the equivalent of leaving the government’s fox in charge of The Washington Post’s henhouse.
Federal agents seized several devices from Natanson’s Virginia home in January, which her paper called outrageous. The judge says he will review the contents of Natanson’s devices himself.
A.I. giant Nvidia posted another blockbuster earnings report this afternoon. The company’s profit nearly doubled in the fourth quarter to $43 billion, thanks to strong chip sales. The better-than-expected result comes amid broader concerns that hopes for the A.I. sector have been overblown.
Ahead of that report, stocks on Wall Street ended higher amid gains in tech shares. The Dow Jones industrial average gained around 300 points on the day. The Nasdaq added nearly 300 points of its own. The S&P 500 closed higher for a second straight day.
