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Taking politics out of parole Jan 31, 2022

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The legacy of “truth in sentencing” politics in Maryland, where the vast majority of people serving life sentences are Black, and how a new law could alter what it means to serve life in prison.

Politics have shaped the parole process in Maryland for decades. In the heat of a tough-on-crime campaign in the 1990s, the state’s governor said that he would reject parole for anyone serving a life sentence, even when parole commissioners had recommended release. This policy, maintained by his successors from both parties, has left hundreds of prisoners with parole-eligible sentences to grow old and die in prison.

This changed in December when state legislators voted to push the governor out of the parole process. Rebecca Tan reports on the policy’s impact and what this change could mean for similar efforts across the country.

And now, some good news Jan 28, 2022

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The revolutionary Webb telescope reaches its final destination. Amy Schneider’s historic winning streak on “Jeopardy!” comes to an end. Plus, the faster world of 5G, explained.

NASA’s revolutionary James Webb Space Telescope on Monday fired its thrusters for five minutes and reached its final destination, a special orbit around the sun where it will spend the rest of its life scrutinizing the universe and capturing light emitted soon after the big bang. Joel Achenbach reports.

Amy Schneider’s history-making “Jeopardy!” streak came to an end this week. Emily Yahr breaks down why she charmed so many people.

5G service just got faster for some people. Our Help Desk colleague Chris Velazco explains why.

Winter's grip on Kabul Jan 27, 2022

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A hunger crisis in Afghanistan is forcing Western countries to grapple with how to save lives without benefiting the Taliban.

After Taliban forces took Kabul in August, foreign aid into Afghanistan dried up. The international community worried that aid money would be misused by Taliban officials, so that money stopped coming. Banks ceased normal operations. Billions of dollars in Afghan assets were frozen.

This economic freeze – in combination with the freezing temperatures Afghans have faced this winter – has become a “lethal combination for the people of Afghanistan,” according to United Nations Secretary General António Guterres.

But after several months of negotiations, the floodgates of foreign relief aid are reopening. This month, the U.N.announced an appeal for more than $5 billion in emergency aid for Afghanistan. The Biden administration has committed $300 million.

And while these numbers look like they could be life-changing, foreign correspondent Pamela Constable says, “it’s still tiny compared to the need.”

Breyer will retire — just in time for Biden Jan 26, 2022

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Justice Stephen G. Breyer will retire at the end of the current Supreme Court term. This clears the way for President Biden to make good on his campaign promise to nominate the first Black woman to serve on the court.

Justice Breyer will retire from the Supreme Court, according to a person familiar with his plans. This clears the way for President Biden to reinforce the court’s liberal minority and make good on a campaign promise: to nominate the first Black woman to the nation’s highest court.

Our Supreme Court reporter Robert Barnes says Breyer will be remembered for his willingness to compromise with his conservative colleagues — and his long-winded questions.

Your pay raise? No match for inflation. Jan 25, 2022

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How inflation is wiping out pay raises. Plus, how Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s mask mandate ban has plunged Virginia’s public schools into chaos.

After years of barely budging, wage growth is finally at its highest level in decades. Workers have more negotiating power than many ever imagined, and average hourly wages rose 4.7 percent last year. But, as economics correspondent Abha Bhattarai explains, the same strong recovery that is emboldening workers is also driving up inflation, leaving most Americans with less spending power than they had a year ago.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) banned mask mandates in public schools recently. Now, school districts are suing in the name of science. National education writer Laura Meckler says this is not an isolated incident. Many states are dealing with a fight to either support mask mandates or parents’ rights.

A war in the heart of Europe? Jan 24, 2022

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Today on Post Reports we ask our Moscow correspondent: Is Russia preparing to invade Ukraine? Plus, 5G wireless service was turned on nationwide last week. We’ll talk about why that caused problems for air travel.

On Monday, tensions over Ukraine and Russia continued to escalate amid growing fears that more than 100,000 Russian troops massed near Ukraine might soon invade. Isabelle Khurshudyan reports from Kyiv.

5G service was rolled out nationwide last week, and while it promises faster wireless to a lot of people, it's also raising concerns for airlines and airports. Lori Aratani reports.

Inside an overwhelmed emergency room Jan 21, 2022

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A Rhode Island emergency department provides a window into how front-line health-care workers are coping with the latest covid surge. And a conversation about how André Leon Talley embodied the heart of the fashion world.

Laura Forman, Kent Hospital’s emergency department director, says that her days dealing with a deluge of covid patients involves a lot of “best bad options.” Reporters Joyce Koh and Lenny Bernstein reported from Rhode Island, where overwhelmed emergency staff have been forced to see patients in their cars. Forman says her staff are burning out – and the conditions are the worst she’s seen in her 26-year career.

Fashion icon André Leon Talley died this week at the age of 73. Talley was the former creative director of American Vogue, the first and only black person to hold that position. Senior critic-at-large Robin Givhan interviewed Talley many times over the years – and they were also friends.

“He had an incredible capacity for generosity. And it came through in a way that was just as grand as his personality,” Givhan says.

You get a test! And you get a test! Jan 20, 2022

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Today on Post Reports, the government’s rollout of free rapid coronavirus tests in the United States. And later in the show, how China’s “zero covid” policy could affect the Winter Olympics.

This week, the Biden administration launched a website where Americans can order free rapid coronavirus tests. Each household is eligible for four tests, which are sent via mail to your residence. Reporter Yasmeen Abutaleb explains the importance — and limitations of rapid tests. You can order your four free tests here.

As some countries become more lenient in their pandemic restrictions, others are doubling down. China’s zero-tolerance policy means some cities are still going through lockdowns in hopes of quashing any possible spread of the virus. Eva Dou reports on what this means for the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Will Democrats flunk their midterm? Jan 19, 2022

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As midterm elections loom, Democrats scramble to hold on to their slim majority. Plus, what a redistricting debacle in Ohio tells us about the map-drawing process happening in states across the country.

For Democrats in swing districts, the midterm elections are looming large. These “front-liners” especially need something to show for their two years in the majority come November. As Marianna Sotomayor reports, some of them are advocating a new strategy on the stalled Build Back Better spending bill — breaking off popular measures, such as extending the child tax credit and curbing prescription drug costs, and abandoning the big, sweeping package.

Based on the results of the 2020 Census, states are drawing up new maps that could dramatically affect how midterm elections go in the fall. One of the states going through this process right now is Ohio, where last week the state Supreme Court rejected a pair of proposed state legislative redistricting maps, saying they were gerrymandered favoring Republicans.

Chief national politics correspondent Dan Balz tells us about the rules and processes in place to stop gerrymandering in Ohio, and why they’ve failed –– for now.

A synagogue held hostage Jan 18, 2022

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What we know about the 11-hour hostage crisis at a Texas synagogue. Plus, Australia sends tennis champion Novak Djokovic home because of his refusal to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

On Saturday night, a gunman held four people hostage for more than 10 hours at a synagogue in Colleyville, Tex. The standoff ended with an FBI raid. The suspect has been confirmed dead, though Colleyville police would not say whether he had been killed by law enforcement or himself.

“The tragedy here is that a house of worship should be a place that people go to without a thought, that it is just simply assumed to be a safe and welcoming place,” says senior editor Marc Fisher. “But of course, in much of the world, synagogues are places that are very much targets.”

Meanwhile, tennis star Novak Djokovic left Australia on Sunday after losing his legal challenge to compete in the Australian Open despite not being vaccinated against the coronavirus. Reporter Liz Clarke on how the decision to send Djokovic home over his vaccination status could set precedent for future tournaments.

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