Evening Briefing: F.D.A. authorizes Pfizer vaccine for young teenagers

May 10, 2021

Your Monday Evening Briefing

Good evening. Here's the latest.

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

1. The Pfizer vaccine for teenagers moved closer to reality.

The Food and Drug Administration authorized use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds in the U.S., a crucial step in the recovery from the pandemic and a boon to American families eager for normalcy. Above, Alejandro Garcia, 16, looks on after he received his first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in West New York, N.J., on April 19.

The F.D.A.'s go-ahead is not the final hurdle. But if an advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorses the vaccine for that age group, as expected, immunizations in theory could begin immediately.

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Ahmad Gharabli/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

2. Israel erupted in violence after a police raid on the Aqsa Mosque.

Palestinian health officials said nine residents of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, including three children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike. The strikes came after militants in Gaza fired rockets toward Jerusalem.

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The exchange capped a day of violence in Jerusalem, which began when police entered the mosque compound around 8 a.m. and fired rubber-tipped bullets and stun grenades at stone-throwing Palestinians. Above, a Palestinian helps a wounded fellow protester at the Aqsa Mosque today.

By the afternoon, more than 330 Palestinians had been injured, with at least 250 hospitalized, according to a representative of the Palestinian Red Crescent. At least 21 Israeli police officers were injured, according to the police.

Escalating tensions have been exacerbated by restrictions on Palestinian access to the Old City during the holy month of Ramadan, a march of far-right Jewish groups through the city center in April, and street assaults by both Jews and Arabs.

Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA, via Shutterstock

3. Gasoline prices rose as much as 4.2 percent after a cyberattack shut down a U.S. pipeline.

The F.B.I. confirmed that DarkSide, a hacking group and "criminal actor" that is believed to have roots in Russia, was responsible for the ransomware attack. A national security adviser said she could not confirm if the pipeline operator, Colonial Pipeline, had paid any ransom.

Gas and oil futures both moderated late in the day after Colonial Pipeline said the 5,500-mile system, which carries 45 percent of the East Coast's fuel supplies, would be "substantially" restored by the end of the week.

In Washington, the breach raised questions about whether an executive order being planned by President Biden to strengthen cybersecurity for federal agencies and contractors goes far enough.

Doug Mills/The New York Times

4. President Biden said his administration would take steps to make it easier for employers to hire workers.

In remarks at the White House, he also said companies need to help employees get vaccinated and to pay them more, after receiving $1.4 trillion in Covid-19 relief from the federal government over the past year.

His comments follow criticism from Republicans over a disappointing employment report released on Friday. Some blame expanded unemployment benefits for keeping hiring at bay. But school closures, child care constraints and incomplete vaccine coverage were playing a larger role, Mr. Biden said.

The president said the Labor Department would work with states to reinstate requirements that anyone collecting unemployment benefits prove they are actively searching for work. Twenty-nine states have already reinstated the rules, which were suspended during the pandemic.

Justin Gilliland/The New York Times

5. Health care providers cannot discriminate against transgender individuals, the Biden administration ruled.

The move will reverse a policy adopted under President Donald Trump that said anti-discrimination provisions of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 did not apply to transgender people.

The ruling will apply to doctors, hospitals and other health care organizations that receive federal funding, and is part of a broader effort by the president to include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning people in protections against discrimination.

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Eric Gay/Associated Press

6. The Biden administration will begin deploying $350 billion in aid to state and local governments this month.

The details of the disbursement have been eagerly awaited by the states, cities, territories and tribal governments that are expected to receive money. The funds were included in the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill signed into law in March.

But several Republican-led states and the Biden administration are in a legal confrontation over whether states can take relief money and use it to solidify their budgets, then cut taxes.

The Treasury made clear today that it would insist the relief money not be used to subsidize tax cuts, and that it could claw back money that is improperly used.

Matt Sayles/Associated Press

7. The future of the Golden Globes show is in jeopardy.

NBCUniversal said it would not broadcast the 2022 Golden Globes, an abrupt blow to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization that puts on the film and television awards show.

The group of roughly 86 journalists has come under intense scrutiny as news investigations uncovered its lack of diversity and its system of compensating members for their work on committees.

NBC was paying $60 million a year for broadcast rights. The audience for this year's telecast fell 62 percent from the previous year's, to 6.9 million.

Bryan Woolston/Reuters

8. Bets on the Kentucky Derby winner will stand, even after he failed a post-race drug test.

The reason is simple: Once the payouts start getting handed over, they become impossible to track. We explain why competitors can be stripped of their moments of triumph but bettors cannot. Meanwhile, the horse's trainer blitzed the airwaves to deny accusations, blamed "cancel culture" and threatened to go to court. Above, a winning bet for Medina Spirit at Churchill Downs on May 1.

In other sports news, the Boston Marathon was oversubscribed by more than 9,200 qualifiers. The organizers, who canceled the 2020 marathon because of the coronavirus pandemic, moved this year's race to October from April, and are now notifying runners if they made the cut.

Deckers outdoor, via PR Newswire

9. In Australia, "ugg" is just a word for sheepskin boots.

But in the U.S., a court said Deckers Outdoor could trademark it and keep Australian companies — and everyone else — from selling their uggs here. Deckers has also trademarked "UGG Australia" in 130 other countries.

The case outraged Australians, who consider the footwear a national symbol. "It doesn't feel moral," said Dean Wilkie, an expert in marketing at the University of Adelaide.

The owner of Australian Leather, which Deckers sued for trademark infringement, said after the court ruling that he would take his five-year legal battle to the U.S. Supreme Court.

via Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia

10. And finally, a new heir to the Italian throne. Just a couple of issues with that.

One is that Italy abolished its monarchy 75 years ago. Another is that a different branch of the family claims the royal line.

Regardless, the son of Italy's last king has tapped his teen granddaughter to eventually lead the House of Savoy. He amended a medieval law that had restricted succession in his royal line to male heirs. Above, Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia with his wife, the French actress Clotilde Courau, and daughters Vittoria and Luisa last year.

This would allow 17-year-old Vittoria di Savoia, a burgeoning influencer in Paris, to be the first woman in 1,000 years to be invested with the authority to lead the family.

So began the latest chapter in the dynastic dispute between the pretenders to Italy's pretend throne. "Totally illegitimate," said Prince Aimone di Savoia Aosta, a cousin and rival claimant.

Have a feud-free evening.

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