Top Eight

Top eight stories for today including Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States; A European court handed Cypriot halloumi cheese makers a setback; A Colorado community asked the 10th Circuit to let its due process claims against the state’s practice of force pooling oil and gas leases play out in federal court, and more.

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National

1.) Concluding with his oath to faithfully uphold and defend the U.S. Constitution, Joseph R. Biden became the 46th president of the United States at noon Wednesday.

Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th president of the United States by Chief Justice John Roberts as Jill Biden holds the Bible during the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, as their children Ashley and Hunter watch.(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)

2.) In what some hailed as the most important inaugural speech in modern American history, President Joe Biden called for a new era of unity and healing as he pledged to bring an end to the pandemic that has dramatically altered the lives of every American while leading the restoration of a battered economy.

President Joe Biden speaks Wednesday during the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool)

3.) Freeing current and former members of his administration from an ethics pledge that would have prevented them from lobbying their former agencies for five years, President Donald Trump revoked an ethics pledge in one of his final acts of office.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk to board Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, in Washington. Trump is en route to his Mar-a-Lago Florida Resort. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

4.) Imprisoned “Tiger King” docuseries star Joe Exotic told a 10th Circuit panel Wednesday he was excessively sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for trying to hire a hitman to kill rival Carole Baskin, hours after his push for a last-minute pardon by outgoing President Donald Trump failed.

Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as Joe Exotic, answers a question during an interview at his zoo in Wynnewood, Okla., in 2013. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)

Regional

5.) A Colorado community asked the 10th Circuit on Wednesday to let its due process claims against the state’s practice of force pooling oil and gas leases play out in federal court.

A storage tank stands near a well pad located in a field near a housing development in Broomfield, Colo., on Feb. 28, 2019. Frustrated residents of a Denver suburb say state law is forcing them to participate in a major oil and gas drilling project against their wishes, so they launched legal challenges with potentially significant consequences for the industry. Backed by a federal judge, they have a chance this week to ask state regulators to block multiple wells planned within about 1,300 feet of homes in the city of Broomfield. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

6.) Prosecutors in South Carolina want rap star Kodak Black transported to state custody to face a longstanding sexual assault charge after his federal sentence for gun law violations was commuted by outgoing President Donald Trump.

This combination of images shows Lil Wayne performing during Hot 97's "Busta Rhymes & Friends: Hot For The Holidays" in Newark, N.J. on Sept. 13, 2016, left, and Kodak Black at the MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. on Aug. 27, 2017. President Donald Trump pardoned or commuted the sentences of more than 140 people in a last-minute clemency flurry after midnight on Wednesday, a list that included rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black. (AP Photo)

International

7.) After scoring a court win last year in their fight to protect the name of their cheese, a European court on Wednesday handed Cypriot halloumi cheese makers a setback by approving a Bulgarian company’s bid to market its cheese products as BBQLOUMI.

Grilled halloumi cheese. (Wikipedia image via CNS)

8.) Two years after it ruled that two Uzbek men are no longer at the risk of ill-treatment in Kyrgyzstan, the European Court of Human Rights reheard the case Wednesday.

Protesters react waving Kyrgyz national flags as they wait for Kyrgyz Prime Minister Sadyr Zhaparov speech in front of the government building in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. Kyrgyzstan's embattled president has discussed his possible resignation with his newly appointed prime minister in a bid to end the political crisis in the Central Asian country after a disputed parliamentary election. President Sooronbai Jeenbekov held talks with Prime Minister Sadyr Zhaparov a day after refusing to appoint him to the post over concerns whether parliament could legitimately nominate him. (AP Photo/Vladimir Voronin)

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