Top Eight

Top eight stories for today including California officials canceled regional lockdown orders amid a drop in hospitalizations and the steadying of new coronavirus cases; Janet Yellen was confirmed as the first female treasury secretary; Russia has been plunged into a political storm, and more.

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National

1.) Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine seems to be effective against new strains of coronavirus, including one that is thought to be 50% more transmissible, the company said Monday morning.

Boxes containing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are prepared to be shipped at the McKesson distribution center in Olive Branch, Miss., Sunday, Dec. 20. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, Pool)

2.) President Joe Biden signed an executive order Monday aimed at encouraging the federal government to buy American products made by American workers.

President Joe Biden signs executive orders after speaking about the coronavirus, accompanied by Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, right, in the State Dinning Room of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

3.) After making history as the first woman to chair the Federal Reserve seven years ago, Janet Yellen broke another glass ceiling Monday when she was confirmed as the first female treasury secretary.

FILE - In this Aug. 14, 2019, file photo former Fed Chair Janet Yellen speaks with FOX Business Network guest anchor Jon Hilsenrath in the Fox Washington bureau in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

4.) A pair of cases that accused former President Donald Trump of violating an anti-corruption provision of the U.S. Constitution were tossed as moot Monday morning by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Regional

5.) Citing a drop in hospitalizations and the steadying of new coronavirus cases, California officials on Monday canceled regional lockdown orders, giving restaurants and other businesses that have been shuttered for nearly two months the green light to reopen.

6.) Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the former White House press secretary under Donald Trump who often sparred with reporters during press briefings and was criticized for spreading mistruths during her tenure, announced on Monday that she will run for governor of Arkansas in 2022.

FILE - In this Monday, March 11, 2019, file photo, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders speaks during a news briefing at the White House, in Washington. Former White House spokeswoman Sanders is running for Arkansas governor, a source told The Associated Press, late Sunday, Jan. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci, File)

International

7.) Russia has been plunged into a political storm that saw roughly 100,000 Russians across the nation take to the streets over the weekend in the biggest protests in years.

FILE - file photo, Jan. 23, 2021, a man holds a poster with a portrait Alexei Navalny and reads: 'One for all and all for one', during a protest rally against the jailing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in St. Petersburg, Russia. Allies of Navalny are calling for new protests next weekend to demand his release, following a wave of demonstrations across the country that brought out tens of thousands in a defiant challenge to President Vladimir Putin. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky, File)

8.) Ice is rapidly disappearing as the climate crisis continues to worsen, according to research revealed Monday.

Meltstream cuts through Greenland ice sheet. (Credit: Ian Joughin)

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