Trump Withdraws Canada Invitation to Board of Peace Initiative 
Taiwan President Offers Cooperation With Ukraine to Combat Sanctions Evasion 
New York Judge Orders Redrawing of GOP-Held Congressional District 
Trump Launches U.S.-Led Board of Peace to Oversee Gaza Ceasefire and Expand Global Role 
Haiti Transitional Council Pushes to Remove Prime Minister Despite U.S. Warnings 
Trump Administration Weighs Tougher Sanctions on Cuba Including Possible Oil Blockade 
Trump Reverses Course on Greenland After Diplomatic Backlash 
U.S. Lawmakers Demand Scrutiny of TikTok-ByteDance Deal Amid National Security Concerns 
Russia, U.S., and Ukraine Plan Abu Dhabi Security Talks as Moscow Stresses Territorial Demands 
U.S. Vice President JD Vance to Visit Azerbaijan and Armenia Following Historic Peace Deal 
Trump Explains Bruised Hand, Cites High Aspirin Intake During Davos Trip 
Iran Warns of All-Out War Response as U.S. Sends Aircraft Carrier to Middle East 
Colombia Suspends Electricity Exports to Ecuador as Trade and Security Dispute Escalates 
U.S. Steps Aside as Syria Reclaims SDF-Held Territory in Power Shift 
U.N. Human Rights Council Condemns Iran Over Deadly Crackdown on Protests 
Japan Snap Election Sparks Bond Yield Surge as Parties Clash Over Fiscal and Monetary Policy 
Pentagon Signals Reduced U.S. Role in Deterring North Korea as South Korea Takes Lead 
President Joe Biden’s administration has yet to have a clear stance on where they hope space exploration in the country would go. Last week, the White House announced that Biden is nominating former Democrat Senator for Florida Bill Nelson to become the new head of NASA.
The White House announced Friday that Biden is nominating Nelson for the post of NASA’s Chief Administrator. Should Nelson be confirmed, he would be succeeding Jim Bridenstine, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump and stepped down in January.
A statement from the White House highlighted Nelson’s experience in space travel and almost 40 years in public service, from the Florida State legislature to Congress to becoming state treasurer and then the Senate. Nelson was a ranking member of the space committees in both chambers throughout his career.
Nelson released a statement following the announcement of his nomination, pledging to lead the agency into “an exciting future of possibilities.” “Its workforce radiates optimism, ingenuity, and a can-do spirit. The NASA team continues to achieve the seemingly impossible as we venture into the cosmos.”
Bridenstine also praised the nomination of Nelson, urging the Senate to confirm the former lawmaker immediately. The former NASA chief noted that Nelson has the “political clout” necessary to deal with both the White House and Congress as well as the diplomatic abilities to lead an international effort to send astronauts back to the moon as well as Mars. Florida GOP Senator Marco Rubio also praised Nelson’s nomination, saying that the Biden administration now understands the importance of the agency’s upcoming Artemis mission in winning the modern space race.
In other news, Biden has pledged to implement new measures to ease the sudden influx of unaccompanied child migrants looking to cross the southern border to the US. Over the weekend, Biden said his administration is planning on rebuilding a system that would allow possible child migrants to seek asylum in their home countries to keep them from making the journey through human trafficking networks. Biden also pledged to visit the border at some point.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pushed back against criticism that the Biden administration was caught off-guard by the migrant surge and contributed to the problem in rewriting immigration rules. Mayorkas said that they are currently working “around the clock” to properly deal with the surges of migrants.
