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Here’s the biggest news you missed this weekend

Editors  |  Paste BN

On 15th ballot, Republican Kevin McCarthy clinches House speaker vote

Rep. Kevin McCarthy clinched the election Friday to become the 55th person to serve as speaker of the House after a marathon 15 rounds of voting and a series of concessions that moved power from his new position to a cadre of hard-right lawmakers. His election came two years after the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the Capitol – a day when McCarthy, his top deputies and 19 of the 20 holdouts he negotiated with to win all voted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

McCarthy, in his new role as speaker, administered the oath to all members-elect early Saturday morning. He officially swore in the members of the 118th Congress and kicked off the start of legislative business in the lower chamber.

Biden heads to border in El Paso amid surge in migrant crossings

Facing criticism that he hasn’t done enough to stop illegal border crossings, President Joe Biden headed Sunday to the U.S.-Mexico border to assess the growing crisis and review enforcement operations. Biden’s trip to the southern border – his first since he became president two years ago – comes amid a surge in mass migration at the border in El Paso, Texas. It also comes as Biden is preparing for two days of meetings in Mexico City with North American leaders to discuss immigration and other issues. Biden is under pressure to detail his plans for dealing with a surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. Border security is a top priority for Republicans, who took control of the House in the November midterm elections and have criticized the Democrat for not visiting the border.

Real Quick

Bolsonaro supporters storm government buildings in Brazil

In a scene reminiscent of the violent Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021 in the U.S., supporters of far-right former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stormed their Congress, Supreme Court and presidential palace Sunday in the capital city of Brasilia. The uprising of Bolsonaro supporters who refused to accept his defeat in the recent election came a week after his leftist rival, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was inaugurated. Hours went by Sunday before control of the buildings on Brasilia’s vast Three Powers Square was reestablished. Justice Minister Flavio Dino said in a news conference that roughly 200 people had been arrested. Bolsonaro, like former U.S. President Donald Trump, has claimed the vote was rigged against him, and some of his supporters have called for a military coup to restore him to power. 

'Overwhelming': Damar Hamlin thanks well-wishers in posts

Damar Hamlin's miraculous recovery took another step forward Saturday. The Buffalo Bills safety, who remains hospitalized in Cincinnati, offer thanks on social media nearly five days after he suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed during Monday night's game against the Bengals in front of a national television audience. "When you put real love out into the world it comes back to you 3x’s as much," was posted to Hamlin's Instagram account. It's the latest sign of progress for Hamlin, whose life was clearly in jeopardy Monday before he was resuscitated. He spent the early part of the week sedated and intubated at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, surrounded by family members while fans stood vigil outside and in Orchard Park, New York, where the Bills play their home games.

Russia claims 'retaliation' missile strike kills 600 Ukraine soldiers

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed it conducted a "retaliation" rocket attack Sunday that killed 600 Ukrainian troops housed in Kramatorsk in the hotly contested Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine. The ministry said the attack was in retaliation for a Ukraine attack last week on buildings housing Russian soldiers in Makiivka, about 60 miles south Kramatorsk. That strike killed 89 Russian servicemembers, the Kremlin said; Ukraine authorities estimated the death toll was much higher. The attack came hours after the end of a partially observed, 36-hour unilateral cease-fire Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered to mark Russian Orthodox Christmas. More Ukraine updates.

Relentless rain in California creates power outages, flood risks

Rain continued to fall in California over the weekend as the state faced the latest in an unrelenting wave of brutal storms and that could provide its worst hit yet on Monday. More than half of Sacramento's 530,000 residents were in the dark at the height of the storm Sunday, victimized by wind gusts of up to 60 mph that toppled trees and tangled power lines, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District said. "Atmospheric river events" will continue to batter California through early this week with likely the most potent system arriving Monday, according to the National Weather Service. Additional rain on saturated soils will lead to considerable flooding, mudslides and burn scar debris flows, the weather service said.

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This is a compilation of stories from across the Paste BN Network. 

Contributing: The Associated Press

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