Where Does Kamala Harris Stand on Abortion and Reproductive Rights?

Joe Biden’s electoral triumph over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential race means all eyes are on both him and his vice president-elect. And as a history-making vice president, Kamala Harris is especially in the spotlight—and so are her policies. Here, we look into the Democratic senator’s stance on abortion access and reproductive rights, major issues that were on voters’ minds in light of President Donald Trump’s latest Supreme Court nominee.

Senator Harris had proposed a plan to protect abortion rights.

In 2019, as a Democratic nominee for president, Senator Harris shared her plan to protect abortion access, which was modeled after the Voting Rights Act of 1965, according to Politico. In it, she proposed that states that tend to restrict abortion would have to obtain preclearance by the Department of Justice before enforcing laws affecting access to the procedure.

“Are we gonna go back to the days of back-alley abortions? Women died before we had Roe v. Wade in place,” she explained in a town hall last May. She would require that “states that have a history of passing legislation that is designed to prevent or limit a woman’s access to reproductive health care, that those laws have to come before my Department of Justice for a review and approval, and until we determine that they are constitutional, they will not take effect.”

Novavax’s COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Gets FDA Fast Track Status

Novavax Inc. (NVAX) Monday announced that its coronavirus vaccine candidate was granted fast-track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

NVX-CoV2373, the company’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate, is currently in late-phase clinical development. NVXCoV2373 is a stable, prefusion protein made using Novavax’ nanoparticle technology and includes its proprietary MatrixM adjuvant.

“The FDA’s decision to grant Fast Track Designation for NVX-CoV2373 reflects the urgent need for a safe and effective vaccine to prevent COVID-19, and we look forward to working closely with the agency to accelerate access to this vaccine,” said Gregory Glenn, President of Research and Development, Novavax.

Novavax said it expects to begin its pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial in the US and Mexico by the end of November. Data from the event-driven trial could support global authorization and approval, including in the U.S.

The company’s ongoing Phase 3 clinical trial in the UK to evaluate the efficacy, safety and immunogenicity of NVX-CoV2373 is expected to be fully enrolled by the end of November. Interim data in the UK trial are expected as soon as early first quarter 2021.

The FDA approval comes on the same day that Pfizer announced that its coronavirus vaccine candidate had a 90% efficacy rate in late-stage trials. The company plans to seek emergency-use authorization from the FDA.

NVAX is currently trading at $91.87, up $2.01 or 2.24%, on the Nasdaq.

Donald Trump Jr. Gets Brutally Mocked For COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Theory

The stock market was pleased to learn of Pfizer’s encouraging findings on a potential COVID-19 vaccine ― but not Donald Trump Jr.

President Donald Trump’s eldest son expressed skepticism over the timing of the announcement, considering it came days after his pop lost the election to Joe Biden.

“The timing of this is pretty amazing. Nothing nefarious about the timing of this at all right?”

Many Twitter users jumped in to tell Jr. that his ginned-up conspiracy theory suggesting Pfizer held off announcing the promising data specifically to hurt his dad’s reelection efforts didn’t actually hold water.

Others pointed out Pfizer’s announcement fit the pharmaceutical giant’s previously announced timeline.

Other Twitter users poked holes in Trump Jr.’s baseless suggestion.

One person did suggest that if Pfizer did hold back the announcement on purpose, it really can’t be blamed, considering how the Trump administration has handled the coronavirus pandemic.

Monday’s announcement doesn’t mean a vaccine is imminent, but Pfizer executive Dr. Bill Gruber told The Associated Press that “we’re in a position potentially to be able to offer some hope.” 

Still, it’s unlikely any vaccine will arrive much before the end of the year, and the initial supplies will be rationed.

Tredegar Q3 Profit From Ongoing Operations Slightly Declines – Quick Facts

Tredegar Corp. (TG) reported third quarter net income from ongoing operations of $0.39 per share compared to $0.40, a year ago. Third quarter sales declined to $184.37 million from $205.97 million, previous year.

John Steitz, Tredegar’s president and CEO, said, “We had strong cash flow during the third quarter with net cash in excess of debt as of September 30, 2020 of $28.0 million, up from $5.9 million as of June 30, 2020, which excludes the net cash proceeds expected from the sale of the Personal Care business of $45 to $50 million.”

Turkish President Erdogan Accepts Son-in-Law Albayrak’s Resignation

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accepts the resignation of his son-in-law Berat Albayrak from his role as treasury and finance minister.

“At a time when even developed nations experienced serious economic hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic, along with regional and global political crises, our country suffered the minimum amount of damage during that critical time, thanks to Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak’s efforts, and our esteemed minister’s accomplishments were appreciated by the President,” the office of the presidency said in a Twitter statement.

Erdogan Son-in-Law Quits as Economy Czar, Spurs Lira Rally

Upon the president’s review, Albayrak’s “request to be excused from his duties has been accepted.”

Albayrak unexpectedly resigned as the country’s economy czar on Sunday, a day after the central bank governor was fired, igniting fresh political turmoil. The lira rallied the most in over two years following the resignation.