| Biden calls on Americans 'to defend the truth.' And Fauci sees 'sobering' data on the South Africa coronavirus variant. It's the biggest news you missed this weekend. |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | Trump acquitted, again | | The Senate on Saturday voted to acquit former President Donald Trump on the charge of inciting an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, 57-43. Now what? Lawmakers hope to move forward, concentrating on the plethora of competing crises in the country. Still, the Jan. 6 riot revealed a festering, violent anger over national politics. In a statement responding to the acquittal, President Joe Biden said all Americans have a duty and responsibility "to defend the truth and to defeat the lies." In doing so, he said, "that is how we end this uncivil war and heal the very soul of our nation. That is the task ahead. And it's a task we must undertake together." | | And Donald Trump, in a written statement, thanked Senate Republicans (most of them) for his impeachment acquittal and proclaimed that the political movement he began with his 2016 election has "only just begun." | | In addition: | | |  | | Then-President Donald Trump speaks following a section of the border wall in Alamo, Texas, on Jan. 12, 2021. | | Mandel Ngan, AFP via Getty Images | | COVID-19: Fauci sees 'sobering' data on South Africa variant | | Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said data on the South Africa variant of the coronavirus is "sobering," confirming that current vaccines are less effective against it than the original virus or U.K. variant . Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press," Fauci also said less is known about the South African variant than the U.K. version, which has proved to be more transmissible than the original version of the virus. He added that, in South Africa, there were people who became infected with the original virus, recovered, and then got reinfected with the South Africa variant. That indicates that prior infection does not protect someone from reinfection with the South Africa variant. | | In addition: The U.S. is reporting an average of fewer than 100,000 new cases per day now. That's still more than one new case every second, but it's less than half the rate the country was reporting in January. | Real quick | | | Snow, ice and freezing temps mean weather havoc for much of nation | | A wave of harsh winter weather and bitter cold temperatures left a swath of the Pacific Northwest and parts of the East blanketed in ice, snow and power outages as more foul weather took aim at the nation's southern tier . The storm that blasted the West left more than 200,000 homes and businesses without power in Oregon on Sunday. And parts of the East were covered with a sheet of ice, with more than 270,000 homes and businesses in Virginia in the dark. The near-record cold temperatures could be blamed in part on the polar vortex, a large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding both of the Earth's poles that has sagged down into the U.S. The result has been brutal conditions for hundreds of millions of Americans this week. The South was not exempt, either. Winter storm warnings are in effect through Monday as a string of Southern cities braced for a blast snow, ice and bitterly cold conditions. |  | | People gather on the snow covered fields of the Long Meadow in Prospect Park to take a stroll, some walking their dogs, at the start of the day on Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. | | Wong Maye-E, AP | | Daytona 500: Big wreck derails 16 cars; weather causes pause | | Drivers took to the track Sunday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway for the "Great American Race," with Denny Hamlin looking for a historic third consecutive victory in the Daytona 500. A huge 16-car wreck derailed multiple contenders after 15 laps, and a weather delay soon followed, pausing the race before 4 p.m. EST. On Lap 3, fans and crews saluted Dale Earnhardt by holding up three fingers, recognizing the 20th anniversary of his death, which came on the final lap of NASCAR's signature event. Among the field in this year's race is Bubba Wallace, whose car failed inspection twice, forcing him to the back of the field. | | |  | | Corey LaJoie (7), Matt DiBenedetto (21) and Kurt Busch (1) race during the NASCAR Cup Series 63rd Annual Daytona 500. | | Jared C. Tilton-Getty Images | | | Slide into our DMs: Biggest News has officially launched texting. Let USA TODAY send you a short, daily text message of the news everyone's talking about – and chat about it with you. It's fun, FREE, and you can subscribe right here. 📲 | | This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Contributing: The Associated Press. | | | | MORE ARTICLES | | | | | | | |
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