Impeachment Trial Update

On Friday, the Senate voted 51-49 (mainly along party lines) to not allow any witness testimony in the impeachment trial of President Trump. Final arguments are set to begin at 11 AM today, followed by a final impeachment vote expected on Wednesday.

Coronavirus Death Outside China

Authorities in the Philippines have confirmed the first death due to the coronavirus outside of China - a 44-year-old man who traveled from Wuhan. As of Sunday night, there are 17,295 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 362 deaths, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins’ real-time online virus tracker.

White House Expands Travel Ban

On Friday, the Trump administration announced it was adding six countries to its travel ban list for failure to meet security standards, including Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria. Immigration visas will be suspended for four of the countries (including Nigeria), while the other two will have limited access to the “visa lottery” system.

Executive Decisions

Several companies announced leadership changes over the weekend:

• WeWork is naming former Brookfield chief executive Sandeep Mathrani as CEO (per a WSJ report). SoftBank exec Marcelo Clure will remain as executive chairman.
• ViacomCBS said Friday that CEO Joe Ianniello will be succeeded by George Cheeks, a longtime NBCUniversal exec.
• Hulu CEO Randy Freer is stepping down. Leaders at Hulu will now report directly to Disney execs.

The Coronavirus Effect

The coronavirus outbreak led to several economic precautions over the weekend:

• China’s central bank said it will be pumping a net 150 billion yuan ($22 billion) into the economy Monday to help protect it from the impact of the coronavirus.
• Starbucks, Apple, and McDonald’s have joined the list of companies that temporarily closed some or all of their Chinese locations.
• Over 50 airlines have reduced service or outright canceled all flights to mainland China - check out the full list here.

Soul of the Party

In 2017, blogger and social media personality Meir Kalmanson felt a unique connection when he encountered a man living on the streets of New York City. The man was holding a sign indicating he didn’t want any money or anything to eat, he just wanted some human connection - to talk to somebody, anybody. After treating the man to lunch and learning more of his story, Meir was inspired to host a Super Bowl party for those without families or homes, dubbing it Super “Soul” Sunday.

Now part of a growing non-profit, these annual events are an opportunity for people to eat, watch the game, and share genuine human connection with others. Since 2017, Super Soul Sundays have expanded to 15 major cities nationwide, with more than 100 people attending last year’s party in New York. Meir realized that sports have the power to bring people of all backgrounds together in celebration, reminding us that we’re all on the same team.

Sympathetic Stranger

Sarah Schecter, a middle school principal in Arlington, TX, is a shining example of the power of kindness. When Sarah discovered, through an off-hand comment, that the father of three of her pupils was suffering from renal failure and in need of a kidney transplant, she felt compelled to take action.

Although they are strangers from different families, genders, and races, Sarah selflessly offered to donate one of her kidneys to the children’s father, Nate. The two proved to be a match, and the kidney replacement surgery went off without a hitch. Due to Sarah’s courageous act of generosity, three young students now have their dad back.