• Russia released American Taylor Dudley, who had been held since April in Kaliningrad, a slice of land between Poland and Lithuania.
• Cervical cancer rates have dropped 65% among women in their early 20s, likely due to HPV vaccinations.
• Inflation rates have slowed due to falling gas prices and airfares, and the federal budget deficit fell significantly in 2022.
• The US is about to hit the debt ceiling, and House Republicans are preparing an emergency plan to breach it, which would cut off 20% of government spending.
• Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned that failure to meet the government’s obligations would cause irreparable harm to the US economy.
• Former President Trump was fined $1.6 million for a tax fraud scheme, and Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes approved prosecutors’ request to investigate him for inspiring the January 8 attack on Brazil’s presidential offices.
Published January 14, 2023. Visit Letters from an American to read Heather Cox Richardson’s original post.
