1-2: Things will get better

✅ Seven days in December: Even as COVID surges, many in Huntington Beach shrug off the pandemic -- From the loud denial of health guidance to hosting political rallies promoting the belief that masks are unconstitutional to the local restaurants and bars that simply ignore state guidelines, Huntington Beach has gained national notoriety for its COVID denial. Susan Christian Goulding in the Orange County Register -- 1/2/21

✅ Feared post-Christmas coronavirus surge appears to begin in L.A. County as cases spike -- The dreaded post-Christmas spike in coronavirus cases appears to be materializing in Los Angeles County, with a new rise in cases as hospitals are already in crisis from the Thanksgiving surge. Rong-Gong Lin II, Marisa Gerber in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/2/21

✅ California reports a record 585 virus deaths in single day -- California started the new year by reporting a record 585 coronavirus deaths in a single day after a health official said the pandemic was pushing state hospitals to the “brink of catastrophe” as some medical centers scramble to provide oxygen for the critically ill. Christopher Weber Associated Press -- 1/2/21

✅ Nine new California laws explained — each in 1 minute -- Nick Roberts and CalMatters’ reporting team. CalMatters -- 1/2/21

✅ Things Will Get Better. Seriously. 
Reasons to be hopeful about the Biden economy. 
—NYT
     The next few months will be hell in terms of politics, epidemiology and economics. But at some point in 2021 things will start getting better. And there’s good reason to believe that once the good news starts, the improvement in our condition will be much faster and continue much longer than many people expect. 
     OK, one thing that probably won’t get better is the political scene. Day after day, Republicans — it’s not just Donald Trump — keep demonstrating that they’re worse than you could possibly have imagined, even when you tried to take into account the fact that they’re worse than you could possibly have imagined. One of our two major political parties no longer accepts the legitimacy of elections it loses, which bodes ill for the fate of the Republic. 
     But on other fronts there’s a clear case for optimism. Science has come to our rescue, big time, with the miraculously fast development of vaccines against the coronavirus. True, the United States is botching the initial rollout, which should surprise nobody. But this is probably just a temporary hitch, especially because in less than three weeks we’ll have a president actually interested in doing his job. 
     And once we’ve achieved widespread vaccination, the economy will bounce back. The question is, how big will the bounce be? 
. . . 
      This new wave of innovation doesn’t have much to do with policy, although progress in renewables can be partly attributed to the Obama administration’s promotion of green energy. But the Biden administration, unlike its predecessor, won’t be anti-science and won’t try desperately to preserve the coal-burning past. That will help us take advantage of progress. 
     I’m less confident in my techno-optimism than I am in my expectations for a rapid employment recovery once we’ve been vaccinated. But all in all, there’s a pretty good chance that Joe Biden will preside over an economy that surprises many people on the upside. Happy New Year. 

✅ 11 Republican Senators Plan to Back Futile Bid to Overturn Biden’s Election 
A group of senators and senators-elect, led by Ted Cruz of Texas, said that they would object to the outcome of the election, while conceding that their effort would be unsuccessful. 
—NYT

✅ Clearing the Wreckage at the Education Department 
The institution lies in ruins right when it’s needed most. 

—NYT