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QuickTake Tonight
Bloomberg

Greetings, QuickTake readers! In this edition: WHO's million-dollar plea, a Turkish jet shatters into pieces, and all hail the humble cement truck.

Senate acquits Trump

The U.S. Senate voted to acquit President Trump Wednesday on charges he abused power and obstructed Congress, ending the historic, bitterly partisan impeachment trial that began last month. Trump became the third president in U.S. history to dodge removal from office after the Republican-led chamber voted 52-48 to find him not guilty of abusing his power and 53-47 to find him not guilty of obstructing Congress. Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah was the only Republican to break with his party and find Trump guilty of seeking political power from the Ukrainian government. The vote now leaves the final judgment of Trump's actions up to voters in November. Trump tweeted he'll make a statement on "our country's victory on the impeachment hoax" Thursday at noon from the White House.

After the verdict:

  • Mitch McConnell said impeachment was a "colossal political mistake" for House Democrats, adding Senate Republicans facing tough re-election races are "in better shape today than when the trial started."
  • Chuck Schumer said Trump's presidency will have a "giant asterisk" because he was "acquitted without a fair trial," but that "no one had illusions the president would be convicted."
  • Democrats warned Trump would continue to seek foreign help for his re-election and vowed to continue other investigations, even leaving open the possibility of subpoenaing John Bolton.

$ignificant figures

179. Three people died and at least that many people were injured after a plane skidded off an airport runway in Istanbul before crashing and breaking apart.

$675 million. How much the WHO said is needed to combat the spread of coronavirus after it recorded the largest number of new cases in a single day on Feb. 4.

38. The death toll from a second avalanche that slammed into a mountain road in eastern Turkey, injuring at least 53 people and leaving others buried under the snow.

Highly quotable

"He shredded the truth." Nancy Pelosi said she couldn't find "one page with truth" in Trump's sharply partisan State of the Union address, "so I shredded his speech."

"End-stage renal disease." Notorious Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff asked for early release from his 150-year prison sentence, saying he has 18 months left to live due to chronic kidney failure.

"Buckingham Palace has nothing on CPW." Madonna offered her NYC apartment to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in an Instagram video after telling them: "Don't run off to Canada, it's so boring there."

This is not normal

1-2 punch. In addition to warmer air temps, a warm Atlantic current is presenting a new threat to rising sea levels, scientists say, as it moves under Greenland's vast glaciers, causing them to melt even more quickly.

The future is now

Double the rays. A new solar panel generates electricity at night by using the earth's heat to make infrared light when pointed at the sky, enabling them to work around the clock and balance the power grid after sunset.

What's good

Construction stars. Footage of China's 10-day assembly of a hospital for coronavirus patients has made cement trucks unlikely heroes, with fans across the globe giving nicknames to and voting for their favorites online.

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This just in: Hollywood superstar Kirk Douglas, known for films, such as "Spartacus" and "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral," has died at age 103.

Thanks for reading!
-Andrew Mach

 

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