Midday rundown: McCarthy’s trip to Taiwan, Spotify layoffs, tax time

KARAH RUCKER: THE F-D-A IS SUGGESTING THE COVID VACCINE BE TAKEN ANNUALLY. MORE BIG TECH LAYOFFS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED. AND TODAY MARKS THE START OF TAX SEASON. BUT FIRST…A LOOK AT THE NEW HOUSE SPEAKER’S AGENDA THIS YEAR…WHICH COULD INCLUDE ANOTHER CONTROVERSIAL VISIT TO TAIWAN.

THIS IS STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS. UNBIASED. STRAIGHT FACTS.

POTENTIAL MCCARTHY TRIP TO TAIWAN

THE PENTAGON IS IN THE PROCESS OF PLANNING THE PLACES HOUSE SPEAKER KEVIN MCCARTHY WILL TRAVEL THIS YEAR TO STRENGTHEN RELATIONSHIPS AMONG OUR ALLIES. ONE OF THOSE BEING TAIWAN, ACCORDING TO REPORTS.

IT COULD CREATE ANOTHER STICKY SITUATION AFTER FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI MADE THE SAME TRIP LAST YEAR.

SPARKING OUTRAGE, THREATS, AND MILITARY DRILLS FROM CHINA —CREATING A TENSE POLITICAL WARFARE BETWEEN OUR TWO COUNTRIES.

MCCARTHY’S TRIP COULD POTENTIALLY COME AS SOON AS THE SPRING.

FDA TO PROVIDE COVID VACCINE GUIDANCE

WITHIN THE PAST FEW YEARS WE’VE LEARNED THAT THE CORONAVIRUS IS SOMETHING WE WILL HAVE TO LEARN TO LIVE WITH.

NOT A “ONE TIME PANDEMIC” BUT A VIRUS THAT EVOLVES INTO MULTIPLE STRAINS — SIMILAR TO THAT OF THE FLU.

WHICH IS WHY THE F-D-A WILL BE RELEASING NEW GUIDANCE TODAY ON HOW WE VACCINATE AGAINST COVID MOVING FORWARD.

IT’S GOING TO SOUND SIMILAR TO HOW WE VACCINATE AGAINST INFLUENZA.

THE FDA IS RECOMMENDING AN ANNUAL SHOT THAT WOULD BE TAKEN IN THE FALL TO BEST PROTECT PEOPLE BEFORE THE WINTER.

VACCINE MAKERS WOULD UPDATE THE SHOT TO TRY AND MATCH IT WITH WHATEVER COVID-VARIANT SEEMS TO BE MOST DOMINANT THAT YEAR.

SUPPORTERS OF THIS APPROACH SAY IT **SIMPLIFIES THE PROCESS.

SO YOU WOULDN’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT HOW MANY SHOTS OR BOOSTERS YOU’VE GOTTEN OR WHEN YOU GOT THEM.

BUT CRITICS SAY COVID HASN’T SETTLED INTO A SEASONAL PATTERN YET — LIKE THE FLU — SO THEY THINK MORE THAN JUST AN ANNUAL SHOT IS NEEDED.

SPOTIFY LAYS OFF 6% OF WORKFORCE

LAST WEEK, IT WAS MICROSOFT AND GOOGLE. THIS WEEK, IT’S SPOTIFY EMPLOYEES GETTING LAID OFF.

600 EMPLOYEES, OR 6 PERCENT OF ITS WORKFORCE, IS NOW WITHOUT A JOB AFTER CUTS WERE MADE MONDAY MORNING. THE TREND OF TECH LAYOFFS IS ONLY DEEPENING.

META, GOOGLE, AMAZON, MICROSOFT, TWITTER, LYFT, AND THE LIST GOES ON.

TECH LAYOFFS IN 2023 HAVE ALREADY REACHED ONE-THIRD OF LAST YEAR’S TOTAL, AND IT’S ONLY JANUARY.

THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE FILING TAXES

TODAY IS THE START OF TAX SEASON. YOU CAN NOW BEGIN FILING YOUR RETURNS TODAY. BUT THERE ARE A FEW SLIGHT CHANGES TO THIS YEAR’S TAX-CREDITS THAT COULD END UP SHRINKING YOUR REFUND, WITH THE IRS DROPPING A LOT OF “PANDEMIC-ERA PERKS.”

DUE TO THE PANDEMIC — LAST YEAR THERE WAS AN “ENHANCED CHILD CREDIT” THAT GAVE FAMILIES 36 HUNDRED DOLLARS FOR EVERY CHILD UNDER 6 YEARS OLD AND UP TO THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR KIDS 6 TO 17.

THIS YEAR, THE CHILD TAX CREDIT IS GOING BACK TO PRE-PANDEMIC AMOUNTS. SHRINKING TO A MAXIMUM OF  2-THOUSAND PER KID.

ANOTHER “PANDEMIC-ERA TAX BREAK” FOR CHARITABLE DEDUCTIONS WAS NIXED.

AND THOSE STIMULUS PAYMENTS WE RECEIVED A FEW YEARS BACK? A LOT OF TAXPAYERS RECEIVED A “RECOVERY REBATE CREDIT” FROM IT. THOSE ARE ALSO GONE.

BECAUSE OF THE CHANGES…TAX EXPERTS SAY TO EXPECT A SMALLER REFUND THIS YEAR.

TAX SEASON STARTS TODAY AND WILL END ON APRIL 18TH, SINCE APRIL 15TH FALLS ON A WEEKEND.

NIKE VACATES CRIME-RIDDEN SEATTLE

A NIKE STORE IN SEATTLE THAT’S BEEN UP-AND-OPERATING FOR 26 YEARS HAS SHUT DOWN.

CUSTOMERS ARE NOW WONDERING IF IT’S BECAUSE OF A LACK OF SALES, OR RATHER A LACK OF SAFETY.

IT’S A RECENT TREND IN DOWNTOWN SEATTLE. A MULTIPLEX CINEMA ALSO DECIDING NOT TO RENEW ITS LEASE AND LEAVE THE AREA. VIOLENT CRIME IS PERSISTENT IN THE CITY.

LAST YEAR 310 HOMELESS PEOPLE WERE KILLED — THAT’S MORE THAN EVER BEFORE.

A NEW NIKE STORE IS OPENING UP THIS YEAR. BUT IT’LL BE ABOUT AN HOUR AWAY FROM SEATTLE’S DOWNTOWN AREA.

UFO-LIKE CLOUD FORMATION

WHAT DOES THIS LOOK LIKE TO YOU? BECAUSE FOR RESIDENTS IN TURKEY…THEY FIGURED THEIR TIME ON EARTH WAS COMING TO A CLOSE…WAITING TO BE ABDUCTED AND SUCKED INTO A SPACESHIP FROM ABOVE. WHEN REALLY —IT’S JUST A RARE AND BIZARRE FORMATION OF CLOUDS.

THE CLOUD HOVERED ABOVE FOR ABOUT AN HOUR. AND NOT SURPRISINGLY, IT ENDED UP ALL OVER SOCIAL MEDIA…FOR PEOPLE TO HAVE SOME FUN WITH.