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U.S. President Joe Biden signs the American Rescue Plan on Thursday in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

U.S. President Joe Biden signs the American Rescue Plan on Thursday in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

Biden aims for freedom from virus by July 4

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Thursday, March 11, 2021
WASHINGTON — One year after the nation was brought to a near-standstill by the coronavirus, President Joe Biden pledged in his first prime-time address Thursday night to make all adults eligible for vaccines by May 1 and raised the prospect of “independence from this virus” by the Fourth of July.

Suwannee tax collector’s office closed Wednesday morning

NEWS STAFF
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
The Suwannee County Tax Collector’s office will be closed next Wednesday morning. The office will be closed Wednesday, March 17, from 7:30 a.m. to noon for a Florida driver license program update. “We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause,” staff wrote in a release.

House targets local emergency orders

NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
TALLAHASSEE — As Florida has spent the past year combating covid-19, the state House is considering a proposal that would restrict local government orders involving public-health emergencies — a measure that backs the power of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Indiana resident Jon Schaffer, right, is shown wearing a hat that says “Oath Keepers Lifetime Member” inside the U.S. Capitol Building during the Jan. 6, 2021, rioting, according to the FBI. He is now facing six federal criminal charges. (FBI/TNS)

Indiana resident Jon Schaffer, right, is shown wearing a hat that says “Oath Keepers Lifetime Member” inside the U.S. Capitol Building during the Jan. 6, 2021, rioting, according to the FBI. He is now facing six federal criminal charges. (FBI/TNS)

Feds focused on organized extremists in Capitol siege probe

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
As members of the Oath Keepers paramilitary group shouldered their way through the mob and up the steps to the U.S. Capitol, their plans for Jan. 6 were clear, authorities say.
Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference following the State of the State address during the joint session of the Florida Legislature at the Capitol in Tallahassee on March 2. (IVY CEBALLO/Tampa Bay Times/TNS)

Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference following the State of the State address during the joint session of the Florida Legislature at the Capitol in Tallahassee on March 2. (IVY CEBALLO/Tampa Bay Times/TNS)

DeSantis: Vaccine eligibility age dropping soon to 55

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
MIAMI — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that after the state makes people 60 and older eligible for the covid vaccine on Monday, it will soon lower the age to 55 and then probably open it up to the rest of the population.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D- Calif., raps her gavel after the House voted to pass the American Rescue Plan on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. (DREW ANGERER/Getty Images/TNS)

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D- Calif., raps her gavel after the House voted to pass the American Rescue Plan on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. (DREW ANGERER/Getty Images/TNS)

Congress OKs $1.9T relief bill

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
WASHINGTON — A Congress riven along party lines approved a landmark $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief bill Wednesday, as President Joe Biden and Democrats claimed a triumph on a bill that marshals the government’s spending might against twin pandemic and economic crises that have upended a nation.