Germany and India became the most recent nations to announce that they will be sending naval ships to the South China Sea, seemingly in response to China’s claim of sovereignty over much of the 1.3 million square mile waterway. Germany said that they want to “show more of a presence in the Indo-Pacific region.” Meanwhile, India said they would be sending four warships for a two month deployment to take part in exercises with several countries including the US, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia.

Simone Biles returned to the Olympic stage to win the bronze medal on the balance beam in likely her last Olympic competition. This ties her with Shannon Miller as the most decorated female gymnast of all time with seven total medals. Biles held the record for most gold medals at a single Olympics from the previous Games in Brazil during 2016, and had hoped to add several more to her resume before pulling from many of her slated events due to mental health concerns. 

The Biden administration has extended Title 42, which was initiated last year, which allows border agents to turn away undocumented immigrants without a hearing. The CDC released an order of their own saying that the suspension of allowing non-citizens to seek asylum is “necessary to protect the public health” because it “creates a serious danger of the introduction of COVID-19 into the United States.” The Biden administration had been under pressure from many Democrats and liberal organizations to repeal this Trump-initiated order, but on Monday the White House announced it was extended indefinitely due to the rise of COVID cases and that if the order was repealed it would “exacerbate overcrowding at DHS facilities.” The ACLU has announced plans to seek an “immediate injunction.”

A scathing and thorough 168 page report was released on Tuesday confirming allegations that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed at least 11 different women, one of which is a New York State Trooper.

A county near New York City has passed a bill that will allow police officers to sue protestors who harass or injure them while on duty, giving them legal rights as a protected class.

Florida school districts are easing their masking policy following Governor DeSantis’ executive order that could withhold funding from schools that continue to require students to wear facemasks.

The debt ceiling which sets the limit for how much money the federal government can borrow expired on Saturday, which has led to the Treasury Department taking “extraordinary measures” to pay US bills.