Monday, Jan. 2

• President Joe Biden contradicted a claim by South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol that South Korea and the United States are in talks to develop joint exercises involving the U.S.’s nuclear assets as counter-provocation against North Korea’s atomic and missile programs.

Tuesday, Jan. 3

• The House failed to elect a speaker in three rounds of voting as Republican Kevin McCarthy fell short of securing a majority in the chamber, unable to overcome opposition within his own party. McCarthy needed 218 votes but only received 203 in the first two ballots, with 19 Republicans voting against him. In the third round, he lost one more vote. Most Republican votes against McCarthy went to Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, a far-right conservative.
• Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, became the longest-serving Senate leader in history, having served since 2007. The record was formerly held by the late Democratic Sen. Mike Mansfield, with 16 years.
• The Food and Drug Administration announced that it will allow retail pharmacies to offer abortion pills in the U.S. for the first time. “Under the Mifepristone REMS Program, as modified, Mifeprex and its approved generic can be dispensed by certified pharmacies or under the supervision of a certified prescriber,” the agency said.

Wednesday, Jan. 4

• Kevin McCarthy continued to fail to receive the votes necessary to secure the House Speaker role after six rounds of voting.
• The U.S. embassy in Cuba resumed full immigrant visa services after a five year pause, triggered due to a spate of alleged cases of so-called “Havana Syndrome” in U.S. diplomats.
• Biden met with Mitch McConnell in Kentucky to promote the 2021 infrastructure spending package and push for greater bipartisanship.

Thursday, Jan. 5

• McCarthy continued to fail to secure the House Speaker role after 11 ballots since Tuesday, continuing to be blocked by opposition from far-right members of his own party.
• The White House announced that the U.S. will start to refuse migrants and refugees from Nicaragua, Haiti and Cuba who try to enter the country without permits at the border with Mexico. The U.S. intends to accept 30,000 people per month from the three countries, along with Venezuela, and give them two-year work authorizations, but only if they have sponsors and pass background checks. It also intends to return up to 30,000 people from said countries per month if they cross the border illegally.
• The Justice Department announced that a federal court sentenced former Bolivian Interior Minister Arturo Murillo to nearly six years in jail for conspiracy to commit money laundering. Murillo pleaded guilty in October 2022 to receiving at least $532,000 in bribes from a Florida-based company in exchange for helping it secure a tear gas contract with Bolivia’s defense ministry, then laundering the money through the U.S. financial system.
• The Treasury Department, in coordination with Turkey, announced sanctions against a network in Turkey that they allege has provided support for ISIS. The department imposed restrictions on four Iraqi individuals living in Turkey and two Turkish firms that the U.S. and Turkey accuse of taking part in the management, transfer and distribution of funds for ISIS.

Friday, Jan. 6

• Fourteen ballots in, McCarthy continued to fail to secure the House Speaker role. Only four other speaker elections required more than 12 votes in U.S. history, all of which took place in the 19th century.
• Biden presented 14 people with the Presidential Citizens Medal, the U.S.’s second highest civilian honor, in recognition of their efforts to “defend the integrity of our elections” during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. The awardees were nine law enforcement officers who served at the Capitol during the attack and five election workers.
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the U.S. was sanctioning Iranian industries that produce ballistic missiles and drones, or “unmanned aerial vehicles,” that the U.S. claims have been used to facilitate Russia’s war in Ukraine. “Iran must cease its support for Russia’s unprovoked war of aggression in Ukraine,” Blinken said, “and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to disrupt and delay these transfers and impose costs on actors engaged in this activity.”
• Filippo Bernardini, a 30-year-old Italian publishing industry worker, pleaded guilty in federal court to wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining more than 1,000 book manuscripts before publication. Bernardini has not publicly disclosed a motive for his alleged actions and has not attempted to sell any of the book manuscripts.

Saturday, Jan. 7

• After 15 votes, McCarthy was finally voted in as House Speaker, the first time more than one vote was necessary for the process in over a century.
• NASA announced that one of its retired satellites, the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite, which launched in 1984, was about to fall to earth, and assured people that the chances of debris posing a risk to “anyone on Earth is very low” since most of it will burn up on re-entry.

Sunday, Jan. 8

• Biden made his first visit to the U.S.-Mexico border since taking office. He stopped in the city of El Paso, Texas, on his way to Mexico to meet with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Monday. Biden observed border officers demonstrating how they search vehicles for drugs, money and other contraband. He also inspected a section of the tall fencing along the border.