Donald Trump's travel ban barring citizens from seven predominantly Muslim countries entry into the United States affected more than 100,000 visa holders. According to The New York Times, a lawyer for the federal government disclosed the figure in a Virginia court defending the ban; the number of visa holders impacted by the highly controversial executive order is significantly higher than previously reported by the White House. The Times reports, "You could hear the gasps in the courtroom when [the lawyer] said that."
Independent music hosting website Bandcamp will donate all of its earnings today to the American Civil Liberties Union. In an announcement for the campaign, Bandcamp said that over 150 artists and labels had agreed to donate all profits from sales in protest of Trump's immigration policies.
The US added 227,000 jobs in January, up significantly from December. Despite Trump's attempt to claim America's growing economy as his influence as far back as December, the January jobs report was collected by the Labor Department in the second week of the month when Barack Obama was still in office.
Kellyanne Conway made up a massacre in an interview with MSNBC's Chris Matthews. Conway, who is facing considerable criticism for the fabrication, claimed that Obama issued a travel ban similar to the president's after two refugees committed the "Bowling Green Massacre." Conway is likely referring to an incident where two Iraqi citizens were arrested in Bowling Green, KY, for attempting to send money to Al-Qaeda members in Iraq. Conway has since acknowledged her mistake.
Yoko Ono will produce a biopic about her relationship with her late husband, former Beatles member John Lennon. The film's coproducer, Michael De Luca, described the film as focusing on "ripe and relevant themes of love, courage, and activism in the US with the intention of inspiring today's youth." Anthony McCarten, who wrote The Theory of Everything, will also write the film, which does not yet have an expected release date.
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