Start your day off right with five things you need to know this morning.
Five things you need to know
The American technology giants have combined to extinguish alternative social media platform Parler. Its website went offline after Amazon pulled the plug on its cloud computing. Amazon said it had taken the action because Parler – seen as an alternative to Twitter – featured dozens of posts encouraging violence. Google and Apple earlier removed Parler from their app stores.
Parler goes dark after move by Amazon https://t.co/zNX4O6Q4qF pic.twitter.com/H59VVneJ3J
— The Hill (@thehill) January 11, 2021
The PGA of America has voted to terminate an agreement to host the US PGA Championship 2022 at the Trump National in Bedminster. The group said using the course, which is owned by President Donald Trump, for the competition would be "detrimental." The Trump Organization said it was "incredibly disappointed" by the move.
The PGA of America has cut ties to Donald Trump, voting to take the PGA Championship event away from his New Jersey golf course next year. The vote comes four days after the Trump-fueled riot at the U.S. Capitol. https://t.co/64uGUJHlTj
— The Associated Press (@AP) January 11, 2021
Chancellor Angela Merkel has spoken out after the banning of US President Donald Trump from most of the big social media sites. The German leader said lawmakers should set the rules on free speech – not private companies. “The chancellor sees the complete closing down of the account of an elected president as problematic,” Steffen Seibert, her chief spokesman, said at a news conference in Berlin.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel questions Twitter and Facebook's decision to shut down Trump’s accounts https://t.co/UtD4fkfZq5
— Bloomberg (@business) January 11, 2021
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has threatened to impeach President Trump again if Vice President Mike Pence and the Trump cabinet do not remove the commander-in-chief themselves. Pelosi described Trump as a threat to the nation after accusing him of inciting his supporters to break into the US Capitol while lawmakers were confirming the election President-elect Joe Biden.
JUST IN: House Democrats have released their resolution to impeach President Trump, charging him with "incitement of insurrection." https://t.co/ZUOVOEl5Qs
— CNN (@CNN) January 11, 2021
Parts of Spain are enjoying a rare patch of freezing cold weather after Storm Filomena hit Europe on the weekend. Madrid saw temperatures of -8C, causing a mixture of chaos and joy. Many areas of the country have been warned to expect temperatures as low as -12C until Thursday.
A crowd in the Plaza de Callao in Madrid took advantage of the record levels of snow brought on by a blizzard that blanketed large parts of Spain with a massive snowball fight. https://t.co/yN2MZcy6Hv pic.twitter.com/gwaLocckbJ
— ABC News (@ABC) January 11, 2021
