PRIMERAS PLANAS INTERNACIONALES
EL PERIÓDICO GLOBAL
www.elpais.com
MIÉRCOLES 10 DE MARZO DE 2021 | Año XLVI | Número 15.941 | EDICIÓN MADRID | Precio: 1,80 euros
La explosión exhibe las miserias del régimen
GUINEA ECUATORIAL
Habla la gimnasta que destapó los abusos en el equipo olímpico P36
EE UU P8
El Supremo busca un resquicio para juzgar a Puigdemont El instructor implica a la justicia europea tras el permiso del Europarlamento REYES RINCÓN / GUILLERMO ABRIL Madrid / Bruselas El magistrado del Tribunal Supremo Pablo Llarena, instructor del proceso contra los dirigentes independentistas de Cataluña, abrió ayer una nueva vía para juzgar al expresident Carles Puigdemont, huido de la justicia españo-
la desde noviembre de 2017. Llarena movió ficha horas después de que el Parlamento Europeo levantase la inmunidad como euro-
diputados de Puigdemont y de los exconsejeros Toni Comín y Clara Ponsatí para que puedan ser juzgados en España. Sin embargo, la
El juez devuelve a la cárcel a los presos del ‘procés’ porque no reconocen sus delitos P15
justicia belga puede denegar la entrega con los mismos argumentos que ya esgrimió en el caso del exconsejero Lluís Puig. Por eso, Llarena planteó ayer una cuestión prejudicial al Tribunal de Justicia de la UE a fin de reforzar su posición y juzgar a Puigdemont en España. PÁGINA 14
Calviño replica a Podemos y hace patentes las diferencias por las ayudas María Jesús Montero intenta rebajar a detalles “técnicos” el conflicto A. MAQUEDA / C. E. CUÉ Madrid La vicepresidenta económica, Nadia Calviño, arremetió ayer contra Podemos al decir que el debate sobre las ayudas directas a pymes no se arregla con una subasta, un tuit o dos páginas, en clara referencia a las discrepancias con el partido de Iglesias. Hacía patentes así las diferencias en el seno del Gobierno, que otros ministros han admitido en público, poco después de que la titular de Hacienda, María Jesús Montero, tratase de reducir el conflicto a detalle “técnicos”. PÁGINA 37
La casa real británica dice que tratará en privado las acusaciones de racismo
DANZA PARA LAS MUSAS. Rocío Molina llevó ayer su zapateado vanguardista a la Sala de las Musas del Prado. Observada por ocho esculturas de las divinidades protectoras de las artes y las ciencias, ofreció a los visitantes una pieza concebida para ese espacio. / JULIÁN ROJAS PÁGINA 30
RAFA DE MIGUEL, Londres El palacio de Buckingham mostró ayer su “preocupación” por las acusaciones de racismo vertidas por Meghan Markle y el príncipe Enrique, y prometió que el asunto será tratado “privadamente por la familia”, según un comunicado. La casa real británica intenta así rebajar la presión abierta por la entrevista de los duques de Sussex, que ha tenido impacto global y debilitado la imagen de la monarquía. PÁGINA 5
Algunos países alivian restricciones a los inmunizados, pero hay dilemas éticos
La herencia del poeta continúa atascada en los juzgados
Una nueva vida después de la vacuna
La Fundación Alberti prepara su extinción
JESSICA MOUZO, Barcelona Solo el 2,8% de la población española está vacunada de la covid. En EE UU, China o Israel se abre paso ya una nueva normalidad
con menos restricciones —uso de mascarilla, movilidad— para los inmunizados. La UE prepara su certificado común en medio de dilemas éticos. PÁGINA 22
Sanidad propone cerrar las comunidades en el puente de San José y Semana Santa
P23
JESÚS A. CAÑAS El Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz) La Fundación Rafael Alberti vive acosada por las deudas y prepara ya su extinción. Ha perdido a sus patrocinadores y el único patrono es el Ayuntamiento de El Puerto de Santa María. Mientras, un juzgado debe resolver el litigio sobre la herencia del poeta. PÁGINA 27
$2.75 DESIGNATED AREAS HIGHER
latimes.com
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10, 2021
© 2021 WSCE
Newsom aims to reassure a weary state Facing a recall effort, governor uses annual address to look ahead and rekindle faith. By Phil Willon and Taryn Luna
Allen J. Schaben Los Angeles Times
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM delivers his State of the State address in front of a monitor with a photo by Times
photographer Francine Orr. He touted his administration’s response to “unthinkable” pandemic challenges.
Democrats fine with GOP calling COVID relief ‘a liberal wish list’ House poised to pass bill with long-sought funds for healthcare, children and pensions. By David Lauter WASHINGTON — Republicans call the massive COVID-19 relief package making its way through Congress a “liberal wish list.” Increasingly, Democratic lawmakers and the Biden administration have chosen to own that. One measure of the bill’s sweep is a host of provisions Democrats have long sought — on topics including health insurance premiums, child care and pensions — that
would amount to major pieces of legislation on their own. As part of the nearly $1.9-trillion package, however, they’ve gotten little public attention, overshadowed by debate over who should receive $1,400 direct payments and whether the bill should increase the minimum wage. For weeks as the bill moved through Congress, administration officials emphasized President Biden’s openness to bipartisan negotiations. Now, with the measure’s congressional journey almost finished — the House is expected to vote on final passage Wednesday — the White House’s tone has shifted. Officials are more willing to crow about achieving Democratic goals.
The relief package is “one of the most consequential and most progressive pieces of legislation in American history,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. On Tuesday, Brian Deese, head of the White House’s National Economic Council, tweeted a list of less-publicized items in the bill that address homelessness, school meals, public transit and Native American concerns, among other topics. Republicans hope the size and sprawling nature of the measure will, over time, boomerang on Democrats. The GOP has been nearly unanimous in criticizing it as too costly and likely to cause inflation.
Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, for example, has broken with his party on some issues — one of a handful of Republican senators to do so. But on the COVID bill, he has stuck to the party line, calling it “massively excessive.” House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield denounced the bill in a floor speech as “the single most-expensive spending bill ever.” “Almost every one of this bill’s 592 pages includes a liberal pipe dream that predates the pandemic,” McCarthy said. Democrats, however, see little downside in delivering on long-promised goals. The bill aims squarely [See COVID relief, A10]
Assuring Californians that their deliverance from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic is within sight, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday made an aggressive effort to rekindle faith in his ability to lead a state tattered by unprecedented lockdowns, economic devastation and enough political animus to nourish an effort to recall him from office. Newsom emphasized his administration’s work to respond to the challenges that “made the unthinkable commonplace” over the last year and pledged to address the deep-rooted inequities further exposed by the pandemic as California emerges from the outbreak. The Democratic governor delivered his annual State of the State address from Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, a mass COVID-19 vaccination site that served as a carefully staged backdrop for a speech laced with springtime optimism. Newsom noted that the capacity of the empty ballpark nearly matches the number of lives lost in California, symbolizing the toll of the pandemic. “So tonight, under the lights of this stadium — even as we grieve — let’s allow ourselves to dream of brighter days ahead,” Newsom said. “Because we won’t be defined by this moment — we’ll be defined by what we do because of it. After all, we are California.” Newsom said his administration “agonized” over the sacrifices Californians were asked to make to stem the spread of the deadly virus. But he said the vaccinations
COLUMN ONE
As 9-year-old girl, she was saved at sea Thirty-five years later, Desireé Rodriguez reunites with fishermen who found her
Strasser, left, and Mark Pisano, who spotted her family’s capsized boat off Catalina Island in 1986.
By Luke Money, Rong-Gong Lin II and Howard Blume Southern California is set to take giant steps toward something more closely resembling pre-pandemic life as some economic restrictions that have been in place for months are close to being lifted, with some major changes possible in a matter of days. This newest normal will still be a considerably different world, however — one marked by continued strict capacity limits for businesses, required masks and social distancing, and reduced or modified operations at public sites of all stripes, including schools, restaurant dining rooms, gyms and Disneyland. With coronavirus cases down dramatically from the [See Reopen, A11]
CALIFORNIA, B1
Pasadena vaccine clinic is shut down Kevin Frayer Getty Images
JACK MA , cofounder of Alibaba, started a credit card-like feature called Huabei,
which enticed young consumers to use it freely. Above, a mall in China last year.
Young Chinese balking at his call to borrow and spend Fintech billionaire Jack Ma has lost sway with many ‘ants’ since regulators’ crackdown. By Alice Su
Carolyn Cole Los Angeles Times
As cases drop, region prepares for more reopenings while keeping tabs on virus.
An agreement between the district and teachers union would see students on campuses in April.
S
DESIREÉ RODRIGUEZ in San Pedro with Paul
Ready for next step to normal
Deal to reopen L.A. schools
By Faith E. Pinho he had been drifting in the cold Pacific water for a night and most of a day. Kept afloat by her orange life jacket and the bow of her family’s capsized boat, 9-year-old Desireé Rodriguez had watched helplessly as one family member after another let go of life. First her mother began foaming at the mouth and then went still. Her 5-year-old sister died soon after. Her uncle went next, followed by her aunt. Now she was alone, with no idea where her father was. He’d been at the helm during what started as a routine fishing excursion on the family’s boat. Soon after it flipped over, miles from land, he had insisted on trying to swim for help through the dark and thick fog. Just as Desireé too began to give up, the skipper of a commercial sport-fishing boat spotted an orange smudge bobbing in the water through his binoculars. Within minutes, the boat’s first officer had leaped into the water and was grabbing Desireé’s life jacket, pulling her back toward the boat — and toward life. The crew radioed the Coast Guard, then transported the girl back to San Pedro, [See Desireé, A8]
arriving daily and precautions millions have taken over the last year to save lives and reduce the spread will accelerate efforts to lift that burden — allowing people to return to work, visit grandparents and attend proms and graduations. “There’s nothing more foundational to an equitable society than getting our kids safely back into the classrooms. Remote learning, it’s exacerbated the gaps we have worked so hard to close,” Newsom said. “In just a few short months since — working together with parents, teachers and school leaders — we’ve turned the [See Newsom, A10]
HANGZHOU, China — Billionaire Jack Ma has long cast himself as a freewheeling champion of young people and small businesses — the “ants” of China — offering them quick online loans so they can realize the lives they want. “You’re young; just spend,” said the ads for Huabei, a credit card-like
feature on Ma’s financial app Alipay, beckoning a generation of fresh graduates to cities filled with shopping malls. Shen Xiaoli, 25, bought into Ma’s vision. Huabei funded Shen’s first iPhone. It helped her afford an internship in Beijing. Soon she was using it for a variety of things, including taxis and groceries. The bills piled up. Her debt grew: “I felt like I’d never finish paying it back,” Shen said. When government regulators cracked down on Ma and his fintech empire last fall, Shen decided to cut back and reclaim her former frugal self. She bought only a
few items during Ma’s annual online shopping extravaganza. She turned to binge-watching anti-capitalist videos and played the left-wing anthem “The Internationale” on repeat. “Through baptism in the spirit of communism, I controlled my desire to consume,” Shen said. Last month, she removed Huabei from the “priority pay” setting on her phone app. She plans to soon pay off her last 1,000 renminbi of debt. “I’ll finally be free,” she said. Ma is China’s king of disruptive innovation, a leather-jacketed wunder[See China, A4]
The site cancels appointments after its system is flooded with ineligible sign-ups. CALIFORNIA, B1
British tabloids show no remorse Right after Prince Harry and Meghan’s tell-all airs, the couple are back in the papers’ crosshairs. WORLD, A3
Roger Mudd, TV anchor, dies The journalist was best known for two major stories involving the Kennedy family. CALIFORNIA, B5
Weather Spotty showers. L.A. Basin: 58/46. B10 Printed with soy inks on partially recycled paper.
BUSINESS INSIDE: UCLA forecast calls for near-record growth for the state and U.S. A12
Nxxx,2021-03-10,A,001,Bs-4C,E1
CMYK
Late Edition Today, mostly sunny, cooler than yesterday for most, high 54. Tonight, cloudy, low 46. Tomorrow, partly sunny, warmer, a gusty breeze, high 68. Weather map is on Page A20.
VOL. CLXX . . . . No. 58,993
Jobs Dried Up The Elected For Performers; Move to Tap So Did Benefits
Who’s Still Not Working, a Year Into the Pandemic
NEWS ANALYSIS
Fiscal Power Favor Cash Payouts Over Fed’s Tinkering By NEIL IRWIN
American political leaders have learned a few things in the past 12 years, since the nation last tried to claw its way out of an economic hole. Among them: People like having money. Congress has the power to give it to them. In an economic crisis, budget deficits don’t have to be scary. And it is better for both the economy and the democratic legitimacy of a rescue effort when elected leaders choose to help people by spending money, versus when pointy-headed technocrats help by obscure interventions in financial markets. Lawmakers rarely phrase things so bluntly, but those are the implications of a pivot in American economic policy over the last year, culminating with the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill. It is set to pass the House within days and be signed by President Biden soon afterward. And while this vote will fall along partisan lines, stimulus bills with similar goals passed with bipartisan support last year. Leaders of both parties have become more willing to use their power to extract the nation from economic crisis, taking the primary role for managing the ups and downs of the economy that they ceded for much of the last four decades, most notably in the period after the 2008 global financial crisis. It is an implicit rejection of an era in which the Federal Reserve was the main actor in trying to stabilize the nation’s economy. Now, elected officials are embracing the government’s ability to borrow and spend — the “great fiscal power of the United States,” as the Fed chair Jerome H. Powell has called it — as the primary tool to fight a crisis. “That’s really been the story of this recovery,” Mr. Powell said at a recent hearing. “Fiscal policy has really stepped up.” The new relief bill is similarly a rejection of the concerns of centrist economists, including Continued on Page A15
Anxiety of Lost Health Care in a Pandemic By MATT STEVENS and JEREMY FASSLER
Ellyn Marie Marsh was getting ready to appear in a new offBroadway musical last year when the pandemic struck, theaters were shut and her work evaporated. Those months of lost wages carried another cost that only became clear much later: She did not get enough work to qualify to keep the health insurance she had been getting as a member of Actors’ Equity. She is far from alone. Haley Bennett was an associate music director on “Diana,” a musical that was in previews when Broadway shut down. She is one of the hundreds of musicians in the New York area who are losing the insurance they received through Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians. And in Los Angeles, Brad Schmidt, a television and film actor who was hospitalized with Covid-19 early in the pandemic, did not get enough work after he recovered to keep the insurance he had been getting through his union, SAG-AFTRA. He said that while he still did not feel fully himself, he had been skipping followup doctor visits because under his new insurance plan, he simply could not afford them. “My lungs were shutting down,” he said. “Clearly I should go in and see how my lungs are now. And I will, hopefully, God willing, at some point. I just can’t do it right now.” Thousands of actors, musicians, dancers and other entertainment industry workers are losing their health insurance or being saddled with higher costs in the midst of a global health crisis. Some were simply unable to work enough hours last year to qualify for coverage. But others were in plans that made it harder to qualify for coverage while they struggled to remain solvent as the collapse of the entertainment industry led to a steep drop in the employer contributions they rely on. The insurance woes compounded a year in which performers faced record unemployment. Several provisions in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus Continued on Page A6
Schumer Ascends to Dream Job, But It Places Him on a Tightrope By LUKE BROADWATER
WASHINGTON — The moment Chuck Schumer achieved his longtime dream of becoming Senate majority leader, he was in a secure room hiding from a violent pro-Trump mob that was rampaging through the Capitol. As rioters prowled the halls hunting for top lawmakers — Mr. Schumer, Democrat of New York, later heard that one had been looking for his desk, saying,
ERIN SCHAFF/THE NEW YORK TIMES
Senator Chuck Schumer is steering the Biden agenda, with no margin for error.
“Where’s the big Jew?” — he was being evacuated with other leaders to a safe room at an undisclosed location. It was then that news outlets confirmed that Jon Ossoff, a Democrat, had won the final Georgia Senate race that would give the party the majority, handing Mr. Schumer the top job. Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, turned to the man who had engineered his defeat and offered a brief concession and congratulations. With that, Charles Ellis Schumer, 70, the Brooklyn-raised son of an exterminator and a homemaker, became the first New Yorker ever to lead the United States Senate. “Jan. 6 was the best of times,” Mr. Schumer said in a recent interview in his office, where he cracked open a Diet Coke. “And it was the worst of times.” His dream job has come with huge challenges and a practically nonexistent margin for error. Mr. Schumer rose to power on the strength of his skills as a party messenger and relentless camContinued on Page A15
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© 2021 The New York Times Company
No group in the United States has recovered its losses, but women have been hit the hardest. Page A8. HISPANIC WOMEN
PREPANDEMIC LEVEL
BLACK WOMEN
MEN
ASIAN
MEN
WHITE WOMEN
MEN
WOMEN
Percent change in employment since Feb. 2020.
MEN
A VACCINE FREE-FOR-ALL
–4 –5
AS OF LAST MONTH
–5
–6
HIGH-RISK ADULTS JOCKEY FOR SHOTS AS RULES EVOLVE
–5
–5
Risk Group Prioritized in One State May Have to Wait in Another
–8% –10 –13 –15 –17
PEAK JOB LOSSES, APRIL 2020
–17
–18
–18
–19
–24% Share of the working-age population that is employed
WOMEN
Hispanic
MEN
Asian
70%
White
PANDEMIC RECESSION
Black
60
Black
50
Hispanic
White
Asian
40
’19
’20
’21
’19
’20
Data not seasonally adjusted. Hispanic workers may be of any race. | Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
’21 ELLA KOEZE/THE NEW YORK TIMES
After Rally and Riot, a Virginia County Fractures By SABRINA TAVERNISE
ROCKY MOUNT, Va. — One sunny day last spring, Bridgette Craighead was dancing the Electric Slide with three police officers in the grass next to the farmers’ market. It was the first Black Lives Matter protest this rural Virginia county had ever had, and Ms. Craighead, a 29-year-old hairdresser, had organized it. She had not known what to expect. But when the officers arrived, they were friendly. They held her signs high and stood next to her, smiling. Later an officer brought pizzas and McDonald’s
Storming the Capitol Crushes the Hopes of Racial Progress Happy Meals. They even politely ignored her cousin’s expired license plate. This, she thought, was the best of America. Police officers and Black Lives Matter activists laughing and dancing together. They were proving that, in some small way, their Southern county with its painful past was chang-
ing. They had gotten beyond the racist ways of older people. This made her feel proud. In a photograph from that day, Sgt. Thomas Robertson is smiling, and Ms. Craighead is standing behind him, her face tilted toward the sun and her fist held high. She did not see the officers around Rocky Mount much after that. But in early January, someone sent her a photograph. It showed Officer Jacob Fracker and Sergeant Robertson posing inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, the day the building was stormed by Donald J. Trump’s most fervent supporters. Continued on Page A18
By AMY HARMON and DANIELLE IVORY
As states have begun vaccinating Americans with medical conditions that may raise their risk for a severe case of Covid-19, they are setting widely varying rules about which conditions to prioritize. The morass of guidelines has set off a free-for-all among people with underlying health problems like cancer or Type 2 diabetes to persuade state health and political officials to add conditions to an evolving vaccine priority list. In Royal Oak, Mich., Megan Bauer, who lives with cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that can cause serious lung infections, said she was grateful that other people with heightened risks were getting vaccinated: health care workers, teachers, her 81-year-old grandmother. If Ms. Bauer lived in Montana, New Mexico, Virginia, Washington, D.C., or at least 14 other states, she could get the vaccine now, too. But not in Michigan. “The wait seems never-ending,” Ms. Bauer said. “With cystic fibrosis, every day is precious, so losing this time is difficult.” In the initial months of the vaccine rollout, states sought to balance between prioritizing older people, who are most likely to die from the virus, and people in professions most likely to be exposed to it. Under recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with medical conditions that have been associated with an increased risk for severe virus symptoms were slated to come next. At least 37 states, as well as Washington, D.C., are now allowing some residents with certain health problems to receive vaccines, according to a New York Times survey. But the health issues granted higher priority differ from state to state, and even county to county. Some people with Down syndrome may get vaccines in at least Continued on Page A6
At Royal ‘Firm,’ Pressing Worry Is Family Image By MARK LANDLER
FRANCOIS-XAVIER MARIT/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES
Art, Sport, Scandal Synchronized swimmers accuse coaches of bullying, harassment and psychological abuse. Page B8.
When Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan, referred to the British royal family as “the Firm” in their dramatic interview with Oprah Winfrey on Sunday, she evoked an institution that is as much a business as a fantasy. It is now a business in crisis, after the couple leveled charges of racism and cruelty against members of the family. Buckingham Palace responded on Tuesday that “the whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.” The allegations of racism, the palace statement said, were “concerning,” and “while some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.” Harry and Meghan’s story, of course, is a traumatic personal drama — of fathers and sons, brothers and wives, falling out over slights, real or imagined. But it is also a workplace story — the struggles of a glamorous, indeContinued on Page A13
ARTS C1-8
TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-9
NATIONAL A14-21
FOOD D1-8
BUSINESS B1-7
Vaccinations on Short Notice
New Guidance for Ex-Smokers
Slices That Are Made to Savor
Bitcoin’s Climate Problem
Seeing Your Past on Canvas
A half-million people have signed up for Dr. B, a service that matches them with clinics struggling to equitably dole out extra doses before they expire. PAGE A4
More women and African-Americans may now qualify for yearly lung cancer screenings. PAGE A16
In a time of takeout, two New York restaurants have come up with better ways to preserve their pizzas. PAGE D7
Decades after she posed for Norman Rockwell, a model has come across the painting, and her younger self. PAGE C1
Trump Chases G.O.P. Dollars
As more investors favor companies that are environmentally friendly, the cryptocurrency’s huge carbon footprint could become a red flag. PAGE B1
A West Coast Bagel Boom
The former president is urging supporters to send donations to his PAC — not to traditional party coffers. PAGE A16
California bakers are producing some of the most delicious versions around, and finding ways to expand. PAGE D1
New Hurdles for Relief Loans
Listening to Taylor Swift’s “Folklore,” an album stocked with references to the insights of teenagers. PAGE C1
INTERNATIONAL A10-13
Offering Hope to a Hometown Ten years after Japan’s 2011 earthquake, a nursing student vows to help comfort an aging population. PAGE A10
In One Afghan District, Peace An unofficial cease-fire is an example of how weary citizens have negotiated ways to stop the fighting. PAGE A12
Changes to the Paycheck Protection Program aimed at sole proprietors have led to gridlock and uncertainty. PAGE B1
EDITORIAL, OP-ED A22-23
OBITUARIES B11-12
Longtime Anchor With an Edge Roger Mudd unsettled Senator Edward M. Kennedy in 1979 with a simple question: “Why do you want to be president?” He was 93. PAGE B11
Youth Sounds Like This
SPORTSWEDNESDAY B8-10
N.F.L., Dementia and Race A mediator was asked to look into claims of racial bias in administering concussion settlements. PAGE B10
Jamelle Bouie
PAGE A23
U(D54G1D)y+=!#!%!?!#
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10, 2021 ~ VOL. CCLXXVII NO. 56
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DJIA 31832.74 À 30.30 0.1%
NASDAQ 13073.82 À 3.7%
STOXX 600 420.41 À 0.8%
10-YR. TREAS. À 14/32 , yield 1.545%
OIL $64.01 g $1.04
GOLD $1,716.60 À $38.90
Across the Southwest, Drought Takes Toll on Water Supply
What’s News Business & Finance
S
Electric-car startup Lucid has an undisclosed commitment to build an assembly plant in Saudi Arabia. B1 Political pressure mounted in Texas to reverse $16 billion in power overcharges from last month’s blackouts. A3 Walt Disney’s ESPN is closing in on a long-term rights deal for National Hockey League games. B1 Disney said its flagship streaming service, Disney+, has surpassed 100 million subscribers. B4 T-Mobile US will automatically enroll its phone subscribers in an advertising program informed by their online activity. B3 Conagra is in talks to sell the Hebrew National hot dog brand to Brazil’s JBS. B1
World-Wide The coronavirus relief bill under consideration by the House after passage by the Senate would increase subsidies to people who buy ACA health plans, marking the biggest changes to the health law since its passage. A2 Manhattan prosecutors are intensifying their investigation into Trump’s businesses, taking aim at a Westchester County, N.Y., estate that the former president unsuccessfully tried to develop. A4 Los Angeles’s school district reached a tentative deal with its teachers union that would allow some students to resume in-person learning. A6 Two of Biden’s nominees to senior Justice Department posts told a Senate panel they would seek to run an agency free of partisan influence. A4 The president is expected to nominate Lina Khan, a critic of big technology companies’ market power, to a seat on the FTC. A4 The U.S. and China are engaging on climate change, a cautious step that could show whether they can work together on shared priorities. A9 New York Gov. Cuomo’s office received a complaint from another female employee alleging inappropriate behavior by the governor and referred it to investigators. A3 Queen Elizabeth expressed concern about allegations raised by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, but said the royal family would address them privately. A18
Swings in Tech Sector Spark Volatility in Hot SPAC Market BY AMRITH RAMKUMAR Shares of technology firms and special-purpose acquisition companies surged on Tuesday, bouncing back after a weekslong streak of declines that pushed some popular SPACs down 20% or more in a month. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 3.7% for its biggest advance since November, trimming a recent slide that just one day earlier dragged it more than 10% below the high it reached in February. Shares of electric-car company Tesla Inc. rebounded 20%, adding more than $100 billion to the company’s market value, or roughly twice the
s 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved
By Julie Steinberg, Ben Dummett, Duncan Mavin and Maureen Farrell
value of Ford Motor Co. Some popular companies that went public by merging with so-called SPACs in recent years—including online realestate firm Opendoor Technologies Inc., space-tourism company Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. and electric-car company Lordstown Motors Corp.— added 6% or more on Tuesday. Those all remain down at least 30% in the past month. Tuesday’s swings highlighted the competing dynamics playing out in financial Please turn to page A2 SPAC pioneers finally reap the rewards................................. B1
Index performance
CHANGE SINCE FEB. 12 CLOSE
2.5%
Dow Jones Industrial Average
0
+1.2% S&P 500
–2.5
–1.5%
–5.0 –7.5
Nasdaq Composite
–7.2%
–10.0 –12.5 Feb. 12
March
The infusion of cash was in addition to the $1.5 billion the Vision Fund had invested in Greensill in 2019. The money, not previously reported, was used as a financial backstop when another Vision Fund company, construction startup Katerra, came close to defaulting on a loan to Greensill, the people said. Greensill, which specialized in making short-term cash-advance-style loans to companies, filed for insolvency this week after regulators took over its banking unit and Credit Suisse Group AG froze investments funds critical to the startup’s operations. Greensill packaged loans to companies into securities, known as notes, that were purchased by the Credit Suisse funds and sold to investors as low-risk, money-market-style investments. SoftBank, founded by billionaire Masayoshi Son, is a giPlease turn to page A8 Tycoon is seeking to delay payments to Greensill........... B2
Source: FactSet
A Lithium Miner Stakes a Claim Migrants See Path For Nation’s Electric-Car Future To U.S. as Easier With New President
Piedmont is at leading edge of efforts to build domestic supply chain
In late February, Honduran teenager Elder Cruz was detained by Mexican immigration authorities near Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala and deported to Honduras. By Juan Montes in Mexico City and Juan Carlos Rivera in San Pedro Sula, Honduras But that isn’t stopping the 15-year-old, an orphan who said he plans to try his luck at the U.S. border again in the coming months because “[Donald] Trump is no longer president of the U.S. and there’s a new one,” even though he doesn’t know the name of President Biden. “My friends have told me that with the new president, it will be easier to enter the U.S.,” said Mr. Cruz, who lives in the violent Villeda Morales slum near the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula.
Across parts of Mexico and Central America, the source of most illegal immigration to the U.S., many would-be migrants don’t follow the ins and outs of U.S. immigration policy. But many agree on one thing: It is probably easier to get in with Mr. Biden than with Mr. Trump. That perception is a key factor in fueling the increasing numbers of unaccompanied minors and families currently turning up at the border. In January, 5,707 minors, mostly teenagers, arrived at the border alone, up from 4,855 the month before. That number is expected to jump again when February data are released this week. The surge highlights the difficulties faced by the new U.S. administration in overhauling what it has called Mr. Trump’s draconian immigration policies without sparking a new wave of migrants that leads to a criPlease turn to page A6
INSIDE JOSÉ A. ALVARADO JR. FOR WSJ
Personal Journal A11-12 Property Report... B6 Sports....................... A14 Technology............... B4 U.S. News............. A2-8 Weather................... A14 World News...... A9,18
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SoftBank Confronts Deeper Losses on Greensill
DRY SPELL: Parts of the Southwest, such as Mojave County, Ariz., above, are locked in one of the most extreme droughts in years, jeopardizing farms and ranches and putting new pressure on urban areas in need of water. A3
JOURNAL REPORT Workplace Technology: Updating the laptop for a new era. R1-10 CONTENTS Arts in Review... A13 Business News.. B3,5 Crossword.............. A14 Heard on Street. B12 Markets..................... B11 Opinion.............. A15-17
YEN 108.49
SoftBank Group Corp.’s Vision Fund injected at least $400 million into Greensill Capital at the end of last year, according to people familiar with the matter, deepening the potential losses the giant tech investor faces in the startup’s collapse.
BUSINESS & FINANCE T-Mobile will give advertisers data on its phone subscribers’ online activities. B3
SPORTS Early digital collectors of officially licensed NBA video highlights score big. A14
BY SCOTT PATTERSON AND AMRITH RAMKUMAR GASTON COUNTY, N.C.—The rolling hills of North Carolina’s Piedmont region are an unlikely setting for a next-generation technology transformation that has become a national priority. Lamont Leatherman, a 55-year-old geologist who grew up here, is its unlikely instigator. A decade ago, he combed the woods near his childhood home in search of lithium, a soft, white metal he believed would be crucial to the burgeoning industry of electric vehicles.
Chaplains Become Shoppers i
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Salesforce. #1 CRM.
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Mariners stuck on cargo ships get special deliveries
Now, the company he helped found five years ago to explore the region, Piedmont Lithium Ltd., has deployed drilling rigs throughout the 2,300 acres it owns or controls to map out deposits. The company is preparing to launch one of the first big new lithium mines in the U.S. in decades. Lithium is an increasingly crucial material, central to the rechargeable batteries that power cellphones and electric cars. These batteries are becoming a disruptive force in the energy sector as well. Demand, especially from vehicles, is expected to Please turn to page A10
Ranked #1 for CRM Applications based on IDC 2020H1 Revenue Market Share Worldwide.
19.8%
BY ANNE KADET
AMY LOMBARD FOR WSJ
Shares of tech firms and special-purpose acquisition companies surged, bouncing back after a streak of declines that pushed some popular SPACs down 20% or more in a month. A1 The Nasdaq jumped 3.7%, while the S&P 500 and Dow industrials gained 1.4% and 0.1%, respectively. B1
EURO $1.1901
Investor put additional $400 million last year into U.K. firm that filed for insolvency days ago BRIDGET BENNETT FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
oftBank’s Vision Fund injected at least $400 million into Greensill at the end of 2020, deepening the potential losses the giant tech investor faces in the startup’s collapse. A1 Metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta is negotiating a standstill agreement with Greensill to give his companies breathing space over payments on billions of dollars of debt. B2
HHHH $4.00
WSJ.com
Cora DiDomenico has worked as a chaplain for three years at the International Seafarers’ Center in Port Newark, N.J., visiting with cargo ships’ crews from around the world. It’s an unusual job. But thanks to the pandemic, her role has expanded to include a quirky dimension: seafarers’ personal shopper. Last week, the chaplain, armed with shopping bags from Best Buy and Target, climbed the long gangway to the deck of a 558-foot fruit-juice tanker where she was promptly swarmed by a half-dozen eager mariners in fluorescent coverPlease turn to page A10
5.3% 4.8% 3.9% 3.8% 2016
2017
2018
2019
2020H1
Source: IDC, Worldwide Semiannual Software Tracker, October 2020.
salesforce.com/number1CRM CRM market includes the following IDC-defined functional markets: Sales Force Productivity and Management, Marketing Campaign Management, Customer Service, Contact Center, Advertising, and Digital Commerce Applications. © 2020 salesforce.com, inc. All rights reserved. Salesforce.com is a registered trademark of salesforce.com, inc., as are other names and marks.