Defense secretary denies request to exempt Oklahoma National Guard from vaccine requirement
CBSN
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday denied a request by the Oklahoma governor to exempt members of the state's National Guard from the Defense Department's vaccine mandate.
Austin told Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt that all members of the Defense Department's service branches must comply with the vaccine order or jeopardize their service.
In a letter to Stitt, according to a copy obtained by CBS News, Austin said, "To maintain a healthy and ready military force capable of protecting the American people, the immediate vaccination against COVID-19 is an essential military readiness requirement for all components and units of the military, including the Oklahoma National Guard."
The Consumer Federal Protection Bureau last week launched an inquiry into what the agency is calling "junk fees in mortgage closing costs." These additional fees, involving home appraisal, title insurance and other services, have spiked in recent years and can add thousands of dollars to the final cost of buying a home.
Retired Maj. Gen. William Anders, the former Apollo 8 astronaut who took the iconic "Earthrise" photo showing the planet as a shadowed blue marble from space in 1968, was killed Friday when the plane he was piloting alone plummeted into the waters off the San Juan Islands in Washington state. He was 90.