1. Coachella announced its lineup Jan. 2, which included Ariana Grande as a headliner, placing her among the ranks of the few women to ever headline the festival. Which celebrity, though, shocked some with their inclusion in the lineup?

a. Kanye West

b. Idris Elba

c. Kodak Black

2. With the government shutdown in its third week, President Donald Trump has been unyielding on the matter of funding for the border wall, which engaged the shutdown in the first place. He recently discussed what action in order to obtain funding for the wall?

a. Asking political allies of the U.S. for funding in exchange for lowered trade tariffs

b. A display of military force against Mexico in order to pressure it to pay for the wall

c. Declaration of a national emergency

3. When Democrats seated their members to gain control of the House of Representatives last week, impeachment was on many’s lips. What has House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on the matter?

a. That impeachment is the first thing on House Democrats’ minds and that they will be pursuing it immediately

b. That impeachment is on House Democrats’ minds but the time isn’t right for the move currently

c. That impeachment is the farthest thing from House Democrats’ minds right now and they have no intentions of pursuing the move

4. The Pew Research Center recently released data about the diversity in the members of the 116th Congress. In many ways, this is the most diverse seating of Congress in U.S. history; however, Congress still has a long way to go in truly reflecting the U.S. population. What category in particular did the research show as not making significant strides toward more closely reflecting the U.S. population?

a. Christians

b. Men

c. White people

4. Lifetime recently released a docu-series “Surviving R. Kelly,” despite legal threats. The series focuses on firsthand accounts, legal documents and police investigations chronicling allegations of physical and mental abuse by R. Kelly. Which musician recently released an apology for working with R. Kelly following the inclusion of an interview with him in the series?

a. John Legend

b. Jay-Z

c. Chance the Rapper

Answers:

1. b. Actor Idris Elba is performing at Coachella, according to the Los Angeles Times. When not acting, Elba DJs under the stage name DJ Big Driis. Despite hours of online speculation regarding his inclusion, Kanye West will not be performing at the festival. Neither will Kodak Black, in a move that frustrated some fans of breakout SoundCloud rappers such as Black, Rich the Kid, Lil Xan and Post Malone.

2. c. On Jan. 4 at a White House news conference and again on Jan. 6 with reporters, Trump discussed the possibility of declaring a national emergency in order to tap existing Pentagon funds to build the wall. According to Reuters, Vice President Mike Pence noted that the administration was in legal talks to determine the viability of such a move. According to the Los Angeles Times, legal experts say that the administration could use emergency powers in order to obtain the funding, but that the matter would likely go straight to court to determine the legality.

3. b. According to Bloomberg News, Pelosi and her lieutenants noted that the time is not currently right for the Democrat-controlled House to pursue impeachment. However, they didn’t fully rule out the possibility, but top Democrats did say that, in order to pursue the move, they would need the support of Senate Republicans. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff also argued that there’s no point in pursuing impeachment without knowing the results of the Russia probe first.

4. a. While white men still occupy a large majority of Congress, more women and those of ethnic backgrounds were seated this year than any previous session, according to the Los Angeles Times reporting on the Pew figures. However, Christians are dramatically over-represented in Congress. The Pew report shows, from self-reporting statistics, that 88 percent of the members of the current Congress identify as some form of Christian while the U.S. population clocks in at around 70 percent.

5. c. Chance the Rapper issued a public apology for working with R. Kelly, according to New York Daily News. The interview clip in the series shows Chance expressing regret at not believing former accusers’ of Kelly. Chance expressed that collaborating with Kelly, which he did in a 2015 song, was a mistake. One of two artists fully featured in the series, John Legend has also been vocal on Twitter about Kelly, calling him “a serial child rapist.”