we had a spirited conversation with abc 7 contributor phil matier and lahnee chen. what happens now that we have a new administration? our inauguration coverage continues at 4:00. we'll talk live with congressman eric swalwell. have a good one. thank you for joining us. >>> tonight, america waitnesses history. a new president is sworn in. president joe biden, america's 46th president. and vice president kamala harris making history as the first woman, first black, first asian-american vp. an inauguration like no other. president biden sworn in on the capitol steps in the shadow of a pandemic, an economic crisis, amid deep national divisions. under tight security and in the very place where rioters descended on the capitol two weeks ago today. >> so help me god. >> congratulations, mr. president. >> presidentid address nation, calling for unity and proclaiming this america's day. and that democracy has prevailed. vice president kamala harris making history. she will carry an influential voice with the president and a decisive vote in the senate. shattered glass on a

phil matier explains how covid has become a factor. >> the other part is that there's right now not room in the jails. for mcallister. there's a movement actually to keep them out of jails, in part because of the covid virus. jails and prisons are afraid of being hotspots, so they don't want non-violent offenders in there as well. >> you can read his columns every wednesday and sunday. >>> a power play in silicon valley by google employees. what they could gain by forming a union. >>> this is the final week we get to see alex trebek as "jeopardy" host. >>> the pandemic is about to make history again. this time on a college basketball court tomorrow in boston. >>> and i'm meteorologist drew tuma. we're tracking more showers on the way. he'll have the timing in the accuweather forecast. >>> first, a look at what's coming up on "jimmy kimmel live." >> thanks, dan and ama. join me from my breakfast nook again. >> you use like a real dropper and rub it in your hands and rub it all in. >> hold on, let me try it myself. oh, my god, it's incredi next, a big real estate investment from google. it

phil matier explains how covid has become a factor. >> the other part is that there's right now not room in the jails. for mcallister. there's a movement actually to keep them out of jails, in part because of the covid virus. jails and prisons are afraid of being hotspots, so they don't want non-violent offenders in there as well. >> you can read his columns every wednesday and sunday. >>> a power play in silicon valley by google employees. what they could gain by forming a union. >>> this is the final week we get to see alex trebek as "jeopardy" host. >>> the pandemic is about to make history again. this time on a college basketball court tomorrow in boston. >>> and i'm meteorologist drew tuma. we're tracking more showers on the way. he'll have the timing in the accuweather forecast. >>> first, a look at what's coming up on "jimmy kimmel live." >> thanks, dan and ama. join me from my breakfast nook again. >> you use like a real dropper and rub it in your hands and rub it all in. >> hold on, let me try it myself. oh, my god, it's incredibl no one sees you need help. no one knows you're n

coming up next, ab 7 news contributor and "chronicle" insider phil matier joins us to talk about the lifting of the stay-at-home order. did he see it coming? >>> and just ahead, a look at how states are doing on distributing vaccines equitably. our new race and social justice reporter julian glover digs into the ♪ ♪ are you ready to join the duers? those who du more with less asthma. anks to dupixent. the add-on treatment for specific types of moderate-to-severe asthma. dupixent isn't for sudden breathing problems. it can improve lung function for better breathing in as little as 2 weeks and help prevent severe asthma attacks. it's not a steroid but can help reduce or eliminate oral steroids. dupixent can cause serious allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. get help right away if you have rash, shortness of breath, chest pain, tingling or numbness in your limbs. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection and don't change or stop your asthma treatments, including steroids, without talking to your doctor. du more with less asthma. talk to your asthma specialist about dupixen

abc 7 news contributor and "chronicle" insider phil matier is here with us. phil, let's start with this whipsaw that has happened for business owners. what's your take on this stay-at-home order lift? >> well, the governor calls it the toggle switch that's going to go back and forth as the need demands. but it is a whipsaw for small businesses and large businesses as well who are trying to at least get some idea of where the goalposts are as we continue on. and this latest was not unexpected. i will tell you that county officials sort of saw this coming in the bay area, but what was a stunner to them, dan, was that it included southern california and parts of the central valley, where the covid infection rates and the icu beds are still at a critical level. so the question here was why are we opening the entire state? if there's still a danger of this spreading up into the north. and that is cause for concern both with businesses and with local governments. >> and the question you raise is a good one. how much pressure is the governor under to do this given th

. >>> also next, today's sunday "san francisco chronicle" has phil matier's final column. hi, i'm pat and i'm 75 years old. we live in the mountains so i like to walk. i'm really busy in my life; i'm always doing something. i'm not a person that's going to sit too long. in the morning, i wake up and the first thing i do is go to my art studio. a couple came up and handed me a brochure on prevagen. i've been taking prevagen for about four years. i feel a little bit brighter and my mind just feels sharper. i would red t. it absolutely work agen. healthier brain. better life. congratulationf 's last days in the chronicle newsroom at 5th and mission. how does it feel? >> it feels a little bit like getting out of school for the summer, you know? there's only so much time in life, only so much time in the day, and right now i'm at the point where i get to choose what it is i'm going to be doing and where i want to have my interests. i've enjoyed for writing for the newspaper for lo these many years, a challenge, a joy, never a shortage of controversy, comedy, corruption, and cha

chronicle insider at abc7 contributor phil matier responded to the mayor's plan on our 4:00 newscast.> right now the biggest challenge is getting the businesses back into san francisco. and a lot of them are saying we might come back, but not as with many people and not as often. that means sales taxes are down. the hotel and convention industry is far from getting back on its feet. so what's the mayor doing? she is saying look, we've made hit the far. we know it's been tough. let's keep a positive attitude and see if we can get to the end of that tunnel where that light is shining. with any luck, that tunnel isn't going to keep going further and further on, but only time and a good vaccination not just planned but actual vaccination program will get us a long way. >> that was phil on our 4:00 broadcast. he was quick to point out that this of course was the mayor's vision which was different than the board of supervisors' or voters' vision. phil's column pour the chronicle will be published sunday. he is continuing as our abc7 insider. there is a lot more to come from phil here on abc

on abc7 news at 4:00, we spoke live with abc7 news contributor and chronicle insider phil matier about how california could take advantage. >> and governor gavin newsom wasted no time. he sent a letter off to biden. and being gavin newsom, it was two pages of letter plus two attachments which basically said send money, send money, send money, on everything from covid to -- gavin's not short on breath, even when he is writing. for school openings, for high speed rail, for water projects. send money. that's what they're really hoping washington is going to turn on the tap big-time. >> you can read phil's columns every wednesday and sunday. biden's speech was one of the best she heard and struck even tone. >> it was an upbeat, promising speech, one of unity, but also recognizing what has taken place in this country. he talked about racism and all the challenges. he is not dodging, and he did not dodge the hard issues. >> a long-time friend of vice president harris, and says she is looking forward to working more with her. >>> donald trump broke with tradition today and did not attend the

"san francisco chronicle" insider and abc7 news contributor phil matier joining us live now. all right, we have the change of leadership. let's talk what this means specifically for the state of california, which battled the trump administration for the past four years on a litany of issue. >> yes, everything from climate change to covid to wildfires around the state. it's been a rough four years for the democrats in california as they battled the administration in washington, but now that's all changed, as we saw with the beginning of the signing of the executive orders on everything from immigration to the requirements for gas on cars, another point of contention between the state. but larry, if politics is brass knuckles, let's get down to it. yes, kamala harris is the vice president. that's great. but the real powerhouse is still nancy pelosi. she is from california. the minority leader in the house is from california. and we've got a new senator, alex padilla up there. so i tnk that california is in a good position going forward. and governor gavin newsom wasted no time.

let's bring in "san francisco chronicle" insider and abc7 news contributor phil matier.essment of the city's response? >> well, she said there is a light at the end of the tunnel. the que to shut down now it's stretched on, stretched on and stretched on to ten months. is it going to be a year? her assessment of san francisco's initial handling of the pandemic is absolutely correct. she shut down, she is one of the first cities in the nation to shut down. shut down big-time. the entire bay area did. and a lot of people say that's one of the reasons we have a lower death rate than the rest of the nation, despite the recent surges, we've all managed to keep it going, down, down, down. but the economics have also suffered and there is a question about you can do a great job about shutting down, but how are you going to do reopening. that's the big challenge facing the mayor and other bay area cities as well. negative, doubt. so many businesses have shuttered during this time. but the mayor, phil, says san franciscans should feel hopeful with the economy now they're starting

abc7 news contributor phil matier explains how covid-19 could be a factor. >> the other part right now there is not room in the jails for mcalister. a move to keep them out of the jails. jails and prisons are afraid of becoming hot spots so they don't want nonviolent offenders in the there. >>> the united kingdom will implement another national lockdown in direct response to surging covid-19 cases. case counts are soaring and so are hospitalizations. jobina is at the live desk with the stringent measures set to become measures just a few hours. >> boris johnson said the new more contagious virus variant was behaving in a, quote, frustrating and alarming way. the national lockdown for england will be in effect until mid february at the least here. nonessential businesses must close, restaurants can only do takeout services. all primary and secondary schools and colleges must transition to distance learning starting today. britains are being told to avoid leaving their homes for nonessential reasons. the lockdown is set to become law wednesday morning. there are more than 26,000 people i