Chris Wallace: $1.9 trillion COVID stimulus bill will eventually pass, but with a caveat
'Fox News Sunday' anchor Chris Wallace says stimulus bill will pass the Senate, but only after $15 minimum wage hike is removed.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is still throwing sand in the gears of good government. The result risks bankrupt states and localities.
The Trump backers Rudy Giuliani, Sydney Powell, and Mike Lindell face defamation lawsuits from Dominion and Smartmatic that may succeed, experts say.
Nearly two dozen Republicans attending CPAC in Florida have designated a proxy to vote on their behalf, citing the "ongoing public health emergency."
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is privately saying he can pass President Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus package but wants to avoid any last-minute changes jeopardizing its trajectory, three sources familiar with the talks tell Axios.Why it matters: While the president hoped to enlist Republican support for the measure, Schumer has worked to ensure he has a solid 50 votes to muscle it through if necessary. A parliamentary ruling Thursday improved his chances.Stay on top of the latest market trends and economic insights with Axios Markets. Subscribe for freeWhat we're hearing: Schumer met with a group of moderate Democratic senators Thursday morning. They pushed for some changes in the bill — including moving pots of money around, more funding for broadband and rural hospitals and extending unemployment benefits beyond August.“They have some ideas and we are going to check them out,” Schumer told Axios afterward.Asked if some of the lawmakers suggested lowering the bill's overall price tag, Schumer said: “I am not going into any details.”The leader is wary of rocking the boat right now, the sources said, and expects the measure will remain relatively unchanged in its final version."Schumer [has] been privately meeting with members to get their input on the legislation to make sure it was included in the drafting," a person familiar with the meetings said.The latest: The Senate parliamentarian announced Thursday night that Democrats could not include a $15 minimum wage provision within the measure under the reconciliation process.The ruling was significant because Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) said they were opposed to including the wage hike in the package, potentially costing the Democrats critical votes.The bottom line: Democrats have largely been in lockstep that a nearly $2 trillion package is required to meet the urgency of the COVID-19 crisis.Last month, a group of 10 moderate Republican senators offered an approximately $600 billion counterproposal, but it was summarily rejected by the White House.The White House has been publicly optimistic it will add some Republican support but has privately been preparing to pass the package regardless.That strategy requires the entire Democratic Senate caucus to support it, leaving no room for error.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
Rivera only got a brief moment to point out why the term "illegal alien" is dehumanizing before once again being drowned out by Hannity and Bongino.
The Senate on Thursday confirmed former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, 64-35, to lead the Energy Department, with 14 Republicans joining all 50 members of the Democratic caucus to give President Biden his 10th Cabinet-level appointee (plus one deputy secretary). After her confirmation, Granholm tweeted that she's "obsessed with creating good-paying clean energy jobs in all corners of America in service of addressing our climate crisis" and "impatient for results." Granholm repeated her priorities on MSNBC Thursday night. "I am all about bringing clean-energy jobs" to communities, especially those, like Michigan, reliant on fossil fuels, she told host Chris Hayes. "I am totally obsessed about how to create good-paying jobs in America," and the clean-energy sector "is the biggest opportunity for us." The market is shifting toward green energy, regardless of what politicians prefer, and the Energy Department's 17 national labs are creating ways to not only expand renewable energy but also "decarbonize fossil fuels," Granholm said. "And honestly, if we can bring the supply chains for all of these clean-energy products to the United States, instead of letting our economic competitors eat us for lunch, the jobs that could be created for us in the U.S. — good-paying jobs — are boundless." Biden has sent the Senate more nominations, and gotten fewer of them confirmed, than any recent president, Axios reports, citing a count by the Partnership for Public Service and The Washington Post. Biden has submitted more nominees to the Senate — but received fewer confirmations — than recent presidents, data shows. https://t.co/tZQbBPahjI pic.twitter.com/BbuqlSmwOP — Axios (@axios) February 26, 2021 "The new president is facing a pandemic without a surgeon general or head of the Department of Health and Human Services, he confronts an economic crisis without his leaders at Labor or Commerce, and domestic terrorism is on the rise with no attorney general," Axios notes. You can track Biden's nominations at The Washington Post. More stories from theweek.comJournalist Tim O'Brien, who's seen Trump's taxes, thinks Trump's accountant will now flip in D.A. inquiryGOP lawmakers reportedly cite 'public health emergency' in skipping votes, despite speaking at CPACTed Cruz jokes about Cancun trip at CPAC as over a million Texans still lack drinkable water
Trump weighed in for the first time after he indicated he would play an active role on the campaign trail during the 2022 midterm elections.
An avowed white supremacist was sentenced on Friday to 19-1/2 years in prison after pleading guilty months ago to a federal hate-crimes case stemming from a botched plot to bomb a historic Colorado synagogue in 2019. Richard Holzer, 28, appeared in a federal courtroom in Denver for a sentencing that capped an undercover FBI investigation of a plan to blow up Temple Emanuel in Pueblo, Colorado, the second-oldest synagogue in the state. Although the plot was thwarted, U.S. District Judge Raymond Moore said Holzer had sought “to terrorize the Jewish community” of Pueblo, a city of 112,000 residents about 100 miles south of Denver.
Those who turned up to the Senate gym Wednesday morning were welcomed by color printouts of Cruz's Cancun trip that read "Bienvenido de Nuevo, Ted!"
Cowboys fans may have thought the franchise tag, long-term contract back-and-forth between the front office and quarterback Dak Prescott couldn't get more muddied. And then Russell Wilson entered the chat. Thursday's announcement was indeed a ...
The German chancellor said she wasn't eligible because the vaccine isn't approved for people over 65 in Germany.
Our cycle of lockdowns and reopenings always keeps the coronavirus burning through the population, providing ample opportunities for new strains to emerge.
After the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic ripped through America's cities a little known beach town in Florida called Miami saw its population quintuple in seven years to 150,000 as people fled the metropolises. A century later, a similar phenomenon is underway, sparked by Covid-19, combined with the exponential rise of teleworking, and the crippling unaffordability of housing in city centres. According to data from the US Postal Service, New York City lost a staggering 110,978 people last year, up 487 per cent from the same period in 2019. Chicago lost 31,347, San Francisco, 27,187, and Los Angeles 26,438. Many of them went to Florida and Texas, others to previously unfashionable places like Boise, Idaho. Some economists believe the pandemic has turbocharged what was an already inevitable decline for so-called "superstar cities" - specifically New York and San Francisco - which have now peaked as hubs for population and jobs. "It was already happening but the Covid [teleworking] technology revolution has put that move on steroids," said Susan Wachter, Professor of Finance at The Wharton School. "It's massively shifted. The speed has been stunning. Pre-covid we were seeing a decrease in population in superstar cities, the least affordable cities. They were victims of their own success. But it was slow. "You could move out, but you would lose that job. Now you can commute from Texas to San Francisco by way of Zoom." New Yorkers leave ghost town behind Second and third tier cities like Miami, Austin, Nashville, Boise and Boulder are now set to boom. "It's just beginning. It will be a decade for this to play out," Said Professor Wachter. "But it's going to be a new era of distributed urbanisation. These cities will become rivals and grow in ways we have never seen before. It'll be exciting for them and the United States." Resilient New Yorkers had withstood the 1980s crack epidemic, 9/11, and the 2008 financial crisis. But the pandemic appears to have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Upscale Manhattan neighbourhoods have become virtual ghost towns. Hungry rats, which usually feast on tossed restaurant food or rubbish, have reportedly turned to cannibalism in the Upper West Side. Normally cramped streets lie empty and burglaries have soared. Property prices have tumbled up to 20 per cent. Hannah McFarlane, who lives in Soho, said her building has 25 apartments but only six occupants remain. "The apartment block was always noisy and bustling," she said. "It’s odd to say, but I kind of miss it.” Among the tens of thousands who have fled New York was Abigail Jaffe, 28, who works in public relations. She "took a leap of faith" and acted on a long held desire to go live in Austin, Texas after her employer adopted remote working. In New York she had shared a flat with a friend, but for less money she got a mortgage on a house in Austin. "I got a dog, I got a car, I'm buying a house. My space has exponentially increased," she said. "I miss the energy that comes from being with colleagues in New York but I love a lot of things about Texas. I love country music. It was just claustrophobic in New York during the pandemic. There was nowhere to go, it was almost apocalyptic."
Aaron Hicks, who dating Cheyenne Woods, Tiger Woods' niece, spoke about the legendary golfer's car accident during his Zoom availability at Yankees spring training Thursday, calling the incident "extremely scary."
Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that Texas is looking at when it will be able to lift all statewide orders related to the coronavirus pandemic and that an announcement is forthcoming.
Sanders said he would introduce a plan to end tax breaks for large corporations and set up incentives for small businesses to implement a pay hike.
FOX News Washington correspondent Rich Edson has the details on 'Special Report'
NEW YORK — One-time Gambino crime family boss Peter Gotti, the successor and older brother to John “Dapper Don” Gotti, died behind bars Thursday after losing two bids for early release, his lawyer confirmed. He was 81. The former sanitation worker-turned-mob don was convicted in 2004 of racketeering conspiracy, including charges of placing a $70,000 bounty on the head of Gambino family ...
Meadows said he was "excited" for Trump to reassert his power in the Republican party, which he suggested will continue to be led by the Trumps.
The House narrowly approved Democrats’ $1.9 trillion coronavirus-relief bill early Saturday morning, in a tight 219-212 vote that mostly fell along party lines. The bill contains $1,400 direct payments for most Americans, $170 billion to colleges and K-12 schools to cover reopening costs, and $70 billion for coronavirus testing and vaccination programs. Additionally, the relief package allocates $350 billion in funding for state, local, and tribal governments. President Biden has pushed for the bill’s passage, however Republicans opposed some of the provisions in the legislation, arguing they were clearly extraneous. “This isn’t a relief bill. It takes care of Democrats’ political allies while it fails to deliver for American families,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R, Calif.) told The Washington Post on Friday. “We already know what is the best stimulus plan out there: It is to fully reopen our economy. To do that, we need our economy to go back to work, back to school and back to health.” Roughly two hours before the vote, McCarthy said that Congress wouldn’t vote on the bill until 2 a.m. on Saturday “because Democrats are so embarrassed by all the non-COVID waste in this bill that they are jamming it through in the dead of night.” Every House Republican voted against the bill, as did just two Democrats: Representatives Jared Golden of Maine and Kurt Schrader of Oregon. Both also opposed Democrats’ $3 trillion bill last May that failed to become law. “During challenging times, the country needs its elected leaders to work together to meet the most urgent needs in their communities,” Golden said, explaining his decision to vote against the bill, according to The Associated Press. “This bill addresses urgent needs, and then buries them under a mountain of unnecessary or untimely spending.” House Democrats included a provision to raise the federally mandated minimum wage to $15 an hour, despite decreasing likelihood that the provision would pass the Senate. With the Senate tied 50-50, Democrats are attempting to pass the coronavirus relief bill via budget reconciliation procedures, which allow for a simple-majority vote instead of a filibuster-proof vote of 60. However, the Senate parliamentarian ruled on Thursday night that a minimum wage increase could not pass as part of budget reconciliation. “It is inevitable to all of us, the $15 minimum wage will be achieved,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on the House floor late Friday, “even if it is inconceivable to some, it is inevitable to us – and we will work diligently to shorten the distance between the inevitable and the inconceivable.” Lawmakers have urgently worked to ensure approved legislation will reach Biden’s desk by March 14, when pandemic unemployment aid programs are set to expire.