National 3-1-21

Herb Scribner

3 years ago

House passes Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid package (Politico) – All but two Democrats voted for the bill – Rep. Kurt Schrader and Rep. Jared Golden. No Republicans voted for the bill.
The golden Trump statue is the talk of CPAC. It was made in Mexico. (Slate) – A golden statue of former President Donald Trump has turned into the talk of the Conservative Political Action Conference taking place in Orlando.
Trump slams ‘establishment’ Republicans McConnell, Cheney and others in CPAC speech as some deny GOP civil war (Fox News) – “I am announcing that I will be actively working to elect strong, smart and tough Republican leaders,” Trump said. “We want Republican leaders who are loyal to the voters and who will vote proudly for the vision that I’ve laid out today.”
Trump teases 2024 presidential run in lie-filled CPAC speech (CNN) – During a lengthy speech in which he baselessly claimed he won in November, that the US has a “very sick and corrupt electoral process” and the Supreme Court failed to “have the courage” to overturn the election on his behalf, he called for a new round of voting restrictions.
Trump has captured the Republican party – and that’s great news for Biden (The Guardian) – As the Trump party takes over the GOP, anti-Trump Republicans are abandoning the party in droves – thereby weakening it for general elections
Cuomo says he was ‘being playful,’ but admits he ‘may have been insensitive’ amid sexual harassment claims (Fox News) – “I never intended to offend anyone or cause any harm. I spend most of my life at work and colleagues are often also personal friends.”
Trump railed against the ‘deep state,’ but he also built his own. Biden is trying to dismantle it. (NBC News) – From high-high level agencies to low-level boards, Biden’s administration is trying to rid the broader federal bureaucracy of Trump loyalists.
Iran rejects informal nuke talks with U.S. and EU, insists Biden drop sanctions first (CNBC) – In 2018, then-President Donald Trump kept a campaign promise and withdrew the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) calling it the “worst deal ever.”
Senior Democrats abandon backup plan on $15 minimum wage (Washington Post) – Lawmakers are backing off a Plan B to raise pay for workers through tax penalties on corporations.
Pompeo: Release of Khashoggi report by Biden admin ‘reckless’ (The Hill) – “It was political. It was aimed at harming a relationship with the kingdom of Saudi Arabia through the use of intelligence in a way that, as a former CIA director, I would have never stood for,” Pompeo said, adding, “So I regret that they chose to do this. It was a political stunt.”
Why Republicans Are Moving To Fix Elections That Weren’t Broken (NPR) – The Brennan Center, a nonprofit that tracks voting laws, says that 43 states — including key swing states — are considering 253 bills that would raise barriers to voting.
Biden expresses support for Amazon union vote in Alabama: ‘Make your voice heard’ (CNBC) – Without calling out Amazon, President Joe Biden on Sunday expressed support for workers “in Alabama and all across America” who are moving to unionize.