Category: US Senate

Senate intel leaders vow to ‘get to the bottom’ of increasing directed-energy attacks

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U.S. personnel have reported symptoms similar to the “Havana Syndrome” attacks from 2016.

The leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee vowed on Friday to “get to the bottom of” a series of directed-energy attacks on U.S. personnel around the world, after POLITICO reported that such attacks appear to be increasing.

“Ultimately we will identify those responsible for these attacks on American personnel and will hold them accountable,” wrote Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Vice Chair Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) in a statement.

The statement came a day after POLITICO reported that U.S. officials are investigating a suspected directed-energy attack on U.S. government personnel in Miami in 2020, as well as at least two additional possible attacks on U.S. soil. Continue reading.

McConnell accuses Biden of ‘bait and switch’ for keeping campaign promises

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Sen. Mitch McConnell accused President Joe Biden of running as a moderate but not governing as one.

Speaking to reporters, McConnell said:

With regard to the direction of the Biden administration so far, I think it can best be described as the “Biden bait and switch.” President Biden ran as a moderate, but I’m hard pressed to think of anything at all that he’s done — so far — that would indicate some degree of moderation.

The bait is always the title, like the massive COVID bill, but with only 1% for vaccines and 9% for health care. Or infrastructure, which is the bait, but the details involve more money for electric cars than for most projects that most of us consider infrastructure. And of course a massive tax increase, undoing the 2017 tax bill, which produced the biggest, best economy in 50 years as recently as February of 2020. Or a bill styled as voting rights, which in fact is a carefully designed plan for the Democrats to take over all of American elections all across the country.

But while it is clear that McConnell does not back Biden’s agenda, it is anything but a “bait and switch.” His policy agenda as president has been consistent with the proposals he outlined as a candidate. Continue reading.

Ted Cruz busted for stance on corporate PACs — and where he really gets his money

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In a biting column for the Bulwark, conservative columnist Mona Charen called out Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) over his well-publicized rant about no longer taking money from corporate PACs — and pointed out it’s a lot of smoke and mirrors.

On Thursday, the Texas Republican made a big show in the Wall Street Journal by announcing he will refuse corporate PAC money because corporations are becoming too “woke.” 

According to Cruz, “For too long, woke CEOs have been fair-weather friends to the Republican Party: They like us until the left’s digital pitchforks come out. Then they run away. Or they mouth off on legislation they don’t understand—and hurt the reputations of patriotic leaders protecting our elections and expanding the right to vote. Enough is enough. Corporations that flagrantly misrepresent efforts to protect our elections need to be called out, singled out and cut off,” before adding, “In my nine years in the Senate, I’ve received $2.6 million in contributions from corporate political-action committees. Starting today, I no longer accept money from any corporate PAC. I urge my GOP colleagues at all levels to do the same.” Continue reading.

Why are Republicans touting parts of Biden’s covid relief plan?

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Not a single Republican lawmaker voted for the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, President Biden’s coronavirus relief package that doled out $1,400 checks for many Americans and provided aid to state and local governments, restaurants and businesses. The bill passed with only narrow majorities, each party stuck in its own corner.

Biden’s bill came just weeks after Congress had passed a coronavirus relief package under President Donald Trump, so many Republicans argued it was too much too soon. Of course, one cannot discount the idea that a change in presidents might have also had something to do with their votes.

Nevertheless, Republicans have been touting elements of the bill on Twitter and in news releases. Any big bill is going to have elements in it that might have, in other circumstances, won the support of lawmakers. Moreover, it might be worth letting constituents know about the potential largesse available from the federal government. Continue reading.

GOP Sen. Blackburn offers an odd excuse after she’s caught spreading lies about Biden’s plans

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During his Wednesday night speech before members of Congress, President Joe Biden outlined some proposals of his American Families Plan. Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, appearing on Fox Business earlier in the day, wrongly claimed that part of Biden’s proposal included making community college and pre-K mandatory. But her office walked back that claim after being fact-checked by CNN’s Daniel Dale.

Blackburn told Fox Business host Stuart Varney, “Three-year-old pre-K — they’re going to mandate this. Two years of college whether you like it or not. These are the things that take away choices from the American people. They give them a great big fat tax bill that they’re going to pay.”

Varney didn’t challenge Blackburn’s community college and pre-K claims, but he did say that “in an evenly divided Senate,” Biden “is not going to get all of the proposals.” Continue reading.

Sen. Tina Smith: Conversations with Minnesotans May 1, 2021

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Hi Friends, 

This month, we observed “National Public Health Week”, and I had conversations with three Minnesotans who are doing groundbreaking work in public health. Our discussion revolved around one of the toughest problems facing public health-addressing the health care needs of underrepresented communities.

My first guest was Dr. Charity Reynolds, MD who is the Medical Director at the Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northeastern Minnesota. In our discussion, Dr. Reynolds told me how she collaborated with the Tribe to build trust between public health workers and the community, a community with historic medical distrust. This trust, along with Tribal self-governance and infusion of resources, made Fond Du Lac one of the first places in the state to vaccinate all of their elders. You can watch the video here. 

Continue reading “Sen. Tina Smith: Conversations with Minnesotans May 1, 2021”

Josh Hawley brutally mocked for railing against big tech while using big tech to promote his book

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Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, one of the most stridently Trumpified Republicans in the U.S. Senate, has been railing nonstop against corporate America — especially big tech — for, as he sees it, promoting “woke” liberalism. And his new book, due out on May 4, is even titled “The Tyranny of Big Tech.” But the far-right Republican is being mocked and ridiculed unmercifully for using big tech to slam big tech.

HuffPost reporter Ed Mazza explains, “Hawley, one of the ringleaders of the January 6 attempt in Congress to overturn the election results based on lies and conspiracy theories, complained on Tuesday about a vague conspiracy against his anti-tech book by ‘corporate media and the woke mob.’ Just one problem: He made that gripe on Twitter — via an iPhone — with a link promoting the book on Amazon.com.”

In early January, Hawley announced that he would contest the results of the 2020 presidential election. And before Congress met to certify those results on January 6, Hawley infamously raised his arm in solidarity with a mob of Trump supporters gathered outside the U.S. Capitol Building — which was violently attacked that day. Hawley’s critics, from liberals and progressives to Never Trump conservatives, denounced him as the face of insurrection. Continue reading.

Nicolle Wallace pans Tim Scott’s rebuttal: ‘Delivered from a planet where facts don’t matter’

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MSNBC anchors fact-checked Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) after his rebuttal speech following President Joe Biden’s first address to Congress.

“I do think it’s going to be hard for most people who are paying any attention to politics to swallow the Republican support making it easier to vote line and the long passage he had about how Democrats are the ones blocking police reform,” MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow noted. “There’s some stuff there that may make sense in a sliver of Republican world, but in the news world, I don’t think will ring.”

“This is a speech delivered from a planet where facts don’t matter, which is where the current Republican Party resides, so it’s not really his fault, but it is his responsibility to get his facts straight,” Wallace said. Continue reading.

CNN Poll: GOP Efforts To Discredit Biden Are Failing

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Republicans have been adamant that President Joe Biden’s popularity will fall as they vilify his policy proposals, including the coronavirus relief package Congress passed in March and the infrastructure bill congressional Democrats are currently trying to pass.

Yet a new CNN poll released Wednesday found that their strategy has not worked, as Biden — and his policies — remain popular nearly 100 days into his tenure, despite the GOP’s best efforts.

According to the CNN poll, 53 percent of Americans approve of the job Biden has done in his first 100 days in office. That approval rating tracks with Biden’s approval rating average from FiveThirtyEight, which has hovered around 53percent since he was sworn in on January 20 — a level he has maintained despite GOP criticism. Continue reading.