Tag: Biden administration

Senate confirms Becerra in tight vote with just one GOP defection

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The Senate on Thursday narrowly confirmed Xavier Becerra as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services by a 50-49 vote.

Republicans were nearly unanimous in their opposition to Becerra, the current attorney general of California. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) was the only Republican to vote in favor of his confirmation. 

Collins previously cited Becerra’s commitment to rural health care, and a shared goal of lowering drug prices among her reasons for supporting him. Continue reading.

New EPA administrator: ‘Science is back’

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In his first interview as the nation’s top environmental official, Michael Regan says he is focused on restoring morale at the agency, combatting climate change and lifting up communities burdened by pollution

Michael Regan has bold aspirations, and a long to-do list, as President Biden’s newly confirmed Environmental Protection Agency administrator.

He wants to hasten the nation’s shift to cleaner forms of energy, make transformational investments in communities battered by decades of pollution, and improve air and water quality around the country. But to accomplish any of that, the 44-year-old administrator said Monday, he must first help the EPA get its groove back.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do, starting with rebuilding the staff morale and getting all of our staff back to feeling as if they matter, their voices matter,” Regan said in his first interview after being sworn in last week. “We really have to restore the scientific integrity and the utilization of data, of facts, as we move forward and make some very important decisions.” Continue reading.

Republican AGs fight Biden rollback of Trump immigration agenda

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Republican state attorneys general are increasingly turning to the courts in hopes of preserving pieces of former President Trump’s hard-line immigration agenda as President Biden hurries to roll back the policies.

The emerging dynamic is something of a role reversal from when Democratic attorneys general sued Trump for immigration policies that liberals viewed as not only illegal but also cruel, xenophobic and at odds with the country’s immigrant roots.

Now, as Biden rushes toward repeal, he faces potential legal roadblocks of his own. Republican attorneys general say their lawsuits aim to ensure that U.S. immigration law is strongly enforced in order to protect public safety and save billions in tax dollars. Continue reading.

Biden struggles to unravel web of Trump immigration rules

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President Biden is finding it increasingly difficult to unwind his predecessor’s immigration regulations as the administration grapples with a surge of migrants at the southern border.

Trump officials put in place some 1,000 different immigration measures, according to figures compiled by the Immigration Policy Tracking Project, creating a complex and lengthy process for an administration that is seeking to turn the page on the Trump era.

The administration is trying to unravel those rules in the face of immediate challenges. Officials on Saturday night said the Federal Emergency Management Agency will launch a 90-day effort to care for the influx of unaccompanied migrant children at the U.S.-Mexico border. Continue reading.

Senate confirms Haaland to lead Interior

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The Senate on Monday voted to confirm Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) to lead the Interior Department, making her the nation’s first Native American Cabinet secretary. 

The Senate voted 51-40 to confirm Haaland. Nine members missed the vote.

Haaland’s opposition to a controversial method of fossil fuel extraction called fracking, participation in a protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline and support for the Green New Deal have made her a favorite among progressives, but drawn ire from some Republicans.  Continue reading.

FEMA ordered to help with influx of migrant children at U.S.-Mexico border

“A Border Patrol facility is no place for a child,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will help shelter and transfer a record number of child migrants showing up at the U.S.-Mexico border, the Homeland Security secretary said Saturday,

While the administration of President Joe Biden has avoided calling the situation a national emergency as former President Donald Trump declared in 2019 , it acknowledged a rising number of “encounters” at the border since April.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas said FEMA would help children found at the border avoid being treated as detainees of Customs and Border Protection and move them more quickly into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services. Continue reading.

While Fox And Trump Make Stupid Noises, Biden Is Busy Governing

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So it turns out that the whole time Sleepy Joe Biden was hiding in the basement, he was working on a plan to render congressional Republicans irrelevant. Which, for the foreseeable future, they certainly are.

If you don’t remember—why should you?—the GOP literally had no party platform in 2020. It was Trump, Trump, Trump. A cult of personality. What they didn’t count on was a strong majority of Americans being all Trumped-out. And so now they’ve got nothing to talk about.

Except, oh yes, the budget deficit. A deficit that literally tripled on Trump’s watch, leading many to doubt that it was ever such a terrible threat to begin with. Washington Republicans who stood quiet as deficits soared over the past four years are donning green eyeshades and calling themselves “fiscal conservatives” again. Continue reading.

Pentagon chief approves extension of National Guard deployment at the Capitol; Biden continues selling relief package to public

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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday approved a request from the Capitol Police to extend the deployment of National Guard members to protect Congress into May, defense officials said, keeping a military presence around one of the nation’s major landmarks for two more months.

Meanwhile, the Senate voted Tuesday to move forward on confirming two of President Biden’s Cabinet picks, Merrick Garland for attorney general and Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development, setting up final confirmation for both on Wednesday afternoon.

Biden and senior administration officials plan to continue trying to sell the public on the benefits of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan after it passes, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday, adding that the effort will include some travel by the president. Aplanned final House vote slated for Wednesday would send the measure to Biden’s desk. Continue reading.

Biden administration eyes new housing facilities for migrant children

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The White House said Tuesday that it’s looking at new facilities to house the unaccompanied children who have arrived by the thousands in recent weeks at the southern border as the Biden administration scrambles to deal with the growing migrant crisis.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration is scouting new facilities that would enable the administration to move thousands of children out of temporary Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) facilities and into housing managed by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where children would have access to education, health care and legal services.

“We’re looking at additional facilities where we can safely house children and ensure they have access to all of these resources,” Psaki said. Continue reading.

Senate confirms Merrick Garland as attorney general

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The Senate voted 70-30 on Wednesday to confirm Judge Merrick Garland as U.S. attorney general. 

Why it matters: Garland takes over the Justice Department after a tumultuous four years under former President Trump, who frequently sought to politicize the law enforcement agency. The former Supreme Court nominee has pledged to make prosecuting the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrectionists a top priority for the Justice Department.

  • Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee last month that he will “supervise the prosecution of white supremacists and others who stormed the Capitol,” as he did as a federal prosecutor investigating the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
  • The Justice Department is also overseeing an investigation into the business affairs of President Biden’s son, Hunter. Garland testified that he hasn’t spoken to the president about the issue. Continue reading.