White House prepares massive infrastructure bill with universal pre-K, free community college, climate measures

Washington Post logo

White House officials are preparing to present President Biden with a roughly $3 trillion infrastructure and jobs package that includes high-profile domestic policy priorities such as free community college and universal prekindergarten, according to three people familiar with internal discussions.

After completing the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package this month, Biden administration officials are piecing together the next major legislative priority. Although no final announcement has been made, the White House is expected to push a multitrillion-dollar jobs and infrastructure plan as the centerpiece of the president’s “Build Back Better” agenda.

That effort is expected to be broken into two parts — one focused on infrastructure, and the other focused on other domestic priorities such as growing the newly expanded child tax credit for several years. The people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations, stressed that planning was preliminary and subject to change. Some aides said that the package’s final price tag remains unclear. Continue reading.

GOP Slams Biden’s ‘Unlawful’ Border Actions After Supporting Similar Trump Moves

Huff Post logo

Republicans eagerly supported Donald Trump when he circumvented Congress on the border wall. Now they say Joe Biden can’t do the same.

Republicans this week accused President Joe Biden of violating federal law after he froze funding for border wall construction between the U.S. and Mexico, an impediment they say is needed to stop the growing influx of migrants there.

Sens. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), joined by 38 other GOP senators, wrote a letter to the Government Accountability Office on Wednesday calling Biden’s executive order halting construction a “blatant violation of federal law and infringe(s) on Congress’s constitutional power of the purse.”

The lawmakers cited the Impoundment Control Act, a 1974 law aimed at preventing executive branch officials from unilaterally substituting their own funding decisions for those of Congress. Continue reading.

Watch GOP congressman refuse over and over again to admit Biden won the election

American Independent logo

Rep. Lee Zeldin said ‘it’s a bit ridiculous’ to even ask him.

Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) on Thursday refused to acknowledge that President Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. Zeldin’s denial came a day after U.S. intelligence agencies warned that similar rhetoric is fueling ongoing extremist threats in America.

Zeldin made his comments in an interview with Politico as part of the publication’s “Playbook Live” series.

Noting that he was one of several Republicans to vote against certifying the election results, reporter Ryan Lizza asked Zeldin to acknowledge that Biden won. Continue reading.

Phillips, Problem Solvers Caucus Deliver Bipartisan Priorities to President Biden

Rep. Phillips banner


WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Vice Chair Dean Phillips (MN-03) and his colleagues on the Problem Solvers Caucus (PSC) sent a letter to President Joe Biden outlining an agenda for bipartisan, bicameral legislation in the 117th Congress.

“You wouldn’t know it from cable news,” said Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03), Problem Solvers Caucus Vice-Chair, “but more often than not Democrats, Republicans, and Independents agree on the core issues that affect our country. We agree that our infrastructure should be the best in the world, that health care costs are out of control, and that a healthy economy means prosperous businesses and rising wages. The Problem Solvers Caucus thrives because it recognizes that bipartisanship doesn’t come from Congress—it comes from the American people. With President Biden’s help, we can fulfill that mandate, find common ground, and inspire a new era of collaboration in Washington.”

Now with 56 members, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, the Problem Solvers Caucus remains committed to finding bipartisan solutions to the major issues we face today. The PSC’s priority agenda for the 117th Congress – listed here in full – is succinctly summarized below.

Continue reading “Phillips, Problem Solvers Caucus Deliver Bipartisan Priorities to President Biden”

GOP goes on the attack against Biden relief bill

The Hill logo

Republicans are going on the attack against the newly signed $1.9 trillion coronavirus bill as they scramble to find a messaging foothold against Democrats’ first big win heading into 2022.

GOP lawmakers, who voted in unison against the legislation, are gambling that they’ll be able to tamp down the bill’s popularity in the long run, even as polls have shown it garners broad approval, including from their own voters.

The focus among congressional Republicans is twofold: highlighting provisions they hope will be damaging to Democrats and accusing their political opponents of trying to take credit for an economic recovery Republicans say was set in motion by the Trump administration. Continue reading.

Biden in TV speech tells Americans, only we together can defeat the virus

Washington Post logo

President Biden’s task Thursday night was daunting as he marked the first anniversary of the week when the coronavirus forced America to shut down. He needed to acknowledge the loss of more than 529,000 lives to the coronavirus pandemic and the accompanying economic suffering, while offering a sense of optimism that the future can and will be brighter.

The first 50 days of Biden’s presidency have offered examples of his leadership style — and how it differs so dramatically from that of former president Donald Trump. Thursday’s speech from the White House provided another revealing glimpse. Instead of a president saying, “I alone can fix it,” Biden said he can only succeed with the help of others.

Leaning against the lectern and looking directly into the camera, he said, “I will not relent until we beat this virus. But I need you, the American people. I need you. I need every American to do their part.” That contrast in leadership styles underscored what the transition from the 45th president to the 46th has meant. Continue reading.

Fox & Friends whines about Biden ‘kicking’ Trump over COVID: ‘We don’t need to go over the 500,000 dead’

Raw Story Logo

“Fox & Friends” co-host Brian Kilmeade on Friday bitterly complained that President Joe Biden didn’t give enough credit to former President Donald Trump for his response to the novel coronavirus.

While reviewing Biden’s address to the nation, Kilmeade said that the president should have credited Trump for the Operation Warp Speed program aimed at speeding up vaccine development.

Kilmeade also seemed upset that Biden mentioned the horrific toll that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the United States, as so far the disease has killed more than 525,000 Americans. Continue reading.

Companies are scaling back layoffs because of Biden’s stimulus package

Washington Post logo

Airlines, Amtrak, New York’s MTA cancel or delay thousands of layoffs after passage

Two airline giants said that they would cancel tens of thousands of planned layoffs because of aid earmarked for them in the $1.9 trillion stimulus measure passed by Congress this week, an early sign of job losses averted by the landmark package.

Scott Kirby, CEO of United Airlines, which had warned employees about 14,000 layoffs last month, said in a social media post that Congress’s new funding for airlines would allow the workers to receive their paychecks and health care through September.

American Airlines said it planned to rescind notices it sent last month to 13,000 employees about coming layoffs. Continue reading.

Biden urges national unity to reach normalcy

The Hill logo

President Biden on Thursday marked the one-year anniversary of pandemic restrictions, urging Americans to come together and do their part to remain vigilant against the coronavirus in order to return to a semblance of normalcy by summer.

In his first prime-time address as president, Biden made an emotional appeal to Americans who have lost loved ones to COVID-19 and those grappling with economic and personal hardships after a year of isolation.

The president balanced his look back at the grim year by offering a sense of optimism. He outlined steps his administration is taking to ramp up vaccine distribution, including a call for states to make all adults eligible to receive a shot by May 1. Continue reading.

Fox News buried in mockery for griping about Biden’s lack of press conferences: ‘Call me when he golfs every weekend’

Raw Story Logo

Fox News was hit with a round of mockery for making a big deal out of President Joe Biden going 50 days into his administration without a press conference.

The president conducted a town hall in mid-February to discuss the coronavirus pandemic and vaccination efforts, but he hasn’t conducted a solo news conference with reporters.

Social media users, however, quickly reminded Fox News of former president Donald Trump and his administration’s failures. Continue reading.