Tag: President Biden

Biden’s America: Democrats see competence, Republicans see chaos

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President Biden’s administration by the middle of last week was confronted with images of long lines at gas pumps. The Middle East had erupted in violence. Headlines were warning that fears of inflation could threaten a fragile economy.

“Don’t panic,” Biden urged on Thursday afternoon. He meant it as a plea to drivers worried about filling their tanks, but it captured his message on the flurry of crises he is suddenly facing.

A president who prides himself on choreography and planning has seen in recent days a burst of unexpected events that showcase the need for political agility. The White House is approaching the problems — all politically sensitive — with a degree of calm and caution, even as some allies want Biden to be more forceful before events spiral further. Continue reading.

A refresher for Kevin McCarthy on people doubting Biden’s victory

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“I don’t think anybody is questioning the legitimacy of the presidential election. I think that is all over with. We’re sitting here with the president today, so, from that point of view, I don’t think that’s a problem.”

— House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), in response to a reporter’s question outside the White House, May 12, 2021

McCarthy had just spent 90 minutes in a White House meeting with President Biden, Vice President Harris and the other congressional leaders when he made these remarks. All participants agreed the discussion on how to fund infrastructure investments was cordial.

Under the old rules of Washington decorum, a gaggle with reporters immediately after the meeting was perhaps not the best time for the House Republican leader to question Biden’s legitimacy as president.

But if that was his calculus, McCarthy was decorous to a fault. Continue reading.

Biden’s jobs plan wins big support in small business survey — even on raising taxes

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President Joe Biden has proposed raising the United States corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, although he has suggested that he is willing to compromise and raise it to 25% instead if necessary. And according to a new survey by the organization Small Business for American’s Future, most small business owners in the United States are in favor of a corporate tax hike.

The survey was conducted from April 17 to May 5, and 1,052 small business owners participated. Small Business for America’s Future found that eight in ten of them supported Biden’s American Jobs Plan, and 67% of the participants favored raising corporate taxes in order to pay for it.

According to Small Business for America’s Future, “76% of small business owners think the American Jobs Plan will boost the economy, and 72% say it will help small businesses specifically; 51% of small business owners say raising taxes on Americans making more than $400,000 would not harm small businesses.” Continue reading.

Trump Ignored Cyber Defense, But GOP Blames Biden For Pipeline Hack

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EDITOR’S UPDATE: Colonial Pipeline announced that its East Coast gas line resumed operations around 5 pm ET on Wednesday evening. But the company cautioned that operations will ramp up for a few days before the line reaches full capacity.

Gas prices are up this week after a hacker attack shut down a major East Coast gas pipeline. Congressional Republicans are blaming the increased prices on President Joe Biden.

On May 8, the Colonial Pipeline Company announced it had been the victim of a cyberattack involving ransomware. The attack forced a shutdown of most of the privately held company’s 5,500-mile East Coast pipeline, which ordinarily delivers 45% of the region’s fuel and runsfrom Houston to New York. Panic-buying since the announcement has resulted in gas stations running out of fuel and the highest gas prices in six years.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a group of hackers with ties to Russia is behind the attacks, though there is no evidence they are acting on behalf of any government. The group, DarkSide, has a history of extorting money after hacking into company computer systems in the United States and Europe. Continue reading.

Biden signs executive order designed to strengthen federal digital defenses

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President Biden signed an executive order Wednesday aimed at shoring up the federal government’s digital defenses as his administration grapples with cybersecurity crises, including a ransomware strike on a major fuel pipeline that has caused gas shortages.

Less than four months into his tenure, Biden has had to respond to a Russian cyber espionage operation that affected nine federal agencies and about 100 American companies, as well as a Chinese cyber hacking campaign that compromised tens of thousands of small and midsize firms that used Microsoft Exchange email servers.

On Saturday, Colonial Pipeline acknowledged that it had fallen victim to a ransomware attack that led it to shut down — the biggest known cyberattack on the U.S. energy sector. The attack has led to long lines at the pump in some parts of the southeastern United States. Continue reading.

Biden lauds Minnesota for ‘meeting the moment’ on vaccinations

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He praised the state’s 64% rate of adult vaccinations. 

Hours after talking with President Joe Biden and select governors about ways to show the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination, Gov. Tim Walz stood on the sunbathed terrace at CHS Field in St. Paul and marveled at a prime example.

“Why would you not be out here on a night like this watching baseball?” said Walz, in a Minnesota Twins jersey mismatched with a St. Paul Saints cap. “We need to continue to try to incentivize them.”

Biden earlier Tuesday invited Walz and five other governors from states with high rates of COVID-19 vaccination to discuss their successes and strategies to overcome recent slowdowns in public interest. Continue reading.

Biden reaches agreements with Uber and Lyft to give free rides to vaccine sites

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The Biden administration has reached agreements with ride-sharing companies Uber and Lyft to offer free rides to coronavirus vaccination sites through July 4, the White House announced Tuesday.

Why it matters: The free rides, starting in the next two weeks, are part of the Biden administration’s push to administer at least one vaccine dose to 70% of U.S. adults by Independence Day. 

How it works: A new feature will allow app users to “simply select a vaccination site near them, follow simple directions to redeem their ride, and then get a ride to take them to and from a nearby vaccination site free of charge,” according to the White House. Continue reading.

Biden sees Trump rematch as real possibility

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Joe Biden is increasingly thinking of his possible reelection and a rematch against former President Trump. 

“He knows it’s a very real possibility,” said one longtime adviser to Biden. 

In an interview with Axios that aired Sunday evening, White House chief of staff Ron Klain said Biden is anticipating the possibility of running against Trump again.  Continue reading.

Young, diverse voters fueled Biden victory over Trump

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A diverse coalition of young and new voters propelled President Biden to victory in November, according to a major new study of the 2020 electorate, while former President Trump made inroads among Hispanic voters in key states.

The report, from the Democratic data analytics firm Catalist, found the most diverse electorate in American history showed up to vote in last year’s elections. Twenty-eight percent of voters last year were nonwhite, up 2 percentage points from the 2016 presidential election.

More than 159 million Americans voted in 2020, the largest turnout in history. The number of nonwhite participants skyrocketed, including by 31 percent among Latino voters and 39 percent among Asian American and Pacific Islander voters. For the first time, Latino voters made up 10 percent of the electorate. Continue reading.

Biden defends rescue package after disappointing jobs report

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President Biden on Friday defended his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan after a disappointing jobs report, arguing that the new data prove the necessity of the legislation and that it would take more time for the economy to recover. 

“When we came into office, we knew we were facing a once-in-a-century pandemic and a once-in-a-generation economic crisis. And we knew this wouldn’t be a sprint, it would be a marathon,” Biden said in remarks from the East Room of the White House. 

“It was designed to help us over the course of a year. Not 60 days, a year,” he said of the coronavirus relief passed earlier this year. “We never thought after the first 60 days that everything would be fine.”  Continue reading.