Good morning! Here is your news briefing for Wednesday February 9, 2022
1.) THE DAILY SIGNAL
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February 9 2022
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Good morning from Washington, where public health officials are backpedaling on the effectiveness of masks against COVID-19 even as school systems cling to them. Doug Badger has the facts. Students are bullying a Georgetown Law prof over his choice of words, Jarrett Stepman writes. On the podcast, the director of a new documentary details Communist China’s bloody suppression of a religious movement. Plus: a former reporter sues over House Democrats’ investigative tactics; mental health and “transitioning” teens; and the disquieting nuclear threat. On this date in 1825, with no candidate claiming a majority in the Electoral College, the House of Representatives votes to elect John Quincy Adams president, although he trails Andrew Jackson in the popular vote.
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2.) THE EPOCH TIMES
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3.) DAYBREAK
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@DaybreakInsider
4.) THE SUNBURN
Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 2.9.22
Who’s up, down, in and out — your morning tipsheet on Florida politics.
Good Wednesday morning.
Sen. Danny Burgess is joining Tampa Bay’s largest law firm.
Shumaker announced Wednesday that it was adding the lawmaker and former head of the Florida Department of Veteran’s Affairs to its legal team “to help expand Shumaker’s reach in Tampa Bay and beyond.”
In addition to Burgess, the firm is bringing on Zephyrhills City Attorney Matthew Maggard.
“Danny and Matthew are respected leaders with strong ties in Pasco County. Adding them to the firm will allow Shumaker to serve new clients and continue its exciting growth,” said Ron Christaldi, Shumaker’s Tampa Managing Partner and the President and CEO of Shumaker Advisors Florida.
Burgess earned his law degree from Barry University and his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of South Florida. He is also a Major in the U.S. Army Reserve.
Shumaker said his law and community experience will be an invaluable resource for Shumaker clients.
“Shumaker handles some of the most cutting-edge cases, with a prestigious team of attorneys who stand out as difference makers in Tampa Bay,” Burgess said. “I am thrilled to join this elite group of innovative leaders and look forward to helping clients solve complex problems.”
Burgess, a Zephyrhills Republican, will work out of Shumaker’s Dade City Office, which provides a full range of services to businesses, individuals, and estates throughout the United States and internationally, emphasizing representation of publicly held companies and other growth enterprises.
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The First Amendment Foundation has selected Florida Supreme Court communications director Craig Waters for its 2022 Pete Weitzel/Friend of the First Amendment Award.
FAF said Waters’ pick was in recognition of his “groundbreaking use of the internet and video technology to open the workings of the Florida Supreme Court — and the state court system — to the public.”
The award comes as Waters prepares to retire after 35 years working for the court. During his tenure, he established the Supreme Court’s initial website, organized the statewide broadcast and worldwide livestreams of Supreme Court oral arguments — most notably those related to the 2000 presidential election recount — and helped bring the court into the social media age.
“No one in this state has done more to open up justice in Florida to the public than Craig Waters,” said Pamela Marsh, executive director of the First Amendment Foundation. “He has dedicated his entire career to the public’s free access to the judicial system and its records. Craig has been an advocate for everything we stand for at the First Amendment Foundation.”
First Amendment Foundation Board of Trustees chair Amy Hollyfield added, “It is an honor to recognize Craig Waters for his relentless work for transparency in Florida’s court system.”
Waters will receive the award during the Florida Supreme Court’s retirement reception at 2:30 p.m. The reception will be held at the Florida Supreme Court’s library and is open to the public.
The Pete Weitzel/Friend of the First Amendment Award was created in 1995 to recognize the significant contribution to open government by Pete Weitzel, the former senior editor of the Miami Herald and the founder and Director Emeritus of the First Amendment Foundation.
Past recipients include former Gov. Charlie Crist, former Attorney General Bob Butterworth, former FSU President Sandy D’Alemberte, former House Speaker Peter Rudy Wallace and former Senate Presidents Jim Scott, Toni Jennings and Joe Negron.
— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —
—@ashishjka: Quick update on the state of the pandemic in the U.S. Nationally, Infections are down 60%. Hospitalizations down about 30%. Deaths have largely plateaued at a very high 2500+ per day. Beneath the headlines, we see dropping infections in every part of the country.
—@ChristinaPushaw: Gov. (Ron) DeSantis 2020: Opens Schools Dems 2022: Schools are open because of us. Say thank you. Gov DeSantis 2021: Protects parents’ right to decide whether or not their own kids wear masks in schools. Dems 2022: School masks are optional because of us. Say thank you.
—@SenRickScott: No one has done more to grow and expand the Republican Party than @GOPChairwoman. The @GOP is making historic investments in the @NRSC and because of their support, we have been able to grow our grassroots fundraising to unprecedented levels.
Tweet, tweet:
—@JosephBHarding: Things that matter to Americans and @POTUS is silent on: — Rising gas prices — empty shelves — affordable housing — not starting another war What is our President worried about? He is worried about my bill that empowers parents. He is worried about @GovRonDeSantis. Red wave.
—@Name_u_Know: I hope it’s not lost on folks that while supporters of HB1239 are saying that the bill won’t reduce direct care, the amended bill literally will reduce the minimum standard of direct care by CNAs from 2.5 to 2.0. That’s clear, harmful math.
—@ByJasonDelgado: CFO @JimmyPatronis on PIP insurance & Floridians: “My phone doesn’t ring off the hook with people complaining about PIP …” “Now I’ll tell you what … If their insurance rates go up, they will burn down the Capitol.”
—@RenzoDowney: Time for bills to start dying? Senate Community Affairs doesn’t have time to extend its meeting this afternoon. Ethics & Elex is using the room next to continue considering @FLSurgeonGen. Before public input, Sen. (Travis) Hutson warns, “Bills will die if we don’t get this going.”
Tweet, tweet:
—@DKThomp: One of the most popular modes of commentary is what you could call DGAF Populist. DGAF Populists — Rogan, Chappelle, Maher — are anti-PC, anti-GOP, anti-left, anti-neurotic, anti-“woke,” pro-“do your thing,” economically left, culturally libertarian, and linguistically rude
— DAYS UNTIL —
Super Bowl LVI — 4; Will Smith‘s ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ reboot premieres — 4; Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show begins — 7; season four of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ begins — 7; Spring Training report dates begin — 8; Synapse Florida tech summit begins — 8; ‘The Walking Dead’ final season part two begins — 11; Daytona 500 — 11; Special Election for Jacksonville City Council At-Large Group 3 — 13; Suits For Session — 14; CPAC begins — 15; St. Pete Grand Prix — 16; Joe Biden to give the State of the Union address — 20; ‘The Batman’ premieres — 23; Miami Film Festival begins — 23; the 2022 Players begins — 27; Sarasota County votes to renew the special 1-mill property tax for the school district — 27; House GOP retreat in Ponte Vedra Beach — 42; the third season of ‘Atlanta’ begins — 42; season two of ‘Bridgerton’ begins — 44; The Oscars — 43; Macbeth with Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga begin performances on Broadway — 48; Grammys rescheduled in Las Vegas — 53; Magic Johnson’s Apple TV+ docuseries ‘They Call Me Magic’ begins — 72; ‘The Godfather’ TV series ‘The Offer’ premieres — 78; federal student loan payments will resume — 81; ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ premieres — 86; ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ premieres — 107; ‘Platinum Jubilee’ for Queen Elizabeth II — 113; ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ premieres — 150; San Diego Comic-Con 2022 — 163; Michael Mann and Meg Gardiner novel ‘Heat 2’ publishes — 181; ‘The Lord of the Rings’ premieres on Amazon Prime — 205; ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ sequel premieres — 240; ‘Black Panther 2’ premieres — 275; ‘The Flash’ premieres — 278; ‘Avatar 2′ premieres — 310; ‘Captain Marvel 2′ premieres — 373; ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ premieres — 408; ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ premieres — 534; ‘Dune: Part Two’ premieres — 618; Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games — 898.
— TOP STORY —
“Senate, House budget bills would create new DCA, change gaming commission, account for inflation” via Gray Rohrer of Florida Politics — The House and Senate Appropriations committees are poised to vote on their budget plans Wednesday, setting the stage for a floor vote later in Session. Along with the main budget bill, they’ll also approve a slew of budget conforming bills required to pass in tandem with the budget. Included in those bills are measures to create a $2 billion fund to help state agencies cope with rising costs of goods due to inflation, create a 6th District Court of Appeal, and change the qualifications for serving on the new Gaming Control Commission. The inflation trust fund is a bill proposed by the House (APC 22-06), setting aside $2 billion in general revenue.
— DATELINE TALLY —
“Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo declines to say if he got the COVID-19 shot, moves toward final confirmation vote” via Skyler Swisher of the Orlando Sentinel — Ladapo is one vote away from being confirmed by the Senate, despite strong opposition from Democrats who say he has failed to promote COVID-19 vaccines, masks and other measures to slow the spread of the virus. The Senate’s Ethics and Elections Committee voted 5-4 on party lines in favor of Ladapo’s confirmation. The full Senate will vote next on his confirmation. Grilled by Democrats over his stance on COVID-19 shots, Ladapo wouldn’t say whether he had gotten the vaccine and a booster dose, saying it is his private medical information. “Our approach at the Department of Health has been to provide education and access,” Ladapo said. “What we have seen during this pandemic has been not so much that but rather coercion and sometimes unfortunately propaganda.”
“‘This is fear-mongering’: Parents, teachers slam Senate bill limiting primary school talk about LGBTQ community” via Kelly Hayes of Florida Politics — A slew of teachers, parents and students spoke Tuesday morning against legislation that would more closely regulate LGBTQ instruction in the classroom and conversations with younger students. Despite the wave of public testimony opposing the bill, the measure (SB 1834) was passed in a 6-3 vote along party lines by the Senate Education Committee. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Dennis Baxley, would ban school districts from “encouraging classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels or in a manner that is not age-appropriate.” It would also allow parents to sue a school district if such a violation occurred.
“Senate begins advancing proposal to block many citizen ballot initiatives” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics — A measure to limit what the public can propose to amend the Florida Constitution is now moving in the Senate after emerging from the House committee process. Republican lawmakers are offering a change to the constitution that would limit citizen initiatives to procedural matters, the structure of government or the constitution. The House is ready to consider its version of the measure (HJR 1127), and the Senate version (SJR 1412) is catching up after passing from its first panel on Tuesday. The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee voted 5-4, along party lines, to advance the resolution from Sen. Jason Brodeur.
“Senate bill banning protests outside people’s homes advances” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics — SB 1664, filed by Sen. Keith Perry, amends the unlawful assembly statute to ban a person from “picketing or protesting before or about another person’s home in order to harass or disturb the person in his or her home.” “This bill recognizes the right to privacy, safety, and peace that we all deserve in our home,” Perry said. Violations of the law would constitute a second-degree misdemeanor, but a warning would be issued first, Perry said. As the bill is currently contemplated, the ban would also include public right of way spaces, Perry said, including sidewalks and streets in front of condo complexes.
—“House committee clears bill outlawing residential protests” via Jason Delgado of Florida Politics
“Bill to require Florida colleges, universities to change accreditors clears Senate Education Committee” via Kelly Hayes of Florida Politics — A committee proposal that would prevent state colleges and universities from being accredited by the same agency for consecutive accreditation cycles advanced Tuesday morning. The committee approved the bill (SPB 7044) in a 6-3 vote along party lines. The measure would also require additional information about textbooks and instructional materials from state universities and colleges, mandating such information be posted at least 45 days before the start of class and kept public for five years. The bill’s goal is to increase transparency and make materials more accessible for students, said Sen. Manny Diaz, who presented the bill.
“Bill to tighten union regulations heads to final House committee” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics — Legislation asking public employee union members to reaffirm annually that they want to remain members has advanced to its final House panel. Critics argue the bill (HB 1197), carried by Rep. Scott Plakon and Rep. Cord Byrd, is a “union-busting” measure pushed Session after Session for the last decade. On Tuesday, the House State Administration and Technology Appropriations Subcommittee voted 9-6, along party lines, to give the measure its second preliminary OK. Public employees would have to sign a member authorization form every year to maintain union membership. Members also couldn’t opt to have union dues automatically deducted from their salaries.
“Police recruitment package ready for House floor” via Jason Delgado of Florida Politics — Florida’s proposal to enshrine itself as the most “law enforcement friendly” state in the nation is ready for the House’s full consideration. A priority of DeSantis, the bill would provide recruits a bundle of perks if signed into law. Among them, a one-time $5,000 bonus for newcomers and a $1,000 reimbursement program for out-of-state officers who relocate to Florida. The House Judiciary Committee approved the bill (HB 3) unanimously without debate. Rep. Tom Leek is the bill sponsor.
ICYMI — “Erin Grall accuses Office of Insurance Regulation of ‘agency malpractice’ before PIP vote” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics — Over the objections of Florida insurance companies, the House Civil Justice & Property Rights Subcommittee voted 15-3 to pass a bill that would eliminate Florida’s long-standing no-fault insurance program and the requirement to carry $10,000 in personal injury protection. Before the vote, HB 1525 bill sponsor Rep. Grall called out the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation for its decision to commission a report on the fiscal impact of a near-identical bill from the 2021 bill that eliminated PIP. The OIR released the Pinnacle report before Gov. DeSantis vetoed the bill.
“A bill in Tallahassee could save Amazon more than $1 million a year” via Jason Garcia of Seeking Rents — Amazon.com flies nearly two dozen flights a day in and out of a small airport in Lakeland, about halfway between Orlando and Tampa. The flights are part of a $100 million air-cargo hub that Amazon has built at the publicly-owned airport, which has become a key cog in a global package-delivery network that has helped make Amazon one of the world’s largest retailers. Amazon paid $941,252.76 in taxes last year on that property — about the cost of a dozen public-school teachers. But Amazon’s annual tax bill could disappear thanks to bills (HB 1387/SB 1840) moving through the Florida Legislature. The legislation, which gets its first hearing tomorrow in the House Ways & Means Committee, seeks to help many businesses avoid paying property taxes on land they lease at airports, seaports and spaceports.
— TALLY 2 —
“Controversial Medicaid managed care bill inches closer to House consideration” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics — A contentious plan to overhaul the state’s mammoth health care safety net took its second step forward Monday. The House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee approved HB 7047 by a 10-5 vote along party lines. If the bill is ultimately approved, it will require the state to enact a long line of changes ahead of Florida’s plans in 2025 to rebid major contracts with managed care companies that now work with the bulk of those enrolled in the program. There are more than 5 million people in Medicaid, but not all are required to be enrolled in managed care. But 4 million are. Democrats warned about some of the proposed changes included in the legislation that could affect dental services provided to Medicaid and affect some of the large public hospitals that treat Medicaid patients.
“House committee advances bill addressing nursing home staff shortage” via Florida Politics — The House Finance & Facilities Subcommittee on Tuesday voted to advance a bill aimed at alleviating the staffing shortage at nursing homes after hearing from numerous groups who warned nursing homes closures were on the horizon if lawmakers don’t act. Sponsored by Rep. Lauren Melo, HB 1239 would allow nursing homes to meet current and future needs by allowing staff without nursing degrees to fulfill a portion of direct care hour requirements. Proponents of the bill describe it as a necessary modernization of current regulations and assert that it would provide nursing home residents with more personalized care, including physical rehabilitation, mental health services, spiritual services, counseling and other treatments.
“Bill allowing tourist taxes to fund law enforcement in seven counties clears House panel” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics — Law enforcement could be considered a tourist development necessity, supplemented with tourist tax dollars in seven northern Gulf Coast counties under a bill approved by a House panel Tuesday. The House Tourism, Infrastructure and Energy Subcommittee voted 15-2 to advance a committee substitute bill for Rep. Jason Shoaf’s tourist development tax measure (HB 573). The approval came after a lengthy revisiting of long-standing battles over tourist tax uses in Florida. Shoaf and other proponents argued high standards of law enforcement and emergency medical services should be considered essential to promoting tourism, while images of increased crime or beach chaos are turnoffs for potential tourists.
“Legislation giving first responders with PTSD more time for workers’ comp claims advances” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics — Legislation to give first responders more time to begin claims for work-related post-traumatic stress is approaching its final committee hearings. The measure, sponsored in the House by Rep. Mike Giallombardo, builds off a 2018 law that modified the state’s workers’ compensation laws to allow first responders who have job-induced PTSD to tap into indemnity benefits, which compensate injured workers for a portion of their lost wages while out of work with an injury. Under current law, first responders must file notices within 90 days of the qualifying event or manifestation of the disorder. Likewise, first responders must file their claim within 52 weeks of the traumatic event in question.
“House moves ahead with bill allowing paid work to meet Bright Futures service requirement” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics — College-bound students seeking a Bright Futures scholarship could soon meet volunteer hour requirements through a regular job. The House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee unanimously approved a bill (HB 461) to allow work, whether paid or not, to count. Rep. Melo filed the bill to ensure the scholarship would be available to those students facing financial challenges. She said when the Legislature in 1997 tagged a volunteer work requirement to the Bright Futures Program, it created an unintended consequence of discouraging many working students from seeking the scholarship.
“Bill protecting tax benefits of farmers engaged in agritourism now ready for House floor” via Ryan Nicol of Florida Politics — Legislation looking to protect farmers’ ability to engage in agritourism moves to the House floor after earning unanimous approval in its third and final committee stop. Rep. Josie Tomkow is sponsoring the bill (HB 717). The legislation codifies that farmland can still be taxed at a lower rate even when using parts of the property for agritourism. The House State Affairs Committee OK’d the measure by a 23-0 vote on Tuesday. “House Bill 717 is a bill that clarifies the intent of Florida’s agritourism property tax structure,” Tomkow explained Tuesday.
“House committee advances bill tackling organized retail theft” via Jason Delgado of Florida Politics — Lawmakers took another step Tuesday toward cracking down on organized crime in Florida. Under a proposal (HB 1511) by Rep. Chuck Clemons, the state would levy stiffer penalties against thieves who steal from multiple stores within a short period. The House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Subcommittee OK’d the bill with a 15-3 vote. It will appear next before the House Judiciary Committee, marking the bill’s final committee stop. The proposal comes as lawmakers nationwide wrestle with a wave of organized shoplifting rings. The crime, coined “boosting,” involves multiple thieves coordinating to steal multiple items across different retailers.
“Net metering bill gets compromise amendment, heads to final Senate panel” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics — Legislation backed by Florida Power & Light (FPL) that would raise energy rates on rooftop solar panel customers passed its penultimate Senate committee on Tuesday. Under current law, solar panel owners who have excess energy generated by the panels can sell it back to utilities at the retail rate the utilities charge other customers. That practice is known as net metering. The bill (SB 1024), carried by Sen. Jennifer Bradley, would require charging a lower wholesale price to the utilities. Before a 6-3 party-line vote in the Senate Community Affairs Committee, Bradley told the committee Florida knows where it’s headed because other states are already grappling with problems with the existing net metering system.
“Cyberterror legislation moves closer to floor vote” via Ryan Nicol of Florida Politics — Legislation that would beef up Florida’s criminal penalties for stealing an individual’s sexually explicit pictures moved one step closer to passage in both chambers of the Legislature Tuesday. The Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee OK’d a measure (SB 1798) from Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book Tuesday morning. The House companion bill (HB 1453) also earned approval Tuesday from the House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee. Rep. Joe Harding is sponsoring that measure. The Tuesday hearings mark the second of three committee stops for the Senate and House bills. Book said she was victimized last year when intimate images were stolen from her and other sexually explicit “deepfake” images of Book were created.
“Bill creating standard procedures before paying hackers gets House committee nod” via Anne Geggis of Florida Politics — A bill advanced Tuesday to require local governments to go through a checklist, including reports to law enforcement, before paying hackers for hijacked data. The Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs, Space and Domestic Security approved Hutson’s proposal (SB 1670). The bill is not so strict as other legislation (PCB Sat 22-02) forbidding paying hackers’ demands altogether. Instead, it outlines training certain government employees should have and requires local governments to have a cybersecurity plan.
“A bill with some bite: Dangerous dogs rule moves forward in second House committee stop” via Anne Geggis of Florida Politics — Dogs will be judged by behavior and not breed, according to a bill that won unanimous subcommittee approval Tuesday at its second hearing stop. Rep. James Buchanan’s bill (HB 721) got the nod from the House Regulatory Reform Subcommittee Tuesday. It allows housing authorities to put restrictions on owners of dogs “that have bitten or attacked persons or domestic animals … provided that no such regulation is specific to breed.” The bill has already won approval from the House Local Administration & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee. The bill strips out statutory language that has grandfathered in Miami’s ban on pit bulls.
“Jacksonville spaceport authority gets committee nod” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics — A new regional government authority would be given state backing to promote space business around the spaceport being developed in Jacksonville, under a bill approved by a House committee Tuesday. On Tuesday, Rep. Wyman Duggan’s Northeast Florida Regional Spaceport Authority bill (HB 1303) shot through the House Tourism, Infrastructure and Energy Subcommittee. The only concern raised was about whether a new state-chartered authority specific to space flight around Jacksonville might somehow conflict or compete with Florida’s big statewide space agency, Space Florida. Duggan assured the committee it wouldn’t, winning a 17-0 vote for his bill.
— MORE TALLY —
“‘A form of welfare’: Bill eliminating permanent alimony advances to House floor after heated debate” via Kelly Hayes of Florida Politics — Legislation to end lifelong alimony has returned to the Legislature, and is now on to the floor after clearing its final House committee Tuesday evening. This year’s House version (HB 1395), carried by Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, was approved in a 15-6 vote in the House Judiciary Committee, but only after some heated debate. The legislation would prohibit the award of permanent alimony in future divorces and would also repeal court-ordered permanent alimony. That leaves bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative and durational alimony as options. Former couples could still agree to permanent alimony in a marital settlement.
“Controversial transfer title bill amended, passes first committee hearing” via Shannon Behnken of WFLA — A proposed state bill that would give car dealers two months to fork over the title to the car you just bought, instead of the current 30 days under state law, inched forward Tuesday. Some consumer advocates argue the proposed 60 days could further hurt consumers, some who have already been waiting six months or longer for a car title. Even so, the recently amended House Bill 1517 is a shell of its first version, which would have taken away any deadline for dealers and would have also taken away the penalties the state could impose on dealers who didn’t transfer titles on time. The committee unanimously approved the amendment.
“Senate panel advances a bill … and a legacy” via Peter Schorsch of Florida Politics — Dan Markel did not get to see one small piece of his legacy take root today, as the Florida Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee voted unanimously in support of SB 1408, a multiyear effort inspired in part by Markel’s 2014 murder-for-hire. But his two children and parents very well might. SB 1408 would allow grandparents to access courts to petition for visitation with grandchildren in cases where one parent died, and the living parent was found responsible for their death by a civil or criminal court. Florida families report a variety of reasons for experiencing separation from grandchildren, but the stories often share a common thread: a surviving parent cuts ties following alleged wrongdoing, and children who once enjoyed the love and support of grandparents are left suddenly without.
“Fentrice Driskell gets bipartisan praise as abandoned cemeteries bill clears House committee” via Daniel Figueroa of Florida Politics — While there was no debate, the was plenty of discussion Tuesday as Rep. Driskell‘s Abandoned African American Cemeteries bill unanimously passed the House Government Operations Subcommittee. The bill (HB 1215) would create a Historic Cemeteries Program within the Division of Historical Resources to coordinate research, repair, restoration, and maintenance efforts at abandoned African American cemeteries. It also creates a Historic Cemeteries Advisory Council and makes it easier for the state to preserve rediscovered cemeteries.
“Jackie Toledo’s human trafficking crackdown bill heads to House floor” via Kelly Hayes of Florida Politics — A Senate bill aimed at cracking down on prostitution and human trafficking in Florida cleared its final committee Tuesday afternoon, sending it to the House floor. The legislation (HB 1439), sponsored by Rep. Toledo, garnered unanimous support in the House Judiciary Committee. The bill bans hourly rates at hotels, motels, and vacation rentals and raises the first-time penalty for those paying for sex from a first-degree misdemeanor to a third-degree felony. Toledo said the changes were meant to decrease the market for human trafficking by lessening the number of people looking to purchase that type of sex work.
“Senate panel moves to kill ‘hourly rate’ hotels, crackdown on ‘first-time johns’” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics — A bill outlawing the long-standing practice of certain hotels offering “hourly rates” has cleared the Regulated Industries Committee, its first committee of reference in the Senate. And an amendment that would impose felony penalties on those soliciting prostitution was added to the bill. SB 1852, sponsored by Sen. Jennifer Bradley, adds one line to existing law. “An operator of a public lodging establishment or a vacation rental may not offer an hourly rate for an accommodation.” However, this one line could have a major impact. Presenting the bill on behalf of Bradley, Sen. Lauren Book notes that hourly rental lodging facilitates human trafficking.
“Senate panel OK’s crackdown on ‘aggressive careless driving’” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics — A Senate bill that adds texting-while-driving to a class of violations constituting “aggressive careless driving” in the case of injury or property damage cleared its first committee Thursday, with an amendment added to provide penalties for the same. SB 476 would add texting while driving and operating a vehicle in ways not allowed by driver’s licenses as potential factors determining an aggressive driving charge. Aggressive careless driving charges would be proscribed in this law after an amendment approved in committee.
‘Local voices’ convene, descend on Capitol to advocate for local choices — Nearly 300 municipal officials traveled to Tallahassee for the Florida League of Cities’ annual Legislative Action Days this week. Their mission was to discuss priority issues and advocate for local self-government. Municipal officials met with legislators and testified in committees to share real-world examples of local impacts from the proposed legislation. “For 100 years, the League has advocated for local self-government,” said FLC President Phillip Walker. “I can think of no better way to honor our centennial anniversary than to be here, together, bringing our united voices to the state Capitol to advocate for our communities.”
Florida NOW slams Chuck Brannan for letting ‘rape loophole’ bill languish — Victims’ rights group Florida NOW called out Rep. Brannan, who chairs the House Criminal Justice & Public Safety Subcommittee, for not scheduling a bill that would close Florida’s “rape loophole” despite the Senate fast-tracking similar legislation. Under current Florida law, the sexual assault of a person who is incapacitated because of alcohol or drug use is charged as a sexual battery if the perpetrator provided the incapacitating substance, but it is treated differently if the victim became intoxicated by choice. HB 525 would delete that caveat. “At this point, we can’t help but wonder what the Representative has against rape victims,” said Florida NOW Vice President Sandra Weeks. “By holding out on HB 525 and other rape law reform bills, he’s holding victim’s rights hostage.”
“Orlando students behind bill to make online voter registration part of Florida high schools” via Scott Maxwell of the Orlando Sentinel — Two years ago, a couple of teenage friends in Orlando were debating how they might make a difference in the world. They zeroed in on voting. Too many young people were sitting on the sidelines of democracy. So John Bedell and Fred Asare-Konadu started programs at their high schools to help kids register to vote. They then developed a plan to promote online voter registration at every high school in Florida and then found legislators willing to turn their idea into reality. So far, the Republican majority that controls the Florida Legislature seems to have no interest in making it easier for young people to register to vote. Not a single GOP lawmaker has signed onto their bill.
Assignment editors — Equal Ground Action Fund hosts “Woke” Place Policy: A discussion about Florida’s censorship of Black history. Community leaders from different backgrounds will speak on a panel, condemning Republicans for aggressively pushing HB 7, the “Stop Woke” bill, 6:30 p.m. RSVP to team@feldmanstrategies.com for livestream link.
— SKED —
Assignment editors — Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, Sen. Ed Hooper and Florida Realtors President Christina Pappas will hold a news conference on a bill (SB 788) to create a program to help first responders, law enforcement, educators, and health care workers purchase homes, 9 a.m., 4th Floor.
— The Senate Appropriations Committee meets to consider the $108.6 billion budget for the Fiscal Year 2022-2023 fiscal year, 9 a.m., 412 of the Knott Building.
— The House Appropriations Committee meets to consider the proposed $105.3 billion budget for the Fiscal Year 2022-2023, 9 a.m., Room 212 of the Knott Building.
— The House convenes for a floor Session to consider HB 7021, from Health and Human Services Chair Colleen Burton, to extend COVID-19 legal protections for hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care providers, 2:30 p.m., House Chamber.
Also:
— House Ways and Means Committee, 9 a.m., Room 404 of the House Office Building.
— GOV CLUB MENU —
Winter minestrone with ditalini; vegan Cobb salad with dressings; pasta salad; tropical fruit salad; BLT wraps; roasted eggplant lasagna; grilled sirloin of beef with Madagascar sauce and onion straws; buttermilk mashed potatoes; Brussels sprouts with applewood bacon and assorted cookies for dessert.
“Ron DeSantis insists narrative of Donald Trump rivalry is ‘total bunk’: He’s ‘a friend of mine’” via Kelly Laco of Fox News — According to DeSantis, Republicans, including himself, have the support of Trump, and any notion to the contrary can be attributed to media spin. DeSantis stated that he’s on good terms with Trump. “Donald Trump’s a friend of mine. He is proud when people do well, and it’s not just me, but obviously, he’s a Florida resident, and he appreciates the job that we’ve done. He’s told me that many times, not only with helping with the election but just how we govern the state.” DeSantis wouldn’t say whether he would potentially take on Trump in 2024 and said anonymous sources close to Trump who said he has a “dull personality” could be attributed to Democrats and the media.
“Progressive stops renewing some home policies in Florida as lawmakers target roof claims” via Lawrence Mower of the Tampa Bay Times — Progressive Insurance is shedding roughly 56,000 policies covering Florida homes with roofs older than 15 years, putting the squeeze on homeowners who already find it difficult and expensive to insure their houses. It’s the latest sign of trouble in Florida’s turbulent property insurance market. “This is an all-hands-on-deck situation,” Sen. Jeff Brandes warned fellow Senators last week. Last week, Farm Bureau Insurance said it would no longer write homeowners’ policies in the state. A handful of property insurers have already gone out of business. The ones that haven’t are requesting double-digit rate increases.
“Only 50% of Florida kindergartners ready for class” via Sam Sachs of WFLA — Only half of Florida’s kindergartners were ready for school when it comes to reading and math. That’s not a judgment; that’s based on scoring by the Florida Department of Education. Using the Star Early Literacy assessment, Florida kindergartners were required to complete a 15- to 20-minute assessment to see how ready for public school they were. The assessment was developed by Renaissance, the company that started the Accelerated Reader program in 1986. 40% of the U.S. uses its programs to test student preparedness.
“Florida to set goals for 100% renewable energy by 2050. But will it actually happen?” via Alex Harris of the Miami Herald — Florida is taking the first step toward requiring more renewable energy statewide after Nikki Fried announced her office planned to start the process of setting goals for the state to get 100% of its power from renewable energy by 2050. But goals are likely all they’ll remain, at least for the foreseeable future. Under state law, the ability to actually force utilities to meet them falls to the Public Service Commission, an appointed statewide board in charge of regulating Florida’s utilities that has historically been less than aggressive about upping standards for renewable energy or energy efficiency.
“Lake Okeechobee water level still high, but releases within healthy threshold” via Chad Gillis of the Fort Myers News-Press — The Caloosahatchee River is in pretty good shape going into the heart of the dry season, although more Lake Okeechobee discharges may be needed in the spring to get water levels down to a healthy level. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers releases around 2,000 cubic feet per day as measured at the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam in Alva. That’s well below the 2,800 cubic feet per second harmful threshold. That’s the point at which too much water is entering the Caloosahatchee River’s estuary. Lake Okeechobee levels are nearly 15 feet above sea level, and the Army Corps will try to get those levels down to at least 12.5 feet by the start of the rainy season in mid-May.
— CORONA FLORIDA —
“Florida Surgeon General defends support of fringe group that touted false COVID-19 ‘cure’” via Skyler Swisher of the Orlando Sentinel — Ladapo defended his involvement Tuesday with a group of doctors that touted a false and unproven COVID-19 “cure” favored by Trump. Ladapo faced scrutiny from Democrats during his second confirmation hearing over his support of America’s Frontline Doctors, which held a controversial news conference in July 2020 in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building. Questioning by the Senate’s Ethics and Elections Committee will resume Tuesday night. If it approves him, the full Senate will take up Ladapo’s nomination next. Ladapo stood with other doctors in white coats at the event, which promoted zinc and the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 cure and blasted lockdowns and other COVID-19 restrictions.
“COVID-19 update: Florida reports 19,306 new cases; positivity rates lowest in nearly two months” via David Schutz of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel — Florida reported 19,306 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday as parts of South Florida have seen positivity rates drop below 15% for the first time since mid-December. The number of patients in the hospital with COVID-19 rose slightly since Monday but is still down nearly 18% over the previous Monday. There were 1,128 COVID-19-infected patients in intensive care units on Monday, the smallest number since Jan. 6. The hospital data combines patients admitted for COVID-19 with those infected while hospitalized. The number of cases in the omicron surge has fallen by more than 73% from its peak on Jan. 11.
“Omicron causes record-high cases in Florida nursing homes, but deaths remain low” via Daniel Chang of the Miami Herald — Florida’s omicron winter hit nursing homes hard, with the number of weekly infections reported among residents and staff reaching record highs in mid-January. But despite reporting more cases for a single week in mid-January than at any other point in the pandemic, Florida nursing homes are not seeing a corresponding spike in deaths, the cumulative effect, experts say, of immunity from vaccines and prior illness with COVID-19. “The fact that there were not more deaths is probably due to vaccination and the fact that many people had it before, and the nursing homes knowing what to do, having procedures they didn’t have when this started concerning PPE and who to isolate and when and how,” said Lindsay Peterson, a researcher with the University of South Florida’s School of Aging Studies.
“Military can’t discipline officers for refusing vaccine, Florida judge rules” via Military Times — In a stinging rebuke of the military’s handling of the mandatory COVID-19 vaccine enforcement policy, a federal-district court judge in Florida has issued a temporary order preventing disciplinary action against two officers who refused the vaccine on religious grounds. The order, which is in place until Friday, is the latest ruling temporarily barring the military from punishing troops over their refusal to get the COVID-19 vaccine. In a separate case, a Texas judge in January ordered a temporary injunction against the punishment of a group of Navy SEALs.
— 2022 —
“What to make of polls that show Americans are trending toward the GOP” via Geoffrey Skelley and Mary Radcliffe of FiveThirtyEight — Are there really more Americans identifying as Republicans than Democrats now? For decades, more Americans have tended to identify as Democrats than Republicans, even if the gap has sometimes been small. But in January, Gallup found that Republicans had taken the lead in party ID during the last three months of 2021: On average, 47% identified as a Republican or said they leaned toward the GOP, while 42% identified as a Democrat or leaned toward the Democratic Party. But it’s still too soon to know whether more Americans are actually identifying as Republicans. After all, political science research has found that an individual’s party identification can fluctuate.
“Casino petition drive fraud claims, investigations multiply” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics — Increasing reports of alleged petition frauds, and a massive petition failure rate are leading county supervisors of elections around the state to say they have never seen a petition drive as bad as the one that just concluded involving proposed North Florida casinos. At least two law enforcement investigations have been opened, in the 1st and 5th Judicial Circuits. Others are being requested in other parts of Florida. Several supervisors told Florida Politics their alarm over the drive conducted by Florida Voters In Charge is not just because of the many allegations of individual petition fraud but because of the drive’s unprecedented petition failure rate of perhaps 60-70% or higher.
—“‘Not just one or two’ fake signatures: FDLE leading statewide investigation of voter petition fraud” via Tom McLaughlin of the Northwest Florida Daily News
Assignment editors — Crist will hold a news conference in Miami to unveil his “Solar for All” initiative and outline a plan for a million solar roofs across Florida, 9:30 a.m., followed by a solar business tour, 11 a.m. RSVP to press@charliecrist.com for locations. It will also be livestreamed via Crist’s Facebook page (@CharlieCristFL).
“Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry supports DeSantis’s bid for redistricting opinion” via David Bauerlein of The Florida Times-Union — Curry stepped into the heated redistricting battle by joining DeSantis in asking the Florida Supreme Court for an advisory opinion on keeping a congressional district that stretches from Jacksonville to west of Tallahassee. Curry submitted a brief Monday that said voters and political candidates deserve to know whether the district lines can withstand constitutional scrutiny. Curry’s filing Monday with the Supreme Court puts him at odds with U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, who lashed out at DeSantis last week. Lawson renewed his criticism Monday in response to briefs filed with the Supreme Court.
Assignment editors — Agriculture Commissioner Fried will meet with Black business owners and entrepreneurs, 9:30 a.m., Pots and Pans Cafe, 952 NE 62nd Street, Oakland Park. RSVP at press@nikkifried.com.
“Democrat Rebekah Jones says she can win in Northwest Florida” via Jim Little of the Pensacola News-Journal — Jones built her name on being a data expert and is now looking to defy the odds to win as a Democrat in Northwest Florida. Jones is seeking to challenge Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz for Florida’s 1st Congressional District, but first, she must convince Northwest Florida Democrats she is the right candidate. Jones told the News Journal she isn’t worried about the primary. “I’m the only one who can win this against a Republican, Gaetz or otherwise, and I’m certainly the only one who’s taken on the GOP in the state and beat them,” Jones said. Jones pointed to a poll released in October from The Listener Group that showed her only 8 points down to Gaetz and noted that redistricting will help her as the district will lose most of conservative Walton County.
Exclusive — “Poll: Vern Buchanan annihilating Martin Hyde in CD 16 GOP primary” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics — A new survey by St. Pete Polls shows U.S. Rep. Buchanan crushing Republican primary opponent Martin Hyde. If a primary vote were held today in Florida, the eight-term incumbent would win more than 76% of the vote, with Hyde taking around 12% and the remainder of voters undecided. The poll comes as Hyde has brought on some high-profile supporters from Trump’s orbit but Buchanan secured the support of Trump himself. Hyde intends to cut into Buchanan’s base over his votes in favor of certifying Biden’s presidential victory over Trump and in favor of background checks on firearm purchases.
“A new map will drive decisions for Southwest Florida lawmakers” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics — With House boundaries all but set, a number of lawmakers representing Southwest Florida now have to decide if and where to run under the new cartography. Rep. Spencer Roach hasn’t decided yet if he’s going to run but said it wouldn’t be maps that make his choice. “I am still evaluating whether to seek a third term in the Florida House and anticipate making that decision before the end of the Legislative Session,” Roach said. “The redistricting process will not factor in my decision; if I run, I will run in the district where I live, which is House District 76 under the proposed maps.” Still, whatever triggers a final decision for Roach, it’s likely the map just passed by the Legislature (H 8013) will give him pause.
“Never mind: Tommy Gregory to seek re-election in HD 72” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics — Rep. Gregory has changed plans and announced a run for the proposed House District 72. For the Sarasota Republican, that will require a move to Manatee County. “It has been an honor to represent Manatee County, and I look forward to continue representing them and this region,” Gregory said. Gregory had previously made clear he intended to run for a third term but in House District 74, where he currently lives under the redistricted House map just approved by the Florida Legislature. That map puts him in the same district as Rep. James Buchanan. Gregory said after consulting with supporters and colleagues in the district and Tallahassee, he concluded it made more sense to run in Manatee.
“Boca Raton City Council member files for Emily Slosberg-King’s HD 91 seat” via Anne Geggis of Florida Politics — The day after Rep. Slosberg-King announced she would not be seeking a fourth term representing House District 91, a Boca Raton City Council Member announced he’s filed to run for the seat. A business litigation lawyer, Andy Thomson won his first campaign in a 2018 Special Election and was subsequently re-elected without opposition to the Boca Raton City Council in 2020. “We need legislators focused on solving problems,” Thomson said, according to a news release from his campaign. “I’m a collaborator and have a record of bringing people together to make a difference.” The entire city of Boca Raton elects Council members on a nonpartisan basis. Tuesday, however, Thomson announced he’s a Democrat and has the endorsement of the outgoing Representative.
“Ballot referendum to put poker room on old jai-alai property dealt blow by Seminole Commissioners” via Martin E. Comas of the Orlando Sentinel — Seminole County Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously rejected a request by the owner of the old Orlando Jai-Alai Fronton property in Fern Park to place a referendum on the Nov. 8 General Election ballot asking county voters if his new development can offer casino gambling in the form of a poker room. Commissioners, instead, urged attorneys for Richard Birdoff, president of the New York City-based RD Management, which owns the fronton building and most of the land surrounding it, and the developer Cordish Companies, to place the issue on the ballot themselves by gathering the required 24,800 or so signatures in a petition drive by this summer.
— CORONA NATION —
“America learns to live with COVID-19” via Margaret Talev of Axios — One in three Americans expects to catch COVID-19 within the next month and only one in 10 thinks it will be eradicated by this time next year. The new data shows Americans are coming to terms with living with COVID-19. But it also reveals an utter lack of consensus on how to live with it. People are divided about evenly into four camps on how to proceed: drop all mandates and requirements, keep some, keep most, or add even more. Half support stores or restaurants requiring customers to show proof of vaccination to enter. “There’s nothing approaching a consensus on what we should be doing to move forward, which underlines the difficulty for policymakers,” said Ipsos pollster and Senior Vice President Chris Jackson.
“Two years into pandemic, politicians still getting tripped up over coronavirus restrictions” via Amy Wang of The Washington Post — Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is at the center of the latest coronavirus-related firestorm, after she posted a photo of herself sitting with a group of elementary school students who were all masked; Abrams was not. The photos became a target for her Republican opponents and right-wing critics, who have called her a hypocrite (and worse), despite the fact GOP politicians have similarly flouted mask mandates or actively sought to prevent protective measures from being implemented.
“Joe Biden officials trying to recalculate U.S. COVID-19 hospitalizations” via Erin Banco of POLITICO — The Biden administration is working on recalculating the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the U.S., according to two senior officials familiar with the matter. A task force comprised of scientists and data specialists works with hospitals nationwide to improve COVID-19 reporting. The group asks hospitals to report numbers of patients who go to the facility because they have COVID-19 and separate those from individuals who go in for other reasons and test positive after being admitted, the two officials said. The administration aims to get a more accurate sense of COVID-19’s impact across the country and whether the virus is causing severe disease.
“The Biden administration will pay community groups to boost trust in COVID-19 vaccines” via Selena Simmons-Duffin of NPR — White House health officials have acknowledged that they are not always the best messengers when it comes to promoting COVID-19 vaccines. So, the Biden administration has worked to equip community groups to do their own local outreach. On Tuesday, the Health Resources and Services Administration is distributing $66.5 million to community groups working in 38 states and Washington, D.C. This is the fourth round of the $250 million in funding allocated in the American Rescue Plan. One group receiving more than $11 million Tuesday is Communities RISE Together, an initiative supported by the Public Health Institute. Dr. Somava Saha, who co-leads the effort, says the administration’s decision to fund local community groups is smart and “flips it from ‘trust us’ to ‘we trust you.’ ”
“The booster problem” via David Leonhardt of The New York Times — The United States has a vaccination problem. And it is not just about the relatively large share of Americans who have refused to get a shot. The U.S. also trails many other countries in the share of vaccinated people who have received a booster shot. This is a different problem from outright skepticism of the vaccine. This booster shortfall is one reason the U.S. has suffered more deaths over the past two months than many other countries. First, medical care in the U.S. is notoriously fragmented. Preventive care, like a booster shot, often falls through the cracks. Government health officials and some experts struggle to communicate effectively with the hundreds of millions of us who are not experts.
“Mask mandates, contact tracing are going away, as states shift to new phase” via Megan Messerly of POLITICO — Blue state governors and state health officials who most vigorously embraced pandemic restrictions are pivoting toward a new era, using omicron’s decline to dial back precautions that have become a hallmark of the last two years. Over the past few weeks, health departments from Oregon to Maine have ended almost all of their government-run COVID-19 contact tracing operations and shifted the responsibility to the public. “We’re not going to manage COVID to zero,” said New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who has taken a strict approach to pandemic protocols but who on Monday said he would lift the state’s school mask mandate.
— CORONA ECONOMICS —
“COVID-19 protests threaten border trade between Canada, U.S.” via Rob Gillies and Tracey Lindeman of The Associated Press — Canadian lawmakers expressed increasing worry Tuesday about the economic effects of disruptive demonstrations after the busiest border crossing between the U.S. and Canada became partially blocked by truckers protesting vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions. The blockade at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, prevented traffic from entering Canada while some U.S.-bound traffic was still moving. Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino called the bridge “one of the most important border crossings in the world.” It carries 25% of all trade between Canada and the United States.
“COVID-19 migration: Who’s moving to Florida and why there’s a New York exodus” via Kimberly Miller of The Palm Beach Post — Extraordinary events have forever pushed and pulled and pressured U.S. population shifts from gold lust to the citrus rush to the restless return of World War II soldiers to revolutions in foreign lands and Civil War on Southern soil. Now there is COVID-19, which has turned a yearslong trickle to Florida from the northeast into a deluge. More than 547,000 people exchanged out-of-state driver’s licenses last year for ones with Sunshine State addresses. That’s a 40% increase from 2020 and nearly 20% greater than the five-year average between 2017 and 2021.
“Hundreds of thousands quit jobs in Florida as ‘great resignation’ continues” via Phil Prazan of NBC Miami — The “Great Resignation” impacts regions and industries differently. Hundreds of thousands of Floridians quit their jobs each month. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows around 3% of Florida workers leave their jobs every month. South Florida as a region is impacted more than others because of the type of industries in the area. Many employers say they’re having a hard time hiring enough workers, particularly in South Florida’s service economy. More jobs are available than workers wanting to work them, driving up wages and prices at times. Experts say companies should not expect a return to the way it was before the pandemic for some time. Looking at the latest quit rate data, the industries keeping their workforce steady are those with dependable hours, decent pay, and better benefits, such as work in education or local governments.
“Why Realtors have embraced brutal honesty. ‘Smells like a farm town.’” via Jennifer Levitz of The Wall Street Journal — The COVID-19 pandemic sparked a surge of Americans moving to new regions, sometimes sight unseen, lured by lower costs or the ability to work remotely. But house hunters or those who uproot can be surprised by what they find, from the pea-soup fog on coasts to relentless snowstorms in the mountains. In response, a new genre of videos is populating YouTube, in which real estate agents get brutally upfront about the potential downsides of moving to their area. They say the blunt talk helps them stand out, sets realistic expectations, and reduces buyer’s remorse. The agents say it also prevents them from assisting needy homeowners who may be out of their depth when they move to a new locale.
— MORE CORONA —
“COVID-19 pandemic led to smaller-than-expected baby bust, new data suggest” via Janet Adamy and Anthony DeBarros of The Wall Street Journal — New data on U.S. births suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a smaller-than-expected baby bust. The U.S. saw about 7,000 fewer births through the first nine months of 2021 compared with the same period the year prior. The numbers reflect conceptions that occurred roughly from April through December 2020, a period that includes the first part of last winter’s COVID-19 case surge, which started in October 2020 and waned by February 2021. Beginning in June 2021, monthly births started to show consistent gains over their year-earlier levels, which reflect pre-pandemic conceptions, and that mostly offset declines in the first two months of 2021.
“J&J pauses COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing in crucial plant” via Reuters — Johnson & Johnson quietly shut down the only plant making usable batches of its COVID-19 vaccine late last year. The halt is temporary, with the plant in the Dutch city of Leiden expected to start making the vaccine again after a few months. Instead, the plant has been making an experimental but potentially more profitable vaccine to protect against an unrelated virus. J&J currently has millions of doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in inventory, the company said in an email, adding that it continues to provide all its fill-and-finish sites with drug substances required to produce its shot. “We continue to fulfill our contractual obligations in relation to the COVAX Facility and the African Union,” J&J said.
“Italy is dropping its outdoor mask mandate as new cases decline.” via Emma Bubola of The New York Times — Italy will no longer require masks to be worn everywhere outdoors, the government said on Tuesday, adding to a growing list of coronavirus restrictions that European countries have relaxed recently as they wrestle with what the next stage of the pandemic could look like. “A new phase is opening up,” Italy’s health minister, Roberto Speranza, said on Italian television. Italy will continue to require mask-wearing in public indoor settings, and Speranza said that masks remained an important tool to fight against the virus. Italians will still be required to carry a mask with them and to put it on outdoors if a crowd forms. The new policy will go into effect on Friday.
—“Norwegian Cruise Line to drop face mask requirements” via Robert Pandolfino of WFLA
— PRESIDENTIAL —
“Doug Emhoff, husband of Vice President, evacuated from D.C. school after bomb threat” via Eugene Scott of The Washington Post — Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, was evacuated from a D.C. public school on Tuesday afternoon after a bomb threat, officials said. A Secret Service agent told Emhoff, “we have to go,” as he participated in an event at Dunbar High School marking Black History Month. A schoolwide announcement followed, saying teachers should evacuate everyone from the facility. The building was evacuated, and police began searching the school in the Truxton Circle neighborhood of Northwest Washington. Students were sent home. In a 4:40 p.m. tweet, D.C. police said that the investigation at the school had concluded and that all streets were reopened. No hazardous materials were found.
“White House denounces Florida GOP over ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill” via The Associated Press — The White House on Tuesday slammed Florida Republicans over a proposal to ban discussions of sexual orientation or gender identity in the state’s schools. A White House spokesperson weighed in on the legislation, dubbed by activists as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, shortly after a GOP-controlled committee approved the measure. “Every parent hopes that our leaders will ensure their children’s safety, protection, and freedom. Today, conservative politicians in Florida rejected those basic values by advancing legislation that is designed to target and attack the kids who need support the most — LGBTQI+ students, who are already vulnerable to bullying and violence just for being themselves,” the White House statement read.
— D.C. MATTERS —
“Money on the table: Child credit $ available via tax returns” via Josh Boak of The Associated Press — The Biden administration wants families with children to know that there is roughly $193 billion waiting for them; all they need to do is file their taxes to claim it. That estimated total remains of the expanded child tax credit, and the administration is concerned that some of those most in need of the assistance may be the least likely to get what is due to them. Biden increased the payments and expanded who was eligible as part of his coronavirus relief package. While most families already received half the credit as monthly payments last year, they’ll lose out on the remaining balance unless they file their taxes.
“House passes bill to ease Postal Service financial woes” via Nicholas Wu and Hailey Fuchs of POLITICO — Long-awaited legislation overhauling the Postal Service’s finances and operations sailed through the House Tuesday. The bipartisan legislation passed the chamber in a 342-92 vote, despite controversy over the head of the Postal Service that had threatened to tank Republican support for the legislation. Among its provisions, the bill would require Postal Service retirees to enroll in Medicare and eliminate the requirement that the agency pre-fund its retiree health benefits for 75 years in the future, saving the beleaguered agency tens of billions of dollars over the next decade. It would also mandate that the Postal Service create a dashboard with performance data and deliver at least six days each week.
“Maria Salazar’s immigration bill offers path to legal residency, requires E-Verify use” via Bryan Lowery of the Miami Herald — Rep. Salazar introduced legislation Tuesday that would set up a new legal residency program for millions of undocumented immigrants and create a potential path to citizenship for those who complete a pair of programs over 15 years. Salazar’s 483-page bill, titled “The Dignity Act,” would set up numerous changes to the immigration system, including measures to increase border security, an expedited process for asylum-seekers, and a new program to provide a path to legal residency for undocumented immigrants already in the country. She said the bill was intended to simultaneously halt new illegal immigration and provide dignity to undocumented people already residing in the U.S.
Personnel note: Neal Dunn announces staff promotions — U.S. Rep. Dunn has promoted Matt Blackwell from Legislative Director to Deputy Chief of Staff and elevated Senior Legislative Assistant Sarah Gilbert to replace Blackwell in that position. “Matt and Sarah are two of the most knowledgeable staffers I’ve had the privilege of working with on Capitol Hill,” Dunn said. “Both have played critical roles in helping my office navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as several issues that heavily impact Florida’s 2nd Congressional District. I’m grateful for their commitment to my priorities and my district. I firmly believe these changes better position my team to focus on priorities as we prep for Republicans to take back the House.” A news release said Blackwell’s “policy expertise has been essential to the office’s response to Hurricane Michael in 2018, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing economic crisis.” It also touted Gilbert’s “expansive knowledge of health care and other key policy issues.”
— CRISIS —
“Mitch McConnell rebukes RNC for saying Jan. 6 attack was ‘legitimate political discourse’” via Jennifer Shutt of Florida Phoenix — McConnell said Tuesday the RNC erred in censuring two House GOP lawmakers for joining the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. McConnell rebuked the RNC for referring to the riot as “legitimate political discourse” in the censure resolution. McConnell said the events of Jan. 6 were “a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.” McConnell said Tuesday that he doesn’t believe it’s the role of the national political committees to decide which Republicans the party will support and which it will cast aside. McConnell said he does have confidence in RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, but added it’s “not the job of the RNC” to single out Republicans.
Meanwhile …
“Government reveals trove of evidence in first Jan. 6 trial” via Alan Feuer of The New York Times — Prosecutors have provided a revealing glimpse of their strategy for the first trial stemming from the attack on the Capitol, unveiling an inventory of the extensive evidence they intend to introduce, including surveillance videos, police communications, text messages, geolocation data and testimony from a Secret Service agent and the defendant’s own children. The defendant in the trial, set to begin on Feb. 28, is Guy Wesley Reffitt, an oil industry worker who prosecutors say was a member of the Texas Three Percenters, a far-right group connected to the gun rights movement. Reffitt stands accused of storming the Capitol with a pistol at his waist.
“The GOP’s ‘legitimate political discourse’ Jan. 6 revisionism is off to a rough start” via Aaron Blake of The Washington Post — Republicans intent upon accusing the Jan. 6 committee of targeting “ordinary” citizens engaged in “legitimate political discourse” have focused on a supposed case-in-point: an older woman the committee subpoenaed after she signed up to be an alternate elector for Trump. The reality is far less simple. The woman appears to be a top GOP official from Michigan — according to comments from Sen. Marco Rubio — who led an effort to submit fake electors. It could rise to the level of criminal activity, and at the very least, would seem relevant to a probe of the effort to overturn the 2020 election.
— EPILOGUE TRUMP —
“Trump is obsessed with being a loser” via Peter Wehner of The Atlantic — Trump has made clear time and time again that, in his view, the worst thing that can happen to a person is to be judged “a loser.” In the 2020 Presidential Election he was, in fact, a loser, but his narcissism and the incredibly fragile self-esteem that undergirds it won’t allow him to accept that reality. Trump seems unable to incorporate anything critical about himself, hence his need to create an imaginary world where he really won the 2020 election but was the victim of a conspiracy that borders on intergalactic.
— LOCAL NOTES —
“Cruise ship docking at Key West encroaches on Navy waters” via Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics — On the same weekend residents rallied against three so-called mega-cruise ships entering Key West waters against voters’ wishes, one of the vessels mooring there Sunday was so big it encroached on waters reserved for Navy activity. The Key West Committee for Safer, Cleaner Ships — which organized the weekend protest — posted photos to Twitter showing the 1,004-foot Celebrity Apex docking at Pier B, a privately owned cruise ship dock. The ship’s rear extended well beyond a boundary line, designated by white-capped bollards, between Pier B’s space and Naval Air Station Key West’s Truman Harbor entrance.
“A pipe bursts, and hundreds of people are still under a boil-water order two weeks later. Welcome to Fort Lauderdale.” via Susannah Bryan of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel — A three-block section from Federal Highway west to Southeast Third Avenue and Las Olas Boulevard south to the New River has been under a boil-water order since Jan. 27, the day after the underground pipe broke. Fort Lauderdale plans to spend $600 million over the next few years fixing and replacing the city’s underground network of aging water and sewer pipes. Experts predict that the total tally will come to at least $1.4 billion over the next 20 years.
“City officials who bankrupted Jacksonville trash fund to investigate why trash problems persist” via Nate Monroe of The Florida Times-Union — Jacksonville city officials publicly and deliberately bankrupted the fund that pays for trash pickup over several years, auditors estimate it will be nearly $30 million in the red by September, so it’s no great mystery who is responsible for the much-maligned state of city trash and recycling pickup. When times were good, and now, when times are not so good, city officials have been unwilling to do the one necessary thing: Raise the fee residents pay for trash pickup that hasn’t been touched in more than a decade. Facing a mountain of complaints about poor service, the city suspended curbside recycling in the fall to better focus on at least getting the trash picked up.
“Ken Welch increases St. Petersburg housing assistance payments” via Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Times — Welch on Tuesday announced increases to a down payment and home rehabilitation assistance available to homebuyers in the city, particularly for households earning below the average median income. Welch also announced new incentives for developers to construct affordable single-family homes in southern St. Petersburg. The city is increasing the maximum amount of down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers in the city from $40,000 to $60,000. The amount available, which starts at $5,000, depends on household income and whether the home is purchased within the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area.
“Is Tampa Bay’s VA nearly perfect or is a federal wait time law being ignored?” via Walt Buteau of WFLA — During a recent two-year span, Veterans Affairs facilities in the Tampa Bay area seemed nearly perfect in scheduling primary care appointments within the required 20-day wait time window. But skeptics believe the data indicates the agency is not following federal law. From Jan. 1, 2020, through last August, only nine out of 106,000 Community Care patients in the Bay Pines and James Haley VA networks were given primary care appointments with civilian doctors. Darin Selnick, a senior adviser for Concerned Veterans for America, helped write the Mission Act. He does not believe it is possible that only nine out of 106,000 Tampa Bay area primary care patients qualified to go outside the VA.
“Florida’s new parental rights law tests limits, and patience, in Pasco” via Jeffrey S. Solocheck of the Tampa Bay Times — For months, DeSantis and many Republican lawmakers have told parents their rights are paramount in Florida’s schools. In October, DeSantis said the state must find even more ways to “empower parents’ rights to decide what is best for their children.” And ever since, the concept has played out in often-heated debates over coronavirus masking and vaccination, library book availability, race lessons in history classes, and restroom rules involving transgender students. Citing these rights, growing numbers of parents have started to make demands of their schools based on what they think is best for their own children.
“Citrus County looks to create economic development council” via Mike Wright of Florida Politics — Citrus County Commissioners are hoping to give their sputtering economic development efforts a boost by utilizing a model they hope will be more successful. During a workshop Tuesday, Commissioners agreed with Chair Ron Kitchen Jr.’s idea to create an economic development council to provide marketing direction for the county. The idea would match the county’s economic development program with its tourism efforts. The county is guided by a tourism development council appointed by the County Commission. Citrus County has been without an economic director since David Pieklik resigned in January. He was on the job only a year following the retirement of his predecessor, Bruce Register.
“After more than 89 years, Gilchrist County Journal to close at end of February” via Alan Festo of The Gainesville Sun — After more than 89 years serving Gilchrist County and the surrounding area, the Gilchrist County Journal announced in its Feb. 3 edition that it plans to close at the end of the month. “A whole lot of things played into it,” co-owner and food editor Cindy Jo Ayers said. “It’s just time, and we’ve made the decision.” The notice announcing the closing also says that the weekly newspaper is for sale. “Everything I’ve heard so far is kind of really iffy,” Ayers said of a possible sale.
“FSU testing confirms elevated radon levels, mold in Sandels Building” via Tristan Wood of Florida Politics — Preliminary testing by a team contracted by Florida State University confirmed the university’s Sandels Building contains mold and has floors with higher than recommended radon levels. The testing comes after a report compiled by faculty and obtained by Florida Politics which tied radon levels and mold to eight cancer cases within 10 years for individuals on the building’s fourth floor. The university has closed the Sandels Building until further notice. Testing conducted by Radon Professional Services from Jan. 26-28 found radon levels ranging from 2.5 to 7 PicoCuries (pCi) per liter in the building’s basement and second floor. The EPA recommends taking mitigation actions for radon levels above 4 pCi/L in residential settings.
“FSU Board of Trustees OK’s $44 million loan for research building” via Tristan Wood of Florida Politics — The Florida State University Board of Trustees approved a resolution to authorize the FSU Research Foundation to take a $44 million loan to help finance the construction of its $88 million Interdisciplinary Research and Commercialization Building. The university broke ground on the building in August. It will serve as a collaborative space for researchers from various fields to create and advance new materials. University officials believe financing the construction instead of paying it now could save the university money.
— TOP OPINION —
“The tweeting, deleting operative who does DeSantis’ distorting” via the South Florida Sun-Sentinel editorial board — True to her flawed form, Christina Pushaw implied on Twitter that neo-Nazi demonstrators in Orlando might be Democrats in disguise. They were not, of course, and she soon deleted the tweet. The deletion only called more attention to how her boss wouldn’t say anything about the repugnant outburst of racism in one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations. When he finally did, it was to wallow in pretentious self-pity, complaining that Democrats were “trying to smear me as if I had something to do with that.” No one suggested anything of the sort. DeSantis’ silence was the issue, and Pushaw’s knee-jerk response highlighted it.
— OPINIONS —
“There’s a name for someone who calls violence ‘legitimate.’ It isn’t ‘Republican.’” via Dana Milbank of The Washington Post — God bless those crafty wordsmiths of the Republican Party! The people who gave us “alternative facts,” “enhanced interrogation techniques,” “tender age shelters,” and “hiking the Appalachian Trail” have outdone themselves. Euphemisms have been with us since even before the Reagan-era MX missile was dubbed the “Peacekeeper,” and the estate tax became the death tax. But calling violence “legitimate discourse” is a particularly illegitimate twisting of the English language. Now, the insurrectionists have become peaceful tourists or “political prisoners,” the Capitol Police murderers, the would-be assassins martyrs. Poll after poll shows about 10% of the American public believes violence against the government is justified at this moment.
“You know what’s ‘disgusting,’ DeSantis? Your heartless policy toward immigrant children” via Fabiola Santiago of the Miami Herald — You have to be devoid of a soul to attack, in a quest for political glory, immigrant children looking for safety in this troubled world and to do so in a city like Miami, Florida’s Ellis Island. Shame is too benign a word for this new racist low. As if not enough dishonor and division has been sown by today’s unrecognizable Republican Party in Miami’s Cuban American community, here comes DeSantis to open another chapter. In Miami to participate in a so-called immigration forum that was nothing but an opportunity for DeSantis to fear-monger and bash Biden, the Governor decided that the best way to pound his anti-immigrant stances was to obsequiously pander to Cuban Americans.
“Speed cameras in Florida school zones make a lot of sense” via the Tampa Bay Times editorial board — Anyone who speeds through a school zone deserves a ticket. Even the folks in Tallahassee seem to agree. That’s why SB 410, which would allow cities and counties to install speed cameras in school zones, is so far sailing through committees without a single nay vote. We already know the dangers that pedestrians face in Florida and Tampa Bay. Florida is the most dangerous place to walk in the United States, with seven of the 10 most pedestrian-hostile metro areas. Tampa Bay ranks eighth deadliest. And yet, too many drivers don’t slow down even for school children. In just one week in 2019, Florida law enforcement ticketed 2,819 drivers and gave warnings to 4,040 more during the “Operation School Zone Safety” campaign.
— TODAY’S SUNRISE —
Surgeon General Ladapo’s confirmation is heading to the full Senate. He made it through a two-part committee hearing that even included questions about his fashion choice in lab coats.
Also on today’s Sunrise:
— Bills to make picketing and demonstrating outside residences are moving through the legislature, but not without questions about the First Amendment.
— A civics lesson of sorts in the debate over making it harder to put citizen’s initiatives on the ballot.
— The Governor talks about gender ideology in the classroom.
— And talk about the high cost of housing; a two-bedroom in Melbourne is going for $2.5 million. Guess who lived there for a while?
To listen, click on the image below:
— OLYMPICS —
“Ocala’s Joey Mantia takes sixth place in 1,500-meter speedskating event at Beijing Olympics” via Paul Newberry of the Ocala Star-Banner — World Cup leader Mantia, from Ocala, got off to a strong start but couldn’t hold his pace through a race that requires both speed and endurance. He wound up sixth in 1:45.26. “The reality is, even if I skated a perfect race, I don’t know if I would’ve beat Kjeld (Nuis) today,” Mantia said. “It’s pretty incredible what he did. It’s nice to know that the gold medal went to somebody who really showed up today.”
“Olympic athletes compete against the pandemic, climate change — and politics, of course” via the Miami Herald editorial board — The controversial two-week 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing officially began Friday morning with the Opening Ceremony airing on NBC. China put on its traditional, spectacular light and fireworks shows; snowflakes were the theme. Still, something is missing at these Olympics: public interest. This year, due to the pandemic, the host country and its politics, which kept some delegations away, and climate change, which is expected to hamper some snow events, the usual magnitude of the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat feels smallish. The Games of the Olympiad are muted and more about everything else than the best athletes in the world coming together and competing.
“Winter Olympics medal ceremonies will allow athletes to temporarily remove masks for photos” via Mike Snider of USA Today — When medal winners at the 2022 Winter Beijing Olympics make their way to the awards podium, they will have gotten marching orders regarding face masks. Athletes can remove their masks for photos capturing the gold, silver and bronze medal recipients on their respective podiums. Then, they are required to put their masks back on and depart the platform. Later they can take quick maskless photos with their own teams. Whether all Olympians will follow those rules, set by the International Olympic Committee as part of its COVID-19 prevention protocols, remains to be seen. There’s precedent for rule-breaking. During last year’s Tokyo Summer Olympics, the first wave of athletes to make it to the awards podium were told to follow the IOC’s rule to keep their masks on during the entire ceremony.
“All alone at luge, where closed doors offer a view of the Games’ best-kept secret.” via Jonathan Abrams of The New York Times — Some Olympic sports impress with their athleticism, or their physical prowess, or their grace and fluidity in movement. The National Sliding Center in Yanqing, the host of the Games’ bobsled, luge and skeleton events, offers something else, something unexpected: a disorienting and exhilarating view of sport. It starts with the track. One could roam along the nearly mile-long track and stand close enough to hear the low hum of the approaching sled, feel the wind’s hiss from a luger’s wake and see the imprint their sleds sliced into the ice.
“NBC says Leslie Jones can keep offering her commentary on the Olympics.” via Remy Tumin of The New York Times — One day after Jones suggested that NBC was pressuring her to give up her colorful Olympics commentary, the network said on Monday night that the situation “has been resolved.” Jones, the former “Saturday Night Live” star who has become an unofficial Olympics armchair expert, has tweeted her way through the past three Olympics, much to the adoration of die-hard sports fans and novices alike. But on Monday, she said that some of her videos had been blocked and that she was considering giving up on the Olympics altogether. “Leslie Jones does not stay anywhere I’m not welcomed,” Jones posted on social media Sunday night at the end of the free skate event.
“How to watch the Winter Olympics online on a budget” via Tatum Hunter and Geoffrey A. Fowler of The Washington Post — The 2022 Winter Olympics are here, and finding coverage online has gotten easier since the Summer Games in Tokyo last year. For instance, the Winter Games in Beijing mark the first time NBC, which owns broadcast rights to the Olympics, makes all of its live coverage available to people who pay for its streaming service, Peacock. That means you won’t find yourself wondering why you can’t find NBC content on an NBC-owned streaming platform. And at $4.99 a month, it’s a small price to pay for a few weeks of Olympics access. But finding the Olympic content, you want when you want it still isn’t a no-brainer. Peacock only allows three people to share the same account, so borrowing a friend’s login can get tricky.
— ALOE —
“Publix working with Audubon Society to restore portion of Everglades. First phase complete” via Paul Nutcher of The Lakeland Ledger — Deer captured on video cameras are evidence of Publix’s yearlong commitment of $1.2 million is working to help restore the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in the western Everglades. The restoration effort so far has eliminated invasive willows and other species across 200 acres of the sanctuary, Publix Super Markets Inc. said in a news release last week. Invasive trees and plants disrupt Florida’s natural water cycle by using standing water from rainfall before it can seep into the underground aquifers. According to a third-party evaluation arranged by Publix, the phase one removal will allow more than 44 million gallons of water per year to be returned to the wetland’s ecosystem, the equivalent of nearly 67 Olympic-size swimming pools.
“This luxury resort near Miami was just named one of the best hotels in America” via Connie Ogle of the Miami Herald — This is getting to be a habit: The most famous luxury oceanfront resort in Sunny Isles Beach was just named one of the best hotels in the country. Again. U.S. News & World Report has just released its 2022 rankings of the best hotels in the United States, and in what was a surprise to precisely no one, Acqualina Resort was ranked No. 3 in the country, behind The Peninsula Chicago (No. 1) and Montage Kapalua Bay in Maui (No. 2). For Acqualina, which also ranked in the top three in 2021, that includes a spectacular beachfront, several pools, the award-winning Espa spa and restaurants including Ke-uH.
— HAPPY BIRTHDAY —
Happy birthday to former U.S. Rep. Patrick Rooney, former state Rep. Fred Costello, and our friend, Todd Jennings, chair of the Pinellas County Republican Executive Committee. Belated birthday wishes to Rhett Bullard.
___
Sunburn is authored and assembled by Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Daniel Dean, Renzo Downey, Jacob Ogles, and Drew Wilson.
5.) MORNING BREW
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13.) AXIOS
Axios AM
🐪 Good Wednesday morning. Smart Brevity™ count: 1,295 words … 5 minutes. Edited by Zachary Basu.
🏂 Snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis, 36, won Team USA’s first gold medal at the Winter Games. The snowboard cross win was 16 years in the making. —NBC
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Pfizer and federal officials are scrambling to speed up COVID vaccines for kids under 5. But polls indicate plenty of parents may be on the fence about getting their child vaccinated right away, Axios’ Tina Reed writes.
- Why it matters: Officials are trying to get first shots into the littlest arms to protect against severe disease and hospitalization — which, while rare for young kids, is still a real threat. But many parents of younger children are leery.
In a Harris poll of 306 parents of kids under 5 provided exclusively to Axios, 73% of vaccinated parents said they’re likely to vaccinate their kids under 5, while only 35% of unvaccinated parents would.
- “When I looked at these numbers, I thought: ‘Buckle up, PTAs. Toddler vaccines are the next culture war,'” John Gerzema, CEO of The Harris Poll, told Axios.
- Context: The push to vaccinate young children comes as even Democratic governors have announced plans to stop masking kids in schools.
The bottom line: If and when Pfizer’s vaccines become available for the youngest kids, officials will have a job ahead of them convincing many parents to take advantage, even after two years of waiting.
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Want to bring down inflation? The great dilemma is this: The only real options are to be patient, or cause a recession, Axios chief economic correspondent Neil Irwin writes.
- Why it matters: It’s a pick-your-poison environment for the Biden administration and the Fed, which face public discontent over economic conditions — and the risk that discontent would only get worse if the alternative was a new recession.
What’s happening: The inflationary pressures from strained supply chains and labor shortages look likely to persist through 2022 and maybe beyond.
- But the measures that would be needed to bring inflation down more rapidly would risk sending the economy into a tailspin.
The big picture: In the decades after World War II, episodes of inflation ended when the Fed took steps to tighten the money supply, causing recessions.
- In other words, companies can’t hike prices and workers can’t demand higher pay if the economy is contracting and more people are out of work.
- In the most extreme example, Fed Chair Paul Volcker engineered a steep downturn in the early 1980s that ended the double-digit inflation of that era — but at the cost of double-digit unemployment that pummeled President Reagan’s popularity.
This time around, the goal is a soft landing. The Fed is looking to move toward higher interest rates gradually, not with the kind of shock Volcker engineered.
- And the Biden administration is decidedly not talking about spending cuts or tax increases that might act as fiscal anti-stimulus.
Reality check: Patience is a virtue, but not necessarily in politics. High inflation is hammering President Biden’s approval ratings, and could cost Democrats big in November’s midterms.
Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
President Biden isn’t just about to lose the window for Democrats to pass legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He could also lose a president’s best backup leverage — the ability to cut them through executive and regulatory actions, Axios’ Andrew Freedman reports.
- Why it matters: Biden may soon find himself hamstrung by unfavorable court rulings, including West Virginia v. EPA — a Supreme Court case scheduled for oral arguments on Feb. 28.
Environmentalists are watching the case closely: They fear the court’s new conservative majority may be willing to go far toward dismantling the EPA’s regulatory authority under the Clean Air Act.
- That’s on top of the collapse of Build Back Better, the best vehicle Democrats had for cutting emissions.
Between the lines: The White House might not have the option of turning to the executive and regulatory approach that President Obama used on climate after running into his own congressional roadblocks.
Canadian anti-vaccine mandate protesters blockade the road leaving the Ambassador Bridge border crossing from Detroit to Windsor, Ontario.
- The busiest land crossing from the U.S. to Canada was shut as part of a protest that began with hundreds of trucks paralyzing downtown streets in Canada’s capital, Ottawa.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell broke with the RNC over last week’s censure of Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), saying it’s not the party’s job to single out members for their views.
- “Traditionally, the view of the national party committee is that we support all members of our party, regardless of their positions on some issues,” he said during a news conference.
McConnell called the Jan. 6 Capitol riot a “violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election from one administration to the next.”
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Apple is set to transform iPhones into contactless credit-card readers and payment processors later this year, report Ryan Lawler of Axios Pro Fintech Deals and Axios Closer co-author Hope King.
- Why it matters: The “Tap to Pay” feature — announced yesterday — will make it easier for merchants to conduct their business and accept contactless payments without any extra equipment.
How it works: Tap to Pay is powered by near-field communications, or NFC, which is used today by contactless credit cards and in payments made from phones to point-of-sale terminals.
- The technology has been present in the iPhone since 2014, though use has been limited until recently to using the phone to make payments via Apple Pay.
The actual payment processing will be handled by Apple partners, the first of which will be fintech startup Stripe.
The intrigue: It’s a shot across the bow at Square, which pioneered an iPhone accessory for accepting payments.
💵 For efficient tracking of fintech and mobile payments, sign up for the Axios Pro Fintech Deals newsletter.
Photo: Courtesy of Heroes of Liberty
A new way America is separating … A conservative children’s book startup has begun publishing a series focused on conservative icons, including Ronald Reagan, John Wayne and economist Thomas Sowell.
- Why it matters: The books’ publisher, Heroes of Liberty, was created to counter children’s books focusing on progressive heroes, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Axios’ Russell Contreras reports.
Heroes of Liberty recently released a book on Wayne targeted to children aged 7 to 12. That followed one about Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
- The subscription service plans monthly releases. Coming up: Douglas MacArthur, and former British Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill.
- The Delaware-based startup is funded by private investors.
The Winter Games’ most unique venue … The Freestyle Skiing Big Air competition is being held on the site of a former Beijing steel mill, set against the backdrop of four industrial cooling towers.
- Freeskiing is taking on Big Air for the first time as a Winter Games discipline. The Big Air snowboarders will be there next week.
The 200-foot Big Air Shougang structure was built at the former Shougang Group steel mill — China’s first state-owned plant, which helped the country become a world leader in steel production, AP reports.
- Its billowing smokestacks provided work for thousands — but also darkened the sky over Beijing’s Shijingshan District, contributing to the city’s air pollution problem.
Above: USA silver medalist Colby Stevenson (left), Norway gold medalist Birk Ruud (center) and Sweden bronze medalist Henrik Harlaut.
Editor’s note: The top story in yesterday’s newsletter was corrected to reflect that BLS data from January cannot be compared to the prior month. See corrected story.
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14.) THE WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
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21.) CHICAGO SUNTIMES
Pritzker to reveal plan to phase out Illinois indoor mask mandate
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22.) THE HILL MORNING REPORT
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23.) THE HILL 12:30 REPORT
24.) ROLL CALL
Morning Headlines
Inspired by an anonymous Instagram account and disgusted by bad pay and worse bosses, congressional staffers have begun the uncertain journey toward unionizing. Just what their struggles will produce remains to be seen — much will depend on how lawmakers, fellow staffers and an obscure legislative branch office respond. Read more…
The House passed a stopgap appropriations bill Tuesday evening to extend current federal agency funding rates through March 11 as Democrats and Republicans continue to trade offers on topline spending levels for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1. Read more…
Grievance is no substitute for ideas
OPINION — Grievance, anchored in revenge and loyalty tests, won’t produce candidates who can connect with voters and put together winning majority coalitions. Qualifications, vision and winnability should matter more than elections that are now in the rearview mirror. Read more…
Click here to subscribe to Fintech Beat for the latest market and regulatory developmentsin finance and financial technology.
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‘Harsh’ exchanges: Dismissive Biden press strategy undermines lofty campaign vows
ANALYSIS — The net effect of the Biden administration’s “just trust us” media strategy is an often-paltry discourse on important issues and, ironically, more rather than less false info flying around on social media and cable news, CQ Roll Call’s John T. Bennett writes. Read more…
Child tax credit talks quietly percolate amid advocates’ push
Sen. Mitt Romney on Tuesday suggested a bipartisan group of senators who’ve struck other deals to move legislation through the evenly divided chamber could next turn their focus to reviving an expanded child tax credit after a more generous version lapsed last month. Read more…
Proposed insurance rule ignites debate over transgender health care
Private insurance companies, patient advocacy groups and conservative organizations are at odds over a proposal to limit discrimination by health plans for medical care for transgender people and other LGBTQ consumers. Read more…
Capitol Police chief pushes back against Rep. Nehls’ allegations of improper investigation
Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger on Tuesday defended his department against allegations it inappropriately investigated a member of Congress’ office, saying an officer acted with vigilance. Manger’s statement came shortly after Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, tweeted that the Capitol Police investigated his office “illegally.” Read more…
CQ Roll Call is a part of FiscalNote, the leading technology innovator at the intersection of global business and government. Copyright 2022 CQ Roll Call. All rights reserved Privacy | Safely unsubscribe now.
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25.) POLITICO PLAYBOOK
POLITICO Playbook: Censures inflame GOP tensions
Presented by
DRIVING THE DAY
HOT JOB: STACEY ABRAMS is advertising for a social media platforms director.
CENSUREY OVERLOAD — The fallout from the RNC’s weekend censure of Reps. LIZ CHENEY (R-Wyo.) and ADAM KINZINGER (R-Ill.) spread to Capitol Hill on Monday: Hill Republicans returned to town and lit into Chair RONNA MCDANIEL. Senate Republicans went on the record to say that looking back to 2020 is a losing strategy that won’t help the party flip both chambers of Congress.
And they’re furious that the RNC would dub the activities of Jan. 6 “legitimate political discourse.”
We’re not just talking here about an expected MITT ROMNEY rebuke — though the Utah Republican certainly called his niece’s decision “very unfortunate,” even “stupid.” The pushback extended from rank-and-file lawmakers all the way up to GOP leadership, as our Burgess Everett, Marianne LeVine and Olivia Beavers write:
— Senate Minority Whip JOHN THUNE (R-S.D.), the No. 2 Senate Republican who might replace MITCH MCCONNELL as GOP leader some day: “The focus right now needs to be forward, not backward. If we want to get our majorities in the fall, it’s better to turn our fire on Democrats, not each other.”
— Sen. JOHN CORNYN (R-Texas), another potential McConnell successor: “They did say in their resolution that the job was to win elections. I agree with that, but then they go on to engage in actions that make that more challenging.”
Even Trump ally Sen. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-S.C.) was mad enough to call McDaniel and personally express his disappointment that the RNC was moving “in the wrong direction” as the chamber’s fate hangs in the balance. “All of us up here want to talk about forward not backward,” he said.
And NRSC Chair RICK SCOTT (R-Fla.), who has aligned himself closely with DONALD TRUMP, distanced himself from the “legitimate political discourse” language. “That’s a decision that members of the RNC get to make,” he told CNN’s Manu Raju. “I think what happened on Jan. 6 was wrong.” (Late Monday night, Scott defended McDaniel more generally on Twitter.)
SO WHAT NOW? Privately, many Hill Republicans hope the RNC will learn a lesson from the episode. The controversy is why House Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY didn’t want to kick Cheney and Kinzinger out of the House GOP Conference: He worried it would become a major distraction from issues Republicans want to focus on, such as inflation and the border. Indeed, the RNC’s discussions about midterm strategy last weekend were drowned out by the censure drama.
Defenders of the RNC say the Senate GOP should stop clutching their pearls. Obviously this is Trump’s party, they argue. And if the RNC members want to go this way, McDaniel had no choice but to do what her members wanted.
McConnell plans to publicly address the censure today. The GOP leader has been something of a broken record in trying to tell his party to focus on the future, not the past — so you can imagine what he’ll say.
Don’t expect similar public rebukes from House GOP members. McCarthy has long instructed his caucus to deflect or not answer reporters’ questions about the latest Trump outrage and internal party divisions — and keep the blunt words for private discussions.
Good Tuesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
LANDER RESIGNS — Well, that was fast. Less than 24 hours after our colleague Alex Thompson reported that an internal White House investigation found that top White House science adviser ERIC LANDER bullied and mistreated his subordinates, Lander resigned.
“I am devastated that I caused hurt to past and present colleagues by the way in which I have spoken to them,” he wrote in his resignation letter.
Lander, whose position is Cabinet-level, is the highest-level official to resign from the Biden administration. The White House investigation of his conduct ended in December. Yet despite President JOE BIDEN’s own stated zero-tolerance policy for workplace bullying, the White House initially signaled Lander was going to stick around after the story was published.
But the situation was quickly becoming untenable. The American Association for the Advancement of Science disinvited Lander from its annual meeting. He canceled a previously scheduled appearance to testify before a congressional committee today.
And press secretary JEN PSAKI was grilled at her briefing about why Lander was allowed to keep his job.
Behind the scenes, senior staff at OSTP were struggling with how to move forward after the news of the internal White House investigation and litany of complaints from fellow staffers became public.
Alex got his hands on a recording of a Monday morning meeting with senior OSTP officials and the office’s chief of staff, MARC AIDINOFF, who kicked off the meeting by addressing the POLITICO article. “I really struggle with what to say here. … There were some things in the article that were surprises to me, and some that, you know, weren’t.”
“I think one of the many, many troubling pieces is, is the way in which … the current work culture at OSTP prevents the work from happening,” he added. “I don’t want there to be any sense that that the behavior of the staff talking to reporters when things [come] to a boiling point is the problem or that, you know, there’s anger from me in any way towards those who sort of felt this got to the point that talking to the press was the appropriate next step.”
Said another official on the call: “I think it’s also going to be an issue … with regard to how does this reconcile with President Biden’s commitment to like, not tolerate bad behavior or demeaning behavior?”
BIDEN’S TUESDAY:
— 10:15 a.m.: The president and VP KAMALA HARRIS will receive the President’s Daily Brief.
— Noon: Biden and Harris will have lunch together.
— 1:45 p.m.: Biden will deliver remarks on manufacturing, union jobs and energy costs with Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG and Energy Secretary JENNIFER GRANHOLM.
— 2:45 p.m.: Biden and Harris will receive the weekly economic briefing.
Psaki will brief at 2 p.m.
THE SENATE will meet at 10 a.m. to take up DOUGLAS BUSH’s nomination to be an assistant Army secretary. At 11:45 a.m., the Senate will vote on JOHN HOWARD’s and LOREN ALIKHAN’s judicial nominations. The chamber will recess from 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., and at 2:30 p.m. vote on the nominations of AMY GUTMANN to be U.S. ambassador to Germany and LISA CARTY to be U.S. representative on the U.N. Economic and Social Council. Surgeon General VIVEK MURTHY will testify before the Finance Committee on youth mental health at 10 a.m. The Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on several nominations, including DEBORAH LIPSTADT as special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, at 10 a.m.
THE HOUSE will meet at 10 a.m.
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PLAYBOOK READS
CONGRESS
WHAT SUNRISE IS READING — E&E News’ Scott Waldman has a thorough look at how Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) has used his political power for decades to protect the interests of his family’s waste coal company — from killing Build Back Better on back. “There is no indication that Manchin has broken any laws,” Scott writes, and Manchin has indicated support for the $500 billion the administration wants to spend on climate. But “he has pushed measures to promote the coal that Enersystems removes from abandoned mines, nominated officials who helped ensure that the power plant that buys most of that company’s coal did not close, and waged political battles against environmental regulations that threatened the same plant.”
THE THREAT WITHIN — The House inspector general in a December draft report recommended that the chamber roll out a “program aimed at identifying and deterring internal threats, including through ‘behavioral monitoring,’” Betsy Woodruff Swan reports. Such an “insider threat” program could prove controversial: “Everything you told me about that report, I will stand at the top of my lungs and fight against,” Rep. KELLY ARMSTRONG (R-N.D.) said. But the House sergeant-at-arms said he doesn’t plan to start any new surveillance and monitoring.
KICKING DOWN THE ROAD … AGAIN — House Appropriations Chair ROSA DELAURO (D-Conn.) “unveiled compromise legislation Monday that would keep the government functioning through March 11 and give lawmakers more time to finish overdue spending bills for this year,” AP’s Alan Fram reports. “Congressional approval in the coming days, which was expected, would avert a federal shutdown when temporary funding expires the night of Feb. 18. A House vote was planned for Tuesday, while the Senate’s schedule was unclear.”
JUDICIARY SQUARE
REDISTRICTING LATEST — The Supreme Court on Monday voted 5-4 to keep the “congressional map drawn by Alabama Republicans in place, freezing a lower court ruling that said the map likely violates the Voting Rights Act,” CNN’s Ariane de Vogue reports. “The lower court had ordered a new map to be drawn, which could have led to Democrats gaining another seat in the House in the fall. Chief Justice JOHN ROBERTS joined the three liberal justices in dissent. … The court’s order, the first dealing with the 2022 elections, means that the map will be used for the state’s upcoming primary, and likely be in place for the entire election cycle, while the legal challenge plays out.”
ALL POLITICS
VANCE IN TROUBLE — A super PAC supporting Ohio GOP Senate candidate J.D. VANCE said his campaign “needs a course correction ASAP,” our Alex Isenstadt reports. “A 98-page PowerPoint presentation produced by TONY FABRIZIO, who has been polling for the pro-Vance Protect Ohio Values super PAC since last year, paints a dire picture of the candidate’s prospects. According to the slide deck, Vance has seen a ‘precipitous decline’ in Ohio’s GOP Senate primary since last fall, when a pair of outside groups backing a rival began a multimillion-dollar TV advertising blitz using five-year-old footage of Vance attacking former President Donald Trump.”
PULLING BACK THE CURTAIN — ERIK PRINCE helped raise money in 2018 for RICHARD SEDDON’s effort to place undercover spies among progressives and anti-Trump Republicans, NYT’s Mark Mazzetti and Adam Goldman reveal this morning. The involvement of the military contractor (and BETSY DEVOS’ brother) is among their new details about Seddon’s operation, including its focus on Wyoming Gov. MARK GORDON and the prospect that it broke federal campaign finance laws by making “straw man donations” to Democrats.
THE PANDEMIC
A COVID CHANGE-UP — Sources tell our Erin Banco that the Biden administration is looking at changing the country’s hospitalization figures so it can get a better sense of the actual impact of the virus. “A task force comprised of scientists and data specialists at HHS and CDC are working with hospitals nationwide to improve Covid-19 reporting. The group is asking hospitals to report numbers of patients who go to the facility because they have Covid-19 and separate those from individuals who go in for other reasons and test positive after being admitted.”
AMERICA AND THE WORLD
RUSSIA LATEST — Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN said “he was prepared to keep negotiating over Russia’s security demands in Eastern Europe but offered a stark warning over the possibility of a full-scale war between Russia and the West — using a five-hour meeting with French President EMMANUEL MACRON to keep the world guessing about his intentions,” NYT’s Anton Troianovski, Roger Cohen and Katie Rogers write. “Mr. Putin said that proposals made by Macron of France in their one-on-one meeting at the Kremlin were ‘too early to speak about’ but could create ‘a foundation for our further steps.’
“Mr. Macron, in a joint news conference with Mr. Putin after their hastily scheduled meeting, described the coming days as potentially decisive in heading off what the West fears could be a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
PIPELINE POLITICS — Following talks with German Chancellor OLAF SCHOLZ on Monday, Biden said the U.S. would “‘bring an end’ to the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline if Russia invades Ukraine,” NBC’s Lauren Egan writes. “When pressed for details on how he would keep that promise given that the pipeline is not under U.S. control, Biden did not elaborate. Scholz, meanwhile, declined to take a firm stance on the fate of Nord Stream 2, telling reporters that Germany was ‘acting together’ with its allies and promising ‘very, very harsh’ steps against Russia if it invades Ukraine.”
PULLOUT FALLOUT — WaPo’s Dan Lamothe and Alex Horton obtained a 2,000-page Army investigation into the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, including the most thorough accounting yet of the evacuation effort. The top takeaways: “Senior White House and State Department officials failed to grasp the Taliban’s steady advance on Afghanistan’s capital and resisted efforts by U.S. military leaders to prepare the evacuation of embassy personnel and Afghan allies weeks before Kabul’s fall, placing American troops ordered to carry out the withdrawal in greater danger.”
PLAYBOOKERS
Emmanuel Macron and Vladimir Putin met Monday at … a humongous white table.
Eric Adams called those who question why he eats fish, after saying he eats a plant-based diet, “the food police.” Perhaps one police force the mayor might be willing to defund.
Fox News host Brian Kilmeade knocked Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, asking the former president to “stop wasting our time with that.”
Peter Thiel, the Silicon Valley billionaire, is stepping down from the board of Facebook parent company Meta in order to focus on electing Trump-supporting candidates in the midterms.
Andrew Yang apologized after getting blowback for “wrong-headed” tweets saying Joe Rogan isn’t racist because he “works with Black people literally all of the time.”
Rumble, the Canadian-based video platform, has offered Rogan a four-year, $100 million contract to leave Spotify.
Donald Trump is making tens of millions of dollars from his coffee table book, according to CNN.
SPOTTED: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao celebrating their anniversary on Sunday night at Capital Grille.
MEDIA MOVE — Alex Wagner is returning to MSNBC as a senior political analyst and guest anchor.
STAFFING UP — William Pratt is now a policy adviser for the Treasury Department. He previously was a legislative aide for Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
TRANSITIONS — Suzi Emmerling has joined Boundary Stone as an SVP, where she will lead a team focused on climate, clean energy, commercial space and transportation sectors. She previously was COO for Eli Broad, and is a CAP, DOT and Eric Garcetti alum. … Michael Mosier is now a senior adviser to Oliver Wyman’s anti-financial crime and digital assets practices. He most recently was acting director and permanent deputy director/digital innovation officer) of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. …
… Darci Vetter is joining the Nature Conservancy as global lead for policy and government relations. She previously was a diplomat in residence at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, and is a USTR and USDA alum. … Jess Meeth is now national comms director for Democrats for Life of America. She previously worked for Let Them Live. … Michael Pedroni is joining the Investment Company Institute as chief global affairs officer. He previously was head of global markets and research at a trade association and is a Treasury alum.
WEEKEND WEDDING — Caroline Kitchens, government affairs director for the R Street Institute, and Dion Mitchell, national sales manager at Upper Quadrant, got married Saturday at Raspberry Plain Manor in Leesburg, Va. The couple met on a dating app in 2017 and had their first date at Meridian Pint in Columbia Heights. Pic … Another pic
WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Julie Devine, legislative director for Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.), and Jack Devine, owner of Tally Ho Productions, welcomed Nancy Violet Devine on Friday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) and John Joyce (R-Pa.) … Amos Snead … Vox’s Zack Beauchamp … Will Levi … Caitlin Webber … Hudson Institute’s John Walters, Michael Pillsbury and Sarah May Stern … Mark Corallo … Heather Zichal … Scott Bennett … Amazon Web Services’ Matthew Haskins … Brian Katulis … Stephanie Cherry … Elliott Schwartz … Sarah Anne Voyles … USAID’s Adam Kaplan (4-0) … John Kartch … Tony Baker … Hilary Badger … Nicole Dicocco … Marlene Cooper Vasilic … Billy Flanagan … Joe Briggs … Ben Stevens of Summit Strategies … Dy Brown … Julie Gunlock … Mansie Hough … Jenny Thalheimer Rosenberg … Denise Diminuco … Bill Ruch … former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson (6-0) … Ted Koppel … POLITICO Europe’s Arnau Busquets Guàrdia
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26.) AMERICAN MINUTE
Frederick Douglass, Abolitionist Leader & Advisor to Lincoln, “I love the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ” – American Minute with Bill Federer
Abolitionist Leader & Advisor to President Abraham Lincoln – American Minute with Bill Federer Frederick Douglass
- Democrats supported slavery; and
- Republicans opposed slavery.
- Jeremiah Haralson (1846–1916), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- James T. Rapier (1837–1883), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Benjamin S. Turner (1825–1894), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Scipio Africanus Jones (1863–1943), delegate to Republican National Convention;
- Edward Duplex (1831–1900), Republican, Mayor of Wheatland, California (1888);
- Pio Pico (1801–1894), last governor of Mexican California. Formed the Republican Party in California;
- Frederick Madison Roberts (1879–1952), Republican, first African-American in California State Assembly;
- Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs (1821–1874), Presbyterian minister, Republican, Secretary of State of Florida and Florida Superintendent of Public Instruction;
- James Weldon Johnson (1871–1944), Republican, appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt as U.S. Consul in Venezuela and Nicaragua, first black manager of the NAACP, president of the Colored Republican Club;
- Josiah T. Walls (1842–1905), Republican, first African American to be elected a U.S. Representative from Florida;
- Abram Colby (1800s), Republican, member of Georgia House of Representatives;
- Jefferson Franklin Long (1836–1901), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Oscar Stanton de Priest (1871–1951), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Archie Alexander (1888–1958), Republican, governor of U.S. Virgin Islands;
- William Tecumseh Vernon (1871–1944), Republican, bishop in African Methodist Episcopal Church, president of Western University, Register of the Treasury under President Theodore Roosevelt, 1906-1911;
- Anna Simms Banks (1862–1923), Republican, first female delegate at the Kentucky’s 7th congressional district Convention in Kentucky;
- Caesar Antoine (1836–1921), Republican, 13th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana;
- Antoine Dubuclet (1810–1887), Republican, State Treasurer of Louisiana;
- Oscar Dunn (1826–1871), Republican, 11th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana;
- Charles Edmund Nash (1844–1913), Republican, U.S Representative;
- P.B.S. Pinchback (1837–1921), Republican, 24th governor of Louisiana; first African-American governor of a U.S. state;
- Ernest Lyon (1860–1938), Republican, Methodist clergyman, former United States Ambassador to Liberia, and founder of the Maryland Industrial and Agricultural Institute for Colored Youths;
- Julius Caesar Chappelle (1852–1904), Republican, legislator (1883–1886), Massachusetts House of Representatives;
- Lewis Hayden (1811–1889), Republican, elected to the Massachusetts State Legislature;
- William Henry Lewis (1868–1949), Republican, one of the first African Americans admitted to the bar, and the first African American to be appointed U.S. Assistant Attorney General, “the highest office in an executive branch of the government ever held by a member of his race”;
- Clement G. Morgan (1859–1929), Republican, Boston attorney, civil rights activist, and city official;
- George Lewis Ruffin (1834–1886), Republican, attorney, judge, Massachusetts state legislator, and Boston city councilman;
- John J. Smith (1820–1906), Republican, abolitionist and Massachusetts state representative;
- Butler R. Wilson (1861–1939), Republican, Boston civil rights activist;
- James W. Ames (1864–1944), Republican, member of Michigan House of Representatives;
- William Webb Ferguson (1857-1910), Republican, first African-American man elected to Michigan House of Representatives;
- John Francis Wheaton (1866–1922), Republican, member of Minnesota House of Representatives;
- Blanche Bruce (1841–1898), Republican, first African American to serve a full term in U.S. Senate;
- Perry Wilbon Howard (1877–1961), attorney and delegate to Republican National Convention, 1912–1960;
- John Roy Lynch (1847–1939), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Hiram Rhodes Revels (1827–1901), Republican, first African American to serve in U.S. Senate;
- Roscoe Conkling Simmons (1881–1951), Republican, nephew of Booker T. Washington, journalist, first African-American columnist hired by the Chicago Tribune, Republican Party leader;
- Ida B. Wells (1862–1931), Republican, civil rights advocate and co-founder of the NAACP;
- Walthall M. Moore (1886–1960), Republican, first African American to serve in the Missouri state legislature;
- Matthew Ricketts (1858–1917), Republican, member of the Nebraska House of Representatives;
- Walter G. Alexander (1880–1953), Republican, first African-American to serve in New Jersey Legislature;
- Oliver Randolph (1882–1951), Republican, second African American elected to New Jersey Legislature;
- Edward A. Johnson (1860–1944), Republican, member of New York State Assembly;
- Henry P. Cheatham (1857–1935), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- James H. Harris (1828–1898), Republican, member of North Carolina House of Representatives and North Carolina Senate;
- John Adams Hyman (1840–1891), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- James E. O’Hara (1844–1905), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- George Henry White (1852–1918), Republican, U.S. representative;
- James H. Young (1860–1921), Baptist, Republican, U.S. Colonel during Spanish-American War, member of North Carolina House of Representatives, 1894-1896;
- Charles Henry Langston (1817–1892), Republican, abolitionist and political activist;
- Green Currin (1842/1844–1918), Republican, member of Oklahoma Territorial Legislature;
- A.C. Hamlin (1881–1912), Republican, member of Oklahoma House of Representatives;
- Edward P. McCabe (1850–1920), Republican, Treasurer of Logan County, Oklahoma;
- Octavius Valentine Catto (1839–1871), Republican, civil rights activist, African American baseball pioneer;
- Crystal Bird Fauset (1894–1965), Republican, first female African-American state legislator in United States;
- Mifflin Wistar Gibbs (1823–1915), Republican, American consul to Madagascar;
- Richard H. Cain (1825–1887), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Francis Lewis Cardozo (1836–1903), Republican, South Carolina Treasurer and Secretary of State;
- Robert DeLarge (1842–1874), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Robert Brown Elliott (1842–1884), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Archibald Grimké (1849–1930), Republican, U.S. Consul to the Dominican Republic, 1894-1898, national vice-president of the NAACP;
- Henry E. Hayne (1840–?), Republican, South Carolina State Senator and Secretary of State;
- Thomas Ezekiel Miller (1849–1938), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- George Washington Murray (1853–1926), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- Joseph H. Rainey (1832–1887), Republican, first African American to serve in U.S. House of Representatives;
- Benjamin F. Randolph (1820–1868), Republican, South Carolina State Senator;
- Robert Smalls (1839–1915), Republican, U.S. Representative;
- William A. Feilds, Republican, member of Tennessee House of Representatives 1846, 1852–1898);
- Samuel R. Lowery (1830–1900), Republican, preacher and lawyer, the first black to argue a caes before the U.S. Supreme Court;
- William F. Yardley (1844–1924), Republican, anti-segregation advocate, first African American candidate for governor of Tennessee (1876);
- Richard Allen (1830–1909), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Alexander Asberry (1861–1903), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Houston A.P. Bassett (1857–1920), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Thomas Beck (1819–?), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Walter Moses Burton (1840–1913), Republican, member of the Texas State Senate;
- Norris Wright Cuney (1846–1898), Chairman of the Texas Republican Party (1886–1896);
- Matthew Gaines (1840–1900), Republican, community leader, minister, and Texas State Senator;
- William H. Holland (1841–1907), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- William Madison McDonald (1866–1950), State Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas;
- Robert J. Moore (1844–?), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Thompson Ruby (1841–1882), Republican, member of the Texas State Senate;
- Robert Lloyd Smith (1861–1942), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- James H. Stewart (1859–1924), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Benjamin Franklin Williams (1819–1886), Republican, member of the Texas House of Representatives;
- Edward David Bland (1848–1927), Republican, member of the Virginia House of Delegates;
- Peter K. Jones (1834–1895), Republican, member of the Virginia House of Delegates;
- John Mercer Langston (1829–1897), Republican, first black U.S. Representative from Virginia;
- William Owen Bush (1832–1907), Republican, member of the Washington State Legislature.
- Star Parker, founder of CURE (Center for Urban Renewal) wrote Uncle Sam’s Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America’s Poor and What We Can Do About It.
- Rev. C.L. Bryant produced a documentary Runaway Slave Movie, stating: “I am a ‘Runaway Slave’ from the Democrats’ plantation.”
- C. Mason Weaver wrote It’s OK to Leave the Plantation: The New Underground Railroad.
- Wayne Perryman wrote Unfounded Loyalty: An In-Depth Look Into The Love Affair Between Blacks and Democrats.
- Jesse Lee Peterson wrote From Rage to Responsibility: Black Conservative Jesse Lee Peterson and America Today.
27.) CAFFEINATED THOUGHTS
28.) CONSERVATIVE DAILY NEWS
29.) PJ MEDIA
The Morning Briefing: Dems, MSM Busy Tossing Their COVID Failures Into the Memory Hole
Top O’ the Briefing
Happy Wednesday, dear Kruiser Morning Briefing friends. It’s time that science got to work on meat-based vegetables. I’ll have the bacon kale, Chauncey.
While I am not the most avid moviegoer, I am usually aware of all of the movies getting buzz before the Academy Award nominations. I was a little lost and confused this year, especially with some of the streaming service flicks getting nominations. I feel like we’re in a world without any rules and Flo from Progressive will one day soon be winning all of the awards.
She kinda bugs me.
The Democrats have been pivoting so forcefully on various COVID-related things this past week that I’m surprised they aren’t all dizzy and nauseated, the poor dears. Ivermectin, natural immunity, the efficacy of cloth masks, you name it, they’ve been Team 180. And being the party of the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, they’ve been trying to erase the memory of their previous, horribly wrong policies.
Of course, their dutiful flying monkeys in the mainstream media have been working overtime to help.
Stacey wrote a great deep-dive about this yesterday:
The memo has gone out: It is time for every cultural institution, politician, and corporate media outlet to pivot on COVID-19. They must reverse their Covidstan policies, advocate a return to normal, and make excuses for the missteps of the health bureaucracy. The speed and shamelessness with which the narrative shift happened are breathtaking, and it can only mean one thing. The internal polling for Democrats in the midterms is beyond dismal, and areas assumed to be safely in the “D” column are at risk. We mustn’t let them get away with the rewrite of history they are attempting.
It’s not just that they’ve been so wrong about so many things, it’s that they were such jackbooted thugs when implementing and enforcing their errant policies. Heck, the Joe Rogan acrimony at Spotify began when he was touting Ivermectin as a treatment. The unhinged left immediately put the wheels in motion to cancel him, as they did with anyone else who went against the now-debunked leftist COVID orthodoxy.
The American left has gotten away with these types of politically-induced memory lapses for far too long, which is precisely the reason they think that they can pull it off again.
The thing is — and I’ve written about this a lot — they’ve been overreaching since they installed the puppet president in the Oval Office, and it’s about to come back to haunt them.
Democrats used COVID to blow up any semblance of election integrity in 2020 and the country has been reeling ever since. That’s on them. Sure, they keep trying to blame Republicans, and they’ll have some success with that in the coastal media bubbles. The misery that they’ve heaped upon the United States in the name of COVID won’t easily be forgotten, especially by the independent voters they were able to con in 2020.
More from Stacey:
Democrats, the health bureaucracy, and the corporate media cannot be allowed to retcon the COVID response over the last two years. We are only beginning to understand the damage to our children and society. The wreckage must be laid directly at their feet.
Again, they will be working overtime to sweep their myriad failures under the rug.
So maybe we buy up all of the brooms.
Everything Isn’t Awful
This woman makes tiny replicas of famous TV sets.
This is Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment.
Mind = blown. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/mWwouizwb6
— Goodable (@Goodable) February 7, 2022
PJ Media
Kruiser’s ‘The Worst of Times’ for the Week of Jan. 31—Feb. 6, 2022
VodkaPundit. Insanity Wrap: Facebook’s Faceplant, Zuck Threatens to Cut Off Europe After HUGE Losses
Vaccine Pusher Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Daughter-In-Law Is Top Lobbyist for Big Pharma
There ya go. Evidence Suggests ISIS Behind the Texas Synagogue Hostage Crisis
Louisiana’s Secretary of State Faces Lawsuit Over Election Integrity
Jury Trial Ordered for CNN’s Don Lemon Over Sexual Assault Allegations
This Is Why We Have the Second Amendment
Welcome to the Hunger Games: Olympic Athletes Complain of Horrible Conditions in China’s COVID Gulag
Democrats and the Corporate Media Are Trying to Rewrite the History on Their COVID-19 Response
Colorado Man Sets Fire to His Own House Because ‘Allah Told Him To’
Prominent Americans Give Joe Rogan Tough Advice on Surviving Leftist Attacks
‘Tinder Swindler’ Simon Leviev Conned Women Out of Millions in the Craziest Way You’ve Ever Heard
Misogynists and racists, the Democrats. Biden’s Economic ‘Recovery’ Leaves Women Behind
George Washington University President Faces Backlash After Siding With Chinese Communist Party
Iranian Man Decapitates Teen Wife, Smiles as He Strolls Neighborhood With Her Head
Bombshell Email Reveals Plan to Arrest Maskless Students in Loudoun County
Townhall Mothership
Sen. Cotton Demands AG Garland Answer for Lenient Sentence of BLM Rioter
Cops Who Killed Minnesota Man During No-Knock Raid Could Face Criminal Charges
Did You Catch What Was Laughable About MSNBC’s Segment About Canada’s Freedom Convoy?
Shucks. Chris Wallace’s CNN Gig Is Not Going Well
Cori Bush Prepares to Make Life Harder for Democrats Ahead of 2022 Midterms
CT governor says you can’t be tough on crime “if you’re weak on guns”
Cam&Co. No-knock warrants and the Second Amendment
Bill introduced to side step budgets, fund CDC to conduct anti-gun research
Army investigation: White House, State ignored Pentagon — and botched Afghanistan retreat
Christie: “Inexperienced” Ron DeSantis should give straight answers about boosters and January 6
The estimated cost of California’s high speed rail system is now up to $105 billion
The Sun-Sentinel editorial board is just mad because it can’t date Christina Pushaw
VIP
#MeToo: Republican Fundraising Pitches Need to Move Into the 21st Century
Well, I Won’t Defend Mitch McConnell Anymore
Joe Rogan Has One Important Quality That All of the Wannabe Gatekeepers Don’t
It’s Starting to Feel Like the Hunter Biden Administration, Isn’t It?
CDC Posts Blank Vaccine Card on Website, Making Widespread Fraud a Certainty
Joe Biden Keeps Violating His Zero-Tolerance Misconduct Policy
GOLD I Am Very Confused About the Stacey Abrams Photo
Around the Interwebz
Byron Allen To Bid For NFL’s Denver Broncos
What on Earth is going on with Peloton?
Is This the End of the Cannonball Run?
Bee Me
Olympic Skier Makes Incredible Jump Over Concentration Camp Prison Yard https://t.co/mC5Um8HkPC
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) February 8, 2022
The Kruiser Kabana
Kabana Gallery
Arrangement in Pink, Red and Purple, 1884 #impressionism #americanart pic.twitter.com/rDWDnugRzo
— James Whistler (@artist_whistler) February 5, 2022
Kabana Comedy
For media inquiries, please contact communications@pjmedia.com.
PJ Media senior columnist and associate editor Stephen Kruiser is a professional stand-up comic, writer, and recovering political activist who edits and writes PJ’s Morning Briefing, aka The Greatest Political Newsletter in America. His latest book, Straight Outta Feelings, is a humorous exploration of how the 2016 election made him enjoy politics more than he ever had before. When not being a reclusive writer, Kruiser has had the honor of entertaining U.S. troops all over the world. Follow on: Gab, Parler, MeWe
30.) WHITE HOUSE DOSSIER
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Cut to the News
8409 Lee Hwy #3984
Merrifield VA 22116-9998
USA
31.) THE DISPATCH
The Morning Dispatch: About Those Truckers
The ‘Freedom Convoy’ has riled Ottawans and attracted controversy, but also shifted Canada’s conversation about COVID restrictions.
| The Dispatch Staff |
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Happy Wednesday! Who’s ready for [airhorn noise] 🚨 1,700 words about Canadian truckers?! 🚨
Quick Hits: Today’s Top Stories
- U.S.-based computer graphics manufacturer Nvidia and Japan’s SoftBank Group announced Monday they are calling off a $40 billion deal that would have resulted in Nvidia acquiring Arm, a British chip-design firm owned by SoftBank. The Federal Trade Commission sued to block the transaction on antitrust grounds in December, and the companies cited “significant regulatory challenges” as the reason for the deal’s collapse.
- The U.S. trade deficit reached a record $859.1 billion last year, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday, with imports of goods and services increasing $576.5 billion in 2021 from 2020 levels while exports of goods and services increased $394.1 billion.
- The House voted 272-162 Tuesday to pass another stopgap government funding package that would give congressional negotiators three extra weeks to hammer out a larger budget for fiscal year 2022. If the Senate passes the legislation as expected, the deadline to avert a federal government shutdown would move from February 18 to March 11.
- An annual Department of Housing and Urban Development report released this week found that the number of sheltered homeless people—those without a home but staying in homeless shelters—declined 8 percent year-over-year in 2021 to the lowest level since at least 2007. The decrease was driven primarily by families with children—not individuals—as HUD said they were disproportionately benefited by the CARES Act and other pandemic relief measures. The report did not draw conclusions about homeless people not staying in shelters.
- Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Tuesday he will not run for the U.S. Senate in 2022, dashing the hopes of many top Republicans who viewed him as the only candidate who could defeat Democratic incumbent Sen. Chris Van Hollen in November.
‘Freedom Convoy’ Divides Canadians
Sen. Mitch McConnell wasn’t the only lawmaker to hold a press conference Tuesday afternoon and call out members of his own party for being unnecessarily divisive.
“It’s becoming harder and harder to know when public health stops and where politics begins,” said Joël Lightbound, a Liberal member of Canada’s Parliament from Quebec. His remarks, clocking in at 13 minutes, were full of not-so-subtle jabs at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “A decision was made to wedge, to divide and to stigmatize. I fear that this politicization of the pandemic risks undermining the public’s trust in our public health institutions,” he told reporters. “It’s time to stop dividing Canadians and pitting one part of the population against another.”
Lightbound—who said that some of his colleagues, behind the scenes, agree with his remarks to “varying degrees”—made a point at the outset of his press conference to both call for the Freedom Convoy protesters to end their blockade of Ottawa and condemn the extremists within their ranks. But he almost certainly would not have staked out the position he did Tuesday without them.
A little more than two weeks ago, Canadian truckers in cities across the country began forming convoys and heading toward Ottawa, the capital, to protest the government’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Trudeau’s administration announced several months ago that, as of November 30, vaccination would be required for “travel within and out of Canada,” but to minimize disruptions, certain groups were exempted from the mandate until January 15: Individuals reuniting with family, international students, temporary foreign workers, and essential service providers like … truck drivers. A similar Department of Homeland Security exemption for travelers entering the U.S. ran out on January 22.
Worth Your Time
- Over the past couple of years, we’ve routinely linked to former American Enterprise Institute President Arthur Brooks’ weekly column on happiness. That column turned into a book, which The Atlantic excerpted for the March edition of its magazine. “Time and again, I have fallen into the trap of believing that success and its accompaniments would fulfill me,” he writes. “On my 40th birthday I made a bucket list of things I hoped to do or achieve. They were mainly accomplishments only a wonk could want: writing books and columns about serious subjects, teaching at a top school, traveling to give lectures and speeches, maybe even leading a university or think tank. Whether these were good and noble goals or not, they were my goals, and I imagined that if I hit them, I would be satisfied. I found that list nine years ago, when I was 48, and realized that I had achieved every item on it. I had been a tenured professor, then the president of a think tank. I was giving frequent speeches, had written some books that had sold well, and was writing columns for The New York Times. But none of that had brought me the lasting joy I’d envisioned. Each accomplishment thrilled me for a day or a week—maybe a month, never more—and then I reached for the next rung on the ladder.”
- The Biden administration in recent weeks has been leaking or otherwise publicizing a number of intelligence reports seeking to expose Russia’s plans vis-a-vis Ukraine before the Kremlin can act. “The best antidote to disinformation is information,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week. The strategy has its proponents, but some in the intelligence community are wary. “There have been so many revelations that some national security hands wish administration officials would just shut up,” Nahal Toosi writes in Politico. “‘I am concerned about the long-term credibility of our intelligence with all of these select declassifications,’ a former CIA officer with expertise on Russia told POLITICO. ‘If it turns out to be wrong, or partially wrong, it undermines how much our partners trust the info we give them, or, frankly, how much the public trusts it.’ … A former National Security Council official who dealt with Russia argued that the more intelligence the administration releases, the more likely that the Kremlin’s operatives can trace the sources and methods used to obtain it, endangering American assets, including human ones.”
- Progressive writer Jonathan Chait supports affirmative action, but argues in his latest piece for New York Magazine that the left is “gaslighting” Asian Americans when it says racial preference admissions processes don’t discriminate against them. “I can accept the trade-offs as the necessary cost of this policy. What I can’t accept is the refusal by Harvard and its defenders to admit what the policy is,” he argues. “Harvard’s method for tamping down its Asian American applicants to an acceptable level has controversially involved using a subjective ‘personal’ score, gauging qualities such as ‘likability, courage, kindness and being ‘widely respected.’’ According to Harvard, Asian Americans systematically score worse by these measures than any other racial group, weighing down their admittance rate despite higher academic scores. Liberals have not denied these facts uncovered by the plaintiffs. Instead, they have engaged in a mix of evasion and deceit.”
Presented Without Comment
Also Presented Without Comment
Scoop: National Archives last month had to retrieve boxes of Trump WH records from Mar-a-Lago that were improperly removed from the WH. The items included correspondence w Kim Jong Un. With @jdawsey1 @thamburger & @AshleyRParker >
Toeing the Company Line
- Did you know that, barring another continuing resolution, the federal government is slated to shut down next week? In yesterday’s Uphill, Haley assesses the likelihood of Congress cobbling together yet another stop-gap measure—and checks in on legislative efforts to deter a Russian invasion of Ukraine with sanctions.
- In this week’s edition of The Sweep, Sarah responds to a series of questions from a reader about the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act—better known as McCain-Feingold—and whether it is responsible for the dismal state of our politics. “Campaigns on both sides have gutted their ‘major donor programs’ and beefed up their online and digital fundraising,” she notes. “Only 3 percent of voters are ever going to give to a candidate (and that number gets lower the lower down the ballot you go). So how do you reach them? And how do you motivate them? Outrage.”
- Crime is up, drug overdoses are rampant, inflation is here, Russia is threatening eastern Europe. The ’80s are back, David writes in Tuesday’s French Press (🔒), and there’s no Ronald Reagan knocking down the door.
- Remnant regular A.B. Stoddard rejoined Jonah on the podcast yesterday for some rank, rank punditry. Does last week’s RNC meeting mean the GOP is now committed to normalizing January 6? Does Mike Pence have a constituency? What should we think about the economic recovery?
- On the site today, economics professors Alex Horenstein and Noah Williams examine the history of price controls in Venezuela and South Africa to demonstrate that such policies are disastrous, countering arguments from U.S. progressives that such measures are useful in fighting inflation.
Reporting by Declan Garvey (@declanpgarvey), Andrew Egger (@EggerDC), Charlotte Lawson (@lawsonreports), Audrey Fahlberg (@AudreyFahlberg), Ryan Brown (@RyanP_Brown), Harvest Prude (@HarvestPrude), and Steve Hayes (@stephenfhayes).
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An essential daily news roundup, TMD includes a brief look at important stories of the day and original reporting and analysis from The Dispatch team, along with recommendations for deeper reading and some much-needed humor in these often fraught times.
32.) LEGAL INSURRECTION
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KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE— Thanks in large part to state courts ruling against Republican gerrymanders in North Carolina and Ohio and Democrats drawing an aggressive gerrymander of New York, the Democratic position has improved in our running assessment of House redistricting so far. Republicans remain favored to flip the House in 2022. — The new Democratic gerrymander in New York gives the party a great chance to win 22 of the state’s 26 seats, although they may not realize those ambitions fully in 2022. — The newly-enacted Republican gerrymander in Tennessee gives the GOP what should be a very easy pickup in November. Our running redistricting tallyAmidst an almost-daily flurry of redistricting news, the Democrats’ position has improved from our last update about a month ago. The primary reason for this is that aggressive gerrymanders by Republicans in North Carolina and Ohio were struck down by state courts, and for the time being, those states do not have maps. Meanwhile, Democrats enacted an aggressive gerrymander of their own in New York, which we will analyze in some depth below. There have been other important developments — such as the U.S. Supreme Court allowing the Republicans’ 6-1 gerrymander of Alabama to stand for 2022 after a lower court had struck it down on racial grounds and the Republicans enacting an 8-1 gerrymander of Tennessee — but the action in those 3 aforementioned big states is what is driving the changes in our overall accounting of redistricting. A few days after New Year’s Day, we listed 283 districts (out of 435) as having completed redistricting. Based on our ratings of the new districts, we had 135 seats rated Safe, Likely, or Leans Republican, and an identical number, 135, rated at least Safe, Likely, or Leans Democratic. We also had 13 Toss-ups. Compared to what the parties already held in these states, we had Republicans up 2 seats and Democrats down 14. The significant Democratic decline included several seats rated as Toss-ups, some of which would have been Toss-ups under both the old and new district lines. As of Tuesday, Feb. 8, we list 308 districts (or about 71% of all the districts) as having new lines (that excludes North Carolina and Ohio, who moved out of the “completed” group following court action, and includes New York and a handful of other states that have completed redistricting in recent weeks). We now rate 156 of these districts as Safe, Likely, or Leans Democratic, 138 as Safe, Likely, or Leans Republican, and 14 as Toss-ups. Democrats are down 10 seats from what they currently hold in these states, and Republicans are down 4 (the full ratings are here). So the situation is a little better for Democrats and a little worse for Republicans — and, again, those developments in the big states are driving the action. That said, the Democrats still would have to win the lion’s share of the Toss-ups to maintain parity with what they have now in the states that have finished redistricting — something that is likely going to be very difficult given what very well could be a challenging set of political circumstances for Democrats in the fall. Overall, we continue to see Republicans as favorites to win the House majority in November. That continues to have much more to do with the political environment than redistricting. With that, let’s take a closer look at the recently-enacted New York map, which is a Democratic gerrymander. Partisan gerrymanders pass in New York, TennesseeAs the Crystal Ball was anticipating in our update last week, a couple of congressional gerrymanders were signed into law over the past few days, with New York Democrats and Tennessee Republicans both getting their way. Though New York had a newly-formed independent commission to oversee the line drawing this cycle, the legislature retained the power to draw the lines itself. As expected, Democratic legislators ended up doing just that, and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) made good on her earlier suggestion that she’d use the redistricting process to boost her party’s prospects. Hochul’s approach is a departure from that of her predecessor, former Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo. A decade ago, he seemed intent on taking the high road, and publicly decried gerrymandering — Republicans also still controlled the state Senate back then, meaning that neither side could dominate the process. As a result, New York ended up going with a court-drawn map for the decade. But this round, New York supplanted Illinois as the largest state where Democrats had a free hand in drawing a map, although some Republicans may complain that California’s independent commission made consistently pro-Democratic choices. While New York lost a district — had it counted just 89 more residents in the last census, it would have retained all its seats — Democrats seem likely to come out ahead. If the Democratic plan pans out as intended, the number of Republicans in the New York delegation will shrink from 8 of 27 to 4 of 26. In surveying the Empire State, we don’t have to look far to see the handiwork of Democratic map-drawers. On Long Island, NY-1 and NY-2 began as light-red Republican-held seats — both gave Trump 51% of the vote 2020. But redistricting pushed them in politically divergent directions. The last Democratic midterm, 2014, turned out to be an especially rough cycle for New York Democrats. In NY-1, which is the eastern half of Suffolk County, then-Rep. Tim Bishop (D, NY-1) lost by a wide 9-point margin to then-state Sen. Lee Zeldin. In the cycles since then, the district has been an on-and-off target for national Democrats, though Zeldin has usually won by similar margins. But last spring, as scandals were beginning to engulf then-Gov. Cuomo’s tenure, Zeldin entered the gubernatorial contest, opening up NY-1. Meanwhile, for much of the last decade, Republicans held down NY-2, which was drawn to be the bluer of the 2 seats, with Peter King, a bombastic moderate whose attention to local issues paid off at home. When King retired in 2020, Republican Andrew Garbarino won the seat over Democrat Jackie Gordon, who had support from the moderate Blue Dog Coalition. In their remap, Democrats made NY-1 several notches bluer — adding precincts around the city of Islip bumped Joe Biden’s share in the district from 47% to 55% — while they conceded NY-2, where Biden’s share drops from 47% to 42%. Garbarino is safe in the new 2nd while the 1st looks likely to see competitive primaries on both sides (the Democratic field includes Gordon). We are starting NY-1, which covers some traditionally swingy areas, as a Toss-up, although this is a district Democrats should be able to win in most years (it’s just that 2022 might be a bad Democratic year, which has bearing on all of our ratings). Moving west — and closer to New York City — Rep. Kathleen Rice’s (D, NY-4) district sees few substantial changes. NY-4 is contained entirely within Nassau County, and, in the old district, Rice’s 56% was close to the 55% Biden took. The Crystal Ball rates NY-4 as Likely Democratic. NY-3, which is being vacated by 3-term Rep. Tom Suozzi, who is mounting an uphill primary challenge against Hochul, saw some creative changes. Though it retains its Long Island focus — 2/3 of its population comes from Nassau and Suffolk counties — it reaches across the Long Island Sound to grab about 143,000 Westchester County residents. NY-3 also adds a handful of Bronx precincts. These additions nudge Biden’s share in the district up to 56.4% from 54.5%. We are starting this district as Likely Democratic too. The Democratic primary for NY-3 already includes at least 6 candidates — state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi was the most recent candidate to enter, though she comes from the part of the district that was most recently added and will likely have to make inroads in Long Island. George Santos, the GOP’s 2020 nominee, is running again, and Curtis Sliwa, Republicans’ 2021 nominee for New York City mayor, is also openly considering the race. The only district that is located entirely within New York City that should be competitive between the 2 parties is NY-11. While the majority of the district still comes from Staten Island — by far the most conservative of the city’s 5 boroughs — NY-11 expands its holdings in Brooklyn. Importantly, those new precincts are heavily Democratic. On the outgoing map, Biden carried the Brooklyn part of NY-11 by just 50%-49%. By taking the district into the Park Slope neighborhood, the mappers expanded that Brooklyn Biden margin to 79%-20%. Overall, the new district supported Biden by almost 10 points. While the changes to NY-11 don’t bode well for first-term Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, we are starting the race out as a Toss-up. Former Rep. Max Rose (D, NY-11), who held the seat for a term before losing to Malliotakis, would probably start out as a favorite in the general election, but he may have to work for the Democratic nomination. Rose was known as a moderate Democrat while he was in Congress — while this helped him run ahead of Biden in the old district, primary voters in the newer (and trendier) parts of the district may be less impressed. Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who lives in Park Slope, is also reportedly considering a run in the district. Though he beat Malliotakis, who was then his GOP opponent for mayor in 2017, in a landslide, she would have carried the new NY-11 by 18 points in her mayoral run. Of course, local voting patterns don’t always carry over to federal elections, but the Democratic primary in the district could be crucial. Moving to Upstate New York, Democrats made several key changes aimed at bolstering their prospects. Map 1 compares the Upstate districts on the outgoing map to those on the recently-enacted map. Though there has been some debate among geography buffs and locals as to where the region starts, for our purposes, we’re defining the “Upstate” districts as those that are located entirely north of New York City. Additionally, as Hillary Clinton performed a bit worse than Biden throughout the region, we’re using the 2016 presidential numbers, which are less rosy for Democrats than 2020’s, as a baseline for Map 1. Map 1: Upstate New York Districts, 2020 vs 2022 Rep. Elise Stefanik (R, NY-21) retains a North Country seat that, geographically, sits atop the state. Though this area was competitive a decade ago — if it was in place in 2012, it would have likely been a rare McCain-to-Obama seat — it swung sharply rightward in the Trump era. NY-27 is the most heavily Republican seat on the current map — speaking of 2012, Gov. Hochul narrowly lost reelection in this district that year. Though NY-27’s designation was eliminated (the state now only has 26 districts), the new NY-24 could be considered its successor. The redrawn 24th is a curious district that begins in the Buffalo area and, aside from a few miles of waterfront in Rochester, runs the length of Lake Ontario. About 60% of the new 24th comes from counties that Rep. Chris Jacobs (R, NY-27) currently represents, so he should be a heavy favorite in the primary and the general election. The third safely Republican seat on the new map is NY-23, which is an open district encompassing most of the Southern Tier. Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney was clearly the member most adversely impacted by the new plan: her current NY-22 was split 5 ways. Though she only represents less than 10% of the new 23rd, it seemed the most logical option for her, and she has announced a run there. Though Tenney was known for her two close bouts with former Democratic Rep. Anthony Brindisi — she lost 51%-49% in 2018, then beat him by 109 votes in 2020 — she, or basically any Republican nominee in the new 23rd, will not have much to worry about in NY-23 for the general election. Staying in western New York, Rep. Joe Morelle (D, NY-25) and Brian Higgins (D, NY-26) both see relatively minor changes to their districts — the former represents Rochester while the latter has Buffalo. Democratic mappers could have probably drawn a third blue seat in the area, but perhaps that would risk spreading their voters too thin. As it was, Morelle’s predecessor, the late Democratic Rep. Louise Slaughter — an institution in the region — was nearly upset in 2014. Higgins’ predecessor, Rep. Jack Quinn, was a popular Republican who, at times, could run over 50 points ahead of the national ticket. Though such Republicans are rare now, perhaps those memories informed the more cautious approach Democrats took. In fact, something that helped Democrats going into the redistricting process was that Republican Rep. John Katko — an overperformer who may be the closest contemporary equivalent to Jack Quinn — announced his retirement. Katko’s district, long based in the college town of Syracuse (where President Biden earned his law degree) gets more Democratic as it adds Ithaca, which includes Cornell University. In 2020, Biden carried Ithaca’s Tompkins County by a nearly 50-point margin, making it the bluest county in the state, aside from 3 counties in New York City. The new Syracuse-to-Ithaca seat favored Clinton 53%-40%, and Biden took that spread up to 58%-40%. Still, in midterm years, college counties can have some odd turnout dynamics, and, as an open seat, we’re reluctant to move NY-22 completely off the board. We’re starting it as Likely Democratic. Rep. Paul Tonko (D, NY-20) who was first elected in 2008 to represent the state’s capital city, takes a slight hit — Clinton’s share in his Albany-area seat drops by 3 points — but Republicans have usually not made strong attempts at this seat. Some of the most substantial changes on the new map are south of Albany, in the Hudson Valley, where Democrats had to shore up some of their swing-district incumbents. Though 2-term Rep. Antonio Delgado (D, NY-19) was already known for earning significant crossover support, mappers strengthened his hand: his new district would have matched the national vote in 2016, going 48%-46% for Clinton, and it replaces a district that went to Trump by almost 7 points that year. Delgado’s new 19th adds the Democratic-leaning parts of the old 22nd — specifically the cities of Binghamton and Utica — as well as some blue precincts in Albany’s orbit, while it sheds about 95,000 residents in Dutchess County. That last change was almost certainly not by happenstance: Delgado’s likely general election opponent is Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro. As the GOP’s gubernatorial nominee in 2018, Molinaro carried his home county 52%-45% against Cuomo — for context, it favored Clinton by less than 500 votes in 2016 and gave Biden a clearer 54%-44% margin in 2020. Molinaro would’ve actually carried the redrawn NY-19 by 3 points in his 2018 statewide bid, although Cuomo was probably uniquely unpopular Upstate. Going further south, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D, NY-18), who is running for a 6th term while chairing the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, is also helped. NY-18, which supported Trump by 2 points in 2016, was redrawn into a district where Clinton claimed a 48%-47% plurality. Perhaps tellingly, despite now containing almost all of Dutchess County, it would have gone to Cuomo by 272 votes in 2018. A key change in NY-18 was the addition of Peekskill, in upscale Westchester County, while much of Putnam County — the sole county in the current district that Maloney has never carried — is roped into fellow Democrat Jamaal Bowman’s NY-16, where it is easily drowned out by Bronx precincts. The highest-profile Republican prospect here is state Assemblyman Colin Schmitt. We’re starting NY-18 as Leans Democratic and NY-19 as Likely Democratic. Ideally for Democrats, the map they gerrymandered for themselves would produce a 22-4 statewide edge, up substantially from the 19-8 advantage they hold now. However, our ratings suggest they will have to work to actually realize this advantage in 2022 if indeed there is a Republican-leaning political environment. In drawing this gerrymander, aside from ignoring the independent redistricting commission that voters created in 2014, Democrats were also were able to muster 2/3rds supermajorities to enact the gerrymander after voters rejected an effort to ease their path to a gerrymander in last year’s November elections. However, the 2014 constitutional amendment did add language to the state constitution stating that districts should be “as compact in form as practicable” and “shall not be drawn to discourage competition or for the purpose of favoring or disfavoring incumbents or other particular candidates or political parties.” Republicans certainly can make a credible argument that this map violates those principles. Rep. Jerrold Nadler’s NY-10 — which uses a thin strip of precincts to connect dark blue parts of Manhattan to Republican-leaning Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods of Brooklyn — has emerged as a prime point of contention. Whether the courts ultimately agree is unknown: All 7 members of the state’s highest court, the New York Court of Appeals, were appointed by Democratic governors. Compared to New York, Tennessee represented gerrymandering on a somewhat smaller scale, but the map has already been consequential. Going into the round of redistricting, it seemed an open question whether Republicans in red states would target Democratic-held districts that were surrounded by red territory, such as IN-1 in northwestern Indiana and KY-3 in Louisville. While those districts have survived largely intact, veteran Rep. Jim Cooper (D, TN-5) was not as fortunate: the heavily Republican legislature in Tennessee split his Nashville base among 3 double-digit Trump seats. Map 2 considers the 2020 presidential and 2018 Senate (which was closer) results under Tennessee’s new map. Map 2: 2018 and 2020 results on new Tennessee map The new TN-7, which actually has the bluest portion of Davidson County (Nashville), may be another longer-term Democratic target, but it will take considerable investment. About a quarter of the new TN-7 comes from Davidson County, and those voters gave Biden 72% — but the rest of the district is nearly as Republican, giving Trump 66%. In 2008, Obama claimed a respectable 47% in the district, but to make up for the slump they’ve seen in the rural counties since then, Democrats will probably be more reliant on any gains in suburban Williamson County. Aside from those districts, the rest of the map is straightforward. TN-9, in the Memphis area, gains some exurban precincts in Tipton County, but keeps its Black majority. While Districts 2 and 3 each have a blue-trending population center, Knoxville and Chattanooga, respectively, both districts include a sampling of smaller and much redder counties. Read the fine printLearn more about the Crystal Ball and find out how to contact us here. Sign up to receive Crystal Ball e-mails like this one delivered straight to your inbox. Use caution with Sabato’s Crystal Ball, and remember: “He who lives by the Crystal Ball ends up eating ground glass!” |
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This message was sent to rickbulow1974@gmail.com from goodpolitics@virginia.edu
Larry J. Sabato
UVA Center for Politics
PO Box 400806
Charlottesville, VA 22904
38.) THE BLAZE
39.) THE FEDERALIST
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40.) REUTERS
Wednesday, February 9, 2022 by Linda Noakes |
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HelloHere’s what you need to know.Ukraine sees a chance for diplomacy, Iran unveils a long-range missile, and Israel warns of a crisis with the UAE |
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A soldier of the U.S. 2nd Cavalry Regiment stands next to combat vehicles as gear is prepared for deployment to Romania at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany, February 9, 2022. REUTERS/Lukas Barth
The sun rises behind the U.S. Capitol in Washington, February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Tom Brenner
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Quote of the day“We don’t want to just sit silently while extinctions happen”Andrew Rypel Professor of fish ecology at the University of California Davis California conservationists and farmers unite to protect salmon
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After years of trial and error, Mouhamad Ghassen Nouira has revived an ancient technique.
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‘Queen of the BRITs’ Adele wins big at music awards Chart-topping superstar Adele won the top three prizes at the BRIT Awards, in the first genderless edition of Britain’s annual pop music honors.
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41.) NOQ REPORT
42.) BO SNERDLEY
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43.) REDSTATE
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The COVID Hysterics Bend the Knee in Yet Another Blow to Their Credibility
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44.) WORLD NET DAILY
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45.) MSNBC
 February 9, 2022 THE LATEST
Ottawa’s extremist truckers took a page out of the Jan. 6 playbook — and blew it up by Cynthia Miller-Idriss The mayor of Canada’s capital declared a state of emergency over the weekend after what started as truckers protesting the country’s recently enacted vaccine mandate turned into a full-blown far-right uprising — and it bears a worrisome resemblance to a different ant-government revolt. “Like the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021,” writes Cynthia Miller-Idriss, “the trucker protests show how anti-government anger has the power to rapidly draw together individuals and ignite the fringe with the mainstream.”
Miller-Idriss adds, “around the world, far-right activists are watching what’s happening in Canada with fantasies of similar resistance in their own countries. Already, a convoy of truckers in the U.S. has announced plans for a similar convoy to head to Washington, D.C., next month.”
Read Cynthia Miller-Idriss’ full analysis in your Wednesday MSNBC Daily. TOP STORIES
Trump didn’t just improperly take love letters from Kim Jong Un when he left the White House. Read More As a comedian, I want to defend Joe Rogan. As a good person, I can’t. Read More Conservative SCOTUS justices seem to think fairness is for whites only. Read More Something clearly forced USA Swimming’s hand. Read More TOP VIDEOS
MORE FROM MSNBC
 “Into America” is teaming up with the Smithsonian’s NMAAHC for a special series called “Reconstructed,” which examines the post-Civil War era through perspectives of the newly freed people and explores the fight for true equality.
In the first episode of Into America’s Black History series, Trymaine Lee explores how Black people gained political power and liberated their people, told through the story of South Carolina Congressman Robert Smalls. Listen now.
 How do we make sense of this unprecedented moment in world history? Why is this all happening? Chris Hayes asks the big questions that keep him up at night every week on his podcast, aptly titled, “Why Is This Happening?”
In the newest episode, Chris talks to award-winning journalist and author of “No Good Men Among The Living” Anand Gopal. In 2021, his reporting took him to Helmand Province, the epicenter of conflict in the war-torn country. His experience there led him to write “The Other Afghan Women,” one of the most comprehensive reports about the plight of women in the countryside. Gopal’s work has appeared in outlets including The New York Times, The Atlantic, Harpers and in The New Yorker, where he currently covers war, revolution and democracy. Listen now.
 
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48.) NBC MORNING RUNDOWN
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To ensure delivery to your inbox add email@mail.nbcnews.com to your contacts  Today’s Top Stories from NBC News WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2022 Good morning, NBC News readers.
In the latest sign of a major fissure in the GOP, Sen. Mitch McConnell condemned the Republican National Committee Tuesday for its censure of two lawmakers and called Jan. 6 a “violent insurrection.” Team USA finally won its first gold medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics, plus all the latest from the Games.
Here’s what we’re watching this Wednesday morning.
 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell broke with the Republican National Committee Tuesday, criticizing its recent censure of two GOP lawmakers and condemning its characterization of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
“We all were here. We saw what happened. It was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election, from one administration to the next. That’s what it was,” McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters at his weekly news conference.
His remarks added to a backlash from Democrats and numerous Republicans after the RNC approved a resolution Friday accusing Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., of “participating in a Democrat-led persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse,” a reference to the Jan. 6 committee.
Cheney and Kinzinger are the only GOP members of the House panel. Read our full story here.
 The U.S. waited six days for its first gold medal, but Lindsey Jacobellis waited 16 years.
Her snowboard cross win is also Jacobellis’ first Olympic gold and the culmination of a long journey for the 36-year-old, who finally swept to victory in her fifth Olympic appearance. Read her full story here.
More highlights from the Games:
Wednesday’s Top Stories
 Biden has riffed about some of his counterparts involved in coordinating a response to Russian aggression, according to people who have heard him use the descriptions.  Yup, one-way masking can still protect against Covid infection, experts say. “You’re certainly much better protected than you would be if you’re not wearing a mask at all,” said one professor of public health at Johns Hopkins University.  Kirsten Stewart and Ariana DeBose are reportedly the first out actors to get Oscar nods in two decades, while “The Power of the Dog” lead the pack with 12 nominations. Also in the News
Editor’s Pick
 A year after the military seized power in a coup, young people explain why they’re joining a national resistance movement at great personal risk. Select
Discover the benefits of sleep masks and browse some top-rated and expert-recommended options. One Fun Thing
 A brave self-taught Indonesian reptile rescuer helped free a crocodile that had a motorcycle tire stuck around its neck for six years on Monday.
Local residents helped cut the tire with a saw after it was caught using a basic trap and live chickens and ducks as bait.
Watch the video here. 
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49.) NBC FIRST READ
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From NBC’s Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Ben Kamisar, Bridget Bowman and Alexandra Marquez
FIRST READ: The era of big Covid mandates is ending
If it’s Wednesday… President Biden meets with CEOs from electric utilities at 2:30 pm ET to discuss fighting climate change… Mitch McConnell calls Jan. 6 a “violent insurrection”… Stacey Abrams apologizes for mask-less photo in GA-GOV… Mehmet Oz and David McCormick battle over China… Rep. Henry Cuellar has a new TV ad in TX-28… And U.S. captures first gold medal of Winter Olympics.
But FIRST… The era of big mandates is over.
Or at least it’s heading in that direction.
That’s the unmistakable conclusion after New York today becomes the latest blue state to end its indoor mask mandate, joining California, Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey and Oregon in loosening their Covid restrictions.
It all comes as Omicron cases are on the decline, as more than 75 percent of Americans have received at least one vaccine dose, and as Democrats find themselves on the defensive on masks and other Covid restrictions.
It’s also a case where the nation’s politics and public health aren’t aligned, with the CDC guidance still suggesting that 99 percent of Americans should be wearing masks indoors regardless of their vaccination status
And where Democratic governors and the Biden White House aren’t aligned either, with the Biden administration still refusing to loosen its mandates and guidelines.
David Swanson/Reuters
One other thing: These mandates are coming to an end without Democrats taking a victory lap – while Republicans argue that Democratic governance has been wrong this entire time.
“We should be pointing to the fact that these successes are because of things that we did,” Dem pollster Brian Stryker tells the New York Times. “Democrats need to take the win on how far we’ve come.”
The Biden White House’s Covid response team holds a press briefing today at 11:00 am ET.
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Data Download: The number of the day is … 43 percent.
That’s the portion of American adults who say that former President Donald Trump “bears a lot of responsibility for the violence and destruction” on Jan. 6, per a new poll from Pew Research conducted Jan 10-17 of this year.
That’s a decline of 9 percentage points since last January, when 52 percent said Trump bore “a lot” of responsibility.
Fifty-seven percent of Republicans and those who lean toward the party believe Trump bears no responsibility for the attack on the Capitol, a view shared by 12 percent of Democrats. And majorities of Republicans both say they have little or no confidence the Jan. 6 committee’s investigation will be fair, and believe Trump either definitely or probably won the 2020 election.
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Other numbers you need to know today
400 million: Approximately the number of confirmed Covid cases in the world since the start of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University, an increase of about 100 million in the last month.
$57 billion: The price tag for the overhaul of the Postal Service, which passed the House with broad bipartisan support on Tuesday.
7: The number of medals (including one gold) won so far by the U.S. Olympic team.
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Tweet of the Day: For relaxing times, make it Old Crow time
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Midterm roundup
Democrat Stacey Abrams, who is running for Georgia governor, apologizedduring a CNN interview for posing mask-less in a photo with masked children.
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo endorsed David McCormick in Pennsylvania’s GOP Senate primary. The former hedge fund manager has praised China in the past, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports, which has already fueled attack ads from celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz (who has his own ties to China, per Politico). McCormick launched a new TV ad responding to the attacks.
Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, launched a new TV ad with less than three weeks to go until his March 1 primary race against attorney Jessica Cisneros. In 30-second spot, Cuellar touts his work with Republicans and says he supports “fully funding law enforcement and border security.”
Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., has decided not to run for Senate, NBC’s Scott Wong reports, instead vying for the Ways and Means Committee chairmanship. Maryland GOP Gov. Larry Hogan also passed on a Senate run.
Republicans are relying on a diverse slate of candidates to retake the House, Politico reports. More than 253 women and 228 people of color have filed to run for the House as Republicans, per the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Members of the Kansas state Senate overrode Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly‘s veto of the new congressional map, despite initially falling short of the votes to do so, the Kansas City Star reports. The override effort now heads to the state House.
An outside group called the Arkansas Patriots Fund launched an ad boosting Republican Jake Bequette, who is challenging Sen. John Boozman in a primary, spending $332,000 on an ad buy on Fox News, per AdImpact. The ad tracking firm reported that neighboring Oklahoma GOP Sen. James Lankford, who is also being challenged in a primary, placed a $140,000 TV ad buy.
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Ad watch: Old statements come back to bite
A Republican-leaning PAC supporting Alabama Senate candidate Katie Britt is attacking Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., in a new ad airing in the state.
Brooks secured former President Trump’s endorsement in April, but the Alabama Futures PAC is resurfacing his old anti-Trump statements. In the 2016 clips featured in the ad, Brooks says he won’t endorse Trump ahead of the 2016 Republican primary elections and adds, “I don’t think you can trust Donald Trump with anything he says.”
The ad later endorses Katie Britt and a narrator claims that she’s “always been 100 percent pro-Trump.” Alabama Futures PAC has so far booked over $1.4 million worth of ad time in the Senate race.
Brooks’ anti-Trump comments were also used in ads against him when he ran for Senate in 2017. Brooks came third in a special election primary to replace former Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.
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ICYMI: What ELSE is happening in the world
Ohio Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty says Kentucky Republican Hal Rogers told her to “kiss my a—” when she asked him to put on a mask at the Capitol’s underground subway. Rogers later apologized.
The Supreme Court’s recent decision to allow Alabama to hold its primary under contested congressional district lines has Democrats arguing it will dilute the power of Black voters.
Congressional staffers looking to unionize are unclear where to go next, as the unique setup of the workplace adds roadblocks to the union drive.
NBCLX looks at the political giving history of the owners of the teams in Sunday’s Super Bowl.
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52.) MANHATTAN INSTITUTE
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I admit to not having the bandwidth to care about the Olympics. I love my country and feel I can display sufficient patriotism by checking the medal count and acknowledging America’s dominance. But th … MORE 
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55.) REALCLEARPOLITICS MORNING NOTE
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In a statement, the judges of the state’s highest court wrote: “we deny petitioners’ motion to amend, and we dismiss the petition
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TOP STORIES:
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Virginia Supreme Court Delivers Massive Decision
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Supreme Court Announcement Rocks DC
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Durham Sets Sights On Huge New Target
- MTG Has Plan To Turn GOP Into Full Blown MAGA
- Trudeau Government Threatens to Criminally Target Americans
- Outrage as Biden Gives Soros $164 Million For Sickening Reason
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Maricopa County Election Workers CAUGHT RED-HANDED on New Video
- Blackrock director predicts financial doomsday coming…
- Truckers shut down Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Canada
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BOOM! Joe Rogan Offered $100 MILLION DEAL From Rumble
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IN DEPTH…
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- US & 20 nations condemn China New
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74.) THE POST MILLENNIAL
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76.) THE DAILY DOT
Welcome to the Wednesday edition of Internet Insider, where we tell you what you should be watching. This week, we discuss the new Jackass film. By:  Audra Schroeder, Senior Writer Did a friend forward this? Subscribe here.  CULTURAL OBSESSIONS ‘Jackass’ is cinema now Jackass Forever has revived the “Tickets to Joker” meme. The “throwing up and crying” meme is also applicable.
The new film—the first since 2010—is a warm blanket of nostalgia in these trying times, as indicated by its opening-weekend box office numbers. Since it was filmed during the pandemic, there aren’t as many public pranks in Jackass Forever. “So that meant we were in a bubble, just torturing each other,” director Jeff Tremaine told the New York Times. Torture is especially inflicted on Ehren McGhehey, who endures stunts that make milk crate challenge injuries look like a walk in the park.
You can certainly see that the main cast has aged. Johnny Knoxville, 50, allegedly lost some cognitive function after being tossed by a bull (again). It makes sense that new cast members are introduced: It’s time to pass the torch to the next generation, and that includes a man named Poopies. Comedian Rachel Wolfson is the first woman to be featured in the franchise, and her presence certainly changes the stunt dynamics.
“You can trace Jackass’ transition from disreputable low culture object to revered comic institution clearly through one metric alone,” said one tweet about the franchise’s critical ascension on Rotten Tomatoes. All the Jackass movies are streaming on Paramount+, and after revisiting them this weekend, there are certainly a couple bits that didn’t age well. But the logistics and planning that go into the stunts—and the pain these men have publicly inflicted on each other’s dicks over 20 years—is really remarkable. Jackass takes a much more primal and intimate approach: body horror as friendship. That can’t be replicated on TikTok.
SPONSORED  ESPN+ has relaunched its Black History Always collection to highlight existing and new sports stories for and about Black athletes, fans, and communities. The collection celebrates Black excellence with ESPN+ Originals docuseries and Black History Always specials like Why Not Us, More Than an Athlete, A Love Letter to Black Women, and so much more. Sign up for ESPN+ to stream the collection that’s all about the culture.
 REVIEWS ‘The Worst Person in the World’ is an ode to not having life figured out For Julie (Renate Reinsve), the protagonist of The Worst Person in the World, the expectation of having everything figured out follows her almost constantly. But the film never judges Julie. She screws up, she changes her mind (and sometimes the circumstances change it for her). She’s not immune to sabotaging her life or hurting others, and even when she’s with a partner, she’s still enveloped in loneliness. It’s often a gift of a movie, and it’s embodied with an empathetic touch helmed by a fantastic performance from Reinsve.
MUST-READS  ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ episode 6 is a painful misuse of an iconic character This episode is the worst kind of fanservice.  Celebrities react to Joe Rogan after videos of him saying the N-word go viral Rogan is also under fire for a joke where he compared Black people to ‘Planet of the Apes.’ *The Daily Dot may receive a commission in connection with purchases of products or services featured here.
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82.) CNN
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 Wednesday 02.09.22 Are you up for a challenge? Fall in love with taking care of your body! Replacing a “typical Western diet” focused on red meat and processed foods with an “optimized diet” can add up to 13 years to your life, according to a new study. Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On With Your Day.  House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell at the White House in 2021.  Capitol Riot
The top two Republican leaders in Congress were at odds yesterday over the Republican National Committee’s resolution to censure GOP Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for serving on the House select committee investigating the January 6 insurrection. The RNC referred to that day as “legitimate political discourse” in the resolution, but in a rare break with the RNC, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said what occurred was “a violent insurrection.” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, meanwhile, defended the RNC’s choice of words. Separately, liberal activists are mounting a legal case to block Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn from running for reelection in North Carolina, arguing he stoked violence by telling the insurrectionists it was “time to fight” days before the attack.
Coronavirus
States are pulling back on Covid-19 restrictions despite warnings from the CDC that it is too early to do so. There are about 290,000 new coronavirus cases every day and hospitalization rates are higher than they were at the peak of the Delta surge, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said yesterday, stating it’s too early to lift mask mandates. Despite calls to keep restrictions in place, several states — including California and Delaware — have already announced updated guidance to drop indoor mask mandates in the coming days. And in New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul is expected to lift the state’s strict Covid-19 mitigation requirements for businesses today. That mandate requires businesses to ask customers for proof of vaccination and for them to wear masks indoors, except when eating or drinking.
US Postal Service
The House of Representatives yesterday passed a sweeping bipartisan bill that would overhaul the US Postal Service’s finances and allow the agency to modernize its service after years of crippling losses. The Postal Service Reform Act would require retired postal employees to enroll in Medicare when eligible, while dropping a previous mandate that forced the agency to cover its health care costs years in advance. Those two measures would save the USPS nearly $50 billion over the next decade, according to the House Oversight Committee. The US Postal Service’s “dire financial condition” has kept the agency from modernizing and prevented plans to replace the vast majority of its aging vehicle fleet with electric trucks, according to a USPS spokesperson. The bill, which cleared the House by a 342-92 vote, now heads to the Senate, where it’s expected to be voted on by the end of next week.
TikTok
The popular social media platform TikTok said it will strengthen efforts to regulate dangerous content, including harmful hoaxes and videos that promote eating disorders and hateful ideologies. The move comes after a viral TikTok hoax last year warned of forthcoming real-world violence in schools. While the threats were vague, they resulted in school shutdowns across the United States. TikTok also announced a new “dangerous acts and challenges” campaign that will ask creators to make videos asking their followers to follow specific steps when viewing content: stop, think, decide and act. TikTok’s move comes at a time when Spotify is under scrutiny for podcast host Joe Rogan’s rhetoric on race and Covid-19.
North Korea
North Korea boasted yesterday that it is one of the few countries capable of “shaking up the world” by firing a missile that could reach the US mainland. The hostile statement comes amid rising international tension over a recent series of North Korean ballistic missile tests. At least seven missile launches have occurred since last month, including their most powerful test since 2017– which was believed to be capable of striking US territories in the Pacific Ocean. The US State Department issued a statement urging North Korea to return to peaceful dialog, calls that Pyongyang has persistently ignored.
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People are talking about these. Read up. Join in. 2022 Oscar nominations announced Looking for a great movie to watch? Check out this list of Oscar contenders.
Winners announced at the 2022 Brit Awards Yesterday was a big day in entertainment news across the pond too!
Apple unveils contactless “Tap to Pay” feature Dear Apple, can you please give us shatter-proof screens next? Sincerely, all iPhone users worldwide.
This is the wildlife photo of the year, as chosen by the public The enchanting image of a frozen lake seriously could have been pulled from a scene in “Game of Thrones.”
More Revolutionary War-era cannons have been found in Georgia Ahoy! After this remarkable find, divers are searching the depths of the Savannah River for more historic treasure. Olympics update
American skier Mikaela Shiffrin crashed out of a second event, another setback following her tumble in the giant slalom on Monday. Shiffrin, who is widely considered the most dominant skier of her generation, said she was feeling “pretty low” after the run.
Follow the latest news and highlights from the Winter Olympics here.  500,000 That’s how many vehicles Hyundai and Kia are recalling due to fire risks. According to the automakers, a defect in some models can spark a short circuit and possibly start a fire in the engine compartment even when the vehicles are not running. The companies are telling owners to park their cars outside and away from buildings until they can be brought in for service.
Peloton is at an important juncture, and we are taking decisive steps.
— Former Peloton CEO John Foley, on cutting 2,800 jobs as part of a restructuring plan to help reinvigorate the struggling fitness company. Peloton said it will lay off about 20% of its workforce and reduce the number of warehouses due to its financial performance. Barry McCarthy, the former chief financial officer of Spotify and Netflix, was also named the company’s new CEO and president, replacing Foley effective today.
Brought to you by CNN Underscored  23 practical things that actually make great Valentine’s Day gifts Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to give your partner, galentine or friend a practical gift that they’ll actually use. We’ve rounded up 23 practical things your valentine will absolutely love, trust us.
Walking a Tightrope Between Mountains Life is about balance. Enjoy this quick lesson from a professional slack-liner. (Click here to view)
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83.) THE DAILY CALLER
84.) POWERLINE
Daily Digest |
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- Two borders that have nothing to do with each other
- Who Is Teaching Our Children?
- Has COVID Been Good For Women?
- Conservative clash captures media attention
- Canadian truckers receive the Tea Party treatment
| Two borders that have nothing to do with each other
Posted: 08 Feb 2022 08:05 PM PST (Paul Mirengoff)Some of the rhetoric in the debate over Ukraine policy seems wildly disproportionate to actual disagreement on the subject. I don’t know of any Ukraine “hawk” who advocates sending U.S. forces into battle against Russia, if it invades. I don’t know any who advocates admitting Ukraine to NATO in the near future. The “hawks” want severe sanctions if Russia invades. In addition, they support moving a relatively small number of U.S. troops to nearby countries and supplying Ukraine with arms. They also reject the idea of agreeing to Russia’s demand that America renounce supporting Ukraine’s admission to NATO which, again, isn’t really on the table now. Reasonable people can disagree on all of these counts. However, even if the hawks get their way (as I think they will), U.S. forces will not be in harm’s way. The funds used for military aid to Ukraine will be a drop in the bucket. Sanctioning Russia won’t harm our economy the way sanctioning China might. Thus, I wonder whether those who vehemently attack the Ukraine hawks are more worked up about other matters — George W. Bush’s interventionism, the foreign policy establishment generally, the mass influx of immigrants at our southern border — than they are about Ukraine. This seems like a case of displacement. Take for example the rant of Rep. Madison Cawthorn, a North Carolina Republican. Last week, calling Joe Biden an “inept, geriatric despot,” he attacked the president on the House floor for sending U.S. troops closer to Ukraine. Cawthorn added that the path to American national security “lies in securing our southern border, not the Russia–Ukraine border.” Cawthorn can pun all he wants about “borders.” The Ukraine issue has nothing to do with illegal immigration from Mexico. The troops Biden is sending to Eastern Europe aren’t being diverted from our southern border. Biden has no intention of sending the military to Texas. And even if he did, we have enough forces to cover both assignments. As Carine Hajjar says at NRO, “last time I checked, one domestic crisis didn’t mean the U.S. had to ditch its foreign policy.” Or that our foreign policy should less (or more) interventionist. |
| Who Is Teaching Our Children?
Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:52 PM PST (John Hinderaker)A better question might be, who is teaching the people who teach our children? But first, this observation–as I have written before, the liberal position on Critical Race Theory is: “It doesn’t exist. And it’s awesome!” The first line of defense is always to claim that CRT is a bogeyman invented by the right; there is no such thing in our schools. But that claim, which usually is easily proved false, soon gives way to the backup position that anyone who questions CRT must be a racist. If anyone is in doubt about whether liberal teachers are introducing poisonous, racist and anti-American doctrines into our schools, all you have to do is look at New Business Item 39, which was adopted during last Summer’s annual meeting of the National Education Association, the corrupt teachers’ union that dominates public education in the U.S. Or you could look at the latest job offering at the University of Minnesota:
So the poison will spread.
It is long past time for the Left to emerge from hiding and publicly defend its commitment to the racist, anti-American doctrines of Critical Race Theory. Let’s hope we can have the debate before it is too late. Our children are being indoctrinated in racist hate, right now. |
| Has COVID Been Good For Women?
Posted: 08 Feb 2022 04:35 PM PST (John Hinderaker)During the covid epidemic there was a serious labor shortage, in part because of massively increased unemployment compensation that made staying home a desirable option for many. But that boondoggle ended, most of the world reopened, and yet, the labor shortage continued. Why? For one thing, quite a few women, having been at home with their families through the height of the epidemic, decided not to return to the labor force when the economy reopened. There are several possible reasons for such decisions: some found that they liked being at home with their children; some committed their time to home schooling; some realized that their families could get by well on one income, particularly since their entire income was taxed at their husbands’ marginal rate. I had a personal experience with this. An excellent member of my staff, who had two young children but had always been career-oriented, had to stay home with her children for a few months due to a government shutdown. Not having done that before, she found that she liked it. We reopened, but one day she came into my office and told me that she loved her job, but she loved her children more, and resigned. I hated to lose her, but could only applaud her decision. But many on the Left are not so understanding. Liberal dogma holds that the only proper place for a woman is in the paid workforce, so anything that causes women to stay at home is perforce bad. This piece in Fortune is a good example. The title says it all: “Women’s workforce participation has plummeted. Here’s how to reverse the trend.”
That is the liberal presumption: more women in the paid workforce–trust me, the other women are working too–represents “progress.”
“Different-sex couples”: the world in which we are living.
“Negatively affected” means those mothers were not in the paid workforce. It is reasonable to assume, however, that those people did not believe they were “negatively affected.”
Shockingly, most people believe that is true.
We conservatives would say that what makes sense for a given family is best determined by the members of that family. If the best course is for a wife to choose to devote her time to caring for her children (and, not incidentally, her husband), it’s fine with us. Liberals, however, are generally not so tolerant. |
| Conservative clash captures media attention
Posted: 08 Feb 2022 04:20 PM PST (Paul Mirengoff)I detect an emerging trend in the anti-conservative mainstream media — using conservatives to attack other conservatives. The New York Times is leading the charge. How else does one explain the Times publishing the op-ed by “common good conservative” Adrian Vermuele attacking originalism? Or an op-ed by three leading common good (or national) conservatives attacking the Republican foreign policy establishment? The publication of the two pieces can partially be explained by the Times’ contempt for originalism and by its foreign policy dovishness. But the spectacle of conservative-on-conservative clash is surely the main selling point. I’m not unhappy the op-eds were published. Though both seem flawed (the foreign policy piece is perhaps most noteworthy for its acknowledgement that many conservatives whom the authors view as their followers don’t agree with them on foreign policy, a point Damon Linker makes here), both contribute to the debate. But does anyone suppose that Vermuele or the team of Sohrab Ahmari, Patrick Deneen, and Gladden Pappin could publish a Times op-ed that simply stated their views on the Constitution or foreign policy and omitted criticism of other conservatives? I hope no one is that naïve. The Washington Post gets into the act with a “pass the popcorn” article about the Heritage Foundation. The report focuses on conservative discontent with this D.C. institution as it was run by former head, Kay Coles James. She became the target of severe criticism from Donald Trump supporters such as Tucker Carlson. James has been replaced by Kevin Roberts whom the Post describes as a “Texas firebrand.” Roberts certainly comes from Texas. He was head of the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation. Is he a “firebrand”? I don’t know, but nothing in the Post’s article shows him to be. As evidence that Roberts is, the Post reports that he reopened his Foundation two weeks after the Wuhan coronavirus “first hit.” In addition, he believes that shutdowns were “awful” — “worse than the disease itself.” This view went against the grain in the first half of 2020. However, it is widely held now, especially if one refines it to say the harm inflicted by shutdowns has exceeded their health benefits. A thorough and fair study of the costs and benefits of shutdowns — if there’s anyone around who would conduct one — might well support this position. I think it would. Questions about the pandemic response are important, obviously. However, I don’t think they will be central to an institution like Heritage. Issues like education, crime, trade, spending, and China seem more important to a full-purpose conservative think tank going forward. I would love to see Heritage shift on some, though not all, of these matters. According to the Post, Roberts’ is all about education. Without getting into the details, I think there’s lots of room for improvement at Heritage on this set of issues. It will be interesting to see how effectively Heritage fights against the teaching of what falls under the rubric of Critical Race Theory in K-12 education. The issue of crime goes unmentioned by the Post. However, this is where I’d love to see a major reversal by Heritage. Backed by the Kochs, Heritage helped lead the charge for leniency towards criminals, especially the federal felons favored by the First Step Act of 2018. Once a frequent visitor to Heritage, I don’t think I’ve set foot in the place since the enactment of that legislation. The landscape of the debate over crime has changed dramatically since 2018. Maybe Heritage, under Roberts, will return to a more traditionally conservative approach — the one that was so effective against crime in the 1990s and early part of this century. More likely, it will retreat to the fringe of the debate. That, itself, would be welcome. The Post notes that “Heritage experts criticized Trump’s attacks on China.” There is room for criticism of Trump on this issue. However, I believe Trump had the right on line China. If Heritage aligns itself more closely with Trump’s position, I will welcome that, too. I’m happy, however, that Heritage has held fast to its views on government spending and debt. During the Obama years, Power Line was a constant critic of the debt the U.S. was running up. This didn’t cease to be a major concern just because, after Obama, it was Trump’s spending that added to the debt. Heritage has always supported free trade. This stance, too, created discontent among many Trump supporters. I’d like to see a synthesis of support for free trade and aspects of the Trumpian critique. Maybe Heritage will help develop such a synthesis. Maybe not. Clearly, there are major tensions in the conservative movement, including but not limited to the ones the Times has been highlighting and the ones I discuss here. Roberts says he’s not that bothered by them because he believes in “creative conflict.” I believe in it too, up to a point. My hope is that the outcome of creative conflict at Heritage isn’t determined by fundraising concerns. In any case, we can count of the Times and the Post to enjoy the conflict. |
| Canadian truckers receive the Tea Party treatment
Posted: 08 Feb 2022 01:25 PM PST (Paul Mirengoff)I haven’t commented on the protest by Canadian truckers in Ottawa. That’s John’s beat, and he’s doing a great job with it. However, I did come across this passage in a Daily Mail article about the protests:
(Emphasis added) False claims of racism and violence by the truckers remind me of similar slurs against the Tea Party. Readers may the allegation of spitting at a black congressman that turned out to be unsupported and almost certainly false. There are important differences between the truckers’ protest and those of the Tea Party. The truckers’ actions are highly disruptive and maybe illegal. To the best of my recollection, that wasn’t the case with Tea Party protests. However, both sets of protesters fell victim to the imperative that forces effectively opposing liberal orthodoxy be defamed as racist and violent. It’s also worth noting, as the Daily Mail does here, that although GoFundMe promoted fundraising efforts for participants in the destructive Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) in Seattle where two teens were shot dead, it has cancelled a fundraiser for the Canadian truckers. Being killed is more “disruptive” and unlawful than being deprived of sleep due to honking (although I’m sure I would hate to experience the latter). GoFundMe defended its decision to cut off the truckers saying it “supports peaceful protests and believe[d] that was the intention of the Freedom Convoy 2022 fundraiser when it was first created.” However, “we now have evidence from law enforcement that the previously peaceful demonstration has become an occupation, with police reports of violence and other unlawful activity.” But the reports of trucker violence and hate crimes apparently are bogus. In any case, the CHOP protest in Seattle indisputably was violent. Yet this didn’t seem to bother GoFundMe. Nor does any desire truthfully to report on what’s actually happening with the truckers in Ottawa preoccupy or constrain the liberal media. |
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85.) THE POLITICAL INSIDER – WAKE UP EDITION
86.) FIRST TRIGHT
February 9th, 2022
02/09/2022 05:16 CDT
BIDEN SAYS THOSE WHO “SOW DISCORD” AND “UNDERMINE PUBLIC TRUST IN GOVERNMENT” ARE NATION’S BIGGEST THREAT
TODAY’S TOP TEN
BIDEN WEAPONIZES LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST CONSERVATIVES
BIDEN’S HOMELAND SECURITY DEPARTMENT essentially says conservative free speech is nation’s biggest threat. The Last Refuge.
INSPECTOR GENERAL OPENS INVESTIGATION into Capitol Police over allegations of spying on members of Congress, staff. The Federalist.
DEVIN NUNES AND TRUMP READY TO TAKE ON Silicon Valley with new platform. American Greatness.
INSECURE BORDER SPREADS LETHAL CRIME to America’s heartland, creating powerful election issue. Just the News.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION FUNDING FREE CRACK PIPES to promote “racial equity.” ZeroHedge.
LATEST EFFORT TO CANCEL JOE ROGAN was a coordinated left-wing hit job. Accuracy in Media.
HOW THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT USED EVANGELICAL leaders to spread COVID propaganda to churches. Daily Wire.
FACEBOOK, OTHER TECH GIANTS CENSOR inconvenient facts about “climate change.” New York Post.
UNEARTHED EMAILS SHOW COZY RELATIONSHIP between New York Times environmental reporter and Biden Interior Department. Daily Wire.
MUSK BLASTS LIBERAL MEDIA for “relentless hatestream” of bad news. Bloomberg.
If you’d like to share First Right with a friend, text FIRSTRIGHT (all caps, no spaces) to 30161
COMMENTARY WORTH READING
- RNC’s censure of Cheney and Kinzinger is absolutely necessary. Rachel Bovard.
- Were masks a waste of time? Geoff Shullenberger.
- What to do with the Left after their coming spanking. Conrad Black.
VIDEO WORTH WATCHING
- GOP Rep says Pelosi is weaponizing the U.S. Capitol Police. Fox News.
- Biden can’t answer how he’ll stop the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Grabien News.
- DeSantis on masking children in schools. Rumble.
LATEST FIRST RIGHT PODCAST
- An interview with conservative commentator Rachel Bovard. Rumble.
OFFBEAT BEAT
- Why Is Shay’s Rebellion important? HistoryInCharts.
TWEETS OF NOTE
- (@thecoastguy) Electric cars is about not having cars. Green energy is about not having energy. It’s not about going green, it’s about going without. Tweet.
- (@EWErickson) In Georiga, it is worth nothing the whole state is overwhelmingly maskless except in a few progressive enclaves. If the Governor and legislature banned mask mandates, those parents would still have their kids in masks. Progressives have become COVID Chicken Littles. Tweet.
MOST CLICKED ITEM YESTERDAY
- ILLINOIS SCHOOL DISTRICT TEACHES GENDER and race propaganda to all lower grades. The Post Millennial.
BONGINO REPORT TOP HEADLINE AT TIME OF EMAIL
- Republicans Demand Answers From Pelosi on Reports of Capitol Police Spying on Members of Congress and Staff BONGINO REPORT.
87.) DECISION DESK HQ
88.) DIGG
89.) THE POLITICAL INSIDER – LUNCH BREAK
90.) CONSERVATIVE TRIBUNE
91.) USA TODAY
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92.) THE DAILY BEAST
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93.) JUST THE NEWS
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94.) SHARYL ATTKISSON
95.) RIGHTWING.ORG
96.) NOT THE BEE
97.) US NEWS & WORLD REPORT
98.) NEWSMAX
99.) MARK LEVIN
February 8, 2022
On Tuesday’s Mark Levin Show, Republicans can never advance the cause of liberty as long as political thugs like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, or his carbon copy cronies are in power. He’s done nothing to advance the conservative movement. How often has McConnell appeared on conservative media outlets? He hasn’t, he exploits the grassroots Constitutional base for their election while resenting what they stand for. The media rarely attacks these Senate Republicans because they work hand in glove with the media. Has McConnell called for the impeachment of President Biden? Of course not, he’s a Svengali that makes raw brash power-grabs to replace conservatives with moderates that he can control. Then, January 6th was not a violent insurrection. The only person that was killed was shot by the Capitol Police. Therefore, Democrats within the media and their partners in the Republican Party like McConnell, Adam Kinzinger, Liz Cheney, have to lie and twist the truth to include people that died from natural causes while near the Capitol (per the DC Medical examiner’s report). Later, a BLM arsonist that burned a building and killed a man is requesting leniency and has not been charged with the death of the man found in the pawnshop he burned. Yet, McConnell and the Democrats are focused on the people being charged with trespassing at the Capitol Building. The insurrection didn’t start on January 6th, it started when they tried to oust a sitting president in any number of ways that skirted the intent of our Constitution from attacking him internally to changing the voting laws in the 2020 election. Afterward, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich calls in regarding another lawsuit he’s filed against the Biden Administration for failing to keep the country and Arizona safe by securing the southern border. Brnovich argues that the current invasion of violent gangs, cartels, and drugs is a violation of the Constitution and that the state will have to do what the federal government is not to protect citizens in Arizona.
THIS IS FROM:
Rumble
Mitch McConnell: Jan 6 Was A Violent Insurrection; Wrong To Censure Cheney, Kinzinger
Fox News
Obama, Holder slam GOP states for gerrymandering, but silent as Democrats do the same thing
Just The News
Feds steer $200M in COVID-19 relief to left-wing nonprofit to aid illegal entrants
Just The News
Biden administration funding crack pipe distribution, saying it’s needed for racial equity
Washington Free Beacon
Congress Probes NIH for Spending $2.5 Million Injecting Puppies With Cocaine
Townhall
We Now Know How Many Americans Biden Left Behind in Afghanistan
Rumble
Dem Rep Jeffries Credits Biden For States Dropping Mask Mandate
Fox Business
Rep. Jamie Raskin failed to report huge stock payout for his wife, a Biden Fed nominee
Daily Caller
Mike Tirico Is Returning Early From The Olympics For Unknown Reasons
The podcast for this show can be streamed or downloaded from the Audio Rewind page.
Image used with permission of Getty Images / Mark Wilson
100.) CIVIL DEADLINE
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101.) THE GELLER REPORT
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102.) CNS
103.) RELIABLE NEWS
104.) INDEPENDENT SENTINEL
Anonymous people pour in illegally non-stop in many areas of our border and it’s a lot more than 2 million. Our leaders don’t even care if they are criminals or terrorists.
ESPN’s racist.
McConnell is clearly not a serious Republican. He calls the J6 rally/riot a violent insurrection and rails against censure of Kinzinger and Cheney.
The Feds, disguised as construction workers, searched a Republican congressman’s office — no crime, no warrant, just spying or intimidating.
Trudeau goes full dictator, but truckers don’t back down.
Israel: Being vaxxed makes no difference in hospitalization and death re Omicron.
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Horror at the BorderWhile the RINOs and Democrats worry about Ukraine’s borders and sovereignty, look at what one spot on our border looks like on the first clip. We know the Democrats want… |
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Whistleblower: ESPN’s a ‘Blatantly Racist’ Workplace EnvironmentProject Veritas released a new undercover video today recorded within ESPN that revealed what appears to be a workplace environment full of toxic racist tension. The Whistleblower-recorded audio and video show numerous… |
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Status of Truckers Blocking the Ambassador BridgeTruckers are blocking the Ambassador Bridge connecting Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario. It is one of the busiest crossings in North America. They are calling for reinforcements. They say They… |
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Alberta and Saskatchewan to End All COVID RestrictionsUndoubtedly in response to the trucker protests, Alberta and Saskatchewan premiers announced plans to end all COVID mandates in phases. ALBERTA Alberta premier Jason Kenney announced on Tuesday that the… |
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Powerful People Who Plan to Continue Face MaskingDr. Anthony Fauci, the medical tyrant running the country, wants forced masking of children until we all feel safe. He needs to retire but won’t because he is having a… |
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GiveSendGo Founder Calls Out Authoritarian GoFundMe & Big TechThe founder and CFO of the platform, Jacob Wells, called out GoFundMe and Big Tech for their “authoritarian style of social platforms,” which he says promotes bias as fact and causes… |
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Congressional Staffers to Unionize – It Gives More Power for Unions & DemsThe White House on Tuesday threw its support behind a new movement by congressional staffers to unionize. They aren’t spoiled, insufferable, and overpaid enough. Now they need a too-powerful union… |
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McConnell Thinks He’s a Dem Activist – Attacks J6 Rioters as InsurrectionistsMitch McConnell really has got to go. He is blatantly damaging the Republican Party prior to an important election. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell disagreed vehemently Tuesday with the Republican National Committee’s recent… |
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Probe Underway of Capitol Police for Warrantless Search of GOP Rep’s OfficeThe inspector general for the U.S. Capitol Police has opened an investigation into allegations that one of its officers surreptitiously entered Rep. Troy Nehls’ office and took photographs. The Texas… |
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US Trade Deficit Soars Under BidenThe Wall Street Journal reports that the US trade deficit is at a record high under Joe Biden. The trade gap — the difference between what the United States sells… |
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Jen Psaki Responds to the Trucker Protest StupidlyWhite House press secretary Jen Psaki responded to a reporter’s question about the trucker protest during today’s presser. The reporter also asked what steps the administration is taking to prevent… |
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Trudeau, a Canadian Fidel, Threatens Protesters with More RestrictionsTo our Fellow Canadians, the time for political overreach is over. Our current government is implementing rules and mandates that are destroying the foundation of our businesses, industries, and livelihoods. … |
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DHS Posts a New Terror Porn MemoMayorkas’s Department of Homeland Security issued a new “National Terrorism” bulletin on Monday, warning of a “continued heightened threat environment” across the United States. Now, what could that be about?… |
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Biden Funds a Soros Open Borders Group with $$$Federal budget watchdog Open the Books revealed that Biden’s Department of Health and Human Services awarded a $164 million contract to left-wing advocacy organization Vera Institute of Justice to fund lawyers for… |
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“Lowest Ratings in Olympic History” After All That NBC SycophantryCCP butt-kissers, NBC, are getting their ratings’ butts kicked during the Beijing Olympics. The ratings are the worst in history so far. NBC says their audience fell 43% from the… |
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It’s a Crime to Be Unvaxxed in Austria and Police Are Going To Pull Them Off the RoadAustrian President Alexander Van der Bellen imposed new Covid restrictions that require all adults in the country to be fully vaccinated and boosted or face fines until 2024. Drivers will be pulled… |
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“Mayorkas Is a Pathological Liar and Sociopath” – Victims Don’t CountMayorkas is a pathological liar and sociopath: Victims of immigrant crime advocate tears into Biden’s DHS head for opposing “deporting ANYONE” and demands he be “put behind bars” The President… |
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80% of Israel’s Hospitalized Are Vaxxed and Death Rates Are ClimbingIsrael is one of the most vaccinated countries in the world with some on their 4th booster, and almost all on their 3rd. Yet they’ve set a COVID-19 case record… |
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Watch the Coutts ‘Fringe Minority’ Protesters from the AirThe Coutts ‘fringe minority’ protest continues to demand the cancellation of the mandates, and you can watch the endless line of protesters from the air in the second clip below…. |
105.) DC CLOTHESLINE
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106.) ARTICLE V LEGISLATORS’ CAUCUS
107.) BECKER NEWS
108.) SONS OF LIBERTY
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109.) STARS & STRIPES
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110.) RIGHT & FREE
111.) UNITED VOICE
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112.) THE DAILY SHAPIRO
113.) INSURGENT CONSERVATIVES
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![]()Kazakhstan – A U.S. Funded BSL-3 viral laboratory reportedly fell into the hands of anti-government protestors during a recent civil uprising. Kazakhstani officials have denied reports that the controversial laboratory was compromised. However, Russian media has reported otherwise.
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Insurgent Conservatives
PO Box 8161 Greenwood, IN 46142
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114.) WAKING TIMES
115.) UNCOVER DC
116.) DC DIRTY LAUNDRY