Category: Administration

Newsom on second GOP debate: Biden was the ‘big winner’ tonight

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) declared that ‘the Biden agenda’ was the true winner of the second GOP presidential primary debate in a Wednesday evening interview with Fox News. “They only identified problems,” Newsom said of the seven GOP hopefuls on the debate stage. “Joe Biden has not only identified solutions, he’s gotten them passed in a bipartisan way to address so many of the…

Minnesota senator tests positive for COVID-19

Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith (D) on Tuesday announced she has tested positive for COVID-19. “I tested positive for COVID this morning after developing mild symptoms Sunday night,” Smith said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “I’ll stay here in Minnesota while following CDC guidelines.” Smith’s positive test comes as the Senate moves toward critical votes this week on legislation to prevent a…

Kemp declares state of emergency over inflation in Georgia

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) declared a state of emergency for the Peach State over inflation rates Tuesday “From runaway federal spending to policies that hamstring domestic energy production, all Bidenomics has done is take more money out of the pockets of the middle class,” Kemp said in a press release.  “While high prices continue to hit family budgets, hardworking Georgians deserve real relief, and…

Former White House official rails against DeSantis’s ‘small and petty’ decision not to meet Biden

Former White House communications director Kate Bedingfield on Friday called Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s decision to forego a meeting with President Biden during his trip to the Sunshine State “small and petty.” “It is a really unfortunate time for Ron DeSantis to choose to be small and petty,” Bedingfield said on CNN. “This is a moment where people are hurting, they want to see their…

Biden defends decision to send troops to the border: ‘They need more people to clear people’

President Biden on Friday defended his decision to temporarily deploy 1,500 active-duty troops to the border, ahead of an expected migrant surge next week. “I’ve asked this Congress for help in terms of what they need at the border,” Biden said on Friday in an interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle. “They need more agents. They need more people to clear people. They need more action.”…

Biden says son ‘has done nothing wrong’ ahead of possible federal charges

President Biden said his son Hunter “has done nothing wrong” as he could soon be charged following a multi-year investigation into his business dealings. “First of all, my son has done nothing wrong,” he said in an interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle on Friday evening. “I trust him. I have faith in him.” Biden’s defense of his son comes after The Washington Post reported on…

TikTok ban poll uncovers age, party divisions

Nearly half of Americans support a potential ban on TikTok, but there are clear divisions between age groups and political affiliation. That was the finding of a new Wall Street Journal poll published on Monday, as momentum is building in Congress to ban the Chinese-owned social media platform due to security concerns.  The poll found that 46 percent of respondents said they support a nationwide…

Biden administration urges return to office for federal workers

New guidance from the Office of Management and Budget urges federal workers to return to the office full-time, while still allowing some flexibility for working from home. The 19-page memo from the Biden administration office does not set concrete dates or targets for moving to in-office work, and does encourage remote work where it has been most efficient, perhaps making some telework a standard part…

Harris announces $1.7B in grants for more than 600 community lenders

Vice President Harris on Monday announced $1.7 billion in grants for more than 600 community lenders to support small businesses, entrepreneurs, nonprofits, housing and commercial real estate as they seek to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. Harris announced the grants as part of the Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, saying that the loans will go to support local lending institutions that primarily serve…

Biden designates new national monuments in Nevada, Texas

President Biden on Tuesday designated two new national monuments in Nevada and Texas. Biden designated Nevada’s Avi Kwa Ame, also known as Spirit Mountain, and Texas’s Castner Range as monuments — protecting a total of nearly 514,000 acres of public lands from development. Biden announced the proclamations during a conservation summit held at the Interior Department. He did not sign the proclamations on stage, but…

White House brands Freedom Caucus deficit plan as ‘tax breaks for the super wealthy’

The White House branded the House Freedom Caucus’ deficit plan as “tax breaks for the super wealthy and wasteful spending for special interests,” as the two sides continued to trade jabs amid an escalating debt ceiling battle. “MAGA House Republicans are proposing, if spread evenly across affected discretionary programs, at least a 20 [percent] across the board cut,” White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt said…

Biden’s budget proposes tax hikes on wealthy to reduce deficit, shore up Medicare

President Biden outlined a slew of tax hikes on wealthy Americans as an avenue for reducing the deficit and funding key programs like Medicare as he released on Thursday his proposed budget for fiscal year 2024. It gives a glimpse of the policy proposals and issues Biden hopes to emphasize ahead of a reelection bid. The budget will not be enacted into law, but it will serve…

Pence asks judge to block special counsel’s Jan. 6 subpoena

Former Vice President Mike Pence has filed a motion seeking to block a subpoena for his testimony about the events surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. CNN first reported on Monday that Pence filed a motion on Friday night asking a judge to block the subpoena for him to testify before a federal grand jury. A spokesperson for Pence declined to comment. The filing…

Buttigieg knocks ‘East Coast elite’ over criticism of East Palestine train derailment response

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg fired back at Republican criticism over his response to the derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, blasting his critics as “card-carrying members of the East Coast elite.” “It’s really rich to see some of these folks — the former president, these Fox hosts — who are literally lifelong card-carrying members of the East Coast elite, whose…

Transportation post has become political nightmare for Buttigieg 

When Pete Buttigieg became Transportation secretary at the start of the Biden administration, some Democrats said it would be a perfect platform for his political prospects if not in 2024, then 2028.   Buttigieg could crisscross the country, appearing before crowds in key states while elevating his name recognition, resume and overall brand.   Instead, the job of Transportation secretary has been a set of compounding problems…

What Biden might try next if his student loan forgiveness plan is struck down

The Biden White House has been reluctant to talk about alternatives to its student loan relief plan for fear of undermining its case now before the Supreme Court, but should the justices strike down the proposal, they do have some options. Lawyers for the administration made their case to save President Biden’s student debt forgiveness before the justices on Tuesday, but with the plan at…

Watch live: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre gives press briefing

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will speak with reporters Friday afternoon, closing out a week that’s seen Biden unexpectedly side with a majority-Republican House measure regarding criminal justice in the District of Columbia. As The Hill reported Thursday, the resolution, passed in early February, would block a Washington, D.C., city council action, popular with city residents, to remove most mandatory sentencing, reduce penalties for…

State Department says Israeli finance minister’s call to wipe out Palestinian village ‘repugnant’

The State Department denounced the Israeli finance minister’s call for the elimination of a Palestinian village as “repugnant,” calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials to repudiate the comments. Department spokesman Ned Price said at a press briefing on Wednesday that the remarks that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich made, saying that Israel should “wipe out” the Palestinian town of Hawara…

When can student loan borrowers expect the repayment pause to end?

Student loan borrowers are left in limbo on the exact date for when they will have to begin repayments after a three-year pause from the coronavirus pandemic.  On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for two cases contesting President Biden’s student loan relief program that could give up to $20,000 of relief to millions of Americans.  The justices are now able to release a…

Buttigieg says he ‘welcomes’ review of his use of government jet

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Tuesday that he “welcomes” a recently announced review of his use of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) jets in order to “get past the politics.” The Transportation Department’s inspector general announced on Monday that it would be auditing Buttigieg’s use of the government aircraft and whether he “complied with Federal regulations, policies, and procedures,” in response to a request from Sen. Marco…

Kerry to serve in climate envoy role at least through COP28 summit in November

John Kerry, the U.S. special presidential envoy for climate, said in a new interview with The Boston Globe that he told President Biden that he will serve in his role through at least the United Nations climate summit in November. “There’s sufficient unfinished business that I felt it would be inappropriate to walk away from that at this point in time,” he told the newspaper….

Youngkin says Biden should go to Ohio instead of Virginia to talk healthcare

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) said on Sunday that President Biden should visit the Ohio town reeling from the derailment of a train hauling toxic chemicals, rather than traveling to Virginia this week to speak about healthcare.  White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Biden plans to use his speech at an event in Virginia Beach on Tuesday to draw a contrast between his…

Biden official says there’s no evidence that Ukraine is misusing US assistance

A prime Biden administration official affirmed that no evidence exists that Ukraine is misusing the monetary assistance it is receiving from the United States. Samantha Power, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), said throughout a CNN city corridor on Thursday night that Ukraine has made progress for years in working to root out corruption, however officers are frequently checking to make…

Buttigieg pushes Norfolk Southern to support higher rail safety standards

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wrote to Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw on Sunday urging the corporate to support higher rail safety standards amid rising considerations concerning the environmental penalties of its prepare derailment in northeastern Ohio.  “I am writing to emphasize the urgent need for Norfolk Southern to demonstrate unequivocal support for the people of East Palestine and the surrounding areas, and to be a…

Special counsel shows signs of ramping up Trump investigation

The Justice Department probes into Donald Trump’s conduct seem like ramping up, as special counsel Jack Smith approaches key allies of the previous president with knowledge of his actions surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol assault and categorized paperwork found at Mar-a-Lago in Florida. In current weeks, Smith has subpoenaed each former Vice President Mike Pence and then-White House chief of workers Mark Meadows, two figures…

Mystery still swirls around three objects US shot out of the sky

Two weeks after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon and one week after President Biden directed the navy to shoot down three more unidentified objects, America is still gripped by questions over what the objects had been and why they had been flying at a top that posed a danger to air site visitors. President Biden on Thursday delivered his most in depth…

Biden’s physician says he is ‘fit for duty’ at 80 years old

President Biden is match to execute the calls for of his job, his physician said in a memo following a bodily examination on Thursday, writing he “remains a healthy, vigorous, 80-year-old male.” Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the president’s physician, wrote that none of Biden’s pre-existing situations noted throughout his last bodily, together with a stiff gait and high ldl cholesterol, had worsened. “The President remains fit…

Progressives push Biden to choose worker-friendly Labor secretary

Progressives need “middle class Joe Biden” to discover a worker-friendly Labor Secretary to substitute Marty Walsh — however it could take some elbow grease to get there.    Liberal lawmakers and advocates have appreciated Biden’s strategy to organized labor, seeing his embrace of unions as simply as gutsy and real as his willingness to condemn company profiteering on the expense of the country’s workforce.  With Walsh’s anticipated exit…

FBI searched Biden documents at University of Delaware: report

The FBI searched the University of Delaware twice in current weeks as half of its investigation into President Biden’s categorized doc dealing with, based on a new CNN report. The searches have been reportedly carried out on two totally different days and with the Biden’s staff’s cooperation — and the supplies retrieved didn’t seem to have categorized markings, CNN reported, citing an anonymous source.  Documents…

Super Bowl snub is latest dust-up between White House, Fox News

The White House’s choice to not have President Biden sit down with a Fox News journalist for an interview through the community’s pregame protection of this year’s Super Bowl alerts a probably frosty highway forward for Biden and the nation’s high cable information firm.  The two sides have given conflicting variations of what went on behind the scenes in the days before the interview, to…