Washington Post: “Nearly two years into a coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people, every country, including the United States, remains dangerously unprepared to respond to future epidemic and pandemic threats, according to a report released Wednesday assessing the efforts of 195 countries.”
House Approves $778 Billion Defense Bill
“The House voted Tuesday to approve a $778 billion defense-policy and budget bill that authorizes $25 billion more in defense spending than requested by President Biden and contains a provision to create a commission on the War in Afghanistan, three months after America’s longest war ended in a chaotic and bloody withdrawal,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
House Passes Workaround to Raise Debt Ceiling
“The House passed a bill Tuesday night to expedite a debt ceiling fix in the Senate, allowing Democrats to essentially raise the nation’s credit limit on their own and thwart a Christmastime default,” Politico reports.
“The measure — which is the result of an 11th-hour accord between party leaders — tees up a new path for Congress to hike the nation’s borrowing ability, preventing the Treasury Department from running out of cash as soon as this month.”
Matt Gaetz Backs Trump for House Speaker
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) told reporters that if Republicans win control of the House of Representatives in 2022, he will push to have Donald Trump installed as Speaker, Rolling Stone reports.
Gaetz added that he has spoken to Trump about the possibility of making him Speaker.
Young Democrats More Likely to Despise Republicans
A new Generation Lab/Axios poll finds that nearly a quarter of college students wouldn’t be friends with someone who voted for the other presidential candidate — with Democrats far more likely to dismiss people than Republicans.
Also interesting: 5% of Republicans said they wouldn’t be friends with someone from the opposite party, compared to 37% of Democrats.
House Republicans Seethe Over McConnell’s Debt Deal
“House Republicans are questioning Senate Republicans’ decision-making at every turn, a rift that’s fueling an intraparty fight over the debt ceiling,” Politico reports.
“First it was President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill, then it was last week’s stopgap government funding deal that divided the two GOP conferences. And after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell cut a deal with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to ease Democrats’ ability to raise the debt ceiling, tensions are boiling over between the wings of the Republican Party.”
“In fact, House GOP leaders said the deal is so toxic they may not need to twist arms to get their members to vote against it.”
The Hill: McConnell faces GOP push back on debt deal.
House Subpoenas Phone Records of More Than 100 People
“The House select committee investigating the January 6 riot has formally subpoenaed the phone records of more than 100 people, a substantial number that includes former Trump officials and associates of the ex-President such as his one-time chief of staff Mark Meadows,” CNN reports.
“The committee has already begun receiving some data from phone providers.”
Judge Blocks Vaccine Mandate for Federal Contractors
“A federal judge on Tuesday blocked President Joe Biden’s administration from enforcing a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for employees of federal contractors, the latest in a string of victories for Republican-led states pushing back against Biden’s pandemic policies,” the AP reports.
“The order came in response to a lawsuit from several contractors and seven states — Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, Utah and West Virginia. It applies across the U.S. because one of those challenging the order is the trade group Associated Builders and Contractors Inc., whose members do business nationwide.”
Matthew Dowd Drops Race for Texas Lt. Governor
“Matthew Dowd, a former George W. Bush political strategist who had launched a bid to be the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor in 2022, ended his campaign Tuesday, six days before the candidate filing deadline,” the Texas Tribune reports.
Said Dowd: “When I first announced, the only other candidate was a white male Christian. A diverse field is now emerging in the Democratic primary for this office. I do not want to be the one who stands in the way of the greater diversity we need in politics.”
60% of Americans Are Now Vaccinated
The CDC reported that 60% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Approximately 71% of the U.S. population has received at least one vaccine dose, and around 23% have had a booster shot.
Fauci Says Omicron ‘Almost Certainly’ Not More Severe
Dr. Anthony Fauci told AFP that “while it would take weeks to judge the severity of the new Covid-19 variant Omicron, early indications suggested it was not worse than prior strains, and possibly milder.”
Said Fauci: “It almost certainly is not more severe than Delta. There is some suggestion that it might even be less severe, because when you look at some of the cohorts that are being followed in South Africa, the ratio between the number of infections and the number of hospitalizations seems to be less than with Delta.”
Jon Tester Also Opposes Biden’s Vaccine Mandate
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) “is planning to vote for a Republican resolution to nullify President Biden’s vaccine mandate for large employers,” The Hill reports.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said last week that he would do so as well.
Select Panel Threatens Mark Meadows with Contempt
“The leaders of the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol are vowing to launch criminal charges against Mark Meadows if he refuses to cooperate in the probe,” The Hill reports.
Biden Threatened Putin on Video Call
“In a video call that lasted for just over two hours on Tuesday, President Biden warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that if Russia invades Ukraine the U.S. will impose unprecedented sanctions and provide additional weaponry to the Ukrainians,” Axios reports.
Top Banking Regulator Nominee Withdraws
“Saule Omarova, President Biden’s pick to serve as a top banking regulator, has withdrawn her nomination for the office of the Comptroller of the Currency,” the Washington Post reports.
“During Omarova’s confirmation hearing last month, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) had suggested that her upbringing in Soviet-controlled Kazakhstan indicated a possible Communist loyalty.”
Chris Cuomo Book Canceled by Publisher
HarperCollins said that it has canceled plans to publish a book by Chris Cuomo, who was fired over the weekend by CNN following controversy over his role advising his brother, disgraced former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, CNBC reports.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports CNN President Jeff Zucker told employees in a meeting that the network won’t pay Cuomo a severance after firing him.
Robert E. Lee Statue Will Be Melted Down
“The statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that once provoked a deadly weekend of violence in Charlottesville will soon be melted down and turned into a new piece of public artwork,” the Washington Post reports.
Pence Aides Cooperating with House Probe
A source tells CNN the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection is getting “significant cooperation with Team Pence,” even if the committee has not openly discussed that.
