INSIDER
Biden visits Arizona computer chip site, highlights jobs
Read full article: Biden visits Arizona computer chip site, highlights jobsPresident Joe Biden has visited the building site for an Arizona computer chip plant to emphasize how his policies are fostering job growth in what could be a challenge to the incoming Republican House majority.
White House: New rule will show 'true cost' of plane tickets
Read full article: White House: New rule will show 'true cost' of plane ticketsPresident Joe Biden plans to announce a new initiative that would eventually allow consumers to see a more complete price on airline tickets before they buy them.
Tentative labor deal averts threat of nationwide rail strike
Read full article: Tentative labor deal averts threat of nationwide rail strikeRail companies and their workers reached a tentative agreement to avert a nationwide strike that could have shut down the nation’s freight trains and devastated the economy less than two months before the midterm elections.
White House confident Biden’s bill will pass House this week
Read full article: White House confident Biden’s bill will pass House this weekPresident Joe Biden’s top economic adviser is expressing confidence the White House’s $1.85 trillion domestic policy package will quickly pass the House this week.
Vote delayed, Democrats struggle to save Biden $3.5T bill
Read full article: Vote delayed, Democrats struggle to save Biden $3.5T billDespite a long night of frantic negotiations, Democrats remain unable to reach an immediate deal to salvage President Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion government overhaul, forcing leaders to call off promised votes on a related public works bill.
White House competition council seeks lower consumer prices
Read full article: White House competition council seeks lower consumer pricesAt the first meeting of a new White House council on U.S. economic conditions, participants are highlighting at least 18 actions taken to help consumers and potentially lower prices.
Biden team is seeking ways to address rising energy prices
Read full article: Biden team is seeking ways to address rising energy pricesPresident Joe Biden’s administration is moving at home and abroad to try to address concerns about rising energy prices slowing the nation’s recovery from the pandemic-induced recession.
Roads, bridges, jobs: Biden selling big infrastructure deal
Read full article: Roads, bridges, jobs: Biden selling big infrastructure dealPresident Joe Biden is trying to sell Americans on the economic benefits of the $973 billion infrastructure package under consideration in Congress, declaring there is an urgent need for a “generational investment."
WH legislative team pursues 'politics is personal' strategy
Read full article: WH legislative team pursues 'politics is personal' strategyWhile President Joe Biden pitches his infrastructure plan to the American public, the real work of delivering his legislative agenda takes place behind the scenes.
Biden directs US to mitigate financial risk from climate
Read full article: Biden directs US to mitigate financial risk from climatePresident Joe Biden is directing federal agencies to develop a comprehensive strategy to identify and manage financial risks to government and the private sector posed by climate change.
Biden announces huge infrastructure plan to 'win the future'
Read full article: Biden announces huge infrastructure plan to 'win the future'Biden hopes to pass an infrastructure plan by summer, which could mean relying solely on the slim Democratic majorities in the House and the Senate. “Ninety-one Fortune 500 Companies, including Amazon, pay not a single solitary penny in income tax,” Biden said. “Wall Street didn’t build this country," Biden said. The new construction could keep the economy running hot, coming on the heels of Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. But we have to get it done.”AdDemocratic leaders embraced Biden’s plan Wednesday.
Biden's top aides unlikely to qualify for relief payments
Read full article: Biden's top aides unlikely to qualify for relief paymentsWASHINGTON – At least one group in America is unlikely to get any money from President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion economic rescue plan — his own top aides. Most of Biden’s senior West Wing advisers made far more than the threshold that would qualify them for direct payments from the president’s COVID-19 relief bill, according to White House financial disclosure forms released Saturday. Others in the West Wing — whose positions don't require Senate confirmation — have had deep ties to the business world. He was listed as having a salary of $1.8 million, according to his disclosure form. Brian Deese, head of the national economic council, was previously global head of sustainable investing at BlackRock, according to his disclosure.
Yellen's encore: Lending economic heft to Biden's virus plan
Read full article: Yellen's encore: Lending economic heft to Biden's virus plan“Yellen is uniquely poised," said Brian Deese, director of Biden’s National Economic Council. "She has as much experience and expertise of addressing the challenges of our time as any living economic policymaker today. AdYellen juggled parenting with her work as a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, in the 1980s, helping to build her son’s pinewood derby car as a colleague fed economic data into a computer. It’s an argument cultivated from years of research that fully blossomed during Yellen’s time as Fed chair. She said Yellen values differences of opinion and diversity because that helps her get a fuller sense of the economy.
Airline CEOs, Biden officials consider green-fuel breaks
Read full article: Airline CEOs, Biden officials consider green-fuel breaksAirline officials are talking to the Biden administration about support for incentives to use cleaner fuels for airplanes. United Airlines said CEO Scott Kirby asked administration officials to support incentives for sustainable aviation fuel and technology to remove carbon from the atmosphere. A United Nations aviation group has concluded that biofuels will remain a tiny source of aviation fuel for several years. Some environmentalists would prefer the Biden administration to impose tougher emissions standards on aircraft rather than create breaks for biofuels. “We stand ready to work in partnership with the Biden administration.”
Biden to meet Republicans proposing $618B in virus aid
Read full article: Biden to meet Republicans proposing $618B in virus aidIn this Jan. 27, 2021, photo, President Joe Biden speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. AdRepublicans are tapping into bipartisan urgency to improve the nation's vaccine distribution and vastly expand virus testing with $160 billion in aid. Psaki said earlier Monday there is “obviously a big gap” between the $1.9 trillion package Biden has proposed and the $618 billion counteroffer. It also includes $20 billion to reopen schools compared to $170 billion in Biden's plan. Biden himself has been on the phone to some of the Republicans, the official said.
Biden to meet with GOP lawmakers to discuss virus relief
Read full article: Biden to meet with GOP lawmakers to discuss virus reliefThe meeting to be hosted by Biden would amount to the most public involvement for the president in the negotiations for the next round of virus relief. Though Biden is wanting “a full exchange of views," Psaki reiterated that the president remains in favor of moving forward with a far-reaching relief package. But Cedric Richmond, a senior Biden adviser, said the president “is very willing to meet with anyone to advance the agenda." Under the Biden plan, families with incomes up to $300,000 could receive some stimulus money. “I support passing COVID relief with support from Republicans if we can get it.
EXPLAINER: Executive orders can be swift but fleeting
Read full article: EXPLAINER: Executive orders can be swift but fleetingA new president may overturn a predecessor's order by issuing another executive order effectively canceling it. Both sides do it, both sides complainTo be sure, modern presidents from both parties have been heavy users of executive orders — and have been criticized by the opposition party. Not surprisingly, some Republicans have complained about Biden’s early reliance on executive orders. As his presidency plays out, an overreliance on executive orders could undercut that argument. Here today, gone tomorrowThe experiences of both Trump and Obama underscore the fleeting nature of executive orders.
White House begins talks with lawmakers on COVID-19 relief
Read full article: White House begins talks with lawmakers on COVID-19 reliefAt least a dozen senators met for an hour and 15 minutes in a virtual call with White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese and other senior White House officials Sunday. Many hope to approve a relief package before former President Donald Trump's trial, which is set to begin in two weeks, overtakes Washington’s attention. Senators also wanted more data on how the White House reached the $1.9 trillion figure. “It was about how can we work together to help the people of this country.”White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients and White House legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell also joined the call. “We’re going to continue to push because we can’t wait,” said White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
White House begins talks with lawmakers on COVID-19 relief
Read full article: White House begins talks with lawmakers on COVID-19 reliefAt least a dozen senators met for an hour and 15 minutes in a virtual call with White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese and other senior White House officials. Many hope to approve a relief package before former President Donald Trump's trial, which is set to begin in two weeks, overtakes Washington’s attention. Senators also wanted more data on how the White House reached the $1.9 trillion figure. “It was about how can we work together to help the people of this country.”White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients and White House legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell also joined the call. “We’re going to continue to push because we can’t wait,” said White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
Biden ordering stopgap help as talks start on big aid plan
Read full article: Biden ordering stopgap help as talks start on big aid planPresident Joe Biden pauses as he speaks about the coronavirus, accompanied by Vice President Kamala Harris, in the State Dinning Room of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021, in Washington. “This can help tens of millions of families — especially those who cannot provide meals for their kids,” Biden said. Children who are unable to get school meals because of remote learning could receive a 15% increase in food aid, according to a fact sheet provided by the White House. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a Thursday briefing that the proposal has support ranging from democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Biden must balance the need for immediate aid against the risk of prolonged negotiations.
Fight over Fed powers stalls $900 billion aid plan
Read full article: Fight over Fed powers stalls $900 billion aid planWASHINGTON – An arcane battle over emergency Federal Reserve powers foiled efforts on Saturday to lock down an agreement on an almost $1 trillion COVID-19 economic relief package. The deadlock was just the latest stumble in a partisan, months-long fight over pandemic relief and the lack of progress is backing lawmakers once again up against a government shutdown deadline Sunday night. Lawmakers on both sides said a provision by Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., that would curb emergency Federal Reserve powers was the sticking point. At issue are Fed emergency programs, launched amid the pandemic this spring, that provided loans to small and mid-size businesses and bought state and local government bonds. Under the Dodd-Frank financial reform law passed after the Great Recession, the Fed can only set up emergency programs with the support of the treasury secretary.
The Latest: Biden: Trump inaugural presence important to US
Read full article: The Latest: Biden: Trump inaugural presence important to USWASHINGTON – The Latest on President-elect Joe Biden (all times local):9:55 p.m.President-elect Joe Biden says it is important that President Donald Trump attend his inauguration only in the sense that it would demonstrate the nation’s commitment to a peaceful transfer of power between political rivals. ___8:45 p.m.Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus have made a fresh push for President-elect Joe Biden to nominate New Mexico Gov. But $207.5 million came in after Election Day as Trump repeatedly – and falsely – claimed President-elect Joe Biden won due to voter fraud. Gina Raimondo has knocked down talk that she is in the running for President-elect Joe Biden’s secretary of health and human services. ___12:25 p.m.President-elect Joe Biden has tapped former Obama administration senior economic adviser Brian Deese to be director of the National Economic Council.