The Pentagon is pausing a plan to offer coronavirus vaccines to Guantánamo Bay detainees, Defense Department press secretary John Kirby said Saturday.
Driving the news: The Pentagon had planned to begin vaccinating detainees on a volunteer basis, several media outlets reported earlier this week. The plan angered some Republicans, who called it "inexcusable and un-American."
Residents in neighborhoods surrounding the U.S. Capitol are wrestling with "life in a fortress" — as fences and checkpoints guarded by thousands of National Guard members have gone up since a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, the Washington Post reports.
Why it matters: The new security is not going away anytime soon, as National Guard members will continue to support local law enforcement in the city through at least mid-March and Capitol Police have suggested making the fencing around the Capitol permanent.
The U.S. government spent almost $90 billion on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits in fiscal year 2020, compared to the $60 billion price tag the year prior, according to data from the Agriculture Department released this week.
Why it matters: Millions of Americans newly received SNAP benefits last year as a result of the pandemic.The coronavirus increased federal spending on the program by an average of 28% per month in April and May alone, nearly double the largest monthly growth seen during the Great Recession, Axios' Dion Rabouin wrote.
Two members of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, were indicted Friday on federal charges for conspiring to obstruct law enforcement from protecting the U.S. Capitol during the pro-Trump siege on Jan. 6, the Department of Justice announced.
The state of play: Dominic Pezzola, 43, and William Pepe, 31, removed temporary metal barricades erected by the Capitol Police to control access to the Capitol, and stole property belonging to Capitol Police officers, per the indictment.
Why it matters: The BLM movement launched in 2013 following George Zimmerman's acquittal for shooting Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teenager. The case kickstarted the international movement to address the controversial deaths of Black people, particularly at the hands of police.
Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died in early January from injuries sustained while responding to the siege on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob, will lie in honor in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Friday evening.
Why it matters: Lying in honor is a final tribute reserved only for private citizens who have rendered distinguished service to the nation, according to the Architect of the Capitol.
Two Hispanic congressmen, Reps. Joaquin Castro and Ruben Gallego, are asking Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to remove Trump loyalists from a panel charged with renaming 10 Army bases that honor Confederate leaders.
Why it matters: The request, outlined in a letter Friday written by Castro and Gallego, comes as the Biden administration purges remaining Trump-era appointees and as Hispanic and Black leaders demand that some Army bases be renamed after people of color.
Democratic Rep. Cori Bush announced Friday that she has moved her office away from QAnon-supporting conspiracy theorist Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene “for the safety” of her team.
Driving the news: The Missouri congresswoman said Greene and her staff "berated" her after she confronted the Republican for not wearing a mask in a Capitol Hill tunnel earlier this month.
Former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith was sentenced to 12 months probation and 400 hours of community service on Friday after pleading guilty to altering an email used to obtain a surveillance warrant on Trump campaign aide Carter Page during the 2016 Russia investigation.
Why it matters: Clinesmith is thus far the only person to be convicted in special counsel John Durham investigation's into the origins of the Russia probe, which has been ongoing since May 2019.
New Pew Research Center polling underscores the immense difference in how much Democrats are concerned about climate change compared to Republicans.
Driving the news: The chart above shows the five issue areas with the largest partisan gaps in Pew's survey of what U.S. adults want the federal government to prioritize this year.
The verdict is clear: The vast majority of Republicans will stand firm with former President Trump. The next phase is clear, too:Republicans are rallying around a common grievance that big government, big media and big business are trying to shut them up, shut them out and shut them down.
Why it matters: The post-Trump GOP, especially its most powerful media platforms, paint the new reality as an existential threat. This means political attacks are seen — or characterized — as assaults on their very being.
Chad Wolf, Ken Cuccinelli and Mark Morgan, three of former President Trump's biggest immigration policy defenders, will join the Heritage Foundation on Monday as fellows, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: All three former Homeland Security officials consistently backed Trump and were key in implementing his strict immigration agenda. Now, they will continue to shape conservative policy ideas on national security and foreign policy from the outside.
Vice President Kamala Harris' husband Doug Emhoff used his first official outing as second gentleman Thursday to learn about and raise awareness for food insecurity, Washington Post reports.
Why it matters: The farm that Emhoff visited at Washington, D.C.'s Kelly Miller Middle School has shifted its focus during the COVID-19 pandemic to help get food to people who are vulnerable to hunger. "Food security is a racial justice issue," said Christopher Bradshaw, executive director of Dreaming Out Loud, the nonprofit that runs the farm.
During previously unreported meetings last summer, House Republican leaders discussed — but then largely set aside — fears that QAnon-supporting conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene would end up a flaming trainwreck for their party.
Why it matters: Greene has emerged not just as an embarrassment but a challenge for the GOP, with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy now forced to weigh whether to maintain his policy of sanctioning members who make dangerous statements.
In a closely divided Congress, the Senate’s Mischief Makers could thwart their leaders' best-laid plans with their own agendas.
Why it matters: On Wednesday night, we shared a list of House members who our leadership sources on the Hill consider some of the top troublemakers. But their Senate counterparts may be even more impactful in a 50-50 chamber, where Vice President Kamala Harris holds the tiebreaking vote.
