Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev apologized at a House hearing Thursday for the confusion caused by his platform's decision to restrict trading of certain "meme stocks," while admitting he did not handle the situation perfectly.
Yes, but: Tenev later admitted the company made mistakes, but could not spell out what those mistakes were — before Congress moved on to the next question.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his counterparts from the E3 — France, Germany and the U.K. — in a video conference on Thursday that the U.S. is prepared to engage in discussions with Iran in an attempt to reach an agreement on returning to full compliance of the 2015 nuclear deal, according to a joint readout of the call.
Why it matters: The U.S. and Iran still haven't engaged in direct talks since President Biden assumed office. Both sides are exchanging public messages demanding the other take the first step to move forward with the nuclear deal.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will now focus on arresting unauthorized immigrants who pose a national security threat — a shift from the Trump era, when agents had broad discretion over which immigrants were targeted.
Why it matters: The new interim guidance is in effect starting Thursday, and comesas the Biden administration tries to rein in the wide latitude given to ICE under the Trump administration. The rule is in line with an executive order that President Biden signed shortly after taking office.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican who has regularly polled as the most popular governor in the country, is facing declining fundraising numbers amid rising criticism for his handling of the coronavirus, stirring questions about whether he'll seek re-election next year or even try to pass the torch early.
Why it matters: Increasingly, the nation's governors are under growing scrutiny for their states' infection and death rates, economic losses and vaccine plans. Democratic governors representing two of the most populous states — Gavin Newsom of California and Andrew Cuomo of New York — are fighting for their political survival.
Ivanka Trump has offered her support to Sen. Marco Rubio's (R-Fla.) 2022 re-election — dulling speculation that she may challenge the senator in Florida's 2022 Republican Senate primary.
What they're saying: "Marco and Ivanka did speak a few weeks ago. Ivanka offered her support for Marco’s re-election and they had a great talk," Rubio spokesperson Nick Iacovella tells Axios.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday that the "9/11 style" commission investigating the Jan. 6 attacks on the Capitol must have subpoena powers in order to be successful.
The big picture: Subpoena powers will give the commission the ability to call witnesses for testimony — including uncooperative ones. Calls for a commission have grown since impeachment charges against former President Trump failed in the Senate last weekend.
In the second half of 2020, Donald Trump’s re-election campaign shelled out seven figures to an influencer marketing business linked to his White House’s former chief digital officer.
Why it matters: The payments bought promotion from prominent conservative brands and social media personalities, showing how campaigns are exploring new, often more opaque digital advertising channels as large social media companies crack down on political ads.
Former Senate Republican Leader Bob Dole, 97, announced Thursday that he has been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.
The big picture: Dole served in the U.S. Senate for 27 years, including 11 years as GOP leader, before retiring in 1996. He unsuccessfully ran for vice president on President Gerald Ford's ticket in 1976, and for president in 1980, 1988 and 1996. Dole clinched the Republican nomination in 1996 but was ultimately defeated in the general election by Bill Clinton.
A CNN spokesperson told the Washington Post that a rule prohibiting anchor Chris Cuomo from interviewing or covering his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, "remains in place today."
Why it matters: Chris Cuomo hosted his brother for numerous segments of "Cuomo Prime Time" to discuss the coronavirus last year, when New York was at the epicenter of the pandemic and the governor was winning plaudits for his crisis management. Gov. Cuomo is now facing a federal probe and calls to resign over his handling of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.
Racial justice and anti-poverty advocates want President Joe Biden to sign more executive orders and pursue even stronger legislation aimed at fighting systemic racism beyond his early moves and current proposals.
Why it matters: The demands from groups like the Black to the Future Action Fund and the Poor People's Campaign show that liberal groups aren't just settling for diverse appointments or vague promises down the road. They expect early action around housing, wages, and expanding voting rights.
The power outages in Texas are the latest in a series of disasters that will be harder to fix — or prevent from happening again — because Americans are retreating to partisan and cultural corners instead of trying to solve problems.
The big picture: From COVID to the election fallout to the utter collapse of Texas' electric grid, America is no longer showing the rest of the world how to conquer its biggest challenges. Instead, there's always another uncivil war to be fought — even when democracy, global health and now climate change are on the line.
Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.) will introduce Biden's immigration bill Thursday, which includes an eight-year pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) will introduce the bill in the Senate next week.
Why it matters: The bill is unlikely to win needed Republican support, but represents the aggressive immigration priorities of President Biden. It will also kick off the immigration debate on Capitol Hill, which could lead to less sweeping immigration reforms.
Meet Charles Little Bull: He's a role-model grad student in his twenties who wears his long hair in two braids. And today, when Nickelodeon unveils his character on "The Casagrandes," he'll become one of the first Lakota figures to appear in a major American animated-TV production.
Why it matters: His debut reflects Native American advocates' heightened campaigning to champion more positive, high-profile representation in media and news coverage.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration is under investigation by the FBI and U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn over its handling of COVID-19 nursing home deaths, the Albany Times-Union first reported Wednesday.
Why it matters: The news comes as N.Y. state lawmakers begin efforts to repeal the Democratic governor's pandemic emergency powers after it was revealed his administration delayed releasing data of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes, prompting allegations of a cover-up.
Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground Productions company has picked up a film starring Michael Keaton about the push for the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund that will screen on Netflix, the streaming giant announced Wednesday.
The big picture: Since the former president and first lady signed a multi-year deal with Netflix, Higher Ground Productions has produced a raft of TV shows and won an Oscar for best documentary last year.
