Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) led 28 members of Congress in requesting that the House allow paid interns the option of working work from home.
Why it matters: The move aims to increase access to job applicants burdened by relocating to Washington, D.C., but who are otherwise qualified.
Sen. Joe Manchin announced Friday that he will vote against Neera Tanden, President Biden's nominee to be director of the Office and Management and Budget.
Why it matters: Manchin's opposition seriously imperils Tanden's nomination, as she will now need at least one Republican vote to be confirmed.
Dr. Anthony Fauci is starring in Democratic digital advertising, a sign of his political potency that also takes advantage of an apolitical government employee.
Why it matters: Democrats accused Donald Trump of playing politics by sidelining Fauci at his COVID briefings and hogging the spotlight. Now they concede President Biden's chief medical adviser is a powerful driver for their own political engagement.
U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas, whose son was killed and husband wounded in an attack meant for her, says the shooter also targeted Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in an interview that will air Sunday on CBS' "60 Minutes."
Driving the news: In a search of her assailant's locker, the FBI found a gun, ammunition and a manila folder with a "workup" on Sotomayor, Salas explains.
The Biden administration has waived ethics rules to allow a top Department of Homeland Security official to make policy in areas on which she lobbied for her former employer, Amnesty International.
Why it matters: The waiver is the first granted under Biden's new ethics pledge, which allows the White House to shelve restrictions on former lobbyists in the administration if doing so is deemed in the national interest.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) released a statement on Friday calling for a "full investigation" into New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes.
Why it matters: Cuomo's handling of nursing home deaths has been under scrutiny for months, but the backlash has become increasingly bipartisan after audio leaked of a top Cuomo aide saying a Democratic request for nursing homes data was rejected because the administration feared it could "be used against us" by federal investigators.
Like many counties, Florida’s Brevard County originally planned to use one system for COVID-19 vaccine appointments, but it didn’t work. Eventbrite is now being used to help schedule vaccinations in 40 states and numerous counties, including Brevard.
Axios Re:Cap goes deeper with Eventbrite co-founder and CEO Julia Hartz to learn how her company has responded to this unexpected use of Eventbrite’s platform.
President Biden committed the U.S. to "working in lockstep with our allies and partners" to protect democracy and promote prosperity, telling the Munich Security Conference on Friday: "Democracy doesn't happen by accident. We have to defend it. Fight for it. Strengthen it. Renew it."
Why it matters: In his first major speech to world leaders, Biden acknowledged that four years of former President Trump's "America First" foreign policy has left the transatlantic relationship in disrepair.
California venture capitalist Imaad Shah Zuberi was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Thursday for unregistered foreign lobbying, illegal campaign contributions and obstruction of justice.
Details: The obstruction of justice charge against Zuberi stemmed from an investigation into a $900,000 contribution he made to former President Trump's inaugural committee. Zuberi was also ordered to pay a $1.75 million fine and $15.7 million in restitution.
Congress yesterday lived down to its reputation, uncovering little new information about the GameStop stock surge. But it did illustrate how Silicon Valley has overtaken Wall Street as public enemy number one, particularly among Democrats.
What happened: No one received more questions, and more rhetorical brickbats, than Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, despite the presence of hedge fund titans Ken Griffin and Gabe Plotkin.
President Biden on Friday urged Congress to pass the newly reintroduced Equality Act, which would expand federal protections for the LGBTQ+ community.
What he's saying: "Full equality has been denied to LGBTQ+ Americans and their families for far too long. Despite the extraordinary progress the LGBTQ+ community has made to secure their basic civil rights, discrimination is still rampant in many areas of our society," Biden wrote in a statement.
Why it matters: Ravnsborg, who has a history of speeding and traffic violations, was able to avoid more serious felony charges and instead faces charges for careless driving, driving out of his lane and operating a motor vehicle while on his phone.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) on Thursday accused Trump allies of engaging in "cancel culture" by rushing to censure Republican lawmakers for voting to impeach or convict former President Trump for his role in the Capitol insurrection.
Why it matters: The comments by Thune, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, underscore the growing divide between mainstream GOP leaders and Trump supporters, who still dominate the party's base. Thune called Trump's actions after the election "inexcusable" in an interview with the AP.
Six Capitol police officers have been suspended with pay and 29 are under investigation for alleged conduct related to the Jan. 6 insurrection by pro-Trump rioters, a spokesperson said Thursday.
The big picture: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said earlier this month that Congress plans to establish a "9/11-type commission" to investigate the siege and report on "the preparedness and response of the United States Capitol Police and other federal, state, and local law enforcement."
The next round of congressional redistricting is shaping up to be a mess, beset by even more complications and lawsuits than usual.
Why it matters: This process will likely help Republicans pick up seats in the House in 2022. Beyond that, though, the pandemic and the Trump administration's handling of the Census have made this round of redistricting especially fraught — and states will be locked into the results for a decade.
President Biden will deliver a robust defense of America’s own democracy, and the broader power of democracies to face autocratic threats from China and Russia, during a virtual address Friday to the Munich Security Conference.
Why it matters: Biden is seeking to repair the transatlantic alliance after four years of President Trump, who harangued allies about their defense spending and questioned America’s commitment to NATO.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) flew to Cancún, Mexico, on Wednesday with plans to "stay through the weekend," as hundreds of thousands of his constituents went without power and heat in Texas after a winter storm caused deadly outages.
The latest: Addressing reporters outside his Houston home on Thursday, Cruz admitted his original intentions, but claimed he started having second thoughts "almost the moment I sat down on the plane."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had to wait a month for a call from President Biden, and while Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman got a call Thursday, it came not from Biden but from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The big picture: Biden, Austin, Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and national security adviser Jake Sullivan have together called officials from at least 43 countries, with Blinken alone calling 39 (there’s considerable overlap between their call lists).
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Thursday to reaffirm the "strategic defense partnership" between the two nations and discuss recent changes to U.S. policy on Yemen, the Pentagon said.
Why it matters: The call comes just days after the White House said it would "recalibrate" its relationship with Saudi Arabia, and return to "counterpart to counterpart" engagement, with President Biden's counterpart being King Salman, not MBS.
Lawmakers who represent Iowa are already making the case to keep the state's first-in-the-nation caucus status ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
Why it matters: The renewed examination of Iowa's early status stems from Democratic party members' calls to have a more diverse state caucus ahead of the state — given the make up of the party electorate — and after a disastrous Democratic caucus in 2020.
