Axios

Sen. Mark Kelly told Axios on Wednesday the mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado, brought back sad memories of when his wife, Gabby Giffords, was shot in the head outside a supermarket in Arizona.

What they're saying: “Because it was a grocery store, you know, reminded me a lot of what it was like in January 2011," Kelly said. "It's really heartbreaking. This happens all too often in our country. I mean two in a week, 18 people dead."

Donald Trump has been in talks with no-name app vendors as he contemplates partnering with an existing platform to create his own social media network, according to sources familiar with the private discussions.

Driving the news: Among the social networking apps the former president and his digital adviser Dan Scavino have homed in on is a relatively unknown platform called FreeSpace, these sources told Axios.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) nominated Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D) as the state's attorney general on Wednesday, making him the first Filipino American to hold the position in California's history.

Why it matters: Lawmakers are coming under pressure to mirror their constituent bases by appointing more people of color.

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services.

Why it matters: Levine is the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The vote was 52-48.

All of President Biden's Cabinet nominees have now been confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

The big picture: Biden now has known, trusted people around him, many from the Obama administration, to help implement his policies and turn away from the tumultuous Trump years.

Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), the lead Republican on the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, will stop accepting donations from Google, Facebook and Amazon, he said Wednesday.

Why it matters: Buck (R-Co.) is declining Big Tech donations as regulatory scrutiny on tech companies heats up in Washington.

Llama owners are uniting to overturn a ban by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on the animals in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Why it matters: Llamas are increasingly popular as hiking companions — they'll carry gear uncomplainingly, with a calm and contemplative gaze — and owners say the move could have broad-reaching implications on the animals' use in the lower 48.

Virginia officially became the first Southern state and 23rd state nationwide to end capital punishment, after Gov. Ralph Northam (D) signed legislation to abolish the death penalty on Wednesday.

Why it matters: Virginia has executed nearly 1,400 people since its days as a colony, more than any other state, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced Wednesday that he's running for Roy Blunt's open Senate seat.

Why it matters: The move sets up a Republican primary fight with former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R), who announced his Senate bid on Monday.

President Biden is putting Vice President Harris in charge of addressing the migrant surge at the U.S.-Mexico border, senior administration officials announced on Wednesday.

Why it matters: Just as President Obama tasked Biden with fixing the U.S. economy after he assumed office in 2009, Biden is putting his own vice president in charge of a problem threatening to overshadow the new administration's successful launch.

Nearly 2,900 unaccompanied minors tested positive for COVID-19 on arrival at U.S. government shelters over the past year — including around 300 currently in the system — a Department of Health and Human Services official tells Axios.

The big picture: The numbers highlight the staggering challenges in trying to manage a child migration crisis during a pandemic, while weighing human rights and child welfare concerns against immigration laws.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) claimed during a hearing Wednesday that Democrats' signature voting rights bill, the "For the People Act," is unnecessary because "states are not engaging in trying to suppress voters whatsoever."

Reality check: Republican lawmakers across the country are trying to pass measures to make it more difficult to vote by limiting mail-in ballots, implementing new voter ID requirements and slashing registration options.

A conservative group is filing a Hatch Act complaint against Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge for political comments she made at the White House last week.

Why it matters: The group, Americans for Public Trust, is signaling that it will use the Hatch Act, which forbids overt political activities by senior federal employees, to cause potential ethics problems for President Biden's Cabinet.

A leader of the far-right Oath Keepers said he "organized an alliance" between his militia group and members of the Proud Boys in the weeks leading up to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, according to new evidence submitted by federal prosecutors.

The big picture: 10 Oath Keepers and four Proud Boys have been charged in separate, but similar cases with conspiracy to obstruct the certification of President Biden's Electoral College victory. They represent arguably the most serious set of charges brought against the over 300 people arrested in connection with the Capitol siege.

Associated Press journalist Thein Zaw has been released from custody in Myanmar after he was arrested three weeks ago while covering a protest against the coup, the outlet reports.

Why it matters: Zaw's case highlighted the diminishing press freedoms around the world — especially in countries that are on the precipice of democracy. Zaw was one of six members of the media who were charged with violating a Myanmar law that punishes journalists who incite fear, an arbitrary action, within the public.

Moncef Slaoui, the former chief science adviser to Operation Warp Speed under the Trump administration, was fired as chairman of the board of directors of Galvani Bioelectronics after allegations of sexual harassment stemming from his time at GlaxoSmithKline.

Why it matters: Operation Warp Speed was established to accelerate and fund the development, manufacturing and distribution of multiple coronavirus vaccines, including Johnson & Johnson and Moderna, which have both been authorized by the FDA.

Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that she's "not willing to give up" on pushing the Senate to pass gun control bills before President Biden turns to executive action, and she slammed Republicans for promoting the "false choice" that commonsense gun laws mean getting rid of the 2nd Amendment.

Why it matters: Republican lawmakers have frequently attacked Democrats for pushing their agenda on gun control in the wake of mass shootings, insisting that the measures would be ineffective and only harm responsible gun owners.

A number of senior Biden administration officials and members of Congress are taking a trip on Wednesday to a refugee resettlement facility along the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The high-level trip comes as pressure mounts on President Biden to visit himself amid a surge of unaccompanied children and migrant families crossing into the United States.

C-SPAN tells me "Road to the White House 2024" coverage begins Friday with Mike Pompeo in Iowa, speaking to the Machine Shed in Urbandale to the Westside Conservative Club, to be shown later that day.

Flashback ... Here's how past cycles started, courtesy of C-SPAN communications director Howard Mortman:

President Biden recently held an undisclosed East Room session with historians that included discussion of how big is too big — and how fast is too fast — to jam through once-in-a-lifetime historic changes to America.

Why it matters ... The historians’ views were very much in sync with his own: It is time to go even bigger and faster than anyone expected. If that means chucking the filibuster and bipartisanship, so be it.

As lawmakers prepare for a hearing Thursday with the CEOs of Twitter, Facebook and Google, the leader of the House Energy & Commerce Committee tells Axios that the question isn't whether to regulate tech companies, but how.

Why it matters: Democrats, empowered in Congress and enraged by misinformation over vaccines and the election, agree it's time to legislate on tech policy, including updating the key law that shields them from liability from user-generated content. The path to passing a bill is a little more clear, and there have been signs that the largest tech platforms are ready to embrace some changes.

Of the college students receiving stimulus checks, 62% plan to pocket or invest their new cash, according to a new Generation Lab/Axios poll.

Why it matters: It's money that won't be fed back into the economy, and one indicator that the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill will benefit many individuals in a way that won't necessarily help the economy roar back.

Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) said Tuesday they'll no longer oppose President Biden's "non-diversity" nominees after the White House pledged to do more to represent Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in government.

Why it matters: The senators went public with their anger at a lack of AAPI representation after Duckworth said she felt insulted following an earlier meeting with White House officials on the issue.

A judge in Colorado overturned Boulder's assault weapons ban 10 days before a gunman opened fire in a grocery store in the city and killed 10 people.

Why it matters: Monday's mass shooting suspect, Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, bought an AR-556 semiautomatic pistol on March 16 — four days after Boulder County District Court Judge Andrew Hartman ruled a 2003 state law invalidated the city's ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines (LCMs).

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) told New York Times podcast "The Ezra Klein Show" Tuesday he doesn't feel "particularly comfortable" with Twitter permanently banning former President Trump from the platform.

Driving the news: In the interview, Sanders was asked about criticisms from some conservatives that liberals had become "too censorious." Sanders responded by saying Trump "is a racist, a sexist, a homophobe, a xenophobe, a pathological liar, an authoritarian, somebody who doesn't believe in the rule of law."

The 10 victims who died in a mass shooting by a 21-year-old gunman in Boulder, Colorado, on Monday have been identified by local police.

The latest: Investigators say it is still unknown why the suspect opened fire inside the King Soopers grocery store, AP reports.

The Department of Justice has asked its Office of Professional Responsibility to review federal prosecutor Michael Sherwin's comments that sedition charges are likely in the criminal investigation into the Capitol riots, per the Washington Post.

Why it matters: His comments to CBS' "60 Minutes" were the subject of an emergency meeting called by District Judge Amit Mehta on Tuesday, who said "these kinds of statements in the media have the potential of affecting the jury pool … I intend to enforce that rule vigorously," Politico notes.

President Biden announced Tuesday that flags on all federal buildings would be lowered to half-staff until sundown Saturday to honor the victims of Monday's mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado.

The big picture: The flag over the White House had just returned to its normal position Monday night, after being lowered last week to honor the victims of the mass shooting in Atlanta.

A Senate operating in the "nuclear winter" Minority Leader Mitch McConnell promises if the filibuster is eliminated is one in which lawmakers face incessant roll calls and other inconveniences turning their comfortable lives into a living hell.

Why it matters: In employing apocalyptic language to warn about a "scorched-earth" response, the Kentucky Republican is trying to scare Democrats away from the tool they're considering to break through the GOP's own political obstinance.

Sen. Lindsey Graham has been using Donald Trump to sell skeptical fellow Senate Republicans on bringing back earmarks.

Why it matters: Both parties swore off member-directed spending a decade ago, saying it too often led to corruption. Democrats are bringing it back this year, House Republicans agree — yet Senate Republicans remain the final holdouts.

A handful of former aides to Biden Cabinet members have picked up new lobbying businesses in recent weeks as their former bosses approached or secured Senate confirmation, records show.

Why it matters: New presidential administrations mean a new crop of Washington professionals who have the personal relationships to navigate and influence high-level policymaking. That can be lucrative for the firms employing them, and corporate clients looking for an edge in D.C.

Former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos reported earning at least $225 million in outside income during her tenure in the Trump administration, according a report by the watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

For the record: CREW said the full amount in outside earnings from dividends, interest and rents during her time in the post could be "potentially well over $414 million," based on its analysis of three of DeVos' financial disclosures conducted by CREW.