A number of states have proposed or finalized new congressional district maps in the past week. The recurrent theme: protecting incumbents rather than expanding majorities.
Why it matters: The flurry of activity is just the start of the high-stakes process that has the potential to affect congressional power for a decade. The biggest states are still to come — as well as deadlines, lawsuits and the potential for lots of court-drawn midterm maps.
Conservative and industry groups are trying to whip up opposition to President Biden's massive social spending plan by warning it will imperil Medicare benefits, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: "Medicscare" is a well-worn political tactic precisely because it can be effective. For Democrats, there's zero room for defections against the $3.5 trillion proposal if they want to pass the bill.
Progressives have shown they won't budge on what they want. But how they get there is now up for negotiation, the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus said Sunday.
Why it matters: Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said her group may not get the $3.5 trillion in social spending it held out for last week, but it's also not settling for the $1.5 trillion pushed by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.). Adjusting the durations of some new programs — rather than cutting them altogether — may bridge the gap.
Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States, Adela Raz, has lost her country and her faith in the U.S. government — and her life's work of liberating women and girls is in shambles. She shared her despair with "Axios on HBO" in her first television interview since the fall of Kabul.
The big picture: Raz said, bluntly, she doesn't think President Biden cares about the fate of Afghan women and girls. She also revealed new details to Axios indicating former President Ashraf Ghani's secret escape was more premeditated than publicly known.
Hundreds of mayors implored Congress earlier this year to take "immediate action" on a massive COVID-related relief package that included billions of dollars to invest into their communities. However, since receiving the initial funding in the spring, very little has been used, according to an analysis from the Associated Press.
The big picture: As of this summer, a majority of the states that benefited from the economic package had spent just 2.5% of their initial allotment while large cities had spent about 8.5%, according to financial reports obtained by AP.
More than a year after the murder of George Floyd sparked global racial justice demonstrations, larger-than-life statues of Floyd, Breonna Taylor and John Lewis were erected in Manhattan's Union Square this week, ABC 7 News reported.
What they're saying: "This is the first time there's been a sculpture like this in NYC, usually it's a mural on a wall, so change is here, change is here," George Floyd's brother, Terrence Floyd, said of the sculpture, per ABC 7 News.
Major power outages across Puerto Rico have surged in recent weeks, fueling anger and fear among residents affected by a situation that the government has called a "crass failure," AP reports.
The big picture: The energy company Luma took over the U.S. territory's power transmission and distribution system on June 1. Since then, customers have complained of an increase in outages.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told CBS's “Face the Nation" on Sunday that fully funding programs for shorter time periods could be a way of reaching a compromise on the reconciliation bill.
Why it matters: The timeline for passing President Biden's infrastructure agenda remains uncertain as lawmakers continue to debate the measure's final price tag.
Senior White House adviser Cedric Richmond told "Fox News Sunday" there is no prescribed timeline for passing key pieces of President Biden's legislative agenda, Politico reports.
Why it matters: A vote on the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill was set to take place Thursday but was ultimately delayed indefinitely as lawmakers continue hashing out a deal on Biden's larger reconciliation package.
Hospitals across most New England states are seeing full intensive care units and staff shortages as growing coronavirus cases continue to shake the region, AP reports.
Why it matters: The New England region has the highest vaccination rate in the country, per AP. However, the states are still reporting record case counts, hospitalizations and deaths, comparable to pre-vaccine peaks.
The left was the week’s big winner.But now progressives risk getting blamed if President Biden’s agenda ultimately tanks.
Driving the news: When Biden spoke to House Democrats on Friday afternoon, he took progressives' side. The roads-and-bridges bill and the big social-spending package must stay linked.
North Korea on Sunday accused the United Nations Security Council of applying a double standard over the country's missile program and warned of "consequences it will bring in the future in case it tries to encroach upon the sovereignty,” AP reports.
Driving the news: The statement followed an emergency closed-door meeting of the top UN body Friday, during which France expressed concern over North Korea's missile launches and proposed a ban on its ballistic missile firings.
Algeria has accused its former colonial ruler France of "genocide" and recalled its ambassador to Paris over comments by French President Emmanuel Macron it described as "inadmissible," AP reports.
Why it matters: The move, announced in a statement Saturday, comes after the newspaper Le Monde reported that Macron accused Algerian authorities of stoking hatred for France. Tensions had been growing over France's decision to reduce the number of visas issued to people in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.
"Saturday Night Live" returned with cast member James Austin Johnson debuting in the cold open as the show's new Joe Biden, as "SNL" skewered the president's attempts to see his agenda fulfilled amid divisions among Democrats.
The kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a London police officer bring to the fore a "culture of misogyny" in British police forces, activists and policing experts say, per CNN.
Context: A police watchdog is investigating five serving officers and one former officer from London's Metropolitan Police for their alleged involvement in "misogynistic, racist and homophobic" WhatsApp group messages with Everard's killer, the Independent notes.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched in cities across Brazil on Saturday, calling for President Jair Bolsonaro's impeachment over his government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, per Reuters.
Why it matters: Brazil's Senate is holding hearings that could lead to Bolsonaro's impeachment as the country's Supreme Court investigates his government’s handling of coronavirus vaccine contracts. Bolsonaro has threatened to reject the results of Brazil's October 2022 presidential election amid poor approval ratings.
