Democrat says White House ‘made a mistake’ by pressuring him to support Biden COVID relief plan on ‘Special Report’
President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package took a key step forward Friday night after Democratic leaders reached an agreement with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-WVa., on unemployment insurance benefits.
A Democratic push to move forward with Biden’s “American Rescue Plan” halted for hours on Friday after Manchin balked the terms of unemployment insurance outlined in the House’s version of the bill.
Manchin’s support is critical for Senate Democrats, who hold a razor-thin majority in the upper chamber and have garnered little support from GOP lawmakers on the package. Even with passage possible through a simple majority vote under special budget reconciliation rules, the Democrats will likely need to stay united in order to get the package through the Senate.
“The President has made it clear we will have enough vaccines for every American by the end of May and I am confident the economic recovery will follow,” Manchin said in a statement. “We have reached a compromise that enables the economy to rebound quickly while also protecting those receiving unemployment benefits from being hit with unexpected tax bill next year.”
Under the agreement with Manchin, Senate Democrats will submit a framework for $300 in weekly unemployment benefits through Sept. 6. In the House version, the weekly unemployment benefit was $400 through Aug. 29.
The agreement also includes a provision denoting that the first $10,200 of unemployment insurance is untaxable for first-time recipients in households earning less than $150,000. The clause was not included in the House bill.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said President Biden backs the compromise.
“The President supports the compromise agreement, and is grateful to all the Senators who worked so hard to reach this outcome,” she said in a statement. “It extends supplemental unemployment benefit into September, and helps the vast majority of unemployment insurance recipients avoid unanticipated tax bills. Most importantly, this agreement allows us to move forward on the urgently needed American Rescue Plan, with $1400 relief checks, funding we need to finish the vaccine rollout, open our schools, help those suffering from the pandemic, and more.”
The Senate will proceed with its “vote-a-rama” on the bill, during which senators can propose amendments to the package as it currently stands. Earlier Friday, lawmakers shot down Sen. Bernie Sanders’ amendment that sought to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour as part of the package.
The Senate is expected to finalize the relief bill this weekend, though the exact timing of a final vote remains unclear.
Fox News’ Chad Pergram contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON — Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, sided with Republicans and seven other senators from her party to vote down a minimum wage increase amendment to President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill. It was the way she did it that drew condemnation on social media and some comparisons to the late John McCain.
Hand gestures have been more frequently used during the COVID-19 pandemic while lawmakers wear masks during their votes. Sen. Mark Kelly, Arizona’s other Democratic senator, used a thumbs up to register his support for the amendment on Friday.
Sinema’s actions were reminiscent to many of a similar move by the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., whose thumbs-down on a move by Republicans to overturn the Affordable Care Act in 2017 became an iconic moment.
Sinema’s name trended on Twitter alongside McCain’s on Friday. Some drew comparisons between the lawmaker because they voted against their own parties. Others said Sinema’s vote would hurt workers strapped in a challenging economy, as opposed to McCain’s vote to preserve health care for many.
Sinema said in a statement explaining her vote that she believes the minimum wage hike should be worked on as an issue separate from the COVID-19 relief bill.
“No person who works full time should live in poverty,” Sinema said. “Senators in both parties have shown support for raising the federal minimum wage and the Senate should hold an open debate and amendment process on raising the minimum wage, separate from the COVID-focused reconciliation bill.”
The amendment was introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., backed by other progressive senators. He pushed the amendment forward after the Senate’s parliamentarian ruled the measurecould not be included. The parliamentarian said the provision raising the wage from $7.25 to $15 by 2025 would have to be removed and considered as a standalone bill or as part of other legislation.
The other Democrats to vote against the amendment were Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del.; Tom Carper, D-Del.; Jon Tester, D-Mon.; Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.; and Joe Manchin, W.V. Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, also voted against the minimum-wage amendment.
Critics said Sinema’s thumbs down displayed insensitivity. Some were confused by her vote given her previously stated support for an increase in wages, including some progressive lawmakers.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., said Sinema’s perceived change from a 2014 tweet supporting increased wages to “gleefully voting no is really disturbing.”
Imagine having the nerve, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wrote on Twitter, “to go home and ask minimum wage workers to support you after going back on your own documented stance to help crush their biggest chance at a wage hike during their longest drought of wage increases since the law’s very inception.”
“Did Sinema really have vote against a $15 minimum wage for 24 million people like this?” asked Sawyer Hackett, a senior adviser to former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro.
The Senate stalled for about nine hours on Friday while senators negotiated proposed changes to the stimulus package’s unemployment benefits, amid voting on a flurry of amendments dubbed a “vote-a-rama.” The chamber is poised to press forward after Manchin said he would support a compromise deal.
Contributing: Ledyard King, Nicholas Wu and Savannah Behrmann, USA TODAY; Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, The Arizona Republic
OMAHA, Neb. — The mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, said Friday her husband has died, several hours after police found a dead man at the couple’s home.
A statement from Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert’s family announced the death of Joe Stothert.
The announcement came about three hours after Omaha police were called to the mayor’s home to investigate reports of a shooting. Officers found the body of a man.
Police didn’t provide details about the shooting but stated that foul play wasn’t suspected.
“It is with great sadness today that we share the tragic loss of Joe Stothert with family, friends, and our loving community,” the family said in a statement. “Joe’s dedication and affection for everyone he cared for serve as a bright light of human kindness for all of us to follow.”
The family asked for prayers and privacy.
Joe Stothert was a critical care physician at Nebraska Medicine in Omaha. Jean Stothert is serving her second term as mayor.
New York lawmakers approved a bill Friday to strip Gov. Andrew Cuomo of the extraordinary authority to issue COVID-19 directives — a power it granted last year. But the measure allows existing orders to be extended. Cuomo is seen here during a news conference last month.
Seth Wenig/POOL /AFP via Getty Images
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Seth Wenig/POOL /AFP via Getty Images
New York lawmakers approved a bill Friday to strip Gov. Andrew Cuomo of the extraordinary authority to issue COVID-19 directives — a power it granted last year. But the measure allows existing orders to be extended. Cuomo is seen here during a news conference last month.
Seth Wenig/POOL /AFP via Getty Images
New York lawmakers voted to strip Gov. Andrew Cuomo of his extraordinary emergency powers on Friday, saying that current COVID-19 circumstances no longer justify the expansive powers Cuomo was granted last year. But the legislation also allows the governor to extend orders he has already issued.
New York’s Senate and Assembly, both of which are led by Cuomo’s fellow Democrats, approved the move on Friday. The Senate vote was 43-20; the Assembly vote was 107-43.
The votes took place as a pair of political crises are undermining the governor’s standing. At least three women have accused Cuomo of sexual harassment, and his administration was found to have undercounted the coronavirus’ horrible toll on nursing home residents. Those crises have fueled calls for Cuomo to resign, and for him to be impeached.
Earlier this week, Cuomo apologized for acting “in a way that made people feel uncomfortable,” but he denied inappropriate conduct and refused to resign. The state’s attorney general is conducting an investigation into the harassment allegations.
Several lawmakers who voted against the legislation Friday said they did so only because they believe it doesn’t do enough to wrest power back from the executive branch.
“What more could this governor possibly do?” Republican Sen. Fred Akshar said, adding that Cuomo has issued some 96 orders during the pandemic. Approving the bill, Akshar said, “is worse than doing nothing.”
The bill, which is identical in both chambers, allows the governor’s COVID-19 directives to stay in effect for 30 days. But while it would stop Cuomo from issuing any new directives without lawmakers’ approval, it also would allow the governor’s existing directives to be extended.
The measure’s supporters said it would be unsafe to suddenly lift all of the orders, noting that despite the arrival of vaccines, the pandemic isn’t over. Cuomo has used the powers to enact a number of policies, from establishing capacity maximums for movie theaters to creating color-coded restriction zones and setting up quarantine restrictions for travelers.
But during Friday’s debate, several lawmakers called for Cuomo’s orders to be lifted immediately, and for him to face recriminations for his handling of the pandemic.
“I support impeachment,” Democratic Assemblyman Charles Barron said, emphasizing that he doesn’t think the legislation goes far enough to strip Cuomo of the special powers. Accusing Cuomo of obstruction and abuse of power, Barron said he would vote for both the Republican and the Democratic versions of the bill to rescind the emergency powers.
During debate on the bill, many lawmakers referenced the political turmoil Cuomo is now in. But as they discussed repealing the governor’s emergency powers, many legislators also returned to a common theme: that their constituents are ready for their lives and businesses to start returning to normal.
“We demand to go back to work. We demand to send our children back to school,” Republican Assemblyman Robert Smullen said, calling for his colleagues to repeal the law that granted Cuomo the powers last year.
The legislature gave Cuomo the extraordinary leeway to issue new orders last year, as New York faced a quick succession of challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, which imposed unprecedented disruptions on everyday life in communities around the world.
But now, the bill states, “The legislature finds that there has been progress in the fight against the virus with the approval and distribution of multiple vaccines in recent months.”
With the worst of the COVID-19 emergency now seemingly over, lawmakers said, it was time to restore the balance of powers.
“This is the last good chance we have to reassert ourselves as a legislature,” Assemblywoman Marjorie Byrnes, a Republican, said.
The bill leaves intact any emergency powers the governor’s office had before the pandemic. But it also says the legislature can terminate a state disaster emergency if both chambers approve a concurrent resolution.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott reacts to President Biden blasting states who lifted coronavirus restrictions, including mask wearing mandates.
“The View” co-host Meghan McCain knocked President Biden Friday for dismissing Texas and Missipppi’s push to lift all COVID mandates as “Neanderthal thinking.”
While Joy Behar mocked the GOP uproar over Biden’s comment by suggesting they now “believe in evolution” and Sunny Hostin accused Republicans of “pearl-clutching over language,” McCain took the president’s swipe more seriously and discussed how Republicans across the country may interpret the remark.
“I think, unfortunately, the problem is if you are President Biden, you have said that this is going to be the soul of the nation that’s going to come back. We’re going to have a complete and utter paradigm shift. Angels are going to come down from the sky and there will be nothing but unity in the country,” McCain began. “It reminds me of Hillary Clinton’s ‘deplorable’ comment, which a lot of people on the left wrote off, and it really did end up hurting her.
“And I think that, unfortunately, it’s a self-inflicted wound. You guys can laugh and say, ‘Oh, it’s a joke, whatever,’ but Republicans across the country already feel like people on the left think they’re dumb rednecks, they’re just stupid deplorables in baskets and nobody cares [about them] with their trucks and flags. That’s what Republicans think the media thinks of them, and that’s why I was surprised to hear him throw around that language,” McCain explained.
McCain then called out Biden for not holding a formal press conference since he took office as well as White House press secretary Jen Psaki for “blowing off” the GOP perspective.
“All it does is gonna help Republicans be more tribal and think that ‘We’re just deplorable Neanderthals, the left has no place for us.’ So there’s no unity whatsoever, and I think it’s really unfortunate,” she said. “I don’t like it at all.”
In court papers, federal prosecutors have said groups of Proud Boys also coordinated travel to Washington and shared lodging near the city, with the intent of disrupting Congress and advancing Mr. Trump’s efforts to unlawfully maintain his grip on the presidency.
The communication between the person associated with the White House and the member of the Proud Boys was discovered in part through data that the F.B.I. obtained from technology and telecommunications companies immediately after the assault.
Court documents show F.B.I. warrants for a list of all the phones associated with the cell towers serving the Capitol, and that it received information from the major cellphone carriers on the numbers called by everyone on the Capitol’s cell towers during the riot, three officials familiar with the investigation said.
The F.B.I. also obtained a “geofence” warrant for all the Android devices that Google recorded within the building during the assault, the officials said. A geofence warrant legally gives law enforcement a list of mobile devices that are able to be identified in a particular geographic area. Jill Sanborn, the head of counterterrorism at the F.B.I., testified before a Senate panel on Wednesday that all the data the F.B.I. had gathered in its investigation into the riot was obtained legally through subpoenas and search warrants.
Although investigators have found no contact between the rioters and members of Congress during the attack, those records have shown evidence in the days leading up to Jan. 6 of communications between far-right extremists and lawmakers who were planning to appear at the rally featuring Mr. Trump that occurred just before the assault, according to one of the officials.
The Justice Department is examining those communications, but it has not opened investigations into any members, the official said. A department spokesman declined to comment.
The Senate kicked off a “vote-a-rama” on Friday with a vote on a $15-an-hour minimum wage, but the proceedings stalled out because of a late clash over unemployment benefits in the Democratic relief package. It highlighted the delicate shape of the Democratic majority.
Senate Democrats struck a deal on a last-minute change to the relief bill, cutting the federal unemployment benefit to $300 a week instead of $400. It would last through September, and not August 29 as in the House version of the legislation. It would also waive tax payments on the first $10,200 in jobless aid. The White House endorsed the plan.
But Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia appeared reluctant to back the new plan, according to a person familiar with internal discussions. He objected to the duration and size of the benefit.
Instead, he considered voting for a dueling amendment from Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio. That proposal would extend a $300 weekly benefit through July 18. It would not include any tax relief for the unemployed, some of whom could get a surprise tax bill later this year.
Manchin’s resistance brought proceedings to a halt for at least eight hours on Friday. Negotiations were underway to draw his support so the vote-a-rama could restart. Republicans were quick to assail Democrats for the misstep. They strongly oppose the coronavirus relief package, blasting it as too large and partisan.
“There is some bipartisanship, we believe, to change the bill,” Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said at a press conference. “But apparently that’s an unpardonable sin on the other side.”
The delay underscored the fragile state of the Democratic majority in an evenly divided Senate. Its one-vote edge over Republicans in the chamber — with Vice President Kamala Harris as the tiebreaker — means any Democratic legislative effort could be derailed without every Senate Democrat on board.
“In a 50-50 Senate, every vote is precious. Every vote matters,” Zach Moller, the deputy director of economic policy at Third Way, a centrist think tank, told Insider. “If Democrats want to control the bill, they need to have unanimity in their party.”
“I think this is the indication of how we’re gonna see the Senate operate for the next two years,” Jim Manley, a former Democratic senior aide, told Insider. “The irony of all this is this bill was going to be the easy one and everything to come is going to be a hell of a lot tougher.”
Democrats are employing a tactic known as reconciliation to approve the relief bill with a simple majority of 51 votes, circumventing Republicans in the process. But the legislation must comply with strict budgetary rules or parts of it could be tossed out.
Any major changes to the bill could prompt a revolt among progressives in the House who have expressed criticism after a provision for a $15-an-hour minimum wage was tossed out in the Senate. Democrats have rushed to approve the bill before March 14, the date that enhanced unemployment insurance starts expiring.
“If it gets to a certain level, it may require renegotiating with the House and the White House,” Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland told reporters. He said it was “not a desirable” outcome and that “the clock is ticking.”
A lengthy process likely to conclude over the weekend
The “vote-a-rama” is a lengthy process in which some Democrats and Republicans offer amendments to modify the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill. Democrats finalized changes to the legislation in recent days, including tightening eligibility for a third stimulus check and adjusting aid formulas for state and local aid.
The possible changes to unemployment aid within the legislation prompted concern from experts that summer would be too soon for the federal government to pull the plug on benefit programs.
“People are still going to be long-term unemployed over summer,” Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at the left-leaning Century Foundation, told Insider. “People wouldn’t have enough money to get by when then aren’t ample job opportunities out there.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the procedure may stretch on for many hours. But Democrats were intent to approve the bill sometime over the weekend.
“The Senate is going to take a lot of votes. But we are going to power through and finish this bill, however long it takes,” he said on Friday. “The American people are counting on us, and our nation depends on it.”
Senate Democrats opened the proceedings with an 11 a.m. vote to restore a $15-an-hour minimum wage in the bill. It was technically still ongoing as of Friday afternoon, since Democrats are working to settle their dispute on unemployment aid before moving forward.
The plan is set to be defeated in a 58-42 vote. All 50 Republican senators voted against it, as did seven Democrats and an independent who caucuses with Democrats.
The non-Republican senators in opposition were Jon Tester of Montana, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, Chris Coons of Delaware, Tom Carper of Delaware, Angus King of Maine, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, and Maggie Hassan of Maine.
The Senate parliamentarian struck that part of the relief legislation, ruling it as out of bounds with Senate guidelines last month. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said Friday he believed the official was “dead wrong” in the move.
“It is an absurd process that we allow an unelected staffer … to make a decision as to whether 30 million Americans get a pay raise or not,” Sanders said during a floor speech.
Republicans in the Senate are staunchly opposed to the $15-an-hour minimum wage. They say raising wages during a downturn would cost many jobs and worsen unemployment.
WASHINGTON — Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, sided with Republicans and seven other senators from her party to vote down a minimum wage increase amendment to President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill. It was the way she did it that drew condemnation on social media and some comparisons to the late John McCain.
Hand gestures have been more frequently used during the COVID-19 pandemic while lawmakers wear masks during their votes. Sen. Mark Kelly, Arizona’s other Democratic senator, used a thumbs up to register his support for the amendment on Friday.
Sinema’s actions were reminiscent to many of a similar move by the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., whose thumbs-down on a move by Republicans to overturn the Affordable Care Act in 2017 became an iconic moment.
Sinema’s name trended on Twitter alongside McCain’s on Friday. Some drew comparisons between the lawmaker because they voted against their own parties. Others said Sinema’s vote would hurt workers strapped in a challenging economy, as opposed to McCain’s vote to preserve health care for many.
Sinema said in a statement explaining her vote that she believes the minimum wage hike should be worked on as an issue separate from the COVID-19 relief bill.
“No person who works full time should live in poverty,” Sinema said. “Senators in both parties have shown support for raising the federal minimum wage and the Senate should hold an open debate and amendment process on raising the minimum wage, separate from the COVID-focused reconciliation bill.”
The amendment was introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., backed by other progressive senators. He pushed the amendment forward after the Senate’s parliamentarian ruled the measurecould not be included. The parliamentarian said the provision raising the wage from $7.25 to $15 by 2025 would have to be removed and considered as a standalone bill or as part of other legislation.
The other Democrats to vote against the amendment were Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del.; Tom Carper, D-Del.; Jon Tester, D-Mon.; Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.; and Joe Manchin, W.V. Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, also voted against the minimum-wage amendment.
Critics said Sinema’s thumbs down displayed insensitivity. Some were confused by her vote given her previously stated support for an increase in wages, including some progressive lawmakers.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., said Sinema’s perceived change from a 2014 tweet supporting increased wages to “gleefully voting no is really disturbing.”
Imagine having the nerve, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wrote on Twitter, “to go home and ask minimum wage workers to support you after going back on your own documented stance to help crush their biggest chance at a wage hike during their longest drought of wage increases since the law’s very inception.”
“Did Sinema really have vote against a $15 minimum wage for 24 million people like this?” asked Sawyer Hackett, a senior adviser to former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro.
The Senate stalled for about nine hours on Friday while senators negotiated proposed changes to the stimulus package’s unemployment benefits, amid voting on a flurry of amendments dubbed a “vote-a-rama.” The chamber is poised to press forward after Manchin said he would support a compromise deal.
Contributing: Ledyard King, Nicholas Wu and Savannah Behrmann, USA TODAY; Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, The Arizona Republic
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Sources from several fire and law enforcement agencies tell 6 News that the mayor’s husband, Dr. Joe Stothert, was found dead Friday afternoon outside their home.
Omaha Police said officers responded to Mayor Jean Stothert’s home at 1:53 p.m. and found a man deceased at the scene.
“The mayor is safe and no foul play is suspected,” OPD Officer Phil Anson said in an email.
The Stothert family released the following statement Friday afternoon:
“It is with great sadness today that we share the tragic loss of Joe Stothert with family, friends, and our loving community.
Joe’s dedication and affection for everyone he cared for serve as a bright light of human kindness for all of us to follow.
Our family asks for your prayers at this very difficult time. We will need them.
We also ask for privacy so our family may grieve and remember an extraordinary and caring husband, father and grandfather.”
Omaha Police were checking IDs outside Mayor Jean Stothert’s neighborhood on Friday afternoon, March 5, 2021, following the news that her husband had died.(Alex McLoon / WOWT)
Police officers were stationed outside St. Andrews Pointe, the residential development where the Stotherts’ home is located, for several hours on Friday checking ID before drivers entered the neighborhood south of 120th and Q streets.
Condolences
City, county, and Nebraska officials sent their condolences to the Stothert family:
The men and women of OPPD, and our Board of Directors, offer our deep condolences for Mayor Jean Stothert and her family. We send our support and care during this very difficult time.
On behalf of all the OPOA, our deepest sympathies and condolences to Mayor Stothert and her family. Dr. Joe Stothert was a widely respected and dedicated public servant who’s work had a profound impact on the LEO community. The Mayor and her family will be in our prayers.
It’s with a heavy heart that I extend my condolences to Mayor Jean Stothert after today’s devastating news of the death of her husband, Dr. Joseph Stothert, who was known & respected by many in the healthcare field. I will be praying for her and her family in this difficult time.
— Jasmine L. Harris for Mayor (@jasmineformayor) March 5, 2021
I am deeply saddened to hear of the loss of Dr. Joseph Stothert. Liz and I are keeping the Stothert family in our thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.
It is with deep sadness and heartache that I extend my condolences to Mayor Jean Stothert on the tragic loss of her husband, Dr. Joe Stothert. My thoughts are with the Stothert family as they gather with friends to support them through this painful time.
— Jen Bauer 4 City Council (@Jen4CityCouncil) March 5, 2021
Officials from Nebraska Medicine, UMNC, and Dr. Pour also gave out condolences:
School officials, Omaha’s Archbishop, and the Omaha Public Library also offered their sympathy:
Democrat Ron Kim accuses the governor’s top aides of intentionally covering up nursing home death numbers on ‘The Story’
Two of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s top female aides are leaving the administration as the governor faces fallout over the coronavirus pandemic and sexual misconduct allegations from two former staffers and a third woman.
The departing officials are press secretary Caitlin Girouard and interim policy adviser Erin Hammond – and although their exits come as the governor faces calls for his resignation, both had been planned in advance, officials said.
Girouard, notably, is the spokeswoman who sent out a statement last week denying the sexual harassment allegations former staffer Lindsey Boylan leveled against Cuomo in a Medium essay.
In a statement, she told Fox News Friday that her departure had been planned for more than a month. She said she accepted a private sector job offer on Jan. 26.
In this image taken from video from the Office of the N.Y. Governor, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference, Wednesday, March 3, 2021, in Albany, N.Y. Besieged by sexual harassment allegations, a somber Cuomo apologized Wednesday, saying he “learned an important lesson” about his own behavior around women, but he said he intended to remain in office. (Office of the NY Governor via AP)
“While I’m saddened to announce Friday is my last day in the Administration, I will always remain a supporter from afar, wishing my colleagues all the success in the world as they continue fighting COVID and building a better future for New Yorkers,” she said.
She called the two and a half years she spent working for Cuomo “the honor of a lifetime.”
The governor’s communications director had equal praise for the departing press secretary.
“Caitlin is a world-class, top-flight communications professional who is well respected in New York, Washington and beyond,” Peter Ajemian said in a statement. “She’s been a real rock for our press shop, especially during the past year fighting the pandemic, and we wish her nothing but the best in her next chapter.”
In a statement, senior Cuomo adviser Rich Azzopardi said Hammond’s exit had “been planned for several months” and would allow her to focus on her family. She could not immediately be reached for comment.
Boylan, currently a candidate for Manhattan borough president, did not respond to a request for comment. She has accused the governor of inviting her to “play strip poker” on a work-related flight in 2017, showing her a cigar box he said was a gift from Bill Clinton and kissing her on the lips without permission.
Charlotte Bennett, another former aide who has accused the governor of workplace harassment, called him a “textbook abuser” in an interview with CBS News Thursday evening and dismissed his attempt at an apology.
A third woman, Anna Ruch, accused Cuomo of making unwanted advances, touching her exposed lower back and asking if he could kiss her. That allegedly happened at a 2019 wedding reception. She had no professional ties to the governor.
Even with the departures planned before the three women went public with their allegations, the governor has for months been facing criticism over his pandemic response – in particular a March directive that sent coronavirus-positive patients into the state’s nursing homes.
The administration early Friday morning said that advisory “was not a driver of nursing home deaths.”
But the Wall Street Journal published a bombshell report Thursday evening alleging that top Cuomo administration advisers had pressured state health officials to underreport nursing home COVID-19 deaths for months.
Once a full accounting became public, the death toll skyrocketed from roughly 6,400 to more than 15,000.
Since President Joseph Biden took office in January and began rolling back Trump-era immigration policies, many lawmakers feared an influx of migrants and asylum-seekers would overwhelm the U.S.-Mexico border.
In a press conference Monday, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said that there was no crisis at the border.
“I think there is a challenge at the border that we are managing, and we have our resources dedicated to managing it,” Mayorkas said.
The Claim
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, some people fear that migrants are spreading the virus as they move from the southern border to cities across the country.
Representative Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) accused the Biden administration of hurting “law-abiding” Americans by allowing COVID-positive migrants to illegally cross the border.
Allowing COVID positive migrants to illegally cross the border is a huge slap in the face to Americans who have had their businesses closed and their lives upended.
Under this regime, the worst thing you can be is a law-abiding American citizen.
In a series of executive orders, Biden paused the construction of the southern border wall, offered permanent protection for young migrants in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, known as “Dreamers” and created a task force to reunite migrant families who were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border by Trump’s 2018 “zero-tolerance” border strategy.
According to Representative Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), the United States Border Patrol in the Rio Grande Valley Sector has apprehended 10,000 migrants in the past seven days. He said we are “weeks, maybe even days, away from a crisis at the southern border.”
“Our country is currently unprepared to handle a surge in migrants in the middle of the pandemic,” Cuellar said in a statement to Newsweek. “Migrants are illegally crossing, potentially exposing border communities to the coronavirus and putting us at risk.”
Whether migrants are tested for COVID-19 depends on their immigration category.
Individuals waiting on immigration proceedings in Mexico as part of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) are tested by United Nations officials for COVID-19 before entering the United States. Migrants are taken to a staging area, where they must test negative in order to cross the border at a port of entry.
MPP is a Trump-era program that forces migrants who arrive at the Southwest border to return to Mexico to wait during their U.S. immigration proceedings. There are about 25,000 individuals in the MPP program with pending cases before the Executive Office of Immigration Review, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS suspended new enrollment into the program on January 21, 2021.
According to DHS, “those who test positive will be supported by facilitating organizations to isolate and/or seek treatment in line with the policy of the relevant local health authority in Mexico. Following isolation and screening, such an individual will again be eligible for facilitated arrival at a designated port of entry.”
New arrivals at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities also are tested within 12 hours of arrival and are separated from the rest of the population in the facilities to prevent potential transmission.
“In order to humanely address the current situation along the Southwest Border, ICE continues to evaluate the manner in which it utilizes its existing family residential centers, which remain fully operational, to safely, effectively, and efficiently process and screen families,” an ICE spokesman said in a statement to Newsweek.
The catch-and-release migrants are tested at the La Plaza Bus Terminal upon being dropped off by U.S. Customs & Border Protection. The migrants who test positive at La Plaza Bus Terminal are advised of quarantine procedures and are asked to socially distance.
Border Patrol agents and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers do not test the migrants they apprehend.
According to a CPB spokesperson, “CBP personnel conduct initial inspections for symptoms or risk factors associated with COVID-19 and consult with onsite medical personnel.”
Suspected COVID-19 cases are then referred to local health systems for appropriate testing, diagnosis and treatment.
Cuellar said migrants dropped off at bus stations by Border Patrol agents are likely not tested before they leave to other cities. There is currently no system in place to keep track of whether migrants get tested for COVID-19 once they leave DHS custody.
“Once the Border Patrol releases them, then they have the notice to appear [at immigration case hearing] and they can go anywhere in the U.S.,” Cuellar said.
Greyhound Lines bus company said in a statement to Newsweek that it sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and requested assistance with a potential surge of migrants at the border.
The border town of Brownsville, Texas, sees a lot of migrants come through its La Plaza Bus Terminal.
Since January 25, there have been 108 migrants who tested positive for COVID-19, which is a 6.3 percent positivity rate, according to Brownsville spokesman Felipe Romero. The positivity rate for Cameron County is 13.8 percent.
Romero confirms that MPP individuals seeking asylum are tested for COVID-19 on the Mexican side of the border in Matamoros and must test negative to be allowed to cross.
He said Brownsville follows all guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Texas Department of State Health Service for COVID-19 and tests other migrants released by federal officials once they arrive in town.
“The catch-and-release migrants are tested at the La Plaza Bus Terminal upon being dropped off by U.S. Customs & Border Protection,” Romero told Newsweek. “The migrants who test positive at La Plaza Bus Terminal are advised of quarantine procedures and are asked to socially distance. There are several NGOs providing resources to those who test positive.”
NGOs, or nongovernmental organizations, and other nonprofit organizations provide testing and locations to quarantine for migrants out of their own pocket.
Cuellar said some towns test migrants for COVID-19, but he is “not seeing border towns broadly testing.”
He added that unaccompanied minors are turned over to Health and Human Services and likely tested, while families with children under age 13 released by CBP with a note to appear in court might be tested by an NGO. Adults and families with older children who are apprehended by CBP are returned across the border under Title 42 and likely not tested.
The Ruling
Half True.
Some migrants are tested before crossing the border. Those seeking entry through MPP must test negative in order to enter the country.
However, migrants picked up by CPB might not have been tested prior to crossing the border illegally. Since CBP officials will not test migrants, that task is left mostly to NGOs.
There currently is no system in place to track if migrants have been tested after they leave NGO shelters or CBP custody.
U.S.-Mexico border in Brownsville, Texas John Moore/Getty Images
New more contagious variants of the coronavirus are being investigated in the United States, raising questions about whether the Covid vaccines currently in use will provide protection against mutations.
There are multiple more contagious variants emerging around the globe, in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil. In the U.S., variants from New York City and California have been identified.
(There are several reasons the antibodies generated after receiving a vaccine might recognize a variant but not fight it as well. For instance, antibodies protect you by attaching to each individual spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, which prevents it from infecting your cell. If a variant produces many times more virus, the antibodies may not be able to attach to all those virus pieces as precisely or efficiently.)
But boosters and new versions of vaccines that target the variants are already being explored.
The three vaccines that have been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use from Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson work in different ways, and therefore have different approaches to handling variants. Here’s what we know:
CVS added more than 100 more New Jersey locations where residents can sign up for a COVID vaccine appointment on Friday, according to a spokeswoman.
“Select CVS Pharmacy locations in the 17 states in which CVS Pharmacy is already administering vaccines as part of the Federal Pharmacy Program received the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) vaccine this past week,” spokeswoman Tara Burke said. “Scheduling for the Janssen vaccine, which requires only one dose, began on cvs.com on today and shots will be administered beginning tomorrow.”
She did not say how many Johnson & Johnson doses New Jersey is receiving.
People who sign up will be given an appointment for either the Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine, depending on availability, she said. Each store will only have one type of vaccine, she said.
The company also has a customer service line at (800) 746-7287 for those without internet access.
No walk-in vaccines will be provided, it said.
When you go to the website, you will see a map that highlights the different states where vaccines are available. When you select New Jersey, you can page down in the pop-up box to see a complete list of the locations.
If you click “Schedule your appointment now,” it will take you to a waiting room that automatically refreshes. When it’s your turn, it will ask you to complete a screening form. You need to answer whether whether you’ve tested positive for COVID in the past 14 days, whether you have been close to someone else who has tested positive and whether you have COVID symptoms.
If you answer “no” to the three questions, the next screen will ask to select your state. Then it takes you to an eligibility checklist so you can attest that you are eligible. After you submit it, you will be given the opportunity to enter your zip code and schedule your dose if appointments are available.
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But Manchin is also intrigued by a proposal from Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), which would extend the $300 unemployment benefits until July 18 — and amounts to a cut from both the Carper proposal and the House bill. Manchin spoke by telephone with Portman on Friday afternoon as the intrigue grew and the Senate stalled.
“There’s bipartisan support for what Rob’s trying to do. And Manchin’s getting beat up by his side. They’re trying to get him in line, so to speak. And he’s trying to do the right thing,” said Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.). “He knows that the Portman amendment saves a lot of money and is better policy. But Democrats in his caucus obviously don’t want to give Republicans a bipartisan win on this.”
Thune said he believed the Portman proposal could pass despite skepticism among some conservatives about any additional federal unemployment payments. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he didn’t know where Manchin’s vote was. He said Democrats “don’t want” Portman’s amendment: “We want to get this wrapped up.”
The Carper proposal,hatched by both moderate and progressive Democrats, also links up the expiration of unemployment benefits with the current lapse of government funding at the end of September. But a vote on the measure was delayed as Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-Nev.) held an animated discussion with Manchin on the Senate floor.
Sinema indicated to Manchin that he could theoretically vote for both Carper’s Democratic amendment and Portman’s GOP amendment in an attempt to end the stalemate. The two parties are fighting over which order to hold the amendment votes in.
Democrats said they were concerned that approving the GOP changes on unemployment benefits could require another round of negotiations with the House and Biden. That would risk pushing the bill’s consideration closer to March 14, when the current round of boosted benefits is set to expire.
“If it gets to a certain level it may require renegotiating with the House and the White House and then it has to come back to the Senate. And that’s not a desirable outcome,” said Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.). “The clock’s ticking, so timing is pretty important.”
The Democratic compromise has the White House’s backing, with chief of staff Ron Klain and press secretary Jen Psaki both tweeting statements of support.
“The President believes it is critical to extend expanded unemployment benefits through the end of September to help Americans who are struggling,“ Psaki said, noting that the deal will ultimately “provide more relief to the unemployed“ than the legislation that passed the House last week.
Five hours into the Senate’s first amendment vote on the minimum wage, which began late Friday morning, there was no final roll call as Democrats continued to tussle over unemployment benefits. And there’s still plenty more drama ahead, with the GOP seeking to inflict maximum political pain. The protracted ordeal, known as “vote-a-rama,” is widely despised by members of both parties and guaranteed to leave sleepless members running on fumes just ahead of the bill’s passage in the upper chamber, likely Saturday. But there’s no way around it.
New York state lawmakers on Friday moved to strip Gov. Andrew Cuomo of temporary emergency powers he was granted last year to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The state Senate, in a 43-20 vote, approved the bill, which would revoke Cuomo’s power to issue new orders related to coronavirus, while allowing current orders to remain in effect, albeit with great legislative oversight.
The bill still was being debated Friday in the Assembly, which is expected to pass it.
Cuomo has suggested he is willing to sign the bill.
“I think everyone understands where we were back in March and where we are now. We certainly see the need for a quick response but also want to move toward a system of increased oversight and review. The public deserves to have checks and balances,” said Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Westchester County.
“This legislation creates a system with increased input while at the same time ensuring New Yorkers continue to be protected,” Stewart-Cousins said.
Cuomo has issued nearly 100 orders related to the coronavirus pandemic, according to debate in the Senate on Friday morning.
Sen. Andrew Lanza, R-Staten Island, on Friday complained that the bill would not prevent Cuomo from acting unilaterally and continuing directives he has issued under the emergency powers authorization.
Lanza, who said he would vote against the bill for that reason, blasted “one-man rule” and the effects from “when you have one man have absolute power over your lives” since last March.
“If I would have told anyone two years ago that we were going to stand by and let a governor to tell student athletes that they couldn’t play” or tell students they could not put on a play “people would say, you’re crazy, no way, no how is that happening,” Lanza said.
The move to strip Cuomo’s powers underscore what has been a growing rift between the governor and lawmakers from his own party.
Cuomo for years has been able to enforce his political will with less effective pushback from the Senate and Assembly than his predecessors faced.
“Many nursing home residents died from Covid-19 in hospitals after being transferred from their nursing homes, which is not reflected in [the Department of Health’s] published total nursing home death data,” James said at the time.
On Thursday night, The New York Times reported that top aides to Cuomo last June rewrote a state Department of Health report to take out the fact that more than 9,000 nursing home residents as of that month had died of the coronavirus. The move came as Cuomo was starting to write a book about what at the time was his widely praised handling of the pandemic.
The Times report contradicts the recent claim by Cuomo’s aides that the death data was suppressed to keep the information from being used as a political weapon by the Justice Department, which at the time was under the control of Attorney General William Barr, a loyal ally of then-President Donald Trump. The Justice Department’s query for the data, however, came months after the Cuomo aides removed it.
The suppression of the nursing home data has perplexed many because it did not change, in any way, the official death tally for Covid in New York. Instead, the move undercounted deaths related to nursing homes while reporting those deaths elsewhere.
“Not only did they withhold the information, they changed the information,” Lanza said Friday.
“A lot of bad things happen when you give power to one man,” he said.
Cuomo’s special counsel Beth Garvey on Friday afternoon issued a lengthy statement on The Times article, suggesting there was no intent to mislead the public or lawmakers.
“To be clear, multiple times during the time the July 6 DOH report was being developed, public statements were made during the daily briefings and in the press regarding the existence of the data, but noting that the deaths were being counted in the facility where individuals died,” Garvey said.
“There were repeated public statements acknowledging the out of facility deaths were not being listed as a subset of nursing home deaths stemming from concerns related to potential for double counting and consistency and accuracy.”
Garvey said that no members of the governor’s staff “changed any of the fatality numbers or ‘altered’ the fatality data.”
Instead, she said, staff asked Health Department questions about the source of previously unpublished data, “to which there were not clear or complete answers,” and probed whether the data “was relevant to the outcome of the report.”
Then, Garvey said, “a decision was made to use the data set that was reported by the place of death with firsthand knowledge of the circumstances.”
Garvey said that decision “gave a higher degree of comfort in” the data’s “accuracy.”
Cuomo earlier this week refused to resign over claims by two former aides and a woman who worked in the Obama White House that he sexually harassed them.
But in his first public comments on the women’s allegations, he also said, “I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable. It was unintentional.”
The nursing home death data is the subject of a federal criminal investigation, while James is overseeing a probe of the women’s allegations.
The government promised economic growth of “over 6 percent,” a relatively modest target by the standards of China’s pre-pandemic expansion but a big turnabout from last year and a signal of its commitment to keeping the world’s second-largest economy humming.
The forecast indicates that China expects a strong rebound after the pandemic brought the country’s economy to a standstill for several months last year. China ultimately recorded growth of 2.3 percent in 2020, its lowest rate in years, but its stringent measures against the coronavirus allowed it to reopen its economy while competitors like the United States and the European Union remained hobbled.
“Our people worked hard and fought adversity in close solidarity and with the unyielding spirit of the Chinese nation, thus proving themselves true heroes,” Li Keqiang, China’s premier, said in announcing the target. “This is the well of strength that enables us to rise to every challenge and overcome every difficulty.”
The emphasis on triumph in the face of difficulty reflects a recent effort by Xi Jinping, China’s top leader, to strike a balance as he seeks to steer the country through what the ruling Communist Party sees as a time of great risk and opportunity.
As countries continue to grapple with the pandemic, the party has doubled down on the message that China’s political model of strong, centralized leadership is superior to the chaos of liberal democracies.
Strengthening that message will be a major focus for Mr. Xi as he looks ahead to two important political events. In July, the party will celebrate the centenary of its founding. Then, in 2023, Mr. Xi is widely expected to take up a third presidential term, following his push in 2018 to scrap constitutional term limits.
Even if the legislative filibuster were eliminated — as progressives are calling for to help raise the wage with a simple Senate majority — Democrats are leagues away from having the votes to get the nation to a $15 hourly rate.
Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jon Tester of Montana, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire voted against proceeding, though the tally remains open. So did two close Biden allies, Chris Coons and Tom Carper of Delaware. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), who caucuses with the Senate Democrats, also opposed it.
Sinema indicated that she supports raising the wage, which last increased in 2009, because she understands “what it is like to face tough choices while working to meet your family’s most basic needs.” But she said a standalone debate on the issue made more sense than putting it in a coronavirus relief package.
“Senators in both parties have shown support for raising the federal minimum wage and the Senate should hold an open debate and amendment process on raising the minimum wage, separate from the Covid-focused reconciliation bill,” she said.
Progressives were not pleased by the defeat on the Senate floor. Sanders vowed to keep pressing the matter.
“If any senator believes this is the last time they will cast a vote on whether or not to give a raise to 32 million Americans, they are sorely mistaken,” said the Vermonter, who chairs the Budget Committee. “We’re going to keep bringing it up, and we’re going to get it done because it is what the American people demand and need.”
Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who is running for the Senate in 2022, said that “every single senator who voted against a $15 minimum wage today should be forced to live on $7.25 an hour so that they can demonstrate to all of us how it’s possible.”
The vote was not an exact extrapolation of where senators stand on raising the wage. Rather than a straight up-or-down vote on the issue, Sanders’ amendment sought to override the parliamentarian’s ruling that the wage increase couldn’t be included in the Covid aid package, which requires only 50 votes and a tiebreaker from Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed thanks to the protections of a process known as budget reconciliation.
So Sanders needed to win 60 votes on Friday to get around that procedural hurdle — which was never going to happen given unanimous GOP opposition to doubling the current $7.25 minimum wage.
Still, the vote on Friday revealed that Senate Democrats are nowhere near having the support they need to raise the wage to $15. The disappointing roll call for progressives suggested that bipartisan negotiations with Republicans are the only way forward in the near-term on the wage, and the White House is entertaining that approach. Several Republicans, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have expressed openness to a wage increase.
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