#Biden Administration COVID-19 Agenda

[ngdrb]

The accomplishments of Joe Biden during his presidency

Joe Biden, the 46th President of the United States, assumed office at a pivotal moment in history, facing a myriad of challenges ranging from a global pandemic to economic uncertainty and social unrest.

Throughout his presidency, President Biden has pursued an ambitious agenda aimed at addressing these pressing issues and advancing key policy priorities. In this essay, we will examine some of the notable accomplishments of Joe Biden during his time in office and the impact of his leadership on the nation.

One of the most significant accomplishments of President Biden during his presidency has been his administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon taking office, President Biden made the pandemic a top priority and swiftly implemented a national strategy to combat the spread of the virus and accelerate the vaccination campaign.

Under his leadership, the administration successfully exceeded its initial goal of administering 100 million vaccine doses within the first 100 days, ultimately surpassing 200 million doses. This aggressive vaccination effort has been instrumental in curbing the spread of the virus and has contributed to a significant reduction in COVID-19 cases and deaths across the country.

 In addition to his focus on public health, President Biden has made substantial strides in revitalizing the American economy in the wake of the pandemic. The administration's American Rescue Plan, a comprehensive COVID-19 relief package, provided much-needed financial assistance to individuals, families, and businesses impacted by the economic downturn. The plan included direct stimulus payments to Americans, extended unemployment benefits, support for small businesses, and funding for vaccine distribution and testing. 

President Biden's economic agenda has also centered on job creation and infrastructure investment, culminating in the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a historic legislation that allocates substantial funding for modernizing the nation's infrastructure, creating millions of jobs, and bolstering economic growth. Furthermore, President Biden has been a vocal advocate for advancing racial equity and social justice in the United States. His administration has taken concrete steps to address systemic inequalities and promote inclusivity, including the signing of executive orders to combat discrimination, promote fair housing, and strengthen tribal sovereignty. 

Additionally, President Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, establishing Juneteenth as a federal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States. These actions underscore the administration's commitment to confronting the legacy of racism and fostering a more equitable society for all Americans.

 Moreover, President Biden has demonstrated a strong commitment to combating climate change and advancing environmental sustainability.

 His administration rejoined the Paris Agreement on climate change, signaling a renewed dedication to global cooperation in addressing the climate crisis. In November 2021, President Biden convened a virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, bringing together world leaders to discuss ambitious measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate the transition to clean energy. 

Additionally, the administration has unveiled a comprehensive plan to invest in clean energy infrastructure, promote energy efficiency, and prioritize environmental justice, aiming to position the United States as a global leader in the fight against climate change. 

In the realm of foreign policy, President Biden has sought to reassert American leadership on the world stage and rebuild alliances with international partners. His administration has prioritized diplomacy and multilateral engagement, working to address global challenges such as nuclear proliferation, cybersecurity threats, and human rights abuses. 

President Biden has reaffirmed the United States' commitment to NATO and other key alliances, signaling a departure from the isolationist policies of the previous administration. His approach to foreign affairs has emphasized the importance of collaboration and collective action in tackling shared global concerns, fostering a more cohesive and cooperative international order. Furthermore, 

President Biden has been a steadfast proponent of expanding access to affordable healthcare and strengthening the Affordable Care Act. His administration has taken steps to bolster the ACA, including increasing enrollment outreach, expanding coverage options, and lowering healthcare costs for millions of Americans. 

President Biden has also championed efforts to address mental health challenges and substance abuse disorders, recognizing the critical importance of mental and behavioral health in overall well-being. 

In conclusion, President Joe Biden has achieved a range of significant accomplishments during his tenure in office, from his swift and effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic to his ambitious efforts to revitalize the economy, promote racial equity, combat climate change, and reinvigorate America's role in global affairs. 

His leadership has been marked by a steadfast commitment to addressing pressing domestic and international challenges and advancing a progressive policy agenda aimed at fostering a more equitable, resilient, and prosperous future for the nation. As his presidency continues to unfold, the enduring impact of his accomplishments is likely to shape the trajectory of the United States for years to come, leaving a lasting imprint on the fabric of American society and the global community.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Peter Montgomery at RWW:

Musician and Christian nationalist political activist Sean Feucht, who is affiliated with the dominionist New Apostolic Reformation, will bring his trademark mixture of worship, spiritual warfare, and hard-right politics to the National Mall on Saturday, Oct 26.  Feucht, an ardent supporter of former president Donald Trump, recently claimed that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign was benefiting from “some serious demonic sorcery witchcraft thing.” He has previously demonstrated a willingness to spread lies about the Biden administration. In a “prayer zoom” livestream Wednesday night, Feucht said Saturday’s gathering will be a chance to “do damage to the kingdom of darkness. “I feel like this is a strategic assignment,” he said. “I feel like God is sending us on assignment…This is a governmental assignment…I feel like God is sending us in as the Navy Seals of intercessors…There comes an hour in battle when you need the Navy Seal intercessors.”  One of Feucht’s colleagues called the event an opportunity for the “ekklesia”—a term dominionists use to signify the church as a governing body on Earth—to “declare the majesty and the dominion of your kingdom over the governments of men.” Feucht said the weekend would kick off with a few hundred people gathering inside the U.S. Capitol complex on Friday morning, followed by a “Jesus March” from the Lincoln Memorial to the White House at noon on Saturday and the main event at 4 p.m. “This will be the last major faith worship event on the National Mall just days before the election and we are so excited to see how God is going to use it to turn the tide in America,” Feucht told Trinity Broadcasting Network’s Erick Stakelbeck. Feucht’s event comes just two weeks after dominionist New Apostolic Reformation leaders gathered thousands of people on the National Mall for a political and spiritual warfare rally that culminated with an “apostolic decree” that Trump would win this year’s election. Feucht considers anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ activist Lou Engle, the organizer of the Oct. 12 rally, his spiritual mentor. 

Feucht is a missionary-musician associated with the controversial and influential megachurch Bethel in northern California. In 2020, his run for Congress ended with a defeat in the primary election in spite of endorsements from Charlie Kirk, Christian nationalist political operative David Lane, and NAR leaders Ché Ahn and Cindy Jacobs. But when COVID-19 struck, Feucht saw an opportunity to make a name for himself by leading public events in defiance of public health restrictions, dubbing them “Let Us Worship.” In 2020, Feucht was part of the pro-Trump boosterism engaged in by many Christian nationalist and dominionist religious-right leaders. When Trump was defeated, Feucht claimed that the incoming Biden administration was “carrying some of the most anti-Christ agenda and philosophy that maybe we have seen in the history of America” and he warned, “There is a mob spirit that wants us to bow down to the gods of secular liberalism … and if we don’t bow, we’re gonna be bullied, harassed, and threatened. We’re going to be censored. We’re going to banished from speaking in the public square.”

Far-right Christian Nationalist Sean Feucht will bring his Let Us Worship rally to DC’s National Mall this Saturday.

[mightyflamethrower]

Joe Biden polls at or below 40 percent approval. Historically, such unpopularity has made it almost impossible for a president to be reelected.

His age advances by the hour. His voice falters, his memory fades, and his gait is reduced to short steps, with his arms, winglike and in tandem, offering balance.

Biden is not so much an octogenarian as an unhealthy and prematurely aging 80-year-old. It is America’s irony that he is fit for almost no other job in the country other than President, which apparently allows for a 3-day-a-week ceremonial role while others in the shadows run the country.

So how does Biden become renominated and reelected, as polls show he is behind in almost every critical swing state on nearly every issue? Answer: not by campaigning, not by championing his record, and especially not by doubling down on his neo-socialist and now unpopular agendas.

Instead, his campaign is focused on four other strategies to beat Donald Trump.

First, left-wing local, state, and federal prosecutors are tying Trump up in court on crimes that have never been seen before and will never be again after the election. All the cases are politically motivated, with many coordinated with the White House.

Even if Trump is not convicted by blue-state prosecutors, in blue-state courtrooms, in front of blue-state juries, he will lose critical campaigning time.

Trump may end up paying out $1 billion in legal fees and fines. At 76, the monotonous days in court are designed to destroy him financially, physically, and mentally.

Biden and his operatives know that, in the long term, they may have fatally damaged the American legal system with such judicial sabotage. But short-term, they hope to destroy Trump before the ballots are cast.

Second, in his fourth year, Biden is suddenly selling government favors to special-interest voting blocs, or hoping to bring short-term relief to voters at the expense of long-term damage to the nation.

For elite college students and graduates, there are now billions of dollars in student-loan cancellations, despite a Supreme Court ruling declaring such targeted contractual amnesties illegal.

For consumers, before the election, Biden will likely drain the last drops from the critical Strategic Petroleum Reserve to lower gas prices—now sky-high due to his previous disastrous green policies.

If that is not enough, Biden has ordered Ukraine not to hit Russian oil facilities to avoid panic in the global petroleum markets before early and mail-in balloting begin.

Biden will quietly jawbone the Federal Reserve Bank to lower interest rates and reinflate the economy, despite his own creation of hyperinflation that caused interest rates to rise in the first place.

He will pander to Arab-American voters in swing-state Michigan by cutting arms deliveries to Israel, even as it seeks to destroy the killers of October 7.

And if that mollification is not sufficient to win Michigan, he will suddenly slap higher tariffs on imported Chinese electrical vehicles to win back apostate union auto workers.

Three, the left learned after 2016 that the only way to beat Trump is to change the way Americans vote.

So under the cover of the COVID-19 lockdown, the left sued in critical states to reduce Election Day to a mere construct, while 70 percent of voters mailed in their ballots or voted by early, rolling balloting over many weeks.

The key was the inability to fully authenticate votes, given the old practice of showing up on Election Day and presenting an ID was declared “racist.”

Four, Biden, as he did in 2020, will outsource his campaign to the media, 95 percent of which is left-wing. Talking televised heads will claim Biden is “sharp as a knife” while focusing on Trump’s tweets, Stormy Daniels, Michael Cohen, and lurid but irrelevant testimonies that permeate Trump’s court appearances.

Trump will continue to hold weekend-long, massive 100,000-person rallies, even in blue states. Meanwhile, Biden’s fixers in the media, administrative state, and legal community will counter that even with no crowds and no campaigning, Biden can win through 24/7 nonstop “October Surprises”—all summer long.

So expect more false “Russian collusion,” “laptop disinformation,” and “January 6 insurrection” hoaxes and their new replacements designed to smother the airwaves with salacious scandals nonstop.

Biden’s fading tenure is similar to the last sad months of Woodrow Wilson’s second term, when in 1919-20, the country was assured that a bedridden president was somehow hard at work, even as his wife, doctors, and handlers kept everyone else away.

Biden’s keepers do not seem to care about the president’s own failing health or his dismal polls. They discount his rare, anemic, and disastrous public appearances. They laugh off the huge Trump rallies. And they certainly could care less about the bad optics of pandering to special interests at the expense of the country or the damage done to the American legal and balloting systems.

Instead, Bidenites believe they can reelect an unhealthy, unpopular, and unsuccessful president by any means necessary.

And they may be right.

[badbirdnews]

The border surge has unleashed dangerous diseases on U.S. citizens.

Diseases like tuberculosis, chickenpox, polio, measles, malaria, leprosy, and even the dreaded Covid-19 are making their way into the country, brought in by the unchecked influx of immigrants. The Biden administration, however, seems to turn a blind eye to this impending disaster. Their immigration agenda remains indifferent to the harmful effects it has on the health and safety of U.S. citizens.

As these individuals pour across the border, they bring with them a myriad of dangerous diseases. Tuberculosis, a deadly respiratory illness, once again are becoming a rampant threat to public health. Chickenpox, a childhood disease that was once under control, is resurfacing in alarming numbers. Polio, a disease thought to be eradicated in the United States, finding its way back due to the lack of proper screening and vaccination protocols.

And let us not forget about the highly contagious measles, which is spreading like wildfire among vulnerable populations. Malaria, a disease transmitted by mosquitoes, is becoming an endemic in certain areas of the America. Leprosy, a debilitating condition that causes nerve damage and disfigurement, is also making an unfortunate comeback.

And lastly, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated the catastrophic consequences of a failure to secure borders and enforce proper immigration protocols. Yet the Biden administration appears unconcerned about the potential for this virus to further ravage our nation. Their indifference is nothing short of alarming.

In the face of these threats, it is imperative that the Biden administration takes immediate action to address the potential health crisis at our borders. The safety and well-being of American citizens must be prioritized over political agendas. It is high time for our leaders to acknowledge the harmful effects their immigration policies are having on our nation and take decisive action to protect us all.

https://badbirdnews.com/the-border-surge-has-unleashed-dangerous-diseases-on-u-s-citizens/

[mariacallous]

For three years, I have been waiting for good news from Washington to share with Yvette Beatty.

Beatty, 63, is a home health aide in Philadelphia who has provided care for elderly adults and people with disabilities for nearly 40 years. Like most direct care workers, she earns very low wages despite the increasing demand for her essential work.

I first met Beatty in April 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic began. In our interviews, she shared with me the hardships she endured: the fear she faced as she risked her life going to work, and her daily struggle to afford basics like food and medicine for her family. “It is very hard.” she told me. “Thank God for noodles.” (You can listen to Beatty in her own words in this profile.)

Beatty questioned why leaders in Washington were not doing more to support underpaid yet essential care workers—the vast majority of whom, like her, are women and workers of color.

“With home health aides, we are struggling out here,” Beatty told me in April 2020. “This is a field everyone needs. They need our service. Why can’t we get wages that help us?”

Yvette Beatty: Listen to her own words in this profile.

Two weeks ago, President Joe Biden took important steps toward heeding Beatty’s call. In a Rose Garden ceremony, he signed a historic executive order with more than 50 directives for improving care jobs and expanding access to affordable child care and long-term care. In his remarks, President Biden thanked care workers like Beatty and said they “deserve jobs with good pay and good benefits.”

The new executive order is important for two key reasons. First, it demonstrates the Biden administration’s commitment to addressing three interrelated and critical challenges in the care sector: 1) the struggle that millions of American families face trying to access high-quality, affordable child care and long-term care for their loved ones; 2) the dire shortage of care workers who provide these services; and 3) the inadequate pay, benefits, and job quality that plague the sector. Because pay for care workers is so low, turnover is high, waitlists are long, and families are unable to find the care they need. In his Rose Garden remarks, President Biden framed the stakes in moral and economic terms, calling the issue “fundamental to who we are as a nation” and important to the entire economy.

To this end, the executive order directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Education to use their regulatory power to enhance the job quality and wages for long-term care workers, early educators, and child care workers. For instance, HHS could increase the pay and benefits for Head Start personnel, and the Education Department could encourage its grantees to increase wages for child care staff.

The second key reason for the executive order’s importance is that it harnesses the power of the executive branch at a time when progress in Congress has stalled. Early in his administration, President Biden proposed historic investments in the care sector as part of the Build Back Better agenda, including $400 billion for long-term care, $225 billion for child care, and $200 billion for early childhood education. However, the final version of this legislation signed into law (the Inflation Reduction Act) was ultimately a slimmed down version of Build Back Better that was stripped of any investments in care.

Now, with Republicans in control of the House of Representatives, any major legislation investing in care work seems unlikely for the foreseeable future. But by issuing an executive order on care work, President Biden was able to bypass Congress to make some progress through the executive branch and demonstrate continued support—albeit without bringing any new money to the issue.

Unfortunately, that lack of new money means that America’s care crisis will continue, despite the positive steps outlined in the executive order. Sizable federal and state investment is required to simultaneously improve care jobs and expand access to affordable, quality child care and long-term care. Unlike other low-wage sectors such as retail or fast food (where wages are responsive to labor market demand, as evidenced by fast-growing wages for in-demand leisure and hospitality workers), the hourly pay for workers providing direct long-term care is mainly financed through Medicaid (funded by both the federal and state governments) and restricted by (often inadequate) Medicaid reimbursement rates set by states. Even when demand for workers is high, as it is today, employers in the care sector have little room to raise pay or improve benefits to attract and retain staff, unless states increase Medicaid reimbursement rates and Congress and state governments invest additional money to finance pay bumps.

Recently, several states have made financial commitments to raise pay for care workers permanently. Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina, and New York have funded pay increases for direct care workers providing long-term services, including home health aides. And New Mexico, Washington, D.C., Maine, and Louisiana boosted pay for child care workers. While promising, these examples of state leadership remain the exception. A comprehensive and national solution to the care crisis requires federal action.

To Yvette Beatty, this issue isn’t partisan. “It isn’t a Democrat or a Republican thing,” she told me back in 2020. “It’s a ‘we’ thing.” She noted the appeal to voters in helping both families and workers. “Help the home health aides so we can continue to help our patients. If we can’t keep ourselves together, how are we going to keep our patients together?”

President Biden’s executive order and instances of state action show hopeful signs of progress on solving America’s care crisis. But major federal investment is needed, and I’m still waiting to call Beatty with good news that it’s coming. Three years ago, when I asked her how she would feel if leaders in Washington invested in care workers, she responded: “It would give us hope if they supported us. It would let us know we are appreciated. If the government could help us right now, it would feel beautiful.”

[theculturedmarxist]

Late 2021, I wrote a bombshell BMJ investigation that found data integrity problems in Pfizer’s COVID-19 clinical trial, based on internal documents provided by an American whistleblower. As the investigation took off on social media, Facebook began censoring it, leading to a back and forth between The BMJ and Facebook, as well as coverage in multiple outlets over “fact checkers” who check narratives—not facts.

New emails released during litigation against the Biden administration now explain Facebook’s move to target The BMJ. Months prior to The BMJ’s investigation, a Facebook employee emailed White House officials Andy Slavitt and Rob Flaherty, detailing how the social media giant would reduce virality of vaccine stories that might discourage the administration’s vaccine policies even if they contained “true content.”

“As you know, in addition to removing vaccine misinformation, we have been focused on reducing virality of content discouraging vaccines that does not contain actionable misinformation,” reads the Facebook email to White House officials Slavitt and Flaherty. “This is often-true content….”

Facebook’s new policy came after the White House had pressured them to control information that might harm Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine policy. Months after agreeing to aid the administration, Facebook’s fact checker faulted The BMJ for “missing context” although they found no factual errors.

Pushing Facebook to attack the press violates the free press clause of the First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

“The government can’t get around the First Amendment by coercing, pressuring, or cajoling private companies to censor Americans for expressing views of which the government disapproves,” emailed Jenin Younes, litigation counsel at New Civil Liberties Alliance, who is suing the federal government along with the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana. “But Rob Flaherty’s emails demonstrate that the Biden administration intentionally sought to suppress true content that it believed threatened the administration’s agenda.”

[hedgewitchgarden]

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Parents are entering the 2024 election cycle facing higher costs, longer waitlists and fewer options in a child care system on the brink. Child care providers are stretched thin and struggling to stay afloat, with subsidies set to dry up this fall. Both groups and advocates say the system is at a breaking point — and that both political parties should make family care a significant priority on the campaign trail. 

Efforts to invest in child care and paid leave in President Joe Biden’s proposed Build Back Better agenda stalled out in the Senate, but, advocates say, the push elevated child care to an indispensable part of the political discourse at both the federal and state levels. State lawmakers in both parties have picked up where Congress left off in investing in child care, and many are emphasizing the issue as part of their agendas.

“We’ve moved past the point now where child care is a side issue and a nice-to-have issue,” said Melissa Boteach, vice president for economic security and child care/early learning at the National Women’s Law Center. “The pandemic really underscored that child care is the backbone of the economy. And even though we didn’t ultimately make it into the final reconciliation bill, I do feel like the narrative has forever shifted on that and it’s now become a political imperative.”

Gender and the economy played a major role in the 2020 election when Biden ran on getting the economy back on track. In the 2022 midterms, backlash over abortion bans propelled many Democrats to victory. Both abortion and the burgeoning child care crisis will be top of mind for many voters — especially women voters crucial to both parties’ fortunes — in 2024. 

The most significant investments in child care in recent history came through the American Rescue Plan (ARP), which Biden signed into law in March 2021. The law gave the child care industry a $39 billion lifeline, adding to $10 billion in emergency pandemic subsidies passed in December 2020 and $3.5 billion to child care block grants passed in March 2020 under the Trump administration. 

Boteach lauded the ARP’s subsidies to states and localities as “the largest investment in child care we’ve seen” and “an enormous accomplishment from the child care perspective.” But those funds are set to expire in September, threatening to send parents and providers over a cliff. 

“Already, half of families lived in a child care desert before COVID,” she said. “And so we’re not even recovered to that place, and now we’re about to lose the funding that was stabilizing states.”

Elliot Haspel, director of climate & young children at think tank Capita and author of “Crawling Behind: America’s Child Care Crisis and How to Fix It,” said the industry was “treading water” before COVID-19 but still in the same pool as other sectors. 

But the effects of the pandemic combined with a lack of sustained public investment, he said, means “the crisis is deeper now than it ever has been in the recent past.”

“It leaves us on the precipice of working parents facing down a wasteland of care options before the 2024 elections,” he added. “This is a pain point that goes into the middle class and upper middle class.”

Child care, Haspel argued, is fundamentally “a human service masquerading as a private market.” And the industry’s economics aren’t working, either, for child care providers, who face low wages, little to no benefits and increasing difficulty keeping their doors open. 

“The workforce is paid poverty wages — half of them are turning to public assistance just to make ends meet. These are the people who are caring for our children and they make less than dog walkers,” Boteach said. “On the other side, you have parents who are struggling to afford care already, even with the providers making poverty wages. And so the solution is public dollars.”

On Monday, Community Change Action and over 725 child care professionals are holding the second annual national Day Without Child Care. Providers are closing their doors for the day to hold over 50 actions, including news conferences and rallies in 20 states and the District of Columbia drawing attention to the crisis. 

“When we don’t have a fully funded child care system, the true cost of care is financial, emotional and socioeconomic,” BriTanya Brown, a Texas-based child care provider and advocate with Community Change Action, said in a Thursday call with reporters. “And it gets placed on the shoulders of women — especially Black and brown women who make up a disproportionate amount of the child care workforce.” 

The child care and paid leave spending failed to pass due to unanimous opposition from Republican senators and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. But Manchin wasn’t the only Democrat who prioritized other provisions over care when drafting Build Back Better’s successor, the Inflation Reduction Act. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, a climate-focused progressive, told Insider in April 2022 that “social investments can be accomplished later,” saying, “There’s a different nature to getting climate right now” than child care. 

“It’s not the first time that women, particularly women of color, were the casualties of compromise,” said Dawn Huckelbridge, director at Paid Leave for All Action. “There’s just an expectation that care work will continue to get done, that it will be done undervalued or unvalued.” 

Biden is framing his reelection bid around economic and personal freedom and highlighting child care as a critical part of his message. 

Without Congress, Biden has few tools to bolster child care access. But he and his administration have taken actions, including a new executive order on caregiving and a Commerce Department rule requiring companies seeking over $150 million in funds from the CHIPS and Science Act to provide employee child care. 

“I think his commitment to funding a child care system that works for us is probably one of the strongest things that he has going,” said Jennifer Wells, a West Virginia-based organizer and Director of Economic Justice for Community Change.

Republicans have traditionally balked at endorsing ambitious social spending programs, and many decried Democrats’ child care proposals in Build Back Better as a “toddler takeover.” But some conservatives have endorsed higher social spending and support after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Celinda Lake, a top Democratic pollster and president of Lake Research Partners, said that backing child care, paid leave, and other family and social programs could help Republicans among women voters who strongly disapprove of abortion bans. 

Bipartisan polling from Lake Research Partners and the Tarrance Group conducted in December 2022 found that 78 percent of all voters, including 83 percent of suburban mothers, 75 percent of independents and 62 percent of Republicans, support expanding funding for child care while letting parents choose their providers. 

“These policies can be very mobilizing to this bipartisan agenda, and that puts Republicans under a lot of pressure,” Lake said. 

Child care could also be a winning issue to court Latinx voters, who will be a key swing constituency in 2024. In the Lake Research and Tarrance Group survey, 95 percent of Latinas supported increasing funding for child care, and 89 percent supported 12 weeks of paid family leave, the highest levels of support from any demographic group.

“Latino voters are a real battleground,” Lake said. “These policies are off the charts for Latinos, even though they’re very tax-sensitive, even though they’re very job-sensitive. This is a way back into the Latino community. Particularly, Latinas are unbelievably, intensely supportive of these policies.”

With Congress divided, the states have taken the lead in addressing the child care crisis. Predominantly Latina advocates won a fight to get child care funding enshrined in New Mexico’s state constitution, a first-of-its-kind achievement in the nation. Some Democratic states, including California and Minnesota, are also pursuing significant investments in child care. 

“The economics are broken — they do not work, in the same way that public education wouldn’t work if there wasn’t some public support,” Democratic state Rep. Dave Pinto of Minnesota said on the Community Change call. “There needs to be ongoing public support. We’re recognizing that in our state, and other states around the country are as well.”

Some Republicans at the state level are also making overtures to fund child care. Virginia, which has divided control of government and a Republican governor, passed millions in new child care funding in 2022. Republicans in North Carolina, who recently enacted an expansion of Medicaid, also allocated $170 million of funds for family programs and caregiving in a new, wide-ranging abortion restriction bill, including $75 million to child care and $20 million to fund paid parental leave for teachers and some other state employees over the next two fiscal years. 

But in a debate over the bill Wednesday, Democratic state Rep. Laura Budd argued that it shouldn’t have taken abortion restrictions for Republicans to invest in child care, calling the measures “tokens” attempting to soften the blow of “fundamentally devastating” legislation. 

Proponents of universal child care have long focused on the economic benefits and societal return on investment from child care and early childhood education. But as the child care crisis pushes women out of the workforce and limits where many families can live to access care, Haspel said that Biden and the Democrats should adjust their message to frame access to child care around freedom and liberty. 

 “I would like to see the president saying child care is patriotic in supporting families to be able to have the care they need to meet the family choices that they want,” he said. “Child care is much more about freedom, much more about choice and liberty. And it’s not an argument that Democrats have made very often.” 

Boteach said Biden’s elevation of child care in his budget proposal and 2024 campaign messaging speaks to “that mothers everywhere and parents everywhere did not forget the experience of the pandemic.” 

Now, it remains to be seen how — if at all —top Republicans will follow suit.

“There is a lot of trauma and anger that would serve all elected officials and all candidates to recognize,” Huckelbridge said. “It’s important to recognize that this is about common humanity.”

[beardedmrbean]

Dozens of House Democrats joined with their Republican colleagues on Wednesday in a vote to require the White House to assess the inflationary effect of President Biden’s executive orders before they are issued.

The bill is the latest effort by Republicans to pump the brakes on Biden administration policies that they say are causing the highest inflation levels seen in decades. But the bill was also supported by 59 Democrats, and easily passed in a 272-148 vote.

Under the bill, any executive order that has an annual budgetary effect of $1 billion or more would have to first be studied by the administration for its possible inflationary effects on the economy, which Republicans say would make Biden think twice about imposing costly new rules on the public.

REPUBLICANS BLAST BIDEN AFTER LATEST INFLATION REPORT, SAY PRESIDENT ‘LIVING IN AN ALTERNATE REALITY’

The bill passed over objections from Democrats who rejected GOP arguments that Washington policies – either in the form of edicts from the Biden administration or massive waves of new federal spending by Congress – have caused inflation. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., blamed the higher costs faced by millions of Americans on COVID and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

"The global spike in inflation has been caused by food and fuel disruptions resulting from the illegal and unprovoked Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as auto part supply shortages connected to the COVID-19 pandemic," she said in Tuesday debate. "There is no evidence that government spending or executive orders by President Biden have increased inflation."

Other Democrats insisted that massive spending bills like the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and the $700+ billion Inflation Reduction Act helped to tame inflation, even though some economists have said those and other bills pumped up demand by flooding the country with more money in a way that drove inflation higher.

GOING BLACK, NOT GREEN: CURBING US OIL, GAS PRODUCTION WOULD HURT THE ENVIRONMENT, REPORT FINDS

"Because of the American Rescue Plan and the actual Inflation Reduction Act that Democrats passed last year, our country's inflation rate is now lower than in the U.K., Canada, and 20 other European Union member states," said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Republicans have vowed to control congressional spending now that they run the House and argued that Biden also needs to be put in check because he is too casually issuing orders that lead to higher prices for Americans. The GOP has cited two examples of Biden executive orders that have had inflationary effects – one that revoked the Keystone XL pipeline permit, and another in late 2021 that requires the government to move toward buying only electric-only vehicles over the next decade.

"Pushing one big-spending policy after another, President Biden has continued to throw fuel on the inflationary fire," said House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., a sponsor of the bill. "That fire is rapidly consuming the wages of our constituents. They have had to pay higher and higher prices for everything from eggs to electricity, all while inflation pushes their real wages further and further behind."

STEFANIK SLAMS PENTAGON FOR LATE REVIEW OF DIVERSITY OFFICIAL: ‘COVERUP OF THEIR RADICAL WOKE AGENDA’

"The REIN IN Act ensures that costly actions the President decides to take solely under his own authority through executive orders will not go into effect until he is informed of and considers the potential inflationary effects," Comer added. "The hope is the president, once he is informed of and understands the potential for inflationary harm from his own policy initiatives, will think twice about inflicting such harm."

Another sponsor, House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York, said families are getting crushed by inflation that’s hitting nearly everything they buy, and that Congress needs to pass the bill to force Biden to recognize it.

"During the past 2 years of one party, far-left, radical, socialist Democrat rule in Washington led by President Joe Biden, inflation has skyrocketed to the highest level in my lifetime," she said. "You talk to any family, any small business, any farmer, any manufacturer, and they will say that the inflation that they are suffering from is crippling their businesses, crippling their family budgets."

[news365timesindia]

[ad_1] US President-elect Donald Trump dined with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida. The meeting is seen as a key interaction between the tech mogul and the Republican leader, who had previously been banned from Meta’s social media platforms. Zuckerberg was among several business figures invited to discuss Trump’s economic plans ahead of his potential return to the White House. Stephen Miller, recently named as Trump’s deputy chief of staff for his second term, said Zuckerberg’s participation showed the tech executive’s interest in supporting Trump’s vision for the country. “Mark has his own interests, company, and agenda,” Miller stated during a Fox News interview. “But he has made it clear that he wants to back America’s national renewal under Trump’s leadership.” A Meta spokesperson confirmed that Mark Zuckerberg attended a dinner with former US President Trump, where he met with the president-elect and his team to discuss the upcoming administration’s policies. This dinner came nearly three years after Facebook, now Meta, banned Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Trump’s account was reinstated in early 2023. Although Zuckerberg has remained neutral in the 2024 presidential race, he has recently become more favorable toward Trump, praising his handling of a previous assassination attempt and criticizing the Biden administration’s alleged efforts to pressure social media platforms to censor Covid-19-related content. Despite these comments, Trump continues to publicly criticize Zuckerberg. In July, he revived the nickname “ZUCKERBUCKS” on Truth Social, indirectly referencing the tech CEO while making threats about imprisoning those involved in election fraud. The dinner also highlights the growing influence of Elon Musk in Trump’s political circle. Musk, who has donated around $200 million to Trump’s campaign through his political action committee, has made several visits to Mar-a-Lago. He is also co-leading a new advisory panel called the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) with venture capitalist Vivek Ramaswamy. The panel’s purpose is to identify and cut government waste. [ad_2] Source link

[news365times]

[ad_1] US President-elect Donald Trump dined with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida. The meeting is seen as a key interaction between the tech mogul and the Republican leader, who had previously been banned from Meta’s social media platforms. Zuckerberg was among several business figures invited to discuss Trump’s economic plans ahead of his potential return to the White House. Stephen Miller, recently named as Trump’s deputy chief of staff for his second term, said Zuckerberg’s participation showed the tech executive’s interest in supporting Trump’s vision for the country. “Mark has his own interests, company, and agenda,” Miller stated during a Fox News interview. “But he has made it clear that he wants to back America’s national renewal under Trump’s leadership.” A Meta spokesperson confirmed that Mark Zuckerberg attended a dinner with former US President Trump, where he met with the president-elect and his team to discuss the upcoming administration’s policies. This dinner came nearly three years after Facebook, now Meta, banned Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Trump’s account was reinstated in early 2023. Although Zuckerberg has remained neutral in the 2024 presidential race, he has recently become more favorable toward Trump, praising his handling of a previous assassination attempt and criticizing the Biden administration’s alleged efforts to pressure social media platforms to censor Covid-19-related content. Despite these comments, Trump continues to publicly criticize Zuckerberg. In July, he revived the nickname “ZUCKERBUCKS” on Truth Social, indirectly referencing the tech CEO while making threats about imprisoning those involved in election fraud. The dinner also highlights the growing influence of Elon Musk in Trump’s political circle. Musk, who has donated around $200 million to Trump’s campaign through his political action committee, has made several visits to Mar-a-Lago. He is also co-leading a new advisory panel called the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) with venture capitalist Vivek Ramaswamy. The panel’s purpose is to identify and cut government waste. [ad_2] Source link

[darkmaga-returns]

The Biden administration is leaving its successors a budgetary mess, and the largest government debt in human history.

The new US fiscal year has just begun but the federal budget deficit has already ballooned some 287% to $257 bln in October, up from $67 bln in October 2023, the Treasury has announced.

The deficit bump – the largest since 2020, was attributed to shrinking revenues (down $77 bln, or 19%), growing spending ($114 bln or 24% more, mostly military, Social Security and Medicare-related), and various “one-off” factors.

In annual terms, the deficit reached $1.8 trln in 2024, up from $1.7 trln in 2023, with $1 trln+ in interest payments on America’s gargantuan $36 trln debt – the largest expense after Social Security, accounting for well-over half of expenses.

Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency has vowed to help tackle the deficit by providing “advice and guidance” on how to slash spending, cut bureaucracy and regulations, but the vote is still out on how effective it will be.

The US has run deficits for all but 12 years since World War II, with spending ramping up dramatically during the Reagan and Bush years (fueled mostly by defense spending and foreign wars), the post-2008 Great Recession, Covid bailouts and Biden’s multi-trillion dollar infrastructure agenda.

Washington has largely been able to avoid penalties associated with spendthrift spending thanks to the dollar’s status as the world’s de facto reserve currency, with the US able to borrow and print money without suffering anywhere near the same sort of inflationary and currency collapse risks other nations would in similar circumstances.

In recent years, more and more countries, including the BRICS bloc, have sought to ramp up trade using national currencies, and even mulled the creation of decentralized alternatives to the dollar, though more work remains to be done on that front. Other analysts have suggested that alternative stores of value, such as gold or Bitcoin, may take the dollar's place in the international economic and monetary order over time.

With the US share of global manufacturing declining steadily since the 1970s, and especially from the 2000s onward with China’s rise, the risks of the US becoming an economic ‘Upper Volta with nuclear weapons’ (as US analysts derisively dubbed the USSR in the 1980s) will only continue to grow.

[docmerry]

Health is on the Ballot This November-Global Health

The 2024 US presidential election will have a vast effect on the health and lives of US residents as well as on many people abroad. The two major candidates hold markedly different views and agendas across global health policy issues.

COVID-19 Pandemic

The actions taken by the Trump Administration during the COVID-19 pandemic can most charitably be described as a mixed bag. He advocated unscientific treatments like the antiparasitic medication Ivermectin against the advice of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). He held frequent “super spreader” campaign events against the advice of Dr. Tony Fauci, our preeminent infectious disease expert.

Trump announced that the US was withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO) in May 2020, based on claims that were false, misleading, and unsubstantiated. The Biden Administration immediately reestablished our membership in WHO in 2021.

On the other hand, the Trump Administration allocated $18 billion to Operation Warp Speed to speed up the development of highly effective COVID-19 vaccines that the FDA authorized within a year. In pharmaceutical terms that is warp speed. Despite a lot of pushback from sceptics, eventually enough people were vaccinated to allow us to come out of lockdown.

Isolation is not Insulation

U.S. foreign assistance makes up less than 1% of our national budget and includes support for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), malaria, family planning, neglected tropical diseases, maternal and child health. This funding not only saves lives, it also contributes to global political and economic security and stability. President Trump’s budget request for fiscal year (FY) 2018 called for reducing foreign assistance for global health down from $8.5 billion to $6.5 billion. That is a 24% reduction in spending.

Biden’s budget request for FY2025 includes $9.8 billion for global health. The administration is negotiating with WHO to form a WHO Pandemic Agreement with 194 member states that would address some of the gaps in the COVID-19 response.

At the United Nations General Assembly (UN) meeting in late September, philanthropist Bill Gates reported that because of advances in nutrition and access to vaccines in low-income countries, deaths of children under five years old have dropped from 10 million down to 5 million per year since the turn of the century. The UN’s goals are to cut that number in half again by 2030.

Global access to vaccines initiative (GAVI)

Now, Gavi is preparing to support countries to recover from lost progress on routine immunization due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gavi is gearing up to deepen efforts to reach all children who have not received any doses of vaccines, introducing new life-saving malaria vaccines, and supports the sustainable growth of vaccine manufacturing in Africa. 

Why build vaccine manufacturing in Africa?

While that might sound like the set up to a why Willie Sutton robbed banks joke, Gavi has good reason to avoid counting on biotech companies like Moderna to supply vaccines.

There’s also a horrific and, frankly, racist narrative that countries in Africa won’t be able to use the vaccine. Now that’s certainly true when you just dump a lot of leftover vaccines. I know one small area in Africa that got seven different vaccines with short expiration dates, no planning, no predictable supply. So yeah, in that situation you’ll have problems. Dr. Tom Freiden, President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives; Director of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the Obama Administration.

Over one billion dollars of taxpayer money and the expertise of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) scientists allowed Moderna to develop it’s COVID-19 vaccine. Then they refused to share that technology with the rest of the world. It’s morally inexcusable, but they have come up with excuses, all of which are untrue.

“We can’t transfer technology because we don’t have enough staff.” They have chosen not to have enough staff.

“We can’t transfer technology because it takes 12-18 months to scale up.” It took one partner of theirs, Lanza, between three and six months, depending on how you count it.

“Africa can’t use the vaccine effectively.” Africans have much less vaccine hesitancy than people in the US and most Western countries. They have a greater ability to run vaccination campaigns because it is something they do regularly.

To be sure, Moderna, which started up in 2010, has always been a bit sleazy. In February 2016, a Nature article criticized Moderna for not publishing any peer-reviewed articles on its technology, unlike most emerging and established biotech companies. In May 2020, Moncef Slaoui resigned from the board of directors of the company to take the lead on “Operation Warp Speed” during the Trump Administration. Slaui continued to hold more than $10 million in stock options while the federal government invested $483 million to assist Moderna in vaccine trials.

Aside from the intuitive pleasure derived from bending the arc of the moral universe by lifting disease burden, there is the added benefit of creating more political and economic stability.

Issues on the Table Right Now

COVID-19 has revealed inequalities in the world's healthcare delivery system. It did not create them. The need is critical and the world is responding.

Polio vaccines are being distributed in Gaza. It is not enough, but it is a start.

Two new malaria vaccines are being rolled out.  As the parasite becomes more resistant to anti-malarial drugs and mosquitos develop resistance to pesticides, prevention is our best hope for saving lives. Currently, our best option for prevention in a timely manner is vaccination.

Gavi also helped introduce new vaccines to fight two of the most deadly diseases for kids: pneumonia and diarrhea. As mentioned previously, two new vaccines to fight malaria that are being used widely in countries like Ghana. Malaria kills more than 600,000 people a year, mostly children in Africa. Gavi is preparing to support over 20 African countries to introduce these ground-breaking vaccines.

The US took a big step in helping put this plan into action. At the June 2024 Gavi pre-replenishment meeting in Paris, the U.S. pledged at least $1.58 billion for Gavi over the next five years. This is an excellent way to ensure the project has funding stability. That is critical to achieve goals beyond an immediate crisis.

A bipartisan Gavi resolution (H.Res.1286 / S.Res.684) provides a multi-year commitment to Gavi to ensure access to lifesaving vaccines and work towards ending preventable child and maternal deaths.

My Take:

Given that the Trump Administration withdrew from WHO early in the COVID pandemic when it became clear that it was not going to be "gone by Easter". Neither the WHO Pandemic Agreement nor Gavi will receive robust funding in a second Trump term.

Global health is not a zero-sum game. The return on investment in life expectancy, productivity, and stability with adequate funding on global health is enormous. In many ways Health is on the Ballot this November.

[getfast]

How Biden Testing Positive for COVID-19 Affects His Presidency?

In a significant development, President Joe Biden has tested positive for COVID-19. This diagnosis not only has immediate implications for his health but also raises important questions about how Biden COVID circumstances will impact his presidency and the broader political landscape. Let’s explore what this means for Biden, his administration, and the nation.

A Personal Health Challenge

President Biden’s health is the foremost concern following his positive COVID-19 test. At 81 years old, he is in a higher risk category for complications. Although he is reportedly experiencing only mild symptoms and is adhering to medical advice, his case highlights the persistent and unpredictable nature of the virus. The President’s personal encounter with COVID-19 underscores the ongoing need for vigilance and public health measures.

In a recent statement, Biden has reassured the public that he is isolating and continuing to work remotely. This approach aligns with public health recommendations and demonstrates his commitment to managing his health while minimizing disruption. The situation serves as a poignant reminder of the personal toll of Biden COVID and the broader implications for those in similar high-risk categories.

Impact on Presidential Duties

The immediate impact of Biden’s COVID-19 diagnosis is the logistical challenge of maintaining presidential duties. As he isolates at the White House, Vice President Kamala Harris and other senior officials will step in to ensure the executive branch remains functional. Despite the technology that enables remote work, the President’s absence from in-person engagements could temporarily shift the focus of government activities and public attention.

The Biden COVID situation illustrates the complexities of maintaining presidential duties under such circumstances. The U.S. political system is well-prepared to handle such scenarios, with established protocols to ensure continuity and stability. Nonetheless, Biden’s COVID-19 diagnosis may cause delays in critical initiatives and affect how the administration navigates both domestic and international issues.

Political and Public Perception

Biden’s COVID-19 diagnosis could significantly influence public perception and political discourse. As a prominent advocate for vaccinations and health measures, the Biden COVID situation might spark renewed discussions about his administration’s pandemic policies. Critics may use this as an opportunity to question the effectiveness of current strategies, while supporters might highlight the unpredictability of the virus and the importance of adhering to public health measures.

The timing of this diagnosis could also impact the broader political narrative. With Biden’s administration grappling with key issues, including legislative priorities and international relations, his illness might shift media coverage and public debate. The Biden COVID diagnosis could affect his ability to drive his agenda forward and influence how the public and political opponents view his leadership during this critical period.

Legislative and Diplomatic Impact

The President’s temporary absence could affect legislative and diplomatic efforts. Key negotiations and policy initiatives might face delays, and the administration’s push for certain legislative goals could encounter obstacles. On the international stage, Biden’s absence might influence scheduled meetings and negotiations, potentially altering U.S. foreign policy dynamics.

Despite these challenges, the administration is likely to adapt and continue its work despite the President’s temporary absence. The executive branch has robust procedures for managing such disruptions, ensuring that government functions proceed smoothly. However, the Biden COVID situation underscores the broader implications of health issues on the functioning of the highest office in the land.

Moving Forward

As President Biden focuses on his recovery from COVID-19, the emphasis will be on managing both his health and the continuity of government operations. His experience with the virus highlights the ongoing challenges of the pandemic and the need for continued public health efforts.

For now, we wish President Biden a swift and smooth recovery. This situation serves as a reminder of the personal and political dimensions of navigating a global pandemic. Stay tuned for updates on Biden’s health and the broader implications for his presidency as we continue to follow this evolving story. Read More

[sa7abnews]

Kamala Harris to Call For ‘Price Gouging’ Ban on Food and Groceries

New Post has been published on https://sa7ab.info/2024/08/16/kamala-harris-to-call-for-price-gouging-ban-on-food-and-groceries/

Kamala Harris to Call For ‘Price Gouging’ Ban on Food and Groceries

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will call for a federal ban on food and grocery price gouging as part of a broader set of proposals intended to reduce consumer costs, her campaign said in a preview of the first policy speech of her nascent presidential bid.

The Democratic nominee is promising to target price gouging and price-fixing within her first 100 days in office, along with other measures to ease the burden of high prices that have weighed on American households and contributed to many voters’ low marks for President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy.

Read More: Yes, Inflation Is Going Down. But Here’s Why Prices Aren’t

Harris plans to direct the Federal Trade Commission and other agencies to investigate and penalize “big corporations” that violate the rules, and to find other ways of tackling price fixing and other anti-competitive practices in the food and grocery industries, her campaign said late Wednesday night.

While price controls have a checkered history in the U.S,, Harris’ team is working to quickly add some proposals to the Biden administration’s achievements and goals, which are at the core of her campaign agenda. She will also detail plans to cut prescription drug and housing costs in an economic address during a visit to Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday.

Former President Donald Trump has made inflation, which spiked early in the Biden administration as the Covid-19 crisis wore on, a centerpiece of his argument that he should be returned to the White House. The Republican candidate and his allies cite Democratic spending programs as a source of the surge in prices for food, gasoline and many other items. 

The Trump campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read More: Harris Will Face the GOP’s Same Old Inflation Playbook

While Harris understands that “price fluctuations are normal in free markets,” her campaign said there is “a big difference between fair pricing in competitive markets, and excessive prices unrelated to the costs of doing business.” 

Americans, the campaign added, “can see that difference in their grocery bills” as prices have stayed high even as corporations’ costs have leveled off and their profits have stayed high.

Harris, in her speech, will specifically single out the highly consolidated meat industry, deeming its processing middlemen “particularly egregious” price fixers with a history of being found to have illegally controlled prices.

She also plans to direct her administration to carefully scrutinize proposed mergers between large food companies with an emphasis on considering whether they will result in higher grocery prices for consumers. That work would include continuing to examine the proposed merger between Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos., which faces challenges from the FTC and several states.

The Harris campaign argues that her proposals “stand in stark contrast” to Trump’s economic agenda, which it said “would increase inflation and costs for middle-class families” by levying tariffs on imports of household goods including groceries.

[influencermagazineuk]

Starmer Convenes First Cabinet Meeting with New Ministers

Sir Keir Starmer convened his cabinet for the first time on Saturday morning, following his decisive electoral victory centered on rebuilding public trust in politics and leading a service-oriented government. The new Prime Minister has appointed several prominent experts to key ministerial positions, demonstrating his commitment to embedding deep policy expertise at the core of his administration. Among these appointments are James Timpson, a respected businessman known for his work in prisoner rehabilitation, who now serves as prisons minister. Sir Patrick Vallance, formerly the government’s chief scientific adviser during the Covid-19 pandemic, has been appointed as the science minister. In a notable decision, Starmer chose not to appoint Emily Thornberry, his former shadow attorney-general, to the equivalent role in his government. Instead, he named Richard Harmer KC, a distinguished human rights lawyer, to the position. Timpson, Vallance, and Harmer are set to be elevated to the peerage. Starmer’s Labour government, the first in 14 years, faces immediate challenges such as resolving doctors’ pay negotiations. Additionally, plans are underway for a significant overhaul of the planning system, aimed at catalyzing a much-needed housebuilding surge. Upon entering Downing Street on Friday, Sir Keir Starmer delivered his inaugural speech as Prime Minister, vowing to mend the fractured trust between the public and politicians through concrete actions rather than mere words. He emphasized prioritizing economic growth as a key agenda. Starmer is also preparing for next week’s Nato summit, where he will engage with global leaders including US President Joe Biden. President Biden congratulated Starmer on his election victory during a phone call, reaffirming the special relationship between the US and the UK in support of freedom and democracy worldwide, according to the White House. Additionally, Starmer spoke with Irish Taoiseach Simon Harris on Friday, reaffirming his commitment to the Good Friday Agreement. In his initial appointments, Starmer named Rachel Reeves as Chancellor, David Lammy as Foreign Secretary, and Yvette Cooper as Home Secretary—roles they previously held in opposition. Rachel Reeves assumes her role amidst challenges of stagnant economic growth, mounting public debt, and the highest peacetime tax burden. She addressed Treasury staff on Friday, outlining her vision for leading the most pro-growth finance department and supporting Labour’s industrial strategy aimed at revitalizing investment. "This Treasury will fully participate in a new era of industrial strategy," Reeves affirmed. Labour maintained a campaign pledge this year not to increase income tax, national insurance, or VAT in government, adhering to stringent fiscal rules. However, the party may need to consider raising other taxes, borrowing, or reducing public services if economic growth cannot be stimulated. Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner has been appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, as the new government prepares to unveil reforms aimed at promoting development in the coming days, part of their commitment to revitalize the construction sector. Wes Streeting, newly appointed Health Secretary, is scheduled to meet with representatives from the British Medical Association (BMA) next week in efforts to resolve a deadlock that has led to 11 strikes by junior doctors in England over the past two years. Streeting engaged with the BMA during the election campaign earlier this year. Officials express growing confidence in the government's ability to negotiate a deal that falls short of the BMA's demand for a 35% pay increase, possibly agreeing to phased salary raises over several years. Addressing the situation on Friday, Streeting affirmed, "We pledged during the campaign to initiate negotiations urgently, and that is precisely what we are doing." Read the full article