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DonViejo

Biden's plan to invest $400 billion to make long-term care cheaper is really popular

(Vox) A $400 billion investment into senior care and long-term caregiving in President Joe Biden’s American Jobs Plan may not fall into a traditional definition of “infrastructure,” but it’s one of the most popular provisions in the plan among Democratic and Republican voters alike, according to new polling from Vox and Data for Progress. The new poll, which surveyed 1,217 likely voters about various provisions of Biden’s $2.25 trillion American Jobs Plan and has a 3 percentage point margin of error, showed that Biden’s investment to improve and lower the cost of long-term care for seniors and those with disabilities has broad support — 73 percent of respondents strongly or somewhat backed the proposal.

This provision enjoys strong support from voters across parties: 88 percent of Democrats, 72 percent of independents, and 55 percent of Republicans support the idea.

DonViejo

Retail sales surge 9.8 percent in March, spurred by stimulus

(The Hill) Retail sales in March surged 9.8 percent as $1,400 stimulus checks were issued, the weather improved, and vaccination rates increased. The figure was well above the 6.1 percent economists expected, and was a return to form after major storms in February led to a 3 percent drop. That figure was revised upward to 2.7 percent.

The $619.1 billion in sales was a whopping 27.7 percent higher than last March, when the pandemic hit in earnest and lockdowns took hold across the country. Paired with a stronger-than-expected showing in weekly jobless claims, which fell significantly to 576,000, stock market futures jumped, with a 150-point increase, or 0.5 percent, expected for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

DonViejo

U.S. imposes sweeping sanctions targeting Russian economy

(Axios) The Biden administration announced it will sanction dozens of Russian officials and entities, expel 10 diplomats from the U.S., and set new restrictions on buying sovereign debt in response to the massive SolarWinds hack of federal agencies and interference in the 2020 election. The sweeping acts of retaliation are aimed at imposing heavy economic costs on Russia, after years of sanctions that have failed to deter an increasingly aggressive and authoritarian President Vladimir Putin.

The administration formally accused Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of carrying out the SolarWinds hack, which Microsoft President Brad Smith has called "the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen." The intelligence community said it has "high confidence" in the assessment.

JHB

Thursday TOONs

soothsayer

Some Presidents aren't afraid of a little bit of rain to pay their respects to our fallen soldiers

Nevilledog

Sen. Hyde-Smith (R) wishes a happy birthday to the Air Force Reserve with photo of Russian jets

...and weird fake Air Force Reserve logo.

mucifer

Schumer lays groundwork for future filibuster reform

(The Hill) Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is asking Democrats to look for GOP dance partners, both as a defense for attacks next year that his party is unwilling to work with Republicans, and as a step toward possibly limiting the filibuster. The initial reason for seeking bipartisan opportunities is next year’s midterms.

Democrats want to bolster their defenses for the coming GOP attacks that voters should deliver a GOP majority in the House or Senate as a check on President Biden, and to punish Democrats for not working on a bipartisan basis. But the effort is also a way to convince Democratic senators to agree to reform the filibuster.

DonViejo

Capitol Police watchdog set to testify about failings on Jan. 6

(NBC News) The U.S. Capitol Police inspector general is set to testify Thursday about the law enforcement agency’s failings during the Jan. 6 attack and make recommendations on how to prevent a future attack. Inspector General Michael Bolton will tell the House Administration Committee that the Capitol Police “failed to disseminate relevant information obtained from outside sources, lacked consensus on the interpretation of threat analyses, and disseminated conflicting intelligence information regarding planned events for January 6, 2021,” according to his prepared statement.

babylonsister

Barack Obama Praises Joe Biden's Decision To Get Out Of Afghanistan

(PoliticusUSA) Former President Obama praised President Biden for making the right decision and removing US troops from Afghanistan after twenty years. In a statement provided to PoliticusUSA, President Obama said: "President Biden has made the right decision in completing the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan. Today, we should pause to pay tribute to the extraordinary sacrifices of the Americans who have served in our longest war, as well as their families. We also honor the allies who served alongside us and the Afghan people who have suffered so much in pursuit of a better future for their country. It has been a long and arduous struggle in Afghanistan, rooted in our response to the deadliest terrorist attack on the U.S. homeland in our history..." (More)

left-of-center2012

Biden Invited to Address Joint Session of Congress on April 28

(Bloomberg) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has invited President Joe Biden to deliver his first address to a joint session of Congress on April 28. The address will come just before his 100th day in office. “Nearly 100 days ago, when you took the oath of office, you pledged in a spirit of great hope that ‘Help Is On The Way.’ Now, because of your historic and transformative leadership, Help Is Here,” Pelosi said in a letter to the president. “In that spirit, I am writing to invite you to address a Joint Session of Congress on Wednesday, April 28, to share your vision for addressing the challenges and opportunities of this historic moment.”