“Attorney general nominee Merrick Garland is vowing to defend the Justice Department's independence from the White House and make the battle against extremism ‘central’ to the department's mission, according to remarks prepared for delivery Monday at his Senate confirmation hearing. Acknowledging the public outrage that defined last summer's social justice protests, Garland, a former top Justice official, highlighted the mission of the department's Civil Rights Division to protect the rights of the ‘most vulnerable members of our society.’ His selection has been cast by President Joe Biden as an attempt to reset a Justice Department roiled by politics and efforts by former President Donald Trump to use the institution to advance his political interests.” Read more at USA Today
“Final push| Democrats are dropping any pretense of bipartisanship as they drive to quickly pass President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus bill before earlier benefits run out. With a vote in the House as soon as Friday and the Senate next week, this will mark the first real test for Democrats’ full control of government since former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial.” Read more at Bloomberg
“Biden’s pick for Interior secretary, Deb Haaland, faces questions at her confirmation hearing tomorrow, with some Republicans warning she’s unlikely to get their support, given her opposition to fracking, endorsement of the Green New Deal and participation in protests against an oil pipeline in South Dakota.” Read more at Bloomberg
“A federal program that provides loans to businesses to help them stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic is undergoing some changes to allow more money to be directed at small businesses that need it most.
President Joe Biden will announce several revisions on Monday to the Paycheck Protection Program, which Congress approved last year as part of a nearly $2 trillion COVID-relief bill.
While the program delivered urgent relief to many businesses across the country, the initial round of loans issued under the program last year left out too many minority-owned and mom-and-pop businesses while larger companies that are better connected got the funds quickly, administration officials said Sunday.
To address those concerns, Biden will announce that only businesses with fewer than 20 employees will be allowed to apply for the program over a 14-day period that begins Wednesday. Some 98% of small businesses have fewer than 20 employees, and the 14-day application period will allow lenders to focus on serving them, administration officials said.” Read more at USA Today
“The number of Americans hospitalized with Covid is at its lowest since early November.” Read more at New York Times
“U.S. Vaccination Push: One month into the Biden presidency, the government is on a glide path to reach his initial goal of administering 100 million vaccine doses in his first 100 days in office. Now comes the far more ambitious and daunting mission of vaccinating all eligible adults against the coronavirus by the end of the summer. Limited supply of the two approved vaccines has hampered the pace of vaccinations, and that was before extreme winter weather delayed the delivery of about 6 million doses this past week.
But the U.S. is on the verge of a supply breakthrough as manufacturing ramps up and with the expectation of a third vaccine becoming available in the coming weeks, Zeke Miller reports.” Read more at AP
“Black Ministers: Health officials in the nation's capital are hoping religious leaders will serve as community influencers to overcome what they say is a persistent vaccine reluctance in the Black community. Several Black ministers recently received their first vaccine shots. Black residents make up a little under half of Washington’s population, but constitute nearly three-fourths of virus deaths.
The city is now offering vaccinations to any resident over age 65, but numbers show that seniors in the poorest and Blackest parts of the District of Columbia are lagging behind, The government responded by giving priority status for vaccine registration to predominantly Black ZIP codes, Ashraf Khalil and Hilary Powell report.” Read more at AP
“An uptick in economic indicators and the prospect of more stimulus have economists talking about the possibility of a post-Covid boom in jobs and wages.” Read more at New York Times
“Texas is in recovery mode after a winter storm left more than 4 million people without electricity and more than 14 million under boil-water advisories. Over 70 deaths have been linked to the intense cold and damaging storms that traversed the United States last week, with about half the deaths reported so far occurred in Texas. Many power plants and water facilities were ill-equipped to handle the wintry onslaught and more than 33,000 Texas homes and businesses remained without power Sunday. In West Virginia, more than 27,000 homes and businesses and another 25,000 in Kentucky were without power Sunday. That number was about 20,000 in Mississippi.” Read more at USA Today
“Many Democrats hope that Justice Stephen Breyer, 82, will soon retire from the Supreme Court — and they have suggested replacements.” Read more at New York Times
“In the final days of the Trump administration, the Treasury Department quietly lifted sanctions on an Israeli mining magnate. Biden administration officials are scrambling to find out whether they can reverse that.” Read more at New York Times
“British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will reveal his plan for unwinding one of the world's strictest COVID-19 lockdowns on Monday after a more contagious variant tore through Britain in January . American health officials will be watching what Johnson says closely as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes that by as early as the end of next month the more transmissible variant known as B.1.1.7. is likely to be the dominant one circulating within U.S. borders. Johnson is expected to announce a phased return for some schools starting March 8. It's not clear if other rules around gatherings, non-essential retail and hospitality will be relaxed. He recently clamped down on international travel, adding mandatory hotel quarantine for travelers arriving from some countries to an existing requirement for a negative COVID-19 test.” Read more at USA Today
“The Hill: Israel: Pfizer vaccine prevents 98.9 percent of COVID-19 deaths.”
“Asia-Pacific Vaccines: Australia has started its COVID-19 inoculation program days after its neighbor New Zealand, with both governments deciding their pandemic experiences did not require the fast tracking of vaccine rollouts that occurred in many parts of the world. Other countries in the Asia-Pacific region that have dealt relatively well with the pandemic either only recently started vaccinating or are about to, including Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia and Singapore.” Read more at AP
“Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit seeking $1.3 billion in damages from My Pillow chief executive Mike Lindell and his company after he repeatedly echoed President Donald Trump’s baseless accusations of widespread voter fraud involving Dominion.” Read more at Washington Post
“The U.S. deported a 95-year-old former Nazi camp guard from Tennessee to Germany. It could be America’s last prosecution of a Nazi collaborator.” Read more at New York Times
“Boeing recommended the grounding of its 777 jets with a particular engine model until the Federal Aviation Administration determines how best to inspect them. A 777 suffered a failure that scattered debris across a Colorado suburb this weekend. (Nobody was hurt.)” Read more at New York Times
“Dutch authorities are investigating after a Boeing 747-400 cargo plane dropped engine parts shortly after takeoff from Maastricht airport.
The Longtail Aviation Flight 5504 cargo plane scattered mostly small metal parts over the southern Dutch town of Meerssen on Saturday, causing damage to cars and lightly injuring one woman, local media said.
Boeing referred questions to Dutch authorities.
“Our investigation is still in a preliminary phase, it is too early to draw conclusions,” a spokeswoman for the Dutch Safety Board said on Monday.
Witnesses said they saw fire in one of the engines of the plane, which landed safely at Liège airport in Belgium, 19 miles (30km) south of Maastricht.
The cargo plane, which was supposed to fly from the Netherlands to New York, used a Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engine, a smaller version of one on a United Airlines Boeing 777 involved in an incident on Saturday.
Boeing 777s grounded around world after Denver engine failure
Boeing said on Sunday it was recommending airlines halt flights of some older, PW4000-powered versions of its 777 airliner pending inspections after an engine fire in a United 777 resulting in debris scattered over Denver in the US at the weekend.
Europe’s EASA aviation regulator said it was aware of the Pratt & Whitney jet engine incidents, and was requesting information on the cause to determine what action may be needed.” Read more at The Guardian
“Lives Lived: Arturo Di Modica, a sculptor and Sicilian immigrant, was best known for “Charging Bull,” a 3.5-ton bronze that he illegally deposited one night in Lower Manhattan — where it remains a landmark. Di Modica died at 80.” Read more at New York Times
“Joe Biden is a month into his presidency and one pattern is clear. He doesn't want to talk about the man he's called “the former guy,” Donald Trump.
But much of what Biden is doing is about breaking from Trump's legacy on matters of policy, symbolism and style, report Jonathan Lemire and Calvin Woodward.
That began on his first day, when Biden appeared at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office wearing a mask.
The Democrat framed his first month as a time to start to “heal the soul” of the nation and restore the White House as a symbol of stability and credibility.
Biden has set out to demonstrate that the days of a seat-of-the-pants presidency are over.
He wants to show that the inflationary cycle of outrage can be contained. That things can get done by the book. That the new guy can erase the legacy of the “former guy.''
From the Earth’s climate and the Iran nuclear deal to what’s not on his desk (Trump's button to summon a Diet Coke), Biden has been purging Trumpism however he can in an opening stretch that is wholly unlike the turmoil and trouble of his predecessor's first month.” Read more at AP
“A senior Republican House leader has refused to admit Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump.
Congressman Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House minority whip, appeared on ABC’s This Week more than three months after Biden won the electoral college 306-232 and the popular vote by more than 7m ballots and just over a month after the Democrat was sworn into office….
‘Clear this up for me,’ ABC host Jonathan Karl said to Scalise on Sunday. ‘Joe Biden won the election. He is the legitimate president of the United States. The election was not stolen, correct?’
‘Look,’ Scalise said, ‘Joe Biden’s the president. There were a few states that did not follow their state laws. That’s really the dispute that you’ve seen continue on.’
‘And, look, if you’re Joe Biden, you probably want to keep talking about impeachment and anything other than the fact that he’s killed millions of American energy jobs, that … they just signed the Paris [climate] accord. It’s going to kill manufacturing jobs in America.’
‘But at the end of the day, when you look at where we are in this country, either we’re going to address the problems that happened with the election that … millions of people are still concerned about, the constitution says state legislatures set the rules for elections, that didn’t happen in a few states, and so, going forward – look, Joe Biden’s the president. But does he...’
Karl interjected.
‘But, congressman, I know Joe Biden’s the president. He lives at the White House. I asked you, is he the legitimate president of the United States, and do you concede that this election was not stolen? Very simple question. Please just answer it.’
‘Look,’ said Scalise, not answering the question. ‘Once the electors are counted, yes, he’s the legitimate president. But if you’re going to ignore the fact that there were states that did not follow their own … laws, that’s the issue at heart, that millions of people still are not happy with and don’t want to see happen again.’
‘You know, look … you can rehash the election from 2020 all day long, but there are people concerned about what the next election is going to look like. Are we going to finally get back to the way the rule of law works?’
Scalise’s comment about the rule of law echoed statements from Trump, his supporters and his lawyers, who have insisted he represents the forces of law and order despite having incited an assault on Congress in which a police officer was one of five people killed and scores of others were injured.” Read more at The Guardian
“In his first post-presidential appearance, Donald Trump plans to send the message next weekend that he is Republicans' ‘presumptive 2024 nominee’ with a vise grip on the party's base, top Trump allies tell me.
A longtime adviser called Trump's speech a ‘show of force,’ and said the message will be: ‘I may not have Twitter or the Oval Office, but I'm still in charge.’ Payback is his chief obsession.
I've learned that Trump advisers will meet with him at Mar-a-Lago this week to plan his next political moves, and to set up the machinery for kingmaking in the 2022 midterms.
Trump is expected to stoke primary challenges for some of those who have crossed him, and shower money and endorsements on the Trumpiest candidates.
State-level officials, fresh off censuring Trump critics, stand ready to back him up.
Why it matters: Trump's speech Sunday at CPAC in Orlando is designed to show that he controls the party, whether or not he runs in 2024.
His advisers argue that his power within the GOP runs deeper and broader than ever, and that no force can temper him.
‘Trump effectively is the Republican Party,’ Trump senior adviser Jason Miller told me. ‘The only chasm is between Beltway insiders and grassroots Republicans around the country. When you attack President Trump, you're attacking the Republican grassroots.’
The big picture: The few Republicans who have spoken ill of Trump since the election — including House members who voted to impeach him, and senators who voted to convict — have found themselves censured, challenged and vilified by the parties in their home states.
The long game: Many Trump confidants think he'll pretend to run but ultimately pass. He knows the possibility — or threat — gives him leverage and attention.
Trump's leadership PAC, Save America, has $75 million on hand, and he has a database of tens of millions of names.
A Trump source said some Republicans have told him: ‘If you endorse me, I'll run.’
But advisers say that's not how it'll work. This week's meeting will aim to tap the brakes.
Instead, Trump is going to set up a formal process for vetting potential endorsees, including a requirement that they raise money and put together an organization.
What we're watching: Trump plans to argue in the CPAC speech that many of his predictions about President Biden have already come true.
Look for Trump to lay into ‘the swamp’ and Beltway insiders in a big way.
The Trump source said: ‘Much like 2016, we’re taking on Washington again.’” Read more at Axios
“Growing anger | Hundreds of thousands of protesters swarmed streets across Myanmar in what may be the largest turnout since the Feb. 1 coup, after two demonstrators were shot dead. The Foreign Ministry rebuffed international condemnation of the violence, and the military has ordered internet blackouts as it tightens its grip on power.” Read more at Bloomberg
Protesters gather today in Yangon.
Photographer: Ye Aung Thu/AFP via Getty Images
“Limiting escalation | Iran offered a last-minute compromise to United Nations atomic inspectors that stops short of completely curtailing their monitoring powers, tapping the brakes on a standoff that has become a major foreign policy challenge for the Biden administration. IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi said he won inspectors a three-month partial reprieve that gives diplomats space to potentially resolve the dispute over Tehran’s nuclear program.” Read more at Bloomberg
“Niger’s election. In Niger, at least 7 people were killed in the southwest of the country on Sunday when a vehicle owned by the country’s electoral commission struck a landmine. The incident marred what was an otherwise largely peaceful presidential runoff election between the ruling party favorite Mohamed Bazoum and former President Mahamane Ousmane.
Bazoum is widely expected to triumph, although official results are not expected until later in the week. Regardless of the victor, the election marks the first time in Niger’s history that one democratically-elected president will be succeeded by another.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Tanzania’s COVID-19 crisis. World Health Organization Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called on Tanzania to take “robust action” to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, encouraging President John Magufuli to face up to a crisis he has downplayed for months. The East African nation has not reported case numbers to the WHO since April, but the recent deaths of high-profile figures has increased pressure on the country’s leadership to take action. In last week’s FP Africa Brief Lynsey Chutel examined Tanzania’s dubious data and Magufuli’s focus on religious deliverance from the coronavirus.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Ecuador’s election. Ecuador’s electoral body named Guillermo Lasso as the second-place finisher in the Feb. 7 presidential election first round, seeing off indigenous leader Yaku Perez in an extremely tight race. Perez alleges fraud kept him from entering the next round and he was further stymied when a requested recount was suspendedlast week. Lasso, a conservative, now faces Andrés Arauz—a protégé of left-wing former President Rafael Correa—in a runoff vote scheduled for April 11.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Another vaccine scandal. Argentina’s health ministerm Ginés González García has resigned after reports emerged of individuals being given preferential access to coronavirus vaccines out of turn. The scandal broke after a veteran journalist admitted to receiving a vaccine after he spoke directly with the minister. García’s decision means Argentina joins Peru as the latest Latin American country to lose its health minister over a vaccine controversy.” Read more at Foreign Policy
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