Opinion | When It Comes to Inflation, Our Focus Should Be On the Cost of Housing
The Federal Reserve is raising interest rates — but Congress has a chance to bring real relief.
Today's Liberal News
U.S. inflation soared 7.9 percent in past year, a fresh 40-year high
The increase reported by the Labor Department reflected the 12 months ending in February and didn’t include most of the oil and gas price increases that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb.
Russia oil shock looms over Fed inflation fight
The Fed is already expected to begin a campaign of interest rate increases next month in a bid to remove its support for economic growth amid a blistering job market and rapidly rising prices.
Tucker Carlson Goes Big On Protecting Putin With Bizarre Warning
The Fox News host seems to want Putin to remain in power.
Merrick Garland, ‘Do Your Job,’ Says Frustrated Member Of House Panel Probing Capitol Riot
Contempt of Congress charges languish with the Department of Justice as the select committee’s members fume at the attorney general.
Jared Kushner Is Expected To Appear Before Jan. 6 House Committee This Week
Trump’s son-in-law may have useful information even though he reportedly blew off calls for aid amid the riot because he was busy with “Middle East peace.
Jan. 6 Panel Reportedly Hopes To Interview Ginni Thomas Over Text Messages
The Supreme Court justice’s wife sent nearly two dozen texts to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, urging him to overturn the 2020 election.
Ukraine Update: Ukraine recaptures Irpin; Putin’s pal Trump can’t help himself
Ukrainian defenders continued to make incremental gains over the weekend, using small-unit tactics to great effect against overextended Russian troops. Larger-scale operations appear to be successfully forcing Russian retreats in several key locations, including a retaking of Irpin, northwest of Kyiv, again pushing Russian artillery positions away from the city.
Federal judge rules Trump ‘more likely than not’ tried to ‘corruptly’ obstruct Congress
In a ruling ordering John Eastman, who is alleged to have helped architect the scheme that would have seen Donald Trump’s vice president throw out the certified electors from a handful of Biden-won states so as to overturn the November 2020 presidential elections, to turn over evidence to the House select committee investigating the coup, a federal judge determined that Donald Trump himself likely sought to criminally obstruct Congress on that day.
Hijacked by his ego, Will Smith missed his opportunity to address bullying, respect for Black women
I’m an avid Academy Awards watcher. I’ve watched for years, and can’t remember missing one. I cheered when Halle Berry won for Best Actress for Monster’s Ball, the year after Denzel Washington won the award for Best Actor for Training Day, and have for years lamented how few Black actors, Latino actors, Asian actors, LGBTQ+ actors, disabled actors, etc. have won awards.
Joe Manchin may be smaller and more corrupt than we even realized
The New York Times has done a deep dive on how Sen. Joe Manchin got rich off of the coal business, and in a nutshell: Holy crap, is Joe Manchin corrupt.
If you pay attention to Manchin, you might know that he gets around $500,000 a year in income from his own personal coal company.
Lawmakers urge ICE to terminate contract with private facility at center of watchdog probe
The chairs of the House Committee on Homeland Security and the Subcommittee on Border Security, Facilitation, & Operations are the latest to call for the closure of the New Mexico immigration detention facility at the center of a recent, blistering watchdog report.
The Two Americas Debating Will Smith and Chris Rock
I was on an overnight flight from Los Angeles to New York City during the Academy Awards, so at first I didn’t see the Will Smith–Chris Rock fiasco that sent America into a complete tizzy. But when I was finally able to turn on my cellphone, I had 653 text messages.Six hundred and fifty-three.By now, you’ve probably seen multiple videos and angles of Smith slapping Rock.
The Night the Oscars Lost Control
The damage control began not long after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock across the face. After the two exchanged a few words, Rock glanced offscreen and appeared momentarily bewildered. Then he awkwardly tried to lighten the mood before pressing on to present the Best Documentary nominees.The altercation was the most shocking moment in Oscars history—at least for people watching at home. But inside the Dolby Theatre, the show proceeded as if nothing of consequence had happened.
A Federal Judge Just Told the Truth About Trump
“The illegality of the plan was obvious.”Attorneys, as a class, are not typically well regarded for their writing; not for nothing do we call sentences that are incomprehensible, jargon-laden, or obfuscatory “legalese.” Yet what makes an order from federal Judge David Carter today important is less its legal ramifications than the simple clarity of the view it offers of former President Donald Trump’s attempt to steal the 2020 election.
20 Reader Views on Transgender People in Competitive Sports
This is an edition of Up for Debate, a newsletter by Conor Friedersdorf. On Wednesdays, he rounds up timely conversations and solicits reader responses to one thought-provoking question. Every Friday, he publishes some thoughtful replies. Sign up for the newsletter here.
Don’t Let Up Now
Russia appears to be revising its strategy in Ukraine. In place of the go-for-broke attempt to swallow the country in a hundred-hour war, to be completed with a tank parade in the Kyiv Maidan and a semi-annexation, some Russian leaders now talk more modestly of operations in the Donbas. Movements on the ground would seem, for the moment, to confirm this shift.
Jamaica Moves to Become a Republic as Calls Grow for Slavery Reparations Following U.K. Royal Visit
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have just finished a weeklong visit to former British colonies in the Caribbean. Their trip comes after Barbados cut ties to the monarchy and became a republic last year. During the so-called charm offensive to the British Commonwealth countries, the royals were met with protests calling for reparations for slavery.
Nonwhite Refugees Fleeing Ukraine War Held in Detention Centers in Poland, Estonia, Austria
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompted an exodus of nearly 4 million people and an outpouring of support for many of the refugees. But a new report finds dozens of nonwhite people who fled Ukraine are being held in long-term detention centers in Poland and Estonia.
Rep. Ro Khanna Says Biden’s Proposed Billionaire Tax Is a “First Step” in Addressing U.S. Inequality
The White House is unveiling a new tax plan that would establish a minimum 20% tax rate on all U.S. households worth more than $100 million. “It’s high time that people who have made billions of dollars pay the same taxes … as people who are in service jobs, and this is the first step towards that,” says California Congressmember Ro Khanna.
“Reckless & Damaging”: Could Biden’s Suggestion of Regime Change in Moscow Endanger Peace Talks?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is open to Ukraine becoming a neutral country but said such a decision could only be made by a nationwide referendum after Russian troops withdraw. This comes as the White House quickly tried to walk back President Biden’s remarks made during a speech on Saturday in Poland during which he appeared to endorse regime change in Moscow. We get responses from Democratic Congressmember Ro Khanna and Quincy Institute President Andrew Bacevich.
U.S. global Covid work will ‘grind to a halt’ without more cash
With a more than $4 billion request stalled in Congress, USAID officials are now forced to plan for the possibility that their funding will run dry in the next few months.
POLITICO-Harvard poll: 40 percent of parents believe masks at school harmed their kids
The poll’s findings come as White House officials warn that masks may be necessary if Covid-19 cases increase in the United States.
CDC updates Covid-19 guidance to allow patients wear N95s
The nation’s public health agency now says hospitals shouldn’t force patients to remove highly protective masks after POLITICO found many that do so.
Biden’s Comments About Putin Were an Unforced Error
Sign up for Tom’s newsletter, Peacefield, here.Joe Biden has been a model of restraint during the most serious global crisis in nearly 60 years, and thank goodness for that. He has provided assistance to Ukraine while keeping NATO together against the possibility of a Russian attack against the alliance.
Biden’s mounting midterm threat: Inflation angst outweighing historic job growth
White House officials deny any sense of panic over the economy or their midterm chances.
Democrats want to crack down on Wall Street. Guess who’s getting in the way.
The administration’s difficulties in getting bank cop nominees through a Democratic-controlled Senate underscore the fault lines within the party over how to approach financial regulation.
Opinion | When It Comes to Inflation, Our Focus Should Be On the Cost of Housing
The Federal Reserve is raising interest rates — but Congress has a chance to bring real relief.
U.S. inflation soared 7.9 percent in past year, a fresh 40-year high
The increase reported by the Labor Department reflected the 12 months ending in February and didn’t include most of the oil and gas price increases that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb.