Sen. Ron Johnson: Not ‘Society’s Responsibility To Take Care Of Other People’s Children’
People should become parents only if they’re sure they’ll never need help, the Wisconsin Republican suggested.
Today's Liberal News
Fox News Host Dan Bongino Permanently Banned From YouTube
The conservative commentator was previously suspended for violating the platform’s COVID-19 misinformation policy.
Artificial Wombs Birth a Complex Controversy
Sign up for Conor’s newsletter here.What do you think about artificial wombs? Are they ethical? Desirable? Should they be a priority for scientists? If they become advanced enough to be viable, would you ever use one? How would a world in which they were available differ from ours? Any thoughts on this subject are welcome.Email your answers to conor@theatlantic.com. I’ll publish a selection of answers in Friday’s newsletter.
The Court Loses Its Chief Pragmatist
Last spring, during an online civics class I teach at the National Constitution Center for high-school students, I asked Justice Stephen Breyer about the values of compromise, consensus, and intellectual humility that he has championed throughout his career, as a Senate staffer for Ted Kennedy, an appellate judge, and a Supreme Court justice.“I saw Senator Kennedy do this all the time,” replied Breyer, who announced his retirement from the Supreme Court today.
Putin’s No Chess Master
A terrible thing may be impending in Ukraine. Undoubtedly, subversion, sabotage, and murder await, although such miseries have been going on for some time without the West paying much attention. But a Russian onslaught, to include air and missile strikes followed by an invasion, would be a lot worse. Thousands of people may die, and the foundations of European security would be rocked as they have not been since the early days of the Cold War.
Matt Gaetz Associate Pleads Guilty On 2 Charges, Agrees To Cooperation Deal
The extremist House member remains under investigation for having sex with an underage girl, which he denies.
POLITICO-Harvard poll: Big domestic spending bills seen as stoking inflation
At a time when inflation is a growing concern, the survey found more than four in 10 people believe that both the BBB and the infrastructure bill will increase inflation.
“Takeover”: Young Lords’ Juan González on Hospital Protest Doc. Shortlisted for Academy Award
The documentary “Takeover,” which chronicles the radical actions of the Young Lords, was recently shortlisted for an Academy Award. In 1970, the Puerto Rican collective took over a condemned hospital in the South Bronx to demand the construction of a new hospital, free healthcare for all, and more.
“Gangsters of Capitalism”: Jonathan Katz on the Parallels Between Jan. 6 and 1934 Anti-FDR Coup Plot
We speak to award-winning journalist Jonathan Katz about his new book “Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines, and the Making and Breaking of America’s Empire.” The book follows the life of the Marines officer Smedley Butler and the trail of U.S. imperialism from Cuba and the Philippines to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Panama. The book also describes an effort by banking and business leaders to topple Franklin D.
Africa CDC Director: Vaccine Inequity Prolongs the Pandemic. Global Cooperation Can Stop New Variants.
As new cases of the highly infectious Omicron variant continue to climb in undervaccinated parts of the world, we speak to the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about how vaccine inequity could lead to even more variants of the coronavirus. Dr. John Nkengasong says only 10% of the population is fully immunized in Africa, a continent of 1.3 billion people, and millions of vaccines donated by COVAX went unused because of their short shelf life.
Omicron spreads in New Zealand, spoiling prime minister’s wedding plans
Jacinda Ardern was to have been married next weekend.
Beijing district orders mass virus testing ahead of Olympics
The ruling Communist Party is stepping up enforcement of its “zero tolerance” strategy.
Game-changing Covid pills remain out of reach for some patients
A flurry of regulatory, testing and logistical issues is complicating the rollout.
‘The CDC alone can’t fix this’: Walensky calls for overhaul of U.S. public health system
If the pandemic is to turn endemic — a situation top Biden health officials say they could more easily control — the U.S. needs to overhaul the nation’s public health workforce, she said.
Opinion | Why Are Minority-Owned Banks Disappearing? Washington Holds the Smoking Gun
Congress needs to create a new safety net for such lenders — not let regulators squeeze them out of business.
Biden’s first year: A tale of 2 presidencies
Inside the White House, there is still optimism: “President Biden was elected to a four-year term, not a one-year term.
Price spikes threaten to ground Biden’s big-spending plans
The government reported Wednesday that the consumer price index, the most widely watched gauge of inflation, hit a four-decade high in December compared to the previous year.
U.S. consumer prices soared 7 percent in past year, most since 1982
The jump is the latest evidence that rising costs for food, rent and other necessities are heightening the financial pressures on America’s households.
Powell’s warning to Congress: Inflation a ‘severe threat’ to jobs
The potential clash over the Fed’s plans to tighten monetary policy could be a harbinger of conflicts to come with Democrats and even some Republicans.
Julian Assange Wins Right to Appeal Extradition; Stella Moris Blasts “Politically Motivated Prosecution”
A British judge has ruled that political dissident and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can appeal his extradition to the United States. The ruling dealt a major blow to the Biden administration’s efforts to put Assange on trial for espionage charges. Assange has spent over 1,000 days locked up in the Belmarsh high-security prison in London, where he recently suffered a mini-stroke.
News Roundup: The Republican-backed return of McCarthyism, Soviet ambitions, and polio
In the news today: The undoing of a century of science and social progress at the hands of a “conservative” fascist movement looking to bring back horrors ranging from McCarthyism to polio. And that’s not hyperbole.
Veteran moderate Democrat Jim Cooper will retire after Tennessee GOP gerrymanders his House seat
Democratic Rep. Jim Cooper announced Tuesday that he would retire, a declaration that came one day after Tennessee’s Republican legislature passed a new gerrymander designed to turn his 5th Congressional District red. Cooper’s existing seat, which includes all of Nashville, backed Joe Biden 60-37; however, by splitting the city between the 5th, 6th, and 7th Districts, the GOP has created a new 5th that would have favored Donald Trump 54-43.
Wisconsin Republicans want to make it easier for teens to tote guns onto school grounds. Yes, really
Since it’s already quasi-legal for teenagers to kill protesters in Wisconsin, Badger State Republicans are hoping to further enshrine the kiddos’ right to be public menaces. Call it the “Kyle Rittenhouse Will Blow Your Face Off for Giving Him the Stink Eye, but this Time He’ll Have a Permit” Incel Aggro Act of 2022.
Neil Young pens open letter to Spotify: ‘They can have [Joe] Rogan or Young. Not both’
On Monday, famous rock ‘n’ roll musician Neil Young reportedly posted an open letter (now deleted) to his management team and record label demanding that his music be removed from music streaming juggernaut Spotify. Rolling Stone reports the letter highlights Young’s dissatisfaction with the streaming service’s support of podcaster Joe Rogan’s show The Joe Rogan Experience.
“They can have [Joe] Rogan or Young. Not both.
Get-rich-quick schemes spread COVID-19 lies with help from the GOP and Sinema
Tonya Ferguson gave a presentation to the Reno County, Kansas, commissioners on how essential oils—which she just happened to sell—can help fight COVID-19. “I like to use an immune support, which is like putting my body in a bubble. It’s a powerful tool to combat viral and bacterial threats,” she says on the video. She claimed to have “protocols” to either protect from or treat people suffering from the virus.
Delaware Lawmaker Criticized For Racist, Sexist Slurs Arrested On Shoplifting Counts
Gerald Brady was arrested just days after announcing that he was resigning for health reasons.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Blasts FDA For Halting Drugs Ineffective On Omicron
White House press secretary Jen Psaki noted that it’s “crazy” the governor is “still advocating for treatments that don’t work.
Florida Sen. Rick Scott Touts Infrastructure Funding He Voted Against
The Florida Republican railed against the “reckless spending” contained in the measure, which passed with wide bipartisan support last year.
Jerry Falwell Jr. Says Trump Offered Him Education Secretary Post
“Ivanka was like, ‘Come on, dude. You gotta do it,’” Falwell told Vanity Fair.
It Sure Looks Like This Arizona Republican Used Campaign Cash To Attend Jan. 6 Riot
State Senate candidate Anthony Kern used donor funds for unspecified travel and lodging around the time he went to Washington for the “Stop the Steal” rally.