Biden news: White House defends ‘Neanderthal’ slur of GOP states, as Trump shifts blame for Senate loss
Live updates from the White House
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Press secretary Jen Psaki said it was a reflection of his frustration at governors rolling back Covid lockdowns, recognizing that the president can't enforce a national mask mandate.
It comes as Donald Trump tried to shift the blame for the Senate race defeats in Georgia, saying Mitch McConnell only offering $600 stimulus checks led to the defeats of Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue.
On the US Mexico border, child migrants detained by authorities have increased 583 per cent under Joe Biden, according to internal documents from the Department of Health and Human services reported by Axios.
An average of 321 children are taken into custody per day in the week ending March 1, compared to just 47 under the Trump administration during the first week of January.
The White House denied reports that it had reviewed the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) guidelines for people who have already received a Covid-19 vaccination.
Earlier reports claimed the administration's Covid-19 taskforce told the CDC to “hold off on releasing” the recommendations during a series of meetings and calls over the last two days.
As questions mount, Biden himself is under increasing pressure to hold a press conference after going 43 days without facing the media. Of the 15 president of the past 100 years, all have held a press conference within 33 days of being sworn into office. Trump did it 27 days in. Obama outdid Trump by a week at 20 days.
• Warnings of possible QAnon threat to Capitol
• Giuliani mocked for warning of dangers of misinformation
• US Catholic group tells followers to avoid Johnson and Johnson vaccine
• Biden criticises Texas and Mississippi governors for dropping Covid restrictions
Giuliani mocked for warning of dangers of misinformation
Donald Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani has prompted derision on social media after he spoke out in a podcast on the dangers of “misinformation.”
Sharing the episode on Twitter, Mr Giuliani wrote: “Misinformation has become a daily occurrence on social media platforms. If continued unaddressed, it will eventually lead to Jefferson’s worst nightmare of a poorly informed citizenry, which he saw as the greatest danger to democracy.”
Namita Singh has the details
Giuliani mocked for warning of dangers of misinformation after amplifying Trump’s ‘big lie’ on elections for months
Podcast appearance comes days after Rudy Giuliani’s YouTube channel was again suspended for repeating unsubstantiated claims of election fraud
San Antonio Spurs coach joins Biden in criticising Texas dropped mask mandate
President Joe Biden was critical of governors in Texas and Mississippi for dropping their Covid mask mandates on Wednesday, describing the move as “neanderthal thinking.”
San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has also taken umbrage at the decision of Texas Gov Gregg Abbott to roll back on Covid restrictions, calling the decision “ignorant.”
“I’m worried about the people in our state. That’s a pretty mystifying decision considering the situation that we’re all in.”
He added that “getting rid of masks just seems ignorant to me” in comments before San Antonio’s 119-92 victory over the New York Knicks, as reported by NBC.
Ghislaine Maxwell being held under ‘brutal’ conditions, brother claims
The family of Ghislaine Maxwell has called for her to be released from jail while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges.
Maxwell’s sister Ian has claimed that she has been subjected to “brutal and degrading” treatment while awaiting trial at a detention centre in Brooklyn, as reported by The Telegraph.
“To anyone familiar with the British system of law, the American system is simply bizarre, quite frankly, cruel.
“As you know my sister is held in the most appalling conditions and subjected to brutal and unusual treatment and yet she is a pre-trial detainee,” he said.
Chantal da Silva has the details
Ghislaine Maxwell being held under ‘brutal’ conditions, brother claims
Ghislaine Maxwell is awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges
Trump served with lawsuit accusing him of breaking ‘Ku Klux Klan’ laws on day of Capitol riot
Donald Trump has been served a civil rights lawsuit accusing him of inciting the Capitol riot along with Rudy Giuliani, the Proud Boys and other far-right groups, according to reports.
Mr Trump was given the documents, filed by Democrat congressman Bennie Thompson and civil rights group the NAACP in mid-February, at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, writes The Independent’s Joanna Taylor
Trump served with lawsuit accusing him of breaking ‘Ku Klux Klan’ laws
NAACP accuses Trump of disenfranchising Black voters and trying to ‘destroy democracy’
US Senate set to debate President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package
The Democrat controlled senate will consider a motion to launch 20 hours of debate on the massive Covid-19 bill that includes funding for vaccines and medical supplies and extends jobless assistance.
Republicans’ response to the motion will likely be an early indication of the steep opposition the bill faces in the chamber.
The Senate will convene despite a warning by Capitol Police that it had obtained intelligence about a militia group’s possible plot to breach the Capitol on Thursday, a day some conspiracy theorists believe that Republican former President Donald Trump will be sworn in for a second term.
The House of Representatives canceled its Thursday session after the Capitol Police’s warning.
Additional reporting by Reuters
Oregon moves to ban public display of nooses, calling them symbol of racism
Lawmakers in Oregon are moving to ban the public display of nooses, after anti-racism campaigners and city leaders petitioned to see the introduction of a bill.
The bill would make intimidation by display of a noose a misdemeanour punishable by up to a year in prison and a $6,250 (£4,485) fine.
If the bill passes then Oregon would be the sixth US state to criminalise the racist symbol being displayed in public.
Gino Spocchia reports
Oregon moves to ban public display of nooses, calling them symbol of racism
‘It's time to call this wave of noose hanging what it is: racial terrorism,’ says witnesses to committee overseeing bill
'I think President Trump has a responsibility to tell them to stand down’
Republican Michael McCaul has said that Donald Trump should tell his supporters to “stand down” after reports that extremists might try and attack the Capitol today.
An unidentified group of “militia” discussed plans in February to “take control of the Capitol and remove Democratic lawmakers on or about March 4,” according to a bulletin issued on Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
March 4 is the day when believers in the baseless QAnon conspiracy have claimed that former President Donald Trump, defeated by President Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 election, will be sworn in for a second term in office.
Mr McCaul told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “The Lead” said: “I think President Trump has a responsibility to tell them to stand down -- this threat is credible, it’s real.”
He added: “It’s a right-wing militia group that believes that the original -- because the original inaugural day was March 4 until the 20th Amendment passed, they think this is the true inauguration day and that President Trump should be inaugurated tomorrow. And that is the threat we face right now.”
Additional reporting by Reuters
What we have learned about 6 January attack
With fresh concerns about a far-right attack on the US Capitol on Thursday and Saturday, what have we learned about the riot of 6 January, when five people were killed?
Although a number of hearings have taken place on law enforcement’s response to the assault on Congress almost two months ago, many questions continue to remained unanswered. Here’s all that we know so far:
Takeaways: What hearings have revealed about Jan. 6 failures
Many questions remain unanswered about the failure to prevent the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, even after six congressional hearings
‘You gotta love Dolly Parton', says Dr Fauci
Dolly Parton went viral on social media this week, following a video in which she riffed on her own hit “Jolene” by singing “Vaccine, vaccine, vaccine, vaccine. I’m begging of you please don’t hesitate”, as she received her own dose of a Moderna jab.
Ms Parton, who donated $1 million to help fund research into the same vaccine last year, added “cause once you dead, then that’s a bit too late.”
Dr Anthony Fauci, watching the video on CNN on Thursday morning, was also delighted by the riff on “Jolene”, and said to viewers: “You gotta love Dolly Parton”.
Biden says he is ‘looking forward’ to signing election reforms bill
Joe Biden says he looks forward to signing the election reform bill passed the US House of Representatives on Wednesday — with the sweeping piece of legislation still needing to clear the Senate.
"I look forward to signing it into law...so that together we can strengthen and restore American democracy for the next election and all those to come," Mr Biden said in a statement released by the White House.
“This landmark legislation is urgently needed to protect that right, to safeguard the integrity of our elections, and to repair and strengthen our democracy,” the president’s statement added.
The bill includes provisions on access to voting, as well as allowing candidates with smaller platforms to stand in elections. But, as Alex Woodward reports, it seems unlikely that enough Republicans will support the bill to pass:
House Democrats pass major voting rights bill
With a murky path ahead in the Senate, the For The People Act takes aim at GOP voter suppression as state lawmakers push restrictive voting laws across US
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