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April 29, 2021 | Talking Points Memo
The Rules Dems Could Change To Keep The Tom Cottons Of The Senate From Delaying Biden Noms’ Confirmations
Forty. That’s how many of Joe Biden’s nominees the Senate will have likely confirmed when his presidency crosses the 100-day mark this Friday. On average, it took these nominees 49 days to move from nomination to confirmation. With over 1,100 seats throughout the executive branch left to fill (not to mention hundreds more in the Judiciary), that glacial pace should worry you. Unfortunately, it can get even slower. And thanks to Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR), it looks like it’s about to.
April 28, 2021 | The American Prospect
Biden Needs to Fire the FBI Director
Trump-appointed FBI director Chris Wray cannot be trusted to handle the continued surge in white supremacist violence and terror.
April 23, 2021 | The American Prospect
Place Human Lives Over Pharma’s Property Rights
The Biden administration is divided over whether to waive trade protections for Big Pharma—with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo as a key industry ally.
April 19, 2021 | The Daily Beast
Silicon Valley’s Favorite Fixer Aims to Stop the Rising Left
But the old guard continues to wield significant power and will be hard pressed to admit defeat, as exemplified by political strategist Bradley Tusk’s continued success. Some might recall Tusk as New York Mayor Bill De Blasio’s biggest critic. Others know him best as Silicon Valley’s favorite political fixer. Teachers’ unions probably remember him comparing them to the NRA. Tusk’s particular brand of politics—lobbying against regulation on behalf of companies he then invests in—in some ways represents the last gasp of corporate control over government that has run rampant since the Reagan era.
April 14, 2021 | The American Prospect
Biden’s Budget Should Build Back Even Better
President Biden’s inaugural annual budget request, which encompasses only discretionary spending (about a third of the federal budget), is a $1.52 trillion proposed investment in the federal government. The rest of the request, to be released later this spring, will include tax reforms and mandatory spending (which includes programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid) and provide a fuller picture of the administration’s priorities.
April 02, 2021 | The American Prospect
Dorothy Slater Eleanor Eagan Max Moran
Op-Ed Climate and EnvironmentExecutive BranchFinancial RegulationLarry Summers
Janet Yellen's Blind Spot On Regulation
With so many competing priorities, it’s justifiable that Yellen has not given her full attention to every single crisis under her purview. But she can no longer dodge her other big duty: financial policy and Wall Street regulation.
March 30, 2021 | Talking Points Memo
Dems Are Running Out Of Time To Quickly Strip Damaging Trump Rules From The Books.
Lawmakers who wish to make use of the CRA to strike Trump’s rules have until April 4 to introduce their resolutions of disapproval, after which point they’ll have five to seven weeks more in which to consider and vote on them. Eleanor Eagan explains why Congress must invoke the CRA now before it’s too late.
March 29, 2021 | The American Prospect
Toward a Conflict-of-Interest-Free West Wing
The latest batch of White House financial disclosures revealed close ties between top Biden Administration officials and corporate titans in Big Tech, Big Oil, and Big Pharma. Eleanor Eagan and Elias Alsbergas explain why these disclosures reveal the need for the Biden White House to adopt stronger ethics disclosures and mandate total divestment from potential conflicts of interest.
March 22, 2021 | Democracy Journal
Building Back Better (Than Expected)
The nominations that President Biden has made thus far serve as a guidebook to the years ahead. By analyzing those picks, we see a vivid picture of where we can expect strong executive actions to take on the corporate monopolies and polluters choking the American economy—and where we can anticipate division between the progressive base and corporatist establishment actors.
March 22, 2021 | TruthOut
We Need An Interior Department Aimed At Environmental Justice — Not Destruction
With Haaland at its head, the DOI will have a real chance to reverse its role in exacerbating climate change and environmental racism. Yet, in order to fully realize this potential, the agency will need more funding, increased lower-level staff and much more diversity.
March 18, 2021 | The American Prospect
John Kerry Must Choose: Wall Street Or The Planet
We have every reason to believe Kerry genuinely wants to save the Earth from climate devastation. His problem is that there is no neoliberal path to doing so.
March 15, 2021 | Independent Media Institute
When Public Officials Get Rented Out By Corporate Power, The People Lose
From Vivek Murthy’s lucrative consulting work with Netflix and Carnival Cruise Lines to Brian Deese’s “greenwashing” of fossil fuel investments at BlackRock, the revolving door between corporate industry and government continues to undermine public trust in the Biden Administration, writes our Elias Alsbergas.
March 10, 2021 | The American Prospect
Will Financial Regulators Act On Climate?
Lael Brainard and Janet Yellen have been talking the talk about climate risk, but not translating that into meaningful action. Our Dorothy Slater takes a closer look at what strong climate action from financial regulators would look like.
March 05, 2021 | The American Prospect
Trump Holdovers Still Dot U.S. Attorneys Offices
De-Trumpifying all levels of the Department of Justice (DOJ) remains a critical factor in Joe Biden’s success. He needs an energized and progressive pool of U.S. attorneys committed to criminal justice reform, prosecuting white-collar crime, and protecting the environment to do that.
February 22, 2021 | The American Prospect
Acting Officials Can Govern for Years. They Deserve Scrutiny.
Little attention is paid to acting officials, who hold jobs temporarily while permanent appointees go through lengthy confirmation processes. President Biden should choose personnel for these acting positions wisely.