The Show Notes: Senate Gun Deal, Bear Market Status, & Biden's 2024 Plan
Welcome! I wrote extensively about today’s January 6th hearing earlier this morning.
Numbers to know: Markets are down BIG with the S&P 500 officially entering bear market territory and year-to-date losses for the NASDAQ topping 30%.
Under-reported: Russia likely to seize control of eastern Ukrainian region within weeks, U.S. official says. - Washington Post
BREAKING: Raphael Warnock Blames Brother’s Drug Conviction on Systemic Racism. Court Records Tell a Different Story. - Washington Free Beacon
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Must read: Senate Reaches Gun Deal - The Reload
A bipartisan group of 20 senators announced on Sunday they have agreed on a framework for new gun legislation.
The framework includes nine reforms targeting gun sales, mental health services, and school security. The framework is light on details but includes policies such as funding for state “red flag” legislation and emergency mental health services.
Clip of the day:
Democrats Don’t Want Biden to Run
The New York Times has a damning piece highlighting the growing number of Democrats who want Biden to pass on seeking reelection in 2024.
Midway through the 2022 primary season, many Democratic lawmakers and party officials are venting their frustrations with President Biden’s struggle to advance the bulk of his agenda, doubting his ability to rescue the party from a predicted midterm trouncing and increasingly viewing him as an anchor that should be cut loose in 2024.
As the challenges facing the nation mount and fatigued base voters show low enthusiasm, Democrats in union meetings, the back rooms of Capitol Hill and party gatherings from coast to coast are quietly worrying about Mr. Biden’s leadership, his age and his capability to take the fight to former President Donald J. Trump a second time.
Powell Facing Choice Between Elevated US Inflation and Recession
This is from Bloomberg:
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is facing an increasingly grim calculus after yet another hot inflation reading last week: He probably has to push the economy into recession in order to regain control of prices.
Vulnerable Dems run against Washington — and their party
This is from AP News:
Many of the nation’s most vulnerable Democrats are actively trying to distance themselves from Washington — and their party. Responding to deep frustration from voters who will decide their fate in November, Democratic candidates in swing states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and New Hampshire are railing against the institutions their party has managed for the last 16 months.
Inside Biden’s frustration with soaring prices
This is from The Washington Post:
President Biden seemed upbeat when he visited an Iowa biofuels plant in April to talk about bringing down gas prices, standing before a large tractor as he declared that “biofuels have a role to play right now” and announced a plan to expand the use of ethanol over the summer.
But privately, Biden dismissed the policy as ineffective and questioned the value of the trip, according to two people familiar with the conversations. After returning to the White House, he hauled his senior staff, including chief of staff Ron Klain, into the Oval Office, badgering them with questions about the purpose of the event.
Biden had worried even before the announcement that it exaggerated ethanol’s ability to cut gas prices and could harm his climate goals, the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. But Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and other officials urged Biden to go, arguing that it would at least help the Midwest — and the White House, after all, was desperate for ways to lower gas prices.