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Todd and Julie Chrisley found guilty on federal charges
ATLANTA (AP) — Todd and Julie Chrisley, stars of the reality television show “Chrisley Knows Best,” have been found guilty in Atlanta on federal charges including bank fraud and tax evasion.
The Chrisleys were initially indicted in August 2019, and the trial began three weeks ago.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Atlanta said a jury found the pair guilty of all charges Tuesday. Prosecutors say the stars of “Chrisley Knows Best” submitted false documents to banks to get loans and failed to pay federal income taxes for multiple years.
An accountant who worked for them also was found guilty. Sentencing for all three is set for Oct. 6.
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Lawmakers hold moment of silence on House floor to honor Uvalde victims
Lawmakers held a moment of silence on the House floor on Tuesday to commemorate the individuals who died in last month’s shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Nineteen students and two adults were fatally shot when an 18-year-old gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. The massacre is the second-deadliest school shooting on record.
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), the lawmaker whose district includes Uvalde, led the moment of silence on the House floor. He was surrounded by other members of the Texas congressional delegation.
“On May 24, 2022, 19 children and two teachers were killed by a gunman at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. My district, but a reflection of every small town in America,” Gonzales said.
“I mourn with the Uvalde community and I pray for healing and comfort for the families and the communities for the loss of the following members,” he added, before reading the names of all 21 victims.
He said the 21 individuals killed “have become innocent victims of senseless violence.”
Lawmakers in the chamber stood and bowed their heads for the moment of silence, which lasted just under one minute.
The Uvalde shooting took place 10 days after a gunman opened fire at a grocery store in Buffalo, N.Y., killing 10 Black individuals. The pair of mass shootings have reignited the gun debate on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers now looking to push through legislation to address firearms in the U.S.
The House is set to vote on a sweeping package on Wednesday that seeks to raise the minimum age to buy semi-automatic weapons from 18 to 21 and ban civilians from having high-capacity magazines of more than 10 rounds, among other measures.
The lower chamber will also vote on a separate bill that aims to nationalize “red flag” laws, which would allow courts to order firearms to be removed from individuals deemed a threat to themselves and others.
The moment of silence came one day before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform is scheduled to hold a hearing on gun violence, featuring testimony from parents of victims and an 11-year-old Robb Elementary School student Miah Cerrillo, who survived the shooting.
Cerrillo told CNN that she covered herself in her friend’s blood and acted as if she was dead to protect herself amid the violence.
Felix Rubio and Kimberly Rubio — the parents of Lexi Rubio, a victim of the Uvalde shooting — and Zeneta Everhart — the mother of Zaire Goodman, who died in the Buffalo massacre — are also scheduled to testify, in addition to a pediatrician from Uvalde and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, among others.
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D.C. Council passes law that would prohibit companies from firing workers for marijuana use
The D.C. Council passed a bill Tuesday that would prohibit private companies from firing employees who test positive for marijuana use.
Although marijuana use has been legal for medical and recreational purposes in Washington, D.C., since 2014, employment laws that require drug testing allow companies to punish workers who use the substance.
The law says employers should not be able to fire or choose not to hire someone on the basis of their use of marijuana, with the exception of workers who are in “safety sensitive” jobs, including those who operate heavy machinery, construction workers, police and security guards.
The council referenced a report from the American Addiction Centers that said government jobs were the most likely to test employees for marijuana use, showing that the law would not have a significant effect on the companies it targets.
At the Tuesday legislative meeting, council members pointed to a 2013 Yale study that demonstrated that 63 percent of Black workers were in jobs that enforced drug testing, as opposed to 46 percent of white workers, to show how the measure would positively impact people of color, according to The Washington Post.
A number of states have passed legislation that provides similar protections for workers, including New Jersey and Nevada.
The bill now heads to Mayor Muriel Bowser’s (D) desk for her signature.
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Energy & Environment — India, China could buy Russian oil rejected by EU
Some of the oil the EU will forgo under its new embargo could wind up fueling countries in Asia, and President Biden has signed legislation to improve preventative care for veterans exposed to burn pits.
This is Overnight Energy & Environment, your source for the latest news focused on energy, the environment and beyond. For The Hill, we’re Rachel Frazin and Zack Budryk. Subscribe here.
Asia may provide market for Russian oil after EU ban
Countries like China and India have the power to undercut the European Union’s latest move to sanction Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, potentially lessening the impact of one the most significant economic actions the West has taken against Moscow thus far.
The EU on Friday officially agreed to ban imports of most oil from Russia, joining countries, including the U.S., that have vowed to forgo oil from the country.
But experts say the move likely won’t push Russia to economic pariah status, as other countries, including major economies like China and India, will still import its fuels and give the Kremlin an alternate income source.
“We’re expecting the bulk of the volumes that Russia currently exports to be taken by other markets,” said Alan Gelder, vice president of refining, chemicals and oil markets at energy research firm Wood Mackenzie.
“If they’re still able to find buyers for their exports, and they’ll need to negotiate a price, it does mean that they’re getting a steady revenue stream. If the world all said no, it would be quite different, but the world is not saying that,” Gelder added.
Greater incentive?: Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said that China and India are likely to be even more incentivized to buy oil after the European embargo.
Further complicating the matter, De Haan said, is that Russian oil is of a quality that makes it desirable in international markets.
“It’s the heavier oil that distills into more desirable molecules like diesel, which is what Europe is really craving at this point,” he said.
The delay could help Russia, too: Kristine Berzina, head of the geopolitics team at the Alliance for Securing Democracy, said the fact the ban doesn’t go into effect right away could also undermine its efficacy by giving Russia more time to adjust.
She said that alarms in the market may raise oil prices in the near term, giving Russia a benefit as it sells oil for now, and the country will also be able to work with other countries like India that are likely to buy the oil.
“They can negotiate the pricing there and try to adjust for the fact that they’ll have to go to different markets long term,” she said.
Ben Cahill, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that despite the limitations, the EU sanctions are probably the most significant action that the world has taken to date to limit the use of Russian oil.
“This definitely is the most consequential move yet in terms of restricting Russian exports,” he said. “The big question is how much will this knock Russian oil offline and how much will it just redirect Russian oil from Europe to Asia.”
Read more about what could happen here.
Biden signs bill to help those exposed to burn pits
President Biden on Tuesday signed legislation to provide better access to mammograms for veterans exposed to burn pits as part of nine bills signed into law aimed at improving veterans’ health care.
The measure aims to ensure that veterans who serve near burn pits get preventative care and requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct breast cancer screenings for women who served near toxic exposures.
The Dr. Kate Hendricks Thomas SERVICE Act was named after Marine Corps Officer Kate Thomas, who served near a burn pit in Iraq and died in April from breast cancer. Biden honored her in remarks at the White House and acknowledged her husband and son who were at the bill signing.
Biden has been focused on expanding benefits for veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and were exposed to toxic chemicals from burn pits. The issue of burn pits strikes a personal note for the president, who believes the chemicals from burn pits may have contributed to the brain cancer that ultimately killed his son Beau Biden.
He signed eight other pieces of legislation focused on veteran health care, including a bill to improve breast imaging services for veterans regardless of if they’re exposed to burn pits or not and to compensate veterans who developed cancer and medical conditions from World War II-era nuclear programs.
Read more here from The Hill’s Alex Gangitano.
RELATED: ANOTHER TOXICS BILL ADVANCES
The Senate on Tuesday voted 86-12 to advance another piece of legislation aimed at helping veterans who were exposed to toxic substances.
The Honoring Our PACT Act specifically seeks to expand health care eligibility through the Veterans Affairs department; establish a framework for connecting toxic exposures to military service, which would grant additional benefits to those who were exposed and expand which conditions are presumed to be caused by service.
The vote to advance the measure was largely bipartisan, but all of the opposition came from Republicans.
The legislation is soon expected to come to a full vote on its passage.
VIRTUAL EVENT INVITE
Closing the Gaps in Health Insurance, Wednesday, June 8 at 1 p.m. ET
A record number of Americans are insured yet many remain vulnerable to significant medical expenses, including high premiums, out-of-pocket costs and prior authorization burdens. The Hill sits down with Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) and more to discuss closing the gaps in health insurance. RSVP today.
PERSONNEL NEWS
At DOE: The Senate on Tuesday voted to confirm Shalanda Baker to direct the Energy Department’s Office of Minority Economic Impact.
Lawmakers voted 54-45 to confirm her. The vote was largely along party lines, but the Republicans who supported Baker are Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Thom Tillis (N.C.) and Roger Wicker (Miss.).
Baker is currently the deputy director for Energy Justice at the department’s Office of Economic Impact and Diversity. She was previously a professor of law, public policy and urban affairs at Northeastern University.
At NWS: The National Weather Service (NWS) got a new leader on Tuesday. The Biden administration announced that Kenneth Graham will lead the weather agency.
Since 2018, Graham has directed the National Hurricane Center. He has also held other roles at the agency including serving as meteorologist-in-charge of the NWS’ New Orleans/Baton Rouge office for 10 years.
NWS hasn’t had an officially named leader since Louis Uccellini left in January. In the interim deputy director, Mary Erickson, has served as the acting director.
ON TAP TOMORROW
- The House Science, Space and Technology Committee will hold a hearing on detecting methane from the oil and gas sector
- The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing on two nominees for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
WHAT WE’RE READING
- Why is eco-conscious California spending millions to support natural gas? (Floodlight)
- ERCOT projects Texas will break electricity demand record this week (The Dallas Morning News)
- Rio Grande water returns to El Paso this weekend, quenching arid border region (El Paso Times)
- Shell, the Oil Giant, Will Sell Renewable Energy to Texans (The New York Times)
ICYMI
- Five automakers back CA authority to set stricter vehicle emissions standards
- Environmental groups sue EPA over California, New Hampshire smog
- Goldman: Oil could hit $140 a barrel this summer
- EVs heading into price ranges fit for mass adoption
And finally: You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Energy & Environment page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.
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Hillicon Valley — Congress takes on crypto, again
A new bipartisan bill is likely to leave the cryptocurrency community celebrating, as it would shift regulatory authority away from the SEC and to another body viewed by the industry as more friendly.
In other tech news, Yubo unveiled new policies Tuesday that it has been under pressure to put out since it was revealed that the Uvalde shooter frequented the social media platform.
This is Hillicon Valley, detailing all you need to know about tech and cyber news from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley. Send tips to The Hill’s Rebecca Klar, Chris Mills Rodrigo and Ines Kagubare. Subscribe here.
Senators release bipartisan crypto bill
Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) introduced legislation on Tuesday that will create a regulatory framework for digital assets such as cryptocurrency.
The Responsible Financial Innovation Act (RFI) will encourage innovation in the financial sector, as well as flexibility, transparency and robust consumer protections while integrating digital assets into existing laws.
The proposed legislation will also assign regulatory authority over digital asset spot markets to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which regulates commodities markets, creating a new advisory committee that will focus on developing guideline principles, empowering regulatory agencies and advising lawmakers on fast-developing technology.
The lawmakers also said the RFI bill will create a workable structure for the taxation of digital assets and cryptocurrencies and will provide a regulatory sandbox for state and federal regulators to collaborate on innovative financial technologies among other provisions, according to the statement.
This comes as lawmakers have been trying to figure out ways to regulate cryptocurrency.
Yubo updates safety policies
Yubo, a social media platform that users said the gunman in the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting used to make threatening remarks, released updated safety guidelines on Tuesday.
The platform targeted for teens is broadening its risk-detection policy, enhancing user-reporting capabilities, testing audio-moderation technology and deploying a new algorithm-based detection system, the company said in a blog post.
“The devastating events of 24 May in Uvalde, Texas, brought to light systemic issues in society that need to be addressed. We are dedicated to doing our part by identifying and implementing safety solutions to the Yubo platform,” Yubo CEO Sacha Lazimi said in the blog post.
The update follows numerous reports that the 18-year-old gunman who was killed by law enforcement after fatally shooting 19 students and two teachers at Uvalde’s Robb Elementary School last month exchanged messages on the platform with users saying he was going to “shoot up” an elementary school, showing off his gun and threatening to rape girls.
Users also said they reported Ramos’s account to Yubo but he was able to remain on the platform, according to reports.
LONG-AWAITED PRIVACY HEARING SCHEDULED
A hearing on the latest bipartisan data privacy bill has been scheduled for next Tuesday, June 14.
The hearing in front of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s panel on consumer protection will be the first opportunity for the new American Data Privacy and Protection Act to be debated publicly.
The legislation, led by Reps. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), seeks to thread the needle on two key issues that have slowed progress on privacy of years: the ability of individuals to sue under the statute and how it should interact with state laws.
The new proposal includes a limited private right of action and some standards that would preempt state rules. Despite striking a compromise on those issues, the bill has been criticized for being too little to tackle the myriad risks threatening American’s data privacy.
Sens. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), key figures on previous privacy efforts, have already raised concerns along those lines.
Google slams antitrust bill
Google escalated its criticism of the bipartisan antitrust bill led by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in a blog post Tuesday.
Google’s vice president of engineering for privacy, safety and security Royal Hansen said the bill would “undermine our ability to keep people safe.”
The bill aims to keep dominant tech companies from emphasizing their own products and services over rivals. For example, it could bar Google from highlighting its own services in its search function.
Hansen said as written the bill could keep Google from security products by default, and may “even require” Google to open its system up to “untrusted and potentially vulnerable rival services.”
Hansen also said the bill could prevent Google from taking action against “purveyors of malicious content,” by prohibiting the company from discriminating against competitors.
Google’s latest blog post attacking the bill aimed at reining in tech giants comes as Klobuchar pushes for a floor vote on the legislation this summer. The bill advanced out of the Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support earlier this year, and a version in the House advanced out of the committee last year.
Backlash: Klobuchar and other supporters of the bill have pushed back on the criticism that it would lead to national security concerns.
Sacha Haworth, executive director of the Tech Oversight Project, a group backing the antitrust proposal, slammed Google’s blog post and said the proposal would benefit user safety.
“Google’s ‘security concerns’ are not just flimsy, they insult your intelligence,” Haworth said in a statement. “Google and Big Tech companies will always put their profits ahead of security, which is why Congress needs to act to allow products and services into the marketplace that ACTUALLY put users and their privacy first.”
BITS & PIECES
An op-ed to chew on: To battle deepfakes, our technologies must track their transformations
Notable links from around the web:
Amazon fired Chris Smalls. Now the new union leader is one of its biggest problems. (Recode / Shrin Ghaffary)
Our Country Moves Closer to a Federal Privacy Law, and I Move Closer To Losing My Mind (Gizmodo / Shoshana Wodinsky)
The linguistics search engine that overturned the federal mask mandate (The Verge / Nicole Wetsman)
A PR Firm Is Paying TikTok Influencers to Promote Liberal Causes and Hype Democrats’ Middling Accomplishments (Motherboard / Anna Merlan)
One more thing: Tech weighs in on visas
A coalition of U.S.-based tech companies sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas asking him to revamp the department’s policies for children of high-skilled visa holders.
In the letter sent on Tuesday, obtained by The Wall Street Journal, the coalition asked the Biden administration to establish “more robust aging out policies” in an effort to address the issue of children of long-term visa holders being able to continue as beneficiaries of their parents’ pending green card applications even after they turn 21.
The coalition noted that more than 200,000 children have grown up in this country under their parents’ protected visa status, which included those who are holders of H-1B visas.
The letter was signed by tech companies such as Twitter, Uber Technologies Inc., Amazon, Google and IBM.
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Technology and Cybersecurity pages for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.
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Live results: South Dakota primary
The Associated Press is following the election in South Dakota.
Follow the live results below.
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Health Care — White House braces for Roe v. Wade ruling
Ahead of tomorrow’s NBA Finals Game 3, watch a group of Golden State Warriors players try (and mostly fail) to pronounce city names in Massachusetts.
A Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade is imminent, and the White House is preparing for the response to the monumental decision.
Welcome to Overnight Health Care, where we’re following the latest moves on policy and news affecting your health. For The Hill, we’re Peter Sullivan, Nathaniel Weixel and Joseph Choi. Subscribe here.
White House prepares for abortion decision
The White House is quietly preparing for a Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, a consequential decision expected to come this month that will create immediate pressure to respond and take action.
Members of the administration have held listening sessions with state officials, medical organizations, faith leaders and businesses regarding the legal barriers to abortion already in place in certain states.
- Focusing on state leaders underscores the White House doesn’t have a lot of options unless Congress acts.
Showing interest: Individuals who participated in those meetings told The Hill that they are encouraged by the White House’s attention but are waiting for concrete details.
“I believe that we are at least setting the stage to fight a bigger fight that’s going to happen,” said Marsha Jones, executive director of The Afiya Center, an organization devoted to the health of Black women and girls in Texas. “The White House, at least they are giving the perception that they are willing to fight this fight with us.”
How vocal will Biden be? Publicly, President Biden has been largely mum on the issue of abortion in the weeks since he expressed outrage at the Supreme Court draft ruling nixing Roe, which leaked at the start of May.
Vice President Harris, meanwhile, has become one of the administration’s leading voices, holding a roundtable on Monday with faith leaders on abortion rights in Los Angeles and releasing a video on social media last week arguing that other rights are at risk if the court overturns the landmark abortion ruling.
FDA panel gives nod to Novavax COVID-19 shot
An outside advisory panel voted overwhelmingly to recommend the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorize a COVID-19 vaccine made by Novavax for use in adults, a move that could lead to adding a fourth vaccine to the U.S. arsenal.
The FDA’s vaccine advisory panel voted 21-0, with one abstention. The FDA does not have to follow the panel’s recommendation, though it often does.
- Novavax’s two-dose vaccine was about 90 percent effective at preventing mild, moderate and severe COVID-19 during clinical trials.
- But critically, the trials were conducted before the omicron variant and panel members expressed concern about whether the efficacy would hold up against the current variants.
Reaching vaccine holdouts: Novavax’s vaccine could appeal to people who have been reluctant to receive one of the mRNA vaccines, as it was manufactured using a fundamentally different process.
But winning over even a small number of eligible people who haven’t yet been vaccinated could be a difficult task and it’s not clear how much success the company will find. The U.S. is not short on doses from any of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines that have been available for more than a year.
VIRTUAL EVENT INVITE
Closing the Gaps in Health Insurance, Wednesday, June 8 at 1 p.m. ET
A record number of Americans are insured yet many remain vulnerable to significant medical expenses, including high premiums, out-of-pocket costs and prior authorization burdens. The Hill sits down with Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) and more to discuss closing the gaps in health insurance. RSVP today.
FOUR DESTINATIONS ADDED TO COVID TRAVEL WARNING LIST
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has added four destinations to its list of “high-risk” travel locations regarding COVID-19 statistics.
Guyana, Mongolia, Namibia and St. Kitts and Nevis were all deemed a Level 3 travel risk on Monday, according to the CDC. They were previously categorized at Level 2, or “moderate” risk.
- CDC said people should avoid those countries if they are not up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations.
- To be considered a Level 3 or high-risk destination, countries must have more than 100 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over the past 28 days.
The new standard: In April, the agency removed all destinations from the Level 4 risk category, saying it would reserve “Level 4” warnings “for special circumstances, such as rapidly escalating case trajectory or extremely high case counts, emergence of a new variant of concern, or healthcare infrastructure collapse.”
WATCHDOG PRESSES NIH OVER FOREIGN FUNDING DISCLOSURES
The oversight office for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a report Tuesday that found a majority of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) grant recipients failed to meet federal requirements regarding foreign financial interests and support.
HHS’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) found that more than two-thirds of grantees — 69 percent — who conducted NIH-funded research failed to meet at least one federal requirement on disclosing foreign financial interests, and many also lacked oversight that would ensure the materials they submit to NIH are accurate and complete.
- The report stated it is the responsibility of grantees to ensure that foreign financial interests are disclosed.
- OIG found that grant recipients did not require their researchers to disclose grants, professional affiliations or participation in foreign government programs despite recent reminders from NIH to do so.
A lack of enforcement: However, the report acknowledged that the recipients of certain grants may have been unaware that they were subject to specific federal requirements and many — nearly 3 out of 4 — lacked the training or guidance on disclosing foreign support.
Warnock presses Schumer to hold vote on insulin bill
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) is pressuring Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) to hold a vote on legislation to lower the cost of insulin.
Warnock faces a tough reelection race this year and has made lowering the cost of insulin a central part of his message.
“I am deeply disappointed the Senate was not able to vote on this critical legislation before Memorial Day,” Warnock wrote in a letter to Schumer dated Monday.
“The time is now to finally act on this critical issue, and we can’t afford to wait any longer,” he wrote.
Different bills: Warnock has a bill to cap patients’ out-of-pocket costs for insulin at $35 per month. But the main effort on insulin in the Senate is a measure from Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine.) that would include a $35 cap on patient costs while also including other measures aimed at reducing the overall price of the drug.
Slipping timeline: Schumer gave his support to the talks between Shaheen and Collins in March and said then that he planned to hold a vote “as soon as possible after Easter recess,” but that timeline has now come and gone.
Collins said Tuesday that she and Shaheen are “close” to introducing their bill.
WHAT WE’RE READING
- They thought they bought Obamacare plans. What they got wasn’t insurance (Kaiser Health News)
- Manchin is waffling on whether he wants to avoid setting off an Obamacare time-bomb. (Insider)
- ‘Testing bottleneck’ for monkeypox puts hope of containment at risk, experts warn (Stat)
STATE BY STATE
- With new senator, Nebraska abortion opponents gain ground (Associated Press)
- California wants to slash insulin prices by becoming a drugmaker. Can it succeed? (Kaiser Health News)
- First probable case of monkeypox reported in Maricopa County (ABC15)
OP-EDS IN THE HILL
- ObamaCare premium hikes are making Democrats sick
- Call to end inbound international flight testing is correct, for all the wrong reasons
- America’s seniors are paying for Medicare mismanagement
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Health Care page for the latest news and coverage. See you tomorrow.
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Defense & National Security — Veterans offer bright spot in Washington
Veterans are in the spotlight in Washington this week as the Senate considers legislation helping those exposed to toxins and President Biden signs bills aimed at supporting Americans who have served.
We’ll have more on the legislation plus the Department of Homeland Security’s grim warning on the threats of domestic extremists.
This is Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. For The Hill, I’m Jordan Williams. Subscribe here.
Veterans’ bills progress through Washington
Veterans took the spotlight on Tuesday as both President Biden and the Senate advanced legislation expanding care and benefits.
On Capitol Hill, the upper chamber advanced a bill that would expand care to veterans suffering illnesses because of exposures to toxins during their service.
Meanwhile, Biden signed nine bipartisan bills also aimed at expanding access to veterans’ care and honoring veterans’ legacies.
Honor our PACT Act: The Senate invoked cloture on the Sgt. First Class Heath Robinson Honor our PACT Act, which would expand the Department of Veterans Affairs’ health care eligibility to veterans impacted by toxic exposures.
The upper chamber voted 86-12 to advance the bill, with all no votes coming from Republicans. Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) unveiled the legislation last month, which came on the heels of a year of bipartisan negotiations.
In a statement after the cloture vote, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Tuesday’s vote was a “critical step towards delivering health care and benefits to veterans and survivors impacted by toxic exposures.”
“President Biden looks forward to working with Congress to swiftly enact this legislation and continue to uphold our sacred obligation to support those who have served our nation, their families, caregivers, and survivors,” she added.
A familiar face: Comedian Jon Stewart joined advocates and lawmakers on Tuesday morning to urge the Senate to pass the bill.
Stewart—an outspoken advocates for veterans who suffer from toxic exposures— applauded the veterans who advocated for the bill, and the legislative aides who negotiated over the past year.
“Real men and women who served this country through heroism and sacrifice—whether they were fighting for freedom or just trying to get out of a drug treatment program doesn’t matter. They kept their covenant with this country,” Stewart said.
“And today is the day that this country says if they’re going to keep their covenant with them,” he continued.
Meanwhile, on Pennsylvania Ave: Biden signed the Dr. Kate Hendricks Thomas SERVICE Act to provide better access to mammograms for veterans exposed to burn pits.
The legislation aims to ensure that veterans who serve near burn pits get preventative care and requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct breast cancer screenings for women who experience toxic exposures.
He signed eight other pieces of legislation Tuesday focused on veteran health care, including a bill to improve breast imaging services for veterans regardless of if they’re exposed to burn pits or not, and to compensate veterans who developed cancer and medical conditions from the World War II-era nuclear programs.
“Less than one percent of the population risk everything to defend our nation and our values and everything we hold dear. And you know, the 99 percent of us who don’t, we owe them, we owe them big,” Biden said at the bill signing. “And that’s what today is all about, is paying a debt in my view.”
DHS offers grim warning after mass shootings
After several particularly violent weeks, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is warning the threats the U.S. faces are only expected to become more “dynamic” as domestic extremists eye vulnerable targets.
The specific warning: “Several recent violent attacks by lone offenders against minority communities, schools, houses of worship, and mass transit have demonstrated the dynamic and complex nature of the threat environment facing the United States,” the agency wrote in a terrorism advisory bulletin posted Tuesday.
The bulletin, updated every few months, is the first since gunmen opened fire at a grocery store in Buffalo, N.Y., and at a school in Uvalde, Texas.
“In the coming months, we expect the threat environment to become more dynamic as several high-profile events could be exploited to justify acts of violence against a range of possible targets,” DHS wrote, noting schools, houses of worship and minority groups could all be targeted.
On divisive issues: DHS again warned the U.S. debate surrounding abortion rights could prompt violence, noting that “individuals who advocate both for and against abortion have, on public forums, encouraged violence, including against government, religious, and reproductive healthcare personnel and facilities, as well as those with opposing ideologies.”
DHS for the first time this year also issued a warning over border politics possibly serving as a motivating factor behind violence.
The role of foreign adversaries: DHS reported that ISIS and al Qaeda supporters “released statements celebrating the hostage taker” who hit a Texas synagogue earlier this year. The agency also described “pro-al-Qa‘ida and ISIS users” celebrating an April attack on the New York City subway system that is still under investigation.
Efforts to promote division are only expected to intensify leading up to the midterm elections this fall.
“Chinese, Iranian, Russian, and other foreign malign influence actors have sought to contribute to U.S. internal discord and weaken its focus and position internationally,” DHS wrote.
Raytheon moves to DC area
Raytheon Technologies on Tuesday announced it will move its global headquarters from Massachusetts to Arlington, Va., making it the latest major defense contractor to reside in the Washington, D.C., area.
Its headquarters will be moved to Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood, where the defense contractor already has offices for its intelligence and space business, the company said.
Why make the move? The maker of the thousands of Stinger missiles sent to Ukraine amid its war with Russia said in a statement the move “increases agility in supporting U.S. government and commercial aerospace customers.”
It also pointed to the area’s position as “a convenient travel hub for the company’s global customers and employees.”
Joining the competition: With the move, the surrounding D.C. suburbs will now host the headquarters for the top five U.S. defense companies: Lockheed Martin in Bethesda, Md.; Raytheon and Boeing in Arlington; Northrop Grumman in Falls Church, Va.; and General Dynamics in Reston, Va. Boeing announced its move to Arlington early last month.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) announced the Raytheon move in a statement on Twitter, saying the shift “demonstrates that the Commonwealth is the best destination for the aerospace and defense community.”
Senate confirms Air Force manpower boss
The Senate voted 76-21 on Tuesday to confirm Alex Wagner to serve as the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.
President Biden nominated Wagner—a longtime defense official from the Obama administration—for the position in July. The Senate Armed Services committee advanced his nomination in October.
He will be replacing John Fedrigo, who has served in the role in an acting capacity since January 2021.
Wagner will be responsible for supervising manpower, military and civilian personnel issues, reserve component affairs and readiness support in the Air Force.
During the Obama administration, Wagner served as Chief of Staff to the Army. He also served as a senior adviser and special assistant in the Pentagon
He currently serves as the vice president for Strategic Initiatives at the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA).
ON TAP TOMORROW
- The Department of Defense will begin the 2022 DoD Digital and AI Symposium
- The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on “The Path Forward On U.S.-Syria Policy: Strategy And Accountability” at 10 a.m.
- The Atlantic Council will host a discussion on “Strengthening Black Sea security and defense in a new era” at 12:30 p.m.
- The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace will host “Trouble on the Homefront” at 1 p.m.
- Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) will join the Heritage Foundation’s discussion on Maintaining American Nuclear Deterrence at 3:30 p.m.
- The Institute of World Politics will host an online seminar on Enterprise Threat Modeling at 6 p.m.
- The Intelligence and National Security Alliance will host a leadership dinner with DoD Chief Information Officer John Sherman at 7:30 p.m.
- The Ploughshares Fund will hold an event titled “Chain Reaction: Action Now”
HOUSE
- The Armed Services subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems will hold a markup for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 at 10 a.m.
- The Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee on Technology Modernization will hold a hearing on “Cybersecurity and Risk Management at VA: Addressing Ongoing Challenges and Moving Forward” at 10 a.m.
- The Committee on Small Business will hold a hearing on “Military to Main Street: Serving Veteran Entrepreneurship” at 10 a.m.
- The Armed Services subcommittee on Strategic Forces will hold a markup for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 at 12 p.m.
- The Armed Services subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces will hold a markup for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 at 2 p.m.
- The House Armed Services subcommittee on Military Personnel will hold a markup for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 at 3:30 p.m.
WHAT WE’RE READING
- Here’s a list of the people who have been subpoenaed by the Jan. 6 committee
- Democrat on Jan. 6 hearing: ‘We’re going to see how much Trump was involved’
- McConaughey calls for ‘real change’ on guns in emotional White House appearance
That’s it for today. Check out The Hill’s Defense and National Security pages for the latest coverage. See you tomorrow!
Source: TEST FEED1
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Schumer firms up gun negotiation deadline but talks may take longer
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday he would give negotiators until the end of the week to strike an agreement on gun violence-related legislation even as some senators say they’ll need more time than that.
Schumer said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told him that he expects to come to an agreement with Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) by the end of the week and that Schumer was “willing to give him that time.”
Schumer also however left open the possibility of the talks taking longer.
“Sen. Murphy expects he can come to an agreement with Sen. Cornyn by the end of the week and I expect to give him that time. If they don’t come to that agreement, we’ll see what happens after that,” Schumer said.
Some GOP senators had signaled earlier that talks could stretch into next week
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told The Hill on Tuesday that he’s “somewhat optimistic” about the progress senators have made so far, but indicated negotiators will likely need more time.
“This is a week to kind of pound out the details, and we don’t need much, but we’ll probably need beyond Friday,” Graham said.
Cornyn, whom Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) tapped to take part in negotiations, also called for “adequate time” for talks in remarks from the Senate floor.
“I don’t believe the Senate will be voting this week because good consensus legislation takes time,” Cornyn said. “So, I hope Senator Schumer will let his members work. There’s no use in rushing a vote on a doomed partisan bill like the House is expected to vote on this week.”
Lawmakers have embarked on bipartisan negotiations in an attempt to come to some agreement on gun violence legislation in response to a elementary school shooting in Texas that killed 19 children and two teachers.
Senate Republicans and Democrats have expressed hope, but also some caution, on whether the group could come to a consensus on matters involving red flag laws, strengthening background checks and increasing school security measures.
Alex Bolton contributed.
Source: TEST FEED1