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Trump: Democrats need to pass 'school security' bills
Former President Trump criticized Democrats for not backing measures to increase security in schools during a Friday address at the NRA’s annual meeting that came days after a teenage gunman armed with an assault weapon killed 19 children and two elementary school teachers in the nation’s latest gruesome mass shooting.
Trump, who is seen as a leading contender to be the GOP’s presidential nominee again in 2024, did not offer support for gun restrictions in his address, instead lambasting Democrats over school safety.
“Whatever our differences may be on other issues, what on earth is stopping Democrats from immediately passing measures to ramp up school security,” Trump said
“How many more tragedies will it take until they agree to set aside their far left political agenda and do what is really needed and actually works,” Trump added.
Democrats are pressing for more restrictions on guns in the wake of the shooting in Texas and another mass shooting a week earlier in Buffalo, N.Y., in which a gunman targeted a Black neighborhood.
A ban on assault weapons expired in 2004 and there has been little traction moving on even narrow measures such as background checks legislation in Congress despite mass shooting after mass shooting.
During his speech, Trump suggested metal detectors, armed guards and single-entry points for schools to combat mass shootings.
Gun control supporters have argued that calls for school security measures and other issues miss the larger issue of guns that links the various mass shootings.
Trump was one of several GOP heavyweights who appeared at the annual meeting, though there were some notable absences.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott offered a video address but did not appear in person so that he could continue with the state’s response to the Texas killings.
Trump took a swipe at those who didn’t show up to the event, though it was not clear who he was speaking about.
“And, unlike some, I didn’t disappoint you by not showing up,” Trump said. “Gotta show up.”
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On The Money — Student loan forgiveness may be on the way
President Biden is closer than ever to announcing an executive order to forgive some student loan debt. We’ll also look at the latest inflation figures, trouble seizing Russian assets and new sanctions on North Korea.
But first, the photos of the week.
Welcome to On The Money, your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. For The Hill, we’re Sylvan Lane, Aris Folley and Karl Evers-Hillstrom. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.
Programming note: On the Money will not publish on Monday, May 30, in observance of Memorial Day. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Biden zeroes in on canceling $10K in student loans
President Biden is nearing a decision on student loan debt forgiveness, with the president and his team zeroing in on canceling $10,000 per borrower, with some potential caveats.
Multiple reports indicated Biden considered using the weekend commencement ceremonies to announce some student debt forgiveness, with The Washington Post reporting the timing was changed in the wake of a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 children dead. A White House official disputed that was the case, however.
- White House officials cautioned no decision has been finalized as Biden continues to weigh his options.
- The president is scheduled to speak at the Naval Academy’s commencement ceremony on Friday and at the University of Delaware’s ceremony on Saturday.
Multiple sources told The Hill in late April that Biden was looking at canceling at least $10,000 in student debt, and indications are the White House appears to have settled on that number even as they work through potential limits on who the loan cancellation would benefit.
The Hill’s Brett Samuels has the latest here.
PEAK INFLATION?
Prices rose at slightly slower rate in April, new data shows
Consumer prices grew at slower yearly and monthly rates in April, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
- The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation, rose 6.3 percent in the 12 months ending in April, down from a 6.6 percent annual inflation rate in March.
- The index rose 0.2 percent in April alone, well below the 0.9 percent monthly gain from March.
- Without food and energy prices, which tend to be more volatile, the PCE price index rose 4.9 percent annually in April and 0.3 percent between March and April.
The data was largely in line with economists’ expectations.
“This is a small step in the right direction, but inflation remains comfortably above the Fed’s target. The good news for the Fed is that most measures of long-term inflation expectations remain consistent with the Fed’s target,” wrote Ryan Sweet, senior director at Moody’s Analytics, in a Friday analysis.
Sylvan breaks it down here.
SECRECY LAWS
US fights its own secrecy laws to pursue Russian assets
Some of the biggest obstacles for investigators going after Russian assets amid the country’s now three-month-long invasion of Ukraine are the legal mechanisms for preserving anonymity that are built into the U.S. tax and financial code.
The most powerful of these rules is the designation known as beneficial ownership, which allows asset owners to remain unregistered on legal documents as long as they name a third party to act on their behalf.
- That means beneficial ownership laws can allow billions of dollars’ worth of illicit property to remain invisible to financial investigators.
- They’re also one of the main reasons the U.S. now ranks above Switzerland and the Cayman Islands as the most financially secretive country in the world, according to a list published this month by the Tax Justice Network, a U.K.-based nonprofit.
The Hill’s Tobias Burns has more here.
SANCTIONS
US sanctions North Korea in response to latest missile launches
The Treasury Department will freeze the assets of two North Korean banks, one individual and a trading company working with the country’s rocket ministry following the May 24 launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile and two shorter-range missiles by North Korea.
The sanctions target supporters of the country’s weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs, as well as foreign financial institutions that “have knowingly provided significant financial services” to the North Korean government, Brian Nelson, head of the Treasury Department’s terrorism and financial intelligence division, said in a statement.
- The property of import-export company Air Koryo as well as an individual named Jong Yong Nam were frozen by the order from Treasury for their role in trying to procure “transistors and hydraulic system components” for the North Korean state rocket industry.
- The order, administered by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control, “blocks the property of persons engaged in [WMD] proliferation activities and their support networks.”
Check out more here from The Hill’s Tobias Burns.
Good to Know
Soaring gas prices have Americans bracing for an expensive Memorial Day weekend, the traditional start of the summer when vacation-related travel typically spikes.
Despite the increases — last week, every state had gas prices over $4 for the first time ever — AAA is predicting travel for the three-day weekend will return to near pre-pandemic levels.
Here’s what else have our eye on:
- A group of Senate Democrats asked Apple and Google to prohibit apps available in their app stores from using data mining practices to target people seeking abortion services in letters sent to the tech giants Friday.
- Delta Air Lines on Thursday announced that it will cut 100 flights from its daily schedule, primarily in the U.S. and Latin America, as the airline business continues to reel from high petroleum prices and supply chain disruptions.
That’s it for today. Thanks for reading and check out The Hill’s Finance page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you next week.
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Health Care – Committee launches probe of birth control coverage
It took more than 20 years, but “Star Wars” prequels are cool now. The “Obi-Wan Kenobi” series premiered today, which you may want to watch if you’re a fan of “Star Wars” — or handsome Scottish men.
The House Oversight Committee is probing some of the largest health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers amid reports that they are not providing free birth control to beneficiaries.
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. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.
Programming note: Health Care will not publish Monday, May 30, in observance of Memorial Day. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Panel presses insurers on free birth control
The House Oversight and Reform Committee is pressing major health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers on their coverage of contraceptives, saying they may not be fully complying with requirements to cover them at no cost to the patient.
Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) sent letters to nine companies requesting information on their birth control coverage, which they are required to cover fully under Affordable Care Act (ACA) rules.
“I am deeply troubled by reports that health plans and issuers may not be fully complying with the ACA’s requirement to cover contraceptives at no cost, potentially depriving patients of access to critically important reproductive health care,” Maloney said in a statement.
She wrote that insurers are sometimes not covering contraceptives that were recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration or were sometimes requiring payment for the surrounding services, such as an office visit.
“Public reporting and information obtained by the Committee indicates that some plans and issuers, including their pharmacy benefit managers (PBM), have not been in compliance with these requirements,” Maloney wrote.
An increased spotlight has also fallen on contraceptive access recently given the expected ruling from the Supreme Court overturning the right to an abortion in Roe v. Wade. That ruling is set to be issued sometime next month.
Medicare premium increase to be lowered next year
Medicare beneficiaries won’t see lower premiums this year, even though the cost of including a new Alzheimer’s medication into the program had been overestimated.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on Friday said Medicare premiums would be adjusted for 2023, not for 2022, “to account for an overestimate in costs attributable to the inclusion of new Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm within the Medicare program for reimbursement.”
HHS cited “legal and operational hurdles” as the reason premiums will not be adjusted this year. Becerra acknowledged that HHS had hoped to achieve this lowered premium sooner, but said it was not “feasible.”
FDA approved Aduhelm, created by Biogen, in June, making it the first Alzheimer’s medication approved in almost 20 years.
The drug has since faced scrutiny over its actual efficacy in treating Alzheimer’s disease as well as its sky-high cost. When the drug was approved, it initially cost $56,000 a year. However, Biogen announced in December that it was halving the cost down to $28,200 a year, or about $2,170 per monthly infusion for patients.
In January, Becerra ordered Medicare to “reassess” the proposed premium increase following Biogen’s announcement.
DEMS WANT TO BAN DATA MINING PEOPLE SEEKING ABORTIONS
A group of Senate Democrats asked Apple and Google to prohibit apps available in their app stores from using data mining practices to target people seeking abortion services in letters sent to the tech giants Friday.
The senators, led by Sen. Ed Markey (Mass.), asked the companies to review and update their app store policies and practices as necessary to address concerns around allowing apps to engage in “data practices that may victimize individuals who seek or have sought abortion services.”
The senators underscored the need for the updates following the leak of a draft majority opinion indicating the Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which could make abortion illegal in states across the country with restrictive laws.
The senators said information about app users’ fertility, browser histories indicating interest in contraception or location information showing a user visited a gynecologist could become a “data trove for actors who are intent on targeting, intimidating, and harming individuals who seek abortions or individuals who simply take steps to promote their reproductive health.”
AMERICANS GROWING CONCERNED OVER FORMULA SHORTAGE: POLL
The overwhelming majority of Americans appear to be worried about the ongoing baby formula shortage as top Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials warn supplies will not return to normal until July.
A new poll from the progressive think tank Data for Progress found 84 percent of voters said they are either “very” or “somewhat” concerned about the lack of formula across the U.S. That includes 86 percent of Democrats, 84 percent of Republicans and 83 percent of independents.
Eighty-two percent said they favor importing baby formula from abroad, an operation President Biden kicked off this week in a scramble to get product on the shelves. The same share supports expanding the number of baby formula products made available to families participating in the government’s nutrition program for women, infants and children.
Currently, four companies make up 90 percent of the formula market.
Among the 6 percent of respondents who are parents of infants, more than half said they have struggled to find formula since the widespread shortage started in February.
What we know about monkeypox cases in the US
Nine likely cases of monkeypox have been identified in the U.S. so far as the virus continues to spread throughout Western countries, outside of the central and western African regions where it typically occurs.
Health authorities have been quick to advise against panic, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) still considering monkeypox to pose a low risk to the general community.
Health experts have stressed that monkeypox is not another COVID-19.
“If people have COVID in their minds, they should cast that out. Because this is not COVID. It doesn’t transmit with the same facility,” Stanley Deresinski, a clinical professor of infectious diseases at Stanford University, told The Hill.
As Deresinski noted, monkeypox requires prolonged skin-to-skin contact for it to spread from person to person, unlike SARS-CoV-2, which spreads through respiratory droplets. The main method through which monkeypox spreads is through the characteristic lesions that develop on the skin.
One clear difference between the monkeypox outbreak and the coronavirus pandemic is that treatments and vaccines for monkeypox were immediately available through the U.S. national stockpile and have already been mobilized to states where cases have been detected.
WHAT WE’RE READING
- Key Senate committee proposes a council to ensure FDA better coordinates on accelerated approvals (Stat)
- Argentina confirms Latin America’s first case of monkeypox (Reuters)
- On remote US territories, abortion hurdles mount without Roe (Associated Press)
STATE BY STATE
- Planned Parenthood plans to offer gender-affirming hormone therapy across Michigan (MLive.com)
- John Fetterman got a defibrillator after his stroke. But doctors say the campaign’s story ‘doesn’t make sense.’ (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
- Politics and pandemic fatigue doom California’s COVID vaccine mandates (Kaiser Health News)
THE HILL OP-ED
The formula crisis puts Black infants at risk for severe undernutrition
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Health Care page for the latest news and coverage. See you next week.
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Hillicon Valley — Yubo app involved in Texas investigation
Yubo, a chat and video app for teens, said it is cooperating with law enforcement as reports emerge that the gunman who shot elementary school students and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, discussed his plans on the platform before the attack.
Meanwhile, a group of Senate Democrats wrote to Apple and Google Friday urging them to prohibit apps from data mining practices that target people seeking abortion as the fate of Roe v. Wade is in a precarious position.
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. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.
Programming note: Hillicon Valley will not publish on Monday, May 30, in observance of Memorial Day. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Yubo cooperating with Texas investigation
Yubo, a livestreaming app marketed toward teenagers, is cooperating with law enforcement on the investigation into the Uvalde, Texas, mass shooting as reports emerge that the gunman used the platform to discuss his plans before carrying out the attack.
Salvador Ramos, the 18-year-old gunman who was killed by law enforcement during the shooting, exchanged messages on the platform with a 15-year-old girl in Germany earlier on the day of the attack saying he was going to shoot his grandmother and “shoot up” an elementary school, The New York Times reported Wednesday, citing screenshots provided by the girl he spoke with, identified by her nickname Cece.
Ramos also reportedly used the platform, which allows users to live video chat or send text-based messages to strangers they connect with, for video calls with Cece earlier in the month when he told her he was purchasing an AR-15 rifle, the Times reported.
One of many: Cece is just one of more than a dozen users who said they interacted with Ramos on the platform and received seemingly disturbing messages, according to reports.
A Yubo spokesperson confirmed in a statement Friday that the company is cooperating with law enforcement and investigating a since-banned account but declined to share details on the investigation into the account.
“We are deeply saddened by this unspeakable loss and are fully cooperating with law enforcement on their investigation. At this stage, we are not legally able to release any specific user information outside of direct requests from law enforcement, but can confirm that we are investigating an account that has since been banned from the platform,” the spokesperson said.
Dems push app stores on data mining
A group of Senate Democrats asked Apple and Google to prohibit apps available in their app stores from using data mining practices to target people seeking abortion services in letters sent to the tech giants Friday.
The Democrats, led by Sen. Ed Markey (Mass.), asked the companies to review and update their app store policies and practices as necessary to address concerns around allowing apps to engage in “data practices that may victimize individuals who seek or have sought abortion services.”
The Democrats said they are concerned that anti-abortion prosecutors or other actors will try to access and leverage personal information, such as data about locations online activity, health and biometrics, in ways that “threaten the well being of those exercising their right to choose.”
The senators underscored the need for the updates following the leak of a draft majority opinion indicating the Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which could make abortion illegal in states across the country with restrictive laws.
DOJ SECURES SENTENCING IN CYBERCRIME SCHEME
A New York resident was sentenced on Wednesday to four years in prison for participating in a fraudulent cybercrime scheme.
John Telusma, who pleaded guilty last year to one count of racketeering conspiracy, admitted to buying stolen or compromised credit cards and aiding members of the Infraud Organization in monetizing their fraudulent scheme.
Telusma is the latest defendant to be sentenced for this role in the Infraud scheme. According to the Department of Justice, the organization is a transnational cybercrime enterprise engaged in the sale of fraud-related goods and services, including stolen identities, compromised credit card data and computer malware.
BITS & PIECES
An op-ed to chew on: Privacy — a Big Tech sleight of hand
Notable links from around the web:
How Influencers Hype-Crypto, Without Disclosing Their Financial Ties (The New York Times / David Yaffe-Bellany)
Shooter warning signs get lost in sea of social media posts (The Associated Press / Amanda Seitz)
A cyberwar is already happening in Ukraine, Microsoft analysts say (NPR / Jenna Mclaughlin)
One more thing: Google pressed on equity audit
A collection of civil society groups and employees at Alphabet, Google’s parent company, sent letters to Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page and former CEO Eric Schmidt Friday urging them to support a racial equity audit at Alphabet.
The letters are pressing the three men to either support or abstain from voting on an investor proposal calling for an independent audit that will be evaluated at Alphabet’s annual stockholder meeting next Wednesday.
Brin, Page and Schmidt collectively control over half of all shareholder votes despite no longer being involved in the day-to-day operations of Google or its parent company because their shares have inflated voting power.
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 next week.
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Defense & National Security — McCarthy rebukes Jan. 6 panel
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has responded to a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, in which he questioned the panel’s legitimacy.
We’ll break down the letter. Plus, we’ll recap President Biden’s commencement speech at the U.S. Naval Academy.
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. A friend forward this newsletter to you? Subscribe here.
Programming note: Defense & National Security will not publish on Monday, May 30, in observance of Memorial Day. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
McCarthy questions Jan. 6 panel’s legitimacy
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) responded to a subpoena from the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol in a letter from his lawyer on Friday that questioned the committee’s legitimacy and requested more information from the panel.
“All valid and lawfully issued subpoenas must be respected and honored. Unfortunately, the words and actions of the Select Committee and its members have made it clear that it is not exercising a valid or lawful use of Congress’ subpoena power,” McCarthy lawyer Elliot S. Berke said in an 11-page letter.
How we got here: The committee issued subpoenas to McCarthy and four other GOP lawmakers earlier this month — Reps. Jim Jordan (Ohio), Scott Perry (Pa.), Andy Biggs (Ariz.), and Mo Brooks (Ala.) — in a highly unusual instance of a committee compelling sitting members of Congress to testify. The panel had previously requested voluntary interviews with the members.
In announcing the subpoena, the committee said that McCarthy had information important to its investigation because he was in communication with former President Trump before, during and after the Jan. 6 attack.
McCarthy said in press interviews on Jan. 6 and after that he had talked to Trump and asked him to speak to the public to stop the attack.
McCarthy’s arguments: Much of the letter went through longtime GOP arguments that the committee is not acting with legitimate authority, in part because none of the sitting members were appointed by the minority leader.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) rejected two of McCarthy’s initial picks for the committee, prompting McCarthy to pull his other three recommendations and refuse to make any more picks.
The letter also argued that it is “difficult to fathom” how the committee is fulfilling any legislative purpose with its subpoena.
Berke asked for the committee to provide a list of topics that it wants to discuss with McCarthy and copies of documents it wants to ask McCarthy about.
He also asked several questions about the ranking member on the committee, questions apparently intended to poke holes in the committee’s legitimacy.
Where to go now: The minority leader and other GOP members subpoenaed by the select committee have limited options in how to respond to the demands.
If they choose not to comply, they can either challenge the panel in court as other potential witnesses have done or defy the subpoenas and risk House contempt proceedings and a criminal referral to the Justice Department. The tactics may succeed in prolonging the investigation in a midterm election year, but it’s far from certain the GOP House members would succeed in court.
Federal courts have repeatedly sided with the select committee in legal challenges against its investigative demands, upholding its subpoenas and the panel’s authority to issue them.
Biden rebukes Putin in Naval Academy address
President Biden on Friday urged this year’s graduating class of midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy to be stewards of strong American leadership abroad as the world faces major challenges including Russia’s war in Ukraine.
‘An inflection point:’ “You are graduating at an inflection point, not only in American history but in world history,” Biden told the graduating class. in the commencement address at the Naval Academy graduation in Annapolis, Md. “The challenges we face, the choices we make are more consequential than ever. Things are changing so rapidly that the next 10 years will be the decisive decade of this century.”
Taking aim at Putin: Biden accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “literally trying to wipe out the culture and identity of the Ukrainian people” by attacking schools, hospitals and other sites in the war that began more than three months ago.
“A direct assault on the fundamental tenets of rules-based international order. That’s what you’re graduating into,” Biden said.
How Biden used the speech: The president largely used the address to prepare the roughly 1,200 graduating midshipmen for the challenges ahead, repeating his belief that the world is in the midst of a “global struggle between autocracies and democracies.”
The graduates, he said, will be “representatives and defenders of our democracy” on the world stage.
“I cannot promise you the way will be straight or the sailing will be easy, but I can promise you that you all have the tools needed to navigate any waters you encounter,” Biden said as he closed the speech. “You are ready.”
Kirby bids farewell to the Pentagon
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby held his last press conference on Friday, during which he highlighted the role of the press when bidding farewell to the podium.
Kirby is set to begin a new role in the White House after serving 18 months as Assistant to the Secretary for Public Affairs and Press Secretary.
“Thank you for the way you put me through my paces, even today, last day,” Kirby said in the final moments of his last press conference in the position. “I got stretched, I got pushed, but that’s what makes you guys so important. That’s what makes this place so special.”
Where is Kirby going? Last week, President Biden named Kirby the National Security Council coordinator for Strategic communications. He will report directly to national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
In a statement, the White House said Kirby will “coordinate interagency efforts” for communications in his new position and will serve as a senior communications point person for the Biden administration.
Invoking Ukraine: In his parting remarks, Kirby highlighted the importance of a free press, noting its coverage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Kirby said the role of the press is especially important as Ukraine fends off Russia’s invasion. He noted that Moscow has been “shutting down a free flow of information.”
“All of you have been, will be or you have colleagues who are on the ground in Ukraine right now putting their own lives in danger, and some of them have been hurt would have been killed,” Kirby said.
“I know that Memorial Day is obviously about memorialize memorializing the fallen,” he added. “I will also— promise you I’ll take some time this weekend to think about them as well.”
Parting words from Austin: During a press conference on Monday, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin thanked Kirby for his time in the agency, saying he served as a “clear and eloquent voice” for the department.
“He’s always understood how central a free and independent press is to our democracy,” Austin said.
“So even when the countries were tough, even when the findings were uncomfortable, when John stood behind this podium, he always committed to truth, trust and transparency,” he added.
ON TAP FOR TUESDAY
- The Information Technology & Innovation Foundation will hos a discussion on “Why the Bipartisan Innovation Act is Crucial for U.S. National Security” at 10:30 a.m.
- The Atlantic Council will host a conversation with Secretary Christine Wormuth at 1:30 p.m.
WHAT WE’RE READING
- US sanctions Nort Korea in response to latest missile launches
- Texas officials say officers should have confronted school shooter sooner
- New York man sentenced to four years in transnational cybercrime scheme
- The Hill Opinion: Washington must recognize the limits of Canada as a strategic ally
- The Hill Opinion: A view of Russia from Helsinki
That’s it for today. Check out The Hill’s Defense and National Security pages for the latest coverage. See you next week!
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Abbott 'livid,' says he was 'misled' on police response to shooting
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he “was misled” and is “livid” over inaccurate information he was given about the police response to the Texas elementary school shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers.
During a press conference on Friday hours after police acknowledged they should have engaged with an active shooter at a deadly school shooting, Abbott said he was given incorrect information about the initial response.
“I was misled,” Abbott said. “I am livid about what happened.”
Abbott earlier this week heaped praise on police for their response to the shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
On Friday, he reversed course.
“As everyone has learned, the information I was given has turned out, in part, to be inaccurate, and I am absolutely livid about that,” he said.
“My expectation is that the law enforcement leaders leading the investigations … they get to the bottom of every fact with absolute certainty.”
Videos have surfaced since the shooting of parents urging police officers to go to the school and police stopping parents from charging in themselves.
“Let’s just rush in because the cops aren’t doing anything like they are supposed to,” said Javier Cazares, the father of a fourth-grader who died during the shooting.
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), who represents the district in which the shooting took place, said the shooting lasted an hour with a 30-minute “lull” when the shooter barricaded himself into a room. Many students were evacuated during that time.
“All of it, I understand, lasted about an hour, but this is where there’s kind of a 30-minute lull,” Gonzales told CNN. “They feel as if they’ve got him barricaded in. The rest of the students in the school are now leaving.”
Police on Friday said they should have sought to engage with the shooter earlier as terrifying details about what was happening inside the school trickled out. One child told CNN she had put the blood of a classmate over her body and played dead as the shooter played music in an adjoining classroom.
Abbott vowed that every official on the scene would be investigated and every minute of the events that day would need to be explained.
“There are people who deserve answers the most and those are the families who lives have been destroyed,” Abbott said. “They need answers that are accurate.”
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Photos of the Week: Manchester City win, Texas school shooting and a panda
Photos curated by Greg Nash, Anna Rose Layden and Madeline Monroe.
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NRA leader calls gun ownership 'fundamental human right'
National Rifle Association (NRA) officials dismissed calls for stricter gun laws on Friday during their annual convention, which is taking place in Houston, a city less than 300 miles from the Texas school shooting that claimed the lives of 19 children and two adults earlier in the week.
NRA head Wayne LaPierre told his group’s members that the Uvalde mass shooting “should never happen again” but rejected gun control proposals, calling gun ownership a “fundamental human right.”
His remarks indicate that Tuesday’s massacre has done nothing to shift the group’s long-standing opposition to any gun restrictions, including expanded background checks and a ban on assault-style weapons.
“Restricting the fundamental human right of law-abiding Americans to defend themselves is not the answer. It never has been,” LaPierre said.
Instead, LaPierre called for additional security at schools, changes to the criminal justice system and new funding to “fix our nation’s broken mental health system” to stop future school shootings.
“We need to protect our schools, because our children deserve at least, and in fact more protection than our banks, stadiums and government buildings … so that every school has a comprehensive security program tailored specifically to that school to meet its security needs,” he said.
Over a pre-recorded video message to NRA members, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) reiterated talking points from NRA officials that new gun laws will not prevent individuals from breaking the law.
“There are thousands of laws on the books across the country that limit the owning or using of firearms, laws that have not stopped madmen from carrying out evil acts on innocent people in peaceful communities,” Abbott said.
Event speakers stressed that they won’t soften their position opposing gun restrictions. Jason Ouimet, executive director of the NRA’s lobbying arm, told supporters that the group will ensure that its pro-gun message remains prominent during the 2022 midterms.
“Now is not the time to quit. Now would be the worst time to quit. Now is when we double down,” South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) told NRA members.
Outside of the NRA event, thousands of protesters rallied against the influential gun group and called on Abbott to step down. The devastating school shooting has sparked a chorus of calls for tougher gun restrictions that the NRA has long lobbied GOP lawmakers to block.
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Medicare premium increase from Alzheimer's drug to be lowered next year
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced on Friday that Medicare premiums would be adjusted for 2023 following a report that found the cost of including a new Alzheimer’s medication into the program had been overestimated.
“Today, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that Medicare Part B premiums paid by Medicare beneficiaries for 2022 should be adjusted downward to account for an overestimate in costs attributable to the inclusion of new Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm within the Medicare program for reimbursement,” the Health and Human Service Department (HHS) said in a statement.
HHS cited “legal and operational hurdles” as the reason premiums will not be adjusted this year. Becerra acknowledged that HHS had hoped to achieve this lowered premium sooner, but said it was not “feasible.”
“CMS and HHS are committed to lowering health care costs – so we look forward to seeing this Medicare premium adjustment across the finish line to ensure seniors get their cost-savings in 2023,” said Becerra.
Aduhelm, created by Biogen, was the first Alzheimer’s medication approved by the FDA in almost 20 years when it was granted approval last June.
The drug has since faced scrutiny over its actual efficacy in treating Alzheimer’s disease as well as its sky-high cost. When the drug was approved, it initially cost $56,000 a year. However, Biogen announced in December that it was halving the cost down to $28,200 a year, or about $2,170 per monthly infusion for patients.
In January, Becerra ordered Medicare to “reassess” the proposed premium increase following Biogen’s announcement.
“With the 50% price drop of Aduhelm on January 1, there is a compelling basis for CMS to reexamine the previous recommendation,” he said at the time.
HHS’s decision comes after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a report that found the costs saved from lower than expected spending on Aduhelm could be passed to Medicare beneficiaries in 2023.
Last month, Medicare announced that it would be limiting coverage of Aduhelm to only include clinical trial patients. HHS did not mention this decision in its announcement, though it may have contributed to the lower than expected costs for Aduhelm, on top of Biogen lowering its price.
Medicare’s Part B monthly premium jumped by $21.60 in 2022, the largest increase in the program’s history, rising from $148.50 in 2021 to $170.10. Part of this increase was to build up a reserve in case Medicare started covering Aduhelm.
After Medicare decided to limit coverage, activists had hoped that the premium would be lowered, with many arguing that the premium should not have been increased by so much in the first place.
Max Richtman, president of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, told Bloomberg Law last month that it was “unlikely” that Aduhelm would have impacted Medcare so “dramatically.”
Source: TEST FEED1