It’s been Immigration Week on Capitol Hill but now it’s time to move on. So what will drive headlines in the week ahead? Here’s a look at the Washington Week Ahead.
TECH HEARING: Leaders of major Silicon Valley companies like Facebook, Alphabet, and Twitter will be testifying in front of subcommittees of the House Energy and Commerce Committee about how their platforms are handling misinformation and disinformation. Spoiler: not well, according to lawmakers. Expect officials on both sides to criticize the platforms. Democrats will likely focus on the role of Google, Facebook, and Twitter in the January 6 insurrection and misinformation generally while Republicans will attempt to get to the root of what they see as anti-conservative bias.
BIDEN SPEAKS: President Joe Biden will take center stage to answer questions from journalists for the first time in his presidency. Biden has received a lot of criticism for not taking questions up to this point. The White House has pointed to COVID-19 restrictions as a major reason why, but after four years of frequent access to the U.S. president, reporters are hoping for more comments directly from the Commander-in-Chief.
FOR THE PEOPLE: The Senate will take up H.R. 1, the “For the People Act,” that passed the House of Representatives early in March. The comprehensive voting rights legislation would expand early voting, enact automatic voter registration and make Election Day a federal holiday. While the Senate is limited by the legislative filibuster, this will be the first time the bill will even be debated on that side of Capitol Hill.
INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK...NO, REALLY: It’s Infrastructure Week! No, really. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will be testifying in front of the House Transportation Committee to sell Biden’s infrastructure plan. The $2 trillion plan would make major investments in green energy and renewable technology while also updating that nation’s crumbling roads and bridges. But, Republicans are not sold on the hefty price tag, especially right after another nearly $2 trillion bill passed out of Congress: the American Rescue Plan Act.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg joined Cheddar's Michelle Castillo from South By Southwest to boost President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure legislation and talk about the big transportation issues of the day, including electric vehicle charging infrastructure and the future of public transit. "It means we have a huge wind at our back delivering on the kinds of transportation solutions that are going to define the 2020's 2030s, 2040s even," he said. "And that's what makes it exciting to come to South by Southwest and talk with some of the people who are following these technologies and ideas the most closely and talk about where we're headed." Buttigieg also touched on the "Don't Say Gay" legislation in Florida, noting that such legislative pushes were likely coming from politicians deflecting from lacking answers to pressing economic concerns, in his opinion.
Following President Biden's executive order that could lead toward regulating digital currency in the United States. Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J. 5th District), the congressman responsible for proposing a bill to regulate stablecoins, digital assets backed by fiat currencies, joined Cheddar News to discuss the bill. "I just want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to be helpful to encourage this innovation and growth here in the United States," he said.
European antitrust regulators gave Amazon approval for its MGM acquisition deal. Amazon expects MGM's collection of content will help it compete in the increasingly crowded world of streaming services.
Lisa Whalen, managing director of automotive and mobility analysis at Morning Consult, joins Cheddar News to discuss Uber and Lyft's decision to enact price surcharges on riders.
Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.) joined Cheddar News to talk about a range of topics including Sarah Bloom Raskin's recent withdrawal as a nominee to the Federal Reserve, the impact the Federal Reserve will have on inflation, and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. "I think it's unfortunate she had to withdraw. I think she was very, very qualified for the position by everything she's done in her past, especially in the area of cyber," he said. "She would have been good to have on the Fed."
With a zero-covid policy in China, country officials are imposing lockdowns in the region in an attempt to control the spread. With China being home to about one-third of global manufacturing, these lockdowns are wreaking havoc on the already fragile supply chain, causing disruption to production of phones and cars alike. Suketu Gandhi, Supply Chain Partner at Kearney joined Cheddar's Azia Celestino to discuss.
Markets opened higher this morning as oil prices fall and investors await a decision from the Federal Reserve. Keith Fitz-Gerald, Chief Investment Officer, Fitz-Gerald Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Catching you up on what you Need to Know on March 16, 2022, with updates on Ukraine and Russia, a container ship gets stuck in the Chesapeake Bay, Disney employees stage a walkout over the "Don't Say Gay" law in Florida, and NASA completes its first spacewalk of 2022.
With the Fed about to the announce a 25 basis point interest rate hike on Wednesday, what exactly does this mean for investors, consumers, and businesses?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has summoned the memory of Pearl Harbor and the Sept. 11 terror attacks in an impassioned video plea to Congress to send more help for Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
