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.
President Joe Biden announced Friday that along with the European Union and the Group of Seven countries, the U.S. will revoke “most favored nation” trade status for Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
The consumer price index jumped 7.9 percent in February, marking a 40-year high for inflation in the U.S. This report comes less than a week ahead of the Fed's all important meeting. Kayla Bruun, Economic Analyst, Morning Consult, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Markets opened lower amid hotter-than-expected inflation data, which surged to its highest level in nearly 40 years. Lisa Erickson, Senior Vice President and Co-Head, Public Markets Group, U.S. Bank joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the significance of this figure ahead of the Federal Reserve's FOMC meeting.
As the Russia-Ukraine war disrupts the global economy, sending markets on a roller coaster ride, gold remains hovering around $2,000 an ounce. Often seen as a safe haven in times of economic crisis, Jason Cozens, founder and CEO of gold-as-currency platform Glint Pay, joined Cheddar’s Opening Bell to discuss the latest gold rush, how the war is impacting prices, and how people can use Glint to trade in the precious metal. “You know the stock markets and cryptocurrencies are risky investments," he stated. "Whereas gold is just reliable money. It's no one else's liability if you own."
As Western sanctions weigh on Russia's economy, the country is at the risk of defaulting on its debt. Fitch ratings agency has downgraded Russia's debt for the second time in a week, warning a "sovereign default is imminent." Jesse Wheeler, Economic Analyst at Morning Consult, explains what that means, and how it could have ripple effects across the global economy.
Uber Lyft and Doordash are all set to spend $1 million dollars on a campaign and efforts to stop lawmakers from classifying their gig workers as employees. The campaign features TV and online ads highlighting Washington area workers who say they prefer the flexibility of being an independent contractor rather than following the model of a company employee. Professor at NYU. Stern School of Business and author of the sharing economy, Arun Sundararajan, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
President Biden is looking at unlikely partners to buy oil, after banning all Russian energy imports. Among them is Venezuela, a regime that has been sanctioned by the U.S. since 2019. Ariel Cohen of the Atlantic Council explains to Cheddar News why that might not be a bad choice.
