Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., listens to testimony before the Senate Committee for Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions hearing, Tuesday, May 12, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via AP, Pool)
.By Mary Clare Jalonick and Eric Tucker
Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., stepped aside as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday after the FBI served a search warrant for his phone as part of an ongoing insider-trading investigation tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced the move, saying he and Burr had agreed it was in the Senate's best interests.
FBI officials showed up at Burr's home with the warrant on Wednesday, marking a significant escalation into the Justice Department's investigation into whether Burr broke the law with a well-timed sale of stocks before the coronavirus caused markets to plummet,
The Justice Department declined to comment. His attorney did not respond to phone and email messages, but said last month that the law is clear that any senator can participate in stock market trading based on public information "as Sen. Burr did."
As the Omicron variant continues to sweep across the country. The US Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments at the end of this week on whether or not the Biden administration can force private companies to vaccinate or test millions of their employees. In addition, the National Nurses United has spearheaded legal action to protect nurses and health care workers, patients, and the public while on the job. President of the National Nurses Union, Zenei Cortez, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Far too often, Americans are forced to navigate a tangled web of outdated government websites, offices way out of their reach, and hours of time 'on hold' to access the simple government services they depend on. A recent executive order, signed by President Biden, is intended to improve, streamline and modernize the 'customer' experience when accessing government services. Mina Hsiang, the administrator of the United States Digital Service, joins Cheddar News to discuss how the tech workforce is impacted by this executive order.
Today marks one year since the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol. The Country watched as supporters of then-President Trump stormed what was assumed to be the most secure building in the country in an attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 Election. Several lawmakers, including the Vice President, could be seen ducking down as they feared for their lives. Democratic Michigan Representative Dan Kildee, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Stocks closed lower on Friday as investors continue to worry over rate hikes. John Lynch, CIO of Comerica Wealth Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says value is back in play with investors. Lynch also believes the market has overreacted to the latest Fed minutes, suggesting a bounce-back at some point.
Ben Armstrong, founder of Bitboy Crypto, joins Cheddar News to discuss Bitcoin's downward trend and what's next for crypto after protests in Kazakhstan cause crypto miners to shut down.
Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine joins Cheddar Politics to discuss his lawsuit against the extremist groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers over their role in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Josh Pasek, a professor at the University of Michigan and expert on political communication and misinformation, joins Cheddar News to discuss how political radicalization happens and how America got to this point.
Kyle Kondik, managing editor at Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, joins Cheddar News to discuss what to expect at the 2022 midterm elections.
Katie Barlow, media editor at SCOTUSblog, joins Cheddar Politics to reflect on what happened at the Supreme Court in 2021 and what may be in store for 2022.
Gerren Keith Gaynor, managing editor of politics and Washington correspondent at The Grio, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the progress President Biden made on his policy agenda in 2021, and what remains to be done in 2022.
