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."
House Democrats are dealing with one of the thinnest majorities in years. Right now it's sitting at just three seats, and a handful of appointments to cabinet positions didn't help the situation. Next week, however, Democrats in Ohio's 11th Congressional District in Cleveland will decide who will ultimately replace former Rep. Marcia Fudge after the general election in November.
John Barnes, one of the many democratic candidates in the Ohio 11 primary, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss.
As Stablecoins become more popular, U.S. regulators are planning to come up with a set of parameters these companies must abide by. Even Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell say regulations are necessary before Stablecoins are widely adopted. But what's the best way to regulate them and how? Cheddar's Alex Vuocolo explains.
