.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."
Cheddar hosts Kristen Scholer and Tim Stenovec cover the breaking news that former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn will plead guilty to lying to the FBI. Jarad Gelner, Senior Advisor, Democratic Coalition, and Peter Van Voorhis, Writer at Red Alert Politics, join in the conversation as well.
After years of economic and political struggle, Argentina is starting to see a resurgence in investment and entrepreneurial growth. Estaban Bullrich is a Senator Elect for Argentina, and he joins Cheddar to explain how the country is moving forward.
VF Hive looks at the intersection of Wall Street, Silicon Valley and Washington D.C. and the egos that drive them. Between Bells follows the latest business, technology, and culture news.
Ben Bradlee earned the moniker of America's most dangerous editor during his tenure as executive editor of The Washington Post. Bradlee's wife, Sally Quinn, and director John Maggio join Cheddar to discuss HBO's new documentary, "The Newspaperman: The Life and Times of Ben Bradlee."
Sen. John McCain said this morning that he would vote in favor of the Republican tax bill. Grover Norquist is the founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform to explain why he's optimistic the bill will pass.
VF Hive editor Jon Kelly, Kristin Scholer and the Hive panel take us through the five biggest stories of the week in politics, business and technology.
Democratic Congressman Hakeem Jeffries represents the eighth district of New York. He believes the Republican tax plan will protect millionaires and hurt middle-class Americans. The Congressman says that, despite an emphasis on reducing the federal deficit, the current plan will increase it by over a trillion dollars.
The speed at which this bill is getting pushed through Congress doesn't concern Norquist. He says the Senate has held 70 hearings on the plan. The Americans for Tax Freedom founder explains more.
Rep. Jeffries criticized the GOP's plan, saying Republicans want to hurt the middle class and help only the richest Americans. He also said state and local tax deductions should be completely cut.
More from Sen. Al Franken: "This has been a shock, and it's been extremely humbling. I am embarrassed, I feel ashamed."
