Coronavirus has hit Capitol Hill, as the first members of Congress have tested positive for the virus.
Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) and Ben McAdams (D-Utah) announced diagnoses late Wednesday. Diaz-Balart’s office said he had developed symptoms Saturday evening and was notified Wednesday of a positive test. Both had voted on the House floor as recently as Saturday morning, to pass the coronavirus relief bill.
Rep. Ben McAdams, D-Utah (Left), Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla. (Right)
At least five other members of Congress are quarantining because they had contact with the lawmakers, including Rep. Steve Scalise, the second-highest ranking Republican in the House.
Some lawmakers had been pushing for ways to vote remotely, particularly since congressional members are disproportionately in higher-risk categories for coronavirus complications. Forty-eight senators are over the age of 65, the age at which some states have recommended individuals to stay inside their homes.
Senator Dick Durban (D-Ill.) has said “it’s time for the Senate to wake up to the 21st century and make sure we’re using technology that allows us to communicate with each other without any danger or risk to public health.”
President Biden has named a racially diverse and overwhelmingly female group to federal and other judgeships. His first list of judicial nominees includes three Black women for U.S. courts of appeals.
Authorities say two Ecuadoran children were abandoned by smugglers after being dropped over a 14-foot-high barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border Tuesday evening.
The still-elevated number of unemployment claims shows that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more businesses reopen, vaccines are increasingly administered and federal aid spreads through the economy.
With President Biden unveiling a $2.9 trillion infrastructure plan, the old gas tax formula may not be able to serve as a matching revenue source, especially with the consistent drumbeat of growing the electric vehicle market.
The Minneapolis officer who put his knee on George Floyd's neck defended himself to a bystander afterward by saying Floyd was “a sizable guy” and “probably on something."
Andrew Williamson, vice president of global government affairs and economic adviser for Huawei, spoke to Cheddar about the Chinese telecom company's lack of communication with President Biden regarding ongoing trade tensions with the U.S.
