We have another Infrastructure Week on the schedule and if you had "the filibuster isn't racist" on your 2021 BINGO card, you win a prize. Here's more about what is and isn't expected in the Washington Week Ahead.
(ANOTHER) INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK: The proverbial joke in Washington is actually, really happening in Pittsburgh on Wednesday when President Joe Biden takes to the stage to pitch his infrastructure plan. The White House has downplayed leaks so far, but we can expect that he'll try to sell the American people on $3-4 trillion in federal spending on "hard infrastructure" like planes, trains, and automobiles and "soft infrastructure" like free community college and universal Pre-K. The bill will not garner much Republican support and Democrats are planning to move forward with another budget reconciliation proposal.
CRICKETS ON CAPITOL HILL: The week of Spring Recess and all through the House, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The Senate gaveled out of its chamber with care in hopes that legislative business would all disappear.
Yes, I did write a poem about next week in Washington. But it pretty much sums up where things are: Congress is in recess for two weeks and that means exactly nothing will be happening on the legislative front. Don't expect much from the president either. He's clearly in no rush to do anything on gun control or immigration, saying "timing is everything." In other words, not now.
BESSEMER UNION BATTLE: The vote on whether to unionize the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama wraps up on Monday, just days before Biden heads north to the union town of Pittsburgh to pitch the country on tons of good, union jobs as part of his infrastructure plan. But the union fight is already here and it's happening in a state that is historically anti-union. Whether or not Amazon's warehouse does unionize or not, the conversation about union jobs and unions, in general, is going to be an ongoing one, especially as the Democratic Senate will likely force a vote on the pro-union PRO Act despite having no Republican support — if they can get the votes in their own party.
Anu Gaggar, global investment strategist for Commonwealth Financial Network, joined Cheddar News to discuss how global supply chains could be disrupted even further by an armed conflict in Ukraine.
Solid-state battery maker Factorial Energy recently raised $200 million in a Series D round led by Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis. Factorial says the funding will be used to accelerate commercial production and deployment of its solid-state battery technology, which the company says is safer, and offers up to 50% more driving range than current lithium-ion technology. Factorial also has joint development agreements (announced in late 2021) with Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, and Hyundai, three of the top 10 global automotive manufacturers, to commercialize its batteries. Factorial CEO Siyu Huang joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
A new report by the Foreign Correspondents Club of China warns that press freedom in the most populous country in the world is declining at an alarming speed. Cheddar News speaks with Steven Butler, Asia Program Coordinator at the Committee to Protect Journalists, about the hardships journalists face in China.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C. 1st District) joined Cheddar to discuss her cannabis legalization bill, the States Reform Act, and the prospects for gaining bipartisan support for a bill that has garnered the endorsement of e-commerce giant Amazon. This legislation is supported by businesses large and small, Amazon obviously being the most recent and largest business to support it," Mace said. "They don't want to sell pot. But what it does do is it affects their working employment pool." She stated that 10 percent of eligible new hires for Amazon are affected by restrictive marijuana laws. The representative also explained that the bill leaves equity provisions up to the states rather than mandating them on a federal level.
After a number of tragic subway incidents, the MTA is facing increased pressure to install subway platform screens to help prevent injury or death. However, according to an earlier report from the MTA, installing these prevented measures isn't feasible. New York City Council Member Keith Powers, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Across the country, states are working to redraw their congressional lines in what is often known as gerrymandering. These news lines are expected to determine the balance of power between Democrats and Republicans within the next decade. Senior Counsel for the Brennan Center's Democracy Program, Michael Li, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
The state of California is officially planning to close its death row in the next two years. That state's governor Democrat Gavin Newsom says the plan is now to move all condemned inmates to other prisons and turn it into, as he calls it, a positive healing environment. Former U. S. Assistant Attorney and Legal Analyst, David Katz, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Anthony Saccaro, Founder and President of Providence Financial, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he elaborates on why he is excited that the market is beginning to rebound and believes February has the potential to be a good month after a turbulent January.
Cryptocurrency is expected to become a part of our daily lives — but what sort of environmental impact does it have? As the U.S. becomes the crypto mining capital of the world, climate advocates are worried about mining companies reopening old coal plants, using massive amounts of energy, wasteful hardware, and more. Congressional Democrats led by Senator Elizabeth Warren are demanding answers from mining firms about their electricity use and waste levels. John Belizaire, CEO of Soluna Computing, joins Cheddar Climate to discuss the congressional letters, how crypto mining can become a green industry, and more.
