Biden Administration

“Look, paid family leave is important. It’s important as a matter of family values. It’s important to our economy. And one more thing that I think is maybe underappreciated. “When somebody welcomes a new child into their family and goes on leave to take care of that child, that’s not a vacation. It’s work. It’s joyful, wonderful, fulfilling work, but …

The Washington Post reports: The Department of Justice said Friday that it will go back to the Supreme Court to request that it put on hold Texas’s restrictive abortion law while legal battles continue. In a different case, the Supreme Court last month allowed the law to go into effect on a divisive 5 to 4 vote. The DOJ has …

From the Department of Homeland Security: Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced that, following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other public health experts, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will amend Title 19 regulations to allow non-essential travelers who have been fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and have appropriate documentation to enter the …

Axios reports: The Department of Justice asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals late Monday to suspend Texas’ new law that bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, or roughly six weeks — before many people know they are pregnant. Medical providers in the state briefly resumed performing abortions last week after a federal judge ruled that the …

CNN reports: Daniel Foote, the US special envoy to Haiti, has handed in his resignation to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, saying he will “not be associated with the United States inhumane, counterproductive decision to deport thousands of Haitian refugees” from the US-Mexico border. Foote stated in his resignation letter to Blinken that Haiti is wracked with poverty, crime, government …

From the State Department’s COVID response team: So far, the United States has committed to donate more than 630 million coronavirus vaccine doses globally. Nearly 160 million of those doses are already on the ground in more than 100 countries — from Peru to Pakistan, Sri Lanka to Sudan, El Salvador to Ethiopia, Mexico to Morocco, and Cameroon to Cambodia. …

The Wall Street Journal reports: All employers with 100 or more employees would have to require their workers to be vaccinated or undergo at least weekly Covid-19 testing under a new plan by President Biden to curb the spread of the pandemic, senior administration officials said. The Labor Department in the coming weeks plans to issue an emergency temporary standard …

The Washington Post reports: Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday that the Justice Department would protect women seeking an abortion in Texas as the agency explores ways to challenge one of the most restrictive laws in the nation. In a statement, Garland said the department would “protect those seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services pursuant to our criminal …

CNN reports: The Biden administration will direct all nursing homes to require their staff be vaccinated against Covid-19 in order to continue receiving Medicare and Medicaid funding, administration officials told CNN. President Joe Biden will announce Wednesday afternoon that he is directing the Department of Health and Human Services to draw up new regulations making employee vaccination a condition for …

The Hill reports: Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg announced on Twitter on Tuesday that he and his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, are going to become parents. “The process isn’t done yet and we’re thankful for the love, support, and respect for our privacy that has been offered to us,” he wrote. “We can’t wait to share more soon.” The couple, who …

Politico reports: Without saying directly that the U.S. was shutting down its embassy in Afghanistan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that the U.S. was evacuating personnel from the facility in Kabul. “We are working to make sure that our personnel are safe and secure,” Blinken told host Jonathan Karl on ABC’s “This Week.” “We’re relocating the men and …

CNN reports: The Biden administration is extending the pause on federal student loan payments one last time until January 31. The pandemic relief benefit was set to expire on September 30 after an unprecedented 19-month suspension. The freeze was initially put in place by Congress and then extended by both the Trump and Biden administrations. “As our nation’s economy continues …

The Hill reports: Half of the total U.S. population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, a White House official said Friday. White House Data Director Cyrus Shahpar announced in a tweet that 50 percent of all Americans are fully vaccinated as part of an update on daily vaccination data. The updated data showed more than 821,000 doses were administered, including …

The Washington Post reports: Only one day after the Biden administration issued a new policy protecting renters from eviction, a series of real estate and landlord groups is trying to invalidate it — setting up another legal showdown over a moratorium that Democrats say is essential to keeping Americans in their homes. The petition arrived Wednesday from groups including the …

The Washington Post reports: The Biden administration is expected to announce a new action to limit housing evictions, moving swiftly after intense pressure from liberal House Democrats, according to three people aware of the matter. The exact details of the measure were not clear, the people said. The congressional pressure campaign intensified in recent days after a national eviction moratorium …

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. has donated and shipped more than 110 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to more than 60 countries, ranging from Afghanistan to Zambia, the White House announced Tuesday. President Joe Biden was expected to discuss that milestone and more later Tuesday in remarks updating the public on the U.S. strategy to slow the spread of …

Via press release from the Justice Department: The Department of Justice has launched a law enforcement task force to address the rise in threats against election workers, administrators, officials, and others associated with the electoral process. “To protect the electoral process for all voters, we must identify threats against those responsible for administering elections, whether federal, state, or local,” said …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and State Department on Monday both warned against travel to Spain, Portugal, Cyprus and Kyrgyzstan because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases in those countries. The CDC raised its travel advisory to “Level Four: Very High” for those countries telling Americans they should avoid travel there, while the …

The New York Times reports: The Department of Veterans Affairs will require 115,000 of its frontline health care workers to be vaccinated against the coronavirus in the next two months, making it the first federal agency to mandate that employees be inoculated, government officials said on Monday. The move comes as concern is growing that the substantial portion of the …

Mediaite reports: The Department of Homeland Security reminded Floridians ahead of a flotilla scheduled to travel near Cuba on Thursday that it was “illegal” to travel to the island nation without permission from the federal government. “It is illegal for boaters to depart with the intent to travel to Cuba for any purpose without a permit,” the department said in …