6/22/2021

COVID | Jun. 22, 2021

 White House News in Chinese - About (weebly.com)

Biden White House Will Endorse A Bill Closing Cocaine Sentencing Guidelines: Reports
Critics have long said laws with harsher punishment for crack cocaine possession than for powder cocaine unduly target Americans of color.

Jun. 22 - The Biden administration will urge Congress to pass legislation that would end sentencing differences between crack and powder cocaine crimes, decades-old guidelines that critics say have unduly targeted communities of color and resulted in the mass incarceration of Black Americans, according to multiple reports.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing Tuesday on federal sentencing guidelines and include a bipartisan panel of officials. The Washington Post first reported that Regina LaBelle, the acting director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, will speak at the hearing and express President Joe Biden’s support for the passage of the Equal Act (Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of the Law), which was introduced earlier this year by Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill)...     more

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June 21, 2021
White House Daily Briefing
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki discussed the president’s agenda and a variety of topics with reporters at her daily briefing. Topics included new sanctions against Belarus, delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to other countries, and status of infrastructure negotiations.

Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, June 21, 2021
JUNE 21, 2021PRESS BRIEFINGS
James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

MS. PSAKI:  Hi everyone.  Good morning — or good afternoon.  Okay.  A couple of items for all of you at the top.

Today, the Biden-Harris administration has launched Child Tax Credit Awareness Day to educate the public and encourage non-filers to sign up for the largest Child Tax Credit in history.

The American Rescue Plan increased the Child Tax Credit to $3,000 for families whose children are between 6 and 17 years old, and $3,600 for families with children under 6 years old, and allows half of that tax credit be paid to families in advance through a monthly check or direct deposit. 

So, starting July 15th, almost all families who have filed taxes in the last two years will receive this monthly payment automatically.  This means most families with two young children would receive a monthly payment of $600 starting in July. 

But we want to make sure that everybody who is eligible signs up, hence we have launched a website: ChildTaxCredit.gov — very easy to remember.  And if anybody is not sure — maybe they haven’t filed taxes because they — they don’t — they’re not required to — they can go there and learn if they’re eligible for this incredible benefit...     more

Of the 55 million vaccine doses the United States will donate, 41 million will go to COVAX, an organization that assists poor countries to access and distribute coronavirus vaccines. 
White House announces plans for 55M donated COVID-19 vaccine doses


Jun. 22 - The Biden administration on Monday said it will distribute 55 million of its promised 80 million doses from the United States' COVID-19 vaccine supply to an international consortium that works with poor countries and targeted regional allies.

On June 3, the White House initially announced the U.S. government would send at least 80 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to needy countries overseas by the end of this month. During that announcement, it designated the first 19 million doses to the COVAX initiative and 6 million to "regional priorities and partner recipients."

In Monday's announcement, the Biden administration said of the 55 million remaining doses, 41 million will go to COVAX and 14 million to Latin American and Caribbean countries in need.

Those countries include Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Panama, and Costa Rica, along with member nations of the Caribbean Community, or CARICOM, organization.

"For all of these doses, those most at risk, such as healthcare workers, should be prioritized, based on national vaccine plans," the White House statement said. "In addition to sharing doses from our own vaccine supply, the Biden-Harris administration is also committed to working with our U.S. manufacturers to produce more vaccine to share with the world."

Biden said before the G7 Summit the United States would purchase 500 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and donate them to 92 low- and lower-middle-income countries, including African Union members.


"Sharing millions of U.S. vaccines with other countries signals a major commitment by the U.S. government," the White House said. "Just like we have in our domestic response, we will move as expeditiously as possible, while abiding by U.S. and host country regulatory and legal requirements, to facilitate the safe and secure transport of vaccines across international borders."     source from

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Jun 22, 2021

US, EU, UK and Canada impose fresh sanctions on Belarus

Jun. 22 - The United States, European Union, United Kingdom and Canada imposed fresh sanctions on Belarus Monday in a coordinated response to the Lukashenko government's forced landing of a Ryanair flight and arrest of an opposition journalist last month as well as the "continuing repression" in the former Soviet state.

In a joint statement, the partners said they were "united in our deep concern regarding the Lukashenka regime's continuing attacks on human rights, fundamental freedoms, and international law."
"Today, we have taken coordinated sanctions action in response to the May 23rd forced landing of a commercial Ryanair flight between two EU member states and the politically motivated arrest of journalist Raman Pratasevich and his companion Sofia Sapega, as well as to the continuing attack on human rights and fundamental freedoms," the statement said...     more