5/07/2021

White House News (白宮消息) | May 7th, 2021

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

Mitch McConnell speaks to reporters following the weekly Republican policy luncheon, November 5, 2019
MITCH MCCONNELL VOWS TO BLOCK BIDEN’S ENTIRE AGENDA JUST TO BE A DICK

May 6 - Something you’ve probably picked up on by now is that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell literally cares about nothing but amassing and maintaining power. Whereas even some of the worst people in Washington typically have something they care about beyond power for power’s sake, or a set of beliefs to guide them, the Kentucky lawmaker truly has none. “Give up,” someone who knows McConnell well told The New Yorker’s Jane Mayer last year when she set out to find “the larger principles or sense of purpose that animates” the senator. “You can look and look for something more in him, but it isn’t there. I wish I could tell you that there is some secret thing that he really believes in, but he doesn’t.”


Perhaps to remind people that, despite being an elected official ostensibly sent to D.C. to work on behalf of the Americans who pay his salary, he doesn’t give a fuck about anything but his own interests, McConnell on Wednesday told reporters that while he could spend his time helping to end the pandemic, or aiding the economic recovery, or stopping mass shootings, he’s actually got something else in mind: blocking Joe Biden’s entire agenda.

“One hundred percent of my focus is standing up to this administration,” the Kentucky Republican said at a press conference in his state in response to questions about fighting among House Republicans. “What we have in the United States Senate is total unity from Susan Collins to Ted Cruz in opposition to what the new Biden administration is trying to do to this country,” he said, referring to his colleagues from Maine and Texas. What sort of things has Biden proposed that McConnell is dead set on opposing? In a word, everything...     continue to read

MAY 6, 2021
President Biden Delivers Remarks on Infrastructure and Jobs Proposal
President Biden traveled to Lake Charles, Louisiana to highlight his administration’s economy and jobs proposal dubbed the American Jobs Plan. The president spoke about the potential benefits of his proposal and the need to increase the corporate tax rate. 
Remarks by President Biden on the American Jobs Plan
MAY 06, 2021

Lake Charles Sea Wall
Lake Charles, Loauisiana

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, Mr. Mayor, Governor, thank you.  It’s good to be back in Lake Charles.  I’ve been here a number of times over the years as Senator and then as Vice President. 

The first time I came down here — with a guy named Russell Long, who I served with — I was 29 — please, sit down, everybody. 

I was 29 years old when I got elected, and I went to see Russell Long. And he said, “Son…” — I’d made my stops to all the senior senators, which was what you do in those days — and I — he said, “Son, sit down.  Sit down.”  And he pounded at his desk. 

And I sat down, and he said — he said, “How much money did you spend on your campaign?”  And I said, “Well, sir…” — and this is going to shock you.  I said, “About…” — I said, “A little over $285,000, but then I had to borrow some money and — to get through it.  And I just won, barely, by less than — less than a half a percentage point.” 

And he said, “Well…” — he said, “It’s a good thing you won.”  And I said, “How is that?”  He said, “Well…” — he said, “You got yourself a $38,000 deficit.”  (Laughter.)  And I said, “Yes, sir.”  And he said, “Well, if you hadn’t won, you’d just have a plain old deficit.  Now you can have a deficit party.”  (Laughter.)  God, I miss — he was amazing.  An amazing guy. 

And both of you are amazing.  Mr. Mayor, you’ve got a great city.  And as I said, I’ve been here — I’ve been here more than once, and it’s good to be back.  And I — it’s hard to believe that — that you got — you got hit as badly as you have within the timeframe you have.   And I used to spend some time with Randy; he got hit a little bit, but not like you did — not like you have.  And, Gov, you know, we have to build back.  We have to build back better. 

One of the things that — that I’m proud of is, in the first 100 days that I became President, we have created more jobs in that period of time than any administration in history.  But the way I look at that, that’s just the down payment getting us back with the American Recovery Act [Rescue Plan].  Just getting us back and getting people — a lot of that had to do with getting people vaccinated, getting 600 million doses of the — of the vaccine, and getting people in a position where it was available.

But now it’s about rebuilding America — rebuilding in a way that it has resilience.  And the folks who are going to rebuild it are those folks right over there: unions.  They’re going to rebuild it in a way that we’re going to provide good jobs.  (Applause.)

Well, look, it’s — as I said, it’s good to be back, Governor Edwards and Mayor Hunter.  And I also want to thank President Reine — the union president of AFL-CIO, head of the — head of the — there you are.  I couldn’t find you. 

And, folks, there’s a — when it comes to bridges and roads and the like, I’ve never seen a Republican or a Democrat road.  I just see roads...   more


White House Releases Fact Sheets to Highlight Nationwide Need and Impact of the American Families Plan
MAY 06, 2021 • STATEMENTS AND RELEASES

Today, the White House released fact sheets that highlight the need for and impact of the investments proposed by President Biden in the American Families Plan in states and territories across the country. The American Families Plan is a once-in-a-generation investment in the foundations of middle-class prosperity: education, health care, and child care.
The fact sheets highlight how many families would benefit from free community college and universal pre-K, the high costs of child care, the number of workers who lack access to paid family leave, and the thousands of dollars families and workers would save in tax cuts and credits.

Individual fact sheets for each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and other territories are linked below.

These fact sheets are the latest in a series from the White House highlighting the benefits of the American Families Plan for communities, in addition to a series of fact sheets on the American Jobs Plan. Fact sheets on how the American Families Plan advances racial equity and supports rural America have been released in recent weeks.


A Letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Stabilization of Iraq
MAY 06, 2021 • STATEMENTS AND RELEASES

Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)) provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date.  In accordance with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency with respect to the stabilization of Iraq declared in Executive Order 13303 of May 22, 2003, is to continue in effect beyond May 22, 2021.

Obstacles to the orderly reconstruction of Iraq, the restoration and maintenance of peace and security in the country, and the development of political, administrative, and economic institutions in Iraq continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.  Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 with respect to the stabilization of Iraq.     source from
Psaki plans to step down as US presidential press secretary

May 7 - Jen Psaki, press secretary for US President Joe Biden, plans to step down in this capacity in about a year, CNN reported.

According to Psaki, she had talked with the Biden transition team about a roughly one-year term in this capacity. "I think it's going to be time for somebody else to have this job, in a year from now or about a year from now," she told on the podcast of journalist David Axelrod in an interview, whose recording has been posted on the CNN website.   source from

5/06/2021

White House News (白宮消息) | May 6th, 2021

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

Biden on implementation of American Rescue Plan — 5/5/21
President Biden delivers remarks on his administration's implementation of the American Rescue Plan.
Remarks by President Biden on His Administration’s Implementation of the American Rescue Plan
MAY 05, 2021

​THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon.  Earlier today, I — I visited a restaurant here in town, Las — I’m going to mispronounce it — Las Geme- — Las Gelameas [Gemelas].  And — which is a pilot program for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund and an important piece of the American Rescue Plan.

One of my goals with the American Rescue Plan is to make sure that we get this law’s benefits quickly and directly to the American people.

So before I say a bit more about what we’re doing to support our nation’s restaurants, let me provide an update on what is happening through the American Rescue Plan right now, as I speak. 

First is providing checks in pockets and shots in arms.  More than 163 million Rescue payments have already gone out.  These are checks — direct payments of up to $1,400 — that, for a typical family of four making about $110,000, means a $5,600 check you’ll get.  By the time all of the money is distributed, more than 85 percent of American households will have received a check. 

The Rescue Plan is also funding vaccine administration and distribution.  It’s a big reason why we were able to administer over 220 million shots in my first 100 days — a pace unmatched by any other nation in the world or in prior mass vaccinations in all of American history. 

You know, it’s helped schools reopen safely.  It’s helping childcare centers stay in business.  It’s helping families pay for childcare. 


The Rescue Plan is delivering food and nutrition assistance to millions of Americans facing hunger.  And hunger is already sharply down in the United States. 

It’s also providing rental assistance to keep people from being evicted from their homes, it’s making healthcare more affordable, it’s cutting child poverty in this country in half, and the list goes on.  And the message is clear: Help is here. 

​And the bottom line is this: The American Rescue Plan is working.  America is getting vaccinated.  Job creation is soaring.  The economy is growing.  And our country is on the move again.      more
Biden administration backs waiving of vaccine intellectual property protections

May 6 - ​President Joe Biden’s administration is throwing its support behind efforts to waive intellectual property protections for Covid-19 vaccines in an effort to speed the end of the pandemic. United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai announced the US government’s position in a Wednesday statement, amid World Trade Organisation talks over easing global trade rules to enable more countries to produce more of the life-saving vaccines.     source from

MAY 5, 2021
White House Daily Briefing
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack held a briefing on the Biden administration’s policy agenda. Secretary Vilsack talked about addressing food insecurity in the American Families Plan and providing aide to minority-owned farms. When asked about Facebook’s independent board’s decision to uphold the ban on former President Trump, the press secretary would not comment on his social media use but said the platforms have a responsibility to address disinformation and misinformation on their sites.
Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, May 5, 2021

MS. PSAKI:  Hi, everyone. 
 
Q    Hi, good afternoon. 
 
MS. PSAKI:  Good afternoon.  Okay.  We have another special guest joining us today: Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. 
 
As you all know, this is Secretary Vilsack’s second turn at the Department of Agriculture, which he led in the Obama-Biden administration from 2009 through 2017, making him the longest-serving member of President Obama’s Cabinet.
 
In those years, Secretary Vilsack fought to put Americans back to work by investing in rural infrastructure, renewable energy, and large-scale conservation partnerships.  Under his leadership, USDA introduced healthier food choices in school meals to benefit 50 million children, and expanded free and reduced-price lunches for millions of kids.
 
Prior to his appointment — or nomination and confirmation, I should say — Secretary Vilsack served two terms as the Governor of Iowa, in the Iowa State Senate, and as the Mayor of Mount Pleasant, Iowa.
 
With that, I will turn it over to the Secretary, who will be — take a few questions once he concludes his remarks.
 
SECRETARY VILSACK:  Jen, thanks very much.  It’s certainly a pleasure to be here today with all of you.
 
I’m here primarily to talk about food and nutrition security.  And you may think that that is just about food and nutrition security, but, in fact, it’s about a lot more than that. 
 
When you understand that 25 percent of America’s workforce is directly or indirectly impacted by the food and ag industry, that it represents a significant percentage of our GDP, that educational achievement is somewhat dependent on youngsters having healthy and nutritious food as they begin their school year and school day, and the fact that it is a noted effort in reducing poverty, food and nutrition security becomes an important issue.  And certainly, we’ve seen the impact of that during the course of the pandemic. ​     more

Psaki Pushes Back on McConnell Saying His Focus Is To Stop the Biden Administration

May 6 - White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is pushing back on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) after he said his focus is on stopping the Biden administration.


A reporter mentioned during a White House press briefing on Wednesday McConnell said, “100% of my focus is on stopping this new administration.”
She asked Psaki, “Are you concerned that it will be difficult to work with Republicans when you have these kinds of statements coming from their leader?”

Psaki replied, “I guess the contrast for people to consider is 100% of our focus is on delivering relief to the American people, on getting the pandemic under control and putting people back to work and we welcome support and engagement and work with Republicans on that.”

​She continued, “The president has extended an open arm to that. The door to the Oval Office open.”     source from

5/05/2021

White House News (白宮消息) | May 5th, 2021

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

MAY 4, 2021
President Biden Remarks on COVID-19 Response and Vaccine Program
President Biden delivered remarks on the administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the goal of administering at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot to 70% of US adult population by July 4.
White House Wants 70 Percent of Adults Vaccinated by July 4
President Joe Biden has set a new vaccination goal. He says he wants nearly three-fourths of American adults vaccinated by Independence Day.
Remarks by President Biden on the COVID-19 Response and the Vaccination Program
MAY 04, 2021

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon. Today, two months until July 4th, I’m here to report that we’re — we’re in our vaccination program — where we are and what comes next in an effort to get this country back closer to normal.

And first: Where are we? Well, as everyone knows, I promised that we’d administer 100 million shots in my first 100 days. After we met that goal, we doubled it to a — a historic 200 million shots. By the time we reached 100 days last week, we had shattered that mark with over 220 million shots in arms.

And as we stand here today, almost 150 million Americans have gotten at least one shot.  Over 105 million Americans are fully vaccinated.  And among our most vulnerable population — seniors — we are nearing 85 percent of those who have gotten their first shot. Seventy percent of the seniors are now fully vaccinated.  It’s a dramatic turnaround from where we were in January, when less than 2 percent of adults and less than 1 percent of seniors were fully vaccinated. 

Not only that, cases are down in 40 states these past two weeks.  Deaths are down dramatically since January — down over 80 percent among seniors, which includes a drop among Hispanics of 80 percent and among African Americans of 70 percent of seniors.  

There are tens of thousands of Americans alive today because — who would not be alive otherwise were they not — had access to rapid vaccination program.  Moms and dads, sisters and brothers, grandparents, neighbors, old friends — they’re around now, and God — thank God for that.

Now, where do we go from here?  Well, as we anticipated, the pace of vaccinations is slowing now that the majority of American adults have already gotten their first shot.  But we are still vaccinating millions of Americans every day. 

In fact, in the last 10 days, 1 out of every 10 adult Americans got a shot.  But, soon, we’ll have reached the adults who are most eager to get vaccinated, and, at that point, this effort will shift to a new phase, which is what I want to talk about today.

Our new phase will focus on three areas.  First, kids, children between the ages of 12 and 15 years of age.  They are not yet eligible for a vaccine...     more


MAY 4, 2021
White House Daily Briefing
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki held a briefing on the Biden administration’s policy agenda. She discussed the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic, aid being provided to India, and the president’s proposed American Jobs and Families plans.
Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, May 4, 2021

...​At the end of March, there were more than 5,000 children in Customs and Border Protection Patrol stations.  Today, that number is approximately 600.

The amount of time children spend in CBP facilities is down by 75 percent — from 131 hours at the end of March to under 30 hours now.

And just yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it will begin the process of reuniting a number of families who were separated by the policies of the previous administration.

Clearly, we’re not done; there’s a lot of work ahead.  Migration is a dynamic and evolving challenge, but the President has a plan and we’re working on implementing it. 

Just a few more brief updates for you.  As you know, Friday is “Jobs Day.”  Here we are again.  And to mark the occasion, I wanted to convey to all of you that we are going to be welcoming in Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to the briefing room on Friday to provide an update to all of you and take some questions.

And throughout this week, the President, the Vice President, Cabinet members, and other administration officials are fanning out across the country to make a forceful argument for the President’s economic vision.  The President, of course, began that push just yesterday, in Virginia, to talk about the Jobs Plan and the Families Plan, and it will continue today with the Vice President who will be traveling to — who will be in Milwaukee.

As part of this, we’ll also have Secretary Vilsack joining us in the briefing tomorrow to talk about the vital child nutrition proposals in the American Families Plan.

Finally, today, Jeff Zients and members of our COVID Response Team held their weekly meeting with our nation’s governors. 
This week, over 29 million doses will go out across all of our channels, with two thirds of those doses going to jurisdictions and one third to federal channels... 
  quoted from
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 28: PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN, FLANKED BY VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS AND HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (D-CALIF.), ADDRESSES A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS, WITH VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS AND HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (D-CALIF.) ON THE DAIS BEHIND HIM, ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28, 2021. BIDEN SPOKE TO A NATION SEEKING TO EMERGE FROM TWIN CRISES OF PANDEMIC AND ECONOMIC SLIDE IN HIS FIRST SPEECH TO A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS.
Joe Biden and the Next 100 Days

May 5 - ...We cannot know what kind of President Biden might have become after one of his earlier runs, but he became president at a moment of both economic peril and political violence—for four years, Trump and his allies leveled attacks on America’s ideals, which culminated with a violent mob storming the Capitol and seeking to undo a free and fair election. 

Under these circumstances, and with extraordinary experience and empathy, Biden has laid the foundation for an historic presidency that builds back a better, more inclusive and secure American dream and middle class. If he stays the course, his second 100 days could produce an historic set of legislative accomplishments that empower a team of true public servants to spend the remainder of the term making real the American ideals in which Joe Biden has never lost faith. ​    quoted from
MAY 4, 2021
Vice President Harris Remarks at Conference on the Americas
Vice President Harris addresses the Conference on the Americas, focusing her remarks on the underlying causes behind migration from Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Mexico to the U.S. southern border.

Remarks by Vice President Harris at the Virtual Washington Conference on the Americas
MAY 04, 2021

...Last week, President Joe Biden and I reached the 100th day of our administration.  In that time, we have let the world know — and the President has been very clear about this — America is back. 

We have rejoined the Paris Agreement.  We are ending our nation’s longest war.  We are rebuilding our alliances and engaging partners all over the world.  And we are revitalizing our relationships throughout the Western Hemisphere from the southernmost parts of South America, to the northernmost parts of Canada, and everywhere in between.

The Western Hemisphere is our home.  And because it is our home, because the people within it are our neighbors, it is imperative that we promote democracy and good governance, security, and prosperity within the region. 

It is also important that we build relationships throughout the hemisphere that are based on dignicy [dignity] and diplomacy — relationships that are both candid and collaborative. 

The strength of the United States of America depends on the strength of all of the Western Hemisphere.  In so many ways, our fates are intertwined.  That is especially true of Latin America, one of our fastest-growing trade partners. 

To be sure, our relationship with Latin America is bigger than trade.  And our relationship is incredibly complex and, at times, has been incredibly complicated.  Today, I want to make clear that our administration firmly believes in the potential of the region and in the power of the people of the region. 

Latin Americans are shaping their own future...    more



US Legislators Call on Biden to Help Raise Funds for Yemen

May 5, TEHRAN (FNA)- A group of influential United States legislators called on the Joe Biden administration to help raise $2.5bln in aid for Yemenis suffering amid what they described as “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis”.


In an open letter on Tuesday, four US senators urged Secretary of State Antony Blinken to provide more aid for Yemen and rally other countries to contribute after a recent United Nations fundraising appeal for the war-torn country fell short, Al-Jazeera reported.

The UN conference in March sought to raise $3.85bln but only raised $1.35bln. The Biden administration had pledged $19mln in US assistance, far below the “fair share” of $1.2bln that international aid group Oxfam had urged Washington to contribute.

“More than 20 million Yemenis depend on humanitarian assistance to survive and we cannot let them down,” reads the bipartisan letter, signed by Democratic Senators Chris Murphy and Jeanne Shaheen, as well as Republican Senators Jerry Moran and Todd Young.


“Unfortunately, the looming threat of famine has re-emerged. Today, nearly 50,000 people in Yemen are living in famine-like conditions with 5 million more just a step away,” added the legislators, urging Blinken to support calls for a second humanitarian donor conference for Yemen.

Switzerland and Sweden have called for another fundraising conference to fill the $2.5bln shortage
“We urge you to work with other major donors to rally around that meeting, mobilizing the resources needed to stave off famine and save lives,” the senators said in their letter.

Murphy has been travelling in the region this week and met in Amman on Tuesday with the US Special Envoy for Yemen, Tim Lenderking, and a group of European diplomats.


Lenderking had been in Saudi Arabia and Oman on April 29 for talks on Yemen.

“Folks are definitely hoping the United States contributes its fair share. It’s definitely a welcome letter,” stated Hassan El-Tayyab, a lobbyist in Washington with the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a Quaker advocacy organisation.
But El-Tayyab told Al-Jazeera that “aid alone is not enough to support the population”.

​“It’s at best a Band-Aid,” he continued, adding, “What Yemen needs is a nationwide ceasefire that ends the war.”
Biden has withdrawn US support for offensive operations carried out by a military coalition in Yemen led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and paused weapons sales to Riyadh that had been previously approved by the Donald Trump administration.     source from


Biden in April offered a meeting in a third country.
Biden Says 'Hope and Expectation' for Putin Meeting in June


May 4 - ...​Biden is scheduled to attend a G7 summit in Britain in mid-June, followed by NATO and EU summits in Brussels, which would open the door to the logistics of a separate Putin meeting.
Austria and Finland have expressed interest in hosting the summit.

In April, Washington expelled 10 Russian diplomats over what it says was Russia's large-scale cyber attack on U.S. computer systems and interference in the 2020 presidential election. Moscow responded with tit-for-tat expulsions.

, the Biden administration has stressed that it wants to bring stability to the relationship and that Washington and Moscow need to cooperate on key areas, such as nuclear weapons and the climate crisis.   quoted from
NBC Nightly News Broadcast (Full) - May 4th, 2021 | NBC Nightly News
May 5, 2021
3.2K147SHARESAVEPresident Biden announces new goal for 70 percent of adults to get first Covid vaccine by July 4, the FDA may soon authorize Pfizer’s Covid vaccine for children, and fears of the Taliban’s return as U.S. troops leave Afghanistan.