FDA chief struggles to explain slow response on baby formula
The FDA and President Joe Biden face mounting political pressure to explain why they didn’t intervene sooner to head off the supply crisis.
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House passes bill to crack down on gasoline ‘price gouging’
The focus on price gouging comes as gas prices hit an national average of $4.59 per gallon Thursday—49 cents a gallon higher than a month ago and $1.55 higher than a year ago, according to AAA.
Carbon removal technologies to get $3.5B federal investment
The Department of Energy said Thursday it will release the money to groups developing direct air capture and other technologies that remove carbon dioxide.
Biden invokes Defense Production Act for formula shortage
The Defense Production Act order requires suppliers of formula manufacturers to fulfill orders from those companies before other customers, in an effort to eliminate production bottlenecks.
U.S. House to consider $28M plan to address formula shortage
The House is expected to take up the emergency spending measure later this week before lawmakers head back to their congressional districts for the next two weeks.
Bezos spars with Biden White House over inflation
The White House responded by pointing out that Jeff Bezos’ attacks emerged days after Biden met in the Oval Office with the labor leaders behind Amazon’s unionization drive, which the company has vehemently opposed.
Biden, Buttigieg send $5B to cities for safety as road deaths soar
The goal is to spur cities to adopt detailed plans to reduce traffic deaths by slowing down cars, carving out bike paths and wider sidewalks and nudging commuters to public transit.
U.S. to release $45B for nationwide internet access
The goal is to have states lay out a five-year timeline to provide full internet access, while ensuring affordable internet access and promoting competition among providers.
Biden cancels offshore oil lease sales in Gulf Coast, Alaska
The Biden administration says it is canceling three oil and gas lease sales, removing millions of acres from possible drilling as U.S. gas prices reach record highs.
Senate bid to save Roe v. Wade falls to GOP-led filibuster
Some Republicans argued that the House-passed bill is more extreme than Roe, and would expand abortion access beyond what is already the law.
Biden starts program to provide discounted internet service
With the new commitment from the internet providers, some 48 million households will be eligible for $30 monthly plans for 100 megabits per second, or higher speed, service.
Postmaster general: Get used to ‘uncomfortable’ rate hikes
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said he’ll advocate for raising prices until “we have accomplished our objective of projecting a trajectory that shows us being self-sustaining.”
UPDATE: Tributes pour in upon the death of Frank Anderson, Marion County’s first Black sheriff
Anderson served two terms as Marion County sheriff from 2003 to 2011. He also was U.S. marshal for the Southern District of Indiana from 1977 to 1981 and 1994 to 2001.
Biden taking ‘hard look’ at student loan forgiveness
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday that President Joe Biden was still considering whether to tie debt relief to borrowers’ income levels, an idea he’s floated in the past. She said it’s “certainly something he would be looking at.”
Lawmakers question beef executives over soaring food prices
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill aggressively questioned the chief executives of the country’s four major beef producers, accusing them of engaging in anti-competitive practices that have financially harmed cattle ranchers and driven up the price of meat.
Brainard wins Senate confirmation to be Fed’s vice chair
The relatively close vote reflects the increasingly partisan atmosphere in Congress that is now engulfing the nomination process for the Fed, an independent institution that has sought to remain above politics.
White House: Without funding, U.S. will lose out on COVID treatments
Officials are expressing increasing alarm that the U.S. is also losing out on critical opportunities to secure booster doses and new antiviral pills that could help the country maintain its reemerging sense of normalcy.
White House seeks more power to counter use of drones in U.S.
The White House on Monday released an action plan that calls for expanding the number of agencies that can track and monitor drones flying in their airspace.
Justice Department to appeal order voiding travel mask mandate
The notice came minutes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked the Justice Department to appeal the decision handed down by a federal judge in Florida earlier this week.
Tougher federal environmental review for big projects to be restored
A rule finalized Tuesday will restore key provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act, an environmental law designed to ensure community safeguards during reviews for a wide range of federal proposals.