President Biden’s public schedule for 06/08/2023:
| 10:00 AM | In-Town Pool Call Time The White House In-Town Pool |
| 11:30 AM Bilateral Meeting | The President holds a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom Oval Office In-House Pool Spray |
| 1:30 PM Joint Presser | The President holds a joint press conference with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom East Room Pre-Credentialed Media |
| 7:00 PM Pride Celebration | The President hosts a Pride Celebration with Betty Who South Lawn Open Press |
The Welcome Tweet
From Thursday…
The prior to the bilateral meeting Oval Office pool spray will be posted after the pool spray happens.
President Biden and PM Sunak’s Joint Presser:
The White House posted the following fact-sheet; Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Protect LGBTQI+ Communities
Today, in celebration of Pride Month, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing new actions to protect LGBTQI+ communities from attacks on their rights and safety. Over a dozen states have enacted anti-LGBTQI+ laws that violate our most basic values and freedoms as Americans, and are cruel and callous to our kids, our neighbors, and those in our community. The Biden-Harris administration stands with the LGBTQI+ community and has their backs in the face of these attacks, and today, federal agencies are announcing new actions to:
White House.gov. 06/08/2023.
- Protect LGBTQI+ communities from attacks on their rights and safety by launching a new LGBTQI+ Community Safety Partnership and announcing that the Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department will serve as the Department’s liaison to the LGBTQI+ community on issues related to protecting the rights of the community.
- Support LGBTQI+ kids so they can thrive by strengthening mental health resources for LGBTQI+ youth, launching a new federal initiative to address LGBTQI+ youth homelessness, releasing federal funding to support programs that help parents affirm their LGBTQI+ kids, and advancing new regulations to protect LGBTQI+ youth in foster care.
- Shield LGBTQI+ Americans from book bans that threaten their rights by announcing that the Department of Education will appoint a new coordinator to address the growing threat that book bans pose for the civil rights of students.
Today’s announcements include:
I. Protecting the LGBTQI+ Community
Launching a LGBTQI+ Community Safety Partnership. LGBTQI+ communities face a surge in violence against individuals and community spaces. Federal threat monitoring shows that these threats are increasingly tied to hate groups and domestic violent extremists. LGBTQI+ individuals – especially transgender women and girls of color – have experienced disproportionately high rates of violence and hate crimes for decades. To protect against these increasing threats, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with support from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), will launch the LGBTQI+ Community Safety Partnership. The Partnership will work hand-in-hand with LGBTQI+ community organizations to provide critical safety resources to ensure these organizations can remain safe spaces for the community. In acknowledgement of the mistreatment that LGBTQI+ communities have often faced in interactions with law enforcement, the Partnership will also work to build trust between LGBTQI+ organizations and federal law enforcement agencies. The Partnership will:
White House.gov. 06/08/2023.
- Provide dedicated safety trainings for LGBTQI+ community organizations and increase federal threat briefings for LGBTQI+ organizations. DHS, through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), will provide trainings to LGBTQI+ community organizations – including community centers, small businesses, and Pride festivals – to help them prevent and respond to threats. DHS will host bi-monthly threat briefings (or as required based on changes in the threat levels) for LGBTQI+ organizations to provide updates on the threat landscape and review key indicators of violence, and offer resources for local leaders. DHS will also lead a series of workshops for LGBTQI+ community organizations to raise awareness of federal funding for both physical security and threat prevention grant opportunities.
- Protect health care providers who serve the LGBTQI+ community. DHS and HHS will work with health care providers and medical associations to provide access to safety trainings and improve threat reporting to support doctors, clinics, and children’s hospitals that face increasing threats when they care for LGBTQI+ patients.
- Support LGBTQI+ communities to report hate crimes and build cross-community partnerships to address hate-fueled violence. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, FBI Field Offices, DOJ Community Relations Service (CRS), the Civil Rights Division and others will undertake targeted engagement with community groups from the LGBTQI+ community and other communities victimized by hate crimes to increase understanding about how to report hate crimes. DOJ will also enhance public trust and public safety by partnering with state and local law enforcement agencies to increase the number of law enforcement officers who have completed CRS’s training programs on engaging with transgender individuals. Through its United Against Hate initiative, which brings together diverse communities to help improve the reporting of hate crimes and provide an opportunity for trust building between law enforcement and communities, DOJ will engage LGBTQI+ communities and other communities victimized by hate crimes as the program is expanded to all 94 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices by the end of September.
Protecting LGBTQI+ Americans’ rights. DOJ is committed to taking an all-of-Department approach to protecting LGBTQI+ rights. As part of that commitment, DOJ’s LGBTQI+ Working Group will coordinate quarterly stakeholder meetings chaired by the Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division, who will serve as liaison to and engage with the LGBTQI+ community and other relevant stakeholders on issues related to discrimination against the LGBTQI+ community. In addition, the Associate Attorney General will continue to coordinate and expand the Department’s work to respond to issues and challenges that affect the LGBTQI+ community, building on DOJ’s existing efforts to support the rights of LGBTQI+ Americans. DOJ is also releasing a fact sheet summarizing the Department’s work to protect the rights of LGBTQI+ Americans.
White House.gov. 06/08/2023.
II. Supporting LGBTQI+ kids to thrive.
- Support the mental health of LGBTQI+ youth and partner with families to affirm LGBTQI+ kids. LGBTQI+ youth face a nationwide mental health crisis, and almost half of LGBTQI+ kids say they seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. However, when LGBTQI+ kids are supported, they thrive. Today, HHS is announcing it will issue a Behavioral Health Care Advisory on Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth to provide evidence-based practices for mental health providers. HHS will also issue a guidance to states and communities on using federal funding to support mental health services for LGBTQI+ youth, including funding from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, and provide technical assistance to communities to increase LGBTQI+ youth mental health services. HHS’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has also just released an LGBTQI+ Family Support Grant to provide $1.7 million in federal funding for programs that prevent health and behavioral health risks for LGBTQI+ youth (including suicide and homelessness) by helping families to affirm and support their LGBTQI+ child.
- Protect LGBTQI+ youth in foster care. LGBTQI+ youth are overrepresented in the child welfare system, and far too often experience trauma, including being exposed to so-called “conversion therapy” while in care, being placed in foster care or congregate care settings that are hostile to their identity, or lacking access to health care and mental health services to support them. Today, the Administration for Children and Families at HHS is announcing that it will advance a rulemaking under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act to protect LGBTQI+ youth in foster care by requiring that state child welfare agencies ensure that LGBTQI+ youth have access to a safe and appropriate placement and have access to supportive services that help to affirm them. To inform this potential proposed rule, HHS will continue engaging with LGBTQI+ youth, foster parents, and other stakeholders.
- Shield LGBTQI+ kids and families from discrimination. The HHS Office for Civil Rights is announcing that it expects to issue proposed regulations to protect LGBTQI+ kids and families from discrimination in human services programs that support children and families. This Rule would strengthen protections eroded by the previous Administration to help protect LGBTQI+ Americans from discrimination.
- Address LGBTQI+ youth homelessness. The Department of Housing and Urban Development is announcing that it will launch a new LGBTQI+ Youth Homelessness Initiative to partner with local communities, service providers, and directly affected young people to address LGBTQI+ youth homelessness. Nearly 40 percent of all youth experiencing homelessness identify as LGBTQI+. HUD will encourage communities to develop collaborative solutions to address the specific needs of LGBTQI+ youth experiencing homelessness. HUD will also provide technical assistance and regular training for shelter and service providers, new resources highlighting innovative methods for supporting LGBTQI+ youth, and Know Your Rights tools for LGBTQI+ youth. This work will be informed by listening sessions HUD will hold with LGBTQI+ youth across the country.
III. Addressing Book Bans
- Protecting Americans from book banning. Across the country, our nation faces a spike in book bans – efforts that disproportionately strip books about LGBTQI+ communities, communities of color, and other communities off of library and classroom shelves. In fact, 2022 saw the highest number of book bans in 20 years. Book banning erodes our democracy, removes vital resources for student learning, and can contribute to the stigma and isolation that LGBTQI+ people and other communities face. The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is announcing that to support its ongoing work to defend the rights of LGBTQI+ students and other underserved communities, it will appoint a new coordinator to address the growing threat that book bans pose for the civil rights of students. That coordinator will work to provide new trainings for schools nationwide on how book bans that target specific communities and create a hostile school environment may violate federal civil rights laws.
Uplifting LGBTQI+ communities. The Department of Education will host Free to Learn: Creating Inclusive and Nondiscriminatory School Environments for LGBTQI+ Students, a national convening on taking action to support LGBTQI+ students. The Department of Health and Human Services will host Advancing LGBTQI+ Health Equity, a national convening on ensuring that LGBTQI+ Americans are healthy and can thrive.
White House.gov. 06/08/2023.
President Biden’s Pride Celebration with Betty Who is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. D.C., time. A live feed should be posted in the Note.
I have never heard of Betty Who…
So, I googled–found her official website and twitter…
Here are a couple of songs from her official YouTube…
Agenda Tweets
From Wednesday…
The White House on Thursday posted; Report Card: Two Years of Building Stronger Supply Chains and a More Resilient Economy
The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis significantly disrupted supply chains around the world, forcing many families to navigate empty store shelves, endure longer delivery times, and pay higher prices at the register. Supply chain bottlenecks for critical inputs, like semiconductors, exposed major U.S. economic and national security vulnerabilities, many of which were decades in the making. Pandemic-induced disruptions were exacerbated by Russia’s unjust invasion of Ukraine, which further highlighted the dangers of overreliance on geographically concentrated production and far-flung, fragile supply chains. Together, the pandemic and the war contributed to a surge in input costs and inflation across many sectors of the economy.
The Biden-Harris Administration made supply chain resilience and response a top priority on day one, collaborating with industry and labor to address acute shortages and bottlenecks throughout the economy. As a result, critical supply chains are significantly more fluid and resilient than they were when the President took office. Today, we see increased access to transportation and warehousing capacity and equipment, solid throughput at the ports, improved delivery times, greater ocean shipping reliability, and steady declines in transportation costs.
- The nation’s ports moved record levels of cargo in 2021 (25.8 million units) and 2022 (25.5 million units) through increased collaboration across the logistics industry, which has helped reduce the significant backlog of anchored vessels from a peak of 155 to roughly a dozen in May 2023.
- 92 percent of goods at grocery and drug stores are in stock—above where they were pre-pandemic.
- There are over 120 new trucking firms with Registered Apprenticeship programs to help attract, train, and retain talent in this critical sector.
- The New York Fed’s Global Supply Chain Pressure Index has eased off of its highest level on record. This has happened alongside a historic surge in East-West ocean shipping prices, which have fallen by roughly 90 percent since their peak in September 2021, as well as a 30 percent drop in gas prices since their summer 2022 peak. Moreover, annual core goods inflation has fallen more than 65 percent since its peak in February 2022.
Today, the White House Council of Economic Advisers released a blog demonstrating that the normalization of supply chains appears to be driving down prices for goods, lowering inflation for families, consumers, and businesses.
Even with this success, President Biden has long recognized that building strong supply chains requires not just solving acute crises but making long-term investments in resilience. In his first months in office, President Biden signed Executive Order (E.O.) 14017, “America’s Supply Chains,” directing the federal government to undertake a first-of-its-kind comprehensive 100-day review of the supply chains of four critical products – semiconductors, large capacity batteries, critical minerals and materials, and pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients – to identify vulnerabilities, assess risks, and develop strategies to promote resilience.
To undertake this comprehensive review, the Biden Administration established an internal task force spanning more than a dozen agencies, consulting with hundreds of stakeholders from labor, business, academic institutions, Congress, and U.S. allies and partners to identify vulnerabilities and solutions for these supply chains. The 100-day review was released on June 8, 2021.
Two years later, significant progress has been made in implementing the 100-day review’s findings. More than 70 recommendations across the report have been completed to date – from providing financing across the full battery supply chain to leveraging the Defense Production Act in historic ways to diversifying supply chains by supporting small- and medium-sized businesses. Spurred by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the private sector has invested over $470 billion in manufacturing of semiconductors, electric vehicles (EVs) and EV batteries, clean energy technologies, and pharmaceutical and medical products.
The following report card lays out actions taken across more than two dozen of the most significant cross-cutting recommendations in the 100-day review, strengthening critical supply chains while creating good-paying, union jobs, and bolstering our industrial base and domestic manufacturing capacity.
To read the full report, visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Supply-Chain-Report-Card.pdf
White House.gov. 06/08/2023.
American Rescue Plan.
Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
Inflation Reduction Act.
CHIPS and Science Act.
H.R.3746 – Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023
Canadian Wildfires Tweet
From Wednesday…
Show more =’s have the support they need. It’s critical that Americans experiencing dangerous air pollution, especially those with health conditions, listen to local authorities to protect themselves and their families.
The White House posted the following call readout:
President Biden spoke with Prime Minister Trudeau of Canada today to offer additional support to respond to the devasting and historic wildfires burning in Canada. The President has directed his team to deploy all available Federal firefighting assets that can rapidly assist in suppressing fires impacting Canadian and American communities. To date, the United States has deployed more than 600 U.S. firefighters and support personnel, and other firefighting assets to respond to the fires. The two leaders also discussed continued cooperation to prevent wildfires and address the health impacts that such fires have on our communities. They agreed to stay in close touch on emerging needs.
White House.gov. 06/07/2023.
Yesterday Nova Scotia.ca., released the the following wildfire update:
The Barrington Lake wildfire in Shelburne County is classified as “being held.”
Being held means it is not moving, but still not under control. Also:
Nova Scotia.ca. 06/07/2023.
- it covers 23,411 hectares (234 square kilometres); the change in size reflects more precise measurement from aerial views Tuesday, June 6
- about 130 firefighters from the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables (DNRR) and more than 40 volunteer and municipal firefighters are responding
- air resources include two helicopters.
Evacuation information for Shelburne fires is available at: https://www.facebook.com/shelburneemo and https://www.facebook.com/BarringtonEMO
There are four other active wildfires in the province. Fires in the following areas are under control and DNRR and volunteer/municipal firefighters are patrolling:
Nova Scotia.ca. 06/07/2023.
- Lake Road, Municipality of the District of Shelburne
- Pubnico, Yarmouth County
- Westwood Hills, Tantallon
- Hammonds Plains.
In Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), DNRR is now solely focusing on extinguishing the wildfire in forested areas while HRM focuses on recovery in urban areas.
Up-to-date information on comfort centres in HRM, response efforts and evacuation updates is available at https://www.halifax.ca/ and by following @hfxgov on Twitter.
People displaced by wildfires can call 211 for information on short- and long-term accommodations available in their area.
People are asked to please remain away from all wildfire areas. People are also reminded to only call 911 if their health or safety is threatened and they need immediate help; for non-emergencies in HRM related to the police, people can call 902-490-5016.
Nova Scotia.ca. 06/07/2023.
Quick Facts:
- there is a provincewide ban on open fires; the fine has been increased to $25,000 for breaking the burn ban
- restrictions on travel and activities in the woods remain in Shelburne County and anywhere evacuation orders are in place
- people should not operate drones over a forest fire; drones can interfere with the suppression effort and pose a danger to aircraft and first responders
- a wildfire that is contained means it is partially surrounded by either natural breaks (like a road, lake, river) or a dozer line or hose line
Additional Resources:
Information on school closures and other updates related to the wildfires are available at: https://novascotia.ca/alerts/
Changes to restrictions on travel and activities in the woods: https://novascotia.ca/news/release/?id=20230604005
Burn restrictions: https://novascotia.ca/burnsafe/
News Release – Increased Fine for Breaking Burn Ban: https://novascotia.ca/news/release/?id=20230531004
Nova Scotia.ca. 06/07/2023.
Veto Tweets
From Wednesday…
The video clip is 1 minute and 45 seconds long.
President Biden:
Folks, Republicans in Congress led an effort to pass a bill blocking my Administration’s plan to provide up to $10,000 in student debt relief and up to $20,000 for borrowers that received a Pell Grant. Nearly 90% of those relief dollars go to people making less than $75,000 a year.
I’m not going to back down on my efforts to help tens of millions of working and middle-class families. That’s why I’m going to veto this bill. And don’t forget, some of the same members of Congress who want to cut student aid, personally received loans to keep their small business afloat during the pandemic.
Some of the same members of Congress who supported this bill voted for huge tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy as well. But when it comes to hard working Americans trying to get ahead, dealing with student debt relief, that’s where they drew the line.
I think it’s wrong.
Last summer, I spoke with a woman named Daria who told me that due to certain health issues, she couldn’t work during the pandemic. Our plan will provide her family the need breathing room. For Daria and people like Daria, I’m going to keep fighting to make sure college is cheap. Make student loan system more manageable for borrowers. And over the last two years, I’ve been working to make college more affordable for all students. And my Department of Education has proposed the most generous repayment program ever, which are going to cut undergraduate loan payments in half.
Let me make something really clear, I’m never going to apologize for helping working and middle-class Americans as they recover from this pandemic. Never.
(President Biden signs the veto).
Twitter. 06/07/2023.
The White House posted the following Message:
TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
I am returning herewith without my approval H.J. Res. 45, a resolution that would disapprove of the Department of Education’s rule relating to “Waivers and Modifications of Federal Student Loans.”
Since Day One, my Administration has been fighting to make college cheaper and the student loan system more manageable for borrowers. My Administration has championed the largest increase to Pell Grants in the last decade — a combined increase of $900 to the maximum award for students over the last 2 years — and has a plan to double the maximum Pell Grant by 2029 to nearly $13,000. This means more money in students’ pockets to pay for college. To help individuals who had to borrow to go to college, my Administration has been building a student loan system that works. The Department of Education has proposed the most generous repayment plan ever, which will cut undergraduate loan payments in half. It has also reformed the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to make it easier for hundreds of thousands of public service employees to get the debt relief they deserve.
The pandemic was devastating for families across the Nation. To give borrowers the essential relief they need as they recover from the economic strains associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Education created a program to provide up to $10,000 in debt relief — and up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients — reaching more than 40 million hard-working Americans. Nearly 90 percent of this relief would go to Americans earning less than $75,000 per year, and no relief would go to any individual or household in the top 5 percent of incomes.
The demand for this relief is undeniable. In less than 4 weeks — during the period when the student debt relief application was available — 26 million people applied or were deemed automatically eligible for relief. At least 16 million of those borrowers could have received debt relief already if it were not for meritless lawsuits waged by opponents of this program.
The Department of Education’s action is based on decades-old authority, granted by the Congress. Multiple administrations over the last two decades have used this authority, following the same procedures as my Administration, to protect borrowers from the effects of national emergencies and military deployments. The Department of Education’s exercise of this authority has never previously been subject to the Congressional Review Act.
It is a shame for working families across the country that lawmakers continue to pursue this unprecedented attempt to deny critical relief to millions of their own constituents, even as several of these same lawmakers have had tens of thousands of dollars of their own business loans forgiven by the Federal Government.
I remain committed to continuing to make college affordable and providing this critical relief to borrowers as they work to recover from a once-in-a-century pandemic.
Therefore, I am vetoing this resolution.
White House.gov. 06/07/2023.
From Congress.gov.
Summary:
This joint resolution nullifies the rule issued by the Department of Education on October 12, 2022, that suspends federal student loan payments and discharges debt.
Congress.gov.
Actions:
| Date | Actions Overview |
|---|---|
| 06/07/2023 | Vetoed by President. |
| 06/07/2023 | Presented to President. |
| 06/01/2023 | Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Yea-Nay Vote. 52 – 46. Record Vote Number: 135. |
| 05/24/2023 | Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 218 – 203 (Roll no. 234).(text: CR H2562) |
| 05/18/2023 | Reported by the Committee on Education and the Workforce. H. Rept. 118-71. |
| 03/27/2023 | Introduced in House |
Remembrance Tweet
From Wednesday…
Show more =’s discrimination in labor markets, pay equity, and worker empowerment. Bill will be missed for his kindness, warmth, and humility.
President Biden’s full statement:
I am deeply saddened by the passing of Bill Spriggs, a man who brought as much lasting brilliance to economics as he brought joy to his friends and colleagues. Bill was a towering figure in his field, a trailblazer who challenged the field’s basic assumptions about racial discrimination in labor markets, pay equity, and worker empowerment. His work inspired countless economists, some of whom work for our Administration, to join him in the pursuit of economic justice. Serving as both the Economics Department Chair at Howard University and as Chief Economist for the AFL-CIO — the first Black American to hold the position — Bill relentlessly fought to ensure that the voices and needs of workers were at the center of economic policymaking. Bill was also a dedicated public servant who held several economic policy positions across the federal government spanning two presidential administrations. Along with these remarkable contributions and achievements, Bill will be missed for his kindness, warmth, and humility.
White House.gov. 06/07/2023.
Get Well Soon Tweet
From Wednesday…
Hank added a tweet to the thread:
While I have you here…did you know that chemo and radiation explode cancer cells and the atoms and molecules from the cancer are then filtered out of the bloodstream by the kidneys? So, cancer survivors literally flush their cancer into the sewer! I just wanted you to know that.
— Hank Green (@hankgreen) June 8, 2023
The letter reads:
Dear Hank,
I am so sorry to hear about the difficult times you are facing. While everyone’s battle with cancer is different, Jill and I understand how hard it can be for you and your loved ones. Always know that you are not alone in this fight. You are in my prayers. Stay strong, and keep the faith.
Twitter. 06/07/2023. Letter sent in May.
I have no idea who Hank is. His twitter bio says: CEO, Complexly and http://DFTBA.com – on cancer sabbatical.
His pinned tweet from May 19th, 2023:
This is an Open Thread.
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