Politics

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden honored those grieving loved ones lost during the pandemic in their joint message to Americans on Christmas Day.

The Bidens evoked classic Christmas themes, such as “the promise of hope and renewal” during “this season of joy,” but acknowledged that many are practicing “finding light in the darkness, which is also perhaps the most American of things to do.”

“We pray for you to find strength from sorrow and purpose from pain,” the Bidens said.

During their first Christmas in the White House, the Bidens reflected on the “enormous courage, character, resilience” displayed by Americans in the past year, lauding those who “show how our differences are precious and our similarities infinite.”

“This sacred season is yet another reminder that we are a great nation because we are a good people,” they wrote.

The president and first lady later met virtually with service members to thank them for serving far from home on Christmas.

Commander, the Bidens’ new German shepherd puppy, lied on the couch between them during the meeting.

The Bidens also spread Christmas cheer on Friday by visiting children at the Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., the first time in history a sitting president accompanied the first lady on the traditional Christmas Eve outing, according to the White House.

Also on Friday, the Bidens called into the phone line run by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, which tracks Santa Claus’ path across the globe. During the call, a father directed a vulgar insult toward the president.

The man, who identified himself as “Jared,” spoke to the Bidens about his children before saying, “Let’s go, Brandon,” before the call ended. The statement, popular among conservatives who oppose the president, has become code for the phrase, “f— Joe Biden,” stemming from a reporter misinterpreting a chant after a NASCAR race.

The Bidens attended mass virtually on Friday, according to a White House official. They attended the Christmas Eve mass from the White House’s East Room, the official said.

Two years into the pandemic and amid another surge in positive cases with the highly transmissible omicron variant, Biden told ABC News World News Tonight anchor David Muir in an exclusive interview earlier this week that “nothing’s been good enough” when it comes to the availability of at-home coronavirus tests.

The Biden administration has purchased 500 million at-home tests to distribute to Americans for free, but they will not be available until after the new year.

Biden expressed regret to Muir for not ordering the tests sooner, saying he wished he would have thought to do it two months ago.

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(WASHINGTON) — The temporary travel ban placed on eight Southern African countries will be lifted by the New Year, the White House announced Friday.

The restrictions were initially issued Nov. 29 in an effort to curb the spread of the new COVID-19 omicron variant. It limited travel for all non-U.S. citizens coming from South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Namibia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

White House Assistant Press Secretary Kevin Munoz tweeted Friday saying the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the change now that we know vaccines and boosters are effective against the variant.

The restrictions will be lifted the morning of New Year’s Eve.

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(WASHINGTON) — The White House on Thursday defended President Joe Biden’s handling of coronavirus testing after the president said in an exclusive interview with ABC “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir that he wished he would have ordered hundreds of millions of tests for Americans sooner and that “nobody” predicted the emergence of the omicron variant.

The president this week announced new plans to slow the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, including purchasing 500 million at-home rapid tests and, starting next month, distributing them to Americans, free of charge.

“I wish I had thought about ordering” 500 million at-home tests “two months ago,” he told Muir on Wednesday during a sit-down interview at the White House.

ABC News’ Alex Presha asked Psaki why Biden’s administration couldn’t have at least foreseen a spike in demand for tests prior to holiday gatherings, regardless of the variants – since Americnas scrambled to get tested last year, too.

The rapid, at-home tests have been hard to find ahead of the Christmas holiday.

“I don’t think last Christmas people were rushing to get tests,” Psaki said, noting that over-the-counter tests were not available like they are this year. But last year, Americans did face long lines at testing centers and other locations.

Psaki pointed out that vaccinations have transformed the country this year compared to last year, when only a small number of Americans could receive vaccinations.

She also defended Biden’s remark to Muir that “nobody” predicted the omicron variant’s emergence, when in fact, infectious disease experts had warned of new variants.

“Nobody saw it coming,” Biden told Muir Wednesday. “Nobody in the whole world. Who saw it coming? “

Muir pressed Biden: “Scientists have long said that when you’re dealing with the coronavirus, COVID-19, that there are going to be mutations, that most likely over time it is going to become very transmissible because this virus is trying to stay alive, trying to survive. So did the administration not expect that there could be moments like this one where you’d have a highly transmissible variant possible around the corner?”

“It was possible,” Biden replied. “And it’s possible there could be other variants that come along. That’s possible. But what do you plan for? You plan for what you think is available, that is the most likely threat that exists at the time, and you respond to it. And I think that that’s exactly what we’ve done.”

Psaki similarly told reporters that “we of course knew that there would be additional variants at some point coming we didn’t know what they would look like.”

“I would say that nobody saw – knew that there would be the number of different variants, nobody knew exactly how transmissible they would be,” she said.

Psaki was on defense, too, about Biden’s comment that he wished he thought of ordering 500 million tests two months ago.

“June was a long time ago, but before that delta variant was on the rise, there was not a demand for testing in this country,” she said. “There really wasn’t. Then delta obviously increased the demand.”

She argued that Biden did, in fact, work to increase testing capacity by using a law known as the Defense Production Act to expand the supply of at-home tests.

“Without that, we wouldn’t have the supply in the market,” she said.

Biden also told Muir that ​​when it came to the availability of at-home coronavirus tests in the United States, “nothing’s been good enough.”

Psaki said what Biden “was acknowledging, which he said in his speech a couple of days ago as well, is that we’re not where we need to be on testing.

“No one is saying we are,” she added.

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(PHILADELPHIA) — Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon in south Philadelphia’s largest park following a business meeting.

The congresswoman was left unharmed, according to a statement provided to ABC News by her spokesperson, Lauren Cox.

“Wednesday afternoon, at around 2:45 p.m., Congresswoman Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in FDR Park following a meeting at that location. The Congresswoman was physically unharmed,” Cox said in a statement.

“She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for their swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both the Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety,” the statement said.

Five suspects were taken into custody in Newark, Delaware, at about 9 p.m., when they were found inside Scanlon’s Acura MDX in a parking lot, Delaware State Police said. Their names were not released.

Scanlon, who was first elected to Congress in 2018, represents the 5th Congressional District in Pennsylvania, which includes parts of south Philadelphia.

Her spokesperson confirmed that Scanlon’s personal belongings, including her personal and government-issued phones and identification, were stolen by the perpetrators.

Philadelphia’s mayor, Jim Kenney, released a statement condemning the incident.

“I’m appalled to learn of this violent crime that was perpetrated against my friend and colleague, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon. Everyone deserves to feel safe in our city, and sadly, as we know, that hasn’t always been the case this year. It’s disheartening, and quite frankly infuriating, that criminals feel emboldened to commit such a reckless crime in the middle of the day in what should be a place of tranquility and peace—one of Philadelphia’s beautiful parks,” he said in a statement.

“I’m thankful that she was not physically harmed during this incident, and my thoughts are with her during what I’m sure is a traumatic time. I’m also thankful that our police officers have been working hard to identify violent criminals and get them off our streets. PPD is actively investigating this incident. We simply cannot and will not tolerate any acts of violence. If anyone has any information about this incident—or any other crime—please call or text PPD’s anonymous tip line at 215-686-TIPS.”

The incident comes amid a violent year in Philadelphia, which saw a spike in both gunpoint robberies and auto thefts.

Philadelphia is seeing at least an 80% increase in carjackings in 2021, compared with the total number in 2020, Philadelphia Police have said.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon in south Philadelphia’s largest park following a business meeting.

The congresswoman was left unharmed, according to a statement provided to ABC News by her spokesperson, Lauren Cox.

“Wednesday afternoon, at around 2:45 p.m., Congresswoman Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in FDR Park following a meeting at that location. The Congresswoman was physically unharmed,” Cox said in a statement.

“She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for their swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both the Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety,” the statement said.

Five suspects were taken into custody in Newark, Delaware, at about 9 p.m., when they were found inside Scanlon’s Acura MDX in a parking lot, Delaware State Police said. Their names were not released.

Scanlon, who was first elected to Congress in 2018, represents the 5th Congressional District in Pennsylvania, which includes parts of south Philadelphia.

Her spokesperson confirmed that Scanlon’s personal belongings, including her personal and government-issued phones and identification, were stolen by the perpetrators.

Philadelphia’s mayor, Jim Kenney, released a statement condemning the incident.

“I’m appalled to learn of this violent crime that was perpetrated against my friend and colleague, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon. Everyone deserves to feel safe in our city, and sadly, as we know, that hasn’t always been the case this year. It’s disheartening, and quite frankly infuriating, that criminals feel emboldened to commit such a reckless crime in the middle of the day in what should be a place of tranquility and peace—one of Philadelphia’s beautiful parks,” he said in a statement.

“I’m thankful that she was not physically harmed during this incident, and my thoughts are with her during what I’m sure is a traumatic time. I’m also thankful that our police officers have been working hard to identify violent criminals and get them off our streets. PPD is actively investigating this incident. We simply cannot and will not tolerate any acts of violence. If anyone has any information about this incident—or any other crime—please call or text PPD’s anonymous tip line at 215-686-TIPS.”

The incident comes amid a violent year in Philadelphia, which saw a spike in both gunpoint robberies and auto thefts.

Philadelphia is seeing at least an 80% increase in carjackings in 2021, compared with the total number in 2020, Philadelphia Police have said.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden said Wednesday in an exclusive interview with ABC “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir that “accountability is necessary” for the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, “no matter where it goes.”

“I think accountability is necessary,” Biden told Muir during a sit-down interview at the White House.

“And that means if it goes right into the previous administration?” Muir pressed, referring to the administration of President Donald Trump, who was in office when his supporters launched a deadly attack on the Capitol.

“No matter where it goes,” Biden said. “Those responsible should be held accountable.”

You can watch more of David Muir’s interview with President Joe Biden on ABC “World News Tonight” and “Nightline” at 12:35 a.m. ET

A House select committee currently investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection has subpoenaed top Trump administration officials, including the former president’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows. The House later voted Meadows in criminal contempt for refusing to cooperate.

In October, a reporter asked the president what his message was to those who defy the committee’s subpoenas.”

“I hope that the committee goes after them and holds them accountable,” Biden said then.

Asked if the Justice Department should prosecute them, he replied, “I do, yes.”

Days later, Biden said during a CNN town hall he was wrong to appear as if he was directing the department to act a certain way, noting what he said “was not appropriate.”

“I should have chosen my words more wisely,” he added.

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(WASHINGTON) — Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon in south Philadelphia’s largest park following a business meeting.

The congresswoman was left unharmed, according to a statement provided to ABC News by her spokesperson, Lauren Cox.

“Wednesday afternoon, at around 2:45 p.m., Congresswoman Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in FDR Park following a meeting at that location. The Congresswoman was physically unharmed,” Cox said in a statement.

“She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for their swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both the Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety,” the statement said.

Scanlon, who was first elected to Congress in 2018, represents the 5th Congressional District in Pennsylvania, which includes parts of south Philadelphia.

Her spokesperson confirmed that Scanlon’s personal belongings, including her personal and government-issued phones and identification, were stolen by the perpetrators.

Philadelphia’s mayor, Jim Kenney, released a statement condemning the incident.

“I’m appalled to learn of this violent crime that was perpetrated against my friend and colleague, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon. Everyone deserves to feel safe in our city, and sadly, as we know, that hasn’t always been the case this year. It’s disheartening, and quite frankly infuriating, that criminals feel emboldened to commit such a reckless crime in the middle of the day in what should be a place of tranquility and peace—one of Philadelphia’s beautiful parks,” he said in a statement.

“I’m thankful that she was not physically harmed during this incident, and my thoughts are with her during what I’m sure is a traumatic time. I’m also thankful that our police officers have been working hard to identify violent criminals and get them off our streets. PPD is actively investigating this incident. We simply cannot and will not tolerate any acts of violence. If anyone has any information about this incident—or any other crime—please call or text PPD’s anonymous tip line at 215-686-TIPS.”

The incident comes amid a violent year in Philadelphia, which saw a spike in both gunpoint robberies and auto thefts.

Philadelphia is seeing at least an 80% increase in carjackings in 2021, compared with the total number in 2020, Philadelphia Police have said.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack sent a letter on Wednesday to GOP Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, requesting he appear for an interview with the panel about his communications with President Donald Trump on and before Jan. 6.

The request from Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., to the staunch Trump ally is the committee’s second such request to a GOP lawmaker.

On Monday night, the committee requested a meeting with Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., to discuss his communications with Trump Justice Department officials about false claims of election fraud and efforts to install Jeffrey Clark as the acting attorney general.

Jordan, who Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., has described as a potential “material witness” for the committee’s investigation, has said he spoke to Trump on Jan. 6 after the attack — after initially telling an Ohio news station he couldn’t remember when he communicated with Trump and Politico reported that they spoke twice.

Jordan, a leader and founding member of the Trump-aligned House Freedom Caucus, was among the GOP lawmakers who planned to challenge the election results on the House floor. He has said he had “nothing to do with” the attack on the Capitol.

After the election, the Ohio Republican focused most of his efforts challenging the legality of the pandemic-era voting changes in many states rather than some of the more outlandish and unproven theories of election fraud pushed by some Trump supporters.

The committee said it hoped to ask Jordan about his communications with Trump on Jan. 6 and any communications he may have had on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6 with Trump’s legal team, White House officials, or any of the rally organizers and activists based at the Willard Hotel.

“We would also like to ask you about any discussions involving the possibility of presidential pardons for individuals involved in any aspect of January 6th or the planning for January 6th,” the panel wrote.

The committee also noted that it has obtained “testimony indicating that the president was watching television coverage of the attack from his private dining room adjoining the Oval Office during this time period,” which has been publicly reported.

A spokesman for Jordan did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

The committee requested a meeting with Jordan in the first week of January but also said it would be “glad to explore travel arrangements” to meet with him at home in Ohio.

Jordan was among the House Republicans nominated to serve on the select committee by House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blocked him from being seated on the panel given his past false statements about the election results — which led McCarthy to withdraw all his selections to the committee.

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(RICHMOND, Va.) — A time capsule estimated to be more than 130 years old, unearthed from the base of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, was being opened Wednesday in Richmond, Virginia, and the artifacts showed a snapshot of life in the Confederate South.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam attended the opening of capsule by historians. Historians used tools to painstakingly open the corroded box. After hours of working to unseal the box, the team — clad in blue latex gloves — pulled the first artifact: a medium-sized maroon book.

“It’s very wet,” Kate Ridgeway said, a conservator with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources said as she peered into the rusted time capsule.

“We are trying to preserve what we can of this book,” Ridgeway said, after conservators took a thin maroon book from the more than hundred year old container.

Other artifacts were slowly pulled from the corroded box, another book and what one historian said looked like the coin.

Conservators pulled a few items from the box: what appears to be a coin, at least three books of varying size and color, what appeared to be an envelope and papers, some of which were difficult to identify given their condition.

Teams quickly worked to “stabilize” the artifacts, Ridgeway told reporters in the room, so that they could be worked on. As for how long it takes to stabilize them, historians said it depends on how wet the items are.

The time capsule was found by construction crews in early December. Crews taking apart the removed statue’s base came across an area that looked “different,” according to a release from Northam’s office, and chiseled out a section of the 2,000-pound granite block to reveal it.

The capsule is estimated by experts to date back to 1887. According to the governor’s office, records show that, “37 Richmond residents, organizations, and businesses contributed about 60 objects to the capsule, many of which are believed to be related to the Confederacy.”

The pedestal stood beneath a bronze statue of Lee on horseback that was removed in September 2021, following nationwide racial justice protests after George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis.

The statue’s removal was slowed by lawsuits from some residents who opposed it being taken down, but the state’s Supreme Court okayed it.

As the capsule was opened, the state was making plans to create a new time capsule to reflect present-day Virginia.

“This monument and its time capsule reflected Virginia in 1890 — and it’s time to remove both, so that our public spaces better reflect who we are as a people in 2021,” Northam said in a September press release. “The past 18 months have seen historic change, from the pandemic to protests for racial justice that led to the removal of these monuments to a lost cause. It is fitting that we replace the old time capsule with a new one that tells that story.”

The state has selected 39 individuals to add artifacts to the 2021 time capsule, which are expected to include nods to the 2020 racial justice protests, as well as items, including face masks and vaccination cards, related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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(AUSTIN, Texas) — The right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council, otherwise known as ALEC, is pushing a new piece of anti-fossil fuel divestment legislation after a version of the bill was passed in Texas.

Texas this year paved the way for the GOP on several fronts, from passing a new “fetal heartbeat” abortion law to a restrictive election law. The state also buoyed a bill that would require state entities to divest from companies that choose to no longer do business with fossil fuel companies. It was signed into law in June.

At least a dozen similar bills to the Texas law were filed in 2021 legislative sessions in a handful of states, according to the Texas Tribune, and experts anticipate the trend will grow in 2022.

“Oil and gas is the lifeblood of the Texas economy,” Texas state Rep. Phil King said during a floor discussion of the state’s bill in May, according to the Tribune. “In the world of capital, there’s a movement to deny funds to businesses that will not sign on to extreme anti-fossil fuel policy.”

ALEC, which drafts and streamlines legislative priorities for lawmakers in statehouses across the country, approved model legislation similar to the Texas law — called the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act — at its December meeting.

In an email obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy, a top executive for a state-level group that pushed the anti-divestment bill in Texas wrote that “at the ALEC Committee meetings you’ll have the opportunity to push back against woke financial institutions that are colluding against American energy producers.”

Modeled after anti-BDS legislation supported by ALEC that passed in Texas in 2019, the fossil fuel bill is touted as sending “a strong message that the states will fight back against woke capitalism,” the executive wrote in the email. The controversial Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement uses financial pressure to “end international support for Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.”

ALEC’s Task Force on Energy, Environment and Agriculture voted unanimously in support of the fossil fuel bill language, according to news reports, but it appears to have been removed from ALEC’s website.

ALEC did not respond to a request for comment.

“It’s likely more political than anything else,” Hana Vizcarra, a senior attorney at EarthJustice, told ABC regarding ALEC’s efforts on the energy front. “I think that the financial sector is waking up to the reality of impacts of climate change on their investments, their lending, how they go about their business… these kinds of efforts appear to just be pushing against the tide of reality.”

Banks are starting to shift their investments as they assess the risks of climate change, Vizcarra said, and that doesn’t necessarily equate to a boycott. In 2020, Larry Fink, founder and chief executive of investment behemoth BlackRock, wrote to shareholders that the firm would make climate change “a defining factor” in its investment strategy.

“It’s largely pushing against the private sector and business community at the moment,” she said. “But they may find that they’re actually hindering their own business climate through these efforts.”

The public is getting on board with holding companies responsible for climate change.

In a September public opinion poll conducted by organizations at Yale and George Mason universities, 41% of Americans said that over the next 12 months, they intend to reward companies that are taking steps to reduce global warming more frequently than they do now.

Another 41% said they intend to punish companies that are opposing steps to reduce global warming more frequently than they do now. The poll found that at least half of Americans say industries should be doing “more” or “much more” to address global warming. And 70% say fossil fuel companies should be doing more.

Progressives, meanwhile, are introducing legislation that would require government entities to divest from fossil fuel companies.

And in response to reporting about the energy discrimination bill, 38 climate advocacy organizations wrote a letter to state treasurers and comptrollers urging them to push back against the legislation.

“Despite what ALEC and other politically-motivated organizations may claim, the global energy transition is underway,” the groups wrote. “This is a market reality, not a political opinion.”

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