DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Biden personally adds mentions of an assault weapons ban to his planned public remarks, a White House official said. "We're going to ban assault weapons again," he said on Thursday at a Lunar New Year reception at the White House, to applause. As vice president, he spearheaded a set of gun control proposals for Barack Obama after Sandy Hook that included a recommendation for a new assault weapons ban. However the Quinnipiac and other polls show that just about half of Americans support an assault weapons ban. Even though an all-out assault weapons ban seems unlikely, a very thin Republican majority in the House means that something more modest, such as raising the age to 21 to buy assault weapons, could be possible, the University of New Hampshire's Scala said.

Musk responded on Twitter to the initial exclusive Reuters report that he met with the officials, saying it was "True." Later, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed the meeting took place and added that Musk did not meet with Biden personally. A Reuters witness on Friday saw Podesta, Landrieu and Musk entering a downtown building that houses both Tesla's Washington lobbying operation and the Center for American Progress, a think tank Podesta founded. BIDEN, MUSK TENSIONSRelations have often seemed antagonistic between Biden, who has pushed for companies to use union labor, and Musk, who has pushed to keep unions out of his factories. Biden only publicly acknowledged the role of Tesla in U.S. electric vehicle manufacturing over a year after taking office, after Musk repeatedly complained about being ignored.

A Reuters witness on Friday saw Podesta, Landrieu and Musk entering a downtown building that houses both Tesla's Washington lobbying operation and the Center for American Progress, a think tank Podesta founded. BIDEN, MUSK TENSIONSRelations have often seemed antagonistic between Biden, who has pushed for companies to use union labor, and Musk, who has pushed to keep unions out of his factories. Musk called Biden "a damp sock puppet in human form" last year after Biden highlighted EV production by GM and Ford in a tweet but left out Tesla. Biden only publicly acknowledged the role of Tesla in U.S. electric vehicle manufacturing over a year after taking office, after Musk repeatedly complained about being ignored. It also includes new U.S. battery production credits that Musk said earlier this week could have significant benefits to the company.

WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The White House on Friday launched a fresh attack against U.S. oil companies, accusing them of using profits to pay shareholders instead of boosting supply, after Chevron Corp (CVX.N) said its annual profit doubled for 2022. Other oil companies are expected to follow suit. "Companies clearly have everything they need – record profits and thousands of approved permits – to increase production," White House spokesperson Abdullah Hasan said in a statement. "The only thing getting in the way is their own decision to keep plowing windfall profits into the pockets of executives and shareholders instead of using them to boost supply." Hasan's comments mark the latest set of attacks from the White House lambasting oil companies for funneling a windfall of profits to investors.

☆ Explainer: When is the State of the Union 2023? Date of Biden's address and what to expect
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Biden will deliver his 2nd State of the Union address on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, at about 9 p.m. Eastern time (0200 GMT Wednesday). An estimated 38.2 million people watched the speech on U.S. television last year, according to the data provider Nielsen. WHAT IS BIDEN EXPECTED TO SAY? Last year, Biden's speech came just days after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and focused heavily on explaining Washington's response. Republicans have not yet announced who will be picked to give the traditional opposition party response to Biden's remarks.

☆ Biden to attack House Republican's economic plans in Virginia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Steve Holland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden will use a speech at a steamfitters union hall in Virginia on Thursday to launch an attack against Republicans who control the U.S. House of Representatives, saying some of their proposals are dangerous for the U.S. economy. Biden, who is laying the groundwork for a bid for re-election in 2024, will visit the union hall in Springfield, Virginia, a Washington suburb. A White House official said Biden will seek to tie House Republicans to former President Donald Trump, the Republican who Biden ousted in the 2020 election. "The president will outline the biggest threat to our economic progress: House Republicans’ MAGA economic plan," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Biden will say his policies "are laying the foundation for strong and stable growth," the White House official said.

☆ Exclusive: Biden to court wealthy donors as he preps 2024 campaign in coming weeks - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Jarrett Renshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Biden and the Democratic National Committee will host fundraisers in New York and Philadelphia next week that coincide with official presidential visits touting legislative successes. Then, the pace and volume of the fundraisers are expected to accelerate in March, the three sources said. Biden's campaign in 2020 was the first presidential candidate in history to raise over $1 billion, as he battled Republican Donald Trump. In 2020, the COVID pandemic forced Biden to stay off the campaign trail and raise money through virtual fundraisers. This time around, Biden will be forced to run a more traditional campaign that includes a mix of official presidential duties, campaign stops and fundraising events.

President Joe Biden is searching for a replacement for National Economic Council (NEC) Director Brian Deese, who is expected to leave soon. Interviews are still ongoing to replace him, according to the sources who declined to discuss an ongoing personnel process. Biden's team is also starting to craft an economic message for his expected 2024 re-election campaign. But reducing high inflation became the administration's top economic priority last year as rising costs began to anger voters. She previously served as the Treasury's point person on international affairs during the Obama administration.

☆ When were Pence classified documents found in his Indiana home?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Mike Pence found documents marked classified at his Indiana home this month which were taken by the FBI, a lawyer for the former Vice President said in letters to the National Archives. Here's how the situation unfolded, according to the letters:Jan. 16: After seeing reports that President Joe Biden had classified documents in his Delaware home, Pence engaged lawyers to review records in his Indiana home. They found "a small number of documentsthat could potentially contain sensitive or classified information," which were locked by Pence in a safe. Jan. 19: The Department of Justice requested "direct possession" of the documents, the Jan. 22 letter says. FBI agents arrived at his Indiana home at 9:30 p.m. to collect the documents, which were secured in his safe.

☆ China tells U.S. to fix its own debt problems after Yellen Africa remarks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - After U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called China a "barrier" to debt reform in Africa this week, Chinese officials in Zambia had a pointed response - get your own house in order. So far, the Biden White House is refusing to negotiate, counting on hardline Republicans to step back under pressure from businesses, investors and moderates. Yellen and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva arrived separately in Zambia Sunday to highlight the need for debt reform in Africa. The U.S. Federal Reserve's rate increases, designed to tame inflation at home, and the appreciating U.S. dollar have added to African countries' debt service burden, the African Development Bank said last week. Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Writing by Heather Timmons, Editing by William MacleanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China tells US to fix its own debt problems after Yellen Africa remarks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

☆ Classified documents found at former U.S. Vice President Pence's home
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Jeff Mason | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Documents marked as classified were discovered at former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's Indiana home last week, and he has turned those classified records over to the FBI, his representative said in letters seen by Reuters. Pence's representative sent a letter to the National Archives notifying them of the documents and in a separate letter said the FBI came to the former vice president's home to collect the documents. The discovery puts Pence in the company of his former boss, former President Donald Trump, and President Joe Biden after documents with classified markings were found at their residences. "Vice President Pence immediately secured those documents in a locked safe pending further direction on proper handling from the National Archives," he said. With agreement by the former vice president, FBI agents came to his Indiana home at 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 19 to collect the documents stored in the safe, Jacob said.

☆ Explainer: Who is Jeff Zients, incoming White House chief of staff?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden named businessman and former COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients to become his second White House chief of staff on Friday, replacing Ron Klain, who is departing the administration after two years on the job. WHO IS JEFF ZIENTS? In the Biden administration, Zients served as the first COVID-19 response coordinator, charged with rolling out a massive vaccine program nationwide in early 2021. He stepped down from that role in 2022 before being tapped to prepare for potential staff turnover at the White House after the midterm elections. The White House chief of staff is like the chief operating officer for the government, someone who runs daily operations, oversees implementation of the president's policies and serves as a liaison for cabinet members.

☆ Analysis: Debt ceiling: White House bets Republicans will blink under pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

House Republicans want cuts to government programsbefore they will approve a higher ceiling; a similar demand sparked a 2011 credit rating downgrade and chaos in financial markets. But we similarly should not blindly increase the debt ceiling," Representative Chip Roy, a leading conservative, told Reuters. 2024 CAMPAIGN FOCUS ON EXTREMISMThe game of chicken comes as the White House prepares Biden's expected re-election campaign. Democrats are planning to deploy that theme in the 2024 election even if an agreement is reached quickly on the debt ceiling. A failure to raise the debt ceiling could have the opposite effect.

☆ Embattled U.S. Rep. Santos was drag queen in Brazil pageants, say associates
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Steven Grattan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The embattled freshman congressman has also faced calls from fellow New York Republicans to step down over fabrications about his career and history. Three years later, Santos competed in a drag beauty pageant in Rio, Rochard said. Another person from Niteroi who knew the congressman but asked not to be named said he participated in drag queen beauty pageants and aspired to be Miss Gay Rio de Janeiro. Santos is the first openly gay Republican to win a House seat in Congress as a non-incumbent, but has positioned himself as a staunch conservative on many social issues. Santos competed in a drag beauty pageant that year but lost, Rochard said.

☆ Dutch premier pledges Patriot missiles for Ukraine at Biden meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday that the Netherlands would offer Patriot missiles to Ukraine, a day after the top Dutch trade official balked at new U.S. restrictions on exporting chip-making technology to China. The Netherlands will join the United States and Germany in sending the Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine, Rutte told Biden at the White House. Biden told Rutte he looked forward to discussing ways to strengthen the supply chain as he welcomed the prime minister to the White House. Trade Minister Liesje Schreinemacher said on Sunday the Netherlands would not summarily accept demands by the United States on chip technology. Rutte told reporters on Friday that he did not feel pressure from Washington to adopt more restrictions on semiconductor exports to China.

☆ Republican candidate arrested in shootings of Democrats' homes in New Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 16 (Reuters) - An unsuccessful Republican state House candidate in New Mexico was arrested on Monday and accused of orchestrating recent shootings at four local elected officials' homes, the Albuquerque Police Department said. Police said on Monday they had arrested Solomon Pena, 39, and accused him of conspiring with, and paying, four other men to shoot at the homes of two county commissioners and two state legislators, all Democrats. Pena lost his election for the state House in November to an incumbent Democrat who garnered more than 73% of the votes. Police said at a press conference Pena had denied his election loss and had approached the commissioners and lawmakers at their homes, claiming election fraud was involved. On Jan. 3, three bullets fired into a state representative's home had gone through her 10-year-old daughter's bedroom, the paper reported.

"Like every President across decades of modern history, his personal residence is personal," the White House Counsel's office said in a statement. The Secret Service, which is tasked with protecting current and past presidents and their families, does not "independently maintain our own visitor logs because it’s a private residence," agency spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. The Republican chairman of the House of Representatives Oversight Committee, James Comer,on Sunday demanded visitor logs for Democrat Biden's house in Wilmington after classified documents were found in his office and garage there. Democrats have unsuccessfully sought visitor logs for Trump's Florida home for years. Biden restored the tradition of keeping White House visitors logs, including publishing them regularly, after the Trump administration ended doing that, the White House counsel noted in Monday's statement.

☆ Republicans want Biden home visitor logs - but not Trump's
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Doina Chiacu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Republicans have sought to compare the Biden documents case with that of former President Donald Trump, who faces a federal criminal probe of how he handled classified documents after he left the White House. Comer said he would not seek visitor logs for Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence, where more than 100 classified documents were found in an FBI search. There is no legal requirement that U.S. presidents disclose visitors at their home or at the White House. The Biden administration reinstated disclosures of official guests to the White House and released its first batch of records in May 2021. TRUMP VS. BIDEN DOCUMENT ISSUESRepublicans in the U.S. House of Representatives launched an investigation on Friday into the Justice Department's handling of improperly stored classified documents possessed by Biden.

☆ Biden documents bungle seen as political black eye before 2024 launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Jeff Mason | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"It basically ... is a huge gift to Trump," said David Axelrod, a former political adviser to President Barack Obama. Axelrod said the latest developments were an "embarrassment" because Biden criticized his predecessor after the FBI found classified government documents during a court-ordered search of Trump's Florida resort. The White House has promised to cooperate with the Department of Justice investigation and says the documents were inadvertently misplaced. In September Biden called Trump's handling of classified documents "totally irresponsible." "This is a distraction for the White House right when they were starting to gain some momentum," said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist and former spokesman for Republican President George W. Bush.

The White House said some material was found in a locked garage at Biden's home and an adjacent room, and pledged to cooperate. "People know I take classified documents and classified material seriously," he added. Biden's attorneys said they have found fewer than a dozen classified documents and turned over the relevant papers after finding them. Trump resisted doing so until an August FBI search turned up about 100 classified documents, raising questions about whether Trump or his staff obstructed the investigation. "People know I take classified documents, classified material seriously," Biden told reporters on Thursday.

☆ Yellen leads new U.S.-Africa policy with trip to Senegal, Zambia, South Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"We believe that Africa's growth will be a key driver of global growth over the coming decades," a senior Treasury official told reporters. But some African countries, including Zambia, have soured on Chinese lending and are looking for alternatives, experts say. Yellen has criticized Beijing - now the world's largest creditor - for not moving quickly to restructure the debt of poor countries in Africa. The topic will be a key issue when she visits Zambia, the Treasury official said. Biden in December proposed that the African Union be included in the Group of 20 major economies to give African countries a bigger seat at the table.

[1/2] U.S. President Joe Biden departs the White House to board the Marine One helicopter for travel to Delaware from the White House in Washington, U.S. January 13, 2023. The White House has said the documents were "inadvertently misplaced" and that it is cooperating fully but has declined to respond to detailed questions on the investigation. While working as the Obama campaign's general counsel in 2008, Bauer helped vet Biden as Obama's pick for vice president. He is married to Anita Dunn, another Biden confidant and senior White House adviser. Bauer will now work with White House lawyers as Biden responds to the special counsel's investigation.

☆ Robert Hur: special counsel on Biden classified document probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Kanishka Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Michael A. McCoyWASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday named Robert Hur as special counsel to investigate whether President Joe Biden had improperly handled sensitive government documents. Hur was the U.S. attorney in Maryland during the Trump administration and most recently served as litigation partner at law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. A graduate of Stanford Law School and Harvard College, Hur served as top aide to then-Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein before his appointment as the U.S. Attorney in Maryland. He knows what he is getting into," Rosenstein told CNN on Thursday after Hur's appointment as special counsel. "I will conduct the assigned investigation with fair, impartial, and dispassionate judgment," Hur said in a statement released after his appointment as special counsel.

☆ Biden aides find second batch of classified documents at new location, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Aides to U.S. President Joe Biden have discovered at least one more batch of classified documents in a location separate from a think tank office he used after serving as vice president, news outlets reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources. The NBC News report said the classification level, number and precise location of the additional documents was not immediately clear. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. A spokesperson for Senator Marco Rubio, the committee's Republican vice chair, said Rubio and Warner had written to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, asking for access to the classified documents. The Justice Department is separately probing Trump's handling of highly sensitive classified documents that he retained at his Florida resort after leaving the White House in January 2021.

Search resuls for: "Heather Timmons"

25 mentions found