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☆ People are dunking on JFK's half-assed Harvard admission essay in the wake of the Supreme Court axing affirmative action
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Supreme Court ruled to overturn race-based affirmative action on Thursday. After the ruling, many focused on John F. Kennedy's underwhelming 1935 Harvard admission essay. The essay, which was first published by The Washington Post in 2013, reappeared on social media on Thursday after the Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action in college admissions was unconstitutional. Although Kennedy's example was extreme and unlikely to cut muster today, US colleges do explicitly favor applicants whose parents went there, via the legacy system. Commentators — including President Joe Biden — on Thursday noted that the legacy system remained untouched by the court ruling.

Persons: John F, Kennedy's, Kennedy, —, — Rebecca Brenner Graham, SATs, Robert Kennedy, Joe Biden —, Ivy, Sonia Sotomayor Organizations: Harvard, Service, The Washington Post, Ivy League, Arts, Harvard Crimson, Harvard University Locations: America

☆ Trump is the only Republican who will lose to Biden in 2024, Paul Ryan says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Former House Speaker Paul Ryan said Wednesday he believes the 2024 Republican presidential nominee will "for sure" be able to unseat President Joe Biden — unless that person is former President Donald Trump. "It's a disaster if we nominate Trump," Ryan, who also serves on the board of Fox News' parent company, told CNBC's "Squawk Box." Cheney is right that Trump "could win," Ryan said, but "I think we lose with him." "I think we're much more likely to lose — we haven't won anything with him since he first won in '16," Ryan said of Trump. "I'm for anybody not named Trump," he added, "because I think we beat Biden for sure if we nominate a Republican not named Trump."

Persons: Paul Ryan, Joe Biden —, Donald Trump, Trump, Ryan, CNBC's, Liz Cheney, Cheney, haven't, Biden, Rupert Murdoch, Fox Organizations: Republican, Fox News, GOP Trump, Trump, Fox Corp

☆ Donald Trump is the only living US president whose ancestors didn't own slaves, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Donald Trump is reportedly the only living US president whose ancestors did not own slaves. That's because Trump's ancestors came to America after slavery had already been abolished. Even Barack Obama — the country's first Black president — is the descendant of a slaveowner on his white mother's side of the family. According to Reuters, the slaveholding ancestors of living US presidents include:Joe Biden — One direct ancestor, five generations removed, owned one slaveBarack Obama — One director ancestor, six generations removed, owned two slavesGeorge Bush — One director ancestor, six generations removed, owned 25 slavesBill Clinton — One director ancestor, five generations removed, owned one slavesJimmy Carter — One director ancestor, four generations removed, owned 54 slavesBut Trump stands out among the bunch. While other presidents have deep ancestral roots in America, Trump's ancestors did not immigrate to the United States until after slavery was abolished in 1865.

Persons: Donald Trump, Barack Obama, —, Mitch McConnell, Sen, Lindsey Graham, Sens, Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Duckworth, Joe Biden —, George Bush —, Bill Clinton —, Jimmy Carter —, Trump, Mary, Confederate, Robert E, Lee Organizations: Service, Reuters, Department of Defense Locations: America, United States, Kallstadt, Germany, Scotland, Charlottsville , Virginia

☆ The Run-Up Goes to Iowa
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( The Run-Up | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

For the past few months, The Run-Up has been reporting on political insiders and the work they’ve quietly been doing to shape the 2024 presidential election. But if anything is going to blow up that assumption, it’s probably going to start in Iowa. As the first state in the Republican primary process, Iowa plays a key role in narrowing the field. If Trump wins there, it may effectively mean that he has secured the nomination. However, there’s a group of voters that holds disproportionate power in the state and in American culture more broadly.

Persons: they’ve, Donald Trump, Biden —, it’s, there’s Organizations: Republicans, Democrats —, Trump, Republican Locations: Iowa

☆ Divided House Sidesteps Biden Impeachment Vote but Starts Inquiry
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Annie Karni | Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Republican-led House on Thursday quashed a move to quickly impeach President Biden but voted along party lines to open an investigation into his removal, as reluctant G.O.P. leaders bowed to a member of their hard-right flank who demanded to move forward with charges that his immigration policies constitute high crimes and misdemeanors. By a vote of 219 to 208, the House referred two articles of impeachment against Mr. Biden — one for abuse of power and one for dereliction of duty — to the Homeland Security and Judiciary Committees. Speaker Kevin McCarthy engineered the move, which allowed the impeachment articles to advance without officially endorsing them. He sought with the referral to defuse pressure from right-wing lawmakers to immediately begin the process of removing Mr. Biden from office, despite a lack of evidence of any wrongdoing.

Persons: Biden, G.O.P, Mr, Kevin McCarthy, Lauren Boebert, McCarthy Organizations: Republican, Homeland Security, Republicans Locations: Colorado, United States

☆ The Boebert vs. Greene fight isn't just happening in a ladies' bathroom anymore — it's out on the House floor and uglier than before
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert had a heated exchange on the House floor on Wednesday. "I told her exactly what I think about her," Greene told Semafor. "She has genuinely been a nasty little bitch to me," Greene told Semafor when asked about a confrontation between the two women on the House floor on Wednesday. "I've donated to you, I've defended you," Greene told Boebert before referring to her with the profanity, per one of the Daily Beast's sources. I lean into it," Greene told former Trump adviser Steve Bannon on his "War Room" podcast at the time.

Persons: Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Green, Greene, Semafor, —, Zachary Petrizzo, Sam Brodey, Joe Biden, Boebert, Greene —, Biden —, I've, Marjorie, I'm, CNN's Manu Raju, Haley Talbot, Kevin McCarthy, Matt Gaetz, MAGA, McCarthy's, Steve Bannon Organizations: Service, GOP, Caucus, Daily, Colorado Republican, CNN Capitol Hill, Florida Rep, Trump Locations: Colorado, Boebert, Gaetz

☆ Opinion: Trump backers are going bonkers with dangerous threats
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( John Avlon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

No one will be above the law.”That’s what then-candidate Donald Trump said at a campaign rally in August of 2016. Trump has reached for apocalyptic rhetoric, calling for his supporters to protest at the Florida courthouse when he is arraigned on Tuesday. The threats of violence reflect an authoritarian impulse completely at odds with the alleged principles of the Republican Party and the conservative movement. Here’s the key difference: Trump was not charged for having the classified documents but for willfully trying to hide the documents after the feds enquired. When facts and reason no longer apply, desperate individuals resort to threats of violence.

Persons: John Avlon, “, ”, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Trump, Andy Biggs, Kari Lake, Merrick Garland, Jack Smith, Joe Biden —, That’s, MAGA, Edmund Burke’s, Lincoln, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson –, –, It’s, Mike Pence, Jonathan Turley, Andrew McCarthy, Bill Barr, Barr, don’t Organizations: CNN, John Avlon CNN, Democratic, Trump, Arizona Republican, Capitol, Arizona GOP, Georgia Republican, NRA, Republican Party, Trump’s Republican, South Carolina Gov, GOP, DOJ, Twitter, Facebook, Washington Post Locations: “ Lincoln, Florida, Arizona, Georgia, Mar, France, Italy, Israel, United States

☆ Trump's defenders have launched a plan months in the making that ignores the substance of the indictment while attacking the credibility of federal prosecutors
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Supporters of Trump in Congress have now launched a plan months in the making to discredit federal prosecutors. McCarthy called it a "grave injustice" and said that House Republicans "will hold this brazen weaponization of power accountable." "God bless President Trump." As special counsel Jack Smith was preparing this week to release the indictment, Trump's allies on Capitol Hill were working overtime to prepare the defense of the former president. Jordan issued a series of letters to the Justice Department, demanding documents related to his investigation into Trump's handling of classified records.

Persons: —, Donald Trump's, skims, Joe Biden —, Kevin McCarthy, Trump, McCarthy, Biden, Department's, Biden's, Hunter Biden, Jim Jordan of, Andy Biggs, Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, Jamie Raskin, Alvin Bragg, Jordan, Jack Smith, Trump's, John Durham, General Merrick Garland, Garland, Steven D'Antuono, Nancy Mace, Donald Trump, James, Republican Sen, Ted Cruz, Cruz's, Mitch McConnell, Mitt Romney, Romney Organizations: Trump, Service, Justice Department, Department, Republican, Republicans, FBI, Twitter, GOP, America, Department of Justice, Democratic, Capitol, Ohio Republican, Washington Field Office, South Carolina, CNN, ABC Locations: Congress, Florida, United States of America, Jim Jordan of Ohio, Arizona, New York, Russia, York, Manhattan, Bragg's New York, Trump's, Lago, Georgia, Washington, Texas, Utah

☆ Senate votes to repeal Biden's student loan forgiveness plan. White House warns Biden will veto
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Senate voted to repeal President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan on June 1, 2023. Getty Images | BloombergA GOP-led effort to overturn President Joe Biden's sweeping student loan forgiveness plan passed the Senate on Thursday. The measure, which passed the House along party lines last week, would also nullify the pause on student loan payments. More from Personal Finance:Student loan pay pause eased forgiveness for public servantsExperts say SCOTUS will rule against student loan forgivenessWhat's at stake as SCOTUS weighs student loan forgiveness Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., acknowledged that the passage of the legislation was mostly symbolic. "We should help Americans with student debt, not make their problems worse," Schumer said.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Biden, Education Miguel Cardona, —, It's, Mark Kantrowitz, SCOTUS, What's, Sen, John Thune, Thune, Joe Manchin, Manchin, Biden's, Ed Markey, Markey, Chuck Schumer, Schumer Organizations: Education, Getty, Bloomberg, GOP, Finance, Senate, Democrats, Democratic Locations: York

☆ Opinion | Liberals Are Persuading Themselves of a Debt Ceiling Plan That Won’t Work
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Ezra Klein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

On Friday, 66 progressive Congressional Democrats sent the president their own letter making a similar case. In remarks after a meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Biden said he was “considering” the argument that the debt ceiling is unconstitutional. The legality of the debt ceiling or a trillion-dollar platinum coin doesn’t depend on how liberals read the Constitution or the Coinage Act. “For the United States to fail to pay interest or principal on its debt would be financially catastrophic, but it would not affect the validity of the debt,” he wrote. “When borrowers fail to make payments on lawfully incurred debt, this does not question the validity of those debts; their debts are just as valid as before.

☆ Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch calls COVID-19 response "the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in peacetime history"
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

In a statement, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch made it clear where he stands on the pandemic-era emergency response. The US Supreme Court last week rejected a push by Republican-led states to keep it in place. In an eight-page statement in response to the case, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch didn't mince words. He called the country's response to the COVID-19 emergency "the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country." In Thursday's statement, Gorsuch warned that the "concentration of power in the hands of so few" won't lead to "sound government."

☆ How Might the Government Avoid Default? Biden Offers Clues.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Jim Tankersley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The president acknowledged that he is considering what would effectively be a constitutional challenge to the very existence of the debt limit. It is a unilateral path that Mr. Biden conceded could face legal hurdles. Together, though, those options could form the basis for Mr. Biden telling reporters that “I’m absolutely certain” the default threat could be defused in time. Republicans have forced debt-limit showdowns before, under Mr. Biden and former President Barack Obama. But current and former administration officials, business lobbyists in Washington and even progressive economists say this standoff is different — and could carry significantly higher risks of tipping the nation into default.

☆ Why Joe Biden Should Not Negotiate With Kevin McCarthy on the Debt Ceiling - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Daniel Pfeiffer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

When President Biden meets with congressional leaders at the White House on Tuesday, he will most likely reiterate his position that Congress should pass a bill lifting the debt ceiling without negotiations or conditions. A poll from Echelon Insights showed that voters support the idea of negotiating over the debt limit. But from the perspective of someone who had a front-row seat inside the White House to the last two debt-limit standoffs between a Democratic president and a Republican House, Mr. Biden’s refusal to negotiate on the debt ceiling is the best strategy. The president must know that Mr. McCarthy is not a negotiating partner who can be trusted to deliver. The speaker’s fate is in the hands of representatives — including many House Freedom Caucus members — who have shown very little willingness for compromise or good-faith negotiation.

☆ Biden, while defending a presidential reelection bid in his 80s, says he's 'acquired a hell of a lot of wisdom' and knows 'more than the vast majority of people'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

President Biden defended his 2024 reelection bid during an interview with MSNBC's Stephanie Ruhle. "I have acquired a hell of a lot of wisdom and know more than the vast majority of people," he said. Biden, who's now 80, would be 82 at the start of a second presidential term in 2025. Ruhle asked: "Why would a 82-year-old Joe Biden be the right person for the most important job in the world?" "I have acquired a hell of a lot of wisdom and know more than the vast majority of people," he told Ruhle.

☆ Someone needs to tell MTG that Biden can't be both a criminal mastermind and completely senile
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Greene baselessly claimed this week that Biden is the mastermind of a criminal empire. And he is the mastermind of the Biden criminal enterprise," Greene told Guilfoyle on Wednesday. The claims Greene has made about Biden are in line with those often trotted out by her fellow far-right GOP members. Other GOP figures, including Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, have also mocked Biden — who's 80 — for his age. It's also worth noting that Trump — who's 76, and who Greene staunchly supports — has been accused of sexual assault and arrested on 34 felony charges.

☆ Ex-Clinton pollster promoting DeSantis as a way to defeat Trump is 'dangerous,' Democratic group warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An ex-Clinton pollster boosted Ron DeSantis and dismissed Joe Biden as the way to defeat Donald Trump. Mark Penn's commentary is "significant" and "dangerous," on Democratic group, Third Way, warns. Ron DeSantis — and dismissal of President Joe Biden — as the way to defeat former President Donald Trump in 2024 is "significant" and "dangerous," one Democratic group warned on Monday. "There is nothing 'dangerous' in questioning whether Joe Biden can beat Donald Trump," he added. "If we do get to the Biden/Trump rematch, I will surely be writing 'How Joe Biden can beat Donald Trump,'" he wrote.

☆ Democrats say Florida is 'dead for Biden' as his 2024 presidential campaign starts: 'We just need to be realistic'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

"It's like a dead carcass on the side of the road," DeSantis said in April of the Florida Democratic Party. Nearly two decades ago, Florida Democrats were "similarly declared dead, you know, forever, Amen," Schale said, but they rebounded. Wilfredo Lee/AP PhotoDemocrats say they still have spend in FloridaBut it's important for Democrats to still invest campaign resources in Florida, Democratic insiders said. Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said the party had no infrastructure and no voter registration drive when she took the helm in February. Joe Raedle/Getty Images, Scott Olson/Getty ImagesBuilding a Democratic benchFried she's optimistic about Florida Democrats' future — and Biden's potential there.

☆ Trump dismisses criticisms about Biden's age, saying when people 'do the age thing' they're coming after him as well
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Former President Trump said anything "wrong" with President Joe Biden has nothing to do with age. Whether you like him or not, he's 100% sharp," Trump said of his fellow 2016 presidential candidate, adding "so it's not an age thing." Trump also levied criticisms at President Joe Biden, saying he could not see Biden running for president in 2024 — but made clear that he did not think what was "wrong" with Biden had anything to do with him being 80 years old. "I think they do the age thing because I'm 4-5 years behind. In October, Biden addressed the concerns, saying they were "legitimate" but said that voters should judge him not by his age, but by his health.

☆ Gisele Fetterman says she faces the same 'vicious attacks' that Meghan Markle, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Jill Biden do as women in the public eye
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Talia Lakritz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

In an Elle op-ed, Gisele Fetterman detailed the scrutiny she experiences as a politician's wife. When her husband, John Fetterman, sought treatment for depression, she faced "vicious attacks." When John Fetterman checked himself into Walter Reed hospital to receive treatment for clinical depression in February, the attacks "exploded," Gisele Fetterman wrote. Despite the constant criticism, Gisele Fetterman said she doesn't want to grow a thicker skin because empathy "drives my career and provides me with purpose and hope." Gisele Fetterman and John Fetterman met in 2007 while he was serving as mayor Braddock, Pennsylvania, and she was working as a nutritionist and food justice activist.

☆ Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley just teamed up on a bill that would let the government 'clawback lavish pay and bonuses when executives explode their bank'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley are teaming up to put the heat on executives of failed banks. Mike Braun and Catherine Cortez Masto, introduced a bill called "Failed Bank Executives Clawback Act," which would require that federal regulators "claw back" compensation of executives from the five-year period before their bank fails. "It's time for Congress to step up and strengthen the law so bank executives bear the cost of failure, not line their pockets and walk away scot-free." In the days and weeks following Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle — and President Joe Biden — have scrutinized the circumstances that led to the bank's failure. Warren has also pushed to roll back 2018 tweaks to the Dodd-Frank Act, which raised the threshold of holdings that require banks to have greater oversight.

☆ Americans could lose $20,000 in retirement savings and private student-loan borrowers could see their payments surge if Republicans don't raise the debt ceiling, a new report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The Joint Economic Committee released a report on the consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling. Republicans have floated a range of spending cuts to raise the debt ceiling that Democrats have rejected. On Thursday, the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) — a congressional group that reviews economic policy — released a report analyzing the consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling. Republicans are gambling with Americans' savings, benefits, and lives, all to play a political game." That's why Biden and Democratic lawmakers have been insisting that raising the debt ceiling be bipartisan, without any negotiations.

☆ Jason Sudeikis let down White House reporters asking for his Joe Biden impression, saying he needed 'fake teeth' and 'a lot more chutzpah' to pull it off
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The star of "Ted Lasso" made an appareance in the White House briefing room on Monday. Reporters asked to see another character played by Jason Sudeikis — Joe Biden — but Sudeikis turned them down. "You don't have a little Joe Biden impression?" Before playing Coach Lasso, Sudeikis appeared as the affable, aviator-wearing Biden as vice president on Saturday Night Live. His character returned to the show in 2021 when the new Biden, played by James Austin Johnson, got a visit from the ghosts of his past, including Jason Sudeikis' Biden from 2013.

☆ Trump supporters in China are up in arms and raging about a possible indictment: 'Trump, America needs you'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

There was a deluge of support for Trump on Weibo after he said he may be arrested on Tuesday. On Saturday, news of a possible Trump indictment skyrocketed to the top of the charts on the Twitter-like Weibo platform at 11.30 p.m., Beijing time. This was moments after Trump wrote Saturday on Truth Social that he will be arrested in New York next week. CNN reported in 2020 that some Chinese social media users viewed Trump as a better candidate than President Joe Biden — surmising that he would help build China up by ruining America. Meanwhile, a possible indictment in New York now looms over Trump.

☆ 'I hate him passionately': New court documents reveal Tucker Carlson's true feelings about Donald Trump
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Fox News host Tucker Carlson's true feelings about former President Donald Trump have been revealed. 'I hate him passionately'In one exchange, Carlson fantasized about not having to cover Trump after the 2020 election, saying that he "passionately" hated Trump. Referring to the decision desk staffers who made the Arizona call, Carlson texted: "Those fuckers are destroying our credibility. At another point in the same day, Carlson texted that "we've got to be incredibly careful right now. Tucker Carlson, who's ardently supported former President Donald Trump on his show, privately said he hated Trump, court filings show.

☆ House GOP adds January 6 investigation to its oversight blitz, vowing to avoid any 'particular political narrative'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

House Republicans have launched their first January 6-centric investigation of the 118th Congress. Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk is spearheading the latest oversight project. Loudermilk said he's interested in "following the facts, not a particular political narrative." Two years after the devastating attack on Congress, Republicans have been swept back into January 6-related news cycles by converging House priorities. House Administration staff did not immediately respond to requests for comment on how many submissions have come in so far.

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