January 1, Florida governor to Biden: ‘Why don’t you do your job?’

Hello Americans,

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis received criticism from President Biden over the banning of mask mandates. DeSantis responded to Biden’s criticism of him and other Republican legislators on Wednesday. “Joe Biden suggests that if you don’t do lockdown policies, then you should ‘get out of the way.’ But let me tell you this: If you’re coming after the rights of parents in Florida, I’m standing in your way. I’m not going to let you get away with it.” The Sunshine State’s governor suggested that the president should focus on illegal immigration at the southern border. “Why don’t you do your job, why don’t you get this border secure and until you do that, I don’t want to hear a blip about COVID from you.”

Former President Donald Trump’s legal team asked the federal court to permanently block the Treasury Department from overturning his tax returns and “end all ongoing examinations” of Trump and his companies. The lawyers claim that the motivations behind Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal attempting to access to Trump’s financial history are purely political. “Chairman Neal’s requests have always been a transparent effort by one political party to harass an official from the other party because they dislike his politics and speech.” The court case dates back to 2019, and will likely face yet another round of legal battles in light of this latest filing.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced a 60-day extension of the recently-expired eviction moratorium. The move was celebrated by many, including the Democratic members of “The Squad” who credited fellow member Rep. Cori Bush’s protests for the victory. Bush (D-Mo.) camped on the Capitol steps to demonstrate against the expiration and pressure the White House to extend it. “On Friday night, I came to the Capitol with my chair. I refused to accept that Congress could leave for vacation while 11 million people faced eviction. For 5 days, we’ve been out here, demanding that our government acts to save lives,” Bush said via Twitter.

A different Squad member recently came under fire for comments that the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) called “anti-Semitic dog whistling.” Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) at the 2021 Democratic Socialists of America National Convention said that those working “behind the curtain” under causes like “free Palestine” are reaping monetary rewards. ADL president Jonathan Greenblatt took issue with her remarks. “Stunning to hear @RashidaTlaib claim ‘behind the curtain,’ those who prevent a ‘free Palestine’ are the ‘same people’ who exploit ‘regular Americans.’ We’ve heard this kind of ugly #antisemitic dog whistling before, but it’s appalling when it comes from a member of Congress,” Greenblatt tweeted.

Genesis Healthcare now requires all 70,000 of its nursing home employees to get their Covid-19 vaccines amid the surge of the delta variant. Over 1,250 nursing home residents were infected with Covid-19 in the week of July 25, double than the week earlier, and 202 individuals died. The nursing home industry has been hesitant to instate any vaccine mandates over fear that many employees would quit. “It’s so easy now to say, ‘Well, Genesis is doing it. Now we’ll do it,'” said Brian Lee of Families for Better Care, an advocacy group for long-term care residents. “This is a big domino to fall.”

The governor of Missouri pardoned the notorious couple who pointed guns at social justice protestors as they marched past their luxurious home in St. Louis last year. Gov. Mike Parson pardoned Mark McCloskey, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor fourth-degree assault, and Patricia McCloskey, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor harassment. “I’d do it again,” Mark McCloskey said. “Any time the mob approaches me, I’ll do what I can to put them in imminent threat of physical injury because that’s what kept them from destroying my house and my family.”

Be well,

Fraser Dixon

Sources

• DeSantis hits back at Biden criticism: ‘Why don’t you do your job?’
• Trump asks court to end House pursuit of his tax returns from IRS
• AOC and ‘The Squad’ credit Cori Bush as they celebrate eviction ban extension
• White House silent on Rashida Tlaib’s latest ‘anti-Semitic dog whistling’ remarks
• Nursing home to workers: Get vaccine or lose your job
• Missouri governor pardons gun-waving St. Louis lawyer couple