Good morning! Welcome back to 10 Things in Politics, your look at the biggest stories in DC and beyond. Sign up here to receive this newsletter.
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Here's what we're talking about:
With Jordan Erb.
One thing to look out for today: Biden is set to talk about the pandemic at 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time. He is expected to announce new guidance on outdoor mask-wearing.
1. NEARING 100 DAYS: President Joe Biden is feeling the Bern' a lot more than progressives expected. They are not ready to crown him the next FDR, but key leaders of the new left praised the president for his first 100 days. It also helps that senior White House officials, including the chief of staff, Ron Klain, have kept an open door to them. Insider caught up with 14 progressive lawmakers, leaders, and activists to get their take.
Here's a peek at their report cards for Biden:
Sen. Bernie Sanders hailed the passage of Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan: "I think he is showing the kind of leadership and providing the kind of agenda that working families in this country want and need," Sanders told Insider.
- "A-": The former House Progressive Caucus chair Rep. Mark Pocan, who campaigned for Sanders, gives Biden a high mark for what he called a "willingness to do things that are maybe not progressive or conservative but absolutely necessary."
- Progressives point to the major implications of the law: "Definitely cutting child poverty in half is good," said former Ohio state Sen. Nina Turner, who is running for Congress. "I want to see us go and get that other half." Democrats are already trying to make some changes permanent.
High marks are also given for the White House's openness: "I don't know how he does it, but he seems to always be available for a phone call, for an email, for a text," Faiz Shakir, Sanders' chief political advisor and 2020 campaign manager, said of Klain. He added that if Klain "says 'yes,' you can take it to the bank."
Where there's room for improvement: One of progressives' biggest disappointments comes from the failure to pass a $15-an-hour minimum wage — though Biden is expected to issue an order later today requiring federal contractors to pay workers on federal business at least that amount.
- They won't wait forever: "If the minimum wage isn't raised to $15 by the '22 election, we're going to have to elect people who are going to pass the $15 minimum wage," said Joe Sanberg, a national advocate for raising the minimum wage who has worked closely with the Biden administration.
Here's how one progressive says Biden can enter the "pantheon" of presidents.
2. Republicans look to gain the most from the 2020 census shift: States in the Sun Belt and the West are expected to gain seats in the House of Representatives, while states in the Upper Midwest and the Rust Belt are poised to lose congressional representation based on the latest round of reapportionment. Texas is the clear winner, gaining two seats.
Where things stand:
Overall, the US population grew at the second-slowest pace in history.
3. Mask guidelines set to loosen today: Dr. Anthony Fauci previewed some of the changes over the weekend, saying the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would soon update its guidance for mask use outdoors. Even people who haven't received a shot are expected to be covered by the announcement. | Elsewhere, West Virginia is literally paying some people to get vaccinated.
- The US says it will share its entire AstraZeneca supply with the world: As many as 60 million doses are expected to be available for export in the coming months after the vaccine clears safety reviews, the Associated Press reports. The destinations for the doses have not been finalized, but Canada and Mexico have asked the US to share more vaccines.
4. Trump is heading back to the Garden State: Like many Florida snowbirds, former President Donald Trump plans to flock back up north for the summer. Trump advisors told Insider that Trump and his relatively small team were discussing when to vacate Mar-a-Lago and temporarily relocate to his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. More on the move — and how it'll shift the epicenter of GOP politics.
5. Gov. Gavin Newsom will face a recall: California officials say the GOP-led effort has met the threshold to force a special recall election. Barring a last-minute change, Newsom will face voters this year on an explicit up-or-down vote. This would be only the second gubernatorial recall in California. The first one ended with Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor.
An ex-cop, anti-vaxxers, and Mike Huckabee: These are the 17 most prominent people behind the recall efforts.
6. Federal officials will investigate the Louisville police in the aftermath of Breonna Taylor's death: Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the inquiry, the second investigation into a police department announced in the past two weeks. More on the investigation here.
7. India's graveyard workers are burying more than three dozen COVID-19 victims a day: One gravedigger told Insider his family had worked at a cemetery for three generations. They cannot recall another time when bodies were coming in so frequently. Photos show the extent of the devastation.
8. These are the stocks that lawmakers are trading: Republican Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio has invested up to $250,000 in the healthcare company GoodRx, perhaps best known for the omnipresent ad campaign. While Republican Sen. Rick Scott, a wealthy possible 2024 presidential contender, continues to make big bets on bonds. Scott invested up to $250,000 last month on New Jersey Turnpike Authority revenue bonds.
Finally, Democratic Rep. John Yarmuth of Kentucky dumped Warren Buffett's holding company in early March, while Republican Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama bought up to $15,000 in shares.
Read the rest of our exclusive roundup.
9. A major gun-control case is headed to the Supreme Court: The high court will determine whether New York's limits on concealed carry violate the Second Amendment. It has been more than a decade since the Supreme Court has issued a major opinion on gun control, per The Washington Post. The court's new, firm conservative majority may hint at why justices elected to hear the case.
A ruling could drastically alter attempts to legislate stronger gun protections.
10. The US military has misplaced seven nukes — four of which have never been found: Since 1956, there have been seven cases of doomsday devices wandering off. Some of them are still MIA.
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A mysterious Florida internet firm took over a giant slice of the Pentagon's internet: Minutes before Trump departed office, Global Resource Systems LLC took over millions of Pentagon IP addresses. The Pentagon responded to the news but didn't explain why it entrusted a firm that appears to lack experience handling such business. More on that major unanswered question.
One last thing.
Today's trivia question: With presidential portraits in the news, who is the only president not to have his face depicted in his official White House portrait?
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