Daily Archives: October 26, 2021

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia said on Tuesday that he's approached "every day" about switching to the Republican Party.

Manchin made the comments at the Economic Club of Washington, DC, where he was interviewed by billionaire David Rubenstein, the chairman of the Carlyle Group. Rubenstein asked the senator if he thinks it would be easier for him if he "shifted to being a Republican."

"Oh, it would be much easier, my goodness," Manchin said, adding, "Is that the purpose of being involved in public service?"

"What I'm telling you now is who I am," he went on to say. "Do you think by having a 'D' or an 'I' or an 'R' is going to change who I am?"

"I don't think the Rs would be any happier with me than Ds are right now," Manchin continued, to laughter from the audience. "I mean, that's about as blunt as I can put it. So I don't know where in the hell I belong."

It's unclear who exactly has approached Manchin about switching parties, and his Senate office did not respond immediately to Insider's request for comment.

Manchin's comments follow the publication of a report last week that said he could soon leave the party and declare himself an "American Independent." Manchin called the report "bullshit," though he later told reporters that he once offered to leave the party if he became an "embarrassment" to his Democratic colleagues.

"The only thing that was ever said that we've ever talked about if I'm an embarrassment to my Democratic colleagues, my caucus," he told reporters. "And I said, me being a moderate centrist Democrat, if that causes you a problem let me know, and I'd switch to be independent. But I'd still be caucusing with Democrats."

"No one accepted that," he added at the time.

Manchin has faced these kinds of questions for some time.

"I've never considered it from that standpoint because I know I can change more from where I'm at," Manchin told Vox in April in response to a question about switching parties.

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Manchin says he's approached 'every day' about becoming a Republican - Business Insider

But the decisions come relatively late in Bidens term: Of his predecessors, only Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon waited as late as September of their first year to tap their FCC chair. And unless the Senate confirms Rosenworcel and Sohn by the end of December, Republicans are poised to gain a 2-1 majority on the commission come January.

Biden is also expected to nominate longtime tech lawyer Alan Davidson to head the Commerce Departments National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a key post for setting the executive branchs policies on issues like wireless spectrum use and 5G, the people said.

Key context: The White Houses expected endorsement of Rosenworcel is likely to give more momentum to her efforts to close the digital homework gap and expand broadband using new subsidy programs created during the pandemic.

A nod to progressives: Bidens choice of Sohn for the open Democratic seat would be the latest prominent gesture toward progressives. He had previously placed antitrust advocate Lina Khan in charge of the Federal Trade Commission and hired fellow anti-monopolist Tim Wu for a top economic advising role in the White House.

Sohn staked out a robust defense of net neutrality during the Obama years and was a top adviser to former FCC Chair Tom Wheeler. She previously co-founded and led the left-leaning Washington advocacy group Public Knowledge.

Rosenworcel and Sohn have previously been at odds in some key fights, despite having many policy views in common. One of Sohns Obama-era causes was a controversial attempt to open the cable set-top box marketplace to more competition. Rosenworcel, who opposed that plan, used her tie-breaking vote on the commission to spike the effort.

Rosenworcels recent supporters include education and public safety groups as well as union workers, along with lawmakers including Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Ben Ray Lujn (D-N.M.) and Reps. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) and Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.). In September, 25 members of the Senate Democratic caucus told Biden that he should pick Rosenworcel to avoid risking the success of his broadband expansion ambitions.

Now the clock starts: Confirming these nominees would mean a mad dash for Senate Democratic leadership over the next two months.

Although Rosenworcel can immediately assume the permanent chair role, her term on the FCC lapsed in 2020, which means she must leave at the end of this year unless the Senate confirms her to a new five-year term.

Republicans would probably use the confirmation process to discourage any revival of net neutrality. They argue that that the GOP repeal of the policy in 2017 has not led to any of the horror stories that net neutrality advocates warned about, such as ISPs manipulating or blocking their customers internet traffic.

And the telecom lead at the Commerce Department: For the NTIA role, the people familiar with the decisions said, Biden picked Davidson a veteran tech lawyer who has worked since 2018 at Mozilla, the company that launched the Firefox browser. There, Davidson helped handle the companys data privacy and open internet portfolio.

He also spent years at other top tech posts including at Google, whose former CEO Eric Schmidt is a strong Biden supporter and is active on a bevy of tech issues from 5G to artificial intelligence. He was Googles first emissary to Washington, opening its D.C. office in 2005 and holding the title of director of public policy for a half-dozen years, which included lobbying for the search giant.

NTIA is likely to play a central role in shaping Bidens agenda around broadband connectivity and 5G wireless technology, including on questions of security involving the Chinese telecom giant Huawei, as well as tech issues like data privacy. Under the bipartisan infrastructure plan that passed the Senate in August, the Commerce Department would also be in charge of giving out $42 billion in grants to states to support the build-out of broadband infrastructure.

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Biden expected to name 2 FCC picks in race to avert Republican majority - POLITICO

By Keith Schubert (Daily Montanan)October 25, 2021

October 25, 2021 By Missoula Current

(Daily Montanan)Republican legislative leadership on Monday approved a special counsel investigation proposed by state Democratic leaders into reports that Attorney General Austin Knudsen used state resources, including law enforcement, to harass and intimidate physicians and staff at St. Peters Hospital in Helena.

Speaker (Wylie) Galt and I strongly believe in government transparency and accountability. Serious allegations have been made by St. Peters Hospital and the medias reporting on several key facts has been unclear. Weve agreed to the minoritys request and have authorized the Legislatures special counsel to examine any relevant government records in accordance with the law, Senate President Mark Blasdel said in a news release.

Last week,the Independent Recordreported Knudsen, a Republican, and two other public officials threatened doctors at the hospital, and the AG sent a patrol trooper there, after a COVID-19 patient asked for ivermectin and was denied the treatment.

Ivermectin is a drug thats used to treat infections from parasitic worms but is not approved by the Federal Drug Administration to treat the coronavirus.

We believe that this investigation will assist us in determining whether legislation is necessary to enhance legislative oversight of Montana Department of Justice law enforcement activities, clarify the parameters of DOJ and Highway Patrol jurisdiction to intervene in local law enforcement and prosecutorial affairs, and prevent similar abuses of power in the future, read a letter from Senate Minority Leader Jill Cohenour, D-East Helena, and House Minority Leader Kim Abbott, D-Helena.

To get to the bottom of the incident, Abbot and Cohenour recommend the special counsel obtain records that document which public officials were involved in this incident, the internal communications pertaining to this incident held by DOJ, MHP, and other applicable public officials and agencies, and the involvement of Montana Highway Patrol and the Medicaid Fraud Unit in this incident, according to the letter.

Cohenour and Abbot met with Senate President Blasdel, House Speaker Rep. Wylie Galt and the special counsel Monday morning to hash out the details of the proposed investigation.

Democrats first called on Republican leadership to launch the investigation on Thursday. After the Democrats requested the investigation, Republicans Blasdel, of Kalispell, and Galt, of Martinsdale, issued a letter requesting more information on the purpose, scope, and method of the investigation.

The Attorney Generals abuse of power in this incident is as shocking as it is damaging to the publics trust in the impartiality of law enforcement, said Sen. Cohenour and Rep. Abbott in a statement. We are grateful to the Senate President and House Speaker for their willingness to engage in dialogue with us about how to protect Montanans from such abuses of power and ensure that coercion like this cannot happen again.

A news release from Abbott and Cohenour regarding the details of the investigation contained a list of questions they would like to see answered through the investigation. The release also contained a series of legislative purposes to determine if legislation is necessary to rein in the power of the DOJ to prevent future such abuses of power.

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Republican leaders approve investigation into AG over reports of threats to St. Peter's - Missoula Current

Opinion: I had hoped that decent people working from the inside could save the Republican Party from those who believe the Big Lie. I was wrong.

Robert Gonzalez| opinion contributor

In February, I wrote an op-ed urging Republicans not to leave the party.

My hope was that the GOP could still be saved by decent people working from the inside. After more than two decades as a Republican, I had seen, metand worked with the many good folks who make it up.

I hoped that the extremism we were seeing those questioning the results of the 2020 election, those advocating against a peaceful transition of power, those defending the terrorists who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, those ignoring science and advocating for horse dewormer as a public health measurewas a fringe element.

While many Republicans failed to show leadership during Trumps presidency, it seemed that in the wake of Jan. 6, those leaders would finally stand up for truth and democracy.

I was wrong.

Since February, weve witnessed a sad majority of Republicans continue to support the anti-democratic forces in the party.

Here in Arizona, Republican leadership has pushed and advocated for a sham audit of the 2020 election results and politicized public health. These anti-democratic tendencies are not just prevalent among currently elected officials.

I dont know of a single Republican candidate who has announced for 2022 that has pushed back on the lunacy surrounding Stop the Steal. The mood among the boots on the ground is no different.

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At local legislative district meetings, Republican grassroots activists obsessively pursue conspiracy theories about the election. Support for Trump and for the belief that the election was somehow stolen for him has become a litmus test for Republicans in Arizona and across the country.

Opposition to science including the science behind vaccines and mask-wearing follow closely behind.

In Washington, D.C., we witnessed House Republicans push out Rep. Liz Cheney from her position of leadership solely for telling the truth that there was no credible evidence of fraud in the 2020 election, and that the terrorist attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6should be investigated by Congress.

More recently, Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, a rising GOP star in any other era, was forced to announce his retirement, fearing for the safety of his family.

While I still hope for a reasonable, sane, principled Republican Party, Im no longer hopeful that it can be achieved by working within. Im not optimistic for the reelection prospects for folks like Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, or for the prospects of those in Republican primaries who do not embrace the Big Lie.

And even if they win, their ability to do good remains severely constricted by the vast majority of Republicans in D.C. who embrace lies.

So where do we go from here?

Im not sure.

Some have left the party and registered as independents. That approach is principled, but given the current structure of our elections, makes it increasingly difficult for these sane voices to have any real influence.

Some have left and joined the Democratic Party. That is all well and good, if you feel a connection to the ideals of policies of that party, or feel that its leadership reflects your values. But weve seen what happens when the left holds political power unchecked. This country works best with a diversity of views.

Some are talking about new parties, like the Serve America Movement, and about reforming our primaries that entrench polarization. I truly hope they get traction, and we can move beyond a hyperpolarizedtwo-party system.

In the meantime, Im leaving the Republican Party. I had hope back in February that we could correct course. Especially after Jan. 6, a return to sanity seemed necessary, maybe inevitable. But after months of meeting with folks on the ground, watching the newsand seeing the 2022 GOP primaries unfold, Im less optimistic.

One of the few remaining tools to influence the Republican Party is to sever ties. So I urge remaining Republicans who stand for truth and democracy to vote with their feet, and leave.

Robert Gonzalez is a lawyer and tech executive living in Tucson. Reach him atrobertgon520@gmail.com; on Twitter:@robertgon33.

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I urged Republicans to stay. Now, months later, I'm leaving the party. Here's why - The Arizona Republic

ANALYSIS Even without a competitive general election race, West Virginia will still be a factor in the fight for the House next year. Buoyed by midterm history and President Joe Bidens slumping job rating, Republicans are increasingly confident in their ability to gain the five House seats they need for control. But theyre certain to lose a seat in West Virginia.

The Mountain State lost a seat during the most recent round of reapportionment due to population loss over the past decade, cutting its House delegation from three to two. The state has been sending only Republicans to Washington since 2015, so that loss will come from the GOP column. And Republicans will have to win a seat elsewhere to compensate.

With all three incumbents poised to run for two seats, West Virginia is home to the first known member-versus-member contest of the cycle. And the new map has some creative numbering, just to add to the chaos of a redistricting cycle.

For 30 years, southern West Virginia has been located in the 3rd District, and the region was represented for decades by Democrat Nick J. Rahall II. But as the state shifted Republican, so did southern West Virginia, and Rahall lost in 2014.

Miller has represented the area since 2019, but the southern seat will now be renumbered as the 1st District. The biggest change is the addition of Kanawha County, which includes the state capital of Charleston and is currently part of Rep. Alex X. Mooneys 2nd District.

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Race ratings: No disputing that GOP will lose a House seat in West Virginia - Roll Call

During yesterday's House debate on whether to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress, Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney highlighted an unexpected new controversy about one of her Republican colleagues, Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana. As The Hill reported:

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ill.) sent numerous letters claiming to be the ranking member of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, the committee's Vice Chair Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) revealed Thursday.

Cheney, an actual member of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, entered into the record this written correspondence in which Banks identifies himself as the "ranking member" of the panel in official correspondence to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. (For those unfamiliar with the phrasing, a "ranking member" is the top member from the minority party on a committee.)

The problem, of course, is that Banks isn't the ranking member on the Jan. 6 committee. In fact, he's not on the committee at all.

Nevertheless, the Hoosier congressman asked the Interior secretary to provide him with all of the information the cabinet agency is providing to the actual committee members. "Pursuant to the rules of the House of Representatives, the minority party retains rights to the same information that is provided to the majority party," Banks wrote.

The Daily Beast and Politico reported separately that Banks "sent similarly signed letters to many other agencies the same ones the Capitol riot committee sent its own info requests to."

The Daily Beast's piece added, "The group of federal agencies that Banks has contacted includes the Department of Justice, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Homeland Security among others. And one of those sources said that recipients also included social media companies, like Facebook, which had also been targets of extensive evidence requests."

I've been reporting on Congress for a long while, and I honestly can't think of another instance in which a member effectively pretended in official, written correspondence to be a member of a committee he or she was not a part of.

Given the context, some history is probably in order.

The original plan was for an independent commission along the lines of the 9/11 Commission. Before it could be created, congressional Republicans made a series of demands; Democrats accepted the GOP's terms; and Republicans killed the idea anyway.

At that point, Congress moved to Plan B: The House created a bipartisan, special select committee to investigate the insurrectionist attack. As part of the process, GOP leaders were invited to recommend a slate of House Republicans to serve on the panel, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had the final call on whether or not they qualified.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy picked five members, including tapping Banks to serve as the ranking member. Pelosi rejected two of the five including Banks, who not only refused to vote to certify his own country's election results, but who seemed to disqualify himself with rhetoric indicating he had no intention of taking the investigatory process seriously.

At that point, GOP leaders announced a boycott of the committee. Pelosi nevertheless found two House Republicans Cheney and Illinois' Adam Kinzinger willing to serve on the bipartisan panel. Cheney ultimately became the committee's co-chair.

But as Banks' correspondence made clear, this left the GOP leadership at a disadvantage: By refusing to even acknowledge the legitimacy of the committee and its probe, McCarthy & Co. have no way of knowing what kind of information the investigation is uncovering. The minority could theoretically ask Cheney and Kinzinger, but the duo doesn't have much use for McCarthy these days.

And as a consequence, Banks apparently feels the need to effectively play make-believe not because he wants to be a productive member of the committee he's boycotting, but because Republicans don't like being in the dark.

Chances are, relevant government departments will not comply with Banks' request for information. But the fact that he's even trying to present himself as the "ranking member" of a committee he's not on is an extraordinary development.

Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "The Impostors: How Republicans Quit Governing and Seized American Politics."

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GOP rep falsely claims to be the top Republican on the Jan. 6 committee - MSNBC

Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash.

Bill Clark | CQ-Roll Call Group | Getty Images

House Republicans are asking Snap, TikTok and Google's YouTube for internal research on how their products affect teens' mental health, in letters to be sent on Monday.

The letters, led by House Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., come one day before executives from each company are set to testify before the Senate Commerce subcommittee on consumer protection. Reps. Robert Latta, R-Ohio, Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and Morgan Griffith, R-Va., also signed the letters.

They follow a series of reports based on leaked documents from Facebook that showed the company's own research found negative impacts on the mental health of its young users, even while Facebook represented the more positive effects of its platform to the public.

The questions in Monday's letters show lawmakers' interest in protecting kids online is not limited to Facebook. Members of Congress are now eager to understand what a whole host of platforms know about their products' impact on kids and teens. Lawmakers are weighing a range of new policies that could limit platform use to older teens and mandate companies install additional protections for young users.

The letters to Snap, TikTok and YouTube ask for research each company has conducted on the impact of their platforms on the mental health of users of various age groups, such as those under 13, 13-18 years of age, and 18 and older. They also ask for internal communications about those impacts and for information about outside research that was contracted.

The lawmakers also asked TikTok, whose parent company, ByteDance, is based in China, if it had ever been directed by the Chinese government to censor content on its platform or if it preemptively took down content for fear of "objections" from the government. They also asked if Chinese officials had sought U.S. user data and whether TikTok complied with such requests, if so.

TikTok has previously maintained that its U.S. user data is out of reach of the Chinese government because its servers with that information are not based in China.

McMorris Rodgers led similar letters to Facebook, Google and Twitter following a hearing with CEOs from those companies in March.

Teen mental health online emerged as a key area of focus for many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle even before the leaked documents became public. But their concerns were exacerbated by reports from The Wall Street Journal that seem to show Facebook knew much more about how its products affected teens, despite painting a relatively rosy picture to Congress.

While severe negative mental health effects, such as self-reported thoughts of suicide, traced to Facebook's platforms, occurred in a fraction of users, Facebook's vast scale means that even small percentages of users can amount to significant numbers.

More reports on Facebook's internal research have continued to trickle out since Friday, when a consortium of news organizations began publishing stories based on documents provided by former Facebook employee Frances Haugen. Haugen has also shared the documents with Congress and the Securities and Exchange Commission, seeking whistleblower status. Portions of the documents were first reported by the Journal.

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WATCH: Facebook 'addictive' and particularly destructive for kids, say senators: CNBC After Hours

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House Republicans demand internal research from Snap, TikTok and YouTube on teen mental health - CNBC