Yellen’s nomination as Treasury secretary clears Senate panel
The Senate Finance Committee approved President Joe Biden’s nomination of Janet Yellen to be the nation’s 78th Treasury secretary on Friday, and supporters said they hoped to get the full Senate to approve it later in the day, making her the first woman to hold the job.
The Finance Committee approved her nomination on a 26-0 vote. The administration is urging a quick confirmation vote, saying it’s critical to get the top member of Biden’s economic team in place as the Democratic president seeks to win approval of a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the incoming chairman of the Finance Committee, said he hoped to get Yellen’s nomination approved by the full Senate later Friday.
Republicans on the committee said they had a number of policy disagreements with Yellen and the Biden administration in such areas as raising taxes on corporations and the wealthy but believed it was important to allow Biden to assemble his economic team quickly.
At her confirmation hearing Tuesday before the Finance Committee, Yellen had argued that without prompt action the nation faced the threat of a “longer, more painful recession.” She urged quick action on the package that would provide an additional $1,400 in payments to individuals making below $75,000 annually as well as providing expanded unemployment benefits, further aid for small businesses and support for cities and states to prevent layoffs.
The plan also provides more support for vaccine production and distribution.
Brokaw to retire: Longtime NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, once television news’s most popular broadcaster as he told viewers about the biggest events of the late 20th century, said Friday that he’s retiring from television.
Brokaw, 80, said he’ll continue writing books and articles. He’s the author of “The Greatest Generation,” about those who fought in World War II.
In a final essay that appeared Dec. 30 on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Brokaw hinted at his announcement by reflecting on a career that took him from breaking into a local newscast in Nebraska and announcing the death of President John F. Kennedy, to coronavirus.
“For me, it’s been an amazing journey — 57 years as a reporter,” Brokaw said.
Fifty-five of those years were at NBC News, starting as a reporter in Los Angeles in the 1960s, covering the White House during the Nixon administration, hosting the “Today” show in the late 1970s and more than 20 years as “Nightly News” anchor.
Congressman’s gun detected: Capitol Police are investigating an incident in which a Republican lawmaker was blocked from entering the House chamber after setting off a metal detector while apparently carrying a concealed gun.
Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., set off the metal detector while trying to enter the chamber Thursday afternoon. The metal detectors were installed after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, which left five people dead, including a Capitol police officer. The incident was witnessed by a reporter from the HuffPost website.
After setting off the machine, Harris was asked to step aside for further screening. At that time, an officer discovered Harris was carrying a concealed gun on his side, according to the reporter.
The officer sent Harris away, at which point Harris tried to get Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y., to take the gun from him. Katko refused, telling Harris he didn’t have a license to carry a gun.
Harris eventually left and returned less than 10 minutes later. He once again went through security and did not set off the magnetometer. He was then allowed to enter the House floor.
Russian warns Navalny backers: Authorities in Russia have taken elaborate measures to curb protests against the jailing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, planned by his supporters for Saturday in more than 60 Russian cities.
Navalny’s associates in Moscow and other regions have been detained in the lead-up to the rallies. Opposition supporters and independent journalists have been approached by police officers with official warnings against protesting.
Universities and colleges in different Russian regions have urged students not to attend rallies, with some saying they may be subject to disciplinary action, including expulsion.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that “it is only natural that there are warnings ... about the possible consequences related to noncompliance with the law,” since there are calls for “unauthorized, unlawful events.”
Iran tweet leads to ban: Twitter said Friday it has permanently banned an account that some in Iran believe is linked to the office of the country’s supreme leader after a posting that seemed to threaten former President Donald Trump.
In the image posted by the suspect account late Thursday, Trump is shown playing golf in the shadow of a giant drone, with the caption “Revenge is certain” written in Farsi.
In response to a request for comment from Associated Press, a Twitter spokesman said the account was fake and violated the company’s “manipulation and spam policy,” without elaborating how it came to that conclusion.
The tweet of the golfer-drone photo violated the company’s “abusive behavior policy,” Twitter’s spokesman added.
In Iran, the suspect account — @khamenei—site — is believed to be linked to the office of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei because its behavior mirrored that of other accounts identified in state-run media as tied to his office. It frequently posted excerpts from his speeches and other official content.
In this case, the account carried the link to Khamenei’s website.
Bigfoot hunting: A mythical, ape-like creature that has captured the imagination of adventurers for decades has now become the target of a state lawmaker in Oklahoma.
A Republican House member has introduced a bill that would create a Bigfoot hunting season. Rep. Justin Humphrey’s district includes the heavily forested Ouachita Mountains in southeast Oklahoma, where a Bigfoot festival is held each year. He says issuing a state hunting license and tag could help boost tourism.
“Establishing an actual hunting season and issuing licenses for people who want to hunt Bigfoot will just draw more people to our already beautiful part of the state,” Humphrey said.
Humphrey says his bill would only allow trapping and that he also hopes to secure $25,000 to be offered as a bounty.