(A)Political Newsletter-Volume 31

(A)Political Newsletter - U.S. Political News & Election Updates

Author

Matthew Dellinger
February 16, 2024

Good morning everyone,

The Biden administration has had a busy week. The administration has worked with Republicans in the House of Representatives to pass more Ukraine funding, announced funding of nearly $1 billion dollars for airport infrastructure, and received criticism over a watchdog report on how HHS handled migrant children without parents. The Committee Chairman for Homeland Security has also announced his retirement this week, following the conclusion of his inquiry into the Department of Homeland Security. Lets dive in!

In today’s edition:

  • Stock Watching

  • Biden Urges House of Representatives to Pass Ukraine Funding

  • Biden Admin Announces $970 Million for Airport Improvements

  • House Homeland Secretary Chairman Announces Retirement

  • Biden Admin Receives Criticism Over Struggles to Vet Adults Housing Migrant Children

CONGRESSIONAL STOCK WATCHER

  • Did some digging on Representative Mike Turner, after he announced the classified national security threat.

    • He hasn't done much trading.

    • However, several of his largest corporate donors are defense contractors, including:

      - Lockheed Martin

      - Northrop Grumman

      - Honeywell International

  • Another new trade from Senator Tommy Tuberville:

    • He sold his whole position in Apple stock, worth up to $550K.

    • He also bought put contracts betting against Apple.

  • Senator Tommy Tuberville just disclosed a sale of up to $215K of stock in Southern States Bank.

    • Southern States Bank has a market cap of just $200M.

    • It's based in Alabama. Tuberville represents Alabama.

    • The stock has now fallen 12% since Tuberville bought less than a month ago.

  • Senator Shelley Capito just disclosed a sale of stock in a company called Enbridge.

    • Enbridge produces oil pipelines.

    • Capito is the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

  • Former US Representative Thomas Suozzi has won the election to replace George Santos, per NBC.

    • We caught Suozzi violating the STOCK Act over 300 times during his previous stint in Congress.

  • Representative Mark Pocan has cosponsored the TRUST in Congress Act.

    • This bill would ban congressional stock trading.

    • We have not seen Representative Pocan trade any stock while in office.

    • It is estimated that he has a net worth of ~$658K.

  • Senator Tommy Tuberville bought stock in a company called Monolithic Power Systems in October.

    • The stock has risen over 58% since.

    • Tuberville has opposed efforts to regulate congressional trading.

    • He said that many politicians wouldn't want to serve if they couldn't trade.

  • Senator Markwayne Mullin had bought stock in the defense contractor Raytheon.

    • Mullin sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

    • The stock has now risen over 29% since.

  • Last month, Senator Markwayne Mullin bought stock in a company called CyberArk software.

    • CyberArk stock has risen 28% since.

Biden Urges House of Representatives to Pass Ukraine Funding

Liu Jie/Xinhua/Getty Images

February 13, 2024 - The Senate passed a $95 billion deal last week that will result in Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan getting more American support - if the deal also passes the House. The bill was passed after Republican Senators blocked a compromise legislation that was going to overhaul the current U.S. immigration policy.

The bill was passed 67-32, with 17 Republican’s voting in favor just after blocking the border bill. Democrat Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said the bill is a “good first step” for solving essential national security issues and reinforcing the security of U.S. allies.

Ukraine will receive $61 billion, Israel will receive $14 billion, and Taiwan will get $4.83 billion. Some of the bill has also been split to go to humanitarian efforts in Gaza and the West Bank.

President Biden has urged House Republicans to adopt the bill even though many of them are under heavy pressure from former President and Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

Ukraine views this aid as crucial to continue its operations as a government and military. This aid would also be stacked on to an EU bill that provided $54 billion for necessary functions and pensions for the Ukrainian people.

Biden Admin Announces $970 Million for Airport Infrastructure Improvements

Carlo Allegri | Reuters

February 15, 2024 - The Biden administration has announced plans to allocate $970 million for improvements across 114 airports nationwide. These upgrades encompass a range of projects, including expanded concourses, upgraded baggage-handling systems, and the construction of new terminals at smaller airfields, among other initiatives.

The largest sum will go to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida for $50 million. However, other large amounts will go to O’Hare International Airport in Illinois in the amount of $40 million, Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia for $35 million, $31 million going to Los Angeles International Airport in California, $31 million to San Francisco International Airport in California, and $27 million to Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina.

Some smaller investments include Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, which will receive $4 million for restroom improvements, $3.4 million to Appleton International Airport in Wisconsin, and Standing Rock Airport in North Dakota will receive $700,000.

These investments come as part of President Biden’s Bipartisan Investing in America agenda and a $5 billion grant program spaced out at $1 billion per year. The projects have been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration and will be spearheaded by Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.

A complete list of airport projects chosen and funds allocated can be found here.

House Homeland Secretary Chairman Announces Retirement

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

February 13, 2024 -  Tennessee Republican Rep. Mark Green announced his retirement on Wednesday citing the impeachment of Secretary Mayorkas as a reason he decided to not run for reelection. As the chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, Rep. Green spent months investigating the policies and management of Sec. Mayorkas’ department and ultimately decided that he was guilty of “high crimes and misdemeanors”.

Rep. Green also stated that “Our country – and our Congress – is broken beyond most means of repair,” and “I have come to realize our fight is not here within Washington, our fight is with Washington.” Rep. Green’s next move is unclear but there is a chance he may run for Governor of Tennessee.

He had previously been nominated by former President Donald Trump to become the Army Secretary but removed his nomination due to criticism on his comments about Muslim culture and LGBTQ+ communities. He has also previously been criticized over his comments about Covid vaccines.

If he returns home to run for Governor, it will be to replace Gov. Bill Lee who is not able to run for reelection due to Tennessee gubernatorial laws on term limits.

Biden Admin Receives Criticism Over Struggles to Vet Adults Housing Migrant Children

Samuel Corum/Getty Images

February 15, 2024 - A federal watchdog has stated that during the immigration surge in 2021 the federal government failed to properly vet adults receiving migrant children. The Department of Health and Human Services is required by law to screen adults that are volunteering to take children. The issue is DHHS could not prove that they received the proper documentation to prove that the adults underwent criminal background checks. Out of all the cases reviewed by a federal watchdog, one-third were missing the proper documentation to prove the screenings took place.

“We found that children’s case files and sponsor records were not always updated with important documentation and information,” said Haley Lubeck, an analyst for the HHS Office of Inspector General, which conducted the review. The HHS spokesman Jeff Nesbitt said that HHS “has already improved through training, monitoring, technology, and evaluation.”

This has brought more criticism to the Biden administration and its immigration policies as there have been millions of migrants at the border since he took office. One of the primary concerns with HHS is the fact they release the children early, and according to the watchdog, fail to follow up with 1 in 5 adults that receive children.

Advocates have called on Biden and his administration to take the findings seriously and put in measures to avoid repeating the situation.

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