As we quickly approach the moment when Republicans force the United States to default on its debts, they are digging their heels in on dangerous and unreasonable demands.
 

• Getting pretty fucking tired of writing this but, here goes: Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy continues to hold the global economy hostage. President Biden and McCarthy, along with other congressional leaders met once again at the White House on Tuesday, and the House Speaker showed no signs of bending to reason. He did his usual schtick, saying “How much is too much?” about the national debt, even though he and his Republican colleagues have no interest in actually reducing the national debt (see: tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, which McCarthy wants to make permanent). 
   

• This is the second time in a week Biden has met with McCarthy, underscoring the severity of the crisis McCarthy has created with his little game of Russian roulette. McCarthy continues pushing for unreciprocated spending cuts to major government agencies, including many social safety net programs as part of the “deal,” even though (as McCarthy knows) spending in the future has nothing to do with paying the debts the United States has already accrued.
   

• After today’s meeting, McCarthy sounded confident that an agreement could be reached ahead of the June 1 deadline, and the White House announced that President Biden would cut his visit to Asia short in order to finalize the agreement. Now, aides to McCarthy and the president will negotiate directly, without the other Congressional leaders. Biden delivered a statement shortly after Tuesday’s meeting, which he called “good” and “productive” and noted that, “there was an overwhelming consensus…that defaulting on the debt is not an option.” No matter how many times they say that, it’s very difficult to believe that it’s off the table in Kevin McCarthy’s warped little mind, especially now that he knows that Democrats will hand over their lunch money to avoid it.

Of course, there are a lot of factors (and members of Congress) who could throw a wrench into these  negotiations. 
 

• Even though McCarthy’s budget proposals would likely not pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate, Biden seems troublingly open to acquiescing to some of McCarthy’s demands, after having initially insisted he would not negotiate with fiscal terrorists. It’s getting a little Bill Clinton’s “Welfare Reform” in here and we’re not okay with it. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sought to quell those fears on Monday night, calling work requirements a “nonstarter,” but there is no telling yet exactly how the final deal will shake out. 
   

• Remember how I said a GOP-led debt ceiling negotiation would likely not pass the Senate? Well, the chance that it could unfortunately lies in the hands of our old frenemies, Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ). Manchin has already been suffering politically for casting the decisive vote to pass the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, and has been taking it out on the Biden administration ever since, even threatening to vote to repeal the bill he was instrumental in shaping. What can we say, he’s up for re-election next year, he’s nervous, and also, maybe, not very smart. 

Many Democratic lawmakers are concerned that Biden will agree to McCarthy’s extortionate demands including work requirements for programs like SNAP and Medicaid. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and John Fetterman (D-PA) stated that they would not vote for any deal that imposes such restrictions. Not great, folks! Stay tuned for more developments in this economic horror show.

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Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, the company that makes ChatGPT, told Congress in a deposition on Tuesday that government intervention and regulation will be essential to mitigate the risks posed by artificial intelligence. Concerns that “generative A.I.” tools will mislead the public, spread disinformation, violate copyright projections, and threaten certain jobs are growing among the public and members of Congress. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) raised his concern that the tools could be subject to hacking by foreign powers for nefarious reasons, and stated that A.I. companies should be required to test their systems and disclose known risks before releasing them. Altman largely agreed with Blumenthal, but said he was more optimistic about the future of work. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) raised separate concerns about the technology’s implications for elections, employment, and national security, and Altman did not disagree, calling election integrity a “significant area of concern.” Altman is planning to embark on a world tour to help major countries regulate the technology his company makes, but like any corporate CEO “advising” governments on prospective regulations for their own products, many believe his regulatory suggestions do not go far enough.

Silicon Valley Bank executives faced tough questions from the Senate Banking Committee for grossly mismanaging their institution into failure. 

North Carolina’s GOP-controlled state Senate voted to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s (D-NC) veto of a 12-week abortion ban, sending it to the Republican-majority House, which is expected to pass the override through on Tuesday night. 

Fortified by Western technology and weapons, Ukraine thwarted another missile attack by Russia over Kyiv on Tuesday. 

According to new data from Pew Research, the number of Republicans who think parents should be able to send their children to public school without the MMR vaccine (even if it poses health risks for others) more than doubled between 2019-2023. Feels bad!

Brazil has confirmed its first known cases of avian flu in wild birds. 

Public-housing officials across the country are installing surveillance cameras purchased with federal grants and using them to punish and evict tenants. 

U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins will resign as top federal prosecutor in Boston after a monthslong internal Justice Department ethics investigation into her appearance at a political fundraiser and other alleged ethical issues. 

Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) introduced a resolution to expel Rep. George Santos (R-NY) who stands indicted on 13 criminal counts. Meanwhile, Kevin McCarthy wants to punt the issue to the House Ethics Committee as quickly as possible so Santos can get back to voting the party line. 

Pennsylvania Appeals Court Judge Patricia McCullough, who rose to prominence in the aftermath of the 2020 election for her allegiance to the “Stop the Steal” cause, is now running for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

In March 2020, disgraced former president Donald Trump put in place COVID-19 restrictions known as Title 42, which allowed agents to rapidly expel many migrants to Mexico or other countries without their having the opportunity to request asylum during the pandemic. President Biden finally let Title 42 expire on Friday, and apprehensions that illegal border crossings would explode have begun to ebb. The huge, expected influx has not materialized, spoiling Republican plans to be repugnant, racist demagogues for political gain. Since taking office, Biden has implemented higher standards for asylum seekers at the border, and opened up new legal pathways for migrants abroad. Countries further south have also fortified border security, according to Department of Homeland Security official Blas Nunez-Neto. Some progressives and asylum officers have expressed concerns that Biden’s new standards undercut the right to claim asylum guaranteed by law and international treaty. Immigration-advocacy have sued to halt the new regulation from taking effect, as they say it mirrors similar policies implemented by president Trump that ended up being shot down in the courts.

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The European Union approved the world’s first comprehensive regulations on cryptocurrency assets on Tuesday. 

In more good news from the E.U., 27 countries in the bloc voted to formally adopt new rules to reduce their contribution to global deforestation. 

The Biden administration announced Tuesday that $11 billion in grants and loans for clean-energy projects will soon become available to rural communities thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act.