Here is the Heritage Take on the top issues today.Please reply to this email to arrange an interview.

Why Joe Biden's So-Called 'Infrastructure' Plan Is a Mistake <[link removed]> – Government subsidies won’t solve the challenge of child care for families, but they could further restrict families’
choices by driving up the cost of care and limiting child care options. Lawmakers should eliminate unnecessary regulations that drive up the cost of child care and that limit parental options instead of forcing families that do not use preschool and childcare to pay for those that do. Lawmakers should also expand the use of 529 savings plans and let families use existing childcare subsidies—including Head Start funds—at a child care or preschool provider of their own choosing. Heritage expert: Rachel Greszler <[link removed]>

The Return of ‘Blame America First’ <[link removed]> – Countries send ambassadors to the United Nations to defend their interests and stand up for their fellow citizens, not to impugn their
nation’s origins and principles. Somebody should explain this to President Joe Biden’s new envoy to Turtle Bay, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. In a shameful performance delivered in a speech to Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, Thomas-Greenfield declared, “I have seen for myself how the original sin of slavery weaved white supremacy into our founding
documents and principles.” She likened racism and hate crimes in the United States to state-led violence in China. She compared Black Lives Matter protests in the United States to those in Burma “where righteous protestors facing brutal violence are demanding democracy and deploying techniques, like strikes and slow-downs and marches, in the mold of Dr. [Martin Luther] King [Jr.].” Heritage experts: Mike Gonzalez <[link removed]> and Brett Schaefer <[link removed]>

Biden says no masks outdoors for fully vaccinated people step toward 'normal living' <[link removed]> – Scientific evidence that outdoor spaces are far safer than indoor and that vaccines are effective in preventing infection has long been known. It is unclear why the agency waited until today to say that vaccinated people needn't wear masks in uncrowded outdoor spaces. CDC did not cite any new study justifying the change in policy. In short, CDC is recommending what millions of Americans already are doing. Heritage expert: Doug Badger <[link removed]>
Battle of the Budgets: Biden versus Trump <[link removed]> – In the battle of budget priorities, the Trump administration’s budgets were certainly more responsible than Biden’s big spending
proposal. That is not to say that Trump’s record on fiscal responsibility was overly praiseworthy, however. Even before the outbreak of COVID-19 and the $4 trillion in spending authorized by Congress and Trump in response, federal spending rose at an unsustainably high rate, adding trillions to the national debt. Many of the good policies in the Trump budgets never actually came to fruition. Each household’s share of the national debt now amounts to $225,000, and that figure continues to rise, with no end in sight. We must turn the tide and rein in the federal budget. Programs that don’t carry out the most essential responsibilities of the federal government should be cut; some should be ended. Instead of following Biden’s budget request, Congress should chart its own path — producing a budget that is fiscally responsible and sufficient to support the truly necessary functions of the federal
government. Heritage expert: Joel Griffith <[link removed]>
Responding To Beijing’s Hosting Of 2022 Olympics Should Be A Team Effort <[link removed]> – To get the Olympics moved would require the Biden administration to
assemble a coalition of allies across the globe to pressure the IOC to postpone and select a new host. The recent unified efforts undertaken by the U.S., the European Union, Canada and the United Kingdom to sanction CCP officials for their treatment of the Uyghurs is a good model. Such a coalition could also engage friends and allies in Asia. If that does not gain momentum, then the U.S., in concert with those same friends and allies, should impose a diplomatic boycott, among other actions. The Romney-Kaine amendment is a good way to get that backup plan on radar screens. It’s encouraging to see lawmakers in Washington giving serious thought to how best to respond to Beijing’s wholesale human rights violations. Stripping China of its ability to host the most prestigious international sporting event is a good place to start. Heritage expert: Olivia Enos <[link removed]>
Fairness for All Act's message to religious Americans: 'Submit or else' <[link removed]> – Fairness for All does not ensure fairness. Instead, it grants special privileges and imposes a unitary, politically correct, legally enforceable set of beliefs about sexuality and gender on all private actors: something the Supreme Court has patently refused to do. And if you think the left will be satisfied with this misguided bill, think again. The ACLU has said Fairness for All “doesn’t protect LGBTQ+ people.” They’ve been joined by the Human Rights Campaign (the country’s biggest LGBTQ+ civil rights group), LAMBDA Legal, and the gay advocacy group GLAAD in proclaiming that the bill “licenses discrimination.” The “compromise” that is
Fairness for All is even viewed by the left as an insufficient attempt to protect their interests. It is all or nothing. As it always was. Heritage expert: Sarah Perry <[link removed]>
Protecting Taiwan Is Vital To Blocking Chinese Aggression In The Pacific <[link removed]> – Would a China that successfully takes Taiwan really halt with just the island? Especially once
doing so would strategically isolate South Korea and Japan, critical US treaty allies, two of the most important economies and sources of American technology, in the world? Or would there then follow one final territorial demand after another? What would be a clearer signal that China is not only intent on changing the world to suit its needs, by any means necessary, but is also intent on
forcing America into a supine position? Heritage experts: Dean Cheng <[link removed]>
Texas Bill Would Provide Array of Supports to Women Seeking Abortion Alternatives <[link removed]> – With help from Human Coalition Action, the public policy advocacy arm of
Human Coalition, the bill was first introduced in the Texas state Senate in February. Under the bill, women are connected via a toll-free number with a licensed third-party professional providing information regarding public and private resources she can be directly connected to at no cost. Those resources
include “support services other than abortion for the pregnant woman or unborn child’s biological father, including housing, employment, resume development, child care, prenatal and postpartum medical care, mental health or behavioral counseling, adoption services, financial assistance, abuse- or neglect-prevention assistance, substance- or alcohol-abuse prevention assistance, and
health benefit plan coverage.” Heritage expert: Melanie Israel <[link removed]>
What Is the Freedom of Association and Will the Supreme Court Protect It? <[link removed]> – If the right to privately form ideas and beliefs is not anchored to the text and history of the First Amendment,
it may be undermined by governments, like California’s, that want to arrest the development of ideas they don’t like before those ideas turn into the speech they fear. The Supreme Court can and should finally anchor the freedom of association to textual and historical bedrock and protect Americans’ freedom to form the ideas, values,
traditions, and beliefs that make us good and active citizens. Heritage expert: GianCarlo Canaparo <[link removed]>

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