Monday, July 25
- Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), chair of the
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said he would place a hold on
United States security assistance to Rwanda over concerns about the
Rwandan governmentÕs human rights record and role in the conflict in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. He sent a letter to Secretary of State
Antony Blinken calling for a comprehensive
review of U.S. policy towards Rwanda.
Tuesday, July 26
- Family members of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera journalist Shireen
Abu Akleh, who was fatally shot by Israeli
forces in May, met with Secretary of State Blinken
to renew their demands for justice and accountability from Israel via U.S.
investigation.
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Reps. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.), who heads the
House committee that oversees inspectors general, and Bennie G. Thompson
(D-Miss.), chairman of the Jan. 6 committee and the Homeland Security
Committee, called on Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph Cuffari to step aside from his officeÕs investigation into
the Secret ServiceÕs deletion of text messages from around the time of the Jan.
6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, saying his office had admitted in congressional
briefings that it became aware that agentsÕ text messages were erased in
December 2021, but did not report that to Congress until this month.
Wednesday, July 27
- President Joe Biden tested negative for
COVID-19 after contracting the virus last week. He also gave a speech
praising his administration for the progress it made against COVID-19 and
renewed his calls for Americans to get vaccinated and boosted.
- Blinken said the U.S. put a Òsubstantial proposal on
the tableÓ to facilitate the release of U.S. citizens Brittney Griner, a basketball star, and Paul Whelan, a former
marine, who are both held by Russia in what the U.S. has called Òwrongful
detention.Ó
- The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by
75 basis points, each of which is one hundredth of 1 percentage point, for
the second time in two months, to fight the U.S.Õs highest inflation in
more than 40 years. ÒThe current picture is plain to see. The labor market
is extremely tight, and inflation is much too high,Ó Federal Reserve Chair
Jerome Powell said.
- The Senate passed legislation to subsidize the
domestic semiconductor industry in an effort to boost U.S. companies
against their Chinese competitors as well as alleviate shortages. The
Senate passed the bill 64 to 33.
Thursday, July 28
- Congress passed the bi-partisan CHIPS and
Science Act, which provides $52 billion for semiconductor production subsidies
and research and development and outlines a vision for U.S. science policy
more broadly.
- Chinese President Xi Jinping
warned Biden against Òplaying with fireÓ over Taiwan during their fifth
phone call. Xi stressed that U.S. should abide by the Òone-China
principleÓ and stressed that China opposed ÒinterferenceÓ with Taiwan by
external forces.
- The Coast Guard reported that at least five
migrants drowned and another 66, including two minors, were rescued in an
incident involving a suspected human smuggling boat near Mona Island, an
uninhabited island west of Puerto Rico. The bodies were found on Thursday
by Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources Park
Rangers.
- The Washington Post reported that text
messages for former President Donald TrumpÕs acting homeland security
secretary Chad Wolf and acting deputy secretary Ken Cuccinelli
are missing for a key period leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the
U.S. Capitol, increasing the volume of missing potential evidence about
the time around the attack.
- The New York Times reported that the Biden
administration expects to begin a COVID-19 booster campaign with retooled
vaccines in September.
- The Department of Labor reported that fewer
Americans applied for unemployment insurance for the first time in four
weeks. Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending July 23
declined by 5,000 to 256,000 from the previous weekÕs 261,000.
Friday, July 29
- The House passed a bill to reinstate a
long-expired ban on assault weapons. It was approved by a 217 to 213 vote
in the Democrat-majority House. All but two Republicans voted against it.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the bill a Òcrucial step in our ongoing
fight against the deadly epidemic of gun violence in our nation.Ó It is
unlikely to succeed in the evenly divided Senate.
- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration announced that vessels off the east coast of the U.S. need
to slow down more often to help save North Atlantic right whales, a
vanishing species of whale, from extinction. ÒChanges to the existing
vessel speed regulation are essential to stabilize the ongoing right whale
population decline and prevent the speciesÕ extinction,Ó the proposed
rules states.
- Blinken said he urged the Kremlin to accept a
proposal for the release of U.S. citizens Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner, who are detained in Russia, in exchange for
Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout, during a call with BlinkenÕs Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.
Saturday, July 30
- Biden tested positive for COVID-19 again in a
rare ÒreboundÓ case following treatment with an anti-viral drug. White
House physician Dr. Kevin OÕConnor said in a letter that Biden Òhas
experienced no reemergence of symptoms, and continues to feel quite well.Ó
- White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield, who announced early in July that she was
stepping down, said that she had decided to remain in her position. ÒIÕm
not done here and there is so much more good work to do with all of you,Ó Bedingfield said.
Sunday, July 31
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi started a tour of
four Asian countries: Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan. ÒThe
trip will focus on mutual security, economic partnership and democratic
governance in the Indo-Pacific region,Ó a statement read. Biden
administration officials later said they expect the trip to include a stop
in Taiwan as well, which could draw ire from China.