Comme le rapporte le site TMZ, Jussie Smollett va devoir retourner devant la justice. Mis en examen – seize chefs d’accusation avaient été retenus ! – depuis son faux témoignage dans sa présumée agression survenue en janvier dernier, l’acteur avait finalement été remis en liberté. La procureur avait préféré abandonner les poursuites, se contentant d’empocher sa caution de 10 000 dollars… La ville de Chicago ne l’entend pas de cette oreille.

La municipalité, qui a fait parvenir un courrier à l’acteur de la série Empire ainsi qu’à ses avocats, réclamait le paiement de 130 000 dollars. Soit la somme correspondant aux frais engagés pour mener l’enquête sur l’agression raciste et homophobe dont il avait dit avoir été victime avant que la justice ne le mette en examen pour faux témoignage. Il avait en effet été suspecté d’avoir tout mis en scène avec la complicité de deux frères, Abimbola Abel et Olabinjo Ola Osundai…

Jussie Smollett, âgé de 36 ans, n’a pas répondu positivement à la demande formulée par le maire démocrate Rahm Emanuel – qui va céder sa place à Lori Lightfoot, récemment élue. Par conséquent, les services juridiques de Chicago, représentés par Bill McCaffrey, passent la vitesse supérieure en l’attaquant en justice. “Les services juridiques vont déposer la plainte dans un avenir proche. Dans le cadre de cette action légale, le service juridique cherchera à obtenir toutes les indemnisations possibles“, a-t-il fait savoir. Cette plainte au civil peut coûter cher à l’acteur car la municipalité est en droit de réclamer jusqu’à trois fois la somme en question, soit 390 000 dollars.

Jussie Smollett, qui avait été rapidement et très largement soutenu par Hollywood au lendemain de sa supposée agression, fait désormais figure de paria. L’acteur devrait toutefois prochainement reprendre les tournages d’Empire, au moins jusqu’à la fin de son contrat. Invitée de The View, sa partenaire de jeu Taraji P. Henson a affirmé qu’il devait faire son retour dans la 6e saison. “Je n’ai en tout cas pas entendu l’inverse“, a-t-elle dit.

Thomas Montet

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Education Secretary Miguel CardonaMiguel CardonaWarren stalls confirmation of Biden pick in push for student loan reforms House lawmakers roll out legislation to protect schools against hackers Education Department says anti-trans discrimination prohibited by Title IX MORE announced on Monday that Puerto Rico is set to receive almost $4 billion in pandemic relief funds to aid the U.S. territory’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Approximately half of the funds will come from the American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 rescue package that President BidenJoe BidenTrump calls Barr ‘a disappointment in every sense of the word’ Last foreign scientist to work at Wuhan lab: ‘What people are saying is just not how it is’ Toyota defends donations to lawmakers who objected to certifying election MORE signed into law in March, according to The Associated Press.

Cardona revealed the development during his first official three-day trip to Puerto Rico, the first trip a member of Biden’s Cabinet has made to the island, the AP reported.

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“I am honored to be in Puerto Rico — the island of my roots — as the federal government releases critical funds to support Puerto Rico’s efforts to safely reopen its schools for in-person learning,” Cardona said, according to the AP.

Dozens of public and private Puerto Rican schools reopened their doors in March for the first time since the pandemic began. Less than 100 out of more than 850 public schools on the island, however, were authorized to resume.

Only kindergarteners, special education students and children in first, second, third and 12th grades were permitted to return to the classroom for in-person instruction, which was only held until noon for two days a week.

Attendance, however, was low, as COVID-19 concerns persisted on the island.

The next month, officials closed down all schools following an increase in coronavirus infections, according to the AP. Some of the institutions were not reopened again until May.

It was not immediately clear how Puerto Rican Gov. Pedro PierluisiPedro Rafael PierluisiOvernight Health Care: House panels launch probe into Alzheimer’s drug | Half of public health workers experiencing mental health strain | Puerto Rico presses Congress to prevent ‘Medicaid cliff’ The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Will this infrastructure deal pass? Puerto Rico presses Congress to prevent ‘Medicaid cliff’ MORE plans to utilize the new funds, the wire service noted.

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Three months ago, Pierluisi reportedly revealed that Puerto Rico had the authority to access $912 million in federal education money.

Stringent conditions in place barred Puerto Rico from receiving particular federal funds in a prompt time frame during the Trump administration, the AP noted, but those circumstances have become more relaxed under the Biden administration.

Puerto Rico has reported more than 173,000 COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic, and more than 2,500 deaths, according to The New York Times.

As of Monday, 42 percent of the island’s population was fully vaccinated, according to the Times.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers Tuesday that the U.S. remains on track for a strong rebound from the coronavirus recession despite several speed bumps that have weighed on the recovery.

Testifying before a special House COVID-19 subcommittee, Powell expressed confidence that rising inflation and lackluster job growth would both turn around as the global economy smoothed out the kinks of reopening.

“I think we’ll see strong job creation in the fall. I really do,” Powell said.

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For now, he said, “there seems to be some kind of a speed limit,” pointing to more than 9 million job openings and even more Americans who are unemployed.

“It may just be that it’s hard to match up with a new job and people feel like they can wait a little bit longer and really shop carefully,” Powell added.

His appearance before the subcommittee comes as the Fed is coming under growing pressure from inflation hawks to raise interest rates and halt monthly bond purchases with prices rising sharply from pandemic lows.

The consumer price index, a closely watched gauge of inflation, rose 5 percent in the 12 months leading into May and 0.6 percent in last month alone. The producer price index for final goods, which measures prices charged by suppliers for shelf-ready items, also rose 5.3 percent annually — the fastest recorded yearly rate.

At the same time, the U.S. has gained an average of 540,000 jobs over the past three months — half the rate Powell and many other economists had expected.

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Powell acknowledged that the pace of job gains had plenty of room to rise with millions of Americans out of the labor force. He also said that caretaking responsibilities, lingering pandemic fears, enhanced unemployment benefits and a desire among millions of Americans to find better, more fulfilling work have all dampened net job creation.

But Republican lawmakers remained unconvinced, insisting that President BidenJoe BidenBaltimore police chief calls for more ‘boots on the ground’ to handle crime wave Biden to deliver remarks at Sen. John Warner’s funeral Garland dismisses broad review of politicization of DOJ under Trump MORE’s extension of jobless benefits and other support measures included in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill from March have disincentivized work and overheated the economy. 

“These Biden administration inflation policies have put you in a tough spot,” House Minority Whip Steve ScaliseStephen (Steve) Joseph ScaliseOn The Money: Powell says pickup in job gains likely this fall | Schumer, Pelosi meeting with White House on infrastructure Powell says pickup in job gains likely this fall Hillicon Valley: Senate unanimously confirms Chris Inglis as first White House cyber czar | Scrutiny mounts on Microsoft’s surveillance technology | Senators unveil bill to crack down on cyber criminals MORE (R-La.) told Powell.

“The Fed has tools to deal with inflation, but those tools are harsh. Raising interest rates and constricting the money supply, they work, but as we saw with Paul Volcker, it causes tremendous pain,” he continued, invoking the former Fed chief known for quashing rapid price increases during the 1970s.

Fed officials have tried for months to reassure the American public, lawmakers and investors that the recent spike in inflation will reverse without their intervention. Powell, echoing a broad range of economists, says the jump in inflation reflects two short-term factors: prices returning to pre-pandemic levels and supply shortages driven by a surprising rebound in consumer demand.

“If you look behind the headline, look at the categories where these prices are really going up, you’ll see that it tends to be areas that are directly affected by the reopening,” Powell said.

“There’s no reason why it should leave a mark on inflation, say, a year or so ahead because we should be through it then.”

Biden’s top economic officials, including Treasury Secretary Janet YellenJanet Louise YellenAs climate threats escalate, ESG needs an ‘R’ for resilience On The Money: Powell says pickup in job gains likely this fall | Schumer, Pelosi meeting with White House on infrastructure Powell says pickup in job gains likely this fall MORE, have made the same case to lawmakers. An ideologically diverse range of economists also generally agree that inflation will likely cool off on its own this year but are unsure exactly when.

Fed officials expect inflation to settle at a 3.4 percent annual rate with the economy growing by 7 percent in 2021, according to median estimates released by the central bank last week. If those projections hold, inflation over the past two years would average out close to the Fed’s annual target of 2 percent.

Despite the pressure facing the Fed, lawmakers largely avoided criticizing Powell or the central bank directly. Even Republicans who eviscerated Biden’s economic policies expressed sympathy for Powell, saying he’d be left to clean up any mess.

“Your job is stable employment and low inflation. Right now we have 9 million job openings and inflation that’s went up five months in a row,” said Rep. Jim JordanJames (Jim) Daniel JordanPowell says pickup in job gains likely this fall Tech industry pushes for delay in antitrust legislation The antitrust package is a Trojan horse conservatives must reject MORE (R-Ohio).

“So something has to give. I’m not necessarily blaming you. I’m blaming the Democrat policies.”

Powell said that while the inflation outlook is uncertain, it is “very, very unlikely” that the U.S. would see the double-digit price increases of the 1970s invoked by GOP lawmakers in recent months.

“What we’re seeing now, we believe, is inflation in particular categories of goods and services that are being directly affected by this unique historical event that none of us has lived through before,” he explained.

“You see extremely strong demand for labor for goods or services, and you see the supply side caught a little bit flat-footed and trying to catch up,” he continued. “I graduated from college in 1975. I had a front row seat. I don’t expect anything like that to happen.”

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Colorado residents and their representatives in Congress are bracing for another summer of raining ash and uncontrolled blazes as wildfires rage along the state’s Western Slope.

Smoke is billowing across the Centennial State, but it’s the duration and frequency of the fires that is causing the greatest alarm. What was once a seasonal occurrence is now extending beyond a few months each year.

“We have transitioned from having fire seasons to now having fire years,” Rep. Joe NeguseJoseph (Joe) NeguseOVERNIGHT ENERGY: House votes to nix Trump methane rule | Supreme Court rules in favor of oil refineries in blending waiver dispute | Colorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round The Hill’s Sustainability Report — Presented by NextEra Energy — Philippine flies turn trash into beef Colorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round MORE (D-Colo.) told The Hill’s Equilibrium on Thursday. “There are fires raging almost year-round.”

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While much of the West set wildfire records in 2020 — with devastating blazes scorching California and Oregon in the fall — Colorado experienced its most active wildfire season in the state’s history.

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This year, the fires have prompted the Bureau of Land Management to increase restrictions on federal land, starting this weekend. Meanwhile, Neguse and other lawmakers from the region are scrambling to push a slew of wildfire bills through Congress, to bolster the firefighting workforce and strengthen mitigation and recovery efforts across the West.

Neguse, who described Colorado as an “epicenter” for wildfires facing “Herculean challenges,” said that at one point last year there were five blazes raging simultaneously in his district: the East Troublesome and Williams Fork fires in Grand County, the Calwood and Lefthand Canyon fires in Boulder County and the Cameron Peak fire in Larimer County.

“When your community is the home to the largest and second largest wildfires in the history of Colorado, it is a wake-up call to our communities, to our state and certainly for policymakers,” said Neguse.

The second-term congressman is a co-sponsor of several bills that he says could help alleviate some of the challenges facing Western states.

In February, Neguse partnered with Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah) to launch the Bipartisan Wildfire Caucus, focused on elevating awareness about wildfire management, mitigation, preparedness and recovery — in hopes that Congress will “lean in and really fund a response that comports with the scale [of] this particular crisis,” he said.

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At the caucus’s first meeting, Neguse and Curtis introduced a bill that would unlock more disaster relief funding to help communities recover faster following destructive fires.

The Wildfire Recovery Act would make changes to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) grants for fire management assistance — a system that provides a 75 percent federal, 25 percent state cost-share in wildfire mitigation and recovery grants — by directing the agency to establish thresholds for cases in which the federal cost-share should be increased.

The measure has about a half-dozen co-sponsors and is awaiting action in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. 

Neguse is also advocating for FEMA to devote more resources to preparing for natural disasters. The Climate Resilient Communities Act, which he introduced in March, would require the Government Accountability Office to evaluate what FEMA can do to make communities more prepared for natural disasters and what additional tools the agency can offer to improve rebuilding efforts. The bill does not have any co-sponsors.

In a third relevant bill, Neguse is trying to unleash a new federal conservation workforce to strengthen fire prevention in the West — through the 21st Century Conservation Corps Act that he introduced alongside Sen. Ron WydenRonald (Ron) Lee WydenThe Hill’s Sustainability Report — Presented by NextEra Energy — Philippine flies turn trash into beef Colorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round Progressives fire warning shot on bipartisan infrastructure deal MORE (D-Ore.) in February.

“There are a myriad of different proposals out there,” Neguse said, stressing that each of the bills serve different policy purposes and that none are mutually exclusive.

For example, Neguse said the Conservation Corps Act aims to convince both Congress and the Biden administration that creating such a workforce — focused on reforestation, resiliency, mitigation efforts and wildlife habitat preservation — is worth a $10 billion capital investment. He said he is optimistic about White House support, citing remarks from Interior Secretary Deb HaalandDeb HaalandColorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round Equilibrium — Presented by NextEra Energy — A new final frontier: Washing dirty laundry in space OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Haaland: No plan ‘right now’ for permanent drill leasing ban | Heat wave sparks historically unseasonable wildfires in West | Watchdog calls on Pentagon to detail ‘forever chemicals’ cleanup expenses MORE at a Natural Resources Committee hearing Wednesday.

Still, convincing Congress is the first step. There are about a half-dozen co-sponsors between Neguse’s measure and Wyden’s.

Neguse said that as a Colorado lawmaker, he is in a unique position to advocate for the 21st Century Conservation Corps Act, as the state is “home to the remnants of what was an incredibly successful, transferable Civilian Conservation [Corps] program adopted in the 1930s,” as part of former President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal.

“This particular program has captured the imagination of the American people, and it’s starting to capture the imagination of my colleagues in Congress,” Neguse said. “To the extent that I can help provide contextual information about both the program’s history and Colorado’s connection to it, and the future of the program in terms of addressing the modern crises that I’ve described, that’s certainly an opportunity that I relish.”

Neguse is also advocating for the Colorado Outdoor Recreation & Economy (CORE) Act with Sens. Michael BennetMichael Farrand BennetColorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round Democrats make full-court press on expanded child tax credit Congress needs to fix the broken market for antibiotic development MORE (D-Colo.) and John HickenlooperJohn HickenlooperColorado lawmaker warns of fire season becoming year-round The Hill’s 12:30 Report – Presented by Facebook – Biden helps negotiate bipartisan infrastructure deal Ex-Sen. Cory Gardner joins lobbying firm MORE’s (D-Colo.). The lawmakers reintroduced the bill in February after it was initially included in the previous year’s National Defense Authorization Act before being stripped out.

The CORE Act aims to protect more than 400,000 acres of Colorado’s public land, including about 73,000 acres of new wilderness and 80,000 acres of new recreation and conservation management areas. In a recent video from Hickenlooper, Neguse and the first-term senator fist-bump trekking poles in front of the Capitol building, with the congressman quipping that “hiking in D.C. just isn’t the same as hiking in Colorado.”

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“These are lands that we hold in trust for future generations,” Neguse, who chairs the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, told Equilibrium. “Public land is part of our ethos as Coloradans. It’s part of our DNA.”

With so many public and private spaces in the West at risk this summer, Neguse emphasized that Congress and the administration must “act urgently and quickly.”

“Time is of the essence. It’s important for us to get this done now,” Neguse said. “But we still do have time to do it, to get it done.”

Interior Secretary Deb HaalandDeb HaalandOVERNIGHT ENERGY: EPA to review part of cancer-linked chemical regulation after industry request | House GOP to launch climate caucus | Haaland announces program to review impact of Native boarding schools Haaland announces program to review impact of Native American boarding schools Senate confirms Biden pick for No. 2 role at Interior MORE, the nation’s first Native American Cabinet secretary, on Tuesday announced an initiative that will review the legacy of federal boarding schools that numerous Native children were forced to attend.

Haaland announced the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative in remarks to the National Congress of American Indians’ 2021 mid-year conference. The program, which will be carried out under Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland, will assess the impacts of the schools across generations.

The agency head has separately instructed the Interior Department to prepare a report detailing the initiative’s findings, including records on cemeteries or other possible grave sites connected to federal boarding schools. A mass grave believed to contain the remains of more than 200 children was discovered last month at the site of one such facility in Canada.

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“The Interior Department will address the inter-generational impact of Indian boarding schools to shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past, no matter how hard it will be,” Haaland said Tuesday. “I know that this process will be long and difficult. I know that this process will be painful. It won’t undo the heartbreak and loss we feel. But only by acknowledging the past can we work toward a future that we’re all proud to embrace.”

“The stories of survivors and their families are important and it is going to become necessary for them to have an opportunity to tell their stories and put it on the record,” Newland added in his own remarks at the conference.

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Federal boarding schools were established to forcibly assimilate Indigenous children to white culture, including forcing them to cut their hair, speak exclusively English and forego their cultural traditions. The slogan “kill the Indian, save the man” was coined by Richard Henry Pratt, the founder of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania.

In an op-ed earlier this month for The Washington Post, Haaland described her own family’s history with such schools, including her grandfather, a survivor of the Carlisle school. “We have a long road of healing ahead of us, but together with tribal nations, I am sure that we can work together for a future that we will all be proud to embrace,” she wrote.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will reconsider decisions underlying a rule governing emissions of a chemical that it has deemed carcinogenic following a request from an industry group.

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The agency told stakeholders in letters dated last week that it would reconsider its risk information for ethylene oxide, a chemical the EPA currently says is carcinogenic if it is inhaled. 

The EPA also said it would reconsider its prior decision not to use a much lower risk finding from the state of Texas as an alternative risk value. 

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Last year, the Trump administration finalized the rule regulating emissions and leaks of ethylene oxide from industry. The chemical is used in manufacturing and to sterilize medical equipment.

At the time, environmentalists argued that the federal government should have set an even stricter limit for what is considered a leak of the substance.

In its new letter, the Biden EPA said that it was granting the industry request because the Texas risk value was finalized after the rule’s comment period closed and because the risk posed by the chemical is “of central relevance to EPA’s determination that risks… are unacceptable and that more stringent standards are required.”

Last year, the American Chemistry Council (ACC), a trade group representing chemical manufacturers, petitioned the EPA to both reconsider its risk information system value for ethylene oxide and to consider the Texas assessment. 

“EPA has not considered the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ’s) peer reviewed assessment on ethylene oxide (EO); and … EPA committed to address ACC’s Request for Correction under the Information Quality Act (IQA) related to the validity of the IRIS value, but decided not to do so prior to the issuance of the Final Rule,” the group said in a petition. 

Environmentalists have raised concerns about the Texas finding and sued in an attempt to compel the state to release the documents used as the technical basis for it. 

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The ACC praised the Biden administration’s move to reconsider these parts of the rule in a statement. 

“We appreciate the EPA’s willingness to consider the latest science on this issue,” said a statement released by the organization.

“We look forward to working with EPA through this process to achieve strong, science based regulations that are protective of human health and the environment,” it added. 

Environmental groups have separately asked the EPA to take a look at aspects of the rule, including what they described as failing to provide an opportunity to comment on new information, failing to get rid of unacceptable cancer risk and failing to require monitoring at the edges of polluting facilities. 

Environmental advocates argued that some good could come from the EPA’s current review if it affirms its existing risk value, and they hope the agency would use that affirmation to strengthen the rule. 

But some have also expressed worry that they still are waiting to find out if the Biden administration will take stronger action to protect people. 

“Five months into the new Administration we are still waiting to see whether EPA will take strong, definitive action to protect fenceline communities and public health from chemical and petrochemical plants’ pollution,” Earthjustice senior attorney Emma Cheuse said in a statement. 

“The science shows that communities are facing unacceptable threats of cancer and other diseases from these chemical plants’ pollution. The critical question for EPA to answer in the process is what will it do to finally and truly help communities still facing this injustice?” Cheuse said. 

Saudi Arabia has released two women’s rights activists who were imprisoned for two years, the Associated Press reported on Monday. 

The London-based organization ALQST for Human Rights shared on Sunday that human rights advocates Samar Badawi and Nassima al-Sadah had been released following the end of their prison sentences. 

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Both of the women were sentenced to five years in prison for being vocal critics of Saudi Arabia’s male guardianship laws, which allows men to have control over women’s ability to obtain a passport and travel, according to the AP. 

This comes after Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman led a crackdown targeting women activists protesting for greater freedoms in 2018. 

The arrests happened during the time the country lifted its longstanding ban on women driving in June. 

Dozen of women prisoners also told Saudi judges about the harassment and abuse they faced in prison, including being caned on their backs, electrocuted, and waterboarded by masked men during interrogations. Prisoners also reported being sexually assaulted and threatened with rape and death, according to the AP. 

Badawi and al-Sadah will be barred from travel for five years and from speaking with the media and sharing informaiton online about their case as part of their conditional release deal. 

The Saudi government has now released all but one women prisoner from their 2018 arrest sweep, the AP noted.

Environmental advocates are shifting their focus to a multi-trillion, Democrat-led spending package after seeing that a smaller bipartisan infrastructure deal is unlikely to include many of their priorities.

The bipartisan agreement is expected to include some scaled-down versions of President BidenJoe BidenTrump calls Barr ‘a disappointment in every sense of the word’ Last foreign scientist to work at Wuhan lab: ‘What people are saying is just not how it is’ Toyota defends donations to lawmakers who objected to certifying election MORE’s climate proposals, but activists are optimistic that they can achieve many of their goals through a Democrat-only measure that is poised to advance alongside the smaller $1.2 trillion package.

“Our eyes are on the prize,” Ben Beachy, director of the Sierra Club’s living economy program, told The Hill on Thursday.

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“We’re fighting for a big bold infrastructure package, and the path for that, as confirmed today, is the reconciliation path, and that is certainly our focus,” he said.

During weeks of bipartisan negotiations, advocates have stressed that they see infrastructure as crucial to getting key climate provisions across the finish line.

That bipartisan deal announced on Thursday is slated to include just $15 billion for electric vehicles and transit, compared with Biden’s initial goal of $174 billion.

It also appears to omit other Biden proposals, such as a push for energy efficient building upgrades and a clean electricity standard, which would make power providers get all of their energy from clean sources by 2035.

Biden said, however, that he also wants to pursue a separate bill to be passed through budget reconciliation, a process that would allow Democrats to sidestep a GOP filibuster and pass the measure with a simple majority.

That measure is more likely to have Democratic priorities on climate, especially as a large group of senators in the party have pledged not to vote for it unless there are major climate provisions.

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The 50-50 split in the Senate means all 50 members of the Democratic caucus would have to be on board to pass a reconciliation package.

Sen. Joe ManchinJoe ManchinGreen groups shift energy to reconciliation package Ocasio-Cortez says Sinema wrong with defense of filibuster Photos of the Week: Infrastructure, Britney Spears and Sen. Tillis’s dog MORE (D-W.Va.), a crucial swing vote, called reconciliation “inevitable,” and Biden spoke with moderate Sen. Kyrsten SinemaKyrsten SinemaGreen groups shift energy to reconciliation package Ocasio-Cortez says Sinema wrong with defense of filibuster Headaches mount for Biden in spending fight MORE (D-Ariz.) about a path forward on Friday.

Elizabeth Gore, senior vice president for political affairs at the Environmental Defense Fund, said advocates will have a role to play in convincing Manchin and Sinema that strong climate action is in their best interest.

“Both of those senators are concerned about climate and they’re committed to finding solutions… and they have unique constituencies and states. And as advocates, our job is to ensure, first of all, that they see a transition to a clean energy economy as an opportunity…and that they see it as a political winner,” Gore said.

“We’ve really tried to tie specific policies back to the impact for jobs and communities and the economy back in their…home state,” she added. “This isn’t about brow-beating them into supporting a policy that goes against their interest. It’s demonstrating and advocating that climate policy and this clean energy transition is good for their state.”

Sam Ricketts, a co-founder and senior adviser for the advocacy group Evergreen, expressed optimism that moderate and progressive Democrats would come together to put forward a strong package.

“Democrats from the most conservative to the most progressive recognize the need and the opportunity facing the country right now, as it is dealing with interwoven crises,” Ricketts said.

But he acknowledged that advocates may need to push to get them there.

“We’ve got to fight…to make sure that elected leaders are actually going to recognize the moment that we’re in, and meet that moment with [a] policy response,” Ricketts said.

“It’s going to be the thing that needs to be sorted between advocates and lawmakers throughout the course of the summer as they turn to advancing a reconciliation that will be the venue through which we get the level of investments that the climate demands and our country needs,” he added.

Among the priorities environmental groups have highlighted are the clean electricity standard, clean energy tax incentives, ending fossil fuel subsidies, upgrading buildings in an efficient manner and putting together a civilian climate corps that creates jobs in areas like conservation.

Meanwhile, some Republicans who initially signed onto the bipartisan agreement have indicated that they could pull out given the plans by Democrats to tie it to a reconciliation package.

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“No deal by extortion! It was never suggested to me during these negotiations that President Biden was holding hostage the bipartisan infrastructure proposal unless a liberal reconciliation package was also passed,” tweeted Sen. Lindsey GrahamLindsey Olin GrahamGreen groups shift energy to reconciliation package Headaches mount for Biden in spending fight Barasso says Biden must do more to reassure GOP MORE (R-S.C.).

Since then, Biden appeared to clarify some of his initial comments on the two measures, saying that he didn’t mean to threaten to veto the bipartisan package if it passed without a reconciliation package.

For activists, GOP wavering provided an additional reason to shift their efforts toward the reconciliation piece.

“There’s a chance Republicans blow up the bipartisan agreement in the first place, so right now we have our eyes on what’s actually moving in the House and the Senate, which is the budget resolution and the reconciliation process and making sure that those are as bold and robust as possible to meet the scale and urgency that the crises demand,” said Ellen Sciales, a spokesperson for the progressive Sunrise Movement.

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Happy Friday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Rebecca Kheel, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

THE TOPLINE: The truth may be out there, but we still don’t quite know what the truth is.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released its much-anticipated report on UFOs — or unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) if you’re the government — on Friday.

The report confirmed that the U.S. government has had 144 UFO sightings since 2004.

But U.S. intelligence agencies have only been able to identify one of the 144 objects. Turns out, it was a “large, deflating balloon,” according to the report.

What are the others?: The report offered several options for what the 143 other objects could be and said there probably isn’t one explanation for all of them.

Some of the possibilities the report raised include airborne clutter, natural atmospheric phenomena, top secret U.S. government programs and foreign adversary systems.

But it also left open the door to “other” explanations — a category that could include aliens.

“Although most of the UAP described in our dataset probably remain unidentified due to limited data or challenges to collection processing or analysis, we may require additional scientific knowledge to successfully collect on, analyze and characterize some of them,” the report said.

Background: The 9-page unclassified assessment came at the direction of lawmakers who inserted the requirement for the report into last year’s intelligence authorization bill amid an uptick in UFO sightings by U.S. military aviators.

Public interest in and acceptance of the existence of UFOs has peaked in recent months as anticipation for the ODNI report built up. Interviews where military pilots described seeing objects in the sky that they said defied explanation, as well as leaked video, stoked imagination further.

Lawmaker reaction: “For years, the men and women we trust to defend our country reported encounters with unidentified aircraft that had superior capabilities, and for years their concerns were often ignored and ridiculed,” Senate Intelligence Committee vice chair Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who championed the reporting requirement, said in a statement Friday.

“This report is an important first step in cataloging these incidents, but it is just a first step,” he added. “The Defense Department and Intelligence Community have a lot of work to do before we can actually understand whether these aerial threats present a serious national security concern.”

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner (D-Va.) similarly said in his own statement that Friday’s “rather inconclusive report only marks the beginning of efforts to understand and illuminate what is causing these risks to aviation in many areas around the country and the world.”

GHANI MAKES THE ROUNDS IN DC

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani wrapped up two days of meetings with lawmakers and administration officials Friday, capped with a visit to the White House to meet with President BidenJoe BidenSenate Republicans urge CDC to lift public transportation mask mandate AOC said she doubts Biden’s win would have been certified if GOP controlled the House Overnight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley MORE.

At the meeting, Biden pledged the United States would remain committed to Afghanistan with political and economic support even as the U.S. military withdraws from the country.

“The senseless violence has to stop, but it’s going to be very difficult,” Biden said. “But we’re going to stick with you, and we’re going to do our best to see to it you have the tools you need.”

Ghani’s view: Earlier in the day, Ghani held a meeting with Defense Secretary Lloyd AustinLloyd AustinOvernight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley Roughly 650 troops to stay in Afghanistan after withdrawal: report Tucker Carlson calls Joint Chiefs chairman a ‘pig,’ ‘stupid’ MORE at the Pentagon.

At that meeting, Ghani brushed off concerns that his government could fall as soon as six months after U.S. troops depart.

“There have been many such predictions and they have all proven, turned out, false,” Ghani said when reporters asked about the U.S. intelligence assessment.

Ghani also refuted the idea that the United States is walking around from his country is

“The false narrative of abandonment is just false,” Ghani said.

At the White House, he also compared his country to pre-Civil War America, saying Afghanistan is in an “1861 moment, like President Lincoln, rallying to the defense of the republic, determined that the republic is defended.

“It’s a choice of values, the values of an exclusionary system or an inclusionary system,” Ghani continued. “We are determined to have unity, coherence, national sense of sacrifice and will not spare anything.”

MILLEY VS. CONSERVATIVES CONT.

Conservatives are still fuming over Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark MilleyMark MilleyTrump aides drafted order to invoke Insurrection Act during Floyd protests: report Overnight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley Tucker Carlson calls Joint Chiefs chairman a ‘pig,’ ‘stupid’ MORE’s impassioned defense of being well-read, including studying critical race theory.

Among the latest attacks on Milley was Fox News host Tucker CarlsonTucker CarlsonOvernight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley Tucker Carlson calls Joint Chiefs chairman a ‘pig,’ ‘stupid’ Pentagon punches back against GOP culture wars MORE, who on his show Thursday night called the nation’s highest-ranking military officer a “pig” and “stupid.”

Former President TrumpDonald TrumpAOC said she doubts Biden’s win would have been certified if GOP controlled the House Trump aides drafted order to invoke Insurrection Act during Floyd protests: report Overnight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley MORE — who chose Milley for the job of Joint Chiefs chairman — also got in on the action Friday, saying in an interview with Newsmax that Milley’s speech was “pathetic.”

Dispatch from the culture wars: The Milley row is just the latest example of conservatives trying to pull the military into their culture wars.

We took a look at the trend — as well as how the Pentagon is punching back — over here, if you’d like to catch up.

ON TAP FOR MONDAY

Reps. Rob WittmanRobert (Rob) Joseph WittmanOvernight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley Overnight Defense: Iran talks set up balancing act for Biden | Pentagon on alert amid Russian saber rattling | Lawmakers urge Pentagon to be pickier about commanders’ requests for more troops Battle heats up over Pentagon spending plans MORE (R-Va.) and Mike GallagherMichael (Mike) John GallagherOvernight Defense: Intel releases highly anticipated UFO report | Biden meets with Afghan president | Conservatives lash out at Milley Biden budget includes 0M to help agencies recover from SolarWinds hack in proposed budget GOP lawmaker calls for Wuhan probe to ‘prevent the next pandemic’ MORE (R-Wis.) will speak about “The US Maritime Industrial Base and Competition with China” at virtual Hudson Institute event at 2 p.m. https://bit.ly/3gWlHjl

ICYMI

— The Hill: Roughly 650 troops to stay in Afghanistan after withdrawal: report

— The Hill: Senators propose bill to help tackle cybersecurity workforce shortage

— The Hill: Administration says it can work with Russia on key Syrian crossing point

— USNI News: Japan-based USS Ronald Reagan now in the Middle East to cover Afghanistan withdrawal

— Associated Press: Afghans who worked as interpreters for US troops hold rally

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— Inside Defense: Senators holding Kendall nomination over defense contractor ties and F-35 training center decision

Une fois encore, les artistes se mobilisent pour le Sidaction. De quoi ravir la vice-présidente, Line Renaud, et le parrain de cette année, le couturier Jean Paul Gaultier. Les stars de la chanson se sont retrouvées le 29 mars dernier au Palais des Congrès, à Paris, pour enregistrer un programme spécial.

Ce show, qui rendra donc hommage à la comédie musicale culte Starmania, qui fête cette année ses 40 ans, a vu défiler sur scène un parterre de stars. On a ainsi pu voir le jeune chanteur et représentant tricolore au prochain concours de l’Eurovision, Bilal Hassani. Sur Twitter, il n’a pas caché sa joie d’avoir pris part au spectacle. “Hier j’ai eu le privilège de chanter pour @Sidaction et partager la scène avec des artistes extraordinaires ! On chantait les chansons de Starmania pour célébrer les 40 ans de la comédie musicale, c’était littéralement magique“, a-t-il écrit. Il a pu retrouver sa concurrente du programme Destination Eurovision, Chimène Badi, laquelle fait son retour dans les bacs.

Il fallait aussi compter sur la participation de Catherine Ringer, Slimane, Gwendal Marimoutou Corine, Vincent Niclo, Julian Bugier, Muriel Robin ou encore Isabelle Boulay, Elisa Tovati, Liane Foly, Sofia Essaïdi, Camille et Julie Berthollet, Grégoire, Amel Bent, Jenifer, le jeune papa Amir, Clara Luciani, Loïc Nottet…

Les artistes vont donc chanter et mettre à l’honneur l’opéra-rock de Luc Plamondon et du regretté Michel Berger. Un show qui a pris place au Palais des Congrès de Paris car c’est la salle qui a vu naître le spectacle mythique il y a 40 ans. Les chansons de l’opéra-rock seront revisitées par plusieurs générations d’artistes. Chaque chanson de Starmania sera plongée dans un tableau spécialement crée pour l’occasion et chorégraphié par Zack Reece qui a notamment collaboré avec Janet Jackson et Kelly Rowland. Une grande soirée d’engagement pour l’association Sidaction, pour sensibiliser les téléspectateurs et faire appel à leur générosité.

Thomas Montet

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