[ad_1]
SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Meeting this week in Geneva between the leaders of two rival superpowers.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVAL RECORDS)
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Obviously it is not in anyone’s interest, your country or mine, to be in a situation where we are in a new Cold War.
SIMON: President Joe Biden speaks to reporters after his three-hour summit with Russian President Putin. Meanwhile, a new federal holiday celebrates the end of slavery in this country. And with us now to talk about the week in politics is NPR White House correspondent Ayesha Rascoe. Happy nineteenth.
AYESHA RASCOE, BYLINE: Thank you for having me.
SIMON: And let’s start, please, with this nineteenth piece of legislation. I looked like this rare thing in the Capitol. It happened so fast. The president signed the bill into law by consensus and it actually came into force within a few hours. How is the creation of this new federal holiday received?
RASCOE: In many places, it was celebrated. Let’s not forget that this holiday was something that black lawmakers have been pushing for decades. And for the most part, this was extremely bilateral, which we know is unusual. But I must note that there are some civil rights activists who have expressed concerns. They do not want federal action to address the effects of slavery and Jim Crow and institutionalized racism to end up making the Juneteenth federal holiday.
SIMON: President Biden signed the bill shortly after returning from a meeting with Vladimir Putin that he described as good and positive. There was no mention of a major breakthrough on a major issue between the two countries – that is cyber-attacks. It seems, I suppose, that there is some consensus on what the president called cybersecurity safeguards, on the return of ambassadors and formal talks on updating arms control agreements. Are there any actions we know about these issues?
RASCOE: At the moment, there is not much concrete action. President Biden said the proof of the pudding would be in the food, which is a common phrase I know now. I did not know before (laughs). But basically, he and his national security advisers are taking a wait-and-see approach to Russia. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters that the ambassadors of both countries would return to their respective positions. And Sullivan said Russia’s Putin is committed to ensuring that the US mission is properly staffed or allowed to be properly staffed through the issuance of these visas or the adjustment of local regulations.
SIMON: There seems to be some movement in Congress, right? And is this in any way related to the kind of unusual friendship we saw in the June 19 vote?
RASCOE: Not exactly. You have this bilateral group of 10 senators – five Democrats and five Republicans – working on a narrower package that would fund physical infrastructure such as roads and bridges. This comes after talks with President Biden and Republicans collapsed. But at the same time, you have Democrats working on a back-up plan that would be extremely expansive, reportedly up to $ 6 trillion, including lowering the Medicare age to 60 and extending benefits to all Medicare beneficiaries for dental, hearing and vision coverage.
And so it’s a moment where you have two very different pieces to move on. The problem for both of them is that trying to get 60 votes in the Senate – which is a very high level. And then again, even if they tried to do it through reconciliation, the Democrats – they have to get at least 50, so every Democrat participates, and there are some moderates who have expressed some concerns. So neither side has increased the amount of support they would need to do anything at this point. And it remains to be seen what he can really get through Congress at this point.
SIMON: NPR White House correspondent Ayesha Rascoe, thank you very much.
RASCOE: Thank you.
Copyright © 2021 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website for terms of use and licenses at www.npr.org for more information.
NPR transfers are created in a hurry until Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using an exclusive transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The valid record of NPR programming is recording.
[ad_2]
picture credit