politicnewsbusterinsiderpostreview: Biden's first SOTU comes at fraught moment

Tuesday, 1 March 2022

Biden's first SOTU comes at fraught moment

The speaker's dais in the House of Representatives with American flag hanging up behind chair.

By Liza Hearon

Tuesday, March 1

BIDEN TO GIVE 1ST STATE OF THE UNION AT FRAUGHT MOMENT President Joe Biden's first State of the Union speech had initially been conceived by the White House as an opportunity to highlight the improving coronavirus outlook and reboot his stalled domestic agenda. But the moment is especially fraught with last week's Russian invasion of Ukraine. Biden will address a mostly full and mask-optional crowd tonight in the House chamber. He'll also speak from within a newly fenced Capitol due to renewed security concerns after last year's insurrection. [AP]

RUSSIAN FORCES SHELL UKRAINE'S SECOND-LARGEST CITY Russian shelling pounded civilian targets in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, and a 40-mile convoy of tanks and other vehicles threatened the capital Kyiv. With the Kremlin increasingly isolated by tough economic sanctions that have tanked the ruble currency, Russian troops are advancing on Ukraine's two biggest cities. [AP]

NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT CONDEMNS RACIST TREATMENT OF AFRICANS FLEEING UKRAINE Africans fleeing the violence in Ukraine have reported facing racist, disparate treatment compared to white Ukrainians. With around 4,000 Nigerians, mostly students, "stranded" in Ukraine, the Nigerian government said, there have been reports of Polish officials refusing Africans entry into Poland. [HuffPost]

PRIMARIES: HERE WE GO AGAIN Texas is holding the first primaries of the 2022 midterm elections today, and the outcomes could offer clues about the directions of the Republican and Democratic parties. Here are four things to watch. [HuffPost]

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MAN KILLS DAUGHTERS, CHAPERONE, SELF AT CHURCH A 39-year-old man shot and killed his three daughters, their chaperone and himself during a supervised visit with the girls at a church in Sacramento, California, authorities said. The shooter was estranged from his daughters' mother, who had a restraining order against him. [AP]

GOP, MANCHIN, BLOCK WOMEN'S HEALTH PROTECTION ACT Critical legislation that would safeguard abortion rights across the country if Roe v. Wade falls didn't advance in the Senate, with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) joining every Republican voting against it. The Women's Health Protection Act would protect the right to access abortion across the U.S., even if Roe v. Wade is overturned in a landmark Supreme Court case that's expected to be decided this summer. [HuffPost]

WHITE HOUSE DITCHING 'BUILD BACK BETTER' BRAND Biden administration officials avoided saying "Build Back Better" on a call previewing the SOTU address. "It's not about the name of the bill," a senior official said, when asked if Biden would talk about Build Back Better. "It's about the ideas." Biden will focus more on reducing the deficit, which might please Sen. Manchin. [HuffPost]

PROUD BOYS LEADER YELLS RACIST SLURS BEFORE ATTACKING BLACK WOMAN Andrew Walls, 26, was arrested and charged with assault in Akron, Ohio, after he was recorded shouting racial epithets at a Black woman and then sucker-punching her in the face. Walls was identified as being a chapter leader in the far-right Proud Boys extremist gang. [HuffPost]

MLB PLAYERS, MANAGEMENT TALKS GO INTO EXTRA INNINGS Major League Baseball extended its deadline for salvaging opening day and a 162-game season until 5 p.m. today after a marathon of 13 bargaining sessions over 16 1/2 hours produced progress toward a deal but left the sides still far apart. The sides have agreed to expand the postseason for 10 to 12 teams, but are still searching for an agreement on central economics. [HuffPost]