Tag: Biden

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Biden Urges Putin to Take Motion Towards

Biden Urges Putin to Take Action Against

President Biden on Friday urged President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to “take action to disrupt” online criminal organizations in his country and said that the United States reserves the right to respond against hackers who launch ransomware attacks from inside Russia, according to a White House readout of a telephone call between the two leaders.

“I made it very clear to him that the United States expects when a ransomware operation is coming from his soil, even though it’s not sponsored by the state, we expect him to act, and we give him enough information to act on who that is,” Mr. Biden said to reporters after signing an executive order at the White House.

Asked if Russia would face consequences for the spate of recent attacks, Mr. Biden simply replied “yes.”

The call came in the wake of a ransomware attack over the July 4 weekend in which a Russia-based group called REvil, an abbreviation of “ransomware evil,” hacked a Florida company that provides software to thousands of smaller firms. Russian hackers were also accused of breaching a contractor for the Republican National Committee last week.

“Biden underscored the need for Russia to take action to disrupt ransomware groups operating in Russia and emphasized that he is committed to continued engagement on the broader threat posed by ransomware,” the White House statement said. “President Biden reiterated that the United States will take any necessary action to defend its people and its critical infrastructure in the face of this continuing challenge.”

The United States intelligence agencies have said they do not believe that the Russian government was directly involved in the REvil attack. But Mr. Biden and top officials have repeatedly said that they believe Russia should be doing more to disrupt the networks of criminals that launch such attacks.

Mr. Biden said he told Mr. Putin that during a face-to-face meeting in Geneva several weeks ago. And after meeting with his top cyber officials earlier this week, Mr. Biden told reporters that he “will deliver” that message again to Mr. Putin, but he did not make clear when that would happen.

The readout of Friday’s call ended the suspense.

Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, offered few details about the call beyond what the White House released in the statement. She declined to say what Mr. Putin’s response was during the call.

But she said the call was evidence that Mr. Biden intends to remain in frequent touch with the leader of Russia, in person and otherwise.

“First, let me say that the president is a believer in face-to-face diplomacy when possible, and leader-to-the-leader diplomacy, when that’s not possible, and this is an example of that,” she said.

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Politics

Biden Forcefully Defends U.S. Withdrawal From Afghanistan

Biden Forcefully Defends U.S. Withdrawal From Afghanistan

John F. Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, said the military was looking at relocating Afghan interpreters and their families to U.S. territories, American military installations outside the United States, and in other countries outside of Afghanistan.

The war began two decades ago, the president argued, not to rebuild a distant nation but to prevent terror attacks like the one on Sept. 11, 2001, and to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. In essence, Mr. Biden said the longest war in United States history should have ended a decade ago, when Bin Laden was killed.

“We did not go to Afghanistan to nation-build,” he said. “And it’s the right and the responsibility of Afghan people alone to decide their future and how they want to run their country.”

Mr. Biden delivered his remarks even as the democratic government in Kabul teeters under a Taliban siege that has displaced tens of thousands of Afghan civilians and allowed the insurgent group to capture much of the country.

The rapid American withdrawal, he said, was a matter of safety.

“Our military commanders advised me that once I made the decision to end the war, we needed to move swiftly to conduct the main elements of the drawdown,” Mr. Biden said. “And in this context, speed is safety.”

In an effort to provide limited reassurance to the Afghan government, he said the American mission to help defend the country would continue through Aug. 31, though most combat troops have already left, leaving a force of under 1,000 to defend the American embassy and the country’s airport.

At another time in the country’s history, Mr. Biden’s speech, and the final withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, might have roiled politics in the United States.

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Politics

North Dakota Sues the Biden Administration Over Oil and Gasoline Leases

North Dakota Sues the Biden Administration Over Oil and Gas Leases

The state of North Dakota has sued the Biden government for suspending new state and waterway oil and gas leases, claiming that doing so has cost the state nearly $ 5 billion in lost revenue and more than half a billion barrels of oil in the ground will hold.

President Biden ordered the suspension days after he took office as part of his climate change agenda – but the move was blocked in federal court in June so states can proceed with new leases.

North Dakota joins 14 other states with Republican attorneys general who have filed lawsuits over the moratorium on new leases.

The Interior Ministry, the federal agency that oversees oil and gas leases, declined to comment.

In the lawsuit filed Wednesday in the US District Court for the North Dakota County, the state called the moratorium illegal and said the Home Office had exceeded its powers to suspend the sale of leases.

It also alleged that the suspension of two North Dakota leases, originally scheduled for March and June, has already cost the state tens of millions in lost revenue.

North Dakota is the second largest producer of oil and gas in the United States, and more than half of the state government’s revenue comes from oil and gas taxes.

“This significant damage to North Dakota will increase rapidly,” the lawsuit said, as the “illegal federal government moratorium may continue”.

If the moratorium continues next year, the lawsuit said, leases on nearly 150,000 acres of North Dakota would be blocked, preventing the construction of more than 1,000 oil and gas wells and the production of 555 million barrels of oil. The estimated total loss of revenue is $ 4.77 billion.

“I took these steps to protect the North Dakota economy, the jobs of our hardworking citizens, and North Dakota’s right to control its own natural resources,” said Wayne Stenehjem, the North Dakota attorney general, in a Explanation.

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Biden condemns assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise

Biden condemns assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to reporters as he departs the White House in Washington, U.S., July 7, 2021.

Kevin Lemarque | Reuters

President Joe Biden on Wednesday condemned the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, who was shot dead by attackers in his private residence overnight.

“The United States offers condolences to the people of Haiti, and we stand ready to assist as we continue to work for a safe and secure Haiti,” Biden said in a statement.

Haiti’s interim prime minister, Claude Joseph, confirmed the killing and said the military and police were in control of security in the country. Joseph added that the first lady, Martine Moise, was injured in the attack and is being treated at a hospital.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the U.S. was in touch with the government in Haiti and stood ready to provide aid if requested. 

“We stand prepared to assist. We’re certainly in touch, but obviously this is still developing, and so we’ll assess what their needs are,” Psaki told reporters on Wednesday aboard Air Force One en route to Illinois.

Haiti’s ambassador to the U.S., Bocchit Edmond, called on the U.S. and other nations to provide assistance to the armed forces in Haiti in the wake of the assassination. 

Edmond said economic assistance was not the current priority and emphasized the need to bolster security in Haiti. In particular, he noted the importance of protecting Haiti’s borders as the perpetrators could still be inside the country or may have already escaped. 

“We cannot have a stable country without security,” Edmond said during a press conference Wednesday. 

Edmond added that a formal request to the U.S. for help in investigating the assassination has been submitted and is being evaluated. He noted that he was in contact with the White House, the State Department and U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Michele Sison. 

The State Department echoed Biden’s condemnation of the assassination and urged Haiti to bring the perpetrators to justice.

“Those who seek to accomplish their political goals through violence and by subverting the rule of law will not succeed in thwarting the Haitian people, and their desire for a better, for a brighter future. We urge Haitian authorities to bring those responsible to justice,” said State Department spokesperson Ned Price at a press conference Wednesday.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been briefed on the attack and the security situation in Haiti by the U.S. ambassador, who is currently in Washington, and Deputy Chief of Mission Nicole Theriot, who is in Haiti, Price said. The State Department has also been in frequent contact with the prime minister.

Price said he couldn’t confirm that the U.S. has received a formal request for assistance but said the U.S. ambassador was in touch with the Haitian National Police.

The State Department strongly denied any involvement by the Drug Enforcement Administration after the attackers reportedly were heard identifying themselves as DEA agents.

“These reports are absolutely false,” Price said. “The United States condemns this heinous act. These false reports are nothing more than that, just false reports.”

Based on a video shot from a neighbor’s house during the attack, Edmond asserted that the perpetrators of the assassination were “well trained professional killers, commandos,” some of whom spoke Spanish. Haitians speak French and Creole.

The attack adds to the political upheaval in the Caribbean country, which has been facing a surge in gang violence, Covid-19 cases and anti-government protests, the Associated Press reported. 

Moise, 53, was accused of trying to increase his power and faced months of demands from opposition leaders to step down, according to the AP. He had been ruling by decree for over a year after Haiti did not hold elections.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Biden Weighs a Response to Ransomware Assaults

Biden Weighs a Response to Ransomware Attacks

William Evanina, who recently left a top counterintelligence post in the U.S. government and now advises companies, said he would advise Mr. Biden “to be bold.”

“We need to give Putin something to think about,” he said. “And while I know people in the government like the idea of having ‘unseen’ cyberoperations, we have to show the American people and the private sector that we are doing something about this.”

Mr. Putin has denied that many of the attacks have come from Russia and has argued that the United States, with its cyberoperations around the globe, is the most active disruptive force on the internet.

But clearly a large number of the ransomware demands come out of Russia, and the ransomware code is often written to avoid hitting Russian-speaking targets.

If Moscow wanted to stop Russia’s cybercriminals from hacking American targets, experts say, it would. That is why, some Russia experts argue, the United States needs take aim at Russia’s kleptocracy, either by leaking details of Mr. Putin’s financials or by freezing oligarchs’ bank accounts.

“The only language that Putin understands is power, and his power is his money,” said Garry Kasparov, the Russian chess grandmaster and a Putin critic. “It’s not about tanks; it’s about banks. The U.S. should wipe out oligarchs’ accounts, one by one, until the message is delivered.”

For now, REvil has shown no sign that it is diminishing operations.

In recent days, its cybercriminals continued to hijack American companies’ networks. On Wednesday, REvil hit a new target: a Florida defense contractor, HX5, that sells space and weapon launch technology to the Army, the Navy, the Air Force and NASA.

REvil posted hacked documents to its naming-and-shaming website, “The Happy Blog.” None appeared to be of vital consequence, but HX5 is just the latest contractor to be hit.

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Health

Biden Makes New Push for Vaccinations, however Specialists Say Extra Is Wanted

Biden Makes New Push for Vaccinations, but Experts Say More Is Needed

Most power rests in the hands of states, employers, or private institutions.

Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, a professor of bioethics and health policy at the University of Pennsylvania, said the United States is unlikely to make significant progress on its vaccination campaign without mandates.

“I like to say that a mandate is legal, ethical and effective,” he said. “Ultimately, jobs will probably have to.”

In his speech, Mr Biden said his government was not giving up trying to convince people that vaccination was in their best interest and in the interest of the country. However, he did not mention the need for states, private companies, schools, and other institutions to start requiring people who refused to be vaccinated.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki admitted in comments to reporters Tuesday that some businesses, schools and other institutions were beginning to need vaccines. But she said the administration has no intention of encouraging her to do so.

“We will leave it to them to make these decisions,” said Ms. Psaki.

But others say the government could be more aggressive.

Lawrence O. Gostin, professor of global health law at Georgetown University, said that while the federal government’s powers to issue mandates are limited, the Biden government still has significant powers to recommend it. It could allocate more funding to vaccination detection systems and create incentives for colleges, universities and organizations to request a vaccine to be offered, he said.

“Vaccine mandates have been very successful in the US and around the world, even in politically difficult situations, because they make vaccination the standard,” said Gostin. “To be unvaccinated must be a difficult decision, not an easy one.”

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Biden to Host Independence Day Occasion Celebrating Progress on the Pandemic

Biden to Host Independence Day Event Celebrating Progress on the Pandemic

While the White House once set July 4th as the date when at least 70 percent of adults would be at least partially vaccinated, officials admitted last month that they would almost certainly miss that target as vaccination rates peaked at April has fallen.

Updated

July 4, 2021, 3:27 p.m. ET

And while 20 states, Washington, DC, and two territories passed the 70 percent mark last week, the country’s overall progress has slowed significantly, with now an average of about a million doses per week. According to the New York Times, about 67 percent of adults had received at least one injection on Sunday.

The rapid spread of the highly contagious Delta variant has also raised concerns among public health officials, who fear that new outbreaks could occur in parts of the country where vaccination rates have remained comparatively low, and that the variant could mutate to that extent vaccinated, Americans remain vulnerable.

While the pageantry at the White House will be a demonstration of normality that seemed far from likely at the start of Mr Biden’s tenure, the occasion will be marked by a reluctance seldom seen under the previous administration.

Even as new cases soared to a summer high last year, President Donald J. Trump hosted 35-minute fireworks and military flyovers on the National Mall, against the will of Washington Mayor Muriel E. Bowser, who urged people to do so do not participate. This year’s fireworks show will be half as long, and Ms. Bowser has welcomed guests to town, encouraged by advances on vaccines.

Under Mr Trump, the White House held other large gatherings well before vaccines were approved, including two to celebrate the nomination and endorsement of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, at which he and several other attendees were believed to have been exposed and infected.

For Mr Biden, this year’s celebrations seem choreographed to signal that Americans can enjoy some measure of normalcy when they get together, even as his own public health officials continue to emphasize the importance of maintaining momentum with vaccines to have.

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Biden hosts 21 new U.S. residents at White Home naturalization ceremony

Biden hosts 21 new U.S. citizens at White House naturalization ceremony

US President Joe Biden watches as people take the Oath of allegiance during a naturalization ceremony for new citizens ahead of Independence Day in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on July 2, 2021.

Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images

President Joe Biden hosted a naturalization ceremony on Friday to swear in and welcome 21 new U.S. citizens ahead of Independence Day. 

“It’s the dreams of immigrants like you that build America and continue to inject new energy, new vitality and new strength,” Biden said at the ceremony in the East Room of the White House.

The president was joined at the event by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who shared the story of his immigrant parents’ journey to the United States as refugees.

“Our country is also better today because its identity and its fabric as a nation of immigrants is stronger because of you,” Mayorkas said after the new citizens were sworn in.

Tracy Renaud, the acting director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, performed the swearing-in. The USCIS announced Thursday that it would hold 170 naturalization ceremonies in the first week of July.

The jubilant ceremony at the White House belied the challenge the Biden administration is facing as it works to stem the ongoing migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The president came into office pledging to pursue an immigration policy that was both more humane and more orderly than that of his predecessor, former President Donald Trump.

At Friday’s ceremony, Biden commended immigrants for their contributions to the country, noting that many serve in the military or have been working as health-care and front-line workers during the pandemic. 

The president also presented an award to Sandra Lindsay, a nurse from Long Island who immigrated to the U.S. from Jamaica when she was 18 years old.

Lindsay was the first person in America to get fully vaccinated outside of clinical trials, Biden said. Her scrubs will form part of a future exhibit about Covid at the Smithsonian Institution, he added.

“Since our nation’s founding, the quintessential idea in America has been nurtured and advanced by the contributions and sacrifices of so many people, almost all of whom were immigrants,” Biden said. 

The president also took the opportunity to tout his administration’s efforts to reform the immigration system. 

He highlighted his support for the immigration reform bill introduced by Democrats in February, which includes improved border management and security, and a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented people in America.

He also praised Vice President Kamala Harris’ efforts to identify the “root causes” of the recent surge in Central American migrants coming to the U.S.-Mexico border. 

Harris visited the southern border earlier this month but faced criticism from Republicans for not having gone there sooner.

The heart of the migrant surge has been an unprecedented jump in the number of unaccompanied minors apprehended at the border and remanded to U.S. government custody while suitable guardians are located.

But that number has been falling steadily since it reached a high in March of this year. As of Tuesday, there were 14,400 unaccompanied minors in U.S. government care, a 35% drop from two months ago, when the Health and Human Services Department was housing more than 22,000 minors.

Democrats and pro-immigrant activists are urging Biden to further scale back border enforcement and to do more to ensure the humane treatment of migrant children and families at the southern border.

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Health

Is Biden Declaring ‘Independence From the Coronavirus’ Too Quickly?

Is Biden Declaring ‘Independence From the Coronavirus’ Too Soon?

“There is so much toxic politics around Covid that it’s constraining sensible action,” he said. “Obviously it makes sense to require proof of vaccination in various settings, but that has become a political lightning rod.”

Dr. Frieden and other experts said they feared that if the Delta variant continues to circulate, it will mutate in a way that leaves even the vaccinated vulnerable. That already seems to be happening elsewhere in the world; even countries like South Korea and Israel, where the virus seemed to be in check, have new clusters of disease.

“Compared to many other countries, we are in a much more secure situation,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University. But, she added, “I really do worry that as America enjoys its freedoms, we forget about the rest of the world, and that could come back to bite us.”

When Mr. Biden announced his July 4 vaccination goal in early May, he said meeting it would demonstrate that the United States had taken “a serious step toward a return to normal.” For many people, that seems to be the case. The president said then that Americans would be able to gather in backyards for small Independence Day barbecues; his gathering of 1,000 guests is partly aimed at showing the country that his administration has exceeded expectations even if vaccinations have stalled.

While Mr. Biden has repeatedly spoken of “independence from the virus,” Dr. Arthur L. Caplan, the director of NYU Langone Medical Center’s medical ethics division, said the president should be careful about the language he uses.

“Before I went out and had my fireworks and sipped piña coladas on the White House veranda, I would say, ‘I’ve got to make clear, as president, we have major challenges unresolved,’” Dr. Caplan said. “I would say, ‘We’re doing well at halftime.’”

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the president’s top medical adviser for the pandemic, said there was nothing contradictory about the administration’s message.

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Biden Helps Altering Army Legislation on Sexual Assault Instances

Biden Supports Changing Military Law on Sexual Assault Cases

President Biden said Friday that he wanted the military to remove the investigation and prosecution of sexual assault cases from the control of commanders, a sea change for the military justice system.

An independent commission formally recommended to Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III this week that sexual assault, sexual harassment and related cases be shifted to special victims prosecutors outside of the chain of command in the military, something military leaders have long resisted, arguing that it would hinder order and discipline.

“Sexual assault is an abuse of power and an affront to our shared humanity,” Mr. Biden said in a prepared statement. “And sexual assault in the military is doubly damaging because it also shreds the unity and cohesion that is essential to the functioning of the U.S. military and to our national defense.”

While Mr. Austin and Mr. Biden have supported the findings of the commission — which are all but certain to receive pushback from officials from some branches of the military — it will be up to Congress to change the military law.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, has a bipartisan measure that would overhaul the way the military prosecutes sexual assault but also other serious crimes, which some lawmakers believe is crucial in adjudicating cases like the one involving Army Specialist Vanessa Guillen. Law enforcement officials said she was killed by another soldier at Fort Hood last year.

Her bill has gained support from at least 70 members of the Senate — including many who voted against the same bill in 2014, arguing it would undermine commanders. Reconciling her bill with the vision of the commission will now be in the hands of lawmakers.

In 2019, the Defense Department found that there were 7,825 reports of sexual assault involving service members as victims, a 3 percent increase from 2018. The conviction rate for cases was unchanged from 2018 to 2019; 7 percent of cases that the command took action on resulted in conviction, the lowest rate since the department began reporting in 2010.

“I want to recognize the experience of our service members who have survived sexual assault and the bravery of those who have shared their stories with the world and advocated for reform,” Mr. Biden said, adding, “I hope this announcement offers some reassurance that the Department of Defense leadership stands with you, starting with your commander in chief.”