New top story from Time: 100 Days, the Global Pandemic Edition

https://ift.tt/3nAQN1y

This article is part of the The DC Brief, TIME’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to get stories like this sent to your inbox every weekday.

There are a few things that pester political pros, regardless of political party. The media’s fixation on debate performances, a function that has absolutely nothing to do with the actual job as an elected official. The expectation-setting for end-of-quarter fundraising that ignores the actual overhead needs. The obsession over how many supporters’ email addresses are in the campaign database, as though that corresponds to the clout inside a caucus.

None, however, irks insiders in a presidential operation like the 100-Day contest. FDR more or less screwed over every one of his successors when he laid down the marker in 1933, saying he’d launch a New Deal agenda to end the Great Depression in that short window. From that point forward, every President has at once tried to match the expectations of the moment when an administration hits the 100-day mark and tried to reject what is — truly — an arbitrary barometer of a Presidency.

Well, Joe Biden hit his 100 days yesterday. He used his first turn before a joint session of Congress this week to preach a sermon of accomplishment and dangle the prospects of a sequel. But when it came time to actually toast the occasion, he did what no President before him had done. He staged a drive-in rally.

That’s right. Even with the tide seeming to turn against the pandemic in the U.S., Biden doesn’t have a lot of options on how he can mix with his supporters. There are still more than 50,000 new cases every day; a mass rally without social distancing only begs trouble. So he did the next best thing. In Duluth, Ga., Biden’s supporters brought their pickups and minivans to the parking lot of an arena complex for an abbreviated version of what he told Congress.

Arbitrary or no, the split screen between Biden at 100 Days and his predecessors was telling of the fundamentally changed country we’re living in at this moment. When Donald Trump hit the marker, he was in Harrisburg, Pa., for a rally that doubled as counter-programming for the White House Correspondents Association black-tie dinner. Barack Obama scheduled a prime-time news conference — an event Biden still hasn’t attempted. George W. Bush’s 100th day fell on a Sunday, so he followed up the next day with a lunch with Congressional leaders. Bill Clinton used his to thank members of Hillary Clinton’s health care task force, which ultimately proved a failure.

Biden doesn’t have the same luxury. He’s finding himself boxed in on what he can do, much the way he found himself during a pandemic-leveled campaign. Even at the end of his rally, his instincts kicked in to connect with supporters. Try as he could to reach across the twin rows of bike racks that separated him from the crowd , he just couldn’t manage the one-on-one interactions that were a hallmark of his pre-pandemic campaign.

It’s not just Biden navigating these challenges in the pandemic’s twilight. Bon Jovi, Grace Potter and Travis Tritt are heading on tour as such this summer for at least some dates. And countless high school graduations are still being lit by the minivan’s high-beams for a second time in as many years this spring. As much as his critics mocked Biden’s choice to keep his events in parking lots for now, he might have found a format that has resonance that Washington simply doesn’t understand.

Upon finishing his 22-minute remarks in Georgia, Biden found himself in a spot familiar to most people watching: he misplaced his mask. “I’m looking for my mask. I’m in trouble,” Biden said as he poked around the podium with the help of his wife. Finding none, Biden’s personal aide Stephen Goepfert brought a spare one to the stage. That gig used to require a bag with sharpies and cough drops. The fact that it now requires carrying extra PPE for the President is yet another reminder that Biden’s first 100 days, like his next, will be like none other.

Make sense of what matters in Washington. Sign up for the daily D.C. Brief newsletter.

Comments

Soldier killed in encounter with terrorists in J-K's Pulwama https://ift.tt/2XGQfvf

A soldier was killed in an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district on Wednesday. After receiving information about the presence of terrorists, security forces launched a search operation in an orchard in Kamrazipora village of Pulwama in the early hours of the day.

New top story from Time: R. Kelly Found Guilty in Sex Trafficking Trial

https://ift.tt/3kMSmKc (NEW YORK) — The R&B superstar R. Kelly was convicted Monday in a sex trafficking trial after decades of avoiding criminal responsibility for numerous allegations of misconduct with young women and children. A jury of seven men and five women found Kelly guilty of racketeering on their second day of deliberations. The charges were based on an argument that the entourage of managers and aides who helped the singer meet girls—and keep them obedient and quiet—amounted to a criminal enterprise. Read more: A Full Timeline of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against R. Kelly [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Several accusers testified in lurid detail during the trial, alleging that Kelly subjected them to perverse and sadistic whims when they were underage. For years, the public and news media seemed to be more amused than horrified by allegations of inappropriate relationships with minors, starting with Kelly’s illegal marriage to the R&B phenom Aaliya...

New top story from Time: A Conversation with Filmmaker Adam Curtis on Power, Technology and How Ideas Get Into People’s Heads

https://ift.tt/2NQRzcY The British filmmaker Adam Curtis may work for the BBC, a bastion of the British elite, but over a decades-long career, he has cemented himself as a cult favorite. He is best known as the pioneer of a radical and unique style of filmmaking, combining reels of unseen archive footage, evocative music, and winding narratives to tell sweeping stories of 20th and 21st century history that challenge the conventional wisdom. “I’ve never thought of myself as a documentary maker,” he says. “I’m a journalist.” On Feb. 11, Curtis dropped his latest epic: Can’t Get You Out of My Head , an eight hour history of individualism, split up over six episodes. Subtitled “An emotional history of the modern world,” the goal of the series, Curtis says, was to unpack how we came to live in a society designed around the individual, but where people increasingly feel anxious and uncertain. It’s a big question, and Curtis attempts to answer it by taking us on a winding journ...

New top story from Time: America’s War in Afghanistan Is Over. But in the Horn of Africa, its War On Terror Rages On

https://ift.tt/2ZEtko9 In a remote corner of eastern Africa, behind tiers of razor wire and concrete blast walls, it’s possible to get a glimpse of America’s unending war on terrorism. Camp Lemonnier, a 550-acre military base, houses U.S. special-operations teams tasked with fighting the world’s most powerful al-Qaeda affiliates. Unfolding over miles of sun-scorched desert and volcanic rock inside the tiny country of Djibouti, the base looks—the troops stationed here will tell you—like a sand-colored prison fortress. Inside, two subcamps sit behind opaque 20-ft. fences ringed with yet more razor wire. The commando teams emerge anonymously from behind the gates and board lumbering cargo planes to fly across Djibouti’s southern border with Somalia for what they call “episodic engagements” with local forces fighting al-Shabab , al-Qaeda’s largest offshoot. General Stephen Townsend, commander of military operations in Africa, describes it as “commuting to work.” The Pentagon has ...

New top story from Time: ‘We’re Nowhere Close to the Deal’. Coronavirus Aid Package Talks Break Down as Trump Rejects Help for Cities

https://ift.tt/3098lHW WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Wednesday dismissed Democratic demands for aid to cash-strapped cities in a new coronavirus relief package and lashed out at Republican allies as talks stalemated over assistance for millions of Americans. Another lawmaker tested positive for the virus. Republicans, beset by delays and infighting, signaled a willingness to swiftly approve a modest package to revamp a $600 weekly unemployment benefit that’s running out. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., roundly rejected that approach as meager, all but forcing Republicans back to the negotiating table. Without action, the aid expires Friday. “We’re nowhere close to the deal,” said White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. He said they’re “miles apart.” Stark differences remain between the $3 trillion proposal from Democrats and $1 trillion counter from Republicans, a standoff that is testing Trump and Congress ahead of the November election and putting...

How Muni is Tackling the 10 Worst Delay Hot Spots Across SF

How Muni is Tackling the 10 Worst Delay Hot Spots Across SF By Cassie Halls The SFMTA has had its fair share of ribbon-cutting ceremonies over the last two years. These celebrations draw attention to some of our biggest projects. Also attention-worthy are some of the more incremental efforts happening at the agency. One such effort led by the Muni Forward team is the Transit Delay Hot Spots Program , launched in February 2020 . Muni Forward is known for corridor projects such as the L Taraval Improvement Project , 16 th Street Improvement Project , and M Oceanview Transit and Safety Project . These efforts are increasing the already sizeable 80 miles of transit reliability upgrades since 2014. There are also other ways we’re working to slash travel times and improve reliability across the Muni network. The Transit Delay Hot Spots Program aims to tackle the 10 worst “delay hot spots” each year, where buses crawl between stops at four miles an hour or less. We’re looking cl...

Smarter Traffic Signals Prioritize Transit and People

Smarter Traffic Signals Prioritize Transit and People By Robert Lim Have you ever wondered how traffic signals could better balance the needs of all road users, whether driving, bicycling, walking or taking Muni? The SFMTA is rolling out its Connected Corridor Pilot this month to use transit platform and traffic signal sensor data to inform signal timing adjustments. The pilot also aims to collect information to support transit efficiency and street safety improvements. Traffic engineers use signal timing adjustments as a tool to prioritize the flow of travel in specific directions or for different travel modes – Muni, people walking or driving – to meet the changing demands of the road network across different timepoints in a day. The Connected Corridors Pilot seeks to push the envelope of innovation by investing in advanced technologies, funded through a U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) grant. These tools will better position the city to serve the potential future ne...

Burundi to Vote in Tense General Election in Shadow of Virus Outbreak as President Steps AsideWhile Ethiopia decided to delay its election this year due to the pandemic, Burundi has pushed forward with the vote at all costs.

While Ethiopia decided to delay its election this year due to the pandemic, Burundi has proceeded with the vote at all costs. Burundians is going to vote Wednesday in a stressful general election, in spite of a huge outbreak of coronavirus which is necessarily impending first major challenge for the new president. President Pierre Nkurunziza, who has been in power since 2005, shocked observers by deciding to step aside, five years after a controversial third-term run plunged his country into political and economic crisis. while Ethiopia decided to delay its election this year due to the pandemic, Burundi has pushed forward with the vote at all costs, with heaving crowds of thousands attending political rallies, with only buckets of water and soap available as a nod to the virus. Burundi has so far officially recorded only 42 cases and one death from the virus, but doctors and the opposition accuse the government of hiding the true extent of the outbreak. The government has...

Vaccine-Related Service Changes Go into Effect November 1

Vaccine-Related Service Changes Go into Effect November 1 By Mariana Maguire An SFMTA staff person receives the COVID-19 vaccine at the Woods Muni Maintenance Division To address operator shortages due to the city’s mandate that only vaccinated employees may work after November 1 , the SFMTA will temporarily suspend “short” line service on a few Muni lines. Short service refers to buses that run on a segment of a longer Muni route to help improve frequency on higher-ridership portions of the line. The long routes on these lines will continue to operate, connecting customers where they need to go. There will be no cancellation of any Muni routes in response to staffing challenges associated with the city’s vaccine mandate. Starting November 1, we are planning to temporarily suspend the 1 California Short , 14R Mission Rapid Short (weekends only), 30 Stockton Short, and 49 Van Ness Short (on weekdays only). These changes are intended to reduce impacts to service systemwide,...

Bus Testing on the New Van Ness BRT Corridor a Success

Bus Testing on the New Van Ness BRT Corridor a Success By Nehama Rogozen Muni and Golden Gate Transit staff recently conducted important bus operations testing that is an important step towards the Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor opening this spring. This testing included emergency turns and maneuvers, repositioning buses, verifying signals are working, clearances between passing buses and safe turns while bike racks are deployed. The training also included several staff. Traffic engineers made sure traffic and transit signals were working and reviewed street markings. Transportation planners coordinated closely with operations, training, engineering and construction staff to make necessary adjustments. Outreach staff and ambassadors answered questions and made sure customers knew testing was taking place. Field manager...

My precise view

Search This Blog