A look at the evolving gig economy and the battles between companies and workers.
Mar. 08, 2021 09:59PM EST
U.S. grants temporary protected status to thousands of Venezuelans
Venezuelans living in the United States will be eligible to receive temporary protected status for 18 months, the Department of Homeland Security announced Monday.
Why it matters: Tens of thousands of Venezuelans have fled to the U.S. amid economic, political and social turmoil back home. Former President Trump, on his last full day in office, granted some protections to Venezuelans through the U.S. Deferred Enforced Departure program, but advocates and lawmakers said the move didn't go far enough.
<p><strong>Details: </strong>The TPS designation allows Venezuelans currently in the U.S. to apply for the protective status, which will last until Sept. 9, 2022. </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>TPS <a href="https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/temporary-protected-status" target="_blank">allows</a> people from other countries to stay and work in the U.S. if their home nations are ravaged by a natural disaster or war, and they're allowed to stay until things improve.</li></ul><p><strong>The big picture: </strong>More than 4 million refugees and migrants <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/news/press/2019/6/5cfa2a4a4/refugees-migrants-venezuela-top-4-million-unhcr-iom.html" target="_blank">have fled Venezuela</a> in recent years, according to the United Nations. Many have gone to Colombia and other South American countries. </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Over 145,000 Venezuelans in the U.S. were eligible for protection under the Deferred Enforced Departure program when Trump made the designation in January, per <a href="https://apnews.com/article/international-news-venezuela-88ba0f2a51b35bf8195e886d4210e5c3" target="_blank">AP</a>. </li><li>The U.S. and allied countries have sought to isolate Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who has clinged to power despite challenges by opposition leader Juan Guaidó, who the U.S. and other countries recognize as the country's legitimate president. </li><li>On the campaign trail, President Biden vowed <a href="https://joebiden.com/todos-con-biden-policy/" target="_blank">to grant TPS</a> to Venezuelans "seeking relief from the humanitarian crisis brought on by the [Nicolás] Maduro regime."</li></ul><p><strong>Go deeper: </strong><a href="https://www.axios.com/venezuela-national-assembly-election-juan-guaido-f83e843d-77ea-4615-adf4-ba80a23fb1f8.html" target="_blank">Venezuela's uncertain future</a></p></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 08:58PM EST
Zuckerberg floated possibility of remote work in January 2020. Sandberg thought he was "nuts"
Chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg thought Mark Zuckerberg was "nuts" when he raised the possibility in January 2020 that 50,000 Facebook employees might have to work from home. By March 6, they were.
Why it matters: In an interview Monday with Axios Re:Cap, Sandberg explained how Facebook moved quickly to respond to the pandemic with grants for small businesses and work-from-home stipends for its employees, and how the company has been watching the unfolding crisis for women in the workforce.
<p><strong>Flashback: </strong>"In January, Mark told me and others that we should get ready for the possibility that we would all have to work from home and there might be a pandemic," Sandberg told Axios Re:Cap host Dan Primack.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"And I thought he was nuts. I was like, 'What do you mean there'd be a pandemic. What's a pandemic? And would we really work from home?' But he said, 'No, no. It's possible that everyone's going to have to, like, go home.'"</li></ul><p><strong>What happened:</strong> Sandberg called the pandemic a "crisis for women," but said Facebook was able to retain people by providing additional COVID leave so their "attrition rates of women are not higher than our attrition rates of men."</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"I definitely heard later that people followed some of the examples we set and I was happy about that. For women out there, I wish more companies did more of it."</li><li>"We gave everyone $2,000 to just buy stuff they needed."</li></ul><p><strong>The big picture:</strong> Sandberg said 50,000 employees and tens of thousands of contractors were affected by those early decisions. The company "reached 2 billion people with the right authoritative information on coronavirus" on Facebook itself. </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"We gave hundreds of millions of dollars in grants to 30,000 small businesses around the world. And then we did another tranche later for Black, small businesses, nonprofits and creators that probably hit thousands more."</li></ul><p><strong>What's next: </strong>Sandberg said Facebook is exploring more work-from-home options and thinks this changed work forever, but added that she doesn't know what will happen with remote work in general.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"We had talked about people working remotely before, and we didn't think it was possible," she said. "Being away is still hard, I think. I don't know what's going to happen with work travel. I don't know how much more we're all going to do."</li></ul><p><em>More than a year into the coronavirus pandemic, Axios is looking back at the week of March 9, 2020 — the week high-profile leaders were forced to make consequential choices that upended our lives and society. Subscribe to Axios Re:Cap <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1412162689" target="_blank">here</a>. </em></p></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 07:09PM EST
Supreme Court declines to hear case on qualified immunity for police officers
The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal for a lawsuit brought against Cleveland police officers that challenges the scope of qualified immunity, the legal doctrine which has been used to shield officers from lawsuits alleging excessive force, Reuters reports.
Why it matters: The doctrine has been the subject of scrutiny from civil rights advocates. Eliminating qualified immunity was one of the key demands of demonstrators during nationwide protests in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd.
<ul class="ee-ul"><li>Advocates for revising or eliminating the doctrine <a href="https://www.axios.com/police-qualified-immunity-excessive-force-7f758b61-c5d3-4276-9932-c3f96e040956.html" target="_blank">say it makes successful prosecution of police misconduct difficult</a> by setting a higher bar for civil suits. Others argue that removing it could intensify a nationwide officer shortage. </li></ul><p><strong>Details: </strong>Shase Howse said that he was slammed to the ground by police and arrested while trying to enter his own home in August 2016, per the <a href="http://clevelandnaacp.org/naacp-steps-in-to-represent-20yr-old-black-male-against-false-charges-from-police/" target="_blank">NAACP Cleveland Branch</a>. Howse, who is Black, was 20 at the time.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>An Ohio-based appeals court granted immunity to the officers in the case, arguing that there was no "clearly established" precedent to deem their actions illegal, per Reuters. </li></ul><p><strong>Our thought bubble,</strong> via Axios' race and justice reporter Russell Contreras: The Supreme Court ruling won't stop advocates who plan on pushing for states to change their qualified immunity laws for officers. </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>A <a href="https://www.nmlegis.gov/Legislation/Legislation?Chamber=H&LegType=B&LegNo=4&year=21" target="_blank">proposal in New Mexico</a>, for example, seeks to eliminate qualified immunity for officers accused of violating someone's constitutional rights.</li></ul><p><strong>Worth noting: </strong>The <a href="https://www.axios.com/george-floyd-justice-policing-act-house-e5f8361c-2940-464a-a56c-93ae0febab93.html" target="_blank">George Floyd Justice in Policing Act</a> passed by the House last week would overhaul qualified immunity for officers. It would also ban chokeholds at the federal level, prohibit no-knock warrants in federal drug cases, and outlaw racial profiling.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>The bill, which is opposed by most Republicans, is less likely to clear the divided Senate. </li></ul></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 04:03PM EST
CDC: Fully vaccinated people can gather indoors without masks
People who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can take fewer precautions in certain situations, including socializing indoors without masks when in the company of low-risk or other vaccinated individuals, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Monday.
Why it matters: The report cites early evidence that suggests vaccinated people are less likely to have asymptomatic infection, and are potentially less likely to transmit the virus to other people. At the time of its publication, the CDC said the guidance would apply to about 10% of Americans.
<p><strong>The state of play: </strong>A fully vaccinated person — someone who's been vaccinated two weeks after receiving their last dose — should still take standard precautions like masking and social distancing when in public. Those who are vaccinated are allowed to: </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing.</li><li>Visit with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for severe disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing.</li><li>Refrain from quarantine and testing following a known exposure to COVID-19, if asymptomatic. </li></ul><p><em>This story is developing. Please check back for updates.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20507624-public-health-recommendation-for-fully-vaccinated-3_7_21-3-pm-clean" target="_blank">Read the full guidance</a>.</strong></p></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 03:43PM EST
Ripple CEO calls for clearer crypto regulations following SEC lawsuit
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse tells "Axios on HBO" that if his company loses a lawsuit brought by the SEC, it would put the U.S. cryptocurrency industry at a competitive disadvantage.
Why it matters: Garlinghouse's comments may seem self-serving, but his call for clearer crypto rules is consistent with longstanding entreaties from other industry players.
<p><strong>History: </strong>The SEC <a href="https://www.axios.com/sec-formally-sues-cryptocurrency-company-ripple-83bfed3a-60dd-45d2-ae67-35431676f957.html" target="_blank">in December</a> sued Ripple, and Garlinghouse personally, for allegedly selling over $1.3 billion in unregistered securities.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Ripple filed its <a href="https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20499910-ripple-answer-to-1st-amended-complaint" target="_blank">formal response</a> last Thursday. It argues that its cryptocurrency, called XRP, didn't require registration because it's an asset rather than a security.</li><li>Ripple secured a separate legal victory last Friday, as a <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/ripple-investor-tetragon-xrp" target="_blank">Delaware court ruled</a> that U.K.-based Tetragon Financial Group cannot recoup its $175 million investment in Ripple because of the SEC lawsuit.</li></ul><p><strong>What he's saying: </strong>"Many countries around the world, the U.K., Japan, Switzerland, Singapore, they all have clarity and certainty that XRP is not a security. In fact, the United States is the only country on the planet that has suggested that XRP is a security. That's why I say this isn't just bad for Ripple, it's bad for crypto broadly here in the United States. And it's driving that activity, it's driving that entrepreneurial activity outside the United States."</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>In an unaired part of the interview, Garlinghouse says that were he to launch a new crypto company today, he would base it outside of the U.S. </li><li>He also expressed confidence that Ripple will prevail against the SEC, but says a loss may lead it to relocate "to a country where there is regulatory clarity and regulatory certainty."</li></ul><p><strong>The bottom line:</strong> The crypto industry is now large enough and old enough that it deserves a U.S. regulatory framework, whether benefitting Ripple or not. </p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Or, as Garlinghouse put it in another unaired segment, when asked why ordinary Americans should care: "The nature of the U.S.' participation in the internet as we know it today has been a source of massive profits. It's been a source of geopolitical strength. And so our I think our lack of leadership around a next-generation technology like blockchain is not good for the United States."</li></ul></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 03:17PM EST
Republican Sen. Roy Blunt will not seek re-election in 2022
Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) will not run for re-election in 2022, he announced on Twitter Monday.
Why it matters: The 71-year-old senator is the No. 4-ranking Republican in the Senate, and the fifth GOP senator to announce he will not run for re-election in 2022 as the party faces questions about its post-Trump future.
<p><strong>The other GOP senators </strong>who have announced their retirement are:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Sen. Richard Shelby (Ala., which Trump won in 2020 by +25.4%)</li><li>Sen. Rob Portman (Ohio, Trump +8.1%)</li><li>Sen. Richard Burr (N.C., Trump +1.3%)</li><li>Sen. Pat Toomey (Pa., Biden +1.2%)</li></ul><p><strong>Background: </strong>Blunt was first elected to the Senate in 2010, after serving in the House for 14 years and as Missouri secretary of state for eight. In addition to being a member of leadership as chair of the Republican Policy Committee, Blunt is the top Republican on the powerful Senate Rules Committee.</p></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 03:01PM EST
COVID Tracking Project officially ends daily updates, citing improved government transparency
The COVID Tracking Project, a volunteer group of data analysts, researchers, and journalists brought together by The Atlantic, published its final daily update on Monday — the one-year anniversary of its founding.
Why it matters: The project quickly became a vital resource for news media, academic researchers, and everyday Americans to track COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in the absence of reliable and public data from the federal government.
<p><strong>Where it stands: </strong>Eric Kissane and Alexis Madrigal, co-founders of the project, point to the <a href="https://covidtracking.com/analysis-updates/new-hhs-dataset-tells-us-precisely-where-COVID-19-is-hitting-hospitals" target="_blank">release of hospitalization data</a> from the Health and Human Services Department, the <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations" target="_blank">CDC's vaccine tracker</a>, and county-level <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view" target="_blank">testing data from the CDC</a> as evidence that transparency from the government has improved enough to justify winding down the project.</p><p><strong>By the numbers: </strong>In its <a href="https://twitter.com/COVID19Tracking/status/1368736331816259585?s=20" target="_blank">final update</a>, the COVID Tracking Project said that states had reported 1.2 million tests, 41,265 new cases, 40,212 total hospitalizations, and 839 deaths. </p><p><strong>What they're saying: </strong>"We began the work out of necessity and planned to do it for a couple of weeks at most, always in the expectation that the federal public health establishment would make our work obsolete," Kissane and Madrigal <a href="https://covidtracking.com/analysis-updates/covid-tracking-project-end-march-7" target="_blank">said in a February blog post</a>.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"Every few months through the course of the project, we asked ourselves whether it was possible to wind down. Instead, we saw the federal government continue to publish patchy and often ill-defined data while our world-famous public health agencies remained sidelined and underfunded, their leadership seemingly inert."</li><li>"Although substantial gaps and complexities remain, we have seen persuasive evidence that the CDC and HHS are now both able and willing to take on the country’s massive deficits in public health data infrastructure and to offer the best available data and science communication in the interim."</li></ul><p><strong>Madrigal, a journalist at The Atlantic, </strong>pointed to two reasons for the new "encouraging signs" in a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/06/964764201/why-a-major-covid-19-tracking-project-is-shutting-down" target="_blank">February NPR interview</a>.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"I mean, I think the Trump administration was actively suppressing some of the information that the federal government had. That's one piece," he said. Multiple reports <a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-politicization-coronavirus-response-eb06ee87-8c29-499d-8451-295649fa8c95.html" target="_blank">suggested deep politicization</a> of the Trump administration's coronavirus response.</li><li>"And the second piece is just that it took a while to get the data systems online at the federal level to produce the kind of data that you would need to respond to and understand the pandemic," Madrigal added.</li></ul><p><strong>What's next: </strong>A full archive for data released by the project is under construction, while analysis and tips on where to find sources to replace CTP will be published until May. </p></div>
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Mar. 08, 2021 02:01PM EST
As Congress eyes massive infrastructure bill, energy and climate move closer to center stage
The imminent enactment of Democrats' $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package creates space for lawmakers and the White House to craft infrastructure plans with big climate and energy-related provisions.
Why it matters: President Biden, during the campaign, vowed to make low-carbon energy, climate-resilient infrastructure and transportation projects a big focus of an economic recovery package. And the Texas power crisis could give fresh momentum to investments in grid modernization.
<p><strong>What we're watching: </strong>A major package isn't expected to come up for votes for months, but Capitol Hill hearings this week and going forward will offer glimpses into lawmakers' thinking.</p><p>They include...</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>On Wednesday, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee holds a hearing on "addressing climate change in the electricity sector and fostering economic growth.”</li><li>A House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee panel has a Wednesday hearing on the environmental and economic case for rail transport.</li><li>The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee meets Thursday for a hearing on power system reliability, resilience and affordability.</li></ul><p><strong>But, but, but:</strong> There are lots of questions right now, such as how many different packages will move (one thing to watch is the need to reauthorize five-year transportation programs), how much Democrats will again look to use budget reconciliation, and more.</p><p><strong>What they're saying:</strong> Capital Alpha Partners' James Lucier, in a note, said the COVID-19 package passed more quickly and at a higher amount than he expected.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>"As a result, Democrats may feel increased confidence in offering an aggressive clean energy and infrastructure package as part of a bigger 'economic recovery plan' toward the end of the year," he writes.</li><li>But Lucier's note also cautions that this will likely be more complicated than the big relief package that's expected to win final approval this week.</li><li>"There will be more separate topics involved and thus more committees. The House-Senate Conference committee could take a long time," he writes.</li></ul><p><strong>The intrigue:</strong> Sen. Joe Manchin, who chairs the energy committee, <a href="https://www.axios.com/joe-manchin-infrastructure-bill-c8408e99-17f3-4477-b5df-8e3d537c0bd9.html" target="_blank">tells "Axios on HBO"</a> that he doesn't want Biden's climate and infrastructure package to move through reconciliation.</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>That's the process Democrats just used for the COVID-19 relief package that makes certain spending and revenue measures immune from Senate filibuster, which is very important in the narrowly divided chamber.</li><li>Manchin also said he wants a big infrastructure package paid for with tax increases, including a higher corporate rate and higher taxes on the wealthy.</li></ul></div>
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