Vice president debates 2012

WASHINGTON — Kamala Harris was frustrated. The text of a speech she had been given to deliver in Chicago to the nation’s biggest teachers’ union was just another dreary, scripted talk that said little of any consequence. As Air Force Two made its way to the Midwest over the summer, the vice president told her staff she wanted to say something more significant, more direct. She brandished a Rolling Stone magazine article about the backlash against Florida school officials after new legislation barring the discussion of gender identity in the classroom. The teachers she was about to address were on the front lines of the nation’s culture wars, Ms. Harris told her staff. They were the same ones on the front lines of school shootings. Just blandly ticking through federal funding for education would not be enough. The plane was just an hour out from Chicago, but she said they needed to start over. By the time she landed, she had a more spirited version of the speech in hand, accusing … [Read more...] about Kamala Harris Is Trying to Define Her Vice Presidency. Even Her Allies Are Tired of Waiting.

Vice President Kamala Harris spoke briefly at the Wednesday funeral for Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old who died three days after being beaten by Memphis police officers last month. For many at the service, her speech was a surprise. Though she had been expected to attend the funeral, which was held at the Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis, it was unclear whether she would address the mourners until she was invited to the pulpit by the Rev. Al Sharpton, who eulogized Mr. Nichols. “We are here to celebrate the life of Tyre Nichols,” Ms. Harris said, turning to address Mr. Nichols’s family. “You have been extraordinary in terms of your strength, your courage and your grace,” she said to his mother and stepfather. “We mourn with you, and the people of our country mourn with you.” The beating of Mr. Nichols was captured on videos that were released to the public last week, sparking outrage. President Biden said in a statement that the video had left him “outraged and … [Read more...] about At Tyre Nichols’s Funeral, Vice President Kamala Harris Calls on Congress to Act

PRINCETON, N.J. — By the time he was a senior at Princeton University in 1992, Ted Cruz had developed an arsenal of rhetorical skills and theatrical gestures that made him one of the most polished performers on the college debate circuit. So when he reached the quarterfinals of the national championships at M.I.T., with the title that had eluded him so far now in sight, he decided to try to knock his Harvard opponents off balance with one of his favorite tricks. Instead of the regular practice of defending his proposed topic — the merits of mind-reading — Mr. Cruz let his adversaries choose which side to argue. But the tactic, intended to highlight his confidence, backfired. As he waited for them to decide, the two Harvard students conspicuously dithered, eating up Mr. Cruz’s allotted speaking time as they whispered and searched their pockets for a coin to flip. The audience, now on to the stalling tactic, chuckled as Mr. Cruz snapped: “Gentlemen! You must have decided by now.” … [Read more...] about Ted Cruz Showed Eloquence, and Limits, as Debater at Princeton

Former Vice President Mike Pence dipped his toes into the presidential campaign waters on Feb. 2 with a proposal that would mean the death of Social Security. Pence made his remarks on stage during a conference of the National Assn. of Wholesaler-Distributors in Washington. The event wasn’t open to the public, but a video and transcript was posted by American Bridge, which is affiliated with the Democratic Party. That’s when Pence unearthed the old Republican idea of privatizing Social Security wholly or partially. Advertisement We can replace the New Deal with a better deal. — Former Vice President Mike Pence, airing out a never-fulfilled GOP promise “Give younger Americans the ability to take a portion of their Social Security withholdings and put that into a private savings account,” he proposed. “A very simple fund that could generate 2% would give the average American twice what they’re going to get back on their Social Security today.” Pence didn’t … [Read more...] about Column: Mike Pence, would-be president, has a plan to kill Social Security. It will cost you

PARIS (AP) — France’s parliament on Monday started debating a fiercely contested pension bill that’s triggered recent strikes and large street demonstrations, with more protests set to come this week. The lower house, the National Assembly, began debating the plans that would raise the minimum retirement age from 62 to 64. The parliamentary session comes one day before Tuesday’s third round of protests called by eight main workers’ unions, with more demonstrations planned Saturday. French President Emmanuel Macron’s government is now facing a harsh political battle at parliament that could span weeks or months. Macron vowed to go ahead with the changes – his second presidential term’s flagship legislation — which he described last week as “indispensable when you compare to (other countries) in Europe.” Faced with opinion polls repeatedly showing that a growing majority of people are against the reform, and his own popularity shrinking, Macron argues that it was a key electoral … [Read more...] about French parliament debates Macron’s divisive pension bill

WASHINGTON — As President Biden prepared to deliver one of the biggest speeches of his presidency, he met with a close group of aides at the White House and read drafts aloud from top to bottom. He practiced in front of teleprompters at Camp David, making sure the language was relatable and clear. And, in quiet moments ahead of the State of the Union address on Tuesday evening, he marked up his speech with subtle lines and dashes that he has long used as a signal to take a breath, pause between his words or steer through a tricky transition. Mr. Biden is the first modern president to have a stutter, which he has navigated since childhood and still speaks of in emotional terms. According to seven current and former aides who have helped Mr. Biden prepare for high-profile speeches throughout his career, the president’s shorthand will help him as he delivers an hourlong speech in which he will have to make an emphatic case for his legislative achievements and urge Republicans and … [Read more...] about Biden’s State of the Union Prep: No Acronyms and Tricks to Conquer a Stutter

William H. Rehnquist, who died Saturday at the age of 80 almost a year after learning he had thyroid cancer, helped lead a conservative revolution on the Supreme Court during 19 notably successful years as chief justice of the United States. Including 14 years as an associate justice, Chief Justice Rehnquist's tenure on the court was not only one of the longest in the institution's history but also one of the most consequential. With a steady hand, a focus and commitment that never wavered, and the muscular use of the power of judicial review, he managed to translate many of his long-held views into binding national precedent. Chief among those was an enhanced role for the states within the federal system, which the court accomplished under his leadership by overturning dozens of federal laws that sought to project federal authority into what the Supreme Court majority viewed as the domain of the states. In the zero-sum game of the tri-partite separation of powers, the Supreme … [Read more...] about William H. Rehnquist, Chief Justice of Supreme Court, Is Dead at 80

Being vice president of the United States is sort of like working for Donald Trump or watching reality TV. It requires a high degree of tolerance for indignity and abuse. The job is inherently subservient — the only thing worse than embarrassing the president is outshining him — and the office almost always diminishes its occupant . Enter as a respected governor or U.S. senator and soon you’re transformed in the public eye to a lapdog, a nullity or an anchor on the administration. (A notable exception being Dick Cheney, who, in caricature, was portrayed as the puppeteer and power behind a feckless President George W. Bush.) Advertisement Kamala Harris, California’s former U.S. senator and attorney general, is just the latest to experience the enervating effect of the vice presidency, alternating between periods of mockery and being largely ignored. Now it’s her turn to suffer another humiliating rite: speculation on whether Harris will be booted from the … [Read more...] about Column: Here’s why Joe Biden won’t be dumping Kamala Harris as his running mate

Live Updates A beachfront condo building in the Florida town of Surfside collapsed early Thursday morning. Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said during a press conference Friday that 120 people have been accounted for while at least 159 people are still missing. Four deaths have been reported. The Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner Department identified three of the four people who died in the Surfside condo collapse, but the department has only announced one of the names publicly, 54-year-old Stacie Fang. Fang was pulled from the rubble and transported to Aventura Hospital, where she died Thursday, WSVN 7 reported. Among those still unaccounted for, 31 are from six Latin American countries. Six are Venezuelan citizens, nine are Argentine, six are Colombian, three are Uruguayan, six are Paraguayan and one is Chilean. The sister of Paraguay first lady Silvana López Moreira is one of the missing six from the country, Paraguay Foreign Minister Euclides Acevedo … [Read more...] about Everything We Know So Far About the Surfside Building Collapse

More than three years after Elon Musk stunned the auto industry with an electric pickup truck that looked more like a stealth fighter than a way to haul two-by-fours and drywall, Tesla said last week that it would begin building the vehicle by the end of 2023 . The announcement has helped fuel a recovery in Tesla’s share price , but also revived a debate about whether the often-delayed pickup, called the Cybertruck, is a work of genius or evidence of Mr. Musk’s hubris. It would be very unlike Mr. Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, to build a pickup that looked anything like the Ford F-150 , Chevrolet Silverado or Ram 1500 pickup — three of the best-selling vehicles in the United States. With its angular stainless steel body, the Cybertruck is an attempt to redefine the pickup in the same way that Tesla upended the conventional wisdom of the auto industry by proving that battery-powered vehicles could be practical and profitable. Tesla advertises that a top-of-the-line … [Read more...] about Tesla’s Pickup Truck Is Coming Soon. Maybe.