The Biden Tracking Newsletter Returns (BTN #22)
Biden Tracking Newsletter #22: Day 965 (9/11) through Day 971 (9/17)
President Biden offering his support for striking autoworkers on September 15th (ABC News)
Welcome back to the Biden Tracking newsletter! It’s been over three months since I’ve done this, but weekly newsletters are back. What’s not back is my presence on Twitter. But if you enjoy this newsletter, feel free to share it on Twitter (or any other place you might share something like this.)
This is the twenty-second edition of the Biden Tracking newsletter. This week, the House began an impeachment inquiry on President Biden, we learned that the Border Patrol is continuing family separation due to overcrowding, and the United Auto Workers Union refused to endorse President Biden. It is Monday, September 18th, 2023, day 972 of the Biden presidency,
Wednesday, September 13th (Day 967)
House Begins Impeachment Inquiry on President Biden
On Wednesday the House of Representatives opened an official impeachment inquiry into President Biden based on Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings. Republicans in the House have accused Biden of profiting from his son's business dealings while serving as vice president between 2009 and 2017, pressuring Ukraine to remove its top prosecutor Viktor Shokin, and interfering in a federal investigation of tax and firearms charges against Hunter Biden. Whether or not Biden gets impeached by the House, it is extremely unlikely that anything would happen in the Democrat-controlled Senate. However, it will be interesting to see the evidence Republicans produce to back up their accusations.
Afghans Are Stuck at U.S. Run Processing Sites
A new report from the Intercept on Wednesday revealed that thousands of Afghans who fled their homes two years ago are stuck at processing sites in the Middle East and the Balkans that are run or coordinated by the U.S. government. The processing sites were set up in August 2021 as temporary sites after the Taliban returned to power. However, human rights lawyers now say that these temporary sites have turned into detention centers with deteriorating conditions. The nonprofit CCR and Muslim Advocates sued the U.S. Departments of State, Defense, and Homeland Security on August 30th for failing to provide information about the sites. It’s unclear what specific responsibility the U.S. government bears at the conditions at each site, what is clear is that the Biden Administration could speed up the process of resettling the Afghans in these camps.
New Quinnipiac Poll Finds Democrats Are From From Set on Joe Biden
A new Quinnipiac Poll released on Wednesday found that 51% of people who support President Biden in the primary might change their candidate choice depending on what happens leading up to the Democratic primary. 73% of Democrats polled say they would vote for Biden in a primary, 11% supported RFK Jr., and 8% supported Marianne Williamson. Only 29% of people who support Donald Trump said they would consider changing their choice. The poll is another example of the lack of excitement surrounding the President. A Democrat challenger who runs their campaign right could easily capture a significant segment of Democratic voters who are rightfully unsatisfied with the President.
Saturday, September 16th (Day 970)
The Border Patrol Separated Migrant Children from their Parents to Avoid “Overcrowding”
On Saturday, CBS News reported that U.S. Border Patrol agents separated migrant children as young as 8 from their parents for several days this summer to avoid overcrowding in a short-term holding facility. In a statement, the CBP said that “the situations described within the report are completely different from previous policies of separating families." These separations are not the same as the ones done under the Trump Administration, which were done simply to deter migration. As border crossings continue to increase it is clear that Biden Administration policies that rely on stricter Asylum rules are not the answer.
Sunday, September 17th (Day 971)
United Auto Workers Declines to Endorse President Biden
In an interview with CBS’s Face The Nation on Sunday, United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain said his union’s endorsement has to be “earned” by President Biden. Fain went on to say that the UAW is expecting “action, not words” from President Biden as negotiations continue between union leaders and automakers. Biden said earlier in the week that he understands workers’ frustrations that as automobile companies register “record profits,” they haven't “been shared fairly, in my view, with those workers.” Biden also sent White House adviser Gene Sperling and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su to go to Detroit to help reach a deal. Fain likely hasn’t forgotten that Biden helped break a strike between rail workers and freight rail companies earlier this year. But the National Labor Relations Board under President Biden has done a good job fighting for Unions.
Other News: