Lawyers representing families of victims and survivors of the condominium collapse in Surfside, Florida, last June have told a judge that they've reached a nearly $1 billion tentative settlement.

Harley S. Tropin is a lawyer representing the plaintiffs. He announced the settlement during a hearing on Wednesday before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Michael Hanzman. Still pending final approval, the settlement involves insurance companies, developers of an adjacent building and other defendants.

“I’m shocked by this result — I think it’s fantastic,” Hanzman said. “This is a recovery that is far in excess of what I had anticipated.”

Earlier this year, Hanzman had approved an $83 million settlement to compensate people who suffered economic losses such as condominium units and personal property, the Associated Press reported.

The 12-story building called the Champlain Towers South condominium collapsed suddenly in the early-morning hours on June 24 and almost instantly destroyed dozens of individual condo units, burying victims under tons of rubble. Rescuers worked for weeks digging through mountains of concrete to find survivors, then later to recover the remains of those who died. A total of 98 people were killed.

The $40 billion U.S. package of assistance for Ukraine as it tries to fend off Russia's aggression is hitching a ride on a commercial flight to South Korea so it can be signed by President Joe Biden.

The Senate voted Thursday to finalize new military and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine as Biden was making his way to the South Korean capital. A White House official says the bill is being flown to Seoul by a U.S. government official who was already planning to travel to the region on a commercial flight.

As the Associated Press reported, bills that have needed an urgent signature have been routinely flown by White House aides for decades to the location of the sitting president, if they were abroad.

Then-President George W. Bush flew back to Washington from his Texas ranch to in 2005 to sign legislation that would require doctors to continue feeding a comatose Florida woman, Terri Schiavo. Her husband wanted to let her die.

Related video above: White House Christmas decorations 2022

President Joe Biden celebrated a quiet Christmas with his family at the White House and spoke with service members stationed around the world.

"They're away from their families to protect us," Biden said in a tweet. "And they have the thanks of a grateful, indebted president."

The White House said Biden and the first lady, Jill, called members of the Army stationed at Panama City, Panama; the Navy aboard the USS The Sullivans in the Arabian Sea; the Marine Corps at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego; the Air Force at Okinawa, Japan; the Space Force in Europe; and the Coast Guard aboard the cutter Bertholf in Alameda, California.

This is Biden's second Christmas as president. On Saturday, Biden and his family joined a Mass on Christmas Eve at the White House and continued their holiday tradition of an Italian dinner.

The president and first lady on Friday also carried on another tradition with their second holiday visit to Children's National Hospital. Biden was the first sitting president to join his wife when they visited hospitalized children and their families before Christmas last year, according to the White House.

Surrounded by Christmas trees and holiday decorations, the first lady read "The Snowy Day" with the president's help holding up the book.

Biden last week encouraged national unity in a recorded address, calling out the nation's political divisions and saying he hoped "this holiday season will drain the poison that has infected our politics and set us against one another."

"So, this Christmas, let's spread a little kindness," he said.

Senator John Fetterman’s candid approach to his struggles with mental health is unusual on Capitol Hill, where issues with members’ health are frequently kept hidden from the public.

But Fetterman’s openness has led to praise from mental health advocates, fellow members of Congress, and President Joe Biden, who said in a tweet, "We’re grateful to you for leading by example." 

Such mental health struggles in politics are not new — but they’re not mentioned often.  

In 1972, U.S. Sen. Thomas Eagleton was forced to bow out as the vice presidential pick for Democratic nominee George McGovern after his mental health struggles became public.

And in 2007, then-Congressman Patrick Kennedy opened up on Larry King live about his struggles with mental health.   

After a late-night car crash on Capitol Hill, the Rhode Island Democrat pled guilty in 2006 to charges of driving under the influence of prescription drugs.  

Since departing Congress, he founded the Kennedy Forum, which he describes as a think tank focused on mental health and addiction policy. 

"I think Senator Fetterman, simply by checking himself in saying he needs help and going to get that help, is going to probably help more people in that single act than any other bill that he sponsors or acts that he passes in Congress this year for sure," Kennedy said last week. "When I did go to treatment, I went under the cover of darkness, I did not do what Senator Fetterman has done, and that is to be very public about going to treatment. When I did go publicly, it was because I was forced to go publicly, I had had a DWI."

Fetterman suffered a stroke during his Senate campaign last year. His office said he has experienced depression on and off throughout his life but it became more severe recently.   

Mental health experts say his transparency about his struggles is an important signal to those dealing with similar issues. They say depression following a stroke isn’t unusual. 

 "We know that up to a third of people who have a stroke will suffer depression is the most common psychiatric disorder in people who have had a stroke. So I think for him to be so public about it is so courageous and he's been courageous up until this point, and he continues to do so," said Dr. Daniel Bober, a psychiatrist. 

HIROSHIMA, Japan —

President Joe Biden was seeking to rally regional cooperation against China on the margins of the Group of Seven summit Saturday, while confronting a stalemate in Washington over how to ensure the U.S. avoids default.

Related video above: Biden in Asia for G7 as U.S. debt ceiling looms

Hoping to avert an outcome that would rattle the global economy and prove to be a boon to Beijing, Biden began his third day in Japan at the annual meeting of the world's most powerful democracies with a briefing by staff on the latest fits and starts in the showdown over how to raise the federal debt limit.

The president on Saturday was also squeezing in meetings aimed at challenging China's buildout across the Indo-Pacific, including with the so-called Quad partnership made up of the U.S., Australia, Japan and India.

The Quad members originally had been scheduled to meet in Sydney next week, but rescheduled their meeting for the sidelines of the G7 to allow Biden to return to Washington earlier on Sunday in hopes of finalizing a deal to increase the debt ceiling before the U.S. runs out of cash to pay its bills.

The shortened trip has reinforced a fundamental tension shaping Biden's presidency: As he has tried to signal to the world that the U.S. is reclaiming the mantle of global leadership, at key moments, domestic dramas keep getting in the way.

The president has largely stayed out of the public eye at the summit, forgoing big public statements and leaving Friday's leader dinner early. He's been spending time instead by a video monitor in a room next to his hotel suite, where aides in Washington have been keeping him apprised of the back and forth of debt limit talks.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan acknowledged that world leaders have been pressing Biden about the debt limit standoff in Washington. But press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that while there was intense interest in how the president would resolve a domestic showdown that has geopolitical ramifications, there was no panic — at least not yet.

"It's not a hair-on-fire type of situation," she said.

Also on the margins of the summit, Biden met with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in lieu of what had been a planned visit to his country later this week for the Quad summit. U.S. officials said the trip would be rescheduled, and Biden has invited Albanese to Washington for a state visit as consolation for change-up.

Biden apologized for skipping Australia but Albanese said he understood the circumstances.

"I would have done exactly the same thing," he told Biden, adding, "I'm very much looking forward to the state visit."

The leaders signed a compact pledging to deepen their partnership on developing the raw materials used in clean energy technologies — as they each seek to move supply away from reliance on China. They also issued a joint statement outlining new areas of cooperation in space, trade and defense.

The president was also dispatching Secretary of State Antony Blinken to fill his spot at a summit of Pacific Island nations in Papua New Guinea on Monday. That presidential stop, too, was scrapped in order to get Biden back to Washington more quickly.

Biden's visit would have been the first by an American president to the country. Pacific island nations are being aggressively courted by the U.S. and China as the two superpowers compete for influence in parts of the world where shipping lanes are vital.

In Hiroshima, Biden and other world leaders were set to agree on a shared framework for improving their own economic resilience — a recognition that high levels of trade with China have become more of a risk than an opportunity for mature economies.

Sullivan said that the G7 leaders would acknowledge that "we do seek to cooperate with China on matters of mutual interest. And also that we will work to address our significant concerns that we have with China in a range of areas." He repeated a phrase often used by G7 leaders that the group is looking to "de-risk, not decouple from China."

When President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address Tuesday night, he'll set out to reassure anxious Americans the state of the union is strong.

He'll give the much-anticipated speech amid multiple crises and to a critical public, with hopes of resetting his presidency after a difficult first year in the White House. Polls show only a quarter of

Americans believe the country is on the right track. Biden's own approval rating is underwater, with more disapproving of his job as president than approving.

So expect him to empathize with the public's discontent, while simultaneously shining a spotlight on his successes, touting the 6.6 million jobs created, the waning coronavirus infections amid vaccinations and therapeutics, and the passage of a bipartisan infrastructure bill that eluded his predecessors.

President Biden is also expected to continue to push his stalled domestic spending agenda, unveil his strategies for tackling inflation and crime, and honor his selection of Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to be nominated to the Supreme Court.

He will deliver his address amid the biggest global test of his presidency, underscoring what the Ukraine crisis could mean for Americans, while hailing the unity of U.S. alliances as the world confronts dangerous Russian aggression.

With November's high-stakes midterm elections just months away, Democrats are hoping the State of the Union address provides a much-needed boost to Biden's struggling presidency.

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President Joe Biden has reached a decision on his first nominee to the Supreme Court, people familiar with the selection said Thursday, with his historic selection of the first Black woman to serve on the nation's highest court set to be revealed as soon as Friday.

The precise timing of the announcement remains fluid, given the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but a Friday ceremony would mark two years to the day when Biden made his initial pledge to choose the first African American female justice during a 2020 primary debate in South Carolina.

But even if the announcement is delayed beyond Friday afternoon, aides said, it will take place no later than Monday, the eve of the State of the Union address.

The first step of the carefully orchestrated rollout calls for the president to formally offer the lifetime position, a step that was poised to take place Thursday evening or Friday morning in hopes of preserving secrecy.

People familiar with the matter declined to say whether the offer had been extended by the president, who was focused on the Russia crisis, but confirmed his decision had been made.

Vice President Kamala Harris postponed a trip to Louisiana scheduled for Friday, raising speculation that an announcement was forthcoming.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

WASHINGTON —

Video above: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin meet with Israeli counterpart at the Pentagon to discuss military readiness against Iran and shared security interest in the region

President Joe Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act into law, authorizing $768.2 billion in military spending, including a 2.7% pay raise for service members, for 2022.

The NDAA authorizes a 5% increase in military spending, and is the product of intense negotiations between Democrats and Republicans over issues ranging from reforms of the military justice system to COVID-19 vaccine requirements for soldiers.

“The Act provides vital benefits and enhances access to justice for military personnel and their families, and includes critical authorities to support our country’s national defense,” Biden said Monday in a statement.

The $768.2 billion price tag marks $25 billion more than Biden initially requested from Congress, a prior proposal that was rejected by members of both parties out of concerns it would undermine U.S. efforts to keep pace militarily with China and Russia.

The new bill passed earlier this month with bipartisan support, with Democrats and Republicans touting wins in the final package.

Democrats applauded provisions in the bill overhauling how the military justice system handles sexual assault and other related crimes, effectively taking prosecutorial jurisdiction over such crimes out of the hands of military commanders.

Republicans, meanwhile, touted success in blocking an effort to add women to the draft, as well as the inclusion of a provision that bars dishonorable discharges for service members who refuse the COVID-19 vaccine.

The bill includes $7.1 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative and a statement of congressional support for the defense of Taiwan, measures intended to counteract China’s influence in the region.

It also includes $300 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, a show of support in the face of Russian aggression, as well as $4 billion for the European Defense Initiative.

In his statement, the president also outlined a number of provisions his administration opposes over what he characterized as “constitutional concerns or questions of construction.”

Those plans include provisions that restrict the use of funds to transfer or release individuals detained at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, which the Biden administration is moving to close. Biden’s statement said the provisions "unduly impair” the executive branch’s ability to decide when and where to prosecute detainees and where to send them when they’re released, and could constrain U.S. negotiations with foreign countries over the transfer of detainees in a way that could undermine national security.

The law also has provisions barring goods produced by forced Uyghur labor in China from entering the U.S., and it begins to lay out plans for the new Global War on Terror Memorial, which would be the latest addition to the National Mall.

WASHINGTON — In a major step to fight climate change, the Biden administration is raising vehicle mileage standards to significantly reduce emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases.

A final rule being issued Monday would raise mileage standards starting in the 2023 model year, reaching a projected industry-wide target of 40 miles per gallon by 2026.

The mileage rules are the most ambitious tailpipe pollution standards ever set for passenger cars and light trucks.

Mileage goals set by the Trump administration would achieve only 32 miles per gallon in 2026.

The move comes a day after Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin delivered a potentially fatal blow to Biden’s $2 trillion social and environmental policy bill, jeopardizing Democrats’ agenda and infuriating the White House.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden laid out what his administration is doing to combat the emergence of the omicron variant and he encouraged the American people to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible.

“Sooner or later, we’re going to see cases of this new variant here in the United States. We’ll have to face this new threat, just as we faced those that’ve come before it,” said Biden.

Biden spoke about the variant Monday morning after he and Vice President Kamala Harris received a briefing from members of the White House COVID-19 Response Team on the latest developments related to the new strain.

Watch Biden's remarks below:

During his remarks, Biden said he has three messages about the variant that he wants the American people to hear.

“First, this variant is a cause for concern, not a cause for panic,” said Biden.

Biden said the U.S. has the best vaccines in the world, the best medicines, the best scientists, and we’re learning more about how to combat COVID-19 every day.

Dr. Anthony Fauci told Biden that it will take about two more weeks to have more definitive information on the transmissibility, severity, and other characteristics of the omicron variant, but the expert continues to believe that existing vaccines are likely to provide a degree of protection against severe cases of COVID-19, according to the White House.

“Second, the best protection – I know you’re tired of hearing me say this – the best protection against this new variant or any of the variants out there, the ones we’ve been dealing with already, is getting fully vaccinated and getting a booster shot,” said Biden.

The Biden administration says Fauci also reiterated that boosters for fully vaccinated individuals provide the strongest available protection from COVID-19.

All adults are now eligible for a booster if they were vaccinated six months ago or more with Pfizer or Moderna, or two months ago or more with Johnson & Johnson. The COVID Response Team’s recommendation to all vaccinated adults is to get a booster shot as soon as possible

“Third, in the event, hopefully unlikely, that updated vaccinations or boosters are needed to respond to this new variant, we will accelerate their development and deployment with every available tool.”

Biden said his team is already working with Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson to develop contingency plans for vaccines or boosters if needed. He will also direct the FDA and the CDC to use the fastest process possible without cutting any corners for safety to get such vaccines approved and, on the market, if needed.

Much of the world is anxiously waiting to learn more about the omicron variant, which was identified days ago by researchers in South Africa. Since then, it has appeared as far apart as Hong Kong, Australia, and Portugal. Canada, our neighbors to the north, have also identified cases of the variant.

The World Health Organization has classified the omicron variant, otherwise known as B.1.1.529, as a “variant of concern.” No cases of the variant have been identified in the U.S. as of Monday morning, but experts say it’s only a matter of time.

“We expect omicron to be identified quickly, if it emerges in the U.S.,” wrote the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in a statement on the variant.

As a result of the emerging variant, Biden has ordered additional air travel restrictions from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi. Those will take effect Monday.

“The very day that the WHO identified the new variant, I took immediate steps to restrict travel from countries in southern Africa,” said Biden. “But while travel restrictions can slow the speed of omicron, it cannot prevent it. But here’s what it does: it gives us time to take more actions, to move quicker, to make sure people understand you have to get your vaccine, you have to get your shot, you have to get your booster if you’re eligible.”

Biden added that he’ll release a detailed plan on Thursday about how the U.S. will combat COVID-19 this winter, “Not with shutdowns or lockdowns, but with more widespread vaccinations, boosters, testing, and more.”

Biden closed his remarks with this message: “If you are vaccinated but still worried about the new variant, get your booster. If you aren’t vaccinated, get that shot, go get that first shot.”

President Joe Biden said Thursday a lot of Americans are feeling "down" because of the pandemic and anxious about the future — particularly heading into the holiday season — and urged those struggling with mental health issues to seek help if they need it.

"How many people do you know — and maybe some in this audience — who because of what you've been through, a loss of a husband, wife, brother, mother, father, son, whatever, or you've had something that's really impacted you with COVID, that you really find yourself just down?" Biden told Anderson Cooper at a CNN Town Hall.

The president said: "There's a lot of people who are just down. They're not sure how to get back in the game. They're not sure whether they want to get back in the game."

The president said so many events that people used to look forward to — a high school prom or a graduation ceremony, he said, for example — were canceled because of the pandemic. He said people have "a lot of anxiety," and that he often gets asked about what holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas are going to look like because of the pandemic and issues with the global supply chain, which are causing delays in the deliveries of some goods.

"A lot of it has to do with us getting back on our feet and getting back on our feet in terms of our attitudes about what the future looks like for us," Biden said.

But he urged those struggling with mental health issues, perhaps exacerbated by the pandemic and lockdowns, to seek help.

"There's plenty of help," the president said. "Look, being down, having some problem in terms of needing some, some advice — if you have a broken spirit, it's no different than a broken arm. You shouldn't be ashamed of it. You should seek the help. There's a lot of people who can help."

The president said that many Americans are reluctant to return to work because of concerns about COVID-19. He also said many people are rethinking minimum-wage or low-paying jobs.

"People are now using this as an opportunity to say, 'Wait a minute, do I want to go back to that $7 an hour job?'"

The delta variant of COVID-19, which is more transmissible and may cause more severe illness than previous strains, has ripped through parts of the country with low vaccination rates for months, though cases have decreased in recent weeks. Biden and health officials have repeatedly pleaded with unvaccinated Americans to get vaccinated to protect themselves and those around them.

Biden said last week the nation was "headed in the right direction" on COVID-19 but that the country is now in a "very critical period" as he urged unvaccinated Americans to get the shot.

President Joe Biden on Friday issued a proclamation observing Indigenous Peoples' Day, becoming the first president in U.S. history to do so, according to Axios and ABC News.

Biden's proclamation recognized Oct. 11 — the same day the federal government will recognize Columbus Day — as Indigenous Peoples' Day. It marks perhaps the most significant event yet in the push to re-focus the day celebrating explorer Christopher Columbus towards a day to honor Native Americans.

"On Indigenous Peoples' Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government's trust and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations," Biden's proclamation read.

The White House also noted the atrocities committed against Native American groups throughout the years — including past federal policies that forced Native Americans to shed their culture — as well as the inequities that still face tribes to this day.

"Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people — a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to," the proclamation read.

"Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples' resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society," the statement read in closing.

For decades, Native American activists have called on governments to re-focus Columbus Day celebrations due to the fact that the explorer slaughtered and enslaved Native people upon arriving in North America.

In recent years, major cities like Boston and Los Angeles have taken up those calls and chosen to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day instead of Columbus Day.

However, certain groups have advocated for keeping Columbus Day in place. According to NPR, some Italian American groups argue that the adoption of Columbus Day in the 1930s helped give Italian immigrants an identity at a time when many were discriminated against because of their heritage.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden is urging Republicans not to use the filibuster to block Democrats in the Senate from raising the U.S. debt ceiling.

“If you don’t want to help save the country, get out of the way, so you don’t destroy it,” said Biden during remarks delivered Monday. “We don’t have time to delay with elaborate procedural schemes, which Republican proposals require, scores of votes without any certainty at all, many of which have nothing to do with the debt limit at all.”

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling by Oct. 18, the U.S. could default on its financial obligations for the first time in history.

“At that point, we expect Treasury would be left with very limited resources that would be depleted quickly. It is uncertain whether we could continue to meet all the nation’s commitments after that date,” wrote Yellen in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi last week.

The secretary added that the Oct. 18 deadline is the department’s best estimate and the federal government’s cash flows are subject to variability, meaning the money could last longer or shorter.

During his speech, Biden explained that Republicans won’t vote to raise the debt limit, and they want Democrats to do it alone. However, Biden says the GOP is also threatening to use the filibuster to block the measure, meaning the Democrats would need to get 60 votes instead of 50 votes to raise the debt ceiling.

“This would block the Democrats from meeting our obligations and responsibilities to prevent Congress from raising the debt limit,” said Biden. “So, let’s be clear, not only are Republicans refusing to do their job, they’re threatening to use their power to prevent us from doing our job: saving the economy from a catastrophic event.”

Biden explained that raising the debt limit comes down to paying what the U.S. already owes, not anything new.

The president blasted the GOP for standing in the way.

“I think, quite frankly, it’s hypocritical, dangerous and disgraceful,” said Biden. “Their obstruction and irresponsibility knows absolutely no bounds, especially as we’re clawing our way out of this pandemic. Democrats will meet our responsibility and obligation to this country. We’re not expecting Republicans to do their part. They made that clear from the beginning. We tried asking to no avail. We’re just asking them not to use procedural tricks to block us from doing the job that they won’t do.”

Biden also took some jabs at former President Donald Trump, saying the reason the U.S. has to raise the debt limit is in part because of the “reckless tax and spending policies under the previous Trump administration.”

“In four years, they incurred nearly $8 trillion in additional debt, in bills we have to now pay off,” said Biden.

Additionally, Biden warned of what could happen if the U.S. defaults on its debt. As soon as this week, Biden says Americans’ savings could be directly impacted by a failure to raise the debt ceiling.

“A failure to raise the debt limit will call into question Congress’ willingness to meet our obligations that we’ve already incurred. This is going to undermine the safety of the U.S. Treasury securities, and it will threaten the reserve status of the dollar as the world’s currency that the world relies on. American credit rating will be downgraded, interest rates will rise for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, and borrowing,” said Biden.

Democrats had originally wanted to raise the debt ceiling in the same bill that extended government funding, but that move was blocked by Senate Republicans. Instead, a standalone government funding bill was passed and signed into law last week.

Both parties have voted to raise the debt limit in the past, with Democrats joining the Republican Senate majority in doing so three times during Donald Trump’s presidency, The Associated Press reports.

Now, however, the GOP has argued that Democrats have chosen to push through their political priorities on their own and thus are responsible for raising the debt limit on their own, reports the AP.

Noting that the U.S. economy has reached an "inflection point," President Joe Biden on Thursday laid out several steps he plans to take to "level the playing field" and lift up the middle class.

Speaking at the White House, Biden noted that corporations and the richest Americans have gotten wealthier in the past 40 years at rates higher than middle-class Americans.

"For a long time, this economy has worked well for those at the very top...while the middle class has been cut out of the deal," Biden said.

He noted that billionaires have seen their wealth increase by $1.8 trillion during the pandemic — a fact that he called "simply not fair."

Biden said his plans to uplift the average American would start by getting COVID-19 under control. He said he hopes his recent move to force more employers to enforce vaccine mandates would help bring case rates down.

"Everything, from our public health to our economy, depends on this," Biden said.

He also called for the extension of the child tax credits that were signed into law earlier this year, which provide parents with up to an additional $300 per child each month.

The president also advocated empowering the IRS to better monitor bank accounts to stop the wealthiest Americans from avoiding income tax.

"If you can make a million or a billion dollars, that's great. All I ask is that you pay your fair share," Biden said.

Finally, Biden called on Congress to pass both his proposed infrastructure package and budget plans, which his administration says will create millions of middle-class jobs and provide much-needed services for working families.

He cited recent extreme weather events like Gulf Coast hurricanes and Western wildfires as a reason to allocate more money to infrastructure.

"We can't wait to act," Biden pleads. "We need to rebuild with resilience in mind."

In closing, Biden told Americans that the pandemic had presented the country with an opportunity.

"We can build an economy that gives working people a shot," Biden said. "We can make the investments that are long overdue in this country."

WASHINGTON —

Video above: Biden signs executive orders

Three new senators were sworn into office Wednesday after President Joe Biden's inauguration, securing the majority for Democrats in the Senate and across a unified government to tackle the new president's agenda at a time of unprecedented national challenges.

In a first vote, the Senate confirmed Biden's nominee for Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines. Senators worked into the evening and overcame some Republican opposition to approve his first Cabinet member, in what's traditionally a show of good faith on Inauguration Day to confirm at least some nominees for a new president's administration.

Haines, a former CIA deputy director, will become a core member of Biden’s security team, overseeing the 18 agencies that make up the nation’s intelligence community. She was confirmed 84-10.

The new Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., urged colleagues to turn the spirit of the new president’s call for unity into action.

“President Biden, we heard you loud and clear,” Schumer said. “We have a lengthy agenda. And we need to get it done together.”

Vice President Kamala Harris drew applause as she entered the chamber to deliver the oath of office to the new Democratic senators — Jon Ossoff, Raphael Warnock and Alex Padilla — just hours after taking her own oath at the Capitol alongside Biden.

The three Democrats join a Senate narrowly split 50-50 between the parties, but giving Democrats the majority with Harris able to cast the tie-breaking vote.

Ossoff, a former congressional aide and investigative journalist, and Warnock, a pastor from the late Martin Luther King Jr.'s church in Atlanta, won run-off elections in Georgia this month, defeating two Republicans. Padilla was tapped by California’s governor to finish the remainder of Harris’ term.

“Today, America is turning over a new leaf. We are turning the page on the last four years, we’re going to reunite the country, defeat COVID-19, rush economic relief to the people,” Ossoff told reporters earlier at the Capitol. “That’s what they sent us here to do.”

Taken together, their arrival gives Democrats for the first time in a decade control of the Senate, the House and the White House, as Biden faces the unparalleled challenges of the COVID-19 crisis and its economic fallout, and the nation's painful political divisions from the deadly Jan. 6 siege of the Capitol by a mob loyal to Donald Trump.

Congress is being called on to consider Biden's proposed $1.9 trillion COVID recovery package, to distribute vaccines and shore up an economy as more than 400,000 Americans have died from the virus. At the same time, the Senate is about to launch an impeachment trial of Trump, charged by the House of inciting the insurrection at the Capitol as rioters tried to interrupt the Electoral College tally and overturn Biden’s election. The Senate will need to confirm other Biden Cabinet nominees.

To “restore the soul” of the country, Biden said in his inaugural speech, requires “unity.”

Yet as Washington looks to turn the page from Trump to the Biden administration, Republican leader Mitch McConnell is not relinquishing power without a fight.

Haines' nomination was temporarily blocked by Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Okla., as he sought information about the CIA's enhanced interrogation program. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is holding back the Homeland Security nominee Alejandro Mayorkas over Biden's proposed immigration changes.

And McConnell is refusing to enter a power-sharing agreement with Senate Democrats unless they meet his demands, chiefly to preserve the Senate filibuster — the procedural tool often used by the minority party to block bills under rules that require 60 votes to advance legislation.

McConnell, in his first speech as the minority party leader, said the election results with narrow Democratic control of the House and Senate showed that Americans “intentionally entrusted both political parties with significant power.”

The Republican leader said he looked forward to working with the new president “wherever possible.”

At her first White House briefing, press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden’s desire to have his Cabinet confirmed and in place is “front and center for the president” and he will be “quite involved” in negotiations over the COVID relief package.

On the upcoming impeachment trial, Psaki said the Senate can “multitask.”

That’s a tall order for a Senate under normal circumstances, but even more so now in the post-Trump era, with Republicans badly split between their loyalties to the defeated president and wealthy donors who are distancing themselves from Republicans who back Trump.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to soon transmit to the Senate the House-passed article of impeachment against Trump, charged with incitement of insurrection, a step that will launch the Senate impeachment trial.

Meantime, the power-sharing talks between Schumer and McConnell have hit a stalemate.

It’s an arcane fight McConnell has inserted into what has traditionally been a more routine organizing resolution over committee assignments and staffing resources, but a power play by the outgoing Republican leader grabbing at tools that can be used to block Biden’s agenda.

Progressive and liberal Democrats are eager to do away with the filibuster to more quickly advance Biden’s priorities, but not all rank-and-file Senate Democrats are on board. Schumer has not agreed to any changes but McConnell is taking no chances.

It will take unanimous consent among senators to toggle between conducting votes on legislative business and serving as jurors in the impeachment trial. The House last week impeached Trump for having sent the mob to the Capitol to “fight like hell” during the tally of Electoral College votes to overturn Biden’s election.

__

Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

Seven Democratic senators on Thursday asked the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate the actions of Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley “to fully understand their role” in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump.

Thousands had gathered that day as Congress voted to formally certify President Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in November. Hawley and Cruz led objections in the Senate to Biden’s victory, despite the widespread recognition that the effort would fail.

In the end, Congress certified Biden’s Electoral College victory, but not before thousands marched to the Capitol at Trump’s urging, overwhelmed security and interrupted the proceedings. In the end, the violence led to five deaths, injured dozens of police officers and caused extensive damage to the Capitol.

The Democratic senators said the question for the Senate to determine is not whether Cruz and Hawley had the right to object, but whether the senators failed to put loyalty “to the highest moral principles and to country above loyalty to persons, party, or Government department.” They also said the investigation should determine whether Cruz, of Texas, and Hawley, of Missouri, engaged in “improper conduct reflecting on the Senate.”

“Until then, a cloud of uncertainty will hang over them and over this body,” the Democratic senators wrote in a letter to the leaders of the Senate Ethics Committee.

The Democratic senators said Cruz and Hawley announced their intentions to object even though they knew that claims of election fraud were baseless and had led to threats of violence.

“Their actions lend credence to the insurrectionists’ cause and set the stage for future violence. And both senators used their objections for political fundraising,” the Democratic senators said in their letter.

Cruz and Hawley have condemned the violence on Jan. 6. Cruz called it a "despicable act of terrorism.” Hawley said those who attacked police and broke the law must be prosecuted.

Cruz helped force a vote on Biden's victory in Arizona, while Hawley helped force one on Biden's victory in Pennsylvania.

“Joe Biden and the Democrats talk about unity but are brazenly trying to silence dissent," Hawley said in a prepared statement. “This latest effort is a flagrant abuse of the Senate ethics process and a flagrant attempt to exact partisan revenge."

“It is unfortunate that some congressional Democrats are disregarding President Biden’s call for unity and are instead playing political games by filing frivolous ethics complaints against their colleagues," said a Cruz spokesperson, Maria Jeffrey Reynolds.

Those Democrats requesting the investigation are Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Tina Smith of Minnesota, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, Tim Kaine of Virginia and Sherrod Brown of Ohio.

Testing wristbands are in. Mask-wearing is mandatory. Desks are socially distanced.

The clearest sign that there's a new boss at the White House is the deference being paid to coronavirus public health guidelines.

It’s a striking contrast to Donald Trump’s White House, which was the epicenter of no less than three separate outbreaks of COVID-19, their true scale not fully known because aides refused to discuss cases publicly.

While the Trump administration was known for flouting safety recommendations, the Biden team has made a point of abiding by the same strict guidelines they’re urging Americans to follow to stem the spread of the virus.

It’s part of an overall effort from President Joe Biden to lead by example on the coronavirus pandemic, an ethos carried over from his campaign and transition.

“One of the great tragedies of the Trump administration was a refusal to recognize that many Americans model the behavior of our leadership," said Ben LaBolt, a former press secretary to President Barack Obama who worked on the Biden transition.

“The Biden administration understands the powerful message that adhering to their own guidelines and modeling the best public health behavior sends, and knows that that’s the best path to climbing out of this until we can get a shot in the arm of every American.”

To that end, most of Biden’s White House staff is working from home, coordinating with colleagues by email or phone. While the White House aims to have more people working onsite next week, officials intend to operate with substantially reduced staffing for the duration of the pandemic.

When hundreds of administration staffers were sworn in by Biden on Wednesday, the ceremony was virtual, with the president looking out at team members displayed in boxes on video screens.

The emphasis on adhering to public safety guidelines touches matters both big and small in the White House.

Jeffrey Wexler is the White House director of COVID-19 operations, overseeing the implementation of safety guidelines throughout the administration, a role he also served during the transition and campaign. During her first press briefing, White House press secretary Jen Psaki suggested those working in the office would receive daily testing and N95 masks would be mandatory.

Indeed, Biden's new federal mask mandate executive order requires that federal employees, contractors and others in federal buildings and on federal lands wear masks and adhere to social distancing requirements. The executive order allows for agency heads to make “case-by-case exceptions" — like, for instance, Psaki's. She wears one until she steps up to the podium for briefings.

Officials in close contact with Biden wear wristbands to signify they have been tested that day. Every event with the president is carefully choreographed to maintain distancing, with strips of paper taped to the carpet to show the likes of Vice President Kamala Harris and Dr. Anthony Fauci where to stand when Biden is delivering an address.

Related video: Fauci: 'Liberating' to work with new team on virus

When Biden met with his COVID team in the State Dining Room on Thursday, the five people in the room sat at individual tables placed at least six feet apart and four others joined by Zoom to keep numbers down.

Plexiglass barriers have been set up at some desks that are in open areas, but nearly all staff who are already working in the building have enclosed offices. The Biden team already had a robust contact tracing program set up during the transition, which it's keeping around for any possible exposures.

Staffers also were issued laptops with wallpaper displays that offer a list of COVID symptoms and a directive to “call the White House medical unit” if they have experienced any of them.

The Trump White House was another story altogether.

After one virus scare in May, the White House mandated mask-wearing, with a memo from chief of staff Mark Meadows requiring their use in shared workspaces and meetings. Simple surgical masks were placed at the entrance to the West Wing.

But after only a few days of moderate compliance, mask-wearing fell away almost entirely, as Trump made it clear to aides he did not like the visual of people around him wearing masks — let alone wearing one himself.

Trump’s White House reduced staffing capacity during the earliest days of the pandemic, but by late spring, when Trump was intent on projecting that the country was “reopening” from pandemic lockdowns — and the U.S. was at roughly 80,000 deaths — aides quickly resumed normal operations. That provided ideal conditions for the spread of an airborne virus.

It was only after Trump himself tested positive that some aides began staggering their work schedules to provide enhanced distancing and contingencies in case someone tested positive.

Those working for the new administration welcome the stricter guidelines now, but they do pose some potential complications as the Biden team builds out its operation.

Karen Finney, who was a spokeswoman in the Clinton White House, said the first challenge may simply be creating a cohesiveness and camaraderie when some new staffers are brought on board without ever having worked in the same room.

“When you sit in the same office as everyone, it’s just a different dynamic," she said. “There's a sense of, ‘We’ve got each other's backs, we're going to be working together on this.'”

Finney added that most of the staff are used to working remotely at this point, so it's not necessarily a new challenge. But she allowed that the national COVID response itself could be somewhat hamstrung by the COVID requirements at the White House.

“Having to coordinate between limited staff in the office, those working remotely, along with governors, mayors, their staff, those on the Hill — it’s a challenge,” she said. “They’ve had the time to think through how to do some of this, but look, it’s going to be a work in progress."

Less than a week after Hurricane Ida ravaged the Gulf Coast, President Joe Biden was in Louisiana on Friday to get an up-close view of the damage and offer assistance from the federal government.

The devastation was clear as Air Force One approached New Orleans, with uprooted trees and blue tarps covering shredded houses coming into focus ahead of landing. The path to nearby LaPlace, where Biden was to be briefed by local officials, was dotted with wood poles that held power lines jutting from the ground at odd angles.

"I promise we're going to have your back," Biden said at the outset of the briefing.

Such trips to natural disaster scenes have long been a feature of the U.S. presidency. It's a moment to demonstrate compassion and show the public that the president is leading during the crisis. It's also an opportunity to hit pause, however temporarily, from the political sniping that often dominates Washington.

In shirtsleeves and boots, Biden was welcomed at the airport by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat. Several Republicans, including Sen. Bill Cassidy and Rep. Steve Scalise, the House Republican whip, were also on hand.

Biden was meeting with with local officials and touring a neighborhood in LaPlace, a community between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain that suffered catastrophic wind and water damage and was left with sheared-off roofs and flooded homes. He also planned a flyover tour of hard-hit communities including Lafitte, Grand Isle, Port Fourchon and Lafourche Parish, where Parish President Archie Chaisson said 25% of the homes in his community of 100,000 people were gone or had catastrophic damage.

Past presidents have been defined in part by how they handled such crises.

Donald Trump casually lobbed paper towels to people in Puerto Rico after a hurricane, generating scorn from critics but little damage to his political standing. Barack Obama hugged New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie in 2012 after Superstorm Sandy, a brief respite from partisan tensions that had threatened the economy with a fiscal cliff. And George W. Bush fell out of public favor after a poor and unprepared response to Hurricane Katrina, which swamped New Orleans in 2005.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, Biden is grappling with the persistent threat posed by climate change and the prospect that disaster zone visits may become a more regular feature of the presidency. Before he left Washington, Biden called for greater public resolve to confront climate change and help the nation deal with the fierce storms, flooding and wildfires that have beset the country.

Scientists say climate change increases the frequency of extreme weather events — such as large tropical storms, and the droughts and heatwaves that create conditions for vast wildfires. U.S. weather officials recently reported that July 2021 was the hottest month ever recorded in 142 years of record-keeping.

As for Friday's trip, Biden said his message to the Gulf Coast was: "We are here for you. And we're making sure the response and recovery is equitable so that those hit hardest get the resources they need and are not left behind."

Biden's nearly eight-month-old presidency has been shaped in part by perpetual crises. The president went to Texas in February after a cold winter storm caused its power grid to fail and he has repeatedly monitored the wildfires that have darkened skies in Western states.

Besides natural disasters, the president has had to contend with a multitude of other challenges. He is searching for ways to rescue the 100-200 Americans stuck in Afghanistan after the longest war in U.S. history ended only a matter of days ago. He is also confronting the delta variant of the coronavirus that has stuck the country in an autumn of uncertainty only months after Biden declared independence from the disease at a July 4 celebration on the White House lawn.

His call for resolve to help the country overcome the pandemic and forge a $1 trillion infrastructure deal is now being applied to the perilous task of withstanding the aftershocks of climate change.

"The past few days of Hurricane Ida and the wildfires in the West and the unprecedented flash floods in New York and New Jersey is yet another reminder that these extreme storms and the climate crisis are here," he said Thursday. "We need to be much better prepared. We need to act."

Biden pledged robust federal help for states dealing with natural disasters. And he said he will further press Congress to pass his nearly $1 trillion infrastructure bill to improve roads, bridges, the electric grid and sewer systems.

The proposal intends to ensure that the vital networks connecting cities and states and the country as a whole can withstand the flooding, whirlwinds and damage caused by increasingly dangerous weather.

Ida was the fifth-most powerful storm to strike the U.S. when it hit Louisiana on Sunday with maximum winds of 150 mph (240 kph), likely causing tens of billions of dollars in flood, wind and other damage, including to the electrical grid. The storm's remnants dropped devastating rainfall across parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey on Wednesday, causing significant disruption to major population centers.

The storm has killed at least 48 people in the Northeastern U.S. and at least 13 in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

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Associated Press writers Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge, La., and Christina Larson and Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.

CINCINNATI — President Joe Biden visited the Tri-State Wednesday to talk about infrastructure and the economy among other things, but a few of the president's statements were outright wrong or factually false.

One of the things the president discussed was gun violence in the Tri-State.

Biden said, "You've had a lot of gun violence here in Cincinnati. I think it's up to what, how many dead? Five hundred over a period? Don't hold me to the number whatever it was."

However, according to Cincy Insights, there haven't been 500 shootings in Cincinnati so far in 2021. There have been 191 reported shootings in the city, and 39 of them were deadly. Even if the time frame is extended to the last five years, the data shows there have been 278 deadly shootings.

While one deadly shooting is too many, the president saying there have been 500 deadly shootings is wrong.

The president also said, "We're not in a position where we think that any virus, including the delta virus, which is much more transmissible and more deadly in terms of non- unvaccinated people... the various shots that people are getting now cover that. They're, you're okay. You're not going to, you're not going to get COVID if you have these vaccinations."

That's false. Vaccinated people can still get COVID-19. A couple from the Tri-State were both vaccinated, but they both contracted the delta variant.

"A lot of folks I know got the vaccine, and they're like, 'OK. It's all over,' but, clearly it's not," Rachelle Caplan said. "We still should be being cautious for ourselves and other people."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in July that 5,492 people who died or were hospitalized with COVID-19 were vaccinated. However, the CDC also said more than a quarter of hospitalizations were asymptomatic or not related to COVID-19, and about a quarter of those who died were found to be the same.

Finally, Biden commented on bridges and infrastructure.

"Take a look at Ohio and Kentucky," Biden said. "Combined, there's well over, there are thousands of bridges that need repair."

According to the Federal Highway Administration, there are about 42,000 bridges in Ohio and Kentucky and 2,400 of them are in "poor condition." The maligned Brent Spence Bridge actually falls into the "fair" category per the administration.

President Joe Biden on Friday signed an executive order aimed at regulating the anti-competitive behavior of large technology and healthcare companies.

The order Biden signed includes 72 actions that the White House says "will lower prices for families, increase wages for workers, and promote innovation and even faster economic growth.

The calls on the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to better enforce antitrust laws and encourage them to challenge "bad mergers" that limited competition in the marketplace — particularly in the labor, agricultural, healthcare and technology markets.

Biden's order also establishes a White House Competition Council to monitor the progress on those changes. That council will be led by Brian Deese, the current head of the National Economic Council.

The White House says the order takes the following actions:

• Boost job mobility by banning or limiting non-compete agreements
• Lower prescription drug prices by supporting programs that import drugs from Canada
• Allow hearing aids to be sold over the counter
• Ban early termination fees on internet contracts between consumers and telecommunication companies
• Make it easier to get refunds from airlines
• Ban manufacturers from barring self-repairs or third-party repairs on their products
• Make it easier for Americans to switch banks
• Direct all federal agencies to promote greater competition in procurement and spending

President Joe Biden is again calling on Congress to pass election reform legislation in response to a bill signed into law in Georgia that restricts voting in the state.

The Republican-sponsored overhaul of Georgia’s elections places new restrictions on voting by mail and establishes greater legislative oversight on the electoral process, among other things.

Other states with GOP-controlled legislatures are considering similar measures in response to the 2020 election that saw Democrats regain control of the Senate and the White House. Some Republicans, led by former President Donald Trump, have stoked false claims that fraud led to their overall defeat.

In a statement responding to the Georgia legislation, Biden referenced the many court cases that upheld the integrity and outcome of the 2020 election and the runoffs election in the Peach State.

“Yet instead of celebrating the rights of all Georgians to vote or winning campaigns on the merits of their ideas, Republicans in the state instead rushed through an un-American law to deny people the right to vote,” wrote Biden.

Biden called the Georgia legislation “a blatant attack on the Constitution” and pointed out some parts of the law he called “outrageous.”

“… it ends voting hours early so working people can’t cast their vote after their shift is over,” said Biden. “It adds rigid restrictions on casting absentee ballots that will effectively deny the right to vote to countless voters. And it makes it a crime to provide water to voters while they wait in line – lines Republican officials themselves have created by reducing the number of polling sites across the state, disproportionately in Black neighborhoods.”

Biden went on to say lawmakers have a moral and Constitutional obligation to act.

“This is Jim Crow in the 21st Century. It must end,” he wrote.

The president ended his statement by again calling on Congress to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which Democrats say will make it easier for all eligible Americans to access ballot boxes and prevent attacks on the right to vote.

“And I will take my case to the American people – including Republicans who joined the broadest coalition of voters ever in this past election to put country before party,” said Biden. “If you have the best ideas, you have nothing to hide. Let the people vote.”

The act of governing seemed to happen at the speed of presidential tweets when Donald Trump was in the White House. But President Joe Biden is settling in for a summer slog of legislating on his big infrastructure proposals.

Congress is grinding through the details, trying to shape Biden’s ideas into bills that could become law. At the same time, the president is negotiating with Republicans over a potential bipartisan deal.

On Monday, the White House will launch a fresh week of new talks. The new talks with Republicans are the first he's held since returning from a foreign trip to Europe.

Earlier this month, shortly before leaving for Europe, the White House announced it had broken off talks with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-West Virginia. In a statement, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Capito's final offer "did not, in his view, meet the essential needs of our country."

Biden is also keeping his options open for a Democrats-only approach, but the path to such a deal is narrow. With Democrats only holding power in the Senate by virtue of a tie-break vote from Vice President Kamala Harris, Biden would need to have all Senate Democrats on board with his plan to have any hope of getting his plan passed.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Juneteenth is now officially a federal holiday and federal employees will have Friday, June 18, off to recognize it.

President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law Thursday afternoon. He and Vice President Kamala Harris also delivered remarks at the signing event held in the East Room of the White House.

"We must learn from our history, and we must teach our children our history, because it is part of our history as a nation," said Harris, who spoke first.

“Juneteenth marks both the long, hard night of slavery and subjugation and a promise of a brighter morning to come. This is a day of profound, in my view, profound weight, and profound power,” said Biden.

Biden said great nations don't ignore their most painful moments; they embrace them.

"Great nations don't walk away. We come to terms with the mistakes we've made. And remembering those moments, we begin to heal," said Biden.

Opal Lee, a 94-year-old activist who pushed to make Juneteenth a national holiday, was also in attendance. The lawmakers thanked her for her work.

Juneteenth is observed on June 19 every year. It commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. and is also known as Emancipation Day, Jubilee Day, and Juneteenth Independence Day.

The holiday dates back to June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3 in Galveston. The order let the slaves of Texas know they were free, in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation.

The U.S. House overwhelmingly passed the legislation to mark the federal holiday on Wednesday, a day after the U.S. Senate gave its approval.

This is the first time in nearly 40 years that the U.S. has recognized a new federal holiday. Martin Luther King Jr. Day was the last added, in 1983. There are now 12 federal holidays.

By making it a federal holiday, the bill only guarantees federal workers will get Juneteenth off. There is no requirement that private businesses give employees the day off.

Since the legislation passed both houses of Congress and received the president's signature so quickly, it's not clear at this time which federal entities will be closed Friday. The Office of Personnel Management tweeted that "most federal employees will observe the holiday tomorrow, June 18th." No word if that includes post offices.

While many are celebrating Congress’ move, others are critical, saying it’s largely symbolic and that more concrete things could be done to assist the African American community.

President Biden's announcement earlier this week that the U.S. will donate half a billion doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine around the globe is the largest any single country has made so far. 

"Even though 250 million is still only a small portion of the entire population that needs to be vaccinated in those countries, it will go a long way to vaccinate people above 65 years of age, as well as the front line workers like health care workers," said Richard Reithinger, vice president of global health at RTI International. 

It also further establishes the U.S. as a world leader in vaccine distribution at a time when some public health experts have called on wealthy nations to do more to help those outside their borders. 

The White House says the doses, which will be produced in the U.S., will begin shipping in August. The first 200 million will be delivered by the end of this year. The remaining 300 million will go out in the first half of 2022. 

Pfizer's vaccine is a two-dose regimen that has to be kept cold during every stage of transportation. Once it's removed from ultra cold storage, the doses only last about five days. That could present some logistical challenges, and possibly determine where the vials are sent. 

"Larger urban centers should be also prioritized, where, of course, you are more likely to find the type of infrastructure that you need to distribute the vaccine," Reithinger said. 

Senior administration officials say the total cost is still being determined, but they expect to spend at least $1.5 billion on from the American Rescue Plan. 

Still, some say the U.S. and other nations need to do more to vaccinate the world. Democratic congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi praised the announcement in a statement, but added, "This must be only the first step in a larger effort to expand and accelerate the production and delivery of the billions of doses we need to end the pandemic."

President Biden has also said the U.S. will export 60 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine and 20 million doses of Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson vaccines this summer. He said the doses would be given with no strings attached.

"We're doing this to save lives, to end this pandemic. That's it. Period," President Biden said Thursday. 

This story originally reported by Kellan Howell on Newsy.com