DeSantis inches closer to presidential run announcement with California speech – as it happened

That’s it from our live blog today. Here’s how the day unfolded in US politics:

• Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis appears to be moving toward announcing his presidential campaign after delivering a speech yesterday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. In the speech, DeSantis’ condemned other states’ responses to the coronavirus pandemic and celebrated Florida as a “citadel of freedom”. DeSantis is expected to formally enter the GOP primary in the next couple of months.

• The DC city council will withdraw its bill revising the local criminal code from congressional consideration, the panel’s chairperson announced. The news comes after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican measure to overturn the DC bill. Despite the council’s move to withdraw the bill, the Senate still plans to vote on the matter this week, according to CNN.

• Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake won the vice-presidential straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend. Lake defeated other contenders with 20% of the vote, while DeSantis came in second place at 14% and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley trailed with 10%. Lake is best known for losing the Arizona gubernatorial race last year and peddling the lie that her election was tainted by widespread fraud.

• Biden reportedly plans to travel to the west coast next week to fundraise, as the president is widely expected to formally launch his reelection campaign in the next several weeks. Biden is expected to make stops in California and Nevada as he meets with donors.

• Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat of Pennsylvania, is “well on his way to recovery” after being hospitalized to receive treatment for depression, his top adviser said. Fetterman’s chair of staff, Adam Jentleson, shared photos of a morning meeting with the senator and said he continues to weigh in on legislation as he recovers.

The live blog will be back tomorrow morning with more updates and analysis of US politics. See you then.

Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat of Pennsylvania, is “well on his way to recovery” after being hospitalized to receive treatment for depression, his top adviser said.

Fetterman’s chair of staff, Adam Jentleson, shared photos of a meeting this morning with the senator and said he continues to weigh in on legislation as he recovers.

“Productive morning with Senator Fetterman at Walter Reed discussing the rail safety legislation, Farm Bill and other Senate business,” Jentleson said on Twitter. “John is well on his way to recovery and wanted me to say how grateful he is for all the well wishes. He’s laser focused on PA & will be back soon.”

Fetterman checked himself into Walter Reed last month, following an evaluation by Dr Brian P Monahan, the attending physician of the US Congress. Fetterman’s office said he has “experienced depression off and on throughout his life,” and his symptoms had becaome severe in the weeks leading up to his hospitalization.

Fetterman has received praise for publicly acknowledging his mental health struggles, as advocates have expressed hope that it will encourage others to seek help.

“Asking for help is important, but it’s not always easy,” said Dr Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general. “I hope Senator Fetterman’s courage will serve as an example for others.”

Joe Biden reportedly plans to travel to the west coast next week to fundraise, as the president is widely expected to formally launch his reelection campaign in the next several weeks.

Politico reports:

.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}Biden’s trip west will take him to Rancho Santa Fe, a wealthy enclave of sprawling estates north of San Diego, two of the people told POLITICO. He also will have likely stops in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Nev. The trip is planned for Monday and Tuesday, though the two people stressed Biden’s itinerary is still being finalized and specifics remain fluid.

Biden and Democrats are gearing up an expected reelection campaign, including by dispatching Vice President Kamala Harris to fundraisers of her own in her home state. On Friday, she headlined a midday event in the San Francisco suburb of Hillsborough at the home of longtime fundraiser Stefanie Roumeliotes and her husband, John Costouros.

Despite feeling no pressure to formally announce his re-election campaign, Biden has already held a handful of fundraisers out east to benefit the Democratic National Committee. Earlier this year, he gave a speech to DNC members in Philadelphia that aides described as a soft launch of sorts.

The news comes as the Republican presidential primary is already in full swing, with Donald Trump and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley having both launched their campaigns. Other Republican candidates, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, are expected to announce in the next few months.

As of now, Democratic leaders appear to be rather unified around Biden’s candidacy. No Democratic lawmaker has yet stepped forward to challenge Biden, indicating that the president will likely have a smooth path to the nomination.

When asked about self-help author Marianne Williamson announcing she will challenge Joe Biden for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House is “not tracking that”.

Jean-Pierre joked that she would perhaps have more to say on Williamson “if I could feel her aura,” eliciting laughter from reporters in the briefing room.

The comment appeared to be a dig at Williamson, a self-described spiritual leader who ran for president in 2020 and said that she struggled to push back against the perception that she was a “crystal woo-woo lady”.

The White House will be represented at King Charles III’s coronation in May, but Karine Jean-Pierre would not commit to Joe Biden himself attending the event.

Reports indicate that Biden does not plan to attend the coronation, but other senior members of the administration may travel to the UK for the event.

Jean-Pierre rejected any suggestion that Biden’s lack of attendance should be interpreted as a snub of the British monarchy if the president does decide to skip the coronation.

Karine Jean-Pierre would not comment on Donald Trump’s speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, in which the former president vowed “retribution” against his political enemies.

Jean-Pierre said she could not speak to Trump’s remarks because of the Hatch Act, which prohibits employees of the federal government from engaging in some political activities.

A reporter asked Karine Jean-Pierre why Joe Biden believes DC should be a state if he disagrees with the city council’s judgment on altering the local criminal code.

Despite his refusal to veto the proposal overturning DC’s crime bill, Biden still believes that Congress should pass a bill granting DC statehood, and he would sign that legislation, Jean-Pierre said.

“He believes that cities and states should be able to govern for themselves,” Jean-Pierre said.

Karine Jean-Pierre sidestepped questions about the news that the DC city council is withdrawing its crime bill after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican motion to overturn the policy.

“The president expressed concerns on certain provisions of the DC crime bill,” Jean-Pierre said. “As we can see, the DC council’s process is still ongoing, so we won’t comment on that any further.”

A reporter noted that the White House has cited DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s opposition to the crime bill to justify Biden’s stance, but Bowser herself has said that Congress should not be “meddling” in local policy matters.

Jean-Pierre deflected that question, instead saying the White House has been in “constant communication” with Bowser’s team.

“This is not something that we put forward,” Jean-Pierre said. “This is a decision that was brought to [Biden], and he wants to be very clear and communicate with the people of DC and with all of you.”

According to reports, the Senate plans to move forward with its vote to overturn the crime bill, even after the council announced it was withdrawing the proposal from congressional consideration.

The White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, is now holding her daily briefing with reporters, and she kicked off her comments by discussing “junk fees”.

The Biden administration has pushed airlines to limit fees for customers, and Jean-Pierre said several airlines are now working toward fee-free family seating to “guarantee that parents can sit with their young children without getting nickeled and dimed”.

The Department of Transportation is also launching a new family seating dashboard to help customers compare fees across airlines, Jean-Pierre noted.

In his State of the Union address last month, Joe Biden pledged to crack down on junk fees, saying, “Junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy, but they matter to most folks in homes like the one I grew up in. … I know how unfair it feels when a company overcharges you and gets away with it. Not anymore.”

The Guardian’s Chris McGreal reports on Evangelical Christians flocking to the Republican party over support for Israel:

When Israel’s former ambassador to the US said his country should worry less about what American Jews think and concentrate on Christian evangelicals as the “backbone” of support for the Jewish state, he had in mind the Texas megachurch pastor John Hagee.

Hagee founded Christians United for Israel (CUFI), a group that claims 11 million members, who have had a significant influence on Republican party politics and in hardening Washington’s already strong support for Israel.

Donald Trump, while president, made no secret of his desire to keep Hagee and Christian Zionist voters happy as a key part of his base by abandoning even the pretense that the US was a neutral player in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Former South Carolina governor and current White House hopeful Nikki Haley recognised Hagee’s power within the most important religious bloc of Republican voters and their influence over political priorities, from anti-abortion laws to Israel policy, when she invited him to give the invocation at her presidential campaign launch last month.

“Pastor Hagee, I still say I want to be you when I grow up,” she enthused.

Left largely unmentioned by Haley and Hagee’s Israeli allies were his antisemitic views, including calling Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler a “half-breed Jew” who was sent by God to drive the Jewish people to Israel. He has also suggested that Jews brought centuries of persecution on themselves by disobeying God.

Read Chris’ full report:

Here’s where the day stands so far:

• Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis appears to be moving toward announcing his presidential campaign after delivering a speech yesterday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. In the speech, DeSantis’ condemned other states’ responses to the coronavirus pandemic and celebrated Florida as a “citadel of freedom”. DeSantis is expected to formally enter the GOP primary in the next couple of months.

• The DC city council will withdraw its bill revising the local criminal code from congressional consideration, the panel’s chairperson announced. The news comes after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican measure to overturn the DC bill. Despite the council’s move to withdraw the bill, the Senate still plans to vote on the matter this week, according to CNN.

• Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake won the vice-presidential straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend. Lake defeated other contenders with 20% of the vote, while DeSantis came in second place at 14% and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley trailed with 10%. Lake is best known for losing the Arizona gubernatorial race last year and peddling the lie that her election was tainted by widespread fraud.

The blog will have more coming up, so stay tuned.

The Senate still plans to vote on overturning the DC bill revising the local criminal code, even after the council announced it would withdraw the proposal from congressional consideration.

Two Senate aides told CNN’s Manu Raju that they still expect the vote to occur:

Now that Joe Biden has said he would not veto the proposal to overturn the DC bill, more Senate Democrats are expected to join Republicans in supporting the motion.

The chair of the DC Council, Phil Mendelson, said this morning, “If the Republicans want to proceed with a vote … it will be a hollow vote because the bill isn’t there before them.”

Carlisa N Johnson reports on how Republican legislators are attempting to restrict voting access:

In the final few days of this year’s Georgia assembly legislative session, Republican lawmakers raced to propose laws seeking to restrict voting access, and make it easier for citizens to challenge and subvert normal election processes.

Senate bill 221, house bill 422 and house bill 426 are just a few of the newly proposed election laws, which come after state Republicans, including the secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, praised election officials for smooth elections in the past two years.

They include measures to eradicate absentee ballot drop boxes, allow citizens to more easily challenge voter registrations – which Republican conspiracy theorists had already done with little backing evidence during the midterms – and even unseal ballots for review.

While some of the elements of these proposed laws offer expanded flexibility and resources for elections, including the popular bipartisan effort to eradicate runoff elections in the state, other aspects are grounded in unfounded claims and conspiracy theories surrounding mass election fraud stemming from the 2020 election.

Read Carlisa’s full report:

Before the DC Council announced it would withdraw the crime bill, Joe Biden faced criticism from a number of Democrats for saying that he would sign a Republican measure to reverse the policy.

“It’s disappointing to all of us who believe in home rule,” Congressman Pete Aguilar, chair of the House Democratic caucus, said Thursday.

“I’m deeply disappointed to see the President announce he will allow Congress to overturn a DC law for the first time in decades,” Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said. “This is simple: The District of Columbia must be allowed to govern itself.”

Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi added Friday, “If he was going to do it, I wish he would’ve told us first because this was a hard vote for the House members.”

The Guardian’s Chris Stein has more details on the DC Council’s decision to withdraw a bill revising the local criminal code:

The chair of the DC council, Democrat Phil Mendelson, criticized the Republican opponents of the crime bill, saying Congress was more focused on winning political points rather than carefully considering the policy.

“It’s quite clear to me that the headwinds that have prevailed in Congress are about the politics of next year’s election and not about what’s the substance in this criminal code,” Mendelson said at a press conference this morning.

“The fact is is that the criminal code has hit these headwinds, which is why I pulled it back.”

Mendelson acknowledged that Senate Republicans may still push for a vote to overturn the bill, but he said such a maneuver would be “hollow” because the council has withdrawn the proposal from congressional consideration.

Mendelson blamed the criticism of the crime bill on misinformation about the content of the proposal, saying, “What people were hearing was we were decriminalizing or that we were reducing sentences and the messaging just got out of our control.”

Asked why he believed Joe Biden indicated he would sign the Republican reversal measure, Mendelson said he thought the president was trying to protect Democratic lawmakers.

“The reality is that if we’re to get statehood, it’s going to be the Democrats who help us with it,” Mendelson said. “So if we have any hope for statehood, we have to want to protect our Democratic friends in Congress. And that’s where I think the president is.”