Congress Raises Debt Ceiling with Spending Cuts

Republicans in Congress narrowly approved raising the debt ceiling after attaching major spending cuts to the bill.  The final vote was 217-215, largely on party lines, but President Biden has sworn to veto the bill, though few expect it to get through the Senate.

The vote was seen as a key test for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in holding the GOP together, and with four defections, he managed to do it.

Though the bill has little chance of passing, McCarthy has been clear that he thinks it gives Republicans a strong position for further negotiations.  Democrats oppose the bill because of the extensive spending cuts it requires over the next decade.

Montana House Disciplines Trans Legislator

Montana legislators vote to bar transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr from participating on the state house floor for the rest of the 2023 session.

Zephyr has refused to apologize for saying lawmakers would have “blood on their hands” over a vote to ban transgender medical care for children. Republicans in the state house says she overstepped bounds of decorum and incited disruption. Police arrested seven protestors supporting Zephyr earlier this week.

This marks only the latest episode in a growing national culture clash over transgender issues. North Dakota this week passed a law restricting the use of bathrooms in spaces such as jails and college dorms by people identifying as trans.

On the other side, a Vermont school district this week removed references to the gendered terms “male” and “female” in its classes on human reproduction, referring instead to “person who produces sperm” and “person who produces eggs.”

Who’ll Be the No. 1 Draft Pick?

Alabama quarterback Bryce Young remains the [betting favorite] to go first in the NFL Draft, which begins today in Kansas City. The Carolina Panthers have the No. 1 pick and they say they’ve made their choice, though they’re not saying what it is.

Kentucky’s Will Levis is the second choice among betters to go first , following a tip on Reddit that had him suddenly soaring in the odds.

The draft runs through seven rounds, ending April 29, with teams trading, negotiating and choosing in this pre-selected order through the week.

➤ The Florida Legislature is poised to make it easier for Ron DeSantis to run for president by amending current state law so DeSantis won’t have to resign as governor even if he becomes a presidential candidate. (More)

➤ Tech billionaire Peter Thiel, a Republican mega-donor, says he won’t fund any candidates in the 2024 elections. He wants the party to focus on business growth rather than cultural issues, and says he is sitting this one out. (More)

➤ Priorities USA, a top Democratic Party super-PAC announces plans to launch a six-state ad blitz for Biden this week in key battleground states. The group aims to raise $75 million to support Democrats in 2024. (More)

➤ The NRA sues in Washington state to block the state’s new assault weapons ban, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional.” Washington is now the 10th state to ban certain types of semi-automatic rifles. (More)

➤ Deion Sanders, new coach of the Colorado Buffalos, has replaced all but 16 of his returning scholarship players through the new NCAA transfer portal. More than 70 percent of CU’s returning scholarship allotment has departed, a historic number. Sanders says he needed to “clean out the old furniture.” (More)

➤ Red Sox pitcher Richard Bleier calls out “completely inappropriate” behavior by Baltimore Oriole fans, who he says spit on Sox relievers and sprayed beer on them during their three-game series this week. (More)

➤ Aaron Rogers meets the press for the first time as a NY Jet, and says he noticed only one Super Bowl trophy in the lobby. “It looks lonely” he said, adding he was lured to the Jets by the opportunity to bring the team its second Super Bowl win this year. (More)

Market Report   Previous Week

➤ Disney files suit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, claiming he waged a “targeted campaign” of retaliation against the entertainment giant. The lawsuit was filed minutes after a DeSantis-appointed board voted to strip Disney of authority over construction decisions at its Orlando properties. (More)

➤ First Republic Bank continues to slide in the market, down another 30 percent Wednesday, even as trading was halted several times for volatility. The stock has fallen more than 90 percent year to date. The federal government so far has refused to intervene. (More)

➤ Google marked its second straight quarter of year-over-year decline in ad revenue, an event that hasn’t happened since the company went public in 2004. (More)

➤ The mystery of quasars, the brightest objects in the universe, has been solved, scientists say. After 60 years of study, new research shows that quasars form when whole galaxies collide. (More)

➤ Windows 11 users will finally have access to iPhone texts, phone calls and contacts, at long last connecting Windows desktops to the market dominant iPhone.  Microsoft is rolling out the new service to customers in 85 countries beginning this week. (More)

➤ Colorado became the first state in the country to approve a “right to repair” law for farmers. The law requires makers of agricultural equipment to give farmers the diagnostic tools and software needed to repair their own equipment. Similar bills are pending in 16 other states. (More)

➤ Gen Z is the hardest generation of employees to work with, according to a new survey by Resume Builder. Nearly 75 percent of managers said Gen Z workers – people 26 years of age or younger – were more difficult to manage than any other generation. (More)

➤ Chicago Cubs fans help one of their own start a baseball romance by passing his phone up the bleachers to a woman who had caught his eye. She punches her number in, and a new Wrigley Field relationship is kickstarted (Watch)

➤ Singapore executes a man convicted of marijuana trafficking, hanging him for having 2.2 pounds of marijuana despite pleas for clemency. Singapore says the death penalty is an effective deterrent against drugs. (More)

Today’s Trivia

How many times has Congress raised the debt ceiling?