Day 8: "It's time to act." - a podcast by Matt Kiser

1/ The Department of Health and Human Services diverted millions of dollars in federal funds intended for vaccines research and public health emergencies to pay for unrelated salaries, administrative expenses, the removal of furniture, news subscriptions, and legal services. In 2018, an unidentified whistleblower alleged the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response had been misusing money since at least 2010 that Congress had allocated for the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. A HHS inspector general report says the agency couldn’t account for $517.8 million from 2007 to 2016. And, as recently as fiscal year 2019, more than $25 million was improperly taken from BARDA. (Washington Post / Bloomberg / CNN / Axios)

2/ The Department of Homeland Security warned of “ideologically-motivated violent extremists” in the U.S. The DHS bulletin said the threat of violence – spurred by “grievances fueled by false narratives” about the unfounded claims about the 2020 election and “anger over COVID-19 restrictions … and police use of force” – will persist for “weeks” following Biden’s inauguration. The National Terrorism Advisory System was last used a year ago to warn of potential retaliation by Iran for the U.S. assassination of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani. A year before that, DHS highlighted the threat from foreign terrorist groups, like ISIS or al-Qaida. (Washington Post / New York Times / ABC News / Politico / Axios)

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  Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene reportedly endorsed executing Democratic leaders and federal agents in 2018 and 2019 before being elected to Congress. In January 2019, Greene “liked” a comment that said “a bullet to the head would be quicker” to remove House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and in other posts, Greene “liked” comments about executing FBI agents who, she believed, were part of a “deep state” working against Trump.(CNN / Washington Post)

  
  


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  A second police officer died by suicide following the insurrection at the Capitol Building on Jan. 6. A third member of law enforcement died from injuries he sustained during the Capitol attack. (Politico)

  
  

3/ House and Senate Democrats introduced legislation that would make Washington, D.C., the 51st state. The bill, first introduced in 2013, would give the District full authority over local issues and grant it full representation ...

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