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When it comes to the successes of President Joe Biden, his accomplishments are stacking up and his approval rating is proving Americans are happy, particularly with the economy. According to Forbes, there's a reason for celebration, because the Biden stock market is rivaling that of former President Donald Trump
FiveThirtyEight, which charts poll numbers to formulate the mean data, shows that Biden enjoys an approval of over 53 percent and a disapproval of 40.6 percent. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump would be lucky to get an approval of 40.6 percent. The last numbers in the Trump administration showed a 57.9 percent disapproval and 38.6 percent approval.
Biden's poll numbers on the economy, in particular, rival Trumps, PBS news reported.
"According to the latest PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll, 54 percent of U.S. adults approved of Biden's handling of the economy, including 94 percent of Democrats and 48 percent of independents," said PBS. "Another 38 percent of Americans disapproved of Biden's economic leadership, including 82 percent of Republicans."
Trump loved to champion his stock numbers from the moment he was elected in 2016. Even using his calculations, it doesn't show his numbers were all that great.
"On the Tuesday in 2016 the election was held between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton the Dow 30 Industrials closed at 18,333," said Forbes. "The Index responded positively to Trump's victory, called on the same evening, and continued to rise until mid-December when it leveled off until the beginning of February."
Trump certainly did well, with the help of the massive tax cut to those desperate for cash that resulted in stock buy-backs that inflated the markets.
"On the Tuesday of the election between Trump and Biden the Index closed at 28,323. It also increased the next three days with Biden in the lead but it had not been called. However, the Monday after the election was called the Index gapped upwards and has continually risen," said the Forbes report. "From Tuesday, November 3, close: Up 6,721 or 24.5 percent. From Friday, November 6, close: Up 5,877 or 20.8 percent. From January 19 (the day before the Inauguration): Up 3,270 or 10.6 percent."
Trump had insisted that the markets would die if Biden was elected.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Monday that the state Senate does not currently have the votes to pass permitless carry of handguns but that he will try to see if there is a "path" to change that.
The news from the Republican presiding officer of the Senate came days after the House approved a permitless carry bill, commonly referred to as "constitutional carry" by supporters.
"If we have the votes to pass a permitless carry bill off the Senate floor, I will move it," Patrick said in a statement. "At this point we don't have the votes on the floor to pass it. I plan to meet with law enforcement who oppose permitless carry and with the [National Rifle Association] and [Gun Owners of America] who support it to see if we can find a path that a majority of senators will vote to pass."
In most cases, Senate bills require 18 votes from the 31-member chamber to be considered on the floor. There are only 18 GOP senators, so a permitless-carry bill would need the support of every Republican in the chamber to reach the floor — or at least one Democratic vote if any Republicans defect.
On Friday afternoon, one key GOP senator, Sen. Kel Seliger of Amarillo, suggested he may not be immediately supportive of the proposal. He told The Texas Tribune that his office was still researching the issue and he tends to support "just about all" bills related to gun rights, but the "system that we have now works." He said it was too early to say whether he would block the bill from coming to the floor or vote against it if it made it to the floor.
House Bill 1927 would get rid of the requirement for Texas residents to get a license to carry handguns if they are not already prohibited by state or federal law from possessing a firearm. The House gave final approval to the legislation on Friday morning in an 87-58 vote that included seven Democrats in support of it.
Supporters of permitless carry, including gun rights groups and conservative Republicans, argued the measure simply allows Texans to exercise rights guaranteed under the Second Amendment. Many Democrats, joined by some law enforcement officers and faith leaders in opposition, instead cited the need for stricter gun safety measures following the 2019 mass shootings in El Paso and Midland-Odessa. The debate over gun laws in Texas has emerged as a top issue this session as gun violence nationwide — including a shooting in Bryan on April 8 and another in Austin on Sunday — has reignited the longstanding debates over gun control.
The passage of the bill in the House last week was a notable development since such proposals have not made it nearly as far in recent sessions. House Speaker Dade Phelan's predecessor behind the gavel, Dennis Bonnen, and his predecessor, Joe Straus, were resistant to the idea and especially chafed at the tactics of its supporters. Bonnen declared the proposal "dead" last session after a gun rights activist showed up at his Lake Jackson home to advocate for the proposal.
The Senate under Patrick is generally seen as the chamber more interested in pressing for hot-button conservative issues. But Patrick has has expressed reservations about permitless carry in the past. Ahead of the 2015 session, he said he did not think there was enough support among lawmakers or the public, a sentiment he reiterated in 2017 while citing law enforcement concerns with "anyone being able to walk down the street with a gun and they don't know if they have a permit or not."
A permitless carry bill has also been filed in the Senate this session, but it was referred to a committee over a month ago and has not received a hearing yet.
Federal investigators are taking steps to stop a company linked to Steve Bannon from misleading consumers about the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Former Trump adviser and former Breitbart News chief Steve Bannon does not radiate 'pinnacle of health.' The portly, cigar-smoking, possibly former alcoholic is not known for his workout ethic. But like many a far-right media figure, including Trump himself (once upon a time), Bannon is now hawking vitamins as a 'Wellness Warrior.' People have called Bannon a lot of things over the years. Wellness Warrior is not one of them. Yet Bannon now appears in ads on his website for 'The War Room Defense Pack,' a collection of zinc and Vitamin D3, with the slogan, 'You can't fight if you're sick!' Anyone ordering a free sample is treated to a complimentary 'War Room Viral Defense Guide,' which doesn't come right out and say it's offering a COVID cure, lest Bannon run into trouble with the FDA. But the savvy consumer will be able to read through the lines," Mother Jones reported in March.
That advertising is now the focus of a federal crackdown.
"The Department of Justice, together with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), today announced a civil complaint against defendants Eric Anthony Nepute and Quickwork LLC, doing business as Wellness Warrior, in the first enforcement action alleging violations of the COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act," the Justice Department announced on Monday.
"According to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, the defendants advertised that their vitamin D and zinc nutritional supplements could prevent or treat COVID-19 without competent or reliable scientific evidence to support their claims. Further, the defendants allegedly advertised without scientific support that their supplements were equally or more effective therapies for COVID-19 than the currently available vaccines. The complaint seeks civil penalties and injunctive relief to stop the defendants from continuing to make deceptive advertising claims," the magazine reported. "The COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act, passed by Congress in December 2020, prohibits deceptive acts or practices associated with the treatment, cure, prevention, mitigation or diagnosis of COVID-19."
Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton announced why the action was being taken.
"The Justice Department is committed to preventing the unlawful marketing of unproven COVID-19 treatments," said Boynton. "Deceptive marketing of unproven products discourages consumers from following health and safety guidelines provided by public health officials. The unlawful spreading of COVID-19 misinformation to sell a product will not be tolerated."
Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, the acting chairwoman of the FTC, focused on one aspect that was "particularly troubling."
"The defendants' claims that their products can stand in for approved COVID-19 vaccines are particularly troubling: we need to be doing everything we can to stop bogus health claims that endanger consumers," Slaughter said. "With this case, the Commission has quickly put to use its new authority to stop false marketing claims related to the pandemic."
Wellness Warrior ad.Screengrab.
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