Kathianne
09-02-2023, 01:50 PM
I wonder if she's going to last at CBS?
WHITE HOUSE (https://www.politico.com/white-house)
DeSantis tells Biden: Keep your IRA moneyThe governor is blocking Biden’s IRA benefits from Floridians. There’s not much Dems can do about it.
https://www.politico.com/dims4/default/a107627/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5392x3595+0+0/resize/630x420!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F51%2F3c%2 F91fd096b474dba54c64d6d13e9a9%2Felection-2024-desantis-40639.jpg
So far, the White House hasn’t publicly hit Gov. Ron DeSantis by name over the rejection of Inflation Reduction Act climate funds, perhaps in hopes that he changes his mind before time runs out next August. | Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo
By JENNIFER HABERKORN (https://www.politico.com/staff/jennifer-haberkorn)
08/30/2023 04:30 AM EDT
Updated: 08/30/2023 11:10 AM EDT
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(https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/30/desantis-refuses-biden-climate-ira-money-00113397#)
(https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/30/desantis-refuses-biden-climate-ira-money-00113397#)
President Joe Biden is offering one of his White House challengers hundreds of millions of dollars to spend in his state. The only problem: that opponent is refusing to take it.
The Inflation Reduction Act makes Florida eligible for some $350 million in energy efficiency incentives. But Gov. Ron DeSantis has rejected the funding and other measures, creating the most prominent blockade by any Republican governor against Biden’s economic agenda.
And there’s nothing the White House can do besides hope he changes his mind.
The rejection has the potential to create significant ripple effects, politically and economically, in the coming months. As the president and his Cabinet members go around the country boasting about the IRA, rebates for energy-efficient purchases — the majority of the funding that DeSantis has refused — have played a particularly prominent role. That’s not just because they underpin the administration’s climate agenda but because they provide direct rebates to consumers.
DeSantis says he will halt campaigning during Hurricane Idalia
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The IRA allows governors the authority to block a handful of its programs, and with it, the power to blunt the political impact of legislation that some Democrats believe will be a key factor in the 2024 election.
Through a veto of his legislature’s request, DeSantis turned down $5 million to set up the rebate program for consumers who buy energy efficient appliances and retrofit their homes. It also effectively blocked $341 million to fund the program because the state would need the administrative money to apply for the program, according to people familiar with Florida’s budget process. However, federal Energy Department rules allow a state to accept the second pot of money even if they don’t take the first. If Florida doesn’t apply for the full $346 million by next August, the law allows DOE to provide Florida’s money to other states.
The governor also rejected $3 million in IRA funds to help the state fight pollution and rebuffed the Solar for All program (https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/solar-all-noi-letters-epa-has-received-states-district-columbia-and) which would have paid to help low-income people access solar panels. DeSantis also vetoed $24 million in grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
So far, DeSantis is the only governor to signal that he will block the energy rebates. But on the smaller sums of money, he has company. He’s one of four to turn down pollution mitigation funding (https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/NOIP%20Status%20Lists.pdf) from the IRA. The others are the Republican governors of South Dakota and Iowa, and Kentucky’s governor, who is a Democrat. The states that haven’t applied for the solar fund are all led by Republicans. They include Florida, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota and South Dakota.
The Biden administration has explored ways around the energy rebate blockade but has come up empty so far, according to federal and state officials. The IRA was written in a way that requires the rebates to go through a state energy office. Unlike many federal laws, there is no federal fallback option or way to circumvent an obstinate governor.
That leaves the Biden administration hoping Florida will reconsider — and that the IRA funding doesn’t snowball into a political litmus test for GOP governors as Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, and the Obama administration’s high speed rail funding, did a decade ago.
So far, the White House hasn’t publicly hit DeSantis by name over the rejection of funds, perhaps in hopes that he changes his mind before time runs out next August.
“It’s unfortunate that some officials are putting politics ahead of delivering meaningful progress for hard working Americans,” said White House spokesman Michael Kikukawa. “Despite this, President Biden and his administration are working with cities, counties, businesses, nonprofits, and other entities in the Sunshine State to ensure Floridians benefit from the lower costs and stronger economy delivered by his agenda.”
There’s reason to think Florida wants the funds: the state’s energy office requested them and the state legislature approved it before DeSantis vetoed a grant (https://www.flgov.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Final-Veto-List-2023.pdf) for the program.
https://www.politico.com/dims4/default/8978c2f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4869x3895+487+0/resize/250x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F3d%2F68%2 F1dbadc5f44a19bb82a82e1eb0ebe%2Fclimate-law-anniversary-28733.jpg (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
Democrats’ climate law set off a wave of energy projects in GOP districts. A backlash followed. (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
BY JOSH SIEGEL (https://www.politico.com/staff/josh-siegel), KELSEY TAMBORRINO (https://www.politico.com/staff/kelsey-tamborrino) AND JESSIE BLAESER (https://www.politico.com/staff/jessie-blaeser) | AUGUST 13, 2023 07:00 AM
“It’s clear from Administration conversations with Florida’s state energy office that they want the rebate funding,” said an administration official granted anonymity to speak freely. “After all, that’s why the request for accessing the administrative funding was in the budget line DeSantis vetoed in the first place — because the state energy office asked for it.”
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Pennsylvania is key for Biden. Democrats there say the party is in shambles. (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/01/pennsylvania-democratic-party-trouble-00113705)
Administration officials expressed confidence that Florida residents will ultimately get access to the rebates — even if they have to wait until after the Republican primary concludes or, at worst, the presidential election.
Republican governors used their opposition to high speed rail funding and Medicaid expansion dollars during the Obama era to showcase their fiscal conservative bonafides and the extent of their opposition to a Democratic president. In that vein, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s spokesman Ian Fury said that she “absolutely believes that the federal government’s wasteful spending, much of it at the behest of President Biden, is the single largest cause of the inflation crisis that our nation finds itself in.”
But Democrats believe the situation is different now compared to a decade ago. DeSantis’ decision could serve as a line of political attack: with another hurricane looming amid possibly the hottest summer on record, the governor is placing opposition to Biden over helping Floridians weatherize their homes, and helping protect them from pollution or buy energy efficient appliances.
“He’s senselessly making the state more vulnerable,” said Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), who is on a House panel that works with the White House on implementation. “A lot of other states that are majority Republican haven’t been this foolish.”
The DeSantis administration did not return repeated requests for comment.
‘The American people won’: Biden signs Inflation Reduction Act
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The Florida Democratic Party plans to put public pressure on DeSantis to reverse course. Party Chair Nikki Fried said many people don’t yet know about the fallout of the veto. Still, she doubts DeSantis would reverse course. “He is not one who admits that he made a mistake or changes his course,” she added.
Soto is urging the administration to work with local officials where it can. The climate funding, for instance, can go to localities instead of a state. Three Florida cities have taken it up.
“My main goal is to get the money to Florida so my advice to the White House has been work with the local government and go around the state in every way possible,” he said.
The administration does not have a work around option when it comes to the rebates program, however. That program is supposed to help consumers cover part of the cost of projects such as insulating homes, installing a heat pump or upgrading to Energy Star appliances. The administration projects that the $8.5 billion program will save consumers up to $1 billion in energy costs (https://www.energy.gov/articles/biden-harris-administration-opens-applications-states-and-territories-implement-85-billion) and support an estimated 50,000 jobs in construction and other sectors.
Half of the money is supposed to go to households with incomes at or below 80 percent of the area median income. White House climate and energy adviser John Podesta said rejecting the rebates is a disservice to low-income households.
“Governors who are interested in servicing those communities would be well advised to kind of take that money and put those programs into effect, and then make those rebates available,” Podesta told reporters recently.
https://www.politico.com/dims4/default/be58146/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6996x5597+699+0/resize/250x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F31%2F97%2 Fea212df74dba92a134c7f9ad4afc%2Fbiden-51966.jpg (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
Big costs, sweeping changes: What to know about the IRA (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
BY KELSEY TAMBORRINO (https://www.politico.com/staff/kelsey-tamborrino) | AUGUST 16, 2023 06:04 PM
Other states are eager to take their piece of the money Florida has rejected. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) has asked the Energy Department to send Florida’s money to his and other states. Rhode Island “could utilize additional funds that Florida’s Governor may not accept for purely partisan reasons,” Reed wrote to the Energy Department.
In Kentucky, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who is up for reelection this fall, has applied for “a number of federal grants,” according to John A. Mura, spokesman for the Kentucky energy and environment cabinet. But, “local governments are best situated to apply for and administer the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant funds,” he said.
Florida’s rejection of IRA money is not absolute. The state has accepted other pots of money, including $3.75 million to support urban tree canopies (https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/urban-forests/ucf/fy23-state-allocations) and access to nature, $209,000 for pollution control and $78.7 million to several state and local entities (https://www.noaa.gov/news-release/noaa-bil-investments-2023-florida) to protect against climate change — a fund that is made up of the IRA and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hunter-biden-irs-whistleblower-gary-shapley-justice-department-claims-of-independence/
POLITICS
IRS whistleblower's attorney raises new questions about Justice Dept's claims of independence in Hunter Biden investigation, which Justice Dept disputes
BY CATHERINE HERRIDGE
SEPTEMBER 1, 2023 / 5:56 PM / CBS NEWS
The lawyer for an IRS whistleblower is raising questions about the Justice Department's claims that its investigation of Hunter Biden has been independent of political interference, pointing to a series of events in April that he says cast doubt on the department's assertion.
The events transpired just after Mark Lytle's client came forward to Congress with allegations of preferential treatment in the Hunter Biden probe. A Justice Department spokesperson described the communications and meetings as "routine."
On April 19, Lytle, who represents IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley, wrote to the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees to say that his client wished to come forward.
Lytle said in the letter that the disclosures his client would make included allegations of "preferential treatment and politics improperly infecting decisions and protocols that would normally be followed by career law enforcement professionals in similar circumstances." The letter did not mention Hunter Biden, referring to the case only as a "sensitive investigation of a high-profile, controversial subject."
Emails reviewed by CBS news say that a senior Justice Department official in the deputy attorney general's office, Associate Deputy Attorney General Brad Weinsheimer, set up a phone call with Lytle six days later, on April 25. The internal emails were first reported by the Daily Mail.
"I was initially encouraged at the outreach from Brad Weinsheimer, in the office of the Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, that they were interested in learning about any allegations of wrongdoing at the department (in the Hunter Biden probe) and that they wanted to create a safe environment for whistleblowers," Lytle told CBS News. "But that all went out the window when the IRS agents were kicked off the case."
On April 26, Weinsheimer met with U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who had been appointed to oversee the investigation into Hunter Biden — and who has since been named special counsel in the case — and then-Hunter Biden attorney Chris Clark. This meeting was first reported by Politico and confirmed by CBS News by two sources familiar with the events.
While it is not publicly known what happened in the April 26 meeting, it occurred during a pivotal moment in the five-year investigation, as negotiations to reach a plea agreement appeared to accelerate.
Weinsheimer, a career Justice Department official, has served 32 years under Republican and Democratic administrations. He has a broad portfolio, including the areas of professional responsibility, special counsel affairs and whistleblowers. Weinsheimer has also served as a department point of contact in the Hunter Biden investigation and other politically sensitive cases.
In response to CBS News' questions about Weinsheimer's role in the Hunter Biden case and that meeting, a Justice Department spokesperson said, "Although the department does not publicly discuss meetings and communications relating to ongoing matters, the department is committed to ensuring that its work is conducted according to the highest standards of professional conduct. Lines of communication with the Department's senior career official is a routine process entirely in keeping with that commitment."
Lytle, however, said he finds the timing significant. "The fact that the office of the deputy attorney general reached out to whistleblowers, then we learned that the same senior DOJ official was apparently meeting with Weiss and counsel for Hunter Biden, indicate Weiss did not have complete authority to make decisions on the case — contrary to what Weiss and the attorney general have told the public," he said.
But a person familiar with the discussions sought to dispel the idea that there was anything suspect about the timing of the April 26 meeting with Hunter Biden's attorney and said that it had been scheduled weeks earlier — before the IRS whistleblower had notified Congress. In describing the meeting, the source also suggested it was in keeping with meetings that would take place with attorneys of those who are high-level targets of an investigation and compared it to those that took place between department officials and lawyers representing former President Donald Trump before special counsel Jack Smith filed charges against him over the handling of classified documents after his presidency.
In June, Attorney General Merrick Garland had said that Weiss would be able "to make a decision to prosecute any way in which he wanted to and in any district in which he wanted to."
In letters to Congress, Weiss insisted he had the "ultimate authority."
In August, Garland said Weiss had informed him that his investigation had reached a stage where he believed his work should continue as special counsel, and he then asked for the designation. Garland said he concluded it was "in the public interest" to appoint Weiss special counsel, giving him expanded powers to continue the probe, in light of the "extraordinary circumstances" of the case.
In their transcribed interviews with congressional investigators, Shapley and the lead case agent on the Hunter Biden probe, IRS whistleblower Joe Ziegler, said they were removed from the probe and that "DOJ had requested that change."
Shapely testified that he pressed his IRS manager for an explanation.
"I specifically asked, and he said, 'No, didn't give a reason.' To which I said, 'How could you possibly make a decision like that in a case like this without being given a reason?'"
Ziegler told congressional investigators, "I can tell you in my normal course of investigations I work, why an agent would be removed is for conduct. So if they did something wrong. But I've never seen it to where they would remove from a supervisor down -- anything like that ever."
After their removal, Lytle told CBS News he went back to the same senior Justice Department official, Weinsheimer, for assistance.
"When the IRS agents were kicked off the case, we called to complain to the very same person, Weinsheimer, who made those earlier promises and assurances, and he seemed no longer interested, and directed our team to U.S. Attorney Weiss."
It is not clear who made the decision to remove the team, and Lytle said the timeline requires further explanation.
CBS News asked Hunter Biden's legal team whether the IRS whistleblowers' allegations came up during their April meeting with the senior Justice Department official, and whether the disclosure alleging preferential treatment added new urgency to their plea negotiations. There was no immediate response.
The plea agreement between federal prosecutors and Hunter Biden fell apart in late July after Federal Judge Maryellen Noreika refused to sign off on a deal that would have seen the president's son enter guilty pleas to two misdemeanor tax charges and enter a diversion program in lieu of pleading guilty to a felony gun possession count. She expressed concern that attorneys were asking her to simply "rubber stamp" the deal, which she refused to do, citing several irregularities as well as confusion between prosecutors and the defense as to whether the plea concluded the investigation. The parties were ultimately unable to reach a new agreement.
After the deal collapsed, Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty. Soon afterward, in mid-August, Judge Noreika granted the government's motion to dismiss, so that tax charges against him could be brought in another venue.
The federal judge has ordered prosecutors and defense attorneys on Thursday to provide an update next week.
WHITE HOUSE (https://www.politico.com/white-house)
DeSantis tells Biden: Keep your IRA moneyThe governor is blocking Biden’s IRA benefits from Floridians. There’s not much Dems can do about it.
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So far, the White House hasn’t publicly hit Gov. Ron DeSantis by name over the rejection of Inflation Reduction Act climate funds, perhaps in hopes that he changes his mind before time runs out next August. | Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo
By JENNIFER HABERKORN (https://www.politico.com/staff/jennifer-haberkorn)
08/30/2023 04:30 AM EDT
Updated: 08/30/2023 11:10 AM EDT
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(https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/30/desantis-refuses-biden-climate-ira-money-00113397#)
(https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/30/desantis-refuses-biden-climate-ira-money-00113397#)
President Joe Biden is offering one of his White House challengers hundreds of millions of dollars to spend in his state. The only problem: that opponent is refusing to take it.
The Inflation Reduction Act makes Florida eligible for some $350 million in energy efficiency incentives. But Gov. Ron DeSantis has rejected the funding and other measures, creating the most prominent blockade by any Republican governor against Biden’s economic agenda.
And there’s nothing the White House can do besides hope he changes his mind.
The rejection has the potential to create significant ripple effects, politically and economically, in the coming months. As the president and his Cabinet members go around the country boasting about the IRA, rebates for energy-efficient purchases — the majority of the funding that DeSantis has refused — have played a particularly prominent role. That’s not just because they underpin the administration’s climate agenda but because they provide direct rebates to consumers.
DeSantis says he will halt campaigning during Hurricane Idalia
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The IRA allows governors the authority to block a handful of its programs, and with it, the power to blunt the political impact of legislation that some Democrats believe will be a key factor in the 2024 election.
Through a veto of his legislature’s request, DeSantis turned down $5 million to set up the rebate program for consumers who buy energy efficient appliances and retrofit their homes. It also effectively blocked $341 million to fund the program because the state would need the administrative money to apply for the program, according to people familiar with Florida’s budget process. However, federal Energy Department rules allow a state to accept the second pot of money even if they don’t take the first. If Florida doesn’t apply for the full $346 million by next August, the law allows DOE to provide Florida’s money to other states.
The governor also rejected $3 million in IRA funds to help the state fight pollution and rebuffed the Solar for All program (https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/solar-all-noi-letters-epa-has-received-states-district-columbia-and) which would have paid to help low-income people access solar panels. DeSantis also vetoed $24 million in grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
So far, DeSantis is the only governor to signal that he will block the energy rebates. But on the smaller sums of money, he has company. He’s one of four to turn down pollution mitigation funding (https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/NOIP%20Status%20Lists.pdf) from the IRA. The others are the Republican governors of South Dakota and Iowa, and Kentucky’s governor, who is a Democrat. The states that haven’t applied for the solar fund are all led by Republicans. They include Florida, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota and South Dakota.
The Biden administration has explored ways around the energy rebate blockade but has come up empty so far, according to federal and state officials. The IRA was written in a way that requires the rebates to go through a state energy office. Unlike many federal laws, there is no federal fallback option or way to circumvent an obstinate governor.
That leaves the Biden administration hoping Florida will reconsider — and that the IRA funding doesn’t snowball into a political litmus test for GOP governors as Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, and the Obama administration’s high speed rail funding, did a decade ago.
So far, the White House hasn’t publicly hit DeSantis by name over the rejection of funds, perhaps in hopes that he changes his mind before time runs out next August.
“It’s unfortunate that some officials are putting politics ahead of delivering meaningful progress for hard working Americans,” said White House spokesman Michael Kikukawa. “Despite this, President Biden and his administration are working with cities, counties, businesses, nonprofits, and other entities in the Sunshine State to ensure Floridians benefit from the lower costs and stronger economy delivered by his agenda.”
There’s reason to think Florida wants the funds: the state’s energy office requested them and the state legislature approved it before DeSantis vetoed a grant (https://www.flgov.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Final-Veto-List-2023.pdf) for the program.
https://www.politico.com/dims4/default/8978c2f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4869x3895+487+0/resize/250x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F3d%2F68%2 F1dbadc5f44a19bb82a82e1eb0ebe%2Fclimate-law-anniversary-28733.jpg (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
Democrats’ climate law set off a wave of energy projects in GOP districts. A backlash followed. (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/13/biden-inflation-reduction-act-climate-states-00110940)
BY JOSH SIEGEL (https://www.politico.com/staff/josh-siegel), KELSEY TAMBORRINO (https://www.politico.com/staff/kelsey-tamborrino) AND JESSIE BLAESER (https://www.politico.com/staff/jessie-blaeser) | AUGUST 13, 2023 07:00 AM
“It’s clear from Administration conversations with Florida’s state energy office that they want the rebate funding,” said an administration official granted anonymity to speak freely. “After all, that’s why the request for accessing the administrative funding was in the budget line DeSantis vetoed in the first place — because the state energy office asked for it.”
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Administration officials expressed confidence that Florida residents will ultimately get access to the rebates — even if they have to wait until after the Republican primary concludes or, at worst, the presidential election.
Republican governors used their opposition to high speed rail funding and Medicaid expansion dollars during the Obama era to showcase their fiscal conservative bonafides and the extent of their opposition to a Democratic president. In that vein, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s spokesman Ian Fury said that she “absolutely believes that the federal government’s wasteful spending, much of it at the behest of President Biden, is the single largest cause of the inflation crisis that our nation finds itself in.”
But Democrats believe the situation is different now compared to a decade ago. DeSantis’ decision could serve as a line of political attack: with another hurricane looming amid possibly the hottest summer on record, the governor is placing opposition to Biden over helping Floridians weatherize their homes, and helping protect them from pollution or buy energy efficient appliances.
“He’s senselessly making the state more vulnerable,” said Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), who is on a House panel that works with the White House on implementation. “A lot of other states that are majority Republican haven’t been this foolish.”
The DeSantis administration did not return repeated requests for comment.
‘The American people won’: Biden signs Inflation Reduction Act
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The Florida Democratic Party plans to put public pressure on DeSantis to reverse course. Party Chair Nikki Fried said many people don’t yet know about the fallout of the veto. Still, she doubts DeSantis would reverse course. “He is not one who admits that he made a mistake or changes his course,” she added.
Soto is urging the administration to work with local officials where it can. The climate funding, for instance, can go to localities instead of a state. Three Florida cities have taken it up.
“My main goal is to get the money to Florida so my advice to the White House has been work with the local government and go around the state in every way possible,” he said.
The administration does not have a work around option when it comes to the rebates program, however. That program is supposed to help consumers cover part of the cost of projects such as insulating homes, installing a heat pump or upgrading to Energy Star appliances. The administration projects that the $8.5 billion program will save consumers up to $1 billion in energy costs (https://www.energy.gov/articles/biden-harris-administration-opens-applications-states-and-territories-implement-85-billion) and support an estimated 50,000 jobs in construction and other sectors.
Half of the money is supposed to go to households with incomes at or below 80 percent of the area median income. White House climate and energy adviser John Podesta said rejecting the rebates is a disservice to low-income households.
“Governors who are interested in servicing those communities would be well advised to kind of take that money and put those programs into effect, and then make those rebates available,” Podesta told reporters recently.
https://www.politico.com/dims4/default/be58146/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6996x5597+699+0/resize/250x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F31%2F97%2 Fea212df74dba92a134c7f9ad4afc%2Fbiden-51966.jpg (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
Big costs, sweeping changes: What to know about the IRA (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/16/democrats-climate-law-listicle-00111360)
BY KELSEY TAMBORRINO (https://www.politico.com/staff/kelsey-tamborrino) | AUGUST 16, 2023 06:04 PM
Other states are eager to take their piece of the money Florida has rejected. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) has asked the Energy Department to send Florida’s money to his and other states. Rhode Island “could utilize additional funds that Florida’s Governor may not accept for purely partisan reasons,” Reed wrote to the Energy Department.
In Kentucky, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who is up for reelection this fall, has applied for “a number of federal grants,” according to John A. Mura, spokesman for the Kentucky energy and environment cabinet. But, “local governments are best situated to apply for and administer the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant funds,” he said.
Florida’s rejection of IRA money is not absolute. The state has accepted other pots of money, including $3.75 million to support urban tree canopies (https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/urban-forests/ucf/fy23-state-allocations) and access to nature, $209,000 for pollution control and $78.7 million to several state and local entities (https://www.noaa.gov/news-release/noaa-bil-investments-2023-florida) to protect against climate change — a fund that is made up of the IRA and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hunter-biden-irs-whistleblower-gary-shapley-justice-department-claims-of-independence/
POLITICS
IRS whistleblower's attorney raises new questions about Justice Dept's claims of independence in Hunter Biden investigation, which Justice Dept disputes
BY CATHERINE HERRIDGE
SEPTEMBER 1, 2023 / 5:56 PM / CBS NEWS
The lawyer for an IRS whistleblower is raising questions about the Justice Department's claims that its investigation of Hunter Biden has been independent of political interference, pointing to a series of events in April that he says cast doubt on the department's assertion.
The events transpired just after Mark Lytle's client came forward to Congress with allegations of preferential treatment in the Hunter Biden probe. A Justice Department spokesperson described the communications and meetings as "routine."
On April 19, Lytle, who represents IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley, wrote to the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees to say that his client wished to come forward.
Lytle said in the letter that the disclosures his client would make included allegations of "preferential treatment and politics improperly infecting decisions and protocols that would normally be followed by career law enforcement professionals in similar circumstances." The letter did not mention Hunter Biden, referring to the case only as a "sensitive investigation of a high-profile, controversial subject."
Emails reviewed by CBS news say that a senior Justice Department official in the deputy attorney general's office, Associate Deputy Attorney General Brad Weinsheimer, set up a phone call with Lytle six days later, on April 25. The internal emails were first reported by the Daily Mail.
"I was initially encouraged at the outreach from Brad Weinsheimer, in the office of the Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, that they were interested in learning about any allegations of wrongdoing at the department (in the Hunter Biden probe) and that they wanted to create a safe environment for whistleblowers," Lytle told CBS News. "But that all went out the window when the IRS agents were kicked off the case."
On April 26, Weinsheimer met with U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who had been appointed to oversee the investigation into Hunter Biden — and who has since been named special counsel in the case — and then-Hunter Biden attorney Chris Clark. This meeting was first reported by Politico and confirmed by CBS News by two sources familiar with the events.
While it is not publicly known what happened in the April 26 meeting, it occurred during a pivotal moment in the five-year investigation, as negotiations to reach a plea agreement appeared to accelerate.
Weinsheimer, a career Justice Department official, has served 32 years under Republican and Democratic administrations. He has a broad portfolio, including the areas of professional responsibility, special counsel affairs and whistleblowers. Weinsheimer has also served as a department point of contact in the Hunter Biden investigation and other politically sensitive cases.
In response to CBS News' questions about Weinsheimer's role in the Hunter Biden case and that meeting, a Justice Department spokesperson said, "Although the department does not publicly discuss meetings and communications relating to ongoing matters, the department is committed to ensuring that its work is conducted according to the highest standards of professional conduct. Lines of communication with the Department's senior career official is a routine process entirely in keeping with that commitment."
Lytle, however, said he finds the timing significant. "The fact that the office of the deputy attorney general reached out to whistleblowers, then we learned that the same senior DOJ official was apparently meeting with Weiss and counsel for Hunter Biden, indicate Weiss did not have complete authority to make decisions on the case — contrary to what Weiss and the attorney general have told the public," he said.
But a person familiar with the discussions sought to dispel the idea that there was anything suspect about the timing of the April 26 meeting with Hunter Biden's attorney and said that it had been scheduled weeks earlier — before the IRS whistleblower had notified Congress. In describing the meeting, the source also suggested it was in keeping with meetings that would take place with attorneys of those who are high-level targets of an investigation and compared it to those that took place between department officials and lawyers representing former President Donald Trump before special counsel Jack Smith filed charges against him over the handling of classified documents after his presidency.
In June, Attorney General Merrick Garland had said that Weiss would be able "to make a decision to prosecute any way in which he wanted to and in any district in which he wanted to."
In letters to Congress, Weiss insisted he had the "ultimate authority."
In August, Garland said Weiss had informed him that his investigation had reached a stage where he believed his work should continue as special counsel, and he then asked for the designation. Garland said he concluded it was "in the public interest" to appoint Weiss special counsel, giving him expanded powers to continue the probe, in light of the "extraordinary circumstances" of the case.
In their transcribed interviews with congressional investigators, Shapley and the lead case agent on the Hunter Biden probe, IRS whistleblower Joe Ziegler, said they were removed from the probe and that "DOJ had requested that change."
Shapely testified that he pressed his IRS manager for an explanation.
"I specifically asked, and he said, 'No, didn't give a reason.' To which I said, 'How could you possibly make a decision like that in a case like this without being given a reason?'"
Ziegler told congressional investigators, "I can tell you in my normal course of investigations I work, why an agent would be removed is for conduct. So if they did something wrong. But I've never seen it to where they would remove from a supervisor down -- anything like that ever."
After their removal, Lytle told CBS News he went back to the same senior Justice Department official, Weinsheimer, for assistance.
"When the IRS agents were kicked off the case, we called to complain to the very same person, Weinsheimer, who made those earlier promises and assurances, and he seemed no longer interested, and directed our team to U.S. Attorney Weiss."
It is not clear who made the decision to remove the team, and Lytle said the timeline requires further explanation.
CBS News asked Hunter Biden's legal team whether the IRS whistleblowers' allegations came up during their April meeting with the senior Justice Department official, and whether the disclosure alleging preferential treatment added new urgency to their plea negotiations. There was no immediate response.
The plea agreement between federal prosecutors and Hunter Biden fell apart in late July after Federal Judge Maryellen Noreika refused to sign off on a deal that would have seen the president's son enter guilty pleas to two misdemeanor tax charges and enter a diversion program in lieu of pleading guilty to a felony gun possession count. She expressed concern that attorneys were asking her to simply "rubber stamp" the deal, which she refused to do, citing several irregularities as well as confusion between prosecutors and the defense as to whether the plea concluded the investigation. The parties were ultimately unable to reach a new agreement.
After the deal collapsed, Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty. Soon afterward, in mid-August, Judge Noreika granted the government's motion to dismiss, so that tax charges against him could be brought in another venue.
The federal judge has ordered prosecutors and defense attorneys on Thursday to provide an update next week.