As the world continued to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic in the early months of 2021, U.S. health officials released guidance designed to help students get back into classrooms for in-person instruction. However, many opponents still argue that schools should stay closed until there is less chance of community spread of the virus or until all teachers have been vaccinated. In the guidance, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that schools in all areas, regardless of the current risk of COVID-19 infection, should require the use of masks, physical distancing of at least 6 feet as…

The Biden administration took steps in February to rescind one of its predecessor’s most controversial health care policies — Medicaid work requirements. Under the Trump administration, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) allowed states to apply for waivers that would require Medicaid enrollees to work, apply for jobs or take classes, typically for about 80 hours a month. The requirements were touted as a way to encourage heathy people to work and, thus, increase their standard of living. The Trump administration also said the requirements would keep Medicaid financially viable. Opponents, however, said the work requirements were unlawful…

The issue of reforming presidential pardon power has been percolating for decades, but it came to a head at the end of Donald Trump’s presidency. In his final days in office, Trump granted pardons to nearly 150 individuals, many of whom had close ties to the former president. The power of the presidential pardon was written into the Constitution as a safeguard against judicial decisions later deemed too harsh. It allows the president to grant clemency to individuals charged with federal crimes without seeking approval from other branches of government. The pardons are not subject to override. However, they do…

In one of his first acts in office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order revoking the construction permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, which would have routed approximately 830,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Canada to Nebraska on its way to Gulf Coast refineries. Biden’s move — the latest development for a project that has become a flashpoint for the climate change debate — was applauded by environmentalists and American Indian groups but sparked objections from the oil industry. The controversial project has spanned multiple presidential administrations. Former President George W. Bush approved the original Keystone pipeline,…

In November 2020, the Trump administration announced that it would reduce U.S. military troops in Iraq and Afghanistan during the president’s final days in office. Christopher Miller, then-acting secretary of defense, said that U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan would drop from 4,500 to 2,500 and troop levels in Iraq would reduce from 3,000 to 2,500 by Jan. 15, 2021. The move received a mixed response. Some lawmakers praised the plan as a key step in the larger push to unwind the U.S. military’s nearly 20-year involvement in the two countries, while others said it could be a security risk given…

The pros and cons of corporate influence in the White House came up for debate last fall when President-Elect Joe Biden began assembling his transition and administration teams. When Biden tapped several top staff members with backgrounds in the lobbying and corporate worlds, some progressives worried that the administration could favor the interests of big business over those of everyday Americans. For example, Biden’s choice for White House counselor, Steve Ricchetti, came under fire when reports surfaced that his brother, Jeff Ricchetti, had lobbying contracts with at least two pharmaceutical companies and Amazon. Ethics attorneys argued that Steve Ricchetti, a…

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is weighing whether or not to ban a pesticide used at tens of thousands of farms across the U.S. that has been linked to brain damage in children. The pesticide in question — chlorpyrifos — has been used in the U.S. since 1965 to protect crops such as berries, nuts, citrus and vegetables. Anyone can be exposed to the pesticide through the food they eat, but farmworkers and those living near farms that use chlorpyrifos are at a higher risk of exposure. The use of chlorpyrifos in homes was largely banned in 2000 and…

The Trump administration announced this fall that it would accept a lower number of refugee admissions in the coming year. In a proposal sent to Congress, the administration said it would accept 15,000 refugees in fiscal year 2021, a more than 15% reduction from fiscal year 2020. The U.S. State Department justified the plan, saying it reflects the administration’s mission to protect Americans, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The president’s proposal for refugee resettlement in FY 2021 reaffirms America’s enduring commitment to assist the world’s most vulnerable people while fulfilling our first duty to protect and serve the American people,”…

The Trump administration moved to protect Americans’ data privacy in September when it banned Chinese-developed social media apps TikTok and WeChat from U.S. app stores, sparking a debate over national security and free speech. The U.S. Commerce Department’s order barred all new U.S. downloads of the apps after Sept. 20 and would ban the apps’ functionality beginning on Nov. 12. Ahead of the September announcement, President Donald Trump had argued for weeks that the apps were allowing the Chinese Communist Party to surveil Americans. “The spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the…

In August 2020, a group of senators introduced a plan for a “bill of rights” aimed at empowering and protecting college athletes. The lawmakers, led by Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), proposed that college athletes should receive fair and equitable compensation as well as better educational opportunities. The bill of rights would also enforce health and safety standards, an issue that became particularly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The NCAA has failed generations of young men and women even when it comes to their most basic responsibility — keeping the athletes under their charge healthy and safe,”…