Spiegel Stuff: The Hill's 12:30 Report: Dems regroup post-holiday Biden agenda blowup

IN CONGRESS

Via The Hill’s Alexander Bolton, “Senate Democrats on Tuesday say they expect President Biden to restart talks with holdout Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) after a ‘cooling off’ period that will extend until the Senate finishes debate on voting rights legislation and rules reform.” https://bit.ly/3EREKnH

Cue the internal meditations: “Senate Democrats agreed at a virtual lunchtime meeting Tuesday that everyone in their caucus would take a deep breath and step back from the heated debate over Biden’s sweeping climate and social spending plan to give Manchin some space.”

Are any negotiations ongoing?: No. “Manchin told reporters on Tuesday morning that there are ‘no negotiations going on at this time’ over Biden’s stalled ‘Build Back Better’ agenda.”

‘DEMS SCRAMBLE TO LOCK DOWN MANCHIN ON FILIBUSTER’:

Via The Hill’s Jordain Carney: https://bit.ly/3eQC5Qs

WHAT ABOUT BENDING THE RULES? NOT BREAKING THEM, BUT ~BENDING~ THEM?:

“Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) on Tuesday night floated smaller changes to the Senate rules that would stop short of the filibuster reforms being pushed for by many of his Democratic colleagues.” https://bit.ly/32REUOS

It’s Wednesday. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook.

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NEWS THIS MORNING

December was a pretty good month by one metric:

Via The Hill’s Sylvan Lane, “U.S. businesses added 807,000 jobs in December despite the emergence of the omicron variant, according to data released Wednesday by payroll processor ADP, far exceeding expectations.” https://bit.ly/3zrmwrQ

For context: “The ADP National Employment Report, a closely watched gauge of private sector job growth, showed private non-farm payrolls adding almost twice as many new workers as analysts projected.”

The full story: https://bit.ly/3zrmwrQ

HAPPENING TOMORROW

How Republicans are treating the Jan. 6 anniversary:

Via The New York Times’s Shane Goldmacher, “Donald J. Trump on Tuesday abruptly canceled a news conference that he had scheduled at his Mar-a-Lago resort for Thursday evening on the one-year anniversary of the breaching of the United States Capitol.” https://nyti.ms/3mXyGDQ

And Republicans are blaming Speaker Pelosi: “Republicans, including Mr. Trump in a statement on Tuesday, have tried to divert attention from the fact that it was the former president’s supporters who turned violent as they sought to stall the certification of the 2020 election, and to falsely blame House Speaker Nancy Pelosi [(D-Calif.)] for the violence.”

More on how Republicans are handling the anniversary of the breach: https://nyti.ms/3mXyGDQ

WHERE THE NATION STANDS ONE YEAR LATER:

“One year after the Jan. 6 insurrection, the threats to American democracy are just as grave as they were on the day itself. Hopes that the riot at the Capitol might have been an aberrational event — a grim one-off, and a shock that that could even serve to bring the nation together in its aftermath — have proven wrong.” Read Niall Stanage’s full column: https://bit.ly/3mYhqOM

WASHINGTONIAN’S SHARE THEIR EXPERIENCES THAT DAY:

Read their accounts in DCist: https://bit.ly/3pWoptF

This is a pretty striking interview:

Watch: https://bit.ly/3zA2AmL

Op-ed: https://bit.ly/3JLsWHe

LATEST WITH THE I-95 CLOSURE

The drivers are FREE!:

Via The Washington Post, “Interstate 95 in Virginia reopened Tuesday evening after a winter storm paralyzed vehicles for 48 miles south of Washington, leaving hundreds of motorists stranded — many for more than 24 hours without food or water — as temperatures fell into the teens.” https://wapo.st/3JHXJVk

When lanes reopened: Around 7 p.m. EST

Still avoid those areas if possible: “Highway crews spent much of the day clearing interstate off-ramps and towing dozens of vehicles that were abandoned or ran out of gas. Officials warned that travel remained hazardous on parts of I-95 and should be avoided, if possible.”

‘TIMELINE: HOW A WINTER STORM BROUGHT I-95 TO A STANDSTILL:

Via The Washington Post’s Michael Laris: https://wapo.st/3HxzEhY

‘I-95 TRAFFIC SNARL SPARKS QUESTIONS ON IMPACTS TO HIGHWAY SYSTEM’:

Via The Hill’s Alex Gangitano: https://bit.ly/3FYpUgx

The moment Tim Kaine left his car, 27 hours later (!):

Let me tell you, I would not be this chipper, or well-spoken, as he was in that moment.

Watch: https://bit.ly/3FXDf8B

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) posed for a photo when he stepped out of his car: All things considered, he looks pretty spritely. Photo: https://bit.ly/3EYFqaS

LATEST WITH COVID-19

OK, but what if Biden releases tons of lavender oil throughout the US to try to calm everyone down?:

Via The Hill’s Morgan Chalfant, “President Biden on Tuesday sought to tamp down worries about the omicron coronavirus variant, underscoring that COVID-19 vaccines protect against severe illness from the virus.” https://bit.ly/32YcqCJ

In Biden’s words: “Folks, I know we’re all tired and frustrated about the pandemic. These coming weeks are going to be challenging. Please wear your mask in public to protect yourself and others. We’re going to get through this. We have the tools to protect people from severe illness due to omicron if people choose to use the tools.”

This tweet has really resonated with a lot of people:

It has more than 228,000 likes since yesterday.

CASE NUMBERS:

Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 57,098,280

U.S. death toll: 830,401

Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y

VACCINATION NUMBERS:

Total number of vaccinations administered in the U.S.: 508 million shots have been given.

Seven-day average of doses administered: An average of 1.41 million doses

For context: The U.S. population is roughly 331 million.

Breakdown of the numbers: https://bloom.bg/3iVTPLH

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Aw!:

ON TAP:

The Senate is in. The House is out. President Biden and Vice President Harris are in Washington, D.C.

10:10 a.m. EST: President Biden and Vice President Harris received the President’s Daily Brief.

Noon: The Senate holds a judicial confirmation vote. The Senate’s full agenda today: https://bit.ly/3sUqmIW

WHAT TO WATCH:

9:30 a.m. EST: U.S. Capitol Police chief Thomas Manger testified on Jan. 6's U.S. Capitol siege. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3pWvJ8p

11 a.m. EST: The White House COVID-19 Response Team held a press briefing. Livestream: https://bit.ly/31vGHZk

12:15 p.m. EST: White House press secretary Jen Psaki and John D. Porcari, port envoy to the Biden-Harris administration supply chain disruptions task force, hold a press briefing. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3eSI1IJ

2:30 p.m. EST: Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks on the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3316CZ9

IN LIGHTER NEWS:

Today is National Whipped Cream Day. It’s also National Keto Day.

We are even further Beyond Meat:

KFC is now serving a plant-based chicken for a limited time. Details from CNBC: https://cnb.cx/34dZh98

Tinsley deserves a medal — and so many treats: