The Red Folder

Archived from February 5, 2024

Key stories for the week, brought to you by the distinguished newsman Sasha Morel.

Reading for the sake of reading sucks. Telling yourself to read to win a round is nice but ineffective. This condensed news brief helps you understand current domestic and international issues, analyze the news, and gives you opportunities to read more.

Domestic Stories

3 key domestic stories for the week:

1) Israel, Ukraine, and…Immigration? Sasha Morel

Senate Republicans and Democrats reached a compromise plan on Sunday to address unlawful migration across the U.S.-Mexico border and advance an aid package for Ukraine and Israel. However, the deal faces significant challenges in a divided Congress.

The agreement, achieved after over three months of negotiations between senators and the Biden administration, marks a rare breakthrough on a longstanding policy issue that has vexed presidents from both parties and stymied compromise efforts on Capitol Hill for decades. President Biden urged Congress to pass the plan, vowing to close the border promptly upon its enactment.

Despite Biden's plea, Speaker Mike Johnson declared the plan "dead on arrival" in the Republican-controlled House. Moreover, with former President Trump actively opposing the deal, its fate in the Democratic-led Senate, where bipartisan support is necessary for advancement, remains uncertain.

Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic majority leader, intends to bring the border and Ukraine package to an initial vote soon, signaling a critical test of its viability.

The plan includes substantial border security measures, such as tightening asylum claims, expanding detention capacity, and potentially closing the border to new entrants under certain conditions. However, it falls short of some Republican demands, alienating conservative members while also drawing criticism from progressive Democrats.

Trump vehemently criticized the plan, labeling it a "horrible, open-borders betrayal of America" and rallying Republicans to oppose it.

The revised bill's cost is estimated at $118.3 billion, exceeding Biden's initial request by $13 billion. It allocates funds for various purposes, including aiding Ukraine, bolstering security assistance for Israel, and enhancing humanitarian aid in conflict zones.

The bipartisan negotiations were prompted by Republican pressure to tie additional aid for Ukraine to stringent border enforcement measures. Republicans followed through on this threat by blocking an emergency national security spending package in December, leading to the current negotiations.

Biden's inclusion of border security funding in his initial request signaled recognition of the border situation's political sensitivity, especially in an election year. The willingness of Democrats to engage in negotiations with Republicans reflects a growing acknowledgment of the unsustainable status quo at the border.

Conservative Republicans have seized on public dissatisfaction with Biden's border policies, opposing any legislation that might allow Democrats to claim credit for addressing the issue.

Read more here:

3) I’m the Problem, It’s Me AmandaLesly Miranda

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen! Taylor Swift is the newest problem to artists as the thirteen-time Grammy winner surpassed the likes of Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, and Paul Simon, making her the artist with the most wins in the category of “Album of the Year”, with four wins. She won in 2009 for her album “Fearless,” in 2015 for her album “1989,” and in 2021 for her album “Folklore,” before winning again yesterday for her album “Midnights.” Swift also announced the release of her eleventh studio album during her acceptance speech titled “The Tortured Poets Department,” which is set to release on April 19th, 2024. This is taking the media world by storm, and just three minutes after the announcement on live television, the queue to pre-order a physical copy of the music was over two hours long, even breaking Target and Amazon’s websites.

But, this is also a concern, as it now seems that it is going to take quite some time for someone to hit the same tier as Swift after Jay-Z, recipient of the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, made a statement regarding the reality that people who should have already won multiple ‘Album of the Year’ awards have never even received one, and following his speech, went on to state how there are improvements that need to be made. Now, it makes one wonder what the Recording Academy may do in light of these accusations from the global superstar. Certain media outlets have started to put out there that the Grammys discriminate against white artists in order to “help promote equality and diversity”. While this idea has not been proven or disproven, it is a well-known fact that many people have boycotted the Grammys on multiple occasions due to their various forms of discrimination and favoritism.

But, is Jay-Z wrong? A recent poll found that if Taylor Swift endorses someone, 18% of Americans would be more likely to vote for them, just because of Taylor Swift’s endorsement. In fact, in 2020, over 35000 voters enrolled to vote in the presidential election after Taylor Swift posted “Vote Now” on her Instagram. All in all, these “Swifties'' are able to influence the entirety of the American market, and after the Grammys, another swing could be in store for us.