The House of Representatives passed a $78bn tax bill with rare bipartisan support, 357 votes to 70. The bill would give more low-income families access to expanded child tax credits and temporarily revive some tax benefits for businesses. However the bill may get stuck in the Senate. Chuck Grassley, a Republican Senator, said it “makes the president look good” and could help his re-election.
Joe Biden signed an executive order lamenting the “high levels of extremist settler violence” in the West Bank. The order imposed sanctions, including visa bans and financial restrictions, on people involved in activity against civilians there. So far they have been applied to four individuals. Mr Biden announced the order ahead of an event in Michigan, a swing state with a large Arab-American population.
“This is a good economy,” Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, said at a press conference after announcing that the central bank would hold high interest rates steady for now. His statement—if not the decision—was surely welcomed by the Biden administration. For months America’s economic data have been consistently strong, but the vibes are off, which has Joe Biden’s re-election campaign worried.
A federal judge threw out a lawsuit brought by Disney against Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor. Disney sued Mr DeSantis for alleged retaliation after it criticised a law restricting conversations about sexuality and gender in school. Mr DeSantis subsequently oversaw the elimination of the “special district” Disney had operated autonomously since 1967. Disney said it would “press forward” with the case.
Under pressure from a senator, Mark Zuckerberg, the head of Meta, apologised to families of children who had suffered abuse online. Both Mr Zuckerberg and Shou Zi Chew, the boss of TikTok, showed up voluntarily at a Senate committee hearing about children’s online safety. The bosses of Snap, Discord and X were also grilled.
On Wednesday Chicago’s city council approved a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The symbolic measure follows similar votes in Atlanta, Detroit and San Francisco; Chicago is the biggest of the bunch. Cook County, which encompasses the city, is home to America’s largest Palestinian population. But the council was split (the mayor cast the tie-breaking vote) and debate was fierce, highlighting tensions within the Democratic party.
Donald Trump’s fundraising machine continues to take in donations at a fast clip. The Economist’s analysis of new data from the Federal Election Commission shows that he raised more than $75m in the second half of 2023. The former president’s legal troubles rally his supporters to donate, but they also drain his campaign coffers: $5m per month is now going to legal fees.
Daily quiz
Which state had the lowest murder rate, per 100,000 people, in 2021?
Every weekday we’ll quiz you on one question about American politics.
The weekly winner, chosen at random, will be announced here on Fridays.
Email your answers to [email protected].
Figure of the day
27%, the proportion of eligible voters identifying as Democrat, a record low. Read our story on why America’s political parties are so bad at winning elections.
HEARD ON THE HILL
—Marsha Blackburn, Republican senator from Tennessee, to Mark Zuckerberg on January 31st
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