RINGSIDE POLITICS – JUNE 16, 2021

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Welcome to another edition of Ringside Politics with Jeff Crouere

Today’s Hot Topics:

1)  Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas avoided describing the surge of migrant children at the U.S.-Mexico border as a “crisis” on Wednesday during his first appearance before lawmakers in his new role.

Mayorkas, the first immigrant and first Latino person to lead DHS, was asked by Republican lawmakers on the House Homeland Security Committee about the situation developing at the southern border, where thousands of children seeking asylum are being detained.

He stopped short of calling the influx of migrants a crisis during his opening statement, but reiterated during the hearing the department faces a “difficult” situation.

2) During an appearance on “All In with Chris Hayes” on Tuesday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she doesn’t see the logic in Sen. Joe Manchin’s reasons for opposing HR 1.

HR 1, The For The People Act, would require states to expand voter registration as well as voting initiatives and would implement reforms to federal campaign finance and ethics laws.

In 2019, Manchin cosponsored HR 1, the For the People Act, but now opposes it because there aren’t any Republican votes for it. Manchin also opposes ending the filibuster, which if he supported the bill, would give Democrats a slim majority to pass the voting rights legislation without the threat of the GOP blocking it. The bill scraped by the House in March, with zero votes from Republicans.

3) Actor Jon Voight slammed the media for remaining silent on the controversy surrounding Hunter Biden and his use of the N-word in text messages, subsequently praising former President Donald Trump for leading the country with “dignity” while he was in the White House.

“What is this, a race? A war?” Voight said in a roughly two-minute video posted on social media Sunday. “The left — they’re OK with slurs. It’s OK for Biden’s son to use racist slurs, and no one says a word, not the media — no one.”

“Why was it OK to beat down President Trump with cruel intention against his beautiful family?” he asked.

He said the Trump family faced harassment while Trump was in the White House but added Hunter Biden is not scrutinized by the media despite being a “poor pity of a man.”

4) President Biden joked when taking questions at a press conference Sunday following the G-7 summit, claiming that his staff will be upset with him if he does not conduct the event as they want him to.

Early on in the question-and-answer portion of the program, Biden was quick to inform reporters that he would operate strictly by the book.

Not long after, however, Biden indeed appeared to stray from protocol by taking one last question after the event seemed to be wrapping up. Notebook in hand, Biden looked to be about to exit the stage, but then hung around to listen to one more reporter.

“I’m going to get in trouble with my staff,” the president said with a laugh. “Yeah, go ahead, but pretend I didn’t answer you.”

Today’s Guests:

1) Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform 

2) Lauren Nash, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, National Weather Service