Monday, May 24

· The Supreme Court declined to hear a case that raised the issue of whether jurisdictions should be able to continue to avoid liability for claims of civil rights violations by police, rejecting an appeal from the mother of a 23-year-old man fatally shot by an officer in Ohio in 2017.

· Reuters reported that United States intelligence agencies are calling for an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus following a report that researchers at a Chinese virology lab were seriously ill in 2019, about a month before the first cases of COVID-19 were made public.

· President Joe Biden released a statement praising Egypt for its “successful diplomacy” in coordination with the U.S. to reach a ceasefire agreement ending 11 days of Israeli military attacks on the Gaza Strip.

· The State Department warned U.S. citizens not to travel to Japan due to a surge in COVID-19 cases there, just two months ahead of the projected opening of the Tokyo Olympics.

· Biden said he would double funding to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster resiliency program to $1 billion to help states and local governments prepare infrastructure for extreme weather.

· Against dissent from its three liberal members, the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from a death row inmate in Missouri who requested execution by firing squad rather than a lethal injection of pentobarbital, saying the latter would cause him excruciating pain.

Tuesday, May 25

· The U.S. downgraded Mexico’s aviation safety rating, an action that bars Mexican carriers from adding new flights to the U.S. and limits airline marketing agreements. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador criticized the decision, saying Mexico has complied with “all the requirements.”

· Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the U.S. will reopen its consulate in Jerusalem, which had served as a de facto embassy for the Palestinians, after a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The move restored some amount of goodwill with Palestine after former President Donald Trump downgraded the consulate’s operations and placed it under the authority of his ambassador to Israel.

Wednesday, May 26

· Biden instructed U.S. spy agencies to review classified information about the origins of the coronavirus to determine whether it came from contact between humans and animals or from a Chinese virology lab. Biden said intelligence agencies had “coalesced around two likely scenarios” but still had no definite conclusions.

· Secretary of State Blinken ended a two-day visit to the Middle East, during which he hailed progress on the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Palestine and worked with nearby countries to collect pledges toward rebuilding Gaza. The U.S. offered $5.5 million in disaster relief and nearly $33 million for the United Nations Palestinian aid agency.

· The Justice Department arrested Bolivia’s former Interior Minister Arturo Murillo and his ex-chief of staff Sergio Mendez, in the U.S. Both men worked in the interim government of Bolivia’s ex-President Jeanine Anez, and were charged with “receiving bribes paid by a U.S. company and individuals to secure a Bolivian government contract.”

· Biden released a statement calling for a ceasefire and end to the “large-scale human rights abuses” in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, saying that he was “deeply concerned” by the escalating violence and the “hardening of regional and ethnic divisions” throughout Ethiopia.

· Reuters reported that officials with direct knowledge said Biden will rely on allied countries to provide most metals needed to build electronic vehicles rather than rely on domestic mines.

· Officials from the Chinese embassy in the U.S. criticized Biden’s ordering of a review of how and where the coronavirus first emerged, claiming that such a review politicizes the origin of COVID-19.

Thursday, May 27

· Senate Republicans introduced their $928 billion counterproposal to Biden’s more sweeping $1.7 trillion infrastructure plan. The Republican proposal is intended to deliver on “core infrastructure investments,” which Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.V.) says is “a serious effort to try to reach a bipartisan agreement.

· The New York Times reported that Biden will seek $6 trillion in federal spending for the 2022 fiscal year, the nation’s highest sustained levels of federal spending since World War II, to be increased to $8.2 trillion by 2031.

· Assistant Secretary of State Robert Godec said the Biden administration plans to impose sanctions on Ethiopia and Eritrea if attacks against civilians in Tigray continue. “The violence in Tigray is horrifying,” Godec said. “It shocks the conscience.”

· The Associated Press reported that Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman told the Russians that the Biden administration decided not to reenter the Open Skies arms control pact, which had allowed surveillance flights over military facilities in both countries before Trump withdrew from the pact.

· Attorney General Merrick Garland directed the Justice Department to expand funding to states and municipalities to track and investigate hate crimes as well as order prosecutors to step up criminal and civil investigations into hate crimes. “Hate crimes and other bias-related incidents instill fear across entire communities and undermine the principles upon which our democracy stands,” Garland said.

· State Department spokesman Ned Price said the U.S. is outraged that peaceful Iraqi demonstrators demanding reform and accountability from Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kahimi were met with “brutal violence” when one demonstrator was shot dead and dozens injured at a rally in Baghdad.

Friday, May 28

· Senate Republicans blocked a proposal to establish an independent commission to probe the Jan. 6 insurrection by Trump supporters at the Capitol. “We all know what’s going on here,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said. “Senate Republicans chose to defend the ‘Big Lie’ because they feared that anything that might upset Donald Trump could hurt them politically.”

· Ahead of Memorial Day weekend, Biden said victory over the coronavirus pandemic is close at hand as about 51% of the population has been fully vaccinated, nearing his “ambitious goal” of getting 70% of adult Americans at least one shot by Independence Day.

· Biden formally revealed his $6 trillion budget plan with a focus on reversing economic inequities and making societal change, in contrast to other recent presidents’ budgets focused on policy proposals to boost gross domestic product. “Where we choose to invest speaks to what we value as a nation,” Biden said. “It is a budget that reflects that fact that trickle-down economics has never worked.”

· Customs and Border Protection imposed an import ban on seafood from a Chinese fishing fleet alleged to use slave labor on its 32 vessels.

Saturday, May 29

· The U.S. announced punitive measures against Belarus for the forced landing of a Ryanair plane in Minsk to capture a dissident journalist. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called the Belarus action “a direct affront to international norms.”

· Biden denounced a proposed bill in Texas, Senate Bill 7, that would restrict voting rights, calling it “part of an assault on democracy … that joins Georgia and Florida in advancing a state law that attacks the sacred right to vote.”

Sunday, May 30

· A report from the Danish public broadcaster Danmarks Radio said the U.S. partnered with Denmark’s foreign intelligence unit to spy on European leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

· Over 10,000 pro-government Ethiopian demonstrators denounced the U.S. for imposing restrictions on aid over the Tigray conflict, saying that “Ethiopia does not need a caretaker” and criticizing “western intervention.”