
President Joe Biden is two full days in to his term and, as promised, he's not wasting any time getting to work.
Here's what you need to know about what is going on in Washington:
- Focus on the economy: Biden signed two executive orders on Friday — one focused on expanding food assistance and delivering stimulus checks to very low-income Americans, and the other on raising the minimum wage to $15 for the federal workforce.
- Other priorities: The executive orders build on a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief plan. It would fund a nationwide vaccination effort and provide direct economic relief, including $1,400 stimulus checks.
- Extremism: The Biden administration plans to take new actions to combat domestic violent extremism. This includes having the Office of the Director of National Intelligence compile a threat assessment and building the National Security Council’s ability to combat it.
- Cabinet: The Senate voted to confirm retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to serve as secretary of defense in Biden's administration. This makes Austin the first African American to run the Department of Defense.
- Next week, impeachment: Both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the article of impeachment will be delivered to the Senate on Monday, triggering the start of the Senate's impeachment trial of former President Trump.