'It's a nightmare'

Masks are beginning to be spotted around Washington, D.C., again. The reason? The fast-spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus, now making up 83% of COVID-19 cases nationwide, has made its way to Capitol Hill, shattering the sense of calm that had begun to settle in following the pandemic and insurrection. After a weeks-long trudge toward normalcy, Capitol physician Brian Monahan confirmed yesterday that the variant has been reported in the Capitol building, and that has spurred discussions of a renewed mask mandate or even a "proof of vaccination" requirement. —Politico

• — Texas superspreaders. A sixth fully vaccinated Texas State House member has tested positive for the coronavirus—the latest breakthrough case among the Democratic lawmakers who traveled to Washington, D.C., last week to block passage of Texas Republicans' voting bills. A White House staffer and an aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have tested positive for the virus, after attending an event with the Texans. Vice President Kamala Harris, who also attended the event, has tested negative. Neither the president nor the speaker were exposed. —NBC News
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• — Tough week for MTG. First a Twitter suspension, and now this. The House Ethics Committee announced yesterday that it is upholding $500 fines against three Republican lawmakers for refusing to wear masks on the House floor while it was still required during the pandemic. GOP Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie, and Ralph Norman all filed appeals against the fines, which were issued in May, but they failed to persuade a majority of the bipartisan panel. —The Hill
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• — A new tone at Fox? White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki confirmed at a press briefing yesterday that the Biden Administration has confronted Fox News over the bid by some of its top-rated hosts to erode trust in the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. "We've been in touch with every network and many, many media outlets about coverage of COVID-19 to make sure people have accurate information, to voice concerns when we have them," Psaki said. —Insider

Rogin: Blue Dog Dems seek Covid commission

"When the Biden Administration finishes its 90-day intelligence review about the origins of COVID-19 next month, Congress' efforts to investigate the issue will be just beginning. Now, a group of national security-focused, centrist Democrats is calling for a 9/11-style bipartisan commission to publicly investigate both the source of the outbreak and our country's response. ... The body would expand the scope of the Biden Administration's ongoing investigation, covering all aspects of the pandemic, and produce a report that would have bipartisan credibility." —Josh Rogin in The Washington Post

Josh Rogin is a Washington Post columnist covering foreign policy and national security.

MORE: 'If anybody is lying here, Senator, it is you,' Fauci tells Sen. Paul in heated exchange at Senate hearing —CNBC

Another Team Trump member arrested

Getting arrested has become something of a habit among associates of Donald Trump. Tom Barrack, chair of the ex-president's 2017 inaugural committee, is the latest example. Arrested yesterday on charges he secretly acted in the U.S. as an agent for the United Arab Emirates, he is accused of failing to register as a foreign agent, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and four counts of making false statements to the FBI. Barrack put pro-UAE language into a 2016 Trump campaign speech, took direction from UAE officials about what to say in media appearances and an opinion piece he published ahead of the 2016 election, and agreed to promote a candidate for UAE ambassador who was backed by UAE officials. What a patriot. —Politico

MORE: Watchdog: Wilbur Ross misled on reason for 2020 Census citizenship question —USA Today

WaPo Ed Board: Time to get tough on the spyware industry

"Countries with a history of turning these technologies against citizens should be prohibited from purchasing them at all. And countries that respect the bounds of the law should refuse to buy from companies that do business with those that don't. Global leaders must work together to fix a problem that doesn't care about geography. Luckily, they have an incentive to act: They are targets, too." —The Washington Post

MORE: Macron among 14 heads of state on potential spyware list —Associated Press

Thiessen: The Cuba embargo isn't the problem

"This theft of wages, at home and abroad, constitutes modern-day slavery. Most Cubans have no choice in where they work, for whom they work, or how much they are paid. Those who work for foreign corporations see their hard-earned wages taken from them by their Cuban Communist masters without recourse or remorse." —Marc Thiessen in The Washington Post

Marc Thiessen is a Washington Post columnist focusing on foreign and domestic policy. He is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and the former chief speechwriter for former President George W. Bush.

MORE: 'Nothing short of historic.' Congress holds first hearing after Cuba protests —Miami Herald

Focus on the insurrection

Sorry, Jims. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced today that she will not accept the appointments of Reps. Jim Banks or Jim Jordan to the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Pelosi said she rejected Banks and Jordan, who each voted to overturn Joe Biden's presidential victory, "with respect for the integrity of the investigation, with an insistence on the truth, and with concern about statements made and actions taken by these members." —Associated Press

• — Kevin takes his ball and goes home. Predictably, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy responded to Pelosi's rejection by pulling all five of his committee selections. The other three picks—Reps. Rodney Davis, Kelly Armstrong, and Troy Nehls—were accepted by Pelosi, who has the authority to approve or reject members, per committee rules. A complete GOP boycott of the committee (except for Pelosi's Republican picks, Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger) would give McCarthy space to paint it as a partisan exercise, which was likely his plan all along. —CNN
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• — "Nothing is off limits." Rep. Bennie Thompson, chair of the select committee, says he is prepared to depose lawmakers and senior Trump Administration officials—including McCarthy and even Donald Trump himself, as the two had a heated phone call during the attack. "The issues of Jan. 6 are one of the most salient challenges we have as a nation, to make sure that this democracy does not fall prey to people who don't really identify with democracy," Thompson said. —The Hill
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• — Americans are on board. According to a CBS News/YouGov poll, Americans across the board still overwhelmingly disapprove of the events of Jan. 6, a sentiment that includes big majorities of Republicans and even Trump voters—and most think there's more to learn about it. A majority of Americans still specifically call it what it was—an "insurrection" and an attempted overthrow of the government. But roughly one-third of the country call it "patriotism," or "defending freedom," even if they disapprove of the attack itself. —CBS News

Germer & Ramachandran: The problem with the election 'audits'

"During every election cycle, election officials use processes designed to be transparent, objective, and secure—with safeguards in place to guard against human error and bias. In the instances when an external process audit is warranted, generally accepted auditing guidelines provide clear standards for ensuring objectivity and avoiding conflicts of interest. The efforts being undertaken in these states fail to meet these basic standards. They are not designed to maintain ballot or equipment security or obtain accurate results. They are designed to stoke mistrust in the 2020 election and in elections to come." —Matthew Germer & Gowri Ramachandran in The Hill

Matthew Germer is an elections fellow at the R Street Institute. Gowri Ramachandran is counsel in the Brennan Center's Election Reform Program. They are co-authors of the report "Partisan Review Efforts in Five States."

MORE: GOP Texas House members seek forensic audit of Nov. 2020 election in state's largest counties —The Dallas Morning News

Just before I opened up The Topline email today, I had been listening to NPR in the car. The news story was that at least one Republican sponsor was walking back from the co-sponsored infrastructure bill, the bill struggling to get to the floor for discussion and a vote this week because Republicans do not want to give more money to the IRS.

Money the Republicans have stripped from it for decades. Money that would actually help people reach someone in the IRS with questions. Money that would allow the IRS to hire people to go after taxes already filed but not paid. Tens of Billions (capital letter for emphasis) of dollars the government is owed but hasn't collected on and more than enough to pay for such a bill. Money mostly from the (really) wealthy Americans whom Republicans see as their donors and whom they want to protect from paying their fair share of taxes.

This is utter codswallop! Refusing to properly fund the only institution responsible for obtaining the funds to operate the government and then claiming fiscal responsibility as the reason not to pass co-sponsored and necessary funding bills is ludicrous. It amounts to shutting down the government because you want to prevent the other party from succeeding in any way. (Republicans seem to get better at this with every new Democrat president.)

And if Senator Graham's idea of the Republicans leaving D.C. to deny a quorum for the bill does happen, no Republican in a state or national office in the country can complain about the Texas elected Democrats who did the same to protest the voting bills being pushed through their state legislature. (And they shouldn't forget that Oregon Republicans left the state last year to protest a state bill they didn't like.) That would be hypocrisy—a label fitting more and more Republican elected officials and just another reason I want an alternate party to stand with. —Keith R., Oregon

The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.