Aug 16, 2021

Happy Monday! Congress is out of session this week, which gives us time to reflect on the grave policy mistakes the leaders in Washington have been making lately. Let's start with President Joe Biden, whose weak strategy has led to a mess in Afghanistan. We also cover the policy-driven fiasco at the border and the radical spending bills the left is pushing through Congress. Finally, we take the opportunity to fact-check politically motivated claims being made about the COVID outbreak in Florida. There is also the usual lineup of podcasts, events, and more in this week’s Agenda.

Biden’s Weak Strategy Is to Blame for Afghanistan Mess
Since President Biden announced a complete withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban has seized control of the country. In a matter of months, the Biden administration has undone President Donald Trump’s successful foreign policy and compromised U.S. interests around the world. Biden’s incoherent, Obamaesque strategy has plunged Afghanistan into deadly chaos. This administration’s deer-in-the-headlights, reactionary approach has embarrassed the United States on the world stage and jeopardizes U.S. national security interests. Heritage vice president James Carafano has tracked the latest developments and has a new commentary in the New York Post on Biden’s failures.

If Biden Wanted to Tackle ‘Root Causes’ of Illegal Immigration, Here’s What He’d Do
It’s no secret that the Biden administration created the border crisis through bad policies and worse messaging. Now, team Biden wants everyone to focus on “root causes” of illegal immigration in the source countries. Will that work? Not the way Biden is approaching it, say Heritage experts James Roberts and Lora Reis. “In addition to ignoring their own open-border policies,” they write, “the administration has misidentified some of the root causes of current illegal immigration from the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.” Read their full report to learn more about how the U.S. should address the border crisis.

Here’s What You Need to Know About the Left’s Radical Spending Bills
The Senate voted last week to advance a bloated $1.1 trillion infrastructure bill, which paves the way for something even worse. “Make no mistake, final passage of this proposal is a necessary first step for approval of Democrats’ radical $3.5 trillion-behemoth budget reconciliation package waiting on deck,” writes Heritage policy analyst David Ditch in response to the Senate’s vote. Read Ditch’s full response to the Senate’s vote to learn more about what the infrastructure bill portends. Also, Heritage experts compiled the nine most important things you need to know about the $3.5 trillion budget plan.

Fact-Checking 4 Claims About Florida’s COVID-19 Spike
It’s summer, and that means a fresh wave of stories about COVID-19 in Florida. Leftists love to hate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis because he refuses to play meaningless medical theater, opting instead for policies that help his state to thrive amid the pandemic. “So, what’s really going on in Florida?” asks Heritage senior fellow Doug Badger. “Here are the facts.” Read his full commentary to learn the truth about the media’s four main claims about Florida’s COVID-19 situation.

DID YOU KNOW?

Heritage has over 200,000 subscribers on YouTube. Are you one of them? Check out our account for creative conservative videos and documentaries.

Parents Speak Out Against Critical Race Theory. In communities across America, parents have had enough and are fighting back against the radical indoctrination of our children. We’ve compiled some of the best videos. Watch them make the case against critical race theory.

Heritage Experts Applaud Congressional Action to Block Critical Race Theory. The U.S. Senate adopted an amendment offered by Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, a Heritage intern alumnus, prohibiting federal funding of CRT. “The U.S. Senate made a powerful statement in favor of protecting all children from the racism of critical race theory by passing this amendment. Critical race theory is based on the barbaric notion that racial discrimination is necessary in public and private life,” write these Heritage experts. Read the full statement.

Heritage Experts Testify Before Congress. The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs recently called on Heritage Foundation research fellow Rachel Greszler to testify on unemployment insurance and fraud in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about what Greszler discussed. And the U.S. House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis recently called on Heritage Foundation research fellow Joel Griffith to testify on the constitutionality and possible ripple effects of COVID-19 eviction moratoriums. Learn more about what Griffith discussed.

Do We Really Need a President? Thursday at noon. Featured speakers Allen C. Guelzo, a Heritage visiting scholar in the Simon Center for American Studies; Sabrina Leeloo Rosell, former student body president at Florida International University; Elizabeth Spalding, a senior fellow at the Pepperdine University School of Public Policy; and Dakota Wood, a Heritage senior research fellow in defense programs, discuss the proper scope and role of the presidency. Register for this virtual event.

This week on the “Heritage Explains” podcast, we break down the Biden administration’s plans to expand welfare. Jason Turner, executive director at Secretaries’ Innovation Group, joins us for the second part of our series on welfare 25 years after the 1996 bipartisan reform. Listen to the podcast.

It’s Time to Hit the Panic Button
Lora Ries, director of Heritage’s Center for Technology Policy and a senior research fellow in homeland security, joined Fox Business to talk about the record-setting number of apprehensions at the border in July. Watch the interview.

Follow The Heritage Foundation and The Daily Signal on Instagram.

Email us your thoughts and questions at [email protected].