Follow section front redirects in Spectrum

Enable NLP source in PCS for load testing

Switch off the News Alerts Survey Widget when we have enough responses

Poll to determine if new LUF updates are available

Allows the winning A/B test variant to be turned on without Spectrum deployment

Show infinite scrolling sections in Assembler MultiView

Show option for NLP article summaries in Action Bar

A general feature flag for Recipe Features that aren't yet released

Feature flag for media team features that aren't yet released

Use new Orca video player for preroll plugin in Spectrum

Show the snow tracker (instead of the heat tracker) on Spectrum

Trump and allies say Biden pays rent for ‘illegals’ in Michigan. Not true.

Tensions grow between Trump and Lake in Arizona race for Senate 

Trump and DeSantis meet privately in Florida 

Soldiers reunite with their pets from overseas: ‘It meant everything to me’

Chiropractor works on giraffe, is nuzzled: ‘Giraffes are just giant dogs?’

An SUV was in flames on the highway. Strangers saved the driver.  

Where seas are rising at alarming speed 

The new face of flooding

Is student loan debt an emergency? Take our quiz.

Miss Manners: I think kindergarten graduations are ‘ridiculous’

Carolyn Hax: Is checking his phone the best way to prove he isn’t lying anymore?

Ask Amy: Boyfriend’s CPA dad did my taxes wrong for years

Meta’s oversight body prepares to lay off workers

Lawsuits test Tesla claim that drivers are solely responsible for crashes   

How an inclusive gym brand became a battlefield over LGBTQ+ rights

Humans might need to re-engineer the climate

The Fed’s fight against inflation needs to lose the dot plot

The Rangers swept the Capitals, and it’s time for the new core to take charge

Middle East conflict live updates: Gaza on the agenda as Blinken, top diplomats gather in Saudi Arabia

Capitals get pushed aside by Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers

Eighty percent of Ukraine-Israel bill will be spent in U.S. or by U.S. military

Facts in the Trump courtroom v. ‘facts’ in the court of public opinion

The Rick Steves guide to life

The sad, stale state of in-flight vegetarian meals

How to train for a marathon on vacation

An assassination plot on American soil reveals a darker side of Modi’s India

As U.S. rushes to send military aid, Ukrainians applaud lobbying effort

 Donald Trump Speaks During A Campaign Rally In Green Bay Wisconsin

Patrick Semansky

President Biden appeared to bend in part to GOP criticisms of unemployment benefits on Monday, while continuing to hit back against claims that overly generous jobless payments are slowing the U.S. economy.

In remarks in the East Room, Biden said on Monday that the White House will “make it clear” that Americans on unemployment must take a job if offered a “suitable” one or lose their benefits. Republicans and business interests have said in recent days that the benefits are discouraging workers from returning to the labor market.

In an apparent nod to those attacks, the White House said it is directing the Labor Department to work with states on reimposing work-search requirements for Americans collecting unemployment benefits. Labor will also soon issue a letter to “reaffirm” the rules of unemployment to ensure that workers, employers and states understand the rules of the program, the White House said.

It’s not a ‘labor shortage.’ It’s a great reassessment of work in America.

Biden reiterated that the administration disputes GOP claims that April’s disappointing jobs data, released Friday, shows that unemployment benefits are too generous and causing workers to stay home rather than rejoin the workforce. And the White House did not announce a departure from prior policy on unemployment benefits. Still, the president’s remarks suggest that the White House is sensitive to the growing political criticisms over its handling of the issue and will seek to amplify pressure on workers to return to work.

“We’re going to make it clear that anyone collecting unemployment who is offered a suitable job must take the job or lose their unemployment,” Biden said in remarks in the East Room. “There are a few covid-19-related exceptions. … But otherwise that’s the law.”

The White House has been forced onto the defensive over some worrisome economic news, with the April jobs report showing a slowdown in the pace of job gains. Democrats and the president have advised patience and pointed to other factors, such as ongoing concerns about the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">coronavirus</a> and the lack of available child care for working parents. Employment of women fell in April, while female labor-force participation also slipped.

Recovery's stumble leaves Americans facing unfamiliar inflation risk.

Biden’s new message on Monday was aimed primarily at demonstrating how the unemployment system works and underscoring why the White House does not think the benefits are to blame for the labor shortage, according to a senior administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak publicly. States waived their work requirements for unemployment benefits at the start of the pandemic, but about 30 of them have already or are planning to soon reimpose them.

The president conceded that the issue had become an easy political attack for Republicans — that generous unemployment benefits were causing people to not look for work — but he insisted there was little evidence of it.

“I think people who claim Americans won’t work, even if they find a good and fair opportunity, underestimate the American people,” he said. “So we’ll insist that the law is followed with respect to benefits. But we’re not going to turn our backs on our fellow Americans.”

He also more explicitly blamed the Trump administration’s pace in addressing the coronavirus, which Biden said led to more jobs lost than would have occurred if the government had had a more adequate response.

“Twenty-two million people lost their jobs in this pandemic through no fault of their own,” he said. “They lost their jobs to a virus, and to a government that bungled its response to the crisis and failed to protect them.<i>”</i>

Under current law, workers are not allowed to turn down a job and continue receiving benefits because of a “non-specific concern” about the virus. Workers can do so if they meet certain criteria outlined in a law passed last year by Congress, such as having a child who cannot go to school because of the pandemic, or because the job being offered does not adhere to health requirements. The White House says it will work with the Labor Department to “take concrete steps to raise awareness” about these rules. Jobless Americans can refuse unsafe work but must document the safety violation and communicate concerns with their employers first.

The Labor Department says there were still more than 16 million claims for unemployment insurance filed for the last week of April. Several GOP-run states, such as <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/05/08/republicans-unemployment-worker-shortage/" target=_blank>Montana and South Carolina</a>, are moving to cut the expanded unemployment benefits on their own. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) has introduced legislation aimed at converting the enhanced unemployment benefit to a two-month signing bonus for new hires worth more than their current unemployment benefit.

“It’s good to see some recognition from the administration that expanded UI may be reducing people’s willingness to work. But if half of the states have already reinstated their work-search requirement, I’m not sure the remaining states doing so is enough to solve the problem,” said Adam Ozimek, an economist at Upwork, who has criticized the expanded benefits.

The White House also announced that it will accelerate several economic measures beyond the work-search requirements. It said it will soon disburse funding aimed at the restaurant industry, struggling renters and distressed municipalities still reeling from the aftershocks of the pandemic. The American Rescue Plan included about $39 billion for child care. Biden said that funding would soon be released to the states to allow for the “dramatic expansion” of child-care eligibility.

Biden also highlighted the amount of aid that was given to businesses and said they have an obligation to create a safe working environment for their employees.

“We need to stay focused on the real problems ahead of us: Beating the pandemic and creating jobs,” the president said, adding: “People will come back to work if they are paid a decent wage.”

Sasse said in a statement that the president is “all over the place” on unemployment insurance. “Cut the spin, convert unemployment into a signing bonus, and get America and Americans up and running,” Sasse said.

GOP governors slash jobless aid as they seek to force the unemployed back to work.

The partisan feud over unemployment benefits comes as the administration faces a crucial test of its ability to work across the aisle on strengthening the economy.

The White House sees this week as an important gauge for whether Biden can gain bipartisan support for his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan — which comes in addition to a $1.8 trillion proposal for expanding services such as child care, education and paid leave. Biden is hosting the four top congressional leaders at the White House on Wednesday, and he’s holding a meeting with a half-dozen Senate Republicans on Thursday, as he makes one of the most concerted efforts at winning GOP votes since he took office.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said last week that he was 100 percent focused “on stopping this new administration,” but on Sunday he told a PBS station in Kentucky that he could support up to $800 billion in infrastructure spending. Biden is also meeting privately on Monday with two more moderate Democrats who are vital to his efforts, Sens. Joe Manchin III (W.Va.) and Thomas R. Carper (Del.). Manchin has expressed concern over Biden’s proposed spending as well as the White House’s push to raise corporate tax rates.

With the fate of the new jobs and spending proposal unclear, the Biden administration has also taken several steps in recent days to accelerate the disbursal of aid. Last week, the Treasury Department announced significant changes to emergency rental aid amid a looming eviction crisis, revising agency rules to allow tenants to more directly claim the assistance. On Monday, Treasury announced details of its $350 billion state and local relief fund, money aimed at reversing the layoffs in local governments slowing down the economic recovery.

The state and local aid can be used for funding health-care efforts related to the virus, a lack of housing or food, providing “premium pay for essential workers,” and infrastructure efforts related to drinking water, storm water and broadband Internet access, among other uses. Gene Sperling, tapped by the White House to lead implementation of the stimulus plan, emphasized on a call with reporters that growth slowed substantially during the recovery after the Great Recession under President Barack Obama because of cuts at state and local levels.

Starting on Monday, state, city, tribal and territorial governments can begin filling out information on a portal with their funding requests. Administration officials said on a call with reporters that the funding could begin arriving within days.

“This is responding to the lessons of the past in a powerful way,” Sperling said. “There is still today 1.3 million state and local jobs lost since the onset of covid. … This is part of a strategy to get Americans back to work.”

New York State Associated Press Young Journalist of the Year

Cornell University, BA in history

Jeff Stein is the White House economics reporter for The Washington Post. He was a crime reporter for the Syracuse Post-Standard and, in 2014, founded the local news nonprofit the Ithaca Voice in Upstate New York. He was also a reporter for Vox.

Jeff Stein

White House Correspondents' Association's Aldo Beckman Award for Overall Excellence in White House Coverage, 2023

Gerald R. Ford Journalism Award for Distinguished Reporting on the Presidency, 2021

White House Correspondents' Association's Merriman Smith Award, recognizing presidential news coverage under deadline pressure, 2016

Finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists for national reporting, 2014

Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress, 2013, "Broken City" series

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Matt Viser is a White House reporter for The Washington Post. He joined The Post in October 2018, covering the midterms and the 2020 presidential election before moving over to the White House to cover President Biden's administration. He was previously deputy chief of the Washington bureau for the Boston Globe.

Matt Viser

washpost

White House to clarify unemployment benefit rules after GOP attacks.

the-washington-post

Joe Biden

name

iptc-media/labour/employment/wage_and_benefit

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/economy/macro_economics/recession

iptc-media/politics

iptc-media/politics/government

iptc-media/labour

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/economy

iptc-media/labour/unemployment/unemployment_benefits

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/business_information/human_resources

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/business_information

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/business_information/human_resources/layoffs_and_downsizing

iptc-media/economy_business_and_finance/economy/macro_economics

iptc-media/labour/employment

iptc-media/labour/unemployment

client-blocklists/Client List: Morgan Stanley KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Amazon KWs - EXCLUDE ALL 

client-blocklists/Client List: Becton Dickinson KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/CLIENT LIST: Nomura KWs 2021 - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Boeing KWs 2021- INCLUDE ANY

client-blocklists/Bed Bath & Beyond KWs - INCLUDE ANY

client-blocklists/Client List: Exxon Mobil  - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Client List: T. Rowe Price KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/T. Rowe Price KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

advertising/B2_Academic & Professional Education_legacyaux_1o8

client-blocklists/Client List: Microsoft KWs 2 - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/HBO KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Ford/Lincoln KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Bank of America KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Diageo - Johnnie Walker KWs - INCLUDES ANY

advertising/Flu, Sickness & Virus Content

client-blocklists/WaPo: Combined Disaster Keyword List - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/ExxonMobil 03312021 KWs - INCLUDES ALL

advertising/Coronavirus Content

client-blocklists/GEICO KWs - INCLUDES ANY_4.26.21

advertising/B2_Economy_legacyaux_rok

advertising/Blackrock - Finance and Investing Content

advertising/B2_Business_legacyaux_hws

client-blocklists/Client List: Navy Federal Credit Union NFCU KWs 2 - EXCLUDES ALL - 12.23.20

advertising/B2_Career Development_legacyaux_feo

client-blocklists/Client List: Eli Lily KWs - INCLUDES ANY

advertising/B2_Data Center Buyer_legacyaux_80A

advertising/B2_Entrepreneurship_legacyaux_sqb

client-blocklists/Client List: Purina KWs - INCLUDES ANY

advertising/Qualcomm Custom KW - 5G

advertising/Citrix Mindfulness

advertising/B2_Finance_legacyaux_jfq

advertising/B2_Government & Policy_legacyaux_mza

advertising/Client Keywords: On Running

client-blocklists/BP KWs - INCLUDES ANY

advertising/B2_Labor_legacyaux_lik

advertising/B2_LGBT & Same Sex Marriage_legacyaux_l3o

advertising/B2_Policy and Regulation_legacyaux_qe2

advertising/B2_Politically Active - DO NOT REMOVE_legacyaux_lmp

advertising/B2_Politics and Policy_legacyaux_pay

advertising/B2_Positive News_legacyaux_hlt

advertising/B2_State Governments_legacyaux_4lq

advertising/B2_STEM Enthusiasts_legacyaux_gx0

advertising/B2_Young Professional / International Businessman_legacyaux_r5x

client-blocklists/Client List: KPMG KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Navy Federal Credit Union NFCU KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Verizon KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Novo Nordisk KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Siemens KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Cisco KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Client List: Capital Concerts KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: AT&T ALT KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Mercedes KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/FX Excludes All Disney

client-blocklists/Client List: Boeing KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Inpixon KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Client List: Google KWs - INCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: AT&T KWs 2021 - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Philip Morris KWs - INCLUDES ANY 

client-blocklists/Capital One KWs 2 - INCLUDES ANY - 1.4.21

client-blocklists/Bank of America Merrill Lynch KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/CME KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Google PG KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Chase KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

client-blocklists/Client List: Office Depot KWs - INCLUDES ANY

client-blocklists/Client List: ETrade KWs - EXCLUDES ALL

prism://prism.query/site,/us-policy/economic-policy&limit=20

Economic Policy

prism://prism.query/site,/us-policy&limit=20

White House to work with states on reimposing work-search requirements following GOP outcry

Push comes as Biden administration plans meetings with senior Republicans over jobs package