Axios Sneak Peek: Impeachment case falls on deaf ears ... Biden's shadow diplomats return

1 big thing: Vivid impeachment case falls on deaf ears | Tuesday, February 09, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By AT&T   Axios Sneak Peek By Alayna Treene, Hans Nichols and Kadia Goba ·Feb 09, 2021 Today's newsletter — edited by Glen Johnson — is 567 words, a 2-minute read.     1 big thing: Vivid impeachment case falls on deaf ears Rep. Jamie Raskin, the lead House impeachment manager. Photo: Congress.gov via Getty Images   The made-through-TV impeachment presentation delivered by House managers presented a gripping narrative for the public but the rambling, legalistic rebuttal Donald Trump's attorneys presented won Tuesday with the pivotal Senate jurors, Axios' Alayna Treene and Glen Johnson write. Why it matters: The House managers are playing the outside game; they know it's a long shot their prosecution will alter the final result, so they're trying to shift public opinion. Trump's defense is playing an inside game — they're doing just enough to sustain the votes needed to acquit the former president. "Not a single thing will change," Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) told Axios. "The outcome is set." Background: An impeachment proceeding is neither a court case nor subject to popular vote. Instead, it's a political proceeding. As a test vote Tuesday showed, the opening arguments — including a gripping 13-minute video montage aired by the Democrats — did not change the expected outcome. Go deeper.     2. Biden's shadow diplomats sweep back to power Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   Members of President Biden's foreign policy brain trust are shifting back into the highest levels of government after spending the Trump era working together in many of the same powerful policy groups and lucrative business ventures, Axios' Lachlan Markay writes. Why it matters: The overlap points to a more coherent ideological approach to foreign policy than was evident in President Trump's notoriously fractious State Department. But there are some notable liabilities as well. Think tanks that have employed senior Biden officials such as the Center for New American Security and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace both accept large contributions from foreign governments and multinational companies that will undoubtedly be affected by Biden administration policy. And firms that have employed some of those officials, like business consultancies WestExec Advisors and the Albright Stonebridge Group, generally do not disclose their clients. Such financial ties have prompted questions about potential conflicts of interest for incoming senior administration officials, even as they begin to individually disclose their own past sources of income. Go deeper.     3. Diversity visa winners losing chance to immigrate Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   Over 1,000 foreigners have seen their luck wasted — winning a coveted diversity green card lottery only to see their visas expire because of the coronavirus and former President Trump's immigration ban, Axios' Stef Kight reports. Why it matters: President Biden has been dismantling many of his predecessor's immigration policies, yet some coronavirus-related restrictions remain — threatening at least 6,500 issued visas set to expire by the end of March. "President Biden should immediately renounce this illegal usurpation of congressional power and restore the status quo by declaring those bans void," Charles Kuck, an immigration attorney involved in lawsuits on behalf of diversity visa lottery winners, told Axios. "The executive actions signed thus far are just the beginning," a White House spokesperson said. "President Biden has been very clear about restoring compassion and order to our immigration system." Go deeper.     A message from AT&T Nearly 17 million kids lack high-speed internet for learning     The homework gap has existed for decades, but the pandemic made the problem – and the need for a solution – more pressing. AT&T has a plan to connect students to brighter futures. Read it today to learn how we can commit to closing the homework gap together.     4. Ben Carson builds out his political operation Ben Carson. Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images   Ben Carson's former presidential campaign committee has been converted into a new political group that already has hundreds of thousands of dollars in the bank, Lachlan also reports. Why it matters: Carson managed to serve four years as President Trump's secretary of Housing and Urban Development with minimal controversy. He announced a new think tank last week, and now the PAC formed from the remains of his 2016 political outfit is another indication he'll be staying engaged in GOP politics. What's new: Carson's still-active presidential campaign committee officially changed its name Friday to Think BIG America PAC. As of the end of 2020, the group had more than $400,000 in the bank, leftover from the 2016 campaign. Think BIG changed its status from a campaign committee to a PAC that can support other candidates for office. Three web domains bearing the PAC's name also were registered this week, though no website using those domains is active yet. Requests for comment made through Carson's new nonprofit, the American Cornerstone Institute, went unanswered. Go deeper.     5. Pic du jour Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images/Bloomberg via Getty Images   Win McNamee, among the news photographers who stayed at their posts to shoot dramatic photos inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, used a remote camera today to capture this image of House managers heading to the Senate for Donald Trump's second impeachment trial.     A message from AT&T We can close the homework gap together     AT&T has invested more than $125 billion in American infrastructure since 2015 and is backed by one of the largest private full-time union workforces in America. Read the plan to learn how together we can connect students to brighter futures.   🙏 Thanks for turning to Sneak to help you understand this important day. If you want to receive email delivery of this newsletter, sign up here.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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