Newsletter Feb 8, 2021

If you thought the Super Bowl was hard-hitting, get ready for two more big battles this week on Capitol Hill over a relief bill and an impeachment trial.

3 Things

Bill in full?: President Joe Biden has decided to bypass bipartisan negotiations with Republicans and proceed directly to the finish line with his $1.9 trillion proposal through budget reconciliation. Most items in his American Relief Plan are expected to pass this week.
The Senate approved the meat and potatoes of the bill in an all-night session that didn't end until Friday, and the House is scheduled to take up the issue this week. If the Democrats' slim majority holds in the House, Biden could be signing the legislation within days.
"We need a big package, and we need to get this done quickly," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Sunday.
However, it appears Biden is open to compromise on a few items the GOP deems important enough to hold up passage. One is the idea to target the $1,400 stimulus checks to those most in need, reducing the income qualifications to $75,000 from $99,000 per individual.
Biden has also indicated that his call to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour could be another casualty of bipartisan give-and-take. The GOP strongly opposes the legislation, so Biden has agreed to revisit the issue at a later date to appease the opposition.
WHICH ITEMS MIGHT FAIL WITHOUT BIPARTISAN SUPPORT

Impeachment, Round 2: If you are one of those who follow high political drama like it's a soap opera (and the plot lines have been quite similar lately), former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial is shaping up to be just as juicy as the first.
Although the central character is still not expected to appear, there is a cast of colorful characters leading the proceedings. Just as the impeachment spotlight introduced us to likeable characters like former Lt. Col Alex Vindman and former US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, the second trial is sure to bring more to the fore.
With the trial expected to get under way Tuesday, we've put together a list of new faces who will play key roles in the case. And, of course, a full cast of characters from Trump's original trial will be back -- Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Ted Cruz, Jim Jordan and more.
The witness list could also get interesting as Dems have discussed calling some of the Trump supporters who participated in the attack back to the Capitol to testify. Trump's lawyers are expected to avoid using the First Amendment defense to justify their client's role in the incident, although his pre-riot speech is sure to come into question.
SEE THE SNEAK PREVIEW FOR TRUMP IMPEACHMENT 2

Thin blue line: Some of the darkest days in our nation's history have been particularly blue for law enforcement across the country following a violent week that left four officers dead and several others wounded. It's a solemn reminder of their brave service.
The shooting death of a New Mexico state trooper by a convicted drug trafficker was the latest in a series of deadly encounters for officers doing their jobs. Two FBI agents were fatally shot and three were injured in an exchange with a suspect involving a child pornography charges. In Mississippi, a veteran with 20 years on the police force was killed responding to an attempted suicide.
The string of incidents serves as a reminder of the difficult job police officers are asked to do in the face of a depressing pandemic and divisive political climate. A worsening mental health crisis puts police in dangerous positions and no-win situations, particularly with the pressures of unjustified police shootings weighing on their minds.
Policing during a pandemic, when officers are required to be in close contact with strangers, only adds to the stresses of an already-dangerous job. So after rooting for the Chiefs and the Bucs, don't forget about the team in blue. They could use a little cheer this year.
HERE'S A LOOK BACK AT THE TRAGIC WEEK FOR POLICE

Markets

DJIA	31,148.24	0.30%
S&P 500	3,886.83	0.39%
Nasdaq Composite	13,856.30	0.57%
Japan: Nikkei 225	29,352.02	1.99%
UK: FTSE 100	6,489.33	-0.22%
Crude Oil Futures	57.44	1.04%
Gold Futures	1,811.10	-0.10%
Yen	105.47	0.09%
Euro	1.20	-0.11%
* As of market close

Tossing cookies?

Google is starting a no-cookies diet in an effort to get ahead of growing privacy issues with the user-tracing software for targeted advertising.

The widespread use of cookies allows tech giants like Google and Facebook to deliver personalized ads to likely customers, but such practices are drawing complaints from the public and heightened interest from lawmakers, who are calling for more regulation of the industry.

Last month, Google rolled out a new system called Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC), a more secure alternative to cookies. Google claims the use of FloC could improve online privacy and protect individual users while still enabling advertisers to deliver targeted ads to key groups.

"This approach effectively hides individuals 'in the crowd' and uses on-device processing to keep a person's web history private on the browser," one Google executive said. "Results indicate that when it comes to generating interest-based audiences, FLoC can provide an effective replacement signal for third-party cookies."

Google said it plans to begin testing the FLoC approach with advertisers later this year on its Chrome browser, which accounted for 63 percent of the global browser market last year. Closest competitors Firefox and Safari have already done away with the use of third-party cookies.

FIND OUT HOW FLoC COULD PREEMPT INTERNET RIGHTS LAWS

Cuban fiscal crisis

The great irony of the U.S.'s decades-long policy against communism is that one of the last bastions of the system sits just 90 miles off its coast.

Once an America-friendly destination for tourism and investment, Cuba has been a very visible example of how those policies have failed since the Fidel Castro-led revolution of the 1950s. The U.S. has tried sanctions, diplomacy and even a failed coup attempt to bring the island nation into the democratic fold, but the late Castro's communist shadow continues to cast over Cuba's crippled economy and impoverished people.

But that may be changing after the government announced an expanded effort to shift toward a more privatized economic model that would see the list of authorized private industries from 127 to more than 2,000. The move is intended to open up new opportunities for growth in the private sector in an economy that has declined 11% amid the pandemic.

Adding to Cuba's economic misery is a long list of tough sanctions imposed by Trump, who designated it as a "state sponsor of terrorism" shortly before leaving office. Biden is expected to try to normalize relations with Cuba, a process started by former President Barack Obama. Cuba's willingness to make market reforms is a good early sign.

SEE WHAT THE CUBAN REFORMS MAY MEAN FOR INVESTMENTS

Champa Bay

If there were any questions about Tom Brady's title as the GOAT, he answered them Sunday in leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Super Bowl LV championship with a 31-9 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.

The 43-year-old veteran quarterback claimed his seventh Super Bowl ring in his 10th appearance and captured his fifth Super Bowl MVP award -- all NFL records. He threw two touchdown passes to longtime New Englands Patriots teammate Rob Gronkowski in their first seasons in Tampa Bay.

The lopsided game still featured plenty of entertainment value, particularly the halftime and pre-game shows. The Weeknd put on a strong halftime performance in a well-choreographed routine that featured a city-scape backdrop with musicians playing in the windows, and an on-field number while he was surrounded by masked dancers wearing matching outfits.

The commercials were down this year due to the pandemic, but there were a few that scored well with viewers. Rocket Mortgage's spot with Tracy Morgan being "pretty sure" about things going horribly wrong, and the "Wayne's World" offshoot with Cardi B was a hit for Uber Eats.

READ ALL ABOUT THE HIGHLIGHTS OF SUPER BOWL LV