(Almost) Daily Meme

'Just give us our money': Taliban push to unlock Afghan billions abroad                                                        

 John O'Donnell / Reuters

 

Afghanistan's Taliban government is pressing for the release of billions of dollars of central bank reserves as the drought-stricken nation faces a cash crunch, mass starvation and a new migration crisis.

Afghanistan parked billions of dollars in assets overseas with the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks in Europe, but that money has been frozen since the Islamist Taliban ousted the Western-backed government in August.

A spokesman for the finance ministry said the government would respect human rights, including the education of women, as he sought fresh funds on top of humanitarian aid that he said offered only "small relief".

Under Taliban rule from 1996-2001, women were largely shut out of paid employment and education and normally had to cover their faces and be accompanied by a male relative when they left home.

How's This For a Win: Text of Biden's $1.75 Trillion Spending Bill is Here, Infrastructure Delayed Yet Again

Rebecca Downs / Townhall Tipsheet

 

After months of Democratic disarray and disunity, the 1,684 page text of President Joe Biden's $1.75 trillion spending bill is here. It was finally put into place as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) claimed Democrats were close to reaching a deal on a key component of Biden's agenda, the other being the Infrastructure package, which is running into its own problems. As Spencer pointed out, Pelosi has warned her members not to embarrass the president and to hand him a win. 

When President Biden announced a deal, the bill's text was not yet released, though a framework was. Touted programs in the framework included:

• Caregiving: Universal pre-school; child-care; elder care and care for people with disabilities; expanded child tax credit
• Energy and Climate Change: Clean energy tax credits and procurements; resilience investments for dealing with extreme weather; incentives for clean energy
• Healthcare: Affordable Care Act tax credits; Medicare coverage of hearing
• Other Middle Class Boosts: Investments in housing; investments in post-high school education and workforce training; earned income tax credit for workers without children; and "equity."

Of course, there were programs not mentioned in the framework or mentioned by just the bare minimum. Read more and see tweets and video here.