☕ The Democratic drama, explained

Pop off, Tuesday.

Poppi, a probiotic soda brand that surged in popularity since its launch in 2018, is being sold to Pepsi’s parent company for nearly $2 billion. With soda sales declining, Pepsi and Coca-Cola are investing in functional sodas that promote gut health. The deal, netting Poppi’s founders $1.65 billion after taxes, is part of Pepsi’s strategy to rival Coca-Cola’s Simply Pop. In 2023, Poppi surpassed $100 million in sales, though it has faced scrutiny over exaggerated health claims.

We're off to start a soda brand.

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Some headlines from this morning:

• Israel has launched its largest attacks in the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire took hold in January. On Monday (local time), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had instructed the army “to take strong action” following “Hamas’ repeated refusal to release the hostages”. It comes as negotiations on the next phase of the ceasefire remain stalled. Hamas said Israel has “decided to overturn the ceasefire agreement”. Early reports indicate at least 400 people have been killed in the airstrikes so far.

• A judge has ruled that Prince Harry’s immigration records will be made public after a Freedom of Information request by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. The request followed his memoir Spare, where he admitted to intermittent drug use since age 17. After stepping down from royal duties, Harry has been living in the US with his wife, actress Megan Markle. The foundation mounted the FOI request after alleging he falsified immigration forms, as visa applicants must disclose prior drug use, which typically disqualifies them from entry.

• The judge who temporarily blocked President Trump’s use of wartime deportation powers is demanding an explanation of the Trump administration’s defense for not complying with a court order, after 200 Venezuelans were deported after a judgment was delivered. Over the weekend, Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants he claimed were linked to the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. White House lawyers argued the court’s order to delay the deportations by 14 days was “not enforceable” as it was made orally.

• Harvard University has announced it will waive tuition fees for any undergraduate student whose family earns under $200,000 a year, saving eligible student families an average of $56,000 annually. Harvard officials say bringing tuition “within financial reach for more individuals” will benefit the campus by diversifying the student cohort. Students from families who earn $100,000 or less will also have their housing and associated costs covered by the university.

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President Trump has claimed that some of President Biden’s presidential pardons, signed in the final days and weeks of his presidency, are invalid. The President argues that Biden’s use of an autopen, a device which can be programmed to transcribe signatures without the signer physically holding the pen, voids the orders. 

The claim was originally surfaced by a conservative think tank called The Heritage Foundation, which publicly questioned President Biden’s cognition and agency during his presidency. Here’s what you need to know. 

Autopen

An autopen is a machine that can replicate a person’s signature by holding a pen and following a writing sample that it has been programmed with. Celebrities and politicians often use autopens to sign hundreds or thousands of documents quickly, without using a digital print of their signature.

Which pardons?

While we don’t know for sure, President Trump is thought to have been referring to President Biden’s preemptive pardons of the US House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the Capitol (known as the Jan 6 Committee).

Before leaving office in January, President Biden preemptively pardoned Jan 6 Committee members.

The Jan 6 riots involved supporters of President Trump storming the Capitol after President Biden’s 2020 election win, which they believed was fraudulent.

It was set up to investigate President Trump’s role in inciting these riots, as well as security protocols around the Capitol and the political fallout of the event.

President Biden pardoned members of the Jan 6 committee in an attempt to protect them from any Trump administration prosecution.

What do the experts say?

Constitutional law experts and presidential historians have disagreed with the claim for different reasons.

Historians point out that the autopen has been used by many presidents and use of the autopen was made public by President Lyndon Johnson in 1968. In 2005, the Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department (a role often called upon to clarify particular procedures within the White House) wrote that a president may use an autopen if they have directed someone to attach their signature to it, and to sign a document with the tool.  

According to constitutional law experts quoted by NPC, the only legal criteria which must be met for a presidential pardon is the person who is offered the pardon must actually accept it.

What happens now?

It’s unclear if President Trump intends to take action on this claim. Meanwhile, a number of images have been republished showing President Biden physically signing a number of the executive orders in question. 

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Divisions in the Democratic Party have deepened, after Head Minority Leader Chuck Schumer joined Republicans to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR), avoiding a government shutdown that could have lasted up to six months.

Though Republicans hold a Senate majority, CRs require three-fifths of the Senate to approve the budget (commonly 60 votes), bringing an end to debate and triggering a formal vote. Withholding votes in that first stage of the process to delay action is known as a filibuster.

Let’s start with the CR

A CR is a temporary funding measure to keep the government running until a budget is passed. Unlike typical CRs, this one included an unusually large number of cuts to government departments.

Without a CR, the government does not have access to money to pay its employees or contractors, or pass on any funds to Americans who may receive some form of government benefits. During shutdowns, the President designates essential workers, who work unpaid, while others are furloughed. The longest shutdown lasted 35 days under Trump’s first administration.

What happened?

Last week, the House passed the funding bill with only Republican support. It then headed to the Senate.

With a filibuster expected in the Senate, Democratic leader Chuck Schumer announced Thursday he would vote with Republicans to push forward the process to the final vote (where the Republicans, who have a majority, could pass it easily) and wouldn’t pressure his party to follow.

On Friday, the filibuster was broken 62-38, with nine Democrats and an independent joining Republicans. The bill then passed 54-46, with one Republican opposing and one Democrat, plus an independent, supporting it.

Schumer’s move drew backlash, with House Democrats circulating a letter condemning his decision.

Why did Schumer do it?

Schumer defended his decision, saying he prioritized the “good of the country” over party interests.

He believed Trump and his allies wanted a shutdown to blame Democrats for service disruptions and push for deeper government cuts, using the President’s control of staffing cuts during a shutdown to do so.

“If the government were to shut down, DOGE [Elon Musk’s Department of Governmental Efficiency] has a plan to exploit the crisis for maximum destruction,” Schumer warned.

Why would Democrats want a shutdown?

Democrats in favor of a shutdown were hoping to leverage their votes to secure wording in the CR which would prohibit DOGE from continuing to cut funding approved by Congress.

Is Schumer safe?

Democrats remain divided on a strategy to oppose the Trump Administration and a Republican majority in the House and Senate, and how to rebuild before upcoming elections.

Schumer’s move to side with Republicans angered House Democrats, with some urging Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to challenge him for his Senate seat in New York. House Democrat Jasmin Crockett said Democrats must "decide whether or not Chuck Schumer is the one to lead at this moment."

Senate Democrats and other senior members of the party are yet to openly criticize Schumer, but many are refusing to answer questions from reporters as to their confidence in the leader.

This week, Democratic approval ratings hit their lowest since 1990.