US Executive Branch Update

Stacy A. Swanson

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US Executive Branch Update – March 16, 2021

by: Stacy A. Swanson of Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP - Capital Thinking Blog

Wednesday, March 17, 2021

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This report provides a snapshot of the US Executive Branch priorities via daily schedules and the prior day’s press releases.

POTUS’ Schedule*

10:15 a.m. EDT – The President receives the President’s Daily Brief | Oval Office

1:40 p.m. EDT – The President departs the White House en route Joint Base Andrews

2:00 p.m. EDT – The President departs Joint Base Andrews en route Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

3:30 p.m. EDT – The President visits a small business in Chester, Pennsylvania | Chester, Pennsylvania

5:45 p.m. EDT – The President departs Delaware County, Pennsylvania, en route Wilmington, Delaware

VPOTUS’ Schedule*

The Vice President and Second Gentleman will travel to Denver, Colorado. The Vice President and Second Gentleman will visit a COVID-19 vaccination clinic at Plan De Salud Del Valle, Inc., in Fort Lupton, Colorado. After, The Vice President and Second Gentleman will participate in a listening session with small business owners at Maria Empanada in Denver, Colorado.

The Vice President will depart Colorado en route to Washington, D.C., later that day.

White House Press Briefing Schedule*

2:15 p.m. EDT – Press Secretary Jen Psaki will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route Philadelphia, PA

*The US President (POTUS) and Vice President’s (VPOTUS) daily schedules are subject to change, as is the White House press briefing schedule.

Recap of Monday, March 15, 2021

Note: Bold hyperlinks spotlight COVID-19 and reopening developments.

The White House

Remarks by President Biden on the Implementation of the American Rescue Plan
Transcript: Press Briefing by White House COVID-19 Response Team and Public Health Officials
Transcript: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, March 15, 2021
Nominations: President Biden Announces his Intent to Nominate Key Members of his Administration
Nominations Sent to the Senate

Department of Defense (DOD)

Readout of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III’s Meeting with Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi of Japan
Press Release: New Officials Sworn In at the Defense Department
Press Release: DOD Receives Approval for Grants to Develop Interstate Compacts for Licensure Portability
Article: DOD Officials Describe Conditions in Indo-Pacific
Article: Japan Visit Aims to Cement Cornerstone Alliance
Contracts for March 15, 2021

Department of State

Daily Schedule | Tuesday, March 16
March 16: Readout | Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin’s Meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Suga
March 16: Statement | U.S.-Japan Joint Press Statement
March 16: Readout | The United States and Japan Expand Indo-Pacific Economic Cooperation
March 16: Readout | Secretary Blinken’s Meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi
March 16: Remarks | Secretary Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobua Kishi Before Their Meeting
March 16: Remarks | Secretary Antony J. Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi Before Their Meeting
March 16: Remarks | Secretary Antony J. Blinken at a Virtual Meet & Greet with Mission Japan Staff and Family Members
March 15: Remarks | Secretary Antony J. Blinken at a Virtual Meeting with Japanese Women Entrepreneurs
March 15: Remarks | Secretary Antony J. Blinken at a Virtual Meeting with Japanese Business Leaders
March 15: Joint Statement | Secretary of State of the United States of America, the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom, and the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, and Italy (re: 10^th anniversary of Syrian uprising)
March 15: Transcript | Department Press Briefing – March 15, 2021

US Agency for International Development (USAID)

Press Release: USAID Welcomes Biden-Harris Appointees
Press Release: The United States Remains Committed to the Syrian People on the 10 Year Anniversary of Syria’s Conflict

US Mission to the United Nations (UN)

Press Release: US Delegation to the 65th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women
Remarks by Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at a UN Security Council Briefing on Syria
Remarks at the NYC Mayor’s Office for International Affairs’ Virtual COVID-19 Memorial Event with the Diplomatic Community

Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)

Press Release: DNI Haines Statement on the President’s Intent to Nominate Chris Fonzone as ODNI General Counsel

Department of the Treasury

Press Release: Treasury Announces Key Staff Appointments | March 16, 2021
Readout: Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen’s Call with Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
Press Release: Treasury International Capital Data for January
Press Release: Settlement Agreement between the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and UniControl, Inc.

Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC)

Press Release: SEC Obtains Emergency Asset Freeze, Charges California Trader with Posting False Stock Tweets

Department of Justice

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) | Daily Press Releases
Press Release: Tech Executive Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Money Laundering in Connection with PPP Loans
Press Release: Two Men Charged with Assaulting Federal Officers with Dangerous Weapon on January 6

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)/ Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

Press Release: Border Patrol Agents Rescue Five Illegal Aliens in Two Separate Events (California)
Press Release: USBP Seizes More Than $76K in Bulk Currency (California)
Press Release: Fentanyl pills, meth and illegal alien intercepted at checkpoint (Arizona)
Press Release: Laredo Sector Border Patrol and Laredo Police Department Shuts Down Stash House (Texas)
Press Release: Large Groups Continue to Flow into the RGV (Texas)
Press Release: CBP Officers at the Laredo Port of Entry Seize Methamphetamine Worth Nearly $1 Million (Texas)
Press Release: CBP at DFW Thwarts Phony Facebook Lottery (Texas)
Press Release: CBP Port Huron Seizes Handgun and Marijuana (Michigan)
Press Release: Operation Stop the Flow Yields More than $500K of Counterfeits Seized by Kansas City CBP Officers (Missouri)

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Press Release: FEMA Awards $37 Million to Virginia for Vaccination Effort
Press Release: FEMA Advisors Available for Oklahomans Requiring Specialized Assistance

Department of Commerce

Blog: Join the Earth Day Photo Challenge
Blog: Spotlight on Commerce | Eloise Parker, Assistant Director for Demographic Programs, U.S. Census Bureau

US International Trade Commission (USITC)

Press Release: USITC Makes Determination in Five-Year (Sunset) Review Concerning Diamond Sawblades from China
Press Release: USITC Institutes Section 337 Investigation of Certain Apparatus and Methods of Opening Containers

Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Statement by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on the Nomination of Janie Simms Hipp to Serve as USDA General Counsel
Press Release: USDA Invests $28 Million in New Projects to Help Restore Lost Wetland Functions, Benefits on Agricultural Landscapes
Press Release: USDA Requests Information on USDA’s Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Strategy

Department of Energy

Press Release: US Department Of Energy Awards $2 Million To Develop Clean Hydrogen Technologies
Press Release: US Department Of Energy Announces Call For Joint U.S.-Israel Clean Energy Technology Proposals

Environmental Protection Agency

Press Release: EPA Strengthens Key Power Plant Rule to Reduce Smog this Summer and Improve Air Quality for Millions of Americans
Press Release: EPA selects Groundwork Denver to receive $178,000 Brownfields job training grant to build a skilled environmental workforce in Sheridan, Colorado

Department of Transportation