New York City was the epicenter of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic as it began in the United States. It recorded its first death from the disease on March 1, 2020. The city’s economy also suffered a massive setback during the lockdown in the early months of the pandemic.

A full job recovery is still several years away and the major problems that predated COVID-19 and persisted through it — poverty, homelessness, affordable housing, unemployment and under-employment — are still with us in the City and across the nation. Nonetheless, the drive to vaccinate the residents of the City is showing substantial success. If this achievement continues, the City’s ability to control the harm from this deadly disease will give the local economy a real chance to recover and, along with it, a chance for the City to get on top of its many problems, especially compared to many other jurisdictions in this country.

NYC Vaccination Program Outpaces the Nation

The facts are that the residents of New York City are making major progress on getting vaccinated against COVID-19; better progress, in fact, than the rest of the nation. The city’s Department of Health COVID vaccine tracker reports that 84.7% of the city’s adults have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine and 77.3% are fully vaccinated as of October 18. By contrast, the CDC is reporting as of that same date, 78.9% of U.S. adults had gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, and 68.4% were fully vaccinated. New York City is doing especially well vaccinating adolescents. Mayor de Blasio stated on October 1 that nearly 75% of 12- to 17-year-olds had gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, substantially better than the national rate of 58% as of October 12 (my calculation using the CDC website data). The City’s decision to use schools as vaccine sites undoubtedly contributed to this success.

https://jimbrennanscommentaries.com/2021/10/28/new-york-city-has-outpaced-the-nation-in-vaccinations-offering-a-foundation-for-economic-recovery/

Kyrsten Sinema struck an agreement on prescription drug pricing with President Joe Biden as part of Democrats' social spending talks, though it’s at risk of ultimately being excluded as the party tries to reach a deal that can pass.

The Arizona Democrat was somewhat reluctant to strike a deal on prescription drug price negotiation, a key campaign plank for many Democrats. But a source familiar said the president and Sinema were able to see eye to eye in the end.

“Sinema struck a deal with President Biden to include Medicare drug negotiation in the framework, consistent with the proposal authored by Congressman Scott Peters, with some edits in the insulin space to further lower costs for consumers. It is unclear if it will be included in the framework this morning — that decision was left with House leadership and Chairman Pallone,” the source said.

House Democrats fired back on Thursday. A Democratic aide said they were never party to the Sinema-White House agreement and saw it as a “Trojan horse devised by Big Pharma.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told her members: “Don’t embarrass” the President by voting down the infrastructure bill as he travels overseas, according to a source in the room.

She also said she would put the infrastructure bill on the floor today and hold the vote open to get the bill through.

When Rep. Jan Schakowsky, a Democrat from Illinois, asked about key moderates Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, she said take the President at his word he will get the larger bill through.

A member of Congress in the room, representing a Midwestern district, tells CNN the President explicitly made the point that the Democratic majorities hinge on what happens over the next week. It was not about the race in Virginia, which some members have dismissed the importance of, but rather the midterm elections.

President Biden is delivering remarks now from the White House on the future of his bipartisan infrastructure bill and wider spending bill.

"Today I'm pleased to announce after months of tough and thoughtful negotiations I think we have a historic — I know we have a historic economic framework," Biden said.

Biden attended a Democratic caucus meeting this morning to lay out the framework of his plan. He's trying to convince progressives who are skeptical of anything short of a fully written bill.

The President is set to depart soon on his second foreign trip as President for the G20 Leaders' summit and climate talks at the COP26 summit.

Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi revved their party toward a House vote as soon as Thursday on a $550 billion Senate-passed infrastructure bill, even as progressives remain undecided about taking what one called "a leap of faith in the president."

Soon after the White House outlined a framework for a $1.75 trillion deal on social spending, Biden made a high-stakes appearance on Capitol Hill to sell Pelosi's caucus on it. While some liberal priorities were included in the package of climate, health care and other social policy investments, others were left on the cutting-room floor — and House progressives remain noncommittal about whether to vote yes on infrastructure given their uncertainty about the framework's Senate future.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus held its own meeting after Biden left, as its chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) held off on where her group stood after the president’s pitch for its votes.

“We have had a position of needing to see the legislative text and voting on both bills," Jayapal said, referring to the infrastructure bill and the separate, still-unwritten social spending bill. "And we'll see where people are. But I think a lot of people are still in that place."

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), the third-highest ranking Democrat in the House, warned on Wednesday night that his party is not currently positioned to maintain its majorities in the House and Senate in the 2022 midterm elections due to divisions among the party’s various factions.

“We are not going to do what we need to do next year until we build enough intestinal fortitude to start operating a little outside or beyond our comfort zones,” Clyburn told a virtual audience from the Charleston Jewish Federation. “We’re not there yet. I’m hopeful that we can get there. Will we ever get there? That remains to be seen.”

“I think we can. I’m not sure we will,” Clyburn added. “My dad used to say to me all the time, ‘Wherever there is a will, there is a way.’ I’m not too sure that Democrats have yet developed the will to win in 2022.”

The South Carolina Democrat characterized the current ideological divides in his party as the major threat to its tissue-thin majorities in the House and Senate. These divides have been on stark display during the ongoing negotiations over the bipartisan infrastructure bill and “Build Back Better” social spending bill, with intra-party trust between the center and the left severely tested.

Nicholas Kristof, the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for The New York Times, announced on Wednesday that he was joining the crowded Oregon Democratic primary field for governor.

Kristof has been making moves to set up for a gubernatorial run for months. POLITICO reported in early September that he has reached out to potential campaign staffers, and he left The Times earlier this month in order to further prepare for a run.

He kicked off his campaign on Wednesday with a biographical video highlighting his roots in the state and hitting the existing political system for not tackling homelessness or addiction.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, is term-limited. The post will likely stay in Democratic hands, and Kristof is far from a frontrunner in the field. He enters a primary to replace Brown that also includes state House Speaker Tina Kotek, state Treasurer Tobias Read and several other candidates. State Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is also said to be considering a run.

This one happened a few days ago, but we couldn’t resist including. Republican Reps. Ann Wagner (Mo.) and Michael McCaul (Texas) were at an event at Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar on Capitol Hill last Thursday. Standing by the bar, a person in their group asked about redistricting in Missouri and said he hoped Wagner gets a more conservative district to help her win reelection.

Wagner, a center-right Republican, responded skeptically: “Then you get those wacko birds,” she said.

To which McCaul, the ranking Republican on the Foreign Affairs Committee, said: “That’s why we had to vote the way we did today!” That day, House Democrats and nine Republicans voted to hold Steve Bannon in criminal contempt of Congress for ignoring a Jan. 6 committee subpoena. Wagner and McCaul voted against the contempt effort.

Wagner’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment. Foreign Affairs’ spokeswoman, Leslie Shedd, denied the account and vowed that McCaul would “never speak to another POLITICO reporter” if Playbook published this item.