Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - ‘Trump’s big lie’

At the direction of U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and the urging of former President Donald Trump, Senate Republicans blocked a bill to create a 9/11-style, bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection by Trump’s followers. The move avoids a high-profile review of the deadly siege by far-right extremist groups and others that could extend into 2022, when midterm elections are scheduled. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer accused Republicans of seeking a political shield by blocking an independent probe of the unprecedented attack on Congress and the U.S. Capitol. He said “Trump’s big lie,” the Republican’s false statements about the 2020 election, had enveloped the GOP party completely. — Margaret Sutherlin

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Here are today’s top stories  

President Joe Biden issued his first full $6 trillion budget proposal, detailing ambitions to dramatically expand the size of the government. New spending would be paired with significant tax increases on corporations and the wealthy, which are predicted to bring in $3.6 trillion over a decade. But Congress controls the purse strings, and with Republicans almost uniformly opposed to Biden’s budget priorities and tax proposals, he and Congressional Democrats face a tough road to passage.

Retail trading favorite AMC, which topped a $10 billion valuation Thursday, lost momentum Friday. Bitcoin slumped 7%, nearing levels seen in last week’s crypto meltdown, and U.S. traders are bracing for fresh volatility over the long weekend. Markets overall were higher Friday after consumer spending numbers rose in April. Here’s your markets wrap.

A new probe is uncovering how badly Brazil botched its Covid-19 response. Last August, when the country emerged as one of the worst hit nations, Pfizer offered to set aside as many as 70 million doses of the BioNTech vaccine it was helping develop. It got no answer. So it made the offer again. And then a third time. And still, no answer.

Credit Suisse is cutting ties with SoftBank, distancing itself from a key backer to Lex Greensill’s collapsed supply-chain finance empire following allegations of conflict of interest. The bank is reviewing its risk and client relationships after being hit by the twin collapses of Greensill and Archegos Capital Management, the latter of which is now under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department. 

Few infrastructure projects better highlight the scope of the problem facing the U.S. than the Gateway project. Amtrak’s proposed $11.6 billion passenger-rail tunnel between New York and New Jersey received long-delayed environmental clearance Friday. It’s the project’s biggest step forward in years.

Health regulators in the European Union approved the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 12-15, the first approved for use in kids in the bloc. The U.S. is taking a closer look at vaccine “passports” for international travel, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, opening the door to voluntary measures to prove vaccination status abroad. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. 

A small northern suburb of Chicago became the first city in the U.S. to promise reparations. Now, a flood of questions have arisen in the Illinois community, including whether the payments should be called reparations at all.

What you’ll need to know tomorrow 

• China reported extremely low “adverse” effects from its Covid vaccine.
• Hong Kong lifts quarantine rules for senior international bankers.
• These are the women who built Black Wall Street, and then rebuilt it.
• Americans are cutting back on meat—and climate isn’t the reason. 
• The U.K. is weighing a carbon border tax to protect its industry. 
• A police raid on a marijuana farm actually turned up a Bitcoin mine.
• From bubbles to boxed (yes, boxed), these are summer’s best rosés.

Europe’s Ivory Ban May Not Be Enough

Despite bans in China and the U.S., the global ivory trade is still flourishing at $23 billion annually. The EU’s proposed near total ban might help build momentum toward a global clampdown, but conservationists worry the recent surge in elephant killings isn’t a last gasp by poachers, but rather the final chapter for an iconic mammal that will soon cease to exist.

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