Biden touts law enforcement plan while attacking 'MAGA' lawmakers

President Joe Biden had a message for lawmakers who defended the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol as he touted his Safer America Plan Tuesday. "Let me say this to my 'MAGA Republican' friends in Congress," the president said, referring to former President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan. "Don't tell me to support law enforcement if you won't condemn what happened on the sixth." "For God's sake, whose side are you on?" Biden said. Biden admonished the lawmakers as he called for more funding for police before a crowd at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Investments in community policing and crime prevention are key policy components of his Safer America Plan, and the president urged communities to use federal funds to supplement local police as early as May. Biden also chided Trump's supporters in the GOP for claiming the mantle as the "law and order" party while defending the insurrectionists who attacked police officers in Washington, D.C., last year. "You can't be pro-law enforcement and pro-insurrection," he said. "You can't be a party of law and order and call the people who attacked the police on Jan. 6, patriots. You can't do it." Biden recently slammed the "MAGA philosophy" as "like semi-fascism," which angered the Republican National Committee. RNC spokesperson Nathan Brand called the president's remarks "despicable."

Biden also renewed his commitment to banning assault weapons, saying America's lax gun laws contributed to mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas; Newtown, Connecticut; and Buffalo, New York, among other locations. "It's time to hold every elected official's feet to the fire and ask them, 'Are you for banning assault weapons? Yes or no?' The answer's no, vote against them," he said. Biden ended his speech by asking the crowd to vote for Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. and Democratic senatorial candidate, John Fetterman. Fetterman is running against Trump-endorsed candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz in a highly publicized Senate race.

The president is scheduled to return to Pennsylvania Thursday for a prime-time speech on the "continued battle for the soul of the nation" at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia.

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Saudi Arabia touts vertical living in Neom's zero-carbon city

Project will vertically layer homes, offices, public parks and schools within a mirrored facade and is expected to be publicly listed in 2024, says Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to state media.

"We aim to make Saudi one of the largest three stock markets on the planet," says Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (Reuters Archive)

The zero-carbon city that Saudi Arabia plans to build at Neom will vertically layer homes, offices, public parks and schools within a mirrored facade stretching over 170 kilometres, the crown prince has said in remarks carried by state media.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman first unveiled plans for "The Line" in January 2021, the first major construction project for the $500 billion Neom business zone aimed at diversifying the economy of the world's top oil exporter.

The city, 200 metres wide and running on "100 percent renewable energy," will also include a high-speed rail with an end-to-end transit of 20 minutes. It will eventually accommodate nine million residents, state news agency SPA cited him as saying on Monday.

"The city's vertically layered communities will challenge the traditional flat, horizontal cities," the prince said. "The designs of The Line embody how urban communities will be in the future in an environment free from roads, cars and emissions."

The kingdom's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, is the cornerstone investor in Neom, a 26,500-square-kilometre high-tech development on the Red Sea with several zones, including industrial and logistics areas, planned for completion in 2025.

Business zone will likely be listed in 2024

The prince said the Neom business zone will likely be publicly listed in 2024, state media reported.

"Neom will add a trillion riyals ($266 billion) to the Saudi stock market value. At least 1.2 trillion at the beginning and the overall will increase after project completion to exceed 5 trillion", said the crown prince.

He added in remarks to reporters that all ventures in which the sovereign wealth fund is an investor will be listed on the stock market.

Prince Mohammed said the government will raise $133 billion of capital in 2027 and tap the market for an additional $53-79 billion riyals for Neom.

"We aim to make Saudi one of the largest three stock markets on the planet," the crown prince said.

Source: Reuters

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