President Joe Biden prepares to sign a series of executive orders at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office just hours after his inauguration on January 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden is expected to deliver remarks on his administration’s response to the economic crisis at 2:45 p.m. on Friday. It follows Democratic President Joe Biden’s campaign pledge to halt new drilling on federal lands and end the leasing of publicly owned energy reserves as part of his plan to address climate change. Its effect could be further blunted by companies that stockpiled enough drilling permits in Trump’s final months to allow them to keep pumping oil and gas for years. But there are other ways an ambitious Biden administration could make it harder for permit holders to extract oil and gas.

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris held a live event Friday afternoon to introduce nominees and appointees for their administration. This live stream has now ended. President-elect Biden is introducing five top picks for his new administration on Friday, drawing on leading names from the Obama White House while also tapping an Ohio congresswoman and a congressional committee veteran. Appearing at the afternoon event are Biden’s choice for director of White House Domestic Policy Council, Susan Rice, who served as President Barack Obama’s national security adviser and U.N. ambassador; and Denis McDonough, Obama’s White House chief of staff, now nominated as veterans affairs secretary. Also attending will be Biden’s selection for agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, who held the same post for Obama; Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge, chosen to be the new administration’s housing chief; and Katherine Tai, who is chief trade counsel for the House Ways and Means Committee and has been tapped as U.S. trade representative.

Are Michigan polls still open for in-person voting during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic? All registered Michigan voters do also have the option to instead vote by mail using an absent voter ballot. Vote-by-mail option for Michigan votersThe state of Michigan mailed absentee voting applications to all registered Michigan voters in May for both this year’s August and November elections. Click here to learn more about voting by mail in Michigan for the 2020 General Election. Click here to view a sample of your Michigan ballot for the 2020 General Election.

DETROIT – The United Auto Workers (UAW) union leadership announced Tuesday they are endorsing Democratic candidate Joe Biden for President of the United States. “In a changing economic environment, we need steady leadership and planning to make sure the jobs of the future are good-paying union jobs with benefits,” said Gamble. “And UAW members need to know they have a voice in those changes.”Gamble added that it is important to have leadership that, at all times, considers the needs of working men and women in making policy choices, and judicial appointments. “UAW members ultimately want a voice. And Joe Biden is committed to giving UAW members that voice at the table.”Related: