Bill Paying: Trying to sell his giant infrastructure bill over Republican opposition, President Biden said yesterday he’s “flexible” on his plan for a 28 percent corporate tax rate so long as his plan gets paid for one way or the other. “But we got to pay for this,” he said. 

  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has called the plan “a Trojan horse” for massive tax increases and unnecessary spending. The President said, “I will not impose any tax increases on people making less than $400,000 a year.”

  Biden said, “We’ll be open to good ideas and good faith negotiations. But here’s what we won’t be open to. We will not be open to doing nothing. Inaction simply is not an option.”

  There seems to be disagreement on exactly what infrastructure is. McConnell said, “If we could agree on what the definition of infrastructure is – and I think it clearly must include roads and bridges and broadband – there may be a way forward.”

  Biden said, “It also depends on having reliable high-speed internet in every home. Because today’s high speed internet is infrastructure. It depends on the electric grid, a grid that won’t collapse in a winter storm, or be compromised by hackers at home or abroad.”

  The President is also pushing for major flood control projects and replacement of old lead water pipes that poison people.

  Biden said scientific research is also a kind of infrastructure. “Investing in research and development help lead to lithium batteries, LED technology, the internet itself,” he said. “It helped lead to vaccine breakthroughs that are helping us beat COVID-19.” 

Viral News: The British variant of the coronavirus labelled B.1.1.5., which is more contagious than the original and makes people sicker, has become the dominant strain spreading in the US, the Centers for Disease Control says.

  CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said that the newer strain has been shown to be more transmissible among younger people and that new outbreaks in the US have been linked to youth sports and day care centers.

  Research says the British strain is about 50 percent more transmissible than the original coronavirus that has killed about 2.9 million people around the world.

  As the Biden administration pours on the steam to get the nation vaccinated, about 25 percent of Americans say they would outright refuse a coronavirus vaccine if offered to them, according to a recent NPR/Marist poll. Another 5 percent are “undecided.”

  The most reluctant to get a shot are Republican men and residents of rural areas. It’s a trend that endangers the US population reaching what’s called “herd immunity” from Covid-19. That’s the point at which the spreading virus dead-ends against people who are immune.

Full Weight: Former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin kept his full body weight on George Floyd’s neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds, a Los Angeles Police Department use of force expert testified yesterday in Chauvin’s murder trial.

  Jody Stiger, a longtime Los Angeles Police Department sergeant, said Chauvin also appeared to be attempting to inflict pain on Floyd’s hand even though he was no longer resisting. He said Chauvin was “squeezing fingers or bringing knuckles together” and pulling Floyd’s  wrist into his handcuffs to inflict pain.

  When Chauvin continued to pin Floyd to the ground, Stiger said, it turned into “deadly force.”

Shanked: Golfer Tiger Woods had been driving between 84 and 87 mph in a 45 zone moments before his February car accident, the Los Angeles County Sheriff says. Woods was going 75 when he rolled his SUV going down a curvy hillside road, according to information from the car’s data recorder.

  The golfer suffered a serious leg injury that endangers his future in the game.

  Investigators say Woods never hit the brakes and in fact actually stepped on the gas when he realized he was losing control. They say there’s no evidence Woods was impaired. So far, he hasn’t even been ticketed, so maybe they gave him a Mulligan.

   In a Twitter post yesterday, Woods didn’t acknowledge his blame for the accident. He tweeted, “I will continue to focus on my recovery and family.”

The Spin Rack: As expected, the Arkansas legislature voted to override the governor’s veto of a bill that makes it illegal to give “gender affirming” treatment to people under age 18. So, it’s now illegal. — British and European health authorities have linked the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine to rare instances of blood clots in recipients … Andrew Giuliani, 35, a former Trump White House staffer and the son of Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani by one of his three wives, says he plans to run for governor of New York in 2022. He’s never held elective office. — The owners of a New York City apartment building have fired two doorman who failed to do anything to stop the random attack on an Asian woman on the sidewalk right in front of them. — The family of “Jungle Jack” Hanna, famous as the likable former director of the Columbus zoo who made exotic animals popular, announced that he has been diagnosed with dementia. — Former Vice President Mike Pence, who calls his wife “mother” and isn’t known for big thoughts, has signed a book deal worth between $3 million and $4 million.

Can’t Ketchup: It’s time to regret all those takeout packets of ketchup you’ve thrown out over the years. Heinz, which dominates ketchup production in this country, says the demand for takeout has led to a shortage of ketchup packets. 

  Now this crisis is getting serious.

-30-