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President Biden is getting mixed marks for his reliance on industry insiders to staff his administration during its first 100 days.

Why it matters: Progressives have leaned on the new president to limit the revolving door between industry and government. A new report from the Revolving Door Project praises him on that front but highlights key hires it deems ethically questionable.

The Jan. 6 insurrection was a "shock to the system," propelling members of Congress toward the goal of shoring up America's ability to compete with China, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) told Axios during an interview Thursday.

Why it matters: Competition between China's authoritarian model and the West's liberal democratic one is likely to define the 21st century. A bipartisan response would help the U.S. present a united front.

Georgia is not alone in passing a law adding voting restrictions, but other states are seeing a surge in provisions and proposals that would expand access to the polls, according to data from the Brennan Center for Justice.

Driving the news: Just Wednesday, the New York State Assembly passed a bill to restore voting rights to convicted felons who have been released from prison.

Some key Republican senators won't rule out raising additional revenue from corporations, and told Axios they may be willing to close loopholes that allow big businesses to eliminate their overall tax bill.

Why it matters: While President Biden’s proposal to raise the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28% to pay for his infrastructure plan has been met with near-uniform GOP opposition, there’s some appetite to ensure corporations pay more.

The White House on Thursday evening nominated Rick Spinrad, an oceanographer at Oregon State University, to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Why it matters: Filling the NOAA slot would complete the Biden administration's leadership on the climate and environment team. The agency, located within the Commerce Department, houses the National Weather Service and conducts much of the nation's climate science research.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed the delegation traveling to Washington, D.C. next week for strategic talks on Iran to stress their objection to a U.S. return to the 2015 nuclear deal and to refuse to discuss its contents, Israeli officials say.

Why it matters: That position is similar to the one Israel took in the year before the 2015 nuclear deal was announced, which led to a rift between the Israeli government and the Obama administration. History could now repeat itself.

1. Health: Coronavirus cases aren't budging — even after vaccinations doubled— Health care workers feel stress, burnout more than a year into the pandemic — Handful of "breakthrough" COVID cases occurred in nursing homes, CDC says.
2. Vaccines: Johnson & Johnson's vaccine production problems look even bigger — All U.S. adults now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine.
3. Political: Watchdog says agency infighting increased health and safety risks at start of pandemic.
4. World: EU regulator: Benefits of J&J vaccine outweigh risk of rare blood clots.
5. Variant tracker: Where different strains are spreading.

Hispanic U.S. House members are pushing for an aggressive, multiyear "Marshall Plan" for Central America to tackle regional violence, corruption and economic devastation.

The big picture: The call for a Central American plan, similar to a U.S. program that rebuilt Western Europe following World War II, comes as both political parties and the Biden administration struggle to find short-term solutions to the ongoing humanitarian crisis. The price tag: TBD.

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) will deliver his party's response to President Biden's joint address to Congress next week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced on Thursday.

Why it matters: The pick is a big deal in the post-Trump GOP as Republicans navigate what the future of the party will look like. Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, is widely seen as a rising star in the party who is well-liked by pro-Trump Republicans as well more moderate members.

Just after midnight this past Sunday, 12 of the richest and best-known European soccer clubs announced an agreement to form what they called the Super League. By Wednesday morning, outcry from fans, politicians and other soccer organizations stopped the Super League in its tracks.

Axios Re:Cap is joined by Financial Times sports editor Murad Ahmed to discuss the Super League’s very short roller coaster ride, why it struck such a nerve, and how the financial motivations behind the Super League could reshape soccer even if the Super League is never revived.

Sens. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) introduced bipartisan legislation on Thursday in response to the surge of migration at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Why it matters: It is the first bipartisan, bicameral bill to address the border situation. Both Cornyn and Sinema are part of a larger bipartisan group of senators who met for the second time on Wednesday to work toward passing immigration legislation.

Stocks fell Thursday following media reports that President Biden wants to nearly double the capital gains tax paid by wealthy Americans.

Inside the numbers: Biden reportedly is considering a proposal of a 39.6% top rate on long-term capital gains, up from the current 20% rate. He also is expected to maintain an ACA-related investment tax, bringing the total federal rate to as high as 43.4%, as first reported by Bloomberg and confirmed by Axios.

Journalism is seriously restricted in 132 of 180 countries included in Reporters without Borders' annual Press Freedom Index — a particularly dangerous state of affairs during the pandemic.

Breaking it down: Nordic countries are ranked high on the list for having "good" press freedoms, while China, Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea are at the bottom. The U.S. is ranked 44th.

The 48-hour rise and fall of the European Super League is the perfect encapsulation of how anti-greed sentiment has changed the rules of capitalism.

Why it matters: The highly-complex structures of capitalism are built from the mostly base motivations of individuals chasing money. That's been condemned and celebrated in equal measure — but has also largely been accepted.

Senate Republicans formally rolled out the framework for their $568 billion counterproposal to President Biden's $2.5 trillion infrastructure plan on Thursday.

Why it matters: The package is far narrower than anything congressional Democrats or the White House would agree to, but it serves as a marker for what Republicans want out of a potential bipartisan deal.

The House of Representatives voted 216-208 on Thursday to pass a bill that would grant statehood to Washington, D.C.

The big picture: It's the second year in a row that the Democratic-controlled House has voted to recognize D.C. as the 51st state. The bill now heads to a divided Senate, where it faces little chance of reaching the 60 votes necessary to send to President Biden's desk.

Will the real Vincent Van Gogh please stand up? "Immersive Van Gogh" is coming to Orlando this fall. It's not the same as "Van Gogh Alive" at the Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg. And definitely not "Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience" coming to Miami.

What's happening: If you're confused, so are other people who keep thinking they're buying tickets to the same exhibit.

Russia's defense minister said Thursday that massive military exercises near the border with Ukraine had been completed, and that he had ordered troops to return to their permanent bases by May 1, according to state media.

Why it matters: Tens of thousands of troops and heavy military equipment had been moved to the border of eastern Ukraine and the annexed territory of Crimea over the last month, sparking fears of a potential Russian invasion.

Private equity is carefully watching the D.C. debate on corporate taxes, in which Senate Democrats seem to be settling on a 25% rate.

Zoom in: Marginal rates obviously matter, but for PE it's just an appetizer before the weedier work begins on issues like corporate interest deductibility.

Multiple world leaders announced new targets for reducing greenhouse gases during President Biden's virtual climate summit, which featured more than 40 heads of state and other world and business leaders.

Why it matters: The goal of the summit is to spur more ambitious emissions reductions through non-binding commitments, bringing the world in line with the global warming goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.

President Biden's new U.S. emissions-cutting target is a sign of White House ambition and a number that distills the tough political and policy maneuvers needed to realize those aims.

Driving the news: This morning the White House unveiled a nonbinding goal under the Paris Agreement that calls for cutting U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 50%-52% by 2030 relative to 2005 levels.

The Biden administration is moving to address global warming by setting a new, economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 50% to 52% below 2005 levels by 2030.

Why it matters: The new, non-binding target is about twice as ambitious as the previous U.S. target of a 26% to 28% cut by 2025, which was set during the Obama administration. White House officials described the goal as ambitious but achievable during a call with reporters Tuesday night.

More than a year into the coronavirus pandemic, some 3 in 10 health care professionals say they've considered leaving the profession, citing burnout and stress, a Washington Post-Kaiser Family Foundation poll out Thursday indicates.

Why it matters: Studies throughout the pandemic have indicated rising rates of depression and trauma among health care workers, group that is no longer seeing the same public displays of gratitude as during the onset of the pandemic.

It was expected that with the economy improving and company balance sheets already loaded with cash, U.S. firms would slow down their debt issuance in 2021 after setting records in 2020. But just the opposite has happened.

Why it matters: Companies generally issue bonds for one of two reasons — because they're worried about not having enough cash to cover their expenses or because they want to lever up and make risky bets.

Japan on Thursday said it will seek to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 46% below 2013 levels by 2030, per the AP and other outlets.

Why it matters: The country is the world's fifth-largest largest carbon dioxide emitter and a major consumer of coal, oil and natural gas.

Regulators in Europe and Washington are racing to figure out how to govern business' use of artificial intelligence while companies push to deploy the technology.

Driving the news: On Wednesday, the EU revealed a detailed proposal on how AI should be regulated, banning some uses outright and defining which uses of AI are deemed "high-risk."

For most of the past year, a strategic communications firm with deep Washington ties has played an integral role for the prosecution in the State of Minnesota v. Derek Chauvin — operating without pay and so under-the-radar that most of its own staff had no idea.

The big picture: Finsbury Glover Hering — formerly known as the Glover Park Group — has been conducting media monitoring and analysis as part of legal team special prosecutor Neal Katyal's vision for a three-pronged "modern appeal/trial strategy."

The upcoming decision from Facebook’s independent Oversight Board on whether to uphold or reverse Facebook’s indefinite suspension of former President Trump’s profiles has policymakers on edge.

Why it matters: The decision will set a historic precedent for how the tech giant treats accounts of world leaders, and could be a litmus test for the board’s power.

Vaccinations keep climbing, and restaurants are ready to roar back this summer. But eateries from Miami to Martha’s Vineyard to Los Angeles are facing the same problem: not enough workers.

The big picture: Millions of restaurants are hiring all at once and, after a deadly pandemic, the jobs of waiters, cooks, and hosts seem more dangerous than they ever have before. All of this is contributing to a nationwide hospitality worker shortage as the economy opens back up.

The U.S. is pumping out coronavirus vaccines by the millions, but the coronavirus isn’t slowing down.

The big picture: This spring has seen a surge in vaccinations but almost no change in the coronavirus’ spread, leaving the U.S. with an outbreak that’s still too big.

Security forces detained at least 1,770 supporters of the jailed, hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny amid protests across Russia Wednesday, according to the independent monitoring group OVD-Info.

The big picture: At least 30 protesters were arrested in Moscow, 805 in St. Petersburg and 119 in the Urals city of Ufa, among dozens of other cities, the group estimates.

India's health ministry confirmed 314,835 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total tally to nearly 16 million infections.

Why it matters: It's the highest number of coronavirus cases reported in a single day anywhere in the world, eclipsing the previous record of 307,581 cases set in the U.S. on Jan. 8, AP notes.

A Black man was fatally shot by a North Carolina sheriff's deputy in Elizabeth City, northeast of Raleigh, on Wednesday, igniting protests in the local community.

Details: Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten said at a news briefing the State Bureau of Investigation was investigating the shooting of Andrew Brown Jr., which happened about 8:30 a.m as deputies were serving a search warrant.

More than 80% of Asian adults say that violence against them is increasing, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.

The big picture: The survey, conducted April 5-11, comes after the recent shootings in Atlanta in which eight people, including six Asian women were killed, as well as a yearlong spike in hate incidents against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.

The Chinese Communist Party is believed to be responsible for newly found hack attacks on the U.S. government, businesses and American infrastructure, cybersecurity company Mandiant said Wednesday.

Why it matters: This is the third major cybersecurity breach to hit the U.S. in recent months — including two in March blamed on hackers linked to China's government: one targeting 30,000 U.S. victims, including small businesses and local governments, the other hitting Microsoft.

As Congress forges ahead with police reform legislation, Democratic operatives are warning lawmakers to steer clear of any defund-the-police rhetoric since it could hurt them in the midterms.

Why it matters: President Biden and his fellow Democrats say Congress needs to pass the George Floyd Policing Act, which would ban chokeholds, prohibit no-knock warrants and generally make it easier to hold officers accountable for misconduct.

Vice President Kamala Harris will meet virtually Monday with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei to discuss solutions to the surge of migration, and she'll visit the region in June, a senior White House official told Axios.

Why it matters: The administration is taking a multi-pronged approach to solving the problem and also hopes to announce details about its plan for investing aid in Central America on Monday — although a final dollar amount has yet to be decided.

The federal government has been paying travel costs for adult sponsors trying to get to shelters to pick up migrant children, a Department of Health and Human Services agency spokesperson confirmed to Axios.

Why it matters: Officials would not provide numbers, but the policy shift underscores the urgency the Biden administration feels to quickly release kids who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border alone and remain in HHS custody.