It’s unlikely the Duchess of Sussex will be tapped to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who died Friday at the age of 90 — but that doesn’t mean the actress-turned-royal won’t toss her hat in the ring, the Daily Mail reports.
Sources told the outlet within minutes of the Senate stalwart’s passing, phones “lit up” with speculation that Markle might look to be appointed to fill the seat until Feinstein’s term expires in January 2025.
Yet despite Markle’s friendship with big-time Dems like Oprah Winfrey and the Kennedy family, there’s little chance of a vault to the Capitol..
“Meghan is definitely a long shot, but in the craziness that is US politics these days it’s not an impossibility,” a major Democratic donor who’s close to California Gov. Gavin Newsom told the news outlet. “Crazier things have happened.”
Newsom, a two-term Democrat who may havepresidential aspirations, must soon choose a replacement for Feinstein, the longest-serving woman in Senate history.
Meghan Markle is reportedly a long-shot candidate to replace California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died last week at age 90.WireImage
The 55-year-old governor reportedly interviewed Markle for a Senator’s spot in October 2020, when he had to replace then-Sen. Kamala Harris after she was chosen by Joe Biden to run with him against Donald Trump.
Markle had been networking among senior Democrats as she angled for the job, with the US presidency as her alleged ultimate goal, a source told the Daily Mail.
Although she and Prince Harry met virtually with Newsom, he ultimately picked another candidate.
Feinstein, whose flag-draped coffin is shown here, was allegedly told by California Gov. Gavin Newsom that he’d appoint a black woman to fill her seat.AP
Newsom reportedly interviewed Markle back in 2020 to fill Vice President Kamala Harris’s then-vacant seat. But he eventually chose someone else.Getty Images
Before Feinstein’s death, Newsom reportedly told her he’d replace her with a black woman. But the best candidates have already announced they’re running for the seat next fall, the Daily Mail reported.
Picking one of those candidates to fill Feinstein’s seat until then could lead to accusations of favoritism, a source told the outlet.
“So he needs to find a woman of color who can do the job for 13 months and will agree to not stand against any of the seasoned politicians who have already thrown their hats into the ring,” the source said.
Feinstein had been sick for several months before her death with a variety of ailments that caused her to miss time in the upper chamber.The Washington Post via Getty Images
“There are not that many women who fit the bill,” the source noted. “Which is why Meghan’s name is being bandied about.”
Markle has also befriended Gloria Steinem, the longtime feminist icon who’s been “introducing Meghan to pivotal people within the party,” a friend of Steinem’s told the outlet.
“Gov. [Kathy] Hochul thinks it should be modified, and it probably should under the circumstances,” Clinton told host John Catsimatidis on 77 WABC radio’s “The Cats Roundtable” show — adding that Democrats are taking a major hit over the crisis.
Big Apple Mayor Mayor Eric Adams and Hochul have argued that the Right to Shelter law was designed to address the local homeless problem — not the unrelenting massive waves of migrants flooding the city for months after crossing the southern border with Mexico.
The issue is currently in litigation, with advocates for the homeless and asylum seekers opposing any significant rollback of the law.
Clinton said the problem is migrants have to wait months to get work permits, so the shelter rule needs to be relaxed to relieve the pressure on the city when it comes to housing all of them during their wait.
“It’s broken. We need to fix it… It doesn’t make any sense,” Clinton said of the system.
“They come here, and we’re supposed to shelter people who can’t get work permits for six months. We need to change that,” he said.
Former President Bill Clinton said he believes that New York City’s “Right to Shelter” law needs to be modified amid the current migrant crisis.Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
“They ought to work. They need to begin working, paying taxes and paying their way. Most of these people have no interest in being on welfare,” Clinton said.
Clinton said Adams has welcomed his counsel on issues, as did previous city Mayor Mike Bloomberg — but not Bill de Blasio.
“In the beginning I tried to help Mayor de Blasio. But he decided that he was .. more progressive than he thought I was — whatever that means,” Clinton said.
Clinton said the city’s system is “broken” and needs to be changed.Robert Miller
“He’s trying to do that. Probably somebody will sue him and say, ‘You can’t do that for one group and not another,'” Clinton said.
The ex-president said that either way, Biden and the Democrats are taking a political hit for the chaos at the border and an immigration system that is clearly incapable of solving the crisis.
“The [US immigration] system is built to handle about 400,000 … We should build more housing just over the Rio Grande, and Mexico, I think, would support that,” he said. “Keep people there, and let them in as quickly as possible if they are going some place where we know they can get a job and they’ll be welcome.”
The former president said proper immigration and vetting can’t be done “with a system that is not well manned and there are not enough facilities along the border.
“Chaos has been very beneficial for the Republicans,” he said.
In general, Clinton said he backs a liberal immigration policy akin to Canada and argued that Venezuelans can prove they are aggrieved by a hostile government and meet the criteria established for US asylum.
“We have always had a blanket offer of entry into America for people who have a reasonable fear for the lives and safety of their families and themselves. A lot of the Venezuelans can easily make that case. … Because there’s no question that the whole country has been consumed by the collapse of effective security and government in the [Venezuelan] Nicolás Maduro administration,” Clinton said.
Newly arrived migrants waiting outside the shelter at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan on September 28, 2023.James Messerschmidt for NY Post
“But they come in here, and under the current law, they have to wait six months for a work permit,” he said.
Clinton emphasized that immigration is good for America, especially given the country’s declining birth rate. He said parts of America — particularly citing regions of upstate New York — suffer from a labor shortage that can be filled by migrants.
“We have a negative birth rate in America … If that happens, the only way to keep your economy growing is either with immigrants or machines,” he said.
Migrants inside the Roosevelt Hotel on September 24, 2023.G.N.Miller/NYPost
Considered a moderate in the Democratic Party, Clinton took some shots at lefty progressives — saying their positions on bail reform and crime in New York cost Democrats the House majority.
He said Democrats made inroads and Republicans were punished in parts of the country during the 2022 mid-term elections after the conservative US Supreme Court outlawed the national right to an abortion, overturning the 50-year Roe v. Wade decision.
“But the Democrats lost enough seats in New York because of reaction to the crime problem here and the sense that — we didn’t have — we my party — didn’t have a good common-sense approach to it,” he said.
“The swing vote is for common sense and solving problems.”
Raymond James initiated coverage on AbbVie Inc ABBV as the company looks beyond Humira's loss of exclusivity and has several levers to set up long-term growth.
Analysts Gary Nachman and Denis Reznik have initiated with an Outperform rating and a price target of $177.
ABBV is showcasing resilience and adaptability, adeptly navigating the U.S. loss of exclusivity (LOE) for Humira, surpassing initial projections.
The portfolio diversification, complemented by Skyrizi and Rinvoq's multi-indication approval, paints a promising outlook for AbbVie.
Raymond James anticipates a resurgence of mid- to high-single-digit growth in both the top and bottom lines by 2025, despite the anticipated pressures on the Hematology/Oncology sectors, primarily due to Imbruvica, and assumes a minimal contribution from the emerging pipeline.
ABBV's strategic outlook is intertwined with proactive mergers and acquisitions. Over the next 6-18 months, the market can expect ABBV to amplify its M&A activity.
ABBV's previous successful integration with Allergan underscores its competency in executing M&As, amplifying investor confidence.
While eyes are set on grander M&A horizons, the company remains vigilant, exploring opportunities to augment its pipeline.
The amalgamation of strategic M&As and pipeline expansion is poised to fortify ABBV's market position, providing a cushion against Humira LOE and pressures from Imbruvica and fostering a diversified, resilient portfolio.
A trade organisation representing pharma manufacturers in Europe has said plans to restrict the use of fluorinated substances known as PFAS could make manufacturing “grind to a halt” and threaten the availability of essential medicines.
According to EFPIA, the proposal to limit PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) – a class that covers up to 10,000 chemicals – would have a major impact on pharma, as well as other industries, and would be the widest ever put in place in the European Economic Area (EEA).
The plan has been put forward by authorities in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway under the REACH legislation, introduced in 2007 to improve the protection of human health and the environment from the risks that can be posed by chemicals.
PFAS contain carbon-fluorine bonds that are very strong, making them highly stable, but that also means they can accumulate in the environment, ending up in drinking water and food, according to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).
A consultation period on the proposal came to an end this week, and the ECHA has received comments from more than 4,400 organisations, companies, and individuals, which will now have to be considered. If it goes through in its current form, the plan would ban all PFAS by 2027, with limited exemptions.
“The innovative pharmaceutical industry is concerned about the impact of PFAS on the environment and does not oppose the close consideration of certain harmful PFAS,” said EFPIA. “However, not all PFAS have the same hazardous properties,” it added, and some are classified as being of low concern by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
“PFAS are used across medicines production, however, those used in actual medicines have no or low identified risk through medicines risk-benefit or environmental risk assessments,” continued the trade organisation.
“Therefore, while there is a need to minimise emissions, the approach should ensure the continued production and availability of medicines for patients in Europe.”
According to its calculations, almost 48,000 marketing authorisations for medicines around the world would be at risk if the restrictions go through as currently planned, and that would mean that some critical medicines may no longer be available.
Around 600 drugs on the World Health Organization (WHO) Essential Medicines List – the priority drugs needed to ensure public health – would be affected.
Moreover, European critical drug lists drawn up to counter shortages and reduce the reliance on imported medicines from non-EEA countries would also be hit, including 60% of medicines listed in Germany and 78% in Norway.
“While we support the need to restrict certain PFAS, we need to find the right approach to ensure the continued manufacturing and availability of medicines in Europe,” according to EFPIA’s director general, Nathalie Moll.
“A total ban would see medicines’ manufacturing in the EU grind to a halt in under three years,” she claimed. “It would also jeopardise the production of all pharmaceutical substances in Europe and would be in conflict with the EU’s strategy of reducing dependency on nations outside of the EEA in the event of shortages or pandemics.”
President Joe Biden, speaking at the White House on Sunday some 12 hours after signing stopgap legislation to avert a federal government shutdown, called on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and fellow Republicans to maintain the U.S.'s commitment to assist Ukraine in its ongoing defense against the Russian invasion that began in February 2022. McCarthy, the president said, has committed to bring a Ukraine assistance bill to the House floor, after McCarthy, who has to varying degrees publicly expressed support for the Ukraine cause, removed Ukraine funds from the 45-day continuing resolution passed Saturday, with Democratic backing, to assuage his own intraparty detractors. "Let's be clear," said Biden. "I hope my friends on the other side [of the aisle] keep their word about support for Ukraine. They said they're going to support Ukraine in a separate vote." Biden called the government-shutdown near-miss "a manufactured crisis" brought about when Republicans walked away from the compromises reached in May, when McCarthy and Biden came together to resolve a debt-ceiling impasse. "I'm sick and tired of the brinksmanship."
