Axios Re:Cap

Robert Downey Jr. today announced the launch of two venture capital funds focused on startups in the sustainability sector, as the actor seems to have taken some of his Tony Stark character to heart. Dan digs into this instance of life imitating art with Downey and two of his partners at Footprint Coalition to better understand their plans and mission.

Nearly 3 million Texans are without power and more than 20 are dead, due to a perfect storm of extreme weather, a failure to winterize energy infrastructure and an antipathy toward regulation. Dan digs into what this experience should teach Texas and other states about the future, with Andrew Freedman, deputy weather editor at the Washington Post.

Richard Branson is scheduled to blast off this Sunday on a suborbital space flight with his company Virgin Galactic, just days before Jeff Bezos plans to ride aboard a Blue Origin spaceship. But a lot more is riding on these rockets than ambitious billionaires.

Axios Re:Cap speaks with Axios Space editor Miriam Kramer about what Branson and Bezos are actually doing, how it’s different from what SpaceX is doing, and the risks these missions could pose for the future of space travel.

August recess was supposed to start for Congress this week, but stimulus negotiations fell apart last week — prompting President Trump to circumvent Congress and attempt to extend programs put in place by the CARES Act via executive action. Now, it’s unclear if Congress is still negotiating, let alone if they’re any closer to a compromise. Axios Re:Cap producer Naomi Shavin is joined by Washington Post White House economics reporter Jeff Stein to find out more about the state of stimulus talks.

Americans seem resigned to the idea that life won't return to normal until we have an approved and widely-distributed vaccine for COVID-19, but vaccine optimism could be undermining other efforts to control the spread of the virus. Dan is joined by Tom Frieden, who led the Centers for Disease Control from 2009 to 2017, to discuss how realistic it is to hope for a vaccine by year-end — and what will still need to happen even when we have it.

Every day that goes by without a new stimulus agreement is another day of worry for many in America's middle class, which was shrinking before the pandemic began. Dan digs into what the pandemic has done to the middle class and what policies are needed to bolster it with Jim Tankersley, a New York Times economics reporter and author of the new book, “The Riches of This Land.”

Unlike in many other parts of America, Los Angeles isn’t debating whether or not to send students back into physical classrooms. In the time since it was announced that the L.A. Unified School District would be fully-remote through at least the end of 2020, it’s become a stand-bearer on the remote-learning front. L.A. Unified Superintendent Austin Beutner joins Dan to discuss why he made the remote decision, how he distributed devices to students, his vision for contact tracing, and what he thinks about President Trump's funding cut threat.

NBA players are trying to balance a return to the court with their efforts to improve racial justice and equality, and not everyone agrees on the best course forward. Dan digs in with former NBA star Jalen Rose, a co-founder with LeBron James of a new voting rights group called More Than A Vote.

Public health officials almost all agree that wearing masks in public could help flatten the coronavirus curve, but not all elected officials are willing to require mask use. In Georgia, where coronavirus cases are surging, Governor Brian Kemp moved to overrule the mask mandates of 15 cities. Dan digs in with Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, whose city was the first in the state to issue a mandate.

Pete Buttigieg isn't talking about three years of consulting work he did for McKinsey, due to a nondisclosure agreement that the firm refuses to lift. Dan speaks with Matt Pearce of the L.A. Times about this developing story. Plus: investors sound off on social responsibility and a fond farewell.