2.41pm BST

Speaking of clean water, Ryan Felton and Lisa Gill of Consumer Reports and Lewis Kendall for the Guardian have this investigation of tap water in America:

In Connecticut, a condo had lead in its drinking water at levels more than double what the federal government deems acceptable. At a church in North Carolina, the water was contaminated with extremely high levels of potentially toxic PFAS chemicals ( a group of compounds found in hundreds of household products). The water flowing into a Texas home had both – and concerning amounts of arsenic too.

Related: We sampled tap water across the US – and found arsenic, lead and toxic chemicals

2.20pm BST

As part of his infrastructure plan, Joe Biden is pledging to ensure that every American has access to clean water.

“Every single American has a right to clean drinking water,” the president said in a tweet this morning. “It’s just plain wrong that in the United States of America today, millions of children still receive their water through lead service pipes. It’s long past time we fix that.”

Every single American has a right to clean drinking water. It’s just plain wrong that in the United States of America today, millions of children still receive their water through lead service pipes. It’s long past time we fix that. pic.twitter.com/l6UpUOkErr

2.06pm BST

The trial of Derek Chauvin will soon start its third day in Minneapolis, where the former police officer is facing murder charges over the killing of George Floyd.

Genevieve Hansen, a Minneapolis firefighter, will be back on the witness stand this morning. Hansen testified yesterday that she pleaded with Chauvin to check Floyd’s pulse, but she was blocked from administering medical care.

The woman who recorded the shocking video of George Floyd’s death that prompted mass protests for racial justice around the world has told the Derek Chauvin murder trial of her feelings of guilt at being unable to intervene to save his life.

Darnella Frazier, who at times sobbed as she gave evidence on the second day of Chauvin’s trial in Minneapolis, said that she still loses sleep over the killing of the 46-year-old Black man.

Related: Teen who filmed killing tells court George Floyd was ‘begging for his life’

1.58pm BST

Greetings from Washington, live blog readers.

Joe Biden will deliver a speech today in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to lay out his $2tn infrastructure proposal, the next plank of his “Build Back Better” agenda.

Biden’s plan … includes ‘historic and galvanizing’ investments in traditional infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges and highways, as well as hundreds of billions of dollars to fortify the electricity grid, expand high-speed broadband and rebuild water systems to ensure access to clean drinking water, an administration official said on Tuesday. It also seeks to expand access to community care facilities for seniors and people with disabilities and invest in research and development and workplace training.

He will propose paying for the new spending with a substantial increase on corporate taxes that would offset eight years of spending over the course of 15 years, officials said. Among the changes, Biden will call for a rise in the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21% and measures to force multinational corporations to pay more taxes in the US on profits earned abroad. The tax plan would unwind major pieces of Donald Trump’s tax-cut law, which lowered the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%.

Related: Biden promises ‘historic’ $2tn spending in infrastructure – but Capitol Hill fight awaits

Continue reading…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/joebiden

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