Biden stymied, vaccine crooks and furious donors: Weekend Reads

[Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( U.S. President Joe Biden is being hindered by state bureaucracy as his plans to undo four years of Donald Trump run into the harsh reality of governing. Still, his push to remake the country gained ground with Democratic lawmakers [working]( to pass his $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill. The global vaccine campaign is shifting into higher gear, triggering diplomatic spats and giving criminal groups something to target even as one of the world's biggest nations is struggling to tame the pandemic. Elsewhere, China looks set to end a quarter-century-long experiment with democracy in Hong Kong, while a charity whose supporters include Oprah and Prince Harry is leaving a trail of enraged, grieving donors. Dig deeper into these and other topics with the latest edition of Weekend Reads. — [Michael Winfrey]( Biden in Washington on March 3. Photographer: Yuri Gripas/Abaca Click [here]( for this week’s most compelling political images and tell us how we’re doing or what we’re missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net. [Biden Confronts Trump-Era Inertia in Trying to Shift Agency Acts]( Cumbersome bureaucracy is threatening Biden’s agenda on everything from climate change to tackling the pandemic. Some of that is because of hardwired elements of the U.S. government, but as [Ari Natter]( and [Todd Shields]( write, some of it is the legacy left by Donald Trump. [Biden’s Quiet Style Belies Ambitions Beyond Undoing Trump Legacy]( He pours over briefing books, he doesn’t tweet and he requires masks: Biden couldn’t be more different from Trump. And as [Jennifer Epstein]( reports, his unobtrusive style belies his desire to dramatically reshape the country beyond undoing Trump’s agenda or reviving Barack Obama’s. Biden criticized the Republican governors of Texas and Mississippi, calling the decisions “a big [mistake](.” Security Guards Face the Hazardous Job of Enforcing Covid Rules]( While the pandemic has devastated the service economy, security work is now one of the more stable paths to a paycheck. But it’s dangerous and, [Polly Mosendz](, [Kim Bhasin]( and [Anders Melin]( explain, many guards now find themselves at the center of a culture war over mask-wearing. [WE Charity's Actions Leave a Trail of Enraged, Grieving Donors]( What began as a conflict-of-interest controversy involving Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and WE Charity is widening. Already the subject of parliamentary inqiries, WE is facing questions over its handling donors’ gifts and vanishing plaques, [Natalie Obiko Pearson](, [Danielle Bochove]( and [David Herbling]( report. [Ex-French President Sarkozy Found Guilty of Corruption]( Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was found guilty of corruption, becoming the country’s second head of state in the modern era to be convicted of a crime after leaving office. As [Gaspard Sebag]( writes, the 66-year-old is unlikely to serve time behind bars. [Vaccine Shipments Present Security Challenge Worthy of Bond Film]( In the coming months, billions of doses of coronavirus vaccines will be dispatched around the world in what freight haulers are calling the biggest security challenge in a generation. That’s because, as [Thomas Buckley](explains, crooks will try to steal some of it. [The Vaccine Revolution Is Coming Inside Tiny Bubbles of Fat]( If messenger-RNA vaccines are the breakout medicine of the pandemic, then the tiny lipid spheres that bring them into people’s cells are the unsung heroes. [Tim Loh]( explores how the world desperately needs more of both. //link.mail.bloombergbusiness.com/click/23132485.87179/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmxvb21iZXJnLmNvbS9uZXdzL2ZlYXR1cmVzLzIwMjEtMDMtMDQvcGZpemVyLXBmZS1oYXMtYS1tb3JhbC1kaWxlbW1hLWRlY2lkaW5nLXdoZXJlLXRoZS12YWNjaW5lcy13aWxsLWdvP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1uZXdzbGV0dGVyJnV0bV90ZXJtPTIxMDMwNiZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249Ym9w/582c8673566a94262a8b49bdB191c6e8c [World]([']([s Worst Covid Crisis Unfolds in Brazil, Where No Fix Works]( More than a year after Covid-19 claimed its first victim, most countries have put the worst behind them. But Brazil, a continent-sized nation of 212 million, is facing more deaths than ever, its hospitals are overflowing, policy is in disarray, and its vaccine supply is severely limited. [China Abandons 24-Year Experiment With Open Hong Kong Elections]( For almost a quarter of a century, Hong Kong stood as the one place under Beijing’s rule with open elections. [Iain Marlow]( and [Kari Lindberg]( look into how a landslide loss just over a year ago may have finally convinced China to end the experiment in democracy. [South Korea and Taiwan’s Chip Power Rattles the U.S. and China]( The supply shock in the $400 billion semiconductor industry has stalled everything from global car production to the economic recovery. As [Sam Kim]( writes, it has also underscored the role of the countries that dominate the industry: South Korea and Taiwan. [And finally]( ... Online memorial services. Zen meditation apps. Temple-led match-making services. As the pandemic forces companies, governments and other institutions to uproot their old ways, Buddhist groups in Japan are embracing new technology to survive, [Ayai Tomisawa]( reports. Staff operate computers during a live broadcast of an online memorial service at Tsukiji Hongwanji temple in Tokyo. Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg   Like Balance of Power? [Get unlimited access to Bloomberg.com](, where you'll find trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters.  You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Balance of Power newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022