Juneteenth bill sails through Congress but key legislation targeting racial inequity faces major obstacles
By Clare Foran and Jessica Dean Legislation moved quickly through Congress this week to establish June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day, a US federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. The bill overwhelmingly passed the House on Wednesday after the Senate unanimously passed the legislation on Tuesday. But at the same time, key legislation aimed at countering racial inequity and discriminatory policies faces major obstacles on Capitol Hill. A number of stumbling blocks have complicated efforts to strike a bipartisan deal on policing legislation after George Floyd’s death in police custody in 2020 sparked nationwide calls to overhaul
Supreme Court dismisses challenge to Affordable Care Act, leaving it in place
By Ariane de Vogue and Chandelis Duster The Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to the Affordable Care Act on Thursday in a decision that will leave the law intact and save health care coverage for millions of Americans. The justices turned away a challenge from Republican-led states and the former Trump administration, which urged the justices to block the entire law. The justices said that the challengers of the 2010 law did not have the legal right to bring the case. Justice Stephen Breyer penned the decision that was 7-2. Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented. RELATED: Nothing Justice Stephen Breyer has said publicly
Abrams signals openness to Manchin’s voting legislation proposals
By Chandelis Duster Stacey Abrams on Thursday praised West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin’s proposed changes to voting rights legislation, a notable statement of support from someone who is widely seen as a leader among progressives on the issue. “What Sen. Manchin is putting forward are some basic building blocks that we need to ensure that democracy is accessible no matter your geography,” Abrams, a Democrat and strong advocate for voting rights, said on CNN’s “New Day.” “And those provisions that he is setting forth are strong ones that will create a level playing field, will create standards that do not
President Biden on historic Putin summit: ‘I did what I came to do’
By Kevin Liptak and Phil Mattingly President Joe Biden said he had raised human rights and cyberattacks during a summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that provided an early and critical test of his diplomatic skills in the highest-stakes talks of his long career. Both Biden and Putin afterward described the three-hour-long summit as generally positive but without any major breakthroughs. Biden suggested the face-to-face was compulsory in a time of deeply strained ties between the United States and Russia. And he said proof of progress would come later, when the results of his diplomacy bear out. “I did what
Michigan Senate passes 3 voting bills with new restrictions
By Taylor Romine and Rachel Janfaza The Michigan Senate on Wednesday passed three bills that would restrict voting rights in the state as part of a larger Republican-led package intended to overhaul election laws, despite Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s all-but-certain veto of the measures. The state Senate advanced the measures — part of a 39-bill package introduced by state Republicans earlier this year — in 19-16 votes. One bill would require those requesting mail-in ballots to provide driver’s license or state identification numbers. The other two would require ID for in-person voting and allow people to vote only via provisional ballots without it. They now
Hill negotiators on policing legislation stuck on key issue: How to prosecute officers
By Jessica Dean and Manu Raju Bipartisan talks on overhauling America’s policing practices are hung up on a key issue: Whether Congress should include new standards for when officers can be charged with crimes. The issue has dogged the two sides for weeks — and it’s far from clear how the matter will get resolved or if it could doom the effort entirely. But Republicans say the topic should be off the table completely, with the GOP suggesting that Democrats have reinserted the issue back into the talks when they had thought there was an understanding it be set aside. “That
Harris hosts female senators for ‘evening of relationship building’ at vice president’s residence
By Jasmine Wright and Veronica Stracqualursi Vice President Kamala Harris held a private dinner Tuesday night for the female US senators, a show of bipartisanship among a deeply divided Congress. It was the first known time that Harris hosted lawmakers in the vice-presidential residence at the Naval Observatory since moving in April, a process that was delayed due to renovations. CNN previously reported that Harris had invited all 24 female senators — 16 Democrats and eight Republicans. “What a wonderful bipartisan women Senators dinner at our @VP ‘s residence!” Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Democrat from Michigan tweeted. In photos Stabenow shared, Harris is
Biden to nominate Michael D. Smith as CEO of AmeriCorps
By Kate Sullivan President Joe Biden will nominate Michael D. Smith to serve as the chief executive officer of AmeriCorps, the nation’s main public service program, the White House confirmed Tuesday. Smith currently serves as the executive director of the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance — an initiative launched by former President Barack Obama in 2014 to address opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color. Smith is also the director of youth opportunity programs at the Obama Foundation. CNN was first to report Smith would be Biden’s nominee to lead AmeriCorps. Smith will need Senate confirmation to lead the
Pennsylvania House committee advances election overhaul bill with new restrictions
By Dianne Gallagher and Paul LeBlanc Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania are the latest to push new state-level voting restrictions, with a key state House committee on Tuesday advancing a major election overhaul bill that the state’s Democratic governor blasted as “extreme.” “Pennsylvania had a free, fair and secure election in November 2020 with record turnout, in which people embraced mail-in voting and the results have been confirmed by two statewide audits,” Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement Tuesday. “Despite the clear facts, too many Harrisburg Republicans have spent the past year spewing lies and conspiracy theories about elections because they
Lone Star State lawmakers put Texas-sized pressure on Washington Democrats over voting rights
By Dianne Gallagher and Wesley Bruer Nearly two dozen Democratic members of the Texas state Legislature are taking their voting rights fight from Austin to Washington this week. The trip is a “Hail Mary” effort of sorts, to apply some Texas-sized pressure on US lawmakers to support the passage of the For the People Act, a comprehensive federal voting rights bill that would counteract many of the voting restrictions put in place by Republicans at the state level. The cross-country blitz comes just weeks after Texas Democrats, in dramatic fashion, notched a rare victory in killing the Republican-controlled Legislature’s flagship election overhaul bill, Senate