DOJ to launch task force to address rise in threats against election officials
By Evan Perez and Christina Carrega The Justice Department announced on Friday that it is launching a task force to address the rise in threats against election officials, according to a memo sent to all federal prosecutors and the FBI. “The Department of Justice has a long history of protecting every American’s right to vote, and will continue to do so. To that end, we must also work tirelessly to protect all election workers—whether they be elected officials, appointed officials, or those who volunteer their time—against the threats they face,” according to the memo written by Deputy Attorney General Lisa
Biden’s frantic weekend saves infrastructure deal but leaves him on thinner political ice
Analysis by Stephen Collinson That Joe Biden’s cherished bipartisan infrastructure plan was nearly destroyed by a few of his own ill-chosen words highlights both the fragility of the deal and his own hopes for a productive domestic presidency. Biden’s extraordinary weekend effort to walk back his own remark on Thursday, interpreted as a threat to veto the bill if it did not arrive at his desk alongside a multi-trillion dollar Democratic spending plan, appears, for now, to have succeeded. Republican senators publicly accepted that his comment linking the two bills — “If this is the only thing that comes to me, I’m not
Justice Department suing Georgia over voting restrictions
By Devan Cole, Christina Carrega, Fredreka Schouten, Evan Perez, Ariane de Vogue and Dianne Gallagher The Justice Department is suing Georgia over new voting restrictions enacted as part of Republican efforts nationwide to limit voting access in the wake of President Donald Trump’s election defeat. The state law imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water. Republicans had cast the measure as necessary to boost confidence in elections after the 2020 election
Farmer Nakita Hemingway to run for Georgia Agriculture Commissioner seat
By Clayton News Daily Staff Nakita Hemingway, a Gwinnett farmer and entrepreneur, formally announced her run for Commissioner of Agriculture for the state of Georgia in Troup County on Saturday. Hemingway, a cut-flower farmer, Realtor, and mother of four, chose to announce her candidacy on Juneteenth, a commemoration of the official end of slavery more than 2 1/2 years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Hemingway, a Georgia native, has ancestors who were brought here as slaves and became rice farmers in coastal Georgia and South Carolina. Hemingway said she believes that agriculture is the key to growing Georgia’s
Harris set to visit US-Mexico border on Friday
By Maegan Vazquez Vice President Kamala Harris will visit El Paso, Texas, on Friday to visit a migrant processing center, following dogged criticism for not having visited the US-Mexico border and a rocky first foreign trip to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month. During the trip, the vice president will tour the El Paso central processing center, a US Customs and Border Protection Facility, and is expected to speak with migrants there. She will do a walking tour, attend an operational briefing and hold a conversation with advocates from faith-based NGOs and shelter and legal service providers. At the conclusion of her trip,
Biden administration extends federal eviction ban through July
By Anna Bahney and Kevin Liptak The Biden administration extended the federal ban on evictions that was set to expire at the end of June by a month. This is intended to be the final extension of the eviction moratorium, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which issued the order. The extension, signed by CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, comes as vaccination rates slow and the effects of the pandemic continue to linger. The moratorium aims to keep people in their homes and out of crowded settings — like homeless shelters — as a way to help stop
Democrats urge Biden to extend student loan pause until April 2022
By Katie Lobosco Key Democratic lawmakers are calling on President Joe Biden to extend the pandemic-related student loan payment pause another six months beyond October — or until the economy reaches pre-pandemic employment levels, whichever is longer. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts led a group of more than 60 other Democrats in asking the President in a letter sent Wednesday to push back the restart date, warning it could “create a significant drag on our economic recovery.” As of now, federal student loan borrowers will have to resume payments on October 1 after an
Biden: ‘We have a deal’ on infrastructure with bipartisan group of senators
By Kate Sullivan and Phil Mattingly President Joe Biden said Thursday he has agreed to a deal on infrastructure with a bipartisan group of senators after White House officials and the senators had a massive breakthrough the night before in their infrastructure negotiations. Both Republican and Democratic senators said Wednesday evening there was an agreement reached with White House officials and 10 senators on a bipartisan infrastructure deal. And on Thursday afternoon, Biden said he had signed off on the agreement. “To answer your direct question, we have a deal,” he said. Though hurdles remain — it’s unclear if the proposal will have enough support from GOP
Why the infrastructure deal is so important for Joe Biden
Analysis by Stephen Collinson President Joe Biden will validate a foundational pillar of his presidency on Thursday — a quest to court Republicans across Congress’ poisoned divides — if he signs off on a hard won bipartisan infrastructure deal. Biden’s patience seems to have delivered a Senate compromise on the issue that would cut against the prevailing stalemate on Capitol Hill. A parallel and exhaustive set of talks on police reform in the wake of the George Floyd murder last year also faces an end-of-day test seen by key players as crucial ahead of a looming Senate recess. Senators emerged from another marathon infrastructure
House progressives demand action after voting rights bill fails
By Ryan Nobles, Annie Grayer and Lauren Fox Now that Senate Republicans blocked the path forward on a monumental ethics reform and elections bill, progressives are frustrated, openly calling for an end to the filibuster even as key moderates have made clear they won’t be changing it. “I do think it would be a mistake to not give it another try. Personally, I believe even with the resistance in our own caucus to ending the filibuster, I think the filibuster’s days are numbered,” Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico told CNN. “Nothing makes that case better than the abuse of voting rights we