Senate committee to hold hearing on DC statehood bill
By Devan Cole A Senate committee will examine a bill on Tuesday that would grant statehood to Washington, DC, with the panel’s members hearing testimony from experts and the city’s mayor on the key Democratic priority, which has gained momentum in recent years. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will focus its attention on S51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, two months after House Democrats passed that chamber’s version of the legislation, which would create the nation’s 51st state using most parts of the city. Parts of DC that are home to federal buildings like the White House, the US Capitol and the
Biden meets with key Democratic senators as he pushes for path on voting, infrastructure
By Phil Mattingly President Joe Biden ramped up his push to move his legislative agenda forward in private meetings Monday with two key Democratic lawmakers and on Tuesday his infrastructure team heads to Capitol Hill for further talks. Biden spoke with the Democrats — Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin — in separate meetings on Monday, according to a White House official. The two lawmakers represent a crucial players in Biden’s efforts to move his $4 trillion economic agenda. Both have insisted Democrats pursue a bipartisan track on infrastructure talks and are part of a group of 21 Republicans and
Senate Democrats brace for defeat on signature voting and election bill amid stiff GOP resistance
By Clare Foran and Lauren Fox Senate Democrats are on track to suffer a stinging defeat Tuesday with Republican opposition expected to sink a voting and election bill that Democrats have made a signature priority, an outcome that will underscore the limits of the party’s power with the narrowest possible Senate majority. Democrats have set up a key test vote on the bill that they have pitched as a necessary counter to state-level efforts to restrict voting access, but Republicans have united against it, decrying it as a partisan power grab and a federal overreach into state voting and election systems. Democrats
Obama invokes January 6 insurrection to advocate for voting rights bill
By Dan Merica Former President Barack Obama on Monday invoked the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol to advocate for a sweeping voting rights bill set to be considered by the Senate, arguing the uprising proved Americans cannot “take our democracy for granted.” Obama’s comments came a day before the Senate is set to vote on whether to advance the For the People Act, the first procedural test of the bill. During a grassroots conference call for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, the former President also argued that America’s “own history” makes clear the importance for fighting for democracy and warned that
Biden’s agenda enters critical week on Capitol Hill ahead of looming Senate recess
By Paul LeBlanc Lawmakers will resume a slate of tense negotiations this week over voting rights, infrastructure and police reform as President Joe Biden’s agenda enters an important week on Capitol Hill. Looming large over the deliberations is the July 4 recess in the Senate, which begins at the end of the week and could encourage real momentum just as easily as it could disrupt it. Here’s where things stand on Capitol Hill: Democrats press forward with voting rights bill The Senate on Tuesday is set to vote on whether to advance the so-called For the People Act,
’10 years is enough’: Advocates and bipartisan lawmakers push for sentencing reform for drug-related offenders
By Christina Carrega and Joe Beare William R. Underwood was a 17-year-old father living in New York City when former President Richard Nixon declared a “war on drugs.” He admits he chose to sell drugs to earn a living — a move that at 34, landed him in federal prison to serve a life without the possibility of parole and a concurrent 20-year sentence for a violent drug offense. “From the beginning of my incarceration, I was surrounded by other men of color serving lifelong and other extreme sentences, including for drug offenses — handed down under a mandatory minimum
Activists fight back as Juneteenth milestone is undercut by GOP discriminatory voting bills
Analysis by Stephen Collinson and Maeve Reston As America finally recognizes the importance of Juneteenth, the full potential of a symbolic new milestone for equality is being undermined by Republican moves to make it harder for many Black Americans to vote. Often in the civil rights struggle, single victories — like this week’s signing of a new law to establish a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the US — quickly cede to the reality of how far there is to go. That is the case on Saturday as progressive activists launch efforts to circumvent new state bills to restrict voting, inspired
New national holiday sets off scramble to shut down governments nationwide Friday
By Paul LeBlanc States across the country are scrambling to close their government offices Friday after President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing Juneteenth as a US federal holiday. While June 19 — which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States — falls on a Saturday this year, governors across the country announced in quick succession a range of plans for their state offices Friday, the closest workday to the new holiday. Many states like Maryland, Nebraska, Missouri, West Virginia and Alabama will give most public employees the day off, but government workers in other states, like California, will
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