Virginia’s Next Lt. Governor: Historic Race, Racial Challenges
By Chandelis Duster, Virginia is primed to elect a woman of color as its next lieutenant governor at a time when the commonwealth is facing a series of challenges that directly affect its Black and brown communities. Regardless of whether it will be Democrat Hala Ayala or Republican Winsome Sears, they’ll draw from their personal experiences as the next administration tackles challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic, crime, education and racial justice, even if they don’t agree on the political remedies. She will also face the aftermath of a racial reckoning that has brought the commonwealth into a national spotlight. The
Biden Unveils $1.75T Build Back Better Plan to House Democrats
By Clare Foran, Daniella Diaz, Phil Mattingly, Kevin Liptak and Jeremy Diamond, President Joe Biden will lay out long-awaited details of his $1.75 trillion economic and climate package to House Democrats on Thursday when he attends a caucus meeting on Capitol Hill as leaders press progressives to vote for a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. While the proposal isn’t finalized in its entirety, days of negotiations have brought it to a place where the key elements are all locked in and Biden plans to impress upon Democrats the scope and scale of what those elements represent, even in the face of several
Justice Clarence Thomas: Legacy, Influence & Key Court Cases
By Ariane de Vogue, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took his seat on the far end of the bench in 1991 feeling — he once said — “beat up” by the workload. A bitter confirmation battle marked by allegations of sexual harassment by Anita Hill was over, but liberals still lamented the fact that a 43-year-old conservative would take the place of retired civil rights icon Justice Thurgood Marshall. Flash forward to 2021 and the most momentous term in recent history. The justices are poised to decide a major abortion case as well as broaden gun rights in a dispute out of New York. Thomas,
Families Urge Biden to Act on Americans Detained Abroad
By Jennifer Hansler, The families of roughly two dozen US citizens and legal permanent residents detained abroad penned a letter to President Joe Biden on Monday urging him to do more to secure the release of their loved ones. “Every day we wonder how much longer our loved ones must endure their captivity, not knowing when they will return home, and not being able to fully understand the efforts the United States government is undertaking to secure their freedom,” the families wrote in the open letter, which was distributed by the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation. The signatories, including those with family members
Biden Yet to Name Permanent OMB Director Amid Policy Push
By Kate Sullivan, Nine months after taking office, President Joe Biden still doesn’t have a permanent director of a critical agency in his administration. The last Cabinet-level position that hasn’t been filled is the director of the Office of Management and Budget — an agency that not many Americans are familiar with but is an incredibly powerful part of the federal government. Shalanda Young has been serving as the acting director since March, after the White House pulled Neera Tanden’s nomination for the role because she didn’t have enough support in the Senate. Tanden was named as the White House staff secretary on Friday. “When you’re
Clarence Thomas: 30 Years of Influence, Ideas & Controversy
By Joan Biskupic, Justice Clarence Thomas‘ unconventional ideas, daring rhetoric and booming baritone have distinguished him from his Supreme Court colleagues over the past 30 years. From the start, his image at the 1991 Senate confirmation hearings went beyond the world of the law. The 73-year-old Thomas remains a cultural icon, especially on issues of race and sex. He is an enduring subject of books, movies and all manner of political debate, related to Anita Hill’s accusations of sexual harassment, the expectations of civil rights leaders and Thomas’ own views of racial stereotypes and constitutional conservatism. Thomas himself has vividly filled in
Biden Urges Action After Senate Blocks Voting Rights Bill
By Betsy Klein, President Joe Biden cast the fight for voting rights in sweeping terms Thursday after the Senate failed to advance a bill on the matter this week, casting blame on Republicans for stymieing the effort in the Senate. During an event commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial, Biden said, “We now face an inflection point in the battle, literally, for the soul of America” over voting rights, specifically calling out former President Donald Trump’s efforts to subvert democracy. “Today, the right to vote and the rule of law are under unrelenting assault from Republican governors, attorneys general, secretaries
Texas GOP Maps Spark Gerrymandering, Voting Rights Clash
By Eric Bradner, With Texas Republicans bolstering their congressional majorities in new maps they approved this week, Senate Republicans in Washington, DC, on Wednesday blocked yet another voting rights bill that would crack down on those kinds of gerrymanders. The maps that Texas state legislators approved this week under the once-a-decade redistricting process would consolidate the power of White voters and eliminate political competition in the state’s rapidly changing suburbs. The number of majority-White districts would increase, even though the growing Hispanic population is almost entirely responsible for Texas gaining two seats in the US House in the reapportionment process. Under the maps
Infrastructure Bill Could Ease Future Supply Chain Crises
By Katie Lobosco, There’s no quick fix for the current pandemic-induced supply chain crisis, but the bipartisan infrastructure bill currently held up in Congress would help prepare the complicated system to handle the next disruption. The legislation calls for major federal investments in each step of the US freight network: Inland waterways and rail used for transporting goods and produce, highways and bridges traveled heavily by truck drivers as well as the nation’s seaside ports, the biggest of which is currently facing a record backlog of shipping containers sitting on scores of ships waiting off the coast. Altogether, the bill would provide up to $78 billion over
Biden Faces Heat Over Stalled Voting Rights Push
By Jeremy Herb, Kevin Liptak and Fredreka Schouten, The White House is under mounting pressure to get results on voting rights legislation, but sources tell CNN the Biden administration still isn’t ready to try to jam it through the Senate by force — even though the Senate’s latest voting bill is expected to falter yet again on Wednesday. Instead of using their slim majority to force the bill through by changing the rules, the current White House plan is for President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to step up the public-facing part of their campaign — either to gain enough