Politics Election category, Page 132
$148 million damages verdict adds to Rudy Giuliani’s financial woes as he awaits his criminal trial
A criminal trial awaits Rudy Giuliani in Georgia. He is an alleged unnamed co-conspirator in a federal indictment against Donald Trump. And now he’s been ordered to pay a sum he surely cannot afford. The $148 million verdict in a defamation case brought by two former Georgia election workers marks...
Latino Democrats shift from quiet concern to open opposition to Biden’s concessions in border talks
WASHINGTON — Prominent Latinos in Congress looked on quietly, at first, privately raising concerns with the Biden administration over the direction of border security talks. Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla of California was on the phone constantly with administration officials questioning why the Senate negotiations did not include any meaningful consideration...
With Iowa’s caucuses a month away, Trump urges voters to hand him a blowout
CORALVILLE, Iowa — Donald Trump was uncharacteristically serious when he implored an audience in eastern Iowa to carry him to a blowout in next month’s Republican caucuses. “The margin of victory is very important, it’s just very important,” Trump told about 1,000 people attending a Wednesday rally aimed at organizing...
Jury awards $148 million in damages to Georgia election workers over Rudy Giuliani’s 2020 vote lies
WASHINGTON — A jury awarded $148 million in damages on Friday to two former Georgia election workers who sued Rudy Giuliani for defamation over lies he spread about them in 2020 that upended their lives with racist threats and harassment. The damages verdict follows emotional testimony from Wandrea “Shaye” Moss...
Sen. John Fetterman says he is ‘not a progressive’
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman says that he is “not a progressive” amid criticism from some of his supporters. Fetterman gained fame, especially in progressive circles, for his backing of issues like single-payer health care, recreational marijuana, LGBTQ rights and progressive politicians like U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. But he told NBC...
Pennsylvania House back to a 101-101 partisan divide with the resignation of a Democratic lawmaker
HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is back to a 101-101 partisan split with the resignation of a Democratic lawmaker Thursday, teeing up another special election to determine the chamber’s majority early next year. The resignation of Rep. John Galloway, of Bucks County, had been expected for months after...
The Republican leading the probe of Hunter Biden has his own shell company and complicated friends
WASHINGTON — Rep. James Comer boasts of being one of the largest landholders near his rural Kentucky hometown, and he has meticulously documented nearly all of his holdings on congressional financial disclosure documents — roughly 1,600 acres in all. But there are 6 acres that he bought in 2015 and...
House approves impeachment inquiry into President Biden as Republicans rally behind investigation
WASHINGTON — The House on Wednesday authorized the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, with every Republican rallying behind the politically charged process despite lingering concerns among some in the party that the investigation has yet to produce evidence of misconduct by the president. The 221-212 party-line vote put the...
House set for key vote on Biden impeachment inquiry as Republicans unite behind investigation
WASHINGTON — The House is pushing toward a vote Wednesday to formally authorize the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden as Republicans rally behind the charged process despite lingering concerns among some in the party that the investigation has yet to produce evidence of misconduct by the president. The vote...
Expansion of Pennsylvania permits to grow, sell medical marijuana headed to governor’s desk
A bill that will allow more of Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana growers and processors to also act as retailers — and vice-versa — fully cleared the legislature on Tuesday and will head to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk. Despite some legislators’ predictions earlier this year that the bill could — or should...
Florida GOP looks to remove Christian Ziegler as chair, analysts say
ORLANDO, Fla. — Embattled Florida Republican Party chair Christian Ziegler faces a vote on Sunday to remove him from his $120,000 a year job as a result of rape allegations lodged against him and the admission that he and his wife had a three-way affair. So far he has steadfastly...
Auto union boss urges New Jersey lawmakers to pass casino smoking ban
ATLANTIC CITY — Shawn Fain, the international president of the United Auto Workers union who recently won large raises for his workers, is taking aim at a new target: New Jersey lawmakers who are delaying votes on a bill to ban smoking in Atlantic City’s casinos. The head of the...
New York’s high court orders new congressional maps as Democrats move to retake control of U.S. House
ALBANY — New York’s highest court on Tuesday ordered the state to draw new congressional districts ahead of the 2024 elections, giving Democrats a potential advantage in what is expected to be a battleground for control of the U.S. House. The 4-3 decision from the New York Court of Appeals...
George Santos attorney expresses optimism about plea talks as expelled congressman appears in court
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. — Former U.S. Rep. George Santos ’ lawyer expressed optimism about plea negotiations in Santos’ criminal fraud case Tuesday, successfully fending off prosecutors’ attempts to speed up the the ousted congressman’s trial. In Santos’ first court appearance since he was expelled from Congress earlier this month, his...
Western Pa. lawmaker’s bill would expand use of forensic genetic genealogy
A Western Pennsylvania lawmaker wants to expand law enforcement’s ability to use a more-detailed form of DNA analysis when identifying victims in cold cases. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, introduced the Cold Case Modernization Act which would expand the criteria for federal Department of Justice grants funding the use of forensic...
Pennsylvania school choice program criticized as ‘discriminatory’ as lawmakers return to session
HARRISBURG — Public school advocates in Pennsylvania are criticizing publicly funded programs that help underwrite tuition at private and religious schools, saying many of the eligible schools discriminate by cherry-picking the students they want to teach. Pennsylvania’s Capitol is already gripped by a broader and mostly partisan debate over how...
Can the Pa. legislature finish the budget before a leaky roof closes the state House for months?
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — State lawmakers will return to Harrisburg next week in hopes of finally ending nearly six months of partisan deadlock on the last pieces...
Biden goes into 2024 with the economy getting stronger, but voters feel horrible about it
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden goes into next year’s election with a vexing challenge: Just as the U.S. economy is getting stronger, people are still feeling horrible about it. Pollsters and economists say there has never been as wide a gap between the underlying health of the economy and public...
New U.S. aid for Ukraine seems out of reach as GOP ties it to border security
WASHINGTON — A deal to provide further U.S. assistance to Ukraine by year-end appears to be increasingly out of reach for President Joe Biden. The impasse is deepening in Congress despite dire warnings from the White House about the consequences of inaction as Republicans insist on pairing the aid with...
Peek inside Joe Biden’s campaign fundraisers, where big money mingles with old jokes in swanky homes
LOS ANGELES — If you’re a Democrat with money to burn and friends in high places, you can spend thousands on tickets to a fundraiser with President Joe Biden. If not, keep reading to see what you’re missing. With an election year around the corner, Biden is accelerating his fundraising...
Fox News pushes back against reporter’s lawsuit claiming he was fired for challenging Jan. 6 coverage
WASHINGTON — Fox News pushed back Friday against a former reporter’s lawsuit saying he was targeted and fired for challenging false claims about the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The network argued Jason Donner had not shown he faced illegal discrimination. The nation’s capital bans discrimination...
Kemp signs Georgia’s Republican redistricting into law
ATLANTA — Meeting a federal judge’s deadline, Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law new Republican-drawn political maps Friday that redistrict Georgia’s congressional and General Assembly seats before next year’s elections. The redrawn district lines preserve Republican majorities after the judge ruled Georgia’s previous boundaries illegally weakened Black voting power in...
Trump’s vow to only be a dictator on ‘day one’ follows growing worry over his authoritarian rhetoric
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — As Donald Trump faces growing scrutiny over his increasingly authoritarian and violent rhetoric, Fox News host Sean Hannity gave his longtime friend a chance to assure the American people that he wouldn’t abuse power or seek retribution if he wins a second term. But instead of offering...
Biden showcases $8.2B for 10 major rail projects, including in W.Pa.
LAS VEGAS — President Joe Biden went to Las Vegas on Friday to say he’s “putting high-speed rail on the fast track,” and he used the moment to blast Donald Trump — his predecessor and likely 2024 challenger — as a do-nothing politician. “Trump just talks the talk. We walk...
Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry makes early witness list in Trump’s Georgia election case
U.S. Rep. Scott Perry is on an exhaustive list of potential witnesses that prosecutors in Fulton County, Ga., have prepared for a potential 2024 criminal trial against former president Donald J. Trump and 14 co-conspirators for alleged attempts to subvert the 2020 presidential vote in that state. The list, first...
