Politics Election category, Page 221
Merrick Garland defends school board memo amid Republican criticismVideo
WASHINGTON — Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday defended a memo aimed at combating threats against school officials nationwide while Republicans insisted he rescind the directive. He signaled he had no plans to do so despite their criticism. The memo took center stage as Garland appeared before the Senate Judiciary...
What’s a ‘wealth tax’ and how would it work?
To help pay for his big economic and social agenda, President Joe Biden is looking to go where the big money is: billionaires. Biden never endorsed an outright “wealth tax” when he campaigned for the White House last year. But his more conventional proposed rate increases on the income of...
Finance reports show Youngkin with lead in cash on hand
RICHMOND, Va. — During the first three weeks of October, Republican candidate for Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin outraised Democrat Terry McAuliffe, while McAuliffe outspent Youngkin, according to campaign finance reports. Youngkin closed out the period with a nearly $6 million cash-on-hand advantage, according to reports compiled by the Virginia Public...
Panel OKs data for redrawing Pa. Assembly, Congress district maps
HARRISBURG — The five-person commission redrawing Pennsylvania General Assembly district lines gave its approval on Monday to adjusted and validated census-based data they will use to craft preliminary maps over the coming months. “Even though we have 90 days to develop a preliminary plan under the provisions of the state...
Biden ‘positive’ on budget deal; Manchin OK with wealth tax
WASHINGTON — Pivotal Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin appears to be on board with White House proposals for new taxes on billionaires and certain corporations to help pay for President Joe Biden’s scaled-back social services and climate change package. Biden said Monday he felt “very positive” about reaching agreement on his...
First steps made in Congress to honor pop superstar Prince
NEW YORK — Minnesota’s Congressional delegation on Monday is introducing a resolution to posthumously award the Congressional Gold Medal to pop superstar Prince, citing his “indelible mark on Minnesota and American culture,” the Associated Press has learned. The medal is one of the nation’s highest civilian honors and past recipients...
House votes to hold Trump ally Steve Bannon in contemptVideo
WASHINGTON — The House voted Thursday to hold Steve Bannon, a longtime ally and aide to former President Donald Trump, in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the committee investigating the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. In a rare show of bipartisanship on the House floor, the committee’s...
Fla. Gov. DeSantis to convene legislature to fight vaccine mandates
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday said he will call state lawmakers back to work early to pass legislation to combat coronavirus vaccine mandates enacted by businesses. The Republican governor didn’t specify a starting date for the special session of the GOP-controlled statehouse in November. “At the...
John Fetterman has raised $9.3M this year in Senate bid, dwarfing Democratic and GOP rivals
John Fetterman’s campaign war chest is dwarfing the coffers of his opponents early in the race for U.S. Senate. Fetterman, Pennsylvania’s Democratic lieutenant governor and former Braddock mayor, has outraised and outspent every other candidate in the crowded field vying to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, records show. From...
Trump announces launch of his own social media site
NEW YORK — Nine months after being expelled from social media for his role in inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, former President Donald Trump said Wednesday he’s launching a new media company with its own social media platform. Trump says his goal in launching the Trump Media & Technology...
‘The stakes are enormous:’ Steve Bannon case tests Congress’ powerVideo
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House is expected to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress. It’s up to the Justice Department, and the courts, to determine what happens next. As lawmakers ready a vote on Thursday to send a contempt referral to the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, there’s considerable...
Senate GOP again blocks Democrats’ election billVideo
WASHINGTON — For the third time this year, Senate Democrats on Wednesday tried to pass broad elections legislation that they tout as a powerful counterweight to new voting restrictions in the states. Once again, Republicans blocked them. But amid the stalemate, there are signs that Democrats are making headway in...
Jan. 6 panel votes to hold Steve Bannon in contempt
WASHINGTON — A House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection voted unanimously to hold former White House aide Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress after the longtime ally of former President Donald Trump defied a subpoena for documents and testimony. Still defending his supporters who broke into the Capitol...
Indictment accuses Nebraska congressman of lying to FBI
A federal grand jury on Tuesday indicted U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska, accusing him of lying to the FBI and concealing information from federal agents who were investigating campaign contributions funneled to him from a Nigerian billionaire. The U.S. attorney’s office announced that the grand jury in Los Angeles...
Colin Powell dies, exemplary general stained by Iraq claims
WASHINGTON — Colin Powell, who served Democratic and Republican presidents in war and peace but whose sterling reputation was forever stained by his faulty claims to justify the U.S. war in Iraq, died Monday of covid-19 complications. He was 84. A veteran of the Vietnam War, Powell rose to the...
Manchin’s opposition may doom clean-power plan Biden backs
WASHINGTON — Sen. Joe Manchin has told the White House and congressional leaders that he will not support including a key clean-power provision in the Democrats’ spending package, putting at risk a central element of the legislation designed to fight climate change, according to a person familiar with the matter....
Jan. 6 panel moving swiftly as it sets Bannon contempt vote
WASHINGTON — A congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection has moved aggressively against close Trump adviser Steve Bannon, swiftly scheduling a vote to recommend criminal contempt charges against the former White House aide after he defied a subpoena. The chairman of the special committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.,...
Pa. lawmakers hand out millions in public contracts to law firms that fill their campaign coffers
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — A host of politically connected law firms are pouring millions of dollars into the campaigns of Pennsylvania legislators, who...
Supreme Court commission talks positively of shorter terms
WASHINGTON — A commission tasked with studying potential changes to the Supreme Court has released a first look at its review, a draft report that is cautious in discussing proposals for expanding the court but also speaks approvingly of term limits for justices. The 36-member bipartisan commission, largely composed of...
Biden to reinstate Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy next month
SAN DIEGO — The Biden administration said it plans to reinstate a Trump-era border policy next month to make asylum-seekers wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court, complying with a judge’s order. It hinges on approval of the Mexican government, which has raised concerns that U.S. officials are...
Steve Bannon defies Jan. 6 panel’s subpoena, faces contempt charge
WASHINGTON — A congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection could soon prepare criminal contempt charges against former White House aide Steve Bannon as he defies a subpoena for documents and testimony about his interactions with President Donald Trump ahead of the violent siege of the Capitol. The committee scheduled...
Judge denies Parnell motion to seal custody case, but grants protections for children’s medical records
The judge presiding over the divorce and child custody case involving Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sean Parnell on Thursday denied a motion by his attorney to seal the entirety of the case and upcoming trial, as well as a motion for a gag order on the parties. Senior Common Pleas...
New wind farms would dot U.S. coastlines under Biden plan
WASHINGTON — Seven major offshore wind farms would be developed on the East and West coasts and in the Gulf of Mexico under a plan announced Wednesday by the Biden administration. The projects are part of President Joe Biden’s plan to deploy 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030,...
Analysis: Ahead of holidays, Biden tries to untangle supply chain messVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden wants to save Christmas — but he may not be able to. He announced Wednesday that the Port of Los Angeles would operate around the clock to alleviate a logistical bottleneck that has left dozens of container ships idling off the California coast and Americans...
Georgia Senate hopeful Herschel Walker cancels event over swastika
ATLANTA — Georgia Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker has called off a fundraiser in Texas because an organizer was displaying a swastika made of syringes in her social media profile to protest mandatory covid-19 vaccination. The Walker campaign said Wednesday that it had canceled the event, which had been...
