Politics Election category, Page 222
Philly lawyer may join GOP field running for U.S. Senate seat
HARRISBURG — George Bochetto, a prominent Philadelphia lawyer and Republican whose cases have often landed in the public spotlight, said Thursday that he is seriously considering running for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat. In a brief interview, Bochetto, 69, said he is “looking at it very, very seriously and it’s...
Senate rejects Biden’s vaccine mandate for businesses
WASHINGTON — The Senate narrowly approved a resolution Wednesday to nullify the Biden administration’s requirement that businesses with 100 or more workers have their employees be vaccinated against the coronavirus or submit to weekly testing. The vote was 52-48. The Democratic-led House is unlikely to take the measure up, which...
House GOP chooses citizen map for proposed new Pa. congressional districts
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — The long-awaited redistricting process in Pennsylvania kicked into high gear...
Tennessee medical board takes coronavirus misinformation policy offline
NASHVILLE — Tennessee’s medical licensing board has voted to remove from its website its recently adopted policy against the spread of coronavirus misinformation by doctors, acting under pressure from a GOP state lawmaker and a new law imposing sprawling virus-related restrictions. The exchange spurring the vote Tuesday by the Tennessee...
Biden has new brand for infrastructure deal he’s promoting
WASHINGTON — Move over, BIF and BBB. Now there’s BBA. President Joe Biden, trying to rebound from sagging poll numbers, is rebranding his bipartisan infrastructure package as “Building a Better America” ahead of a Wednesday trip to Kansas City, Mo., to promote the deal. The economy has roared back during...
Congressional leaders reach deal to hike debt limit
WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders reached an elaborate deal Tuesday that will allow Democrats to lift the nation’s debt limit without any votes from Republicans, likely averting another last-minute rush to avoid a federal default. Hours later, the House passed legislation overwhelmingly along party lines that kicked off a multi-step process....
Attorney says Meadows won’t cooperate with Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — In an abrupt reversal, an attorney for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said his client will not cooperate with a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, citing a breakdown in negotiations with the panel. Attorney George Terwilliger said in a letter Tuesday that...
California Rep. Devin Nunes leaving Congress to lead Trump social media groupVideo
LOS ANGELES — Rep. Devin Nunes, a controversial congressman from California’s San Joaquin Valley, is leaving Congress to lead a social media company created by former President Donald Trump. “I will deeply miss being your congressman,” Nunes said in a message to his constituents. Shortly after he sent the note,...
Justice Department sues to block gerrymandered Texas congressional mapVideo
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration sued Texas on Monday to block its new congressional map, accusing the state of gerrymandering to shut out nonwhites in violation of federal voting rights law. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the enforcement action at Justice Department headquarters, saying the redistricting plans Texas adopted in...
Socialist Kshama Sawant faces recall vote in Seattle
SEATTLE — At first, Henry Bridger II supported Kshama Sawant, Seattle’s combative socialist city councilmember. A liberal voter in one of the most liberal neighborhoods in an extremely liberal city, he liked her fresh outlook and support for a $15 minimum wage. Seven years later, Bridger is leading an effort...
Turning outrage into power: How far right is changing GOP
WASHINGTON — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy appears to have settled on a strategy to deal with a handful of Republican lawmakers who have stirred outrage with violent, racist and sometimes Islamophobic comments. If you can’t police them, promote them. The path to power for Republicans in Congress is now...
CNN fires Chris Cuomo for helping with brother’s scandal
NEW YORK — CNN has fired anchor Chris Cuomo after details emerged about how he assisted his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, as the politician faced sexual harassment allegations earlier this year. The network suspended Chris Cuomo earlier in the week to investigate his involvement with his brother’s...
Vaunted Pennsylvania Society weekend loses luster among politicos
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 — For years, Pennsylvania Society has been the marquee event for the state’s politicians and the well-heeled special interests that...
Virginia GOP completes sweep of elections with House win
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A three-judge panel overseeing a recount in a close Virginia Beach state House race upheld the Republican candidate’s victory on Friday, a decision that also reaffirms the GOP’s takeover of the chamber and completes the party’s sweep of last month’s elections. Republicans also claimed the statewide...
GOP gubernatorial candidate Jake Corman lays out platform in Pittsburgh campaign stopVideo
State Sen. Jake Corman, a Republican candidate for governor, made a campaign stop in Pittsburgh on Thursday, using a former Pittsburgh mill site being redeveloped as a tech hub as a backdrop. Corman, 57, of Centre County, is in his sixth term in the state Senate, where he serves as...
Senate passes stopgap funding bill, avoiding shutdown
WASHINGTON — The Senate passed a stopgap spending bill Thursday that avoids a short-term shutdown and funds the federal government through Feb. 18 after leaders defused a partisan standoff over federal vaccine mandates. The measure now goes to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. Earlier in the day,...
Confusion breaks out as GOP lawmakers defy New Jersey coronavirus mandate
TRENTON — Disorder and confusion erupted outside the New Jersey Assembly as several Republican lawmakers defied a new requirement to show proof of covid-19 vaccination or a negative test and were blocked — albeit briefly — by state troopers from entering the ornate chamber Thursday. Ahead of an expected voting...
Gov. Tom Wolf adds to mounting veto tally, kills permitless-gun bill
Gov. Tom Wolf followed through on his veto threat Thursday, rejecting Republican-penned legislation to allow people to carry a firearm openly or concealed, without a permit, adding to his total for Pennsylvania’s chief executive with the most vetoes in more than four decades. Wolf, a Democrat, called the bill “dangerous.”...
GOP risks government shutdown to fight Biden vaccine mandate
WASHINGTON — The federal government could be heading for temporary shutdown, with Republicans poised to stall a must-pass funding bill in their effort to force a debate in Congress on rolling back the Biden administration’s covid-19 vaccine mandates for some workers. Conservative Republicans in the House and Senate who are...
Conservatives eagerly await Supreme Court abortion arguments
It’s the moment conservatives have been waiting for. Oral arguments at the Supreme Court on Wednesday represent the best opportunity leaders on the right have had in decades to gut the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which codified a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion before a fetus can...
Dr. Oz calls Keystone State home as he ponders U.S. Senate bid
Dr. Mehmet Oz’s claim to residency in Pennsylvania may be both recent and tenuous, but that won’t keep him off the crowded GOP ballot of contenders seeking to replace U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey. The Associated Press reported that Oz, 61, a longtime New Jersey resident, is planning to announce his...
Gov. Tom Wolf will use computer-drawn maps and other tools to help spot Pa. gerrymandering
PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania’s new congressional map will help shape political power for a decade — and Gov. Tom Wolf is laying down some rules as it gets drawn. Wolf plays a key role in the decennial redistricting: The Republican-controlled state Legislature will draw a map, but Wolf, a Democrat, can...
Ex-Trump aide Mark Meadows cooperating with House Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — Mark Meadows, Donald Trump’s former chief of staff, is cooperating with a House panel investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, putting off for now the panel’s threat to hold him in contempt, the committee’s chairman said Tuesday. The panel “will continue to assess his degree of compliance,” Mississippi...
Sources: Dr. Oz plans to run for Senate seat in Pennsylvania
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Dr. Mehmet Oz, the celebrity heart surgeon best known as the host of TV’s Dr. Oz Show after rocketing to fame on Oprah Winfrey’s show, is planning to run for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat as a Republican, according to three people familiar with his plans. Should...
Pa. Latinos work to turn huge population gains into political muscle, but still face barriers
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. LEHIGH VALLEY — Over the past five years, Victor Martinez has noticed...
