Politics Election category, Page 225
How ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ became code for insulting Joe Biden
WASHINGTON — When Republican Rep. Bill Posey of Florida ended an Oct. 21 House floor speech with a fist pump and the phrase “Let’s go, Brandon!” it may have seemed cryptic and weird to many who were listening. But the phrase was already growing in right-wing circles, and now the...
A full guide to Pa.’s Supreme Court election and other appellate judicial races
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 — On Tuesday, voters statewide will have the opportunity to choose a new justice for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, as...
Michigan governor vetoes stricter voter ID, election bills
LANSING, Mich. — As promised, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Friday vetoed Republican-sponsored legislation that would toughen in-person voter identification rules and require people to include additional information such as their driver’s license number on absentee ballot applications. The governor said the bills would disproportionately hurt minority voters who are...
Biden at Vatican to talk climate, poverty with Pope Francis
VATICAN CITY — Declaring it’s “good to be back,” President Joe Biden on Friday opened a five-day European trip at the Vatican, where he and Pope Francis — the world’s two most prominent Roman Catholics — planned to discuss the covid-19 pandemic, climate change and poverty. A dozen Swiss Guards...
Biden announces ‘historic’ deal — but still must win votes
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden announced Thursday that he and Democrats in Congress have reached a “historic” framework for his sweeping domestic policy package. But he still needs to lock down votes from key colleagues for what’s now a dramatically scaled-back bill. Eager to have a deal in hand before...
Powerful special interests are pouring millions into Pa. Supreme Court race
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 — Labor unions, lawyers, and a political committee with ties to a billionaire advocate for school choice are underwriting the...
Josh Shapiro breaks with Gov. Wolf over strategy on climate changeVideo
HARRISBURG — Josh Shapiro, the Democratic candidate for governor, is breaking with Gov. Tom Wolf on the centerpiece of Wolf’s plan to fight climate change amid the strong and sustained pushback it has received from building trades unions that have long backed the party’s candidates for governor. Wolf — a...
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...
