Politics Election category, Page 3
Trump signs bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, ending record shutdown
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump swiftly signed bipartisan legislation Thursday funding much of the Department of Homeland Security, but not its immigration enforcement operations, after it won final approval in the House, ending the longest agency shutdown in history. The White House had warned that temporary funding Trump had tapped...
Hegseth clashes for a 2nd day with Democrats in Congress over the Iran war
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth clashed with Democratic lawmakers in Congress for a second day Thursday, rejecting senators’ accusations that the Iran war was launched without evidence of an imminent threat and waged with no coherent strategy. The three-hour hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee mostly traced the...
Maine Gov. Janet Mills drops Democratic U.S. Senate bid against Platner, lamenting a lack of campaign funds
PORTLAND, Maine — Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Thursday dropped her bid for the U.S. Senate, pointing to a lack of campaign funds to keep up in one of the most competitive races in the country that quickly became a reflection of an internal party debate over which candidates can...
Louisiana congressional primaries suspended as a result of Supreme Court ruling, state officials say
BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana’s congressional primaries won’t be going forward as scheduled in May, as a result of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down a majority Black congressional district, the state’s top elected officials said Thursday. Gov. Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill said in a...
Supreme Court ruling will reshape American politics. The only question is when
The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Wednesday handed Republicans their biggest victory yet in the perpetual battle to control the House of Representatives and statehouses across the country — but it may have come too late to have much of an effect on this year’s midterm elections. The 6-3...
Deluzio, Hegseth spar during heated congressional hearingVideo
U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sparred during a contentious congressional hearing Wednesday over accounts that a U.S. command post in Kuwait was unprepared for an Iranian drone attack that killed six troops and injured dozens more. When Deluzio asked Hegseth whether there was anything else that...
Pa. House passes bill opening door to separate public, private state playoffs
The state House on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted in favor of a proposal that would clear the way for the PIAA to hold separate postseason tournaments for traditional public high schools and private, parochial and charter schools. The bipartisan bill passed on a 178-23 vote and now goes to the Senate...
Florida legislature approves new congressional map intended to boost Republicans in midterms
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Legislature approved a new congressional map intended to maximize Republicans’ advantage in the state as part of the national redistricting battle that President Donald Trump launched ahead of this year’s midterms. The vote came just two days after Gov. Ron DeSantis unveiled his proposal and the...
House approves bill to extend divisive surveillance program, but path forward uncertain
WASHINGTON — The Republican-controlled House approved a three-year reauthorization of a divisive U.S. surveillance program ahead of its expiration on Friday, adding new oversight measures but stopping short of the warrant requirement that critics have demanded. A large group of Democrats joined most Republicans to pass the bill in a...
Comey appears in court in Trump threat case that’s likely to pose a challenge for Justice Department
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Former FBI Director James Comey appeared in court on Wednesday, kick-starting a criminal case against him that legal experts say presents significant hurdles for the prosecution and will likely be a challenge for the Justice Department to win. Comey, who didn’t enter a plea, was indicted in...
Supreme Court weakens Voting Rights Act and aids GOP efforts to control the House
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday hollowed out a landmark Civil Rights-era law that has increased minority representation in Congress and elsewhere, striking down a majority Black congressional district in Louisiana and opening the door for more redistricting across the country that could aid Republican efforts to control the...
Environmental Protection Agency boss backs big budget cuts but Congress will get the final say
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats accused the Trump administration of abandoning the Environmental Protection Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment at a congressional hearing Wednesday, slamming agency leadership over a proposal to cut its budget in half. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s appearance before the Senate environment committee was...
Hegseth will be grilled by Congress for the 1st time since the Iran war began
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will face questioning from lawmakers Wednesday for the first time since the Trump administration launched the war against Iran, which Democrats have contested as a costly conflict of choice waged without congressional approval. The hearing before the House Armed Services Committee is being held...
Supreme Court to weigh Trump administration push to end protections for Haitian, Syrian migrants
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday over the Trump administration’s push to end legal protections for migrants fleeing war and natural disaster, one in a series of immigration cases the high court is considering against the backdrop of the president’s far-reaching immigration crackdown. The government is appealing...
Federal judge dismisses DOJ lawsuit against Arizona seeking voter data
PHOENIX — A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit against Arizona seeking access to the state’s detailed voter records, the latest legal setback in a nationwide effort by the Trump administration. U.S. District Judge Susan Brnovich, a Trump appointee, wrote that Arizona’s statewide voter registration...
Ex-FBI Director Comey indicted in probe over online post officials say constituted Trump threat
WASHINGTON — Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted on Tuesday in an investigation over a social media photo of seashells arranged on a beach that officials said constituted a threat against President Donald Trump, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person was not authorized to publicly...
On social media, concerns and questions arise about a U.S. military draft
Since the U.S. and Israel launched war on Iran, concerns have been cropping up on social media that the country’s first military draft since 1973 could return. Popular influencers like Spencer Hunt have been expressing such worries. A March TikTok post on the topic by Hunt (@spencewuah) — which garnered...
Ending the death penalty gains support from both parties in Pa. House
A Pennsylvania House committee on Monday passed a pair of bills that would abolish capital punishment in the commonwealth, potentially ending decades of limbo in which death sentences have been handed down but not carried out. Both bills passed the House Judiciary Committee on party-line votes, with the Democratic majority...
Former Pa. governors call on state leaders to make Shapiro’s security a priority
In the wake of a third assassination attempt on President Donald Trump on Saturday, all five of Pennsylvania’s living former governors called on state leaders to make the safety and security of Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family a top priority. “Combating political violence and keeping our elected officials safe...
Virginia Supreme Court considers whether to block voter-approved U.S. House map favoring Democrats
RICHMOND, Va. — Attorneys defending Virginia’s new Democratic-drawn congressional districts faced skeptical questions Monday from state Supreme Court judges who are considering whether to overturn the redistricting plan approved by voters last week that could help Democrats win as many as four additional U.S. House seats. A Republican challenge to...
DC gala shooting suspect aired grievances against Trump in writings to family
WASHINGTON — The man accused of opening fire at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner railed against Trump administration policies and referred to himself as a “Friendly Federal Assassin” in writings sent to family members minutes before the attack that authorities increasingly believe was politically motivated, according to a law...
Close watch on how Trump and journalists will get along at White House correspondents’ dinner
Donald Trump’s expected attendance at Saturday’s annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington for his first time as president will put his administration’s often-contentious relationship with the press on full public display. Trump will be watched closely at the event held by the organization of reporters who cover him...
Justice Department drops criminal probe of Fed chair Powell, likely clearing the way for Kevin Warsh
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has ended its investigation into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, clearing a major roadblock to the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as his successor. U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said on X Friday that her office was ending its probe into the...
‘2 ways of calculating’: Trump defends his mathematically impossible calculations on drug prices
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump, who helped push the term “fake news” into the mainstream, now seems to have a new favorite subject: fake math. During a Thursday event announcing a deal with drugmaker Regeneron to lower the cost of its pharmaceutical products, Trump defended his past claims that prices...
Congress keeps holding all-nighters, creating dysfunction after dark
WASHINGTON — Just as the Senate prepared to launch into a late-night vote series, Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana went to the floor to vent. Frustrated and seemingly exhausted Wednesday, Kennedy said he wanted more time to debate his amendments to a budget resolution to fund immigration enforcement agencies....
