Politics Election category, Page 343
Labor Secretary Acosta resigning amid Epstein deal scrutiny
WASHINGTON — Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta said Friday he is resigning following renewed scrutiny of his handling of a 2008 secret plea deal with wealthy financier Jeffrey Esptein , who is accused of sexually abusing dozens of underage girls. President Donald Trump, with Acosta at his side, made the announcement...
Trump administration plans immigration enforcement operation
CHICAGO — The Trump administration is moving forward with a nationwide immigration enforcement operation targeting migrant families, despite loud opposition from Democrats and questions over whether it’s the best use of resources given the crisis at the border. The operation could happen as soon as this weekend after being postponed...
McGrath flip-flops on Kavanaugh confirmation after backlash
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — U.S. Senate candidate Amy McGrath said she would have voted to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court and then just hours later she changed her mind. The Courier Journal reports that the reversal came after her comments were slammed on social media by both...
Candidate: Woman reporter needs chaperone to cover him
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Republican candidate for Mississippi governor says he would not let a woman journalist follow him while campaigning unless she was accompanied by a male colleague — and now he’s trying to raise campaign money based on that because he says the “liberal media” are attacking...
Trump directs government to revamp care for kidney disease
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the government to revamp the nation’s care for kidney disease so that more people whose kidneys fail have a chance at early transplants and home dialysis. Trump said his order was intended to increase the supply of donated kidneys, make...
Presidential hopeful Kirsten Gillibrand to campaign in Pittsburgh
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand will bring her presidential campaign to Pittsburgh on Thursday. Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2009, is scheduled to meet with health care workers to discuss the rising cost of prescription drugs, according to a statement from the...
Murphy wins North Carolina GOP congressional primary runoff
RALEIGH, N.C. — A state legislator aided by hardline conservatives on Capitol Hill won the Republican nomination Tuesday for the North Carolina congressional district seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Walter Jones Jr. Voters in the 3rd District GOP primary runoff chose state Rep. Greg Murphy of Greenville...
Plan by Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez to declare climate emergency
WASHINGTON — Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are teaming up on a measure that would designate climate change as an emergency, and they have won early support from one of Sanders’ fellow Democratic presidential candidates. The legislation to be introduced Tuesday in the House is...
Federal court: Trump can’t ban critics from Twitter account
NEW YORK — President Donald Trump can’t ban critics from his Twitter account, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, saying the First Amendment calls for more speech, rather than less, on matters of public concern. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan upheld a lower court judge who...
Barr: Mueller’s Hill testimony will be ‘public spectacle’
EDGEFIELD, S.C. — Attorney General William Barr on Monday accused Democrats of trying to create a “public spectacle” by subpoenaing Special Counsel Robert Mueller to testify before Congress about the Russia investigation. In an interview with The Associated Press, Barr said the Justice Department would support Mueller if he decides...
Fuel makers launch ad criticizing Trump ethanol mandates
MADISON, Wis. — An association representing oil refineries launched a television ad in four swing states Monday criticizing President Donald Trump’s moves to expand the use of ethanol in gasoline. The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers’ 30-second spot will run statewide through July in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin. The...
What did Jeffrey Epstein’s famous friends know and see?
WASHINGTON — Jeffrey Epstein has hobnobbed with some of the world’s most powerful people during his jet-setting life. Future President Trump called him a “terrific guy.” Former President Bill Clinton praised his intellect and philanthropic efforts and was a frequent flyer aboard his private jet. The arrest of the billionaire...
Elizabeth Warren raises $19.1M, topping Bernie Sanders in new fundraising
WASHINGTON — Elizabeth Warren raised $19.1 million in the second quarter, her campaign said Monday, cementing her status in the top tier of Democratic presidential contenders and surpassing Bernie Sanders, her main liberal rival. The strong showing leaves the Massachusetts senator behind only Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend, Indiana, mayor...
Justice Department shaking up legal team on census case
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is shaking up the legal team fighting for the inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 census but offered no specifics on why the change was being made. The change announced Sunday comes days after the department vowed to continue to try to find...
Former GOP lawmaker Justin Amash won’t rule out future presidential run
WASHINGTON — Rep. Justin Amash said he “wouldn’t rule out” a run as a third-party presidential candidate but plans to seek re-election to Congress in his Michigan district as an independent after leaving the Republican Party. “I believe that I have to use my skills, my public influence, where it...
Gov. Tom Wolf nixes $90M voting machines bill tied to nixing straight-ticket button
Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed a bill Friday that would have provided $90 million to help counties statewide upgrade voting machines because Republican Senate leaders tacked on a last-minute provision that would have nixed straight-ticket voting in Pennsylvania. Wolf further said that Senate Bill 48, “while purporting to secure elections, binds...
Trump weighs executive order to add census citizenship query
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday he is “very seriously” considering an executive order to try to force the inclusion of a citizenship question as part of the 2020 Census. Speaking to reporters as he departed the White House for a weekend in New Jersey, Trump said the idea...
Trump sticks to patriotic themes at Fourth of July event
WASHINGTON — President Trump celebrated “the greatest political journey in human history” Thursday in a Fourth of July commemoration before a soggy, cheering crowd of spectators, many of them invited, on the grounds of the Lincoln Memorial. Supporters welcomed his tribute to the U.S. military while protesters assailed him for...
Michigan Rep. Justin Amash quitting Republican Party
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, the only Republican in Congress to call for impeachment proceedings against President Trump, said Thursday he is leaving the GOP because he has become disenchanted with partisan politics and “frightened by what I see from it.” In an opinion article published...
Michigan Rep. Justin Amash quitting GOP
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, the only Republican in Congress to call for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, said Thursday he is leaving the GOP because he has become disenchanted with partisan politics and “frightened by what I see from it.” In an opinion article...
Trump administration still looking for way to add citizenship question to censusVideo
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department said Wednesday that it was still looking for a way to include a controversial citizenship question on the 2020 census, even though the government has started the process of printing the questionnaire without it. The abrupt shift from the Justice Department came hours after President...
Democrats eye Pennsylvania district that became more favorable turf in 2018 redraw
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s decision last week not to stop partisan gerrymandering was a blow to congressional Democrats who were hoping several states could see more favorable maps for 2020. But in at least one state, a new map implemented last year to redress partisan gerrymandering is giving Democrats...
Trump administration abruptly gives up fight over census citizenship question
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration, abruptly switching course, has decided to give up its fight to add a question about citizenship to next year’s census. Word of the decision to give up the fight came initially in an email from a Justice Department attorney to the lawyers who had challenged...
Pa. Senate Republicans issue letter to Lt. Gov. Fetterman over Senate floor chaos
State Senate Republicans issued a letter to Lt. Gov. John Fetterman Tuesday expressing “grave concerns” over what they described as his “dereliction of duty and defiance as the presiding officer of the Senate.” Signed by all 28 Republicans in the state Senate, the letter refers to chaos — shouting, name...
Eugene DePasquale makes run for Congress official
State Auditor General Eugene DePasquale is hoping to leverage his tenure as the state’s elected fiscal watchdog to make a run for U.S. Congress. DePasquale made the official announcement on social media Sunday after a week of reports that he had told Democratic Party leaders he planned to run for...
