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Republican AGs urge Biden administration to give up on vaccine requirements
WASHINGTON — More than 20 Republican state attorneys general are threatening to sue the Biden administration over its mandate that large employers require their employees to either be vaccinated against the coronavirus or undergo weekly testing. In a Thursday letter, the 24 AGs pushed the administration to remove the requirement that would affect nearly 80 […]
Revised voting rights bill rolled out in U.S. Senate, with Manchin on board
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats on Tuesday unveiled a revamped voting rights bill that would expand voter registration as well as create nonpartisan redistricting committees, but the measure is still likely to face an uphill battle in an evenly divided Senate. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he will bring the legislation to the floor of […]
Voting by proxy becomes business as usual in the U.S. House
WASHINGTON — Data from roll call votes shows that 171 U.S. House Democrats and 89 Republicans have voted by proxy at least once since House Speaker Nancy Pelosi authorized the pandemic-era practice beginning last year. Pelosi has now announced the extension of proxy voting until Oct. 1 as the delta variant of the coronavirus continues […]
U.S. House Dems unveil new voting rights bill named for John Lewis
WASHINGTON — At the base of the bridge in Selma, Ala., where the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis of Georgia almost died while marching for civil rights, congressional Democrats announced Tuesday the introduction of legislation that aims to protect voting rights across the country. Rep. Terri Sewell, an Alabama Democrat, unveiled what will be designated […]
U.S. House moderates won’t back Dem budget without passage of infrastructure bill
WASHINGTON — Nine moderate U.S. House Democrats are threatening to oppose a budget resolution needed to pass a major social policy package unless a bipartisan infrastructure bill is first signed into law, according to multiple media reports. Opposition from the group could stymie House Democratic leadership’s plans of passing major legislation this fall on two […]
U.S. Senate to try again on voting rights in September
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is planning to bring a comprehensive voting rights package to the Senate floor for a vote when the chamber returns from recess next month. Schumer, a New York Democrat, said Wednesday that the Senate will take up a compromise version of the voting and elections bill, S.1, […]
House Dems document U.S. history of discrimination in shaping John Lewis voting rights bill
WASHINGTON — A House panel released a new report on Friday that will help lawmakers craft legislation named after the late Georgia civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis that aims to protect voting rights across the United States. The 124-page report, put forth by the House subcommittee on elections, outlines the U.S. history of discrimination […]
Black women with children excluded from federal cash assistance program, report finds
WASHINGTON — A new research paper reviewed how each state implemented a federal program that has provided cash assistance to low income families over the last 25 years — and found that Black women with children repeatedly were excluded. On a call with reporters Wednesday, policy experts at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities […]
Feds order new eviction ban in counties with highest COVID-19 infection rates
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials on Tuesday announced a new, narrower moratorium on evictions through Oct. 3, which would protect struggling renters in areas of the U.S. that have been hit hardest by soaring COVID-19 infection rates. The ban applies in all 15 Arizona counties. The targeted eviction ban comes days after a federal moratorium […]
Biden urges state and local leaders to postpone evictions while rental aid is distributed
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday called on state and local governments to put their own pause on federal evictions for at least two months, and urged them to use $46.5 billion provided by the coronavirus relief package for tenants and landlords. But the White House said that the Centers for Disease Control and […]
House Dems to unveil revamped voting rights bill named for the late John Lewis
WASHINGTON — House Democrats plan to next week unveil a new version of a voting rights bill named after the late Georgia civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis. During a Friday press conference, House Democratic Whip Jim Clyburn of South Carolina said that House Democrats are expected to introduce a revised H.R. 4, the John […]
Klobuchar: Senate Dems ‘very close’ to a deal on revised voting rights bill
WASHINGTON — Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Thursday that lawmakers attempting to negotiate a compromise elections overhaul bill are “very close to an agreement” on legislation, as Democrats struggle to respond to restrictive voting laws passed in Republican-led states. Klobuchar, the chairwoman of the Senate Rules & Administration Committee, has been meeting with other Senate […]