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U.S. House speaker gains Dem backing for foreign aid plan, as far-right Republicans seethe
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats on Thursday began coalescing behind Republican Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan to provide assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan through a series of three bills, though far-right members of his own party grew increasingly frustrated with the Louisianan’s bipartisan streak. Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is leading an effort […]
U.S. House GOP rolls out aid for Ukraine, Israel; votes planned on TikTok, border security
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans unveiled three bills Wednesday that would provide $95 billion overall in assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, instead of voting on a similar bipartisan Senate-approved package that’s been waiting around for months. The Ukraine bill would provide $60.84 billion, the Israel bill would appropriate $26.38 billion and the Indo-Pacific bill […]
Trump backpedals on support for national ban, says states will decide abortion rights
WASHINGTON — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump announced a shift in his views on abortion laws Monday, releasing a video advocating for state legislatures to make those decisions, not Congress — and was immediately met with strong criticism from an influential anti-abortion group that said it should remain a national debate. “My view is now […]
An 1873 law banned the mailing of boxing photos. Could it block abortion pills too?
WASHINGTON — An anti-obscenity law enacted in 1873 that hasn’t been enforced in decades shot to the forefront of the nation’s abortion debate in the past week thanks to two U.S. Supreme Court justices, amid expectations a future Republican president would use the law to order a nationwide ban on medication abortion. The Comstock Act, […]
Democrats’ quest to hang on to Senate majority centers on Arizona, Montana, Ohio, and Nevada
WASHINGTON — Political consultants and Beltway pollsters are setting up camp in purple states to join a towering battle for control of a narrowly split U.S. Senate, but come November, only the voters will make that choice. The road to the majority in the upper chamber of Congress mostly runs through Arizona, Montana and Ohio, […]
Biden campaign, Jan. 6 officers decry Trump use of ‘political violence’ in post of video
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign on Monday called on voters to disavow violence as a viable part of this year’s campaign cycle, including comments made by his Republican opponent and former President Donald Trump. Former U.S. Capitol Police Sergeant Aquilino Gonell, District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges and Biden-Harris Communications Director […]
U.S. Supreme Court justices seem skeptical of limits on access to abortion medication
WASHINGTON — The future of medication abortion access in the United States went in front of the U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday, where several justices appeared somewhat skeptical as anti-abortion organizations argued use of the pharmaceutical should be moved back to what was in place before 2016. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, speaking on behalf […]
U.S. Supreme Court to hear oral arguments Tuesday on abortion pill limits
WASHINGTON — The same U.S. Supreme Court that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion will hear oral arguments Tuesday over access to mifepristone, a pharmaceutical used in both medication abortion and miscarriage care. The nine justices will then decide whether to leave access to the drug intact or require the U.S. Food and Drug […]
U.S. Senate in overnight vote sends $1.2 trillion government spending package to Biden
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate took a broadly bipartisan vote early Saturday to approve a $1.2 trillion spending package, sending the measure to President Joe Biden for his signature with no time to spare after missing a midnight deadline. The 74-24 vote wraps up the government funding process for fiscal year 2024, which began back […]
Congress rushes to approve $1.2 trillion spending package ahead of midnight deadline
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House approved a broadly bipartisan $1.2 trillion spending package Friday, sending the legislation to the Senate ahead of a midnight deadline. Senators have just hours to clear the measure for President Joe Biden’s signature, otherwise parts of the federal government will begin a funding lapse early Saturday. Meeting that benchmark will […]
$1.2 trillion spending package that would avert a shutdown released by Congress
WASHINGTON — Congress released the final six government funding bills early Thursday, starting off a sprint toward the Friday midnight deadline to wrap up work that was supposed to be finished nearly six months ago. The bipartisan agreement on a $1.2 trillion spending package, which emerged just before 3 a.m., came less than two weeks […]
GOP U.S. Sen. Lankford of Oklahoma blocks bill expanding IVF for vets, service members
WASHINGTON — Washington state Democratic Sen. Patty Murray tried to pass a bill Tuesday that would expand access to in vitro fertilization for military service members and veterans, but Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford raised an objection and prevented the legislation from moving forward. “The recent chaos in Alabama caused by far-right ideology put a […]