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As NV moves on mail-in voting, onslaught of laws in other states worries advocates
WASHINGTON — A U.S. House elections panel on Thursday heard from witnesses about the need to craft a new formula that identifies which states or jurisdictions have problematic histories of racial discrimination when it comes to access to the ballot box. The hearing in the House Administration Committee’s elections subcommittee also served as a way […]
Dozens of members of Congress are vaccinated, but some still hesitate
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress were among the first people in the U.S. to have access to the sought-after COVID-19 vaccine when the initial doses became available in December. Three months later, a States Newsroom survey across 22 states—making up a large swath of Congress— found at least 155 members of the U.S. House and Senate, […]
Democrats press Biden to cancel student debt
WASHINGTON – Joycelyn Fish drove through several feet of snow that blanketed Wisconsin one February night so she could get to a nationally televised town hall and question President Joe Biden about the crush of student debt. The blunt reply she got from Biden—that he wouldn’t take action to eliminate $50,000 in debt per student […]
Cortez Masto, Rosen highlight help for Nevada as relief bill passes Senate
The U.S. Senate passed President Joe Biden’s nearly $2 trillion stimulus plan Saturday afternoon after wrangling over an amendment to trim unemployment benefits derailed the bill’s passage for nearly an entire day. The Senate version, which does not include a federal minimum wage hike and puts limits on the funding for state and local governments, […]
Nevadan senators welcome Cardona’s confirmation as education secretary
The Senate on Monday confirmed Miguel Cardona to lead the U.S. Department of Education in a 64-33 vote. Cardona, a longtime educator from Connecticut, will be tasked with helping schools reopen during the pandemic and leading the $68 billion agency. “Teachers, students, and parents across the Silver State have endured an incredibly challenging year,” Nevada […]
Relief bill passed by House would give NV state government $2.9 billion
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House on a nearly party-line vote passed President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic aid package early Saturday, in a rush to both boost COVID-19 vaccine funding and get legislation to the president’s desk before unemployment benefits expire in mid-March. The package, dubbed the American Rescue Plan, passed 219-212. It includes a gradual […]
Barrasso interrupts, shouts at Haaland during 2nd day of confirmation hearing
WASHINGTON — In a bitter and at times high-decibel round of questioning at her confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Interior nominee Rep. Deb Haaland again fielded questions from Senate Republicans from oil and gas-producing states about the Biden administration’s energy policies. It was the New Mexico Democrat’s second morning in front of the Senate Energy and […]
Haaland faces GOP critics at her Interior confirmation hearing
WASHINGTON — Rep. Deb Haaland confronted expected tough questioning from Republican senators on Tuesday at her confirmation hearing to become the first Native American secretary of the Department of the Interior. But the New Mexico Democrat also drew support from Rep. Don Young, a longtime Alaska Republican who made a quick appearance to praise her […]
CBO gives Senate case for raising minimum wage through reconciliation
WASHINGTON—The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office in a report Monday found a gradual increase to a $15 federal minimum wage by 2025 would reduce poverty, add $54 billion to the deficit over a decade and increase pay for millions of low-income workers. The report could help Democrats make a strong case for including a gradual federal minimum wage […]
Horsford may have to share committee assignment with QAnon congresswoman
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Rules Committee is set to meet on Wednesday to consider a resolution that would strip Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of her two committee assignments. Greene has been denounced for spreading outrageous conspiracy theories – including ones in which she contends the deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas, as […]
H.R. 1: Dem measure includes sweeping election/campaign reforms
WASHINGTON—Democrats who control Congress by narrow margins and the White House are making a fresh attempt to move forward a massive package that tackles dark money in campaigns, voter suppression and election security. The architect of the bill, Rep. John Sarbanes, said in an interview that the tumultuous 2020 election was a perfect example of […]
NV conservationists welcome Biden’s pause on oil & gas leases
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden signed a host of executive orders on climate Wednesday that put a hold on new oil and gas leases on federal property, place environmental justice in the center of climate reform and set goals of conserving nearly a third of the nation’s land and water. “Our plans are ambitious, but we are […]