by Jennifer Shutt, Missouri Independent March 11, 2022 WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday announced a new round of sanctions on Russia by the United States, as well as countries within the European Union and the Group of Seven nations. The latest round of joint economic restrictions will revoke Russia’s …
Read More »Texas Supreme Court Deals Final Blow To Federal Abortion Law Challenge
By Eleanor Klibanoff, The Texas Tribune March 11, 2022 The Texas Supreme Court dealt a final blow to abortion providers’ federal challenge to the state’s latest abortion restrictions Friday. The court ruled that state medical licensing officials do not have authority to enforce the law, which bans abortions after about …
Read More »Maryland Governor, Legislators Agree To Suspend Maryland Gas Tax For 30 Days
Maryland Gov Larry Hogan and state lawmakers agreed Thursday on legislation to suspend the state’s gas tax for 30 days. The emergency bill will land on the governor’s desk within days, and the gas tax holiday will commence after a special bill-signing ceremony. “Increased revenue projections for this year and …
Read More »House Condemns Bomb Threats Made Against HBCUs
by Ariana Figueroa, Missouri Independent March 8, 2022 WASHINGTON – The U.S. House on Tuesday passed a resolution condemning the weeks-long chain of bomb threats made to Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The resolution, sponsored by North Carolina Democratic Rep. Alma Adams, is in response to the more than 30 bomb threats …
Read More »Senate Passes $1.5 Trillion Spending Bill to Fund Government
The Senate voted Thursday evening to pass a $1.5 trillion spending bill to fund the government and provide nearly $14 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine, sending the must-pass measure to President Joe Biden’s desk before a midnight deadline Friday. In a 68-31 bipartisan vote that cleared the 60-vote threshold, …
Read More »The Only All-Black Women’s Unit Sent To Europe During WWII Is Awarded Congressional Medal
Mariel Padilla Originally published by The 19th Rep. Gwen Moore remembers the day a constituent called her office with a “fantastic, jaw-dropping story” about Black women’s contribution to the Second World War. The constituent’s mother, Anna Mae Robertson, was one of six surviving members of the country’s first and only …
Read More »Russian Energy Ban Passed By House
The House passed legislation late Wednesday that aims to ban Russian energy imports to the U.S. and give the president greater authority to sanction the Kremlin over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Suspending Energy Imports from Russia Act, which passed the House with a strong bipartisan vote of 414-17, would …
Read More »Missouri Lawmaker Wants To Make Out-Of-State Abortions Illegal
A Republican state Representative in Missouri has proposed a measure that would make performing an abortion on a Missouri resident — or helping a Missouri resident get one — illegal. State Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman has attached amendments to a number of abortion bills currently being considered within the state …
Read More »House Passes $1.5 Trillion Spending Bill to Fund Government
The House voted Wednesday night to pass a $1.5 trillion spending bill to fund the government through September and provide nearly $14 billion in critical aid to Ukraine. The bill includes $730 billion in non-defense funding, an increase of $46 billion over fiscal year 2021, and $782 billion in defense …
Read More »Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio Indicted For Conspiracy In Capitol Riot Case
Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the former national chairman of the Proud Boys, was arrested Tuesday following his indictment on conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, which disrupted a joint session Congress as they were ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related …
Read More »Senate Passes Bipartisan Postal Reform Bill
The Senate on Tuesday, by a 79-19 vote, passed a sweeping reform of the United States Postal Service (USPS) to eliminate much of its debt and restructure some of its operations. The bill, which was ten years in the making, is the first major overhaul of the mailing agency in …
Read More »Biden Declares U.S. Ban On Russian Oil, Warns Of Gasoline Price Spikes
by Jennifer Shutt, Missouri Independent March 8, 2022 WASHINGTON — The United States will no longer import Russian energy in an attempt to further cripple that nation’s economy as it wages war against Ukraine. President Joe Biden announced the newest sanctions Tuesday from the White House, saying that a ban …
Read More »Florida Lawmakers Pass “Don’t Say Gay” Bill; Sends To Gov. DeSantis
The state senate in Florida has passed the controversial ‘Parental Rights in Education’ bill (House Bill 1557), which critics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The legislation passed by a 22-17 vote, along party lines, with the Republican majority voting in favor of it, except for two Republicans, Jeff …
Read More »Supreme Court Rejects GOP challenges to N.C., Pa. Congressional Maps
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to block state court-ordered congressional maps in Pennsylvania and North Carolina before the 2022 midterm elections, in two orders late on Monday, handing a win to Democrats. In a pair of rulings issued late in the day, the court opted to allow redistricting maps drawn …
Read More »First U.S. Capitol Rioter To Stand Trial Convicted On All Counts
Guy Reffitt, the Texas Three Percenter who is the first U.S. Capitol rioter to stand trial, was convicted by a jury Tuesday of five felony counts stemming from the January 6 attack on the Capitol. A federal jury in Washington, D.C. deliberated for roughly three hours before they found Reffitt …
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