Poli Alert Politics & Civics

Grace Panetta Originally published by The 19th Seven states have directly voted on abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022 — and abortion rights advocates are so far undefeated with ballot measures. The most recent win came in November when Ohio became the latest …

Jimmy Williams Former President Donald Trump’s recent comments at a New Hampshire rally, where he stated that immigrants coming to the U.S. are “poisoning the blood of our country,” have sparked intense controversy. The remarks, swiftly rebuked by President Joe Biden’s campaign, drew historical parallels as Trump’s language echoed terminology …

Danielle J. Brown, Maryland Matters  In the new landscape of abortion discourse following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th) and other Democrats are calling on top social media sites to combat potentially harmful misinformation related to abortion access and procedures. On Dec. 7, Raskin and …

Jimmy Williams A federal jury has ruled that Rudy Giuliani must pay $148 million in damages to Ruby Freeman and her daughter Shaye Moss, former Georgia election workers. The jury found Giuliani liable for defamation and causing emotional distress after falsely accusing Freeman and Moss of manipulating ballots in the …

Jayme Lozano Carver, The Texas Tribune Near the tip of the top of the state, Amarillo is far from the Capitol in Austin, Dallas’ busy downtown, and Houston’s congested highways. The “floating” city in the Panhandle is often forgotten by much of the state, residents say. Most of the country …

Tim Wesselman, Georgia Recorder This week will mark 11 years since a massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary forever changed the lives of more than 20 families. A young man with military-style firepower killed 20 children and six adults in less than five minutes. The mass shooting in Connecticut came three …

Jennifer Shutt, Kentucky Lantern Members of the U.S. House headed home Thursday for a three-week winter break without completing work on several must-pass bills, but senators are now scheduled to return to Capitol Hill on Monday as leaders in the upper chamber and the White House look for an agreement …

Casey Quinlan, Georgia Recorder Next year is packed with potential shifts in the economy but many economists and investment analysts expect that the country will likely avoid a recession in 2024 even as growth slows in the first half of the year. States Newsroom talked to economists about their expectations for some key …

Jimmy Williams Rep. James Comer, a wealthy farmer and chairman of the House Oversight Committee, is under scrutiny for his financial dealings, particularly regarding six acres of land co-owned with a campaign contributor. Comer, a vocal critic of the Bidens’ use of shell companies, is accused of treating these six …

Shefali Luthra Originally published by The 19th The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to weigh in on the future of mifepristone, a drug used in more than half of all abortions in the United States, setting up another major dispute over abortion rights less than two years after the court’s …

Jennifer Shutt, Georgia Recorder The Biden administration said Wednesday there’s roughly $1 billion left in military aid for Ukraine and predicted that funding will last less than a month if Congress doesn’t approve another supplemental spending bill. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during the daily briefing that “the …

Jacob Fischler, Rhode Island Current The U.S. House voted along party lines Wednesday to officially proceed with an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden. The Republican-controlled chamber approved a resolution, 221-212, with Illinois Democrat Brad Schneider not voting, to allow three committees to continue their investigation into whether Biden benefited …

Ashley Murray, Georgia Recorder The U.S. Senate took an important step Tuesday on the nation’s annual defense policy bill, but the reliably bipartisan legislation is expected to hit the same hard-right opposition in the U.S. House that has dogged lawmakers since the beginning of this Congress. The Democratic-led upper chamber …

Jimmy Williams President Joe Biden issued a pointed warning to Israel during a closed-door fundraiser in Washington, criticizing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the conflict with Palestine. Biden mentioned that U.S. and European support for Israel was softening due to concerns about “indiscriminate bombing.” He expressed that Netanyahu faced …

Jennifer Shutt, Maine Morning Star Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy struggled Tuesday to convince members of Congress to approve billions in additional aid to his country at a crucial moment in the nearly two-year war with Russia. But the outlook was grim as lawmakers remained deadlocked on another piece of a …