Poli Alert Politics & Civics

Sneha Dey and Joshua Fechter, The Texas Tribune   After a mass shooting on Saturday at an Allen outlet mall ended with eight people dead, Texas Republicans are doubling down on their resistance to gun control legislation. A gunman used an AR-15-style weapon to open fire on shoppers on Saturday …

Sofia Resnick, Michigan Advance Anti-abortion leaders could not stop paraphrasing Winston Churchill last June after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a victory that took 50 years to realize. “While we celebrate the momentous ruling in Dobbs, we must remember that overturning Roe was not the beginning of …

By Matthew Choi, The Texas Tribune A gunman killed eight people Saturday afternoon and wounded at least seven more after he opened fire at an outlet mall in Allen, creating a scene of panic and bloodshed in the latest mass shooting in Texas. The massacre ended when a police officer …

By Zach Despart and Renzo Downey, The Texas Tribune A House committee has recommended the expulsion of Republican state Rep. Bryan Slaton after finding he had engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct with an aide, then acted to thwart an investigation into the matter. A scathing report by the House General …

Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix Wasting no time in firing back at The Walt Disney Co. in their continuing feud, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation Friday purporting to void the entertainment giant’s development agreement with the Reedy Creek Improvement District when that special district was still under Disney’s control. The original …

Ariana Figueroa, Iowa Capital Dispatch U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday announced Democrats’ plans to mark up legislation to increase the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour, pointing to an increase in the cost of living. Outside the U.S. Capitol, Sanders, a Vermont independent and chairman of the Health, …

Julia Conley, Common Dreams Along with passing forced pregnancy laws and measures to punish parents for supporting their transgender children, the Republican Party is pushing numerous bills to loosen child labor regulations—and on Thursday Gov. Kim Reynolds confirmed she plans to make Iowa the second GOP-controlled state to enact such …

Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner announced her resignation Thursday afternoon effective June 1, after brokering a deal to kill a bill that would allow a state takeover of the city prosecutor’s office. “An elected prosecutor is our city’s sole opportunity to have a say in …

Documents obtained by ProPublica and published Thursday reveal that billionaire real estate tycoon Harlan Crow paid tens of thousands of dollars for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ grandnephew to attend a pair of elite private schools. It’s the latest in a string of recent revelations about how the Republican …

Ashley Murray, Missouri Independent Unless Congress can strike a deal, the U.S. Treasury will likely default on the nation’s bills starting June 8, triggering major consequences for the economy, according to Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics. The risk assessment organization’s chief economist testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on the …

Wesley Muller, Louisiana Illuminator Republican lawmakers on a state House panel killed a measure that would have established a $10 per hour minimum wage in Louisiana and increased to $14 by 2028. House Bill 374, sponsored by Rep. Ed Larvadain, D-Alexandria, failed to pass the House Committee on Labor and …

Ariana Figueroa, Kentucky Lantern Children as young as 10 were found working past midnight at a McDonald’s restaurant in Louisville, the U.S. Department of Labor said in announcing numerous civil penalties levied on fast-food franchises. As part of an investigation into federal child labor law violations in the Southeast, the …

Casey Quinlan, Wisconsin Examiner Higher temperatures. Higher gas prices. Drivers across the country have seen that seasonal given play out in recent weeks. The national average for a gallon of regular gas was $3.61 on May 1, up 11 cents over the previous month, according to AAA. The good news …

Grace Panetta, Shefali Luthra Originally published by The 19th Republican lawmakers in North Carolina, one of the few Southern states where abortion remains legal and accessible, are proposing a 12-week abortion ban that could further weaken access in the region. Republican legislative leaders in the state recently gained a supermajority …

Patrick Svitek and Matthew Choi, The Texas Tribune U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, announced Wednesday he is challenging U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, for reelection. The third-term congressman made the announcement in a three-minute video posted on social media. The video touted Allred’s life story and congressional record — and …