The Justice Department said Wednesday that settlements have been reached in four civil cases after protesters were removed from D.C.’s Lafayette Square during civil rights demonstrations in June 2020. As part of the settlements, the United States Park Police and Secret Service will “update and clarify” policies on demonstrations “within …
Read More »Proud Boy Leader Enrique Tarrio Sentenced To Five Months In Jail
Proud Boy Leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio was sentenced to 155 days in jail and three years of probation on Monday for burning a stolen Black Lives Matter flag in December. Tarrio was arrested on January 4, 2021, in Washington, D.C. The controversial ringleader was in the city for former President …
Read More »Black Lives Matter Protestors Targeted By Trump’s DOJ
The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) released a report on Wednesday detailing the history of policing and describing how the Department of Justice (DOJ) under former President Donald Trump targeted Black Lives Matter protestors to interfere with last summer’s demonstrations. “We want to really show how the U.S. government has …
Read More »Gun-Waving St. Louis Couple Pardoned by Missouri Governor
On Tuesday, the couple who pointed guns at social justice demonstrators as they passed their luxury St Louis home last year was pardoned by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson as promised. The governor pardoned Mark McCloskey, who had pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault in the fourth degree and had been fined …
Read More »President Biden Is Raising ‘ridiculously low’ Federal Firefighter Pay
President Joe Biden is raising federal firefighter pay to $15 an hour and giving retention incentives. The raise comes as western states battle with deadly heatwaves and wildfires. “Because of climate change, woodland firefighting is no longer a seasonal endeavor,” a White House fact sheet said. The President met virtually …
Read More »Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Dead At 88
Former Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, who presided over the Pentagon when the United States went to war against Iraq and Afghanistan, has died. “It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of Donald Rumsfeld, an American statesman and devoted husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather,” …
Read More »Oath Keepers Member Agrees To Cooperate With Prosecutors
A second member of the right-wing terrorist organization, Oath Keepers, will cooperate with federal prosecutors and testify against other organization members. Mark Grods, a 54-year-old who admitted he brought firearms to D.C. and was part of the tactical “stack” formation that advanced toward the Capitol that day, made a deal …
Read More »House To Vote Today On $715 Billion Transportation Package
Democrats this week are preparing to pass a $715 billion transportation package called the INVEST in America Act. According to CBS News, the transportation bill would allocate $343 billion to roads, bridges, and safety; $109 billion would be given to transit; $95 billion would be used on passenger and freight …
Read More »President Biden Promotes Bipartisan Infrastructure Plan In Wisconsin
President Joe Biden promoted the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on Tuesday. “After months of careful negotiation of listening, compromising together and in good faith, moving together with ups and downs and some blips, a bipartisan group of senators got together and they forged an agreement …
Read More »House Dems set to vote on Jan. 6 select committee
The House is set to vote Wednesday afternoon on creating a select committee to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced the resolution to create the select committee earlier this week after efforts for a bipartisan special commission on the ransacking of the Capitol …
Read More »House Votes To Repeal 1991, 1957 War Authorizations
The House voted on Tuesday to repeal a pair of decades-old war authorizations. A 1991 authorization for the use of military force (AUMF) in Iraq and a 1957 authorization for military action in the Middle East was repealed with bipartisan support in a 355-46 vote. The repeals come on the …
Read More »Consumer Watchdog Agency Approves New Foreclosure Protections
The United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule for homeowners who are struggling to make mortgage payments due to the pandemic, but said foreclosures would be allowed to resume in coming months once those extra protections have been met. The new rule safeguards struggling borrowers and allows them to …
Read More »Federal Judges Block Black Farmers From Receiving Debt-Relief Funding
Two federal judges have blocked minority farmers from receiving billions of dollars in debt-relief payments. Judges Marcia Morales Howard and William Griesbach say the Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color Act is unconstitutional because it is not race-neutral. The orders come after white farmers and institutions filed lawsuits because they couldn’t receive …
Read More »Texas Governor Sued Over Defunding Of Legislature
Texas House Democrats are asking the state’s Supreme Court to overturn Gov. Greg Abbott’s veto of a budget provision that funds the Legislature, charging that his action was unconstitutional. The suit argues that Abbott’s veto, which could lead to about 2,000 legislative staffers not being paid for two years, violates …
Read More »DOJ To Establish Task Force To Address Threats Against Election Officials
The Justice Department announced on Friday that it is launching a task force to investigate the rise in threats against election officials, according to a memo sent to all federal prosecutors and the FBI. “The Department of Justice has a long history of protecting every American’s right to vote, and …
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