Jennifer Shutt, Virginia Mercury Two months after doctors diagnosed the first case of monkeypox in the United States, Congress has yet to hold a hearing or give any significant attention to the painful and debilitating virus that’s spread to more than 4,600 people. Public health officials in the Biden administration …
Read More »Members Of Congress Arrested After Protest For Abortion Rights In Front Of Supreme Court
Jennifer Shutt, Colorado Newsline More than a dozen members of Congress were arrested Tuesday alongside abortion rights activists after they sat down and blocked an intersection between the U.S. Capitol building and the Supreme Court to protest conservative justices’ decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The act of civil disobedience …
Read More »Congress Roiled By Supreme Court Decision Revoking Abortion Rights
by Jacob Fischler, Virginia Mercury Republicans in Congress were jubilant at the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling overturning decades of precedent to revoke a constitutional right to an abortion, while Democrats were equally despondent about what they called an extremist decision that revoked a long-held right and represented an attack on women’s autonomy. …
Read More »U.S. Senate Moves Forward On Gun Safety Legislation
The Senate is poised to pass a bipartisan bill later this week that could become the most comprehensive federal gun safety legislation in years, including billions in new mental health funding. Senators on a procedural vote late Tuesday agreed 64-34 to start debate on the gun control bill, which would also have to …
Read More »In A First, 2 Rooms In U.S. Capitol Named For Women Who Served In The Senate
by Jennifer Shutt, Florida Phoenix The first woman joined Congress more than a century ago, but not until this month have any of the 540 rooms in the U.S. Capitol been officially named for women who served in the U.S. Senate. Following a dedication ceremony last week, Margaret Chase Smith …
Read More »Congress Votes To Suspend Normal Trade Relations With Russia
by Jennifer Shutt, Georgia Recorder April 8, 2022 WASHINGTON — The U.S. Congress last week voted overwhelmingly to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and reinforce a ban on Russian oil imports, following weeks of back-and-forth negotiations over the specifics. Senators in a pair of rare 100-0 votes agreed to …
Read More »5 Questions About COVID-19 Funding That’s Stuck In Congress
by Jennifer Shutt, Missouri Independent April 1, 2022 WASHINGTON — Congress remains undecided over how exactly to provide billions more to fight the COVID-19 pandemic as a new variant spreads throughout states and public health officials caution the virus doesn’t show signs of fading away. Negotiators were close to an …
Read More »Zelensky Invokes Pearl Harbor, 9/11; Pleads For U.S. Help In Ukraine
by Jennifer Shutt, Idaho Capital Sun March 16, 2022 WASHINGTON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday invoked the Pearl Harbor attacks ahead of World War II and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, while urging the United States to do more to stop the Russian war against his country. During the …
Read More »Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky To Address U.S. Congress
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will make an address to both houses of the U.S. Congress this week to provide an update on the Russian war, top congressional officials said Monday. Zelensky, who has led his country against the Russian invasion for almost three weeks, will make a virtual address to …
Read More »Congresswoman Jackie Speier Will Not Seek Re-Election
Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) announced on Tuesday that she would not run for re-election, a decision that ends the congressional career of one of the House’s leading women’s rights champions. “It’s time for me to come home. Time for me to be more than a weekend wife, mother and friend,” …
Read More »Biden To GOP On Debt Ceiling: ‘Get Out Of The Way’
President Joe Biden is urging Republicans not to use the filibuster to block Democrats in the Senate from raising the U.S. debt ceiling. “If you don’t want to help save the country, get out of the way, so you don’t destroy it,” said Biden during remarks delivered Monday. “We don’t …
Read More »Former President Trump Wants Tax Returns Blocked From Congress
Former President Donald Trump does not want the House Ways and Means Committee to have access to his 2019 tax returns. The former President’s attorneys are asking a federal judge to block the release of the documents because it will expose “private tax information” for “political gain.” For two years, …
Read More »The US House of Representatives Reinstates Mask Mandate
The US House reinstated its mask mandate after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced its new guidelines for vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. “For all House Office Buildings, the Hall of the House, and House Committee Meeting, wearing of a well-fitted, medical-grade, filtration face mask is required when …
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 …
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