Democrats

Via press release from the White House: Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman, and humanitarian. Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend. But, what’s extraordinary about Jimmy Carter, though, is that millions of people throughout America and the world who never met him thought of him as a dear …

The New York Times reports: Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina is set to leave office on New Year’s Day after two terms that began with his effort to undo the state’s “bathroom ban” for transgender people and ended with him muscling through a Medicaid expansion. Now Mr. Cooper, 67, has plenty of options. In his farewell address last week, …

Gothamist reports: A Turkish transportation app that connects users with taxis, e-bikes and electric scooters has named the attorney representing Mayor Eric Adams in his federal corruption case to its board of directors. The Istanbul-based Marti Technologies announced late last week that its board elected Alex Spiro as a director during its 2024 annual shareholder meeting. In New York, Spiro …

The Hill reports: “It is utterly preposterous to suggest that we are going to send our military into Panama to, quote, ‘take back the Panama Canal,’” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said during a Thursday appearance on CNN. “We have a treaty with Panama. We have a free trade agreement with Panama,” she added. “We are no more going to take …

The New York Times reports: Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York on Thursday signed a law that requires companies that are big fossil fuel polluters to help pay to repair damage caused by extreme weather, which is becoming more common because of greenhouse gas emissions. The legislation, called the Climate Change Superfund Act, mandates that the companies responsible for the …

CBS News reports: President Biden and his family are heading to St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands for a final holiday before he leaves the White House next month. The trip has become an annual one for the Bidens, who in the past have stayed at a wealthy donor’s home on the island. It’s the third year in a …

Axios reports: Medicare’s $2,000 prescription drug cap will take effect at the start of the new year. The yearly limit on out-of-pocket payments, under the Inflation Reduction Act, is expected to lower millions of seniors’ medical costs. It will have a particularly significant impact for patients taking expensive drugs to treat cancer and other serious conditions. Overall, 3.2 million Americans …

CBS News reports: Former President Bill Clinton checked into a Washington, D.C., hospital Monday afternoon for “testing and observation after developing a fever,” an aide said in a statement. “President Clinton was admitted to Georgetown University Medical Center this afternoon for testing and observation after developing a fever,” Angel Ureña, Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, wrote on X. “He remains …

CBS News reports: President Biden is granting clemency to 37 of the 40 federal inmates facing death sentences. Their sentences will be commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The three inmates who didn’t get clemency are the convicted murderer in the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting, the gunman at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, and the …

Politico reports: New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Saturday distanced himself from a top NYPD official whom he previously promoted and defended, following new graphic sexual assault allegations. “The allegations are extremely concerning and alarming,” Adams told reporters Saturday. “The police commissioner is doing a full review of all personnel, but she’s also doing a full review of this …

Reuters reports: Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden secured his 235th appointment to the federal judiciary on Friday, narrowly surpassing President-elect Donald Trump’s first-term tally by one with a record number of women and people of color named to the bench. The Democratic-led U.S. Senate voted to confirm two of Biden’s nominees to serve as life-tenured federal trial court judges in …

CBS News reports: Legislation to expand Social Security benefits to millions of Americans passed the U.S. Senate early Saturday and is now headed to the desk of President Biden, who is expected to sign the measure into law. Senators voted 76-20 for the Social Security Fairness Act, which would eliminate two federal policies that prevent nearly 3 million people, including …

Politico reports: Senate Democrats wrapped up their extensive investigation of Supreme Court justices’ ethics practices Saturday, issuing a report blasting two conservative justices for accepting expensive gifts from wealthy benefactors and slamming Chief Justice John Roberts for a lackadaisical response to ethical lapses by his colleagues. “Now more than ever before, as a result of information gathered by subpoenas, we …

“The other thing that’s important in this, Shannon, is whether or not Republicans carry most of the freight in this. House speaker Mike Johnson, he has been under serious fire about this handling of this interim spending bill over the past few weeks. And if you have more Democrats support this bill than Republicans, that is kind of part and …

The Daily Beast reports: Pete Buttigieg offended an entire state by dismissing the idea that the SUV-sized drones spotted over New Jersey were part of a UFO invasion. Buttigieg quickly tried to backtrack the slight after being taken to task for saying New Jersey was a “very unlikely” location for a UFO landing on The Breakfast Club, co-hosted by Charlamagne …

Axios reports: House Democrats on Thursday coalesced around an operative phrase to describe their fervent opposition to Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) revised spending proposal: “Hell no.” It’s a term House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) used in a closed-door meeting of his caucus to describe his position. Jeffries initially termed the bill “laughable” when walking into the meeting. Johnson plans …

The Associated Press reports: The top Democrat in the House is blaming Republicans for a government shutdown if one happens. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Wednesday evening in remarks from the U.S. Capitol that “House Republicans will now own any harm that is visited on the American people that results from a government shutdown, or worse.” “An agreement is …

New York City’s ABC affiliate reports: New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday lost his attempt to dismiss one of the criminal charges he faces. Adams was indicted in September on bribery and other charges alleging he accepted illegal campaign contributions and bribes consisting of various forms of luxury travel. Adams sought to dismiss the bribery count, arguing the …

The Washington Post reports: President Joe Biden endorsed banning members of Congress from trading stocks, throwing his waning political capital behind long-running efforts to prevent lawmakers from profiting off of their unique access to market-moving information. Biden expressed his support for changing the requirements for lawmakers during an interview with Democratic political adviser Faiz Shakir for the advocacy journalism outlet …

The Hill reports: Three Democratic senators unveiled a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College system Monday, just more than a month after President-elect Trump stunned the Democrats by sweeping all seven battleground states, knocking off three Senate Democratic incumbents in the process. Sens. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii,) Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.), three leading progressive Senate voices, say …