Politics

Kentucky Lawmakers Approve Bill Stripping Democrat Gov Of Power To Appoint US Senators During Vacancy

The Associated Press reports: Kentucky lawmakers gave final approval Thursday to a bill stripping the state’s Democratic governor of any role in picking someone to occupy a U.S. Senate seat if a vacancy occurred in the home state of 82-year-old Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell. The legislation calls for a special election to fill any Senate vacancy from the Bluegrass …

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US Census Revamps To Better Count Minorities

Axios reports: Hispanics and people of Middle Eastern and North African heritage may be more accurately counted in future U.S. census forms and other governmental data thanks to a new rule announced Thursday. Critics have long said the government’s approach to asking about people’s race or ethnicity is confusing or misrepresentative — and has huge stakes for the distribution of …

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South Carolina To Use US House Map Ruled Racist

The Washington Post reports: A federal court ruled Thursday that time had run out to draw a new congressional district in South Carolina and said the state could use its existing map this year even though it had earlier determined that map was unconstitutional. The panel of three judges last year concluded that South Carolina’s Republican-led legislature “exiled” 30,000 Black …

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Florida Supreme Court Has Until Monday To Rule On Abortion Rights And Legal Marijuana Ballot Measures

Florida Politics reports: The Florida Supreme Court must make a consequential decision between now and Monday, April 1, on whether to allow two significant ballot initiatives on the November 2024 ballot. Attorney General Ashley Moody asked the court to block the marijuana amendment from the ballot, but the scope of questions during the Supreme Court hearing suggested that several Justices …

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Dems May Trade Protecting Johnson For Ukraine Aid

The Hill reports: A growing chorus of Democrats say promising to protect Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) from a budding conservative coup could be their best chance to secure military aid for Kyiv, which has been stalled on Capitol Hill for months. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has already filed a motion to oust the Speaker if he bucks the conservatives’ …

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Chris Christie: I Won’t Run On The No Labels Ticket

Reuters reports: Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a Republican, has decided against running as the No Labels candidate for president, delivering the latest blow to the centrist, third party’s bid for the White House. The two-time former presidential contender’s decision leaves the group with few remaining viable options for candidates as it seeks to seize on the unpopularity of …

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MTA Approves NYC’s First-In-Nation Congestion Tolls

The New York Times reports: New tolls to drive into the busiest parts of Manhattan — including $15 for most passenger cars — were officially approved on Wednesday by an 11-1 vote of the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Nearly all the toll readers have been installed, and will automatically charge drivers for entering the designated congestion zone at …

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Pro-Choice AL Dem Flips Deeply Red Seat In Election To Replace GOP State Rep Who Pled Guilty To Voter Fraud

The Alabama Reflector reports: Democratic candidate Marilyn Lands, who campaigned on ending Alabama’s near-total abortion ban and protecting access to contraception and in vitro fertilization, won a special election Tuesday for a Huntsville-area state House seat. Lands will succeed former Rep. David Cole, R-Madison, who resigned in August after pleading guilty to voter fraud charges. In a statement, Lands said …

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Texas Sues Two More Porn Sites Over Age Verification

The Austin American-Statesman reports: In another attempt to limit the accessibility of adult content online, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued two more pornography distribution companies, alleging that they are in violation of a state law requiring age verification for sexually explicit websites. The attorney general’s office filed civil lawsuits against Multi Media, which owns the website Chaturbate, and …

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NYT: Brazil’s Bolsonaro Fled To Hungarian Embassy As Authorities Closed In His Plot To Orchestrate A Coup

The New York Times reports: On Feb. 8, Brazil’s federal police confiscated former President Jair Bolsonaro’s passport and arrested a pair of his former aides on accusations that they had plotted a coup after Mr. Bolsonaro lost the 2022 presidential election. Four days later, Mr. Bolsonaro was at the entrance to the Hungarian Embassy in Brazil, waiting to be let …

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“Literally Anybody Else” Launches Bid For President

Dallas’s ABC affiliate reports: Before a Dallas Stars hockey game at the American Airlines Center last week, fans were met by an ordinary, eager-looking guy wearing a TCU ballcap and a shirt that read ‘Literally Anybody Else 2024’ by the steps of PNC Plaza. His mission? Impossible. But the sentiment driving it all? Wholly relatable, sympathetic, and engaging to many …

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Israel Cancels US Visit By Diplomats After Gaza Vote

The Washington Post reports: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday canceled a trip to Washington by an Israeli delegation of top officials after the United Nations Security Council passed its first resolution calling for a Gaza cease-fire. The United States abstained, allowing it to pass. The resolution, backed by 14 nations including China and Russia, demands an immediate cease-fire …

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UN Security Council Backs Gaza Ceasefire, US Abstains

The Guardian reports: For the first time the UN security council has voted for a call for a ceasefire in Gaza, after the US abstained, rather than using its veto as it has done on previous occasions. Russia and China have also previously vetoed texts. The resolution that passed was written by the 10 elected members to the council, and …

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Axios: Biden Team Dedicates Staff To Go After RFK

Axios reports: President Biden’s team is so worried about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s potential impact on the election that it’s built an entire operation dedicated to attacking Kennedy. Former President Trump’s campaign also figures that Kennedy is more likely to pick off votes from Biden than Trump — so it’s content to watch and wait. Those contrasting approaches are coming …

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NJ Democrat Tammy Murphy To End US Senate Bid

The New Jersey Globe reports: Tammy Murphy will announce today that she is dropping out of the race for United States Senate, abruptly ending her campaign after four months, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed. That clears the way for insurgent Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) to likely win the Democratic nomination and become the strong favorite to replace indicted Senator …

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Murkowski Won’t Rule Out Leaving Republican Party

CNN reports: Sen. Lisa Murkowski, aghast at Donald Trump’s candidacy and the direction of her party, won’t rule out bolting from the GOP. The veteran Alaska Republican, one of seven Republicans who voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial, is done with the former president and said she “absolutely” would not vote for him. Asked if she would …

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Senate Candidate: Charge Obese More For Healthcare

The Daily Beast reports: Multimillionaire banker and Wisconsin U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde has made health care, namely his beef with Obamacare, one of four central issues on his campaign website. The Republican challenger to Democrat Tammy Baldwin, who also unsuccessfully ran in 2012, has long opposed the Affordable Care Act. Video shows that Hovde proposed enacting an especially cruel …

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GOP Rep: Santos Will Watch The Election From Prison

“George Santos’ expulsion from Congress was good for the nation and his resignation from the Republican Party is good for commonsense conservatives. Santos can watch me defend this important swing district and the November election results from his prison cell as he’s being held accountable for stealing an election and ripping off donors.” – GOP Rep. Nick LaLota, responding to …

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Retiring GOP Rep Takes Job With Peter Thiel’s Palantir

Rolling Stone reports: Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher, who led the charge on a bill that could effectively ban TikTok within the country — on the basis that China can “surveil its users” — plans to take up a post with the American surveillance company and defense contractor Palantir. Gallagher, who currently chairs the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, …

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Senate Approves Funding Bill To Avert Govt Shutdown

The Associated Press reports: The Senate passed a $1.2 trillion package of spending bills in the early morning hours Saturday, a long overdue action nearly six months into the budget year that will push any threats of a government shutdown to the fall. The bill now goes to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. The vote was 74-24. …

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