Politics

Philadelphia’s Fox affiliate reports: On Wednesday, Governor Josh Shapiro announced the demolition of the southbound lanes, which were found to be unsafe after the collapse of the northbound lanes, will be completed by Thursday. He says the first step after demolition will be to backfill the area and pave it to allow motorists to return to the roadway with three …

The Texas Tribune reports: Texas’ highest criminal court ruled Wednesday that the securities fraud case against now-suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s should remain in Houston, settling a key issue in the 8-year-old case as Paxton faces an impeachment trial in the Texas Senate this summer. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, in a 6-3 ruling, overturned lower-court decisions that said …

Politico reports: Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said he would not vote for Donald Trump should he end up the Republican nominee and be convicted in a criminal trial. The declaration is one of the strongest rebukes of Trump since he was indicted. It also underscores the difficult position in which the Republican party now finds itself: with the party’s …

Florida Politics reports: If Ron DeSantis wants to wrest front-runner status away from Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican presidential race, he’s going to have to resolve his trouble with female voters. That’s one takeaway from a new poll by The Economist and YouGov, which illustrates that DeSantis is dragging with women voters, and is stronger with men. While DeSantis …

The Associated Press reports: The measure, which won final legislative approval Tuesday, bans state agencies from using “environmental, social and governance” standards to screen potential investments, award contracts or hire and fire employees. It also says the state cannot weigh how a company promotes sustainability, engages with its community or structures its leadership to support those goals. Sen. Dave Craven, …

NBC News reports: Five years after Democrats came close to unseating Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in Texas, a group of strategists has launched the “Lose Cruz” super PAC. Backed by seven-figure funding, the super PAC will try to drive anti-Cruz messaging through rapid response, with ads online and on television. The first ad is expected next week. “Ted Cruz has …

The Independent reports: Ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appeared on Fox & Friends and delivered a sobering assessment of the charges against his former boss which dismantled the assertion Mr Trump’s allies have pushed on social media seeking to explain away the boxes of documents and classified materials at Mar-a-Lago as the president’s own property. By all indication, he said, …

The Houston Chronicle reports: In the upcoming impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has likened the Senate proceedings to a real-world courtroom, with senators serving as jurors and Patrick as the judge. However, this raises concerns over potential conflicts of interest within the trial. Paxton owes Patrick around $125,000 in outstanding campaign loans, while one …

Florida Politics reports: If Ron DeSantis becomes President, the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division would have a new task. The Florida Governor and 2024 Republican candidate told radio host Hugh Hewitt the Justice Department would branch out its understanding of civil rights to “do all discrimination” as part of “taking some of these agencies and making sure they’re actually …

CNBC reports: Americans For Prosperity, the political network financed largely by billionaire Charles Koch, is launching a wave of digital ads targeting former President Donald Trump. The ads argue that if Trump becomes the Republican nominee next year, it will lead to President Joe Biden winning reelection. Koch, who’s worth more than $60 billion, and his network notched several wins …

Roll Call reports: A disagreement between Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House conservatives that jammed up legislative business last week eased Monday evening, but members of the rebel bloc made clear it may not be the end of trouble for their leadership. Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz said McCarthy agreed to renegotiate the “power-sharing agreement” he worked out in January, when …

Florida Politics reports: Ron DeSantis says he can do better than the three jurists former President Donald Trump picked for the U.S. Supreme Court. “Well, actually, I would say we’ll do better than that. I mean, I respect the three appointees he did, but none of those three are at the same level of Justice (Clarence) Thomas and Justice (Samuel) …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: The state GOP convention in Columbus this weekend was both a grassroots business meeting and the start of the 2024 U.S. presidential contest in Georgia. It was also a reminder of the party’s fissures, since Gov. Brian Kemp and other statewide Republicans skipped the scene entirely. The group elected a new chairman in Josh McKoon. But …

Florida Politics reports: Oklahoma’s Governor is offering more context for his endorsement in the 2024 presidential race. After backing Ron DeSantis in Tulsa Saturday, Kevin Stitt took his enthusiasm for the Florida Governor to “Fox & Friends” to start off the week, explaining why he thinks the Florida Governor is the “right guy to take the White House back.” “Well, …

Playbook reports: The seismic news surrounding Donald Trump’s federal indictment last week upended the political world — and quickly overshadowed the embarrassing spectacle playing out on the House floor. To recap: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was forced to send his members home early after a splinter group of 11 conservative hard-liners, days after being steamrolled by the bipartisan debt-ceiling deal, …

Variety reports: Actor Denée Benton took aim at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis during Sunday’s Tony Awards telecast, referring to the Republican presidential hopeful as a “Grand Wizard” as she presented an award for theater education. On CBS’ live telecast, Benton saluted the 2023 recipient of the excellence in theater education award, Jason Zembuch Young of South Plantation High School in …

Reuters reports: Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, a billionaire businessman who created Italy’s largest media company before transforming the political landscape, died on Monday aged 86. Berlusconi, who was prime minister during 1994-5, 2001-6 and 2008-11, had been suffering from leukemia and had recently developed a lung infection. Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party is part of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing …

The Wall Street Journal reports: George Soros, the legendary investor, philanthropist and right-wing target, is handing control of his $25 billion empire to a younger son—Alexander Soros, a self-described center-left thinker who grew up self-conscious of the family’s wealth and wasn’t thought to be a potential successor. The 37-year-old, who goes by Alex, said in the first interview since his …

Sky News reports: Former Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon is in custody after being arrested in connection with the investigation into the Scottish National Party’s finances. Ms Sturgeon’s husband, former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell, was previously arrested as part of the probe along with ex-treasurer Colin Beattie. Both men were subsequently released without charge pending further inquiries. The long-running …

CNN reports: Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earned his first gubernatorial endorsement Saturday from Oklahoma GOP Gov. Kevin Stitt. Ahead of DeSantis’ remarks in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Stitt said DeSantis is “the right guy to beat Biden for the next eight years.” Stitt highlighted DeSantis’ handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and argued that his tenure as Florida’s governor …