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Democrats predict abortion access, reproductive rights will be key issues in 2024
WASHINGTON — Democrats on Wednesday released new campaign ads and detailed how they plan to talk about abortion access and reproductive rights leading up to the 2024 elections. Top Democratic campaign leaders said during a press call they expect the issues will be key to regaining control of the U.S. House and keeping control of […]
A year after Dobbs: Congress takes a back seat on federal abortion policy
WASHINGTON — One year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, the courts rather than a divided Congress are leading the way on decisions on reproductive rights that would affect the entire nation. Congress has not enacted federal legislation to either preserve reproductive rights or to restrict abortion in the […]
Iowa, New Hampshire Democratic presidential contests remain in flux after DNC panel meets
New Hampshire Democrats will have at least 90 more days to change when and how the state plans to hold its 2024 Democratic presidential primary after the national party approved an extension in a committee meeting Friday. Iowa, which proposed both a mail-in and an in-person caucus process, was found not compliant. But the state […]
D.C. spending standoff ahead as U.S. House Republicans demand $130 billion in cuts
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans outlined Wednesday how they would cut $130 billion from the dozen annual government funding bills — producing a plan with significantly lower spending than the level both parties agreed to in the debt limit deal just two weeks ago. The spending levels likely set up a stalemate later this year […]
Democrats in Congress renew push to protect access to birth control
WASHINGTON — Democrats in Congress reintroduced a bill Wednesday that would guarantee access to birth control regardless of any future Supreme Court rulings. The measure would ensure people have the right to use contraception and that health care providers have a right to share information about contraception as well as provide it. The legislation would […]
Social media, trauma, hate speech add to youth mental health crisis, U.S. Senate panel told
WASHINGTON — U.S. senators agreed during a hearing Thursday the country’s children are going through a youth mental health crisis, though some of the committee’s members disagreed about what role Congress has to play. Senators detailed a complicated patchwork of issues that contribute to youth mental health challenges, including violence and trauma within schools and […]
U.S. Senate sends Biden debt limit legislation ahead of Monday default deadline
WASHINGTON — The bipartisan debt limit bill is on its way to President Joe Biden after the U.S. Senate voted Thursday to clear the measure for his signature. The 63-36 vote followed several amendment votes, all of which were rejected. Biden is expected to quickly sign the package, preventing a default on the debt that […]
U.S. House approves debt limit package, sending it to Senate days before default deadline
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House took a broadly bipartisan vote Wednesday night on the debt limit package, sending it to the U.S. Senate where lawmakers are expected to vote quickly to clear the measure. The bill would suspend the nation’s borrowing limit through Jan. 1, 2025 and set caps on discretionary spending for two years. […]
Debt limit deal hits turbulence in Congress as leaders prep for vote
WASHINGTON — Congress began moving the bipartisan debt limit package forward Tuesday, though frustrations with provisions in the bill could make for narrow passage in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. Conservative Republicans and progressive Democrats both aired their disappointment with the agreement forged over the weekend, but only GOP lawmakers are looking to possibly […]
Biden, McCarthy say they have brokered a debt limit deal to avert U.S. default
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced a deal in principle Saturday night that would stave off a first-ever default on the nation’s debt as long as it can clear both chambers of Congress before June 5. The agreement would address the nation’s debt limit and include a “historic” reduction in spending, McCarthy said, though […]
Treasury secretary pinpoints June 5 as earliest date for U.S. debt default
WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress and the Biden administration have until at least June 5 to broker and enact a debt limit bill under new estimates from the Treasury Department, giving negotiators a few more days before the country would default. “Based on the most recent available data, we now estimate that Treasury will have […]
With debt default as soon as a week away, U.S. House jets off for holiday break
WASHINGTON — U.S. House members walked down the steps of the Capitol building Thursday morning to head back to their districts for a Memorial Day recess that began exactly one week before the country could default on the debt. House Democrats took to the floor after the final vote of the week to give a […]