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CDC issues detailed strategy for safely reopening K-12 schools
WASHINGTON—The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday released updated guidance to provide educators a science-based plan for reopening K-12 schools. The agency said it cannot force schools to reopen but can only stress that steps such as wearing masks and physical distancing of at least 6 feet are key to mitigating the spread of coronavirus. […]
Proposed $15-an-hour minimum wage would boost paychecks in the South
WASHINGTON—A gradual increase in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour would increase the pay of low-income workers across the U.S. but particularly in much of the South, researchers and experts predict. Florida recently voted to increase its state minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026, but the Sunshine State is an outlier. […]
North Carolina’s Regan approved by Senate environment panel as EPA chief
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee voted Tuesday to move forward the nomination of Michael Regan to lead the EPA. Following that bipartisan 14-6 vote, the nomination of Regan, the secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, now will head to the full Senate for confirmation. The chairman of the committee, Tom […]
A defiant Marjorie Taylor Greene says she’d be ‘wasting my time’ on committees
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene told reporters here on Friday that, now that she’s lost her committee assignments, she has more time to push a pro-Trump agenda. The House voted late Thursday, 230-199, to remove the Georgia Republican from two committee seats she had been assigned by GOP leaders upon arriving in Washington […]
U.S. Education secretary nominee says teachers should be prioritized for vaccines
WASHINGTON—The president’s pick to lead the U.S. Education Department said Wednesday that he wants teachers at the front of the line for vaccinations as local leaders debate reopening schools amid the pandemic. Miguel Cardona, a veteran educator from Connecticut, in his Senate confirmation hearing also faced questions from several Republicans about transgender students’ participation in […]
Biden rolls back Trump policy on separation of migrant children from their parents
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden signed three executive orders on Tuesday evening that will reverse controversial policies from the previous administration, including one that resulted in the separation of migrant children from their parents. Biden made it clear during the signing that he was not creating new immigration policies with the executive orders, but reversing those crafted […]
U.S. Senate Agriculture panel approves Vilsack as Ag secretary in bipartisan vote
WASHINGTON—The Senate Agriculture Committee on Tuesday unanimously approved Tom Vilsack’s nomination to lead USDA, after a hearing in which Vilsack discussed climate change goals in farming, food insecurity, supply chain problems and inequalities faced by Black farmers. Vilsack, a former Iowa governor who also ran the Agriculture Department for eight years during the Obama administration, […]
Ag nominee Vilsack battles skepticism from Black farmers ahead of confirmation hearing
WASHINGTON—Tom Vilsack, the president’s pick to lead the Agriculture Department, will likely face questions about his treatment of Black farmers and his record on civil rights at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee on Tuesday. President Joe Biden’s decision to tap the former Iowa governor, who also served as USDA chief during the […]
Dems move to strip committee assignments from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Rules Committee is set to meet on Wednesday to consider a resolution that would strip Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of her two committee assignments. If approved for debate by the panel, the resolution would move to the floor of the Democratic-controlled House for a vote. It is included […]
Election reform to return as a priority for Dems in Congress
WASHINGTON—Democrats who control Congress by narrow margins and the White House are making a fresh attempt to move forward a massive package that tackles dark money in campaigns, voter suppression and election security. The architect of the bill, Rep. John Sarbanes, said in an interview that the tumultuous 2020 election was a perfect example of […]
Biden to pause new oil and gas leases on public lands in sweeping climate order
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden is set to sign a host of executive orders on climate Wednesday that will put a hold on new oil and gas leases on federal property, place environmental justice in the center of climate reform and set goals of conserving nearly a third of the nation’s land and water. On the leases, […]
New Pentagon chief has roots in Georgia
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Friday confirmed General Lloyd J. Austin III as secretary of Defense, making the former Georgian the first African-American to serve in the post. In a nearly unanimous vote of 93-2, the four-star general is the second member of President Joe Biden’s national security team to be confirmed by the […]