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Liberal Supreme Court justices challenge abortion restrictions in high-stakes case
WASHINGTON — The liberal wing of the U.S. Supreme Court appeared highly skeptical of a Louisiana law that restricts abortion access as the justices heard oral arguments Wednesday in a case that could open the door for additional abortion limitations around the country. But the court’s conservative majority — which is likely to determine the […]
Major abortion case heads to U.S. Supreme Court this week
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Wednesday in a high-profile abortion case that’s rooted in Louisiana but could have major implications in states around the country. The case, June Medical Services LLC v. Russo, centers on a Louisiana law that requires any physicians who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a […]
Trump EPA chief to Congress: Cut my funding
WASHINGTON — President Trump’s U.S. EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler wants Congress to deeply cut funding for his own agency in the next fiscal year. The Trump administration this month asked Congress to slash the EPA’s annual budget by about $2.4 billion for fiscal 2021 — that’s a 26 percent cut from the amount the agency […]
U.S. House votes on landmark bill to make lynching a federal hate crime
WASHINGTON — Lynching is not considered a hate crime under federal law, but that’s expected to change soon. The U.S. House voted, 410-4, on Wednesday to approve a bill called the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. The bill would specifically list lynching as a hate crime, identified as a crime that targets people based on their […]
Florida Dems fume as Bernie Sanders gains steam
WASHINGTON — South Florida Rep. Donna Shalala was quick to lash out against Bernie Sanders on Twitter. It was Sunday night, and Sanders — fresh off a decisive win in the Nevada Democratic caucus — said it’s “unfair” to contend that everything was bad about the late Cuban dictator, Fidel Castro. “When Fidel Castro came […]
U.S. House votes to remove ERA obstacle; FL lawmakers split
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted on Thursday to remove one barrier to adding the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, but plenty of legal and political obstacles remain. The House voted 232-183 on Thursday — largely along partisan lines — to approve a resolution that would remove an expired congressional deadline for ratification of a constitutional […]
FL Republicans defend Trump’s ouster of impeachment witnesses
WASHINGTON — Two days after the U.S. Senate acquitted President Donald Trump of the charges leveled against him in his impeachment trial, the president ousted two witnesses who had testified against him. Republican members of Florida’s congressional delegation see nothing wrong with that. On Friday, Trump fired Gordon Sondland, his ambassador to the European Union. […]
Trump acquitted, despite one GOP defector
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has survived impeachment, but he didn’t emerge unscathed. The U.S. Senate on Wednesday acquitted Trump on charges that he abused his power by pressuring a foreign government to interfere in a U.S. presidential election and then obstructed a congressional investigation into his actions. The vote was almost entirely partisan, but […]
Trump made his pitch for 4 more years. Pelosi ripped up the speech
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump delivered his third — and possibly final — State of the Union address Tuesday night on the floor of the U.S. House, where he was impeached in December. And the partisan animosity that has gripped Washington throughout the impeachment proceedings was on stark display throughout the annual speech by the […]
Dems’ final pitch for ousting Trump: ‘He will do it again’
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats on Monday made their closing arguments for removing President Trump from office, insisting that leaving him in the White House would guarantee he’ll cheat in the 2020 presidential election. “He has done it before. He will do it again. What are the odds, if left in office, that he will […]
‘Is this a fair trial?’ Dems say Trump can’t be exonerated without witnesses
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats made an impassioned plea Friday afternoon for senators to allow for witness testimony in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial, but the outcome appeared all but certain. Republican lawmakers were expected to vote later Friday against allowing for witnesses and additional documents. Two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt […]
U.S. House votes to limit Trump’s war authority (again). Here’s how Floridians voted
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted Thursday to repeal the 2002 authorization for the use of military force that allowed the George W. Bush administration to wage war against Saddam Hussein’s government in Iraq. Most House Democrats joined 11 Republicans and one independent to approve a resolution to approve the repeal amid concerns about escalating […]