congress
Election officials make their voices heard as battleground states debate voting laws
When Georgia legislators pushed through a restrictive voting bill during the 2021 session, Bartow County election supervisor Joseph Kirk said he felt frustrated and sidelined. Lawmakers largely didn’t take election officials’ views into account, he said, and what resulted was a law that included a number of provisions that he said election officials believe are “to the […]
Biden to ask Congress for more Ukraine aid after earlier U.S. funding runs dry
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is preparing to ask Congress for billions more in aid to Ukraine as the war shifts to the Eastern regions of the country, following Russia’s failure to take the capital city of Kyiv. “I’m asking the Defense Department to put together what they think we need,” Biden said this week. […]
U.S. Senate strikes bipartisan agreement on $10 billion in COVID-19 funding
The U.S. Senate reached a bipartisan deal on pandemic aid funding Monday, settling on $10 billion for added testing, treatment and vaccines. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, and Utah GOP Sen. Mitt Romney released separate statements Monday afternoon announcing the compromise, though Schumer was disappointed negotiators didn’t reach an agreement on […]
White House wants $10 billion for Ukraine aid, $22.5 billion for more COVID help
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is asking Congress to provide $10 billion in assistance to Ukraine and $22.5 billion in COVID-19 funding on a fast timeline — within the next week. White House acting budget director Shalanda Young wrote in a letter to lawmakers that this likely won’t be the last emergency funding request for either Ukraine […]
Ohio Gov. DeWine signs Republican congressional map with huge GOP advantage
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has signed Statehouse Republicans’ congressional map for Ohio giving the GOP a substantial advantage, claiming that of all the maps presented it “makes the most progress to produce a fair, compact and competitive map.” DeWine pointed to fewer county splits in the map and the number of Ohio cities the map […]
Despite restraints, Democrats’ drug pricing plan could still aid consumers
By Michael McAuliff, Kaiser Health News The Medicare prescription drug pricing plan Democrats unveiled this week is not nearly as ambitious as many lawmakers sought, but they and drug policy experts say the provisions crack open the door to reforms that could have dramatic effects. Tamping down drug expenses has been a longtime rallying cry for consumers beset […]
How Congress will attempt the biggest expansion of U.S. social programs since FDR
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate this week passed a massive bipartisan infrastructure bill and an even larger budget blueprint that would pave the way for historic changes in U.S. health, education, climate and tax policies. The two measures are roped to each other, reflecting Democrats’ strategy to pass what could be bipartisan with Republicans — […]
Poll: Most Ohioans support a bipartisan infrastructure package. Will it get done?
A majority of Ohioans support a bipartisan infrastructure package being considered in Washington, D.C., according to a new poll commissioned and touted by a state environmental group. Around half of the 800 Ohioans polled offered support for the infrastructure bill, with approval rising to 64% after hearing some of the specific proposals in it, such […]
Ohio troopers head into Texas political maelstrom
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and six other Republican governors are sending state troopers to the border at the request of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, also a Republican, amid a chaotic political situation.
Vote expected soon on expanding regulation on toxic chemicals in drinking water
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress and Biden administration officials at a conference on Wednesday outlined how they’re attempting to regulate toxic chemicals found in drinking water, including an upcoming vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. EPA Administrator Michael Regan, a former top environmental official in North Carolina, said the agency is currently in the […]
Biden meets with Whaley, other mayors and governors on infrastructure package
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden met with a group of governors and mayors on Wednesday as he seeks to build support for a massive federal infrastructure package awaiting action from Congress. Among the state and local leaders meeting with Biden was Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, a Democratic candidate for Ohio governor. Others joining Biden in […]
Proposal made to expand veterans’ free access to all national parks
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa testified Tuesday before the House Natural Resources Committee hearing in support of bipartisan legislation that would give veterans and Gold Star families free lifetime access to national parks and public federal lands. “No one is more worthy of experiencing open access to the incredible places that these […]