congress
Zelenskyy pledges a fight for ‘common victory’ against Russian tyranny in visit to U.S.
WASHINGTON — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy evoked images of the “great American soldiers” of World War II as he appealed to Congress Wednesday night to continue U.S. assistance in defending Ukraine from deadly Russian shelling and targeting of civilian infrastructure. The historic and surprise visit to the United States by the wartime Ukrainian leader marked his […]
More than $37 billion in disaster aid under scrutiny in congressional lame duck
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration wants Congress to approve more than $37 billion to help communities throughout the country recover from various natural disasters, including Hurricanes Ian, which battered Florida and the Southeast U.S. in late September, and Fiona, which hit Puerto Rico. The supplemental funding request comes on top of a $9 billion COVID-19 […]
Members of Congress arrested after protest for abortion rights in front of Supreme Court
WASHINGTON — More than a dozen members of Congress were arrested Tuesday alongside abortion rights activists after they sat down and blocked an intersection between the U.S. Capitol building and the Supreme Court to protest conservative justices’ decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The act of civil disobedience came as backers of abortion rights urge more […]
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.