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Marriage equality bill heads to Biden’s desk following bipartisan U.S. House vote
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House overwhelmingly approved a marriage equality bill Thursday that would ensure same-sex and interracial couples continue holding many of the rights they have now, should the U.S. Supreme Court overturn the cases that established those constitutional protections. The measure now heads to the desk of President Joe Biden, who plans to […]
Congress on track to scrap Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate in defense bill
WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. military would no longer be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine under a proposal Congress could pass as soon as this week. The provision eliminating the vaccine mandate is tucked into the massive National Defense Authorization Act, the annual defense policy bill that Congress has passed each year for […]
Democrats strip Iowa of first-in-the-nation prize, tap South Carolina for first primary
WASHINGTON — Voters in South Carolina would go first in picking Democratic presidential nominees, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, Georgia and Michigan if their states go along with a proposal a key Democratic National Committee panel approved Friday. The Rules and Bylaws Committee’s nearly unanimous voice vote proposes moving the Democratic primary’s earliest election date […]
U.S. House GOP to keep earmarks for local projects — with some ‘tweaks’
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to keep earmarks in place when they take over the chamber in January, a move that solidifies GOP support for the controversial spending practice that was brought back under new guardrails and transparency mechanisms less than two years ago. Earmarking has become especially important to members of both […]
U.S. House Democrats make history electing first Black party leader in Congress
WASHINGTON — The three U.S. House Democrats who have led their party through four presidencies and thousands of floor votes formally passed the torch to the next generation Wednesday, when the party gathered behind closed doors to elect its top leaders for the 118th Congress. House Democrats named Hakeem Jeffries, of New York, as their […]
Same-sex marriage protected under bill passed by U.S. Senate with GOP support
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate approved legislation Tuesday that would enshrine protections for same-sex and interracial marriages, codifying many of the rights that would disappear if the U.S. Supreme Court were to overturn those landmark decisions the way it overturned the nationwide right to an abortion this summer. The 61-36 bipartisan vote sends the bill […]
Thousands of veterans deluge VA with claims for toxic exposure benefits, health care
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is processing claims at the fastest rate in its history, hoping to avoid a significant backlog as hundreds of thousands of veterans apply for health care and benefits under the landmark toxic exposure law Congress passed earlier this year. The day after President Joe Biden signed the […]
Nancy Pelosi, first woman to serve as speaker of the U.S. House, steps down from leadership
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who became the first woman in history to hold the gavel, shepherding landmark bills across four presidencies, announced Thursday she’ll step aside from leadership though she’ll remain in Congress. “With great confidence in our caucus, I will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress,” she […]
Bill protecting same-sex marriage gains bipartisan support in U.S. Senate
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate cleared a key hurdle to passing a marriage equality bill Wednesday, garnering even more than the 60 senators from both political parties needed to move past a legislative filibuster. The bill, which could win final passage in the Senate as soon as this week, would ensure same-sex and interracial couples […]
McConnell re-elected U.S. Senate GOP leader, fending off bid by Florida’s Rick Scott
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans overwhelmingly re-elected Mitch McConnell on Wednesday as their leader for the next Congress, though nearly a dozen members backed Florida Sen. Rick Scott’s attempt to usurp McConnell. Scott’s bid, which he launched Tuesday during an hours-long discussion among Senate Republicans about the future of their party amid disappointing results in the […]
Congress heads back to D.C. for a hectic lame-duck session
WASHINGTON — Congress returns to Capitol Hill and a lengthy to-do list next week, following a six-week midterm elections break that saw Democrats outperform expectations and Republicans barely inch toward the U.S. House majority. On the agenda are same-sex marriage legislation, a huge defense bill, changes in how presidential electoral votes are counted and more. […]
Which party controls Congress? It could be days or weeks before we know
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and Democrats exulted Wednesday in outperforming expectations in the midterm elections, even as vote-counting was still in progress and control of both chambers of Congress remained unknown. The U.S. Senate will go to the winner of two of the last three races where party control is still in doubt in […]