Category: Black Leaders

Texas Republicans Finalize Major Bill of Voting Limits

Texas lawmakers on Saturday finished drafting a bill that would impose a raft of new voting restrictions, setting up the likely passage of what would be among the most far-reaching laws in Republicans’ nationwide drive to overhaul elections systems and limit voting.The bill would tighten what are already some of the country’s strictest voting laws,

Biden’s jobs and family plans are broadly popular—but only if people know about them

A Politico/Morning Consult poll this week highlighted one of the challenges the White House still faces in both passing President Joe Biden’s agenda and then getting credit for it with voters next year. The survey found that 61% of respondents were not familiar with the “American Jobs Plan” and 62% were not familiar with the

Multi-Millionaire Sean Hannity Says Americans Should Get a Second Job Rather Than Accepting Government Assistance

For the last few decades, average Americans have fallen behind. The costs of housing and college have furiously accelerated while wage growth has remained relatively stagnant. This was especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe Biden has promised to help close that gap. And the idea of closing the wage gap is popular with voters

After Skirting Filibuster Fight for Months, Democrats Near a First Battle

WASHINGTON — With a showdown coming over the creation of an independent commission to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol assault, Democrats are finally bumping up against the limits of what they can accomplish in the evenly divided Senate without changes to the filibuster rules.Republicans who see the commission as a threat to their midterm election

He Fought Trump’s 2020 Lies. He Also Backs New Scrutiny of Ballots.

Brad Raffensperger, the Republican secretary of state in Georgia, earned widespread praise for his staunch defense of the election results in his state last year in the face of growing threats and pressure from former President Donald J. Trump.As Mr. Trump spread falsehoods about the election, Mr. Raffensperger vocally debunked them, culminating in a 10-page

Republicans mark anniversary of George Floyd’s death by working to weaken police reform bill

When we talk about George Floyd, himself, remember this always: xHe was not just a victim. His death was not just a catalyst for activism and protests.#GeorgeFloyd was a man. A father. A brother. A friend. His life mattered. Sending love & light to his family and loved ones today. pic.twitter.com/LkKwPAyQRx— Sherrilyn Ifill (@Sifill_LDF) May

South Dakota’s Noem launches legal strategy to take on Biden

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem catapulted onto the list of conservative politicians favored by former President Donald Trump with her libertarian approach to the pandemic. With the virus waning, she may be seeking to stay there by picking some legal fights sure to please the right.In recent weeks, Noem has

There was never, ever going to be a bipartisan investigation into the Jan. 6 attacks

Max Boot, writing for The Washington Post, thinks this was all to be expected. In fact, it may well be a blessing in disguise. As Boot points out, the bipartisan commission, as agreed to by Reps. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, and Republican John Katko, would have permitted Republicans to hamstring its effectiveness by requiring a majority vote of

The Daily Bucket fosters community among citizen scientists and friends alike

Appy, who writes regularly for the Bucket, agrees that although the group is grounded in nature, the personal connections in comment threads have solidified a far-flung assortment of people into “one big, happy, growing family.” Appy adds that the group sparked for them “a renewed interest in photography. My progress in that craft has been

Republicans Move to Limit a Grass-Roots Tradition of Direct Democracy

In 2008, deep-blue California banned same-sex marriage. In 2018, steadfastly conservative Arkansas and Missouri increased their minimum wage. And last year, Republican-controlled Arizona and Montana legalized recreational marijuana.These moves were all the product of ballot initiatives, a century-old fixture of American democracy that allows voters to bypass their legislatures to enact new laws, often with

Sean Hannity Wants GOP House Members to Sue Nancy Pelosi Over Mask Mandates

The country is getting closer and closer to getting back to normal. And that is largely due to Joe Biden’s COVID response. Fox News, though, does not want to give the president any credit. In fact, the network wants to make a major issue out of masks. Republicans in congress have been making a show

Madison Cawthorn lies. This time he’s pretending he actually did something in Congress

In fact, Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux, a first-year Democrat from Georgia’s 7th district, is the real first freshman member to pass a bill as the lead sponsor in the 117th Congress. Rep. Bourdeaux proposed and wrote H.R. 1799, the PPP Extension Act of 2021. She introduced it on March 11 and it passed through the House on March 16,

Biden chides ‘dull’ Coast Guard grads in wild speech

President Biden delivered rollercoaster remarks Wednesday at the US Coast Guard Academy’s graduation ceremony, calling the grads a “dull class” while boasting of his own college exploits including a fire-extinguisher assault on his dorm’s RA. Biden attempted to earn laughs at the expense of the US Navy, but when the cadets didn’t respond, he turned

Months after insurrection, America’s political journalists are back in their comfy safe space

Mere months after the United States passed half a million pandemic deaths due to willful public misinformation by elected officials and the attempted seizure of the U.S. Capitol so that the lawmakers within could be either forced into nullifying an election or executed for their unwillingness to do so, the new political story is “Democratic

The Voting Rights Act Now Has Bipartisan Support As Lisa Murkowski Calls For Reauthorization

The John Lewis Voting Rights Act now has bipartisan Senate support, as Sen. Murkowski (R-AK) has joined Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) in calling for reauthorization. Manchin and Murkowski wrote a joint letter to congressional leadership and provided it to PoliticusUSA:Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McCarthy, and Leader McConnell: When President Lyndon B. Johnson transmitted

Damon Weaver, Kid Reporter Who Interviewed Barack Obama In 2009, Dies At 23 | National

Damon Weaver, who attained national fame after interviewing President Barack Obama at the White House in 2009, has died. Candace Hardy, Weaver’s sister, told the Palm Beach Post her brother died of natural causes on May 1. He was 23. Further details about his passing have not been released. Weaver, a communications major at Albany

Reporter gets stumped when White House press sec. Psaki turns his hack question back on him

The reporter began by asking about the release of the 2020 Human Rights Report and Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying that human rights around the world should always be a No. 1 priority, and aren’t mutually exclusive from the rights that people have to practice their religions. “Why should the faith community not see that as

Biden under pressure to respond to Israel-Gaza fighting uptick

President Biden is facing pressure from warring factions within his own party on how he ought to respond amid an escalating bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas involving thousands of rocket exchanges and ground troops. On one end of the political spectrum, Republicans are unified in their stance that Israel has the right to defend itself from

Fox News Embarrasses Itself Trying To Mock Biden For Maskless White House Speech

Fox News breathlessly tried to make a big deal out of President Biden speaking at a White House event maskless after the CDC eased guidelines for vaccinated people. Video: “There he is maskless” pic.twitter.com/RFuTFL6vnz — Acyn (@Acyn) May 13, 2021 As Biden sprinted to the podium, the Fox News voiceover said, “There he is maskless,

Ohio lottery offers residents shot at $1m

Demand for Covid-19 vaccines have been falling across the US in recent weeksThe US state of Ohio will award cash prizes of $1m (£710,000) to five recipients of Covid-19 vaccines as part of a lottery launched to boost flagging up-take of jabs.Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said only adult residents who had had a vaccine would

Canton restaurant owner, 2 sons charged in pizza parlor brawl

Words were exchanged and, at some point, the male customer cursed at the woman, according to the report.“It quickly escalated,” Cordry told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “The son and the father came out of the kitchen and just came after the guy at the table. They picked him up and kind of threw him against the

Joni Ernst Sticks Up for Liz Cheney, Accuses GOP Colleagues of Trying to Cancel Her

Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell have very different leadership styles. Since Trump left office in January, McConnell and Republican senators have barely mentioned him (outside of lap-dog Lindsey Graham). Kevin McCarthy and GOP congresspeople, however, mention Trump every chance they get. And there is also a big difference in how GOP senators and congresspeople are

Arizona election ‘audit’ is going so well, Republican lawmaker says ‘It makes us look like idiots’

Republicans are trying to have 2.1 million ballots from Maricopa County—where the majority of the state’s voters live—“audited.” So far, the conspiracy theorists in charge of the effort have gotten through 250,000 ballots, which puts them on track to finish in August. They only have the space where they’re currently working reserved until May 14, at

Body of missing swimmer found in Lake Lanier

Divers pulled the body of 23-year-old Anthony Saintil from the lake about 1 p.m. Sunday, according to Georgia Department of Natural Resources spokesman Mark McKinnon. Authorities said Saintil had jumped into the lake off of a pontoon boat about noon. He was last seen in the area of Flat Creek, according to McKinnon. n”,”_id”:”https://twitter.com/NASA_Wallops/status/1391185366586204164″,”additional_properties”:{“comments”:,”_id”:1620567263567},”provider_name”:”Twitter”,”height”:null},”type”:”oembed_response”},{“_id”:”3FM5LBKHLZCZXN3WXQWPVH7PEM”,”additional_properties”:{“inline_comments”:,”comments”:,”_id”:1620518131570},”type”:”text”,”content”:”Upper-level winds

Trump’s Fascist Cabal Are Targeting Liz Cheney Because She is an American Patriot

It is high time to call out Republicans loyal to a demented fascist for their anti- and un-American actions that no longer border on fascism because they have, as a movement, crossed that line. Whether one likes Liz Cheney’s conservative bona fides or not, her fealty to American democracy cannot be questioned. For the record,

President derides Trump on infrastructure, amid fury over Florida elections bill

CORONAVIRUS-EEUU-VACUNAS (AP)The White House spoke out against Florida’s new elections bill, which was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis on Thursday. Karine Jeanne-Pierre, a White House principal deputy press secretary, said the move was in the “wrong direction” and “built on a lie”.In other news, President Joe Biden gave a speech in Louisiana on

Biden omits the word ‘God’ from national prayer declaration

President Biden left the word “God” out of his proclamation of the annual National Day of Prayer on Thursday. The president lauded America’s “remarkable religious vitality and diversity,” noted “the power of prayer to provide hope and uplift us for the work ahead,” and even quoted the late congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis.

Kamala Harris Makes History As First Vice President With Figure In Madame Tussauds Wax Museum | National

Kamala Harris will become the first vice president to be immortalized in New York’s famous Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, which is slated to unveil her likeness and that of President Joe Biden later this year, according to NBC News. The museum released a sneak peek of developing images of Harris and Biden, which were done

Jake Tapper Won’t Book Any Republicans On His Show Because They Won’t Stop Lying

That’s the question CNN’s Jake Tapper asked viewers during an appearance on “New Day,” noting that he hasn’t booked any Republicans on his “State of the Union” show since January, the month when a group of former President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the United States Capitol and congressional Republicans entrenched themselves further in baseless conspiracies

House Republicans moving to replace Cheney after she again calls out seditionists for their lies

It is impossible to feel sympathy for Cheney, whose odious version of conservatism was never far afield of the lie-fueled, panic-promoting opportunism that has now reduced the movement to conspiracy theory and demands to tamp down on democracy itself, but the Republican move is a dire one for the country. Supporting fraudulent claims that the