President Joe Biden said Wednesday that parts of the United States are “backsliding into the days of Jim Crow” by passing laws he says are reminiscent of when Black Americans had to pay poll taxes and pass other tests before casting their vote. “The cry for justice 400 years in the making is ringing out…… MORE
The Biden administration said Wednesday it will replace a Trump-era rule barring certain federally funded health care providers from referring patients for abortions, a step long demanded by abortion rights groups. The Department of Health and Human Services unveiled the proposed regulation to reverse the Trump administration’s rule blocking providers in the Title X family…… MORE
Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, a long-serving lawmaker and top Republican on the powerful Ways and Means Committee, announced on Wednesday he is retiring at the end of his term. “I have an announcement I can’t think of a better place to make it than right here at the chamber I led many years ago. ……… MORE
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday promised to examine the practices of police departments around the country that commit civil rights violations in his first public comments since the police shooting death of Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. In a brief virtual address to civil rights leaders attending the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action…… MORE
US intelligence agencies still do not know “exactly where, when or how Covid-19 virus was transmitted initially” in China but remain focused on two primary theories, that “it emerged naturally from human contact with infected animals or it was a laboratory accident,” the nation’s top spy told Senate lawmakers on Wednesday. That admission from Director…… MORE
The Senate is pushing to advance a bill Wednesday that would address the surge of hate crimes against Asian Americans. The bill, which would assign a Justice Department official to expedite reviews of potential Covid-19-related hate crimes and establish an online database, initially received pushback from some Senate Republicans as an ineffective, messaging vote. But…… MORE
The Treasury Department is establishing an Office of Recovery Programs to lead the agency’s implementation of economic relief measures from three massive congressional coronavirus relief bills. The office, which will be led by Jacob Leibenluft, will mainly focus on establishing and administering the Treasury programs to support an equitable and swift recovery from the pandemic.…… MORE
The Biden administration intends to move forward with $23 billion in proposed arms sales to the United Arab Emirates even as it continues its review of pending weapons transfers, a State Department spokesperson told CNN Wednesday. The Trump administration last year pushed forward the controversial sale, which includes F-35 aircraft and armed drones, despite bipartisan…… MORE
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday praised President Joe Biden’s plan to withdraw US troops from Afghanistan, calling it a “careful and thought-out plan.” “The President doesn’t want endless wars. I don’t want endless wars. And neither do the American people. And it’s refreshing to have a thought-out plan with a set timetable instead…… MORE
Activist and nonprofit founder Rana Abdelhamid on Wednesday launched her Democratic primary challenge to Rep. Carolyn Maloney in New York’s 12th congressional district, marking the third straight election in which Maloney, who has been in Congress since 1993, will face intense opposition from party progressives. This time, though, the field will include a candidate with…… MORE
