GOVERNMENT + POLITICS
Congress gives up on attempt to make women register for the draft after GOP outcry
A bipartisan provision in an annual defense measure that would have required all young Americans to register for the military draft has been cut following a Republican backlash. Lawmakers tried to include the provision in the $777.9 billion measure, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022, to require all Americans — including women — ages 18 […]
House Republicans slam treatment of Jan. 6 defendants held at D.C. jail
WASHINGTON — Four House Republicans held a Tuesday press conference to complain about the poor conditions at a District of Columbia jail housing inmates charged with violence in connection with the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. But a District of Columbia advocate for prison reform in an interview said that jail and another […]
Search warrant issued over Mattaponi Council recordings will be dropped, prosecutor says
A search warrant King William County authorities obtained in August for records from online giant Google relating to covert recordings of closed Mattaponi Tribal Council meetings will be voluntarily rescinded, an official said Tuesday. “We’re not pursuing it,” said King William Commonwealth’s Attorney Matt Kite. The warrant, issued by a magistrate in James City County […]
Bob Dole championed ‘lives of greater dignity’ for Americans with disabilities
By Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector TOPEKA — In 1969, during his maiden speech on the Senate floor, Bob Dole focused his remarks on the rights and opportunities of individuals with disabilities, a subject with which he was intimately familiar. Dole’s passion for disability rights stemmed from his service as a soldier in World War II, […]
Political rage: America survived a decade of anger in the 18th century – but can it now?
By Maurizio Valsania, Università di Torino Americans have an anger problem. People rage at each other. They are angry at public officials for shutting down parts of society. Or for the opposite reason because they aren’t doing enough to curb the virus. Democrats vent their rage at Republicans. And Republicans treat Democrats not as opponents, […]
An impetuous, unpredictable conservative takes on a job of moderation, process
Winsome Sears made a political career of confounding people who told her she couldn’t do something; of zigging when conventional wisdom dictated that she zag. A Black, conservative, evangelical Republican woman and former Marine, she was told she had no business taking on an entrenched Democratic House of Delegates member from a deep blue Norfolk […]
Women would sign up for the military draft under defense bill in Congress
WASHINGTON — As the Senate works to finalize a major annual defense measure, there is a bipartisan push to include a requirement that all young Americans — including women — for the first time register for the military draft. The $777.9 billion measure, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022, also would allocate millions to cleaning […]
Youngkin promises to ‘slash regulations’ on day one for business growth
Virginia Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin promised business leaders Friday he would slash “job-killing regulations” and implement policies to “start winning big time” in the race to lure businesses and jobs to the region — laying out educational choice, diverse energy investments and lower taxes as top agenda items in his early days in office. Youngkin’s remarks […]
Open records advocate urges Va. Supreme Court to change system for redistricting comments
Since the Supreme Court of Virginia took over the redistricting process, all public comments been compiled on a single document more than 400 pages long that’s tough to navigate and infrequently updated, the Virginia Coalition for Open Government says. Megan Rhyne, the executive director of the nonprofit group that promotes expanded access to public information, […]
At-home COVID tests to be covered by insurance—but details still to come
WASHINGTON — State health officials on Thursday welcomed the Biden administration’s plan to require private health insurers to reimburse Americans for the cost of rapid, at-home COVID-19 tests — though the officials also raised questions about whether the process will be burdensome. Making those tests more accessible will allow Americans to get results quickly and […]
U.S. Supreme Court considers new limits on abortions in Mississippi case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is weighing potentially sweeping changes to the right to an abortion, after two hours of arguments Wednesday morning on a Mississippi law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The court’s conservatives, who hold a 6-3 majority, appeared through their questions to be sympathetic to Mississippi’s arguments that its […]
Protesters rally at Supreme Court as justices hear landmark abortion case
WASHINGTON — Lucia Ruta remembers a time when abortions were illegal. A native of Washington, D.C., she says she received an abortion in a back alley when she was 16, in the 1960s. “The doctor told me that if I made as so much a whimper, he was going to stop and kick me out,” […]