Senate

When President Barack Obama was in office and the White House needed to reach Sen. Joe Manchin, one person was always tasked with making the call: then-Vice President Joe Biden.Read Full StorySenate DemocratsMidterm ElectionPoliticsPresidential ElectionRepublican SenatorsBipartisan SenatorsThe White HouseCongressRepublicansThe Oval OfficeJefferson Jackson DinnerCNNManchin SpaceBiden BurnsCentrist SenatorsJoe BidenBarack ObamaPat ToomeyJay Rockefeller

In a one-two punch of authoritarian maneuvering shocking in both its scope and its severity, Republicans are fighting to hollow out the right to vote for millions of Black and brown Georgians. And what they can’t take away in the state Senate, the GOP plans to gut with a new Trump-aligned Secretary of State.Read Full StoryAbsentee VotingCivil WarBlack ChurchesMagaVoting RightsRacial InjusticePoliticsGOP VotersDemocratic VotersHouse DemocratsGOP EffortsMAGATrumpianThe State SenateBlack GeorgiansJody HiceBrad RaffenspergerStacey AbramsMax Burns

The House is set to vote Thursday on two proposals that would legalize subsets of the estimated 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. without legal permission, as Democrats gauge the chances of approving immigration legislation and sending it to President Biden's desk. The bills are expected to pass in...Read Full StoryU.s. CitizenshipUndocumented ImmigrantsBillsPoliticsUndocumented WorkersImmigrant WorkersHouseDemocraticSenateDACATPSImmigrant FarmworkersU.S. CitizenshipLegal ImmigrationDreamersDonald TrumpZoe LofgrenDan NewhouseDick DurbinNancy Pelosi

LUBBOCK, Texas — On Wednesday, the Texas House voted to advance a bill that would allow restaurants to deliver alcoholic beverages with the purchase of food. At the beginning of the pandemic, Gov. Greg Abbott waived regulations to temporarily allow the pickup and delivery of alcohol for restaurants selling food. House Bill 1024 would make this permanent.Read Full StoryRestaurantsAlcoholic BeveragesFood & DrinkLocal FoodMexican FoodThe Texas HousePicosoMexican KitchenTexansThe Texas SenateBillHouse PassageLUBBOCKAprilGov. AbbottGreg Abbott

A plan to revamp the state’s Bright Futures program is being further watered down amid opposition from parents and students. The original version of the proposal would have tied the higher education tuition scholarship to whether a student’s major leads to a job. The newest version of Republican Senator Dennis...Read Full StoryScholarshipsFlorida State UniversityJobsFlorida CollegeSenate BudgetCollege TuitionBright Future 'sFSUHouseGAAScholarship AwardsState AppropriationsGov. Ron DeSantisRepublican LawmakersHigher EducationDennis BaxleyTravis HutsonRon Desantis

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) – A new bill could prevent transgender female athletes from competing on female sports teams. The Arkansas House and Senate have passed a bill that says transgender women cannot compete in women’s sports because they are not identified as “female” on their birth certificate. Chris Atting is...Read Full StoryTransgender WomenTransgender YouthLegislatureTransgender RightsBill Of RightsWomen SportsThe Arkansas HouseSenateBentonville High SchoolTransgender AthletesArkansas GovernorFemale Sports TeamsFAYETTEVILLEArk.KidsAsa Hutchinson

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., reversed course on vowing to object to President Joe Biden's nominees because of a lack of Asian American and Pacific Islander representation Tuesday evening after a spokesperson from her office said she had received assurances from the Biden administration. 'Senator Duckworth appreciates the Biden administration's assurances...Read Full StoryPoliticsPresidential ElectionCall For DiversityD-HawaiiAsian AmericansPacific IslandersThe White HouseMSNBCAnti-AsianSenateAxiosAAPI RepresentationSenator DuckworthAAPI VoicesAAPI AppointmentsJoe BidenMazie HironoTammy DuckworthKiran AhujaJen O'malley Dillon

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Mike Braun introduced a bill to reduce student loan costs by killing an origination fee charged to borrowers when they take out new debt. Braun has reintroduced the Student Loan Tax Elimination Act, which removes the origination fee from new federal student loans. “Student loan origination...Read Full StoryStudent Loan DebtFederal Student LoansFederal LoansStudent BorrowersDirect Subsidized LoansDirect Unsubsidized LoansDemocratsCongressRepublicansSenateOrigination FeesLoan OriginationStudent Loan CostsStudent Debt RepaymentStudent Debt CancellationMike Braun

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina state Sen. Ralph Hise, a top Republican budget writer in the chamber, has tested positive for COVID-19, a spokesman for GOP senators said on Tuesday. Hise, a Mitchell County Republican, tested positive on Sunday and has been isolating since, according to Pat Ryan, the spokesman. Hise, 44, was last in the Legislative Building on Thursday, Ryan said, and has been talking to people with whom he had close contact. Now in his sixth term, Hise is the deputy president pro tempore and a co-chairman of both the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Senate Redistricting and Elections Committee.WRAL-TV first reported Hise’s positive case. With Hise’s case, at least six North Carolina General Assembly members have acknowledged publicly since last year that they tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a tally by The Associated Press.Covid-19Public HealthRepublican SenateRepublican SenatorsSenate PresidentGOP SenateAPThe Associated PressWRAL-TVGOP SenatorsLegislative BuildingN.C.Deputy PresidentAssembly MembersRalph HiseRyan

WASHINGTON — The survival of the Senate's effective supermajority rule to pass bills could hinge on a working group of 20 senators that includes the most moderate members in both parties. If the group can cut deals and deliver victories, it could become the model for lawmaking under President Joe...Read Full StorySenate DemocratsBipartisan SenatorsSenate RepublicansFilibusterPoliticsThe SenateSenate LeadersCongressRepublican SenatorsGOPNBC NewsD-Calif.The White HouseMSNBCAmericanJoe BidenAngus KingJerry MoranTodd YoungJoe ManchinSusan CollinsRon KlainMitt RomneyDick DurbinDianne FeinsteinMike Rounds