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Washington at a standstill as states face the loss of federal help amid ‘the worst part of the crisis’
WASHINGTON — The number of coronavirus infections across the country is swelling at a perilous time for state governments, just weeks before federal support rushed through Congress in the pandemic’s early stages is set to end. The expiring provisions from the $2 trillion CARES Act and subsequent executive orders will mean reductions in unemployment benefits […]
Biden wants mask mandates nationwide: ‘We can save tens of thousands of lives’
WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden’s coronavirus response plan seeks to put a national mask mandate in place by calling on all governors to require face coverings in their states. It’s a move that public health experts say could dramatically reduce the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths. But putting wider mask laws in place would […]
The Supreme Court could strike down Obamacare. Here’s what’s at stake.
WASHINGTON—The fate of the sweeping 2010 health care law known as Obamacare is again in limbo, with the Supreme Court on Tuesday set to hear arguments over whether that statute should be overturned. States are at the heart of the case and nearly every one has made an argument about why Obamacare should be kept […]
AP declares Joe Biden is the next president
WASHINGTON — Democrat Joe Biden’s native state of Pennsylvania on Saturday secured his victory to become the next president of the United States when The Associated Press reported he had gained enough votes there to win the electoral college. The AP called Pennsylvania for Biden at 11:25 a.m., which gave the former vice president 284 […]
Battleground states count mail ballots, with Biden just shy of votes to clinch presidency
WASHINGTON — Two days after Election Day, the nation waited for vote-counting to finish in several critical states, where the tallying of mail ballots has left Democrat Joe Biden just short of the votes needed to become the next president. Thursday’s updated totals could push Biden beyond the 270 electoral votes needed to secure victory […]
The fight for the presidency comes down to millions of uncounted mail ballots in battleground states
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump prematurely declared victory early Wednesday morning, but the outcome of a razor-thin presidential contest actually depends on key battleground states that are trying to finish tallying millions of remaining mail ballots. Here are some questions—and answers—about what’s going on in those states: Why is the counting process slow? It’s taking […]
U.S. Justice Department monitoring polling places in 18 states
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Justice will have staffers on the ground in 44 counties and cities across 18 states on Election Day, monitoring for violations of federal voting-rights laws—fewer states than in 2016. The localities this year are in battlegrounds like Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. The deployment of personnel […]
Struggle for control of the U.S. Senate enters its final tense hours
WASHINGTON — Democrats have a shot at winning the White House, capturing the Senate majority and keeping their hold on the House—an election result that could dramatically shift the policy agenda away from the gridlock that’s gripped the nation’s capital for years. In the Senate, the clearest route to that outcome is through flipping GOP-held […]
Trump in final debate slams pandemic aid as a ‘big bailout’ for blue cities and states
WASHINGTON — Asked during Thursday’s final presidential debate about why another round of economic relief hasn’t been approved to aid unemployed Americans and struggling local governments, President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, pointed fingers at opposite ends of the U.S. Capitol. Trump blamed House Democrats for the stalemate over another coronavirus stimulus […]
Barrett nomination advances to U.S. Senate floor with a GOP-only vote
WASHINGTON — Republicans on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, as Democrats boycotted the markup in a show of protest. The 12 Republicans on the panel speedily voted on Barrett’s nomination and sent it to the Senate floor. The full Senate will […]