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Albertsons-Kroger mega-deal raises questions from lawmakers about higher food prices
WASHINGTON — Members of a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee panel raised concerns during a Tuesday hearing that a proposed merger between two of the largest U.S. supermarket chains could mean a monopoly on groceries and lead to higher food prices for Americans. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat who leads the Subcommittee on Competition […]
U.S. House to intervene in rail workers strike, heeding Biden call
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday said the House will take up legislation to ratify an agreement between rail workers and operators in order to avert a nationwide rail strike. “This week, the House will take up a bill adopting the Tentative Agreement — with no poison pills or changes to the […]
Student loan repayment pause extended by White House amid legal battles over relief plan
WASHINGTON — The Department of Education announced on Tuesday it is extending the pandemic-era pause on federal student loan repayments until June 30 while legal challenges to the administration’s student debt relief program are fought over in the courts. The agency said if the student debt relief program has not been put in place by […]
U.S. Senate Democrats make a last-ditch push for a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers
WASHINGTON — Democratic U.S. senators have set a December deadline for passing bipartisan legislation that would create a pathway to citizenship for more than 600,000 undocumented people who were brought into the country as children — but they don’t yet have enough Senate Republican votes to make it a reality. During a Wednesday press conference […]
Migrant women endured medical mistreatment at Georgia ICE facility, U.S. Senate report finds
WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. Senate on an investigation panel on Tuesday grilled federal immigration officials about a bipartisan report that detailed how migrant women at an immigration detention center in Georgia underwent questionable gynecological procedures. The U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Permanent Investigations released an 18-month bipartisan report that found migrant women who were detained at Irwin […]
Six GOP-led states win national injunction against Biden student debt relief plan
WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court on Monday issued a nationwide injunction indefinitely blocking the Biden administration’s student debt relief program in response to a challenge by six GOP-led states. The unanimous ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis came after the six states — Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina […]
Biden student debt relief plan thrown out by Texas judge; new applications halted
WASHINGTON — Late Thursday a federal judge in Texas struck down the Biden administration’s student debt relief plan, ruling that the program is unlawful, in a blow to 16 million student debt borrowers already approved for relief. The U.S. Department of Education now is no longer accepting applications for the program, according to the student […]
Young Black and Latino voters seen as key in turning back midterm ‘red wave’
WASHINGTON — Young Black and Latino voters were critical in holding off the Republican “red wave” in several battleground states for U.S. Senate seats and in tight U.S. House races in the midterm elections, according to analyses by researchers and grassroot organizations. Young, diverse voters between the ages of 18 and 29 had the second-highest youth […]
Biden says midterm elections turned out to be ‘a good day’ for democracy
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Wednesday that even though midterm election results have yet to determine which party will control Congress, Democrats had a strong night defending their majority in both chambers. Control of both the U.S. Senate and House remained unclear Wednesday as more than 50 House seats have not been called and […]
Georgia fight for U.S. Senate seat will go to a December runoff
WASHINGTON — Control of the U.S. Senate once again might hinge on Georgia, as voters in the Peach State will head back to the polls next month in a runoff election. Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock and former professional football player and GOP nominee Herschel Walker are in a dead heat in Georgia, sending that race to […]
No GOP ‘wave,’ but Republicans could still gain control of U.S. House
WASHINGTON — Republicans fell short of their greatest ambitions for major gains in the U.S. House, with control of the chamber still in doubt early Wednesday. Republicans are still likely to narrowly win control of the U.S. House, based on expert projections. But of 20 races rated by elections forecaster Inside Elections as true toss-ups, […]
U.S. Senate control too close to call as multiple states grapple with tight vote counts
WASHINGTON — Control of the U.S. Senate remained unclear early Wednesday as races in a handful of swing states in the midterm elections were still too close to call, and it appeared it might be days — or even weeks — before a final result was known. Among the tightest contests: In Pennsylvania, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a Democrat, was […]