State prisoners in Michigan would no longer rely on scandal-plagued for-profit vendors to feed them under the budget Gov. Rick Snyder (R) proposed Wednesday. Snyder’s FY2019 budget plan adds $13.7 million in Corrections funding to move prison food service back into public hands. It is a dramatic reversal for Snyder, who initiated the privatization of […]
At the federal level, the Trump administration has adopted a no-corporate-lobbyist-left-behind hiring practice that emphasizes placing former industry executives and lawyers in key decision-making positions where they can push policies that will benefit their former employers and clients. At the state level, the revolving door is swinging in the opposite direction. Former regulators and government […]
The International Criminal Court is launching an inquiry into potential charges of crimes against humanity against Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, more than two years after he took office and kicked off a violent “anti-drug” campaign that has left at least 4,000 people dead. According to his spokesman, investigating the complaint against the president is a “waste […]
White House Chief of Staff John Kelly reportedly tried to cover up a White House domestic abuse scandal, and may have jeopardized national security in the process. Why is John Kelly still in the White House? Kelly engaged in a series of wildly irresponsible actions to cover up a domestic abuse scandal and may have […]
A rule revived by the Trump administration gutting funding for organizations that perform or promote abortions abroad could cost Planned Parenthood around $100 million in funding, according to analysis by the New York Times. It’s the latest indication that White House efforts to hinder reproductive justice work are hitting the well-known non-profit health organization. According […]
Before Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) became chairman in 2015, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence had a reputation for bipartisanship. With the revelation, reported by CBS News on Thursday, that the committee’s Republican majority staff will soon be separated from the Democratic minority staffers on the committee by a wall — literally, a physical barrier […]
More than a year into the Trump presidency, the White House continues to go without a top science adviser. But new internal logs confirm it did consider a series of candidates last year in an attempt to fill the position. A calendar obtained by ScienceInsider through a freedom of information request shows that last spring, […]
White House Chief of Staff John Kelly was supposed to be a “moderating influence” on Trump — the “adult” who would impose military order on a chaotic White House. Instead, Kelly engaged in a series of wildly irresponsible actions to cover up a domestic abuse scandal that ultimately may have jeopardized national security. As his […]
Lawmakers, advocates, and New Mexico residents were outraged after an Albuquerque newspaper ran an offensive cartoon depicting immigrant “Dreamers” holding up a white couple in an alley on Wednesday. Published in the conservative newspaper’s opinion section, the cartoon depicts three men with weapons holding up a well-dressed white couple. In the cartoon, one man holds […]
The feud between Vice President Mike Pence and gay Olympic skater Adam Rippon escalated again Thursday when Pence tweeted directly at the athlete, describing his history of supporting ex-gay conversion therapy as “fake news.” Headed to the Olympics to cheer on #TeamUSA. One reporter trying to distort 18 yr old nonstory to sow seeds of […]
Rob Porter, a White House staff secretary who was in change of the flow of paperwork coming into and out of the Oval Office, resigned from his position on Wednesday after both of his ex-wives accused him of abuse — but not before White House Chief of Staff John Kelly released a statement praising Porter […]
Thursday morning, Arthur Jones, a GOP congressional candidate for Illinois’ 3rd district, appeared on CNN’s New Day, where he was asked about his beliefs and confronted about some of the content on his campaign website. In addition to being a candidate for Congress, Jones is also a former leader of the American Nazi Party and […]
Thursday morning, Arthur Jones, a GOP congressional candidate for Illinois’ 3rd district, appeared on CNN’s New Day, where he was asked about his beliefs and confronted about some of the content on his campaign website. In addition to being a candidate for Congress, Jones is also a former leader of the American Nazi Party and […]
FirstEnergy Corp., a strong supporter of President Donald Trump’s pro-coal agenda, conceded defeat this week in its bid to shift the costs of one of its struggling coal-fired plants onto the backs of customers in West Virginia. The company’s decision to withdraw its plan represents yet another loss for owners of coal-fired plants who had hoped […]
By Jeremy Deaton Imagine that Steph Curry, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant went to the same summer camp growing up. Every June, they showed up to the same gym, trained on the same court and drank from the same cooler of Gatorade. ESPN would make documentaries about that camp. Curry would wax poetic […]
Wisconsin Republican U.S. Senate candidate Leah Vukmir blamed school shootings on “school programs aimed at coddling teens” in a blog post written shortly after the Columbine High School shooting. Vukmir, who has served in the Wisconsin state legislature since 2002, wrote a blog post in September 1999 that blamed “the self-esteem movement” in schools for […]
DETROIT, MICHIGAN — At U.S. Immigration Court in Detroit’s McNamara Federal Building, the waiting room is full. It’s early January and most of those waiting are squeezed into winter coats, sitting in connected chairs making small talk in Spanish, Arabic, and English. Everyone had rushed to be present by 8:30 a.m. — braving icy roads […]
MACON, GEORGIA — Students at Mercer University wore rainbow flags around their shoulders and sat in silent protest Wednesday, while Jay Sekulow, personal counsel to President Donald Trump and chief counsel at the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), delivered the school’s Founders’ Day address. In the weeks since the historically Baptist school announced […]
On Tuesday, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) defended a former staffer—Rob Porter, the Trump White House’s staff secretary—accused of domestic abuse. On Wednesday afternoon, he walked back his defense. But on Wednesday night, after Porter resigned, Hatch reversed course again and resumed his defense, saying in part, “He’s basically a good person.” Porter served as Hatch’s […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Immigrants and advocates were arrested in the U.S. Capitol Wednesday while urging lawmakers to support a “clean” Dream Act. The act of civil disobedience came hours after some people gave energetic speeches at a Lutheran church two blocks from the U.S. Capitol Wednesday. As part of the “National Day of Action Against […]
A new DNA analysis of Britain’s oldest complete skeleton has concluded that early Britons had dark skin, dark hair, and light eyes — upending assumptions about what the area’s indigenous population really looked like. The skeleton, known as “Cheddar Man,” was first discovered over 100 years ago in Gough’s cave in Cheddar Gorge, in the southwest […]
A new DNA analysis of Britain’s oldest complete skeleton has concluded that early Britons had dark skin, dark hair, and light eyes — upending assumptions about what the area’s indigenous population really looked like. The skeleton, known as “Cheddar Man,” was first discovered over 100 years ago in Gough’s cave in Cheddar Gorge, in the southwest […]
In exchange for leaving out a key program protecting about 800,000 undocumented immigrants, Senate Democrats have pried several billion dollars in funding increases for other domestic policy priorities out of Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). A document circulating among House Democrats and outside ally groups like NDD United labels the total haul of the deal […]
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) delivered a multi-hour address to her congressional colleagues on Wednesday, in an effort to oppose a two-year bipartisan budget deal struck by Senate leaders hours earlier. The bill notably excluded any mention of or protections for hundreds of thousands of “Dreamers,” undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as […]