Tag: United States Senate

The environmental activist group, Sunrise Movement, released the video of the confrontation and tweeted that the California senator treated the group of about 15 young people with “smugness” and “disrespect.” In the 15-minute version of the video, the children tell Feinstein that they’ve come to her to express their support for the Green New Deal. Feinstein repeatedly tells the children that there is “no way to pay” for the plan, and tells the children that she is supporting her own resolution. I know what I’m doing,” Feinstein says. I’ve gotten elected. So maybe people should listen a little bit.” When a teen tells Feinstein that she should listen to them, because they are her voters, Feinstein responds by asking the girl how old she is. When the girl responds that she is 16, Feinstein says, “Well you didn’t vote for me.” She says to the group, “You know better than I do, so maybe one day you should run for the Senate and then you do it your way. Feinstein responded to the incident later on Friday in a statement, which she released on Twitter. “This morning I spoke with a small group of children, young adults and parents from the Sunrise Movement, who were delivering a letter in support of the Green New Deal resolution. The Sunrise Movement released their own statement on Twitter, writing that Feinstein showed “stale, establishment thinking.” “Sen. But we are going forward, one way or another,” the group wrote.

“One of my goals in the next two years is to get 71% youth voter turnout in 2020,” Hogg told the Guardian in a recent phone interview. I think there’s a lot of people that, quite frankly, really, really, really hate our president David Hogg Working with young gun violence prevention activists from across the country, the Parkland made a bet this past spring that local organizing – and more local news coverage – could make a difference in the 2018 midterm elections. Over the summer, the March for Our Lives activists traveled on a bus tour to dozens of states to host rallies and voter registration drives, all with the goal of increasing youth voter turnout in the midterm elections. March for Our Lives is still focused on gun policy. The group is hoping to play a stronger lobbying role to pass gun control bills in state houses this year, as well as pressuring the senate, which is still controlled by Republican allies of the National Rifle Association, to pass a historic bill expanding background checks on gun sales. It’s possible to measure the influence of March for Our Lives so far by tallying up their year of wins and losses. These laws are already being used to prevent shootings, Hogg said. A national movement While the media spotlight still focuses most often on a handful of the most famous Parkland students, the teenage survivors a have spent the past year connecting with young activists who have long advocated for gun violence prevention in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington DC. This was the answer that Hogg, among others, gave , in a phone interview that had been scheduled for 9pm. “Does March for Our Lives still exist in four years?

The President was unyielding in his demand for American taxpayers to pay billions to build a wall he promised Mexico would pay for, and he failed to reassure federal workers that their lives wouldn't be thrown into chaos by another government shutdown. "Our country deserves better than rhetoric that divides us. Nevadans, and all Americans, deserve a government that serves working families and addresses the challenges confronting our nation together. On issues where we can find common ground like investing in infrastructure and tackling the rising costs of prescription drugs, I hope this Administration will follow up on these words with bipartisan action,” said Senator Rosen. “While I am glad that the President recognized the millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions who are anxious about their health care, the reality is this Administration continues to sabotage our health care system and undermine the Affordable Care Act, which already protects those with pre-existing conditions, and it is his policies that are putting individuals like Tanya at risk of losing access to affordable care. I will continue to put Nevada families first, like I always have, by finding smart, bipartisan solutions on the critical issues facing our communities.” Nevada Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV 3): "I came to Congress to work across the aisle and get things done for the people of Nevada. I am hopeful tonight, after hearing President Trump's address, that we can work in a bipartisan manner to solve problems for the American people. We can and should work together to lower health care and prescription drug costs, provide paid family leave, rebuild our nation's infrastructure, and invest in life-saving medical research. I stand ready to work with the President on these issues. However, I will continue to oppose any measures that would weaken protections for patients with pre-existing conditions or otherwise harm southern Nevada families."

Montana U.S. Sen. Steve Daines told lawmakers in Helena on Friday to put party politics aside when considering legislation, emphasized the need to pass funding for border security and said it was critical to address the epidemic of missing and murdered Native women in Montana. U.S. Sen. Jon Tester spoke to legislators last month and U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte will speak on Monday. Funding for a border wall was the trigger of a 35-day partial federal government shutdown that ended a week ago. President Donald Trump has refused any budget deal that doesn't include $5.7 billion for wall along the southern border. Stopgap funding re-opened the government until Feb. 15 and Trump has said there's a "good chance" he'd declare a national emergency to obtain funding for the wall. In December Daines called for using a "nuclear option" by changing the U.S. Senate rules to require only 51 votes to pass funding for the wall. Those critical of calls to build a wall along the southern border point out the fentanyl was seized at a border crossing, not at a location proposed for a wall. The economy was also a focus of Daines' speech, both its successes and where he sees the need for improvement. The Republican tax cuts passed in 2017 have benefited Montanans to the tune of about $1,000 more annually in their paychecks, Daines said, and told lawmakers not to add any more taxes following on the heels of cuts at the federal level. Montana legislators this week heard a bill called Hanna's Act, the main legislation in a package of five bills related to missing and murdered Native women.

DENVER — Two years after jumping into a fight with the Trump administration over public lands, the U.S. outdoor industry is turning up the political pressure - though its impact is difficult to measure. "We will always - this is really core to who we are," said Corley Kenna, a spokeswoman for Patagonia, the brashest political fighter among the industry's major players. The Outdoor Industry Association and some big retailers, including Patagonia, Columbia Sportswear, REI and The North Face, have campaigned together and on their own to protect public lands. Some of their forays are unobtrusive get-out-the-vote campaigns, lobbying for national parks funding and email blasts to customers about public lands news. But Patagonia took the unusual step of endorsing U.S. Senate candidates in November's election. Now, show organizers have made climate change and sustainable manufacturing a priority and announced the formation of the Outdoor Business Climate Partnership to lobby for state and federal climate policies. "You do tend to see issue advertising does change public opinion to a much greater extent than candidate advertising," he said. But neither the Outdoor Industry Association nor the big companies have done the kind of polls and surveys that would show that. "I would like to think that we played a part in that because we were motivating our own community to get out and vote," Kenna said. Public lands were an issue in the Nevada election last year, said Dave Damore, a political science professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown addressed his past extramarital relationship with U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris in his weekly column Saturday, saying he may have boosted the presidential hopeful's career. "Yes, we dated. It was more than 20 years ago," Brown wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle. Gavin Newsom and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein. "That's politics for ya." "The difference is that Harris is the only one who, after I helped her, sent word that I would be indicted if I 'so much as jaywalked' while she was D.A.” — Willie Brown, former mayor of San Francisco Brown appointed Harris -- about 30 years younger than Brown and just a few years out of law school – to two well-paid state commission assignments on the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board and the California Medical Assistance Commission, the Washington Free Beacon reported. "Whether you agree or disagree with the system, I did the work," Harris said in a 2003 interview with SF Weekly. "I brought a level of life knowledge and common sense to the jobs." Brown's involvement in her election raised questions as to how Harris would remain impartial, given his enormous political clout. During his two terms as mayor of San Francisco, Brown was known for his charm, arrogance and ego, according to a 1996 profile in People magazine.

Good Tuesday morning. Here are some of the stories making news in Washington and politics today. _____________________ • Senator Kamala Harris, the California Democrat and barrier-breaking prosecutor who became the second black woman to serve in the United States Senate, declared her candidacy for president on Monday. She entered the race on the holiday of Martin Luther King’s Birthday, an overt nod to the historic nature of her candidacy. • The Democratic field for 2020 is getting more crowded by the day. Here’s an updated list of who’s in, who’s out and who’s still thinking it over. • From Washington to South Carolina to Harlem, Democrats across the country commemorated Martin Luther King’s Birthday with events that honored the slain civil rights leader and lashed out at President Trump as a racist. • After his blank schedule for the day drew criticism, Mr. Trump paid a brief visit to a national monument to the Rev. • While the Trump administration has cracked down on Russian officials, Mr. Trump himself has largely taken a far more generous stance toward Moscow. Here are five times the administration has been tougher on Russia than the president.

Paul suffered multiple broken ribs in the 2017 attack, and the neighbor, Rene Boucher, pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress. Paul sued Boucher, and a jury trial set for Jan. 28 in Bowling Green, Kentucky, will determine the amount of damages the senator can receive. Paul's legal team says his political beliefs are "irrelevant" to the trial, noting Boucher has said the attack had nothing to do with politics. Boucher's attorney, Matt Baker, said Friday he agrees that Paul's political views are irrelevant to the trial. Paul, who ran for president in 2016 and is now in his second Senate term, rose to political prominence as a favorite of tea party supporters. Also in their motion, the senator's lawyers said the condition of Paul's yard before the attack should also be excluded, arguing that it "has no bearing upon the damages he is entitled to receive." Baker said he will oppose that request because yard conditions at Paul's house are "what this has always been about." His lawyers said a biomechanics expert is prepared to testify that Paul's injuries were similar to those resulting from a 25 mph (40 kph) car crash. Boucher was sentenced to 30 days in prison for the attack. Copyright 2019 The Associated Press.

Everyone loves a good party. Just ask Cinderella. and newly minted Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Scott and New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a self-avowed democratic socialist. Members of Congress are “sworn into” office and don’t get “inaugurated,” they cried. This week, celebrating Scott’s ascension to the U.S. Senate, the Florida Sunshine Ball pulled out all the stops. The theme of the swanky party: “The Inauguration of Rick Scott.” Hey, wait a minute. They don’t inaugurate Senators, either. Scott waited until Jan. 8, the very last day to take office after Gov. And emblazoned at the top: “The Inauguration of Senator Rick Scott.” For Republicans, when Ocasio-Cortez calls a new member taking the oath in Congress an “inauguration” they make fun of her. If that’s not a partisan double standard, I don’t know what is.

Former Gov. Scott Walker said Wednesday he plans to hold a key role in President Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign in Wisconsin while reiterating his interest in a potential 2022 bid for governor or U.S. Senate. “I’m going to help chair [Trump’s] and Vice President Pence’s re-election campaign here in Wisconsin,” Walker said. “I want to be a part of making sure that we keep this president, this administration intact.” Walker’s comments come just days after leaving office as one of the state’s top Republicans and position him firmly as a supporter of a figure he had staunchly opposed during the 2016 presidential primary. In November he lost a third-term re-election bid to state Superintendent Tony Evers, partly because of a public backlash against Trump. In his comments Wednesday during a Fox News interview, Walker reiterated his interest in potentially running for the seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, “if” Johnson opts not to run again. Johnson has previously said his current six-year term would be his last. When Walker dropped out in September 2015, he urged other candidates to do the same to prevent Trump from winning the nomination. The former governor in a recent interview with The Associated Press praised the president for his judicial appointments, tax law and trade agreements, but said he has disagreed with some of Trump’s divisive social media rhetoric. He said he would not challenge Trump for the party’s nomination in 2020.