National Politics

By Tierney Sneed The Justice Department on Wednesday put states and local officials on notice of their federal obligations when conducting post-election audits and dictating the rules for casting ballots. The department released two new election guidance documents. They come as Arizona Republicans are in the midst of a controversial review of the 2020 results

By Stella Chan and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his wife pulled their 10- and 11-year-olds from a summer basketball camp over its policy not to enforce face coverings, a spokesperson in his office said. “The Newsoms were concerned to see unvaccinated children unmasked indoors at a camp their children began attending

By Priscilla Alvarez, CNN Two more whistleblowers have come forward alleging that migrant children who stayed at the Fort Bliss facility near El Paso, Texas, received poor care, according to a complaint obtained by CNN. The issues include mismanagement by private contractors, shortage of underwear and other clothing, and anxiety among children unsure of what

By Daniella Diaz, CNN House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy a “moron” after being asked by a reporter about his criticism of the Capitol physician’s mask mandate in the House, another sign of the souring relationship between the two House party leaders. “He’s such a moron,” Pelosi, a California Democrat, said

By Lauren Fox, CNN After bipartisan infrastructure talks went to the brink Monday, negotiators are trying to put things back on track, returning to the arduous work of ironing out their remaining differences, recommitted to the painstaking work that has to be done if this group is ever going to clinch a deal. Bottom line:

By Jason Hoffman, Kate Sullivan and Maegan Vazquez, CNN President Joe Biden on Wednesday proposed strengthening the federal government’s Buy American rules in an attempt to boost US manufacturing. The new proposal would require that goods purchased with taxpayer money contain 75% of US-made content, up from the current 55%, according to a fact sheet

By Veronica Stracqualursi and Annie Grayer, CNN The US House is reinstating its mask mandate as the Delta variant emerges as the dominant strain of Covid across the country and in light of the new US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, the House attending physician announced Tuesday. The House’s reinstatement of the mask

By Tami Luhby, Anna Bahney and Katie Lobosco, CNN Sixteen months after the coronavirus pandemic upended the economy and left millions of Americans out of work, the historic relief programs Congress put in place are set to start expiring. Lawmakers rushed in March 2020 to cushion the financial blow wrought by the virus by approving

By Holmes Lybrand, Tara Subramaniam, Marshall Cohen and Daniel Dale, CNN On the day a House select committee held its first public hearing to glean facts about the January 6 attack at the US Capitol, some Republican lawmakers continued to deceive the public about both the attack and its aftermath. Republican members of Congress made

By Tierney Sneed, CNN As part of the historically quick work to put his judicial nominees on the bench, President Joe Biden is on a mission to pick judges whose professional backgrounds break the mold of the ex-prosecutor and corporate law veterans who currently dominate the federal judiciary. But it’s not a task that the

By Fredreka Schouten, CNN Civil rights activists and voting rights groups this week are intensifying pressure on Congress to advance federal voting rights legislation as a bulwark against an array of new laws in Republican-controlled states that make it harder to vote. Activists say they also are growing increasingly impatient with President Joe Biden and

By Devan Cole, CNN Americans’ approval of the US Supreme Court fell to 49% this year after hitting a 10-year high in 2020, according to a Gallup poll released Wednesday, underscoring the country’s changing opinion of the newly solidified 6-3 conservative majority court. The 49% approval rating — and 44% disapproval rating — given to

By Marshall Cohen and Tierney Sneed, CNN The Justice Department on Tuesday rejected a request from GOP Rep. Mo Brooks to protect him from a civil lawsuit against him and former President Donald Trump concerning the January 6 insurrection. The lawsuit was brought earlier this year by Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California. Brooks, an

By Jenn Selva and Devan Cole, CNN Former Oregon GOP state Rep. Mike Nearman has been banned from the state Capitol and its grounds after pleading guilty Tuesday to official misconduct in the first degree, a charge that stemmed from an incident in December in which he helped protesters enter the closed building. Nearman was

By Gregory Krieg, Ethan Cohen and Sabrina Souza, CNN Texas state Rep. Jake Ellzey will win the special election runoff in Texas’ 6th Congressional District, CNN projects — without the endorsement of Donald Trump. The Republican overcame the former President’s backing of his opponent, Republican Susan Wright, to claim victory. Wright is the widow of

By Geneva Sands, CNN Critical pipeline operators have reported more than 220 cybersecurity incidents since the Transportation Security Administration implemented emergency measures in the wake of the crippling ransomware attack on one of America’s most important pipelines, according to TSA Administrator David Pekoske. Companies have been reporting incidents since day one of the agency’s May

By Shawna Mizelle, CNN Former US President Barack Obama has joined NBA Africa as a strategic partner, the National Basketball Association announced on Tuesday. Obama “will help advance the league’s social responsibility efforts across the continent, including programs and partnerships that support greater gender equality and economic inclusion,” according to a news release from the

By Paul LeBlanc, CNN A New York federal court has ordered US craft store Hobby Lobby to forfeit an ancient artifact purchased at a 2014 auction that “originated in the area of modern-day Iraq and entered the United States contrary to federal law,” the Justice Department announced Tuesday. The artifact — known as the Gilgamesh