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National Politics

A visitor captures a cell phone image of the Washington Monument

FISA: What to know about the government’s key spy powers that Congress just extended

By Annie Grayer, Ellis Kim, CNN (CNN) — Congress has approved another short-term extension of controversial spy powers that permit US officials to monitor phone calls and text messages from foreign targets. The deadline to renew the powerful surveillance law exposed deep divisions in the Republican Party and left US national security officials scrambling as

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Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee confirmation hearing in Washington

Louisiana delays US House primaries after Supreme Court ruling but lets other races go forward

By Fredreka Schouten, Arlette Saenz, Patrick Svitek, CNN (CNN) — Louisiana Republicans delayed the May 16 primaries for US House Thursday, one day after the US Supreme Court’s decision invalidating the state’s congressional map and calling it an unconstitutional gerrymander. Early voting was scheduled to begin Saturday and overseas ballots had already gone out. The

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Texas state Rep. James Talarico

‘It’s a mess’: With no Trump endorsement in Texas Senate race, Cornyn and Paxton are locked in an expensive brawl

By Patrick Svitek, CNN (CNN) — Nearly two months ago, President Donald Trump promised he would make an endorsement “soon” in the Republican primary runoff for US Senate in Texas. That endorsement still has not arrived — and its absence is keeping the race highly competitive. Three people involved in the race said they no

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James Brady

White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting yields debates over security, new ballroom — but not guns

By Eric Bradner, CNN (CNN) — Forty-five years before a gunman attempted to storm the Washington Hilton’s ballroom during President Donald Trump’s appearance at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, another would-be assassin stood on the sidewalk and shot President Ronald Reagan in the chest as he exited the same hotel. The location, and the presence

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Demonstrators outside the US Supreme Court in Washington

Takeaways from the Supreme Court’s historic Voting Rights Act opinion and what’s next for the midterms

By Tierney Sneed, Fredreka Schouten, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday kicked yet another leg out from under the Voting Rights Act, the landmark 1965 civil rights law that Chief Justice John Roberts’ court has repeatedly undermined over the years. Wednesday’s opinion, written by Justice Samuel Alito with the dissent from the court’s

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People look at handguns during The Nation's Gun Show in Chantilly

Justice Department seeks to roll back gun control measures days after Trump assassination attempt

By Holmes Lybrand, Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — Days after a gunman charged security at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner in what investigators say was an attempt to kill President Donald Trump with legally-owned firearms, his Justice Department is further rolling back gun control measures. “We’re repealing rules that went beyond what the law allows,”

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