17 h. ago Some Democrats want to use gerrymandering. That’s a bad idea | Carlo Invernizzi

When a house is on fire, more fire won’t helpWhen Texas Republicans unveiled yet another contorted congressional map last week – one that would all but erase Austin’s Latino-led seat and increase the Republican party’s federal House tally by up to five seats in total – the outcry from Democrats was immediate and justified. But beyond the Democratic state legislators’ brave effort to stymie the proposal by boycotting the vote, a different refrain has also been heard by leading Democrats in other states: if they do it, why can’t we?Governor Gavin Newsom of California has vowed to “fight fire with fire”, advancing a proposal that would redraw California’s own congressional map to offset Republican gains in Texas. New York’s Kathy Hochul has also embraced the prospect of aggressive gerrymandering in Democratic-controlled states, sidestepping the independent commissions that Democrats themselves had once championed and successfully implemented in both California and New York. Continue re...

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4 d. ago Texas house again fails to meet quorum as governor threatens to add more Republican seats to gerrymandered map – live

State legislature fails to meet quorum for third day; Greg Abbott says ‘we may may it six, or seven, or eight’ about number of added gerrymandered seatsTexas house meets without necessary number of lawmakersAccording to new reporting by the New York Times, the president has secretly signed a directive to the Pentagon to begin using military force against certain Latin American drug cartels that the Trump administration considers terrorist organizations.According to the Times’ sources, US military officials have started drawing up options for how the military could go after the group. The Times also notes that this escalation would be the most “aggressive step” in the administration’s “campaign against cartels”. They also noted that this continues the president’s preference for using “military forces to carry out what has primarily been considered a law enforcement responsibility to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs”. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Texas House again fails quorum as governor escalates threats and Democrats face second bomb threat amid redistricting battle – live

Hotel where several Texas Democrats are staying has second bomb threat this week, police say; Greg Abbott says he will keep calling special sessionsAccording to new reporting by the New York Times, the president has secretly signed a directive to the Pentagon to begin using military force against certain Latin American drug cartels that the Trump administration considers terrorist organizations.According to the Times’ sources, US military officials have started drawing up options for how the military could go after the group. The Times also notes that this escalation would be the most “aggressive step” in the administration’s “campaign against cartels”. They also noted that this continues the president’s preference for using “military forces to carry out what has primarily been considered a law enforcement responsibility to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs”. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Packers star Billy Howton, believed to have been the oldest living NFL player, dies at 95

Billy Howton, a former Green Bay Packers star regarded as one of the most productive wide receivers of the pre-Super Bowl era who was a founder and the first president of the NFL Players Association, has died

Events

5 d. ago Democrats condemn Texas senator over alleged FBI role in locating lawmakers

John Cornyn claims FBI agreed to help return Democrats to state, sparking backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in locating Texas Democratic lawmakers who left the state to block Republicans from enacting a gerrymandered congressional map that would likely add five more Republican seats before next year’s midterm elections.Senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI would assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. None of the lawmakers have been charged with a crime. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Soldiers hailed as heroes for tackling armed assailant at Georgia Army base

Six soldiers at a Georgia Army base are being hailed as heroes for tackling an armed assailant accused of shooting five people

Events

6 d. ago The Latest: Putin hosts Trump envoy Witkoff for crucial talks on Ukraine peace deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff for talks, days before the White House’s deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or potentially face severe economic penalties that could also hit countries buying its oil

Politics

6 d. ago Trump DOJ must address concerns of Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell ‘legitimization’ in grand jury release: Live updates

Vice President JD Vance is hosting a strategy dinner on handling of Jeffrey Epstein case as shock poll shows 81% of Americans believe President Donald Trump responsible for administration hiding information

Politics

6 d. ago Trump DOJ must address victim concerns about Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell grand jury release: Live updates

Strategy dinner announced as shock poll shows 81 percent of Americans believe President Donald Trump is responsible for administration hiding information on Jeffrey Epstein case

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7 d. ago Trump approval 20 points underwater in new poll with 81% blaming him for Epstein info blackout: Live updates

Latest shock poll follows president’s claim in CNBC interview that polls showing him with approval ratings in the 30s were ‘fake’

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7 d. ago America’s Most Wanted: Texas senator calls on FBI director Kash Patel to hunt down ‘fleeing’ Democrats

GOP accuses missing Texas Democrats of ‘bribery’ to justify rounding them up for blocking votes on gerrymandered congressional map

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7 d. ago What does Texas redrawing its voting maps mean and why have Democrats left the state? Explained

At the behest of Donald Trump, the state is pushing to restructure congressional maps to add as many as five seats for RepublicansAt the insistence of Donald Trump, Republicans in Texas are pushing ahead with an effort to redraw their congressional map to pick up as many as five additional Republican seats.The decision has set off a cascading legal battle. State lawmakers have fled Texas as part of an effort to stop Republicans from passing the map. Democrats in other states have said they will retaliate, setting the stage for a nasty and prolonged redistricting tit-for-tat that could last for years. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump attacks blue states for accepting Texas Democrats while endorsing gerrymandered state map – live updates

President says ‘we are entitled to five more seats’ in Texas as state House battles over Republican-drawn congressional mapsFull report – Trump weighs in on Texas redistricting fightIt’s a quiet August Tuesday on the president’s schedule today. The only listed item on his agenda is an executive order signing at 4pm EDT. We don’t know the details of that just yet.Trump is also speaking on CNBC now, and we’ll bring you the latest from that interview. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump calls blue states ‘gerrymandered’ and ‘terrible’ for accepting fleeing Texas Democrats amid redistricting fight – live

President says ‘we are entitled to five more seats’ in Texas as state House battles over Republican-drawn congressional mapsTexas House pushes forward on redistricting as Democrats vow to fightIt’s a quiet August Tuesday on the president’s schedule today. The only listed item on his agenda is an executive order signing at 4pm EDT. We don’t know the details of that just yet.Trump is also speaking on CNBC now, and we’ll bring you the latest from that interview. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Texas redistricting standoff escalates with threat to arrest absent Democrats – US politics live

Civil warrants issued in state’s House to bring back lawmakers cannot be enforced outside TexasTexas House pushes forward on redistricting as Democrats vow to fightUS border agents were directed to stop deportations under President Donald Trump’s asylum ban, CBS News reported Monday citing two unnamed Department of Homeland Security officials.The direction comes after a three-judge panel at the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit on Friday partially granted an order that limited the asylum ban, saying it cannot be used to entirely suspend humanitarian protections for asylum seekers, according to CBS. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Texas House pushes forward on redistricting as Democrats vow to fight

Lawmakers travel to Illinois, New York and elsewhere to stop vote on Republicans’ redistricting planUS politics – live updatesTexas Democrats in the state legislature denied Republicans a legislative quorum on Monday by leaving the state, preventing, at least for now, plans proposed by the White House to aggressively redistrict Texas’s congressional lines in their favor.When the legislature gaveled in at 3pm local time on Monday, Republicans fell short of a quorum by eight votes after Democrats fled to Illinois, a legislative conference in Boston, New York and elsewhere. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago California could slash 5 GOP US House seats to counter Texas' move to pad Republican margin

California Democrats are weighing new political maps that could slash five Republican-held House seats in the liberal-leaning state while bolstering Democratic incumbents in other battleground districts

Politics

8 d. ago Texas House reconvenes without quorum as Democrats flee state

Lawmakers travel to Illinois, New York and elsewhere to stop vote on Republicans’ redistricting planUS politics – live updatesTexas Democrats in the state legislature denied its speaker a legislative quorum Monday by leaving the state, forestalling plans proposed by the White House to redistrict Texas’s congressional lines to more greatly favor Republicans.When the legislature gaveled in at 3pm local time on Monday, Republicans fell short of a quorum by eight votes after Democrats fled to Illinois, a legislative conference in Boston, New York and elsewhere. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Texas House reconvenes without quorum as Democrats flee state to thwart Republicans’ redistricting plan

Lawmakers in Illinois, New York and elsewhere, stopping legislature from moving ahead with vote on maps proposalTexas Democrats in the state legislature denied its speaker a legislative quorum Monday by leaving the state, forestalling plans proposed by the White House to redistrict Texas’s congressional lines to more greatly favor Republicans.When the legislature gaveled in at 3pm local time on Monday, at least 51 Democrats were in Illinois, a legislative conference in Boston, New York and elsewhere. Democrats hold 62 of the 150 seats in the legislature’s lower chamber, so as long as at least 51 members remain out of Austin, the Texas legislature cannot move forward with any votes, including a plan to redraw the state’s congressional maps to give Republicans five more seats in Congress. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago ‘There’s an appetite for this brand of politics’: the independent politician making a bid for US Senate

Dan Osborn is challenging Republican incumbent Pete Ricketts in Nebraska to become a rare independent senatorDan Osborn is a man who does not like to lose, and if you had asked him on election night last year whether he would run again as an independent for a US Senate seat representing the very Republican state of Nebraska, Osborn would have told you to, in his words, “pound sand”.Yet the results of his first bid for elected office were alluring, so much so that he has decided take another stab at becoming only the third current member of the US Senate who is not in either of the two parties. While he did not beat Republican senator Deb Fischer last November, he did narrow her margin of victory to the single digits in a state that Donald Trump won by 20 points. Next year, Osborn will challenge the state’s other Republican senator, Pete Ricketts, in a contest he characterizes as a struggle between the working class and the wealthy. Continue reading...

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