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CDC to update federal masking guidance in coming weeks
WASHINGTON — The federal government will likely update its guidance on masking and other COVID-19 mitigation efforts in the coming weeks as the omicron surge continues to wane, U.S. public health officials indicated Wednesday. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky said at a White House briefing that the agency will continue looking […]
U.S. House panel debates record number of guns found at airport checkpoints
WASHINGTON — U.S. House members wrestled Tuesday with how to address a spike in travelers trying to bring firearms through airport screening points in carry-on bags. During 2021, Transportation Security Administration officers detected 5,972 firearms at checkpoints, 86% of which were loaded. That number was up from the previous record of 4,432 discovered in 2019. […]
COVID vaccine for kids under 5 delayed until at least April
WASHINGTON — A COVID-19 vaccine for young children will be delayed by at least two months as Pfizer and BioNTech gather more information on a three-dose regimen. The news came after the Biden administration earlier had announced it was preparing to get the vaccines out to states as soon as it could following federal approval. […]
Short-term federal spending patch held up by Tennessee senator over crack pipe controversy
WASHINGTON — Federal government funding runs out in just a week, Congress hasn’t cleared a short-term funding measure to avoid a shutdown, despite broad bipartisan support — and the latest holdup is over claims the Biden administration wants to pay for crack pipes as part of “safe smoking” kits. The stopgap spending bill passed the […]
U.S. House passes three-week patch to keep the federal government operating
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House passed a bill Tuesday that would keep the U.S. government up and running through March 11. The short-term funding bill, the third one of this fiscal year, is designed to give negotiators more time to reach a bipartisan agreement on full-year spending bills — a task they’ve so far been […]
McConnell rebukes RNC for saying Jan. 6 attack was ‘legitimate political discourse’
Washington — U.S. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday the Republican National Committee erred in censuring two House GO lawmakers for joining the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The Kentucky Republican rebuked the RNC for referring to the riot as “legitimate political discourse” in the censure resolution. McConnell said the […]
House advances marijuana banking bill, but final passage uncertain
WASHINGTON — Cannabis dispensaries throughout the country came one step closer to using banks the way many other businesses can when the U.S. House cleared a bill Friday with sweeping changes to banking regulations. Reps. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., and Dave Joyce, R-Ohio, co-sponsors of the legislation, said Friday their proposal would allow medical and recreational […]
Governors attempt to bridge deep political divides in big D.C. meeting
WASHINGTON — Governors of both parties from throughout the United States met here over the weekend to try to speak on a unified front about what their states need from the federal government. But the waters were muddied by governors’ clearly divided political views about two major issues of the moment: voting laws and whether […]
Biden vows to nominate first Black woman to Supreme Court by end of February
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer formally announced his retirement Thursday, giving President Joe Biden his first, and possibly only, opportunity to make a nomination for the lifetime appointment. At the White House, Biden said he will make his decision by the end of February and recommitted to nominating the court’s first Black female […]
Fauci declines to predict COVID vaccine timetable for kids under 5
WASHINGTON — Parents hoping to vaccinate their young children against COVID-19 will need to be patient, Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned Wednesday. The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said while he expects that the vaccine regimen for children under 5 will be three doses, he couldn’t provide a timeline on when […]
Reports: Supreme Court Justice Breyer to step down
Editor’s note: This story has been updated. WASHINGTON — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer is planning to announce his retirement in the coming days, according to multiple press reports Wednesday. The decision by the 83-year-old justice, who was nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1994, would give President Joe Biden his first chance to […]
Biden administration drops vaccine-or-test workplace rule
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration announced Tuesday it will withdraw an emergency mandate that would have required employees at large businesses to get the COVID-19 vaccine or test regularly for the virus. The decision from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which will take effect Wednesday, follows a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court earlier […]