Eleven members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, led by Chairman Dick Durbin, have requested that Harlan Crow, a Republican donor and real estate magnate, provide an itemized list of gifts and real estate transactions given to Supreme Court justices or their family members. The committee has requested that Crow provide the requested information by May 22, 2023 and has not yet received a response. This is part of the committee’s ongoing efforts to craft legislation strengthening the ethical rules and standards that apply to the Supreme Court.
Posts published in “US”
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned that if the White House is forced to cite the 14th Amendment to raise the debt ceiling, it could lead to a "constitutional crisis". This week marks a defining challenge for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as he attempts to strike a deal with President Biden to avert an unprecedented debt default. Yellen urged Congress to act quickly and responsibly to raise the debt ceiling and avoid a potential global economic crisis.
On Sunday afternoon, a mass shooting at a Texas outlet mall left eight people dead and six more injured, including two elementary school-aged sisters and a couple and their 3-year-old son. The victims represented a multicultural cross-section of the area's increasingly diverse suburbs, leaving the community in shock. The 33-year-old gunman was later killed by police, and the investigation into the shooting is ongoing with the motive of the gunman still unknown.
The White House has issued a veto threat against the Secure the Border Act of 2023, a bill proposed by House Republicans to address immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. The Office of Management and Budget said the bill would make elements of the immigration system worse, not better, and does very little to increase border security. The White House has urged Congress to reject the bill and instead focus on finding solutions that will actually increase border security and uphold the nation’s core values and international obligations.
A woman wearing a pink beret at the U.S Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 was identified by an ex-romantic partner and charged with four federal counts on Monday. Jennifer Inzunza Vargas Geller of California now faces four misdemeanor counts related to the Capitol riots, and the FBI has asked for the public's help in identifying those involved. The FBI has made it clear that they are committed to holding those responsible for the Jan. 6 insurrection accountable.
On Sunday, 8 people were killed in a shooting at a Dallas-area outlet mall. The shooter, Mauricio Garcia, had an interest in white supremacist ideology, evidenced by a patch on his chest and posts on social media accounts. Federal agents are currently investigating the possibility of a connection to white supremacist ideology as the motive for the shooting.
A 17-year-old boy from Chesapeake, Virginia, died on Saturday after being trapped under a collapsing dune at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore in Frisco, North Carolina. Seashore law enforcement rangers responded to a 911 call and attempted to free the teen from the sand, but were unsuccessful. The National Park Service is currently investigating the incident and Superintendent David Hallac expressed his condolences to the family.
Eight people have been killed and 10 injured after an SUV plowed into a group of migrants waiting at a bus stop in Brownsville, Texas. The driver, George Alvarez, has been charged with eight counts of manslaughter, and police are investigating whether the collision was intentional. The victims were waiting at a stop near a Catholic Charities facility in Brownsville known as the Ozanam Center, and the injured are being treated in hospital.