BARBARA LEE

Republican John Duarte has defeated Democratic nominee Adam Gray in California's 13th Congressional District, a new U.S. House of Representatives district in the Central Valley.

The Biden administration has put a well-known Russian paramilitary organization on a list of religious freedom violators alongside a number of notorious terrorist organizations.

House debate reflected a perspective, shared broadly by both parties, that the U.S. has even more at stake than standing by Ukraine. “The Ukrainian people, they need us, they are in desperate need of our support," said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., chair of the House Appropriations Committee. The new legislation would bring American support for the effort to nearly $54 billion, including the $13.6 billion in support Congress enacted in March. The measure was released as Washington has become increasingly assertive about its goals and its willingness to help Ukraine with more sophisticated weapons. Biden met in the White House Situation Room Tuesday with Pelosi and six other House Democrats who traveled recently to Ukraine and Poland.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also addressed the pay issue by recently setting a minimum annual pay for House staff at $45,000. The median salary for staff working for an individual lawmaker was $50,000 last year, according to the House Office of Diversity and Inclusion. The vote Tuesday will allow a board to issue regulations to establish the rights of congressional staff to collectively bargain. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., said he doubts many staffs in GOP offices would opt to unionize, calling it unnecessary. The House voted to pass the resolution as part of a measure establishing rules for debate on aid to Ukraine.

The House has approved a resolution that will pave the way for letting congressional staff join a union and engage in collective bargaining.

(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) (Manuel Balce Ceneta)WASHINGTON — (AP) — A fresh $40 billion Ukraine aid package headed toward House passage Tuesday as lawmakers beefed up President Joe Biden's initial request, signaling a magnified U.S. commitment to thwart Russian President Vladimir Putin's bloody three-month-old invasion. The new legislation would bring American support for the effort to nearly $54 billion, on top of the $13.6 billion in support Congress enacted in March. “Time is of the essence, and we cannot afford to wait," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., wrote in a letter to colleagues. Those weapons have helped Ukraine hold its own surprisingly well against its more lethal foe, but the grinding war is taking its toll. Biden met in the White House Situation Room Tuesday with Pelosi and six other House Democrats who traveled recently to Ukraine and Poland.

(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) (Manuel Balce Ceneta)WASHINGTON — (AP) — A fresh $40 billion Ukraine aid package headed toward House passage Tuesday as lawmakers beefed up President Joe Biden's initial request, signaling a magnified U.S. commitment to thwart Russian President Vladimir Putin's bloody three-month-old invasion. “Time is of the essence, and we cannot afford to wait," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., wrote in a letter to colleagues. Senate approval of Ukrainian aid seems certain, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and other Republicans have echoed the need for quick action. Republican support for more pandemic spending is waning and including that money would have slowed the Ukraine measure in the 50-50 Senate, where at least 10 GOP votes will be needed for passage. Biden met in the White House Situation Room Tuesday with Pelosi and six other House Democrats who traveled recently to Ukraine and Poland.

The House has emphatically approved a fresh $40 billion Ukraine aid package that beefs up President Joe Biden’s initial request.

The House has approved a bill decriminalizing marijuana and letting states set their own policies on pot.

Four men are going to trial for an alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Year after year, several thousand women in the U.S. carry an unintended pregnancy to term and then offer the baby for adoption.

It's a crowded scene outside the Supreme Court, where hundreds of abortion debate partisans are trading chants while justices hear highly anticipated arguments inside.

When U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal returns home to Seattle, the Congressional Progressive Caucus chairwoman always goes for a walk along the Puget Sound.

The African American Cultural Society is celebrating its 30th Anniversary at 4 p.m. with a plated dinner, Sally Rooney on abortion.

Rep. Barbara Lee of California said she received a “back-alley” abortion in Mexico after a teenage pregnancy. And Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington said she opted for an abortion after being told her pregnancy would be high risk for her and the baby. The hearing comes weeks after a Texas law took effect that bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy with no exception for rape or incest. And, the U.S. Supreme Court in December will hear arguments over a Mississippi law that would ban abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The hearing also looked at what the federal government can do to ensure abortion access.

Three Democratic members of Congress have offered deeply personal testimony about their own abortions as a congressional committee looks at how to respond to conservative states that are passing laws limiting abortion access.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) has emerged as the most powerful House liberal by aggressively representing the priorities of her caucus and pushing leaders not to acquiesce to the demands of moderates in politically competitive districts whom liberals argue too often stand in the way of progress.

The U.S. has delivered about 20 million doses to African nations so far, the lawmakers say. ___TIRANA, Albania — The Albanian government is calling on people to get the COVID-19 vaccine because of increased daily cases from the delta variant. It comes at a time when such mandates are gaining traction now that the government has given full approval of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine. State Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the slight easing of restrictions is coming because the state reached 6 million vaccine doses in a population of 8.2 million. Elsewhere in the state, groups of five will be allowed to congregate as long as all adults are fully vaccinated.

It was a mistake to believe that bombs and missiles and drones and tanks could ever bring peace.

The Taliban reportedly shot and killed a woman in Afghanistan on Tuesday for not wearing a burqa. This incident took […] The post Taliban reportedly shoots and kill Afghan woman for not wearing burqa appeared first on TheGrio.

Barbara Lee was the only member of Congress to vote against the 2001 resolution that launched the U.S. war with Afghanistan.

Republicans excoriated the White House's strategy while Democrats criticized the haphazard manner of the U.S. withdrawal.

President Joe Biden signed legislation Thursday establishing Juneteenth as a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery, following the passage of a bipartisan Congressional bill. State governments that had not already declared Juneteenth a holiday were also scrambling to respond the new federal holiday. Instead, he said the company sent an email acknowledging the federal holiday and pledging to consider time off in the future. But the federal holiday declaration brought it to the attention of some Americans for the first time. Still, Eve said the declaration of Juneteenth as a federal holiday will make companies that don't follow suit increasingly look bad.

The declaration of Juneteenth as a federal holiday is putting the pressure on more U.S. companies to give their employees the day off, accelerating a movement that took off last year in response to the racial justice protests that swept the country.

The House votes to repeal 2002 military authorization for the Iraq War, with Biden's blessing

His audience included scores of members of Congress and Opal Lee, a 94-year-old Texas woman who campaigned for the holiday. Juneteenth is the 12th federal holiday, including Inauguration Day once every four years. It's also the first federal holiday since the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday was added in 1983. Before June 19 became a federal holiday, it was observed in the vast majority of states and the District of Columbia. He said the Juneteenth holiday will help promote understanding and unity.

Black Americans are rejoicing after President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing Juneteenth as a federal holiday.

In 2016, then-89-year-old activist Opal Lee marched 1,400 miles from Fort Worth, Texas, to Washington, DC, to raise awareness about Juneteenth.

His audience included scores of members of Congress and Opal Lee, a 94-year-old Texas woman who campaigned for the holiday. Juneteenth is the 12th federal holiday, including Inauguration Day once every four years. It's also the first federal holiday since the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday was created in 1983. Before June 19 became a federal holiday, it was observed in the vast majority of states and the District of Columbia. He said the Juneteenth holiday will help promote understanding and unity.

The House vote is part of a growing bipartisan effort to scrap post-9/11 laws that gave presidents broad authority to wage war.

The Democratic-led House, with the backing of President Joe Biden, is expected to approve legislation Thursday, June 17, 2021, to repeal the 2002 authorization for use of military force in Iraq. The repeal legislation was passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 268-161. The White House says there are no ongoing military activities reliant solely upon the 2002 authorization. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said he agreed the 2002 authorization was outdated, but he argued that Congress should not repeal it without also approving a replacement. In the end, legislation terminating the 2002 authorization will need 60 votes in an evenly divided Senate to overcome procedural hurdles.

The House, with the backing of President Biden, is expected to approve legislation to repeal the 2002 authorization of use of military force in Iraq.

In the wake of 9/11, Congress approved two measures giving the president expansive war powers. An effort to repeal the 2002 authorization of force in Iraq has growing bipartisan support.

The Democratic-led House, with the backing of President Joe Biden, is expected to approve legislation Thursday, June 17, 2021, to repeal the 2002 authorization for use of military force in Iraq. A vote on Thursday would come one day after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he intends to bring repeal legislation to the Senate floor this year. “The authorization passed in 2002 is no longer necessary in 2021.”The White House said in a statement that it supports the House bill and stressed that no ongoing military activities are reliant upon the 2002 authorization. Many lawmakers, particularly Democrats, say passage of the 2002 authorization, or AUMF, was a mistake, and some Republicans agree the authority should be taken off the books. In the end, legislation terminating the 2002 authorization will need 60 votes in an evenly divided Senate to overcome any procedural hurdles.

The Democratic-led House has passed legislation to repeal the 2002 authorization for use of military force in Iraq.

The bill to repeal the AUMF has the backing of the White House.

The White House and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer are endorsing efforts to terminate the 2002 authorization of military force against Iraq.

The House is voting to repeal the 2002 war authorization in Iraq, and Chuck Schumer made it clear the Senate will follow suit.

The White House announced this week that it supports an effort to repeal the 2002 Authorization to Use Military Force.

Queen Elizabeth sat by herself at Prince Philip’s funeral and now will embark on the next phase of her reign alone.

Gavin Newsom says he'll appoint a Black woman to the U.S. Senate if Feinstein retires before her term ends in 2024. Gavin Newsom said Monday he'd appoint a Black woman to replace U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein if she retires before her term is up in 2024. “We have multiple names in mind and the answer is yes," he said during a interview on MSNBC's “The ReidOut" when asked if he would name a Black woman to the seat if given the chance. Newsom recently held that power after then-California Sen. Kamala Harris was elected vice president. He faced competing pressure to name a Latino and a Black woman and eventually chose Alex Padilla, making him California's first Latino U.S. senator.

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool)Joe Biden and Kamala Harris showcased American designers at their inauguration Wednesday, and Harris gave a nod to women's suffrage, Shirley Chisholm and her beloved sorority in pearls and purple. Pearls had a strong fashion showing, in line with a social media campaign that had inauguration watchers donning strands in support and celebration of Harris. “If there’s a message to be taken from today’s inauguration fashion, it’s that those who attended are signaling faith in unity and bipartisanship, as well as restoring truth and trust,” Torgerson said. Another inauguration fashion star on Twitter was Nikolas Ajagu, the husband of Harris' niece, Meena Harris. It was updated on January 21, 2021, to correct the fact that Meena Harris is Vice President Kamala Harris’ niece, not her sister.

Harris will make history Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, when she becomes the nations first Black, South Asian and female vice president. Biden and Harris knew each other prior to the 2020 presidential campaign in part through Harris’ friendship with Biden’s deceased son, Beau. Since joining the ticket, and particularly since the election, Harris has made efforts to deepen their relationship and is in frequent contact with the president-elect, people close to Harris say. “The relationship of the vice president to the president is the most important relationship. Harris is said to be looking at Biden’s vice presidency as a guide for her own.

FILE - In this Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020 file photo, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris speaks as she and President-elect Joe Biden introduce their nominees and appointees to key national security and foreign policy posts at The Queen theater, in Wilmington, Del. – Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will resign her Senate seat on Monday, two days before she and President-elect Joe Biden are inaugurated. Harris is the first woman ever elected vice president — and the first Black woman and first woman of South Asian descent to serve in that office. The wins by Ossoff and Warnock in Georgia ensured a 50-50 Senate, positioning Harris as the tie-breaking vote for Democratic control. Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, have enjoyed conversations and debates over how Emhoff should be addressed when Harris takes office.

Now Biden will have to do it with President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial beginning potentially as soon as his first day in office. “We’re going to have to move simultaneously in a whole bunch of areas.”Biden has so far stayed largely out of public deliberations over Trump's impeachment for inciting a riot. So let him do his job — and let the Senate do their work,” said California Rep. Barbara Lee, a Democrat. And there’s the prospect they could further exacerbate the already fraught atmosphere on Capitol Hill, politicizing Biden’s agenda and making it tougher for him to get support from winnable Republican senators. And Democrats on Capitol Hill are barreling ahead as well, refusing to accept the prospect that impeachment will deter them from their legislative goals.

Now Biden will have to do it with President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial beginning potentially as soon as his first day in office. “We’re going to have to move simultaneously in a whole bunch of areas.”Biden has so far stayed largely out of public deliberations over Trump's impeachment for inciting a riot. So let him do his job — and let the Senate do their work,” said California Rep. Barbara Lee, a Democrat. And there’s the prospect they could further exacerbate the already fraught atmosphere on Capitol Hill, politicizing Biden’s agenda and making it tougher for him to get support from winnable Republican senators. And Democrats on Capitol Hill are barreling ahead as well, refusing to accept the prospect that impeachment will deter them from their legislative goals.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., holds a news conference on the day after violent protesters loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021. “It has been an epiphany for the world to see that there are people in our country led by this president, for the moment, who have chosen their whiteness over democracy,” Pelosi said. Pelosi says, “The complicity, not only the complicity, the instigation of the president of United States, must and will be addressed.”___1:25 p.m. Flight attendants have expressed concern that their flights could be carrying supporters of President Donald Trump who took part in Wednesday’s violent protest and siege of the U.S. Capitol. ___2:25 a.m.Democrats in Congress are laying the groundwork to impeach President Donald Trump.

FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2019, file photo, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla talks during a news conference at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif. California Gov. Newsom also rejected pleas from a host of prominent Black leaders to replace Harris, the Senate’s only Black woman, with another African American woman, such as U.S. Reps. Karen Bass or Barbara Lee. If confirmed, she would become the first Black woman to hold the office, giving Newsom two history-making picks in one day. Given the timing, however, it appeared the choice was intended at least partly to quell criticism for not choosing a Black woman to replace Harris. With Padilla, Newsom gets a political soul mate and a loyalist.

Gavin Newsom speaks at a COVID-19 testing facility in Valencia, Calif. As California Gov. Gavin Newsom's shoulders as he considers his pick to serve out the rest of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' Senate term through 2022. The South saw its highest number of Black Senate candidates ever this year, but none won races outright. Labor icon Dolores Huerta and California Latinas for Reproductive Justice want Newsom to appoint a Black woman. De Leon won the endorsement of the California Democratic Party and prominent labor unions, in part because of his support for immigrant rights and aggressive policies to curb climate change.

This image from House Television shows the final vote, 228-164, in the House on passage of a bill to decriminalize and tax marijuana at the federal level. (House Television via AP)WASHINGTON – The Democratic-controlled House on Friday approved a bill to decriminalize and tax marijuana at the federal level, reversing what supporters call a failed policy of criminalizing pot use and taking steps to address racial disparities in enforcement of federal drug laws. “Whatever one’s views are on the use of marijuana for recreational or medicinal use, the policy of arrests, prosecution and incarceration at the federal level has proven unwise and unjust.″Drug reform advocates called the House vote historic, noting it is the first time comprehensive legislation to decriminalize marijuana has passed the full House or Senate. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., called the House bill an important racial justice measure. Instead of allowing a vote on the GOP bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is “actually focused more on legalizing pot,'' Scalise said.

Election Day is over but California already is consumed with its next high-profile political contest the competition to fill Kamala Harris' soon-to-be-vacant U.S. Senate seat. Padilla is one of a group of people being considered as one of the candidates for the Senate pick. A group of Black California lawmakers have organized a lobbying drive behind U.S. Rep. Karen Bass, who represents parts of Los Angeles and its suburbs. And they could wait: California’s other Senate seat is held by 87-year-old Dianne Feinstein, the chamber’s oldest member. Does Newsom run the risk of angering groups who lose out on the Senate pick and who might make his re-election bid more difficult?

Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., speaks at Carpenters Local Union 1912 in Phoenix, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020, to kick off a small business bus tour. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)If you need help with the Public File, call 407-291-6000.

During the past week, Trump told Sean Hannity of Fox News that Harris would assume the presidency within “three months” of Biden's inauguration. During a conversation with Rush Limbaugh, he warned that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would “replace” Biden with Harris. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Trump ally, is pushing the president to make Harris a campaign centerpiece. “This is a desire not to run against Joe Biden, to run against anybody but Joe Biden,” he said. Biden and Harris can best respond to the attacks by focusing on their agenda and policies, said Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee of California.

In her first two days as Joe Biden's running mate, Kamala Harris has fired off the campaign's sharpest criticism of President Donald Trump's shortcomings. And Harris herself was a critic of Bidens record on race, notably assailing him during a primary debate for previously opposing federally mandated busing. But Harris signaled Wednesday that shell offer a strong defense of Bidens record on race. Harris is already delivering for the campaign in a tangible way: With a record-breaking fundraising haul. Through her nearly two decades in California politics, Harris built a network of deep-pocketed donors in Hollywood and the state's legal circles.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is already being lobbied by hopefuls and numerous names are emerging in the early speculation. (Kevin Dietsch/Pool Photo via AP, File)LOS ANGELES The possible election of U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris as vice president has kicked off widespread speculation in California about who might replace her. Gavin Newsom, who would choose a replacement if Joe Biden and Harris defeat President Donald Trumps ticket. For Newsom, the list choices is long and the political risks many, especially with a national reckoning on racial injustice underway.

Ocasio-Cortez, a freshman who has made her mark as one of Congress' most outspoken progressives, described it on the House floor Thursday. She said Yoho, one of the House's most conservative members, put his finger in her face and called her disgusting, crazy and dangerous. I want to thank him for showing the world that you can be a powerful man and accost women," she said. You can be married and accost women.More than a dozen other Democrats also spoke, mostly women, in remarks that included taunts of House Republicans' overwhelmingly white male membership and warnings that the numbers of women lawmakers will only grow. We're not going away, said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash. There is going to be more power in the hands of women across this country.

Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California, both former presidential candidates, are expected to announce a package in coming days, with a House bill coming soon. Both the Senate and House efforts are expected to include changes to police accountability laws, such as revising immunity provisions, and creating a database of police use-of-force incidents. We have a moral moment in our country, Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., the chairwoman of the CBC, said on a conference call Wednesday. With Democrats in the majority, the bills will almost certainly pass the House. She acknowledged the opposition the bills will likely face, but called on fellow lawmakers to consider the option of doing nothing.

People participate in a protest in Times Square against military conflict with Iran on January 08, 2020 in New York. The Democratic-led House of Representatives voted on Thursday to approve two measures that will constrain President Donald Trump's ability to go to war with Iran. One of the measures would block funding for any use of offensive military force in or against Iran without congressional approval. Democrats, wary of getting bogged down in a new Middle East conflict, have sought to require Trump to seek authorization for future uses of military force. "Today, Congress passed two historic pieces of legislation to reassert our authority over matters of war and peace."

It's likely to face a tougher battle in the Republican-controlled Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell opposes marijuana legalization. The House Judiciary Committee approved a bill Wednesday that legalizes marijuana on the federal level, removing it from Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act. "The criminalization of marijuana has been a mistake," Chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said during the markup of the bill. In response, Nadler said that House Democrats can "negotiate" with the Senate, acknowledging Republicans won't take the bill "as is." The committee approval comes two months after the House passed legislation that would protect banks that serve marijuana businesses in states where the substance is legal.