Politics Election category, Page 13
Thousands of Pa. college students wait for key financial aid due to state budget impasse
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Financial aid for thousands of Pennsylvania college students is on hold as a result of the state...
Government shutdown could be the longest ever, Speaker Johnson warns
WASHINGTON — Republican Speaker Mike Johnson predicted Monday the federal government shutdown may become the longest in history, saying he “won’t negotiate” with Democrats until they hit pause on their health care demands and reopen. Standing alone at the Capitol on the 13th day of the shutdown, the speaker said...
North Carolina GOP announce plans to vote on new House map amid nationwide redistricting battle
RALEIGH — North Carolina Republican legislative leaders announced plans Monday to vote next week on redrawing the state’s U.S. House district map, with a likely aim to secure another GOP seat within already right-leaning boundaries. The move comes amid an emerging mid-decade battle nationally between Republicans and Democrats seeking advantage...
Treasury chief says government shutdown is hitting economy
The U.S. federal government shutdown is starting to impact the nation’s economy, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday as the closure entered its 13th day. “This is getting serious. It’s starting to affect the real economy,” he told Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria” program, without offering more...
JD Vance says ACA credits fuel fraud as Democrats push for extension to end shutdownVideo
WASHINGTON — Vice President JD Vance criticized Affordable Care Act tax credits on Sunday, labeling them vehicles for fraud and calling for regulatory reform, even as Democratic lawmakers seek to extend healthcare subsidies in the standoff over the government shutdown. “The tax credits go to some people deservedly, and we...
Beijing blames U.S. for raising trade tensions, defends rare earth curbs
BEIJING/HONG KONG — China called President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs on Chinese goods hypocritical on Sunday and defended its curbs on exports of rare earth elements and equipment, but stopped short of imposing new levies on U.S. products. Trump on Friday responded to Beijing’s most recent export controls by imposing...
FAA staffing issues delay U.S. air traffic for 5th straight day
WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday air traffic control staffing issues delayed travel for a fifth straight day as major U.S. airlines urged air travelers to be patient during an ongoing government shutdown. More than 6,400 flights were delayed Friday, and 470 canceled, after 22,000 had been delayed...
U.S. military will use R&D money to pay troops if shutdown persists
The Trump administration said on Saturday it would pay troops during the federal government shutdown by tapping unused funds that had been set aside for research and development. “I am using my authority, as Commander in Chief, to direct our Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to use all available funds...
Former President Biden undergoing radiation therapy for cancer, spokesperson says
Former U.S. President Joe Biden is receiving radiation therapy for his prostate cancer diagnosed in May, a spokesperson for him said on Saturday. “As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment, the spokesperson said. Biden, who turns 83 next...
‘Keep your mouth shut’: Tempers flare over shutdown with no end in sight
WASHINGTON – Two weeks into a government shutdown with no end in sight, tensions are high and getting hotter among the people with the power to the end it. At the U.S. Capitol this week, two Democratic senators confronted the Republican speaker of the House outside his office, accusing him...
White House: Trump gets covid shot in preparation for upcoming travel
President Donald Trump has received updated flu and covid-19 booster shots in preparation for upcoming travel, the president’s physician announced Friday. Sean P. Barbabella, a Navy captain, shared the information in a letter submitted Friday to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “President Donald J. Trump successfully completed a scheduled...
Trump to posthumously award Charlie Kirk the Medal of Freedom at White House ceremony
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says he will posthumously award slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk the Medal of Freedom at a White House celebration next week. Trump said he’ll be rushing back to the U.S. from Israel and Egypt, following a trip that’s tied to a ceasefire and hostage-release deal...
White House lays off thousands of U.S. government workers, blaming shutdown
President Donald Trump on Friday blamed Democrats for his decision to lay off thousands of workers across the U.S. government as he followed through on his threat to cut the federal workforce during the government shutdown. Job cuts were under way at the Treasury Department, the U.S. health agency, the...
Trump ratchets up U.S.-China trade war, promising new tariffs
President Donald Trump revived the trade war against Beijing on Friday, ending an uneasy truce between the two largest economies with promises to sharply hike tariffs in a reprisal against China curbing its critical mineral exports. The president unveiled additional levies of 100% on China’s U.S.-bound exports, along with new...
Trump didn’t win the Nobel prize he coveted, but prizewinner dedicated it, in part, to him
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s dream of becoming a Nobel laureate did not come true this year, although the prizewinner dedicated the honor to him, in part, for supporting her cause. The Norwegian committee that determines the winner of the prestigious awards passed Trump over for the peace prize he...
White House says Nobel Committee places ‘politics over peace’
The White House responded to the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to a Venezuelan opposition activist María Corina Machado by saying the prize committee was playing politics by not giving it to President Donald Trump. “The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace,” White House Communications Director Steven...
Federal government shutdown: White House says mass layoffs of federal workers have begun
WASHINGTON – The federal government shutdown rolled on to Day 10 on Friday after senators the day before voted down dueling funding bills for the seventh time. With both sides not budging from their positions, it appears increasingly likely the shutdown will crash into the weekend and the next week....
‘I’m cautiously optimistic’: Palestinians, Jews in Western Pa. share mixed emotions about peace deal
When Karim Alshurafa heard Thursday’s news of a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release, he felt conflicted. Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, which could be the first step toward ending a 2-year-old war that has roiled the Middle East. Alshurafa, 42,...
Shapiro joins states in legal action against Trump’s National Guard deployments
Pennsylvania has joined nearly two dozen states in taking legal action in an attempt to stop President Donald Trump from deploying National Guard troops to U.S. cities. The multistate amicus brief argues that the deployment of National Guard troops in Oregon was “unlawful, unconstitutional and undemocratic,” according to Gov. Josh...
Fetterman breaks with Dems on reining in Trump’s strikes on alleged drug boats; approval rating up among Republicans
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman went against the Democratic grain again. Fetterman on Wednesday was the lone Democrat in the Senate to vote against a measure to prevent President Donald Trump from using military force against suspected drug traffickers in the Caribbean without congressional authorization. Even with the support of two...
A Democratic rep.-elect isn’t being sworn in. Is it because she’d force an Epstein vote?
A Democrat from Arizona who won a special election for a seat in Congress on Sept. 23 is still waiting to be sworn in to the House of Representatives. Adelita Grijalva says the first thing she’ll do is sign the paperwork that would let the House vote on a bill...
What’s next legally for James Comey? His team plans to argue for dismissing the charges.
A series of legal motions aimed at dismissing charges against former FBI Director James Comey could be coming quickly from his defense team. Comey pleaded not guilty in a Virginia federal court Oct. 8 to charges pushed by President Donald Trump. One of Comey’s defense lawyers, former Justice Department senior...
Trump’s war on the left: Inside the plan to investigate liberal groups
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump’s threatened crackdown on the finances and activities of liberal non-profits and groups opposed to his agenda is a multi-agency effort with top White House aide Stephen Miller playing a central role, according to officials. The Trump administration plans to deploy America’s counter-terrorism apparatus - including...
Democrats have excelled in special elections — what does that mean for the midterms?
Out of power since President Donald Trump took office and deeply unpopular in opinion polls, Democrats are clinging to a glimmer of hope ahead of the 2026 midterm elections: a string of impressive finishes this year in more than three dozen special elections. In 42 state legislative and U.S. congressional...
Who’s to blame for the shutdown? All of the above, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds
WASHINGTON — Americans blame both Republicans and Democrats for the ongoing government shutdown and are worried services could falter as a third of the federal workforce sits on unpaid leave, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The five-day poll, completed on Tuesday, asked Americans nationwide how much blame Democrats, Republicans...
