15:43 BST 15:43
There is worrying news for Democrats in Pennsylvania with a report claiming that Republicans are recruiting disgruntled former opponents of their opponents four times more often than those who are going in the opposite direction. The changes are a “warning sign” for Democrats as they try to maintain control of Congress in the November midterm elections, according to a Reuters report. Pennsylvania, a critical state that marginally backed Joe Biden in 2020, is likely to see a fierce battle for one of its Senate seats with the departure of Pat Toomey, the only Republican elected in the state. “I just got bored and felt there had to be a better way,” Beth Jones, a 48-year-old retired Philadelphia police officer who registered as a Republican last month, told Reuters, citing crime and high inflation for her decision. Jones said she had voted Democratic for three decades. Reuters reported that it looked at enrollment data in six states that may see tight races for the U.S. Senate in November that generally require voters to be members of a party to run for office. While each state monitors voter registration differently, the survey showed Republican gains in four of those states and no significant difference in two of them. In Pennsylvania, Republicans have converted four Democrats for every Republican who changed direction, according to the Pennsylvania State Department. The conversion rate is much higher than in 2016, says Reuters, when Republicans seized the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate.
15:17 BST 15:17
A bipartisan senator wants Joe Biden to reverse his decision to end the Trump-era immigration policy that has blocked refugees at the southern US border due to the coronavirus pandemic. Axios says the group of five Democrats and six Republican senators will introduce a bill later today that would prevent the Biden administration from removing Title 42 without a detailed plan to stop an expected increase in immigration at the border. “Obviously the current preparations and plans for the end of Title 42 are not enough,” Axios said, citing Arizona Democratic co-sponsor Kyrsten Sinema of the bill, saying he had met with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Wednesday. Senator Kyrsten Sinema Photo: Al Drago / AP The Biden administration announced last week that the policy introduced by Trump in 2020 would end on May 23, describing it as a public health move because the pandemic was receding. However, the announcement has been widely repulsed and threatens to derail negotiations in Congress on a relief package for vaccines, treatments and trials, the Washington Post reported. The White House wanted $ 22.5 billion, and a bipartisan Senate committee appeared to have settled on $ 10 billion before Title 42 provoked a furious response from Republicans. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he will pick up undocumented immigrant buses and send them to Washington to confront Joe Biden, according to CNN. Read about the impact of the Title 42 decision here:
14:42 BST 14:42
California Cities ‘Spend Money on Covid Police’s Relief’
Sam Levin Big cities in California have spent large chunks of federal relief money for Covid on police stations, a review of public records has revealed, with several cities prioritizing police funding by a wide margin. As part of the American Rescue Plan (Arpa), the Biden government’s signature boost package, the US government has sent funds to cities to help them fight the coronavirus and support local recovery efforts. The money, officials said, could be used to fund a range of services, including public health and housing initiatives, health workers’ salaries, infrastructure investments and small business assistance. But most major California cities have spent millions of Arpa dollars on law enforcement. Some also gave money to the police from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Financial Security (Cares) Act, which was passed in 2020 under Donald Trump. In a state with severe income inequality and a dramatically worsening homelessness crisis, stimulus spending has provoked reactions from community organizers who say the funds should have gone directly to citizens and that police should have accepted cuts. “It was called the ‘American rescue plan’, but are you telling me that what was to be rescued was the police department?” said Stephen “Cue” Jn-Marie, pastor and activist at Skid Row in Los Angeles. “The city’s kneeling reaction is always to use law enforcement to respond to everything; and the police force is getting bigger.” Read the full story here:
14:32 BST 14:32
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Sumer is scheduled to vote at 1:45 p.m. for the confirmation of Joe Biden’s chosen one, Ketanji Brown Jackson, who will be confirmed as the first black female associate judge of the US Supreme Court. In a tweet, Schumer said: “It will be a happy day for America!” Chuck Sumer (@SenSchumer) Tomorrow afternoon: This Senate is well on its way to conducting the final vote on the ratification of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson in the US Supreme Court! It will be a happy day for America! April 7, 2022 Despite a reluctant and sometimes farcical hearing in Parliament two weeks ago and the announcement by high-profile Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham that he would not support her now (although he voted for her promotion to the U.S. Court of Appeals), her confirmation is all but of course. Three Republicans, Susan Collins of Maine, Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have announced they will vote for her, assuring Biden of an award-winning bipartisan nomination in the equally divided chamber. Jackson’s appointment to the highest court of the country, replacing the longtime liberal judge Steven Breyer, who is retiring, is more than symbolic. The lifelong date at the age of 51 could see Jackson on the bench for decades, and will likely prove to be a vocal contrast to the panel’s current 6-3 Conservative majority. Illinois Democrat Dick Darbin, chairman of the Senate, praised Jackson’s “impeccable qualifications” Monday and said her experience as a public defender would bring “a lack of perspective in court.” “Hers is a uniquely American family history, how many hopes and promises can be achieved in a single generation,” Durbin said. “I’m proud that we can witness it.” Jackson will become only the sixth woman to serve on the Supreme Court in its more than 200 years of history. Read the highlights of Jackson’s confirmation hearings here: Updated at 3:33 p.m. BST
14:20 BST 14:20
Good morning blog readers and welcome to a busy Thursday. It’s a big day in the U.S. Supreme Court, where Joe Biden’s chosen one, Ketanji Brown Jackson, is almost certain to be confirmed as the judge’s youngest associate in a Senate vote scheduled for 1:45 p.m. The conflict in Ukraine continues to dominate the headlines on both sides of the Atlantic. Follow the developments on our live news blog here. It also happens in US politics today:
A bipartisan senator is calling on Joe Biden to reverse his decision to end Trump’s Title 42 immigration policy, which is blocking refugees at the southern border because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he is going to collect undocumented immigrants and put them on buses to Washington to be dealt with by the president. Covid-19 numbers are rising again in many states as the BA.2 variant dominates and controversy continues in Congress over the size of a bailout package. The United States has called for Russia to suspend its membership in the UN Human Rights Council over alleged atrocities in Ukraine. The General Assembly is voting today in New York. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki will deliver her daily briefing at 1 p.m.
