Senate Democrats

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Top Democrats Push to Legalize Pot at Federal Level

They're calling for an end to prohibition

(Newser) - Top Senate Democrats have unveiled draft legislation to legalize marijuana, remove federal penalties, and erase nonviolent federal cannabis-related criminal records. The proposal from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, and Sen. Cory Booker, dubbed the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, would remove marijiuana, now fully...

Senate Democrats Reach 'Enormous' Budget Agreement

It envisions spending $3.5T over the coming decade

(Newser) - Senate Democrats announced late Tuesday that they'd reached a budget agreement envisioning spending an enormous $3.5 trillion over the coming decade, paving the way for their drive to pour federal resources into climate change, health care, and family-service programs sought by President Biden. The accord marks a major...

Joe Manchin Floats a Voting-Law Compromise
Joe Manchin's Big Move
on Voting Law
the rundown

Joe Manchin's Big Move on Voting Law

Democratic senator floats a compromise ahead of next week's vote

(Newser) - Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia earned the wrath of fellow Democrats earlier this month when he announced that he wouldn't back a major election-reform law. Now, ahead of next week's vote, Manchin has put a compromise in play. Coverage:
  • Manchin released a lengthy list of reforms he
...

49 Democrats, 50 Republicans, and 1 Joe Manchin
Schumer Has Potential Way
to Pressure Joe Manchin
the rundown

Schumer Has Potential Way to Pressure Joe Manchin

He could call a secret vote to strip West Virginian's chairmanship of energy panel

(Newser) - The dust is settling on Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin's decision over the weekend to buck his own party on a voting-rights bill, and there's no shortage of thoughts on what the Manchin vote in general means for the Senate. The 73-year-old may be a Democrat, but he represents...

Sen. Sinema's Explicit Ring Gets Plenty of Attention

Centrist Kyrsten Sinema shared photo of her wearing ring that said 'f--k off'

(Newser) - On a weekend in which photos of her exaggerated thumbs-down "no" vote on an incremental minimum wage were projected on City Hall in Flagstaff, Ariz., Sen. Kyrsten Sinema projected an image of her own—which included the words "f--k off." The Arizona Democrat posted a photo on...

Bernie Sanders' Minimum Wage Bid Is Rejected

Senator's workaround to add measure to relief bill falls short

(Newser) - Sen. Bernie Sanders tried again for a $15 federal minimum wage Friday but was undercut by a handful of Democrats. On a 58-42 vote—though the final count could change—the Senate rejected an attempt to slip the minimum wage increase into President Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief...

Senator Has a 'Plan B' to Raise Minimum Wage

Large corporations could face new 5% tax if pay falls below threshold

(Newser) - With the door shut on raising the federal minimum wage through the COVID-19 relief bill , Democrats are looking for another route. Instead of mandating a $15 hourly wage, Sen. Ron Wyden suggests going at it another way: penalizing large corporations whose employees don't make a certain amount. The companies...

Senate Votes on Advancing Barrett
Senate Votes on
Advancing Barrett

Senate Votes on Advancing Barrett

A 51-48 vote moves Barrett toward final confirmation on the Supreme Court

(Newser) - Senate Republicans voted overwhelmingly Sunday to advance Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett toward final confirmation despite Democratic objections, just over a week before the presidential election, the AP reports. The vote was 51-48. Barrett's confirmation on Monday was hardly in doubt, with majority Republicans mostly united in support...

Dems to Boycott Barrett Vote
Dems to Boycott Barrett Vote

Dems to Boycott Barrett Vote

Committee members slam 'sham process'

(Newser) - The Senate Judiciary Committee is due to vote Thursday on advancing the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court—but the panel's 10 Democrats will not be present. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democrats on the committee said Wednesday that Democrats will boycott the hearing...

All but One Senate Republican Votes for COVID Relief Bill

Rand Paul joins Democrats in blocking scaled-down measure

(Newser) - Mitch McConnell's scaled-down COVID relief package was shot down in the Senate on Thursday as expected , though Politico reports that Republican leaders scored at least a symbolic win. All but one GOP senator voted in favor, with Rand Paul the lone exception. That resulted in a 52-47 vote in...

Senate Democrats Block GOP Policing Bill

Schumer called it 'irrevocably flawed'

(Newser) - A police reform bill introduced by Senate Republicans last week has been blocked by Democrats who called it too flawed to even be a starting point for debate. A motion to introduce Senate debate on the bill, which needed 60 votes, was defeated in a 55-45 vote Wednesday, reports NBC...

As Trump, Schumer Clash, a 'Nasty' Letter Is Sent

President said NY was unprepared for outbreak because of 'impeachment hoax'

(Newser) - President Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer spent Thursday clashing over the administration's coronavirus response, with Schumer criticizing the White House's "tardiness and inadequacy" and Trump firing back in more personal terms. Trump, who was impeached by the House in December, called the Democrat a "...

3 Democratic Senators Could Be Leaning Toward Acquittal

Republicans hope to wrap trial up Friday

(Newser) - President Trump's defense rested its case in his impeachment trial Tuesday, with White House lawyers urging senators to vote to acquit—and at least three Democrats may end up joining Republicans in doing so. Politico reports that Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, and Doug...

Democrats Have Little Hope of Taking Senate Now
Democrats Have Little Hope
of Taking Senate Now
OPINION

Democrats Have Little Hope of Taking Senate Now

Don Blankenship's loss makes that clear, according to Politico analysis

(Newser) - Tuesday's primary results brought a dose of reality to Democrats: They have little or no chance of taking control of the Senate next year, writes Charlie Mahtesian at Politico . Democrats' hopes were raised briefly by the prospect of once-imprisoned coal executive Don Blankenship winning the GOP nomination in West...

Midterm 'Blue Wave' May Fizzle in the Senate

Democratic incumbents in swing states are looking shaky, according to new poll

(Newser) - Democrats are expected to make big gains in the House when the midterm elections take place later this year. A new poll, however, suggests the party might actually lose ground in the Senate. In the poll for Axios , Survey Monkey looked at 10 races where Democratic incumbents are fighting to...

Senators: Trump Lacks 'Legal Authority' for 'Bloody Nose' Hit

Democrats warn that Congress must OK any preemptive strike on North Korea

(Newser) - If President Trump has any plans to give North Korea a "bloody nose" with a preemptive nuclear strike, he'd better go through the proper channels first. That's the gist of a letter, due to be delivered to Trump Monday, from 18 Democratic senators that warns of the...

Some Big Names Watch Newest Senators Take Oath

Former VPs Biden, Mondale joined Jones, Smith

(Newser) - Two former vice presidents stood beside the Senate's newest senators on the Senate floor as the two Democrats took their oaths of office, the AP reports. Former Vice President Joseph Biden was next to Alabama Democrat Doug Jones as he was sworn in Wednesday. Former Vice President Walter Mondale—...

Franken Has Parting Shot for GOP in Final Senate Speech

He urges senators to 'stand up for truth'

(Newser) - So long, Sen. Al Franken: The Democrat delivered his final speech on the Senate floor Thursday, slamming Trump administration policies and urging fellow senators to "stand up for truth," the Hill reports. Franken, who reluctantly resigned after several women accused him of groping or harassing them, said he...

Report: Al Franken Will Resign
Report: Al Franken Will Resign
THE RUNDOWN

Report: Al Franken Will Resign

Not so fast, senator's office says

(Newser) - Fellow Democratic senators are calling for Sen. Al Franken to step down —and a Democratic official says he plans to do so. The official told Minnesota Public Radio on Wednesday that Franken, who has been accused of sexual harassment by multiple women, plans to announce his resignation Thursday. MPR...

Al Franken Apologizes for &#39;Crossing a Line&#39;
Al Franken:
'I Am So Sorry'

Al Franken: 'I Am So Sorry'

He vows to regain trust of Minnesotans

(Newser) - Sen. Al Franken apparently sees himself as an over-enthusiastic hugger, not the "serial groper" one woman describes him as. In a statement issued Thursday, the day after two more women accused him of touching them inappropriately during photo-ops , the Democrat apologized for making "some women feel badly" and...

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