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Immigration lawyers fear Laken Riley bill could have broad impact as Trump takes office
WASHINGTON The U.S. Senate this week is moving to pass a bill that immigration attorneys and experts warn could have far-reaching ramifications, such as swamping federal courts with challenges by state attorneys general and subjecting some migrants including children and teens to rapid detention and deportation. The legislation, the Laken Riley Act,S. […]
U.S. Senate moves ahead with immigration bill expanding detention for theft, shoplifting
WASHINGTON The U.S. Senate Monday voted to proceed with consideration of a bill that would impose new mandatory immigration detention requirements for immigrants charged with property crimes and give broad legal standing to state attorneys general. In an 82-10vote, a majority of Senate Democrats, 32, and one independent, joined Republicans. Nine Democrats voted against […]
Strong bipartisan support in U.S. Senate advances bill expanding immigration detention
WASHINGTON U.S. Senate Republicans gained more than enough Democratic support Thursday to advance a bill that would greatly expand immigration detention, following a presidential election in which border security was a main theme for President-elect Donald Trump. In an 84-9procedural vote, 32 Senate Democrats and one independent backed the bill,S. 5, sponsored by Alabamas […]
Trump huddles with U.S. Senate GOP but no agreement yet on big tax, immigration overhaul
WASHINGTON U.S. Senate Republicans and President-elect Donald Trump met behind closed doors Wednesday evening to plot how to enact sweeping changes to immigration, energy and tax policy, though they didnt appear to make significant progress. Republicans want to use the complicated budget reconciliation process to approve legislation without relying on Democrats for votes in […]
U.S. House GOP kicks off new session with border security push
WASHINGTON The U.S. House passed its first bill of the 119th Congress Tuesday, a measure that increases migrant detention and is named after a Georgia nursing student whose murder President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly tied to the Biden administrations immigration policies. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson said during a Tuesday press conference that as promised, […]
Trumps election as president certified by Congress, four years after Capitol attack
WASHINGTON Lawmakers certified President-elect Donald Trumps win Monday in a smooth process that four years ago was disrupted by a violent mob of Trump supporters bent on stopping Congress from formally declaring President Joe Bidens 2020 victory. Vice President Kamala Harris the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee defeated by Trump presided over the […]
Louisianas Mike Johnson elected U.S. House speaker by GOP in cliff-hanger vote
WASHINGTON U.S. House Republicans on Friday elected Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson as their speaker for the 119th Congress, following weeks of speculation about whether the GOP would begin another protracted, public dispute over leadership. The drama-filled vote ensured that Johnson, who was first elected speaker in October 2023, will hold the gavel as Republicans […]
Biden commutes sentences of nearly 1,500 people, pardons 39 in historic clemency action
WASHINGTON President Joe Biden Thursday commuted the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were placed in home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic, and granted pardons for 39 individuals with convictions for nonviolent crimes. America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances, Bidensaid in a statement.He noted many of the 1,500 were […]
U.S. Senate GOP wants mass deportations to ‘start early’ next year, Graham says
WASHINGTON A top Republican on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee said Tuesday that when President-elect Donald Trump takes office and the GOP takes control of the Senate, lawmakers first priority will be to pass a border security package through a complex process known as budget reconciliation. Trump has promised his base his administration will […]
Despite doubts on legality, Trump pledges to sign order revoking birthright citizenship
WASHINGTON President-elect Donald Trump vowed to sign an executive order on his first day in office to end the constitutional right to U.S. citizenship for anyone born in the country, during an extensive Sunday interview on NBCs Meet the Press with Kristen Welker. But Trump also admitted there would be legal hurdles to carrying […]
U.S. House Republicans grill immigration agency chief over parole program
WASHINGTON Republican members of a U.S. House Judiciary Committee panel scrutinized the head of the Department of Homeland Security agency tasked with processing legal pathways to immigration during a contentious hearing Wednesday about the Biden administrations parole program that grants temporary protections for nationals from some countries. That program temporarily grants work permits and […]
President Biden issues pardon to son Hunter on gun and tax charges
WASHINGTON President Joe Biden Sunday night announced he has pardoned his son Hunter, a reversal in his long-standing pledge that he would not exert his executive authority to clear his son of gun-related charges and tax crimes. I believe in the justice system, Biden said in a statement. But as I have wrestled with […]