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Senate

Apr 4, 2017

Senate heads for showdown on Gorsuch

WASHINGTON — Republican and Democratic senators exchanged bitter accusations Tuesday as they headed toward an explosive confrontation over President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee that could change the Senate, and the court, for generations. “It should be unsettling to everyone that our colleagues across the aisle have brought the Senate to this new low,” Majority [&helli[...]

Aug 6, 2015

Senate to exit Washington for summer break

The Senate bolted for the exits Wednesday as the chamber abandoned work on cybersecurity legislation and headed home for an almost five-week vacation, leaving the bulk of this year’s business for a tumultuous session this fall. Senate leaders reached a deal to expedite a debate next month on legislation to disapprove President Barack Obama’s nuclear […]

Aug 5, 2015

Republican leader proposes gun background check bill

WASHINGTON — Backed by the National Rifle Association, the Senate’s No. 2 Republican leader introduced legislation Wednesday that would reward states for sending more information about residents with serious mental problems to the federal background check system for firearms purchasers. The bill by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, would also bolster programs for treating mentally ill […]

Jun 17, 2015

Senate passes amendment to ban torture as US policy

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate passed a measure Tuesday aimed at ensuring that the United States never tortures detainees again. The Senate voted 78 to 21 to approve a defense bill amendment that bans torture. It was introduced by Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California. The amendment bolsters […]

May 14, 2015

Senate under pressure after House votes to end NSA program

WASHINGTON — After the House’s lopsided bipartisan vote to end the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of Americans’ phone records, the Senate is under considerable pressure to pass a similar measure. If it doesn’t, lawmakers risk letting the authority to collect the records expire June 1, along with other important counterterrorism provisions. The House bill, [&he[...]

Nov 10, 2014

Nominees face lame duck obstacles in Senate

WASHINGTON — So many nominees, so little time. President Barack Obama and his allies have a parade of people they’d like the Senate to confirm for judgeships, ambassadorial posts and other top jobs during the dwindling days that Democrats will run the chamber. But with Congress’ post-election lame duck session likely to last five weeks […]

Jul 31, 2014

Gillibrand takes on campus sexual assaults

Protecting college and university students from sexual assault is the goal of a new bipartisan bill introduced Wednesday in Washington, D.C. Among the group of senators announcing the proposed legislation was Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who has also fought for changes in the way the military handles sexual assault cases. She was joined by Anna, […]

Jun 19, 2014

Senators propose 12-cent gas tax increase

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two senators unveiled a bipartisan plan Wednesday to raise federal gasoline and diesel taxes for the first time in more than two decades, pitching the proposal as a solution to Congress’ struggle to pay for highway and transit programs. The plan offered by Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Bob Corker, R-Tenn., would […]

May 21, 2014

Senate backs judge who wrote drone memo

WASHINGTON — A former Justice Department official who helped craft the Obama administration’s legal rationale for using drones to kill suspected American terrorists abroad won preliminary Senate approval Wednesday to become a federal appeals court judge. The largely party-line 52-43 vote cleared the way for a final confirmation vote Thursday for David Barron, a Harvard […]

May 7, 2014

White House offers to show senators drone memo

WASHINGTON — Hoping to head off another confirmation battle, the White House said Tuesday that it will allow senators to review a secret paper justifying the drone strike on an American citizen written by one of President Barack Obama’s appellate court nominees. The White House is hoping the memo’s disclosure will lead to confirmation of […]

Apr 28, 2014

Minimum wage heads for likely Senate rejection

WASHINGTON (AP) — The push by President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats to raise the federal minimum wage seems ready to join the parade of issues that gets buried in Congress but — the party hopes — propels voters to the polls this November. Immigration. Renewing expired jobless benefits. Tighter curbs on guns. All of […]

Apr 10, 2014

GOP derails gender pay gap bill in Senate

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans derailed a Democratic bill Wednesday curbing paycheck discrimination against women, an effort that even in defeat Democrats hoped would pay political dividends in this fall’s congressional elections. Wednesday’s vote was 53-44 to halt GOP tactics aimed at derailing the legislation, but that fell seven short of the 60 votes Democrats […]

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