Latest in Campaign 2024
“Trump Trade” soars in aftermath of Tuesday’s elections
U.S. stock futures spiked after Donald Trump’s presidential win over Kamala Harris, with the Dow Jones gaining 3.4% and the Russell 2000 jumping over 5%. Investors appear optimistic about a pro-business environment under Trump and a Republican-controlled Senate, fueling gains in financial stocks.
A Q&A with Democratic West Virginia senate candidate Glenn Elliott
West Virginia Democrat Glenn Elliott is running for a U.S. Senate seat that his party has held since 1959. In a state where Democrats have rapidly lost power in recent years, forecasters expect Republicans to flip it in a landslide.
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Live updates on Election Day 2024
Medill News Service reporters provide live updates from polling places across Maryland and Washington on Election Day. These reports are published in conjunction with the Washington Post. 6:07 p.m. - Few voters feel strongly towards Alsobrooks By Ananya Chag...
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A Q&A with Democratic West Virginia senate candidate Glenn Elliott
West Virginia Democrat Glenn Elliott is running for a U.S. Senate seat that his party has held since 1959. In a state where Democrats have rapidly lost power in recent years, forecasters expect Republicans to flip it in a landslide.
read moreLive updates on Election Day 2024
Medill News Service reporters provide live updates from polling places across Maryland and Washington on Election Day.
These reports are published in conjunction with the Washington Post.
6:07 p.m. – Few voters feel strongly towards Alsobrooks
By Ananya Chag
Democratic voters in Montgomery County said they’ve struggled with voting against former Republican Governor Larry Hogan for the senate seat.
“God I really love that guy, I’d vote for him for President,” Roberta “Bobby” Hammer, 49, said, just after voting at Poolesville Elementary School. “But we can’t lose the house,” Hammer said, referring to the Democratic party’s potential to win majority control of the Senate.
Hammer said that the “majority of the reason” she voted was for her three kids, two of them grown. While the family is Christian, she said that “female rights” were important when it came to abortion, and ultimately “opportunities” that her children “can and should have in life should never be anyone else’s decision.
”Hammer added that after talking with some other people about “struggling” with her vote, she was “convinced” to vote against Hogan, but “sad.
”Hammer also told the Post that even though she voted for Democrat Angela Alsobrooks, she didn’t know whether the senate candidate would best represent her interests.“It’s a gamble,” she said.
5:49 p.m. – Blue-collar workers vote for Trump and Hogan
By Sonya Dymova and Erica Schmitt
Plastered with Trump and Hogan signs, Dundalk, Md., stands out as a Republican stronghold in Baltimore County, which has been trending more Democratic in recent years.
At Logan Elementary School, most voters appeared to overwhelmingly vote for former President Donald Trump and former Governor Larry Hogan, citing concerns about immigration and economic policies impacting local blue-collar workers.
“My job is starting to get put on the wayside for cheaper labor,” said Justin Weber, a 36-year-old Dundalk resident who has worked in construction for 15 years. “To be honest, it’s costing me to try and find another job.”
Other voters echoed their support for Trump and Hogan, citing the impact of hyperinflation over the past four years on the blue-collar businesses where they work.
“I voted for Trump because my dollar went a lot further when he was in power and I had no problems with what he was doing,” said Brennan Howell, a 40-year-old industrial mechanic who voted Republican for both major races.
5:03 p.m. – FREDERICK COUNTY VOTERS ARRIVING TO THE POLLS INFORMED
By Caroline Killilea
As of 4:00 p.m., 1,365 Frederick County residents have voted at Orchard Grove Elementary School, according to the polling location’s chief judges.
This morning, 55 voters lined up early to cast their ballots, and the chief judges expect a post-work rush this evening.
Geoffrey Grammer, who ran against April McClain Delaney in the Democratic primary for Maryland’s 6th Congressional District, is outside Orchard Grove campaigning for Delaney. After dropping out of the race, Grammer endorsed Delaney and expressed confidence in her candidacy. “What I can tell you is she’s running for moral reasons because she wants to make the sixth district better,” he said.
Graham also noted that voters seem well-informed on the issues. “A lot of people are coming in informed. They know who they want to vote for, and they’ve done their homework. And that’s been really good to see. So it’s a very engaged electorate this election.”
4:31 p.m. – Marylanders Back Trump, Hogan Despite Divergent Views on Reproductive Rights
By Sonya Dymova and Erica Schmitt
Deborah Carr, 43, persuaded her partner, Joseph Giffin, 44, to vote in the election out of a sense of civic duty, though he claims it was Elon Musk who ultimately influenced him.
The warehouse workers cast their ballots for former President Trump and former Governor Larry Hogan at Logan Elementary School in Dundalk, Md., each motivated by different reasons.
“Immigration is big to me: When we have kids and, and elderly that are going hungry, it really can’t bring too much more of a drain on the economy,” Carr said. “It needs to be done in a more checks and balances environment.”
“I just like my freedom, so I’ll never vote Democrat,” Giffin added.
Despite voting for Republican candidates on the ballot, the couple is in favor of Question 1, a constitutional amendment that seeks to codify reproductive freedom and access to abortion in the state, as well as protect patients and providers from criminal charges stemming from abortion bans in other states.
“My significant other, he believes that he shouldn’t have any right to tell our daughter or any other woman what they should or shouldn’t do, and that’s exactly where I fall,” Carr said as Giffin nodded.
Giffin voted “No” by mistake.“Is that what it was?” he asked, appearing surprised. “It’s very complicated. Just say yes or no.”
Carr agreed and said it was too complicated for some constituents to understand.
”We don’t have a higher education — we have GEDs and we have high school graduates,” she said. “And some of the ways that those things are worded are very, very confusing.”
4:30 p.m. – PRINCE GEORGE COUNTY VOTERS CLASH ON DEMOCRATS’ COMMITMENT TO CLASS ISSUES
By Marisa Guerra Echeverria
When Rebecca Lasky, 42, voted at the Huntington Community Center mid-afternoon, she refused to vote for a Senate candidate.
Lasky, a dog groomer living in Bowie, Md., said her decision stemmed from her distrust in Angela Alsobrooks.
While she knew she did not want to vote for former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, she said she was “pissed off” that Alsobrooks improperly claimed tax exemptions for her properties while she had a comfortable salary compared to her constituents.
“We’re all struggling out here just trying to put groceries and gas in our car and we can barely get tax breaks when we’re poor, middle class,” Lasky said.
At the same time, another Bowie resident, William Rodriguez-Lott, 56, believes Democratic candidates up and down the ballot better represent middle and working-class interests.
Rodriguez-Lott, who takes turns as a nurse, truck driver and volunteer firefighter, said he believes Democrats have put actions behind their appeals to the working classes.
“I’m all for equal rights and giving middle and lower-class people a chance to show we could do better if given the opportunity,” Rodriguez-Lott said.
4:28 p.m. – PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY TRUMP-HOGAN VOTER BACKS PRO-CHOICE BALLOT MEASURE
By Hannah Webster
At Huntington Community Center, lifelong Prince George’s County resident Dean Brown, 44, cast his ballot for Republicans Donald Trump for President and former Governor Larry Hogan for Senator.
Brown cited economic concerns as his top priority, adding that his rent had reached $1865 due to inflation. He also said he was concerned about restrictions on gun ownership since people had broken into his house in the past.
Still, Brown voted yes on Question 1, which supports the constitutional right to an abortion in Maryland. He said he respects people’s rights to make those decisions for themself since he and his partner considered an abortion when he was younger.
“I decided not to, but I don’t discourage anybody from it,” he said. “If that’s what you want to do, go for it.“
3:57 p.m. – Military family in Baltimore County, MD votes for Trump, criticizes Biden’s Afghanistan withdraw
By Audrey Pachuta
For Kevin Prem and Ashley Taylor, voting for former President Trump was about returning to a time they felt was better.
Prem, a combat veteran who served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bahrain, criticized policies under the Biden-Harris administration, especially those affecting military personnel and their families. He pointed to President Biden’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan, which resulted in the deaths of 13 American service members, as his primary motive to visit the polls.
“I’ll be damned if I don’t say something,” Prem said after casting his vote at Logan Elementary School in Dundalk.
Taylor, a 37-year-old store manager and Prem’s wife, agreed. She said she felt that Trump prioritized American citizens over foreign interests in a way his opponents did not.“
Life was better, life was peaceful, life was easier when Trump was in office,” Taylor said.
She cited rising costs as a major concern and echoed her husband’s view that re-electing Trump was the answer to their financial worries.
“When you’re on a plane and it’s going down, you have to put your own mask on first, and that’s what we have to do here in America,” Taylor said.
3:15 p.m. – Harris voter votes to bring things ‘back to normal’
By Raj Ghanekar
The 2016 election between former President Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is front of mind for Cynthia Pendergraph, a Montgomery County resident.
The 55-year-old said that she “still [has] a lot of PTSD” from Trump’s win eight years ago, but after she cast her ballot for Kamala Harris at Poolesville Elementary School, she told the Washington Post she’s hopeful the vice president’s victory would allow the country to get “back to normal.”
Pendergraph said Trump’s rhetoric is too divisive, while Harris’s messaging speaks more to the unity she wants and gives her hope for deeper bipartisan cooperation.
“I feel like she’ll bring some Republicans into her actual cabinet, which will help us see the other side, and so we can actually have a conversation again,” Pendergraph said.
Pendergraph said she voted for Democrats down the ticket.
Reproductive rights was a big motivation for her choice in the Senate race, picking Prince George’s County executive Angela Alsobrooks over former Republican governor of Maryland Larry Hogan.
“I don’t really trust that the Republicans will keep their word, because they haven’t kept their word. Why should they start now?” Pendergraph said.
2:44 p.m. – Early Voters in Catonsville Mobilize in Different Ways on Election Day
By Erica Schmitt
Some early voters in Catonsville, Maryland are mobilizing in other ways on Election Day.
Mark Weaver, the president of the Southwest Baltimore county Democratic club, said he cast his ballot earlier in the week to focus on putting up posters in favor of Democratic candidate Angela Alsobrooks for senate and Question 1, which asks if the state should protect abortion rights in the constitution, across local polling stations like Catonsville High School.
“My task today is to make sure that all our local polling sites have signs. I’ve been [to] around 10 of them,” Weaver said.
Weaver also added that several members of the Democratic club traveled to Pennsylvania in the morning to help mobilize Democratic voters.
Meanwhile, Nancy Curry, a 75-year-old retiree, cast her ballot last week and spent the day canvassing in support of former President Donald Trump at Hillcrest Elementary School in Catonsville.
“I just feel like I needed to do my part today,” Curry said. “I think it’s really good versus evil, with the extreme policies on the other side, I’m concerned for my children and my grandchildren.”
Polling locations are expected to stay open the remainder of today, with a majority open until 7 p.m. in Catonsville.
2:30 p.m. – Voters ‘sad’ to go against Hogan
By Ananya Chag
Democratic voters in Montgomery County said they’ve struggled with voting against former Republican Governor Larry Hogan for the senate seat.
“God I really love that guy, I’d vote for him for President,” Roberta “Bobby” Hammer, 49, said, just after voting at Poolesville Elementary School. “But we can’t lose the house,” Hammer said, referring to the Democratic party’s potential to win majority control of the Senate.
Hammer said that the “majority of the reason” she voted was for her three kids, two of them grown. While the family is Christian, she said that “female rights” were important when it came to abortion, and ultimately “opportunities” that her children “can and should have in life should never be anyone else’s decision.”
Hammer added that after talking with some other people about “struggling” with her vote, she was “convinced” to vote against Hogan, but “sad.”
Hammer also told the Post that even though she voted for Democrat Angela Alsobrooks, she didn’t know whether the senate candidate would best represent her interests.“It’s a gamble,” she said.
2:07 p.m. – Marylander votes libertarian in Senate race over COVID lockdown resentment
By Sonya Dymova
John Dingle, a 56-year-old small business owner, voted for Mike Scott, the Senate Libertarian candidate, despite admitting he had no idea who the candidate was.
Walking out of Hillcrest Elementary in Catonsville, Md., he said what mattered most to him was voting against former governor and Republican nominee Larry Hogan.
“I voted against everybody that took my rights away during COVID,” Dingle said. “Governor Hogan did not allow us to assemble. He kept casinos, liquor stores open to close churches.”
Regarding the presidential race, Dingle was more deliberate in his choice. “I voted for Trump because he ran the government great for three and a half years until COVID came,” Dingle said. “I believe he gave too much power to Fauci.”
1:37 p.m. – Voters in Baltimore County vote Hogan based on experience, Alsobrooks for retaining blue majority
By Sonya Dymova, Audrey Pachuta and Erica Schmitt
At Hillcrest Elementary in Catonsville, Maryland voters in Baltimore County expressed support for Republican Larry Hogan for Senate, citing his previous experience as governor. Meanwhile, several Angela Alsobrooks supporters said they were voting for the Democrat to maintain the party’s control of the Senate.
“I went with the [former] governor,” Dan Noble, a 58-year-old federal government employee said. “For eight years, I feel like he did a really good job, and I know more about him than I do Alsobrooks.”
Some voters were willing to vote across party lines to extend their support for Hogan. Maria Czajkowski, a 66-year-old retiree voted for Vice President Harris in the presidential election but chose the Republican nominee for Senate.
“I know the argument for not voting for him, but I think he’s his own person and I respect what he’s done in the past,” she said.
For other voters, the choice came down to maintaining a Democratic majority in the Senate rather than Alsobrooks’ individual policies.
“Usually I vote for someone I feel strongly about, but in this case, I just feel strong about the fact that we can’t lose the Senate,” Regina Barkdull, a 60-year-old architect and registered Democrat said.
1:08 p.m. – Republican voters in Frederick County cast ballots in favor of enshrining abortion rights
By Eli Kronenberg and Caroline Killilea
Bruce Ricci, donning his MAGA hat to the polls, voted for Donald Trump. “I just think he’s a great guy,” Ricci said, adding he keeps the country “in hold.”
At the same time, Ricci strongly believes in a woman’s right to have an abortion and voted to enshrine abortion rights in Maryland’s constitution. “It’s just a very simple thing. You know, it shouldn’t be something that the government has a right to decide.”
Richard Howe, a 65-year-old CEO, said he voted straight-ticket Republican for the abortion amendment. “A woman’s fundamental right to choose is something I believe in,” Howe said.
Howe said he had no concerns that Trump, Hogan or Parrott would undermine abortion rights. “None of the candidates on the ticket have pledged to do anything,” he said. “It’s already been adjudicated by the Supreme Court. The worst [Trump] could do is add another Supreme Court justice.”
1:00 p.m. – Voters swap Harris votes in swing states for third-party votes in blue states
By Emma Richman
Some voters across the country are participating in the Swap Your Vote campaign to protest the Biden administration’s policy on Israel’s war on Gaza while also preventing a second Trump presidency.
Sumner Crenshaw, a 39-year-old Frederick, MD resident, said she swapped her vote for president with a swing state voter in Pennsylvania. Crenshaw voted third party for Socialist candidate Claudia de la Cruz, while her counterpart in Philadelphia voted for Vice President Kamala Harris.
“That way you get the harm reduction in that you are voting for the candidate most likely to do good, which is Harris-Walz,” Crenshaw said. “But you’re also still getting to get your voice heard that we are very frustrated with the current administration.”
A registered Democrat, Crenshaw said she voted blue for the other races on the ballot.
In addition to sending the Democratic Party a message that they should listen to progressive voters, Crenshaw said she hoped the effort would help get third-party candidates a larger share of the vote to secure more public funding in the future.
So far nearly 12,000 voters have swapped their vote, according to The Swap Your Vote campaign.
12:20 p.m. – Trump pushes a potential Republican away from party
By Emma Richman
There’s a steady stream of voters coming in and out of Lincoln Elementary School in Frederick, MD.
Peter Parker, a 74-year-old Navy veteran and retired restaurant worker said he thought about switching to the Republican Party in 2016, but Trump stopped him.
Parker said he is totally against former President Trump and he voted for Vice President Kamala Harris. He cited his religion and the Trump family’s racism as the main reason why.
“I’m a Christian and that’s not the way God wants things,” Parker told The Post. “Anyone that’s got a problem with race is against God.”
12:15 p.m. – Childcare costs from of mind for Germantown voter
By Jonas Kalderon Blum
Three generations of one family came to the polls at Germantown Elementary with one word in mind: affordability.
Grandmother Yulon Wimbush, 54, with her 11-month-old grandson in hand said, “childcare is too expensive. The Maryland voucher is no where near enough.”
Her daughter-in-law, Skylyn Wright, 26, added, “his daycare is more than my rent.”
Both said they voted for Kamala Harris, Angela Alsobrooks, and April McClain-Delaney.
She also said the right to abortion is paramount for her. “The future is counting on us…we need to protect the same rights my mom had,” Wright said.
Wimbush agreed and said, “Our rights are on the line. I certainly don’t want anything stripped away from me.”
She said she hopes men will also choose to support women’s freedom. “A lot of men don’t like women to overpower them, but that’s not it. It’s not overpower, it’s a balance. where I fall short you pick me up, where you fall short I pick you up.”
11:48 a.m. – HARRIS-HOGAN VOTERS ON WOMENS HEALTH
By Marisa Guerra Echeverria and Hannah Webster
At Arrowhead Elementary School in Upper Marlboro, Md., some split-ticket voters cited women’s health care as a top issue.
First-time voter Chanae Fowler Hewitt, 45, said she voted for Vice President Kamala Harris and former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan due to her past experiences with women’s health.
The mother of three referenced her own pregnancy complications and said her son was born through IVF and surrogacy.
“He said to me this morning that if certain laws were passed 17 years ago, he wouldn’t be here. So that really drove me to come out today to make sure I voted for that,” Fowler Hewitt said.
Despite statewide concerns of Hogan caucusing with Republicans on abortion restriction, Fowler Hewitt said she could not vote for Alsobrooks because she was unhappy with how Alsobrooks’ office handled her daughter’s sexual assault in 2019.
“After that, Hogan got my vote,” Fowler Hewitt said.
Showing up to vote in a pink blazer and a pin from Delta Sigma Theta — a historically African American sorority — Mia Jordan also split her ticket to vote for Harris and Hogan.
Jordan, who is in her forties, said reproductive freedom was a top issue, with both herself and her ten-year-old daughter in mind. While she said that the Republican Party does not consult the right experts regarding women’s health, she trusted Hogan because of his work as Governor.
“We need a very focused and upright individual to be represented in that party,” Jordan said. “I don’t think that he’s a party line guy.”
11:40 a.m. – FREDERICK COUNTY VOTERS ON DELANEY V. PARROTT RACE
By Caroline Killilea
Democratic voters in Frederick County, Maryland say they don’t trust Republican Neil Parrott as the Sixth Congressional District’s Representative in the House.
“I think he’s representing certain groups and not protecting everybody,” said Tav Laskauskas, 40.
“That’s a problem for me.”Jennifer Gamertsfelder, 37, says she cast her ballot for Delaney both to vote with her party and because she felt strongly that Parrott shouldn’t have the House seat. “I did an anti-vote. I was anti-Parrott, mostly, to be honest.”
11:38 a.m. – Montgomery County Voter Splits with Family at the Polls
By Jonas Kalderon Blum
28-year-old Kat Schaufele brought her young daughter with her to Roberto W. Clemente Middle School to vote for all the Democrats on her Montgomery County ballot, even though she felt torn on the Senate race.“I struggled with the Senate because I definitely want to keep the Senate blue, but I liked Larry Hogan as governor,” Schaufele said.
Originally from Anne Arundel county, Schaufele said her vote definitely opposed many people in her extended family. “They’re all red all the way.”While she’s registered as a Democrat, she said she sees herself as down the middle, “red and blue just like Maryland.” She is hopeful “the world is a little less chaotic before [her daughter] turns 18.”
11:35 a.m. – Elderly voters on Trump
By Ananya Chag
Elderly voters in Montgomery County are expressing sentiments about wanting to “keep Trump out of office.”
Hand in hand with her husband, Pamela Loomis, 67, told the Post after voting at Roberte Clemente Middle School that she didn’t “think Trump was mentally competent.” She said that she and her husband both proudly voted for Harris.
“It’d be a disaster to get Trump back in,” Phyllis Palmer, 77, said, adding that she was a “Democrat all the way.” She said she’s staying positive and hopes to get the “right people in there.” She added that she didn’t plan on watching the polls and she liked to just “hear what happens.”
11:33 a.m. – New mom prefers Harris, cites the economy as reason why
By Raj Ghanekar
New mom Deborah Aning went to vote at Roberto W. Clemente Middle School in Montgomery County around lunchtime, giving the 30-year-old a chance to beat the afternoon rush.
Aning, who voted for Kamala Harris, says the economy has put pressure on her as a prospective homeowner and with a young son at home. She worries whether she’ll be able to consistently afford baby formula or buy a home someday. But Harris’s policies give her hope.
“I think what she’s bringing will help me as a new mom and as a new parent, and I think that it’ll give Americans a chance to feel that they can also achieve their financial goals and dreams,” Aning said.
But her young family wasn’t the only thing on her mind. The decision was also based on what’s best for her elderly parents.
“When you see a retiree, they have contributed their years into working in American society,” Aning said. “They deserve to have some sort of income so they can survive.”
10:50 a.m. – Voting blue in Upper Marlboro
By Coby Potischman
Kayleen Irizarry, 53, brought her grandson Damian to the polls with her “to hold my hand as we voted for the first Madam President” and said that she is voting straight-ticket Democratic.
She had considered voting for former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, but felt that the stakes of Senate control were too high.
Irizarry, who was born in Puerto Rico and lived there until the age of five, donned a red “Puerto Rico” hat and said that she is “making a statement” about the controversial “garbage” remarks made about the territory at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally.
In a follow-up text message, she said “we Puerto Ricans, no matter the percentage of PR blood, whether born in PR or anywhere, hold a special bond to the island and the PR flag. It’s sacred. When poked, we come together and take action.”
10:50 a.m. – Voters still torn on Maryland Senate
By Eli Kronenberg
In Maryland’s hotly contested Senate race between Democratic Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks and Republican former Governor Larry Hogan, some voters are still undecided, even moments before entering their polling place.
Malcom Albright, a 33-year-old grocery store night crew worker voting at Lincoln Elementary School in Frederick County, told The Post he still hadn’t made up his mind in the Senate race and would make a “snap decision” in the ballot box. “I really kinda like Hogan and what he was doing beforehand — the way he’s more bipartisan and tries to make common ground between both parties,” Albright said.
But ultimately, Albright said he would probably vote for Alsobrooks “to give Democrats more seat power.” Albright is voting for Kamala Harris, who he said is “better aligned toward where we should be going as a society.”
10:04. a.m. – Upper Marlboro Judge on Harris-Stein ballot errors
By Marisa Guerra Echeverria, Coby Potischman and Hannah Webster
Darlene Rowe, a Chief Judge at Arrowhead Elementary School in Upper Marlboro, Md. said a woman complained that her vote was switched from Kamala Harris to Jill Stein between 8 and 8:15 a.m. this morning.
Since then, 12 others have complained of the same issue, Rowe said. Of those 13, two ballots were spoiled and the rest caught the mistake when reviewing their selection before submitting their ballot.
8:36 a.m. – Ward 8 voters say they will still support Trayon White despite indictment
By Heather Zhu and Sarah Lin
Rodney Brown, 49, said that he will continue to support Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White amid his indictment on federal bribery changes because of White’s support of a law to allow a “second chance” for people who are incarcerated from crimes they committed as children.
“I know he’s innocent until proven guilty. But Trayon does a lot for the community,” Brown said at Ferebee-Hope Recreation Center, a polling site in southeast DC.
Brown, who is formerly incarcerated, said that he is “in the process of seeking justice” for a murder charge which he said he was wrongfully convicted for. Brown praised White for his support of a DC law which “gives people a second chance” if they were incarcerated when they were young, have served more than a certain period of time in prison and maintained a good record while incarcerated.
DC Council passed the Second Look Amendment Act in 2021, an expansion of the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act which allows a person who committed a crime before the age of 25 and who has served at least 15 years in prison to petition to have their sentence reviewed.
“This law makes us eligible for a second chance,” Brown said.
Kayla Dunbar, 26, said she will also continue to vote for White based off his previous community work as a Councilmember.
“We love him. I voted for him. And you know why? Because every other politician in the world has gone through something,” she said at Ferebee-Hope Recreation Center. “Everybody’s going to do something. As long as you’re doing your job in the community, I have nothing.”
7:51 a.m. – Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White claims charges don’t affect his re-election run
By Heather Zhu and Sarah Lin
Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White said his federal bribery indictment charges will not affect his capacity to serve as an elected official, declining to comment further.
White stood outside Ferebee-Hope Recreation Center in Southeast DC, wearing a red beanie and a navy blue suit. He talked to and shook hands with constituents and voters who arrived at the voting site. He also took a selfie with an election worker, who was promptly asked to leave afterward.“I’m still here working, doing God’s work. I continue to do it as long as God gives me the ability to do it. Just want to tell people I’m still out here, still working,” White said.
He said he voted for himself, but declined to comment on his vote for the presidential election. He also said he did not support Initiative 83, calling it “too complicated.”
Could voter ID laws backfire on Republicans?
In the four years since former President Donald Trump’s unsuccessful attempt to overturn the 2020 election through false claims of voter fraud, Republicans across the country have intensified efforts to enact new restrictions on voting they argue will strengthen election security.
Georgia’s Election Integrity Act of 2021 drew special attention for its provisions that some viewed as suppressive, including sections substantially narrowing the window for voters to request a mail-in ballot and requiring additional identification for absentee voters. President Joe Biden led a chorus of Democratic officials sounding the alarm on the Georgia law, calling it “Jim Crow in the 21st century.”
North Carolina and Wisconsin, two other swing states, also have strict voter ID laws on the books from Republican-backed legislative initiatives. While Wisconsin’s dates back to 2011, North Carolina only began implementing its legislation in 2023, when the state Supreme Court overturned its own decision that had struck down the 2018 measure for racial discrimination.
According to Marjorie Hershey, a professor emeritus of political science at Indiana University, Republicans theorized that “less educated people and low-income people are more likely to vote Democratic, and because they are the least likely to vote overall, the tougher you make voting the more likely you are to exclude them from the final results.”
Yet, in the build-up to the 2024 presidential election, polling has consistently shown Trump leading among infrequent voters and those without a college degree.
A recent NBC News poll found that Vice President Kamala Harris has a 14-point advantage over Trump among white college graduates, while Trump led by 32 points among white voters without a college degree — margins that mirror Biden’s estimated splits against Trump in 2020.
New York Times/Siena College polling from before Biden dropped out of the race showed Trump leading by 10 points among voters who had never previously voted in a primary or midterm, while Biden had a 4-point edge with all other voters.
Given that low-propensity and non-college-educated voters have shifted toward the Republican Party, some have suggested that voter ID laws may now benefit Democrats. Journalist Matthew Yglesias recently made that case in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “Liberals have been slow to wake up to the fact that the low-propensity voters are now Republicans and there’s no reason to take an unpopular stand against voter ID laws,” Yglesias wrote.
Could voter ID laws in fact shut out votes from an increasingly important demographic within Trump’s base?
“Republicans have spent so long trying to make it difficult for people to vote, and yet now it’s almost turned around to the point where irregular voters lean more Republican,” Lakshya Jain, co-founder of the election forecasting website Split Ticket, said. “It’s definitely one of the stranger things I’ve seen.”
However, Jain said it was hard to conclude what the practical impact of the laws would be. “It really depends on how targeted these [laws] are in terms of effects by race,” Jain said. “If these disproportionately impact Black people, you’re going to get a pro-Republican effect.”
The question of whether voter ID laws impact overall voter turnout has been studied by political scientists for years, but little conclusive evidence has emerged.
“It’s been a very controversial topic in political science,” Marc Meredith, a professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania and senior analyst on the NBC News Decision Desk, said. “While there may be important effects of voter ID laws on certain individuals’ ability to vote, there is not much evidence that the typical voter ID law has much of an effect on aggregate turnout.”
Meredith said examples of voters who might struggle to vote under new restrictions include students in states where student IDs are not considered valid voter IDs (such as Arizona, Ohio and Texas) and individuals who recently moved to a state but haven’t yet obtained a driver’s license. “Many of these variables are not that clearly tied to party in the first place,” he said.
Meanwhile, Hershey mentioned the existence of studies that found turnout increasing among groups who perceived they were being suppressed because, she said, “those folks get pissed off.”
To the extent that voter ID laws do suppress the vote, Hershey said, pollsters are not cleanly capturing the political sentiments of those who would be most affected because the “non-college” category still encompasses a wide range of educational experiences and income levels.
“Those folks at the very bottom of the educational scale and the income scale tend to still vote Democratic,” Hershey said. “It’s just they don’t vote very much.”
Both parties remain desperate to turn out voters who lean in their direction ideologically but rarely engage in politics. While the extra hurdles introduced by recent election laws may present a risk for Republicans, their ultimate impact remains unclear.
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Local and national educators and advocates testified before the DC Council Committee of the Whole in support of a new bill that would create a task force to address the need for improved mathematics education in DCPS and DC public charter schools.
read moreRepublican senators slam delays for student financial aid forms
WASHINGTON – Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) announced Thursday that he and other senators are directing the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, to examine the delays surrounding the updates to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form.
The Education Department said earlier this week that colleges and universities will now receive the key information during the first half of March instead of late January.
This new timeline further delays when students will receive their financial aid packages, and ultimately see whether they can afford college
Most college acceptance decisions come out in March or April, but the delay means that colleges won’t be able to send out aid packages until weeks afterward. Most colleges require students to accept offers by May 1, so it will be a tight turnaround for many high school seniors to see if their aid packages match up with their dream college.
The Department of Education had to fix a problem with the way it calculates how much a family can contribute to tuition. The Student Aid Index calculation replaced the Expected Family Contribution formula; however, the department initially did not correctly account for inflation.
The updated tables “will allow students to benefit from an additional $1.8 billion in aid and ensure that all students can access the maximum financial aid they are eligible for,” the Education Department said in a press release.
Cassidy, ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, placed blame on the Biden administration, saying at a news conference on Thursday that it had “upside down priorities.”
The rollout of the new form was far bumpier than intended by the Department of Education.
It soft launched on Dec. 30 but was not fully available for students to fill out until Jan. 8. Last school year, the form was available starting Oct. 1.
Starting with the 2024-2025 award year, a normally tedious process was supposed to be simplified. The most noteworthy differences included a faster application process and an increase in eligibility for federal Pell Grants.
“We are moving the federal financial aid application into the 21st century,” said Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, “putting affordable higher education within the reach of 610,000 students from families with low incomes.”
The latest changes to the form are a part of the FAFSA Simplification Act passed by Congress in 2020, so the Biden administration had roughly three years to implement the new system.
“If ever there was a time for the department to signal to the American people, listen, we squandered our dollars. But now we’re going to tighten our belts. And we’re going to do it right and come up with a solution to this problem that we created,” Cassidy said.
“Instead, it is kind of like, ‘Oh, I’m sorry, pitiful us.’”
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.Va) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) joined Cassidy in underscoring their disappointment in the rollout.
“What we need is transparency for Iowa families, and that’s why I’m demanding an investigation,” Ernst said. “No more delay Department of Education. We need to get this straightened out right now.”
While there have been unexpected delays in the process, the Department of Education is committed to continuing to “provide regular progress updates to schools and stakeholders.”
More than 3.1 million FAFSA forms have been successfully submitted since the application launched.
Ahead of DEI ban, UTD grapples with student expression, transparency
For 15 years, three large boulders located on the University of Texas at Dallas campus were used to publicize events, display art and present political messages.
After Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack of Israel, which killed about 1,200 people, and Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza, which has killed more than 17,000 Palestinians, the boulders – dubbed the Spirit Rocks – became a campus hot spot in the pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian student messaging campaign. Sometimes, these designs changed in a matter of minutes.
At 2:16 a.m. on Oct. 12, the main boulder was painted with the Palestinian flag with the message, “Free Palestine.” Nine minutes later, the rock was painted over with the Israeli flag. By 2 p.m. on Oct. 12, it was split in half: the left with a pro-Israel message and the right with a pro-Palestinian message.
Student Government President Srivani Edupuganti said leading up to Thanksgiving break, political discourse around Israel and Gaza had died down, and the Spirit Rocks weren’t being painted over as frequently.
On Nov. 20, students planned to paint the Spirit Rocks for the Transgender Day of Remembrance. When they showed up, the three boulders were missing. In their place were three freshly planted trees.
“The fact that they were removed so sneakily left students under the impression that they were removed because of the Israeli and Palestinian discourse,” Edupuganti said.
In an email to students, staff and faculty, the Division of Student Affairs said the Spirit Rocks were removed because they “were not intended to be a display for extended political discourse.” The Division of Student Affairs did not respond to a request for a comment.
However, since their beginning in 2008, the Spirit Rocks have continually displayed political messages. As early as 2009, students painted the rocks to support the Iranian Green Movement. In 2011, students used the rocks to protest the arrest of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, and in 2015, students painted a design in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
“It seems weird that now (the Middle East conflict), for some reason, was the breaking point, even though students have been civil and peaceful,” said Junior Anika Sultana.
UTD is one of many national universities grappling with student expression amidst the conflict in Gaza.
Jade Steinberg, soon to be UTD Hillel President, said UTD has also failed to take action after antisemitic events on campus. Steinberg said someone vandalized a student’s door, which had a mezuzah, a traditional Jewish doorpost decoration. Steinberg also said a Jewish student was called a slur on the way to class, and when UTD Hillel painted the Spirit Rocks, students shouted “baby killers.”
“We’ve tried to explain to (the administration) how we don’t necessarily feel safe or heard on campus,” Steinberg said. “And so far, unfortunately, nothing has really come of that besides the removal of the Spirit Rocks.”
Steinberg said the removal “lit a new fire” under the tension at UTD. Starting on Nov. 27, the Progressive Student Coalition organized a week of protests over the Spirit Rocks’ removal. Students gathered at the former site of the rocks, painted pebbles with the Palestinian and pride flag and drew pro-Palestinian art on the sidewalk by the student center.
Sultana said students are fearful UTD may take away other platforms for student expression. Fatimah Azeem, Editor-in-Chief of The Mercury, UTD’s independent student newspaper, said although the Spirit Rocks were not the only way to exercise free speech, they were the most popular and barrier-free.
“It’s not like anything else on campus,” Azeem said. “It’s not like putting up a flier, which can be taken down or putting up a bulletin board, which you have to get pre-approval for. (The Spirit Rocks) don’t have all these layers of bureaucracy.”
Azeem said the administration has been “evasive” when students and Mercury reporters approach with questions regarding the Spirit Rocks’ removal.
She said on Nov. 29, Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Gene Fitch hosted an event with pizza to help students relax ahead of finals week. Students asked Fitch about the decision to remove the Spirit Rocks, Azeem said.
“He literally answered with, ‘I’m standing here serving pizza, thank you,’” Azeem said.
Sultana, who is also a graphic designer and contributor for The Mercury, said UTD students have felt left in the dark when it comes to campus speech.
“At this point, it’s really frustrating because whenever we go to admin for answers, they just run,” Sultana said. “And it’s not like the student body isn’t willing to compromise with them either.”
During Homecoming Weekend, Sultana said the administration requested students stop changing the Spirit Rocks’ design during the weekend. Sultana said students respected the administration’s wishes. The administration should work with students when making decisions that will impact campus life, Sultana said.
Edupuganti said the administration did not consult Student Government when deciding to remove the Spirit Rocks, even though they were a “Student Government-supported installation.”
“(The Spirit Rocks’ removal) is something that dealt a blow to that trust in the relationship,” Edupuganti said.
Student Government Senator Avinash Chivakula said the administration’s choice to remove the Spirit Rocks is indicative of a larger problem on campus. He said the removal has further fractured the trust students have in the administration’s ability to facilitate productive conversations around nuanced political issues.
“It’s very much a lack of administrative foresight,” Chivakula said. “And we’re going to see more of that, especially with SB 17 and a further lack of administrative cohesion.”
SB 17 comes amidst a national conservative opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in higher education. The law prohibits Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices at public colleges and universities.
The law also prevents institutions from asking for DEI statements; giving preferential treatment in the hiring process based on race, sex or ethnicity; and requiring participation in DEI training.
SB 17 does not affect student organizations and academic course instruction.
Chivakula, however, said the burden to foster open conversations around DEI and politicized topics will fall unfairly on students. These issues are intimate and emotional, Chivakula said, but that doesn’t mean the university’s response should be suppression.
“A campus’s job is to facilitate opportunities for students to let out those emotions because I don’t think anger is inherently a bad thing,” Chivakula said.
Steinberg said the elimination of UTD’s DEI office will make students feel less confident in the administration’s ability to support minority students. It is more difficult for Hillel UTD to feel it has “allies” within the administration, Steinberg said, especially after the antisemitic incidents.
Since SB 17’s passing, Student Government has asked the UTD administration for greater transparency and clarity around its policies, Edupuganti said. In May, the Student Government passed a resolution asking for the administration to use an “open decision-making process” and use open forums to hear students’ input.
In November, the UTD Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion attended a Student Government meeting and presented on what will happen to different programs once SB 17 takes effect in 2024.
In a Nov. 29 email, Benson told students, faculty and staff the Office of Campus Resources and Support will replace the Office of DEI. The new office will “enhance student community-building and support employees and employee resource groups.” In the email, Benson said details were still being ironed out.
Azeem said since that email, the administration has been receptive to questions about DEI. But due to the uncertainty around SB 17, they may not be able to provide answers, she said.
Azeem said one step the administration can take to address campus unrest is reinstating the Spirit Rocks. Edupuganti said Student Government has passed a resolution calling for the reinstatement, but it has not gone to the president’s office yet.
Chivakula said UTD should be transparent around its administrative decisions so that the school can work toward its goal, which should be to foster growth amongst its student body.
“There’s no better place to talk about these topics than a campus where people are actively trying to learn and be better,” Chivakula said.
Health & Science
What states will have abortion on the ballot this year?
Here’s a breakdown of the 10 states that have abortion referendums on the ballot on Tuesday, and what it means for access to reproductive care.
read morePoint by Point – Episode 3: Costs vs. Access – The Diverging Health Care Paths of Trump and Harris
In this third episode of Point by Point, we focus on health care by comparing former President Trump’s efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act with Vice President Kamala Harris’s commitment to expanding health care access. Tune in as we explore how their policies on health care costs, insurance coverage, and prescription drug prices could shape the future of the U.S. health care system.
Listen here:
Health care professionals call on Trump to release medical records
WASHINGTON – More than 200 doctors and nurses are calling on former President Donald Trump to release his medical records, citing concerns over his age and fitness for office as he campaigns for a potential second term that would make the 78-year-old the oldest president-elect in history.
So far, Trump has resisted their pressure.
Dr. Ezekiel Tayler, a critical-care physician from Pennsylvania, was among the 238 signatories of a letter from Doctors for Harris, an independent grassroots organization that is not affiliated with the Harris-Walz campaign. He said he signed the letter because he believes anyone running for America’s highest office has a responsibility to be upfront with voters.
“I think what Donald Trump has done is normalize a lack of transparency, saying: ‘I can do whatever I want, whenever I want to do it, and if you don’t like it, well, I am who I am’ and that’s not appropriate,” Tayler said.
The letter, which was dated Oct. 13, noted that without a disclosure of health data, doctors and voters are forced to draw conclusions from Trump’s behavior during public appearances. They said that in that regard, “Trump is falling concerningly short of any standard of fitness for office and displaying alarming characteristics of declining acuity.”
Trump’s history of health disclosure controversy
When Hillary Clinton’s campaign published her detailed medical report over a year before the 2016 election, Trump faced pressure to follow suit.
In a December 2015 tweet, he said he’d release a full medical report that would “show perfection.”
Ten days later, his personal doctor issued a four-paragraph letter that included no specific health statistics, but claimed that Trump “will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.” It was later revealed that Trump had dictated this letter and his doctor simply signed it.
In 2020, Trump tested positive for COVID-19 after Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court confirmation on September 26 but waited until October 2—three days after a presidential debate with Joe Biden—to announce it. This detail came to light a year later after Trump’s former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, published it in his 2021 book.
Health concerns grow ahead of the election
Now, in lieu of publishing an updated medical report, as Trump promised he would do in an August 2024 interview, his campaign issued a statement citing two July memos from former White House physician and current Texas congressman Dr. Ronny Jackson, who treated the former president after he was shot in an assassination attempt this summer, as proof that Trump is fit for office.
“I want to receive a solid health report, not from the doctor who examined him last time—who had his own issues—but from a respected physician, so I can comprehend what is happening with him,” said Pat Ford-Roegner, a nurse practitioner and member of Nurses for America, a group that started working with Doctors for Harris earlier this year.
Ford-Roegner said that she believed the “level of anger” Trump is displaying in his recent public appearances is the most alarming aspect of his behavior. The Doctors for Harris letter cited similar worries.
“As we age, we lose our sharpness and return to basic instincts. We are witnessing this with Trump, as he utilizes his rallies and appearances to ramble, meander, and crudely lash out at his numerous perceived grievances,” the doctors wrote. They pointed to his recent claim that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Ohio as a specific example.
In the week after the letter, Trump took the stage at a town hall in Pennsylvania, where he danced and swayed to his personal playlist for nearly 40 minutes after abruptly ending the Q&A portion of the event. Dr. Mark Lopatin, a retired rheumatologist who also signed the letter, highlighted this as another cause for concern.
“The public deserves to know what’s going on,” Lopatin said. “So I think anytime someone is not being transparent we should call that out.”
Latest in Environment
IMF: Carbon Emissions Exceed Global Warming Goals
The International Monetary Fund reported that carbon emissions exceed what would be necessary to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, the upper bound agreed upon in the Paris Agreement.
read moreFlorida’s immigrant communities sidelined in hurricane preparations and recovery efforts
WASHINGTON – In a span of two weeks, Florida endured two hurricanes, forcing immigrant communities to overcome storm preparations and recovery hurdles amidst language barriers, infrastructure challenges and a pervasive distrust of law enforcement.
Many of Florida’s foreign-born residents are farmworkers living in the rural heart of the state who found themselves directly in the path of Hurricane Milton — the second of two recent storms that prompted state officials to issue evacuation orders due to potentially life-threatening conditions.
According to a report by American Immigration Council, a Washington-based advocacy group, about 21.6 percent of Florida’s residents are foreign-born, and 9.9 percent of its U.S.-born residents live with at least one immigrant parent.
Ahmed Gaya, director of the Climate Justice Collaborative at the National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA), said that immigrant communities can be vulnerable to natural disasters due to several factors. Many live in flood-prone areas with poor drainage mechanisms, and these regions often lack political influence, leading to underinvestment in climate resilience efforts.
The biggest challenge, according to Gaya, is the language barrier.
U.S. Census Data reveals that Floridians communicate in over 130 languages, with nearly 30 percent of households using a non-English language as their primary language at home. This, coupled with limited access to the internet and television, contributes to a lack of critical information and unsafe conditions for immigrants during extreme weather events.
“When it comes to preparation, very little of the information about disaster preparation is in a language accessible to limited English proficiency speakers. We find that a lack of language access, even in things like emergency warnings and evacuation orders, is a major concern for a lot of our residents,” Gaya said.
Statutory limitations and political skepticism make the process more complex for immigrants than citizens born in the US during relief efforts.
Many people are excluded from recovery benefits because of their immigration status, and some who qualify may hesitate to seek help due to misinformation or confusion about available resources. Gaya noted that there’s also a strong distrust of law enforcement and government institutions within these communities — especially among mixed-status families.
In terms of ongoing recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, mutual-aid efforts are key for immigrant communities.
“A lot of folks living in mobile homes or in industry-provided housing have lost their homes and don’t have recourse to any kind of state or federal recovery efforts that other residents in Florida have recourse to,” Gaya said.
Alongside concerns about relief from storm damage, recent allegations of improper FEMA fund distribution have put both government employees and immigrant communities at risk of threats.
Republican lawmakers, along with former President Donald Trump, have raised concerns about FEMA disaster funds being diverted to border-related issues — a claim denied by both FEMA and the Biden administration.
On Oct. 2, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas acknowledged a FEMA funding shortfall, which prompted Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee to take action. The group wrote to Mayorkas, questioning whether the $61.2 billion allocated for disaster relief in 2023-2024 had been properly prioritized. They plan to investigate if any of the funds were redirected to migrant services.
“The Committee is concerned the agency’s mission has been radically expanded under the Biden-Harris administration’s reckless open-borders agenda,” Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., said in a statement.
FEMA updated its Hurricane Rumor Response page, stating that no disaster funds have been wrongfully diverted.
David Becker, an election law expert and Executive Director of The Center for Election Innovation and Research, said that voters should anticipate disinformation as “the new normal.”
“It’s incredibly depressing that there are domestic actors, political leaders and candidates who are actively spreading disinformation that is fueling anger and delusion among many Americans, and we should expect that this will be exacerbated by the outcomes in certain states,” Becker said.
High court appears supportive of EPA despite climate advocates’ concerns over its anti-environmentalist track record
Washington — The U.S. Supreme Court appeared receptive to upholding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s right to place generic limits on ocean sewage discharge as San Francisco took its contentious battle to the high court Wednesday, despite resistance from some lawmakers and environmental advocates fearing the high court would undermine protections of the Clean Water Act.
The question presented by the city focused on whether the Clean Water Act allows the EPA to impose rules that subject permit holders to enforcement for exceeding water quality standards “without identifying specific limits to which their discharges must conform.”
Environmentalists feared the Supreme Court would go beyond the question and use the case to undermine the EPA’s authority as a whole after several high court rulings chipped away at environmental protections.
In June, the Supreme Court’s ideologically divided 6-3 ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo struck down the 40-year-old Chevron doctrine which provided deference to federal agencies’ interpretation of ambiguous federal law and regulations. The nation saw several other rulings undermining environmental protections in recent years, including the high court’s use of its emergency—or “shadow”—docket to halt the EPA’s curbing of smog-forming air pollution that crosses state lines in Ohio v. EPA. In 2023, the Supreme Court stripped federal protections for over half the nation’s wetlands in the Sackett v. EPA case.
Oral argument breakdown
According to San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, the case started about a decade ago when the EPA included generic prohibitions against violating water quality standards in discharge permits.
“They essentially say we can’t contribute to excess pollution without defining what is excess or which pollutants need to be controlled,” Chiu, among the petitioners, said in an interview.
But the justices appeared to agree that the Clean Water Act does not prohibit the agency from using generic language.
“There’s got to be something in this statute that tells you that the agency can’t decide to go the less prescriptive, more flexible ‘you decide how to meet it; this is the goal’ route,” Justice Elena Kagan said when questioning Tara Steeley, San Francisco’s deputy city attorney. “And I don’t see anything in this statute that does that.”
Still, Justice Brett Kavanaugh appeared skeptical about the use of generic language, shifting the question from what is legal to what is practical.
“It’s just hard to know in advance, when multiple other people are also discharging into the same waters, when you’re going to have crossed the line, right?” Kavanaugh asked Frederick Liu, Assistant to the Solicitor General for the Department of Justice representing EPA.
Liu repeatedly responded by arguing that the EPA is willing to make it more practically implementable by giving specific prohibitions—but is unable to do so after San Francisco failed to give the agency information on the state of its sewage system despite EPA’s requests.
“Where do the flows go? What’s the conditions of the pipes and the pumping stations? How does the system respond to wet weather events?” Liu said. “That’s the information that we’ve been lacking for the past ten years and that we asked San Francisco to provide as part of the long-term control update [fruitlessly].”
Justice Samuel Alito moved to introduce a possible solution which was reiterated by Justice Sonia Sotomayor later in the argument.
Alito asked Liu if he wanted the high court to hold that these permit requirements are allowed when the “EPA or the State has made every reasonable effort to get the necessary information from the regulated party and the regulated party has refused to provide the information.”
“In that limited situation, you can resort to this sort of permit condition?” Alito questioned.
“We think … yes,” Liu responded.
Environmentalist Focus
The seeming lack of ideological division of justices in the case comes as a surprise after lawmakers and advocates repeatedly voiced opposition to the high court’s involvement, fearing the Supreme Court would undermine the Clean Water Act as a whole by siding with San Francisco, endorsed by organizations like the National Mining Association, the American Petroleum Institute, the National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors, a legislative body independent from the mayor and city attorney, introduced a resolution last Tuesday, urging the city to drop the lawsuit that “has the potential to seriously destabilize Clean Water Act protections at a time when environmental protections are already under serious threat,” The San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Mike Farrah, legislative aide to Supervisor Myrna Melgar who introduced the resolution, said they approached Chiu asking to avoid litigation at the Supreme Court, concerned “they would strip away the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency to set rules and regulations.”
According to Chiu, San Francisco attempted to solve the issue without the high court involvement on several occasions ”to no avail.” He cited multiple mediation meetings with the agency but said he could not provide records since “mediation discussions are confidential.”
Still, the activists wish the case was dropped before coming to the high court.
“Regardless of how narrow [San Francisco’s] dispute may be with the EPA, the Supreme Court can take that and interpret it as it will,” said Scott Webb, vice chair of the Sierra Club San Francisco Bay Chapter. “It’s like bringing in the mafia to deal with a small, schoolyard dispute.”
What comes next
With oral arguments now concluded and an opinion expected months away, uncertainty clouds the future of the Clean Water Act.
If the high court rules in favor of San Francisco, the consequences will be nationwide, experts say.
“This challenge would affect the legal authority of the EPA—and possibly of state agencies that also issue permits—to include these types of limits in any permit anywhere in the country,” said Becky Hammer, a senior attorney with the Nature Resources Defense Council. “Not just San Francisco, not just sewer systems, but any type of water pollution discharge anywhere in the United States.”
“That would be very harmful to the goals of the Clean Water Act … designed to provide everybody in this country with safe, healthy waterways,” she added.
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Latest in National Security
Blinken blasts Congress for holdups on budget and other critical issues
Congressional delays in passing spending and other legislation undermine U.S. positioning on the global stage and may invigorate “competitors,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the Foreign Service Institute Wednesday.
read moreChina’s “national treasures”: What’s next for panda diplomacy?
WASHINGTON — On Oct. 15, two giant pandas arrived at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo after a 19-hour trans-Pacific flight on a FedEx carrier plane, fittingly known as the “Panda Express”. Before last week’s arrival, pandas have not occupied the National Zoo since November 2023, when three giant pandas were returned to China ahead of an expiring loan agreement.
Pandas and the future of diplomacy
Given U.S. and China’s competitive relationship and tense diplomatic atmosphere in recent years, the pandas’ November departure concerned the panda-loving public, as an agreement had not been constructed at the time for new giant pandas to occupy the National Zoo in the trio’s place.
Chee Meng Tan, an assistant professor at the University of Nottingham Malaysia, said the recall of the pandas signified the Chinese government’s disapproval with America’s stance on key political differences, including the U.S.’s containment strategy in the South China Sea and America’s support for Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian War.
“The fact that pandas are national treasures means that you can’t just leave them in the hands of people that are not on very good terms with you,” Tan said.
However, E. Elena Songster, author of “Panda Nation: The Construction and Conservation of China’s Modern Icon,” offers a different theory — rather than making a political statement, the Chinese government likely wanted the pandas to retire in their home country.
“The pandas were getting quite old,” she said. “They probably did want to bring these geriatric pandas back to China… to spend their sunset years in the homeland.”
Four pandas from Zoo Atlanta were also returned to China on Oct. 12, with the original loan beginning in 1999. With the end of this long-standing loan, Songster believes the recent panda loans represent a new era of U.S.-China diplomacy, backed by a Xi Jinping-headed government.
“Those original loans were all made under a previous leadership in China, and so it’s my feeling that Xi Jinping really wants these new loans to be on him, starting this new legacy of panda loans to the United States,” Songster said.
Tan agrees that Xi Jinping is attempting to “reset” the political relationship through new panda loans, but notes that China is particular in sending pandas to strategic places around the U.S., such as the San Diego Zoo and San Francisco Zoo in California to “woo the tech crowd.”
“San Francisco is one of the world centers for AI, so I would imagine that he’s signaling the importance of San Francisco to China’s AI ambition,” he said.
Pandas as a diplomatic tool
The exchange of giant pandas has historically symbolized China’s willingness to forge strong diplomatic ties with another country. The National Zoo’s first pandas were received in 1972 by President Nixon’s administration as a gift, during China’s transformation away from the cultural seclusion which occurred under Mao Zedong’s government.
“When the Chinese gifted [Patricia] Nixon the first pair of government-gifted pandas, it was a signal that U.S.-China relations were heading towards normalization,” Judith Shapiro, Director of Dual Degree in National Resources and Sustainable Development at American University, said.
In 1984, the Chinese government switched from gifting giant pandas to renting them out on loans to countries, allowing the government to keep their ownership over the pandas and to relocate them at will, unlike the nature of a permanent one-time gift.
A 2013 study showed that the timing of panda loans has historically coincided with when countries make favorable deals or contracts, signaling China’s approval for the policies. On the flip side, the rescinding of pandas can also signal China’s disapproval, such as when two bears were recalled days after Beijing warned President Obama against meeting the Dalai Lama, a Tibetan spiritual leader, in 2010.
“There’s always a certain amount of interpretation that has to be made, because the government of the People’s Republic of China usually maintain in all their official statements that every panda loan is an act of goodwill, but they’re very aware of the power of the panda in terms of its broad appeal to people,” Songster said.
But pandas cannot appear instantly. There is also a great scientific effort behind every panda loan, requiring time on both ends to prepare for the panda’s transport. The hosting zoo must raise millions of dollars to build an adequate panda habitat and support the panda’s annual fee — $1 million dollars — to the China Wildlife Conservation Association “to support research and conservation efforts in China,” according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.
However, the program’s conservation efforts have been questionable. A The New York Times investigation found that China has removed more pandas from the wild than it has released, and that individual pandas have been hurt by aggressive artificial breeding practices.
“As an actual conservation program, the success is really dubious, compared with the fact that each individual panda on this loan is incredibly valuable financially to the Chinese and to the recipient zoo,” Shapiro said.
China has promised two more pandas to the San Francisco Zoo, but it is uncertain whether U.S. zoos will receive more in the future. One thing is certain — the American public loves pandas, and as long as China’s panda loan policy resumes as normal, American zoos will continue to vye for giant pandas.
“People really love seeing pandas. They love going and visiting them, they enjoy watching them on videos,” Songster said. “People are inclined to attach meaning to the pandas, and it’s often associated with their affection for them.”
Sullivan reiterates de-risking instead of decoupling Chinese trade, underscores export controls
Washington — Ending trade with foreign competitors to protect U.S. technology is not a path forward, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Wednesday, underscoring the need for more nuanced and targeted export controls.
“It doesn’t make sense to allow companies to sell advanced technology to countries that could use them to gain military advantage over the United States,” Sullivan said in remarks at the Brookings Institution. “Now, it would be a mistake to attempt to return to the Cold War paradigm of almost no trade, including technological trade among geopolitical rivals.”
He said a system of nuanced and targeted export control should continue instead, “de-risking” trade with China rather than “decoupling” with the country.
“Yes, the fence is high, as it should be, and … the yard is small, and we’re not looking to expand it needlessly,” he said, using an Obama administration trope where the yard refers to the pool of the exported items controlled and the fence stands for the control itself.
The U.S. must consider four distinct questions when examining how to continue with the export control system of limited items under tight restrictions, Sullivan said. These questions include examining which sensitive technologies are most likely to become foundational to national security, as well as identifying where competitors will be exerting maximum effort.
Some experts say this statement is a turn from Sullivan’s previous remarks, moving from a more absolutist, idealistic tone to a more practical approach.
“I think that that set of four questions suggested a more moderate tone, a more kind of realistic, updated understanding of the limitations on what we can do,” said Martin Chorzempa, a Senior Fellow at the Petersen Institute of International Economics, comparing Sullivan’s remarks from two years ago.
But targeted export controls of this nature aren’t new.
Former President Barack Obama instituted the Export Control Reform Initiative (ECR) in his first term, creating new, more nuanced rules around working with foreign trade partners. The ECR liberalized trade in general, but put tighter controls on a select group of specific technologies, according to Robert Shaw, the program director for the Export Control and Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
The system maintained its path throughout Donald Trump’s presidency and was picked up by the Biden administration.
“With respect to China in particular, [it’s] continued, essentially on a similar vector from the Obama administration and all the way to the present,” he said.
Still, Biden introduced some new policies into the system–-such as for semiconductors.
In 2022, the administration’s Chips and Science Act put roughly $52 billion into domestic research and development for these critical pieces, which are used in many electrical devices from medical equipment to smartphones. Around that time, the U.S. also introduced enhanced export controls focused on limiting China from accessing US-originating semiconductor technology.
“Export controls on semiconductors were new,” said Mary E. Lovely, Anthony M. Solomon Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute. “It is, in some sense, echoing things we saw before, but also amplifying them and increasing their use,” comparing the initiative to export controls from the Trump administration.
Shaw said the export controls’ design under Biden sets them apart, particularly the way they allow for quick tweaks as needed.
“They can be easily adjusted to where they could be fairly quickly calibrated to either be tightened further or loosened,” Shaw said.
Sullivan ended his remarks by doubling-down on the need to utilize secure trade policy, not only for America’s interests now, but also for its future in the global economy.
“Our task ahead is to harness that power to take on the realities of today’s geopolitical moment in a way that will not only preserve America’s endurance strengths, but extend them for generations to come,” Sullivan said.
Latest in Living
Photos: Embassy Row’s fashionable trick-or-treaters
Parents, children and students alike collect candy on a beautiful autumn afternoon.
read moreDC Residents Highlight Strengths and Shortcomings of Housing Authority Restructuring
WASHINGTON — Residents and prospective tenants appeared appreciative of new leadership, but eager to see more change at the first District of Columbia Housing Authority public oversight roundtable on Tuesday, which saw benefit recipients directly address the councilmembers overseeing the fraught government agency.
“[DCHA’s new director] Keith Pettigrew is our black panther,” voucher recipient Rhonda Hamilton said. “He knows and is experienced in how to manage a housing authority.”
This hearing was part of the authority’s three-year plan to restructure and increase transparency in the agency after a 2023 controversy involving overpaying landlords alongside an uptick in housing insecurity in Washington.
Residents currently receiving housing assistance raised concerns that the restructuring of the DCHA organizing board only maintains one seat for local representation, while previous boards had multiple neighborhood seats.
“We want our other residents to have a vote,” Christine Spencer, a DCHA housing recipient, said. She added though that she does appreciate that she can “walk out the door and see [DCHA community] events in your neighborhood…it’s refreshing.”
Councilmember Zachary Parker (Ward 5) agreed with the need for representation. “It feels like there’s a firewall between tenants and DCHA employees,” he said.
A 2023 Washington Post investigation revealed that the DCHA, which is an independent agency of the DC government, incorrectly overpaid rent for more than 15,000 households, totaling over one million dollars per month. The investigation also reported that many units provided for by the authority lacked adequate facilities, such as electricity and accessible entrances. This led to a turnover in management.
DCHA’s new leadership said they will need time to address these critical issues and point to the three-year plan, which involves more considerable structural changes to the authority’s operation, including better landlord oversight.
Residents also worried about problems that the DCHA takes too long to address.
“The biggest problem I think is a breakdown in communication,” Ronald Smith, who received his voucher after twenty years on the waitlist and requires extra room for his medical equipment, said. “My voucher is only for a one bedroom unit. The space [my wife and I] live in now is deplorable. I don’t know what to do, I need to leave this place but I can’t fit in a one-bedroom.”
The plan, which would be carried out through 2027, would also provide more resources to the Office of Customer Engagement, aimed at boosting assistance and support for residents in need.
“Whenever there’s a new administration and communication changes…it feels like I’m starting over,” Linda Brown said, a resident who worries these organizational changes will make her home unaffordable. “I just don’t feel represented.”
Despite these issues, local elected officials generally approved of the new leadership.
“Since Keith Pettigrew took over the agency has taken big strides,” Housing Committee chair Robert C. White (At-Large) said. “It’s about creating a foundation for lasting improvement. That’s what residents want and deserve.”
VIDEO: Take Steps 2024 raises $200K for IBD Support and Research
WASHINGTON — The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation hosted Take Steps 2024 on Saturday, drawing the largest crowd in years, according to organizers. Individuals diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), their caregivers and healthcare professionals gathered to celebrate the latest fundraising achievements.
“We’ve actually hit our goal of $200,000 this morning,” said Marissa Spratley, the fundraising manager of the foundation.
Donations will fund groundbreaking research, better treatments and programs aimed at improving the quality of life for those living with IBD.
WATCH THE VIDEO STORY HERE:
Latest Business
“Trump Trade” soars in aftermath of Tuesday’s elections
U.S. stock futures spiked after Donald Trump’s presidential win over Kamala Harris, with the Dow Jones gaining 3.4% and the Russell 2000 jumping over 5%. Investors appear optimistic about a pro-business environment under Trump and a Republican-controlled Senate, fueling gains in financial stocks.
read moreSupreme Court questions risk disclosure arguments in Facebook case
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court appeared skeptical that companies should be required to include past events in their risk disclosure statements during oral arguments for Facebook, Inc. v. Amalgamated Bank Wednesday.
The case considers whether a risk disclosure is misleading if it fails to disclose that a warned risk has occurred in the past. Shareholders in Facebook, Inc., now known as Meta Platforms, Inc., allege that the company misled investors in its 2016 Securities and Exchange Commission filing because the risk of data misuse was described as hypothetical when Facebook knew that it had occurred in the past.
In 2015, the public learned that Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm, improperly obtained data from over 30 million Facebook users. Cambridge Analytica agreed to delete the data, although Meta later learned that it had not. When that became public, Meta’s stock price plummeted, harming investors.
The respondents argue that Meta should have disclosed that the data breach occurred when it listed data breaches as a potential risk factor in Item 105 of its 10-K filings to the SEC. Lauren A. Ormsbee, co-counsel for an amicus brief supporting the plaintiffs, said that a ruling in favor of Meta could incentivize companies to hide materialized risks from investors.
“Investors, for the large part of the US economy, are people in unions and in pensions — teachers, firemen, police officers,” Ormsbee said. “So an adverse ruling here would have a real world impact on a vast majority of Americans if companies are told: ‘You get to hide information about the risks that are ongoing from undisclosed events that have occurred in your company.’”
The Ninth Circuit ruled 2-1 in favor of investors. During oral arguments, many justices initially also seemed critical of Meta.
Justice Elena Kagan said that while the disclosure statements were not overtly false, they could mislead investors.
“It’s not a black-and-white thing, but it’s clearly misleading,” Kagan said. “When we look at these statements, we’re not looking only for lies.”
Still, many justices ultimately seemed wary of the feasibility of requiring businesses to include past events in their risk disclosure statements.
Kagan and Justice Neil Gorsuch questioned how to determine when past events should be included in risk disclosures and whether that would encourage less specific disclosures.
At the suggestion of Kannon Shanmugam, the attorney representing Meta, Justice Clarence Thomas asked respondents what additional information they believe should have been included in Meta’s filing.
In response, Kevin Russell, the attorney representing the respondents, provided an example of a one-sentence statement detailing that a sizable breach of user data had occurred recently. In response, Shanmugam argued that this information was already in the public domain at the time the risk disclosure was filed.
Shanmugam also argued that a ruling in favor of the respondents could create a precedent that companies must list all past events. Ted Allen, Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at the Society for Corporate Governance, said this could ultimately make disclosures less helpful to investors.
“If the Supreme Court upholds the Ninth Circuit’s rationale, or most of it, then you probably will see longer and longer risk disclosures, and longer and longer 10-K filings — which already are significantly longer than they were 23 years ago,” Allen said.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts also suggested that the issue may be best resolved by the SEC, which supported the investors during oral arguments. Kavanaugh suggested they add a requirement to list specific ongoing risks, rather than turning to the courts.
“Why does the judiciary have to walk the plank on this?” Kavanaugh asked.
Published in conjunction with
Photos: IMF and World Bank annual meetings draw climate, humanitarian protesters
WASHINGTON — Around 80 protesters gathered to criticize the World Bank and International Monetary Fund for climate and development policies on Friday. Representatives from various climate action groups met at Edward Murrow Park to hear from global advocacy leaders before marching to the White House to demand federal action.
Speakers highlighted the burden of debt on the global south, the overwhelming effect of climate change on developing nations and support for the Palestinian people. They urged world leaders to cancel debt in developing nations, fund the World Bank’s International Development Association and cut reliance on oil and gas.
“They need to pay us back,” said Shereen Talaat from MENA Fem Movement For Economic, Development, and Ecological Justice, before the march. “Years and years of extracting our resources in the Global South. They need to pay us back. They need to pay the bill of the climate crisis.”
The protest came at the end of the IMF and World Bank’s annual meetings, which have historically drawn protests.
The rally was attended by members of advocacy groups, including The Climate Reality Project. (Hannah Webster/MNS)
Attendees donned shirts and pins with phrases like “#Cancel The Debt,” “Get your a$$ out of oil and gas,” and “Keep 1.5℃ alive.” (Hannah Webster/MNS)
A speaker representing Stop Financing Factory Farming led the crowd in a chant of “World Bank, put your money where your mouth is.” (Hannah Webster/MNS)
After about an hour of speakers, the group began their march to the White House. (Hannah Webster/MNS)
As they walked, the protesters led cheers, including “World Bank, no thanks” and “What do we want? Climate justice.” (Hannah Webster/MNS)
Protesters marched for about 25 minutes, escorted by DC police. (Hannah Webster/MNS)
The march ended on the Ellipse, south of the White House. (Hannah Webster/MNS)
At the Ellipse, speakers commended President Joe Biden’s climate initiatives, while urging further action. (Hannah Webster/MNS)
SOTU: Health Care
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Congress should approve his plan to replace Obamacare with a new health care program that would provide “affordable alternative” insurance options and criticized Democrats for trying to impose “a socialist takeover of our health care system.”
“A good life for American families requires the most affordable, innovative and high-quality health care system on earth,” Trump said in his third State of the Union address.
Trump said he has proposed health care plans that would be up to 60% cheaper than the Affordable Care Act plans. Both the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services did not respond when asked if a specific replacement plan has existed or ever will.
The president blamed Democrats for not providing the American people with the health care reforms he has promised.
“As we work to improve Americans’ health care, there are those who want to take away your health care, take away your doctor, and abolish private insurance entirely,” said Trump, referring to the Democrats.
Democrats stood up at this comment, pointed their fingers at Trump and shouted “YOU.”
Trump said 130 Democrats endorse legislation to impose a “socialist takeover” of the health care system by “taking away the private health insurance plans of 180 million.”
Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., are pushing for a “Medicare for All” plan that would end private health insurance while other candidates like former Vice President Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., are pushing to expand on Obamacare.
“We will never let socialism destroy American health care,” Trump said.
Trump emphasized the administration’s efforts to protect patients with pre-existing conditions, to which Democrats threw up their hands and shook their heads in disagreement. Led by House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Senate and House Democrats brought more than 80 patients, doctors and health care advocates from across the country as guests to the speech.
“President Trump will speak to an audience filled with Americans who are suffering because of his broken promises on prescription drug costs and his all-out assault on Americans with preexisting conditions,” Pelosi said in a press release Tuesday morning.
The president also called upon Congress to pass legislation to lower prescription drug prices.
“Get a bill to my desk, and I will sign it into law without delay,” the president said.
Democrats responded to this by booing and holding up three fingers to represent H.R. 3, legislation proposed by the late Rep. Elijah E. Cummings that would require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to negotiate certain drug prices. The bill has been on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s desk for over a month after being passed in the House.
Generic prescription drug prices dropped 1% in 2018, the first price drop in 45 years, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Trump said it was the first time in 51 years. Brand-name drug prices, however, are still increasing.
Trump said the administration will continue to make health care more transparent by requiring hospitals to make their prices negotiated with insurers public and easily accessible online. He also pointed to the passage of administration-backed legislation called “Right to Try,” which allows terminally ill patients access to drugs not fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration if they feel they have tried all other options.
He also said he has launched new initiatives to improve care for Americans with kidney disease, Alzheimer’s and those struggling with mental health challenges, in addition to pursuing new cures for childhood cancer and AIDS.
The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday afternoon to further discuss Trump’s health care policies and overcoming pharmaceutical barriers in particular.
Trump Sticks By Wall in State of the Union Address
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s call for a wall to secure America’s southern border in his State of the Union address Tuesday night was no surprise to opponents.
Jennifer Johnson, the policy director at the Southern Border Communities Coalition, said Trump continually characterizes the southern border as a violent area.
“More of a reality check, these are families and children seeking protection, fleeing spiraling violence and poverty,” she said.
Chris Montoya, who served as a Customs and Border Protection agent for 21 years, said that “crime rates are pretty low in border cities. Being a border patrol agent is one of the safest law enforcement jobs. All those things together means a safe border.”
Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., invited as his guest a mother who had been separated from her children at the border.
Other Democrats brought undocumented immigrants as their guests, including Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., and Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J.
Rep. Sheila Jackson, D-Texas, was enthusiastic about their attendance at the address. “Their presence here today is representative of the big tent that America is,” she said.
In his address, Trump attributed what he called at crisis at the border to America’s “reduced jobs, lower wages, overburdened schools, and hospitals that are so crowded you can’t get in.” He referenced San Diego and El Paso as being cities that were once violent, and now safe with the addition of physical barriers.
Trump also mentioned the prevalence of MS-13 within the country. “They almost all come through our Southern border,” he said.
Montoya said MS-13 members do enter through the southern border on rare occasions, but it is uncommon for CBP agents to make an arrest.
Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin is the ranking member on the Senate Subcommittee for Border Security and Immigration. He said nothing changed in Trump’s rhetoric. “If we’re waiting on him, we’re not going to get this solved,” he said.
Washingtonians alternately protest, celebrate the State of the Union
WASHINGTON – DC-area residents had very different reactions to President Donald Trump’s second State of the Union address Tuesday night. But whether they celebrated or denounced the event, emotions were strong.
Around 40-50 people gathered at each of two intersections near the Capitol ahead of the address — far fewer than the 400 people who protested last year, according to Resist DC, the community action group that organized both years’ protests.
People lined the sidewalks along the streets that President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and other Trump cabinet members’ motorcades were expected pass by. They held homemade signs lit with string lights so they would be visible to government officials in their cars and chanted anti-Trump messages to music and drums.
Eileen Minarick, 70, said she was protesting simply “because the state of our union is terrible.”
Elsewhere in the city, local bar patrons gathered to drink beer, compete in presidential bingo and watch the State of the Union.
Grassroots activist group CODEPINK hosted a number of guest speakers, including actor Danny Glover, for a lively discussion before the main event. Topics ranged from the Bolivarian revolution to ending domestic violence.
Anita Jenkins, spokeswoman for Stand Up for Democracy, riled the crowd with a call to establish the District of Columbia the 51st state in the United States.
“The people of D.C. have no representation… We have nobody to speak for us,” she said. Modifying the words of America’s early founders, she said, “Taxation without representation is a rip-off.”
As President Trump appeared on the projector, shouts of disapproval rose from the bar patrons. The State of the Union 2019 had begun and the energy was energetic in its moroseness.
Across town, the atmosphere was also charged. Members of DC Young Republicans and Arlington Falls Church Young Republicans filled a restaurant for a celebratory viewing party.
“In the past, most of the people in this room voted for a wall… but the proper wall never got built,” said Donald Trump. He paused and then said, “I’ll get it built.” Hoots and hollers erupted in the bar and two girls were seen smiling and hugging each other.
Though Trump stressed unity in his national address, DC-area residents remained divided in their reactions.
2020 Candidates Alternate Cheers, Hisses to Trump Wall, Immigration Proposals during State of Union
WASHINGTON – Several Democratic 2020 presidential candidates expressed their displeasure with many of President Donald Trump’s policies during the State of the Union address Tuesday.
Sens. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., could be seen shaking their heads when Trump mentioned controversial topics such as his commitment to building a border wall and the dangers of migrant caravans heading to the U.S. southern border.
Harris, who announced her candidacy on Jan. 21, shook her head and visibly mouthed, “They’re not,” as Trump said, “Large, organized caravans are on the march to the United States.”
In a Facebook Live address before the State of the Union, Harris told viewers, “It’s a moment for a president to rise above politics and unite the country with a vision that includes all Americans, not just the ones who may have voted for them. It’s a moment to bring us together.”
Early in the address, Harris was often reluctant to give Trump a standing ovation, asking her colleagues, “Really?” as they cheered the president’s comments about space exploration.
The candidates and their Democratic colleagues booed and hissed as Trump labeled the numerous investigations into his campaign finance and relationship with Russia “ridiculous partisan investigations.”
“If there is going to be peace and legislation, there cannot be war and investigation,” he said. “It just doesn’t work that way!”
Democrats cheered later as Trump mentioned that women have filled 58 percent of new jobs in the past year. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who has formed a presidential exploratory committee, pointed at the newly elected House Democrats, who stood up and chanted, “USA, USA.”
“I think he didn’t realize that all the female jobs he created were for [congresswomen],” Gillibrand said after the speech.
The Democratic candidates stood and applauded with everyone in the chamber when Trump recognized World War II veterans, a SWAT team member and a childhood cancer survivor.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., sat stoically as Trump denounced socialism. Sanders, who calls himself a democratic socialist, is widely considered likely e to enter the presidential race. Unlike Sanders, Gillibrand and Harris stood and applauded as Trump said, “America will never be a socialist country.”
TRUMP STRIKES CHORD WITH WOMEN, FALLS FLAT ON BIPARTISAN BORDER WALL PITCH
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump got one of his biggest rounds of applause during his State of the Union address Tuesday night when he noted that Congress now has a record-high number of elected women, but it wasn’t lost on the crowd that when the women rose to cheer they were mostly on the Democratic side of the aisle.
“Americans can be proud that we have more women in the workforce than ever before,” Trump said as the women lawmakers rose to clap and celebrate. He then advised them “Don’t sit. You’re going to like this.”
“Exactly one century after the Congress passed the constitutional amendment giving women the right to vote, we also have more women serving in the Congress than at any time before,” he said. There were 117 women elected to Congress in 2018.
Bipartisan chants of “USA! USA!” filled the chamber as both the Democrats and Republicans broke into uproarious applause. Many of the Democratic women wore white and donned pins that read “ERA YES,” in a nod to the women of the suffragette movement.
Trump called his list of priorities “the agenda of the American people” in his second State of the Union address Tuesday, which was delayed a week because of the 35-day government shutdown, which didn’t end until the previous Friday. The address was the first the president has delivered before the new Democratic majority in the House.
The president remained on-script for the duration of the 84-minute speech and touted his administration’s achievements from the past two years. He also laid out several legislative priorities going forward, including a “smart, strategic, see-through steel barrier,” an infrastructure bill and the eradication of HIV and AIDS.
Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., was glad that health care was a topic in the speech, while Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., described the speech as “terrific.”
“We haven’t gotten that right when it comes to protection our citizens with pre-existing conditions, correcting all the problems and costs associated with the ACA,” French said. “I like that he kept an emphasis on that while also tackling the prescription drug process.”
For Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., laying out these broad initiatives wasn’t enough.
“I wrote down a number of initiatives — defense spending, cancer research, transportation, infrastructure — and never heard anything of how we’re going to pay for them,” he said.
The president also pushed his plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria and to reduce drastically the number of troops in Afghanistan.
Among Democrats, reactions were mixed as Trump highlighted his achievements. When Trump lauded the U.S. increase in gas and oil production, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who has championed a Green New Deal to address accelerating climate change, remained seated.
Many Democrats applauded Trump’s push for a new infrastructure bill and decision to withdraw troops from Syria and Afghanistan.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who sat behind Trump with Vice President Mike Pence, was clearly following a printed version of the speech. She applauded when Trump mentioned criminal justice reform and bipartisan efforts on lowering drug costs and furthering women’s rights.
After praising a recent bipartisan effort to secure criminal justice reform, Trump shifted to a project he said would require the same bipartisan effort: a southern border wall.
“Simply put, walls work and walls save lives,” he said. “So let’s work together, compromise and reach a deal that will truly make America safe.”
However, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, was not encouraged by the president’s attempt to strike a bipartisan tone.
“I just don’t think he is to be trusted,” she said. “This is not a president who is working for the middle class of this country.”
Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said that while parts of Trump’s speech were good, he was too combative at times.
“There should have been more emphasis on the fact that the government was shut down and we all need to work together to bring it back,” he said. “Blaming the Democrats is not going to keep the government open.”
Freshmen members of Congress excited, disappointed at their first State of the Union address
WASHINGTON — Before attending his first State of the Union address, Rep. Jefferson Van Drew, D-N.J., felt a sense of excitement and joy, but also feared the president might once again fan partisan flames by rehashing controversial issues.
“I hope that right now, he doesn’t talk about closing the government again. I hope he doesn’t talk right now about declaring a national emergency. I would so much rather see that we try to work together and get something done. That requires flexibility on Democrats side as well. Both sides have to do this,” said Van Drew.
Partisanship is the reason the approval rating for Congress is so low, but issues like border security, and infrastructure deserve cooperation between the two parties, said Van Drew.
“Rather than just argue and disagree and investigative and be hurtful on both sides, maybe we can actually get something get done.”
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Chris Pappas, D-N.H.
Although having been full-fledged members of Congress for a little over a month, the freshmen class of senators and representatives still retains a “sense of awe” about the State of the Union address, said Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H. Pappas said he hoped Trump would strike a conciliatory tone with Democrats, allowing lawmakers to avoid a second government shutdown.
Pappas brought a transgender military veteran from his home state to hear the president as a symbol of his hope that Trump’s transgender military service ban will be lifted.
“That doesn’t make us any safer and in fact plays politics with the military,” he said.
In addition to passing social justice reform, Pappas said he would like Trump to speak about the opioid crisis, prescription drug costs and infrastructure — and Trump did.
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Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill.
In Illinois Rep. Sean Casten’s dreams, Trump’s State of the Union address would make climate change a priority, but said his expectations were low. Trump did not in fact mention the environment.
“Truth is what I hope he doesn’t say is what I fear he will say,” Casten said, “which is that he’s going to threaten to shut down the government again if he doesn’t get a wall.”
Casten’s guest was Julie Caribeaux, the executive director of Family Shelter Service, which receives federal aid and provides support for victims of domestic abuse. He said domestic violence victims are some of the “primary victims” of Trump’s rhetoric.
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Anthony Brindisi, D-N.Y.
Rep. Anthony Brindisi, D-NY, was hoping for a message of bipartisanship and unity, things that “the American people are calling for.” Trump did call on Congress to act together on many issues.
Brindisi’s top priorities this year are trying to find common ground with the Republicans on immigration reform, infrastructure and lowering prescription drug costs. On infrastructure, he said he specifically wanted to hear Trump’s ideas on investing in job training programs. Trump mentioned all the issues, but with little specificity except that he wants a border wall and enforcement to stop what he called “caravans of migrants” heading to the southern border.
“Those are things that I talked about during the campaign that many people back in upstate New York are calling for and those are things I hope he does say,” Brindisi said.
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Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev.
Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., said she gets excited every time she walks onto the House floor, and Tuesday was no exception. Although there were parts of the speech she did not agree with, namely Trump’s insistence on a border wall, Lee said she appreciated the call for bipartisanship.
Lowering prescription drug prices, investing in infrastructure and a comprehensive border control strategy — these are all components of his speech Lee said she could agree with.
“These are all ideas I can get behind and they work together to produce some results for American families,” she said.
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Rep. Deb Halaand, D-N.M.
Rep. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., said she was dismayed about Trump’s urgency regarding funding for a border wall.
“I wasn’t surprised. Let’s put it that way about the president’s speech. I mean, of course, we don’t want a wall,” said Halland. “He instilled fear and everybody about the danger, you know, the danger that’s coming across the border.”
Haaland hopes to focus on promoting awareness about climate change and wished the President would be more receptive to the diverse issues and people around the country.
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Rep. Chuy Garcia, D-Ill., said he enjoyed his first State of the Union in a historical sense, but wanted President Trump to address issues he feels are important, including raising the minimum wage and healthcare.
Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, D-Ill.
He said while the president did mention lowering prescription drug costs, there was another area of healthcare that was not noted, such as the millions who do not have healthcare at all.
“He wrapped himself around a lot of patriotism and recognition of your courageous battles and victories and but in the end, I think he failed to address important things more,” Garcia said.
Post-SOTU Interviews with Illinois Democratic Reps. Jan Schakowski and Cheri Bustos
Our Alex Lederman sat down with Illinois Democratic Reps. Jan Schakowski and Cheri Bustos after the State of the Union to hear their thoughts on President Obama’s address.
Schakowski — Evanston’s congresswoman since 1999 — said “(Obama)’s vision of what makes our country strong was so human and so true.”
Bustos said Obama is focused on the future — our children and grandchildren — and working together to solve the nation’s problems.
Medill’s State of the Union night on social media
Medill on the Hill produces live State of the Union broadcast
WASHINGTON — It was the third day of reporting for the 21 students in Medill on the Hill. It also happened to be the day the president would deliver his final State of the Union address.
Months ago, buoyed by the excitement of the possibilities and the folly of youth, some of us came up with the idea of taking Medill on the Hill to a new level — producing live TV while also finding new ways of storytelling for the website and social media.
On State of the Union night, Jan. 12, the Washington web team led by Alex Duner and Celena Chong managed the flow of copy and constant web updates streaming in from reporters around Capitol Hill and elsewhere in D.C. There also was a constant stream of @medillonthehill tweets and snapchats as well as several Periscopes.
Tyler Kendall, Allyson Chiu and Shane McKeon were responsible for the main story, and Chiu said the experience was, “the highlight” of her journalism career.
“It was hectic, crazy and we were definitely all running on adrenaline by the end of the night,” she said.
Other reporters were assigned to stories on specific issues the president mentioned, or how local college students reacted to the speech. One even tweeted the speech in Spanish.
My task was to produce the Washington end of a live television broadcast.
Nine months ago Jesse Kirsch came back from 2015 Medill on the Hill with an idea for Carlin McCarthy, another producer with the Northwestern News Network, and me.
He said, with the optimism of a television anchor, that for the 2016 State of the Union we should produce a live broadcast with analysts at our home studio in Evanston and reporters in our D.C. bureau and on Capitol Hill. I said, with the skepticism of a television producer, that I thought he was crazy.
It took long nights, patience and a lot of support from the Medill faculty and staff, but we pulled it off.
Jesse opened the show in Evanston and before we knew it Isabella Gutierrez was doing a live hit from the Washington bureau. Then we were live in Statuary Hall with Noah Fromson, followed by a live report from graduate student Ryan Holmes on what to watch for just minutes before we streamed the live feed of President Barack Obama addressing a joint session of Congress for his final State of the Union.
We did a live interviews with Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, wrote scripts while we counted down the seconds until they were read and gathered quotes from senators and members of Congress. Alex Lederman also provided quick-turn video interviews with two congresswomen.
Associate Producer Geordan Tilley, who interviewed Durbin, was nervous before the show, but she said she is proud of the Medill effort.
“I thought the show was some of our best work, Tilley said. “Especially considering how many firsts were involved, not the least of which was our first time going live.”
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Medill Today | November 6, 2024
“Trump Trade” soars in aftermath of Tuesday’s elections
by Ananya Chag | November 6, 2024 | Business, Campaign 2024, Featured | 0 Comments
U.S. stock futures spiked after Donald Trump’s presidential win over Kamala Harris, with the Dow Jones gaining 3.4% and the Russell 2000 jumping over 5%. Investors appear optimistic about a pro-business environment under Trump and a Republican-controlled Senate, fueling gains in financial stocks.
DC Appears Poised to Create New Task Force to Improve Math Education
by Jonas Blum | November 6, 2024 | Education, Featured | 0 Comments
Local and national educators and advocates testified before the DC Council Committee of the Whole in support of a new bill that would create a task force to address the need for improved mathematics education in DCPS and DC public charter schools.
Supreme Court questions risk disclosure arguments in Facebook case
by Hannah Webster | November 6, 2024 | Business, Featured | 0 Comments
Facebook Inc. v. Amalgamated Bank examines risk disclosure requirements for companies. During oral arguments, the justices doubted shareholders’ claims.
A Q&A with Democratic West Virginia senate candidate Glenn Elliott
by Coby Potischman | November 5, 2024 | Campaign 2024, Featured, Politics, Topics | 0 Comments
West Virginia Democrat Glenn Elliott is running for a U.S. Senate seat that his party has held since 1959. In a state where Democrats have rapidly lost power in recent years, forecasters expect Republicans to flip it in a landslide.
Live updates on Election Day 2024
by Medill News Service | November 5, 2024 | Campaign 2024, Featured, Politics, Topics | 0 Comments
Medill News Service reporters provide live updates from polling places across Maryland and Washington on Election Day. These reports...