Author: PolitCens

A huge increase in federal food aid kept the number of U.S. households considered “food insecure” from rising during 2020, despite the economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that more than one in 10 U.S. households was short of food at some point last year, and that racial and regional disparities in hunger increased despite the surge in federal aid.Now, however, with the pandemic surging back throughout the country, the assistance programs that prevented an untold number of American families from facing food shortages last year are beginning to expire, raising the possibility that more Americans could soon find themselves going hungry.The FILE – Dylan Pfeifer uses a lift to move a box filled with donated canned and boxed foods to his home in Chandler, Ariz., April 3, 2021, to safely store the items until they are given to St. Mary’s Food Bank.On top of direct food assistance, the federal government authorized the extension of unemployment insurance benefits as well as a $300 weekly supplement to those benefits.The USDA study did not specifically tie increased benefits to the fact that hunger rates remained stable during the pandemic, but anti-hunger groups said the connection was clear.“The fact that the numbers around overall hunger in America did not drastically increase shows that the route and the steps that the federal government and that the Congress and administration took throughout the year were the right approach, and that our nutrition programs work,” said Eric Mitchell, executive director of the Alliance to End Hunger.Racial disparities found While the overall numbers paint a picture of an effective pandemic response, the details demonstrate that there are significant holes in the social safety net lawmakers tried to augment last year.FILE – Elizabeth Ruiz, 7, spells out “God Bless U” as she and her mother, Daylin Lemus, of Adelphi, Md., wait to receive a Catholic Charities distribution of food at Northwestern High School, in Hyattsville, Md., May 5, 2020.The rate of food insecurity among white, non-Hispanic households actually decreased during the pandemic year, from 7.9% to 7.1%. However, among Black households, food insecurity affected 21.7% in 2020, an increase from 19.1% the previous year. The rate of food insecurity also rose in Hispanic households, but the change was not statistically significant.Overall, a Black household was more than three times as likely to suffer food insecurity in 2020 as a white household. Hispanic households were 2.4 times as likely to be short on food as white households.(The USDA report codes the race of a household by determining the race of a single “reference person,” typically the owner of the residence or the person whose name appears on a rental agreement, and does not break out multiracial households.)Regional and household differencesThe survey also found that rates of hunger in the Northeast, Midwest and West all fell year-over-year, though the drop was statistically significant only in the Midwest. In the South, however, hunger rose by a statistically significant amount, from 11.2% in 2019 to 12.3% in 2020.Households with children were significantly more likely to face food insecurity than the average, at 14.8%, and that percentage rose to 15.3% if any of those children were under 6 years old.FILE – City worker Randy Greice, foreground, unloads a pallet of food at a distribution event in Opa-locka, Fla., Oct. 6, 2020.“The disparities were there prior to COVID,” said Mitchell, “If anything, [the pandemic] exacerbated those disparities … and made them even more alarming.”Aid programs set to expireThis month, many of the programs that allowed Americans to keep food on the table through the first 20 months of the pandemic are beginning to expire. The enhanced unemployment benefit payment ended as of this week, and Congress failed to extend a moratorium on evictions that had been preventing people behind on their rent from losing their homes.The expanded SNAP benefit will expire at the end of this month, as will the program providing some low-income families access to fresh foods.”Congress and administration need to come together to find solutions to be able to extend the changes that were implemented or, better yet, make them permanent,” said Mitchell. “There’s potential for this to happen in Washington, but we’re going to have to create the political will to make it reality.”While combating hunger is a bipartisan issue in Congress, there is significant disagreement on how to do it. Many Republicans in Washington object, for example, to a large spending bill being pushed by Democrats, which would make some of the new social safety net spending permanent.Representative Kevin Brady of Texas, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, released a statement Thursday saying, “President Biden, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats are ramming through trillions of wasteful spending and crippling tax hikes that will drive prices up even higher, kill millions of American jobs and drive them overseas, and usher in a new era of government dependency with the greatest expansion of the welfare state in our lifetimes.”Many Democrats support further safety net expenditures, including robust federal efforts to guarantee food security. Representative Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat, recently tweeted, “We have the ability to prevent hunger in America — it’s a policy choice.” 
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The White House said on Wednesday it had asked 18 Trump administration appointees to resign from military academy boards, saying President Joe Biden would require such officials to be “aligned with the values of this administration.”   The 18 — six each on the Board of Visitors to the Air Force Academy, the Military Academy and the Naval Academy — were asked to resign, the White House said. If they did not resign their positions, they were to be terminated at 6 p.m., the White House said. Those asked to step down include Kellyanne Conway, White House counselor under Donald Trump, and Sean Spicer, a White House spokesperson under the former Republican president.   “I will let others evaluate whether they think Kellyanne Conway and Sean Spicer and others were qualified … to serve on these boards,” White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said in response to a question during a daily briefing.”The president’s qualification requirements are not your party registration. They are whether you’re qualified to serve and whether you’re aligned with the values of this administration.” “I’m not resigning, but you should,” Conway wrote in a letter to Biden posted on Twitter. Spicer, who serves on the Board of Visitors to the U.S. Naval Academy, said on his Newsmax show on Wednesday he would not step down. “I will not be submitting my resignation, and I will be joining a lawsuit to fight this,” Spicer said.   Trump’s former budget chief Russ Vought also said he would not quit. “No. It’s a three- year term,” he said on Twitter. The boards provide advice and recommendations to the U.S. president on matters including those related to morale, discipline, curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs and academic methods of the academies, according to a 2020 notice in the Federal Register. 
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Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law Tuesday an elections overhaul that adds more voting restrictions in the booming state. Democrats had spent months protesting what they say are efforts to weaken minority turnout and preserve the Republican Party’s eroding dominance in the state. Abbott signed the sweeping changes during a ceremony in the East Texas city of Tyler, where the surrounding county went for former President Donald Trump by a more than 2-to-1 margin last year. But it was far closer in Texas overall, with Trump carrying the state by 5 1/2 percentage points, the thinnest margin of victory by a Republican presidential nominee here in decades. The bill signing again underlined the hard right turn Texas Republicans made this year, including a new state law that took effect last week banning most abortions. Texas is among at least 18 states that have enacted new voting restrictions since the 2020 election, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. The laws are part of a national Republican campaign, including in Florida, Georgia and Arizona, to tighten voting laws in the name of security, partly driven by Trump’s false claims that the election was stolen. Opponents did not wait for Abbott’s signature to begin filing lawsuits against the new Texas law known as Senate Bill 1. The American Civil Liberties Union, minority rights groups and disability advocates are part of a broad coalition that filed separate lawsuits last week in federal court in Texas, accusing Republican lawmakers of violating the federal Voting Rights Act and intentionally discriminating against minorities. Some changes squarely take aim at the Houston area, where President Joe Biden carried the surrounding county of 1.6 million voters by a 13-point margin. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year, Harris County elections officials offered 24-hour polling places and drive-thru voting, which are outlawed under the new law. The county also tried sending mail-in ballot applications to more than 2 million registered voters, but going forward in Texas, any election official who tries sending an application to someone who doesn’t request one could face criminal charges.Partisan poll watchers are also entitled to more movement, and election judges who obstruct them could also face criminal penalties, which Democrats argue could lead to voter intimidation.In response to new voting restrictions in Republican-controlled statehouses, Democrats in Congress want to pass new federal voting rights protections at the federal level but have been unable to overcome opposition from Senate Republicans. White House press secretary Jen Psaki defended Biden’s approach on voting rights, saying the president had used his bully pulpit and made Vice President Kamala Harris the point person on the issue. But Psaki said the administration planned to take additional but unspecified steps to address concerns from voting rights groups. “We would say to these advocates: We stand with you,” Psaki told reporters Tuesday aboard Air Force One. “There’s more we’re going to keep working on together.”Abbott signed the bill 100 days after Democrats kicked off a summer of last-ditch maneuvers by walking out of the state Capitol to temporarily block the measure by leaving the legislature short of a quorum. More than 50 Democrats flew to Washington, D.C., in July to thwart the bill for a second time, which led to Republicans issuing civil arrest warrants in an effort to compel Democrats to return, although no one wound up being forced to come back.The protests did not achieve any significant changes to the bill, underscoring Republicans’ determination to pass the measure and the strength of their commanding majority in the Texas Capitol. 
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Analysts are portraying this week’s visit to China by U.S. presidential envoy John Kerry as a diplomatic embarrassment, with Chinese leaders giving no ground on Kerry’s appeal for cooperation on climate change and offering him only video meetings with senior officials.“The Taliban got a better reception” when a delegation from the Afghan insurgent group met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on July 28, noted Anders Corr, a longtime China observer and publisher of the Journal of Political Risk.The chilly treatment of Kerry reflects how much an increasingly assertive China’s approach to Washington has changed in just a few months.U.S. President Joe Biden’s appointment of Kerry, a former secretary of state and former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as a special envoy for climate issues was initially greeted in China as an opportunity in which to engage with a new U.S. administration. Under Biden’s predecessor, President Donald Trump, U.S. policies toward Beijing were seen by some as overly hawkish, and by others as rightfully assertive.“The climate issue could be our new ping pong diplomacy,” hopefully suggested an article in the Global Times, a branch of China’s state media conglomerate.The constructive attitude continued during Kerry’s initial visit to Shanghai in April, which concluded with a joint statement listing several concrete steps to reduce carbon emissions and pledges of cooperation between the sides “to tackle the climate crisis.”But any goodwill apparent at that time had dissipated amid mounting competition for global influence and what some see as Beijing’s growing arrogance following America’s chaotic exit from Afghanistan by the time Kerry arrived in Tianjin – a seaport city east of Beijing – for his latest meetings this week.Senior officials, including Wang, Vice Premier Han Zheng and Yang Jiechi, the state councilor in charge of foreign affairs, met with Kerry only by video conference while a relatively junior climate negotiator was dispatched to Tianjin for face-to-face talks.The treatment amounted to “a diplomatic snub,” Corr said, comparing it to widely circulated photographs of Taliban political commission leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar meeting in person with Wang just weeks before. “Not to mention the drab photo backdrop, video calls from principals, and public lecturing [by the Chinese side].”The whole affair is a “joke” at the U.S.’ expense, Corr said, adding the Chinese Communist Party “is laughing its [expletive] off. You can quote me on that.”Clash on climate issueIf the optics were an embarrassment for Kerry, the substance of the meetings did not go any better. During his video call with the American envoy, Wang lectured Kerry and rejected his argument that the climate issue is so important that it should transcend politics.Kerry told reporters after his meetings that the talks had been “very constructive” and that he had been “very direct” in telling the Chinese that their construction of new coal plants was hindering global efforts to deal with climate change.He also said he had urged his interlocutors not to let other stresses in the relationship between the world’s biggest economies to stand in the way of cooperation on what he called the “climate crisis.”However, China’s foreign ministry reported that Wang told Kerry that Washington was guilty of a “major strategic miscalculation toward China” and that the climate issue could not be decoupled from other diplomatic issues.“What China is saying is that they have no intention to collaborate with the U.S. on climate issues if they don’t get what they want,” said June Teufel Dreyer, professor of political science at the University of Miami, in a phone interview on Friday.What Beijing wants, Dreyer said, is concessions with regard to Taiwan, the South China Sea, freedom of navigation and a host of other issues. But she does not think the Biden administration is in a position to give ground on any of those areas.She noted that sagging poll ratings after the chaotic U.S. exit from Afghanistan and bipartisan demands in Washington for a tough approach to China have limited the administration’s options in the run-up to critical congressional elections next year.“2022 is just around the corner,” she said. The Biden administration and the Democratic Party “can’t afford” another foreign policy setback.Dreyer said she doesn’t know what Kerry’s objectives were in Tianjin, but he seems to have come home empty-handed.“As a taxpayer, if there’s no result, I don’t see why U.S. officials have to go on these trips; it costs a lot of money,” she said. “And if the Chinese side used the occasion to humiliate America, that’s doubly bad.” 
 
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A Texas ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy took effect early Wednesday morning after the U.S. Supreme Court did not act on an emergency request by abortion rights groups to block the law enabling the ban. Barring a later ruling by the court, its inaction by midnight on the groups’ request for an injunction will allow the ban litigation continues in the groups’ lawsuit challenging its constitutionality. Abortion rights groups say 85%-90% of abortions in Texas are obtained after six weeks of pregnancy, meaning the law would most likely force many clinics to close. Such a ban has never been permitted in any state since the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, in 1973, they said. Planned Parenthood and other women’s health providers, doctors, and clergy members challenged the law in federal court in Austin in July, contending it violated the constitutional right to an abortion. The law, signed on May 19, is unusual in that it gives private citizens the power to enforce it by enabling them to sue abortion providers and anyone who “aids or abets” an abortion after six weeks. Citizens who win such lawsuits would be entitled to at least $10,000. Abortion providers say the law could lead to hundreds of costly lawsuits that would be logistically difficult to defend. In a legal filing, Texas officials told the justices to reject the abortion providers’ request, saying that the law “may never be enforced against them by anyone.” A court could still put the ban on hold, and no court has yet ruled on its constitutionality, Stephen Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, said in a tweet. “Despite what some will say, this isn’t the ‘end’ of Roe,” he said. Texas is among of dozen mostly Republican-led states that have enacted “heartbeat” abortion bans, which outlaw the procedure once the rhythmic contracting of fetal cardiac tissue can be detected, often at six weeks – sometimes before a woman realizes she is pregnant. Courts have blocked such bans. The state of Mississippi has asked the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade in a major case the justices agreed to hear over a 2018 law banning abortion after 15 weeks. The justices will hear arguments in their next term, which begins in October, with a ruling due by the end of June 2022. The Texas challenge seeks to prevent judges, county clerks and other state entities from enforcing the law. A federal judge rejected a bid to dismiss the case, prompting an immediate appeal to the New Orleans, Louisiana-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which halted further proceedings. On Sunday, the 5th Circuit denied a request by the abortion providers to block the law pending the appeal. 
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One of the lasting legacies of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks may finally be repealed by U.S. lawmakers seeking to limit presidential war-making powers. The 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force (or AUMFs) for the war on terror have been a subject of heated debate on Capitol Hill almost since they were passed. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more. Produced by:  Katherine Gypson  
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Thousands of Americans gathered Saturday in Washington to demand federal legislation to protect voting rights. Saqib Islam reports from the protest, March On for Voting Rights, which also marked the 58th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic “I Have a Dream” speech on the National Mall. 
Camera: Saqib Ul Islam           Producer: Saqib Ul Islam
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Thousands of protesters rallied in Washington and other U.S. cities on Saturday to demand protections for voting rights, aiming to pressure lawmakers to pass legislation to counter a wave of ballot restrictions in Republican-led states. Held on the anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic 1963 March on Washington, organizers of the “March On for Voting Rights” say the state-level moves to curb voting access disproportionately affect people of color. In Washington, protesters holding “Black Lives Matter” flags and signs calling for federal legislation marched from McPherson Square toward the final meeting point at the National Mall, where King gave his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech 58 years ago. Activist Carolyn Ruff, 74, said she made the trip from Chicago to Washington to push for the passage of a federal law that would restore key protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which outlawed discriminatory voting practices. The bill, named after the late civil rights hero John Lewis, was approved in the U.S. House of Representatives this week but faces poor prospects in the Senate because of rules there that allow a minority to block legislation. Demonstrators hold signs during a march for voting rights, marking the 58th anniversary of the March on Washington, Aug. 28, 2021, in Washington.Lewis’ youngest brother urged Republican senators to put aside partisanship and pass the law, saying that fundamental rights secured in the 1960s were at stake. “Just think, 58 years later we are still fighting for those same rights. Something about that just don’t sound right,” said Grant Lewis, one of a series of civil rights leaders to address the crowd. “It doesn’t matter what side of the aisle you are on. It’s more important to be on the right side of history.” Republican reactionAfter Democrat Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, Republican lawmakers in many states reined in use of dropboxes and mail-in voting. The moves came after Republican former President Donald Trump tried unsuccessfully to overturn the election based on unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud. So far this year, at least 18 states have enacted laws restricting voter access, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University. Demonstrators stop at the John Lewis Mural during a march for voting rights, Aug. 28, 2021, in Atlanta.Organizers expected 50,000 demonstrators in Washington. Rallies also took place in Phoenix, Miami and several other cities. In addition to the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, a more expansive voting reform bill was passed by the House earlier this year, but Senate Republicans blocked it in June, saying voting rules should be left to the states. The lack of meaningful Republican support appears set to doom any legislation in the Senate, which is divided 50-50 along party lines and where filibuster rules mean Democrats need to secure the votes of 10 Republicans to advance measures. ‘It’s worth ending the filibuster’Kathleen Kennedy, 27, said she joined the Washington march after reading about a bill in Texas that had garnered national attention when Democratic lawmakers fled the state to deny a quorum needed for Republicans to pass it. The bill, which would outlaw drive-through and 24-hour voting locations and add new identification requirements to mail-in voting, among other restrictions, was approved by the state’s House of Representatives on Friday. “So many of these laws are getting passed. Elections are coming up. Elections will be impacted by these laws,” said Kennedy, a resident of nearby Silver Spring, Maryland. “It’s worth ending the filibuster.” Some speakers also promoted the idea of making the nation’s capital the next state. A coalition of groups advocating for Washington, D.C., statehood, 51 for 51, was one of the leading organizers of Saturday’s event. 
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As the U.S. rushes to evacuate Americans and allies from the chaos of Afghanistan, a growing number of Republicans are questioning why the U.S. should take in Afghan citizens who worked side by side with Americans, further exacerbating divides within the party heading into next year’s midterm elections.  Little more than a week ago, as the Taliban’s stunning takeover of Afghanistan still was snapping into focus, former President Donald Trump issued a statement saying that “civilians and others who have been good to our Country … should be allowed to seek refuge.” But in more recent days, he has turned to warning of the alleged dangers posed by those desperately trying to flee their country before an end-of-month deadline. “How many terrorists will Joe Biden bring to America?” he asked. As Republicans level blistering criticism at Biden during his first major foreign policy crisis, some are turning to the nativist, anti-immigrant rhetoric Trump used during his four years in office. It’s causing dismay among others in the party who think the U.S. should look out for those who helped the Americans over the last two decades. “I think these false narratives that these are a bunch of terrorists are just — they’re completely baseless in reality,” said Olivia Troye, a former White House homeland security adviser who currently serves as director of the Republican Accountability Project. “There’s no basis for this at all in terms of the intelligence and national security world.” Neil Newhouse, a veteran Republican pollster, said the rhetoric reflects “a general, overall increase” in concern in the country over the risk of terrorist threats after Afghanistan’s fall to the Taliban — not just in the short term from those who may not have been properly vetted, but a year or two down the road. “There’s just a sense that we are less safe as a country as a result of this,” he said. All thoroughly vettedThe Biden administration has stressed that every person cleared to come to the U.S. is being thoroughly vetted by officials working around the clock.  But the refugees have become an emerging flash point, with Trump and his followers loudly demanding that Americans be prioritized for evacuation and warning of the potential dangers posed by Afghans being rescued in one of the world’s largest-ever civilian airlift operations.  FILE – Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., speaks at a news conference held by members of the House Freedom Caucus on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 29, 2021.That talk intensified Thursday after a suicide bombing ripped through the crowd at the Kabul airport, killing 13 U.S. service members and well over 150 Afghans. “How many American military personnel have to die to evacuate unvetted refugees?” tweeted Representative Matt Rosendale, a Montana Republican. “Get American citizens out and bring our troops home.” Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, on Friday toured the Doña Ana Range complex at Fort Bliss, where many refugees will be housed, and later tweeted the U.S. “should rescue Afghans who’ve assisted the US military, but they should go to a neutral & safe third country.” “They should NOT come to US w/o a FULL security vetting,” he said. That followed a call Wednesday by Kentucky Representative James Comer, the top Republican on the House Oversight and Reform Committee, for the administration to brief lawmakers on their efforts to vet Afghan refugees and prevent terrorists from entering the country. “In the chaotic situation left in the wake of the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, we are particularly concerned that terrorists and others who wish to harm the United States may seek to infiltrate the country disguised as those who provided assistance to coalition forces in Afghanistan,” he wrote in letters to the secretaries of state and homeland security.FILE – Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan speaks to lawmakers in Annapolis, Md., Feb. 5, 2020. He’s one of several U.S. governors who have pledged to help resettle Afghan refugees in their states.Still others, including Republican governors and members of Congress, have taken a different stance, welcoming refugees to their states and working furiously to help those trying to flee. Among those governors is Maryland’s Governor Larry Hogan who posted a video statement on Twitter.  “Many of these Afghan citizens, our allies, bravely risked their lives to provide invaluable support for our efforts as interpreters and support staff. We have a moral obligation to help them,” the governor’s statement said, adding that his state would welcome the refugees. Lawmakers busyOn Capitol Hill, the effort to help Afghan friends and family of constituents is the rare undertaking that is consuming legislative offices of members of both parties. The United States and its coalition partners have evacuated more than 100,000 people from Afghanistan since the airlift began August 14, including more than 5,100 American citizens. While the administration’s explicitly stated priority is to evacuate Americans, the numbers reflect the demographics of those trying to flee.  U.S. officials believe about 500 American citizens who want to leave Afghanistan remain in the country; others are believed to want to stay. And many of the Afghans, including those who served as American interpreters and fixers and in other support capacities, are desperate to escape, fearing they will be prime targets for retribution by the Taliban once the U.S. leaves. But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from accusing the Biden administration of failing to put Americans first. “We’re actually prioritizing Afghan refugees more than we’re prioritizing our own citizens,” said Republican J.D. Vance, who is running for Senate in Ohio and has made repeat television appearances blasting the administration’s approach. On Fox Business Network, he claimed, without evidence, that the U.S. has “no knowledge” of 90% of the people being evacuated and said some have shown up on wide-ranging terror databases. Trump and his former policy adviser Stephen Miller, along with conservative commentators like Tucker Carlson, have taken things even further, using the same anti-immigrant language that was the hallmark of Trump’s 2015 speech announcing his candidacy for the Republican nomination. “You can be sure the Taliban, who are now in complete control, didn’t allow the best and brightest to board these evacuation flights,” Trump said. “Instead, we can only imagine how many thousands of terrorists have been airlifted out of Afghanistan and into neighborhoods around the world.” Carlson has warned about Afghans invading America. FILE – Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., talks to a reporter at the Capitol in Washington, Aug. 5, 2021.Different from pastThe rhetoric underscores the transformation of a party once led by neoconservatives who championed interventionist nation-building policies and invaded Afghanistan — followed by Iraq — nearly 20 years ago. But not Republicans all are on board.  Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican whose office has been working around the clock to rescue the “countless” Afghans he says deserve evacuation, chastised those in his party invoking “terrorist” rhetoric. “I would say that they need to do their homework,” he said. “When you talk to the people that we’ve spoken with, when you look at their service record … when you recognize that they sleep in the same tents, they carry arms together, they’ve been in live firefights, how dare anyone question whether or not they deserve to come to this country or to a safe third country?” “We’re not talking about just walking down the street and picking and choosing people,” Tillis added. “We know these people. We know who their children are. We know what their service record was. And quite honestly, somebody taking that position, each and every time they do, is insulting a service member who considers these people like brothers and sisters.” Many of the Afghans seeking to come to the U.S. are doing so under the Special Immigrant Visa program designed specifically for individuals who worked with U.S. forces. Adam Bates, policy counsel at the International Refugee Assistance Project, said that, due to their work, those individuals were extensively vetted by U.S. authorities before applying to the program — and are again extensively vetted “by a wide array of federal agencies” before the visas are granted. Troye, who has spent significant time on the ground in Afghanistan over the years, said Americans became extremely close to the Afghans with whom they served. “These people became like family to many of us,” she said. “It’s really shameful to see some of these Republicans speaking in this way about people who really risked their lives to help us, who were really our allies on the ground.” 
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The U.S. Capitol Police officer who fatally shot a woman as she tried to force her way into the House of Representatives during the January 6 attack said the shooting was a “last resort” because he believed she posed a threat to members of Congress. “I tried to wait as long as I could,” police Lieutenant Michael Byrd said in an interview with “NBC Nightly News” that aired Thursday, in what were his first public remarks since the violence. FILE – This undated driver’s license photo from the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration, provided to AP by the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, shows Ashli Babbitt.”I hoped and prayed no one tried to enter through those doors,” Byrd said. “But their failure to comply required me to take the appropriate action to save the lives of members of Congress and myself and my fellow officers.” Byrd described the shooting as an act of “last resort” as he spoke publicly three days after a review by the Capitol Police concluded he had acted lawfully and within department policy in shooting the supporter of then-President Donald Trump as she tried to force her way through a smashed window into the House of Representatives’ Speaker’s Lobby. “It was a very terrifying situation,” Byrd said. The shooting of Ashli Babbitt, 35, came on a day of violence that saw hundreds of Trump supporters fight their way into the Capitol, attacking police and sending lawmakers running. Babbitt was a U.S. Air Force veteran who embraced far-right conspiracy theories on social media, including Trump’s false assertions that his 2020 presidential election loss was the result of fraud. She was one of four participants in the riot to die on January 6. Far-right groups have embraced Babbitt as a martyr, arguing she was murdered. Her cause has also been taken up by Trump, who falsely claimed last month that the officer who shot her was the “head of security” for a “high-ranking” Democratic member of Congress. Police officers who fought the mob, in testimony given last month to a congressional committee, recounted scenes of violence in which rioters beat them, taunted them with racist insults and threatened to kill an officer “with his own gun.”  FILE – Ashli Babbitt walks through the U.S. Capitol shortly before being shot and killed on Jan. 6 in a still photo from U.S. Capitol Security footage that was introduced as evidence by House impeachment managers, Feb. 10, 2021. (U.S. Senate/Handout)A Capitol Police officer who had been attacked by rioters died the following day. Four police officers who took part in the defense of the Capitol later took their own lives. More than 100 police officers were injured. The Capitol Police review of the shooting concluded that it may have saved lives. “The actions of the officer in this case potentially saved Members and staff from serious injury and possible death from a large crowd of rioters,” the department said. It added that the officer’s family had “been the subject of numerous credible and specific threats.” The Justice Department in April closed its investigation into the death of Babbitt, saying there was no evidence that the officer had acted criminally in the shooting. The worst violence at the Capitol since the War of 1812 delayed the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory by several hours and brought a huge military presence into the city for several months.
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A U.S. federal judge imposed financial penalties and other sanctions Wednesday against nine lawyers with ties to former U.S. President Donald Trump after ruling that their lawsuit challenging 2020 election results in the state of Michigan was a “historic and profound abuse of the judicial process.”“It is one thing to take on the charge of vindicating rights associated with an allegedly fraudulent election,” U.S. District Court judge Linda Parker wrote. “It is another to take on the charge of deceiving a federal court and the American people into believing that rights were infringed, without regard to whether any laws or rights were in fact violated.”The lawyers involved include Sidney Powell, Lin Wood, Emily Newman, Julia Haller, Brandon Johnson, Scott Hagerstrom, Howard Kleinhendler, Gregory Rohl and Stefanie Lynn Junttila.Parker ordered that the lawyers attend 12 hours of legal education and reimburse local officials in Michigan for the costs of defending the lawsuit.The judge also said her ruling would be sent to every state bar and federal court where each lawyer practices for possible disciplinary action.Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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Two U.S. congressman made a previously unannounced trip to the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Tuesday for what they said was a visit to assess the ongoing evacuation effort and to pressure U.S. President Joe Biden to extend his August 31 for withdrawing the remaining U.S. troops from Afghanistan. “We conducted this visit in secret, speaking about it only after our departure, to minimize the risk and disruption to the people on the ground, and because we were there to gather information, not to grandstand,” said a joint statement from Congressman Seth Moulton, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Congressman Peter Meijer, a Michigan Republican. The lawmakers, who served on the House Armed Services Committee, released their statement after flying out of Kabul on a charter plane. They said that in their view, after seeing the situation firsthand and speaking to commanders on the ground, “we won’t get everyone out on time.” FILE – Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., speaks in Las Vegas, Aug. 3, 2019.Biden said Tuesday he expects the evacuation mission to be completed by the end of the month. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement Tuesday saying travel to the region by members of the House of Representatives would divert resources from the evacuation operation. “Given the urgency of this situation, the desire of some Members to travel to Afghanistan and the surrounding areas is understandable and reflective of the high priority that we place on the lives of those on the ground,” Pelosi said. “However, I write to reiterate that the Departments of Defense and State have requested that Members not travel to Afghanistan and the region during this time of danger.  Ensuring the safe and timely evacuation of individuals at risk requires the full focus and attention of the U.S. military and diplomatic teams on the ground in Afghanistan.” FILE – Peter Meijer, R-Mich., speaks in Grand Rapids, Mich., Oct. 14, 2020.The Associated Press cited a senior U.S. official saying the Biden administration viewed the visit by Moulton and Meijer as unhelpful, and other officials saying it was seen as a distraction to the troops who have been tasked with securing the airport to facilitate evacuation flights. Tens of thousands of people have sought to flee Afghanistan since the Taliban seized control earlier this month. More than 70,000 people have been evacuated, but crowds remain at the airport and others in Kabul and elsewhere in Afghanistan have been unable to reach the site. South Korea announced Wednesday it planned to evacuate around 380 people who supported the country’s official activities in Afghanistan. Some information for this report came from the Associated Press and Reuters. 
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Prosecutors are discussing a plea deal for a Missouri man who participated in the deadly January 6 riot on the U.S. Capitol dressed as George Washington. Isaac Yoder, a locksmith from Missouri, has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges that include violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.At a hearing Tuesday before a district judge, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mona Furst said discussions had begun “about a possible resolution without a trial” in Yoder’s case.The FBI said Yoder admitted to investigators in March that he entered the Capitol on January 6.Multiple photographs have been published of Yoder dressed as the first president of the United States, presumably in the Capitol on January 6.Authorities say about 800 Trump supporters entered the Capitol, and many of them stormed past law enforcement authorities, smashed windows, ransacked congressional offices and scuffled with police officers, 140 of whom were injured in the melee.Many of the rioters boasted on social media of occupying the Capitol and were quickly identified by their friends and relatives, as well as by police.To date, 615 people have been charged with an array of criminal offenses, some as minor as trespassing in a secure area. Others face more serious charges, including attacking police or vandalizing the Capitol.About 40 of the rioters have pleaded guilty so far, with some facing potential prison sentences of three to four years. Others have been given probationary terms for minor offenses.Some information for this report came from Reuters. 
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Two members of Congress flew unannounced into Kabul airport in the middle of the ongoing chaotic evacuation Tuesday, stunning State Department and U.S. military personnel who had to divert resources to provide security and information to the lawmakers, U.S. officials said. Representatives Seth Moulton, a Democrat, and Peter Meijer, a Republican, flew in and out on charter aircraft and were on the ground at the Kabul airport for several hours. That led officials to complain that they could be taking seats that would have otherwise gone to other Americans or Afghans fleeing the country, but the congressmen said in a joint statement that they made sure to leave on a flight with empty seats.  FILE – Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., speaks in Las Vegas, Aug. 3, 2019.”As Members of Congress, we have a duty to provide oversight on the executive branch,'” the two said in their statement. “We conducted this visit in secret, speaking about it only after our departure, to minimize the risk and disruption to the people on the ground, and because we were there to gather information, not to grandstand.” FILE – Peter Meijer, R-Mich., speaks in Grand Rapids, Mich., Oct. 14, 2020.Meijer, an Army veteran, served in Iraq and later did humanitarian aid-related work with a nongovernmental organization in Afghanistan, helping to deliver emergency assistance to aid workers after kidnappings and targeted killings. Moulton served in the Marine Corps in Iraq. Two officials familiar with the flight said that State Department, Defense Department and White House officials were furious about the incident because it was done without coordination with diplomats or military commanders directing the evacuation. The U.S. military found out about the visit as the legislators’ aircraft was inbound to Kabul, according to the officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing military operations. One senior U.S. official said the administration saw the lawmakers’ visit as manifestly unhelpful and other officials said the visit was viewed as a distraction for troops and commanders at the airport who are waging a race against time to evacuate thousands of Americans, at-risk Afghans and others as quickly as possible. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement Tuesday evening taking note of the desire of some legislators to visit Afghanistan and saying she was writing to “reiterate that the Departments of Defense and State have requested that Members not travel to Afghanistan and the region during this time of danger. Ensuring the safe and timely evacuation of individuals at risk requires the full focus and attention of the U.S. military and diplomatic teams on the ground in Afghanistan.” The Pentagon has repeatedly expressed concerns about security threats in Kabul, including by the Islamic State group. When members of Congress have routinely gone to war zones over the past two decades, their visits are typically long planned and coordinated with officials on the ground in order to ensure their safety. President Joe Biden on Tuesday said he is sticking to his August 31 deadline for completing the risky airlift as people flee Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.  The two congressmen said they went into their visit wanting “to push the president to extend the August 31st deadline. After talking with commanders on the ground and seeing the situation here, it is obvious that because we started the evacuation so late, that no matter what we do, we won’t get everyone out on time, even by September 11.” 
 
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Kathy Hochul became the first female governor of New York at the stroke of midnight Tuesday, taking control of a state government desperate to get back to business after months of distractions over sexual harassment allegations against Andrew Cuomo.The Democrat from western New York was sworn in as governor in a brief, private ceremony in the New York State Capitol overseen by the state’s chief judge, Janet DiFiore.Afterward, she told WGRZ, a Buffalo television station, she felt “the weight of responsibility” on her shoulders.“I’ll tell New Yorkers I’m up to the task. And I’m really proud to be able to serve as their governor and I won’t let them down,” she said.Hochul’s ascent to the top job was a history-making moment in a capital where women have only recently begun chipping away at a notoriously male-dominated political culture.Cuomo left office at 12:00 a.m, two weeks after he announced he would resign rather than face a likely impeachment battle. He submitted his resignation letter late Monday to the leaders of the state Assembly and Senate.On his final day in office, Cuomo released a pre-recorded farewell address in which he defended his record over a decade as New York’s governor and portrayed himself as the victim of a “media frenzy.”Hochul was scheduled to have a ceremonial swearing-in event Tuesday morning at the Capitol, with more pomp than the brief, legally required event during the night.She planned to meet with legislative leaders later in the morning and make a public address at 3 p.m.For the first time, a majority of the most powerful figures in New York state government will be women, including state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Attorney General Letitia James and the chief judge, DiFiore. The state Assembly is led by a man, Speaker Carl Heastie.Hochul will inherit immense challenges as she takes over an administration facing criticism for inaction in Cuomo’s final months.COVID-19 has made a comeback, with new cases up nearly 1,370% since late June. Hospitalizations are climbing even as schools prepare to go back into session.Big decisions lay ahead on whether to mandate masks or vaccines for certain groups, or whether to reinstate social distancing restrictions if the state’s latest wave of infections worsens. Hochul has said she favors making masks mandatory for schoolchildren, a contrast with Cuomo, who said he lacked that authority.The economy remains unsettled. Jobs lost during the pandemic have been coming back, but unemployment remains double what it was two years ago.New York has also struggled to get federal relief money into the hands of tenants behind on their rent because of the pandemic, releasing just 6% of the budgeted $2 billion so far. Thousands of households face the possibility of losing their homes if the state allows eviction protections to expire.Hochul also faces questions about whether she’ll change the culture of governance in New York, following a Cuomo administration that favored force over charm.Cuomo’s resignation comes after an independent investigation overseen by state Attorney General Letitia James concluded there was credible evidence he’d sexually harassed at least 11 women.In his farewell remarks, Cuomo struck a defiant tone, saying the attorney general’s report that triggered his resignation was designed to be ”a political firecracker on an explosive topic, and it did work.”“There was a political and media stampede,” he said.Cuomo also touted himself as a bulwark against his party’s left wing, which he said wants to defund the police and demonize businesses, and boasted of making government effective in his years in office. He cited his work battling the COVID-19 pandemic, legalizing same-sex marriage and hiking the minimum wage to $15.“I tried my best to deliver for you,” Cuomo said.Some critics jumped on Cuomo’s remarks as self-serving.Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou, a fellow Democrat, tweeted he had a hundred million opportunities to improve as a leader and “Chose himself every time. Goodbye, Governor Cuomo.”Cuomo’s top aide, Melissa DeRosa, released a statement saying the governor was exploring his options for his post-gubernatorial life but had “no interest in running for office again.”Cuomo’s resignation won’t end his legal problems.An aide who said Cuomo groped her breast has filed a complaint with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office. Separately, Cuomo was facing a legislative investigation into whether he misled the public about COVD-19 deaths in nursing homes to protect his reputation as a pandemic leader and improperly got help from state employees in writing a book that may net him $5 million.The switch in leadership was happening in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Henri, which narrowly missed Long Island on Sunday but dumped rain over the Catskill Mountains and Hudson Valley.Hochul will need to quickly build her own team of advisers to steer the administration for at least the next 16 months.Hochul, who said she didn’t work closely with Cuomo and wasn’t aware of the harassment allegations before they became public, has vowed no one will ever call her workplace “toxic.”“I have a different approach to governing,” Hochul said Wednesday in Queens, adding, “I get the job done because I don’t have time for distractions, particularly coming into this position.”She announced the planned appointments Monday of two top aides: Karen Persichilli Keogh will become Secretary to the Governor and Elizabeth Fine will be Hochul’s chief legal counselor.She plans to keep on Cuomo-era employees for 45 days to allow her time to interview new hires, but said she will not keep anyone found to have behaved unethically.Hochul, who has already said she plans to run for a full term next year, is expected to pick a left-leaning New York City politician as her lieutenant governor. Hochul once represented a conservative Western New York district in Congress for a year and has a reputation as a moderate.State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs praised Hochul as “formidable.”“She’s very experienced and I think she’ll be a refreshing and exciting new governor,” he said.
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Kathy Hochul was set to become the first female governor of New York at the stroke of midnight, taking control of a state government desperate to get back to business after months of distractions over sexual harassment allegations against Andrew Cuomo. The Democrat from western New York was to be sworn in as governor in the first minutes of Tuesday in a brief, private ceremony overseen by the state’s chief judge, Janet DiFiore. Her ascent to the top job will be a history-making moment in a capital where women have only recently begun chipping away at what was long a male-dominated political culture. Cuomo was expected to leave office at 11:59 p.m., just under two weeks after he announced he would resign rather than face a likely impeachment battle. On his final day in office, he released a pre-recorded farewell address in which he defended his record over a decade as New York’s governor and portrayed himself as the victim of a “media frenzy.”A digital billboard along Interstate 787 supports New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Aug. 23, 2021, in Albany, N.Y.Hochul was scheduled to have a ceremonial swearing-in event Tuesday morning at the New York State Capitol. She planned to meet with legislative leaders later in the morning and make a public address at 3 p.m. For the first time, a majority of the most powerful figures in New York state government will be women, including state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Attorney General Letitia James and the chief judge, DiFiore. The state Assembly is led by a man, Speaker Carl Heastie. Hochul will inherit immense challenges as she takes over an administration facing criticism for inaction in Cuomo’s final months. COVID-19 has made a comeback, with new cases up nearly 1,370% since late June. Hospitalizations are climbing even as schools prepare to go back into session. Big decisions lay ahead on whether to mandate masks or vaccines for certain groups, or whether to reinstate social distancing restrictions if the state’s latest wave of infections worsens. Hochul has said she favors making masks mandatory for schoolchildren, a contrast with Cuomo, who said he lacked that authority. The economy remains unsettled. Jobs lost during the pandemic have been coming back, but unemployment remains double what it was two years ago. New York has also struggled to get federal relief money into the hands of tenants behind on their rent because of the pandemic, releasing just 6% of the budgeted $2 billion so far. Thousands of households face the possibility of losing their homes if the state allows eviction protections to expire. Hochul also faces questions about whether she’ll change the culture of governance in New York, following a Cuomo administration that favored force over charm. Cuomo’s resignation comes after an independent investigation overseen by state Attorney General Letitia James concluded there was credible evidence he’d sexually harassed at least 11 women. In his farewell remarks, Cuomo struck a defiant tone, saying the attorney general’s report that triggered his resignation was designed to be “a political firecracker on an explosive topic, and it did work.””There was a political and media stampede,” he said. Cuomo also touted himself as a bulwark against his party’s left wing, which he said wants to defund the police and demonize businesses, and boasted of making government effective in his years in office. He cited his work battling the COVID-19 pandemic, legalizing same-sex marriage and hiking the minimum wage to $15. “I tried my best to deliver for you,” Cuomo said. Some critics jumped on Cuomo’s remarks as self-serving.  Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou, a fellow Democrat, tweeted he had a hundred million opportunities to improve as a leader and “Chose himself every time. Goodbye, Governor Cuomo.” Cuomo’s top aide, Melissa DeRosa, released a statement saying the governor was exploring his options for his post-gubernatorial life but had “no interest in running for office again.” Cuomo’s resignation won’t end his legal problems. An aide who said Cuomo groped her breast has filed a complaint with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office. Separately, Cuomo was facing a legislative investigation into whether he misled the public about COVD-19 deaths in nursing homes to protect his reputation as a pandemic leader and improperly got help from state employees in writing a book that may net him $5 million. The  switch in leadership was happening in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Henri, which narrowly missed Long Island on Sunday but dumped rain over the Catskill Mountains and Hudson Valley. Hochul will need to quickly build her own team of advisers to steer the administration for at least the next 16 months. Hochul, who said she didn’t work closely with Cuomo and wasn’t aware of the harassment allegations before they became public, has vowed no one will ever call her workplace “toxic.”  “I have a different approach to governing,” Hochul said Wednesday in Queens, adding, “I get the job done because I don’t have time for distractions, particularly coming into this position.” She announced the planned appointments Monday of two top aides: Karen Persichilli Keogh will become Secretary to the Governor and Elizabeth Fine will be Hochul’s chief legal counselor. She plans to keep on Cuomo-era employees for 45 days to allow her time to interview new hires, but said she will not keep anyone found to have behaved unethically. Hochul, who has already said she plans to run for a full term next year, is expected to pick a left-leaning New York City politician as her lieutenant governor. Hochul once represented a conservative Western New York district in Congress for a year and has a reputation as a moderate. State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs praised Hochul as “formidable.””She’s very experienced and I think she’ll be a refreshing and exciting new governor,” he said. 
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Andrew Cuomo defended his record over a  decade as New York’s governor and portrayed himself as the victim of a “media frenzy” Monday as he prepared for a midnight power transfer that will make Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul the state’s first female governor.
Cuomo, a Democrat, was set to end his term at 11:59 p.m., just under two weeks after he announced he would resign rather than face a likely impeachment battle over sexual harassment allegations.
Hochul was scheduled be sworn in just after midnight by the state’s chief judge, Janet DiFiore, in a brief, private ceremony.
In a pre-recorded farewell address released at noon, Cuomo boasted of making government effective in his years in office, cited his work battling the COVID-19 pandemic and struck a defiant tone on the harassment allegations.
He said the report that triggered his resignation — a scathing account of what Attorney General Letitia James said was sexual harassment or inappropriate touching of 11 women — as “designed to be a political firecracker on an explosive topic, and it did work,” Cuomo said. “There was a political and media stampede.”
But he said prolonging his fight in office “could only cause governmental paralysis and that is just not an option for you and not an option for the state, especially now.”
Some critics jumped on Cuomo’s last remarks as self-serving.
“100000000 opportunities to be a better leader. Chose himself every time. Goodbye, Governor Cuomo,” tweeted Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou,” a fellow Democrat.
The  switch in leadership was happening in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Henri, which narrowly missed Long Island on Sunday but dumped rain  over parts of the Catskill Mountains and Hudson River Valley.
The storm drew Cuomo back out into public view over the weekend, albeit briefly. He gave two televised briefings — warning New Yorkers to take the storm seriously with the same mix of scolding and reassurance that once made his daily COVID-19 briefings popular.
In a statement released to some news organizations, Cuomo’s top aide, Melissa DeRosa, said the governor was exploring his options for what to do after he leaves office but had “no interest in running for office again.”
Hochul, also a Democrat, will inherit immense challenges as she takes over an administration facing criticism for inaction in Cuomo’s distracted final months in office.
COVID-19 has refused to abate. Schools are set to reopen in the coming weeks, with big decisions to be made about whether to require masks for students or vaccination for teachers. The state’s economic recovery from the pandemic is still incomplete.
Hochul will need to quickly build her own team of advisers who can help steer the administration for at least the next 16 months.
She announced the planned appointments Monday of two top aides: Karen Persichilli Keogh will become Secretary to the Governor and Elizabeth Fine will be Hochul’s chief legal counselor.
She plans to keep on Cuomo-era employees for 45 days to allow her time to interview new hires, but said she will not keep anyone found to have behaved unethically. At least 35 employees in the governor’s office have left since February, according to staff rosters.
Hochul, who said she didn’t work closely with Cuomo and wasn’t aware of the harassment allegations before they became public, has vowed no one will ever call her workplace “toxic.”  
“I have a different approach to governing,” Hochul said Wednesday in Queens, adding, “I get the job done because I don’t have time for distractions, particularly coming into this position.”
Cuomo’s resignation won’t end his legal problems.
An aide who said Cuomo groped her breast and has since filed a complaint with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office. Separately, Cuomo was facing a legislative investigation into whether he misled the public about COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes to protect his reputation as a pandemic leader and improperly got help from state employees in writing a pandemic book that may net him $5 million.
Hochul has already said she plans to run for a full four-year term next year. She’ll do so as the state Democratic Party grapples with an internal struggle between moderate and liberal New Yorkers.
Hochul, who once represented a conservative Western New York district in Congress for a year and has a reputation as a moderate, is expected to pick a left-leaning state lawmaker from New York City as her lieutenant governor.
State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs praised Hochul as “formidable.”
“She’s very experienced and I think she’ll be a refreshing and exciting new governor,” he said.
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