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☆ Election Updates: A Democratic brawl in a Virginia race may put a House seat in play in November.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Jonathan Weisman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

One of the field’s top fund-raisers, Krystle Kaul, faces charges of embellishing her résumé well beyond the usual flourishes of a political campaign. Ms. Filler-Corn was the first woman and first Jewish speaker of the Virginia State House. Mr. Helmer is a Rhodes scholar and an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and as a member of the Virginia House. Then last week, an anonymous Democratic official, speaking through her lawyer, accused Mr. Helmer of groping her and later making sexually crude remarks. “That would be presumptuous.”Democratic voters in the district peppered by texts attacking Mr. Helmer could be forgiven if they do not know where to turn.

Persons: Dan Helmer, Eileen, Krystle Kaul, Suhas Subramanyam, Jennifer Wexton, Subramanyam, Helmer, Barbara Comstock, Donald J, Trump, Mr, “, Ms, Wexton, Helmer of groping, Kaul, Michele Davis Younger, ”, Will Reinert, Subramanyam’s, Aliscia Andrews, Alexander Isaac, Avram Fechter Organizations: Congressional, Democratic, Senate, Republican, Virginia State House, Army, Virginia State House Democrats, Washington Post, Loudoun County Democratic Party, National Organization for Women, ”, Republicans, Democrat, National Republican Congressional, ” Democratic, Virginia Democratic, Federal, Commission, PAC, United States Central Command, Department of Defense, Marine Corps, Loudoun County Democratic Locations: Washington, Israel, Virginia, Rhodes, Afghanistan, Iraq, Democratic, Loudoun County, Va

☆ Senate border bill exposes Democratic divisions as White House attempts to ramp up pressure on GOP
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Priscilla Alvarez | Lauren Fox | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —The Senate will vote Thursday on a border security bill that is dividing the Democratic caucus and failed earlier this year, exposing rifts within the party even as they try to shift the narrative on border security. Sources say those talks included reviving the stalled border security measure that initially failed after former President Donald Trump told GOP lawmakers to knock it down. “I will not vote for the bill coming to the Senate floor this week because it includes several provisions that will violate Americans’ shared values. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer acknowledged over the weekend that not every Democrat may vote for the bill in a letter to colleagues. They think we’re nuts.”But Republican Sen. James Lankford, a key negotiator on the border bill, said he’ll vote against the measure Thursday.

Persons: Donald Trump, “, ’, ” Sen, Cory Booker, Booker, Chuck Schumer, Sen, Alex Padilla, “ It’s, ” Padilla, Virginia Democratic Sen, Mark Warner, ”, Republican Sen, Lisa Murkowski, ” Murkowski, James Lankford, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Tom Suozzi, Murphy, Schumer, ” Robyn Barnard, ” Barnard, We’ve, Brian Schatz, Maine Sen, Angus King, CNN’s Sam Fossum Organizations: CNN, Democratic, White, New, New Jersey Democrat, Republicans, GOP, Senate, Virginia Democratic, Republican, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Tuesday, Democrats, Democratic Rep, of, Human, ”, Democrat Locations: Ukraine, New Jersey, Virginia, Alaska, New, Hawaii, Maine

☆ TikTok sues to block prospective US app ban
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

If it loses, TikTok could be banned from US app stores unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells the app to a non-Chinese entity by mid-January 2025. But Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, an advocate for the TikTok legislation, said in remarks on the Senate floor in April that the briefings provided critical insight into the risk TikTok poses. US policymakers have described the law at issue as a forced divestiture of TikTok, not an outright app ban. Some US officials have been trying to ban TikTok from the United States since 2020, when former President Donald Trump moved to block the app by executive order. (Trump has since reversed his position, saying a TikTok ban would only help Meta, a company Trump blames for his 2020 election defeat.)

Persons: Washington CNN — TikTok, Joe Biden, TikTok, Bytedance, “, didn’t, Virginia Democratic Sen, Mark Warner, Warner, they’ve, They’ve, ”, Tuesday’s, ByteDance, TikTok’s, Berman, Evelyn Douek, Biden, Gautam Hans, Hans said, Jennifer Huddleston, Donald Trump, Trump, Douek, ” Douek Organizations: Washington CNN, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Justice Department, Oracle, Foreign Investment, Republican, Democrat, Virginia Democratic, Senate, Stanford University, Cornell University . Still, Apple, Google, Cato Institute, European Commission, Trump Locations: China, United States, TikTok, Israel, Ukraine, Montana, Canada, United Kingdom, India

☆ Virginia Democratic Primary Election Results
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Polls close at 7 p.m. Eastern time. The state offered in-person early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Voters could drop off absentee ballots in-person or to a drop box by the close of polls. They could also return ballots by mail, as long as they were postmarked by Election Day and received by the third day after the election. The state primary, which will include races for state and congressional offices, will be held on June 18.

☆ AI could disrupt the 2024 US presidential election. What’s Congress doing about it?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

But with just nine months until Americans head to the ballot box, there are few signs Congress is ready to pass any meaningful legislation on AI. Alex Wong/Getty ImagesSchumer has previously said that with the election nearing, he may seek to fast-track a bill that focuses specifically on AI and election security. Nothing looks likely to move.”Initial momentum on AI regulationFor months, Congress has focused on getting up to speed on the basics of AI. Still other ideas would require “high-risk” AI models to register for a government license, or create a dedicated new federal agency to oversee AI. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testifies before a Senate Judiciary Privacy, Technology & the Law Subcommittee hearing titled 'Oversight of A.I.

Persons: Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, “, Schumer, Sen, Todd Young, Martin Heinrich, Michael Rounds, Alex Wong, New Mexico Democratic Sen, South Dakota Republican Sen, Mike Rounds, Indiana Republican Sen, didn’t, Paul Gallant, Cowen, ”, Gallant, we’re, Sam Altman, Altman, Heinrich, Rounds, Young, Julia Nikhinson, Sundar Pichai, Jensen Huang, Mike Johnson, Marcus Molinaro, Johnson, Drake, Tom Hanks, Tennessee Republican Sen, Marsha Blackburn, Hakeem Jeffries, Don Beyer, it’ll, Alan Davidson, Biden, Elizabeth Frantz, ” Davidson, —, Sarah Myers West Organizations: Washington CNN, mayoral, U.S, Senate, Capitol, Artificial Intelligence, “, CNN, New, New Mexico Democratic, South Dakota Republican, Indiana Republican, Cowen Inc, United, International Atomic Energy Agency, Intelligence, Reuters, Google, Nvidia, New York Republican, The Washington Post, Commerce, Tennessee Republican, ITI, Virginia Democratic Rep, State of, Republican, House Energy, European Union, EU, Congress, Commerce Department, White House, Privacy, Technology, Democrats, Federal Trade Commission Locations: Washington ,, New Mexico, South, Washington , U.S, Washington

☆ Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announces Senate bid
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Edward-Isaac Dovere | Veronica Stracqualursi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Larry Hogan announced Friday that he is running for US Senate this year, providing Republicans with a strong candidate in their bid to flip a seat in a deep-blue state. It’s what I did as Maryland’s governor, and it’s exactly how I’ll serve Maryland in the Senate. “I would pay a significant amount for a ticket to watch Chuck Schumer’s face right now,” Josh Holmes, the top political adviser to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, posted on X. Though he was personally popular during his two terms as governor, the state Republican Party has veered very much toward Trump. In recent decades, Maryland has been dominated by the Democratic Party at the state and federal levels.

Persons: Larry Hogan, United States Senate –, I’ll, Let’s, ” Hogan, Hogan, ”, Donald Trump, “, Chuck Schumer’s, Josh Holmes, Mitch McConnell, McConnell, Sen, Chris Van Hollen, West Virginia Democratic Sen, Joe Manchin, nixed, Trump, Hogan’s, Angela Alsobrooks, David Trone —, Ben Cardin, MAGA, “ Hogan, Martha McKenna, Maeve Coyle, George H.W, Bush, Shania Shelton Organizations: Washington CNN — Former Maryland Gov, US, United States Senate, Maryland, Republicans, Republican, West Virginia Democratic, CBS News, CNN, Prince, Maryland hasn’t, Senate, Democratic, GOP, Republican Party, Trump, Democratic Party, Old Locations: “, Maryland, Washington, eyeing, Prince George’s, ” Baltimore, State, Baltimore

But with regard to endorsements, Haley hasn’t necessarily benefited from the Trump holdouts, notably because they haven’t gone as far as to endorse her for the nomination. So while the holdouts might bother him on a personal level, they likely don’t have much influence over the Republican nomination in 2024. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnellMcConnell has said he has “essentially stayed out” of the GOP nomination process. 2 Republican, had endorsed Scott as a candidate for the GOP nomination. He’s in a commanding position, and I’ve said all along I’ll support the nominee,” Thune said about Trump on Wednesday.

Persons: Donald Trump, Nikki Haley, Haley, she’s, ” Haley, ”, Trump, Nikki ‘ Birdbrain ’ Haley, ” Trump, MAGA, Haley hasn’t, Chris Sununu, –, Ron DeSantis, Sen, Tim Scott of, Marco Rubio, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, Lindsey Graham of, John Barasso of, John Cornyn of, Deb Fischer, Nebraska, Mitch McConnell McConnell, McConnell, Mitt Romney, Utah Romney, Romney, hasn’t, Joe Biden, West Virginia Democratic Sen, Joe Manchin, Susan Collins of Maine Collins, Collins, John Thune of, Scott, Thune, “ I’m, I’ve, ” Thune, I’ll, Schumer, ” Sen, Joni Ernst, Iowa Ernst, Ernst Organizations: Republican, South Carolina Gov, Trump, Iowa, Donald Trump View, Republican Party, True American Patriots, New Hampshire Gov, Florida Gov, GOP, Capitol, West Virginia Democratic, John Thune of South Dakota Thune, Senate, Biden Locations: New Hampshire, “, South Carolina, Florida, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Marco Rubio of Florida , Arkansas, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, John Barasso of Wyoming, John Cornyn of Texas, Utah, John Thune of South Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa

Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesDemocrats are also encouraged by Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz eking out reelection in 2018 by less than 3 percentage points over Democrat Beto O'Rourke. In Florida, meanwhile, Republican Sen. Rick Scott won his seat that year by around 10,000 votes out of 8.1-plus million cast. In Texas, Democratic Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas will have to overcome primary challenger Roland Gutierrez, a state senator from San Antonio, before he can take on Cruz. “Just 'cause they’re the best options they have doesn’t mean they're winnable, doesn't mean they're competitive,” said Texas Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak. National Republicans are eying Ohio, where Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown was first elected in 2006, and Montana's Jon Tester, also a three-term Democratic incumbent.

Persons: Joe Biden's, West Virginia Democratic Sen, Joe Manchin, Roe, Wade, Dallas, Kate Cox, Texas Republican Sen, Ted Cruz eking, Democrat Beto O'Rourke, Republican Sen, Rick Scott, “, Michigan Sen, Gary Peters, Debbie Mucarsel, Powell, Carlos Curbelo, Colin Allred, Roland Gutierrez, hasn't, O'Rourke, Cruz, ”, Matt Mackowiak, ′, West Virginia . Montana Sen, Steve Daines, Scott, Democratic Sen, Sherrod Brown, Jon Tester, Daines, Trump, Mucarsel, Allred, Cox, I’ve, “ Rick Scott, ” Mucarsel, Biden, “ Debbie Mucarsel, ” Scott, Jonathan Turcotte, Catherine Cortez Masto, can’t, Beto, MacKowiak Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, West Virginia Democratic, Republicans, Texas Republican, Democrat, Republican, Democratic, Democratic Senatorial, West Virginia ., National Republican Senatorial Committee, National Republicans, Senate, GOP, Trump, Texans, Social Security, Biden, Nevada Sen, NFL, Democrats ’ Senate Locations: Texas, Florida, In Florida, Michigan, Miami, In Texas, San Antonio, Cruz . Texas, West Virginia, West Virginia . Montana, Ohio, Illinois , Texas , Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, U.S, Mexico, Ecuador, Washington

Tester entered the Senate after selling Montana voters on his authenticity, and the former high school band teacher's message hasn’t changed much. Tester chairs the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “I take my cues directly from the veterans of this state,” Tester told the assembly at Bigfork High School. There’s been an influx of newcomers from Arizona, Washington state, California and Texas. He currently ranks second with $407,000 in contributions from lobbyists, putting him just behind Washington state Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell, according to the research group OpenSecrets.

Persons: Jon Tester, Tester, Republican Donald Trump, hasn’t, you’ve, He's, ”, “ It’s, West Virginia Democratic Sen, Joe Manchin's, Mitch McConnell, Tim Sheehy, Matt Rosendale, Kevin McCarthy of, Trump, he’s, Israel, Noah Sohl, Lockheed Martin, Sohl, “, ” Sohl, ‘ I’m, I’m, ” Tester, Terry Baker, Baker, “ He’s, There’s, that's, Sid Daoud, Sen, Conrad Burns, ” Jack Abramoff, Abramoff, Burns, Democratic Sen, Maria Cantwell, he's, Big Sandy, Sharla Organizations: U.S . Senate, Veterans, Bigfork, Democrat, Republican, Montana, West Virginia Democratic, Montana , U.S . Navy, U.S . Rep, Democratic, Lockheed, . Census, Veterans ’ Affairs, Bigfork High, Senate, Republicans, Montana Libertarian, Washington Locations: Mont, U.S, Montana, Bigfork, Flathead, Washington, Pacific, Ky, Montana , U.S, Kevin McCarthy of California, Rosendale, Butte, Israel, Missoula, Vietnam, Kalispell, ” Montana, Arizona, California, Texas, Bozeman, Iraq, Big

Manchin never defended the remark but was criticized by West Virginia Republicans for what his party’s nominee said. By 2022, coal mining employees in West Virginia made up nearly 30% of all coal employees in the country. John Deskins, director of the West Virginia University Bureau of Business and Economic Research, said 75% of West Virginia’s coal jobs were disappearing before coal production dropped because of mechanization. West Virginia Democratic Party Chair Mike Pushkin said Trump never fulfilled his promise. He said the state Democratic Party was branded “anti-jobs and anti-coal” because of environmental policies coming from the national party.

Persons: Joe Manchin’s, Robert C, Byrd, Jennings Randolph, Jay Rockefeller, Manchin, Joe Biden's, Jim Justice, Donald Trump, Barack Obama, Trump, Hillary Clinton, John Deskins, ”, Mike Pushkin, “ Donald Trump, Robert Rupp, " Rupp, ” Rupp, Rupp, “, “ He’s, Biden, Jim Crow, William Hal Gorby, you’re, ” Manchin, Pat McGinley, ” McGinley, Democratic Sen, Mike Caputo, Kavish Harjai Organizations: U.S, Senate, West Virginia's, Democratic, Mountain State, Republican Gov, Biden, Senate Energy, Natural Resources Committee, West Virginia Republicans, West Virginia University, of Business, Economic Research, West Virginia Democratic, Democrats, Retired West Virginia Wesleyan, New, Democrat, Immigrants, Black, West Virginians, ” West Virginia University, Big Branch, Big, Mine Safety Administration, Massey Energy, West Virginia Democrats, United Mine Workers, America, Democratic Party, Press Locations: CHARLESTON, W.Va, Washington, Manchin, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, West, Towns, Europe, ”, Randolph, Los Angeles

☆ Virginia elections: Youngkin looks to prove that non-MAGA politics can be a winning Republican strategy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Jake Tapper | Arit John | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Glenn Youngkin isn’t on the ballot this year, but his push for a new conservative direction for the Republican Party is. The discipline extended beyond the 10 candidates Youngkin endorsed in competitive primaries, so as to keep distractions at bay. Virginia Democrats, who would normally use such a post to put the entire GOP in an awkward position, did not apparently even notice. Still, there isn’t a lot of evidence that the Virginia Democratic Party sees Youngkin as any sort of liability for the GOP — he isn’t featured negatively in any of their ads, for example. “What we have found out over the last two years is that that vest-wearing, affable, basketball playing dad is really a MAGA Extremist,” said Virginia Democratic Party Chair Susan Swecker.

Persons: Glenn Youngkin isn’t, MAGA, He’s, Youngkin –, aren’t, that’s, Donald Trump, ”, “, Youngkin, “ I’ve, Joe Biden, ” Youngkin, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, Youngkin’s, Mark J, Rozell, Roe, Wade, ” Rozell, Taylor Keeney, Bob McDonnell, Thomas Peterffy, Sen, Siobhan Dunnavant, Dunnavant, Del, Tara Durant, Matt Strickland, Emily Brewer, Hermie Sadler, Durant, Juan Pablo Segura, Jason Ballard, John McGuire, Bryce Reeves, Bill Woolf, Buddy Fowler, John, Lee Peters, Mike Dillender, McGuire, Reeves, Ballard, Daniel Squadron, Tim Kaine, Mark Warner, he’s, Susan Swecker Organizations: CNN, Virginia Gov, Republican Party, Democratic, Democrat, Republican, GOP, Privately, Trump, Commonwealth, Virginia Democrats, Schar School of Policy, Government, George Mason University . Virginia, Republican Gov, PAC, OB, Covid, NASCAR, Heritage Festival, Heritage Indian, The States, States Project, Democratic National Committee, Democrats, Republicans, Virginia Democratic Party, Virginia Democratic Locations: Virginia, Fredericksburg, “, Richmond, Chantilly, Sens

CNN —Virginia Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine said Sunday “there’s a powerful argument to be made” for barring Donald Trump from the presidential ballot based on the 14th Amendment’s ban on insurrectionists holding public office. “My sense is it’s probably going to get resolved in the courts,” Kaine said on “ABC This Week,” adding that Democrats’ focus should be on winning in 2024. Legal experts have pointed to the 14th Amendment as a potential long-shot avenue to keep Trump from becoming president. Video Ad Feedback Does the 14th Amendment make Trump ineligible? Seven GOP senators joined the chamber’s 50 Democratic and Independent members in finding Trump guilty of inciting a riot on January 6.

Persons: Virginia Democratic Sen, Tim Kaine, Donald Trump, ” Kaine, Trump, CNN Kaine, Trump’s, Kaine Organizations: CNN, Virginia Democratic, ABC, Trump, Liberal, United, Capitol, GOP, Democratic, Independent Locations: Michigan, New Hampshire, United States, Virginia

☆ Defense personnel alarmed after memos reveal Air Force leadership warned about accused Pentagon leaker but let him continue working
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Haley Britzky Sean Lyngaas Zachary Cohen Natasha Bertrand | Haley Britzky | Sean Lyngaas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Teixeira was arrested on April 14 and has been charged under the Espionage Act with unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information and unauthorized removal of classified information and defense materials. His defense lawyers have argued he didn’t expect classified information that he posted on Discord to be further spread around the internet. According to one current US service member who handles classified intelligence, the memos read as if Teixeira’s leadership was building a case for disciplinary action against him. Jobs under the 1N0 and 1N4 job codes would have given him more hands-on responsibilities with intelligence, the current service member and a former enlisted intelligence airman told CNN. But the current service member said it would not be unusual for senior non-commissioned officers to handle disciplinary matters with a junior enlisted airman like Teixeira.

CNN —Virginia Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly said two staffers were injured Monday by a man wielding a bat who came into his district office in Fairfax. Connolly told CNN that the assailant who entered his office and attacked two of his aides did so with a metal bat. “He was filled with out of control rage,” Connolly told CNN in a phone interview. Connolly told CNN he was at a ribbon cutting at the time for a food bank when the assailant drove to his office and entered the building. In October, a man attacked Paul Pelosi, the husband of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, hospitalizing him after hitting Paul Pelosi with a hammer in the couple’s home in San Francisco.

☆ Snap stock surges as Congress renews efforts to ban TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner is expected to unveil bipartisan legislation Tuesday afternoon that expands President Joe Biden’s authority to ban TikTok and other suspected information technology risks from the United States, a person familiar with the matter told CNN. Angelo Zino, senior equity analyst CFRA Research, wrote in a note Monday that the “biggest beneficiaries of a TikTok ban” would be Snapchat, Facebook-parent Meta, and YouTube. “TikTok’s emphasis on short-form videos has increased engagement/time spent by consumers and has upended the entire industry, creating a headwind for META/SNAP,” Zino wrote. Shares of YouTube’s parent company Alphabet were essentially flat on Tuesday. A TikTok ban, or the possibility of it, may just be one more positive for Meta’s stock this year.

☆ Virginia Gov. Youngkin stokes 2024 campaign speculation after killing Ford battery plant over China links
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Alex-Seitz-Wald-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Alex Seitz-Wald | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

But this week, Virginia Republican Gov. (Virginia doesn't allow governors to serve consecutive terms, so Youngkin can't seek re-election.) “There’s a logic to the politics of Youngkin’s decision,” said Liam Donovan, a Republican strategist and lobbyist. Gretchen Whitmer telling the Detroit News that Youngkin’s “political determination” created an “exciting opportunity” for her state. “Carlyle makes a lot of money out of China,” said Surovell, the Democratic state senator.

☆ Sinema and Manchin high-five over supporting the filibuster at World Economic Forum in Davos
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin high-fived over their support for the filibuster on Tuesday. The pair were speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Sinema said the 2022 election showed Democrats were wrong to oppose the Senate rule. "As we all know," Sinema, flanked by West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, said Tuesday, "the filibuster was not eliminated. At the end of her remarks, Manchin chimed in: "We still don't agree on getting rid of the filibuster."

☆ Virginia on track to send first Black woman to Congress
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Zoë Richards | Zoë Richards Is The Evening Politics Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

State Sen. Jennifer McClellan is on track to become the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress after she won the Democratic primary Thursday to fill the seat of Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin, who died last month from cancer. Lamont Bagby, the chair of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, in the primary. Morrissey resigned from his state House seat in 2014, but he then ran for that same seat as an independent and won in 2015 — while serving time in jail. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia also threw his support behind her. McClellan had also won the support of other Black leaders in the district, including Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney.

☆ Elon Musk’s Twitter blocked links to rival Mastodon. That could raise alarms among regulators
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Soon, however, Twitter began throwing up roadblocks — marking links to Mastodon as “unsafe” and potentially malicious, blocking tweets containing those links and preventing users from adding Mastodon links to their profiles. Now, legal experts are pondering whether there may be anticompetitive or other regulatory implications arising from Twitter’s blocking of Mastodon links. Eugen Rochko, the founder and CEO of Mastodon, has not publicly addressed Twitter’s link blocking, but has amplified a public report about it. Baer added that Twitter’s link blocking doesn’t just raise potential competition concerns. And prior to Thursday, there did not appear to be grounds for Twitter to claim that Mastodon links were unsafe.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema leaving the Democratic Party and registering as an independent
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Jeremy Herb | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is leaving the Democratic Party and registering as a political independent, she told CNN’s Jake Tapper in an exclusive TV interview. While Sanders and King formally caucus with Democrats, Sinema declined to explicitly say that she would do the same. She also brushed aside criticism she may face for the decision to leave the Democratic Party. “Nothing about the last two years indicates a major effort would’ve made helped – the exact opposite actually,” a White House official said. After a vote against filibuster changes in January, the Arizona Democratic Party’s executive board censured Sinema.

☆ Virginia Democratic congressman Donald McEachin dies
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 28 (Reuters) - U.S. Representative Donald McEachin, a Democrat from Virginia who was recently re-elected to his fourth term in Congress, died on Monday aged 61, his office said. McEachin had been battling colorectal cancer since 2013, his chief of staff, Tara Rountree, said in a statement. "It is with great sadness that I join Virginians tonight in mourning the loss of Congressman Donald McEachin: a tireless champion for Virginia families and a force for economic opportunity and environmental justice," U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement. Republicans won at least 220 seats in the Nov. 8 election against 213 by the Democrats, with five seats still to be determined. McEachin defeated Republican challenger Leon Benjamin Sr. by about 30 points in Virginia's fourth congressional district, which includes the state capital, Richmond.

☆ House Republicans say TikTok made misleading claims in briefings on data handling
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Washington CNN Business —House Republicans say TikTok may have misled congressional staff in private briefings about the company’s handling of US user data, in a new letter to the short-form video app this week. And it foreshadows how House Republicans, having gained a majority in the 2022 midterm elections, are likely to approach TikTok in the coming months. “Both claims appear to be misleading at best, and at worst, false,” Comer and McMorris Rodgers wrote. Tuesday’s letter calls on TikTok to preserve a broad swath of documents, communications and other records, in a preview of how House lawmakers could investigate the company in the coming months. And it reiterated a half-dozen other requests for information the GOP lawmakers had sent to the company during the summer.

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