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☆ What Christian Nationalism Has Done to Wyoming Is a Sin - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Susan Stubson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

What followed was an uncomfortable master class in racism and xenophobia as the man decanted the reasons our country is going down the tubes. I now understand the ugliness I heard was part of a current of Christian nationalism fomenting beneath the surface. And in large part, it’s my faith community, white, rural and conservative, that got them there. As my faith grew, so did Tim’s political career in the Wyoming Legislature (he served in the House from 2008 to 2017). Christian nationalists have hijacked both my Republican Party and my faith community by blurring the lines between church and government and in the process rebranding our state’s identity.

☆ Nebraska legislature passes bill to restrict abortions at 12 weeks, gender-affirming care for those under 19
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Jack Forrest | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —A Nebraska bill combining a ban on most abortions after 12 weeks and restrictions on gender-affirming care for transgender Nebraskans under 19 is poised to become law after the state’s unicameral legislature voted for its passage Friday. It will also severely restrict most abortions at 12 weeks after legislators added a last-minute amendment to the bill on May 17. The bill makes it illegal for medical personnel to perform an abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy — with exceptions for sexual assault, incest and medical emergencies. The bill does not define “medical emergency.”The bill also bans a range of treatments that fall under the umbrella of gender affirming care. Others, like puberty blockers and other hormone treatments, are the standard of care for many trans and nonbinary youth.

☆ The countdown is on for DeSantis' presidential kickoff, just as 2024 frontrunner Trump readies powerful exit from Florida
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Polling has him second to Trump, who has been living in Florida at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. Donald Trump's permanent residence is in Palm Beach, Florida, at his Mar-a-Lago oceanside estate. New Jersey, therefore, is set to become the new go-to spot for the GOP right around the time that the DeSantis campaign kicks off. On Monday, DeSantis' political team moved to a new office in Tallahassee, NBC News reported. The DeSantis political operation declined to share details of the governor's plans, including formal rollouts and events that may come later.

☆ DeSantis signs law to cover up records of his travel and visitors ahead of anticipated 2024 presidential run
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

DeSantis signed a bill into law that will hide his travel records from public view. DeSantis signed the bill into law unceremoniously on Thursday afternoon, among more than 35 other bills. The security argument was nonsensical to Ben Wilcox, research director and co-founder of the good government organization Integrity Florida, given that the new law will apply to past travel records. "It strains credulity to suggest that hiding travel records could somehow prevent a security breach in the future," Wilcox told Insider. Another elections related bill is headed for DeSantis that will allow him to maintain his seat as governor while running for president.

☆ DeSantis signed a bill into law that creates new hurdles for undocumented workers and patients in Florida. It provides $12 million to relocate migrants to blue states
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

DeSantis signed a bill into law to crack down on undocumented workers in Florida. The legislation includes $12 million to relocate migrants to blue states. Ron DeSantis signed a sweeping bill into law Wednesday that will make it harder for undocumented people to work in Florida, even though the measure fell short of his demands. DeSantis boasted about the stunt during a press conference in Jacksonville, Florida, on Wednesday, saying officials in blue states expected border states to "grin and bear" the care of an influx of migrants. DeSantis signed the immigration measures into law a day before before the federal Title 42 is set to expire.

☆ Hong Kong restricts foreign lawyers from national security cases
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Jessie Pang | Thomson Reuters | Jessie Pang Joined Reuters In After An Internship. She Covers Hong Kong With A Focus On Politics | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, May 10 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's legislature passed a legal amendment on Wednesday to prevent foreign lawyers working on national security cases, a restriction critics say will undermine fair trials and the right of defendants to choose their lawyers. The amendment enshrines in law a ruling from China's top lawmaking body last December that Hong Kong courts must get the approval of the city's leader before admitting a foreign lawyer without Hong Kong qualifications for national security cases. It would also discourage some foreign lawyers from getting Hong Kong restricts foreign lawyers from national security casesinvolved, he said. "The vague definition of 'cases concerning national security' in the bill implies that the government can arbitrarily use the new powers to allow or prohibit foreign lawyers from taking up local cases, whatever civil or criminal, on the over-broad ground of 'national security'," Lai said. Beijing imposed the national security law on Hong Kong in 2020 after months of anti-government protests.

Florida lawmakers sent DeSantis a bill that would let him stay governor while running for president. "I don't think we have seen a six-month stretch that has ever been this productive in the history of our state," DeSantis said at the Florida Capitol in Tallahassee on Friday. Should DeSantis be successful in a presidential run, he would follow in the footsteps of Democrat Bill Clinton and Republican George W. Bush. Ron DeSantis speaks during an election night watch party at the Convention Center in Tampa, Florida, on November 8, 2022. During a press conference in Panama City, Florida, on Thursday, DeSantis continued to play coy about his intentions.

☆ Florida just ranked as the top state for education, amid DeSantis battles on curriculum, books, and college leadership
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But on Tuesday, Florida came in first for education as part of the annual Best States rankings from US News & World Report. The Florida education model works." Students from the Miami-Dade County Public Schools School for Advanced Studies-Wolfson campus protest during a statewide walkout on April 21, 2023 in Miami, Florida. Florida Education Association President Andrew Spar panned the US News analysis as a "narrow view of education" and predicted curriculum restrictions and book removals would "impact student scores in the years ahead." Florida ranks 44th in the US for spending per student on public schools, according to the Florida Education Association, which is the state's teacher's union.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema’s Party of One
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Robert Draper | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Katie Hobbs, who received almost 11 percent of the Republican vote in her 2022 victory over the far-right Kari Lake. Sinema, even before she left the party in December, had become the Democrat whom Democrats love to hate. In January 2022, after her refusal to pass voting rights legislation by discarding the Senate filibuster that stood in the way, Sinema was censured by Arizona’s Democratic Party. “The decision was really a no-brainer,” a former state party official told me, adding that the censure resolution was supported by more than 90 percent of Arizona’s Democratic precinct committee members. Hobbs, on the other hand, relied heavily on the turnout of a progressive base that might have reacted poorly to Sinema’s presence on the stump.

☆ Column: Europe raises green energy climate hurdles with red tape revamp: Maguire
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

EMISSIONS TRADING TWEAKSThe European Union's Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is the region's main device for managing emissions by providing financial incentives to cut pollution while penalising high emitters. This is designed to prevent companies moving heavy polluting parts of their supply chain to areas outside of the EU ETS catchment area, and ensure that companies cannot merely outsource the dirtiest parts of the production phase elsewhere. However, this new mechanism runs the risk of eroding the cost competitiveness of hard-to-decarbonize sectors, such as steel and chemicals producers. The key now for Europe's lawmakers is to ensure that many of these new hurdles can still be cleared by key industries without undermining the economic competitiveness of the entire region. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Asked why he's getting crushed in the polls during his trip to Japan, DeSantis suggests his backsliding against Trump could change 'if and when' he makes his presidential run official
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

He has been slipping in the polls when compared to Trump. Ron DeSantis of Florida brushed off a question Monday about how he's been slipping in 2024 polls against former President Trump. Most recent polling shows Trump bests DeSantis 51% to 38% among GOP primary voters. Though DeSantis has been slipping in the polls, he still is the only candidate who consistently comes in second to Trump in a hypothetical matchup. DeSantis' tactics on Trump may also be a factor in why the governor is slipping in the polls.

☆ Lindsey Graham repeats false claim that Democrats support 'abortion at the moment of birth' on CNN
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Graham falsely claimed that Democrats support abortion up until the "moment of birth." Democrats in fact support legislation allowing abortion after viability only when the mother's life and health are at risk. The senator repeated claims that Democrats support elective abortion at birth – a claim that medical experts say is false. Abortion up to the moment of birth, taxpayer-funded," Graham, a Republican, told CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Union." They introduced legislation that allowed abortion demand with taxpayer-funded – you paying for it, the taxpayer – up to the moment of birth," Graham responded.

☆ Tennessee G.O.P. Cuts Session Short With No Action on Gun Control
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Emily Cochrane | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

NASHVILLE — Hundreds of students, parents and teachers marched to the Tennessee State Capitol, day after day, demanding a ban on assault weapons and action on gun control. Their calls were echoed by musicians like Amy Grant and Sheryl Crow, who trekked to the legislature to personally lobby lawmakers after a mass shooting at a Nashville Christian school. Several faith leaders joined the effort, writing to Republican leaders to urge them to support a proposal that would help temporarily restrict access to guns for people found by a court to be a danger to themselves or others. But on Friday, just under a month after the attack at the school, Republicans instead cut short the year’s legislative session and punted on any measure dealing explicitly with guns, capping a whirlwind three months of lawmaking that underscored the power of the far-right flank of the Republican Party in Tennessee and saw the brief expulsion of two Black Democratic lawmakers. “We’re not going anywhere,” she added.

☆ Stunning endorsement: DeSantis ally Rep. Byron Donalds backs Trump for president in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Byron Donalds, who has said he'd be interested in becoming governor of Florida, has endorsed Trump. Ron DeSantis, has endorsed Donald Trump for president in 2024. "President Trump is the leader in the clubhouse right now," he said. He added, however, that he thought DeSantis could beat Trump in a primary. "The current legal problems have rallied more Republican voters around Donald Trump," Donalds said.

☆ Gavin Newsom says he's taking a road trip through red states to fight the policies and 'anger machine' of DeSantis and other GOP governors
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is traveling to red states to tout the progressive agenda. Gavin Newsom of California already had a plan in the works to go on offense against Republican governors. California Gov. California Gov.

☆ Florida lawmakers are working at breakneck speed to pass DeSantis' agenda before a presidential run: 'Our colleagues are tripping over themselves'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

DeSantis is quickly signing bills into law in Florida this legislative session, which ends May 5. After the legislation session, DeSantis is expected to mount a presidential run, challenging Trump. Ron DeSantis that will give him a list of accomplishments to brag about during a widely anticipated 2024 presidential run. Lawmakers began meeting for their 60-day session just three weeks ago, and already the governor has signed bills into law amid much fanfare at public events. Last week DeSantis signed a bill to curb lawsuits in the state.

☆ As Cuba election day nears, some voters ask, 'why bother?'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Dave Sherwood | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

HAVANA, March 22 (Reuters) - Like a growing number of Cubans, 77-year-old Havana resident Humberto Avila says he will likely sit out Sunday's legislative elections. The retired university professor says he's done the math - 470 candidates, 470 open seats - and sees no point in voting. Abstention has spiked in recent elections, rising to a four-decade high of 31% of eligible voters in municipal elections in November. "This vote is for the Revolution ... and to continue to defend our socialist system," Diaz-Canel told textile workers in Santa Clara. Rey Lazaro Blanco, a 19-year old geography student at the University of Havana, told Reuters he will vote on Sunday.

☆ Trump's looming indictment causes his feud with DeSantis to boil over into insults and insinuations about a 'porn star' and 'underage' classmates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The Trump indictment news put DeSantis on the spot, given he's expected to run for president. "I don't know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair," DeSantis said. "But when he can actually make a positive difference — whether that's the Silicon Valley bailout or the Trump indictment — he shuts up for political convenience. Asked about the battle, DeSantis' political team pointed to the governor's comments Monday saying that he would not participate in helping Bragg with an extradition. Ron DeSantis' interview with the New York Post.

The president, the government and the majority," a senior MP in Macron's camp, Gilles Le Gendre, told Liberation newspaper. Another MP in Macron's camp, Patrick Vignal, bluntly urged the president to suspend the pension reform bill, which will raise the retirement age by two years to 64, given the anger it has triggered, and its deep unpopularity. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes 1 2 3 4 5While Borne said the administration would try in future to better involve citizens and unions in lawmaking, she gave no specifics, and both said they had devoted as much time to dialogue on the pension bill as possible. Other opposition MPs urged Macron to fire Borne, call snap elections and hold a referendum on the pension bill because of the widespread anger. Polls show a wide majority of French are opposed to the pension reform, as well as the government's decision to push the bill through parliament without a vote.

☆ Trump concedes DeSantis is his biggest rival and says he regrets endorsing him for governor: 'I don't think it's nice'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Trump told reporters that it would be disloyal for DeSantis to run for president in 2024. Trump said he regretted endorsing DeSantis in 2018, noting his backing helped him win. Speaking to a group of reporters aboard his plane Monday, Trump conceded that DeSantis was "probably" his biggest rival, and said he regretted endorsing him for governor in 2018. "And in the process, we beat the left day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year." Trump and DeSantis have roughly the same favorability among Iowans, according to a Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll released Friday.

☆ DeSantis' approach to a possible 6-week abortion ban in Florida could torpedo his shot at the presidency
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

GOP lawmakers in Florida have introduced a six-week abortion ban. But the ramifications of a six-week ban in Florida would go beyond politics. As the session kicked off in Tallahassee on Tuesday, the path to a six-week abortion ban in Florida appeared more clear than it did a few months ago. In a press conference with reporters, she acknowledged the math was difficult but vowed the party would fight, arguing that a six-week ban was broadly unpopular among Floridians. Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book, a Democrat of Plantation, Florida, accused Republicans of going "scorched earth" with their abortion ban bill.

☆ Factbox: What to look for at China's NPC meeting of parliament
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Laurie Chen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Besides meeting annually to deliberate legislation and appoint government personnel, it oversees the State Council, China's cabinet. Its top body, the roughly 170-member NPC Standing Committee, meets more frequently to pass legislation. The Standing Committee also has the power to amend semiautonomous Hong Kong's mini-constitution, known as the Basic Law. The NPC will also appoint top government positions including vice president, NPC chair, vice premiers, state councillors, head of the Supreme Court and ministers. Several NPC and CPPCC delegates have put forth policy proposals in recent days, with China's historically low fertility rate a hot topic.

But EU countries still need to rubber stamp the decision before it can take effect. EU countries' ambassadors on Friday cancelled the vote that had been planned for March 7, the spokesperson for Sweden said. Italy, which has previously said it will vote against the EU cars law, on Friday welcomed the postponement of the vote. Such an outcome, along with some resistance from Italy and some eastern European countries, could throw the whole EU ban into question. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will attend a German cabinet meeting at the Schloss Meseberg palace on Sunday, where the topic is likely to be discussed.

☆ Factbox: What to look for as China kicks off its annual session of parliament
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Laurie Chen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Besides meeting annually to deliberate legislation and appoint government personnel, it oversees the State Council, China's cabinet. Its top body, the roughly 170-member NPC Standing Committee, meets more frequently to pass legislation. The Standing Committee also has the power to amend semiautonomous Hong Kong's mini-constitution, known as the Basic Law. The NPC will also appoint top government positions including vice president, NPC chair, vice premiers, state councillors, head of the Supreme Court and ministers. China will announce its central and local government budgets, military spending budget and economic growth target on the opening day of the NPC.

☆ GOP lawmakers vilify ESG moves at BlackRock, Vanguard but take their money nonetheless
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

But Republicans have vilified BlackRock, Vanguard Group and State Street for leading the push on Wall Street to promote clean energy and what GOP lawmakers often title "left-wing social priorities." Still, many Republican lawmakers received money from the very firms their party is criticizing. It was the third election cycle in a row that both lawmakers took donations from the firm's PAC. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., received $10,000 from BlackRock and a combined $6,500 from Vanguard and State Street in the 2022 cycle. Huizenga's spokesman Brian Patrick said the donations won't affect the lawmaker's position on ESG issues.

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