Policy
Supreme Court sides with FCC power in forfeiture process
The Supreme Court upheld on Thursday the Federal Communications Commission’s power to issue findings that companies broke the law, turning aside challenges from telecommunications giants that the agency had to go to the courts first. The 8-1 decision found that the FCC’s forfeiture process does not run afoul of the Constitution because it requires going […]
Consent questions raised at data privacy bill hearing
Data privacy legislation put forward by House Republicans is friendly to businesses, Republicans and Democrats agree; whether or not that’s a good thing depends on which side of the aisle members sit on. Republicans say the legislation would provide clarity for businesses and uniform protections for consumers around the country. Democrats say the bill would […]
Congress finds a unifying issue — geothermal energy
Republicans and Democrats in Congress seem to have found a unifying issue, and it’s a hot one lurking beneath the earth’s surface: geothermal energy. Without objection and without partisan digs from either side, the House on Tuesday passed by voice vote a package of six bills — three from Republicans and three from Democrats — […]
Executive order sets voluntary cyber reviews for advanced AI
Developers of frontier artificial intelligence models will have the option to voluntarily submit new technologies for review by federal cybersecurity agencies under a new executive order that comes after President Donald Trump backed away from an expected order last month. Trump issued the executive order on Tuesday morning in a private signing. It represents the […]
Administration sticks with Congress on Medicaid work mandate exemptions
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Monday outlined states’ obligations to implement upcoming Medicaid work requirements, issuing a rule that closely adheres to a list of exemptions already found in federal law. The work requirements, passed as part of the Republican 2025 reconciliation law, are set to take effect in January. The law […]
Alabama groups urge Supreme Court to halt congressional map
Challengers to Alabama’s latest redistricting push urged the Supreme Court on Monday not to let the state use a congressional map in this fall’s elections that a lower court found likely discriminated against Black voters. The groups, including voters and Democratic officials in the state, argued the justices should keep the state’s congressional lines used […]
Judge blocks moves to add Trump to Kennedy Center name
A federal judge in Washington on Friday blocked the Trump administration’s moves to rename the Kennedy Center after President Donald Trump and close the center for two years — and gave two weeks for removal of the changed signage on the building’s façade. The opinion and order came in a lawsuit filed in December by […]
Judge temporarily halts DOJ ‘anti-weaponization fund’
A federal judge in Virginia on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from proceeding with the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” created by the Justice Department last week. The two-page order from Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia directed the administration not to take any steps to […]
Judge declines to block parts of Trump mail voting order, for now
A federal judge on Thursday denied an effort to pause President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to restrict mail voting in federal elections, finding that it was too early to say whether anyone has been harmed by the effort. The opinion and order, from Judge Carl Nichols for the U.S. District Court for the District […]
Prediction markets put under spotlight by House Oversight panel
Prediction markets are under new scrutiny from Congress as lawmakers mull a ban on members betting on the platforms. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee officially launched an investigation Friday into insider trading on the platforms, spurred by suspicious bets on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and the war in Iran. Committee […]