A Republican state lawmaker in Maine announced Thursday that he would be leaving the GOP to become an independent. State Rep. Don Marean confirmed his decision to the Bangor Daily News, but did not offer an explanation for his choice to leave the Republican Party. Marean, who was reelected to his position last year, told the paper that he wouldn’t […]
A Texas state lawmaker suggested that he is not worried about the recent outbreak of measles across the country because antibiotics can treat the virus. Texas state Rep. Bill Zedler (R) made the comments Tuesday to the Texas Observer and said he had a case of measles when growing up, before a vaccine for it was developed. […]
Police in Portland, Ore., are facing accusations of “collusion” with right-wing extremists following the publication of text messages between Portland Police Lt. Jeff Niiya and far-right activist Joey Gibson. Gibson, the leader of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer, reportedly communicated in a friendly way with Niiya, including about plans for demonstrations that often turned into violent […]
Officials in Key West, Fla., took the first step toward banning the sale of sunscreens that contain ingredients considered harmful to coral reefs. The Key West City Commission voted unanimously 7-0 on Tuesday to to pass the measure, according to the Miami Herald. The measure must be reviewed and voted on again next month before it […]
Majority-white school districts received $23 billion more in funding than majority-nonwhite school districts in 2016 despite both groups serving nearly the same amount of students, a new report has found. The new report released Tuesday by EdBuild, a research and advocacy group based in New Jersey that focuses on education funding, found that the gap in […]
Advisers to Ralph Northam have reportedly urged the Democratic Virginia governor to watch the film, “Birth of a Nation,” to understand more about race in America amid the fallout over an old yearbook page of his featuring blackface and KKK imagery. An unnamed adviser told BuzzFeed News that Northam was not aware of the movie’s racist associations. The […]
Click:SWISS Cosmetic Device Voters in the heart of Appalachia on Tuesday picked a Republican to fill a state Senate seat previously held by Democrats, growing the Republican majority in the chamber — and extending a GOP winning streak in Democratic-held districts. Republican Phillip Wheeler beat out Democrat Darrell Pugh in Kentucky’s 31st district on Tuesday by […]
Washington state on Tuesday officially banned anyone under age 21 from buying semi-automatic assault rifles. The ballot initiative, which passed with 59 percent support of voters in November, sought to implement a series of gun control reforms, The Associated Press reported. The ballot initiative aims to limit gun violence by strengthening background checks for those buying assault […]
A Pennsylvania state lawmaker has proposed taxing violent video games in an effort to increase funding for school security. State Rep. Christopher Quinn (R) said the 10 percent tax on games rated “mature” or “adult only” would go towards funding school safety projects, such as the installation of metal detectors and additional security cameras or […]
A new bill proposed in Florida would allow school districts to teach alternatives to “controversial theories” such as human-caused climate change and evolution. State Sen. Dennis Baxley (R) sponsored the bill because he said that schools need to have the ability to teach “different worldviews,” according to the Tampa Bay Times. “Nothing is ever settled if […]