On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled that it would take an act of Congress, not a Trump-era regulatory rule, to ban bump stocks for firearms. Monday afternoon, New Mexico’s U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, joined by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), announced that they had organized nearly two dozen […]
Congress & Federal Gov.
New Mexico Democrats vote against the National Defense Authorization Act due to wedge-issue amendments
This story is republished from NM Political Report, a nonprofit news outlet, as a part of our commitment to bringing you the best in independent news coverage that matters to Albuquerque. By Susan Dunlap The bill passed by a 217-to-199 vote, on Friday, largely along party lines with Republicans introducing over 300 amendments to the […]
Tobacco-like warning label for social media sought by US surgeon general who asks Congress to act
By MICHELLE CHAPMAN The U.S. surgeon general has called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms similar to those now mandatory on cigarette boxes. In a Monday opinion piece in the The New York Times, Dr. Vivek Murthy said that social media is a contributing factor in the mental health crisis among young […]
Supreme Court strikes down Trump-era ban on rapid-fire rifle bump stocks, reopening political fight
By LINDSAY WHITEHURST The Supreme Court on Friday struck down a Trump-era ban on bump stocks, the rapid-fire gun accessories used in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, in a ruling that threw firearms back into the nation’s political spotlight. The high court’s conservative majority found that the Trump administration overstepped when it changed course from predecessors and banned bump […]
Unanimous Supreme Court preserves access to widely used abortion medication
By MARK SHERMAN WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously preserved access to a medication that was used in nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S. last year, in the court’s first abortion decision since conservative justices overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago. The nine justices ruled that abortion opponents lacked the legal right to sue over the federal Food […]
House votes to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for withholding Biden audio
By FARNOUSH AMIRI WASHINGTON (AP) — The House voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio of President Joe Biden’s interview in his classified documents case, Republicans’ latest and strongest rebuke of the Justice Department as partisan conflict over the rule of law animates the 2024 presidential campaign. The […]
$1M from feds would add transitional housing for homeless families
Transitional housing options for Albuquerque’s women and children exiting emergency shelters are limited and waitlists are long — circumstances that can result in a return to life on the streets for families experiencing homelessness. However, $1 million in funding requested by Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-NM, would expand housing availability for the vulnerable group. Transitional housing […]
Biden is said to be finalizing plans for migrant limits as part of a US-Mexico border clampdown
By COLLEEN LONG and SEUNG MIN KIM The White House is finalizing plans for a U.S.-Mexico border clampdown that would shut off asylum requests and automatically deny entrance to migrants once the number of people encountered by American border officials exceeded a new daily threshold, with President Joe Biden expected to sign an executive order […]
NRA can sue ex-NY official it says tried to blacklist it after Parkland shooting, Supreme Court says
By LINDSAY WHITEHURST A unanimous Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for a National Rifle Association lawsuit against a former New York state official over claims she pressured companies to blacklist it following the deadly 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Giving the NRA a new chance to prove its case, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that “the critical takeaway is […]
Members of the U.S. Senate face a vote on whether they support contraception access
BY JENNIFER SHUTT / Source NM WASHINGTON — U.S. senators will go on record next month with whether they support legislation from Democrats that would guarantee access to contraception — a right currently upheld by two Supreme Court cases, but one that has been singled out by a conservative justice. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a […]