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GOP takes aim at Biden’s executive order on voter registration

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ATLANTA (AP) — Republicans and conservative activists are increasingly attacking an executive order issued three years ago by the Biden administration that goals to expand voter registration, saying it’s unconstitutional and an try and interfere within the November election.

A recent fundraising email from the GOP political motion committee is an example of the way it frames the regulation, claiming it forces federal agencies to “act as Biden’s personal Get Out the Vote machine.” A Republican-led House committee recently issued subpoenas for agency directors, and a bunch of GOP secretaries of state asked the Supreme Court to take up a case difficult the order.

Despite opposition from the appropriate, there is no such thing as a indication that the ordinance would favor voters of 1 party over the opposite.

White House spokeswoman Robyn Patterson said the administration will proceed to guard the voting rights of eligible residents no matter political affiliation. Biden issued such an order in 2021 as Republican legislatures across the country debated a wave of state voting restrictions based on false claims that widespread fraud cost former President Donald Trump his re-election.

“These are baseless claims made by the same people who spread debunked lies about the 2020 election and used those same debunked lies to enact laws across the country that make it harder to vote and more easily subvert the will of the people,” Patterson said in a press release .

A “Vote Here” sign is seen outside a polling place on November 8, 2022 in Sandy Springs, Georgia. After months of candidate campaigning, Americans are voting within the midterm elections to make your mind up tight races across the country. (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images) – Source: Photo: Alex Wong / Getty Images

Here’s what the order does, what federal agencies have done up to now to comply with it, and what Republicans are saying about it.

This is to make voting easier

Biden issued an executive order on March 7, 2021, noting the federal government’s “obligation to ensure that registering to vote and the act of voting is simple and easy for all who are eligible to do so” and that it might be implemented “in accordance with applicable law.” Agency leaders were asked to submit a strategic plan inside 200 days.

The order ordered updates to the federal website Vote.gov, including ensuring voting information is out there in greater than a dozen languages. The site does indirectly address voter registration, but connects visitors with state and native election offices to start the registration process.

The order specifically mentions the Department of Defense and asks it to determine procedures to be sure that active-duty military personnel have the chance to register annually, update their voter registration information, or request an absentee ballot.

It also directs the Department of Justice to supply educational materials about registering and voting to people in federal custody as they prepare for release, together with details about rules that will prohibit them from voting.

Republicans query this approach

A 12 months after the order was issued, congressional Republicans sent a letter to the White House expressing concerns that the administration had overstepped its authority and ordered federal agencies to interact in activities beyond their missions.

Republicans say the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service has informed state agencies that the prices of providing voter registration services are allowable administrative expenses under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and will be “reimbursed at 50 percent.”

“The use of the multibillion-dollar National Nutrition Program to implement the Biden administration’s voter registration program is not only a cause for concern, but requires further analysis,” the Republicans wrote.

According to a former White House official who helped implement the order, the letter didn’t indicate that states administer the food assistance program and that states were specifically directed to supply voter registration information under a federal law passed years ago.

Justin Levitt, who was a senior policy adviser at the White House, also said the agency was merely reiterating earlier guidance that these expenses were reimbursable.

Months later, Republicans sent letters to federal agencies requesting information on plans to implement the order. They also included repealing an executive order in a sweeping election bill introduced last 12 months.

Last month, the chairman of the House Administration Committee sent letters requesting documents related to the order and set a two-week deadline for its implementation. Then the chairman, Wisconsin Republican Bryan Steil, issued a subpoena. He called the federal regulation “another attempt by the Biden administration to tip the scales before 2024.”

A White House official said the Office of Management and Budget sent an initial response and other agencies were working to answer the committee because it issued the subpoenas.

Order requires state entry

While federal agencies didn’t publicize their proposals, they did announce steps they were taking to implement the order.

Levitt, a lawyer and constitutional law expert, called the order groundbreaking but limited in scope. While federal law allows agencies to help with voter registration, he said military recruitment offices were the one ones doing so before Biden issued the executive order. He also said the federal agency can only do it if a state requests it.

“Most of what the agencies did was either directly do what the states asked them to do or clarify the rules so people know what the rules are,” Levitt said.

In Kansas and New Mexico, two Native American colleges run by the U.S. Department of the Interior served as voter registration agencies. Kentucky and Michigan said they’d designate Veterans Administration offices of their states. Michigan also plans so as to add offices for the federal Small Business Administration.

I’m asking for the intervention of the Supreme Court

A bunch of Republicans who function their state’s top election officials were also critical of the order, calling it undue federal influence over the administration of state elections.

West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner sent a letter in May 2022 asking Biden to repeal it and spoke against it during congressional testimony last 12 months. A couple of months ago, he issued a press release saying his state would refuse to just accept any voter registration forms collected by federal agencies.

“Adding federal agencies to an already complex administrative process will make it even more difficult for election officials to provide timely and accurate election registration services,” he said in an April statement.

In May, Warner and eight other GOP secretaries of state filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court asking the justices to take up a case difficult that ruling. The others were from Arkansas, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Tennessee and Wyoming.

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The court rejected the request to take up and choose the case by the tip of June and can take care of it for the primary time only in early autumn, at the primary private conference of judges. In the unlikely event that the court agrees to listen to the case, hearings is not going to be held until early next 12 months.

“Innocent as ordered”

Republicans opposing the executive order called it “Bidenbucks,” an obvious reference to the controversy that erupted after the 2020 election when Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg donated over $350 million to the inspiration. non-profit organization which was later distributed to election offices. Republicans say the “Zuckerbucks” campaign was an try and profit Democrats.

David Becker, a former Justice Department lawyer who heads the Center for Election Innovation and Research, said the timing of heightened criticism – years after Biden’s executive order and just months before the presidential election – is noteworthy.

“It’s portrayed as a deep-state power grab, when in fact it’s about ensuring that eligible citizens working with the federal government can easily register or update their registration,” Becker said. “It’s as harmless as an order.”

He said a vital advantage of the federal regulation is that voters already registered have the chance to update their information. It provides more accurate voter rolls, which Republicans say is required.

“It’s good for election integrity. It encourages participation,” Becker said. “It used to be uncontroversial.”

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Politics and Current

Kamala Harris Recognized for Her Spotlight on Race and Reparations During NABJ-WHYY Interview

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Kamala Harris, theGriio.com

In a wide-ranging interview with the National Association of Black Journalists and public radio station WHYY, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke more broadly about race than at some other time since becoming a presidential candidate and then the Democratic Party nominee.

The historic presidential figure (Harris is the primary Black woman and Indian-American to be nominated by a significant party) made her first appearance as vice chairman on the difficulty of reparations and outlined the systemic harms inflicted on Black communities by U.S. history, including African-American slavery and racial oppression.

“We need to tell the truth in a way that leads to solutions,” said Harris, who co-sponsored HR40 when she was a U.S. senator.

While members of the Congressional Black Caucus and advocates have called on President Joe Biden to take executive motion within the absence of three many years of inaction on Capitol Hill, the presidential candidate has signaled she believes it should come through Congress. She cited Congress’s ability to carry hearings and “raise awareness” in regards to the history of slavery and racial discrimination.

However, the vice chairman added: “I am not downplaying the significance of any executive action.”

Referring to her economic plan if she wins the White House in November, Harris said her ideas for creating an “opportunity economy” would aim to “explicitly address the obstacles that exist historically and currently” in areas similar to student loan debt, health care debt, biased home valuations and black maternal mortality.

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris (left) is interviewed by National Association of Black Journalists members Gerren Keith Gaynor (far right), Eugene Daniels (second from right) and Tonya Mosley (third from right) on the WHYY studios in Philadelphia, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

“I am pleased that Vice President Harris has recognized the important role truth plays in our pursuit of racial healing and transformation,” said Lee. “My legislation to establish a Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation would usher in a moment of truth-telling by educating and informing the public about the historical context of the racial inequities we witness every day.”

But Hunter said that despite Harris’ clear preference for congressional motion on the commission’s creation, such a commission through executive motion “could be a source of legislative policy.” He continued,

Political pundit and radio host Reeta Colbert admitted that Harris “hung around” during her CNN interview and presidential debate with Trump to discuss her racial identity.

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This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Airlines forces 14-year-old girl off plane due to weight and balance issues, leaving her to fend for herself

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The mother of a teen who was banned from a plane in Canada due to a weight imbalance is outraged at how the incident has put her daughter’s safety in danger.

According to the CBC, 14-year-old Camryn Larkan boarded a Porter Airlines flight home from Toronto to Victoria, British Columbia, on August 30 after visiting family and friends. Once she was seated on the plane, a flight attendant approached her and told her she had to get off the plane.

14-year-old stuck at the airport
14-year-old forced to leave plane due to “weight and balance” issues. (Source: Pexels)

“I was a little disoriented… I thought I was going to go back to my seat. I thought they were just going to take my bags.” – Camryn he said CBC. “As soon as I got off the plane and saw the doors close, that’s when I started, you know, getting really concerned.”

Porter Airlines pulled Camryn from the flight due to a “weight and balance issue.” The airline said agents asked for volunteers, but when nobody got here forward, “passengers were selected based on ticket type.”

After Camryn and several other passengers were asked to leave the plane, a Porter Airlines agent arranged for Camryn to fly to Victoria the subsequent day. Camryn immediately called her father, who got here to pick her up on the airport.

Camryn’s mother expressed her frustration, saying the airline completely mishandled her daughter’s exit from the plane.

“They put my child in immediate danger,” Catherine Larkan said. “It was complete neglect and it shouldn’t happen to any other minor.”

The airline’s policy is that unaccompanied minors are exempt from involuntary disembarkation. The company offers a $100 service plan for children traveling alone. The plan is required for children ages 8 to 11 and optional for children ages 12 to 17.

Camryn’s family didn’t know the service existed, so the airline treated the 14-year-old as an adult.

“At the time, our team was unaware that Camryn was a minor,” a Porter Airlines spokesperson said. “Camryn left the airport quickly and our team had limited ability to discuss options with her.”

Children travelling without an unaccompanied minor plan are considered “independent adults” and are subject to “adult passenger considerations such as weight, balance and unloading situations.”

“They provide a service, saying we know these people are at risk, and they say if you don’t pay for the service, you’re going to be treated like any other adult passenger traveling,” Camryn’s mother said. “It’s just absolutely absurd.”

An airline representative told People magazine that its customer support department is in touch with Camryn’s family and that Porter Airlines is working on solutions to minimize the chance of an incident like this happening again.

This article was originally published on : atlantablackstar.com
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Here’s What You Need to Know About Threats in Springfield, Ohio, After False Accusations About Haitian Immigrants

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Haitian immigrants in Springfield Ohio, theGrio.com

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio (AP) — A small Ohio town has been flooded with false bomb threats since last week’s presidential debate, when former President Donald Trump falsely accused Members of Springfield’s Haitian community kidnap and eat cats and dogs.

Trump’s vice presidential candidate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, has amplified debunked web rumors about Haitian migrants because the Republican ticket criticizes President Joe Biden’s administration’s immigration policies, which Trump’s Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, supports. City officials acknowledge that the influx of about 15,000 Haitian migrants is causing problems, but say there is no such thing as a evidence to support the claim that they’re eating people’s pets.

More than 30 bomb threats since last week have targeted schools, government buildings and the homes of city officials, forcing evacuations and closures. Springfield also canceled its annual diversity, arts and culture celebration in response to the threats, and state police on Tuesday distributed in city schools.

Here are some things to know concerning the situation in Springfield:

Who is behind these false threats?

Foreign actors, in particular. That’s according to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican who said many of the threats got here from abroad. The governor’s office said a criminal investigation by multiple law enforcement agencies found the “vast majority” of the threats were international in origin. Officials didn’t provide further details on how investigators determined they got here from a foreign country, and DeWine didn’t name the country.

What’s happening?

DeWine has sent dozens of Ohio State Highway Patrol members to all 18 city schools, where checks might be conducted twice every day to prevent further disruptions and help parents and students ensure that the buildings are secure. But even with the increased police presence, many parents still didn’t let their children go to school Tuesday.

Meanwhile, security cameras have been placed at strategic locations around the town, and an explosives-sniffing dog has been deployed to Springfield and might be on duty 24 hours a day.

DeWine $2.5 million declared greater than two years to increase support for primary health care. State highway patrol also helps local law enforcement implement traffic laws. DeWine said many Haitians are inexperienced drivers who’re unfamiliar with U.S. traffic laws.

How is the town reacting?

Springfield never wanted to be the focus — not like this.

City officials said Tuesday that misinformation and lies about Haitian immigrants have sown fear and division, disrupted science and price taxpayers money. In an announcement, they implored public figures, community members and media to “move beyond divisive rhetoric and instead work to promote unity, understanding and respect.” The statement didn’t mention Trump or Vance by name.

Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said the influx of migrants is straining police, hospitals and schools. He also criticized the federal government, saying the town asked for help months ago. But on Tuesday he urged national leaders to “soften their words and speak the truth.”

Why did so many Haitians move to Springfield?

Work and word of mouth.

Springfield in consequence, industrial jobs were lost and the population dropped significantly late last century. But the town made a concerted effort to attract employers and Haitian immigrants who helped meet the growing demand for employees in its factories and warehouses. Word spread, and Haitians began arriving in larger numbers in the past few years.

Haitians from Springfield and elsewhere have come to the U.S. to escape violence in their home country. Many Haitians are here under a federal program called Temporary Protected Statusallowing them to live and work temporarily in the U.S. because conditions in Haiti are deemed too dangerous for them to return to the island.

What do Haitian immigrants say?

Members of the Haitian community say they were uneasy even before Trump and Vance picked up on the pet-eating lies, as former residents were angered by the brand new arrivals’ impact on jobs, housing and traffic.

“Some of them are talking about living in fear. Some of them are afraid for their lives,” Rose-Thamar Joseph said last week on the Springfield Haitian Community Outreach and Support Center.

On church service on Sunday, Mia Perez said her daughter was evacuated from school twice last week.

“Children at school are asked by other children, ‘What does dog taste like? What does cat taste like?'” Perez said. “She asks, ‘Are we Haitians who eat this stuff? Is it true? What’s going on?'”

“It’s a conversation I wasn’t ready to have with my daughter,” Perez said. “I felt disrespected by our culture.”

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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