Latest Politics Headlines

All the headlines from our Politics Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Court: Former Work Comp Commissioner Can Sue Iowa over Alleged GOP Reprisals

Jul 6 2017 // In a landmark decision making it easier for citizens to sue government officials who violate their rights, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled that a Democratic appointee can seek damages for alleged political retaliation he...

Senate Republicans Delay Healthcare Vote as Support Wanes

Jun 27 2017 // U.S. Senate Republican leaders postponed a vote on a healthcare overhaul on Tuesday after resistance from members of their own party, and President Donald Trump summoned Republican senators to the White House to urge them...

Senate Health Bill in Jeopardy as 3 Republican Senators Oppose

Jun 26 2017 // At least three Republican senators said they would vote to block the current version of their party’s health-care bill from advancing, endangering Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s plan to repeal...

North Carolina Senate Passes Legislation to Reduce Opioid Abuse

Jun 23 2017 // Legislation aimed at reducing opioid abuse and overdoses has passed the North Carolina Senate with unanimous bipartisan support.The measure approved Wednesday changes how drugs such as OxyContin and morphine are prescribed...

Senate Republicans Unveil Secret Draft of Their Health Insurance Plan

Jun 22 2017 // Senate Republicans’ proposal to replace Obamacare would provide an additional $50 billion over four years to stabilize insurance exchanges, relying on a mechanism Republicans have criticized in the past as a way to...

Senate Confirms New FEMA Chief Long

Jun 21 2017 // Brock Long was cleared by the Senate to become President Donald Trump’s emergency-management director Tuesday after gaining the support of one unlikely constituency: environmentalists.While climate advocates panned...

Trump Nominee Kaplan to Tilt Labor Board to Republican Majority

Jun 21 2017 // President Donald Trump was poised on Tuesday to nominate Washington lawyer Marvin Kaplan to the National Labor Relations Board, nudging the agency toward a Republican majority that could overturn a series of decisions that...

Connecticut Governor Says State Senate Bill Ignores Insurance Industry Concerns

Jun 5 2017 // Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy sharply criticized the Connecticut Senate for unanimously passing legislation early Friday that creates a new mandate for health insurers, arguing the bill shows a “lack of...

Texas Senate Passes Texting While Driving Ban

Jun 5 2017 // The Texas Senate on May 19 passed a measure banning texting while driving statewide.HB 62 by Midland Rep. Tom Craddick previously was approved by the House. While more than 100 cities in the state have texting and driving...

Illinois Senate Passes Bills Requiring Work Comp Pre-Approval, Creating Nonprofit Insurer

May 30 2017 // The Illinois Senate has passed two workers’ compensation measures — one that would require companies writing workers’ comp insurance to get state approval for the rates they charge, and another that creates a...

Republican Health Bill Would Cut Deficit by $119B, Add 23 Million Uninsured: CBO

May 25 2017 // A bill passed by U.S. House Republicans would cause 23 million people to lose healthcare coverage by 2026 while de-stabilizing health insurance markets in some states and making it hard for sick people to buy insurance, a...

Texas Senate Passes Texting While Driving Ban

May 22 2017 // The Texas Senate on May 19 passed a measure banning texting while driving statewide.HB 62 by Midland Rep. Tom Craddick previously was approved by the House. While more than 100 cities in the state have texting and driving...

Democratic Attorneys General Move to Defend Obamacare Insurer Subsidies

May 19 2017 // More than a dozen Democratic attorneys general on Thursday sought to intervene to defend a key part of the Obamacare healthcare law — subsidy payments to insurance companies — which is under threat in a court...

Bill Setting Statewide Rules for Ridesharing Companies Passes Texas Senate

May 18 2017 // A bill that would preempt local regulations for ridesharing companies in Texas and replace them statewide standards has passed the Texas Senate. It now heads to the desk of Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.HB 100,...

Republican Governors Have Own Ideas for Healthcare Reforms

May 18 2017 // A group of about a dozen Republican governors is pushing for its own set of national healthcare reforms, flexing its considerable muscle in the national debate over the future of Obamacare as the U.S. Senate begins writing...

Texas Senate Committee Again Looks at Texting Ban

May 16 2017 // Another bill that would ban texting and driving has been taken up by the Senate State Affairs committee.The committee approved the Senate version, SB 31 by Laredo Sen. Judith Zaffirini in March, but the measure never made...

Berkshire’s Buffett Says Republican Health Plan Is Tax Cut for Wealthy

May 8 2017 // Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Chairman Warren Buffett on Saturday fumed that healthcare costs are eating away at the U.S. economy like “tapeworm” and said the Republican approach to overhaul Obamacare is a tax cut...

House Passes Obamacare Repeal, 217-213; Senate Support in Doubt

May 4 2017 // House Republicans mustered just enough votes to pass their health-care bill Thursday, salvaging what at times appeared to be a doomed mission to repeal and partially replace Obamacare under intense pressure from President...

Louisiana GOP Seeks to Divert $190M in Flood Aid to Protection Project

May 4 2017 // House Republican lawmakers are proposing to divert $190 million of Louisiana’s congressional disaster-recovery money to a flood-protection project, a move that would shrink aid earmarked for homeowners struggling to...

Republicans Schedule Health Insurance Vote for Today

May 4 2017 // House Republicans plan to vote Thursday on their long-stalled Obamacare repeal measure, setting up a high-stakes test given the continuing doubts about whether they have enough votes to guarantee passage.“We’re...