Federal and state lawmakers continue push for gun-control measures in wake of Highland Park mass shooting: ‘We are going to get it done’
As the legislation awaits a vote in the U.S. Senate, Schneider said additional laws are needed to reduce gun violence from mass shootings to suicides after five people were gunned down at a Colorado Springs nightclub and seven at a Chesapeake, Virginia Walmart in late November.
chicagotribune.comFederal loan center opens in Highland Park to help businesses, organizations impacted by parade shooting: ‘They need to be served’
U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering and officials from the U.S. Small Business Administration discussed relief available to businesses and other organizations impacted by the shooting Monday at the temporary SBA Business Recovery Center in downtown Highland Park.
chicagotribune.comA Biden edge in COVID-19 bill: Dems reluctant to wound him
Internal Democratic disputes remain over raising the minimum wage, how much aid to funnel to struggling state and local governments and whether to extend emergency unemployment benefits another month. The issue that's provoked the deepest divisions is a progressive-led drive to boost the federal minimum wage to $15 hourly over five years. More ominously, the Senate parliamentarian is expected to rule soon on whether the minimum wage provision must be tossed from the bill. Senate Budget Committee Chair Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., his chamber's chief minimum wage sponsor, said Democrats must “act boldly” and approve a package with the minimum wage increase. AdRepublicans said the measure's higher minimum wage and increased unemployment benefits would cost jobs or discourage people from seeking work, and said much of the spending was wasteful.
Activists wary of broader law enforcement after Capitol riot
Though there is no federal law that explicitly charges crimes as domestic terrorism, prosecutors have successfully used other statutes to cover conduct that might reasonably be seen as terrorism, including at the Capitol. No comparable law exists for people aligned with U.S.-based extremist groups, which enjoy expansive free speech protections. “Surveillance tactics and the eye of our law enforcement have always been trained on communities of color. Particularly Black communities,” Nelson said. Muslim Americans believe they've felt particular scrutiny since 9/11, including after the Patriot Act, legislation that afforded law enforcement new counterterrorism authority, as well as less intrusive initiatives like the Obama-era program designed to counter violent extremism.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene defends not wearing mask during Capitol attack lockdown
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also said it was "insane" for Democrats who have since tested positive for COVID-19 to blame Republicans. Greene spoke after Democratic Representatives Brad Schneider, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Pramila Jayapal all tested positive for COVID-19. Greene told Fox News she tested negative for COVID-19 on January 4 and said that Americans should not be forced to wear a mask. "Several Republican lawmakers in the room adamantly refused to wear a mask...even when politely asked by their colleagues," Schneider said. Jayapal noted in her statement that "several Republicans not only cruelly refused to wear a mask but mocked colleagues and staff who offered them one."
cbsnews.comFury at the shaken Capitol over the attack, security, virus
Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON – This time the fury enveloping the U.S. Capitol comes not from an insurgent mob but from within. The anger on display is searing — Democrat against Republican; Republican against Republican; legislators of both parties against the catastrophic security failure that left top leaders of the government vulnerable to last week's violence as well as to the coronavirus in their ranks. Shaken members, long accustomed to protective bubbles, inquired whether they can expense their own bulletproof vests to taxpayers (yes they can). McCarthy had joined most House Republicans in December in supporting a lawsuit to block Biden’s election, and again last week in two votes against certifying Biden’s win. In their oath of office, lawmakers vow to defend the Constitution “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”
Fury at the shaken Capitol over the attack, security, virus
Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON – This time the fury enveloping the Capitol comes not from an insurgent mob but from within. The anger on display is searing — Democrat against Republican; Republican against Republican; legislators of both parties against the catastrophic security failure that left top leaders of the government vulnerable to last week's violence as well as to the coronavirus in their ranks. Shaken members, long accustomed to protective bubbles, inquired whether they can expense their own bulletproof vests to taxpayers (yes they can). McCarthy had joined most House Republicans in December in supporting a lawsuit to block Biden’s election, and again last week in two votes against certifying Biden’s win. In their oath of office, lawmakers vow to defend the Constitution “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”
3rd House lawmaker tests positive for COVID-19 after lockdown during Capitol attack
Washington — A third House lawmaker has tested positive for COVID-19 after being exposed to the virus while in lockdown with some Republican members who refused to wear masks during the attack on the Capitol last week, bringing the total number who have so far tested positive to three. Congressman Brad Schneider announced he had tested positive for COVID-19 in a statement on Tuesday, and blamed Republicans for spreading the virus. Several Republican lawmakers in the room adamantly refused to wear a mask...even when politely asked by their colleagues," Schneider said. Left to right: Representatives Pramila Jayapal, Bonnie Watson Coleman, and Brad Schneider, who tested positive for COVID-19 after sheltering in place with other House members during the Capitol riot. Getty ImagesWatson Coleman, a 75-year-old cancer survivor, was the first to announce on Monday that she had tested positive.
cbsnews.comThree lawmakers test positive for Covid after Capitol lockdown
In statements announcing their positive test results, Jayapal and Schneider slammed Republicans who refused to wear masks while sheltering on Wednesday. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., announced early Tuesday that she had tested positive for Covid-19, becoming the second lawmaker to contract the virus after the riot. At least three Democratic lawmakers have tested positive for Covid-19 since being placed in lockdown last week during the siege of the Capitol. At least six House Republicans were filmed refusing to wear masks while in lockdown, according to a video posted online by Punchbowl News. Schneider also called for those who don't wear masks to be removed from the House floor.
cnbc.comCOVID fears grow in Capitol as three lawmakers test positive
A second Democratic member of the House who was forced to go into lockdown during last weeks violent protest has tested positive for COVID-19. Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington says she has tested positive. Those who tested positive were among dozens of lawmakers who were whisked to a secure location when pro-Trump insurrectionists stormed the Capitol on Wednesday. It's not certain where and when lawmakers caught the illness, but the Capitol’s attending physician notified all House lawmakers of possible virus exposure and urged them to be tested. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey said Monday that she had tested positive for COVID-19.
The Latest: US to allow more people to get coronavirus shots
___THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:The U.S. will allow more people to get coronavirus shots, including those 65 and older. Brad Little says people 65 and over will be able to get the coronavirus vaccine starting Feb. 1. Ontario reported 2,903 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, including eight new cases of a variant from the United Kingdom. ___MADRID — Spain is reporting 25,438 coronavirus cases and more than 400 deaths for the second day in a row. Italy added 14,242 coronavirus infections on Tuesday, increasing the tally to 2.3 million cases.