Michigan Judge denies Trump campaign’s requests in election lawsuit, issues opinion
November 6th, 20200 LANSING – Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens issued her opinion today in Trump v Benson, the lawsuit filed by the Trump campaign against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. Stephens denied the campaign's request to stop vote counts and processing after she held a hearing and listened to arguments Thursday,...
Biden gets a critical push in Nevada, most remaining votes will likely favor him
November 6th, 20200 CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA — Nevada’s Clark County, which is home to Las Vegas, delivered more than 20,000 votes for former Vice President Joe Biden, more than double what President Trump received in the latest count early Friday. With this blow to Trump's electoral hopes, Biden has moved closer to securing that battleground...
Biden gains slight leads in PA and GA, GA goes to recount
November 6th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — Joe Biden has a sliver of a lead in the key battleground states of Pennsylvania and Georgia. President Trump’s slight lead in Pennsylvania diminished on Friday as mail-in ballots from across the state continued to be counted. Those ballots were overwhelmingly in Biden’s favor, giving him an edge by some 6,000...
Vote counts push Biden closer to victory as Trump falsely claims election being “stolen”
November 6th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — With his re-election chances fading as more votes are counted in a handful of battleground states, President Trump launched an extraordinary assault on the country’s democratic process from the White House on Thursday, falsely claiming the election was being “stolen” from him. Offering no evidence, Trump...
U.S. Supreme Court may not have final say in presidential election, despite Trump threat
November 4th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — While President Trump wants the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on a presidential race that is still too close to call, it may not be the final arbiter in this election, legal experts said. They said it was doubtful that courts would entertain a bid by Trump to stop the counting of ballots that were received...
Federal Judge blocks President Trump’s rule designed to stop immigrants seeking Green Cards
November 3rd, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — A U.S. District Judge in Chicago rejected a rule on Monday that was implemented by the Trump administration and aimed at denying Green Cards to immigrants utilizing food stamps and other public benefits. The rule was rejected by Judge Gary Feinerman. The Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights, as...
U.S. Election Day unfolds smoothly, so far defying fears of disruption
November 3rd, 20200 DETROIT/ATLANTA — Americans by the millions waited patiently to cast ballots at libraries, schools and arenas across the country on Tuesday, in an orderly show of civic duty that belied the deep tensions of one of the most polarizing presidential campaigns in U.S. history. The face masks worn by many voters and the sight of...
Polarized electorate, mail-in ballots could spark post-election legal “fight of our lives”
November 2nd, 20200 WILMINGTON, DEL — U.S. Election Day on Tuesday has all the ingredients for a drawn-out court battle over its outcome: A highly polarized electorate, a record number of mail-in ballots and some Supreme Court justices who appear ready to step in if there is a closely contested presidential race. The only missing element that would...
Record-breaking early voting in U.S. election tops 80 million
October 29th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 80 million Americans have cast ballots in the U.S. presidential election, according to a tally on Thursday from the U.S. Elections Project at the University of Florida, setting the stage for the highest participation rate in more than a century. The record-breaking pace, more than 58 percent of the total...
Exclusive: Q&A with Kamala Harris ahead of election
October 28th, 20200 DEARBORN — Democratic vice presidential nominee and California Senator Kamala Harris visited Metro Detroit last Sunday, making a notable, unannounced stop in Dearborn to grab dinner at the Khalaf Grill. The visit by Joe Biden's running mate was just one of several visits by both prominent Democratic and Republican candidates in the...
“Baptism by fire” for newly appointed Supreme Court Justice Barrett
October 27th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — Newly confirmed conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett faces a barrage of politically fraught cases in her first days on the job, as the court weighs election disputes and prepares to hear a challenge to the Obamacare healthcare law. On Monday, the Republican-controlled Senate pushed through...
Tlaib, AOC, Omar and Pressley call for international investigation into DHS human rights abuses
October 26th, 20200 WASHINGTON D.C. — On Monday, U.S. Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) sent a letter to calling for an international investigation into ongoing alleged human rights abuses by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The letter was sent to United...
U.S. early voting tops 60 million as historic pace continues
October 26th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 60 million Americans have cast ballots in the U.S. presidential election with eight days to go, a record-breaking pace that could lead to the highest voter turnout in over a century, according to data from the U.S. Elections Project on Monday. The tally is the latest sign of intense interest in the...
Trump rejoices as Senate panel approves Barrett while Democrats boycott
October 22nd, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Thursday, the Republican-led U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee approved President Trump’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to a lifetime Supreme Court seat despite a Democratic boycott, clearing the way for a final Senate confirmation vote planned for Monday. By a 12-0 vote, the panel approved Barrett with...
Lawsuit stops Trump cuts to SNAP food assistance for 700,000 unemployed Americans
October 22nd, 20200 LANSING – Attorney General Dana Nessel announced on Thursday that the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has permanently blocked an effort by the Trump administration to revoke Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility for more than 700,000 unemployed Americans. A lawsuit filed in January by......
Parents not found for 545 children separated at U.S.-Mexico border
October 21st, 20200 NEW YORK — Lawyers and non-profit organizations seeking to reunite immigrant families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border by the Trump administration have not been able to locate the parents of 545 children so far. A federal judge ordered thousands of families separated at the border in 2017 and 2018 to be reunited after a 2018...
Pelosi aide: U.S. coronavirus aid talks moving closer to deal
October 20th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The White House and Democrats in the U.S. Congress moved closer to agreement on a new coronavirus relief package on Tuesday as President Trump said he was willing to accept a large aid bill despite opposition from his own Republican Party. With just two weeks to go until the U.S. presidential election, Trump......
Jill Biden mobilizes voters at Shatila Bakery in Dearborn
October 20th, 20200 DEARBORN — Jill Biden, the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, will be attending a voter mobilization event at Shatila Bakery on Warren Avenue in Dearborn on Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 4 p.m. The event is invite-only and not open to the general public due to COVID-19 concerns. Dearborn is one of few stops Jill Biden will...
Wall Street climbs on optimism over stimulus deal talks
October 19th, 20201 NEW YORK — Wall Street’s main indexes inched higher at the open on Monday on hopes of a coronavirus vaccine by the year-end, while investors were also encouraged by signs an agreement in Washington on a fiscal package could be reached soon. Last week the White House proposed a $1.8 trillion stimulus package, but House Speaker Nancy...
“An evening of unity” with a fascist criminal is shameful
October 16th, 20201 This Sunday, Michigan's top elected officials will be addressing and attending the virtual event, "An evening of unity", sponsored by Yeshiva Beth Yehuda, the self-described "oldest and largest Jewish educational institution in Michigan." Governor Whitmer, Senator Debbie Stabenow, Senator Gary Peters, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan...
Khizr Khan, father of a slain U.S. soldier, backs Democratic party again ahead of November election
October 16th, 20200 DEARBORN — Khizr Khan, the Muslim American parent of a slain U.S. army captain who rose to prominence in 2016 while campaigning for Hillary Clinton and calling out then-candidate Donald Trump for his anti-immigrant stance, is back in the pre-election fold. Khan, who is Pakistani, is again criticizing President Trump, this time for......
Not all is lost after Census count stops, civil rights advocates say
October 16th, 20200 After a Supreme Court ruling this week allowed the Department of Commerce to stop Census enumeration efforts by Friday, Oct. 16, advocates point to other pending rulings and to the Nov. 3 elections as important determinants of what happens with the data that has been collected by the Census Bureau. Arturo Vargas, executive director of...
Analysis ranks Michigan as top state for bridging COVID racial disparities
October 16th, 20200 LANSING — A Politico analysis of responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. by various state governments shows certain states stand out in their approaches to public health, mass unemployment and school reopenings. Politico reporters looked at the states' responses by consulting various health researchers, academic experts and......
In split-screen town halls, Trump and Biden squabble over coronavirus response
October 16th, 20200 MIAMI/PHILADELPHIA — On Thursday, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden criticized what he called President Trump’s “panicked” response to the coronavirus pandemic, while Trump defended his handling of a crisis that has killed more than 216,000 Americans. The rivals spoke in simultaneous town halls broadcast on separate...
America’s standing in the world
October 15th, 20200 Call it American exceptionalism or not, the American people have always embraced the idea that we live in an exceptional country. We are grateful to be Americans. We take a lot of pride in our country, as we should. Pride and patriotism are among America’s greatest strengths. Having said that, we need to be clear-eyed about our......
