“Prominent Democrats have increasingly softened their opposition to voter identification requirements in recent days, signaling a new openness to measures that activists have long vilified as an insidious method of keeping minorities from the ballot box,” the Washington Post reports.
Pelosi Will Use Select Committee for Jan. 6 Probe
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) told the House Steering and Policy Committee that she will appoint a select committee to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection, CNN reports.
Axios: “The creation of such a committee means House Democrats, who currently have a majority, would be responsible for the investigation.”
Abbott Calls Special Session of Texas Legislature
Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has set a special session of the Texas Legislature starting July 8, the Texas Tribune reports.
“Abbott has already said that he plans to ask state lawmakers to work on two priority elections and bail bills that died in the final hours of the regular legislative session after House Democrats walked out of the chamber.”
“More recently, Abbott has said the agenda for the Legislature’s overtime round will also include further restricting in schools the teaching of critical race theory, which refers to an academic discipline that explores the role racism plays in institutions and structures of governance.”
Senate Republicans Block Voting Rights Bill
The U.S. Senate refused to advance a landmark voting rights bill after every Republican voted against it.
The vote was 50 to 50, but needed 60 “yes” votes to allow debate to proceed.
FiveThirtyEight: Why Republicans won’t support sweeping voting rights legislation now… or anytime soon.
Joint Chiefs Disapprove of Military Justice Overhaul
“The top leaders of the Army, Navy, Marines and other military branches voiced concern about legislation that would make sweeping changes in the military justice system, expressing their views in letters to a leading Republican opponent of the bill,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The legislation, which supporters say will better combat sexual harassment and assault within military ranks, has the support of two-thirds of all senators.”
Covid-19 Rebounds In Southern States
“Covid-19 transmission is accelerating in several poorly vaccinated states, primarily in the South plus Missouri and Utah, and more young people are turning up at hospitals. The data present the clearest sign of a rebound in the U.S. in months,” Bloomberg reports.
“In Missouri, Arkansas and Utah, the seven-day average of hospital admissions with confirmed Covid-19 has increased more than 30% in the past two weeks.”
Mike Lindell Promises Trump Will Be President by Fall
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell said he’s going to host a “cyber symposium” where he’ll present proof that the 2020 election was rigged, according to Right Wing Watch.
Said Lindell: “Boom. It’s going to be a worldwide event. Millions are going to see it, and those Supreme Court justices are going to look at it then, and they’re going to go 9-0 that this country was attacked. The election is gonna come down. Donald Trump will be in office by this fall, for sure.”
Congressional Honeymoon Ends as Democrats Sour
Gallup: “While Americans’ support for Biden is holding firm, their approval of Congress slipped to 26% this month, from 31% in May. It is now 10 points below this year’s high of 36% recorded in March, around the time Congress passed the largely popular CARES Act, which provided $1.9 trillion in new COVID-19 economic relief.”
“The mechanics of the recent decline in congressional approval are clear, as support fell sharply among Democrats, to 38%, down from 54% last month.”
Arizona Democrats Leave Capitol to Block Tax Votes
“Arizona House Democrats refused to show up at the Capitol on Tuesday, blocking debate on a budget and a major tax cut primarily benefiting the wealthy,” the Associated Press reports.
“The move kept the House short of the number of lawmakers required to conduct business, forcing Republican House leaders to delay budget work until Thursday, when all GOP lawmakers are expected to be at the Capitol.”
Abbott Vetoes Bill to Protect Dogs
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) vetoed bipartisan legislation that would have banned tethering dogs outside with heavy chains, the Houston Chronicle reports.
The hashtag #AbbottHatesDogs is now trending on Twitter.
Nearly 900 Secret Service Members Got COVID-19
Between March 1, 2020 and March 9, 2021, 881 Secret Service members tested positive for COVID-19, according to government records.
Miller Won’t Challenge Abbott for Texas Governor
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller (R) announced he would seek reelection, putting to rest speculation that he could challenge Gov. Greg Abbott (R) for the top elected position in the state, the Texas Tribune reports.
Manchin Will Vote to Advance Voting Rights Bill
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) he’s reached an agreement with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) where Manchin will vote yes to open debate on the election overhaul bill, CNN reports.
That allows Democrats to stay unified on the bill even though it won’t survive a Republican filibuster.
Democrats Grow More Critical of Israel
Politico: “Ilhan Omar started out in Congress as a somewhat lonely critic of decades of U.S. policy in the Middle East. Now, six months into her second term, the Minnesota Democrat has new and diverse allies. … Democrats are showing they’re increasingly comfortable backing her up, particularly as she hammers the Israeli government in ways that buck long-held bipartisan traditions in Washington.”
“That friendlier posture toward Omar indicates that her party’s shift on America’s role in the Middle East was more than just a short-term fixture of the recent 11-day conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza… A generational divide within the Democratic Party has elevated younger lawmakers’ calls for a recalibration in U.S. policy toward Israel.”
Michigan County Votes to ‘Audit’ 2020 Election Results
“The board of commissioners in a northern Michigan county that supported Donald Trump voted to pursue an audit of its election Tuesday,” the Detroit News reports.
Democratic Group Will Pour $20M Into Voting Rights
New York Times: “The digital effort will include a series of extensive voter information campaigns, going beyond a more traditional approach that would consist solely of persuasion ads. Their overall goal is to help people navigate a new balloting landscape created by the many new restrictions passed by Republicans in at least 16 states.”
“The campaigns will also provide voting tools like text message reminders to register to vote or request an absentee ballot.”
It Could Take Weeks to Know Winner of NYC Primary
Playbook: “There are 13 candidates on the ballot, and polls show no one coming remotely close to a majority. That means it’s virtually certain that we won’t have an outright winner tonight, and it will be necessary to move to the ranked-choice, ‘instant runoff’ tabulation to determine the Democratic nominee.”
“But ‘instant’ it is not — far from it. The problem is you need to know which candidates finished the race in which places before their supporters can be reallocated in the correct order. And that’s only possible after all the votes are tabulated.”
“The city board of elections is reportedly not going to run those calculations for the first time until next Tuesday. And that will only include votes cast in person — whether today or during the early-voting period, which ended Sunday. Then there are absentee ballots, which won’t start to be added to the tallies until after the Fourth of July. That means it could be until the middle of next month before a winner can be identified.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“Every death is tragic. Nearly every death is, at this point, entirely preventable… We know our vaccines work.”
— CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, quoted by The Guardian.
