In the News
The U.S. Congress has proposed a bill to prohibit the government from conducting any preemptive strikes against North Korea.
A group of 65 lawmakers — led by U.S. Representative for California, Ro Khanna — submitted the bill named "No Unconstitutional Strike Against North Korea Act," last week, according to Congress.
The bill is under review from military committees of Congress.
Shortly after Amazon — a company worth more than $500 billion — announced last year it would be building a second headquarters, dubbed HQ2, it was deluged with hundreds of bids by municipalities and state governments offering all sorts of taxpayer giveaways to reel the company in.
The bidding war served as a sort of absurd reality show, as cities competed to win the affection of Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos. Only instead of a "Bachelor"-esque rose ceremony, Amazon in mid-January released a shortlist of 20 cities and regions among which it will now pick one to establish HQ2.
Miral Patel feels guilty every time she fills her car with gas. Or every time she goes out to eat. When she buys her husband birthday gifts, she uses his credit card.
When Patel, 31, of Mountain View, came to the United States from India three years ago, she wasn't allowed to hold a job. A few months later, the U.S. granted spouses of certain visa holders work permits. But since then, the Trump Administration has indicated it will end this rule, and could make it official as early as next month.
Dozens of lawmakers sent a letter to President Donald Trump, urging him to reestablish military-to-military contact with North Korea in order to prevent any miscalculations that could evolve into "a great conflict, including nuclear war."
The letter, signed by 32 Democrats and one Republican, said: "We write to request the reestablishment of military-to-military communication between the United States and North Korea. The U.S. should do all in its power to avoid misunderstandings that could escalate to a great conflict, including nuclear war."
A newspaper report that said federal immigration officials are preparing to conduct massive raids in Northern California prompted a quick response from California Attorney General Xavier Becerra this week.
Becerra acknowledged the federal government's jurisdiction over immigration enforcement, but said it must respect the state's laws and its right to determine how to keep Californians safe.
Yesterday, Representatives Barbara Lee and Ro Khanna introduced a house bill aimed to reform federal cannabis laws and foster healing in communities that prohibition has hurt most.
Introduced in the Senate last August by New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, the 'Marijuana Justice Act of 2017' seeks to remove cannabis from the U.S.' illegal and restricted drug 'schedule,' and to address the destructive impacts that cannabis prohibition continues to have on both individuals and their government.
More than 30 lawmakers are calling on President Trump to reestablish military-to-military communications with North Korea.
"The U.S. should do all in its power to avoid misunderstandings that could escalate to a greater conflict, including nuclear war," the lawmakers wrote in a letter to Trump on Thursday.
DRIVING THE DAY — CONGRESS HURTLES TOWARD A SHUTDOWN, write POLITICO's Burgess Everett, John Bresnahan and Rachael Bade: "Congress is careening toward the first shutdown in more than four years, with Republicans and Democrats at a seemingly intractable impasse over government funding and the fates of young immigrants facing deportation.
The war on the war on weed has officially begun.
Two weeks ago, Attorney General Jeff Sessions rolled back protections for states that legalized the cultivation and sale of marijuana. Now, politicians in pro-pot states are pushing back. On Wednesday, attorneys general from 19 states wrote a letter to Congress seeking expanded authority to allow marijuana businesses to store their money in federally regulated banks.
A group of House Democrats on Wednesday introduced a bill to legalize marijuana at the federal level and expunge federal convictions for marijuana use or possession.
The bill, introduced by Reps. Barbara Lee and Ro Khanna of California and sponsored by 12 House Democrats, is a companion to Sen. Cory Booker's Marijuana Justice Act, introduced in the Senate last year.