Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., leaves the chamber Wednesday afternoon with plans to take up voting on the GOP's sweeping mega bill by next week despite lack of support from key fiscal hawks, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
British lawmakers have voted to decriminalize abortion after a lawmaker argued it was cruel to prosecute women for ending a pregnancy. The House of Commons on Tuesday approved an amendment to a broader crime bill that would bar the prosecution of women who take steps to end their pregnancies at any stage. Tonia Antoniazzi, the Labour lawmaker who introduced the amendment, said the change was needed because police have investigated more than 100 women for suspected illegal abortions in recent years, including some who suffered natural miscarriages and stillbirths. The House of Commons will now need to pass the crime bill, which is expected, before it goes to the House of Lords, where it can be delayed but not blocked.
Senate Republicans are proposing deeper Medicaid cuts, including new work requirements for parents of teens, as a way to offset the costs of making President Donald Trump’s tax breaks more permanent. They are keeping in place an existing $10,000 annual cap on state and local tax deductions known as SALT. But they boost a tax credit for some seniors to $6,000. The proposals unveiled Monday by Republicans for Trump's “big, beautiful bill” provide the most comprehensive look yet at changes the GOP senators want to make to the package approved by House Republicans last month. Republican leaders are pushing to fast-track the package by Trump’s Fourth of July deadline.
The Trump administration's Justice Department has begun targeting Democratic and presidential swing states with demands for election data or changes to voter registration procedures. While the requests may seem technical and mundane, collectively they suggest the department is moving away from its traditional stance of protecting access to the ballot box. Instead, the actions address concerns that have been raised by a host of conservative activists following years of false claims surrounding elections in the U.S. By targeting certain states — presidential battlegrounds or those controlled by Democrats — they also could be foreshadowing an expanded role for the department in future elections.
Imagine a meeting of your neighborhood watch where the neighbor down the street bursts in, yelling “Help, my house is burning!” You survey the room and another neighbor is sitting there decked out in fire-fighting gear from head to toe.
For years, Idahoans yelled loud and clear: the Lava Ridge Wind Project is not welcome in our state. Affected local residents, farmers, tribes, conservationists, and the Japanese-American community all stood united in opposition to this plan. However, despite numerous legitimate concerns and near-unanimous opposition to the project, the Biden administration’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) refused to listen.
In the southwest corner of our linoleum floored family room, rested a brown Naugahyde fabric Lazy Boy recliner. Overhead light was provided from a 70’s style swag lamp casting a “just bright enough to read” warmth. It was a comfortable throne for my Dad ( Bud Thomas) to do his crossword puzzles. Under that lamp, he would consistently read three full newspapers a day. Family court was presided over by him on current events or the latest ball games involving any of his three sons. Answers to questions were often uttered from behind that newspaper. The words, “No, that’s not necessary” were more commonly spoken than the alternative of: “Sure son, go ahead and take the car. And by the way, here’s a five-spot to spend. Have fun!”
NHA TRANG, Vietnam - Rod Kjersten has returned to Vietnam for the first time since he was a nurse in the U.S. Air Force hospital in Cam Ranh Bay. Now 77, he recalls the precise date when he left - May 28, 1970. He served at the hospital for two years where he treated wounded American soldiers and saw many die. He says while he was initially "gung-ho" about the U.S. and South Vietnamese war efforts, he has since become "neutral." Asked why, he said it was after seeing the Ku Chi tunnels on this trip. These were some of the tunnels used by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers to hide and "pop up" to shoot at Americans.
As spring turns to summer, graduation ceremonies are marking rites of passage in communities across our great state.
Former congressman Billy Long of Missouri has been confirmed to lead the Internal Revenue Service, an agency he once sought to abolish. Long's confirmation on a 53-44 Senate vote Thursday gives the beleaguered IRS a permanent commissioner after months of acting leaders and massive staffing cuts that have threatened to derail next year's tax filing system. Democratic senators strongly opposed Long's nomination based on the Republican’s past work for a firm that pitched a fraud-ridden coronavirus pandemic-era tax break and on campaign contributions he received after President Donald Trump picked him. While in Congress, Long sponsored legislation to get rid of the IRS, the agency he's now tasked with leading.