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Upcoming U.S. Supreme Court cases could curb colleges’ use of affirmative action
WASHINGTON — A U.S. Supreme Court dominated by conservative justices could fundamentally reshape the college admissions process later this year when it takes up two landmark cases challenging affirmative action in higher education. The court recently agreed to hear two cases that challenge race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, […]
U.S. Senate Republicans again block debate on voting rights legislation
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Republicans blocked the advance of voting rights legislation Wednesday, the second time this year — thwarting again Democrats’ attempts to pass federal protections for voters amid a slew of new state elections laws. “When we are faced with a coordinated effort across our country to limit the freedom to vote, we […]
Democrats seek support services for survivors of American Indian boarding schools
WASHINGTON — Democratic lawmakers are pushing federal agencies to provide support for survivors of and communities affected by American Indian boarding school policies, the decades-long practice of forcibly sending American Indian children to faraway boarding schools that rejected their tribal cultures. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kan., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sent a request this month for […]
Federal investigation seeks to uncover painful history of American Indian boarding schools
WASHINGTON — The American Indian children travelled on trains, thousands of miles from their homes in Kansas and elsewhere, to Pennsylvania’s Carlisle Indian Industrial School in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Many had been forcibly taken from their parents and communities. Once there, they had to hand over their belongings, put on uniforms, cut […]
Lesser prairie chicken and other endangered species to get reprieve under Biden administration plans
WASHINGTON — The lesser prairie chicken, a rare dancing grouse once abundant on the Great Plains, could benefit again soon from the protection of the U.S. government. So could the rusty patched bumblebee, a black-headed pollinator that at one time ranged from Georgia to Maine and across the Midwest. The Biden administration is rewriting how […]
New funding to curb wildfires pushed in Congress, as another fire season looms
WASHINGTON — As wildfires across the United States grow in size, intensity and duration each summer, members of Congress from the West are pushing for massive new investments in ecosystem management and wildfire mitigation. With dry conditions across the country, 2021 could see significant fires. Currently Florida and parts of Kansas, Arizona, Minnesota and Montana […]
Biden banks on offshore wind to help curb climate change
WASHINGTON — Two wind turbines, each as tall as the Washington Monument, stand sentinel 27 miles off the coast of Virginia, the nation’s first offshore wind installation in federal waters. The pilot project began producing power last October but is just the beginning for an industry poised for massive growth over the next decade. Longtime […]
U.S. House agriculture panel to key in on climate change and farming
WASHINGTON — Democrats are eyeing proposals that would support programs for U.S. farmers — who have suffered catastrophic losses from severe weather events in recent years — to reduce carbon emissions on their land. In his first major policy hearing as House Agriculture Committee chairman, Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.) said Thursday that the issue of […]
American Indian tribes ‘very close to reaching a breaking point’ in COVID-19 response
WASHINGTON — Native American tribes are facing a dire situation from the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing some of them to a breaking point, American Indian health leaders told members of Congress this week. In many places, tribal leaders are scrambling to respond to disproportional illness and death in their communities. Confirmed COVID-19 cases among American Indians […]
Postmaster general suspends overhaul until after election
WASHINGTON — Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said Tuesday he will halt a series of sweeping policy changes to the U.S. Postal Service until after the general elections this fall. DeJoy said he won’t change overtime rules, retail hours at local post offices, or the location of mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes, or close […]
Kansas makes history as record number of U.S. women bid for Congress
WASHINGTON — More women from across the nation are running for Congress this year than ever before, and Kansas is leading the way in making history on the ballot. For the first time ever, there will be a female candidate in each of Kansas’ U.S. House and Senate races in November. All of the Democratic […]
Democrats see opportunity for Senate seat in Kansas GOP primary battle
National Republican and Democratic groups are pouring millions of dollars into the Kansas Republican Senate primary, an effort to influence the race before the general election battle. The money comes as some see vulnerability in the traditionally deep-red state. The last time Kansas sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate was in 1932, the same […]