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A Social Security Administration office building is seen on March 6 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV/AP hide caption toggle caption George Walker IV/AP Phone calls to local Social Security offices are currently being rerouted to other field offices — often to staff who don’t have jurisdiction over the caller’s case, employees say. Disability advocates and experts warn this is making it harder for people to get help. The latest change is part of the Social Security Administration’s ongoing efforts to bring down wait times for phone services. In a statement to NPR, a spokesperson for the agency said that…

Washington — The House Oversight Committee issued subpoenas Tuesday to a slew of former attorneys general and FBI directors, as well as former President Bill Clinton, for testimony about the case involving convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The subpoenas seeking depositions from the former Justice Department officials were issued after Republicans and Democrats on a House Oversight subcommittee approved measures to authorize the demands last month as part of efforts by Congress to obtain more information about Epstein. House investigators also issued a subpoena to Attorney General Pam Bondi for documents related to the Justice Department’s investigation into Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell,…

Politics / August 5, 2025 A gerrymandering fight reveals how far Trump will go to avoid electoral accountability. Ad Policy Members of the Texas Department of Public Safety inside the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on Monday, August 4, 2025. Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered the arrest of Democratic lawmakers who left the state to block a controversial vote on new congressional maps.(Sergio Flores / Bloomberg via Getty Images) The small-d democratic logic of an argument made by Texas state Representative Ann Johnson—who, with her Democratic colleagues in the state legislature, has left Texas in order to prevent Republican…

new video loaded: Why the G.O.P. Isn’t Doing Many Town HallsBy Annie Karni, Gabriel Blanco, Nikolay Nikolov and Claire Hogan•August 5, 2025The booing started in seconds at Representative Mike Flood’s town hall in Lincoln, Neb. Annie Karni, a congressional correspondent for The New York Times, reports from the auditorium after the Republican congressman’s town hall, which she said was one of the most raucous political events she’s ever witnessed.Recent episodes in PoliticsShow more videos from Politics Source link

On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, Texas Democrats, along with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and the Democratic National Chair Ken Martin, met Tuesday to continue the fight against a redistricting plan to add five seats favoring Republicans.The Texas Legislature attempted to meet Monday to consider a bill to redraw the state’s congressional districts, but Democratic members who left the state over the weekend did not return, denying the quorum needed to convene the session. Gov. Greg Abbott has since vowed to take steps to remove those lawmakers from their seats, and Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows said he had…

The Texas Legislature attempted to meet Monday to consider a redistricting plan that would favor Republicans, but Democratic members who left the state over the weekend did not return, denying the quorum needed to convene the session. Gov. Greg Abbott vowed to take steps to remove those lawmakers from their seats, and Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows said he had signed civil arrest warrants for the absent Democrats. Republicans “can make idle threats, but as long as they are out of state, there’s really nothing that they can do,” said Mark Jones, a Rice University political science professor. More than 50 Texas…

Good morning. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day. Today’s top stories Republican leaders in Texas have threatened to arrest Democratic lawmakers or expel them from the legislature if they don’t return to the state House. Over the weekend, Democrats fled the state to prevent a vote on a bill aimed at redrawing Texas’ congressional maps. This bill is seen as favoring Republicans, as it creates five new GOP-leaning districts, which President Trump has advocated for. Republicans currently control…

A grand jury on Monday declined to indict a former Atlanta police officer on manslaughter charges in the death of a church deacon who died in a struggle with the officer following a minor car crash.After hearing the case, Fulton County grand jurors rejected criminal charges against Kiran Kimbrough, said Jeff DiSantis, a spokesperson for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.Johnny Hollman Sr. died in August 2023 after he refused to sign a citation following a wreck. Family members said the 62-year-old Hollman was driving home from Bible study at his daughter’s house and taking dinner to his wife when…

Politics / August 5, 2025 A new analysis shows that if you give $100 to an appeal run by a leading Democratic Party vendor, only $1.60 will actually go to the campaign. Ad Policy These ubiquitous e-mail and text-message pleas for donations are known as “churn and burn” come-ons. The signs of the Democratic Party’s receding viability are legion, from its dismal approval numbers in opinion polls to its serial capitulations to the GOP on Capitol Hill. Yet one arm of the Democrats’ political operation is humming along: its nonstop fundraising appeals in e-mail inboxes and text-messaging accounts. These frenetic…

Sao Paulo — A justice on Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered the house arrest Monday of former President Jair Bolsonaro, on trial for allegedly masterminding a coup plot to remain in office despite his defeat in the 2022 election – a case that has gripped the South American country as it faces a trade war with the Trump administration.Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the case against Bolsonaro before the top court, said in his decision that the 70-year-old former president had violated precautionary measures imposed on him by spreading content through his three lawmaker sons. Supporters of former Brazilian President…