Critics say Indiana redistricting dilutes minority influence
Critics on Monday assailed the proposed new Indiana congressional and legislative districts as rigged in favor of Republicans, alleging they dilute the influence of minority voters.
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Biden, Congress face big week for agenda, government funding
It’s a consequential week for President Joe Biden’s agenda, as Democratic leaders delicately trim back his $3.5 trillion “Build Back Better” package to win over remaining lawmakers and work to quickly pass legislation to avoid a federal shutdown.
Indiana House approves redistricted maps, sends them to Senate
The Indiana House on Thursday voted 67-31, mostly along party lines, to approve the new state legislative and congressional election district maps, likely ensuring Republicans will keep their supermajority in the Legislature.
Pence hopeful the Supreme Court will restrict abortion in US
Former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday that he is hopeful the new conservative majority on the Supreme Court created during his and President Donald Trump’s administration will soon overturn abortion rights in the United States.
New state Senate seat added in Indy under GOP proposal
Indianapolis would gain a new state Senate district under a redistricting plan released Tuesday by Indiana Senate Republicans.
Supreme Court sets arguments in big abortion case
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Dec. 1 in Mississippi’s bid to have the landmark Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing a woman’s right to an abortion overturned.
Indiana House committee advances proposed election district maps
The Indiana House Elections Committee voted 9-4 along party lines Tuesday morning to advance the proposed congressional and House district election maps released last week by Republicans.
New redistricting commissions splinter along partisan lines
When voters in some states created new commissions to handle the politically thorny process of redistricting, the hope was that the bipartisan panelists could work together to draw new voting districts free of partisan gerrymandering. Instead, cooperation has proved elusive.
Hoosier voters voice concern about proposed election maps
Stepping to the lectern in the Indiana House Chamber, Rev. Fatima Yakubu-Madus echoed the frustration of many who attended Thursday’s public hearing on redistricting when she emphatically asked state representatives, “What can we do, what can we say to change your mind?”
Justice Thomas urges Americans to strive for ideals of Declaration of Independence
During the 2021 Tocqueville Lecture Thursday at the University of Notre Dame, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas discussed how his early life attending a Catholic school in the South now influences his approach to life and the law and helps shape his view of America.
Justice Department reviewing policies on transgender inmates
The Justice Department is reviewing its policies on housing transgender inmates in the federal prison system after protections for transgender prisoners were rolled back in the Trump administration.
Redistricting could pose challenges to some House GOP lawmakers
Some Indiana House Republican incumbents could go head-to-head with their GOP colleagues next election cycle based on shifts in the proposed redistricting maps.
GOP likely to keep 7-2 congressional hold under proposed redistricting maps
Drafts of the state’s proposed new congressional and House district maps released Tuesday by Republicans aren’t likely to make a sizable change in Indiana’s political landscape.
Justice Department seeks order against Texas abortion law
The Justice Department has asked a federal court in Texas to stop the enforcement of a new state law that bans most abortions in the state while it decides the case.
Providers urge Supreme Court to reject 15-week abortion ban
Abortion providers urged the Supreme Court on Monday to reject Mississippi’s 15-week prohibition on most abortions, saying a decision to uphold it would “invite states to ban abortion entirely.”
7th Circuit orders stay of injunction on Indiana abortion laws
An injunction against several provisions of Indiana law that tighten access to abortions was stayed Wednesday by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. A dissenting judge, however, blasted the majority’s position and state laws that “piously purport to protect women’s health” while “chip(ping) away” at longstanding abortion precedent.
Fighting Texas abortion law could be tough for federal gov’t
Foes of the new Texas law that bans most abortions have been looking to the Democratic-run federal government to swoop in and knock down the most restrictive abortion law in effect in the country. But it’s nowhere near that simple.
Justice Department will ‘protect’ abortion seekers in Texas
The Justice Department said Monday that it will not tolerate violence against anyone who is trying to obtain an abortion in Texas as federal officials explore options to challenge a new state law that bans most abortions.
Indiana legislators eye Texas abortion law but not this year
Indiana’s Republican-dominated Legislature has approved numerous abortion restrictions over the past decade but its top leaders said Thursday it won’t hurry to adopt legislation patterned after a new Texas law that bans most abortions.
20 states including IN sue over Biden admin school, work LGBT protections
Attorneys general from 20 states including Indiana sued President Joe Biden’s administration Monday seeking to halt directives that extend federal sex discrimination protections to LGBTQ people, ranging from transgender girls participating in school sports to the use of school and workplace bathrooms that align with a person’s gender identity.