Washington — Senate Democrats on Tuesday will try to pass legislation that would restore a Trump-era ban on bump stocks, an accessory that enables semi-automatic weapons to shoot at a very rapid pace, after last week’s Supreme Court decision striking down the ban.  Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Sunday he’d bring up the legislation for a vote under unanimous consent, a procedure in which a measure passes so long as no lawmaker objects. He confirmed in a Senate floor speech Tuesday that Sen. Martin Heinrich, a New Mexico Democrat, wouldRead More

President Biden on Tuesday will clear the way for hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants married to U.S. citizens to apply for legal residency in one of the most expansive immigration programs of his presidency, according to two federal officials with knowledge of the plans. The policy shift is a bold move for the Democratic president months before the November elections, and a rebuke to congressional Republicans who have ignored his calls to expand border security and to create a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants livingRead More

What is Juneteenth? The holiday’s history and significance, explained. Biden just signed legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. Here’s why this once local celebration is significant to U.S. history. Just the FAQs, USA TODAY If you need to visit a bank or post office this week, you may want to consider going before or after Wednesday. That’s because Wednesday, June 19 is Juneteenth, a holiday that commemorates the day when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas in 1865 with 2,000 Union troops to proclaim that moreRead More

An exceptional heat wave is about to build into the Midwest, the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic, with widespread record high temperatures occurring over multiple days. Triple-digit heat index values will stretch from the Gulf Coast to Nova Scotia, representing a combination of dangerous heat and stifling humidity that will be hazardous for vulnerable groups. The National Weather Service is predicting a “prolonged period of dangerously hot conditions” with “intense heat and high humidity.” “Heat related illnesses increase significantly during extreme heat and high humidity events,” the agency wrote, “particularly forRead More