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Ted Cruz, Senate panel mulls permanent daylight saving time

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Senators are wading into the thorny issue of whether to “lock the clock” — that is, end the practice of changing the time twice a year to account for the shifting seasons.

At a hearing Thursday, Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz said there was general consensus among his colleagues that Americans should stop changing the clocks by adopting permanent daylight savings time — which makes it light later in the evening and later in the morning — or permanent standard time, which does the opposite. But there isn’t agreement on which standard to embrace.

The Senate unanimously passed legislation in 2022 from Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) to create permanent daylight savings time without requiring states already on permanent standard time to make the move. The bill’s passage at that time took many lawmakers by surprise, including those who said they would have hurried to the floor to block the request for speedy consideration had they known the measure was coming up for a vote. It later died in the House.

Scott said Thursday that President Donald Trump is “on board to lock the clock.” In December, Trump expressed support for ending the practice of changing time twice a year, but in March said it’s a “50/50 issue.”

He explained in remarks in the Oval Office, “If something is a 50/50 issue, it’s hard to get excited about it. I assume people would like to have more light later, but some people want to have more light earlier because they don’t want to take their kids to school in the dark.”

A White House spokesperson declined to clarify Trump’s stance further.

But Commerce Committee members also said they wanted to make sure states have latitude to make their own decisions on whether to use permanent daylight or standard time, weighing economic and health tradeoffs.

“There are very real and complicated issues and counterveiling arguments on both sides,” Cruz said. “There is widespread agreement on locking the clock … but the reason we’re holding these hearings is because these are real arguments and they have real impacts on people.”

Lawmakers heard Thursday from advocates on both sides of the issue, including the CEO of the National Golf Course Owner’s Association favoring permanent daylight savings time and a sleep medicine expert backing permanent standard time. Jay Karen, the CEO of the golf association, said that late afternoon golf activities account for a high share of revenue and that permanent daylight savings time would be a boon for outdoor recreation generally, leading to health benefits.

Karin Johnson, the sleep medicine doctor and member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s advocacy committee, said permanent daylight savings time would be a “hidden mandate” that would wake Americans earlier and disrupt their circadian rhythms. She also pointed out that previous attempts to make this switch were abandoned. Permanent standard time would also lead to lower rates of depression and better sleep, she argued.

Cruz didn’t take a clear stance on whether he sided with permanent daylight savings time or standard time, but he argued that changing the clocks twice a year can indeed disrupt sleep.

“This leads to increased risks of health problems, including higher rates of heart attacks, strokes, and even car accidents immediately following the time change,” Cruz said.

Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) said it’s important lawmakers be “thoughtful” about how time changes work state-by-state.

“What works in my home state of Delaware may not work in Washington state,” Blunt Rochester said. “It’s time to figure this out. People across our country are tired of the constant cycle of falling back and springing forward.”

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Congress

Senate GOP ready to move on elections bill

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Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso told reporters Monday the chamber will vote Tuesday to take up a House-passed elections bill known as the SAVE America Act.

The Wyoming Republican, whose job it is to help round up support, said he is “doing everything I can to make sure we get on this bill tomorrow.”

Republicans will need a simple majority to begin debate on the partisan legislation; they can lose three members and still let Vice President JD Vance break a tie.

So far, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has said he’s a “no,” while Republicans are also watching GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

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Jesse Jackson’s family withdraws posthumous endorsement in Illinois Senate primary

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The family of the late Rev. Jesse Jackson walked back a posthumous endorsement of Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s Senate campaign on Monday, after the family said Jackson’s endorsements for Tuesday’s primaries were not completed before his death.

On Saturday, Stratton’s campaign touted an endorsement from Jackson, who died last month, and his son Yusef. The announcement came after Stratton saw Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Jackson family’s organziation, passing out sample ballots — which were also obtained by Blue Light News — that recommended Stratton.

“[Jackson’s] example has been a north star for me, and I’m deeply honored to have received his trust, support, and endorsement before his passing,” Stratton said in a statement on Saturday.

But on Monday, Yusef Jackson, who is the organization’s COO, said the draft sample ballot was “released without authorization” and that the Jackson family and Rainbow PUSH Coalition are not making political endorsements this cycle.

His father “began the process of reviewing candidates and identifying those he intended to support in the upcoming primary election,” Yusef Jackson said in the statement. “However, given his passing just over a month ago, the process was never fully completed. Out of respect for my father, we decided not to publicly release his intended selections given the process had not been finalized.”

The Stratton campaign said on Monday that officials with Rainbow PUSH Coalition said she had been endorsed by Jackson.

“Juliana spoke on Saturday at Rainbow PUSH for a Women’s History Month event and officials told her she received the endorsements. Organizers shared the sample election ballot that was already being distributed and encouraged her to share the news,” the Stratton campaign said in a statement.

The endorsement mix-up draws further scrutiny on the split among Black Democrats in Illinois between Stratton and Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), who are both seeking to succeed retiring Sen. Dick Durbin. Some Democrats in the state have expressed concern that Stratton and Kelly could split the vote in Tuesday’s primary, creating a path for Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) to win the nomination.

Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.) told Blue Light News prior to the family’s statement that his father “never got in on Black-on-Black fights.”

Jonathan Jackson added that the races the late Jesse Jackson “was excited about” were himself and former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s comeback bid.

“He wouldn’t do that. He was always pushing the community forward,” Jackson said. “This smells of desperation.”

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Johnson on Trump’s Hormuz plan

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Speaker Mike Johnson said he supports President Donald Trump’s effort to build a global coalition ensure safe passage of commerce through the Strait of Hormuz — even if Trump “didn’t anticipate it” being necessary before launching airstrikes against Iran.

Speaking to reporters after attending a Washington event with Trump, Johnson said the president told him that “he anticipated the strait of Hormuz would be closed.”

“I don’t know that he didn’t anticipate it in the front end, but now it’s necessitated,” Johnson said. He added that the coalition is “a reasonable thing” for other countries to assist with and “it would be helpful.”

Asked about how much a potential supplemental package to fund the military action would cost, Johnson said, “We don’t know yet.” Estimates for the cost of the war have exceeding $1 billion per day.

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