Congress

Jeffries calls on Biden to pardon more Americans

Published

2 years ago

December 3, 2024

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called on President Joe Biden to pardon more people convicted of nonviolent offenses amid controversy over the president’s pardon of his son, Hunter Biden.

“During his final weeks in office, President Biden should exercise the high level of compassion he has consistently demonstrated throughout his life, including toward his son, and pardon on a case-by-case basis the working-class Americans in the federal prison system whose lives have been ruined by unjustly aggressive prosecutions for nonviolent offenses,” Jeffries said in a statement.

Jeffries’ comments echo the calls from some other Democrats who in recent days have asked Biden to use his clemency powers for more Americans in federal custody besides Hunter and to address sentencing disparities. But it did not pass judgment on the pardon of Hunter Biden itself. Some in the caucus have openly criticized the president since the pardon was issued and said it could tarnish his legacy and open a lane for Donald Trump to issue similar sweeping pardons.

Congress

Justices Kagan and Barrett on tap to testify on Capitol Hill next week

Published

2 hours ago

July 7, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Two Supreme Court justices will testify on Capitol Hill next week, marking the first time since 2019 that members of the high court will testify on their annual budget request to Congress.

Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Elena Kagan will appear July 14 before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, which has jurisdiction over the annual spending measure that funds the Supreme Court, according to a scheduling announcement from House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole.

They will also give testimony that same day to members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, according to a person granted anonymity to disclose scheduling not yet made public.

The Supreme Court requested a boost of more than $14 million for fiscal 2027 for security for the nine justices. House Appropriators have advanced legislation that would fund the Supreme Court at $207 million — nearly $44 million more than the current enacted funding levels.

Lawmakers of both parties and chambers are seeking more information about how the court plans to use the funds. Senior appropriators have said they are hoping to keep questioning tightly focused on operations and expenses of the court rather than on cases pending before the justices.

Congress

Capitol agenda: Platner’s Hill support crumbles

Published

6 hours ago

July 7, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Graham Platner’s congressional fan club is ready to move on.

The Maine oysterman’s already scandal-ridden campaign was hit Monday by new allegations reported by POLITICO that he forced a woman he dated, Jenny Racicot, to have sex with him in 2021 — a claim Platner denies.

Now a wave of Democrats across the ideological spectrum is calling on the progressive to step aside while already circulating names to replace him. Those bailing include his — now former — staunchest defenders on Capitol Hill, along with party leaders who had warily gotten behind him after their preferred candidate, Gov. Janet Mills, suspended her campaign.

The cascade of opposition spotlights a party deeply anxious about their path ahead in Maine, where unseating GOP Sen. Susan Collins is critical to Democrats’ effort to win control of the chamber.

Democrats can still replace Platner on the ballot, but only if he chooses to drop out before the July 13 deadline outlined in Maine law. If he were to exit the race, the state Democratic Party would have to pick his replacement by July 27.

That tight timeline would set up a scramble potentially pitting factions of the party against each other.

Rep. Ro Khanna, who joined Platner on the campaign trail several times, Monday night endorsed a former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Troy Jackson, who had previously won the backing of Sen. Bernie Sanders. Khanna said Jackson was “someone who has spent his life standing up for these progressive values.”

Sanders himself, who had backed Platner, has yet to comment publicly on the allegations.

A progressive-aligned PAC also weighed in, calling for Maine’s Democratic Party to honor primary voters’ wishes and “not allow crusty insiders like Chuck Schumer an establishment do-over.”

“A small caucus of party insiders cannot be trusted to nominate the shake-up-the-system outsider this moment calls for,” Progressive Change Campaign Committee co-founder Adam Green said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand called for Platner’s immediate withdrawal, saying the DSCC “will not invest in the Maine Senate race” if he remains on the ballot. Schumer had previously backed Mills.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Martin Heinrich, previously two of Platner’s biggest supporters, also joined in calling for him to step down, while Sen. Ruben Gallego, another former Platner fan, rescinded his endorsement.

Apart from Jackson, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and former public health official Nirav Shah are taking calls about replacing Platner, according to three people familiar with those conversations, granted anonymity to discuss sensitive discussions.

A spokesperson for Platner did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the candidate’s loss of lawmakers’ support.

Platner has not said that he would suspend his campaign. In a video statement posted minutes after Blue Light News’s report, Platner said he is “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward” for his candidacy.

What else we’re watching:

— MEET THE NEXT LIKELY CBC CHAIR: Rep. Troy Carter has a front row seat to Republican redistricting in Louisiana, is a self-proclaimed “close ally” of potential speaker Hakeem Jeffries and is currently the Congressional Black Caucus’ vice chair. CBC members say that makes him their ideal next leader. Several members, including Chair Yvette Clarke and No. 3 Lucy McBath, said in interviews they view Carter as a strong — if not singular — contender to chair the caucus next term.

— HILL STAFFER GROUP DEMANDS MISCONDUCT ACCOUNTABILITY: A 1,500-strong group of Capitol Hill staff members is calling on congressional panels to take steps to better hold accountable denizens of the campus accused of misconduct. The Congressional Progressive Staff Association is asking House Administration and Senate Rules and Administration to enact a series of recommendations after two House members — Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales — became the latest lawmakers to resign over sexual misconduct accusations against them.

Riley Rogerson and Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.

Congress

The likely next Congressional Black Caucus chair has big plans for the shrinking powerhouse

Published

9 hours ago

July 7, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The Congressional Black Caucus is, for now, at the pinnacle of its power, with record-high membership, deep influence on the House Democratic agenda and one of its own members in line to claim the speaker’s gavel.

But major threats have shaken the nearly 60-year-old group in recent months. A recent Supreme Court decision threatens to decimate its membership and an influx of hard-left Democrats could undermine its brand of pragmatic, civil-rights-focused liberalism.

It will likely be Rep. Troy Carter’s job to plot a path forward. The three-term Louisiana Democrat is positioned to take over as chair from Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) next year, and in an extensive interview said he was determined to defend the CBC’s privileged place in House Democratic politics.

“If those who are out there banking on us being quieted, going away, not fighting for the rights of individuals, and providing resources to those that have been historically left behind, they are sadly mistaken,” he said.

Carter, 62, is now serving as caucus vice chair and a self-proclaimed “close ally” of Hakeem Jeffries, the minority leader and likely speaker if Democrats can win a majority in November. He would not commit to seeking the chair but spoke about his “passion for the caucus,” and five other CBC members, including Clarke, said in recent interviews that he is a strong — and perhaps the only — contender.

“I don’t know if there’s anyone who would even think about running against him,” Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.) said. “He’s set in a perfect position to be the chairman of our caucus, and he has my unyielding support.”

Fields, however, probably won’t be eligible to vote for Carter — underscoring the larger challenges the caucus faces.

The Supreme Court’s April ruling in Louisiana v. Callais allowed the Republican-controlled state legislature to redraw congressional lines — effectively drawing out Fields and leaving Carter as the delegation’s sole Democrat. The ruling’s effects went far beyond the Louisiana state lines, however, allowing GOP-dominated states to eliminate majority-minority districts and threaten the reelections of as many as 19 CBC members.

Carter cast the moment as an opportunity for evolution rather than reinvention for the CBC as he fielded questions about how aggressively Democrats should respond to Republican gerrymandering, the caucus’s longstanding commitment to preserving seniority rights and how it will respond to a new crop of ultraprogressives intent on tugging the party leftward.

“It’s always been revered as the conscience of the Congress, and we will still be the conscience of the Congress if we lose one, two, three or 10 members,” he said.

But some CBC consensus positions that have served to amplify its influence inside the larger Democratic Caucus are already coming into conflict with some members’ demands that their party get more serious about fighting President Donald Trump and Republicans.

For instance, some Democrats believe the most effective way to combat the GOP redistricting spree is to carve up majority-minority districts in blue states as well as red ones. That could create more Democratic seats at the price of diluting Black power in Congress.

Though some prominent CBC members, such as New York Rep. Greg Meeks, are open to the idea, Carter said he was not inclined to join them.

“We want a party that is reflective of all the voices of all the people,” he said. “And if we just start painting a picture, all we want is Democrats, then we lose the value and the flavor and the diversity of what our party represents, and that is a seat at the table for everyone.”

Carter struck a softer note on seniority rights, which has long been seen as the foundation of minority power in the House and a red-line issue for the CBC. The system, he acknowledged, helps minority members “ascend to roles of leadership in a system that even within the party hasn’t always been fair.”

But, he added, “I have never believed that a person that comes in with superior expertise in a subject matter, should be told to wait.”

That attitude has served Carter himself well, putting him in position to assume the CBC chair in only his fourth congressional term after a long career in New Orleans politics. His words, however, are a far cry from suggesting that longtime committee leaders such as Meeks on Foreign Relations, Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson on Homeland Security or California Rep. Maxine Waters on Financial Services ought to step aside.

The real threat could come from a slew of young progressives who have signaled they aren’t interested in waiting their turn next term or otherwise playing nice with the traditional Democratic powers-that-be. Some of those future lawmakers, such as Darializa Avila Chevalier of New York and Chris Rabb of Philadelphia, could be joining the CBC.

Carter brushed off the potential for conflict. He said that while the CBC “still plays a role” in moderating House Democrats, he would not endorse the suggestion from centrist lawmakers such as Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) that self-avowed democratic socialists like Avila Chevalier and Rabb don’t belong in the Democratic Party.

“We’re not going to let people pit us against each other,” Carter said. “A Democrat’s a Democrat’s a Democrat. We have different ideas, we have different philosophies, we have different views, different approaches on how to get there, but our missions aren’t different.”

But members of the caucus have shown a taste for intraparty warfare recently, and several of the new progressive members have so far refused to commit to backing as speaker should Democrats prevail in November.

Just weeks ago, Clarke and two former CBC chairs, Reps. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) and Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), publicly lambasted Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) for merely suggesting there should be “new leadership” in the Democratic Party, without naming Jeffries directly.

Carter said he was not involved in drafting the statement but did not distance himself from its sentiment — especially as a friend and fraternity brother of Jeffries.

“For Senator Slotkin to suggest there needs to be new leadership, I’m not sure what barometer she’s using to measure that,” he said. “If anyone cared to be honest and fair, and they evaluated the task at hand and the ultimate challenges … Hakeem Jeffries has demonstrated exquisite leadership.”

Carter and Jeffries aren’t out of step on much, but the likely new chair said he had a different view on what the signature bill of a new Democratic majority ought to be. Jeffries has said he wants a focus on “affordability.” Carter is instead advocating for a voting rights bill that could help restore Black political power.

But the two have been in lockstep on using the bully pulpit to pressure corporate America and other institutions outside government to preserve American democracy from the threats they see.

When the caucus announced unanimous opposition in May to a bipartisan college athletics reform bill, Jeffries spoke at a news conference announcing a boycott of the Southeastern Conference over its limp opposition to Republican redistricting in the South.

Expect more of that, Carter said.

“If you call yourselves our friends, if you recognize and appreciate our economy, our entertainment, our sports, then you have to also recognize and stand with us at this great time of peril, when our rights are being taken away,” Carter said. “Stand with us if you want us to stand with you.”