California
Near the end of September, with COVID-19 cases falling and more schools and businesses reopening, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration urged restraint, citing a statistical model that predicted a startling 89% increase in virus hospitalizations in the next month…
A Sacramento judge refused Wednesday, 10/21, to order the California Republican Party to disclose information about its ballot drop box program to state officials, rejecting an argument by AG Xavier Becerra that the investigation was essential to ensuring ballots are being properly handled…
Coronavirus
At least five people in Vice President Mike Pence's orbit have tested positive for coronavirus in recent days, including chief of staff Marc Short, close aide Zach Bauer and outside adviser Marty Obst…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Gilead Sciences Inc.’s antiviral therapy Remdesivir on Thursday, 10/22, granting broad clearance for the coronavirus treatment…
U.S. vaccine advisers questioned whether safety and efficacy standards set by FDA officials were high enough to warrant emergency authorization of a shot…
The Social Security trust fund could be depleted by 2030, five years earlier than the official government estimate before the coronavirus hit, because of the recession and long-term near-zero interest rates triggered by the pandemic…
President and Administration
A U.S. Labor Department official said “white privilege” or “white fragility” training for employees of federal contractors is outlawed by a Trump executive order that’s already triggered the filing of more than 100 complaints to the agency over allegedly unlawful diversity training…
The Labor Department (DOL) has declined to extend a shortened, 30-day window for the public to weigh in on its high-stakes proposal, released 9/22, which would make it easier for employers to classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees who are owed minimum wage and overtime protections…
Lawyers appointed by a federal judge to identify migrant families who were separated by the Trump administration say that they have yet to track down the parents of 545 children and that about two-thirds of those parents were deported to Central America without their children, according to a filing Tuesday, 10/20, from the American Civil Liberties Union…
Education
The U.S. Department of Education released a new Parent and Family Digital Learning Guide on Friday, 10/23, a resource to help parents and guardians understand how digital tools can provide tailored learning opportunities, engage students with course materials, encourage creative expression, and enrich the educational experience…
Colleges joined with major business and industry groups in filing a lawsuit challenging new Trump administration rules that would narrow the eligibility requirements for H-1B skilled worker visas and increase the wages employers would have to pay visa holders…
Congress
On Sunday, 10/25, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that she's still “optimistic” about Congress passing a coronavirus relief package before Nov. 3. Pelosi told CNN she sent Mnuchin a list of concerns on Friday, 10/23, with the understanding that he was reviewing them over the weekend and will provide some answers today, 10/26…
The Senate is set to vote this evening, 10/26, to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the United States Supreme Court. On Sunday, 10/25, Senate Republicans voted 51-48 to limit debate on the Supreme Court nomination of Barrett, setting up a vote on her confirmation for this evening…
Presidential Election
With eight days before Election Day, there have been a total of 58.6 million ballots cast so far, more than the 58 million that The Associated Press logged as being cast through the mail or at in-person early voting sites in 2016…