In the News

by Kenon Whitehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyZZmwg6xsQ Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI) delivers this week’s CBC Message To America focusing on voting rights and discriminatory voter laws impeding minorities’ access to the ballot. Rep. Moore began her address by naming states in the country that are “making it harder” for Americans to vote. She said Alabama, North Carolina, Texas, and even her “own home state of Wisconsin” are creating obstacles to keep African-Americans from exercising their ... Read more

by Mark Schoeff Jr.Legislation that would block a Labor Department proposal to raise investment advice standards for retirement accounts was on the verge of passing the House on Tuesday — with a veto threat waiting in the wings.The House began debate in the early afternoon on the bill that would force the DOL to halt its fiduciary rule until the Securities and Exchange Commission acts on a similar requirement for retail investment advice. The measure, which was written by Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo.,... Read more

by Alex BrownIt took a historic procedural move to get the House to vote on the Export-Import Bank, a process that moved closer to reality with Monday night’s motion to set up a floor vote Tuesday. Getting the bank actually reauthorized may take a more typical Washington maneuver: tying it to must-pass legislation as Con­gress rushes to meet a flurry of late-year deadlines.Even as bank allies celebrate the rare success of their discharge petition, which forced the House vote on Ex­port-Im­port, ... Read more

by Paul Singer, Nathan Bomey and Paul DavidsonWASHINGTON — The House launched a rare effort Monday to circumvent Republican leadership in hopes of reviving the Export-Import Bank, which conservatives managed to choke off earlier this year.The procedure, known as a "discharge petition," basically allows a simple majority of the House to force the House to vote to extend the bank's charter. In the Monday vote, 62 Republicans joined 184 Democrats to exceed the 218 votes needed to force the bill to ... Read more

by Emily AtkinBadger Guns has a bad reputation. Before selling the weapon that eventually shot two police officers in the face, the Milwaukee firearm dealer had racked up 130 federal gun regulation violations in nearly two years. Coincidentally or not, the store has one of the worst records in the country of selling guns that are later used in crimes.But Badger Guns — with its myriad violations and crime gun sales — is also a rarity. According to the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, nine ou... Read more

by Adam AuriemmaGwen Moore isn’t known for being very reserved. She’s been an outspoken member of Congress for 10 years. But a couple weeks ago, when a jury in her Milwaukee district handed down a massive $6 million judgment against a local gun store, she was practically “dancing in the streets,” she said in a recent interview.“I know there’s a long way to go—it’s been appealed—but I am just delighted,” the congresswoman said.Moore was referring to the case against Badger Guns, a shop in West Mi... Read more

by Matt PearceStrict federal protections couldn't save the firearms industry from an unusual defeat in court this week.In a nationally watched case, a Wisconsin jury ruled Tuesday that a Milwaukee-area gun store was negligent when it sold a handgun later used to shoot and seriously injure two Milwaukee police officers.The gun had been bought illegally, and the officers sued the store. A Milwaukee County jury ordered the store to pay $6 million in damages, in effect sending a warning to other gun... Read more

by Tom KertscherWhen U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore said, "I don’t think we do children a favor by forcing women to give birth," she drew criticism from The Daily Caller, a conservative-leaning website.The Milwaukee Democrat was speaking at a Washington, D.C., news conference in favor of continuing federal funding for Planned Parenthood.Moore made similar remarks the next day, Sept. 29, 2015, during a speech on the House floor about a Republican-backed bill to defund the organization. And she made a claim... Read more

by Andrea BeasleyThis week, women in politics celebrated Latina Equal Pay Day, and took a stand on gun violence. Find out more in this week’s edition of That’s What She Said!1. Mia LoveRep. Mia Love professed her support for Republican House speaker contender, Jason Chaffetz, hours before House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s bombshell announcement to rescind his bid for John Boehner’s job.2. Maria Contreras-SweetIn honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, #POTUS Cabinet member Maria Contreras-Sweet p... Read more

by Russell BermanIt has taken nearly five years and the resignation of a speaker, but moderate Republicans in the House have taken their most aggressive step to undermine the influence of hard-right conservatives in the party.A group of more than 50 GOP lawmakers joined nearly the entire Democratic caucus to force a vote on legislation reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank, the 80-year-old federal lending agency that shuttered when Republican leaders refused to renew its charter. The bipartisan c... Read more