Louisiana power project stuck in abortion debate gets funded
The Louisiana Bond Commission has approved a $39 million future line of credit for a critical New Orleans area power plant project that had become an unlikely pawn in the ongoing political tug-of-war over enforcing Louisiana’s near-total abortion ban.
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In shift, oil industry group backs federal price on carbon
The White House said climate adviser Gina McCarthy “made clear that the administration is not fighting the oil and gas sector." AdThe meeting came after weeks of friction over moves the administration made to halt new oil leasing on federal lands and to review Trump administration deregulation efforts aimed at helping U.S. oil and gas producers. Despite the moratorium on new leases, the Biden administration has continued to issue permits for existing leases, including more than 200 in March, records show. Companies could claim they have the right to extract oil and gas after spending years and millions of dollars to secure leases. Thirteen states sued the Biden administration Wednesday to end the leasing suspension.
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Trump agreements seek to tie Biden's hands on immigration
The agreements say Arizona, Indiana, Louisiana and Texas are entitled to a 180-day consultation period before executive branch policy changes take effect. The Biden administration rejects that argument on grounds that immigration is solely the federal government's responsibility under the Constitution. The Trump administration, usually eager to trumpet immigration enforcement, stayed publicly quiet on the agreements, which were first reported by BuzzFeed News. It is our hope that the SAFE agreement will foster timely communications about any significant forthcoming policy changes. “For our entire history, immigration policy has been understood to be the exclusive responsibility of the federal government,” Legomsky said.
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Louisiana Congressman-elect Luke Letlow dies from COVID-19
Luke Letlow, who was only 41 and had no known underlying health conditions, died Tuesday night at Ochsner-LSU Health Shreveport — days before he was scheduled to be sworn into office, according to his spokesman Andrew Bautsch. Ghali, of LSU Health Shreveport, told The Advocate that Letlow didn't have any underlying health conditions that would have placed him at greater risk of developing complications from COVID-19. "There was no one like Luke Letlow, and there was no one who loved this state and its people more. Luke was a part of our family, and we are so incredibly proud of the man he was.”Before working for Abraham, Letlow had worked for former Gov. Letlow is one of more than 7,000 people in Louisiana who have died from COVID-19 since March, according to data from the state health department.
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Mark Zuckerberg donates $100M more to help election offices
DENVER – Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, on Tuesday donated an additional $100 million to helping local election offices prepare for November even as some conservatives are stepping up their efforts to stop the funds from being used. The contribution brings the total funding for the election from Zuckerberg and Chan to $400 million — the same amount that Congress allocated in March to help fund election offices as they dealt with the difficulties of adapting to new voting behavior during the coronavirus pandemic. Zuckerberg and Chan stepped into the gap initially in September, with a $300 million donation. These funds will serve communities throughout the country -- urban, rural and suburban – and are being allocated by non-partisan organizations.”Zuckerberg added that most election offices that applied have fewer than 25,000 registered voters in their jurisdictions. Some conservatives have criticized CTCL for donating to election offices in large Democratic-leaning cities in swing states.
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State and local officials tussle over virus restrictions
Across the U.S., state and local officials are trying to balance the competing priorities of protecting their citizens from the coronavirus while keeping the economy running. President Donald Trump also visited Atlanta on Wednesday, arriving at the airport without a face mask. Edwards' initially had resisted a statewide mask order, but changed his mind as case numbers began rising rapidly in Louisiana. Yale University law professor David Schleicher says in cases like Georgias, where it is the state versus local government, the state almost always wins. Thats not to say it is absolute.Schleicher pointed to Wisconsin where the state Supreme Court voted in May to strike down Democratic Gov.