Clarence B. Jones says he thought a prankster was on the line when he answered the telephone and heard the person on the other end say they were calling from the White House. “I said, ‘Is this a joke or is this serious?’” Jones recalled. The caller swore they were serious and was calling with the news that President Joe Biden wanted to recognize Jones with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. Jones, 93, will be honored for his activism during the Civil Rights Movement. He’s a lawyer who provided legal counsel to Martin Luther King Jr. and helped write the ope ..read more

President Joe Biden on Thursday defended the right to protest but insisted that “order must prevail” as college campuses across the country face unrest over the war in Gaza. “Dissent is essential for democracy,” he said at the White House. “But dissent must never lead to disorder.” The Democratic president also said the protests have not caused him to reconsider his approach to the war. Biden has occasionally criticized Israel’s conduct but continued to supply it with weapons. Biden said the campus protests haven’t prompted him to rethink his Middle East policies, and he opposes sending in Nat ..read more

From Delco to Chesco and Montco to Bucks, what about life in Philly’s suburbs do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know! Following the 40-car freight train derailment in Whitemarsh Township last summer, Federal Railroad Administration officials indicated they would investigate the incident. The FRA’s investigation reports are usually posted online six months after an incident. WHYY News requested a copy. It turns out the agency decided to conduct a “limited scope investigation” — meaning no formal summary report was prepared, and no recommendations were made. Early signs from the site indica ..read more

It was an eventful day at the pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Pennsylvania, with the site becoming the new political stumping ground as politicians and city officials made stops at the protest site. Earlier in the day, an unidentified person reportedly walked through the encampment spraying an unknown substance on the grounds, including on the food that had been donated to the effort. The man was reportedly arrested, possibly facing charges. Police were also earlier seen taking down signs hanging on the barricade but otherwise left the encampment alone. Members of a protest encam ..read more

Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a bill long sought by counties seeking help to manage huge influxes of mail-in ballots during elections in the presidential battleground state and to avoid a repeat of 2020’s drawn-out vote count. The bill comes barely six months before Pennsylvania could play a decisive role in selecting the next president in November’s election between Democratic President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, a Republican. The bill passed on party lines, 102-99, as Democrats backed it and Republicans opposed it, warning that ..read more

What questions do you have about the 2024 elections? What major issues do you want candidates to address? Let us know. Union leaders from the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council announced their endorsement of  Joe Biden for president at an event at their headquarters. The endorsement comes on the heels of a major national union endorsement, the North America’s Building Trades Unions. Leaders and members pointed to the Investing in America plan as the catalyst for the endorsement. “A lot of my members have been out working on the infrastructure bill,” said Francis McLaugh ..read more

Donald Trump has already been president once, and has been outspoken about the policies he would support and enact if elected again in November. He’s promised mass deportations of millions of migrants and suggested the United States would not defend foreign allies from aggression in certain circumstances. He’s vowed to eviscerate the federal bureaucracy and staff those career civil service roles with political loyalists, use law enforcement to target foes and painted a dire picture of America’s future if he does not return to the White House. In two wide-ranging interviews with TIME Magazine p ..read more

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is moving toward reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug. The Justice Department proposal would recognize the medical uses of cannabis, but wouldn’t legalize it for recreational use. The proposal would move marijuana from the “Schedule I” group to the less tightly regulated “Schedule III.” So what does that mean, and what are the implications? What has actually changed? What happens next? Technically, nothing yet. The proposal must be reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget, and then undergo a p ..read more

What questions do you have about the 2024 elections? What major issues do you want candidates to address? Let us know. Delaware Gov. John Carney announced Monday he will run for Wilmington mayor in an effort to succeed Mayor Mike Purzycki, who is not running for re-election after serving two terms. The governor will face fellow Democrat and former state treasurer and current city Treasurer Velda Jones-Potter in the September primary. Jones-Potter previously campaigned for mayor in 2020, only to lose to Purzycki in a vitriolic three-way race. Attempts to reach Jones-Potter for comment were not ..read more

From Delco to Chesco and Montco to Bucks, what about life in Philly’s suburbs do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know! Councilmembers Fred Green and Portia West receive salaries from City of Chester for their public service. The pair also serve on the board of the Stormwater Authority for the City of Chester — where they earn an additional salary. First-term Mayor Stefan Roots alleges Green and West are violating Article II, Section 202 of the city charter, which states that no council member should “hold any other compensated position in the City of Chester government.” This prohibition d ..read more