An assisted living home in California connected to the bank owned by Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Eric Hovde has been cited for a series of violations, records with the state of California show. The home, Claremont Hacienda in Los Angeles County, has also been named in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the daughter of a former resident. The lawsuit was amended in March to add SunWest Bank — which Hovde owns and which is a part-owner of the assisted living home — as a defendant in the case. Hovde is challenging two-term Democratic incumbent Sen. Tammy Baldwin for re-election this year. Democ ..read more

President Joe Biden is scheduled to make a rare campaign appearance Tuesday in Florida, where he is expected to give a speech in Tampa about the new law that will prohibit most abortions in the state after six weeks of pregnancy, starting on May 1. The implementation of the new ban is expected to have a ripple effect across the Southeast, as women from nearby states have traveled to Florida to access legal abortion over the past two years.  That led to more than 7,000 abortions performed by doctors in Florida, according to a report from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administrat ..read more

The North Carolina Republican Party selected Jason Simmons to be its new chair on March 26. Simmons has played footsie with election fraud conspiracies. Simmons replaced former chair Michael Whatley, who, last month, was elected to lead the Republican National Committee. Whatley’s RNC co-chair is Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump. Whatley has been a major backer of Trump’s lies that the 2020 election was stolen. Whatley has claimed, without proof, that he stymied Democratic efforts to rig the election in North Carolina. Trump won the state by less than 2% in 2020. I ..read more

Democratic Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Lucas Kunce raised more than $2 million in the first quarter of 2024, substantially more than his opponent, incumbent Republican Sen. Josh Hawley.  The U.S. Senate contest in Missouri has not received a lot of media attention, in part because of the state’s decisive rightward trend in recent elections. But Kunce’s fundraising haul and a referendum on abortion rights could make it a race to watch in November. In the first months of 2024, Kunce’s campaign raised over $2.25 million from more than 66,000 donations. This is a continuation of a trend f ..read more

Laurie Buckhout, a Republican running for Congress in North Carolina’s first district, attended an event organized by a man who was convicted of committing crimes against children. In December 2023, Buckhout attended a candidate forum in Plymouth, North Carolina. The event was organized by Harvey West, a local Republican activist, and his wife, Kim Cotten-West. Buckhout posted about the event on the social media platform X. “Wonderful night in Plymouth with Harvey West and Kim Cotten-West  and their amazing candidate forum with Representative Ed Goodwin, Robert Brawley and others,” Buckh ..read more

In special elections on Tuesday, state House Democratic candidates Peter Herzberg and Mai Xiong scored victories in two Southeast Michigan districts to help secure a 56-54 voting majority for their caucus.  “I am incredibly humbled for the overwhelming support of the voters of the 13th House District, who have chosen me to represent our community as the next State Representative. Michigan holds a special place in my heart, as it has been a beacon of hope for me and my family,” said Xiong, a Macomb County commissioner who had the endorsement of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer from before the s ..read more

Anyone who plans or coordinates a protest that disrupts traffic could face harsher punishment under a proposed law under consideration in Louisiana.  House Bill 127, sponsored by Rep. Mike Bayham, R-Chalmette, passed the lower chamber in a 72-31 mostly party line vote. Rep. Joe Stagni, R-Kenner, joined with Democrats to oppose the measure. It will head next to the Senate for consideration.  The bill would expand a state criminal statute that outlaws obstruction of a highway, road, railway, airport runway or navigable waterway. Under current law, the crime is considered a misdemeanor ..read more

Missouri state Sen. Bill Eigel, who is currently running for governor, said he would oppose a popular plan to make childcare more affordable because it utilizes tax credits. Eigel has supported tax credits in the past. An analysis by the Missouri Chamber of Commerce found that more than three-fourths of the state is a childcare desert, meaning childcare is either unavailable or prohibitively expensive. This is keeping parents out of the workforce and affecting business’ ability to be fully staffed. House Bill 1488 aims to remedy this crisis by reimbursing taxpayers for 75% of funds spent on c ..read more

Iowa Republican Rep. Zach Nunn concurred with a radio host’s viewpoint that laws against hate crimes are unnecessary. Nunn represents Iowa’s third district in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is running for reelection this year. Nunn appeared on the Simon Conway Show on Jan. 31 in Des Moines, Iowa. During the interview, Conway discussed Michael Cassidy, a former congressional candidate who was charged with a hate crime for vandalizing a Satanic Temple display in the Iowa State Capitol.  “I don’t understand hate crimes at all,” Conway said. “You smack me in the mouth, that’s assault ..read more

The Colorado House of Representatives on Sunday passed a prohibition on the sale, manufacture and transfer of so-called “assault weapons” for the first time in state history, sending the measure over to a less certain future in the Senate. The chamber passed House Bill 24-1292 on a 35-27 vote, with three members excused. Every Republican present voted against it, joined by nine Democrats. Most of those Democrats represent rural or swing districts. The nine Democrats were Rep. Shannon Bird of Westminster, Sheila Leider of Littleton, Meghan Lukens of Steamboat Springs, Bob M ..read more