U.S. House panel to consider self-driving car legislation

A U.S. House subcommittee will vote on Wednesday on a sweeping proposal to allow automakers to deploy up to 100,000 self-driving vehicles without meeting existing auto safety standards and bar states from imposing driverless car rules. The measure, which would be the first significant federal legislation aimed at speeding self-driving cars to market, would require automakers to submit safety assessment reports to U.S. regulators, but would not require pre-market approval of advanced vehicle technologies.

Third GOP senator indicates he might oppose health care bill

A third Republican senator angrily indicated Monday he might oppose his party's health care bill in an upcoming showdown vote, a threat that could doom one of the GOP's top priorities to a humiliating, self-inflicted defeat. Sen. Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican, said moderate GOP senators "basically confirmed" to him that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., assured them last week that Medicaid cuts planned by the legislation would "never happen" because they are too far in the future.

Two GOP senators oppose healthcare bill, killing it for now

Republican Sens. Mike Lee and Jerry Moran said Monday evening they would not vote to advance the GOP healthcare bill, essentially killing the legislation in its current form. Lee, of Utah, and Moran, of Kansas, tweeted that they could not support the Senate's bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

Lawmakers: US Senate’s health care plan would hurt Vermont

The health care proposal under consideration in the U.S. Senate would be devastating to the thousands of Vermont residents who rely on the current system for care, and it has the potential to wreak havoc on the state's finances, top state and federal politicians across the political spectrum said Monday. Meeting in the Statehouse office of Republican Gov. Phil Scott, the three members of the congressional delegation and other top lawmakers from the Democratic and Republican parties said they had different opinions about the best way to fix President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act, but they agreed Vermont residents had to be protected in the process.

Hudson Opens Office in SCC Library

Congressman Richard Hudson talks with supporters Monday after the formal opening of his Moore County office in Boyd Library at Sandhills Community College. Congressman Richard Hudson talks with supporters Monday after the formal opening of his Moore County office in Boyd Library at Sandhills Community College.

Unions and lawmakers press Trump to protect workers in NAFTA talks

With NAFTA negotiations to happen next month, the Trump administration is set to release its priorities within the next 30 days under the 'fast-track' rules. President Trump shakes hands with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto during the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, on July 7, 2017.

Susan Rice to Face Questions on Capitol Hill Over Unmasking

Former national security adviser Susan Rice will testify this week before a House committee, where she'll likely face difficult questions about "unmasking" President Donald Trump's associates. On Tuesday, Rice will testify in a closed-door meeting of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which is conducting its own investigation into allegations of Russian election interference.

Protesters Rally Against GOP Health Care Plan At Senate Office Building

Protesters again took to Capitol Hill on Monday to protest Senate Republicans' proposed health care bill, staging a demonstration in the Hart Senate Office Building, where several people were reportedly arrested. Demonstrators there urged Republican senators to vote against the bill, which would dismantle key portions of the Affordable Care Act and cause millions of people to lose their health care coverage, largely due to cuts to Medicaid.

Tom Reed: The dignity of developing our workforce

"American citizens have worked every job, every occupation, no matter what it might be-no matter how grueling, how challenging, or even how dangerous," he said during his weekly address. His message was there is dignity in every honest job, and there good paying career opportunities available now-and you don't need to run up tens of thousands of dollars of debt earning a four-year college degree to get those jobs.

Doubts remain as Republicans try another Senate health care bill

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced a new health coverage overhaul bill today, but the Washington Post reports that doubts remain whether he has sufficient Republican votes to pass it. The situation is complicated by a competing bill from two Republican senators.

Texas Republican congressman says Trump should kick kids out of White House

Donald Trump Jr., left, in an interview Tuesday with Fox News host Sean Hannity, has come under increasing scrutiny for his role and activities during the 2016 presidential campaign for his father, President Trump. Donald Trump Jr., left, in an interview Tuesday with Fox News host Sean Hannity, has come under increasing scrutiny for his role and activities during the 2016 presidential campaign for his father, President Trump.

Yellen calls risks of inflation ‘two-sided’

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, left, and the committee's ranking member Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, listen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 13, 2017, as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testified before the committee. less Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, left, and the committee's ranking member Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, listen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 13, 2017, as Federal ... more Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 13, 2017, before the Senate Banking Committee.

Durbin, Duckworth: Plainfield tank car derailment a wake-up call for DOT

WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth today called on U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to do more to prevent railroad tank car accidents like the one in Plainfield, Illinois on June 30, 2017, in which multiple rail cars on a Canadian National train carrying crude oil derailed, causing an estimated 45,000 gallons of oil to leak out of the tank cars. "We are extremely grateful for the hard work of Plainfield's first responders, who were able to contain the spill and prevent any injuries or deaths as a result of the incident," the Senators wrote in a letter to Secretary Chao.

Hultgren hosts Women in STEM panel, scholars graduation

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State receives over two million in housing and development funding

WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded a total of $2,058,130 in grant funding to Illinois agencies through two programs the Housing Counseling Grant Program and the Service Coordinator Program to help families, seniors, and people with disabilities who live in insured and assisted apartment housing across the state live more independent lives. "This funding will give local housing agencies across Illinois the ability to expand and improve existing supportive services for families, seniors, and people with disabilities, helping them to continue to live as independently as possible in the communities they love and know," Durbin said.

Dem senator’s family profits from outsourcing he decries: report

Joe Donnelly Dem senator's family profits from outsourcing he decries: report Indiana Republican raises M for potential Senate bid Senate confirms Trump's 'regulatory czar' MORE , who has fiercely criticized the outsourcing of U.S. jobs, has profited from a company that uses a Mexican factory to produce dye for ink pads, The Associated Press reported Thursday. Stewart Superior Corp., an arts and crafts business owned by Donnelly's family, has for more than a year shipped raw material to a company-owned factory in Mexico where it produces ink pads and other products.

Gova t to report on solvency of Social Security, Medicare

Republicans in Washington have been clamoring for years to address the long-term financial problems of Social Security and Medicare. On Thursday, the trustees who oversee the programs are scheduled to issue their annual warning about the finances of the federal government's two largest benefit programs.