EL PASO, Texas — The El Paso County Democratic Party chairperson on Monday called for both state and city investigative audits into El Paso’s Covid-19 vaccination efforts. It comes as ABC-7 has received numerous complaints from viewers who say they registered for the vaccine in December and have not yet been called back by the
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AUSTIN, Texas — Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said Texas is on a comeback from a pandemic that has killed more than 36,000 people here — third-most in the U.S. — and steered America’s biggest red state Monday night into a thicket of battles over voting, policing and immigration that are likely to deepen political divides in the
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WASHINGTON, DC — A federal judge on Monday refused to release jailed Cowboys for Trump leader Couy Griffin of New Mexico as he awaits trial in Washington in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol. U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui ordered Griffin, an Otero County Commissioner, held without bail on charges that he knowingly entered
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LAS CRUCES, New Mexico — Members of the Las Cruces City Council unanimously voiced their opposition to U.S. Rep. Yvette Herrell’s rejection of electoral votes that certified Joe Biden’s presidency. In her first speech in Congress, the newly elected Republican congresswoman objected to counting the electoral votes from Pennsylvania and Arizona, saying the actions “disenfranchised”
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WASHINGTON, DC — President Joe Biden’s administration has deported hundreds of immigrants in its early days despite his campaign pledge to stop removing most people in the U.S. illegally at the beginning of his term. A federal judge last week ordered the Biden administration not to enforce a 100-day moratorium on deportations, but the ruling
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El Paso, TX — Local YWCA chapters across the state are calling on the Texas Legislature to enact legislation that will increase access to quality child care in hopes of helping working mothers that have suffered a massive burden during the coronavirus pandemic. YWCA Texas affiliates are asking for policies that will equitable quality child
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DALLAS, Texas — Faced with the threat that the state might slash its vaccine allocation, Dallas officials in late January reversed course on a plan that would have prioritized doses for people living in the county’s most vulnerable ZIP codes, primarily in communities of color. A divided Dallas County Commissioners Court had voted to prioritize vaccines at
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SANTA FE, New Mexico — A bill that would legalize medically assisted suicide for terminally ill patients in New Mexico passed its first hurdle this past week and is backed by the state’s governor. In a Democratic-led party-line vote, the Elizabeth Whitfield End-Of-Life Act passed the House Health and Human Services Committee 7-4. The bill is named
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AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Republicans are again trying to limit the ways transgender youth can participate in athletics. Lawmakers have filed legislation that would ban transgender girls and women who attend public K-12 schools, colleges and universities from playing on single-sex sports teams designated for girls and women. One bill filed by Rep. Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, is
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — The jailed leader of Cowboys for Trump has been held in solitary isolation for two weeks as he refuses to take a coronavirus test and has rejected initial offers to speak with an attorney or judge following his arrest in connection with the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol, according to
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SANTA FE, New Mexico — The Democratic speaker of the state House is restricting access by lawmakers to the House floor and closing off conference rooms after the disclosure that a Republican legislator tested positive for Covid-19, along with several positive tests among legislative staff. Speaker Brian Egolf of Santa Fe said that as of
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HOUSTON, Texas — A federal judge in Texas said Friday that he’ll likely extend his hold on the Biden administration’s deportation moratorium until February 23. Earlier this week, Judge Drew Tipton of the Southern District of Texas, a Trump appointee, blocked the administration’s 100-day pause on deportations, delivering a blow to one of President Joe
Continue Reading EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, has sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency asking for the agency to host a mass vaccination site in El Paso. In a tweet, the congresswoman shared the letter she sent Thursday night to Robert Fenton Jr., the acting FEMA administrator. NEW:
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WASHINGTON, DC — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has made it clear she has no interest in working with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. The congresswoman from New York tweeted Thursday that she disagreed with Robinhood’s decision to abruptly stop transactions of GameStop stock following the company’s Reddit-inspired rise. Ocasio-Cortez described the decision as “unacceptable” and said she would support a hearing by the
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EL PASO, Texas — Former El Paso Democratic congressman Beto O’Rourke said in a radio interview that he is contemplating a run for governor of Texas next year against Republican incumbent Greg Abbott. Abbott will be seeking his third term in office and O’Rourke told ABC-7’s media partners at KLAQ radio that he’s considering a
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ODESSA, Texas — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday signaled that the state plans to sue the Biden administration over executive orders it issued this week imposing new regulations on the energy industry in a sweeping move to combat climate change. Abbott’s comments came after he held a roundtable discussion in Odessa on the significant
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SANTA FE, New Mexico — An economic relief package is taking shape at the New Mexico Legislature as a state Senate panel has endorsed a $600 rebate to low-income workers and a separate bill that would waive licensing fees on liquor stores. Residents of New Mexico who earned up to $31,200 during 2020 would be eligible for
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — Defense attorneys for jailed Cowboys for Trump leader Couy Griffin urged a federal judge Wednesday to release the Otero County commissioner and gun rights advocate as he awaits trial in Washington in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol. Federal prosecutors want Griffin, a resident of Tularosa, New Mexico, held without bail
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WASHINGTON, DC — In what is the most ambitious U.S. effort ever to stave off the worst effects of climate change, President Joe Biden is aiming to cut oil, gas and coal emissions and double energy production from offshore wind turbines through executive orders he signed Wednesday. The orders getting his signature target federal subsidies
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SANTA FE, New Mexico (KOAT) — Republican lawmakers in New Mexicoare looking to eliminate a tax for retirees. The majority of U.S. states do not tax social security income for retirees. “We’re one of only 13 states that taxes that kind of income,” John Garcia, the executive vice president for the Homebuilders Association of Central
Continue Reading A federal judge’s action Tuesday preventing President Joe Biden’s 100-day pause in deportations demonstrated the land mines that await the new administration in the nation’s courts. The short-term order by the Texas-based judge could also force a confrontation up to the US Supreme Court, where the Biden legal team already faces hard choices over how
Continue Reading SANTA FE, New Mexico — School districts across New Mexico will be allowed to bring students back into classrooms early next month, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced during her State of the State speech on Tuesday afternoon. In a major pull-back of restrictions that were based on county-level Covid-19 case rates and hospital capacity, the governor said
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HOUSTON, Texas — A federal judge in Texas temporarily blocked the Biden administration’s pause on deportations Tuesday, delivering a blow to one of the administration’s first immigration actions. The court order stems from a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton challenging the 100-day pause on deportations, which took effect Friday. The complaint cited
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UPDATE: WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Senate has rejected a Republican attempt to dismiss Donald Trump’s historic second impeachment trial, a vote that allows the case on “incitement of insurrection” to move forward but also foreshadows that there may not be enough votes to convict him. The procedural vote to set aside an objection from
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WASHINGTON, DC — President Joe Biden this week will impose a moratorium on new oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters, both the Washington Post and the New York Times reported Tuesday morning citing administration insiders who have been briefed on the draft of the plan. The moratorium’s announcement, which is expected on
Continue Reading VICTORIA, Texas — A federal judge in Texas on Monday asked the Biden administration to clarify its 100-day pause on deportations as he considers a lawsuit to block the moratorium. Over the weekend, Texas, which is suing the Biden administration, submitted a Fox News report to the court that cited an internal email instructing Immigration
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AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Legislature on Monday began an every-10-year redistricting process that could diminish El Paso’s representation in the state House of Representatives. Census estimates through 2019 show that El Paso’s population has stagnated since the last census in 2010, while Texas continued rapid growth. If those estimates are confirmed by 2020 census
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Justice Department’s inspector general is launching an investigation to examine whether any former or current department officials “engaged in an improper attempt” to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Inspector General Michael Horowitz said Monday that the investigation will investigate allegations concerning the conduct of former and current
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Supreme Court has brought an end to lawsuits over whether Donald Trump illegally profited off his presidency. The justices on Monday threw out Trump’s challenge to lower court rulings that had allowed lawsuits to go forward alleging that he violated the Constitution’s emoluments clause by accepting payments from foreign and
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WASHINGTON, DC — Dominion Voting Systems has sued former President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani for defamation after he pushed the “Big Lie” about election fraud on his podcast and TV appearances. Dominion is seeking more than $1.3 billion in damages. “Just as Giuliani and his allies intended, the Big Lie went viral on
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