Who is KL Sharma, Congress candidate to contest against BJP’s Smriti Irani from Amethi?
Kishori Lal Sharma is a trusted associate of the Gandhi family, having served as Sonia Gandhi’s representative in Raebareli.
‘Our territory’: India lodges protest with China over infrastructure development in Shaksgam Valley
India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas. The last round of military talks between the two sides had taken place in February.
Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Congress picks Rahul Gandhi from Raebareli, KL Sharma from Amethi
Rahul currently represents Wayanad in the Lok Sabha while Smriti Irani is bidding for a fresh term from Amethi. Raebareli was held by Sonia Gandhi who became a member of Rajya Sabha
Delhi liquor policy case: HC to hear Manish Sisodia’s bail pleas today
Sisodia approached the high court after a trial court refused to grant him bail in the matter on April 30.
Which states could have abortion on the ballot in 2024?
South Dakota advocates submitted petitions Wednesday in their effort to amend the state constitution to include the right to abortion, at least under some circumstances. Signatures are also expected to be turned in Friday in Missouri for a ballot measure there. The efforts in both states are part of a movement to put abortion rights questions to voters since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and removed the nationwide right to abortion. OUTSPOKEN PRO-ABORTION GOVERNOR GETS SPEAKING SLOT AT VATICAN SUMMIT Since that 2022 decision, most Republican-controlled states have new abortion restrictions in effect, including 14 that ban it at every stage of pregnancy. Most Democrat-dominated states have laws or executive orders to protect access. Additionally, voters in seven states — California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana, Ohio and Vermont — have sided with abortion rights supporters on ballot measures. It’s not clear yet how many states will vote on measures to enshrine abortion access in November. In some, the question is whether amendment supporters can get enough valid signatures. In others, it’s up to the legislature. And there’s legal wrangling in the process in some states. Some of the efforts have already failed to reach ballots. Wisconsin’s legislative session ended without a state Senate vote on a measure that the House approved to ask voters to ban abortion after 14 weeks. Iowa lawmakers did not approve a measure before their session ended this year to ask voters to find that there’s no constitutional right to abortion; Pennsylvania lawmakers previously pursued a similar amendment, but it’s not expected to be added to the ballot there this year. A Louisiana measure to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution died in committee and one in Maine effectively died when it fell short of receiving the approval of two-thirds of the House. WHAT’S SECURELY ON 2024 BALLOTS? FLORIDA The state Supreme Court ruled on April 1 that a ballot measure to legalize abortion until viability could go on the ballot despite a legal challenge from state Attorney General Ashley Moody, who argued that there are differing views on the meaning of “viability” and that some key terms in the proposed measure are not properly defined. Advocates collected nearly a million signatures to put a state constitutional amendment to legalize abortion until viability on the ballot, surpassing the nearly 892,000 required. Sixty percent of voters would have to agree for it to take effect. Abortion is illegal in Florida after the first six weeks of pregnancy under a law that took effect May 1. MARYLAND Maryland voters this year will also be asked whether to enshrine the right for women to end their pregnancies in the state’s constitution in a ballot question put before them by lawmakers last year. The state already protects the right to abortion under state law and Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-1. Abortion is allowed in Maryland until viability. NEW YORK New York lawmakers agreed to ask voters to bar discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, pregnancy outcome and reproductive healthcare as part of a broader equal protection amendment. It would also bar discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin and disability. The language of the constitutional amendment does not mention abortion specifically. Abortion is allowed in New York law until viability. WHERE ELSE COULD ABORTION BE ON THE BALLOT IN 2024? ARIZONA A signature drive is underway to add a constitutional right to abortion in Arizona. Under the measure, the state would not be able to ban abortion until the fetus is viable, with later abortions allowed to protect a woman’s physical or mental health. Supporters must gather nearly 384,000 valid signatures by July 4. Abortion is currently legal for the first 15 weeks of pregnancy in Arizona. An Arizona Supreme Court ruling in April said enforcement could begin soon for a near-total ban that was already on the books. But on Thursday, the governor signed a bill repealing that law, which is still expected to be in effect for a time. ARKANSAS Proponents of an amendment to allow abortion in many cases have until July 5 to gather nearly 91,000 valid signatures to get it on the Nov. 5 ballot. The measure would bar laws banning abortion in the first 20 weeks of gestation and allow abortion later in pregnancy in cases of rape, incest, threats to the woman’s health or life, or if the fetus would be unlikely to survive birth. Because it allows limits as soon as 20 weeks, the proposal does not have the support of Planned Parenthood Great Plains, which includes Arkansas. The state has a ban on abortion at all stages of pregnancy with narrow exceptions. COLORADO Advocates for a ballot measure to add constitutional protections for abortion, including requiring Medicaid and private health insurers to cover it, have turned in signatures to have it placed on the ballot. The secretary of state’s office has until May 17 to determine whether there are enough valid signatures. More than 124,000 are required. Amending the state constitution requires support of 55% of voters. Those backing a dueling measure — a law to ban abortion — did not turn in signatures, and the measure will not go before voters. Abortion is legal at all stages of pregnancy in Colorado. MISSOURI Missouri advocates for abortion access are expected to turn in signatures on Friday, two days ahead of their deadline to submit more than 171,000 to ask voters to approve a constitutional amendment to guarantee abortion until viability. A group of moderate Republicans have abandoned for this year efforts for an alternate amendment that would have allowed abortion up to 12 weeks and after that with only limited exceptions. Abortion is currently banned in Missouri at all stages of pregnancy with limited exceptions. MONTANA Abortion rights proponents in Montana have proposed a constitutional amendment that would bar the government from denying the right to abortion before viability or when it’s necessary to protect the life or health of the pregnant
Trump-backed Brad Knott on track to win Democratic NC House seat after opponent bows out before runoff
A candidate seeking the Republican nomination for a North Carolina congressional seat announced Thursday that she’s suspending her campaign, citing her rival’s endorsement by former President Donald Trump in their upcoming runoff. Johnston County attorney Kelly Daughtry had finished first among 14 candidates in the March 5 Republican primary for the central North Carolina district. But she failed to get above the 30% of the vote needed to avoid a runoff. She and second-place finisher Brad Knott, a former federal prosecutor, had advanced to the scheduled May 14 runoff. In a social media post, Daughtry said that with Trump’s formal backing of Knott last month “it has become clear that a pathway to victory is no longer feasible.” VULNERABLE HOUSE DEM ‘FIGHTING’ TO RETAIN HIS SEAT REJECTS GOP CHALLENGER’S CLAIM HE’S ‘BEHOLDEN’ TO BIDEN “I believe in the democratic process and respect the endorsement of our President,” Daughtry added. Knott also picked up the endorsement of third-place primary finisher Fred Von Canon. “The time has now come to suspend my campaign,” Daughtry added. “Brad has my full endorsement, and I want him to know that I am here to support him, not to oppose him.” But her announcement doesn’t mean she is no longer an official candidate. And her name won’t be removed from the ballot — it’s too late for that. Early in-person voting for the runoff continues through May 11, and traditional absentee balloting has been going on for weeks. Knott accepted Daughtry’s endorsement in his own statement but cautioned supporters who believed he was now the primary winner. Daughtry, the daughter of former state legislative leader Leo Daughtry, ran unsuccessfully for a congressional seat in 2022. “While Kelly has ended her campaign, this election is not over,” Knott said. “I strongly encourage my supporters to get out and vote on May 14.” The seat for the reconfigured 13th District covers all or parts of eight counties. The horseshoe-shaped boundaries arc around most of Raleigh, the state capital, and stretch from Lee County — then east and north — to the Virginia border. The current 13th District is represented by first-term Democratic Rep. Wiley Nickel. Nickel, however, declined to seek reelection, citing the North Carolina legislature’s redistricting last fall that skewed his district to the right politically. Two other Democratic incumbents — Reps. Jeff Jackson and Kathy Manning — didn’t run either, saying the GOP-leaning skew also made it impossible for them to win in November. The GOP runoff winner in the 13th District will still have a fall Democratic rival in Frank Pierce. Still the Democratic departures could make a big difference in whether Republicans can retain their narrow U.S. House majority entering 2025.
Filibuster against $4B Missouri Medicaid bill ends
A dayslong filibuster in the Missouri Senate ended Thursday after a Republican faction allowed a vote on a more than $4 billion Medicaid program they had been holding hostage. Senators gave initial approval in a voice vote to a bill that will renew a longstanding tax on hospitals and other medical providers. The measure needs a second vote of approval in the Senate. Money from the tax is used to draw down $2.9 billion in federal funding, which is then given to providers to care for low-income residents on Medicaid health care. $15 MINIMUM WAGE INCHES CLOSER TO APPEARING ON MISSOURI BALLOT The vote came after members of the Freedom Caucus, a GOP faction, on Tuesday began blocking any work from getting done on the Senate floor. They took shifts stalling two nights in a row by reading books about former President Ronald Reagan and going through the proposed state budget line by line. The Freedom Caucus had been leveraging the tax to pressure Senate Republican leaders to pass a bill kicking Planned Parenthood off the state’s Medicaid program, which the chamber did last month. The House last week sent the measure to Republican Gov. Mike Parson, who is expected to sign it. On Tuesday, the Freedom Caucus used the hospital tax again to demand that Parson sign the Planned Parenthood defunding bill and that the Legislature pass a proposed constitutional amendment to raise the bar for passing future amendments. The hope is that raising the vote threshold to amend the constitution would hypothetically make it harder for voters to pass a pending abortion rights amendment this fall. Republican lawmakers have said raising the bar for amending the constitution is a top priority. GOP senators only managed to pass the proposal after negotiations with Senate Democrats to strip other election-related language, which House Republicans want, from the proposal. Senate Majority Lear Cindy O’Laughlin said in a Facebook post Wednesday she plans to bring the measure on constitutional amendments up for debate May 6. Both the Freedom Caucus and Republican Senate leaders are claiming victory in the extended standoff. The Freedom Caucus said in a statement they formed a coalition with 18 senators — enough to force a vote without support from Democrats — in support of passing the constitutional amendment. Other Senate Republicans said the advancement of the crucial hospital tax represents a defeat for the Freedom Caucus. “What you saw today was the majority of the majority party all sticking together saying we know we have a duty to govern in this state, and we’re going to do whatever we need to do that,” Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Lincoln Hough told the Missouri Independent. The last time a Missouri Senate filibuster lasted so long was in 2016, when Democrats stood to protest proposed protections for those who cite their faith in denying services such as flowers or cakes for same-sex weddings.
UT-Austin says protesters carried guns and assaulted people. Prosecutors haven’t seen proof.
The Travis County attorney hasn’t “seen a single weapons charge or an assault charge” despite school officials’ insinuations of planned violence.
Newsom’s ‘failure’ to ‘do anything’ to stop university violence slammed by lawmakers
Hours after officers in riot gear cleared an increasingly dangerous anti-Israel encampment at UCLA, top California Republicans on Thursday excoriated Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom for a lack of urgency and a failure to act decisively to end the continued campus unrest. GOP lawmakers also placed university leaders on notice, warning that legislators are already discussing pulling state grants from schools that allow the occupations to persist. “We should not be giving Cal Grant money, state money, to students who are trampling on other people’s rights,” Assemblyman James Gallagher told reporters. “They should lose funding. And they did very little to protect students’ rights. They should be punished for their failure to act. “We as Republicans want accountability for this. No more words or failure to say anything or do anything, like we’ve seen out of Gavin Newsom, but actual actions to hold people accountable.” ISRAEL’S PRESIDENT RELEASES BLISTERING STATEMENT ON US UNIVERSITY ENCAMPMENTS: ‘RESURGENCE OF ANTISEMITISM’ Republicans in the state legislature are also “calling for budget action” to hold university administrators accountable by “withholding part of their budget if necessary,” state Sen. Brian Jones said. “And the students that are found guilty of a crime, they lose their Cal Grants,” he said. UCLA FALLS TO ANARCHY AFTER COUNTERPROTESTERS CONFRONT ANTI-ISRAELI ENCAMPMENT: ‘HORRIFIC ACTS OF VIOLENCE’ Jones said students who “have nothing to do with these protests and nothing to do with these damages” will not be at risk of losing their grants if a bill gets drafted. Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital this week the state’s office of emergency services would be ready to respond upon request from campus administrators but declined to comment when asked if National Guard troops would be called in. “Any needed state support would be coordinated through the Law Enforcement Mutual Aid System, which is used to maintain public safety during emergencies, including civil unrest, and to provide assistance to local agencies during other unusual events or catastrophic disasters,” a spokesperson for Newsom’s office said. “In these situations, Cal OES plays a coordinating role to make sure local responders receive the support they have requested for their responses to incidents affecting their campuses.” COLUMBIA COPIED BIDEN’S PLAYBOOK OF ‘DON’T’ WHEN ADDRESSING ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS — THEN IT TRIED TRUMP’S Early Thursday morning, police officers in riot gear knocked down a plywood barrier surrounding the anti-Israel encampment at UCLA, entering the area at around 1:54 a.m. after a lengthy and tense standoff with hundreds of agitators on campus. Officers made about 200 arrests, breaking up the camp that had produced “several days of violent clashes,” according to the school’s chancellor, Gene Block. Fox News’ Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.
Turkey says it halts trade with Israel over Gaza aid access
Turkey’s Ministry of Trade cites humanitarian crisis in Gaza for its decision to suspend imports and exports. Turkey has halted exports and imports to and from Israel, the Turkish Ministry of Trade says, citing the “worsening humanitarian tragedy” in Gaza. “Export and import transactions related to Israel have been stopped, covering all products,” the ministry said in a statement on Thursday. “Turkey will strictly and decisively implement these new measures until the Israeli Government allows an uninterrupted and sufficient flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza.” The announcement came after Israel’s foreign minister said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was breaking agreements by blocking ports from handling Israeli imports and exports. “This is how a dictator behaves, disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and businessmen, and ignoring international trade agreements,” Israel Katz posted on X. .@RTErdogan is breaking agreements by blocking ports for Israeli imports and exports. This is how a dictator behaves, disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and businessmen, and ignoring international trade agreements. I have instructed the Director General of the… — ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) May 2, 2024 Katz said he instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work to create alternatives for trade with Turkey, focusing on local production and imports from other countries. The two countries had a trade volume of $6.8bn in 2023. Turkey last month imposed trade restrictions on Israel over what it said was Israel’s refusal to allow Ankara to take part in airdrops of aid for Gaza and for Israel’s war on the enclave. Asked about Turkey’s ongoing trade with Israel despite the harsh rhetoric from Ankara, Erdogan said last month that Turkey no longer continued “intense trade” with Israel, adding, “That is done.” He did not indicate Ankara had cut off all trade with Israel, however. Adblock test (Why?)