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8 votes
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Finland's new economy minister has apologised for extremist remarks after it emerged he addressed a far-right group four years ago
7 votes -
North Carolina GOP censures Senior State Sen. Tillis for backing LGBTQ+ rights and other policies
14 votes -
Jerry Springer, politician turned TV ringmaster, dies at 79
10 votes -
Norway has expelled fifteen Russian officials that it had accused of spying under diplomatic cover
8 votes -
Finnish conservative leader Petteri Orpo has won a nail-biting three-way election race, defeating Prime Minister Sanna Marin's centre left Sosiaalidemokraattien
7 votes -
Kevin McCarthy fails on first US House speakership vote in historic loss
20 votes -
Brazil will have first Indigenous woman chief for key post
3 votes -
Sixteen searches, four arrests in European Parliament after Qatar corruption investigation
5 votes -
Rishi Sunak to become first British Asian PM as Penny Mordaunt bows out
13 votes -
Søren Pape Poulsen, leading challenger to Mette Frederiksen, is hemorrhaging support after false claims about the origins of his soon-to-be ex-husband
3 votes -
Swedish rightwing on verge of narrow election win but waits on final tally – bloc including far-right Sverigedemokraterna on course for one-seat majority
11 votes -
CBS News poll: Of 2,085 adults polled, majority favor maximum age limits for elected US officials
13 votes -
Argentina's VP Cristina Fernández de Kirchner unharmed in point-blank attempted shooting
6 votes -
US House Speaker Pelosi arrives in Taiwan, defying Beijing
21 votes -
Lords complain of ‘poor wine’ and ‘too much salmon’ in the ‘disappointing’ taxpayer-subsidised food and drink served to Parliament
14 votes -
Swedish government narrowly survives no-confidence vote – vote targeted Justice Minister Morgan Johansson over his record on violent crime
4 votes -
German state elections show populism in decline on left and right
9 votes -
Denmark seeks to charge former defence minister with disclosing secrets – top prosecuting office says Claus Hjort Frederiksen shared ‘highly classified information’
3 votes -
In France, a racist conspiracy theory edges into the mainstream
13 votes -
Former Danish defence minister, Claus Hjort Frederiksen, said that he has been charged under a law that deals with divulging state secrets
4 votes -
David Sassoli, European Union parliament president, dies at age 65
6 votes -
Stacey Abrams is running for Georgia governor in 2022
16 votes -
Conservative politician Péter Márki-Zay wins Hungarian opposition race as six parties come together to challenge Orbán
15 votes -
Colin Powell dies of COVID related complications at 84
6 votes -
Iceland elects Europe's first female majority parliament – but Katrín Jakobsdóttir's future as PM looks to be in doubt after her party lost several seats
7 votes -
Hong Kong leader defends election after single non-establishment figure picked for 1,500-strong committee
6 votes -
Andrew Yang to launch a third party
15 votes -
Stefan Löfven steps down as Sweden's prime minister after seven years – finance minister Magdalena Andersson widely tipped to be his successor as leader of Socialdemokraterna
8 votes -
Morten Messerschmidt, a leading right-wing Danish politician, has been convicted of fraudulently receiving funds from the European Union
9 votes -
New York governor Andrew Cuomo to resign after investigation finds he sexually harassed multiple women
16 votes -
New vote totals show tighter Democratic race for New York City mayor
5 votes -
Donald Rumsfeld, influential but controversial George W Bush defense secretary, dies at 88
12 votes -
Mike Gravel, former Alaska Senator and anti-war advocate dies at age 91
10 votes -
Sweden's Vänsterpartiet said it would seek to oust PM Stefan Löfven if the government didn't drop or change plans for the abolition of rent controls on new-build properties
7 votes -
Denmark's secret service helped the US spy on European politicians including German Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2012 to 2014
5 votes -
Walter Mondale, Vice President of the Carter administration and 1984 Democratic candidate for president dies at 93
8 votes -
Alexei Navalny reaches fourteenth day of hunger strike as officials threaten force-feeding
15 votes -
Covid-19: Brazil to get fourth health minister since pandemic began
6 votes -
Mario Draghi forms new government in Italy, politicians and technocrats named as ministers
8 votes -
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declares China's treatment of Uighurs 'genocide'
15 votes -
Partner of Norway's former justice minister has been found guilty of threatening democracy – she faked attacks on her family home and the torching of her car
10 votes -
Andrew Yang is running for Mayor of New York City
26 votes -
Leading politicians in Finland have expressed outrage after former prime minister Juha Sipilä was assaulted outside the country's Parliament building
9 votes -
In Georgia Runoff Elections, (D) Warnock wins vs (R) Loeffler, (D) Ossof very likely wins vs (R) Purdue
Text post because the big news companies are cowards playing it safe and not calling Ossof yet, though it's basically over Warnock makes history with Senate win as Dems near majority (AP News) My...
Text post because the big news companies are
cowardsplaying it safe and not calling Ossof yet, though it's basically overWarnock makes history with Senate win as Dems near majority (AP News)
My takes below:
What does this mean?
This gives Democrats a thin majority in the senate. Does it mean they have free reign? No, the party is not that unified. In particular, as you probably have heard his name many many times now, Manchin, the "conservative Democrat" from WV is likely to be the kingmaker in votes. So it's not like just anything can get passed, and Manchin will not eliminate the filibuster easily.
So is it pointless?
ABSOLUTELY NOT
It's a huge victory nonetheless for Democrats. Remember, with control of the Senate, Chuck Schumer will be Senate Majority Leader, who controls what legislation the senate votes on. Even bipartisan bills were consistently torpedoed by McConnell who would refuse to even have a vote on it. Now, there is politics that can be done - deals, compromise, whatever. If you can't vote on something, nothing can be done. Things that are overall popular like increased stimulus are also going to pass.
Additionally, perhaps an even bigger deal, Biden can get his nominations through for cabinet and judges. There's an insane amount of unfilled heads of state departments right now, and the rest are filled with people absolutely unfit for the job. Having a real human being be the head of the EPA, or Department of Education, or the Department of Energy, and so forth is a big deal.
It also means that Justice Breyer can safely retire and have another "liberal" Justice take his place.
It's not sweeping control over the government, but it's a immensely superior political situation to McConnell stone walling anything he doesn't want, and Biden having to haggle with McConnell over how incompetent his cabinet needs to be.
48 votes -
Pennsylvania Republicans block seating of Democratic state senator, take control from lieutenant governor
20 votes -
Email accounts belonging to Finnish MPs were compromised during a cyberattack on the country's parliament in the autumn
6 votes -
Andrew Yang files paperwork to run for New York City mayor
26 votes -
An anti-gay Hungarian politician has resigned after being caught by the police fleeing a 25-man orgy through a window
27 votes -
Belgium has expelled five Danish far-right activists and banned them for a year over their plans to burn a Quran in a mainly-Muslim area of Brussels
10 votes