Latest news with #SenateDemocraticCaucus
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Chuck Schumer, 74, Rushed to D.C. Hospital amid Heatwave After Getting 'Lightheaded' at Senate Gym
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was rushed to a Washington, D.C., hospital on Wednesday, June 25, but later returned to work. The 74-year-old senior senator from New York, who has led the Senate Democratic Caucus since 2017, was exercising at the Senate gym when he began to feel "lightheaded," according to a statement from his office. "Out of an abundance of caution, he went to the hospital to be treated for dehydration and is now back at work in the Capitol," the statement continued. "He wants to remind everyone to drink some water and stay out of the heat." Like much of the eastern United States, D.C. is experiencing a major heat wave this week. Temperatures in the nation's capital were expected to reach around 100 degrees on Wednesday. Schumer is a New York City native who launched a career in politics as soon as he earned his law degree from Harvard University in 1974. He joined the Senate in 1999, after 18 years in the House of Representatives and five years in the New York State Assembly, and succeeded Nevada Sen. Harry Reid as the top Senate Democrat in 2017. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Schumer is up for reelection in 2028, and would be 78 at the start of his next term if he opts to seek reelection. Read the original article on People
Indianapolis Star
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Indianapolis Star
I was dragged out by sheriff's deputies. Indiana Democrats stayed silent.
I have spent my entire adult life working to advance the ideals of the Indiana Democratic Party. I've poured my time, expertise, reputation, and heart into electing Democrats. I've defended policies I believed in. I've protected the people who proclaim to protect the rest of us. I helped build campaigns from the ground up, mentored staffers, trained interns, and gave everything I had to the belief that this party could be a force for justice. At the June 9 City-County Council meeting, in the very chamber where I have sat as a professional, policy advisor, and believer in public service, I was dragged out and groped by law enforcement at the direction of those very Democrats I once helped into office. All of them watched. Some turned away. Others remained silent. None of them intervened. It wasn't because I had harmed someone, disrupted democracy, or posed a threat to anyone's safety. It was because I had the audacity to demand accountability for survivors of sexual assault harmed within our own party's infrastructure and city hall. Survivors who put their trust in us, in me, because we told them we were the party of women's rights that believed in bodily autonomy. Because we said we were different. I worked for the Senate Democratic Caucus for nearly a decade. I fought like hell for their policies, districts, and image. I was not just politically or professionally invested in the people who watched me in person and online, be removed. I had been to their weddings. Their baby showers. I've shown up at their doors when they lost loved ones. I've mentored their children. I've contributed to their campaigns. I've canvassed their districts, written speeches, edited press releases, and gone on television to defend their records, often sacrificing my own time in the process. And now, when I've needed them most, hardly any of those officials have picked up the phone to check my well-being. When my image — my body — was plastered all over the news, groped by law enforcement's hands, there was overwhelming silence. Not even the Chair of the Indiana Democratic Party, a woman I once called a mentor. A woman I believed, deeply, shared my commitment to safe, accountable, inclusive workplaces. A woman who has publicly acknowledged that workplace harassment in politics is no surprise. Briggs: Hogsett's texts to women show Indianapolis mayor embodied toxic culture The emotional weight has been crushing. The physical toll is real. And the psychological harm — to me, to the survivors I support, and to my partner and family — continues to deepen. I would say that the silence from our party's leadership is deafening. But it's worse. The continued chatter to impugn my motives and treat me like a troublemaker is worse. But who did reach out to inquire about my well-being? The workers. The staffers. The volunteers. The people with the least power and the most to lose. They wrote to me, called me, whispered encouragement when they thought no one else would hear. The only entity within the state party that has come out alongside survivors is the Howard County Democratic Party. A county party, which understands the message we send as a state party, and from our capital city, is never neutral. They've all asked me to keep going — not because they don't see what this is costing me, but because they know the truth: If someone like me — who's spent two decades building relationships, delivering results, and holding confidences — can be tossed aside for daring to speak up… what does that say to every survivor working quietly within our systems? What does that say to our neighbors living at the margins, without titles, connections or political capital? What does that say about who we are? Imagine that it wasn't me that night — someone who benefits from whiteness, who is straight and cisgender — but a queer Black woman. A trans organizer. An undocumented survivor. Instead of being a white Hispanic woman, a brown woman. Or someone with no media presence, connections, or political history to soften the blow. I know for a fact there were people of color prepared to testify that night. They saw what happened to me and stayed silent — because they knew it would be worse for them. That is what is at stake right now. This is about the soul of the Indiana Democratic Party. Who we really are when it counts. Whether our commitments to justice, safety, and dignity are real, or just slogans we dust off every two years for a campaign. Opinion: Indianapolis makes construction too slow, expensive and exhausting I haven't written this easily. I am grieving many losses– of relationships and expectations. But I still believe in accountability. I still believe in the people who whisper to me that they want to do better, but feel trapped in a system that punishes truth-telling. To those people and everyone watching: now is the time to choose. Will we protect survivors, or protect those with perceived power? Will we lead with courage, or cower in silence? Will we be the party we claim to be — or something else entirely? The Indiana Democratic Party cannot afford to look away any longer. Mayor Joe Hogsett has lost the moral clarity to lead and must resign. There are others who can do that job far better, and to the degree the people of Indianapolis deserve. The truth is here. And so am I. Even now — especially now — I'm still fighting for what's right.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats pick first woman of color to be next state Senate president
California's state Democrats are shaking up leadership, with the Senate Democratic Caucus pledging unanimous support to Sen. Monique Limón (D-Goleta), who will take over as Senate president pro tem in early 2026. Limón, who was elected to the state Senate in 2020, is chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Senate banking committee. The 45-year-old Central Coast native served in the Assembly for four years before her Senate campaign and worked in higher education at UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara County School Board before entering politics. She highlighted the importance of the moment, noting that the caucus, amid ICE raids led by the Trump administration targeting minorities in Los Angeles and across the state, elected her — the first woman of color to hold the position. The uncertain times, she said, were "a reminder of why leadership today, tomorrow and in the future matters, because leadership thinks about and influences the direction in all moments, but, in particular, in these very challenging moments. And for me, it is unbelievably humbling to be here." Recently, Limón has been vocal on the Sable Offshore Pipeline project, which aims to repair and reopen a pipeline off the coast of Santa Barbara County that spilled 21,000 gallons of crude oil in 2015. This year she wrote a measure, Senate Bill 542, in response to the project that would require more community input on reopening pipelines and better safety guidelines to find weak points that could lead to another spill. "No one has fought harder to make college more affordable than Monique Limón," said current Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), who also applauded her work on wildfire recovery. "She is a tireless voice for the Central Coast in rural parts of this great state." McGuire took leadership of the Senate in a unanimous vote by Democrats with former speaker and gubernatorial candidate Toni Atkins' blessing in February. He pledged to protect the state's progressive ideals ahead of a problematic state budget that continued to bubble over, with the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress supporting cuts in federal aid to the state for heathcare for low-income Californians, education and research and other essential programs. The Sonoma County Democrat's takeover was part of a wider change — both legislative houses were led by lawmakers from Northern California this year, leaving Southern California legislators with limited control. Limón's district covers Santa Barbara County and parts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties. McGuire terms out of office next year and may be planning a run for insurance commissioner in 2026 but wouldn't confirm his plans despite collecting more than $220,000 in contributions so far this year. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats pick first woman of color to be next state Senate president
California's state Democrats are shaking up leadership, with the Senate Democratic Caucus pledging unanimous support to Sen. Monique Limón (D-Goleta), who will take over as Senate president pro tem in early 2026. Limón, who was elected to the state Senate in 2020, is chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Senate banking committee. The 45-year-old Central Coast native served in the Assembly for four years before her Senate campaign and worked in higher education at UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara County School Board before entering politics. She highlighted the importance of the moment, noting that the caucus, amid ICE raids led by the Trump administration targeting minorities in Los Angeles and across the state, elected her — the first woman of color to hold the position. The uncertain times, she said, were "a reminder of why leadership today, tomorrow and in the future matters, because leadership thinks about and influences the direction in all moments, but, in particular, in these very challenging moments. And for me, it is unbelievably humbling to be here." Recently, Limón has been vocal on the Sable Offshore Pipeline project, which aims to repair and reopen a pipeline off the coast of Santa Barbara County that spilled 21,000 gallons of crude oil in 2015. This year she wrote a measure, Senate Bill 542, in response to the project that would require more community input on reopening pipelines and better safety guidelines to find weak points that could lead to another spill. "No one has fought harder to make college more affordable than Monique Limón," said current Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), who also applauded her work on wildfire recovery. "She is a tireless voice for the Central Coast in rural parts of this great state." McGuire took leadership of the Senate in a unanimous vote by Democrats with former speaker and gubernatorial candidate Toni Atkins' blessing in February. He pledged to protect the state's progressive ideals ahead of a problematic state budget that continued to bubble over, with the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress supporting cuts in federal aid to the state for heathcare for low-income Californians, education and research and other essential programs. The Sonoma County Democrat's takeover was part of a wider change — both legislative houses were led by lawmakers from Northern California this year, leaving Southern California legislators with limited control. Limón's district covers Santa Barbara County and parts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties. McGuire terms out of office next year and may be planning a run for insurance commissioner in 2026 but wouldn't confirm his plans despite collecting more than $220,000 in contributions so far this year. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Democrats pick first woman of color to be next state Senate president
SACRAMENTO — California's state Democrats are shaking up leadership, with the Senate Democratic Caucus pledging unanimous support to Sen. Monique Limón (D-Goleta), who will take over as Senate president pro tem in early 2026. Limón, who was elected to the state Senate in 2020, is chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Senate banking committee. The 45-year-old Central Coast native served in the Assembly for four years before her Senate campaign and worked in higher education at UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara County School Board before entering politics. She highlighted the importance of the moment, noting that the caucus, amid ICE raids led by the Trump administration targeting minorities in Los Angeles and across the state, elected her — the first woman of color to hold the position. The uncertain times, she said, were 'a reminder of why leadership today, tomorrow and in the future matters, because leadership thinks about and influences the direction in all moments, but, in particular, in these very challenging moments. And for me, it is unbelievably humbling to be here.' Recently, Limón has been vocal on the Sable Offshore Pipeline project, which aims to repair and reopen a pipeline off the coast of Santa Barbara County that spilled 21,000 gallons of crude oil in 2015. This year she wrote a measure, Senate Bill 542, in response to the project that would require more community input on reopening pipelines and better safety guidelines to find weak points that could lead to another spill. 'No one has fought harder to make college more affordable than Monique Limón,' said current Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), who also applauded her work on wildfire recovery. 'She is a tireless voice for the Central Coast in rural parts of this great state.' McGuire took leadership of the Senate in a unanimous vote by Democrats with former speaker and gubernatorial candidate Toni Atkins' blessing in February. He pledged to protect the state's progressive ideals ahead of a problematic state budget that continued to bubble over, with the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress supporting cuts in federal aid to the state for heathcare for low-income Californians, education and research and other essential programs. The Sonoma County Democrat's takeover was part of a wider change — both legislative houses were led by lawmakers from Northern California this year, leaving Southern California legislators with limited control. Limón's district covers Santa Barbara County and parts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties. McGuire terms out of office next year and may be planning a run for insurance commissioner in 2026 but wouldn't confirm his plans despite collecting more than $220,000 in contributions so far this year.
