Former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton this week visited a Ukrainian church in Chicago to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
Driving the news: The former presidents placed sunflowers — the Ukrainian national flower — outside the Saints Volodymyr and Olha Catholic Church in Chicago, according to an Instagram video posted on Bush's page.
The White House considered giving Americans gas cards to help offset high prices, but faced strong opposition from congressional committees, which questioned the plan's viability and effectiveness.
Why it matters: The Biden administration is feeling political pressure from high energy costs, made worse by Western sanctions against Russia, and Democrats desperately want to offer some kind of policy response.
Driving the news: The group of 10 senators planned to meet with military leaders and NGO officials to learn more about how the U.S. can better support the region and its allies in the defensive alliance. It's the second congressional delegation to visit Europe in the last week.
The South Carolina Department of Corrections can now carry out executions by firing squad for death row inmates who choose the method, the department said Friday.
Why it matters: The state becomes just the fourth to allow the method, joining Mississippi, Utah and Oklahoma. Only three people have been executed by firing squad since 1976, according to NPR.
A rising number of law enforcement agencies are opting not to share statistics about hate crimes with the FBI — just as hate crimes are skyrocketing, according to U.S. Justice Department numbers.
The big picture: The decline in reporting hurts efforts to accurately document violence against Asian Americans, Black Americans, and LGBTQ+ people, advocates and DOJ officials say.
Alaska Republican Rep. Don Young, the longest-serving member of Congress in either party, has died, according to staffers and his family. He was 88.
Driving the news: “It’s with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we announce Congressman Don Young, the Dean of the House and revered champion for Alaska, passed away today while traveling home to Alaska to be with the state and people that he loved," Young's office said in a statement. "His beloved wife, Anne, was by his side."
The American Bar Association (ABA) said Friday that Ketanji Brown Jackson is "well qualified" — its highest rating — to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court ahead of her confirmation hearings next week.
Why it matters: The assessment is yet another point in favor of President Biden's nominee, who has garnered support from both Republicans and Democrats. If confirmed, she'd be the first Black woman to serve as Supreme Court justice in U.S. history and the first in decades with significant experience representing criminal defendants.
The former West Virginia legislator who filmed himself storming the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection pleaded guilty to one felony count of civil disorder on Friday, prosecutors said.
Why it matters: Derrick Evans recorded himself breaching the Capitol with a mob of Trump supporters and filmed himself saying, "We’re in, we’re in! Derrick Evans is in the Capitol!" according to charging documents.
Why it matters: Friday's action moves ownership of the Amache grounds, currently managed by volunteers, to the National Park Service and guarantees that the stories of those who were incarcerated there are honored and preserved for future generations.
The Department of Homeland Security inspector general on Friday released a report calling for the "immediate removal" of all detainees from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in New Mexico due to "egregious" living conditions.
Driving the news: Inspector General Joseph Cuffari issued a "management alert" directing ICE to address "the critical staffing shortages that have led to safety risks and unsanitary living conditions at the Torrance County Detention Facility."
The House on Friday passed a legislation aimed at banning racial discrimination related to hairstyles with a 235-189 vote.
Driving the news: Introduced by Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act prohibits "discrimination based on a person's hair texture or hairstyle if that style or texture is commonly associated with a particular race or national origin."
Latinos in the U.S.experienced a 40% spike in drug overdose death rates in 2020, according to a new study.
Why it matters: The large percentage increase for Latinos shows how the pandemic and isolation may have affected Hispanics, who experienced higher rates of COVID-19 deaths.
The United Nations has recorded some 1,900 civilian casualties during Russia's invasion of Ukraine — with 52 children among 726 confirmed dead, a UN official told the Security Council on Thursday.
Driving the news: UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo said the actual number of civilians killed from Feb. 24 to March 15 was "likely much higher."
Arnold Schwarzenegger debunked disinformation regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine in a now-viral video on Thursday, and urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to put an end to the war.
Mark Meadows, who previously served as former President Trump's chief of staff, is under investigation for alleged voter fraud, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) confirmed to Axios Thursday.
Why it matters: The probe comes after the New Yorker reported that Meadows, also a former U.S. congressman, registered to vote in September 2020 using an address he allegedly never visited.
Seeking to protect veterans from cyberattacks and to teach kids about disinformation, lawmakers are introducing legislation to address heightened homeland security concerns after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Why it matters: Since the start of the war, much of the attention has been on how to supply humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. Now, lawmakers are thinking about nonmilitary attacks Russia could unleash on the United States.
