Political News

Governor Pillen Announces New Corrections Director

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 04/10/2023 - 3:00am

LINCOLN, NE – Governor Pillen announced Rob Jeffreys as the next director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (NDCS). Jeffreys will start April 17, 2023.

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Nebraska Lawmakers Advance School Safety Package To Full Legislature

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 04/03/2023 - 5:00am

A person kneels in front of an entry to Covenant School which has become a memorial for shooting victims, Tuesday, March 28, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. Six people were killed at the small, private Christian school last Monday after a shooter opened fire inside the 200-student school. (John Amis / AP Photo)

LINCOLN — A Nebraska legislative committee advanced a package Wednesday designed to improve school safety, coming just days after another school shooting, this time in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Education Committee voted 7-0 to send Legislative Bill 516, proposed by State Sen. Lynne Walz of Fremont, to the full Legislature. State Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha was not present for the vote.

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This Course Uses Science Fiction To Understand Politics

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 04/03/2023 - 4:00am

Uncommon Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

What prompted the idea for the course?

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Nebraska Trans Health Bill Advances, Despite Filibuster Vow

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 03/27/2023 - 5:00am

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Legislature voted Thursday to advance a contentious bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors, despite threats from some lawmakers that they would filibuster the rest of the session.

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Nearly 300,000 Women Served During The Iraq War. Two Decades Later, They Remain ‘The Invisible Veterans.’

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 03/27/2023 - 2:00am

Christina Schauer deployed to Baghdad in March 2003 during her sophomore year in college. At age 20, Schauer was part of an 800-member reserve battalion that consisted mainly of engineers, truck drivers, mechanics and a handful of medics like herself, tasked with building up the military bases that are there now. About 10 percent were women, she said.

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Supreme Court Honors Legacy Of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Published by Nikki Palmer on Fri, 03/24/2023 - 2:00am

The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was remembered during ceremonies at the Supreme Court. (Charles Dharapak / AP Photo)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose death ahead of the 2020 election led to a conservative shift on the Supreme Court, was remembered Friday during ceremonies at the high court as a legendary champion for women's rights.

Speaking just two days after what would have been the justice's 90th birthday, Chief Justice John Roberts called her a "woman of conviction, courage and quiet compassion."

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‘Moving Unapologetically To The Forefront’: How An Archive Is Preserving The Black Feminist Movement

Published by jason@omahadail... on Mon, 03/13/2023 - 3:00am

Portraits of Anna Julia Cooper (left) and Mary Church Terrell circa 1900.
(Library of Congress)

While White women had their eyes set on the ballot — what would ultimately be a self-serving prize — Black women in the late 19th and early 20th centuries led a multifaceted movement that would benefit not only themselves, but American society as a whole.

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Voter ID Public Hearing Stretches Seven Hours At The Unicameral

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 03/06/2023 - 5:00am

LINCOLN — Nebraskans on Wednesday packed a public hearing room and overflowed into another, waiting for a shot to weigh in on three proposals that will help shape the state’s final Voter ID law.

The trio of bills that aired during a combined session before the Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee represented different ends of the spectrum.

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Point v. Counter-Point: Legislative Bill 753: The Philosophical Public Policy Case For Opportunity Scholarships

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 03/06/2023 - 4:00am

The Nebraska Examiner has described Legislative Bill 753, the Opportunity Scholarship Act, as a bill that “provides public funds for private schools.” More specifically Legislative Bill 753 is described as “a bill that would set aside at least $25 million a year in taxpayer funds for tax credits for donations to private school scholarships.”

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Why Can’t Americans Agree On, Well, Nearly Anything? Philosophy Has Some Answers

Published by Nikki Palmer on Mon, 03/06/2023 - 2:00am

Does wearing a mask stop the spread of COVID-19? Is climate change driven primarily by human-made emissions? With these kinds of issues dividing the public, it sometimes feels as if Americans are losing our ability to agree about basic facts of the world. There have been widespread disagreements about matters of seemingly objective fact in the past, yet the number of recent examples can make it feel as though our shared sense of reality is shrinking.