14:23
Florida’s Republican-controlled House last night passed a bill that overhauls voting laws in the state and includes a police force that will be dedicated to investigating election crimes.
Governor Ron DeSantis has called for the creation of the creation of a police unit, saying last year that voter fraud – claims of which he did not specify – is rampant and needs to be more severely punished. The bill passed last night also increases penalties for violating state election laws.
Voting rights advocates say that the bill is a way for DeSantis – a formidable Trump ally – to play to a base that believes there was fraud in the 2020 election.
“It is very clearly an attempt to satiate a certain sector of the base that has been bombarded with misinformation about the 2020 Election and the Big Lie,” Brad Ashwell, Florida state director of the advocacy group All Voting is Local, told the Miami Herald.
Bernice King tweeted that “Florida is going full steam ahead with bills that deter democracy”.
Be A King
(@BerniceKing)Please pay attention. Florida is going full steam ahead with bills that deter democracy. Election fraud is very rarely an issue, so why dedicate millions of dollars and a police force to it? Dangerous. https://t.co/7wpxg0fZdY
14:06
US joins calls for war crimes investigation into Russia’s actions in Ukraine
Good morning, and welcome to the US politics live blog.
The US is joining in on calls for an international war crimes investigation into Russia’s actions in Ukraine, with Kamala Harris saying earlier today that “we should all be watching”.
“Absolutely there should be an investigation,” Harris said while standing next to Polish president Andrzej Duda during a joint news conference in Warsaw. “I have no question the eyes of the world are on this war and what Russia has done in terms of this aggression and these atrocities.”
The international criminal court (ICC) said last week that it is launching a war crimes investigation into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine following a referral for investigation from 39 countries.
While Harris emphasized that the US and Poland are united in efforts to help Ukraine, she did not directly address the US dismissing Poland’s plan to provide fighter jets to be sent to Ukraine.
Harris also announced that the US will provide $53m in humanitarian assistance to Ukrainian civilians affected by the invasion.
Here’s what else is happening:
- Congress is racing to get a spending bill on Joe Biden’s desk as funding for the government is set to expire Friday night. The House late last night passed a huge $1.5tn spending bill that includes $13.6bn in military and humanitarian support to Ukraine and European allies. The bill earmarks $6.5bn in funds to send troops and weapons to eastern Europe to aid allied forces and another $6.8bn in aid to refugees and support to allies.
- The spending bill passed without the $15.6bn the White House asked Congress for to help fund its Covid response plan. The White House said the money is needed to secure Covid-19 treatment and aid next-generation vaccine development and without the funding, treatment and testing will be in short supply.
- Biden is set to meet with Colombia president Ivan Duque today. The two leaders are set to discuss migration. Biden is also speaking to Turkish president Tayipp Erdogan this morning.
Stay tuned for more live updates.