Us Senate

US Senate passes $1.7T bill to fund government

The bill has more than $850 billion in US defence funding and over $770 billion for non-defence programmes.

US House approves binding referendum to 'decolonise' Puerto Rico

Bill would allow Puerto Rico to hold first-ever binding referendum on whether to become a state or gain some sort of independence, in a last-ditch effort that stands little chance of passing the Senate.

US lawmakers vote to phase down powerful hydrofluorocarbons

Senators vote 69-27 in favour of ratifying the 2016 Kigali Amendment, which would accelerate global efforts to develop alternatives to HFCs for use in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration.

US Senate panel okays $4.5B military aid to Taiwan amid China tensions

Senate Foreign Relations Committee approves Taiwan Policy Act, in a clear indication of support from both Republicans and Democrats for changes in American policy toward Taiwan, such as treating the island as a major non-NATO ally.

US Senate split on gun law after Texas school massacre

Mass shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead raises pressure on US politicians to take action over the ubiquity of firearms — but also brings the grim expectation of little or no change.

US Republicans block Senate bid to save abortion rights law

Senate falls far short in its effort toward enshrining Roe v Wade abortion access as federal law, blocked by a Republican filibuster in a blunt display of America's partisan divide over landmark court decision.

US Senate to vote on abortion rights bill with no prospects of success

Senate will vote on legislation to codify abortion rights into law on Wednesday in reaction to leaked draft decision indicating Supreme Court is poised to overturn its landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, says Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

US Senate set for hearings of first Black woman to Supreme Court

Confirmation hearings are set begin for President Biden's choice for the highest US court - Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Who is a 'war criminal' and who gets to decide?

US President Joe Biden called Russian President Vladimir Putin a "war criminal" over his actions in Ukraine but the White House later clarified that there is a process for such a formal determination.

MLK family urges US Senate to bolster right to vote

Family of Martin Luther King Jr. criticises President Biden and Congress for failing to pass voting rights bills, saying passage of legislations could protect voters from racial discrimination.

Biden allies defeat sanctions bid on Russia-Germany gas pipeline

President Biden's Democratic Party defeats Senate bid to impose immediate sanctions on a Russian pipeline to Germany, fearing setting back diplomacy to prevent Moscow from invading Ukraine.

US House votes to restrict imports from China's Xinjiang region

The House backed the 'Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act' by an overwhelming 428-1, but it must also pass the Senate and be signed by President Biden to become law.