Russell Payne

1 week ago | salon.com | Russell Payne

While former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is pitching himself as the New York mayoral candidate who can stand up to President Donald Trump, the Department of Justice investigation recently opened against him, putting him in a position similar to Mayor Eric Adams and threatening his ability to govern if elected. At the same time, his political rivals say that the new investigation into Cuomo could lead to him, if elected, being manipulated into serving Trump's agenda.

2 weeks ago | salon.com | Russell Payne

Congressional Republicans slipped a provision into their budget passed Thursday that would hand out billions of dollars to pay for things like Texas Gov. Greg Abbot’s immigrant busing initiative and state-funded border wall. An amendment to the House budget, passed Wednesday night, sets aside $12 billion for Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem to allocate to states, specifically to pay for programs the Trump administration considers supportive of its border security mission.

2 weeks ago | salon.com | Russell Payne

Self-described moderates in the GOP are rallying behind a policy favored by centrists of both parties and which economists consider a major tax cut for America’s “merely wealthy” professionals. At the same time, President Donald Trump, who is now attempting to push through the bill as is, appears to have flipped on the issue multiple times.

2 weeks ago | salon.com | Russell Payne

In the 2024 election, pro-gun advocates coalesced around a primary request for President Donald Trump’s second administration: a dramatic loosening of concealed carry regulations nationwide, something that Republican leaders in both the House and the Senate have been vocal advocates of in the past. National concealed carry reciprocity has become the main policy request from pro-gun advocates and the gun lobby in Trump’s second term.

3 weeks ago | salon.com | Russell Payne

Despite being the first pope from America, a country where the Catholic Church is known for its relative conservatism, Pope Leo XIV — who spent much of his adult life working in Peru — is expected to largely continue his predecessor’s progressive reforms, despite some past comments criticizing the acceptance of LGBTQ+ “lifestyle choices.” James Martin, an American Jesuit priest and the founder of Outreach, a prominent Catholic LGBTQ+ organization, told Salon that the new pope’s background in...