The electoral process for a U.S. President is long, with many candidates declaring their campaigns six or even 12 months before primary season opens in January. But this year, the primaries could lack suspense, with one incumbent candidate, President Joe Biden for the Democrats, and one Republican, Donald Trump dominating that party’s primary process despite … Continue reading “On the Election Road: U.S.A. 2024”
Traditionally, the U.S. presidential election primary season starts off not with a primary but with a caucus. What’s the difference? Both primaries and caucuses are a way to choose candidates for a party’s election campaign. Not only party members vote – all voters can choose to register as Democrat or Republican when they sign up … Continue reading “Caucus vs Primary”
On 7 April, the U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as a Supreme Court Justice — the first ever African-American woman in the court’s 233-year history. Despite hostile Senate hearings, three Republican Senators gave their votes to confirm the nomination. When he fulfilled an election promise by nominating Ms. Brown Jackson, … Continue reading “Historic Supreme Court Nomination”
President Biden will give his first State of the Union Address on 1 March. The State of the Union address is an annual event when both Houses of Congress join to hear the President give a speech about the situation in the country and major initiatives he intends to take in the following months. It … Continue reading “What is the State of the Union Address?”
Juneteenth (19 June) marks the day when the most distant part of the United States received news of the end of slavery. On 19 June 1865, the enslaved people of Galveston, Texas finally discovered that Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation had actually freed them two-and-a-half years earlier. As of 17 June 2021, it will be a … Continue reading “Juneteenth Becomes a Federal Holiday”
New Mexico Congresswoman Deb Haaland has become the first Native American to lead the Department of the Interior, which manages federal lands and natural resources, and includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Since 1824, the BIA has been in charge of federal services to the 574 federally recognised Native tribes and 1.9 million American Indians … Continue reading “The First Native American U.S. Interior Secretary”
The jury in the trial over the death of George Floyd has found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all three charges: second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Floyd’s family and supporters expressed relief. The court found that it was Chauvin’s actions – kneeling on Floyd for more than nine minutes during … Continue reading “Police Officer Convicted of Murdering George Floyd”
The line-up for the Biden-Harris Presidential Inauguration includes an extraordinary young poet. Andrea Gorman was named the country’s inaugural National Youth Poet Laureate in 2017, at just 18. The Inauguration swearing-in ceremony traditionally includes a religious invocation and blessing, given by Father Leo J. O’Donovan and Reverend Dr. Silvester Beaman, a recitation of the Pledge … Continue reading “Presidential Poet”
Amidst all the chaos in Washington, D.C. on 6 January, as Congress tried to certify Joe Biden’s presidential win, a quieter but possibly just as revolutionary election event was taking place in the deep South. In Georgia’s runoff Senate elections, both seats were won by Democrats, giving Biden a tiny but working majority in Congress. … Continue reading “Georgia on their Minds”
Assuming that anything happens as planned in this extraordinary election campaign, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, and Kamala Harris as Vice-President, on Inauguration Day, 20 January, 2021. The ceremony and traditional celebrations that follow will be much smaller than in previous years because of the coronavirus … Continue reading “Inauguration Day”
