Midterm Elections

March 7 (UPI) — Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., announced he is retiring at the end of his term and put his support behind San Diego Supervisor Jim Desmond.

Issa issued a statement Friday on social media saying he will not be seeking re-election in this year’s midterm elections.

“This decision has been on my mind for a while and I didn’t make it lightly,” Issa wrote. “First, we built the right campaign infrastructure, support has been overwhelming — including from President Trump — and our polling was unmistakable: We would win this race. But after a quarter-century in Congress — and before that, a quarter-century in business — it”s the right time for a new chapter and new challenges.”

Issa offered his “enthusiastic endorsement” to San Diego Supervisor Jim Desmond, who filed to run for Issa’s seat on Friday.

The announcement comes after Gov. Gavin Newsom‘s ballot measure to redraw state congressional districts, which passed in November, transformed Issa’s district from safely Republican to an area more friendly to Democrats.

Issa had previously been rumored to be considering a run for Congress in Texas, but he told Fox News in December that the plan would not be going forward.

“I’m thrilled to set the record straight and here’s the truth: Texas House members and residents of that state did ask if I would consider running there following Gavin Newsom’s historically corrupt gerrymander,” he said at the time. “I appreciate the opportunity, but California is my home. I told them I’m going to stay in Congress, and I don’t need to go to Texas for that.”

Anna Elsasser, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, celebrated the news of Issa’s retirement in a statement.

“After over two decades of disastrous representation, Darrell Issa is once again running for the exits — and good riddance. Issa abandoning his voters now is the clearest sign yet that Republicans know he can’t win on his record of skyrocketing prices, gutting health care, and looking out for himself and wealthy special interests above all else,” Elsasser said. “Any Republican who tries to parachute into this race with the same extreme agenda will face the same fate.”

Christian Martinez, a spokesman for the National Republican Campaign Committee, praising Issa for his “decades of dedicated service” in a statement provided to Politico.

“We are optimistic that this district will continue to be represented by a Republican who will stand for common sense and reject the radical agenda and chaos that progressive Marni von Wilpert and socialist Ammar Campa-Najjar would bring,” Martinez said.

Feb. 27 (UPI) — The Justice Department has sued another five states, including three led by Republicans, for their unredacted voter registration lists, amid the Trump administration’s the information ahead of November’s midterms.

The Trump administration has now sued 29 states and the District of Columbia for voter information, heightening Democrats’ concerns that it is seeking to meddle in the elections.

The five states sued Thursday were Utah, Oklahoma, Kentucky, West Virginia and New Jersey. The litigation effort has so far disproportionately targeted Democratic-led states, with Utah, Oklahoma and West Virginia among the few GOP-led states sued for their voter registration lists.

Attorney General Pam Bondi argues she is charged by Congress with authority to request the sensitive election data under the Civil Rights Act of 1960, though courts have ruled against the government in the three cases that have reached decisions: California in mid-January and Michigan and Oregon earlier this month.

Courts that have so far rejected Bondi’s argument found either that she lacks the authority to compel disclosure of the unredacted voter lists, as in Oregon, or the laws she cites do not permit the government to obtain them, as in Michigan. The judge in the California case also ruled her demand “stands to have a chilling effect on American citizens like political minority groups and working-class immigrants” worried about how their information will be used.

“As several courts have already held, the Department of Justice’s request for voters’ personal information, including their driver’s license numbers and Social Security numbers, is baseless,” New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said in a statement Thursday rejecting the Trump administration’s lawsuit.

“We are committed to protecting the privacy of our state’s residents, and we will defend against this lawsuit in court.”

Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson of Utah said the Justice Department sued her state after federal prosecutors declined Utah’s previous offer to share publicly available lists with them. The Trump administration’s lawsuit was expected, she said.

“Neither state nor federal law entitles the Department of Justice to collect private information on law-abiding American citizens,” she said in a statement. “Utahns can be assured that my office will always follow the Constitution and the law, protect voters’ rights and administer free and fair elections.”

Attorney General Gentner Drummond of GOP-led Oklahoma even responded to the lawsuit by stating that they are willing to “fully cooperate with any lawful requests related to voter fraud.”

“Oklahomans should have confidence that their state remains firmly committed to both election integrity and the protection of personal information,” he said in a statement.

The Trump administration has argued it requires the lists for election integrity purposes, raising concerns from Democrats already concerned about Trump attempting to interfere in the midterm elections as he has repeatedly expressed worries that he will be impeached if his Republican Party loses control of Congress.

Democrats and civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Common Cause and the NAACP, have each echoed warnings that the Trump administration wants to use voter registration lists to undermine the upcoming election.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division acknowledged Thursday that many states are choosing to fight them in court, but they will not be dissuaded.

“We will not be deterred, regardless of party affiliation, from carrying out critical election integrity legal duties,” Dhillon said in a statement.

Feb. 20 (UPI) — Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has been tapped to give the Democratic response next week to President Donald Trump‘s State of the Union, the party’s leaders said.

Spanberger was announced as the Democratic speaker Thursday in a joint statement from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both from New York.

“Gov. Spanberger has always put service over politics — defending our national security and delivering real results for working families,” Schumer said.

“She knows real results for working families. She knows Americans want lower costs, safer communities and a stronger democracy — not chaos and corruption.”

Spanberger is a rising star in the Democratic Party. A former CIA officer, Spanberger ousted a Republican incumbent to win a U.S. House seat for her state in 2018.

After three terms in the chamber, she was elected in November as the first female governor of Virginia. Democrats are hoping her win flipping the governor’s mansion blue will help cement Virginia’s status as a Democratic-led state come the midterm elections.

Jeffries on Thursday praised the 46-year-old for standing “in stark contract to Donald Trump, who will lie, deflect and blame everyone but himself for his failed presidency on Tuesday evening,” which is when the president is scheduled to speak to a joint session of Congress.

“As our nation marks its 250th anniversary this summer, Gov. Spanberger embodies the best of America as a mother, community leader and dedicated public servant.”

The Democratic leaders also announced Thursday that Sen. Alex Padilla of California would deliver the Democratic response in Spanish.

“Americans don’t need another speech from Donald Trump pretending everything is fine when their bills are too high, paychecks are too low and masked and militarized federal agents are roaming our communities violating constitutional rights on a daily basis,” Padilla said in a statement Thursday on his selection to give the Democratic rebuttal.

“We refuse to accept his failed economic agenda that makes billionaires richer while middle class Americans see their healthcare costs rise. We refuse to accept a federal government that weaponizes enforcement agencies against immigrants and U.S. citizens alike. And we refuse to accept attacks on the right to vote.”

Padilla said “there is a better path” and that’s what his Tuesday speech will be about.

Trump’s address is to be held Tuesday, but at least 12 Democratic members of Congress are planning to boycott the speech and attend a competing rally organized by progressive organizations MoveOn and MeidasTouch.