Republicans set to block voting bill again
Senate Republicans were expected today to block action on voting rights legislation, intensifying calls by activists and lawmakers for Democrats to finally do away with the filibuster or find themselves at a steep disadvantage in next year’s midterm elections. For the third time this year, Republicans were poised to use the procedural weapon to thwart an attempt by Democrats to ensure access to the ballot box and counteract a raft of GOP-written state laws imposing new election restrictions. President Joe Biden reached out Monday to Senate Democrats to express his support for what the White House described as a “must-pass priority.”
FDA moves to make some hearing aids available without a prescription
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday outlined a plan to make hearing aids available without a medical exam, prescription or fitting. The proposed rule, which would create a new category of over-the-counter hearing aids, could help improve access to and reduce the cost of the devices for millions of Americans with mild to moderate hearing impairments. The rule, which has not yet been finalized, is the culmination of a yearslong push to make the medical devices available to more Americans. More than 37 million American adults have a hearing impairment, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. The majority do not use hearing aids.
NKorea confirms missile test designed for submarine launch
North Korea announced Wednesday that it had tested a newly developed missile designed to be launched from a submarine, the first such weapons test in two years and one it says will bolster its military’s underwater operational capability. The test Tuesday was the fifth round of missile launch since September and came as North Korea steps up pressure on Washington and Seoul to abandon what Pyongyang sees as hostile polices such as joint U.S.-South Korea military drills and international sanctions on the North.
FBI raids homes linked to Russian oligarch
FBI agents on Tuesday searched homes linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska in New York’s Greenwich Village and on Washington’s Embassy Row as part of an investigation into whether he violated sanctions imposed on him by the United States, according to people with knowledge of the matter and a spokesperson for Deripaska. The searches were part of an investigation by the FBI and federal prosecutors from the office of the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, the people said. Deripaska, who has ties to President Vladimir Putin of Russia, was a client of Paul Manafort, who was convicted in 2018 of financial fraud and other crimes.
By wire sources