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A bipartisan group of lawmakers announced a deal Wednesday to renew the Violence Against Women Act, which lawmakers have failed to reauthorize in recent years.
The Violence Against Women Act was originally signed into law in 1994, and then-Sen. Biden was the primary author of the legislation. The act aims to support survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking using federal grants.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said they would introduce the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2022 to “update and strengthen the law to ensure that it can meet the current needs of survivors, increase prevention, and improve the response to violence.” The bill would reauthorize the act through 2027.
Yesterday’s press conference also included a special guest: actress Angelina Jolie.
Jolie, who has advocated for the reauthorization, said at the announcement, “the reason that many people struggle to leave abusive situations is that they’ve been made to feel worthless. When there is silence from a Congress too busy to renew the Violence Against Women Act for a decade, it reinforces that sense of worthlessness.”
It’s Amy and Chelsey with today’s top stories out of Washington.
In hiding from Taliban, Afghans who helped U.S. still struggle to escape
In the weeks after the U.S. ended 20 years of military occupation in Afghanistan, the former Afghan Armed Forces commander lost several fellow soldiers who put up one last fight against the Taliban takeover. Now, the former commander is fighting to keep himself and his family alive amid a deadly retribution campaign by Taliban fighters.
“Right now, they are looking for us to kill us and to kill others who are like us,” the Afghan veteran told USA TODAY during a phone interview facilitated by an interpreter. He asked that his name be withheld to protect his identity.
He is one of tens of thousands of U.S.-allied Afghans in hiding, according to veterans groups, as the Taliban seeks retribution against those who led the country during U.S. occupation.
A report from the United Nations released last week found more than 100 members of the former Afghan government, its security forces and others who worked with the U.S. have been killed since the Taliban’s Aug. 15 takeover. Two-thirds were killed at the hands of the Taliban, despite the militant Islamic group’s promise of “amnesty” for Afghans who allied themselves with the U.S. during the war.
The UN report cited credible evidence that other Afghan allies have disappeared, their fates unknown.
The White House’s response: The White House insists the evacuation of Afghan allies – including interpreters, former Afghan government workers, soldiers and others – remains a priority. But a coalition of veterans and humanitarian groups working to aid Afghan allies, as well as a growing number of members of Congress, are demanding a stronger effort by the White House to expedite evacuations as the situation worsens.
Real quick: stories you’ll want to read
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Former Trump aide subpoenaed by Jan. 6 House committee
The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol subpoenaed Peter Navarro, a senior trade adviser under Trump, Wednesday.
The former aide documented plans to delay the certification of the 2020 presidential election results with the help of others in the Trump White House in several interviews, on his website and even in his 2021 memoir with the goal of overturning the results.
Committee Chair Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in a statement that Navarro “appears to have information directly relevant to the Select Committee’s investigation into the causes of the January 6th attack on the Capitol.” He was directed to submit the requested documents to the committee by Feb. 23 and appear for a deposition on March 2.
Navarro released a statement Wednesday calling the subpoena part of a “partisan witch hunt” and said Trump has “invoked Executive Privilege,” though a federal judge denied Trump’s request to block release of documents to the committee last year.
Monday is Valentine’s Day, and now you can buy a Build-A-Bear in boxers (and other festive accessories) to mark the occasion. – Amy and Chelsey
