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Ranked choice voting keeps winning headlines. New York City uses it in primaries, Maine uses it statewide, Alaska uses it with a nonpartisan primary, and advocates from Better Choices are pushing for more consensus.

When President Richard Nixon told the nation on June 17, 1971, that drug abuse was “public enemy number one,” he formally launched the War on Drugs and cemented cannabis in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. 

As cannabis use became more common in the late 1970s, the backlash grew even stronger. A political and religious conservative resurgence was underway after years of liberal ascendancy. That wave would soon bring former California Governor Ronald Reagan to the White House.

President Donald Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom are escalating a partisan tug-of-war match — each threatening to manipulate electoral maps for short-term advantage. However, their proposals are receiving significant pushback from voters, election reform advocates, even members of their own parties.

New York City’s Charter Revision Commission (CRC) is considering a proposal to adopt a nonpartisan “Top Two” open primary system, which would allow the city’s 1.1 million independent voters to cast a ballot in primary elections they pay for.

Houston Chronicle and Hearst Newspapers Spotlight Kelly Damphousse, a Former Correctional Officer Who Transformed a University.

In a late-session vote last week, House Republicans advanced a sweeping change to federal hemp policy that could outlaw a wide range of intoxicating hemp products, sometimes referred to as “gas station weed,” as the hemp Farm Bill loopholes become a major policy issue in many states, including California, Tennessee and Texas.

On June 23, 2025, Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott shocked lawmakers and lobbyists alike by vetoing Senate Bill 3 (SB 3), a measure that would have banned hemp-derived THC products across the state.  He also called for a special session to bring lawmakers back to Austin on July 21 to craft regulations that restrict, but do not outright ban, intoxicating hemp products.

The United States is facing a disturbing resurgence of politically motivated violence, targeted attacks not just on individuals, but on the democratic fabric of the nation itself. Over the past several years, elected officials, public servants, and civilians have been stalked, firebombed, shot, and killed, sometimes in their homes, sometimes in broad daylight, often because of who they are, what they believe, or who they represent.

California has just proposed a sweeping new rule to permanently ban intoxicating hemp products — and Texas may soon follow, as Governor Greg Abbott (R) faces a June 22 deadline to sign or veto a similar bill.