Rep. Greg Casar on Texas Abortion Ban, State of the Economy
For women living in Texas, access to abortion services is non-existent and for providers, they run the risk of facing felony charges. Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas, 35th District) told Cheddar News that he hopes Texas can once again be a springboard for abortion rights.
"There's also real reason for hope here in Texas because abortion rights for the country started in Texas. In fact, an Austinite, Sarah Weddington, when she was in her 20s, sued district attorney Henry Wade and won the case Roe v. Wade here in Texas and bought abortion rights to the whole country," he said.
In the interim, organizations like Planned Parenthood have stepped up to provide women-in-need with support, funding and transportation to out-of-state abortion providers.
Casar also talked to Cheddar News about the state of the economy, and the surge in layoffs across various sectors, in particular. He said the introduction of more unions in order to boost employee protections in the city of Austin is one way to protect Americans in the broader job market.
"The only thing that has been able to balance inequality in this country's history in a really powerful way has been the union movement and its so important whether you're Black, white, or Brown, young or old, the union movement is resurging and that can change our economy for the better regardless of who is in the White House, regardless of who controls Congress," he said.
When it comes to protecting American dollars in the wake of the Silicon Valley Bank collapse, he said assessing executives' lobbying goals could help avoid future financial collapses.
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The U.S. Senate, circumventing holds by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville, on Thursday confirmed the nominations of two senior military leaders, including the first female member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
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Israeli troops advanced toward Gaza City on Thursday, as the Palestinian death toll rose above 9,000. With no end in sight after weeks of heavy fighting, U.S. and Arab mediators intensified efforts to ease Israel's siege of the Hamas-ruled enclave and called for at least a brief halt to the hostilities in order to aid civilians.
Rep. George Santos easily survived a vote Wednesday to expel him from the House as most Republicans and 31 Democrats opted to withhold punishment while both his criminal trial and a House Ethics Committee investigation proceed.
