It’s been a week since the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., that left 17 people dead. And in that short amount of time, the teenage survivors have started a movement to turn up the pressure on lawmakers for gun control reforms.
Florida State Representative Jared Moskowitz says we shouldn’t be surprised by how quickly they mobilized.
“This is what America looks like,” he said. “This is how we’ve brought major change in this country before. Groups have risen up and demanded the system change. It just so happens that it’s kids. Maybe we’re not used to that...but if the adults in the room are failing, then let’s listen to our children.”
On Tuesday, just days after the shooting, Florida lawmakers voted down a motion to take up a bill that would ban assault rifles, reflecting the state’s historical reluctance to enact gun control reforms.
“Florida is, unfortunately, the Petri dish for the NRA,” says Moskowitz.
The legislator urged President Trump to live up to his campaign promise and make America great again. He said the commander-in-chief can’t use pushback from Congress as an excuse for not getting things done.
“Just sign an executive order and ban bump stocks,” he said. “Just sign an executive order and deal with background checks.”
The tech-savvy teenagers of Parkland have leveraged social and traditional media to mobilize people across the country. They’ve organized a national “March for our Lives” protest for March 24.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/florida-state-legislator-partisanship-on-gun-control-wont-cut-it).
Sens. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) are central to whether Judge Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed to the Supreme Court. On Wednesday, all three reacted with indignation to Pres. Trump's mocking of Prof. Christine Blasey Ford, who's accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault.
The FBI's investigation into Prof. Christine Blasey Ford's allegations against Brett Kavanaugh is likely to be wrapping up soon. As we await those findings, Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), who serves on the judiciary committee, said the judge's anger at the accusations may be understandable, but his making a direct, partisan attack against Democrats is "not what we expect from our federal judges."
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know.
The FBI's investigation into Prof. Christine Blasey Ford's allegations against Brett Kavanaugh is likely to be wrapping up soon. Senate Republicans have demanded a report, but the FBI continues to broaden its investigation, specifically to a party that was marked in one of Kavanaugh's calendars.
Dipayan Ghosh, fellow at the Shorenstein Center and a former adviser to both Facebook and the Obama White House, said that big tech has been ignoring "the little guy" for a long time and putting tech users and their privacy at risk.
On Tuesday, Amazon announced that it will be raising its minimum wage to $15 an hour. The news comes after months of criticism and even proposed legislation spearheaded by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA). The "Stop BEZOS" Act introduced in the Senate in September would require corporations like Amazon to contribute to the cost of social services for its employees. Khanna was sponsoring a version in the House. He said he commends Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and believes this move will propel other corporations in the same direction.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know.
New York Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney was seated behind Prof. Christine Blasey Ford during her Senate testimony last week. The lawmaker, who was seen crying as Ford spoke, said, "It's so sad to me that this is still happening in America...and that in some ways we haven't made that much progress since Ms. Hill testified 26 years ago."
Canada and the U.S. inked a new trade deal late Sunday evening after months of contentious tariff talks between the two allies. Lauren Gardner, reporter for POLITICO Pro Canada, said the trade agreement will benefit dairy farmers and automakers in the U.S.
California became the first state to mandate that publicly held corporations include women on the board. Some people believe that this will prioritize diversity over merit while others, like Asa Regner, deputy executive director for UN Women, say it's a first step toward gender parity in corporate America.
