Closing summary
We’re closing our politics blog now. Thanks for joining us.
So far there’s no sign of a deal in the Senate over a stopgap funding agreement that would keep the government running. The House passed the measure last night.
Here’s what we’ve been following:
Nancy Pelosi praised Joe Biden and Barack Obama as she reflected on their legislative accomplishments during her time a House speaker. Pelosi, who steps down next month, gave what could be her last press conference in the job.
Republican Florida governor Ron DeSantis indicated he was ready to sign the nation’s most restrictive abortion law, a Texas-style “heartbeat ban” that outlaws the procedure as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually around the sixth week of pregnancy.
The House voted 233-191 to allow Puerto Rico to hold a vote on becoming the 51st state, a largely symbolic measure because the Puerto Rico Status Act is unlikely to get a hearing in the Senate.
Joe Biden said he’ll be heading to sub-Saharan Africa soon. He was speaking at the conclusion of a summit with African leaders in which he pledged hundreds of millions of dollars for infrastructure, technology and free elections.
First lady Jill Biden says she’s “all in” on her husband running again for the presidency in 2024, according to a report from CNN that says her position is a “tidal shift” from her reluctant feelings of just three months ago.
Two conspirators convicted of terrorism last month in a plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor Gretchen Whitmer were sentenced to prison sentences of 12 and 10 years respectively. A third convict is yet to be sentenced.
The state department has announced a new round of sanctions against a number of Russian oligarchs, government officials and their families for enabling president Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
DeSantis back 'heartbeat' abortion ban for Florida
An extreme “heartbeat” abortion ban looks to be coming to Florida after Republican governor Ron DeSantis announced his willingness Thursday to sign such a law.
“I’m willing to sign great life legislation. That’s what I’ve always said I would do,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Fort Lauderdale, reported by the Florida Phoenix.
A heartbeat ban outlaws an abortion once the presence of a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually around the sixth week of pregnancy.
A version of the law, the nation’s most restrictive abortion legislation, took effect in Texas in 2021 after the Supreme Court, which had yet to overturn federal abortion protections, declined to block it.
Rightwinger DeSantis is seen as a likely contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, and leads in several recent polls of party members.
Despite passing a raft of culture war legislation during his first term of office, including a 15-week abortion ban, DeSantis largely avoided the issue during campaigning ahead of his landslide reelection as Florida’s governor last month.
The Republican supermajority in the Florida legislature means Democrats would be unable to block any new abortion law.
Updated
