A bipartisan bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday that would authorize a new partnership program to reduce U.S. dependence on China while enhancing cooperation between the United States and Israel to develop innovative approaches for treating and potentially curing COVID-19: Reps. David Kustoff (R-TN), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Lance Gooden (R-TX) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY) introduced... 

Democratic Minnesota state representatives introduced legislation that could end the exclusion of pedophilia from legal protections of sexual orientation in state law. The state’s existing anti-discrimination law excludes sexual attraction to children from legally protected sexual orientations, but HF 1655 would remove that exclusion. The bill describes itself as “removing certain sections in... 

A disgruntled customer has stabbed two cell phone store clerks in a shopping mall in the city of Claye-Souilly, near Paris. The suspect was arrested shortly after the attack. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin wrote on Twitter that the assailant was detained by an off-duty police officer and an off-duty corrections officer who were at the store when the attack happened. News channel LCI reported... 

New Australian bill introduces some of the toughest legislation anywhere in the world for refusing to hand over personal data, while other Western countries are scrambling for their own solutions. Existing legislation already allows for imprisonment for up to two years for failing to give investigators access when serious crime is involved, but the new Assistance and Access bill, which has gone out... 

A US House of Representatives bill establishing control over the Russian Far East ports envisions a show of force and thus amounts to a declaration of war, the chairman of the Russian upper house of parliament’s international committee told Sputnik. “This bill, I hope will never be implemented because its implementation envisions a scenario of power with forced inspections of all vessels... 

A couple of weeks ago we wrote several notes about German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s painfully awkward visit to the White House. After meeting in private, the pair sat down in the oval office for a brief press conference where you could cut the tension with a knife. At one point someone from the media asked for a handshake but the request was promptly ignored. Now, a couple of weeks later, we learn... 

House Republicans have released the American Health Care Act, legislation to replace Obamacare. The reconciliation process also includes legislation released by Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. On Monday, House Republicans released Obamacare replacement legislation, entitled the American Health Care Act, online. The legislation keeps President Barack Obama’s signature... 

Saudi Arabia has told the Obama administration and members of Congress that it will sell off hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of American assets held by the kingdom if Congress passes a bill that would allow the Saudi government to be held responsible in American courts for any role in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The Obama administration has lobbied Congress to block the bill’s passage,... 

Canada has introduced a bill strongly resembling the Anti-Counterfeit Trade Agreement (ACTA), prompting speculation that authorities were prepared to ratify the notorious legislation. The US encouraged Canada to adopt the bill. According to Ottawa, Bill C-56 or Combating Counterfeit Products Act, is aimed at countering harmful counterfeiting activities, much like the international ACTA treaty. If... 

Because you can never have too many laws, regulations and mandates, Massachusetts State Representative David Linsky has filed a new bill that would, among other things, force gun owners to undergo mental health background checks, acquire liability insurance, pay an additional 25% tax on all forms of ammunition, and require firearms categorized as “assault weapons” to be stored (in other words... 

Despite launching a gun control agenda, President Obama has signed a bill that would afford him armed Secret Service protection for life. “The legislation, crafted by Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, rolls back a mid-1990s law that imposed a 10-year limit on Secret Service protection for former presidents. George W. Bush would have been the first former commander in chief affected,”... 

An onrush of condemnation and criticism kept the SOPA and PIPA acts from passing earlier this year, but US lawmakers have already authored another authoritarian bill that could give them free reign to creep the Web in the name of cybersecurity. As congressmen in Washington consider how to handle the ongoing issue of cyberattacks, some legislators have lent their support to a new act that, if passed,... 

Bill Allows Military to Arrest, Permanently Detain, Torture, Kill American Citizens There is a bill in the US Senate called the National Defense Authorization Act and it could be voted on as early as this week. This bill gives the president the authority to indefinitely imprison American citizens without a court hearing, both domestically and abroad. Senate Bill 1867 is bringing the battlefield to... 

It flew through the House with nary a word against it in the regular session. But today Speaker Joe Straus called the anti-TSA-groping bill “ill-advised” and a “not well-researched” publicity stunt, after quickly gaveling in and out a five-minute floor session this morning. The possible lack of quorum may have been the official reason that bill did not get a floor debate this... 

PROTECT IP Act could censor anything, including search engines. The controversial PROTECT IP Act unanimously passed the Senate Judiciary Committee today. When the PROTECT IP Act becomes law U.S. authorities and copyright holders will have the power to seize domains, block websites and censor search engines to prevent copyright infringements. Introduced just two weeks ago, the bill now heads over to...