Essential Politics: Get Ready To Vote On Pot

WASHINGTON — The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok’s China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U. S. lawmakers that’s expected to face legal challenges and disrupt the lives of content creators who rely on the short-form video app for income. The TikTok legislation was included as part of a larger $95 billion package that provides foreign aid to Ukraine and Israel and was passed 79-18.

FAIRBANKS, Alaska — A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane carrying two people crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday and burst into flames, authorities said. No survivors have been found. The plane took off in the morning from Fairbanks International Airport. It crashed about 7 miles (11 kilometers) from there and “slid into a steep hill on the bank of the river where it caught fire,” according to Alaska State Troopers. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Clint Johnson, chief of the National Transportation Safety Board’s Alaska regional office, said it remained unclear what happened in the time between the takeoff and the crash but the tower operator “saw a large plume of smoke.” Michaela Matherne was flying from the village of Galena to Fairbanks to catch a flight to New Orleans when her small plane was diverted to verify the coordinates of the crash site. “When we were in the air there was speculation that it was a cabin that caught fire, maybe a fish camp,” she told The Associated Press via Facebook Messenger. “We actually didn’t know what we were looking at until after we landed a few minutes later,” she said.

(WASHINGTON, D. C.) — The Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to move ahead with $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, bringing the bill to the brink of passage after months of delays and contentious internal debate over how involved the United States should be abroad. The vote to end a filibuster drew the support of 80 senators — 10 more than supported the bill when the Senate first passed it in February — virtually guaranteeing that the bill will soon reach President Biden’s desk.

(NASHVILLE, Tenn.) — Protesters chanted “Blood on your hands” at Tennessee House Republicans on Tuesday after they passed a bill that would allow some teachers and staff to carry concealed handguns on public school grounds, and bar parents and other teachers from knowing who was armed. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The 68-28 vote in favor of the bill sent it to Republican Gov.

The Broncos have made perhaps one of their easiest decisions of the offseason. Denver exercised the fifth-year option on All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain II’s rookie contract on Tuesday, keeping him under contract through 2025. Surtain, the ninth overall pick in 2021, will earn $6.6 million ($3.5 million guaranteed) in 2024, according to Over The Cap.

Dallas LeBeau knew how to ski before he knew how to walk. The 21-year-old skier and Winter Park coach who died attempting to jump over U. S. Highway 40 near the Berthoud Pass summit on April 9 had always been passionate about the sport and felt he needed to do something unique to make a name for himself in the industry, his mother Valerie LeBeau wrote in an email to the Denver Post. “He always wanted to do something big,” Dallas’s childhood friend Devin Shirk said.