Today in History: March 30, Reagan shot in assassination attempt
In 1867, US Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with Russia to purchase the territory of Alaska for $7.2 million, a deal ridiculed by critics as 'Seward's Folly.'
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In 1870, the 15th Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibited denying citizens the right to vote and hold office on the basis of race, was declared in effect by Secretary of State Hamilton Fish.
In 1923, the Cunard liner RMS Laconia became the first passenger ship to circle the globe as it arrived back in New York after a 130-day voyage.
In 1939, Detective Comics issue #27 was released, featuring the first appearance of the superhero character Batman.
In 1975, as the Vietnam War neared its end, Communist forces occupied the city of Da Nang.
In 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously wounded by John Hinckley Jr. outside a Washington, D.C., hotel. Also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy, and a District of Columbia police officer, Thomas Delahanty. (Hinckley would be found not guilty by reason of insanity and held at a psychiatric hospital until his supervised release in 2016. James Brady died in 2014 as a result of his injuries.)
In 2023, a Manhattan grand jury voted to indict Donald Trump on charges involving payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter, the first ever criminal case against a former US president.
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Ohio ‘state to watch' for U.S. constitutional convention measures, concerned advocates say
Stock photo from Getty Images. Ohio is one of the states where legislators are pushing for conventions that could make constitutional amendments related to term limits and other issues, but advocates are concerned about the free-for-all that could result. These measures have garnered strong opinions on both sides of the issue. Opponents, going back to James Madison, say constitutional conventions are risky because of their lack of regulation once a convention is called. This could allow for uncontrolled power-grabs that could result in amendments that may not be popular with the general public. The U.S. Constitution can be amended in two ways: through Congress with amendments passed with two-thirds support of each chamber and then sent to the states for ratification; or through a constitutional convention invoked by Article V. Article V is silent about rules and regulations once a convention is called. In order to call a convention, two-thirds of states, or 34 of the 50, would have to pass their own resolutions applying for a constitutional convention for a certain purpose. Past applications by states have aimed to force the federal government to balance their budget, but no such convention has happened in the history of the United States. Recently, however, the draft of a lawsuit has been circulating to attorneys generals in some states, looking to make the convention happen based on a legal argument that applications from states — no matter the purpose or age of the request — can be combined and counted toward the 34 needed to bring about a constitutional convention, according to critics of the move. 'This is literally a rewrite of our Constitution,' said Viki Harrison, policy director for civil rights and civil liberties with Common Cause, a nonpartisan voting rights advocacy and government watchdog group with branches all over the country. 'There would be nothing safe, there would be no guardrails.' Ohio has seen out-of-state interest in their measures, in what Common Cause Ohio's Catherine Turcer called a 'full-court press' this year of legislation and movement to see passage. Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum appeared in March to support Senate Joint Resolution 3 in the Ohio Senate General Government Committee, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis came to Ohio to support House Joint Resolution 3. 'It is very clear that Ohio is a focus of moving an Article V convention, that it is in fact a priority, and we are a state to watch,' Turcer said in a media briefing with other Common Cause branches. Santorum spoke on behalf of Convention of States Action, an advocacy group pushing for support of a constitutional convention, arguing that America's founders included the option of a constitutional convention 'to give the states a way to counteract the federal government if it became abusive with its powers.' Convention of States Action said 19 states have passed resolutions for a constitutional convention, and 'we hope to see Ohio become state number 20,' according to state media liaison Diana Telles. DeSantis argued that without term limits in Congress, 'incentives to do really good policy are just skewed away,' making a constitutional amendment necessary. The resolution DeSantis came to support, HJR 3, specifically applies for a convention of the states to institute congressional term limits. The measure and its Senate counterpart, SJR 6, look to piggyback on a 1992 amendment to the Ohio Constitution that instituted term limits for Ohio's members in Congress of two successive six-year terms in the U.S. Senate and four two-year terms in the U.S. House. Those term limits aren't being enforced because of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 1996 that 'the states have no authority to change the qualifications for members of Congress,' according to an analysis of HJR 3 done by the Legislative Service Commission. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX While the resolutions spell out the necessary number of states needed to call a convention, they also point out that the Constitution 'does not specify how a convention to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution must be conducted or how its delegates are to be chosen.' 'Further, the Constitution does not indicate whether the states that apply for a convention may limit the scope of amendments the convention is to propose,' the HJR 3 and SJR 6 resolution analyses state. While term limits are attractive to many Americans, the opposition to constitutional conventions has less to do with the specific issues and more to do with the freedom convention attendees would have if it takes place. 'Whether you like term limits or not, (the problem is) the mechanism to get it,' Harrison said. As for the other convention request currently working its way through the Ohio legislature, HJR 2 and its companion, SJR 3, also want to see a convention that touches on term limits, but go further, looking at amendments 'that impose fiscal restraints on the federal government' and 'limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government.' These measures go into more detail about the purported method through which conventions are formed, while also noting Congress 'does not have power beyond calling the convention and setting a reasonable time and place.' The Ohio bills name the state legislatures as authority-bearers when it comes to naming delegates to the convention, instructing delegates, and recalling delegates for 'breach of a duty or a violation of the instructions provided.' All four resolutions have seen hearings in their committees, but no votes have been cast on the measures yet, possibly because the legislature has had the main priority of passing a state operating budget by the end of June. Some states have been working to repeal resolutions that requested a convention, which, according to Georgetown University law professor David Super, could be the reason a lawsuit to combine existing resolutions is being floated. 'Congress decided long ago that it can only count applications together when they're for the same purpose,' Super said, in the media briefing with Common Cause. The Ohio resolutions on term limits specify that the application 'is valid only for the purpose of a convention that is limited to considering congressional term limits,' and say it 'should be aggregated with other state applications for a convention on term limits, but not with any applications on any other subject.' The resolutions focused on federal fiscal responsibility say the measures are only valid if combined 'with other applications from state legislatures that call for a convention for substantially the same purpose.' Telles said the movement for a constitutional convention would be for all of these issues. From the Convention of States Action point of view, 'it is necessary to address all of these areas, not just term limits or a balanced budget.' 'State amending conventions to propose amendments are a safe, civil and constitutional way for the states to flex their muscle and affect real change in Washington, D.C.,' Telles said. 'It's clear Washington is not going to fix itself.' Even if the lawsuit is filed – it's still just a draft at this point – Super said previous cases like it have fallen apart in the past, and 'there are some really serious problems with it.' 'The reason that these cases have failed is … they operate on the premise that the federal courts can tell the legislature what to do,' Super said. And while this issue has seen some momentum, according to Common Cause, the idea of implementing a constitutional convention isn't a universally supported issue by any means, even among the same political parties. 'This is not a standard red-blue issue, there are members of Congress who have strongly supported a constitutional convention,' Super said. 'But there are also members of Congress who are opposed to a convention.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
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Former Labor Secretary: Don't Forget the Hardworking Immigrants Targeted by Trump's California Campaign of Terror
"If you report me, I'll report you," is among the most common threats that immigrant workers hear from employers who abuse and exploit them. Immigrants cross continents and oceans seeking a better life, many escaping abuse, violence, and desperate poverty. Once here, they help raise our children, care for our elderly, serve food in restaurants, clean our homes, move products in warehouses, and harvest our produce. They become indispensable to the lives of the communities they call home and the economies that depend on their labor. Police officers clash with demonstrators during a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles on June 9, 2025. Police officers clash with demonstrators during a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles on June 9, 2025. RINGO CHIU/AFP via Getty Images Many endure brutal working conditions. One tool to keep workers from advocating and organizing is the threat employers make that if workers speak up, they will be deported. For nearly 20 years, I represented low-wage workers in Los Angeles, including those who were trafficked to the United States and held against their will, not permitted to leave their workplace. Invariably, the constant tool of their oppression was the daily threat that if the workers reported their captors, the U.S. government would come for them. Those who justify the Trump administration's campaign of terror on these hardworking communities argue that, because these immigrants shouldn't have come here in the first place, they deserve any mistreatment perpetrated against them. This argument is problematic for three reasons. First, it's unconstitutional. Our Constitution guarantees some protections for all people in the United States. Specifically, the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments' right to due process, which includes the right to be heard and to present evidence in one's defense, and equal protection under the law apply to all "persons," not just "citizens." Given the Trump administration's willingness to throw the Constitution out at their whim, it isn't surprising that they disregard this argument. But that doesn't mean the rest of us should. Second, it's bad economic policy. Undocumented immigrants perform essential labor. Without them, many of the industries we rely on would collapse. This is one reason many corporate leaders and industry associations have been at the forefront of advocating for comprehensive, humane immigration reform. Third, it puts the government on the side of exploitation and against working people. Using workplaces as the site of immigration enforcement makes going to work dangerous. It reinforces the threats employers make, telling workers in no uncertain terms that the government can and will be weaponized against them. The federal government is responsible for enforcing labor laws, not aiding and abetting breaking them. What this administration is doing pushes violations further underground. The Trump administration only knows how to pit communities against each other, but the reality is that working people aren't struggling to pay their rent or mortgage because of immigrants. The anti-worker raids in Los Angeles are just the next front in this administration's ever-escalating war on working people. Immigrant workers are our neighbors, our friends, and co-workers; the coaches on our kids' soccer teams and the adopted tios and tias who celebrate our children's birthdays with us. They're people like my friend, David Huerta, SEIU California president and long-time labor leader. That's one of the reasons the federal government's attacks on immigrant communities in Los Angeles have been met with protest. The Trump administration's plan is to escalate the situation to justify increased violence, detention, deportation, and lawless deployment of power. The administration's pattern of hurting vulnerable communities and then criticizing people for standing by them is intended to create enough confusion that they can get away with anything. But we can't let them. Trump has deployed more than 4,000 National Guards to Los Angeles against the wishes of Governor Gavin Newsom and despite local and state law enforcement officials' response. The last time the president of the United States deployed the National Guard without the state governor's cooperation was 60 years ago when former President Lyndon B. Johnson sent National Guard troops to Alabama to protect protesters marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge to advance civil rights. The same move is now being used to incite violence, not prevent it; to promote racism, not combat it. Julie Su is the former acting secretary of Labor and a senior fellow at The Century Foundation. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
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Rapper Silentó Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Fatally Shooting His Cousin
Silentó, the rapper best known for his viral 2015 hit 'Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),' has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to charges related to the fatal shooting of his cousin. The musician, whose real name is Ricky Lamar Hawk, pleaded guilty but mentally ill to charges relating to shooting Frederick Rooks in Jan. 2021. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the 27-year-old took a deal to plead guilty to a reduced charge from malice murder to voluntary manslaughter. He also pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and concealing the death of another. A separate felony murder charge was dropped as part of the plea agreement. Silentó will serve 30 years in prison with credit for time served since Feb. 2021. The Atlanta rapper was initially arrested after the DeKalb County Police Department found Rooks, 34, with gunshot wounds to his face and leg in January 2021. Rooks was pronounced dead at the scene. Silentó confessed to the murder shortly after, and authorities matched bullet casings to a gun that he had at the time of his arrest. Following Silentó's arrest, his publicist at the time, Chanel Hudson, shared on social media that the rapper had been struggling with mental health issues. 'Over the past several years, Ricky has been suffering immensely from a series of mental illnesses,' she wrote. 'We will continue in his efforts of treatment, but we ask in the meantime the public uplift him and his family in immediate prayer & positive energy!!' Silentó scored a massive hit with his debut single 'Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),' which he released as a junior in high school in 2015. The song was a runaway success, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning more than 400 million Spotify streams in the time since. He shared his struggles with mental health in the years that followed, and Hudson claimed that he had attempted suicide in 2020. He had several encounters with law enforcement, including an arrest in Aug. 2020 for domestic violence. That October, he was arrested for driving 143 miles per hour in DeKalb County. Best of Variety 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? 25 Hollywood Legends Who Deserve an Honorary Oscar New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
