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Vanuatu RSE Workers Celebrate First-Ever Bislama Language Week
Vanuatu RSE Workers Celebrate First-Ever Bislama Language Week

Scoop

time11 hours ago

  • Scoop

Vanuatu RSE Workers Celebrate First-Ever Bislama Language Week

Grace Tinetali-Fiavaai, RNZ Pacific journalist For the first time, Vanuatu Bislama Language Week is being officially celebrated in New Zealand and for Ni-Vanuatu seasonal workers toiling in the orchards of Pukekohe, they are feeling a sense of pride. The week marks a historic addition to the Ministry for Pacific Peoples' annual Pacific language calendar, which now includes 12 languages: Rotuman, Samoan, Kiribati, Cook Islands Māori, Tongan, Papua New Guinean, Tuvaluan, Fijian, Niuean, Tokelauan, Solomon Islands Pijin and Bislama. Bislama is the national language of Vanuatu and a creole language spoken across Vanuatu's 83 islands which is a blend of English, French, and Indigenous words. Clifford Yahwo has been participating in the seasonal program and this year marks his tenth year, he said he is feeling thankful he gets to witness this historic moment. Yahwo said it is great to have the opportunity to celebrate Bislama in Aotearoa. "Vanuatu is a small country in the Pacific, close to Fiji, Solomon (Island), New Caledonia. "I am so happy, like we are very happy we to celebrate here in New Zealand. We come for work, but its good we have this opportunity to celebrate Bislama language here in New Zealand." "Also, [in] Vanuatu we have different cultures - each island [has its] own culture, different from different island. Another thing is we are independent people. We had our independence since 1980." Fellow team leader David Navian, who also manages another group of workers at Punchbowl orchards, echoes the same sentiment, especially because people get to learn about their language. Laughing from the cold weather and crisp air in Pukekohe, he offered a few of his favourite phrases: "Hariap yumi go long haos" which means Hurry up, we're going home. "Karem kwiktaem yumi tekem moa bin" which means Pick quickly, we get more bins. "Blessem, kol kol tumas!" Bless, it's too cold! The theme for this year's inaugural Bislama Language Week is 'Tokabaot Klaemet Jenj - hemi ril mo yumi mas lukaotem laef' which translates to 'Talk about climate change, it is real, and we must look after life'. Ministry for Pacific Peoples chief executive Gerardine Clifford-Lidstone said this is more than a cultural milestone. "There is deep pride in Bislama. It connects people across islands, generations, and borders," she said. "We are proud to stand alongside the Vanuatu community as they celebrate Vanuatu Bislama Language Week for the first time in Aotearoa New Zealand. "This is a powerful moment of recognition, connection, and pride. Bislama carries the stories, humour, and heart of its people - and we are honoured to support its journey here" Events are being held across the country all week and as the workers like to say: "678 to the world."

‘We've already done that': Missouri lawmakers show little enthusiasm for new congressional maps
‘We've already done that': Missouri lawmakers show little enthusiasm for new congressional maps

Yahoo

time5 days ago

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

‘We've already done that': Missouri lawmakers show little enthusiasm for new congressional maps

Members of the Missouri House review a proposed Congressional map during redistricting debate on Jan. 18, 2022 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications). As Texas embarks on a special legislative session that includes revising that state's congressional districts to help Republicans, President Donald Trump is reportedly asking for Missouri to do the same. The reaction among legislative leaders, however, is decidedly negative. Asked by text about a report from Punchbowl News on a new redistricting effort, state Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O'Laughlin responded with a horror emoji. 'I know this is a topic being talked about in Washington,' she added, 'but no one has asked us to do anything about redistricting.' Punchbowl reported that U.S. Rep. Bob Onder of Lake St. Louis was at the White House on Tuesday and came away convinced Trump's advisors want Missouri to act. 'The president's team is serious about it,' Onder said to Punchbowl. Missouri has eight seats in the U.S. House, six held by Republicans and two held by Democrats — the same total and partisan division it has had since a seat was lost after the 2010 census. Missouri Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck of Affton said Democrats would fight any effort to change district lines that were just redrawn three years ago. 'This originated out of the White House,' Beck said. 'This is a blatant power grab by an administration desperate to deflect from their cover up of the Epstein files and other things going on.' We've already done that. To do it again would be out of character with the way Missouri operates. – Chad Perkins, speaker pro tem of the Missouri House The 435 seats in the U.S. House are allotted to the states every 10 years based on census results. When Missouri receives its allotment, the state Constitution mandates that lawmakers revise district lines. The last time lines were redrawn between censuses was in the 1960s, following the 1964 U.S. Supreme Court decision that districts had to be drawn as closely as possible in population to preserve equal representation, known as the one person, one vote decision. In 2022, when the current districts were drawn, Republican leaders in the Missouri Senate had to resort to little-used maneuvers to outwit opponents within their caucus who wanted to break up the 5th District and push the partisan split to 7-1. The 5th District, which includes Kansas City and sections of Jackson and Clay counties, has been Democratic for decades. U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, who has held the seat since 2005, was re-elected in November with 60% of the vote. Splitting those votes into adjacent districts, while bringing in enough Republican votes to carry the district, isn't as certain as it may seem to aid the GOP, said state Sen. Mike Cierpiot, a Republican from Lee's Summit. 'There's a lot of Democrats in Jackson County,' Cierpiot said, 'and if it's a map that they promote that, once again, puts two or three of our Republican seats in play in a bad year, I would have trouble supporting that.' The 2022 fight over redistricting came during a four-year period where hard-right conservatives in the state Senate fought almost daily with GOP leadership and its backers. This year, Republicans finally forged a truce that helped make their supermajority, holding two-thirds of the seats, far more effective in moving priority legislation. The fight over redistricting was colored as much by personalities as policy, said U.S. Rep. Eric Burlison, a Republican from Springfield who won the 7th District seat in 2022. Then-state Sen. Bill Eigel of St. Charles, leader of the insurgents, couldn't convince anyone that a 7-1 map was possible and safe for Republicans because of his personal conflicts with the leadership, Burlison said in an interview on Thursday with The Independent. 'It was more about people's personalities than what were the facts,' said Burlison, a state senator at the time. 'What was achievable in that session was marked by that.' Tempers fray as Missouri Senate Republicans fight over Congressional map The conflict was so bad that Eigel and Cierpiot nearly came to blows during a lunch break. It wasn't the only moment where violence was possible, Burlison said. 'There were multiple moments where it almost came close,' he said. In the Missouri House, where it is easier for leadership to shut down debate and quash factionalism, a top Republican leader said there's no reason to revisit the current map. 'We do redistricting every 10 years,' House Speaker Pro Tem Chad Perkins of Bowling Green said. 'We've already done that. To do it again would be out of character with the way Missouri operates.' There may be some willingness to try a new redistricting effort. Cierpiot said he could support it if he is convinced Republicans would not lose seats in years favoring Democrats. But it could backfire, he said. 'Right now, in Missouri, we're in a Republican wonderland,' Cierpiot said. 'We've had decent years, and we haven't had an off year since probably 2008, but I'm old enough to remember those things do cycle through.' State Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, a Republican from Arnold, enthusiastically backs the idea. 'We should have written a 7-1 map' in 2022, she said. 'Our failure to do so almost cost the GOP the majority in Congress. I'm up for it.' It is encouraging, Beck said, that most Republican comments are opposed to the idea of redistricting again. But pressure could change that. 'I don't know how much they're gonna get pushed to change those views,' he said. 'I've watched these people say things before and then change their mind.' There are a lot of legal questions, involving both the federal and state constitutions, that will be played out in the courts in states that try to redraw lines set after the 2020 census, said Justin Levitt, a professor of law at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Levitt, who monitors redistricting efforts nationwide and was deputy attorney general for civil rights at the end of President Barack Obama's administration, said a redistricting effort in Missouri would create legal issues over minority voter rights. Both of Missouri's Democratic members of Congress, Cleaver and U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell of St. Louis, are Black. To gain a seat, 'you'd have to effectively target the minority communities of St. Louis and Kansas City,' Levitt said. It would also create problems because the stated goal is to increase Republican representation in Congress, he said. 'The Supreme Court has said with crystal clarity that excessive partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional, that it is inconsistent with basic democratic principles,' Levitt said. 'It said that in the same breath that it also said that the federal courthouse doors are closed to adjudicating that claim, but just because the cops are not outside your door doesn't mean shoplifting is legal.' Missouri's constitution is silent on whether lawmakers have the power to redraw lines outside the 10-year cycle of the census. That silence, Levitt said, would have to be interpreted by the courts. 'Other states have construed that constitutional time in their own state constitutions to say, once every 10 years and no more frequently,' he said. With a 219-212 majority — four seats are vacant, including three previously held by Democrats — Republicans are worried that a small shift in voter sentiment could put them again in the minority. Texas, with a 25-13 split in favor Republicans, is looking at possibly moving five seats to the Republican column, according to the Texas Tribune. It took a telephone call from Trump to Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott to get it on the special session agenda amid concerns that GOP voters might be spread too thin. In retaliation, California Gov. Gavin Newsome has threatened to redraw that state's 52 districts, currently 43-9 in favor of Democrats, to counter the Texas move. So did New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who told reporters Monday that it's 'too early' to make a definitive statement on the issue, the New Jersey Globe reported, adding he would speak to other Democratic governors about redistricting. With Missouri now involved, it is clear that Trump is looking everywhere he can for new GOP seats, Levitt said. 'They're casting a wide net,' he said. 'The president seems to be abundantly nervous, and it wouldn't surprise me that he is in desperation, looking wherever he can.' Congressional districts are already gerrymandered so the result isn't in question, Beck said. It is already hurting the country and redistricting between censuses makes it worse, he added. U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, who represents the 2nd District in eastern Missouri, received 54.5% of the vote in November and is the only member of Congress from either party in the state who did not win 60% or more of the vote. 'There's only a select few seats that are actually up for grabs ever. The other ones are safe,' Beck said. 'They've done this over time, and it's a shame. Now the politicians pick their voters, instead of the voters pick their politicians.'

Alleged road rage incident leaves man unconscious
Alleged road rage incident leaves man unconscious

News.com.au

time18-07-2025

  • News.com.au

Alleged road rage incident leaves man unconscious

A man has been injured in a suspected road rage incident in Sydney's southwest. Around 9:50pm on Friday, emergency services were called to a street in Punchbowl after witnesses discovered a man lying unconscious on the road. Police and paramedics arrived to find the 55-year-old man with serious injuries. He was treated at the scene before being transported to Liverpool Hospital, where he remains in a stable condition. The investigation is in its early stages however police believe the man had been driving when he stopped at a red light. It's suspected he exited his vehicle to speak with someone, which may have led to a confrontation. An e-bike was found at the scene, though the rider reportedly left shortly afterwards. Investigators are exploring whether the e-bike rider was involved in the incident.

Palestinian woman released from detention after Australian visa cancellation
Palestinian woman released from detention after Australian visa cancellation

SBS Australia

time18-07-2025

  • Politics
  • SBS Australia

Palestinian woman released from detention after Australian visa cancellation

A Palestinian woman detained for over a week following the cancellation of her visa has been released overnight. Maha Almassri was taken from her home in Punchbowl in Sydney's south-west at 5am last Thursday, and initially held in Bankstown police station before being transferred to Villawood detention centre, according to her family. Her Australian visa was cancelled by Assistant Citizenship Minister Julian Hill after failing the character test, according to a document seen by SBS News. A private Facebook post confirmed her release on Thursday night, which SBS News has verified with a source close to the family. Details of the release are unknown, and the status of her visa is unclear. Australia's Migration Act grants its home affairs minister — or a chosen delegate — the right to cancel a person's visa on character grounds or if the cancellation is deemed to be "in the national interest". The document stated that the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation assessed Almassri to be "directly or indirectly a risk to security", therefore deeming she "objectively fails the character test". Alison Battisson, a lawyer acting for Almassri, declined to comment. SBS News contacted Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke's office for comment. "The government will not be commenting on this cancellation," a spokesperson for Burke told SBS News. "Any information in the public domain is being supplied by the individual or her family and is not necessarily consistent with the information held by our intelligence and security agencies."

Playbook PM: Redistricting ruffles the 2026 race
Playbook PM: Redistricting ruffles the 2026 race

Politico

time15-07-2025

  • Politics
  • Politico

Playbook PM: Redistricting ruffles the 2026 race

Presented by THE CATCH-UP 2026 ON THE BRAIN: President Donald Trump spoke with Texas Republicans this morning, ominously writing on Truth Social that 'with the right Candidate, Texas isn't 'going Blue' anytime soon!' The point of the call? To mobilize the GOP to get five new red seats through the mid-decade redistricting process — a massive undertaking that could have big 2026 implications, as Punchbowl's Jake Sherman notes. The looming redistricting conversation has been growing since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott requested it last week. Finding five new red seats in an already GOP-tilted Texas could mean moving Republican voters out of some incumbents' districts, complicating their reelection path in 2026. But there's a bigger target that some Republicans, including Trump, are hoping to capitalize on. 'Hispanic voters in Texas have rapidly shifted in favor of the GOP, in large part thanks [to Trump], so a mid decade redistricting will mean significant gains,' Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) — currently battling it out in a heated primary against AG Ken Paxton — wrote on X. Not having it is House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who together with Texas Democrats at a presser this morning slammed the 'aggressive and egregious gerrymander' as rigging the map 'to disenfranchise millions of people in Texas,' per POLITICO's Nick Wu. DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.) also pointed to the possibility that Republican incumbents will lose voters: 'It's basic math.' More eager to play ball is California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been floating an equal and opposite redistricting response in light of Texas' proposed moves. 'Two can play this game,' Newsom, a widely speculated 2028 hopeful, wrote on X today. The messaging war: As Republicans reimagine an even redder Texas, they're still figuring out the right message to sell the sweeping megabill — and beat back Democratic attacks. Republican strategists are pushing a new tack on tax cuts, branding them as 'Trump Working Family Tax Cuts' and hammering how policies like no taxes on tips could benefit new elements of Trump's 2024 coalition, NBC's Peter Nicholas and colleagues report. The speaker's side: 'Every citizen in every zip code in every pocket of America will benefit from the One Big Beautiful Bill,' Speaker Mike Johnson said at today's weekly House Republican Leadership news conference. New numbers out today show Johnson raised more than $50 million for House Republicans this cycle, and he's already transferred more than $14 million to the NRCC, per Punchbowl's Andrew Desiderio and colleagues. On the flip side: Democratic strategists are piloting new programs that would overhaul the old style of Democratic politicking to avoid repeating 2024's sweeping losses, NYT's Ken Bensinger and Shane Goldmacher write. 'That mind-set will be on display on Tuesday in Washington when many of the party's keenest number-crunchers are gathering for a closed-door meeting of the Analyst Institute, a progressive nonprofit that focuses on data-driven campaign tactics, to discuss where the party went wrong in 2024.' Other hot-button issues are likely to be on the table, such as stories like the latest from USA Today's Sarah Wire, who writes how states are trying to mitigate the impact of the megabill's cuts to Medicaid and SNAP food assistance, and how voters are mobilizing to town halls, some for the first time, out of concern. Reminder: Another piece of the 2026 puzzle will slot in tonight after 10 p.m., when the results roll in from the Arizona primary for the special election to fill the late Rep. Raul Grivalja's seat. The three-way race has become a litmus-test for the old guard vs. new guard of the Democratic party, as Playbook noted this morning. To little surprise, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has placed her bet on the old guard — in this case former Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva, per Fox News' Chad Pergram. 'She happens to be [Grijalva's] daughter, but she's made her own mark. I've watched her career carefully in Arizona,' Pelosi said. Good Tuesday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Send me your thoughts and tips to abianco@ 7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 1. TICK TOCK: OMB Director Russ Vought is meeting with Senate Republicans during their lunch today ahead of Friday's deadline to pass the all-important rescissions package. Senate Majority Leader John Thune is still negotiating with Republicans about potential amendments to the bill, telling POLITICO's Jordain Carney this morning that 'we're working on something, but I don't think it's quite ready yet.' Johnson's holding firm that Friday is the deadline and urged senators to pass the bill as-is at his weekly presser, POLITICO's Meredith Lee Hill reports. Thune still expects the first Senate votes to happen later today, per Jordain. The holdouts: The latest to come around is Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), who secured an agreement to reallocate Green New Deal money to power emergency alerts for tribal communities usually served by public media, Meredith reports. But Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is chief among those who've been pushing for amendments, and said there might not be 'openness' to changes, per Punchbowl's Samantha Handler. More on Republicans to watch from Axios' Stef Kight Also on the Hill today: Mike Waltz had his confirmation hearing to become U.N. ambassador, where he said he has plans to make the United Nations 'great again,' AP's Farnoush Amiri and Matt Brown write. Democrats laid into Waltz over his role in Signalgate — saying he lied about aspects of the leaked chats, POLITICO's Cheyanne Daniels writes. … And the presidents of Georgetown University, the City University of New York and the University of California, Berkeley were slammed by House Republicans with questions about antisemitism on campus, per NYT. Today's must read: 'PBS and NPR's Last-Ditch Fight to Save Funding,' by NYT's Benjamin Mullin 2. ON TRUMP'S AGENDA: Trump is on his way to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for the Energy and Innovation Summit sponsored by Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.). There's around $90 billion in investments expected to be announced today, per McCormick's office. Among them, a $25 billion investment from Google to build AI data centers and a $3 billion deal with Brookfield to upgrade local power plants, Semafor's Liz Hoffman scooped. Expect a gaggle of the country's biggest CEOs to be spotted. More on the summit from AP's Seung Min Kim and Marc Levy 3. THE ECONOMY, STUPID: Inflation grew slightly in June as the weight of Trump's wide-ranging tariffs started to materialize in the U.S. economy, POLITICO's Sam Sutton reports. The Consumer Price Index rose 2.7 percent compared to last June — which is a bit higher than expected and is higher than the previous pace of 2.4. And 'core' inflation, which doesn't include shifting food and energy prices, also slightly rose. Wall Street shares opened higher after the news, per Reuters. What Trump won't like: 'With new, higher tariff rates threatened to kick in starting in August, economists said the June inflation report was unlikely to push the Federal Reserve into cutting interest rates sooner rather than later. Interest-rate futures continued to show odds-on chances of the Fed resuming rate cuts in September,' Bloomberg's Chris Anstey writes. Speaking of the Fed: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wants Chair Jerome Powell to also step down from the Federal Reserve's board when his term expires in May 2026, per Bloomberg's Daniel Flatley and colleagues. In the meantime, top contenders to be the next fed chair like Kevin Warsh are calling for cutting interest rates — a move sure to curry favor with Trump, Bloomberg's Catarina Saraiva writes. It's always sunny: 'While many industries have been upended by the president's topsy-turvy trade and immigration policies, Wall Street is quietly humming along just fine,' NYT's Rob Copeland and Stacy Cowley report this morning. 'JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the country, exceeded forecasters' expectations for the second quarter, earning about $15 billion …Citi and Wells Fargo also reported earnings on Tuesday. Wells Fargo announced a profit of $5.5 billion, up 12 percent from a year ago.' 4. FROM RUSSIA, WITH LOVE: Trump may have taken his most decisive step yet putting the screws on Russia, but President Vladimir Putin is not fazed and has no intention of backing away from the fight, Reuters' Guy Faulconbridge and Darya Korsunskaya scoop this morning. His territorial demands over Ukraine may get even more ambitious as Russia's ground offensive advances — and Putin believes Russia can withstand any potential sanctions from the West. The Kremlin rewarded a U.S. citizen, Daniel Martindale, with a Russian passport after he helped them target Ukrainian troops, per Reuters. Standing firm: 'We first and foremost note that any attempts to make demands — especially ultimatums — are unacceptable for us,' Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said, per Bloomberg's Jennifer Dlouhy and Natalia Drozdiak. Still, Trump's turn toward Ukraine are sparking concerns among some in Russia's top ranks 'that an opportunity may have been missed,' WaPo's Catherine Belton and Robyn Dixon report. 5. CRACKDOWN CENTRAL: 'The IRS Is Building a Vast System to Share Millions of Taxpayers' Data With ICE,' by ProPublica's William Turton and colleagues: 'ProPublica has obtained a blueprint of the system, which would create an 'on demand' process allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to obtain the home addresses of people it's seeking to deport. … Last month, in a previously undisclosed dispute, the acting general counsel at the IRS, Andrew De Mello, refused to turn over the addresses of 7.3 million taxpayers sought by ICE. … De Mello said he had identified multiple legal 'deficiencies' in the agency's request. … Two days later, on June 27, De Mello was forced out of his job.' Related read: 'Republicans renew a bid to remove noncitizens from the census tally behind voting maps,' by NPR's Hansi Lo Wang 6. JUSTICE WATCH: Over 75 former federal and state judges today are calling on the Senate Judiciary Committee to reject Trump's nomination of Emil Bove for the U.S. Court of Appeals, CNN's Piper Hudspeth Blackburn and Jamie Gangel write. 'Mr. Bove's egregious record of mistreating law enforcement officers, abusing power and disregarding the law itself disqualifies him for this position,' the group wrote in its letter. They also reference the recent whistleblower report, which Bove adamantly denied during his testimony to the committee in June. Read the letter Not just judges: It comes as all 10 Dems on the Judiciary Committee wrote to Chair Chuck Grassley in a letter asking him to call whistleblower Erez Reuveni to testify before the panel prior to its vote on Bove, our colleagues on Inside Congress report. And two dozen progressive groups have also sent a letter to the committee denouncing Bove's nomination, Semafor's Morgan Chalfant reports. 'His nomination 'threatens the foundational principles of judicial impartiality and the rule of law,' the groups — including the SEIU, Demand Justice, and Human Rights Campaign — write.' Weaponization watch: 'Dismissals at Justice Dept. Would Bypass Civil Service and Whistle-Blower Laws' by NYT's Devlin Barrett: 'A new batch of more than 20 career employees at the department and its component agencies were fired on Friday, including the attorney general's own ethics adviser, Joseph W. Tirrell. … On the surface, the various groups have little in common. Justice Department veterans, however, see an overarching pattern: a quickening effort by the Trump administration to ignore and eventually demolish longstanding civil service legal precedents meant to keep politics out of law enforcement work, and to give more leeway to the president's loyalists.' 7. BEARING ARMS: '40,000 Troops, 19 Nations: The China Threat Unites U.S. Allies,' by WSJ's Mike Cherney: 'Artillery, rocket launchers and self-propelled howitzers opened fire at a training area in northern Australia on Monday, kick-starting three weeks of military drills here between the U.S. and 18 allies. … The biennial exercise, called Talisman Sabre, is meant to send a message to China: The U.S. and its partners are ready to respond together to aggression from Beijing … During the exercise, the U.S. and its allies plan to fire key land-based missile systems that will be crucial if Washington wants to control important sea lanes around Taiwan in a conflict.' TALK OF THE TOWN Elmo's X account is back to normal after it was hacked and posted profanely about releasing the Epstein files. TALK OF THIS TOWN — Michael Schaffer pens his latest Capital City column: 'Event Planners Are Cancelling on Trump-Era Washington. Is This a Sign of Things to Come?' The gist: There's a 'giant flashing danger sign for a region already reeling from sweeping federal job cuts.' It's part of a changing perception of the U.S. and D.C., 'a city whose pitch to visitors never used to change much based on who was president. What had been a place of monuments and history is now increasingly viewed from afar as a place where your event could be suddenly canceled by authorities or your keynote speaker could be detained at the airport.' TRANSITIONS — Thomas Boodry, Grace Colvin, Alison Anway and Scott Wagner have joined Ballard Partners' Washington DC office. Boodry was previously special assistant to President Trump and senior director for legislative affairs at the National Security Council. Colvin was previously VP of federal advocacy and strategy at The League of Credit Unions and Affiliates. Anway is the chair of Ballard's health policy advisory group, and was previously based in Ballard's Tallahassee office. Wagner is a partner at Ballard and was previously based in Ballard's Miami and Tallahassee offices. … Sarah Pierce is now director of social policy at Third Way. She previously was a policy analyst at USCIS and is a Senate Homeland Security Committee and Migration Policy Institute alum. … Sean O'Donnell is now on the litigation team at Judicial Watch. He previously was IG at the EPA. … Santiago Gonzalez is now VP at NVG. He most recently was legislative director for Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.). Send Playbookers tips to playbook@ or text us on Signal here. Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Zack Stanton, deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.

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