In the News
A new bill has been introduced in the US House of Representatives to address an issue of growing concern for music artists, particularly those in the hip-hop genre. Introduced by Congressmen Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), the Restoring Artistic Protection (RAP) Act seeks to protect artists from the use of their lyrics against them as legal evidence in criminal and civil cases.
A group of House Democrats on Tuesday introduced a bill that would place term limits on current and new Supreme Court justices.
Decatur, GA — U.S. Reps. Hank Johnson (GA-4) and Nikema Williams (GA-5) have announced community projects that were included in the fiscal year 2023 appropriations bill, which is Congress' annual spending plan.
Fiscal year 2022 ends Sept. 30. Not all projects have received funding, but several projects from Decatur, Clarkston, Tucker and metro Atlanta were included in the bill.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In an effort to restore legitimacy and independence to the nation's highest court, Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) introduced the Supreme Court Tenure Establishment and Retirement Modernization (TERM) Act. The legislation would establish term limits for Supreme Court justices while preserving constitutional protections for judicial independence in decision making. Under the TERM Act, a new justice would take the bench every two years and spend 18 years in active service.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) is introducing the legislation in the U.S. Senate.
"Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech"
Congressmen Hank Johnson (GA-04) and Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) have introduced the Restoring Artistic Protection Act (RAP Act) to protect artists from the wrongful use of their lyrics against them in criminal and civil proceedings. The legislation is the first bill of its kind at the federal level and is aimed to protect artists' First Amendment rights.
Rep. Johnson joins the show at the 9:17 mark.
Watch here.
WASHINGTON — A group of U.S. House Democrats Monday called for the passage of legislation that would add four justices to the Supreme Court, following the overturning of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that provided the constitutional right to abortion.
"It's an ultra-right-wing Republican Supreme Court," Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia said during a press conference outside the Capitol. "It is a Supreme Court where basic freedoms are under assault."
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), the lead sponsor of the 2021 Judiciary Act, called the current makeup "a Supreme Court at crisis with itself and with our democracy" where "basic freedoms are under assault" from the 6-3 conservative supermajority on the bench.
The Supreme Court isn't susceptible to the popular vote the way Congress is, Johnson said, and it has used that fact to amass power. "It's making decisions that usurp the power of the legislative and executive branches," he said.
Georgia Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson asked Murray why Thomas, "would exclude court review of that due process right." Thomas is in an interracial marriage, and other critics have also asked why he did not cite the case in his opinion.
Murray said she was "confused" about why that case wasn't included in "Justice Thomas' long laundry list of rights to be overturned, but it surely would be there."
"Could it be that he himself enjoys that right conferred under Loving?" Johnson asked.