Today, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai issued a statement stating he has serious concerns over the Sinclair-Tribune merger and proposed referring the transaction to an administrative hearing.

President Trump’s continued efforts to obfuscate and dodge forcefully addressing Russian interference in the 2016 election hammer home the need for Congress to act to safeguard our elections and our democracy. Americans expect their President and other elected officials to put their country before their party when facing an ongoing threat from a hostile foreign state.

Whether Scott Pruitt resigned or was forced out, he had repeatedly shown himself unworthy of the office and he had to go. Pruitt's tenure has been a long, unbroken string of ethical lapses, maladministration, and relentless attacks on the environment he was charged with protecting. A cascade of investigations into his abuse of taxpayer funds, hiding his schedule, sweetheart apartment lease deals, and first-class flights made a mockery of public service. This partial litany of his scandals -- unearthed by environmental groups, watchdogs, and journalists -- speak for themselves, but he is hardly alone among President Trump’s appointees.

Today, Common Cause joined Public Knowledge in filing a motion requesting the FCC hold the Sinclair-Tribune merger review in abeyance pending the D.C. Circuit’s review of the agency’s decision to reinstate the UHF Discount. The UHF discount is a provision that allows broadcasters operating UHF stations to only count half their coverage area when determining if they fall under the national ownership cap.

Today, Common Cause issued a new report examining how corrections industry influence, felony disenfranchisement and prison gerrymandering fuel mass incarceration and undermine democracy. Democracy Behind Bars looks at our broken criminal justice system and how it is manipulated for the benefit and profit of the prison industry. The report goes on to examine the work going on in the states to restore voting rights to citizens who have served their time and to curb mass criminalization and incarceration.

Except for one state legislative district, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Texas congressional and state legislative districts and overturned a lower court decision that the districts were racially discriminatory. The lower court in Abbott v. Perez had previously determined that the districts violated 14th Amendment equal protection and the Voting Rights Act. Common Cause filed an amicus brief on behalf of the plaintiff-appellees in this case.