Valerie Richardson

Gina McCarthy, EPA head, won’t appear at House hearing on Animas River spill

A House committee will hold next week the first congressional hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency's Animas River spill, but administrator Gina McCarthy won't be there. Published September 3, 2015

Iran deal losing support with public even as White House gains Senate votes

President Obama's Iran nuclear deal may have won a veto-proof majority in the Senate, but it's still losing the public-opinion battle, according to a poll released Thursday. Published September 3, 2015

Pro-pot group drops ballot campaign to allow marijuana in Denver bars

A pro-marijuana group is withdrawing its ballot measure to allow pot in Denver bars and plans to work instead with the city council and the business community on devising a law on social use in commercial establishments. Published September 3, 2015

House Judiciary to hold first hearing on Planned Parenthood in wake of videos

The first congressional hearing on Planned Parenthood since the release of explosive undercover videos is scheduled for next week as part of a House Judiciary Committee investigation into the publicly funded organization's abortion practices. Published September 2, 2015

Lamar Smith blasts Obama’s ‘extreme climate-change agenda’

Rep. Lamar Smith, chairman of the Science, Space and Technology Committee, threw cold water Wednesday on President Obama's Alaska climate-change tour, saying the president's proposed regulatory fixes have put him on "thin ice." Published September 2, 2015

Ninth Planned Parenthood video fuels accusations of extensive lawbreaking

The takeaway moment from the latest fetal tissue video comes when a woman identified as Advanced BioScience Resources's Perrin Larton recounts cases in which the fetus "just fell out" during an abortion procedure. Published September 1, 2015

Obama Justice Department sides with Planned Parenthood against Bobby Jindal

The Obama administration has sided with Planned Parenthood in its effort to keep its contract with Louisiana, arguing in a court filing that the state's decision to defund the organization may be in violation of the federal Medicaid Act. Published September 1, 2015

Planned Parenthood defenders demand full video footage release

Defenders of Planned Parenthood called Monday for the release of the full footage from explosive undercover videos on its role in procuring aborted fetal tissue, while investigators countered that the missing video is from bathroom breaks and waiting periods. Published August 31, 2015

Texas emerges as top destination for Californians fleeing state

Californians fled the state in unprecedented numbers over the last decade, and their primary destination was Texas, according to an analysis issued Monday. Published August 31, 2015

Black Lives Matter causes more headaches for Dems by rejecting DNC resolution

The Democratic National Committee's attempt to cozy up to the Black Lives Matter movement was rejected Sunday as the network pushed back against aligning itself with either major party. Published August 31, 2015

Andy Johnson, Wyoming farmer, sues EPA over $16M fines over stock pond

Farmer Andy Johnson hasn't sent millions of gallons of gold-mine wastewater down any rivers, but he's facing more than $16 million in fines from the Environmental Protection Agency for running afoul the Clean Water Act. Published August 30, 2015

Planned Parenthood admits it manipulates rules on fetal organ sales to maximize profit

In a letter to Congress intended to defend its practices and attack its hidden-video critics, Planned Parenthood wound up lending credence to accusations that it manipulates rules on selling fetal organs to maximize profit. Published August 27, 2015

Nebraskans get more than enough signatures for vote to bring back death penalty

Nebraskans for the Death Penalty announced Wednesday that they have gathered enough signatures to force a repeal vote on the newly enacted state law eliminating capital punishment. Published August 26, 2015

EPA: Gauging mine’s water level before spill would have been ‘difficult,’ ‘expensive’

An EPA internal review released Wednesday concluded that its crew underestimated the water pressure building up behind the debris at the Gold King Mine, but that it would have been "very difficult and expensive" to figure that out. Published August 26, 2015