Nancy Pelosi Announces Impeachment Inquiry
House Speaker and U.S. Senator Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced on Tuesday a formal impeachment inquiry against U.S. President Donald J. Trump, making him the fourth president in U.S. history to face the proceeding. The announcement follows a week of political turmoil, during which Trump called Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky and asked him to investigate former vice president Joe Biden for his family’s business dealings in the country, according to a whistleblower’s complaint.
“Trump’s doing this because he knows I’ll beat him like a drum,” Biden said, according to NPR. “And he’s using the abuse of power and every element of the presidency to try to do something to smear me.”
Trump announced that he would release a transcript of his conversation with Zelensky and the full whistleblower complaint by the end of the week.
Emory University, Children’s Healthcare, Join National Emergency Research Network
Emory University and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta will join Brown University (R.I.) and Hasbro Children’s Hospital, as well as University of California, San Francisco and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in forming one of the six “nodes” of the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN). PECARN is a federally funded pediatric healthcare research network made up of some of the top universities and children’s hospitals in the country. SPARC, as Emory’s node is called, has been awarded a $2.8 million research grant to develop and conduct studies with the goal of decreasing mortality rates among ill and injured children, according to a Sept. 17 University press release. It will also provide opportunities for more advanced research, as the institutions combine their resources. Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, which partners with Emory University, treats over 240,000 children annually.
Study Finds Increased Voter Turnout Among College Students
Voter turnout among college students doubled between 2014 and 2018, according to a study published by Tufts University (Mass.) on Sept. 19. The study found that 40 percent of eligible college students cast a ballot last year, compared to only 19 percent in 2014. The study analyzed data from 10 million students that was voluntarily submitted by more than 1,000 national colleges and universities. The researchers then matched the data to public voting records, which allowed them to track voter registration and turnout.
Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that while voter turnout rose between the two midterm years across nearly all demographics, young voters saw the greatest increase, according to The Washington Post. Turnout was slightly higher among female students than male students, with black women having the highest turnout of all demographics at 43 percent. Hispanic and Asian students saw significant increases to their turnout as well. Voter turnout generally increased at smaller increments among students in business and STEM majors.
New Mexico Governor Proposes Bill to Offer Free Public College
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Grisham unveiled a plan to make all public colleges and universities free for in-state residents on Sept. 18. The state legislature must pass the proposed bill, called the New Mexico Opportunity Scholarship, before it becomes law, according to The New York Times.
Grisham plans to use funds from the state’s high oil production to pay for the program. The program would be available to all students regardless of family income and immigration status. The program also includes funding for adults returning to community colleges.
However, the program requires all recipients to be enrolled as full-time students and maintain a 2.5 GPA. The scholarship will only be applied to remaining tuition balances after a student has exhausted other state and federal aid, and will not cover textbook and living expenses.
Governor Kemp Posts Job Application for Senator Isakson’s Replacement
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp began the search to replace Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia), who plans to retire at the end of this year, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Applicants seeking to fill the senator’s seat, who has cited health issues as the reason for his departure, can submit their resume and contact information and certify their eligibility in a job entry on the governor’s website. The U.S. Constitution requires that candidates for Senate be at least 30 years of age, a U.S. citizen for at least nine years and a resident of the state one is running in. The selected applicant will take Isakson’s place in the Senate and be the incumbent in the November 2020 special election to determine who will fill the remainder of Isakson’s term.
Musa Ya-Sin (21C) is from Decatur, Georgia, majoring in history. Before transferring to Emory in Fall 2019, Ya-Sin attended Georgia State University. An aspiring law student, Ya-Sin enjoys video games, volunteering and cooking.
