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Two top Democratic lawmakers on the House Transportation Committee are seeking answers from Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) following production issues with the Boeing 737Max and 787 Dreamliner jets.

Committee Chairman Peter DeFazioPeter Anthony DeFazioHillicon Valley: Global cybersecurity leaders say they feel unprepared for attack | Senate Commerce Committee advances Biden's FTC nominee Lina Khan | Senate panel approves bill that would invest billions in tech Top Democrat: FCC actions are a 'potential setback' to autonomous vehicles Biden's infrastructure plan builds a stronger foundation for seniors MORE (D-Ore.) and Rep. Rick LarsenRichard (Rick) Ray LarsenDemocrats debate fast-track for infrastructure package LIVE COVERAGE: House votes to name Speaker COVID-19 is wild card as Pelosi faces tricky Speaker vote Sunday MORE (D-Wash.), chairman of the Transportation Subcommittee on Aviation,said in a statement that they are seeking records amid recent reports of electrical problems, foreign objects in debris of newly manufactured aircrafts and other quality control issues.

The lawmakers specifically said they were seeking records regarding continued issues with the manufacture and production of Boeing commercial aircraft at facilities in both Washington state and South Carolina.

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A spokesperson for Boeing told The Hill that it received a letter from the lawmakers and is reviewing it.

The FAA told The Hill in a statement We are reviewing Chair DeFazios and Rep. Larsens request and will make every effort to respond to them as quickly and completely as possible.

The letter comes roughly one month after Boeing and the FAA asked more than a dozen airlines to removemore than 100 737 Max jets from service over a potential electrical issue.

United Airlines, American Airlines and Southwest Airlines all removed the aircraft from service at the companys request. Boeing said last week that the FAA approved a fix for the problem, CNBC reported at the time.

In March, the FAA said it was inspecting four Boeing Dreamliners after the company reported production issues with the jets in September.

DeFazio and Larsen initially began investigating in April 2019, one month after Boeing grounded all flights on the 737 Max jet after a pair of crashes killed 346 people total.

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Their report, released in September, found repeated and serious failures by both The Boeing Company (Boeing) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during the 737 Max's design process.

The FAA cleared the aircraftfor service in November.

Updated: 6 p.m.

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Democrats seek answers from Boeing, FAA after production issues with 737 Max, Dreamliner jets - The Hill

A bitter and bruising Democratic primary for Philadelphia district attorney comes to a close Tuesday.

Incumbent DA Larry Krasner has spent his first term pushing to reform what he calls an unjust system, focusing on exonerating people wrongly convicted and reducing mass incarceration.

Challenger Carlos Vega, a longtime homicide prosecutor whom Krasner fired in 2018, has promised to continue reforms while returning to a more traditional approach to prosecution and collaboration with police. Vega and his allies in the local police union blame Krasner for surging homicides and gun crimes, which are roughly in line with national trends during the pandemic.

In heavily Democratic Philadelphia, Tuesdays winner is all but certain to win the November general election against lawyer Chuck Peruto, the only Republican candidate. Krasner is seen as the favorite to win the primary, but political watchers credit Vega with making it a competitive race.

READ MORE: The voters who will choose Phillys next DA arent the people with the most at stake

With voters heading to the polls if they havent already cast ballots by mail here are some factors that will help determine the winner.

Races for district attorney take place in off-year elections, which typically attract far fewer voters than contests for mayor, governor, Congress, or president.

So while the rhetoric has been fiery, the voters tuning into it likely make up a very small fraction of the electorate. Turnout in DAs races has been light in the past three decades, sometimes not even cracking 10%. Krasner prevailed in 2017 with 38% of the vote in a seven-candidate primary, but just under 20% of the citys Democrats cast a ballot.

In the 2017 primary, there were slightly more than 155,000 Democratic votes cast for district attorney. Its hard to predict what turnout will be this year following the expansion of mail voting roughly half of Philadelphias votes were cast by mail last year. But registered Democrats had returned about 47,000 mail ballots in the city as of Monday morning, which suggests extremely low turnout.

READ MORE: Philly elected Larry Krasner district attorney to reform the system. Heres what he did.

Campaign advertising, which can help mobilize voters, has also been notably light this year, especially considering the stakes. In 2017, a political action committee funded by billionaire George Soros spent almost $1.7 million to help Krasner win.

Krasner has been the biggest spender in this years race, shelling out almost $160,000 in television and radio ads, according to the advertising tracking firm AdImpact. Protect Our Police PAC, an anti-Krasner group founded last summer by retired cops, has spent almost $134,000 on TV ads. A related Soros group spent $90,000 in radio ads backing Krasner.

Vega put $30,000 into a last-minute radio ad touting his endorsement from former Gov. Ed Rendell, who served two terms as district attorney. He spent $366,000 mailing campaign literature to voters. But he did not air TV ads during the campaign.

The FOP encouraged Republican voters in the city to register as Democrats to support Vega in the primary. City data shows 6,252 Republicans switched over this year. Three out of every five party-flippers live in 14 wards in Northeast Philadelphia, where the FOP is based, and where Vega hopes to perform strongly.

But voters change parties for plenty of reasons. The city has more than one million voters, with 77% Democrats, 11% Republicans, and 12% independents or members of smaller political parties.

Krasner has been happy to highlight the FOPs opposition to his reelection. He frequently links Vega to the FOP, which had a friendly relationship with former President Donald Trump and connections to the Proud Boys, a self-described Western chauvinist organization designated by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a hate group. The FOP represents about 14,000 active and retired officers, although many no longer live in Philadelphia.

READ MORE: Carlos Vegas campaign to be Philly DA started in his moms bodega

Vega, in a radio debate with Krasner last week, predicted he will be at odds with the FOP many times if elected because he will push for reforms in city policing.

I am not owned by the FOP, he said.

But Krasner was still at it Friday as he accepted the endorsement of the Guardians Civic League, which represents 1,500 active and retired Black police officers. He criticized the FOP leadership, saying they cater to retired white officers who long for the days of Police Commissioner-turned Mayor Frank Rizzo.

They are a very diverse group of people, Krasner said of police. And many of them want what we all want, which is the system that is balanced and fair and just and that is not racist.

Results from far Northeast Philadelphia, the Delaware River Wards, and Girard Estates will show whether the FOPs efforts translated into votes.

Krasners promises of reforms in 2017 helped mobilize progressive voters still smarting from Pennsylvanias role in helping to elect Trump. With Trump now out of office, will that enthusiasm wane?

Progressive groups such as Reclaim Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Working Families Party say they are all in to defend Krasner, whose first victory was a watershed moment for their movement. But theres concern on the left that Trumps absence and the difficulty of generating enthusiasm for an incumbent with a complicated record will dampen their impact.

READ MORE: Larry Krasner has progressives in a new position: Defending a controversial incumbent

Even Reclaims endorsement of Krasner highlighted frustration with the pace of reform, praising the incumbents efforts to hold police accountable but saying he has failed to implement the transformative change needed to dismantle a fundamentally unjust and unequal system.

Krasner got some 11th-hour help from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), who endorsed Krasner in early May and sent out an email blast on Monday encouraging supporters to have his back when it matters most, to make sure he can continue our collective struggle for justice from the DAs office.

Turnout and Krasners margin of victory in neighborhoods such as Fishtown, Cedar Park, Center City, and parts of South Philadelphia east of Broad Street will show whether the progressive movement held its ground.

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What to watch for in the Democratic primary between Philly DA Larry Krasner and Carlos Vega - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Former First Lady Michelle Obama opened up about the strategies that help her cope with depression, during an interview with CBS' "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" Tuesday.

"Over the course of your adulthood, you develop your own tools," Obama, 57, said. "And for me, it's turning off the noise that is upsetting." She said she takes breaks from "reading all the feeds that are fueling my anxiety."

"I surround myself with things that make me feel good: family, friends, walks [and] exercise," she told Colbert.

In August, Obama shared that she was experiencing "low-grade depression" on an episode of her podcast, "The Michelle Obama Podcast."

Particularly during the pandemic when everyone's lives are disrupted, keeping a consistent schedule is also helpful, Obama said. "I woke up, I took a shower, I worked out, I got dressed every day," she said. "There wasn't a day that went by that I didn't do that, because it's just the doing that gets you out of the funk."

Obama said it's important that young people understand that it's very common to experience highs and lows in life, but they are temporary. This is something she teaches her own adult children, Malia, 22, and Sasha, 19.

"They have to be prepared to handle the highs and the lows," she said. "I'm trying to get them and other young people to start thinking about what are your tools, the things that bring you joy, the things that bring you calm and peace."

Patience and self-care is also key in tumultuous times: "There are moments in all of our lives, particularly in the middle of a pandemic and racial unrest, you're going to feel kind of way about it so give yourself a break," she said.

On her podcast, Obama said her depression was due to just the pandemic, "but because of the racial strife, and just seeing [the Trump] administration, watching the hypocrisy of it, day in and day out, is dispiriting."

Low-grade depression, also called "dysthymia," is characterized by loss of interest in normal daily activities, feeling hopeless, lacking productivity and sleep problems, according to the Mayo Clinic.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, anxiety and depression rates among Black Americans spiked in the weeks following the circulation of the video of George Floyd's death at the hands of police. Hearing news about Black people "being dehumanized or hurt or killed or falsely accused of something" contributed to the weight of her feelings, Obama said.

In the interview Tuesday, Obama reiterated that depression and mental health "is a part of life," she said. "Nobody rides, life on a high."

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Michelle Obama's advice for coping with depression: 'Develop your own tools' and give yourself a break - CNBC

AUSTIN, Texas Texas Republicans on Monday resumed their push to pass a major voting bill with an array of restrictions, moving the bill to a closed-door panel of lawmakers who will hash out the final version of the legislation.

But much of the suspense surrounding the panel, known as a conference committee, centers not on whether the legislation will pass the G.O.P.-controlled Legislature, but on what measures it will include when it does.

After a late-night scramble of last-minute negotiations among lawmakers last week, it looked as if recently introduced voting options, such as drive-through voting and 24-hour voting, would survive Republicans initial attempt to ban them. The version of the bill passed by the State Senate would have prohibited those types of voting, but the House version passed last week made no mention of either provision.

However, State Senator Bryan Hughes, the Republican sponsor of the initial bill and one of the committee members who will shape the final version behind closed doors, said in an interview last week that he would like to see the provisions banning drive-through voting and 24-hour voting added back to the final bill.

It makes sense, Mr. Hughes said, citing internal polling suggesting that Texas voters preferred standardized hours for early voting across the state. So theres some predictability and people are confident that the rules are being followed.

The conference committee will meet this week to start crafting a final version of the bill, which would then be sent for a final up-or-down vote in both chambers. The Senate announced its members made up of four Republicans and one Democrat on Monday, and the House will make its appointments when the chamber convenes on Tuesday.

The bill initially sought a host of new restrictions on voting that would have had an outsize impact on voters in cities, most notably in Harris County, the biggest county in the state and home to Houston.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Harris County introduced a drive-through voting option, which more than 127,000 voters used in the general election. It also had a single day of 24-hour voting, which more than 10,000 voters used to cast ballots. The original bill that passed the House would have banned both of those methods, as well as placed limitations on the allocation of voting machines in counties with a population of more than one million, which election officials had said could force the closure of some polling locations.

But as the bill made its way through the Legislature, most of those provisions were removed. The bill as it passed the House included provisions greatly expanding the autonomy and authority of partisan poll watchers, included new penalties for election officials and workers who violate the rules, and barred officials from sending out absentee ballots to voters who have not requested them.

Mr. Hughes said he wanted the provisions against drive-through and 24-hour voting to be added back to the bill so there would be uniformity among counties in how elections are run.

Amid months of false claims by former President Donald J. Trump that the 2020 election was stolen from him,Republican lawmakers in many states are marching aheadto pass laws making it harder to vote and changing how elections are run, frustrating Democrats and even some election officials in their own party.

One county cant just make up the rules, Mr. Hughes said. Houstons not the capital of Texas. Harris County doesnt need to do that. Whether I like the change or I dislike it, one county cant just make up the rules on the fly. That doesnt work.

Democrats in the Legislature have argued that this logic hampers the administration of elections, which are best run when local officials are empowered to address problems in their communities.

You really cant have uniformity when every county is different. Harris County is different than Loving County, said Jessica Gonzlez, a state representative and the Democratic vice chair of the House Elections Committee, referring to a county in West Texas with less than 200 residents. And so, in my experience in doing voter protection work, its important that these elections officials are able to administer their elections, because theyre the ones who are actually on the ground and able to address those issues.

If legislators in Texas were to add back provisions from the version of the voting bill that initially passed the State Senate, the state would stand as somewhat of an outlier nationally. Republicans in other states have tended to remove some of the strictest measures from voting bills as they make their way through legislatures. Both Georgia and Florida initially introduced bills that featured much more strident restrictions such as limiting voting on Sunday or banning drop boxes before settling on final versions that allowed for some weekend voting and limited drop box usage.

Texas is one of the last major battleground states working toward an overhaul of its voting rules and regulations. The Legislature is in session until the end of May, so any law will have to be on its way to the desk of Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, by midnight, June 1.

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Just How Strict Will Texas Republicans Voting Bill Be? - The New York Times

Republicans are sparring with Gov. Andy Beshear over a contract dispute between his administration and a Kentucky Baptist Convention affiliated adoption agency over a clause intended to prevent discrimination against LGBTQ people.

The five Republican constitutional officers Attorney General Daniel Cameron, Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles, Treasurer Allison Ball, Auditor Mike Harmon and Secretary of State Micheal Adams signed a letter Monday urging the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to reinstate its contract with Sunrise Childrens Services, a large foster care and adoption agency.

Their statement, which argues that Beshear has a legal obligation to continue the contract, follows a similar letter put out by the majority of the Kentucky House Republican Caucus on Wednesday that also urged Beshear and the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to waive a provision that prevents discrimination over sexual orientation and gender identity.

Sunrise is a proven partner in caring for the children of Kentucky and has been for more than four decades, Speaker Pro Tem David Meade said, We are simply asking that the state continue in this partnership and not risk the care provided to hundreds of Kentucky children. Now is not the time for the administration to make this about politics.

Neither letter specifically mentions the heart of the dispute between Sunrise and the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

The Courier Journal first reported that the dispute is over a single sentence in the contract but neither the Beshear administration nor the Kentucky Baptist Convention has detailed the exact language at issue.

The Beshear administration, Sunrise Family Services and the Kentucky Baptist Convention all did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Last Monday, Beshear confirmed the issue was over a clause that aims to prevent discrimination over sexual orientation and gender identity, without ever directly using those words.

My understanding is that is the clause, Beshear said, when asked directly whether the clause is in regards to sexual orientation. My understanding is that there has recently been a settlement agreement that impacts this from litigation against the state, possibly because of those waivers. My understanding is that theres a new supreme court case, at least since the last time a contract came along.

Beshear was likely referring to the U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County, where in 2020 the court ruled that it is illegal for businesses to fire employees because they are gay or transgender.

And while it is unclear which settlement agreement Beshear was referring to, there has been a longstanding lawsuit against the state and the Kentucky Baptist Homes for Children, filed by the ACLU on behalf of Alicia Pedreira, who said she was fired by the organization after it learned she is a lesbian.

The dispute sparks a familiar flash-point in Kentucky politics over what, if any, anti-discrimination protections should be afforded LGBTQ Kentuckians.

Recent fairness bills intended to prevent discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodation have failed to get a hearing in either chamber of the General Assembly.

In the 2021 legislative session, Republicans tucked a provision into the Executive Branch budget bill that attempted to prevent the Beshear administration from enforcing non-discrimination clauses that went against a childrens services contractors sincerely held religious beliefs.

Beshear vetoed the bill, saying it would allow discrimination against people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity, but his veto was easily overridden.

In their letter, Republican constitutional officers argued that Sunrise had first amendment protections because the state could not discriminate against religious conduct.

They truly have done the Lords calling to do unto the least of these, Secretary of State Micheal Adams wrote. I respectfully ask the Beshear administration to stand up for Kentucky children rather than kowtowing to political correctness.

Chris Hartman, the executive director of the Fairness Campaign, said ending the contract with Sunrise will not overburden the states foster care and adoptive services, where there are around 9,100 children and that it was about protecting LGBTQ Kentuckians.

This is not only about respecting LGBTQ families and parents, but about protecting kids, Hartman said. I would say its a dangerous environment for LGBTQ kids to be in Sunrises care right now.

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Republicans spar with Beshear on disputed adoption contract over discrimination clause - messenger-inquirer