Padilla, Schiff introduce modified Insurrection Act to check presidential power
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THE NEW INSURRECTION ACT OF 2025
U.S. Sens Alex Padilla, D-California, Adam Schiff, D-California, and Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, introduced the new Insurrection Act of 2025 to moderate the president’s use of the act in its current state, unchanged in 217 years.
Their updated version proposes reforms to the legislation that “gives the President broad and vague authority to deploy troops — either with or without the request of a state — to suppress ‘any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy.’”
The modified act would clarify criteria for domestic military deployment, emphasize military use as a last-resort effort, require consultation with, approval from and reporting to Congress, clarify when the law can be used and provide for judicial review in case of misuse. Twenty-two senators co-sponsored the legislation.
“Our military should be focused on defending our national security — not silencing speech a president disagrees with or policing our own citizens,” Padilla said in a press release. “The archaic Insurrection Act is far too broad and grants nearly unchecked powers to a president to abuse the military for their own political purposes — and we must make sure it continues to only be invoked in the most extreme of circumstances.”
“The president’s dangerous decision to deploy the National Guard and the U.S. Marine Corps in Los Angeles over the objection of our governor brings us closer to the very real possibility that the president could invoke the Insurrection Act to turn our military into a political tool. That must never be allowed to happen,” Schiff said, condemning the Trump administration’s recent actions and “creeping authoritarianism”.
INTEREST RATES LIKELY TO STAY HIGH
Via David Lightman
Don’t look for consumer interest rates to drop much anytime soon.
That’s the message from a new UCLA Anderson forecast. The report in some ways mirrors comments this week by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who took a cautious tone about the economy’s path ahead.
UCLA’s report, which covers California’s outlook as well as the nation’s, said that Trump administration policies have led to “higher long-term interest rates and a depreciation of the U.S. dollar, as capital markets adjust to a weakening U.S. economy that is perceived as less institutionally stable, prompting a reallocation of capital towards other markets.”
The Fed tries to keep the economy healthy and prices stable largely with its key, targeted interest rates.
Since December, that rate has been in the 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent range. It announced no change in that range this week.
The Anderson forecast expects rates to be in that range throughout this year, “primarily due to tariff-induced inflation but also because the labor market has held up remarkably well so far, despite them.” The rates are those that banks charge to lend money to each other overnight, rates that have an influence on what consumers pay.
Rates on loans for home mortgages are influenced by several factors, including inflationary expectations. In the week ending Wednesday, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage was 6.81 percent, down slightly from the previous week, according to rate tracker Freddie Mac.
The Anderson forecast saw two Fed rate cuts next year, as unemployment rises and the economy continues to adjust to current policies. The forecast predicted California’s unemployment rate, already one of the nation’s highest, will jump as high as 6.1 percent early next year. The forecast also saw two more cuts in 2027.
The Fed is concerned about inflation. Consumer prices were up 2.4 percent in the 12 months ending in May, not far from the Fed’s 2 percent target. But Powell and the forecast suggested that because of the Trump tariffs, more inflation could be coming.
The forecast saw the cost of living rising at a 4.4 percent clip in the last quarter of this year before dropping to 3.3 percent early next year.
HEALTH4ALL COALITION RALLY SUPPORT FOR IMMIGRANT HEALTH
The Health4All Coalition will rally outside Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas’ office on Friday, calling for protections for Medi-Cal funding for low-income immigrants.
The coalition maintains that Rivas is well-positioned to negotiate with Gov. Gavin Newsom and other lawmakers to prevent cuts to immigrant and farmworker communities’ healthcare. This follows the Legislature’s recent vote against undocumented immigrant healthcare last Friday, notably an adaptation of Newsom’s initial plan.
Current budget changes will result in a monthly $30 premium for people to stay in Medi-Cal if they have had green cards less than five years, are dreamers or fully undocumented, enrollment freezes for undocumented people or those with UIS status and the elimination of dental benefits for current recipients if they have had green cards less than five years, are dreamers or fully undocumented.
The coalition previously rallied outside Rivas’ office condemning Newsom’s proposal on June 6, when Rivas demonstrated support in favor of immigrant healthcare.
“Immigrant workers and families, who pay billions in taxes, deserve access to care, and I am proud to protect California’s progress expanding Medi-Cal,” Rivas said, in a statement following their initial campaign. “There are tough choices ahead, and Assembly Democrats will closely examine any proposal from the Governor. But let’s be clear: We will not roll over and leave our immigrants behind.”
The event will take place on Friday at 10:30 am outside of Rivas’ Salinas office. Participating organizations include Monterey Bay Central Labor Council, Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action, California Pan-Ethnic Health Network and Health4All Coalition.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It is not up to the president to decide which governors and mayors get to lead their constituents when they’ve been democratically elected.”
— Sen. Alex Padilla in X post
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This story was originally published June 20, 2025 at 4:55 AM with the headline "Padilla, Schiff introduce modified Insurrection Act to check presidential power."
