Politics and views in the United States.

Congress reaches a deal to avoid a partial government shutdown again. Arizona Republicans want to ensure Trump remains on their state ballot and Senate Democrats reintroduce the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.

TRANSCRIPT

-Welcome to "2024 Talks," where we're following our democracy in historic times. -This negotiation has been difficult, but to close the government down at a time like this would hurt people who should not be hurt. -Republican Congressman Chuck Fleischman of Tennessee says government shutdowns cause more harm than good.

The House passed another short-term spending measure, which would avoid a shutdown this weekend and keep federal agencies running into March.

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump made dueling visits to the Texas border.

In Brownsville, Biden touted a bipartisan immigration and border security deal.

It would have toughened access for migrants but was tanked by Republicans on orders from Trump. -The majority of Democrats and Republicans in both houses support this legislation, until someone came along and said, "Don't do that.

It'll benefit the incumbent." -Biden says he would be willing to shut down the border should the bipartisan legislation pass.

Trump, meanwhile, traveled to Eagle Pass, where he called migrants "terrorists."

The IRS says with controversial new funding, it'll be able to go after more than 100,000 high earners who haven't filed going back to 2017.

That could net hundreds of millions of dollars.

The GOP-led Arizona Senate passed a bill saying presidential candidates can't be blocked from the ballot, even if they violated the Constitution's 14th Amendment ban on insurrectionists.

Opponents say the bill would bypass the Constitution to protect Trump, but Republican Senator Janai Shamp says it's not a partisan issue. -This is about the fact that we should be standing to make sure that the people are heard, and when the people put forward a nominee, political games should not have any interference. -Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib is urging voters in her state to consider the whole ballot in November, rather than stay home in protest of Biden's handling of the war in Gaza. -Know that there's so many other folks on that ballot, many of which support a ceasefire, many city council members courageously proposing ceasefire resolutions. -More than 100,000 folks in Michigan voted uncommitted in this week's primary, and Democrats fear young voters won't turn out in November.

Tlaib supports that protest, but says staying home simply makes those who want to cease fire invisible.

Biden told reporters Thursday a hostages-for-ceasefire deal probably won't be in place by Monday, as he had previously suggested.

And Senate Democrats have reintroduced the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.

It would require states with a history of discrimination return to having to get federal approval before changing voting rules.

The bill previously died in the Senate when filibustered by Republicans, but Georgia Democrat Raphael Warnock says John Lewis was persistent, even when beaten nearly to death by police while marching for civil rights. -I think about John Lewis crossing that Edmund Pettus Bridge.

He didn't have any reason to think that he could win.

But with a trench coat on his back and commitment in his heart, he kept marching. -I'm Catherine Carley for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

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