House Speaker Johnson spoke yesterday at the kickoff of the House Republican policy summit, delivering a wide-ranging address that touched on the party’s legislative agenda, U.S. military action in Venezuela, Democratic opposition, and the sudden passing of Congressman Doug LaMalfa. Republicans Leading on Tax Policy, Speaker Says Speaker Johnson emphasized Republican achievements on tax policy, Read More…
(The Center Square) – Democratic lawmakers criticized President Donald Trump’s announcement of land strikes against Venezuela and leader Nicolas Maduro’s capture. In a post to social media, Trump announced the U.S. carried out a “large scale strike” against Venezuela, capturing Maduro and his wife. The two are in U.S. custody and charged with “narco-terrorism conspiracy, Read More…
(The Center Square) – A limited ban on stock trading by Congress might get a vote next year after a 2012 law did not do enough to stem the practice that critics say is legal insider trading. The Center Square has been investigating the trades of lawmakers on key committees, finding trades that raise questions Read More…
(The Center Square) – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed Senate Bill 1950, prompting strong backlash from medical, disability, religious and legal groups who say it was rushed and violates key ethical and legal protections. State Rep. Bill Hauter, R-Morton, a practicing physician, said Pritzker showed signs of hesitation but ultimately “his leftist ideology took over and he Read More…
Stacey Abrams is set to reveal soon whether she’ll run for president or senator or something else. But in recent months, the Democrat has mounted a nationwide, largely below-the-radar effort to expand her donor and political network that will make her an instant force whatever she decides. Abrams has traversed the country meeting with top Read More…
WASHINGTON — Beto O’Rourke raised $6.1 million in his first 24 hours as a presidential candidate, according to his campaign, surpassing Bernie Sanders and every other 2020 Democrat who has disclosed their figures. O’Rourke’s campaign announced Monday that he had taken in $6,136,763 in online contributions in the day after declaring his candidacy Thursday morning. Read More…
Joe Biden is carrying a 20th century voting record into a 21st century political dogfight. During more than 40 years in public life, Biden has taken an array of stances at odds with today’s Democratic Party consensus. As he now prepares for his third presidential campaign, that record could hamper him in a big field Read More…
A massive public lands package including a ban on new mining claims north of Yellowstone and the renewal of a popular conservation fund has now become law. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed S. 47, a broad legislative package including land designations and more affecting areas across the country. It sailed through the House and Read More…
(CNN)Bernie Sanders advocated for the nationalization of most major industries, including energy companies, factories, and banks, when he was a leading member of a self-described “radical political party” in the 1970s, a CNN KFile review of his record reveals. Sanders’ past views shed light on a formative period of his political career that could become Read More…
Facebook removed several ads placed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign that called for the breakup of Facebook and other tech giants. But the social network later reversed course after POLITICO reported on the takedown, with the company saying it wanted to allow for “robust debate.” The ads, which had identical images and text, touted Read More…
WASHINGTON – House Democrats find themselves in one of the trickiest battles on Capitol Hill, trying to prove their unity in the fight against President Donald Trump and on core issues they campaigned on last year. They had a remarkably effective first two months in the majority, defying Trump on his demand for a border Read More…
Former Vice President Joe Biden is in the final stages of preparing for a 2020 presidential campaign that is expected to launch next month, according to multiple people familiar with his planning. A formal kickoff is expected by mid-April and would all but cement the size and scope of the Democratic presidential field that currently Read More…
Howard Schultz’s announcement in January that he was considering running for president as an independent may have been met with chuckles and eye rolls from pundits, but on Twitter, political operatives, trolls and profiteers saw an opportunity. Within days of the announcement, Twitter was home to fan accounts that seemed to span every demographic, praising Read More…
Less than a week after raging against cow farts and urging Americans to stop eating so many hamburgers, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was caught oozing with hypocrisy. On Tuesday night, an image scorched across Twitter showing Ocasio-Cortez and her chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, sitting down for dinner together. While sitting no more than a foot Read More…
A Virginia state employee has complained that her eighth-grade daughter was upset during a tour of the historic governor’s residence when first lady Pam Northam handed a ball of cotton to her and another black child and asked them to imagine being enslaved and having to pick cotton. “The Governor and Mrs. Northam have Read More…
ots” of the Russia investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, saying in an interview that lawmakers on Capitol Hill should be more aggressive in digging into alleged ties between President Donald Trump and the Russian government. The 2016 Democratic nominee — who once worked as an attorney for the House Judiciary Committee during the Read More…
Joe Biden’s big lead in early Democratic 2020 polling might be a bunch of malarkey. While most polls show the former vice president hovering around 30 percent of the Democratic primary vote, well ahead of second-place Sen. Bernie Sanders, two recent surveys paint a starkly different picture — raising the question of whether Biden is Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is traveling to Iowa this week, his fifth trip to the Hawkeye State since he began exploring a possible 2020 presidential run last year. At least 11 Democrats are running for president or have formed exploratory committees, but Bullock has repeatedly deflected questions about his plans. He says he’s Read More…
Stripe, a Silicon Valley online payment company which in September hit a massive $20 billion valuation, has become embroiled in an investigation into US President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee, The New York Times reports. Citing two people familiar with the inquiry, the Times said federal prosecutors issued a subpoena demanding that officials on the inaugural Read More…
The U.S. government is preparing to begin construction of more border walls and fencing in South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley, likely on federally owned land set aside as wildlife refuge property. Heavy construction equipment was expected to arrive starting Monday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said. A photo posted by the nonprofit National Butterfly Center Read More…
Some GOP voters want a primary challenge but most would back Trump West Long Branch, NJ – In the run-up to 2020, fewer than 4-in-10 voters back a second term for President Donald Trump. The Monmouth University Poll finds a sizable number of GOP voters who would like to see Trump face a primary Read More…
House Democrats provided a detailed offer Thursday — with dollar figures — of their opening offer in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding negotiations. The plan does not include funding for a border wall sought by President Trump. In her weekly news conference Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi addressed the ongoing negotiations over border security, making Read More…
SAN FRANCISCO—Before a campaign forum that would help to define her nascent political career, Kamala Harris, then a 38-year-old prosecutor, was bracing for questions about an uncomfortable topic: her relationship with the mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown. Harris’ consultant, Jim Stearns, had warned his candidate that her opponents would dredge up her ties to Read More…
The vast majority of freshman House Democrats are not quite ready to “impeach the motherf*cker.” Over the last two weeks, Axios reached out to every single one of the 64 new House Democrats, and only a tiny fraction said they were on board with impeachment. The big picture: There’s been a cable news feeding frenzy Read More…
White. Male. Old. A Wall Street billionaire. At first glance, Michael Bloomberg would seem to have zero appeal in a Democratic Party where progressive populism is on the rise and activists and elites say it’s time for a woman or a person of color to win the White House. But unlike any of the other Read More…
Several Democratic politicians – known collectively as “the governors” among elite donors – have been in contact with Wall Street’s top political financiers as they each consider running for president in 2020, CNBC has learned. The group includes former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Montana Gov. Read More…
Republican Montana Sen. Steve Daines introduced a bill on the Senate floor Thursday that would withhold the pay of members of Congress during future government shutdowns. Daines’s introduction of the bill, sponsored by Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn, comes hours after Daines announced he sent a letter requesting the secretary of the U.S. Senate withhold Read More…
House Democrats have formally proposed creating a new committee on climate change, without many of the main factors that progressives wanted in the panel’s structure. Democratic leaders unveiled the plans for the “Select Committee on the Climate Crisis” late Tuesday as part of a package of rules to govern House proceedings for the next two Read More…
Wednesday morning, recently reelected Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester broke some exciting news by telling Montana College Democrats that their state’s governor, Steve Bullock, would challenge incumbent Republican Sen. Steve Daines in his 2020 reelection bid. Minutes later, Bullock’s chief of staff offered a contrary view: Not only was Bullock not ready to announce, he’s Read More…
US Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke will leave his post at the end of the year, in the latest high-profile departure from President Donald Trump’s administration. When announcing it on Twitter, Mr Trump did not give a reason for Mr Zinke’s departure but the former congressman from Montana has come under scrutiny for his use of Read More…
A federal jury Monday found U.S. Rep. Bob Brady’s top political strategist, Ken Smukler, guilty of nine of 11 counts of repeatedly flouting campaign finance laws in a case that once threatened to ensnare the congressman himself. Smukler, 58, who has helped dozens of Democrats win public office over the last 30 years, was convicted of coordinating Read More…
Trial for Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, and his wife and former campaign manager, Margaret, was set during a hearing on Monday for Sept. 10. Duncan and Margaret Hunter appeared in federal court in downtown San Diego for a planning hearing stemming for their Aug. 21 indictment. The two face 60 counts of crimes including conspiracy Read More…
Hillary Clinton is facing a backlash after arguing that European leaders should seek to assuage the concerns of a growing right-wing populism across the continent by refusing to offer “refuge and support” to migrants. “Europe has done its part, and must send a very clear message — ‘we are not going to be able to Read More…
TRENTON — A former chief investigator of Mercer County elections has been charged with voter fraud after officials learned she resides in Pennsylvania, yet has voted in New Jersey since at least 2012. Andrea Palmucci-McGillicuddy, 52, is charged with fraudulent voting, interference with elections and other related offenses, according to court records. The charges were filed Read More…
(CNN)Democrats hope a manual recount will overturn the results of Florida’s Senate election and pave the wave for Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson to keep his Senate seat. Appearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer projected confidence about Nelson’s chances. “Bill Nelson is — is strong as could be,” Schumer said. “He believes, Read More…
A major GOP money group is getting ready to slam Mike Bloomberg with negative talking points if the billionaire Democrat makes a run for the White House in 2020. America Rising, a super PAC whose targets have included Hillary Clinton, is preparing an opposition-research blitz against Bloomberg that would focus on a range of topics, Read More…
A fight broke out in a closed-door meeting of House Democrats over climate change as a powerful veteran lawmaker fought with freshman star Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other members-elect over the creation of a special panel for the issue. New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone, incoming chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee — backed Read More…
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s office in California was vandalized Monday, according to an Instagram post by the congressman. McCarthy, whose local office is in Bakersfield, Calif., posted photos of the suspects and some of the damage. Two young men were caught on surveillance camera outside of the office, which had its window smashed in Read More…
President Donald Trump defied climate scientists, intelligence specialists and even his own defense secretary on Sunday evening, capping a week of freewheeling press engagements with a sprawling prime-time network television interview in which he portrayed himself as an isolated but eminently empowered commander in chief. “I felt comfortable at the beginning, other than it was Read More…
The Treasury Department announced new actions Wednesday directed at Chinese and Russian companies that the department said have facilitated illicit shipments on behalf of North Korea. The department announced designations against one individual and three companies. Those businesses include a Chinese logistics company and its affiliate in Singapore, as well as Russia-based Profinet and its Read More…
Fifty percent of likely U.S. voters approve of President Donald Trump’s job performance, the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows. Another 49 percent disapprove of Trump’s performance, according to Rasmussen. READ THE FULL STORY.
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) on Sunday denied allegations posted on social media accounts linked to the family of his former girlfriend that he had behaved abusively towards her. Ellison, who is battling four challengers for his party’s nomination in the race for Minnesota attorney general, spoke out through his campaign after a Facebook post alleging Read More…
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Making West Virginia political history, the House Judiciary Committee has voted in favor of impeachment articles for all four remaining members of the state Supreme Court. Only former Justice Menis Ketchum was spared because he announced his resignation the day before impeachment proceedings were set to begin. READ THE FULL STORY.
The Democratic Party’s left-wing insurgency found its limits Tuesday night, with voters favoring establishment candidates over more liberal challengers in almost every closely watched race across several states. In Michigan, former state senator Gretchen Whitmer easily won the Democratic nomination for governor over Abdul El-Sayed, a doctor backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) who was Read More…