INSIDER
What's next now that Speaker Mike Johnson is facing a motion to vacate from Marjorie Taylor Greene
Barely six months into the job, House Speaker Mike Johnson is at risk of the same conservative revolt that took down his predecessor.
Speaker Johnson says he plans to invite Netanyahu to address the US Congress
House Speaker Mike Johnson says he plans to invite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress, a show of support from Republicans amid growing Democratic criticism of Netanyahuโs leadership.
Schumer's rebuke of Netanyahu shows the long, fragile line the US and allies walk on interference
Republicans and Israeli officials were quick to express outrage after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer lashed out at Prime Benjamin Netanyahuโs handling of the war in Gaza and called for Israel to hold new elections.
New Speaker Mike Johnson holds favor with conservatives. Can he unite the GOP where others failed?
New House Speaker Mike Johnson has inherited many of the same problems that bedeviled Republican leaders with far more experience.
Christian conservatives cheer one of their own as Mike Johnson assumes Congress' most powerful seat
Evangelical Christian conservatives have long had allies in top Republican leadership in Congress.
House speaker live updates | Next round of voting set for Thursday after Jordan comes up short again
There will be no further votes for House speaker on Wednesday after Republicans reached an impasse on how to move forward.
Jim Jordan's rapid rise has been cheered by Trump and the far right. Could it soon make him speaker?
Rep. Jim Jordan becoming House speaker would help cement the far rightโs takeover of the Republican Party and trigger conflict with Democrats over the size and scope of government.
Republican Steve Scalise is seen as a fighter, but becoming the House speaker might require a brawl
Republican colleagues call Steve Scalise a fighter, but the nominee for House speaker may be in for a brawl.
Kevin McCarthy's ouster as House speaker could cost the GOP its best fundraiser heading into 2024
Some members of the GOP are wondering if anyone can take Kevin McCarthy's place as a fundraising dynamo and party builder.
Gaetz launches effort to bring down McCarthy, but removing the House speaker is no easy task
One of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's harshest critics is making good on his threat to try to remove the California Republican from his leadership post.
Speaker McCarthy is giving hard-right Republicans what they want. But it never seems to be enough.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy has turned to a strategy that so far has preserved his tenuous hold on House leadership, but also marked his tenure by chaos.
McCarthy makes case for House speaker, but right flank balks
With Republicans just one win away from gaining control of the House, Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy is maneuvering to lock up support to become the next House speaker.
McCarthy's push to ascend to House speaker relies on Trump
The next House speaker could very well hail from California, but if Republicans take control, that leader won't come from the part of the state represented by the current speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco.
Gaetz, Greene flaunt new paths to power, testing GOP leaders
Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz and Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are presenting top House Republicans with a test of how to handle a new breed of Trump-era, social media-savvy firebrands.
Gaetz, Greene flaunt new paths to power, testing GOP leaders
Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz and Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are presenting top House Republicans with a test of how to handle a new breed of Trump-era, social media-savvy firebrands.
House scuttles GOP attempt to boot Swalwell from intel panel
The House has rejected an attempt to boot a Democrat from the House intelligence committee. Democrats scuttled a Republican effort to remove Swalwell from the intelligence panel. Democrats scuttled the effort from House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, 218-200, after he forced a vote. After the briefing, which was also attended by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, McCarthy said he thought Swalwell should be removed. The Republican resolution comes as the once-bipartisan intelligence panel deals with the raw feelings left by the investigations into former President Donald Trumpโs ties to Russia.
Impeachment vote becomes defining moment for GOP senator
But the North Carolina Republicanโs vote to convict former President Donald Trump should not have come as a shock. AdWith Burr retiring at the end of his term in 2022, itโs a vote that could end up defining his career. Exactly a year later, as the Russia investigation was wrapping up, Burrโs time leading the committee came to an abrupt end. He sided with most Republicans in a vote to dismiss the trial, creating an expectation heโd also vote to acquit. AdSo when Burr stood up to vote for Trump's conviction, many in the chamber wondered if there would be other surprises.
Trial highlights: 'We were invited' and a quick defense
They bolstered their case with accounts from the rioters themselves, some of whom said they were acting on Trump's orders. The former president's defense team insists Trump's speech near the White House was protected under the First Amendment. And they argue he shouldn't be on trial in the Senate because he is no longer in office โ an argument Democrats reject. To underscore their point, Democrats showed videos using rioters own words. Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said he expects the defense will wrap up in less than a day.
Biden's long political evolution leads to his biggest test
Now Bidenโs central political identity faces the ultimate trial. Biden's answer follows two tracks: defending the fabric of society and institutions of government that Trumpโs tenure has stressed and calling for sweeping legislative action. The outcome will determine the reach of Bidenโs presidency and further test the lifetime politicianโs ability to evolve and meet events. Bidenโs longtime friend, California Rep. Nancy Pelosi, is the House speaker, but presides over a diminished Democratic majority and slim margin for error. โThey believe in his compassion and they believe in, quite frankly, his leadership skills.โAnzalone loosely compared Biden's appeal to Ronald Reagan's.
The Latest: No public access to Capitol grounds Jan. 20
With the Washington Monument in the background, people attend a rally in support of President Donald Trump on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. The announcement comes after thousands of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol last week as legislators were meeting to vote to certify Bidenโs electoral win. The State Department is investigating what appears to be a โprankโ after its website suggested President Donald Trumpโs term would end Monday evening. It comes days after thousands of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol to try to stop the congressional certification of Bidenโs victory. The National Park Service is shutting down public access to the Washington Monument until Jan. 24, citing threats surrounding Joe Bidenโs inauguration.
In Georgia, Biden's presidency meets early defining moment
For President-elect Joe Biden, his most defining congressional election is coming before he takes office. Both Georgia Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock must win Tuesday to split the Senate 50-50. To be sure, even a closely divided Democratic Senate wouldnโt give Biden everything he wants. While progressives say they've lowered their expectations of what's possible โ even under a Democratic Senate โ they still intend to push Biden. Besides misrepresenting Bidenโs and most Democratic senatorsโ policy preferences, that characterization ignores the reality of the Senateโs roster.
GOP leader Sen. Mitch McConnell finally acknowledges Joe Biden won election
First, the Republican leader heaped praise on Trump's โendlessโ accomplishments as he congratulated President-elect Joe Biden during a morning Senate speech. Then he pivoted, privately warning Republican senators away from disputing the Electoral College tally when Congress convenes in a joint session Jan. 6 to confirm the results. โI want to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden,โ McConnell said as he opened the Senate. They finally said aloud what many Republicans had been signaling privately โ that Biden is the winner of the presidential election, and they are essentially abandoning Trump's election attacks. Some GOP lawmakers have vowed to carry the fight to Jan. 6 when Congress votes to accept or reject the Electoral College results.
In a first, leading Republicans call Biden president-elect
He said Mondayโs Electoral College vote โwas significant.โTexas GOP Sen. John Cornyn said barring further legal challenges it appears Biden will be president. Others have said Trump's legal battles should continue toward resolution by inauguration day, Jan. 20. "Once the Electoral College has voted, most people are going to recognize Joe Biden as the president-elect." "Although I supported President Trump, the Electoral College vote today makes clear that Joe Biden is now President-Elect,โ said Sen. Many Republicans are unwilling to declare Biden the winner for the same reasons they avoided standing up to Trump during his presidency.
Trump ally McCarthy is reelected leader of House Republicans
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., talks about House Republicans and the election, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020. House Republicans are โthe most united and energizedโ he's ever seen after their โhistoric political upset." McCarthy and his team are now among the remaining leaders from the tea party era, when House Republicans last controlled Congress. In the Trump era, House Republicansโ role receded as the White House often dominated the discussion and Republicans held the majority in the Senate. The House Republicans had to seek a waiver from the District of Columbia, which has restrictions on large gatherings.
Trump ally McCarthy is reelected leader of House Republicans
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., talks about House Republicans and the election, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020. House Republicans are โthe most united and energizedโ he's ever seen after their โhistoric political upset." McCarthy and his team are now among the remaining leaders from the tea party era, when House Republicans last controlled Congress. In the Trump era, House Republicansโ role receded as the White House often dominated the discussion and Republicans held the majority in the Senate. The House Republicans had to seek a waiver from the District of Columbia, which has restrictions on large gatherings.
Dems clinch House control, but majority likely to shrink
By retaining the House, Democrats will control the chamber for four consecutive years for only the second time since 1995, when Republicans ended 40 years of Democratic dominance. As the bad news sunk in, Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., who led House Democrats' campaign committee, announced Monday she wouldn't seek another term leading that organization. Republicans have been heartened by the House results, which many believe position them for a strong run for the majority in the 2022 elections. Illustrating that, the Blue Dog Coalition of the most conservative House Democrats, whose membership has dwindled in recent years, lost at least six of its roughly two dozen members. On the Republican side, the conservative House Freedom Caucus was hoping to grow from its roughly 30 members.
2016 sequel? Trump's old attacks failing to land on Biden
WASHINGTON โ President Donald Trump stood before a crowd in a state that had once been firmly in his grasp. That moment Wednesday in Iowa, a state Trump won comfortably four years ago but is now seen as competitive, underscored a fundamental challenge facing his reelection campaign: Itโs not 2016. The presidentโs attempts to recycle attacks he used on Hillary Clinton that year have so far failed to effectively damage Democrat Joe Biden. โThe presidentโs message is clear: he has accomplished more for America in 47 months than Joe Biden has in 47 years,โ said Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh. โThis boils down to a choice between a political outsider who has shaken up Washington and a failed career politician.โThe Trump campaign believes it has a viable, if narrow path to victory.
Law and order vs. health care as Dems, GOP vie for suburbs
In the Republican-leaning California 48th Congressional District in Orange County, Republican challenger Michelle Steel has talked about taxes, while Rouda has focused on health care and prescription drug costs. The pattern is similar outside Philadelphia, where GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick accuses Democratic challenger Christina Finelo of supporting police defunding. Wagner has voted for bills that would have ended the coverage that former President Barack Obamaโs health care law guarantees people with preexisting conditions. Freitas has said he thinks government intrusion into health care doesn't help. Democrats have run health care themed ads against Republicans in numerous states including Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska and Texas.
Can Trump aide Meadows move from deal breaker to deal-maker?
Now as President Donald Trump's chief of staff, Meadows is an unorthodox pick for the White House role, trying to negotiate a coronavirus relief package on Capitol Hill. With talks stalemated, Trump has resorted to bypassing Congress, issuing the executive actions that Meadows warned would come if the White House failed to reach a deal. Meadows, with his Freedom Caucus roots, gives conservative Republicans who oppose such big spending some comfort that the White House won't yield too much to Democrats. Once Trump became the party's nominee, Meadows quickly set in motion to become a Trump confidant. In some ways, Meadows arrival at the White House can seem like he never really left Congress.
In virus talks, Pelosi holds firm while Mnuchin wants a deal
The Democratic leader has been here before, negotiating a deal with the White House to save the U.S. economy, and lessons from the Great Recession are now punctuating the coronavirus talks. Monday brought no new talks between Trump's team and negotiators on Capitol Hill as the president tries a go-it-alone strategy. Over the weekend, he launched a series of executive actions that give the appearance of a White House taking charge but may end up providing little help for ordinary Americans. Anytime they want to meet and theyre wiling to negotiate and have a new proposal were more than happy to meet, Mnuchin said later at the White House. Now, facing a far greater crisis the raging virus and economic shutdown Pelosi is standing firm.
What's keeping Washington from a virus deal, explained
Still, its not like Washington politicians to leave so much money on the table. Trump is eager for an agreement, much of the country expects one, and its not too difficult to sketch one out on paper. And Trumps team ultimately may have to make more concessions than they think since Republicans are split. Meadows has been understaffed during the talks, which can slow down the complicated horse-trading such a sweeping bill requires. Its clear that Pelosi recognizes shell have to go far lower than the $900-plus billion aid package that she built into the Democrats bill.
Congress stalls out again dealing with national trauma
(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)WASHINGTON For a moment, Congress had a chance to act on policing reform, mobilized by a national trauma and overwhelming public support. There are other high-profile examples where public support has been unable to overcome hyper-partisanship in Congress most notably on gun control. The parties have also failed to make progress in overhauling the nations fractured immigration laws, despite broad public support. Murray said in an interview that there was little attempt to do that kind of behind-the-scenes work on policing reform. The feeling that you want to accomplish something, that you want to get something done ... is a very different feeling than we saw with policing reform."
Washington Post: George W. Bush painted portrait of John Boehner
Floyd Yarmuth/CNN(CNN) - Former President George W. Bush painted a portrait of former House Speaker John Boehner as a gift for his retirement from Congress, according to The Washington Post. A spokesman for Boehner told the Post the portrait was a gift before he resigned from Congress in 2015 and that it will not be hung as an official portrait in the speaker's lobby located in the US Capitol. "When he was leaving the position of Speaker of the House, he asked President George W. Bush to paint his official portrait." The portrait adds to a collection of paintings by Bush, including portraits of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Dalai Lama and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. "Portraits of Courage," a collection of stories, 66 portraits and a four-panel mural that Bush painted to honor military veterans, was released in 2017.