Washington Post: “President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he was not sure whether a proposed $1.8 billion fund for people claiming political persecution was dead, a departure from acting attorney general Todd Blanche’s more definitive assurance of the fund’s demise a day earlier.”
Sherrill Says Officials Won’t Let Her Visit Detention Center
New York Times: “Gov. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey said Wednesday that federal immigration officials were continuing to bar her from entering a detention center in Newark, raising ‘serious questions about what is happening behind its walls.'”
“Ms. Sherrill noted that she had met Tuesday evening with relatives of migrants being held at the Delaney Hall detention center, which has become a focal point of protest against President Trump’s immigration crackdown. She said that the relatives had shared ‘heartbreaking reports of unsafe, inhumane and unconstitutional conditions’ inside the 1,000-bed jail.”
House Advances New Sanctions on Russia
New York Times: “Defying Republican leaders, the House voted on Wednesday to take up a bill to impose sweeping new sanctions on Russia and provide additional aid to Ukraine, after a bloc of G.O.P. defectors joined Democrats in an effort to ratchet up pressure on Moscow more than four years into the war.”
“The bill, which still must win passage in the House, faces a difficult path to enactment, given divisions in the Senate over a sanctions package and objections from the White House. President Trump has repeatedly signaled he does not want Congress constraining his flexibility to negotiate directly with Moscow, and could veto the legislation if it reaches his desk.”
Republicans Begin to Test the Limits of Trump’s Power
New York Times: “On a tour through Asia last fall, President Trump took a moment on the world stage to celebrate a legislative victory at home: After months of iron-fisted pressure, he had compelled Republicans to pass legislation that cut taxes and slashed into the country’s social safety net.”
Said Trump: “I said, ‘Put it all into one bill, and if we get it done, we’re done for four years.’ We don’t need anything more from Congress in terms of that.”
“Ever since, Mr. Trump has been intent on testing that theory, daring lawmakers to defy him and doing his best to vanquish them from office if they do. But after a retributive romp through primary season, Mr. Trump’s style of governing — unilateral, and often impatient — has collided with restive Republicans who seem to be exacting some political vengeance of their own.”
Denmark Cabinet Sees Women Take Majority of Cabinet
Bloomberg: “Denmark’s new cabinet reached a record level of female representation, with women outnumbering men for the first time in the Nordic country.”
“Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, the first woman to win a third term in her homeland, unveiled a ministerial lineup of 11 women and 10 men, bringing female representation to 52%.”
The $9 Billion Liability Across From the Capitol
Politico: “There’s a 2.4-million-square-foot ticking time bomb on Capitol Hill, and lawmakers are dithering over how to deal with it as anxieties rise over the massive costs and disruptions involved.”
“The Rayburn House Office Building has never undergone a full renovation since it opened in 1965, and as plans for a massive revamp of Congress’s largest office complex keep getting pushed off, key systems are routinely failing and expensive piecemeal repairs are weighing on the legislative branch budget.”
Sheinbaum Accuses U.S. of Meddling in Mexican Affairs
Los Angeles Times: “Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday again accused the U.S. of meddling in Mexico’s internal affairs after The Times published a report about two Mexican governors from her party who have had their U.S. visas revoked amid criminal probes into their possible links to organized crime.”
Trump Plans to Make Blanche ‘Permanent Attorney General’
President Donald Trump announced that he planned to soon make Todd Blanche “permanent attorney general” months after he assumed that post in an acting capacity, according to a video posted by a White House aide on Wednesday night, Bloomberg reports.
Fight to Kill ‘Anti-Weaponization’ Fund Risks GOP Blowup
Wall Street Journal: “GOP senators headed toward an intraparty showdown over the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion ‘anti-weaponization’ fund, as some Republicans sought guarantees in law that it was truly dead.”
“The fight over the fund has held up an immigration-enforcement bill that has been a GOP priority for months. The Senate voted 53 to 46 Wednesday on a procedural motion to advance the $70 billion immigration measure, but GOP lawmakers signaled they hadn’t resolved disagreements over the ‘anti-weaponization’ fund and the Justice Department’s decision to end tax audits of President Trump and his businesses.”
GOP-Led House Votes to Limit Trump’s Iran War Powers
“The GOP-led House voted to restrict President Trump’s ability to continue the war against Iran without congressional approval, a rebuke to the White House and the latest sign that Republican lawmakers’ support for the war is eroding on Capitol Hill,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The measure passed 215-208, with four Republicans joining Democrats in support.”
Trump Won’t Resume War Unless U.S. Troops Are Killed
“President Trump has told aides privately that he would consider ending the ceasefire with Iran if Tehran kills American troops, U.S. officials said, insisting that the weekslong pause in airstrikes remains intact despite a steady stream of violent skirmishes,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The president’s reluctance to reignite the war suggests he might be willing to withstand smaller flare-ups for weeks—or even months—to avoid a broader conflict in the Middle East.”
Top Iowa Races Move Towards the Democrats
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “In Iowa, Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-IA), who got a late endorsement from Donald Trump, lost a gubernatorial primary to Zach Lahn, an anti-establishment newcomer.”
“Regardless of who the GOP picked to run against state Auditor Rob Sand, the Democratic nominee for governor, we have been considering moving the race to Toss-up—and we are making that change today.”
“We are also bumping both Iowa’s Senate race and the contest for the state’s 2nd District from Likely Republican to Leans Republican.”
Trump’s Arch Is Atrocious
Sebastian Smee: “If President Trump’s ambition is realized, a triumphal arch will thrust its way into this murmuring conversation like a boastful bore crashing into a huddle of friends swapping stories about a loved one at a wake.”
“Heavy-handed and overbearing, it would pervert the significance of this uniquely meaningful place, forcing visitors to see these two sites through a crass and generalized assertion of victory and triumph.”
Donald Trump’s Superficiality Is Bone Deep
Jonathan Chait: “Of all the reasons for Trump to hesitate to crown Vance as the Republican presidential nominee in 2028, he has fixated not on Vance’s inflammatory comments about single women or on the difficulty vice presidents have detaching themselves from their administration’s unpopular record, but instead on the one time that Vance briefly mishandled a football trophy.”
“This is an extraordinarily shallow method for picking your party’s standard-bearer. It isn’t a surprise, however, because Trump is almost certainly the shallowest man ever to inhabit his office. Superficiality is a value system that has guided some of his administration’s most important decisions as it has drifted from menace into frivolity and decadence.”
Mike Johnson Knows What Happened to Tom Kean
New York Post: “Speaker Mike Johnson teased that he knows what is going on with mysteriously missing Rep. Tom Kean Jr., but will leave it to the congressman to divulge it.”
Said Johnson: “I do know what his health issue is, but he’s asked me not to disclose that, and I’m going to honor that.”
Quote of the Day
“They have no navy, they have no air force, they have no air defenses. Their leadership is fractured. They have hyperinflation, their currency is worthless, and they’re having trouble making payroll… I guess other than that, they’re doing well.”
— Secretary of State Marco Rubio, quoted by the New York Post, on Iran.
Senators Privately Ask Platner About Any New Allegations
“In a private meeting Tuesday with some Senate Democrats, Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner attempted to quell growing concerns from some in the party that a string of negative revelations about his life had jeopardized his candidacy,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Sen. Bernie Sanders asked Platner if any additional allegations would emerge against the embattled Democratic candidate… Platner said there weren’t any.”
“Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who also attended the meeting, followed up and said there is a big difference between marital issues and allegations of sexual assault… Platner agreed and denied any credible allegations of assault were forthcoming.”
Explained Platner: “It’s not a secret I’ve had a messy, complicated life. The worst of the rumors we’ve all heard are not true.”
The House GOP Majority Dwindles
Politico: “Tuesday was supposed to be a voting day in the House, with members flying back to Washington to begin their workweek by passing a slate of bipartisan bills.”
“Instead the floor was largely deserted after Republican leaders pushed back the chamber’s first votes — further adding to a gaping divide between the House and Senate in how often lawmakers on each side of the Capitol are carrying out their most basic legislative duties.”
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 8745
- Next Page »
