“Three B-52 bombers took off from Barksdale AFB in Louisiana on Wednesday and flew for hours near the coast of Venezuela, according to flight tracking data, in what appears to be a major show of force by President Donald Trump,” ABC News reports.
Senate Democrats Tank Military Funding Bill
“Senate Democrats on Thursday turned an annual Pentagon funding bill into the collateral damage of a fierce shutdown battle, blocking the legislation as they pressed for an agreement that includes their domestic priorities,” Politico reports.
“The defense funding bill — including a military pay raise — fell far short of the 60 votes needed to advance. All but three Democrats opposed the move by Republicans to open debate on the bill. It failed in a 50-44 vote, as many Democrats argued the Senate should instead focus on a deal to end the shutdown.”
Doubts Rise Over GOP’s Mamdani Strategy
Time: “While Democrats in races across the country are bracing for Mamdani to come up in opponents’ attack ads and fundraising ploys, it’s unclear how much of it will resonate outside of the Big Apple. Conversations with players in both parties reveal that Republicans’ drive to lash Mamdani’s brand of politics to Democratic contenders thus far has been a mixed bag.”
“Some Republicans quietly concede that Mamdani is tough to cast as the architect of Democrats’ national strategy. The sharp 33-year-old state legislator may be in the center of the media universe, but no one looks at New York Mayors as the deciding force inside the Democratic Party…”
“Another rub: even New Yorkers don’t know who Mamdani is, let alone most voters beyond the boroughs. In a Quinnipiac poll released last week, 19% of likely New York City voters said they hadn’t heard enough about him to even have an opinion of him. Nationally, he’s even less known.”
The White House Is Convinced It’s Winning the Shutdown
“The White House’s political operation is telling congressional Republicans to hold firm on the government shutdown, citing internal and external polling that show Democrats’ numbers are eroding,” Axios reports.
“Since the shutdown started Oct. 1, Democrats have boasted that public opinion is on their side. But the trend line appears to be shifting, according to internal White House polling data.”
Said one White House aide: “Democrats are taking on water. And we have a higher pain tolerance.”
Wes Moore Leads In Possible Race with Larry Hogan
A new Baltimore Banner poll in Maryland finds Gov. Wes Moore (D) leading in a possible match up with former Gov. Larry Hogan (R), 45% to 37% with another 14% undecided.
Hogan, who served two terms as governor, has dropped social media hints suggesting that he is weighing another campaign.
Voters Blame Everyone for the Shutdown
A new AP-NORC poll shows fairly similar proportions of Americans placing significant onus for the shutdown on Donald Trump at 58%, congressional Republicans at 58% and congressional Democrats at 54%.
Gaza Peace Deal Already Unraveling?
President Trump on Truth Social: “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them.”
Trump to Meet Putin in Hungary
“President Donald Trump said Thursday that he’ll meet with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Hungary to try to resolve the war in Ukraine, but a date has yet to be determined,” the AP reports.
No Movement on the Shutdown
“The top four congressional leaders spent Thursday trading accusations about the existence — or lack thereof — of a formal offer to end the government shutdown, now in its 16th day,” Punchbowl News reports.
“The high-level back-and-forth shows that each side — facing growing pressure to do something as the shutdown grinds on — is still more intent on blaming the opposition for the stalemate than finding a solution.”
One interesting takeaway: “Republicans are bending over backwards to speak to Democratic audiences and present themselves as the reasonable party in the standoff.”
Playbook: “And though there are some glimmers of movement around the edges, both parties continue to look pretty dug in — so the shutdown will likely stretch to at least three full weeks when the Senate reconvenes early next week.”
Trump to Announce Proposal to Make IVF More Accessible
“President Trump plans to announce a policy proposal on Thursday to make in vitro fertilization more accessible, the first concrete step from the White House on an issue that Mr. Trump repeatedly promised to address on the campaign trail,” the New York Times reports.
White House Keeps GOP Lawmakers In the Dark
“As the government shutdown drags on, many congressional Republicans are in the dark about the Trump administration’s decisions over which federal workers are being laid off and which federal contracts are being cancelled,” CNN reports.
“Multiple GOP lawmakers told CNN they are only finding out about the decisions – which have far-reaching consequences for the constituents they represent – after they’ve been made public.”
Mike Johnson Backs Off Pledge to Debate Hakeem Jeffries
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) walked back his agreement to debate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) on C-SPAN’s “Ceasefire” program, The Hill reports.
Said Johnson: “I’ll debate Hakeem Jeffries anywhere, anytime — as soon as we get the government open.”
Trump Boxes In Democrats Again
Join now to continue reading.
Members get exclusive analysis, bonus features and no advertising. Learn more.
Trump Is Calling the Shots at the Justice Department
President Trump attacked former President Biden and former Special Counsel Jack Smith in an Oval Office screed.
Said Trump: “I think it was the worst weaponization of a political opponent in the history of the world… Deranged Jack Smith in my opinion is a criminal. I hope they’re gonna look into Weissmann too… Lisa Monaco should be looked at very strongly.”
The New York Times notes the reaction of top Justice Department officials: “They smiled, nodded and shuffled in place as he spoke.”
GOP Lawmaker Got ‘JFK Assassination Report’ from Russia
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) said that she’d been handed a copy of an unreleased government report on the John F. Kennedy assassination — but from the Russian government, The Independent reports.
Said Luna: “I have received a hard copy of the report on JFK’s assassination from the Ambassador of Russia. A team of experts is enroute [sic] to my office in the morning to begin translation and full review of documents.”
She added: “We will be uploading as soon as we can.”
Dean Blundell: “Luna just did something that would have ended careers a decade ago: she publicly solicited documents from the Kremlin, received them from Russia’s ambassador, thanked Moscow on Twitter, and promised to publish whatever they handed her.”
“This should sound familiar. It’s exactly what happened in 2019 when Lev Parnas and Rudy Giuliani pushed Russian disinformation through congressional Republicans to attack Joe Biden. The difference now is they’re doing it openly.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“We call it the Hate America Rally that will happen Saturday. Let’s see who shows up for that. I bet you you’ll see Hamas supporters, I bet you’ll see antifa types. I bet you’ll see Marxists on full display, people who don’t want to stand and defend the foundational truths of this republic.”
— Speaker Mike Johnson, quoted by Mediaite, on the “No Kings” rallies planned for this weekend.
No One in Young GOP Racist Group Chat Was a ‘Kid’
Mother Jones: “The oldest appears to be Joe Maligno, who public records suggest is 35. In the chat, he spoke about gas chambers and used a racial slur toward Chinese people. Maligno previously identified himself as general counsel for the New York State Young Republicans.”
“Maligno did not respond to requests for comment from Politico. According to a Wednesday follow-up report from the outlet, he lost his job as an employee of the New York State Unified Court System.”
Pentagon Reporters Walk Out En Masse
Associated Press: “News outlets were nearly unanimous in rejecting new rules imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that would leave journalists vulnerable to expulsion if they sought to report on information — classified or otherwise — that had not been approved by Hegseth for release.”
“Many of the reporters waited to leave together at a 4 p.m. deadline set by the Defense Department to get out of the building. As the hour approached, boxes of documents lined a Pentagon corridor and reporters carried chairs, a copying machine, books and old photos to the parking lot from suddenly abandoned workspaces. Shortly after 4, about 40 to 50 journalists left together after handing in badges.”
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 14
- 15
- 16
- 17
- 18
- …
- 8234
- Next Page »
