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Louisiana’s Steve Scalise and Ohio’s Jim Jordan jump into race for U.S. House speaker
WASHINGTON — Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio announced Wednesday they will seek the U.S. House speaker’s gavel after Kevin McCarthy’s unprecedented ouster brought the lower chamber into uncharted territory. Eight dissident Republicans joined Democrats to unseat McCarthy Tuesday, leaving a vacuum of GOP leadership and bringing an abrupt […]
U.S. House votes to remove Kevin McCarthy as speaker
WASHINGTON — Dissident Republicans in the U.S. House voted with Democrats on Tuesday to oust Kevin McCarthy as speaker, a historic move that came just nine months after he secured the gavel following days of negotiating with the GOP’s right flank and 15 rounds of voting. It wasn’t immediately clear after the vote how the […]
Government shutdown nears: U.S. House GOP fails to pass one-month spending plan
WASHINGTON — A sweeping government shutdown appeared inevitable on Friday, with the U.S. Senate stuck in a procedural holding pattern on its bipartisan stopgap bill and divided U.S. House Republicans unable to pass their short-term spending bill. Both chambers of Congress must approve and President Joe Biden must sign government funding legislation before midnight on […]
Government shutdown won’t affect health care or most benefits for veterans, VA says
WASHINGTON — Veterans who rely on government health care and other assistance can continue to see their doctors and receive education and pension benefits despite a possible, and likely imminent, partial shutdown that will temporarily cease many federal operations. The Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday released guidance on what functions will continue and not […]
Active-duty military would work without pay in shutdown, White House warns
WASHINGTON — The White House is warning that a partial government shutdown would mean 1.3 million active-duty armed services members must keep working without receiving paychecks and hundreds of thousands of Pentagon employees would face furloughs. The Biden administration on Tuesday blasted what it’s now calling an “Extreme Republican Shutdown,” saying it would undermine national […]
Tuberville opponents plant hundreds of signs outside U.S. Capitol in protest of blockade
WASHINGTON — More than 300 signs dotted the lawn outside the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, each bearing the name of a military nominee blocked this year by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama in protest of a Pentagon abortion policy. Multiple Democratic senators delivered comments Tuesday at the sign installation organized by the progressive VoteVets […]
Hospitals plead with Congress to avert $8 billion in cuts in Medicaid funding
WASHINGTON — Health care representatives from across the United States are urging Congress to halt cuts to funding that helps hospitals care for uninsured or low-income patients who rely on Medicaid. More than 250 hospitals and health systems appealed to House and Senate leadership in a letter Thursday asking the lawmakers to avert or delay […]
Battles over spending, farm bill, Ukraine and yet more loom over a divided Congress
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House and Senate were back in D.C. on Tuesday following a long summer recess, facing an overwhelming agenda of unfinished work — funding the federal government and reauthorizing major programs set to expire at the end of the month. Congressional leaders and President Joe Biden have only a few weeks to […]
White House slams ‘baseless’ House GOP impeachment inquiry as ‘political stunt’
WASHINGTON — The White House is lambasting the House GOP’s decision to open an impeachment inquiry into unproven allegations that President Joe Biden profited from his son’s international business scheme during his time as vice president in the Obama administration. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy announced Tuesday that he directed several of the chamber’s […]
Pennsylvanian sworn in as the first woman to serve as U.S. archivist
WASHINGTON — Pennsylvania native Colleen Shogan was sworn in as the 11th archivist of the United States on Monday, marking the first time a woman has been appointed to oversee billions of the nation’s records and artifacts since the role was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts administered the […]
Tuberville blockade of military nominees roils hearing for top Air Force official
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday conducted a nomination hearing for the next U.S. Air Force chief of staff, a key appointment caught up in the more than 300 military promotions blocked by Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville in protest of the Pentagon’s abortion policy. Gen. David W. Allvin, now vice chief […]
Biden administration chooses first 10 drugs for Medicare price negotiations
WASHINGTON — Medicare can now negotiate lower prices for 10 common high-price drugs, cutting out-of-pocket costs for an estimated 9 million seniors and saving taxpayers billions, the Biden administration said Tuesday. Medicare will begin this year to negotiate with the manufacturers of popular medications used to treat blood clots, diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic […]