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      Democratic chair of Senate intelligence panel seeks briefing on Biden documents – as it happened

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      Mark Warner, the Democratic chair of the Senate intelligence committee, has requested a briefing on the classified documents found at Joe Biden’s former office, as well as the government secrets the FBI discovered last year at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.“Our system of classification exists in order to protect our most important national security secrets, and we expect to be briefed on what happened both at Mar-a-Lago and at the Biden office as part of our constitutional oversight obligations,” Warner said in a statement. “From what we know so far, the latter is about finding documents with markings, and turning them over, which is certainly different from a months-long effort to retain material actively being sought by the government. But again, that’s why we need to be briefed.”House Republicans geared up to launch investigations and tried to make the most of reports that classified documents dating to his time as vice-president were found in an office used by Joe Biden. But unlike with the government secrets the FBI found at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, it didn’t take a search warrant for Biden to turn over the material – he had it done so immediately, which Democrats are citing to defend the president.Here’s what else went on today:
      The Democratic Senate intelligence chair requested a briefing on both Biden’s classified documents, and the government secrets found at Mar-a-Lago.
      House Democrat Katie Porter announced a run for the California Senate seat up for election in 2024, but its current occupant, Dianne Feinstein, gave no indication she’d be stepping down. Meanwhile, Porter’s recently defeated Republican opponent announced plans to run for her seat again.
      The House GOP made clear it wants spending cuts in exchange for raising the debt ceiling, which will be necessary later this year.
      George Santos may be an admitted fabulist, but a top House Republican had little to say about whether the party would discipline him for his lies. Also today, two Democrats hand-delivered an ethics complaint to his office.
      A Texas House Republican filed impeachment articles against homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. It remains to be seen if the chamber’s leadership will go through with trying to remove him over his handling of the southern border.
      Katie Porter only narrowly won re-election to her southern California House district last year, and after she today announced plans to run for Senate in 2024, her former opponent declared a new campaign to take her seat.Republican Scott Baugh, who lost with 48.4% of the vote to Democrat Porter’s 51.6% in the 2022 election, said he would run again next year:Voters are rightfully upset with the dysfunction in Washington and deserve better. I am ready to go to work to restore thoughtful, conservative representation to our part of Orange County. That’s why I’m running for #CA47 in 2024.— Scott Baugh (@ScottBaughCA47) January 10, 2023
      Porter represents California’s 47th district centered on Orange county, a former Republican stronghold that has become more liberal in recent elections. The Cook Political Report’s partisan voting index rates it D+3, indicating a slight tilt towards the Democrats.The Trump Organization’s former finance chief has been sentenced to five months in prison after pleading guilty to tax crimes and cooperating with prosecutors in their successful case against Donald Trump’s business:After testimony that helped convict Donald Trump’s company of tax fraud, its longtime senior executive Allen Weisselberg has been given five months in jail for accepting $1.7m in job perks without paying tax.Weisselberg, 75, was promised that sentence in August when he agreed to plead guilty to 15 tax crimes and testify against the Trump Organization, where he has worked since the mid-1980s and, until his arrest, had served as chief financial officer.He was handcuffed and taken into custody moments after the sentence was announced.Weisselberg will likely be locked up at Rikers Island in New York and eligible for release after slightly more than three months.As part of the plea agreement, Judge Juan Manuel Merchan also ordered Weisselberg to pay nearly $2m in taxes, penalties and interest, which he has paid as of 3 January. The judge also sentenced Weisselberg to five years of probation after his release.Allen Weisselberg: ex-Trump finance chief given five months for tax fraudRead morePart of the reason last week’s speakership fight was so high-profile was because it was exceptionally well covered, and much of that was thanks to C-Span.The non-profit organization funded by cable companies is dedicated to broadcasting government affairs, including Congress’s activities. Usually, what it’s allowed to put onscreen is restricted, but as the Washington Post reported last week, it had special permission to roam across the chamber during the standoff for speaker, allowing the public to see the haggling, boredom and emotion that took place on the House floor as Kevin McCarthy lost vote after vote, until finally triumphing on the 15th ballot.Matt Gaetz, a conservative Republican who was one of the ringleaders of the group that delayed McCarthy’s election, was apparently a fan of C-Span’s work. CNN reports that he has filed an amendment to the House rules package to allow C-Span to continue broadcasting freely in the chamber:.⁦@RepMattGaetz⁩ amendment to the House Rules package would allow CSPAN cameras to film the House floor at all times — as we saw last week pic.twitter.com/EVC7tmdP2o— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) January 10, 2023
      Now that the dust has settled, it’s worth asking whether last week’s protracted House speaker election a good or bad thing for Republicans.The days-long, 15-ballot process that resulted in Kevin McCarthy’s victory early Saturday morning was indeed unprecedented – the last time a speakership election took so long was before the Civil War. And many in the GOP felt like the conservative holdouts who delayed McCarthy’s election for days did more harm to the party’s standing than good. Politico reports that Republican donor Thomas Peterffy sent text messages to some of the holdouts, threatening to cut them off if they didn’t make a deal:At least two Republicans among McCarthy’s 20 holdouts got direct threats from GOP donor Thomas Peterffy last week, per GOP sources I spoke with.Here is a screenshot shared with me… pic.twitter.com/H3pOPT888W— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) January 10, 2023
      That said, a CBS News/YouGov poll released before McCarthy’s election indicates many Republicans may have felt the battle was worth fighting. The data found 64% approved of the way the speakership election was handled, while 36% disapproved.The hallway outside George Santos’s office is the scene of an entrenched stakeout by reporters, as Insider found out when they went down there:made a pilgrimage to the Santos Stakeout pic.twitter.com/HYfF6kzmf3— bryan metzger (@metzgov) January 10, 2023
      Needless to say, most lawmakers do not get this kind of attention.George Santos just can’t catch a break. But perhaps that’s to be expected for someone who brazenly lied in their campaign for Congress.The New York Republican has been hounded by reporters in the halls of Congress ever since he first arrived in the Capitol last Tuesday, and has had a complaint filed against him at the Federal Election Commission. Today, two Democratic congressman made a big show of giving him another complaint, this one being filed with the House ethic committee:.@RepDanGoldman and @RepRitchie filed a complaint with the House Ethics Committee about @Santos4Congress, and then hand delivered it to his office. Santos was in his office when this happened, in the back by the windows. pic.twitter.com/r3264Ht0XS— Kyle Stewart (@KyleAlexStewart) January 10, 2023
      Meanwhile Pete Aguilar, the Democratic caucus chair in the House, said Republican speaker Kevin McCarthy is only allowing Santos to stick around because he’s worried about losing his majority:”Kevin McCarthy owns George Santos.”— House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar says “the only reason” Rep. George Santos (R-NY) was sworn into Congress was because McCarthy needs his vote pic.twitter.com/Y9T0uTkg7l— The Recount (@therecount) January 10, 2023
      Mark Warner, the Democratic chair of the Senate intelligence committee, has requested a briefing on the classified documents found at Joe Biden’s former office, as well as the government secrets the FBI discovered last year at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.“Our system of classification exists in order to protect our most important national security secrets, and we expect to be briefed on what happened both at Mar-a-Lago and at the Biden office as part of our constitutional oversight obligations,” Warner said in a statement. “From what we know so far, the latter is about finding documents with markings, and turning them over, which is certainly different from a months-long effort to retain material actively being sought by the government. But again, that’s why we need to be briefed.”In a new interview, Mike Pence commented on classified files being found in a private office used by Biden.Speaking with radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt, Pence called the discovery of classified files from Biden’s tenure as vice president versus the search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property a “double standard”.“It’s just incredibly frustrating to me,” said Pence during his interview today.“But the original sin here was the massive overreach.”Read the full article from the Hill here.Republican representative Pat Fallon of Texas has filed articles of impeachment against Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.Fallon announced the filing in a Twitter post, linking to a Fox News article.I have officially filed Articles of Impeachment on Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.👇👇👇https://t.co/I4EBmCB5pI— Rep. Pat Fallon (@RepPatFallon) January 10, 2023
      Here is more context behind Fallon’s filing, from the Hill:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas) filed the paperwork for the resolution on Jan. 3, the first day of the 118th Congress, though with delays in securing a House Speaker, the document was officially filed late Monday.
      The resolution claims Mayorkas “engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his duties,” complaining that he has failed to maintain operational control over the border.
      The resolution comes amid a busy week in the Biden administration. President Biden visited the border over the weekend for the first time since taking office, pledging to deliver more resources to the officers who patrol the region.
      And Mayorkas is in Mexico this week, meeting with officials there on a variety of issues, including the shared migration agreement rolled out by the Biden administration last week.Read the full article here.Senate tunnels were briefly closed following a mix-up where a small group breached a locked door on the Senate side of US Capitol complex.According to the United States Capitol police, the group was accompanied by a staffer and were screened following the confusion.Police also noted that the incident was not a threat, but the group using the wrong doors.From Politico reporter K Tully-McManus:Senate tunnels were briefly closed this afternoon after a small group breached a door on the Senate side of the Capitol complex.Tunnels are back open. They were closed for a VERY short time (*just* long enough to disrupt some folks lunch plans.)— K Tully-McManus (@ktullymcmanus) January 10, 2023
      The White House provided more details into a meeting that Biden had with Canada prime minister Justin Trudeau.According to a read out, the two world leaders discussed several global issues including the war in Ukraine, Haiti, and Brazil.Biden also told Trudeau that he looks forward to an upcoming visit to Canada in March.From CBS News corespondent Ed O’Keefe:INBOX: The White House readout of @POTUS Biden’s meeting with @JustinTrudeau says they discussed the situations in Ukraine, Haiti and Brazil and among other things the president, “also stated he looks forward to traveling to Canada in March of this year.”— Ed O’Keefe (@edokeefe) January 10, 2023
      House Republicans are gearing up to launch investigations and trying to make the most of reports that classified documents dating to his time as vice-president were found in an office used by Joe Biden. But unlike with the government secrets the FBI found at Mar-a-Lago, it didn’t take a search warrant for Biden to turn over the material – he ordered it done so immediately, which Democrats are citing to defend the president.Here’s what else is going on today:
      Democratic House lawmaker Katie Porter announced a run for California’s Senate seat up for election in 2024, but its current occupant, Dianne Feinstein, gave no indication she’d be stepping down.
      The House GOP made clear it wants spending cuts in exchange for raising the debt ceiling, which will be necessary later this year.
      George Santos may be an admitted fabulist, but a top House Republican had little to say about whether the party would discipline him for his lies.
      Joe Biden is traveling in Mexico, where he just concluded a meeting with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau.He did not answer questions shouted by members of the White House press corps in attendance, including one about the classified documents.CNN reports that an attorney for Joe Biden found 10 documents related to Iran, Ukraine and the United Kingdom in a personal office, dating from his time as vice-president.The attorney clearing out an office Biden once used in Washington DC found briefing materials and intelligence memos from 2013 through 2016, when Biden served under Barack Obama, according to CNN, which cited a source familiar with the matter. The documents were mixed in with family materials, some of which related to the funeral of his son Beau Biden, who died in 2015.Upon realizing the papers were classified, the attorney immediately contacted the National Archives and Records Administration. Biden’s team eventually turned over several boxes “in an abundance of caution, even though many of the boxes contained personal materials, the source said,” according to CNN’s report.California senator Dianne Feinstein is unfazed by Katie Porter’s announcement that she’d run for her Senate seat in 2024.The 89-year-old is the oldest sitting senator, and has in recent months been the subject of reports questioning her fitness to serve. Feinstein was blase when the San Francisco Chronicle asked for her thoughts on the challenge from the 49-year-old Porter:NEW: Feinstein tells @sfchronicle “Everyone is of course welcome to throw their hat in the ring … Right now I’m focused on ensuring California has all the resources it needs to cope with the devastating storms slamming the state.” https://t.co/tgTkfLPFxo— Sara Libby (@SaraLibby) January 10, 2023 More

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      Progressive Katie Porter launches bid for Dianne Feinstein’s US Senate seat

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      Progressive Katie Porter launches bid for Dianne Feinstein’s US Senate seatDemocratic congresswoman announces candidacy for seat held by Feinstein, 89, who has not yet said if she will retire Democratic representative Katie Porter, the progressive former law professor known for her sharp questioning of witnesses and her use of a whiteboard during hearings, said she will seek the California Senate seat currently held by Dianne Feinstein.Feinstein, a fellow Democrat, is the oldest member of the chamber, and has not yet said if she will retire.“Especially in times like these, California needs a warrior in Washington,” Porter said in a video posted on Twitter. “That’s exactly why I’m announcing my candidacy for the United States Senate in 2024.”Porter was first elected to Congress in 2018 and won a tight race for re-election to her newly redrawn southern California district in November. She said in the video that she had “challenged the status quo” in Washington, taking on “big banks,” Wall Street and the pharmaceutical industry. She wants to ban members of Congress from stock trading.“To win these fights, it’s time for new leadership in the US Senate,” she said.California needs a warrior in the Senate—to stand up to special interests, fight the dangerous imbalance in our economy, and hold so-called leaders like Mitch McConnell accountable for rigging our democracy.Today, I’m proud to announce my candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2024. pic.twitter.com/X1CSE8T12B— Katie Porter (@katieporteroc) January 10, 2023
      Feinstein, 89, has faced questions about her age and memory and whether she will seek another term. She has not announced whether she will seek re-election in 2024, though she is widely expected to retire.“Everyone is, of course, welcome to throw their hat in the ring, and I will make an announcement concerning my plans for 2024 at the appropriate time,” Feinstein said in a statement on Tuesday. She added that she is currently “focused on ensuring California has all the resources it needs” to deal with deadly storms hitting the state.Feinstein won her sixth election in 2018 and has been a force for Democrats, serving for a time as chair of the intelligence and judiciary committees. But she also has seen pushback from Democrats who view her as too bipartisan at a time when politics is more polarized and her state is increasingly liberal.In 2020, Feinstein announced she would step down as the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee. The move followed criticism that she was too friendly with Republicans during supreme court confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett. That included an embrace of the Republican chairman, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, at the conclusion of the hearings and kind words for what she called a job well done.Feinstein has defended her performance and said in 2021 that she planned to serve her full term, even as there was open speculation and discussion about the future of the seat. Governor Gavin Newson said in 2021 that he would appoint a Black woman to replace Feinstein, who is white, if she were to retire early.Porter, 49, was a consumer protection attorney before her election to the House, and she has earned a reputation for her tough questioning of chief executives and other witnesses at congressional hearings – often using a whiteboard to break down information.Porter’s media savvy was again on display during the recent meltdown in the US House over the election of a new speaker. As Republicans argued, Porter was seen sitting in the chamber, disinterestedly, reading a book on “the subtle art” of not caring about what’s happening.TopicsDemocratsCaliforniaHouse of RepresentativesUS CongressUS SenateUS politicsnewsReuse this content More

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      Trump call to ‘play tough’ on debt ceiling stokes fears of chaotic Congress

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      Trump call to ‘play tough’ on debt ceiling stokes fears of chaotic CongressNew House rules package sets up showdown on federal debt limit with Republicans expected to push for deep spending cuts Following the passage of a new House rules package on Monday and with Donald Trump urging House Republicans to “play tough” on raising the federal debt limit, Democrats are warning of a chaotic 118th Congress that could see the government cease to function normally.The rules package passed the House under the Republican party’s slim majority by a 220-213 vote. A single Republican, Representative Tony Gonzales of Texas, voted against the package, as did all Democrats.Republicans could cause US to default on its debt, top Democrat warnsRead moreThe new rules contain a slew of concessions to the far right of the Republican party, including a measure to force a vote on confidence in the speaker by a single representative, and gutting the office of congressional ethics, the body that carries out bipartisan inquiries into allegations of misconduct by members of Congress.“Kevin McCarthy hasn’t held the speaker’s gavel for a whole week, and already he’s handed over the keys to Maga extremists and special interests for the next two years,” said the House Democratic whip, Katherine Clark, in a statement on Monday.The rules package also sets up a showdown over the federal debt limit. It removes the so-called Gephardt rule, which allowed the House to circumvent a vote on lifting the debt ceiling, which had remained in place while Democrats controlled the House.Republicans have made clear that they plan to leverage consideration of further debt increases in order to secure significant government spending cuts – potentially including to social security and Medicare. The move opens the possibility of a government shutdown similar to the one in 2013, or even a federal debt default. Both would have severe consequences for the US and global economy.On Monday, Trump, whose influence over the party was shaken somewhat by poor midterm election results for his endorsed candidates but who remains the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican nomination for president, called on House Republicans to leverage power “by simply playing tough in the upcoming debt ceiling negotiations”.Posting on the social media network he set up, Truth Social, Trump pressed all wings of the Republican party, including those rebels who initially voted against McCarthy, to join the negotiations: “It will be a beautiful and joyous thing for the people of our country to watch.”On Tuesday, senior House Republicans were already offering warning signs of disruptive negotiations ahead. The majority leader, Steve Scalise, was asked by reporters if he could guarantee US would avoid a debt limit breach. He argued of the need for “living within our means” by suggesting the US was “about to max out the credit card”.Forecasters predict that the current debt ceiling of almost $31.4tn will need to be raised some time around August this year.But the chaos last week, which saw 15 floor votes before McCarthy won the speakership, underlined the bitter divisions within the House Republican party and empowered a smaller group of ultra-conservative lawmakers belonging to the Freedom Caucus. The result means that negotiations on the debt ceiling are likely to be extremely fraught, as the speaker will need to continue to appease the extreme Republican fringe that demands deep spending cuts.The situation is likely to bear the hallmarks of the 2011 debt ceiling crisis, in which the Republican-controlled House demanded spending cuts from the Obama administration, resulting in market volatility and the downgrading of the US government’s credit rating for the first time in history.TopicsHouse of RepresentativesKevin McCarthyUS politicsRepublicansDemocratsUS CongressnewsReuse this content More

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      Kevin McCarthy faces rocky first day as House speaker – live

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      The House will convene at 5 pm eastern time to vote on a rules package, typically a customary but crucial step for operating the chamber, but which today will serve as yet another barometer of how dysfunctional the new Republican majority will be over the coming two years.The package governs how the House will conduct its business, and would cement many of the procedural giveaways Kevin McCarthy made to win the support of rightwing insurgents who blocked his election for days last week. However, those concessions could spark a revolt among moderates and others unhappy with the deal the speaker made, again raising the possibility of another bout of standoff and legislative paralysis.Much of the debate centers on how the House will handle the massive spending bills Congress must periodically pass to keep the government running. The New York Times has a good rundown of the roots of this intraparty dispute:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}The new House Republican majority is proposing to make institutional changes of its own as part of a rules package Speaker Kevin McCarthy negotiated with hard-right rebels in exchange for their support for his job. The handful of Republicans who are forcing the changes, which are scheduled to be considered on Monday, pointed to the rushed approval in December of a roughly $1.7 trillion spending bill to fund the entire government as an example of back-room legislating at its worst.
      “What this rules package is designed to do is to stop what we saw happen literally 15 days ago, where the Democrats passed a $1.7 trillion monstrosity of a bill that spent the American taxpayers’ money in all kinds of crazy ways,” Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio, said Sunday on Fox News. He said Republicans would require 72 hours to allow lawmakers to pore over any bill.
      Part of the fight over the speakership was about the way Congress works, in particular the unwieldy “omnibus” spending bills that appear to materialize out of nowhere and with only minutes to spare.
      But restoring any semblance of order and structure to the consideration of spending bills and other measures will prove to be extremely difficult with conservative Republicans in charge of the House and Democrats controlling the Senate and the White House. The new dynamic is more likely a prescription for shutdown and gridlock. The roots of dysfunction run deep.Congressman Jason Smith, a Republican from Missouri who objected to the certification of the results of the 2020 election, has won the chairmanship of the House ways and means committee.In a statement about his win, Smith pledged as chair to support the Republican plan to slash funding to the IRS or Internal Revenue Service – billions were allocated to the agency last year to go after tax cheats.“Our first step is defunding the $80bn pay increase Democrats gave the IRS to hire 87,000 new agents to target working families. But we are not stopping there,” Smith said in a statement.Doing so would reduce revenues by almost $186bn over 10 years and add more than $114bn to the deficit, according to an evaluation from the Congressional Budget Office.Rep. Jason Smith’s stmt on winning Ways and Means gavel: “It is deeply humbling and an honor to be selected by my colleagues to serve as the next Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.” pic.twitter.com/lpciH9TkbZ— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) January 9, 2023
      Nancy Mace, one of the moderate Republicans who had voiced hesitation over the rules package, will vote for it, NBC News reports:MACE will be a YES tonight on rules package but she wanted to make people aware of the flaws in the process W @KyleAlexStewart— Haley Talbot (@haleytalbotnbc) January 9, 2023
      In a Sunday interview with CBS News, Mace objected to the way the package had been negotiated:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}I like the rules package. It is the most open, fair and fiscally conservative package we’ve had in 30 years. I support it, but what I don’t support is a small number of people trying to get a deal done or deals done for themselves in private, in secret, to get a vote or vote present. I don’t support that … And so I am on the fence right now about the rules package vote tomorrow for that reason.Another aspect of the deal Kevin McCarthy cut with conservative Republicans that made him House speaker was a pledge to allow a single lawmaker to call for a vote to oust him from office.Under the previous Democratic speaker Nancy Pelosi, a motion to vacate could only be made if a majority of a party agreed to it. While lowering the threshold got McCarthy the votes he needed to win the chamber’s leadership, it also raised fears that any lawmaker who disagrees with his policies and tactics would create a crisis by seeking to remove him.CNN surveyed two Republican representatives today about how they think the rule will be used. Here’s what they had to say:Rep. David Joyce on one member being able to force a vote to oust speaker: “So it concerns Kevin more than it concerns me.” Says it should only be used in extreme circumstances and not as a recourse on “everyday policies.”But does the GOP agree on that?”Probably not” pic.twitter.com/gXL7sp7kxM— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 9, 2023
      The House GOP may eventually win cuts to government spending, but first they’re going to try to pass a bill that will add more than $114bn to the budget deficit.The Congressional Budget Office has released its evaluation of the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, which would strip the Internal Revenue Service of $71bn in funding that was allocated last year in order to crack down on tax cheats. If the funding were withdrawn, revenues would decrease by almost $186bn in the 10 years from 2023, adding to the deficit by more than $114bn.The proposal is up for a vote today, assuming the House Republicans pass their proposed rules package.It took four days and 15 ballots for Republicans to resolve their differences and elect Kevin McCarthy speaker of the House. But he can’t get much done unless the chamber agrees on its rules, and with some GOP lawmakers pledging to oppose the package up for a vote this afternoon, pressure groups have stepped in to make clear there will be consequences if it turns into a standoff.Hours before McCarthy formally was elected, Texas’s Tony Gonzales said he would oppose the rules package, reportedly over McCarthy’s willingness to cut spending to the defense department:I am a NO on the house rules package. Welcome to the 118th Congress.— Tony Gonzales (@TonyGonzales4TX) January 7, 2023
      That’s prompted conservative group FreedomWorks to make this threat:If Tony’s a ‘NO’ on the House Rules Package he should not be welcomed into the 119th Congress. #ampFW #HouseofRepresentatives https://t.co/X2tGxa3FqO— FreedomWorks (@FreedomWorks) January 9, 2023
      As with the speaker vote, the package will need 218 votes to pass, and all 212 Democrats are likely to oppose it. That means the GOP can only lose six votes – and they’re already down one.The White House has accused Republicans of wanting to “defund the military” as the new House majority makes clear that across-the-board spending cuts will be a major part of their agenda in the upcoming Congress.Here’s what White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates is telling the media, according to USA Today:The White House slams possible defense cuts that Republicans’ speaker deal could produce. “This push to defund our military in the name of politics is senseless and out of line with our national security needs,” @AndrewJBates46 says. “There is bipartisan opposition ..”— Joey Garrison (@joeygarrison) January 9, 2023
      It’s almost certain that Republicans will use the House’s powers of investigation to go after Hunter Biden, in a bid to cast his father’s presidency as corrupt. And while there are indeed unanswered questions Hunter Biden’s foreign business entanglements, the Guardian’s David Smith reports that the strategy is not without risks for the GOP:When Borat – alias British actor Sacha Baron Cohen – told risque jokes about Donald Trump and antisemitism at last month’s Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, Joe Biden was not the only one laughing in a red velvet-lined balcony.Sitting behind the US president was Hunter Biden wearing black tie and broad smile that mirrored those of his father.The image captured the intimacy between the men but also the sometimes awkward status of Hunter as both private citizen and privileged son of a president. It is a dichotomy likely to come under a harsh public glare this year as congressional Republicans set about making Hunter a household name and staple of the news cycle.‘It’s going to be dirty’: Republicans gear up for attack on Hunter BidenRead moreEven some Republicans regard the idea of the GOP-controlled House impeaching homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the Biden administration’s muddled and increasingly harsh handling of the US-Mexico border as ridiculous.Outgoing Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson (who will be succeeded by one of Donald Trump’s old press secretaries, Sarah Huckabee Sanders when she’s sworn in tomorrow, becoming the first female governor of the state), shot down any suggestion, on Fox Business this morning, that impeaching Mayorkas is a good plan.As Axios reminds us, new House Speaker Kevin McCarthy last November threatened to launch an “impeachment inquiry” into Mayorkas over his handling of border policy – if he does not resign.Mayorkas has dismissed the idea of him quitting, of course.Hutchinson told Fox that “impeachment proceedings should not be based upon policy…it should be based on wrongdoing.“And so whenever there’s failed policy, let’s investigate and have hearings on that and try to change that policy. That, to me, should be the approach of the Republican Congress,” he added.US president Joe Biden visited the border yesterday for the first time as president, spending a few hours in El Paso, Texas, which has been the scene of some misery of late with an increase in irregular crossings of the border and migrants having nowhere to stay, amid freezing temperatures.Biden did not meet with any asylum seekers during his visit.Biden’s ‘carrot and stick’ approach to deter migrants met with angerRead moreWhite House chief of staff Ron Klain has rung alarm bells via Twitter on what Republicans in the House might try to do as they try to force deep national spending cuts.Here’s Klain after Florida Republican representative Michael Waltz went on Fox.They are going to try to cut Social Security and Medicare. It could not be clearer. https://t.co/h1cXaa6iwa— Ronald Klain (@WHCOS) January 9, 2023
      Earlier, Waltz told Fox: “We have to get spending under control.”But amid discussions about defense spending cuts, he added that that was not his primary target and he was not going to press for cuts “on the backs of our troops.”He added: “We can work on reprioritizing defense spending but that’s nibbling around the margins. If you really want to talk about spending, it’s the entitlements program – that’s 70% of the entire budget … if you want to talk about big reforms, I look forward to hearing that from those folks who are pushing towards a balanced budget.”Social security is the federal US social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability and survivor benefits, while Medicare is chiefly the government health insurance program for those 65 and older.The Washington Post warned in a piece at the weekend that: House Republicans are set to steer the country toward a series of fiscal showdowns as they look to force the White House to agree to massive spending cuts, threatening a return to the political brinkmanship that once nearly crippled the economy and almost plunged the US government into default.In a Guardian interview before he retired, Kentucky Democrat John Yarmuth told our Chris Stein last month that the Republican party is now so extreme it could cause the world’s largest economy to default on its debt for the first time ever in its quest to extract concessions from the Biden administration.Republicans could cause US to default on its debt, top Democrat warnsRead moreIt’s a lively day in Washington, even though Joe Biden is on trip to Mexico City, where he’ll meet with the leaders of Mexico and Canada for talks.On Capitol Hill, meanwhile, it’s new House speaker McCarthy’s first day of business with the gavel in his grasp after his epic struggle to get the votes to put him in that position as last Friday turned over into the early minutes of Saturday.Here’s where things stand:
      US president Joe Biden, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Mexico’s president Andrés Manuel López Obrador have issued a joint statement condemning yesterday’s attack on Brazil’s congress and presidential palace by supporters of Jair Bolsonaro.
      The special grand jury in Georgia has concluded its examination of Donald Trump’s alleged election meddling in the state, where he made efforts to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 election win. There are further stages to go through before prosecutor Fani Willis decides whether to indict Trump on criminal charges.
      House Republican leadership apparently does not want a repeat of last week’s dysfunction in the chamber, when it took 15 rounds of voting over four days to elect a speaker. They’re now racing to make sure moderate GOP lawmakers lend their vote on a crucial package of rules for governing the House.
      The House will convene at 5pm eastern time to vote on the rules package, typically a customary but crucial step for operating the chamber, with votes due after that.
      Should the rule package pass, the new Republican House majority will be able to get down to business, and their first priority will be undoing part of one of Joe Biden’s biggest legislative achievements.They’ve scheduled an initial vote later today on the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, which would rescind almost all of the new funding to the Internal Revenue Service tax authority provided by last year’s Inflation Reduction Act. The IRS has been underfunded for years, and the money was intended to help the agency modernize and better crack down on tax cheats. The GOP opposed the Inflation Reduction Act, and tried to stoke outrage by telling voters the money would be used to hire tens of thousands or armed IRS agents – which mostly turned out not to be true.Whether or not this passes, expect more legislation of this sort aimed at undoing the legacy of Biden’s two years of united government.Election meddling has consequences, and for proof of that, look no further than the now-concluded special grand jury investigation into what Donald Trump and his allies were up to in Georgia in the wake of the 2020 election.It’s unclear if Trump himself could face charges based on what the jurors determine, but they’ve already informed several of his allies they are targets of its investigation. These include Rudy Giuliani, one of his most prominent attorneys, as well as Georgia Republican party chair David Shafer and state senator Brandon Beach. It’s far from the only investigation into Trump, or his campaign to stop Joe Biden from taking office. The justice department is investigating that as well as the violent insurrection on January 6, and both cases have been handed to special prosecutor Jack Smith. Smith is also expected to decided whether to bring charges against Trump and others over the government secrets discovered at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago resort.There are reasons to believe the special grand jury investigation in Georgia is the most immediate threat Trump is facing. Here’s more from the Guardian’s Chris McGreal as to why that might be:Of all the legal threats Trump is facing, is this the one that could take him down?Read more More

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      ‘One more embarrassment’: McCarthy debacle wearily received in California home town

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      ‘One more embarrassment’: McCarthy debacle wearily received in California home townBakersfield, in California’s unfashionable Central Valley, has been thrown back into focus by the sorry saga in Congress Kevin McCarthy’s home town – the hardscrabble city of Bakersfield, in California’s Central Valley – has experienced plenty of bruised feelings over the past week, but not necessarily because people have felt the pain of their congressman’s tortured path to the House speakership.Many have bristled at being under a national spotlight during what even Fox News has described as a political clown show. Local Republicans appeared increasingly defensive as McCarthy fell short in vote after vote – before finally prevailing in the early hours of Saturday morning. Democrats, meanwhile, expressed growing concern that McCarthy had been taken captive by his party’s far-right wing and, especially, by apologists for the violent insurrection at the US Capitol two years ago.None of it reflected well on a distinctly unfashionable city known for its hot, dusty climate and polluted skies, its big agricultural businesses and the hundreds of oil wells dotting the surrounding hills. “I only wish they would have stopped saying Mac [McCarthy] was from Bakersfield,” a local insurance salesman, Mark Pearse, wrote in a letter to the local newspaper. “We do not need any more negative publicity.”Reached by phone, Pearse elaborated: “We’re already in the top ten of a lot of negative things. Pedestrians getting run over. Our police and sheriff’s department shooting and killing people. This is just one more embarrassment.”Certainly, nobody has been out in the streets cheering on the local celebrity. McCarthy’s district office, which sits in a business park next to a cluster of medical offices, resembled a suburban fortress with blacked out windows, a door kept locked at all times, and a sign under the door bell saying the only way to be invited in was to call by phone. Staff referred all questions – even questions about a protest on the anniversary of the January 6 uprising taking place directly outside – to McCarthy’s Washington office.More forthcoming was Cathy Abernathy, a seasoned Republican consultant who gave McCarthy his first taste of rejection back in 1987 when she turned him down for an internship with the district’s previous congressman, Bill Thomas. (She later hired him anyway and eventually groomed him to succeed Thomas in 2007.)Sitting in front of a life-sized cardboard cut-out of Abraham Lincoln on Friday, with Fox News reporting the 13th of the 15 vote counts on the television, Abernathy dismissed the week’s drama as an uncommonly visible version of business as usual on Capitol Hill and said the characterizations of McCarthy as weak or politically tone-deaf were grossly unfair.“This is the way things get done in Washington,” she insisted. “It takes hours and hours to achieve anything … It’s unfortunate that a group of 20 members have given such a negative impression of him. He’s a happy-go-lucky, friendly guy. It’s too bad some people mistake that for brainless.”Democrats, meanwhile, took advantage of the January 6 anniversary to stage a series of small protests in and around Bakersfield and tell whoever was willing to listen that McCarthy was one of 147 Republican House members who voted against the certification of Joe Biden’s election as president in 2021, quickly forgave Donald Trump for his role in stirring up the Capitol riot, and has sought to build his power base accordingly ever since.“All of this stems from his decision to kiss Trump’s ring,” said Mari Goodman, one of the protesters outside McCarthy’s district office.“We’re here to remember the people who were hurt and the damage caused,” said Laura Hardman, one of a cluster of January 6 protesters at a busy traffic intersection in Tehachapi, a farm town in McCarthy’s district 40 miles from Bakersfield. “The leaders are still not accountable.”Hardman said she took no pleasure in seeing McCarthy struggling to win over House members who were among the biggest apologists for the insurrection. “As one of his constituents, I find it embarrassing,” she said. “I voted for him in 2006, and he worked with us on some issues. But the longer he’s stayed in Washington, the further he’s drifted from his district.”Such sentiments are a distinct minority view in a part of California that prides itself on bucking the West Coast liberal stereotype. Many of the resentments and frustrations with establishment politics that fueled the rise of Donald Trump seven years ago can be felt in the Central Valley, where farmers and business entrepreneurs often complain that the progressive politicians who run California do not give them the respect they deserve.That complaint extended, last week, to parts of the media. Abernathy, the Republican consultant, said she’d picked up a distinctly condescending tone from reporters and TV producers. One expressed surprise that a man in McCarthy’s position had not gone to an Ivy League university. (He graduated from the Bakersfield branch of California State University.) Another, searching for a way to distinguish Bakersfield from Los Angeles, its giant neighbor 100 miles to the south, offered: “You people have grit.”If some people in Bakersfield felt the country was making fun of them and their most prominent native son, though, others were more than willing to go along for the ride. As Mark Pearse, the insurance salesman, asked after a healthy dose of McCarthy-bashing on the phone: “Haven’t you heard me laughing?”TopicsCaliforniaUS politicsHouse of RepresentativesRepublicansDemocratsnewsReuse this content More

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      McCarthy clinches speaker’s gavel at 15th attempt as Republicans in disarray

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      McCarthy clinches speaker’s gavel at 15th attempt as Republicans in disarray With a wafer-thin majority, and few powers, Nancy Pelosi’s successor looks set to be one of the weakest speakers in historyHe had nothing to lose but his dignity. Congressman Kevin McCarthy knew the job he had always craved was within his grasp. All he needed was the vote of a 40-year-old Florida man under investigation over sex trafficking allegations.McCarthy walked over and begged Matt Gaetz to make him speaker of the US House of Representatives. Gaetz stared, pointed a finger and refused. Fellow Republican Mike Rogers stormed towards Gaetz and had to be forcibly restrained.After Brexit and Trump, rightwing populists cling to power – but the truth is they can’t govern | Jonathan FreedlandRead moreThat this tragicomedy played out on the second anniversary of the deadly January 6 attack on the US Capitol was almost too on the nose. That it was Gaetz, an ardent supporter of Donald Trump and smash-mouth media performer, who held McCarthy’s fate in his hands said everything about the Republican party in 2023.Midnight tolled, and within an hour McCarthy had achieved his dream of becoming speaker, securing a majority of votes from those present at the 15th attempt in the longest such election since the civil war. He beamed, punched the air and waved the gavel with childlike enthusiasm. “That was easy, huh?” he said. “I never thought we’d get up here.” But at what cost?After a historic humiliation, it was a pyrrhic victory. With a wafer-thin majority, and having surrendered numerous powers to far-right rebels so they would drop their opposition, McCarthy is set to be one of the weakest speakers in history.His concessions reportedly included allowing a single member to call for a vote to remove the speaker, putting him at risk of a shorter tenure than Liz Truss’s 50 days as British prime minister. He also offered key committee positions to the House Freedom Caucus, granting them outsized influence and raising the spectre of chaos for the next two years.The former Republican National Committee chairperson Michael Steele told the MSNBC network: “If it does come to, God forbid, a shutdown of the government, the American people have only one place to look and that is the man right there on our screen right now who gave away the House so he could take a seat.”The late-night drama capped a torrid week in which liberals indulged some guilt-free schadenfreude as the Republican party ate itself on live television, unable to coalesce around a choice for the position that is second in line in the presidential succession.The old House chamber resounded with a hubbub of voices, fiery speeches, shouts of “McCarthy” and “Jeffries” [Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries], chants of “Hakeem! Hakeem!”, roars of “Yea!” and “No!” to decide adjournments, the wails of babies (some members brought the families and, in one case, a pet dog) and, 14 times over, House clerk Cheryl Johnson uttering the words, “A speaker has not been elected.”Joe Biden described the saga as an “embarrassment”. For McCarthy, it was like a recurring nightmare. Nominating him on the sixth ballot, Florida Congresswoman Kat Cammack said: “Well, it’s Groundhog Day.”Trapped in a time loop, the elected representatives to the House could not be sworn in, leaving the lower congressional chamber in suspended animation. But still the Capitol hummed with tourists, reporters and banks of TV cameras. Trolleys of pizza rolled along marble corridors to sustain late-night negotiations behind closed doors.Commentators interpreted the disarray as evidence of a new generation of conservative Republicans, many aligned with Trump’s “Make America great again” (Maga) base, who want to upend business as usual in Washington. It also suggested that the former president has unleashed anti-establishment forces that even he can no longer control.McCarthy had initially condemned Trump over the January 6 attack but, before the month was out, went cap in hand to his home in Florida to pledge his fealty. In turn, Trump supported McCarthy for the speakership but the gesture appeared half hearted; notably the former president did not round on McCarthy’s opponents with his customary insults and nicknames.As the voting went on and on, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert of Colorado, a conservative firebrand, noted that “her favourite president” had called on the anti-McCarthy holdouts to “knock this off”. But she went on: “I think it actually needs to be reversed. The president needs to tell Kevin McCarthy, ‘Sir, you do not have the votes and it’s time to withdraw’.” The show of defiance prompted a loud “Oooh!” from many in the House.Speaking by phone on Friday morning with the House still in limbo, Newt Gingrich, a former Republican speaker, said: “It was very significant that these people who call themselves Trump supporters just shrugged off his endorsement of McCarthy. That was a significantly different reaction than he would have gotten a year or two ago. It certainly means he’s weaker than he was. He must have been very surprised by how casually they rejected him.”Some of the rebels’ motives would have been very familiar to Trump: money. Several McCarthy opponents used the stalemate as an opportunity to send out fundraising appeals. Gaetz’s campaign asked donors to “support our fight with critical reinforcements” and branded McCarthy “Kyiv Kevin” – a reference to his support for Ukraine. Congressman Andy Biggs of Arizona urged donors “to turbocharge our emergency efforts to break the establishment”.Gingrich commented: “There is a wing of the Republican party which is very unhappy with Washington and that wing makes it profitable for some members to be very disruptive. If you look at Gaetz and Biggs, they’re making money every day this goes on because they’re sending out fundraising appeals by email, so they have a big vested interest in keeping it going. If you look at others, this is their chance to maximise their leverage.”He warned that this is “the most dangerous period” for Republicans since a divisive 1964 party convention that saw moderates facing off against conservative insurgents. But there are some critics who argue that Gingrich himself planted the seeds of the current crisis, pointing to his partisan shock tactics as speaker in the 1990s that transformed politics into a blood sport (a charge he vehemently denies, pointing to several bipartisan accomplishments during the Bill Clinton White House).The next mutation was the Tea Party in 2010, a grassroots conservative movement that endorsed small government and fed a racist backlash against President Barack Obama. Republican speakers including John Boehner had trouble fending off a rebellious right flank and ended up with government shutdowns, standoffs and early retirement.The right was further empowered by the rise of Trump and went on to adopt his style of performative populism. A majority of the members opposing McCarthy this week voted to overturn the 2020 election. Yet party leaders have repeatedly acquiesced to their demands rather than seeking to hold them accountable.Former Republican Capitol Hill communications director Tara Setmayer said: “The Maga wing are political nihilists and that’s evidenced by their behaviour and their demands. They’ve been rewarded for being political trolls, not professional elected officials who govern for the best interest of their constituents. This is all about political kabuki theatre and fundraising for them.”Many of the holdouts represent overwhelmingly majority Republican districts, Setmayer noted, and cannot be bought off with promises of infrastructure projects to impress voters. She added, “Bringing the bacon home to their districts? That is not the currency that the Maga wing operates in today’s political climate. In the era of Trumpism it’s attention, viral moments, media hits on Fox News and Steve Bannon’s podcast. The grift is the political currency.”Setmayer, a senior adviser to the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group, warned that these are ominous signs for the coming Congress, saying: “The Republican party is incapable of governing like grownups in Washington and that’s unfortunate because it [affects] the entire country.“If you listen to what a lot of these Republicans are saying, their focus is on personal agendas and vendettas against Democrats or the Biden administration. They want to focus on nonsense like endless spurious investigations into Hunter Biden and the Department of Justice and the ‘deep state’ and Dr Fauci and relitigating Covid policies. This is all backward thinking, not putting a focus on real issues that impact Americans every single day. It’s going to be chaos. Chaos is their currency.”The power of the far-right extremists could jeopardise crucial agenda items such as passing a budget and lifting the debt ceiling limit to cover previously authorised spending.Bill Galston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution thinktank in Washington, said: “I believed from the start that this would be a period of minimum legislative productivity and nothing that’s happened in the past four days has changed my mind. But this is a game for very high stakes because these people could blow up the world financial system if they’re not careful.”Democratic strategist Kurt Bardella agreed. “We’re going to have nothing but internal strife and gridlock within the Republican party that will create a dysfunctional House of Representatives,” he said. “This is what happens when you allow someone like Donald Trump to hijack an entire party, someone who only traffics in lies and conspiracy theories.”Kevin McCarthy wins House speaker bid after gruelling 15-vote sagaRead moreRepublicans’ identity crisis looks set to persist. Disappointing midterm election results suggested that Trump’s influence may be waning as he again seeks the party’s presidential nomination. But the decline of a strongman can create a leadership vacuum and fresh uncertainties. This week saw allies such as Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene on opposing sides and drove a wedge between Fox News hosts Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity.Larry Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota, noted that for decades the Republican party had an ideologically-driven conservative wing that sought to change policy.“But we now have an almost anarchist element in the Republican party that has no real concern about governance,” he said. “In fact, they’re anti-governance. They don’t want to see Congress operate and so the normal rules for negotiations, the give and take, doesn’t apply because the only thing they want is mayhem. It’s a whole new radicalism.”TopicsHouse of RepresentativesUS CongressUS politicsRepublicansDemocratsnewsReuse this content More

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      Republican McCarthy says he finally has enough votes to win House speaker – live

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      Kevin McCarthy says he has enough votes to win election as speaker of the House on Friday night in a what could be the final act of a drawn out saga.Speaking with reporters just now, the California Republican, who has lost 13 straight votes over four days, said he was confident he finally has enough support to prevail.House members have just voted to adjourn until 10pm, after which time, McCarthy says, colleagues will finally propel him to the speakership in a 14th vote:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}We’ll come back tonight. I believe at that time we’ll have the votes to finish this once and for all.
      It just reminds me of what my father always told me. It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish. And now we have to finish for the American public.“The adjournment will allow two Republican congress members absent from today’s two votes so far to return to Washington DC, and for McCarthy’s allies to work further on two of the six holdouts who still block his pathway.In particular, Republicans Matt Rosendale of Montana and Eli Crane of Arizona are believed to be the two most likely members of the so-called “Never Kevins” to flip.McCarthy won Friday’s two votes so far, with 213 and 214 votes respectively, still shy of the threshold he needs. But he picked up significant momentum, flipping 15 of the 20 rebels who opposed him previously.In his brief comments to reporters just now, he brushed aside criticism that the length of the process had undermined Republicans’ ability to govern:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}Getting together and just finding the ability of how we’re going to work together… it’s new for us, being in a tight majority [but] at the end of the day, we’re going to be more effective, more efficient. And definitely government’s going to be more accountable.
      That’s the great part, because it took this long now we learned how to govern. So now we’ll be able to get the job done.Hi all – Sam Levin here continuing our live coverage for the rest of the day.Congressman Matt Gaetz, a vocal member of the “Never Kevins”, appeared to concede that Kevin McCarthy might ultimately become speaker, NBC News has reported.“I think the House is in a lot better place with some of the work that’s been done to democratize power out of the speakership and that’s our goal,” Gaetz said this afternoon, according to the station, which reported that he had been huddled with the rightwing extremist congresswoman Lauren Boebert, who has also staunchly opposed McCarthy.More here on the latest developments.House speaker election at ‘a turning point’ despite McCarthy’s 13th lossRead moreJoe Biden has honored the “heroes” who repelled the deadly January 6 Capitol riot, by awarding them presidential citizens medals at the White House on Friday on the second anniversary of the insurrection. He insisted there was “zero place in America for political violence”.The president delivered a powerful speech denouncing the rioters who overran the Capitol building at Donald Trump’s behest as he attempted to remain in office, and praising the law enforcement officers who stood in their way..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}A violent mob of insurrectionists assaulted law enforcement, vandalized sacred halls, hunted down elected officials, all for the purpose of attempting to overthrow the will of the people and usurp the peaceful transfer of power.
      All of it was fueled by lies about the 2020 election. But on this day, two years ago, our democracy held because we the people, as the Constitution refers to us, did not flinch. We the people endured. We the people prevailed.Biden awarded the medals, the first of his administration, to 12 “extraordinary Americans”, including five law enforcement officers who lost their lives. Relatives of the fallen officers accepted the awards on their behalf, among them Gladys Sicknick, mother of fallen Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}History will remember your names, your courage, your bravery, your extraordinary commitment to your fellow Americans.
      America owes you all a debt of gratitude that we can never fully repay unless we live up to what you did.Read more:‘All I did was testify’: Republican who defied Trump will get presidential medalRead moreKevin McCarthy says he has enough votes to win election as speaker of the House on Friday night in a what could be the final act of a drawn out saga.Speaking with reporters just now, the California Republican, who has lost 13 straight votes over four days, said he was confident he finally has enough support to prevail.House members have just voted to adjourn until 10pm, after which time, McCarthy says, colleagues will finally propel him to the speakership in a 14th vote:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}We’ll come back tonight. I believe at that time we’ll have the votes to finish this once and for all.
      It just reminds me of what my father always told me. It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish. And now we have to finish for the American public.“The adjournment will allow two Republican congress members absent from today’s two votes so far to return to Washington DC, and for McCarthy’s allies to work further on two of the six holdouts who still block his pathway.In particular, Republicans Matt Rosendale of Montana and Eli Crane of Arizona are believed to be the two most likely members of the so-called “Never Kevins” to flip.McCarthy won Friday’s two votes so far, with 213 and 214 votes respectively, still shy of the threshold he needs. But he picked up significant momentum, flipping 15 of the 20 rebels who opposed him previously.In his brief comments to reporters just now, he brushed aside criticism that the length of the process had undermined Republicans’ ability to govern:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}Getting together and just finding the ability of how we’re going to work together… it’s new for us, being in a tight majority [but] at the end of the day, we’re going to be more effective, more efficient. And definitely government’s going to be more accountable.
      That’s the great part, because it took this long now we learned how to govern. So now we’ll be able to get the job done.Joe Biden is speaking now at the White House to pay tribute to the law enforcement officers who defended the US Capitol against a violent mob of Donald Trump-incited insurrectionists two years ago.We’ll bring you the best of his comments very shortly..@POTUS: “But on this day two years ago, our democracy held because We the People did not flinch. We the People endured. We the People prevailed.And on this day of remembrance, we honor a remarkable group of Americans who embodied the best.”— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) January 6, 2023
      You can follow the president’s speech here:Happening Now: President Biden marks two years since the January 6th insurrection during a Presidential Citizens Medal ceremony. https://t.co/LVhkWzSs8e— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 6, 2023
      Kevin McCarthy has picked off at least one of the seven remaining Republican holdouts, Andy Harris of Maryland.It won’t change the outcome of the 13th vote for speaker – McCarthy will still lose this round – but it would appear to point to a successful strategy of picking off the rebels one by one.BIG — Andy Harris, one of the seven remaining holdouts, has just flipped to McCarthy. McCarthy’s critics picking off the remaining opponents one by one. Now the focus shifts to Rosendale & Crane.— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) January 6, 2023
      So far today, 15 of the 20 Republicans who have voted against him consistently through 11 votes from Tuesday to Thursday have been persudade to join the McCarthy camp.The Californian will sense that he’s edging closer. Six of the seven hardline Republican holdouts blocking Kevin McCarthy’s path to the House speakership held firm in a 13th round of voting, thwarting once again the Californian’s pathway to the gavel.McCarthy won 214 votes, still shy of the threshold he needs. But he did flip the vote of Andy Harris of Maryland, potentially leaving him just two more votes away from victory assuming the chamber embarks on a 14th ballot on Friday afternoon.The other six so-called “Never Kevins” voted for Ohio’s Jim Jordan, who was not nominated, meaning there was not enough support for McCarthy to win on this vote.They included Andy Biggs of Arizona, Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Matt Gaetz of Florida, among the most vocal of McCarthy’s opponents. Earlier Friday, several House members walked out as Gaetz attacked McCarthy from the floor.McCarthy’s allies, meanwhile, will be encouraged by the apparently successful strategy of picking off the rebels one by one to put him on the brink of victory. It represents an astonishing turnaround in his fortunes from 11 votes over three days earlier this week, during which at least 20 Republicans opposed him every time.McCarthy agreed to many of the detractors’ demands, according to the Associated Press, including the reinstatement of a longstanding House rule that would allow any single member to call a vote to oust him from office. That change and others mean the job he fought so hard to gain will be somewhat weakened, assuming he emerges triumphant.There are now 6 GOP holdouts left in the election for Speaker of the House. McCarthy needs two votes from this group to win:Biggs AZBoebert COCrane AZGaetz FLGood VARosendale MTThe 6 all sat together in one row during this latest vote.— Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) January 6, 2023
      There are seven holdout Republicans still standing in Kevin McCarthy’s path. Two of them, Andy Biggs of Arizona, and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, have voted for Ohio’s Jim Jordan, even though he was not formally nominated.If three more Republicans join Boebert and Biggs, McCarthy looks all but certain to lose again. But if McCarthy can flip four of the five rebels yet to vote, he will win.Rejuvenated allies of Kevin McCarthy have touted the California Republican for an imminent 13th House speaker vote, more confident that this time they may have the support he needs to secure the gavel.Round 12 earlier this afternoon saw McCarthy flip more than a dozen of the 20 Republican holdouts who have so far blocked his path to the speakership.Some frantic horse trading has taken place, and McCarthy’s team is optimistic and ready to go again.Kentucky Republican James Comer has just delivered a fiery speech nominating McCarthy, promising investigations into Joe Biden and his dealings with Ukraine and Russia.Congresswoman Veronica Escobar of Texas is nominating Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic party’s leader in the House, for speaker.There are no other nominations, for the first time.Voting is under way and it seems to be a two-way fight between McCarthy and Jeffries, potentially a good sign for the Republican that this could finally be the vote in which he wins the speaker’s gavel.It’s been a lively morning in US politics and there is a lot more drama ahead. The House still does not have a speaker but California Republican Kevin McCarthy is finally making some progress. In a few minutes, Joe Biden is due to speak at the White House on the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection by extremist supporters of Donald Trump, encouraged by the-then president. Biden will also present medals to a group of people who upheld the law and US democracy on January 6, 2021, and in the 2020 election and its aftermath against dangerous opposition from the far right.Here’s where things stand:
      Kevin McCarthy lost a historic 12th round of voting in his tortured quest to become House speaker – but the California Republican picked up support from several of the hardline Republican rebels who have consistently opposed him.
      Tribute was paid in Washington, DC, this morning to the late law enforcement officers who defended the US Capitol against Trump’s mob of insurrectionists two years ago today. The “tremendous bravery” of the five law enforcement officers who lost their lives as a result of the riot, 140 more who were injured, and hundreds of others on duty that day were honored by current Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries and predecessor Nancy Pelosi, the most recent speaker.
      The House of Representatives reconvened for the fourth day of the 118th Congress without a speaker. And the voting began again. The House can do no business until a speaker is elected, including swearing in its members.
      Another lawsuit against Trump. The partner of Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick, who died after the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress, has sued Donald Trump.
      California’s governor Gavin Newsom, a rising star in the Democratic party, will be sworn in for his second term on Friday by comparing his leadership style with that of Republican governors and former president Donald Trump. He is widely seen as a future presidential candidate, though he says he plans to support Joe Biden in 2024.
      While we vote for the next stage of the House voting, here’s a video of the tribute in Washington DC this morning paid to the late enforcement officers who defended the US Capitol against Donald Trump’s mob of insurrectionists two years ago today.The “tremendous bravery” of the five law enforcement officers who lost their lives in the riot, 140 more who were injured, and hundreds of others on duty that day were honored by current Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries and predecessor Nancy Pelosi, the most recent speaker.Here’s the fillip for Kevin McCarthy, the chairman of the hard-right Freedom Caucus among House Republicans, Scott Perry, has swung behind him.This could make the difference. Clearly McCarthy is not there yet to get the majority needed to elect him speaker of the House. But he’s a lot closer.We’re at a turning point. I’ve negotiated in good faith, with one purpose: to restore the People’s House back to its rightful owners. The framework for an agreement is in place, so in a good-faith effort, I voted to restore the People’s House by voting for @gopleader McCarthy.— RepScottPerry (@RepScottPerry) January 6, 2023
      McCarthy has now flipped 14 hold-outs out of the 19 or 20 who’ve been opposing him since Tuesday – not enough to get him across the line yet, but noises are coming from his camp about momentum.Kevin McCarthy appears to have lost a 12th vote to become House speaker, but picked up support from several of the hardline Republican rebels who have consistently opposed him.Voting is still under way but enough Republicans have voted against him to deny the Californian Republican the 217 votes he needed. (The threshold had fallen by one from 218 because at least two House members voted only “present”).In 11 previous votes over three days, 20 Republican holdouts voted consistently against McCarthy. In Friday’s first vote, at least six switched their support to him, after overnight negotiations between the rebels and McCarthy’s team, and a conference call this morning.The next steps remain unclear, although more negotiations are likely this afternoon to win over more of the holdouts as McCarthy’s allies attempt to build on the momentum.McCarthy spoke optimistically as he entered the chamber ahead of the vote.“I feel good, I think you’re going to see an improvement in the vote today, we have a couple members who unfortunately are out so we’re seeing progress,” he told reporters.“My father always told me one thing, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”Several House members reportedly walked out of the chamber during Matt Gaetz’s speech nominating Jim Jordan.Also notable was that his address failed to gain the applause of a single congress member.people walk out during Gaetz’s speech, which is for Jim Jordan pic.twitter.com/tfFjuN2v87— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 6, 2023
      As voting continues, McCarthy has picked up at least five votes from the 20 rebels who had previously opposed him, indicating significant momentum to his cause.It remains to be seen if the shift is enough to get McCarthy to the 218 votes he needs during this round of voting, but it’s the first time in 12 rounds of voting he has picked up support, and his allies will be encouraged.Proceedings in the House are already growing rancorous as Florida Republican Matt Gaetz tears into Kevin McCarthy.Gaetz, a leading member of the “Never Kevins” who have barred McCarthy’s path to the speakership over the last three days, and who on Thursday nominated Donald Trump for the role (the fortmer president got one vote, that of Gaetz), says the 12th vote will have the same result as the previous 11.“One must wonder,” Madam Clerk, is this an exercise in vanity?” Gaetz wonders.“Mr McCarthy doesn’t have the votes today. He will not have the votes tomorrow, and he will not have the votes next week, next month, next year.”Gaetz nominates Jim Jordan of Ohio.Now another Republican maverick, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, is on her feet, nominating Kevin Hern of Oklahoma.Despite all the talk this morning of “glimmers of hope” and “breakthroughs”, it’s not looking good for McCarthy as things stand. Voting is under way.Mike Garcia, a Republican congressman from California, is on his feet nominating Kevin McCarthy for speaker (again), and a 12th vote looks like it’s imminent.“This is not about Kevin McCarthy,” Garcia is insisting, even though it is. He’s paying tribute to US service members, and addressing the fentanyl crisis even as he’s urging his colleagues to support McCarthy.He’s also talking directly to Democrats, and drawing boos, as he takes a dig over them voting from home during the pandemic. He’s been rebuked for not directing his remarks through the chair.“We are on the verge of a very important victory… a victory for the future of our nation,” he insists, although it’s far from clear McCarthy has even close to the 218 votes he will need to win the speaker’s gavel.Democrat James Clyburn of South Carolina is nominating Hakeem Jeffries as his party’s nominee for a 12th time. Jeffries, the party’s leader in the House, has won all 212 Democrat votes in every round of voting so far. More

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      Democrats commemorate January 6 attack with tears and silence at US Capitol

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      Democrats commemorate January 6 attack with tears and silence at US CapitolHundreds of members of Congress gathered to pay tribute to five police officers whose deaths have been tied to the insurrectionSenior Democrats on Friday led a large and poignant gathering on the steps of the US Capitol in Washington to commemorate the “solemn day” on the second anniversary of the deadly January 6 insurrection by extremist supporters of Donald Trump.Hundreds of members of Congress paid tribute to five police officers whose deaths have been tied to the violent insurrection in 2021, as rioters overwhelmed law enforcement and broke into the Capitol at the urging of the then president, intent on stopping the official certification of his election defeat by Joe Biden.Many were in tears at Friday morning’s event, including Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker who had to flee for safety two years ago as the mob rampaged through the Capitol, calling out for her and invading her office while members of her staff hid in fear for their lives.Pelosi’s replacement as the most senior Democrat in the House, the new minority leader and New York congressman Hakeem Jeffries, paid tribute to the deceased police officers.“Many more will forever be scarred by the bloodthirsty violence of the insurrection of this mob,” he said.Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick died not long after being attacked by the mob. Four other police officers affected by the events that day later took their own lives.The ceremony included families of the fallen officers reading out their names, with the tolling of a bell, and concluded with 140 seconds of silence, one for each of the 140 law enforcement officers injured during the attack.Jeffries announced it was a bipartisan gathering of lawmakers, but there was no sign of Republican leadership. Many Republican House members were engaged in a simultaneous conference call with Kevin McCarthy as he pleaded for their support in his epic struggle to become the next speaker of the House.One Republican Congress member was spotted by CNN as being at the event, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.Jeffries said: “We stand here today with our democracy intact because of those officers. Violent insurrectionists stormed the Capitol and attempted to halt the peaceful transfer of power, a cornerstone of our republic. They failed.“They failed because of the bravery and valor of the United States Capitol police and the Metropolitan police department officers who fought heroically to defend our democracy. We will never forget their sacrifice and we will never forget this day.”Pelosi dabbed at tears as she listened to Jeffries’ remarks.Then she added: “The January 6 insurrection shook our republic to the core.”She noted that many inside and outside Congress still held the “physical, psychological and emotional scars” of an unprecedented day in modern American democracy.TopicsUS Capitol attackUS politicsUS CongressDemocratsnewsReuse this content More