Politics
- PoliticsHuffPost
18 Senators Vote Against More U.S. Weapons For Israel
Wednesday was the first time Congress has voted on blocking specific arms transfers to Israel, reflecting deep frustration among lawmakers with Israeli conduct in Gaza and Lebanon.
5 min read - PoliticsNBC News
North Carolina GOP lawmakers vote to strip powers of incoming Democratic leaders
North Carolina Republican lawmakers voted to strip the state’s incoming Democratic governor and attorney general of key powers.
3 min read - PoliticsReuters
Trump likely to pick Johns Hopkins surgeon, COVID mandate critic Makary for FDA, sources say
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will likely choose Johns Hopkins surgeon and writer Martin Makary to lead the Food and Drug Administration, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday. Makary raised concerns about a number of public health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, touting the protection from natural immunity and opposing COVID vaccine mandates. The FDA is the world's most influential drug regulator with a more than $7 billion budget.
2 min read - WorldAssociated Press
Nicaragua's Ortega proposes reform to make him and his wife 'copresidents'
Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega on Wednesday proposed a constitutional reform that would officially make him and his wife, current Vice President Rosario Murillo, “copresidents” of the Central American nation. While the initiative has to pass through the country's legislature, Ortega and Murillo's Sandinista party control the congress and all government institutions, so it is likely to be approved. Ortega put forward another bill Wednesday that would make it illegal for anyone to enforce s
2 min read - PoliticsHuffPost
Trump's Pick For Education Secretary Has Been Named In A Sexual Abuse Lawsuit
Educators are sounding the alarm about Donald Trump’s choice to put the former WWE chief executive at the helm of public education.
4 min read - PoliticsReuters
Trump planning to tap loyalist Vought to lead OMB, sources say
President-elect Donald Trump is planning to tap conservative loyalist Russell Vought to be the director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, according to two sources close to his transition effort, putting him at the helm of a powerful agency that helps decide a president's policy priorities and how to pay for them. Vought was OMB chief in Trump's first term and would play a key role in rolling back government regulations and setting budget priorities. Vought helped produce a blueprint
2 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Speaker Johnson declares support for banning Sarah McBride's access to women's restrooms
House Speaker Mike Johnson declared Wednesday that lawmakers and staff will have to use the restroom corresponding with their biological sex, a statement directed at Sarah McBride, the first transgender person to be elected to Congress, months before she is set to arrive on Capitol Hill. “All single-sex facilities in the Capitol and House Office Buildings — such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms — are reserved for individuals of that biological sex," the Louisiana Republican said.
2 min read - USNBC News
Election workers seek to hold Rudy Giuliani in contempt for continued defamatory comments
The two former Georgia election workers who won an almost $150 million defamation judgment against former Donald Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani want him held in civil contempt for continuing to falsely accuse them of committing election fraud in the 2020 election.
4 min read - PoliticsNBC News
House Ethics panel has 'no agreement' on releasing Matt Gaetz report after meeting
Members of the House Ethics Committee met behind closed doors Wednesday but did not reach an agreement on whether to publicly release a report detailing their sweeping investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general.
6 min read - WorldHuffPost
U.S. Vetoes Another U.N. Cease-Fire Resolution While Continuing To Arm Israel
The veto comes after the Biden administration announced that a U.S.-Israel panel looking into reports of civilian harm in Gaza will meet for the first time.
5 min read - USAssociated Press
FEMA head sounds the alarm over disaster funding after double hurricanes
The money available to help communities hit by disasters has shrunk after back-to-back hurricanes Helene and Milton, and the funding problems might jeopardize the government's ability to respond to new emergencies in the future, the Federal Emergency Management Agency chief said Wednesday. Deanne Criswell warned during a Senate hearing with other agency heads that FEMA's disaster relief fund — the country’s emergency checkbook — is down to less than $5 billion. The Biden administration has ask
2 min read - USAssociated Press
Trump-nominated judge says blanket pardons for Capitol rioters would be 'beyond frustrating'
A federal judge who was nominated by Donald Trump says it would be “beyond frustrating and disappointing” if the president-elect hands out mass pardons to rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol after the 2020 election, a rare instance of judicial commentary on a politically divisive subject. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, who was appointed to the bench in June 2019, expressed his criticism during a hearing Tuesday at which he agreed to postpone a Capitol riot defendant's trial until after Trum
4 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
North Carolina Republicans push through bill weakening incoming governor and attorney general
North Carolina Republican legislators gave final approval Wednesday to a series of political power moves that would weaken the incoming governor and other Democratic elected officials in the ninth-largest state. The Senate voted along party lines for the 131-page measure, which would alter yet again how the State Board of Elections is appointed, likely leading to a GOP majority on a panel now controlled by Democrats.
4 min read - PoliticsThe Guardian
Biden urged to use clemency powers to tackle ‘crisis’ of US mass incarceration
Members of Congress call on president to pardon or commute sentences before he leaves White House
3 min read - USNBC News
Jan. 6 rioter is convicted of plotting to murder FBI agents who investigated him
WASHINGTON — A Donald Trump supporter who was among the first rioters to breach the U.S.
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
House Speaker Mike Johnson says he supports banning transgender women from using women's bathrooms
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday he supports restricting “single-sex facilities” in the Capitol, including restrooms, to “individuals of that biological sex”— which would effectively ban the first transgender congresswoman from using women’s bathrooms in the next Congress.
4 min read - USAssociated Press
North Carolina Republicans complete a veto override of voucher, immigration bill
The Republican-dominated North Carolina legislature completed on Wednesday its override of Gov. Roy Cooper's veto of legislation that both approves more funds for private school scholarship grants for recipients of all incomes and directs local sheriffs to comply with federal immigration agents’ requests to detain certain inmates. The Senate voted to enact the bill despite Cooper's objections, one day after the House voted for a similar result. The bill, which is now law, means that a large wi
4 min read - USThe Guardian
Razor-thin House race in California too close to call weeks after election day
Democratic challenger Derek Tran has a 314-vote lead over Republican incumbent Michelle Steel
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump picks former top DOJ official to be ambassador to NATO
President-elect Donald Trump Wednesday named former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker as his pick to be the next ambassador to NATO, a key alliance that Trump derided for years.
3 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
What to know about Matthew Whitaker, Trump’s pick to be America's ambassador to NATO
Donald Trump has tapped former acting attorney general Matthew Whitaker as U.S. ambassador to NATO — set to make him the nation's representative to a bedrock Western alliance that the president-elect has repeatedly relished criticizing. Whitaker has a legal and criminal justice background, rather than one focused on foreign policy and national security, yet is poised to take over an important position for U.S. global affairs.
4 min read - PoliticsHuffPost
Teachers Union Lashes Out At ‘Unqualified’ Linda McMahon As Education Pick
The National Education Association says Donald Trump's nomination of the professional wrestling mogul shows he “could not care less” about students.
2 min read - USAssociated Press
Texas offers Trump land on US-Mexico border for potential mass deportations
Texas is offering a parcel of rural ranchland along the U.S.-Mexico border to use as a staging area for potential mass deportations under President-elect Donald Trump. The property, which Texas originally purchased last month, is located in rural Starr County in the Rio Grande Valley. Republican Dawn Buckingham, the Texas Land Commissioner, sent a letter Nov. 14 to Trump extending the offer.
3 min read - PoliticsPolitico
Trump bets he can scandal-proof his most controversial Cabinet picks
“I just don't think you can deal with allegations in the past as though they're fact,” said one GOP senator.
4 min read - PoliticsHuffPost
Longtime Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur Escapes Challenge From State Lawmaker
It was the second run for Kaptur since her district was redrawn, but her first with a mainstream GOP opponent.
2 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Ohio Democrat Marcy Kaptur extends tenure as longest-serving woman in US House with election win
Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur won another term in the U.S. House on Wednesday, after defeating a Republican state lawmaker endorsed by President-elect Donald Trump. The Associated Press had previously said the race was too early to call, despite Kaptur declaring victory just before 2 a.m. the morning after Election Day.
2 min read - USYahoo News
House speaker bans trans women from using Capitol women's bathrooms after first openly trans lawmaker is elected
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace introduced legislation to ban trans women from using single-sex bathrooms on Capitol Hill, targeting Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, the first openly trans member of Congress. Here's what the bill says and what the reaction has been.
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump lawyers demand judge 'immediately' throw out hush money case
Donald Trump's attorneys are demanding the judge who presided over his New York hush money trial and conviction immediately throw out the case, saying it would be "uniquely destabilizing to the country" otherwise.
2 min read - BusinessReuters
Trump pick for Manhattan's top federal prosecutor urges focus on national security, money laundering
Jay Clayton, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, said the office is well-positioned to focus on national security and combating terrorism financing and money laundering. Trump nominated Clayton, former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman, last week to be U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. The office is known for tackling financial crime and an unusual degree of independence from the rest of the Justice Department.
2 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Donald Trump's lawyers urge judge to ignore prosecutors and dismiss hush money conviction
As prosecutors push to preserve President-elect Donald Trump’s historic hush money conviction, his lawyers urged a judge Wednesday to ignore them and scrap the case before he takes office in January. Echoing their stance since Trump's win, his lawyers argued in a letter that continuing with the case will interfere with the president-elect's preparations for returning to the White House and impede his ability to run the country. The lawyers, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, said voters' decision to
2 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Trump chooses former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker as NATO ambassador
Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO, the bedrock Western alliance that the president-elect has expressed skepticism about for years. Trump, in a statement, said Whitaker was “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot" who "will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The cho
5 min read - PoliticsPolitico
House Republicans are playing the Trump card in committee chair races
GOP lawmakers are touting their loyalty to the president-elect as they prepare pitches for colleagues who will pick leaders.
11 min read - PoliticsBusiness Insider
Trump nominates Howard Lutnick for commerce secretary
Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, is already serving as the cochair of President-elect Donald Trump's transition team.
2 min read - PoliticsHuffPost
Republicans Are Mad That Democrats Are Confirming Lots Of Biden's Judges
“No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!” Trump said on social media. But Democrats are making judges a priority in the lame duck ― just like the GOP did, too.
7 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
What to know about Linda McMahon, Trump’s pick for Education secretary
Linda McMahon has been a constant presence in Donald Trump's tumultuous orbit, serving in his first administration and supporting his presidential campaigns. Now he's chosen her to serve as Education secretary. McMahon is married to Vince McMahon, whose father was a prominent professional wrestling promoter.
3 min read - PoliticsWashington Post
What the Republican trifecta could mean for student loan borrowers
The past four years have been filled with highs and lows for federal student loan borrowers, as nearly 5 million have benefited from $175 billion in debt cancellation provided by President Joe Biden and others have watched their prospects for relief ensnared by litigation. The next four years could be just as tumultuous with Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House. President-elect Donald Trump and congressional Republicans are hostile toward Biden’s student loan for
8 min read - PoliticsPolitico
Biden won’t talk about what happened in Rio
At back-to-back global summits, the world prepared to move past Biden.
6 min read - USWashington Post
DEA faces legal challenge as uncertainty clouds plan to reclassify marijuana
As the federal government considers loosening restrictions on marijuana, the Drug Enforcement Administration is scheduled to convene a court hearing to flesh out the Biden administration’s historic policy shift. But cannabis-reform advocates this week asked a judge to remove the DEA from its own hearing, arguing the agency has improperly communicated with antimarijuana groups in a bid to torpedo the Biden administration’s proposal. The advocates assert that prominent doctors, researchers and sta
8 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Biden unlikely to ban menthol cigarettes, despite urging from health officials
A federal ban on menthol cigarettes would be one of the most effective ways to save lives, Black Americans, the Surgeon General said. But the Biden administration isn't likely to do anything about it.
3 min read - ScienceCBS News
SpaceX launches Super Heavy-Starship, with Trump there to watch
President-elect Donald Trump was on hand with Elon Musk for the sixth test flight of SpaceX's huge Super Heavy-Starship rocket.
7 min read - USAssociated Press
North Carolina GOP bill would weaken next Democratic governor and attorney general
North Carolina Republicans advanced extensive legislation Tuesday that would weaken the powers of the incoming governor, attorney general and schools superintendent — all Democrats who were elected two weeks ago — and shift election board appointments to the GOP state auditor. The final 131-page measure, which also includes setting aside additional funds for Hurricane Helene relief, became public roughly an hour before the GOP-controlled House met to debate it during a lame-duck General Assembl
5 min read - USHuffPost
Mike Johnson Calls Extra Press Conference Just To Make Anti-Trans Statement
The House Speaker previously ducked a question about whether Sarah McBride, soon to be the first transgender member of Congress, is a man or a woman.
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump picks Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick to be commerce secretary
President-elect Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will nominate key transition adviser and billionaire financial services executive Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department.
2 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Biden fades into the background at his final international summits: From the Politics Desk
President Joe Biden’s final international summits almost certainly would have played out differently had the elections back home gone as he had hoped.
9 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump 'heavily working the phones' to drum up support for Matt Gaetz nomination
President-elect Donald Trump has been making calls to bolster his pick to lead the Justice Department — Matt Gaetz — who already faces skepticism from some Republican senators, according to sources familiar with his push.
4 min read - USNBC News
Weak turnout in key cities hurt Harris in the 'blue wall' states
A new analysis of precinct-level data by the NBC News Decision Desk shows the extent to which President-elect Donald Trump’s wins in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania — and Vice President Kamala Harris’s losses — were driven by weak turnout in heavily Democratic cities.
5 min read - USAssociated Press
Florida's new state lawmakers may test DeSantis' influence in final years of his term
Florida’s upcoming legislative session could test Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis ’ influence in the state, on the back of his failed attempt to challenge President-elect Donald Trump for the Republican nomination and as he considers his political future beyond the governor’s mansion. Florida’s incoming legislative leaders formally took their oaths of office Tuesday, ceremonially marking the start of the final two years of DeSantis’ second term at the helm of unified GOP control. The governor won
4 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump watches Elon Musk's SpaceX Starship launch in Texas
President-elect Donald Trump will attend a SpaceX Starship launch Tuesday. The rocket company is owned by Trump booster Elon Musk.
3 min read - USAssociated Press
LA enacts sanctuary city ordinance to prepare for potential mass deportations under Trump
The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday approved a so-called “sanctuary city” ordinance that bars city resources from being used for immigration enforcement and city departments from sharing information on people without legal status with federal immigration authorities, in anticipation of potential mass deportations under President-elect Donald Trump. Sanctuary cities or states are not legal terms but have come to symbolize a pledge to protect and support immigrant communities and decline to v
4 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Harris lost to Trump. She may have one last chance to defy him.
Fresh from a devastating loss to Donald Trump, Vice President Kamala Harris may now head to Capitol Hill to defy him in what could be her last major act in office.
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
What to know about Dr. Mehmet Oz, Trump's pick to lead Medicare and Medicaid
Mehmet Oz, a celebrity heart surgeon turned talk show host and lifestyle guru, is President-elect Donald Trump's pick to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the massive federal health care bureaucracy that covers more than a third of Americans. Who is Dr. Oz? Trained as a heart surgeon, Oz rose to prominence on Oprah Winfrey's leading daytime television show before spinning off his own series, “The Dr. Oz Show," in 2009.
4 min read
