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☆ Matt Gaetz says he'll 'resign' from Congress if the Democratic Party changes tack and elects a moderate Republican for speaker
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Matt Gaetz is sure House Democrats will not break ranks and vote for a moderate Republican for speaker. Gaetz told Fox News host Laura Ingraham that he will "resign" if that scenario occurs. These 212 Democrats are going to vote for Hakeem Jeffries every single time," Gaetz told Ingraham. "I assure you — that if Democrats joined up to elect a moderate Republican, I will resign from the House of Representatives. On Thursday, Gaetz voted for former President Donald Trump to be speaker even after McCarthy made significant concessions to the "Never Kevin" camp.

☆ Trump's former interior secretary says the ex-president's influence is clearly waning: 'He's behind McCarthy, and they ignored him'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ryan Zinke told CNN's Laura Coates, "He's behind McCarthy, and they ignored him." In an interview with CNN shared online by Mediaite, Zinke agreed with host Laura Coates that Trump's influence is "absolutely" waning. "He's behind McCarthy," Zinke told Coates on CNN, "and they ignored him." But a few hours later in the House's 5th round of voting, Trump's passionate plea failed to convert a single Republican vote in favor of McCarthy. Zinke told Coates that that vote was just a "castaway" and should not be taken seriously.

☆ Nancy Pelosi says Kevin McCarthy might need a 'doctor or a psychiatrist' after 'really sad' losses on the speakership vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kevin McCarthy has failed to secure the 218 votes he needs to become speaker after 11 votes. Nancy Pelosi said McCarthy might need a "doctor" or a "psychiatrist" after so many losses. Insider saw a message from the "Nancy Pelosi for Congress" team, sent with the subject line: "RE: Kevin McCarthy." No love lost between Pelosi and McCarthyThere is no love lost between Pelosi and McCarthy. Representatives for McCarthy and Pelosi did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are sounding the alarm about how a nonfunctional House hurts national security. "If a national security crisis arises, the President of the United States is right down the street," he said. "I'm informed by House Security that, technically, I don't have a clearance," Gallagher, a former Marine Corps intelligence officer, told reporters. "I'm a member of the [House Intelligence Committee], I'm on the Armed Services Committee, and I can't meet in the SCIF to conduct essential business." "President Xi says, 'Our system of governance works because democracy don't,'" Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, told reporters.

☆ Matt Gaetz votes for Trump to become House speaker as Kevin McCarthy loses for the 7th time
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Rep. Matt Gaetz voted for former President Donald Trump for House speaker on Thursday. Rep. Kevin McCarthy lost his bid for House speaker for the seventh time. Gaetz is among 20 House Republicans who have repeatedly voted against McCarthy. Yet there appears to have been limited, if any, progress in negotiations as the anti-McCarthy group remained opposed to him in the seventh vote on Thursday. Gaetz's vote for Trump also comes as the former president on Wednesday morning urged the holdouts to support McCarthy.

REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstWASHINGTON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - About 20 hardline Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have voted against California Republican Kevin McCarthy in his bid to become the next Speaker of the House in successive rounds of voting this week. That has stopped the House from starting their work and exposed the sharp rifts that have developed within the Republican party. Here are some of McCarthy's most prominent opponents:SCOTT PERRYPerry is the chair of the House Freedom Caucus, the furthest right ideological grouping in the House and the home of almost all McCarthy opponents. Boebert is one of the top fundraisers among House Republicans and brought in more than $7 million for her reelection bid, to eke out one of the closest wins of the November midterms. Like others who voted against McCarthy, he was a prominent opponent of measures designed to stop the spread of COVID-19.

☆ Ron and Casey DeSantis danced to the governor's campaign song 'Sweet Florida' at the state's inaugural ball, in final event of 2-day 'DeSantis-Palooza'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Casey DeSantis wore a gold embellished gown. Songs included "My Girl" and "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," two guests leaving the event told Insider. Bill Diamond of Palm Beach told Insider the food was "very good and very inventive" and raved about the lamb. "I have had clients coming back and saying that was very Kennedy-ish," one source who attended multiple inauguration events told Insider. Casey DeSantis and the couple's son, Mason, were also present, he said, as were Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nuñez and her husband Adrian Nuñez.

☆ 2 Black people have been nominated for House speaker for the first time in American history
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

For the first time, two Black people were nominated to be speaker of the House of Representatives. Conservatives opposed to Kevin McCarthy nominated Rep. Byron Donalds on the 4th ballot on Wednesday. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stepped down from leadership at the end of the last Congress, though she will remain in the House as a rank-and-file lawmaker. "Now, here we are, and for the first time in history, there have been two Black Americans placed into the nomination for speaker of the House." Donalds' nomination came on the fourth ballot for House speaker.

☆ Trump throws Kevin McCarthy a lifeline and warns Republicans to avoid a 'GIANT & EMBARRASSING DEFEAT' in chaotic House Speaker race
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump re-upped his endorsement of Kevin McCarthy to become the next Speaker of the House. House lawmakers are expected to continue voting this afternoon. Until a speaker is selected, lawmakers cannot finish the basic formalities of starting a new Congress, including swearing in members. While Trump continues to boost McCarthy, the former president took another swipe at McConnell. "The harm they have done to the Republican Party is incalculable," Trump said of McConnell and Chao.

The latest vote saw a core group of GOP holdouts nominate and vote for Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, a sophomore Republican lawmaker who on Tuesday had publicly shifted his support away from McCarthy. While the vote is still ongoing, enough Republicans have abandoned McCarthy to leave him shy of the 218 he needs to win the coveted seat. WASHINGTON — In the fourth vote in two days, Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., again failed to secure enough support to win the U.S. House speakership. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is seen at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on December 21, 2022. Kevin McCarthy will do a good job, and maybe even a GREAT JOB – JUST WATCH!"

☆ GOP Rep. Byron Donalds dismisses risks of prolonged House speaker vote chaos, says Biden 'is right down the street' if an actual crisis erupts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Republican Rep. Byron Donalds blew off concerns about the ongoing House speaker fight. House lawmakers can't legally do anything until they are sworn in by an elected speaker. "The President of the United States is right down the street," Donalds said of the Biden backstop. "We all know that if a national security crisis arises, the President of the United States is right down the street. The House remains paralyzed until a speaker is named, because elected members are legally powerless — unable to introduce bills, do committee work, or pass laws — until they are formally sworn in by a duly elected speaker.

☆ AOC says she was telling Matt Gaetz the Democratic Party would 'absolutely not' rescue Kevin McCarthy's speakership bid when they were spotted chatting on the House floor
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Cheryl Teh | Azmi Haroun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was spotted chatting with Matt Gaetz on the House floor on Tuesday. "McCarthy was suggesting he could get Dems to walk away to lower his threshold," Ocasio-Cortez told The Intercept. Ocasio-Cortez added to Semafor that she told Gosar the same thing she told Gaetz: that her party would not be helping McCarthy out. Rebuking both Gosar and Gaetz, Greene tweeted on Tuesday that "making plans with Democrats is not what any Republican should be doing." Representatives for Gaetz, Gosar, Greene, and Ocasio-Cortez did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

☆ Matt Gaetz is accusing Kevin McCarthy of squatting in the speaker's office before he's even got the job
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Matt Gaetz is accusing Kevin McCarthy of squatting in the speaker's office. Gaetz wrote a letter to the Architect of the Capitol after McCarthy failed to get enough Republican votes. Gaetz questioned why McCarthy was allowed to occupy the speaker's office despite three failed votes. "The Speaker of the House Office in the Capitol is currently being occupied by Kevin McCarthy," Gaetz tweeted Tuesday night. "Kevin McCarthy is not the Speaker of the House.

☆ Ron DeSantis Heads Off a Taxpayer Insurance Bailout
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ron DeSantis and Florida Republicans have managed a rare policy feat: Constructive insurance reform. This month the Florida Governor signed legislation to prevent the state’s property insurance market from collapsing under a tidal wave of lawsuits that could blow a hole in the state budget. Democrats call the reform a bailout for insurers that will raise homeowner premiums. The truth is that it fixes a legal racket that allowed windfalls for trial lawyers that have caused homeowner insurance premiums to spike and caused numerous insurers to become insolvent and exit the market.

☆ Florida GOP to hold no-confidence vote in RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Marc Caputo | Marc Caputo Is A Senior National Political Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

The Florida GOP plans to hold a no-confidence vote in Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel next month, a crucial test of the embattled leader’s strength just days before her own re-election. He issued the petition in response to Republican Party of Florida Chairman Joe Gruters sending out a letter Tuesday endorsing McDaniel. The messy race for national chair reflects broader troubles in the Republican Party. The two candidates vying to succeed Gruters as Republican Party of Florida chair, Leon County Chair Evan Power and Sarasota County Chair Christian Ziegler, both told NBC News they support Dhillon. "This is about who is best to be RNC chair, and that's Ronna."

☆ Marjorie Taylor Greene attacks Lauren Boebert, calls her childish and mocks her struggle to get re-elected
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Marjorie Taylor Greene ripped into Lauren Boebert on Monday, saying she acted "childishly." "I don't believe in this, just like I don't believe in Russian space lasers, Jewish space lasers and all of this." Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) December 19, 2022Boebert survived an extraordinarily tight race for Colorado's Third Congressional District in the midterms. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) December 19, 2022Boebert did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. Boebert, Greene and Gaetz — who all sit to the far right of the Republican Party — have long been grouped together, but reports emerged in April of a rift between Greene and Boebert.

☆ Senate passes legislation to ban TikTok from US government devices
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The Senate passed legislation Wednesday evening to ban TikTok from US government devices, in a move designed to limit perceived information-security risks stemming from the social media app. The vote by unanimous consent approved the No TikTok on Government Devices Act, a bill authored by Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley. “Once again, Sen. Hawley has moved forward with legislation to ban TikTok on government devices, a proposal which does nothing to advance U.S. national security interests,” a spokesperson for TikTok said in a statement. (Another state, Nebraska, banned TikTok from state devices in 2020.) Already, the US military, the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security have restricted the app from government-owned devices.

☆ Kevin McCarthy's impossible GOP math
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Republican leader Kevin McCarthy is far from assured of winning sufficient support in his party to become House speaker next month. The tiny GOP House majority that takes over in January, after a disappointing midterm performance, would mean a fragile governing mandate for any party at any point in American history. McCarthy’s impossible mathFrom a broader political perspective, it might be in McCarthy’s interest to stand up to the most extreme members of his conference. The path to the GOP majority went through comparatively moderate seats in places like New York that will be most at risk in the 2024 election. But it also reflected Greene’s growing personal power, after she broke with some radical GOP members and lined up to support McCarthy’s speakership.

But first: The results from five counties will help tell us if Democrat Raphael Warnock is on track to win tonight’s Senate runoff in Georgia. Warnock got 56.9% of the vote in Cobb when he won the Jan. 2021 runoff, and he got just under that last November (56.8%). And in Gwinnett, Warnock got 60.6% of the vote in the 2021 runoff, compared with 58.9% last month against Walker. In rural Chattooga — one of NBC News’ “County to County” counties — Warnock got just 20.5% when he won the 2021 runoff, and he got less than that in the November general election (19.8%). Data Download: The number of the day is … $7.79 billionThat’s how much money was spent on political television, radio and digital ads this entire cycle (starting the day after the 2021 Georgia Senate runoff through today’s runoff), per AdImpact.

The ex-Florida tax collector whose arrest led to a federal investigation into U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, a former friend, was sentenced Thursday to 11 years in prison for sex trafficking of a minor and other offenses. Prosecutors said Greenberg paid at least one minor to have sex with him and other men. Joel Greenberg, then the Seminole County tax collector, during an interview at his office in Lake Mary, Fla., in 2019. His cooperation with federal officials could play a role in an investigation into whether Gaetz allegedly sex-trafficked a 17-year-old girl. Greenberg’s scandal-plagued term as Seminole County tax collector started in 2017, around the time he and Gaetz became friends.

☆ Chinese firm selling surveillance tech to Iran comes under scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Dan De Luce | Dan De Luce Is A Reporter For The Nbc News Investigative Unit. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +11 min

Tiandy is one of several Chinese companies at the center of China’s vast domestic surveillance network, experts and human rights advocates say. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, Liu Pengyu, said the embassy could not speak on behalf of Chinese private companies. Last week, the Biden administration effectively banned the sale or import of new equipment from a number of Chinese surveillance firms but Tiandy Technologies was not named. Maya Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch, said Chinese surveillance technology tends to be less expensive and more attractive for some authoritarian governments. Like other video technology companies in China, Tiandy’s software includes an ethnicity tracking tool that supposedly can digitally identify someone’s race.

☆ Florida doctor accused of raping sedated patients dies by suicide
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A Florida doctor accused of raping his sedated patients was found dead on Monday in what has been ruled a suicide, officials said. Salata’s wife was present at the office at the time of the arrest, according to the arrest report. That victim told police she "couldn't believe" he had raped her because of her age, the arrest report states. NBC affiliate WBBH of Florida reported days following Salata's arrest that a third woman had come forward accusing him of rape. You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.

☆ Former Florida tax official and ex-Gaetz associate Joel Greenberg sentenced to 11 years in prison
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A federal judge sentenced former Florida tax official Joel Greenberg to 11 years in prison. Greenberg was a longtime associate of Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz before he struck a plea deal last year. Before striking a plea deal, Greenberg was a close associate of Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz. Greenberg's plea deal said he conducted 150 financial transactions totaling $70,000 between December 2016 and December 2018 to pay women for "commercial sex acts." "Those who told lies about Congressman Matt Gaetz are going to prison, and Congressman Matt Gaetz is going back to Congress to continue fighting for America," a spokesperson for Gaetz's office previously told Insider.

☆ Marco Rubio slams Biden shutting down a rail strike for workers who want more paid sick leave: 'I will not vote to impose a deal that doesn't have the support of the rail workers'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rail workers were threatening to strike over lack of paid leave, potentially devastating the economy. "But if Congress is forced to do it,I will not vote to impose a deal that doesn't have the support of the rail workers." Congress is able to vote to step in and impose a deal for rail workers, overruling the normal bargaining process. Workers wanted 15 paid sick days, according to Reuters, but railroad companies agreed to just one paid personal day in the tentative agreement. Michael Paul Lindsey, a locomotive engineer in Idaho and steering committee member for Railroad Workers United, told Insider it was a "blatant betrayal," but he wasn't surprised.

President Donald Trump is boxing his own shadow as he seeks the Republican presidential nomination — and that’s not likely to change anytime soon. Dan Eberhart, a Republican fundraiser who once backed Trump but now wants DeSantis to be the party’s nominee in 2024, said there's time. In the world of GOP elites, the field is quickly narrowing to Trump and DeSantis, and the Florida Republican source said there is something unique about their rivalry. “The fact is Ron is different from any other Republican who might run against Trump,” the Republican said. But more than that, he said, Republican voters are exhausted.

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