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☆ McConnell fights for his legacy as he sells a divided GOP on Ukraine funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Mitch McConnell is making a very public push to support additional US support for Ukraine. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe White House has asked for $105 billion for Israel, Ukraine, and to fund border security efforts. While some Senate Republicans are skeptical of Ukraine support, there is much greater opposition in the House. Before former Speaker Kevin McCarthy's historic ouster, a conservative revolt forced leaders to strip Ukraine aid from the massive bill that funds the Pentagon. The measure failed but 93 Republicans voted in favor of it.

Persons: Mitch McConnell, —, McConnell, Oksana Markarova, SpeakerMike Johnson, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Johnson, Kevin McCarthy's, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie of, Israel, Greene, Matt Gaetz's Organizations: Ukraine, Republican, Service, University of Louisville, Politico, Pentagon, America, Twitter, GOP, Florida Rep Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, U.S, Israel, China, Russia, Iran, United States, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Washington, Florida

☆ Live updates: House Speaker race continues
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Mike Hayes | Kaanita Iyer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

After three weeks of infighting, division and tensions that left the House paralyzed they will again attempt to elect a speaker this afternoon. Members can also opt to vote PRESENT, which casts no vote. Additionally, Massie this morning said he would support Johnson after voting present last night. Remember, the math is tricky here: The prevailing candidate will be the one who wins 50% +1 of the total number of the House voting for a person. Should a member not vote or vote present, that will drop the target number that a candidate needs to reach.

Persons: Mike Johnson, Johnson, Hakeem Jeffries, Jeffries, Thomas Massie of, Mark Amodei, Amodei, designee Johnson, Massie, I’m, ” Massie Organizations: House GOP Conference, House, CNN Locations: Thomas Massie of Kentucky, French Hill, Arkansas, Nevada

☆ These 16 lawmakers did not vote for a House resolution supporting Israel after the Hamas attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The House passed a resolution in support of Israel in the wake of the Hamas attack. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a resolution in support of Israel by an overwhelmingly 412-10-6 margin following the October 7 attack by Hamas. Over a dozen progressive Democrats — and one Republican — voted "nay" or "present." The bipartisan resolution, drafted by Republican Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas and Democratic Rep. Greg Meeks of New York, is a largely symbolic gesture. Furthermore, several progressives have described Israel as an "apartheid state," a description also employed by several international human rights organizations.

Persons: Mike Johnson, —, Republican —, Mike Johnson of, Michael McCaul of, Greg Meeks, Israel, Waleed Shahid, Sen, Bernie Sanders, Thomas Massie, Jamaal Bowman, Cori Bush, Andre Carson, Al Green, Summer Lee, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Delia Ramirez, Rashida Organizations: —, Service, Republican, Republican Rep, Democratic, Justice, Vermont, New York Rep, Missouri Rep, Indiana Rep, Texas Rep, Pennsylvania Rep, Kentucky Rep, Cortez of New York Rep, Minnesota Rep, Illinois Rep Locations: Israel, Mike Johnson of Louisiana, Michael McCaul of Texas, New York, States, Gaza, Kentucky, Missouri, Alexandria, Cortez of, Minnesota, Michigan

On Tuesday, 20 Republicans voted against his candidacy – far more than the handful he could afford to lose given the party’s narrow majority in Congress. These are the House Republicans who voted against Jordan in each ballot:First ballot1. Don Bacon of Nebraska voted for former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy2. Anthony D’Esposito of New York voted for former Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York4. Kelly voted for former House Speaker John Boehner15.

Persons: Jim Jordan of, Jordan –, Kevin McCarthy’s, Jordan, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Kevin McCarthy, Lori Chavez, McCarthy, Anthony D’Esposito, Lee Zeldin, Mario Diaz, Steve Scalise, Jake Ellzey, Mike Garcia, Andrew Garbarino, Carlos Gimenez, Tony Gonzales, Kay Granger, Mike Kelly, Jennifer Kiggans, Nick LaLota, Mike Lawler, John Rutherford of, Mike Simpson, Steve Womack, Ken Buck, Tom Emmer, John James of Michigan, Tom Cole, Doug LaMalfa, Victoria Spartz, Thomas Massie of, Bacon, Vern Buchanan, Byron Donalds, Buck, Chavez, DeRemer, D’Esposito, Diaz, Balart, Ellzey, Garcia, Drew Ferguson, Garbarino, Gimenez, Gonzales, Granger, James, Candice Miller, Kelly, John Boehner, Kiggans, Lawler, LaLota, Mariannette Miller, Meeks, Rutherford, Simpson, Pete Stauber, Bruce Westerman, Womack Organizations: Washington CNN — Republican, House Republicans, New York, Michigan Locations: Jim Jordan of Ohio, Oregon, New, New York, Florida, Louisiana, Texas, California, Virginia, John Rutherford of Florida, Idaho, Arkansas, Colorado, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Indiana, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Georgia, Iowa

And others, still, cited grievances with Scalise’s record or with maintaining the status quo by elevating the No. By Thursday afternoon, even lawmakers Scalise had previously flipped changed their minds, and his backing began deteriorating. And in a razor-thin GOP majority, Scalise needs the support of all but four of his conference to secure the gavel if every Democrat casts a ballot. “I love Steve Scalise,” Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee said heading into the conference meeting to determine the next steps. “I think we need to start voting.”Others said the disagreement should be fleshed out in private before proceeding to a floor vote.

Persons: Steve Scalise, “ We’re, Scalise, it’s, Jim Jordan of, Jordan, Kevin McCarthy, Max Miller of, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie of, Chip Roy, Nancy Mace, Carlos Gimenez, Lauren Boebert, Bob Good, Michael Cloud of, Barry Moore of, Lloyd Smucker, George Santos, George Santos of New York –, McCarthy, Matt Gaetz, speakership, Scalise’s speakership, ”, hasn’t, “ We’ve, Michael McCaul, “, Andy Ogles, I’m, Steve, ” Greene, Ralph Norman of, Donald Trump – Organizations: Louisiana Republican, Scalise, – Rep, Max Miller of Ohio, George Santos of New York, speakership, Rep, Republican, ” Locations: mended, Jim Jordan of Ohio, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, Carlos Gimenez of Florida, Colorado, Virginia, Michael Cloud of Texas, Barry Moore of Alabama, Pennsylvania, George Santos of, Florida, California, George Santos of New York, Israel, Tennessee, Ralph Norman of South Carolina

As of now, neither House Majority Leader Steve Scalise nor Rep. Jim Jordan – the two declared GOP candidates in the race – have locked down 217 votes, the necessary number to be elected speaker by a majority vote of the full chamber. The uncertain vote math has raised questions over how and when the GOP majority will be able to elect a new speaker, particularly as infighting continues to roil House Republican ranks. “I’d put it at 2%,” he said when asked by a reporter what the chances are there will be a new House speaker by Wednesday. After his removal as speaker in a historic vote last week, McCarthy announced he would not run again for the post. Read more about the race for House speaker here.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy’s, Steve Scalise, Jim Jordan –, Mike Garcia, it’s, “, Thomas Massie, I’d, ”, McCarthy, Wednesday’s, Read Organizations: Republicans, GOP, Republican, California Republican, Kentucky Locations: California

CNN —House Republicans picked Rep. Steve Scalise as their nominee for speaker on Wednesday, but the Louisiana Republican lacks the votes needed to win the gavel and it remains unclear whether he will be able to win over holdouts. Scalise won out over Rep. Jim Jordan in a closed-door vote by the House GOP conference to pick their speaker nominee on Wednesday. House Republicans hold a narrow majority and Scalise can only afford to lose four GOP votes on the floor and still win the speakership. McCarthy’s ouster, which was driven by a group of hardline conservatives, has intensified deep divisions within the House GOP conference and escalated tensions. Scalise is a veteran of House GOP leadershipScalise has risen through the ranks of leadership during his time in Congress.

Persons: Steve Scalise, Kevin McCarthy’s, Scalise, Jim Jordan, Donald Trump, Jordan, Trump, McCarthy’s, It’s, “ I’m, I’ll, Marjorie Taylor Greene, CNN’s Manu Raju, “, Jake Tapper, Thomas Massie, Massie, McCarthy, hasn’t, Steve, ”, Kevin Hern, Byron Donalds of, Tom Emmer, – Organizations: CNN — House Republicans, Louisiana Republican, holdouts, Republicans, House GOP, Committee, Scalise, House Republicans, GOP, CNN, ” Republican, Oklahoma GOP, Oklahoma, Rep, Republican Locations: Louisiana, Georgia, Byron Donalds of Florida

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) speaks during a press conference on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with members of the House Freedom Caucus on July 14, 2023 in Washington, DC. The House narrowly passed an annual defense policy bill on Friday after Republicans added provisions on abortion and transgender surgeries — measures that were a nonstarter for Democrats. The amendments, adopted Thursday, would ban the secretary of defense from paying for or reimbursing service members for abortion-related expenses and transgender surgeries and hormone treatments. House Democratic leaders said Thursday that members of their caucus will vote against passing the bill. The defense legislation will eventually need to be reconciled with a version of the bill under consideration in the Senate.

Persons: Ronny Jackson, Ken Buck, Ken Buck of Colorado, Andy Biggs, Eli Crane of, Thomas Massie of, Henry Cuellar, John Duarte of, Brian Fitzpatrick, Matt Rosendale, Joe Biden's, Hakeem Jeffries, Sen, Tommy Tuberville, Scott Perry, We're, Perry, Pete Aguilar, I've, Pat Ryan Organizations: National Defense, Caucus, Democrats, Four, Rep, Texas Democrat, Republicans, Department of Defense, Defense Department, Democratic, House Democratic, Senate, GOP, House Armed Services Committee Locations: Washington ,, Ken Buck of, Eli Crane of Arizona, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Texas, John Duarte of California, Pennsylvania, D

☆ Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has some fans on Capitol Hill — they just happen to be Republicans
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

RFK Jr. might be running for President as a Democrat, but he has some fans among GOP lawmakers. Sen. Ron Johnson told Insider he hopes Kennedy "gains traction and wins the nomination." House Republicans have invited Kennedy to testify next week, and some Democrats say it's a political ploy. "He's displayed extraordinary political courage," said Johnson, recounting Kennedy's own narrative about how he took up anti-vaccine advocacy. Johnson's liking for Kennedy goes beyond just COVID and vaccines — he's on a similar wavelength with other aspects of Kennedy's conspiratorial worldview as well.

Persons: Sen, Ron Johnson, Kennedy, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Johnson, It's, he's, Bobby, He's, John F, York Sen, Trump, Joe Biden's, Jack Dorsey, David Sacks, Biden, it's, That's, Jim Banks, Ted Cruz, Thomas Massie of, I'd, Massie, Jim Jordan, Tom Williams, Jordan, Donald Trump's, Dennis Kucinich, who's, Kucinich, Dan Goldman, Goldman Organizations: RFK Jr, GOP, Republicans, Service, Democratic, Tea Party, Republican, JFK, CIA, Biden, Ukraine, Twitter, Capitol, Kennedy Democrats, Democrat Party, Jim Banks of Indiana, Federal Government, FBI, Big Tech, Inc, Getty, Center, Children's Health Defense, Democrat Locations: Wall, Silicon, Kennedy's, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, York, Ted Cruz of Texas, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Ohio, New York

CNN —House Republicans unloaded a barrage of criticism directed toward FBI Director Christopher Wray Wednesday, outlining a litany of complaints while Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee. Chairman Jim Jordan opened the hearing launching into a wide array of attacks on the FBI. “House Republicans will attack the FBI for having had the audacity to treat Donald Trump like any other citizen. FBI Director Christopher Wray is sworn in prior to testifying before a House Judiciary Committee hearing. “We did stand up a whole dedicated unit to focus on threats to FBI, individuals, FBI employees and FBI facilities because of the uptick that we saw over that time period,” Wray said.

Persons: Christopher Wray, Wray, Jim Jordan, Hunter Biden, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, “, ”, Matt Gaetz, ” Wray, ” Gaetz, Edgar Hoover, Gaetz, Jonathan Ernst, ’ Wray, Trump . Jordan, Jordan, Jerry Nadler, ” Nadler, Saul Loeb, –, John Durham, Biden, Hunter, ” that’s, ” Jordan, Thomas Massie, Massie, Nadler, Jack Smith’s, – Wray Organizations: CNN — House Republicans, FBI, Catholic Church, Florida Republican, Reuters, GOP, Foreign Intelligence, Republican, Trump ., Ohio Republican, Republicans, Trump, DOJ, FISA, “, White, ” New York Rep, ”, Committee, Getty, CNN, US State Department, Biden, White House, Democratic National Committee, Capitol, Trump’s Locations: Richmond, Florida, Washington , DC, Ohio, United States, Russia, Durham, Ukrainian, Louisiana, Kentucky, Lago, Mar

☆ Debt Limit Bill Heads to Key Committee in First Test of G.O.P. Support
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Carl Hulse | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

If they are joined by another Republican on the committee, they could sideline the agreement before it even reaches the floor. A third ultraconservative on the panel, Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, is considered a potential ally of Mr. Roy and Mr. Norman but has shown receptiveness to the debt limit deal. Lawmakers are generally expected to back bills they had a hand in writing, even if they object to other aspects. “This debt deal arguably puts us on a better footing to do the appropriations process properly,” Mr. Massie said on Twitter on Monday. members backing the bill could also look to Democrats on the panel for support for the measure.

CNN —House Speaker Kevin McCarthy helped secure a debt limit deal – now he has to secure its passage in the House, with little room for error and a looming threat to his speakership. In a win for McCarthy, a key Republican said he expects to support a rule to set parameters for debate. The powerful House Rules Committee must still vote to adopt the rule, but with that anticipated support, it is now on track to do so — a hurdle that must be cleared before the bill can come to the House floor for a final vote. If he did not support the rule, the debt limit bill may have been unable to advance to the House floor. Roy and Norman have both emerged as leading critics of the bipartisan debt limit bill.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy, –, McCarthy, “, it’s, Thomas Massie, Massie, Chip Roy, Texas, Ralph Norman of, Carolina –, Roy, Norman, ” Massie, Glenn Beck, can’t, Jim Jordan, Ohio, he’s, McCarthy’s, ”, Patrick McHenry, ” McHenry, “ I’m, McHenry Organizations: CNN —, GOP, Treasury Department, CNN, Republican Locations: Kentucky, Carolina

☆ Republican tries to scuttle debt limit bill in House Rules Committee as pressure grows on key swing vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Manu Raju | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

That would essentially doom the debt ceiling bill since Roy – who sits on the panel – and another conservative committee member are trying to stop the bill from advancing. A third conservative who sits on the panel – Massie – has been mum about how he plans to handle the rule vote in committee. But in January, Massie told CNN he was reluctant to vote against rules to stop bills in their tracks. “And when I checked, there wasn’t a rule that something has to come out of Rules Committee unanimously. “I think that comment was that it had to be unanimous to come out of the Rules Committee to go to the floor is the tweet that I read.

☆ Biden and McCarthy lean on holdouts in both parties to pass debt ceiling deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The bill caps non-defense spending, temporarily expands work requirements for some food stamp recipients and claws back some Covid-19 relief funds. Speaking from the White House on Sunday, Biden hailed the agreement as critical to preventing economic disaster. But like Biden, McCarthy acknowledged the agreement required concessions from both sides. Dusty Johnson said on “State of the Union.”Passing the bill through the House will not be the final step. On Sunday, a handful of powerful Senate Republicans had raised concerns about the deal’s defense spending during a Senate GOP conference call, a source on the call said.

☆ Tucker Carlson helped broker the deal that made Kevin McCarthy House speaker after 14 failed votes, text messages show
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Tucker Carlson won concessions from Kevin McCarthy in a deal that made him House speaker, per his texts. McCarthy needed 218 votes to win his bid to become House speaker, giving him a small margin of error. The result was 14 rounds of votes that failed to produce a House speaker, making it the most contested speaker election in more than 150 years. Grossberg discussed some of the conversations between her and Carlson regarding McCarthy's House Speaker election in an interview with CNN on Tuesday night. On January 7, the House held its 15th vote for House Speaker.

☆ DeSantis goes to Washington, a place he once despised, looking for support to take on Trump
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Steve Contorno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Hours ahead of his meeting with congressional Republicans, Florida Rep. John Rutherford endorsed Trump, making him the sixth House Republican to back the former president over their home state governor. Rutherford’s announcement comes after NBC reported last week that DeSantis’ political operation was scrambling to convince Florida Republicans not to endorse until after he had formally decided to run. A spokesman for DeSantis’ political operation did not return a call or email. But by plucking support from within DeSantis’ backyard, Trump has created the impression that even Republicans close to DeSantis may be having second thoughts about his performance. Roy was among the first to back DeSantis, calling him “a man of conviction” who “unequivocally has made Florida stronger and freer.”

☆ Opinion: Gun control after Louisville shooting has a chance
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Max Burns | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Meanwhile, Democrats — once wary of mentioning gun control at all — have finally rediscovered their voice. See heated gun control discussion between lawmakers in the halls of Congress 01:19 - Source: CNNDemocrats’ rising confidence in fighting for gun reform comes against a backdrop of tireless coalition-building from gun safety activists and community organizers across the country. Everytown credits at least 51 pieces of state-level gun safety legislation passed in 2022 to their state-by-state strategy. Over the summer, an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that 59% of American adults think it’s more important to control gun violence than to protect gun rights (35%) — “its highest point in nearly a decade.” These figures have surely factored into Democrats new assertiveness on gun control. “Republicans look completely unreasonable when they won’t even discuss background checks, gun safety measures like storage or red flag laws,” Del Percio warned.

☆ Opinion: Don't count DeSantis out yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Patrick T. Brown | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

A third Trump presidential nomination would indicate that Republican primary voters may prefer style over substance. But if they are serious about not just making liberals mad but advancing actual policy, GOP voters should consider other names, starting with the Florida governor. Recognizing key figures and institutions on the right in this way suggests a DeSantis administration would be serious about delivering on conservative principles. In short, DeSantis offers Republicans a glimpse into what a successful conservative approach to governing could look like. If GOP voters decide their primary operating principle is to enrage the media and “own the libs,” they will nominate Trump.

Embattled Rep. George Santos grabbed a premier center aisle seat ahead of President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address. Seated beside Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Santos soon discovered that not everyone — including some Republicans — was interested in seeing him. Santos sat just in front of Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee and behind Rep. Trent Kelly of Mississippi. Seats are reserved for senators as a group in the front of the chamber and House members sit behind them. House members can claim preferred spots during the day but they have to camp out there to reserve them for the entirety of the speech.

☆ C-SPAN captured a tense back-and-forth between George Santos and Mitt Romney at the State of the Union
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

George Santos and Mitt Romney had what appeared to be a tense exchange at the State of the Union. Following the speech, Santos tweeted that Romney "will NEVER be PRESIDENT!" C-SPAN cameras captured the tense interaction between Santos — the scandal-plagued Long Island congressman — and Romney, the party's 2012 presidential nominee. And according to CNN, Romney simply told Santos: "You don't belong here." Following the speech, Santos tweeted that Romney "will NEVER be PRESIDENT!"

☆ House Democrats have already found something to love about Kevin McCarthy's Republican-led House
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The House just used an open process for amending legislation for the first time in 7 years. But in interviews with Insider this week, Democrats also expressed skepticism that the use of open rules would be more than a one-time thing; the open rules that the chamber utilized last week were provided for as part of the House GOP's rules package. "We'll see how long this lasts," said Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California, a long-time ally of Pelosi. Spanberger herself had fun with open amendments, submitting one that would exclude drilling from areas offshore because the GOP majority was "looking to destroy Virginia's beautiful coastline." said Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California, who said he generally favors an open process.

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