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☆ State of the Union brings brief unanimity on Social Security, Medicare. Why experts say there's still reason to worry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

That would include Social Security and Medicare. The Republican Study Budget Committee, which included a host of House GOP leaders, has also suggested other changes — raising the retirement ages for both Social Security and Medicare, as well as changing the measurement for annual Social Security cost-of-living adjustments. More recently, former Vice President Mike Pence called for reforming Social Security with the creation of private savings accounts. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., has led a House bill that would apply reapply payroll taxes on $400,000 in earnings while also making benefits more generous. Biden similarly proposed expanding benefits and increasing payroll taxes on high earners during his presidential campaign.

☆ NBA roundup: Giannis' triple-double sparks Bucks to 7th straight win
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Khris Middleton scored 24 points off the bench for the Bucks, who won their seventh straight game. Tyler Herro added 24 points despite shooting just 2 of 8 from 3-point range, and Bam Adebayo recorded a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds. Jalen Brunson scored 41 points, three shy of his career high, while Julius Randle posted 28 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks. De'Andre Hunter scored 20 points and Clint Capela had 12 points and 11 rebounds. DeMar DeRozan collected 27 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, and Nikola Vucevic had 23 points and 11 rebounds.

☆ NBA roundup: Mavs win game but lose Luka Doncic
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Knicks 120, Celtics 117 (OT)Julius Randle scored 37 points and Jalen Brunson added 29 as New York came back to win in overtime in Boston. Brunson added four rebounds, seven assists and two blocks, rejecting Malcolm Brogdon's potential game-tying 3 at the buzzer. Jayson Tatum had 35 points and 14 rebounds while Jaylen Brown added 22 points in Boston's third straight loss. Zach LaVine had 18 points and nine rebounds, Patrick Williams posted 15 points in his hometown, and Nikola Vucevic (nine rebounds) and Ayo Dosunmu each had 12 points. Norman Powell added 15 points for Los Angeles, with Robert Covington scoring 13 and Reggie Jackson and Ivica Zubac contributing 12 and 11 points, respectively.

WASHINGTON — Republicans, newly empowered with a House majority, are demanding spending cuts as a price for lifting the debt ceiling and averting a catastrophic default on U.S. debt. Republicans are divided over whether Medicare and Social Security spending should be on the chopping block. Jose Luis Magana / APLuna said she wants to do it without tax increases or Social Security or Medicare cuts. The White House has vowed that Biden won’t grant concessions on the debt limit and that paying the country’s bills is non-negotiable. But I think we’ve got to also honor our commitment to Americans when it comes to Social Security and Medicare,” Garcia continued.

☆ NBA roundup: Nikola Jokic, Nuggets edge Pelicans in final seconds
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Mandatory Credit: Andrew Wevers-USA TODAY SportsJanuary 25 - Nikola Jokic had a triple-double and scored the winning basket with 16 seconds left as the visiting Denver Nuggets defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 99-98 on Tuesday night. Hernangomez made two free throws with 36 seconds left to give the Pelicans a 98-97 lead, but Jokic answered with a jump hook from the lane. Heat 98, Celtics 95Bam Adebayo had 30 points -- including the go-ahead jumper in the lane with 20.4 seconds left -- to lead host Miami over Boston. Adebayo also grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds as Miami won without its leading scorer, Jimmy Butler, who sat due to back stiffness. Mason Plumlee notched 17 points and Jalen McDaniels provided 15 points and 10 rebounds.

☆ NBA roundup: Celtics claim 8th straight with OT win over Warriors
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Williams added 11 rebounds. Damion Lee added 16 points and reserve Saben Lee had a season-best 15 as Phoenix won for just the third time in its past 15 games. Nic Claxton had 20 points and 11 rebounds, Joe Harris and Seth Curry scored 16 points apiece and Cam Thomas added 15. Anthony Edwards had 23 points and Kyle Anderson added 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for Minnesota. Hamidou Diallo tossed in 17 points, while Saddiq Bey and Jaden Ivey had 16 points apiece.

☆ NBC News host scoffs at Sen. Ron Johnson after he said the media was biased during a charged interview: 'You can go back on your partisan cable cocoon'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sen. Ron Johnson appeared on NBC News' "Meet the Press" on Sunday. Johnson and NBC News Host Chuck Todd repeatedly cut each other off throughout the interview. Johnson repeatedly claimed that the media was biased whenever Todd called him out. They make these things up," Johnson told Todd, later refuting the idea that the recent insurrection in Brazil looked similar to the January 6, 2021 insurrection. "Senator Ron Johnson, I look forward to our face-to-face at some point.

☆ Biden's classified records bumbling is a gift for Trump, and some high-profile figures say it closes the door on an indictment for the former president
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Biden aides have discovered two batches of classified documents from when he was vice president. "When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House? Over in the US House Republicans have already launched an investigation. Trump is the only person to have announced a 2024 campaign for the White House, but his campaign has been off to a slow start. Some commentators even predicted that the perception of a double standard around the Biden documents investigation would derail a potential Trump indictment.

☆ Bills ride emotional win into NFL postseason
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

With 19 teams still in the postseason hunt entering the final weekend, there was no shortage of gridiron suspense unfolding across the United States. At every stadium before kickoff there was an announcement acknowledging Hamlin and the first responders and medical caregivers. But the Bills that provided Hamlin with the best tribute of all, harnessing their emotions to secure a victory and the AFC second seed. "We just wanted to come out and play free, play loose, play for (Damar)," said Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who also threw three touchdown passes. Despite the loss, the Giants also qualify for the postseason, moving on to the wildcard, where they will face the Minnesota Vikings.

☆ Five states will have politically-split Senate delegations in the new Congress, reflecting the nation's continued partisan polarization
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The new Congress, which begins this week, will have five politically-split Senate delegations. But in the new Congress, which begins this week, only five states will have split Senate delegations: Maine, Montana, Ohio, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. AP Photo/Matthew BrownMontanaDemocratic Sen. Jon Tester and Republican Sen. Steve DainesTester was first elected to the Senate in 2006 and secured reelection in both 2012 and 2018. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty ImagesWest VirginiaDemocratic Sen. Joe Manchin and Republican Sen. Shelley Moore CapitoManchin is perhaps the nation's most recognizable moderate Democrat, having single-handedly scuttled Biden's Build Back Better agenda in December 2021. WisconsinRepublican Sen. Ron Johnson and Democratic Sen. Tammy BaldwinThe Badger State is often home to some of the closest races in the entire country.

☆ Chinese manufacturing contracts sharply as COVID infections soar
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Economists in a Reuters poll had expected the PMI to come in at 48.0. The data offered the first official snapshot of the manufacturing sector after China removed the world's strictest COVID restrictions in early December. Cumulative infections likely reached 18.6 million in December, UK-based health data firm Airfinity estimated. GDP expanded 3% in the first nine months of 2022, versus China's official full-year goal of around 5.5%. The official composite PMI, which combines manufacturing and services, declined to 42.6 from 47.1.

NBC News reporters tracked seven bellwether counties as part of the "County to County" project for the 2022 midterm elections. However, as the Omicron variant swept its way across the country last winter, even Democratic voters were in a sour mood, showing pandemic fatigue amid Biden’s stalled legislative agenda. Democrats doubled down on the message even as polls showed GOP Sen. Ron Johnson gaining momentum with a message on crime. For young voters in Dane County, it was a message that worked. Democrats were enthusiastic, and they'll continue to look to Dane County as key to their path to victory in 2024 and beyond.

☆ Six battleground states will hold the key to the White House in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

AP Photo/Andrew HarnikGeorgia2012 margin: Romney +7.8%2016 margin: Trump +5.1%2020 margin: Biden +0.2%For decades, Republicans could easily depend on the Peach State's electoral votes falling into their column. Two years later, Biden won the state by roughly 12,000 votes over Trump, followed by the dual 2021 runoff victories of Sens. AP Photo/Matt RourkePennsylvania2012 margin: Obama +5.4%2016 margin: Trump +0.7%2020 margin: Biden +1.2%Biden's hometown of Scranton is dear to his heart so Pennsylvania was always going to be a key state for the party in 2024. AP Photo/Andy Manis, FileWisconsin2012 margin: Obama +6.9%2016 margin: Trump +0.8%2020 margin: Biden +0.6%Wisconsin is one of the most politically-divided states in the country. But Trump flipped Wisconsin to the GOP in 2016, the first time it had supported a Republican presidential nominee since 1984.

☆ Here are the 5 senators who voted against giving workers break time to pump breast milk
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Five senators voted against expanding protections for breastfeeding workers. The PUMP Act will now be included in the federal Omnibus bill, which the president is expected to sign. In online statements on Thursday, Merkley and Murkowski celebrated the passage of the PUMP Act. "I am encouraged to see the PUMP Act pass the Senate—good progress toward ensuring no mother ever has to choose between a job and nursing her child," Murkowski said. Merkley and Murkowski initially tried to get the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act voted on as a standalone bill on Tuesday, but the attempt was blocked by Paul.

☆ Conservative senators hail member-led strategy session as 'good first step' in dealing with mounting frustrations about Mitch McConnell's leadership
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A group of Senate Republicans hosted their first member-led policy discussion on Wednesday. Attendees said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was in the room but didn't participate. "Nothing was fleshed out," Braun told reporters at the US Capitol, adding that "I think it's the beginning, maybe, of a more participatory process." Still, convening more meetings, which Cornyn said this group seemed inclined to do, is preferable to the scorched-earth tactics others have embraced in the past. "I think they're good meetings to have," Rubio told Insider.

☆ Kevin McCarthy's oversight agenda will be 'a recurring skit on SNL' if he makes MAGA cheerleaders Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert investigators: GOP strategists
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert want in on the GOP oversight blitz. the Oversight Committee member said of the need to keep congressional probes above board. McCarthy's office has repeatedly told Insider that the House GOP steering committee, which McCarthy leads, will handle assignments for the next Congress "at the appropriate time." Aaron Cutler, a former House GOP leadership aide and now partner at Hogan Lovells, urged House Republicans to avoid "focusing on the wrong things," and to cut bait if needed. Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty ImagesGiven that some sort of spectacle is probably unavoidable at this point, Roe urged House Republicans to tread carefully.

☆ Senate MAGA mutineers incensed their red wave never came work on new ways to punish Mitch McConnell
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Senate Republicans recently tried and failed to strip Mitch McConnell of his leadership post. Ted Cruz is among the conservatives determined to "stand up and fight" against business as usual. He called any such compromise "indefensible," and urged others to also dig in their heels so House Republicans have a better negotiating position next year once their narrow majority takes effect. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is trying to fend off House conservatives determined to deny him his dream of becoming speaker, has also been pushing to quash any lame duck breakthroughs. "Any Republican that's out there trying to work with them is wrong," McCarthy recently said on Fox News.

☆ Senate MAGA mutineers work on new ways to punish Mitch McConnell
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Special counsel Jack Smith has subpoenaed local officials in key presidential swing states for any and all communications involving former President Donald Trump, his campaign and a series of aides and allies who assisted in his effort to overturn the 2020 election. A spokesperson for Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson confirmed that Smith’s office had sent a subpoena. Scott McDonnell, the Dane County clerk, confirmed to NBC News that his county had received a virtually identical subpoena as Milwaukee. An Arizona elections official confirmed that Maricopa County had received such a subpoena this month with similar demands for those communications. "Maricopa County has received a subpoena and will comply," Fields Moseley, a county spokesperson, said.

☆ How Trump’s legacy became ‘pure poison’ for independents
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Ronald Brownstein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

Among female independents, Trump’s ratings were even worse: just 23% favorable and 72% unfavorable, according to previously unpublished exit poll results provided by the CNN polling unit. Trump’s unfavorable rating hit a comparable 69% among independents with at least a four-year college degree. That was a significantly smaller advantage than the double-digit lead among independents Democrats enjoyed in both the 2020 presidential race and the 2018 contest for the House. While Democrats held the presidency, Republicans won independents by double-digits in House elections in the midterms of 2014, 2010 and 1994. Gretchen Whitmer won 59% of the independents with degrees and 56% of women independents.

☆ GOP senators threaten to delay major military bill over Covid vaccine mandate
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julie-Tsirkin-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Julie Tsirkin | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON — Several Republicans are warning they will drag out Senate consideration of a massive military policy bill unless they get a vote on ending a Covid vaccination mandate for service members. The senators’ threat could delay final passage of the annual bill, which Congress has consistently passed, but it would not prevent the Senate from eventually voting on the legislation. It is insane.”The other GOP senators calling for a vaccination vote are Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and Mike Braun of Indiana. The Biden administration has had a mixed record on Covid vaccination mandates in court. The proposal put forth by the seven GOP senators is unlikely to get a vote without the support of Senate Republican leaders.

☆ JCPenney was once a shopping giant. Can it make a comeback?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

People walk past a JCPenney store at the Queens Center Mall in New York in 2016. The Denver Post/Getty Images Shoppers hurry across an intersection in front of a JCPenney store in Denver in 1964. Anne Cusack/The Los Angeles Times/Getty Images Customers shop at a new JCPenney store in New York in 2009. Mary Altaffer/AP A customer goes down an escalator at a JCPenney store in Westminster, Colorado, in 2009. Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images JCPenney CEO Jill Soltau speaks during an interview in Fort Worth, Texas, in 2019.

☆ Fewer states than ever could pick the next president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Ronald Brownstein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Five states decided the last presidential race by flipping from Trump in 2016 to Joe Biden in 2020 – Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The Democratic and Republican presidential nominees have each carried 20 states in every election since at least 2008. Democrats did not demonstrate the capacity to threaten any of the GOP’s core 20 states, as Republicans did in Nevada. A race with just Wisconsin, Nevada, Georgia and Arizona as true battlegrounds would begin with Democrats favored in states holding 260 Electoral College votes (including Washington, DC) and Republicans in states with 235. After 2022, the list of genuinely competitive presidential states may be shrinking, but, if anything, that could increase the tension as the nation remains poised on the knife’s edge between two deeply entrenched, but increasingly antithetical, political coalitions.

In the 13 races in six battleground states where an election denier was on the ballot for governor, secretary of state or attorney general, 12 lost, according to the latest NBC News projections. Arizona — along with Michigan and Alabama — was one of three states where election deniers advanced to be the GOP nominees for governor, secretary of state and attorney general. In Pennsylvania, meanwhile, Republican Doug Mastriano — who was one of the most high-profile election deniers — lost the race for governor to Democrat Josh Shapiro. “But voters sent a very clear message that Americans deeply care about democracy and don’t want extremists running our nation’s elections.”The defeats of election deniers spanned well beyond swing states. All 14 races where election deniers won were in states that voted to elect Trump in both 2016 and 2020.

Sen. Linsey Graham, a Trump ally, told reporters he voted "for change." "I welcome the contest," McConnell told reporters after Scott announced his bid. "I voted for change," he told reporters. Earlier this month during an interview with Fox News host Martha McCallum, Scott denied rumors spread by Trump that Scott "hates" McConnell. So we acquainted our members with the tools they have," McConnell told reporters at the US Capitol, adding, "I think that'll be used more often.

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