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☆ Republicans boost outgoing Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey as a potential challenger to Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Republicans hope that outgoing Arizona Gov. "I hope that he'll get in," Utah Sen. Mitt Romney told The Hill of a potential Ducey candidacy. Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee, told The Hill that Ducey would be "excellent candidate." This year, Arizona Republicans nominated venture capitalist Blake Masters as their Senate nominee, but he went on to lose to Kelly by 5 points last month. "He's not our only chance, but he's probably our best chance," an Arizona-based Republican operative told The Hill of Ducey.

REUTERS/Tom BrennerWASHINGTON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Over 200 advocates from around the United States converged on Capitol Hill this week with an 11th-hour mission: persuade lawmakers to provide citizenship to "Dreamer" immigrants who illegally entered the United States as children. Addinelly Moreno Soto, a 31-year-old communications aide who came to the United States from Mexico at age 3, trekked to the Capitol from San Antonio with her husband hoping to meet with her state's U.S. Senator John Cornyn, an influential Republican whose support could help advance a deal that has eluded Congress for more than a decade. The end-of-year push comes as a window is closing for Congress to find a compromise to protect "Dreamers", many of whom speak English and have jobs, families and children in the United States but lack permanent status. Tillis himself has been skeptical about whether Congress will have time to pass the legislation before the year’s end.

☆ Advocates Urge Congress to Pass Permanent Residency Status for Afghans
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Drew Angerer/Getty ImagesConvincing Republican senatorsThe House version of the Afghan Adjustment Act has 143 co-sponsors, including 10 Republicans. Demonstrators gather to support Afghan evacuees outside the Capitol on Nov. 16, 2022. At the moment, one prospect to advance the Afghan Adjustment Act is by attaching it to that larger spending bill, advocates say. But negotiations on the omnibus are ongoing, and whether the Afghan Adjustment Act will be included is up in the air. Yet without a deal by then, passage of the Afghan Adjustment Act appears doomed, advocates say, keeping Afghan evacuees in perpetual legal limbo.

WASHINGTON — Democrats are grappling with how to handle a potential re-election bid by newly minted independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema in 2024, fearing that a three-way battle could split their voters and throw the race to Republicans in Arizona. Asked how the DSCC should handle a possible Sinema 2024 run, Sinema's Arizona colleague, Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, “I haven’t given that any thought." Schumer said he has granted Sinema’s request to preserve her committee assignments through the Democratic Party, meaning the 51-49 partisan organization of the chamber won’t change. She wouldn’t say if Democrats should back her but said her working relationship with Sinema won’t change. Prior to her party switch, Sinema had stronger relationships with Republican senators than just about any Democrat.

☆ 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.

☆ Effort to impeach Alejandro Mayorkas will only complicate the immigration puzzle
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

They want the incoming Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee to launch an impeachment investigation of Mayorkas ASAP in early January. While their alleged crimes are very different, any impeachment effort against Mayorkas would likely end similarly: Belknap was acquitted in a Senate trial. Democrats, controlling the Senate majority, would surely do the same if Republicans could even muster the majority needed to impeach Mayorkas. McCarthy would rather just see Mayorkas resign, although there’s no indication Mayorkas will. “If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure.

On Tuesday, for example, Fox News host Sean Hannity said Republicans “have been unwilling for whatever reason” to vote early and by mail. Ahead of the general election, registered Democrats held an 8-point edge over registered Republicans in Georgia in early voting. Now about to enter his seventh term, Schweikert said that Republicans in his state used to enjoy a robust early voting edge. Kirk, who had raised concerns about mail-in voting, changed his tune after the November midterms, tweeting that Republicans must recognize the “power of early voting.” But Johnson has called for a ban on mail-in voting. At the forefront of GOP concerns over early voting is Pennsylvania, where Democrats enjoyed an edge so substantial that Republicans did not come close to overcoming it.

☆ Trump's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad campaign kickoff
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Trump pledged when he launched his 2024 campaign that "America's comeback starts right now." Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell also said Trump's actions make him less likely to be the party's nominee. Trump endorsed Florida Sen. Rick Scott in the contest, but McConnell handily defeated Scott, another sign of Trump's slipping hold on the Republican Party. The DA's office notched a huge victory this week when a jury convicted the Trump Organization of nine tax-fraud counts. US District Judge Beryl Howell has not made a final decision on the request to hold Trump's team in contempt of court, according to The Post.

"Grateful for the long-overdue release of Brittney Griner today from Russian custody. "Thank you to every single person that kept Brittney Griner’s name alive #WEAREBG," tweeted one of her Phoenix Mercury teammates, Brianna Turner. The Biden administration wasn't able to secure Whelan's release because the Russian government is treating his case differently than Griner's, Biden said. “While we celebrate Brittney’s release, Paul Whelan and his family continue to suffer needlessly,” Blinken said. Share this -Link copiedWho is Viktor Bout, Russian arms dealer that the U.S. exchanged for Brittney Griner?

☆ First on CNN: Defense bill takes aim at Russia’s pot of gold
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN Business —A must-pass defense bill now being negotiated in Congress includes new sanctions designed to trip up Russia’s war machine by targeting Moscow’s mountain of gold. If passed, the defense bill would directly sanction any American entities that knowingly transact with or transport gold from Russia’s central bank holdings. As of mid-2021, Russia’s central bank held $127 billion worth of gold, according to the Central Bank of Russia. The gold is stored at vaults within the territory of the Russian Federation, the Russian central bank has said. In June, President Joe Biden announced the United States and the rest of the G7 would impose a ban on imports of Russian gold.

☆ U.S. lawmakers ease planned curbs on Chinese chips amid corporate pushback
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Alexandra Alper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The final version no longer forbids contractors from "using" the targeted chips and pushes the compliance deadline back to five years from the immediate or two-year implementation deadlines included in the first version. Chips made by SMIC are commissioned by companies all over the world and can be found in products as diverse as cell phones and cars. They are difficult to identify because chips are not typically labeled with the names of the companies that manufacture them. Lawmakers released a final version of the NDAA Tuesday night. Schumer's office, SMIC, YMTC, CXMT and the Chamber of Commerce did not respond to requests for comment.

☆ U.S. lawmakers ease proposed curbs on Chinese chips amid corporate pushback
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Alexandra Alper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Chips made by SMIC are commissioned by companies all over the world and can be found in products as diverse as cell phones and cars. They are difficult to identify because chips are not typically labeled with the names of the companies that manufacture them. Lawmakers are expected to announce final language for the final package later this week, which may include the revised measure. SMIC, YMTC and CXMT, the Chinese Embassy in Washington and the Chamber of Commerce did not immediately respond to requests for comment. SMIC was blacklisted by the Trump administration over concerns the company aids the Chinese military.

Senate Republicans who weighed in on Trump's remarks on Truth Social from Saturday focused more on the importance of upholding the Constitution. “A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,” Trump wrote. Romney added that he doesn't think Trump's comments will affect his chances of winning the GOP nomination in 2024. Sen. Mike Rounds, meanwhile, tied Trump's remarks to his 2024 ambitions. Some GOP senators, including Rick Scott of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri, said the electorate should determine if Trump's remarks were disqualifying.

☆ GOP backlash over Trump's call for 'termination' of the US Constitution grows despite his attempts to walk back comment
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Donald Trump claimed on Monday that he had not called for the Constitution to be cancelled. It came amid a backlash from Republican senators over the comment. Trump said that election fraud allowed for the "termination of all rules" including "those found in the Constitution." "The Fake News is actually trying to convince the American People that I said I wanted to 'terminate' the Constitution. His claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him have been widely refuted.

[1/2] Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a rally to support Republican candidates ahead of midterm elections, in Dayton, Ohio, U.S. November 7, 2022. "Every President and every member of Congress swears to 'defend' the Constitution of the United States," White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said on Monday. "Asking Members of Congress to reaffirm their oath of office and uphold the Constitution should not be a heavy lift. Some Republicans condemned the remarks made by Trump on Saturday on his Truth Social online platform but many remained silent or did not condemn him by name. Both Cornyn and Thune, however, stopped short of saying Trump's remarks should disqualify him as a presidential candidate when they were asked that by reporters.

At face value, this act seems like a step forward by codifying federal same-sex and interracial marriage rights. At best, it is a preemptive Band-Aid should the Supreme Court try to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, which cited the Fourteenth Amendment to legalize same-sex marriage. But in no way does this act federally legalize “marriage equality” across the United States. The protections to religious liberty were late additions to the bill, in order to secure the support of Senate Republicans like Utah’s Mitt Romney. Of course, the irony in this situation is that federal marriage equality isn’t even guaranteed under the Respect for Marriage Act.

That’s all I have to say about that,” said Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, a member of Senate Republican leadership. I don’t think he should be the nominee of our party in 2024,” he said. And I don’t think it’ll matter in terms of his political future, but I do believe we need to watch who we meet with. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., the outgoing NRSC chair, said, “There’s no room in the Republican Party for white supremacist antisemitism — so it’s wrong.”Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said: “Antisemitism is wrong, and white supremacy is wrong, and that’s all there is to it. Writing on Truth Social, Trump called Ye a “seriously troubled man” and said he had no idea who Fuentes was.

☆ U.S. Senate eyes tightened restrictions on Chinese semiconductors
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Patricia Zengerle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The Democratic leader of the U.S. Senate urged lawmakers on Monday to back his proposal to bar the U.S. government from doing business with companies that use semiconductors made by producers the Pentagon considers Chinese military contractors. "We need our government and our economy to rely on chips made right here in America." The proposal from Schumer and Cornyn would broaden an existing ban on government use of Chinese chips. "We need to stay tough on the Chinese government and its actions," Schumer said. Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, additional reporting by Katharine Jackson; Editing by Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Trump encourages GOP to 'fight' special counsel decision as Republicans attack DOJ
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Rebecca-Shabad-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Rebecca Shabad | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

In an interview with Fox News, Trump said he has been "going through this for six years," referring to various investigations into his actions, including both impeachments and special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. A Trump campaign spokesman added that, "This is a totally expected political stunt by a feckless, politicized, weaponized Biden Department of Justice." Trump noted that the announcement of a special counsel comes just days after he announced a 2024 White House bid, which Garland said was a factor in his decision to seek an independent prosecutor. Asa Hutchinson, who has sometimes rebuked Trump, said in a statement that Garland's decision was "not good news for our country." Garland named John L. Smith, known as Jack Smith, a prosecutor at The Hague and a former federal prosecutor, to begin serving as special counsel “immediately."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., meets with reporters Wednesday after he fended off a challenge by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and was re-elected as Republican leader. And we turned off a lot of these centrist voters," McConnell said Wednesday. “Much criticism is being placed on the fact that the Republican Party should have done better. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., speaks after he was nominated to be House speaker on Tuesday. “What I hope we learned from this is you can’t win the general election merely because of your base vote.

Christopher Gregory/Getty ImagesDonald McGahn, Trump campaign counsel: I was at the top. Trump's 2016 campaign aides said they paid about 50 people, including part-time actors, to appear as supporters for his 2016 campaign announcement. Corey Lewandowski, Trump campaign managerCorey Lewandowski: I called my wife just as we were getting onto the plane. Stuff that would be from Mars on any other campaign was perfectly normal for the Trump campaign. Mark J. Terrill/AP photo Show less Trump at the Republican National Convention while Cruz speaks on July 20, 2016.

[1/2] The U.S. Supreme Court building is seen in Washington, U.S., June 26, 2022. The Senate has the authority to confirm a president's nominees to the federal judiciary including the Supreme Court. Biden's Republican predecessor Donald Trump put a major emphasis on getting judicial nominations confirmed as he worked to move the judiciary rightward. If Democrats retain control, Biden has a chance to match or surpass Trump's mark of having 234 judicial nominees confirmed over four years. Circuit courts are the regional federal appellate courts one step below the Supreme Court.

☆ Pelosi likely has the largest security detail of any lawmaker in Congress. Here's what we know about her and her husband Paul's protection.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Details about congressional security practices remain closely guarded after the January 6 attack. Keeping information about congressional security practices under wraps is apparently part of the Capitol Police's job, as critical details remain closely guarded. Similar media reports say that full-time congressional security details are limited to the speaker, House and Senate majority and minority leaders, and House and Senate whips. Last month she told The New York Times that she'd spent more than $120,000 on private security over the past year. Financial records filed by the Nancy Pelosi Victory Fund PAC show that the fundraising committee paid nearly $4,000 to private security firm Safehouse Security Solutions this spring.

Rep. Mayra Flores speaks at the University Draft House in McAllen, Texas, on Oct. 10. “I still believe at the end of the day this is still a solid, moderate Democratic region,” González said. A fighting chanceOf the three Latina Republicans running, Mónica De La Cruz, endorsed by former President Donald Trump and running in an adjacent congressional district, Texas' 15th, is considered the party's best chance to win. Soon after being sworn in to Congress, Flores voted against the landmark gun safety bill pushed through Congress by Sen. John Cornyn, the Texas Republican. Francisco Medrano Jr., of Harlingen, says he’s likely to support Republican Mayra Flores.

☆ Biden White House preparing to take executive action to protect DACA 'Dreamers'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Josh-Lederman-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Josh Lederman | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

The White House is preparing to take executive action to protect hundreds of thousands of immigrants known as “Dreamers,” people close to the White House told NBC News, as the Biden administration braces for a potential court defeat that could end the decade-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Circuit Court of Appeals, possibly within days. Although the Biden administration is likely to appeal the order, the Supreme Court has indicated it would agree with a 5th Circuit ruling that ends the Obama-era program. The order would direct Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deprioritize deporting DACA recipients and refrain from deporting them if they aren’t deemed threats to public safety or national security. And if something terrible comes out of the 5th Circuit, I think it could be an issue in November,” said Durbin, referring to the November midterm elections.

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