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WASHINGTON — Conservative hard-liners are consolidating power in the narrow new House majority, presenting early challenges for Republicans in swing districts ahead of the 2024 election as Democrats seek to paint the entire party as beholden to extremists. Twenty House GOP hard-liners have set the tone, extracting a series of concessions from Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., to change House rules while securing plum committee assignments and winning assurances about advancing their legislative priorities. “If you can’t win independent voters, you can’t win elections.”Democrats are targeting 25 districts to win back the House majority next year, including 18 Republican-held seats that Biden carried in 2020. In the narrow Republican majority, McCarthy has only four votes to spare before he requires Democratic support to pass measures. Lance, the former congressman, argued that renominating former President Donald Trump could cost Republicans the House.

☆ Florida Rep. Greg Steube out of hospital after accident at home
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

SARASOTA, Fla. — A U.S. congressman from Florida who was seriously injured in a tree-trimming accident in Sarasota said Saturday he has been discharged from the hospital and is recovering at home. A separate tweet said then that he had spent the night in the ICU after sustaining several injuries that were serious but not life-threatening. Steube also thanked staffers at Sarasota Memorial Hospital on Saturday “for the excellent care” he received. Steube was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and just began his third term. He represents all of Sarasota and Charlotte counties and part of Lee County.

NBC News has repeatedly contacted Santos’ team with requests for comment about his lies and other allegations against him. Here is a timeline mapping out the controversy:Nov. 3, 2020: Santos loses his first bid for Congress to Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi. Sept. 6, 2022: Santos files his personal financial disclosure report, claiming his assets are as much as $11 million. The New York Times later reported that none of the 49 victims appear to have worked at the various firms named in his biography. In another Dec. 26 interview with the New York Post, Santos acknowledges some of the specific fabrications in his résumé.

☆ GOP Rep. Steube sustains 'several injuries' after accident on his property
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Zoë Richards | Zoë Richards Is The Evening Politics Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., sustained "several injuries" Wednesday after he was involved in an accident at his property, his office said. The severity of the injuries and how they occurred were not immediately clear. "Congressman Steube was involved in an accident on his property late this afternoon and has sustained several injuries," his office tweeted. NBC News has asked Steube's office for details. Rep. Vern Buchanan, who represents the 16th District, tweeted that it was "horrible" to hear for Steube's accident and that he wished his fellow Republican a speedy recovery.

☆ Rep. George Santos pushes back on 'insane' reports he took funds for veteran's dying dog
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"The reports that I would let a dog die is shocking & insane," the freshman lawmaker from New York tweeted Thursday morning. Santos' office did not immediately provide any of those photos when asked by CNBC. Santos then became elusive, and finally told Osthoff he had moved the money into his charity to use "for other dogs," the veteran told Patch. If Santos were to leave office, it would likely trigger a competitive special election in New York for his seat. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., made a similar argument Thursday when asked by CNN whether he believed Santos should resign.

☆ Pentagon receives more than 350 new reports of UFO sightings
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Dan De Luce | Dan De Luce Is A Reporter For The Nbc News Investigative Unit. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A classified version of the report was submitted to lawmakers, as mandated by a defense spending bill passed by the last Congress. Following demands from Congress, the top intelligence agency released its first report on UFOs in 2021, which looked at 144 reported cases. Officials found no evidence that the reported sightings indicated signs of extraterrestrial life or new breakthrough aircraft or weapons by foreign adversaries. Although the report cited no evidence that UFO sightings could be linked to foreign adversaries, government agencies “will continue to investigate any evidence of possible foreign government involvement in UAP events." The Pentagon last year set up an office to document and analyze UFO reports.

Rep. George Santos, the newly sworn-in New York Republican under fire for fabricating large parts of his résumé, told NBC News on Thursday that "if 142 people ask for me to resign, I will resign." Santos said he would be in Congress "until those same 142,000 people tell me they don't want me." A growing number of Republican lawmakers have called for Santos to resign in recent days, including at least four in New York and one other out of state. "With the extent and severity of the allegations against him, his inability to take full responsibility for his conduct, and the numerous investigations underway, I believe he is unable to fulfill his duties and should resign," Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., added. He has said Santos will get at least one committee assignment, although it will not be on a top committee.

☆ GOP Rep. George Santos vows to serve out his full term as more Republicans push him to resign
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Embattled Republican Rep. George Santos of New York vowed Thursday to stay in Congress and serve out his full two-year term, brushing off howls of bipartisan criticism and calls for his resignation after he admitted to lying about his background. A handful of Santos' fellow freshman House Republicans have joined in, including Rep. Nick Langworthy, who is also the chair of the New York Republican Party. But newly minted Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is not calling on Santos to resign from the House, where Republicans hold a slim majority over Democrats and losing Santos' vote would make the speaker's job more difficult. "Voters have elected George Santos," McCarthy told reporters on Capitol Hill. McCarthy's remarks contrasted with the barrage of criticism that Long Island Republicans hurled at Santos a day earlier.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., speaks to Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., in the House Chamber on Jan. 6, 2023. She said it’s a bad idea for the House to bring up those bills. Still, some of the more moderate Republicans acknowledge that they’ll have to make compromises with Democrats to get immigration bills signed into law. The GOP rules package adopted Monday identifies the seven bills that will get speedy votes in the House. “Many of their radical things will be stopped in the Senate because we have a Democratic majority,” Schumer said, vowing not to let ultraconservative lawmakers defund the FBI.

☆ Safety official's remarks about possible gas stove ban fuel hot GOP takes about Biden
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Zoë Richards | Zoë Richards Is The Evening Politics Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Republicans are warning that the Biden administration is coming for your stove if it's fueled by gas. “Gas stoves are the next thing the Biden Administration is coming after,” he tweeted. “Washington bureaucrats should have no say in how Americans prepare their dinner.”Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told Biden to "get your hands off our gas stoves!!!!" “There’s been a lot of gaslighting today about gas stoves,” Beyer tweeted Tuesday. “To be clear, I didn’t call for a ban on gas stoves.

The GOP-controlled House passes a rules package for 118th Congress with just one GOP defection, NBC’s Kyle Stewart reports. ... President Biden spends his final day in Mexico City at North American Leaders’ Summit. But first: The news that the Justice Department is reviewing Obama Era classified documents found at a think tank tied to President Biden is quite a political gift to Donald Trump. “When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House?” Trump posted on his Truth Social account. 6: The number of shootings recently at or near the homes of New Mexico Democratic political leaders, including the incoming state House speaker.

☆ Rep. Mike Rogers apologizes to Matt Gaetz for losing temper during chaotic speaker votes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julie-Tsirkin-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Julie Tsirkin | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Reps. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Mike Rogers, R-Ala., on Sunday publicly resolved their differences after tensions boiled over on the House floor late Friday night during the votes for House speaker. Rogers was physically restrained after he charged towards Gaetz. After Gaetz voted present in the 14th ballot, McCarthy approached Gaetz in the back of the chamber, where a tense exchange occurred, a number of Republican lawmakers crowding them. Rogers, the incoming chairman of the powerful Armed Services Committee, then walked over and appeared to lunge in the direction of Gaetz, but was physically restrained by Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., before storming away. McCarthy ultimately gained the votes to secure the speakership in the 15th ballot, when Gaetz and several other McCarthy opponents switched their votes to “present.”

☆ The House speaker battle showed a 'schism within a schism' in the GOP as MTG and Matt Gaetz were on opposite sides and even a plea from Trump couldn't sway some of his biggest supporters
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Kevin McCarthy was elected speaker on Friday night after a week of disarray and 15 rounds of voting. Thanks to the events of the past week, McCarthy may struggle to manage the slim GOP majority. "It's a schism within a schism," Kevin Kosar, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who studies Congress and US politics, told Insider. But during the House speaker battle this week, some of them found themselves on opposites sides, even after their would-be leader, Trump, took a stance. With new divisions and animosities on display after the House speaker battle, it's unclear how effectively McCarthy will be able to do just that.

Share this -Link copiedMcCarthy elected speaker in 15th round McCarthy was elected House speaker Saturday shortly after midnight on the 15th ballot. Share this -Link copiedHouse reconvenes to hold 14th round of speaker votes The House has reconvened to begin the 14th round of speaker votes. Read the rest of the story, The House speaker election, in three charts. Share this -Link copiedHouse begins 13th round The House is beginning the 13th round of speaker votes. At least 14 House GOP flip to support McCarthy in twelfth speaker vote Jan. 6, 2023 01:52 Share this -Link copied

“It’s critically important that the Rules Committee reflect the body and reflect the will of the people. “What we’re seeing is the incredibly shrinking speakership,” former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in an interview Friday. “The reason these people want to be on the Rules Committee is they want to screw things up for McCarthy. The message the leader received from his deal-making centrists: We can live with giving Freedom Caucus members committee slots but committee gavels are a “nonstarter.”“Nobody should get a chairmanship without earning it,” Bacon said. That pisses us off.”Díaz-Balart said he had received assurances that “there are no deals cut about chairmanships” to committees as part of swaying votes to make McCarthy speaker.

Of the more than 50 speakers of the House, 15 have been in McCarthy’s situation: needing multiple elections to win the gavel. McCarthy needs a simple majority to win. But that has become harder to get in recent years, as more closely divided Houses have left the majority party with fewer votes to spare. This year’s speaker elections have seen a number of protest votes, like Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., voting for former President Donald Trump. Protest votes have become more common in recent years.

“I’m not telling you we have an agreement,” McCarthy said at one point, according to two people. Share this -Link copiedReporters appear to be live tweeting the GOP conference call Members of the Capitol press corps were live-tweeting what was being said on the House GOP Conference call Friday morning. Share this -Link copied‘I’m not even a congressman’: House lawmakers and staffers can’t function while speaker fight drags on WASHINGTON — There is no speaker of the House. And because of the GOP’s new razor-thin majority, McCarthy can only afford four GOP defections on any speaker vote. If members are not present for votes, it would lower the threshold McCarthy, of California, needs to win a majority and become House speaker.

The chaos unfolding in the new Republican-controlled House shows that analysis, if it was ever true, certainly doesn’t hold today. Since the new Congress began Tuesday, every time Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has called a vote to be elected speaker, he has gotten no closer to the gavel. Though there is no shortage of backroom deal-making going on among House Republicans, either, the public nature of the leadership fight means many of the concessions McCarthy is offering have been announced by his opponents. Back in 1995, Newt Gingrich nudged aside longtime House Republican leader Bob Michel of Illinois to become the first Republican speaker of the House in 40 years after President George H.W. That helped oust House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, in 2015 and then his successor, Paul Ryan, R-Wis., once a conservative darling.

The group of hard-line Republicans standing firm in opposing Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s bid for speaker has coalesced around an alternative: Rep. Byron Donalds, a conservative two-term lawmaker from Florida who is considered a rising star in the GOP but is still relatively unknown nationally. Donalds said the incident inspired him to change his life and eventually emerge from businessman to politician. In 2021, Donalds was denied membership in the Congressional Black Caucus and insisted it was because of his conservative views. Donalds’ wife, Erika Donalds, with whom he has three children, is also a conservative Republican and involved in state politics. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., center right, speaks with a colleague in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol, on Wednesday.

On Thursday, the House enters its third day of the new Congress without a speaker under the new GOP majority. Until Republicans have enough votes for a candidate, all other House business remains at a standstill. During the six speaker votes this week, 20 conservatives have stuck together to deny GOP leader Kevin McCarthy of California the 218 votes needed to win the speaker's gavel. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., leaves the House Chamber following a day of votes for the new Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. Kevin Dietsch / Getty ImagesAfter the sixth failed vote, McCarthy and his must trusted allies huddled with his most fervent opponents for more than two hours in the first-floor Capitol office of Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn.

WASHINGTON — Many House Republicans are furious with a band of far-right rebels who they say are holding the party hostage by repeatedly rejecting its nominee for speaker. The unwillingness of most House Republicans to cut a deal with Democrats to pick a speaker weakens their leverage in the showdown with a group of 20 right-wing lawmakers who want to defeat Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who is backed by 90% of the GOP caucus. As Bacon and other McCarthy allies dangle the possibility of a bipartisan speaker to secure the votes to make him speaker, the anti-McCarthy faction is calling their bluff. Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., who has voted against McCarthy all six times, said he doesn’t believe any Republicans would go around the House Freedom Caucus and team up with Democrats to pick a speaker. Democrats open door to consensus speakerSome Democrats say they’re open to negotiating a consensus speaker.

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump issued a full-throated endorsement of House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy Wednesday morning, hours before Republicans planned to return to the floor to try again to elect a speaker. Democrats unified behind their leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., while McCarthy lost 19 House Republicans on two of the ballots and 20 on the third. Trump had initially backed McCarthy publicly, but during the day Tuesday, it appeared that Trump's enthusiasm for McCarthy had waned. Kevin McCarthy during the opening day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol, on Jan. 3, 2023. "Trump has already reiterated support," McCarthy told reporters at the Capitol late Tuesday.

It absolutely is,” said former Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, home to the rebels. It foreshadows more divisions in the narrow House majority, which will have to compromise with a Democratic-controlled Senate and President Joe Biden to keep the government functioning and avert economic crises. 2 GOP Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana pleaded with colleagues to support McCarthy so the House could begin to advance conservative goals like bolstering border security and energy independence. But we can’t start fixing those problems until we elect Kevin McCarthy as our next speaker,” he said on the floor. “This is going to be everyday in the House Republican majority,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said on Twitter.

Share this -Link copiedConservatives opposed to McCarthy seen huddling in chamber during third vote During the third ballot vote for speaker, several House Republicans who have opposed McCarthy to be speaker were seen huddling in the back of the chamber. McCarthy lost twice earlier in the day, with 19 conservatives casting their ballots for Rep. Jim Jordan, of Ohio, in the second round. Share this -Link copiedDemocrats mock Republicans over inability to elect House speaker Now in the minority, House Democrats appeared to enjoy the GOP divisions over electing a speaker Tuesday. Share this -Link copiedPelosi reacts to Republicans' struggling to elect GOP speaker As House Republicans struggled to elect their own speaker now that they have the majority, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested the GOP is ruining Congress as an institution. Pelosi stepped down as the Democratic leader after serving as House speaker twice.

Democrats will wield an expanded 51-seat Senate majority and control the presidency. We need to be cutting spending,” McCarthy told reporters after a meeting with Senate Republicans on Dec. 21. There’s so much discombobulation and disunity on different sides of the Republican caucus,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters before the holiday recess. Conservative lawmakers say a GOP House should block a debt limit increase without major policy changes to rein in spending. Some House Republicans are already calling to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his department's handling of immigration policy.

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