‘Tough lessons’: House braces for Rayburn renovation
As one lengthy renovation on the Capitol campus comes to an end, another one is about to begin — and lawmakers are hoping it won’t come with the same blown deadlines and cost overruns. Members pressed Architect of the Capitol Thomas Austin on how to use lessons from the Cannon House Office Building renewal project […]
Consent questions raised at data privacy bill hearing
Data privacy legislation put forward by House Republicans is friendly to businesses, Republicans and Democrats agree; whether or not that’s a good thing depends on which side of the aisle members sit on. Republicans say the legislation would provide clarity for businesses and uniform protections for consumers around the country. Democrats say the bill would […]
Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary
Sen. John Cornyn’s loss to Trump-backed Ken Paxton in a primary last week means the Senate Judiciary Committee will have two Republican members who may feel less obligated to stick with President Donald Trump. Cornyn, R-Texas, joins Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., as Judiciary Committee members no longer facing reelection. Tillis announced his retirement last year […]
Bessent stays mum on ‘anti-weaponization’ fund at hearing
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent repeatedly declined to comment on the IRS’ involvement in a controversial settlement agreement to set up an “anti-weaponization” fund during testimony before a Senate committee Tuesday, citing ongoing litigation. Bessent, who also oversees the IRS through his post at the Treasury Department, stayed tight-lipped on the settlement, largely deferring to the […]
Senators urge quick action to halt college sports decay
Senators and college officials on Wednesday urged swift action on a bipartisan measure that aims to overhaul a college athletics system they say hemorrhages money and hinders student-athletes — even as two powerful conferences said they would seek changes. During a much-anticipated Senate Commerce Committee hearing, both the bill’s authors — Chair Ted Cruz, R-Texas, […]
Cornyn’s loss proves election rules still apply
ANALYSIS —After Donald Trump’s election in 2016, there was a narrative that the typical rules about elections were extinct. But Texas Sen. John Cornyn’s recent fate has proved that many of the political laws of gravity still apply. Last fall, national Republicans were excited that Cornyn had closed the initial gap between himself and state […]
Congress finds a unifying issue — geothermal energy
Republicans and Democrats in Congress seem to have found a unifying issue, and it’s a hot one lurking beneath the earth’s surface: geothermal energy. Without objection and without partisan digs from either side, the House on Tuesday passed by voice vote a package of six bills — three from Republicans and three from Democrats — […]
An autopsy of the DNC campaign autopsy
After weeks of stalling, Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin finally released the long-awaited campaign autopsy to nearly universal bad reviews. What the DNC needed was a candid after-action report. What they got was an extraordinarily incomplete post-mortem that fails to get to the heart of what worked, what didn’t and why. The party is […]
Bennett will face Kean in high-profile matchup in New Jersey
Democrat Rebecca Bennett will face New Jersey Rep. Thomas H. Kean Jr. this fall in a closely watched battleground race that could help determine which party wins control of the House. Bennett won the Democratic primary for the 7th District on Tuesday, securing 47.8 percent of the vote when The Associated Press called the race […]
In Iowa, Hinson-Turek matchup set for November
Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek, a two-time Paralympic gold medalist who bills himself as a “commonsense prairie populist,” won the Democratic nomination for the state’s open Senate seat Tuesday. Turek beat state Sen. Zach Wahls in a contest that symbolized some of the party’s ideological divisions. Wahls ran as an anti-establishment outsider who rejected Senate […]