White House
Blanche pushes back on ‘weaponization’ fund worries during hearing
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche defended his involvement in a $1.8 billion “weaponization” compensation fund at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing Wednesday in his bid for the top Justice Department job. Over the course of the hearing, Blanche sparred with Democrats and pushed back on concerns from some Republicans about his time serving as […]
Todd Blanche takes his turn on the hot seat
Todd Blanche faces his biggest public test Wednesday in his bid to serve as President Donald Trump’s fourth confirmed attorney general: a Senate Judiciary Committee with a pair of undecided Republicans. The panel’s two-day hearing, which will feature Blanche on the first day and outside witnesses on the second, will likely air some of the […]
Trump informs Congress of renewed military action against Iran
The Trump administration formally notified Congress that military activities against Iran resumed last week, renewing questions about the administration’s obligation to seek congressional approval for a war that began in February. The notification, which the 1973 War Powers Resolution requires be sent to congressional leaders within 48 hours of military action, suggests open-ended operations following […]
Trump loses his ‘Senate whisperer’ after Graham’s sudden death
Donald Trump has lost a go-to ally in the Senate after the death of Lindsey Graham, with senior White House aides and other Republicans — and even some Democrats — saying the late senator had become a crucial part of the president’s legislative efforts. The 71-year-old Budget Committee chairman and national security hawk was a […]
Trump: Definitely not signing bipartisan housing bill
President Donald Trump on Friday put to rest any lingering hopes he would sign into law major housing legislation Congress recently cleared with overwhelming bipartisan majorities. The legislation, which is designed to increase the supply and lower the costs of housing, would become law at midnight tonight, if Trump doesn’t veto the measure. The Constitution says […]
After Thursday night firings, election commission has no members
President Donald Trump on Thursday night removed the remaining members of a federal commission intended to assist with federal elections, amid his broader effort to control voting procedures and election administration. Trump fired Chair Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland from the Election Assistance Commission, while Republican commissioner Christy McCormick resigned. A White House official confirmed […]
Government-seeded accounts could test Trump’s ‘communists’ claim
President Donald Trump’s recent attacks on democratic socialists who have won Democratic Party primaries could clash with his idea of creating investment accounts for American adults. The administration this week already formally launched its Trump Accounts initiative for children, which includes a one-time government contribution of $1,000 for each eligible child. The president, during a […]
Little clarity on Iran from Trump, but new help ahead for Ukraine
Lawmakers and European officials hoping to get clarity on the U.S.-Iran conflict from President Donald Trump at a NATO summit likely left disappointed. During a Wednesday evening press conference in Ankara, Turkey, the first reporter to question him characterized the Iran standoff as a “strategic dead end for you” and asked why Trump has been […]
Trump’s attention drifts to 250th even after House floor meltdown
All aboard the Trump train. President Donald Trump on Wednesday emerged from a rail coach painted specially for America’s 250th birthday bash, with both arms spread, as the awaiting crowd in Medora, N.D., cheered his arrival. Moments later, as a pack of Theodore Roosevelt-era “Rough Rider” enactors on horseback escorted Trump’s motorcade to the dedication […]
Trump’s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism
by Kate Yandell ANALYSIS — President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damaging the new blue lining of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is now peeling, as well as for algae in the water. But the administration has not provided evidence to back up the president’s claims. Experts say the pool’s ills have […]