Senate ready to speed up confirming judges over objections from Democrats
Senate Republicans this week are poised to make good on a monthslong threat to change the rules in order to speed up confirming President Trump’s judicial nominees.
Senate
Georgia lawmakers pass heartbeat abortion ban, joining four other U.S. states
Georgia’s Republican-controlled legislature on Friday passed one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the United States, outlawing abortion if a doctor is able to detect a heartbeat.
U.S. lawmakers introduce bill to stop NSA’s mass data collection
Republican and Democratic U.S. lawmakers introduced a bill on Thursday that would end the collection of Americans’ phone records by the National Security Agency in an effort to undo a widely criticized security measure passed in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
Republican-led US Senate Rejects Green New Deal
The Republican-led Senate Tuesday night voted against consideration of the Democratically-supported New Green Deal — the outline of an ambitious plan to get the U.S. off climate-changing fossil fuels.
2020 Dems warm to expanding Supreme Court, Diminishing Conservative Majority
Some of the progressives vying for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination have said they’ll consider diminishing the conservative majority on the Supreme Court either by adding more justices or by imposing term limits.
Heartbeat Bill Victory in Kentucky
Kentucky’s House passed Senate Bill 9, a fetal heartbeat bill, by a vote of 71 to 19 last night. SB 9 bans most abortions in the state once a fetal heartbeat is detected. The measure requires anyone seeking an abortion to first determine if a fetal heartbeat is detectable, typically about six weeks into pregnancy. The bill now moves on to Governor Matt Bevin’s desk.
12 GOP senators rebuke Trump, vote with Dems to block border emergency
A dozen Republican senators on Thursday voted with Democrats to block President Trump’s declaration of an emergency at the southern border, a politically embarrassing rebuke to Trump that will set up the first veto of his presidency.
Trump declares he will veto Senate resolution nixing his emergency declaration
President Trump said Thursday he will veto a measure passed with bipartisan support in the Senate that terminates his emergency declaration at the southern border, setting up the first veto of his presidency.
Defying Trump, Senate votes to end US support for Saudi-led Yemen war
The US Senate on Wednesday dealt a stinging bipartisan rebuke to Donald Trump’s foreign policy and his alliance with Riyadh, voting to end support for the bloody Saudi-led war effort in Yemen.
Kentucky Becomes 16th Permitless Gun-Carry State
Kentucky became the latest state to adopt a permitless gun-carry system when Republican governor Matt Bevin signed Senate Bill 150 into law on Monday.
Trump flips 3rd Circuit federal appeals court with ‘Bridgegate’ attorney
With the confirmation of a nominee to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, President Trump has for the first time in his presidency flipped an appeals court to have a majority of Republican-appointed judges.
U.S. Senate to vote Wednesday on Saudi Yemen war resolution
The U.S. Senate will vote on Wednesday on a resolution to end Washington’s support for the Saudi Arabia-led military campaign in Yemen, as lawmakers push President Donald Trump to toughen his policy toward the kingdom.
GOP senators eye ‘nuclear’ move to change rules on Trump nominees
Senate Republicans are preparing to change the rules to cut down on the time it takes to confirm hundreds of President Trump’s nominees later this month.
Republicans brush off Trump budget request
Congress loves to ignore presidential budget requests, and this year, lawmakers are even more eager to dismiss President Trump’s spending blueprint.
Pelosi, Schumer warn of another government shutdown over Trump’s $8.6B wall proposal
President Trump’s pursuit of additional border wall funding in his fiscal 2020 budget proposal will only lead to another government shut down, warned Democratic leaders on Sunday.
Faith Organization Says House Resolution Condemning Hatred Must Include Anti-Christian Bigotry and Persecution of Christians
The Washington, D.C. based, Christian Defense Coalition, calls for Speaker Pelosi to include Christianity in a potential House Resolution condemning all forms of hatred including anti-Semitism, racism and Islamophobia.
Top US general in Europe seeks more troops, warships to counter Russia
The top U.S. military commander in Europe warned Tuesday of a growing Russian threat and is calling for more troops, warships and aircraft, saying he’s ‘not comfortable yet with the deterrent posture’ of the American troop presence.
Trump administration warns of record illegal border crossings ahead of vote by Congress
The Trump administration warned Republican lawmakers Tuesday about record numbers of illegal crossings at the southern border with Mexico as Congress appeared to be on the verge of terminating President Donald Trump’s declaration of an emergency there.
Mitch McConnell: It’s clear Senate will vote against President Trump’s national emergency
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell hoped President Donald Trump wouldn’t declare a national emergency over border security, but said Monday that he was ‘obviously’ unsuccessful in arguing against the move.
Senate may reprimand Trump in addition to revoking his border emergency
Senate Republicans are holding active discussions about whether to amend a resolution revoking President Trump’s border emergency in a way that scolds Trump for the way he asserted authority over the federal budget to fund his border wall.