Partisan Tensions Evident at Lance’s Third Town Hall of the Year

Leonard Lance, the mild-mannered Republican congressman from New Jersey's 7th congressional district, on Wednesday faced another crowd of constituents to answer questions, his third town hall event since President Trump was inaugurated. Lance has diverged from Trump on several issues - he was a 'no' on the president's biggest legislative initiative so far, a failed effort to replace the Affordable Care Act with a vastly different Republican plan - but constituents at Wednesday's event at a high school in Morris County nonetheless gave Lance some flak for his party ties.

Lawmaker says bill to scrap much of Dodd-Frank is coming soon

The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Jeb Hensarling, plans to release by the end of the month a revised proposal to scrap much of the Dodd-Frank Act. The Texas Republican's new bill would give banks relief from the government's annual stress tests, which assess whether they could survive a financial meltdown, and strip the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau of key powers.

Fairfield mother to be deported on April 19

An ICE representative said Maribel Trujillo Diaz is being held at a facility in LaSalle, Louisiana and she will be deported on Wednesday, April 19. Trujillo's husband has released a statement that says in part, "When Maribel's lawyer called yesterday evening to tell me that the appeal to the Sixth Circuit Court had been denied, I say that is another failure to stop the injustice that is being done to us as a family. My pain is greater because I am powerless to help her.

Meet the congressman who is pushing for a Charles Darwin Day

U.S. Rep. Jim Himes has taken on the role of promoting Darwinism in the House of Representatives, saying he believes it's the type of legislation his southwestern Connecticut constituents want him to pursue at a time when skepticism surrounds science.

Manchin schedules Town Hall meetings in Parkersburg, Hinton

West Virginia's Democratic U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin has scheduled a series of constituent visits around the state over the next two weeks to discuss current state and national issues. According to the senator's office, they include a Town Hall meeting at West Virginia University in Parkersburg on Wednesday.

Trump downplays Bannon’s campaign role amid reports of infighting

Amid a flood of reports detailing division among the upper echelon of his White House, President Trump on Tuesday night refused to firmly back his controversial chief strategist, Steve Bannon - going so far as to minimize Bannon's role in the underdog presidential campaign. Bannon, the former executive chair of Breitbart News, served as the Trump campaign's CEO during the final, successful push to Election Day.

Politics | The Battle Over Marijuana Heats Up at RI State House

Rhode Island's battle over the legalization of marijuana hit a new level of political fever as both sides rolled out their big political guns and their strongest arguments at Tuesday's State House Judiciary Committee hearing. With Massachusetts approving the legalization of marijuana - then delaying its implementation - Rhode Island is feeling the pressure to try and capture as much tax dollars as possible.

Sen. Claire McCaskill plans 8 town halls across Missouri

In a year when congressional town hall meetings have often turned angry, Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill is wading into predominantly Republican areas of Missouri to host a series of them this week. McCaskill's first town hall will be Wednesday at Jefferson College in the eastern Missouri town of Hillsboro.

Calls For Spicer’s Resignation After He Claims That Hitler Was Better Than Assad

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer apologized for saying Adolf Hitler didn't resort to using chemical weapons like Syria's president, after an outpouring of criticism from politicians and Jewish groups on Tuesday, including calls for his removal from his position. Spicer made the remarks during a daily press briefing while addressing the chemical attack and Russia's position on it.

Proposal for SouthCoast Hyperloop goes to Washington

A super-fast form of transportation involving giant tubes, pods and air pressure would have a stop in SouthCoast if built in the Northeast, among other nationwide locations, should a company making the technology pick a Somerset woman's proposal. Holly McNamara, a Select Board official in Somerset, said she feels one step closer to seeing that become a reality after a visit to Washington, D.C., last week to make her case to a panel of judges.

Russian Spies’ Go-To Tactics For Entangling People: Bribery and Blackmail

As congressional and FBI investigators in Washington explore potential ties between President Trump's 2016 campaign and Russian intelligence services' meddling in the election, they're searching for one particular clue: money. Loans, payments, sweetheart deals or other transactions are a tried and tested way that Russia's spy agencies get access to or control over people who interest them.

Dems: Trump’s tax secrecy complicates legislative overhaul

The Senate's top Democrat said Tuesday that President Donald Trump's refusal to release his tax returns is going to make this year's promised overhaul of the tax code "much harder." Sen. Charles Schumer says Trump is opening himself to second guessing about his motives for supporting different policies and that the average American will think he's making changes because "it's good for him."

Super PAC supporting Josh Mandel’s Senate bid is backed by dark money group, AP finds

A super PAC created to support Republican Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel's latest bid for U.S. Senate is getting the bulk of its money from an advocacy group not required to disclose its donors, an Associated Press review has found. The anonymity allowed by the arrangement signals Ohio will see another expensive and nasty faceoff as Mandel seeks to unseat Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown next year.