GOP Lawmakers Request New Special Counsel…

Two prominent Republican lawmakers want a special counsel to investigate potential government surveillance abuse as well as possible bias and conflicts of interest at the U.S. Justice Department and FBI. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte and House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy made the request Tuesday in a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Poll Shows Strong, Bipartisan Support For Bill Expanding Access To Cancer Care

H.R. 1409, co-sponsored by Representative Leonard Lance and Representative Brian Higgins ensures that any health plan covering cancer care offer patients the same level of cost-sharing for all forms of cancer medicine. "Bipartisan support for the Cancer Drug Parity Act has grown to 136 cosponsors, reflecting the strong momentum in Congress to pass this piece of meaningful cancer treatment legislation, said Congressman Lance.

House to debate bill to reduce violence in schools

The U.S. House of Representatives will debate bipartisan legislation next week aimed at preventing violence at schools following the shooting deaths of 17 people at a Florida high school on Feb. 14, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said on Tuesday. McCarthy, the second most powerful Republican in the House, did not outline any other bills the chamber might consider that are urged by gun control groups, such as raising the minimum age for buying semi-automatic rifles or banning them altogether.

OPED: Five things Trump could do to stop Russia’s meddling

There's been no call to arms from President Trump, who could galvanize the federal bureaucracy and Congress to counter the threat if he chose. Instead, the president still reacts to warnings about Russian interference as if they were attacks on his legitimacy.

Justice Dept. suing California over sanctuary laws, Gov. Brown calls it a a political stunta

California Gov. Jerry Brown has slammed the Trump administration's latest salvo against the Golden State - the Justice Department announced Tuesday night it is suing to block state laws that extend protections to people living in the U.S. illegally - claiming it's a move that will "further divide and polarize America." "At a time of unprecedented political turmoil, Jeff Sessions has come to California to further divide and polarize America," the Democratic lawmaker tweeted.

In Pa. union territory, an electoral test of labor’s pull

In this March 6, 2018, photo, Conor Lamb, the Democratic candidate for the March 13 special election in Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District, greets supporters during a rally at the Carpenter's Training Center in Collier, Pa. less In this March 6, 2018, photo, Conor Lamb, the Democratic candidate for the March 13 special election in Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District, greets supporters during a rally at the Carpenter's Training ... more In this March 5, 2018, photo, Republican Rick Saccone, right, talks with supporters at a campaign rally in Waynesburg, Pa.

Tillerson Heads to Africa With Security, Not Aid, as U.S. Focus

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson begins his first official trip to sub-Saharan Africa with a pledge to help shore up trade, civic freedom and good governance in countries that President Donald Trump has harshly criticized. Tillerson heads to the continent with the Trump administration advocating cuts of more than a third in aid to African countries and programs, along with deep reductions to global health initiatives.

Failed legislative special session: Nearly $1 million ‘down the drain,’ one La. lawmaker says

Legislature meets in special session to address the state's fiscal crisis Monday March 5, 2018, in Baton Rouge, La. Speaker of House Rep. Taylor Barras, R-New Iberia, lower left, announces the vote to call HB8 off the calendar which was authored by Rep. Walt Leger, D-New Orleans, which was 49-49 and thereby defeated.

Republicans call for special prosecutor to investigate FBI

Republican Reps. Bob Goodlatte and Trey Gowdy are calling on Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to appoint a special counsel to review decisions made by the FBI over the past two years when the Bureau was obtaining surveillance warrants to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Bryant says he won’t appoint himself to US Senate

Mississippi's Republican governor took himself out of the mix Tuesday for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Thad Cochran, saying he'll find another strong contender to keep the seat firmly in GOP hands for decades, as Cochran did. "There's something nefarious about the idea of a governor appointing himself.

Ryan: Trump’s planned steel, aluminum tariffs too broad

News selected on topics and regions - oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector The most powerful member of the U.S. House of Representatives said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump's planned tariffs on steel and aluminum imports are too broad and open the country to possible retaliation, adding that he encouraged the White House to more narrowly focus its approach, Reuters reported. "There is clearly abuse occurring," said Speaker Paul Ryan at a press briefing by Republican lawmakers.

Cohn is the latest in a string of high-level departures from the West Wing.

Top economic adviser Gary Cohn is leaving the White House after breaking with President Donald Trump on trade policy, the latest in a string of high-level departures from the West Wing. Cohn, the director of the National Economic Council, has been the leading internal opponent to Trump's planned tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum, working to orchestrate an eleventh-hour effort in recent days to get Trump to reverse course.

Chao, lawmakers tangle over Hudson River rail tunnel project Source: AP

Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao Tuesday acknowledged that President Donald Trump has asked Speaker Paul Ryan to block funding for a multi-billion dollar railway tunnel project that's a top priority of the Senate's top Democrat. In contentious exchanges with several lawmakers, Chao told a House committee Tuesday that Trump indeed is intervening to try to kill the project.

GOP Senate chairman warns Trump on tariffs

The Republican chairman of the Senate Finance Committee is telling President Donald Trump he's concerned that proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports would "undermine" the tax cuts Congress recently passed. Hatch says in a letter to Trump he supports the president's goal of targeting foreign countries that don't compete fairly in trade.

Rolly: Hatch’s latest bout of foot-in-mouth disease took a swipe at Romney and even himself

Retiring Sen. Orrin Hatch made comments last week that, if taken literally, described fellow Republican Mitt Romney, who wants to succeed him, as "one of the stupidest, dumbass people I've ever met." Hatch was referring to supporters of the individual mandate in the Obamacare health care plan.