Blue Cross submits plans to comply with new requirements

Blue Cross of Idaho submitted to Idaho insurance regulators a set of health insurance plans that it hopes to sell under Gov. Butch Otter's executive order. The Idaho Statesman reports Blue Cross submitted its five plans on Tuesday after the executive order required Idaho insurers to create "state-based" health plans that do not comply with the Affordable Care Act.

Trump administration wary about bipartisan Senate immigration plan

President Donald Trump's administration stuck to its hardline immigration approach on Thursday and suggested it would not support a bipartisan U.S. Senate proposal to protect young "Dreamer" immigrants and tighten border security. The Department of Homeland Security dismissed the plan, which would protect from deportation 1.8 million young adults who were brought to the United States illegally as children, saying it did not meet Trump's minimum criteria for immigration legislation.

Wildstar’s IN for Governor! And Other Filings and Schatzle-Dumar News

I come bearing good news for Libertarian Party die-hards: you've found your party's candidate for Governor and you can stop looking around now. His name is Nickolas Wildstar and he's at the top of the OC Registrar of Voters Candidate Filing Log for Feb. 13 ; he's a black rapper from the 626, an apparent Rand Paul follower, and if I catch his drift an apparent cannabis devotee - and if I can't convince you to vote for a Democrat he's certainly going to be preferable to any Republican on the ballot.

APNewsBreak: Senator to stop blocking some DOJ jobs over pot

20, 2017 file photo, Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, in Washington. Gardner used his power as a senator to freeze all nominations to the... WASHINGTON - Colorado's Republican U.S. senator will stop blocking nominees for some Justice Department jobs over concerns about the marijuana industry, saying Thursday that federal officials have shown good faith in recent conversations on the department's pot policy.

House Speaker Ryan: Florida shooting shouldn’t threaten right to own guns

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Paul Ryan, in a round of interviews with conservative radio shows on Thursday, said the Florida school shooting that killed at least 17 people on Wednesday should not threaten citizens' rights to own guns. "There's more questions than answers at this stage," the Republican lawmaker said in an interview with Tom Katz on Indiana radio station WIBC about the mass shooting less than 24 hours earlier.

The Latest: Trump admin denounces new deal on ‘Dreamers’

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, walks through a basement passageway at the Capitol amid debates in the Senate on immigration, in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. President Donald Trump is thanking Grassley for introducing legislation similar to the immigration framework pushed by the White House.

Rep. Kevin Cramer likely to announce U.S. Senate run at rally

A member of Governor Doug Burgum's staff tweeted, "See you all at the Ramada in Bismarck this Friday to launch Rep. Kevin Cramer's campaign for US Senate" On Tuesday former ND GOP chairman Gary Emineth dropped out of the race for Heidi Heitkamp's seat, citing the likelihood that Cramer would run and yesterday Cramer confirmed Oklahoma oil man Harold Hamm would chair his finance committee should he decide to run.

US Senate Weighs Competing Immigration Proposals

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., listens as Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, speaks about immigration and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, Feb. 7, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The U.S. Senate could vote on several immigration reform proposals Thursday, as lawmakers weigh competing plans that address issues such as protecting young undocumented immigrants, boosting border security and changing the rules for family-based immigration.

Bipartisan immigration pact among several Senate proposals

A group of senators reached a bipartisan agreement aimed at balancing Democrats' fight to offer citizenship to young "Dreamer" immigrants with President Donald Trump's demands for billions to build his coveted border wall with Mexico. Though the compromise was announced Wednesday by 16 senators with centrist views on the issue and was winning support from many Democrats, it faced an uncertain fate.

Romney postpones announcement on Senate race after shooting new

Mitt Romney is preparing to announce a bid for Utah's Senate seat held by retiring Orrin Hatch, a position some hope the 2012 GOP presidential nominee will use to continue his biting criticism of President Donald Trump. Romney, who once called Trump "a phony" who was unfit for office, is not expected to address the president in an announcement video he has prepared for release online, according to people with direct knowledge of his plans.