Mattis turns up heat on North Korea and China

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis turned up the heat on North Korea and its main benefactor, China, on Saturday, calling the North Koreans a "clear and present danger" and chastising the Chinese for coercive behavior in the South China Sea. His sharp words for both countries suggest he believes China will, out of self-interest, exert leverage on North Korea to halt its nuclear and missile programs even as Washington pushes Beijing to change course in the South China Sea.

Nunes Committee Asked for ‘Unmasking’ of Americans

"The Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee asked U.S. spy agencies late last year to reveal the names of U.S. individuals or organizations contained in classified intelligence on Russia's meddling in the 2016 election, engaging in the same practice that President Trump has accused the Obama administration of abusing," the Washington Post reports.

Sen. Lindsey Graham: U.S. officials sought to unmask him after conversation with foreign party

Sen. Lindsey Graham says U.S. intelligence agencies tell him that a conversation he had with a foreign individual was picked up in surveillance and that an unknown U.S. official or officials asked to know his identity as a party in the conversation. Graham says he doesn't know if intelligence agencies actually revealed his name.

Pence rallying GOP base in Iowa, where some cool to Trump

In this July 18, 2016, file photo, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, speaks during the opening day of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. The Republican base in Iowa is unsettled, with conservatives disappointed by President Donald Trump so far and party leaders saying he's being undermined from within.

Iowa Christian right cool to Trump as Pence rallies GOP base

Vice President Mike Pence is trying to solidify the Republican base in Iowa, where some conservatives are cool to President Donald Trump and party leaders say he's being undermined from within. Headlining Sen. Joni Ernst's annual summer fundraiser, Pence will promote steady job numbers under Trump, who campaigned last year on promises of economic growth.

House committee issues subpoenas; Comey okayed to testify

Former FBI Director James Comey , whom Trump fired last month, could testify as early as next week and planned to confirm the president's pressure to drop the agency's investigation into Flynn , according to CNN . In addition to the two meetings that Sessions has acknowledged, the senators pointed to the possibility of a separate encounter at an April 2016 Trump campaign event that Sessions and Kislyak attended.

Sen. Mike Lee blames Congress for Trump’s sluggish start: ‘Look in the mirror’

Utah Sen. Mike Lee speaks to the Utah House of Representatives at the Utah State Capitol, Feb. 21, 2017, in Salt Lake City. If former FBI Director James Comey's testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee next week is anything like memo leaked after his firing, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, is "going to have a whole lot of other questions for him," he told ABC News' "Powerhouse Politics" podcast.

UPDATE 1-Mattis presses China on North Korea, South China Sea

The United States is encouraged by China's efforts to restrain North Korea but Washington will not accept Beijing's militarization of islands in the South China Sea, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Saturday. The comments by Mattis, during the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, show how U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is looking to balance working with China to restrain North Korea's advancing missile and nuclear programs while dealing with Beijing's activities in the South China Sea.

Manchin, Capito approve of Trump pulling US out of Paris accord

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., reiterated their support of President Donald Trump pulling the United States out of the Paris climate agreement during separate appearances Friday on MetroNews "Talkline."

Mayor Roberts says she’s leading on climate change. GOP opponent says she is – grandstanding.’

After President Donald Trump said he would withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord Thursday, Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts and her Democratic opponents in September's primary said they opposed the decision and backed the city's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. City Council member Kenny Smith, the Republican mayoral candidate, said he too has "consistently supported" the city's efforts and goals to become more environmentally-friendly.

House Russia probe veers close to dysfunction at end of rocky week

The House intelligence committee's Russia investigation appeared Friday to be veering back off the rails after a rocky week, punctuated by the re-emergence of House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes as a force in the probe. A visibly angry House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said Friday she has met with House Speaker Paul Ryan multiple times to complain about Nunes never fully stepping away from the Russia probe - despite the California Republican's promise two months ago that he would step aside.

The Latest: Special counsel’s Trump probe adds Manafort case

The Associated Press has learned that the special counsel running the U.S. investigation into possible ties between President Donald Trump's campaign and Russia's government has assumed oversight of an ongoing investigation involving former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. The investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller may also expand to look into the roles of the attorney general and deputy attorney general in the firing of FBI Director James Comey.

Trump administration returning Senate torture report

The CIA and director of national intelligence will return their copies of the Senate intelligence committee's massive 6,700-page report on the CIA's interrogation and detention program under the George W. Bush administration, a Senate aide confirmed to CNN Friday. The decision means it's highly unlikely the report - which concluded that interrogation techniques such as waterboarding did not elicit useful intelligence from detainees - will be made public so long as Republicans control the Senate and the White House.

Trump Adviser Cohn Confident Congress Will Raise Debt Ceiling

President Donald Trump's chief economic adviser said Friday that Congress has no choice but to vote to raise the government's borrowing authority, and that the White House will consider spending cuts or other riders to avert an unprecedented default. Gary Cohn, the National Economic Council director, appeared to align himself with Trump's budget director, Mick Mulvaney, and against Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, who has said Congress should pass a "clean" bill to raise the debt limit.

Trumpa s cuts could see hungry kids in vulnerable California GOP districts

In this May 23, 2017, photo, Budget Director Mick Mulvaney holds up a copy of President Donald Trump's proposed fiscal 2018 federal budget as he speaks to members of the media in the Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington. Trump's $4.1 trillion plan for the budget year beginning Oct. 1 generally proposes deep cuts in safety net programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, commonly known as food stamps.