Category Archives: Republicans

Pro-Israel groups target US lawmakers critical of Gaza war with attack ads

Posted on by

Rashida Tlaib and other Democratic members of ‘the Squad’ have been targeted but also a libertarian Republican

The pro-Israel lobby in the US is airing attack ads and beginning to back primary opponents to challenge Congress members who are not voting for or supporting Israel’s war on Gaza.

Over the last 10 days, groups that support Israel have launched ads in at least seven districts targeting those who have been particularly vocal in calling attention to the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, opposing Israeli military aid or criticizing Israel’s government.

Continue reading...

House speaker Mike Johnson faces key test as government shutdown is days away with no deal in sight – US politics live

Posted on by

Kevin McCarthy’s replacement tasked with passing legislation to fund the government but issues that toppled predecessor persist

Meanwhile in South Carolina, Kamala Harris officially filed the Biden campaign’s paperwork to appear on its primary ballot:

Joe Biden’s victory in the state’s primary three years ago revived a presidential campaign that appeared to be flagging. After winning the White House, he successfully pushed to make it the first state to vote in the Democrats’ nominating calendar, arguing the process should better reflect the country’s diversity, though not all Democrats were happy about the decision.

Continue reading...

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Marjorie Taylor Greene unite in push to free Julian Assange

Posted on by

Maga Republican and leftwing Democrat among 16 US Congress members lobbying Joe Biden to drop extradition attempts against WikiLeaks founder

Maga Republican and fierce Trump supporter Marjorie Taylor Greene and leftwing Democratic firebrand Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have found common ground in freeing Australian WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

The pair are among 16 members of the US Congress who have written directly to president Joe Biden urging the United States to drop its extradition attempts against Assange and halt any prosecutorial proceedings immediately.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

US Democratic senator Joe Manchin will not seek re-election in 2024

Posted on by

Controversial West Virginia Democrat, 76, has for years held outsized degree of power within party

West Virginia’s controversial Democratic US senator Joe Manchin has announced that he will not seek re-election in 2024 and will instead “fight to unite the middle”.

The 76-year-old senator, who for years has held an outsized degree of power within the Democratic party and often defied its leadership, appeared in July at an event held by a political group exploring a third-party presidential bid.

Continue reading...

West Virginia Democratic senator Joe Manchin will not seek re-election in 2024 – as it happened

Posted on by

This live blog is now closed. You can read the full report on Manchin’s announcement here:

Joe Biden has hailed the tentative deal reached between SAG-AFTRA and television studios on Wednesday.

In a statement released by the White House on Thursday, Biden said:

Collective bargaining works. I applaud SAG-AFTRA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers for working together in good faith towards an agreement that allows our entertainment industry to continue telling the stories of America.

When both sides come to the table to negotiate in earnest they can make businesses stronger and allow workers to secure pay and benefits that help them raise families and retire with dignity.

“She called me four-letter words in each of the last two debates… The reality is this – the Republican party has appropriately I think had scrutiny of Hunter Biden for years. I mean, you know, not only the media but even Republican politicians, correctly,” said Ramaswamy.

“In the last debate…she said, ‘I feel dumber every time I hear you speak’… For using TikTok, the criticism wasn’t of Nikki Haley’s daughter. It was of Nikki Haley for having been completely oblivious to where the next generation of Americans is actually getting their information,” he added.

Continue reading...

Support for Israel and verbal sparring propel fiery third Republican debate

Posted on by

Candidates clash over Ukraine and immigration and grapple with abortion questions as Donald Trump holds rally nearby

The Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and other foreign policy issues dominated Wednesday’s fiery third debate of Republican presidential hopefuls in Miami. Candidates pledged wholehearted support for Israel’s military response following last month’s Hamas attacks, and clashed over Ukraine, China and immigration.

The debate, minus Donald Trump, the runaway favorite for the party’s 2024 nomination who was hosting his own private rally elsewhere in the area, was a more bitter affair than its predecessors in Wisconsin and California. Lively verbal sparring sometimes regressed into insults, with Nikki Haley at one point calling one of her rivals “scum”.

Continue reading...

Calls to ‘finish’ Hamas and ‘you’re just scum’: key Republican debate takeaways

Posted on by

Candidates showed unequivocal support for Israel on a night when Nikki Haley shot back at Vivek Ramaswamy’s criticism

The third Republican debate was held in Miami on Wednesday, with frontrunner Donald Trump once again foregoing the debate for his own rally nearby.

The pool has dwindled since the last debate, and Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tim Scott and Chris Christie seemed to be more serious and focused this time around as they answered questions on the Israel-Hamas war, immigration, abortion and the federal budget. Even so, the debate had moments where it devolved into a shouting match, with petty barbs and personal attacks.

Continue reading...

House Republicans subpoena Hunter Biden and president’s brother James

Posted on by

House committee has been searching for evidence of influence peddling when Biden was vice-president to Barack Obama

House Republicans issued subpoenas on Wednesday to members of Joe Biden’s family, taking their most aggressive step yet in an impeachment inquiry bitterly opposed by Democrats that is testing the reach of congressional oversight powers.

The long-awaited move by Representative James Comer, the chairman of the House oversight committee, to subpoena the president’s son Hunter and his brother James comes as Republicans hope to gain ground in their nearly year-long investigation. So far, they have failed to uncover evidence directly implicating the president in any wrongdoing.

Continue reading...

White House decries ‘nasty personal smears’ after House Republicans subpoena Biden family – as it happened

Posted on by

This live blog is now closed. You can follow the action of the third GOP debate here:

Philadephia has elected Cherelle Parker, the first female mayor to lead the city.

Following her victory, Parker, who served 10 years as a state representative for northwest Philadelphia, said:

“Thank you Philly. We did it. We made history, or “her” story. As a little girl, I never dreamed that this moment would arrive but it’s here now… From the bottom of my heart, thank you for believing in me and in my vision for a safer, cleaner greener city with economic oppurtunity for all.”

Continue reading...

Rhode Island elects its first Black representative to Congress, Gabe Amo

Posted on by

The Democratic contender defeated Republican Gerry Leonard to win the state’s first congressional district

The Democrat Gabe Amo defeated Republican Gerry Leonard to win Rhode Island’s first congressional district seat Tuesday, becoming the state’s first Black candidate elected to Congress.

The former White House aide succeeds David Cicilline, a former Democratic representative, who stepped down this summer to become president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation.

Continue reading...

Virginia Democrats appear on track to keep majority in state senate

Posted on by

House of delegates still too close to call as Republican governor Glenn Youngkin’s goal of full control of legislature slips away

Virginia Democrats appeared to be on track to retain their majority in the state senate on Tuesday, depriving Republican governor Glenn Youngkin of a legislative trifecta that would have allowed him to swiftly enact his policy agenda.

Two hours after polls closed in Virginia, where all 140 seats of the state legislature were up for grabs, the house of delegates remained too close to call. Virginia Republicans still hoped to keep their majority in the lower chamber, even as their goal of taking full control of the legislature slipped away.

Continue reading...

Mike Johnson says in resurfaced video he uses app that helps people ‘quit porn’

Posted on by

House speaker says in clip he and son use Covenant Eyes, which bills itself as a tool that ‘helps you live porn-free with confidence’

Mike Johnson, the hardline conservative and outspoken Christian who was elected House speaker in October, has raised eyebrows after he admitted using an app which bills itself as a tool to help people “quit porn”.

A year-old clip posted online over the weekend showed Johnson discussing how he and his son use Covenant Eyes, an app which tracks users’ phone and computer use, to monitor each others’ online activity.

Continue reading...

Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis potent challengers to Biden in swing states, poll shows – as it happened

Posted on by

This live blog is now closed. For our reporting on politics polling, read our latest article:

Gaza’s health ministry in the Hamas-controlled territory says more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed there since 7 October.

We have a separate live blog covering the conflict, and you can follow it here:

Continue reading...

With the US election a year away, most Americans don’t want Biden or Trump

Posted on by

Polls continue to show both presidential frontrunners ‘as tied as tied can be’, with third-party candidates tying for a distant third

Americans are one year away from a presidential election that’s shaping up to be a historically unpopular rematch between the oldest ever sitting president, Joe Biden, a Democrat, and his Republican predecessor, the twice-impeached, serially indicted Donald Trump.

With less than 10 weeks to go before Iowa’s caucuses launch the 2024 Republican nominating contest, much can still change. As it stands, the country appears to be hurtling toward an election few Americans want – but that might be one of the most consequential in modern US history.

Continue reading...

Blow to Ron DeSantis as more key Florida backers switch to Trump

Posted on by

Bad news for Florida governor’s campaign, with favorability falling throughout 2023 and a GOP debate scheduled for Wednesday

Five Republican legislators in Florida have switched their endorsements from rightwing governor Ron DeSantis to former US president Donald Trump before a key party nomination debate in Miami next week.

The move is another boost to Trump – who remains dominant in the 2024 Republican race – and a blow to DeSantis, whose once highly anticipated bid for the White House has recently floundered badly. All recent polling has shown Trump with a strong lead over his rivals and DeSantis being edged out of second place by the former US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley.

Continue reading...

Rashida Tlaib claims in video that Biden supports Palestinian genocide

Posted on by

Michigan Democrat is only Palestinian American in Congress and warns Biden voters ‘will remember in 2024’

Michigan Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian American member of Congress, has released a video accusing Joe Biden of supporting the “genocide of the Palestinian people”.

Tlaib has been a withering critic of Biden’s staunch backing of the Israeli war against Hamas in Gaza and the White House refusal to listen to demands from some progressive Democrats to back calls for a ceasefire.

Continue reading...

Democrats voted not to expel Santos because it would set dangerous precedent, lawmaker says

Posted on by

Jamie Raskin says it was ‘an easy call’ because Santos hasn’t been convicted of a crime, though he faces 23 federal criminal charges

Thirty-one Democrats voted not to expel the Republican lawmaker George Santos from the US House of Representatives because he has not been convicted of any crime and to eject him would set a dangerous precedent for Republicans to expel their ideological opponents, a leading congressman said.

“For me this was an easy call,” said Jamie Raskin of Maryland, a law professor and influential progressive who sat on the January 6 committee and was lead manager in Donald Trump’s impeachment for inciting the attack on Congress.

Continue reading...

US House passes $14.3bn aid package for Israel despite Democratic opposition

Posted on by

Led by House speaker Mike Johnson, Republican plan passes Thursday 226-196 as Biden threatens veto

The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a Republican plan to provide $14.3bn in aid to Israel as it fights Hamas, despite Democrats’ insistence it has no future in the Senate and the White House’s promise of a veto.

The measure passed 226-196, largely along party lines, with most Republicans supporting the bill and most Democrats objecting.

Continue reading...

US House vote fails to expel Republican George Santos after 23 federal charges

Posted on by

The lying representative from New York retained his seat with fewer than two-thirds of the chamber supporting the resolution

A vote to expel Republican lawmaker George Santos from the US House of Representatives failed on Wednesday when fewer than two-thirds of the chamber supported the resolution, preserving Republicans’ narrow 221-212 majority.

Santos on Friday pleaded not guilty to a 23-count federal indictment accusing him of crimes including laundering funds to pay for his personal expenses, illegally receiving unemployment benefits and charging donors’ credit cards without their consent.

Continue reading...