Pence hands over AOL emails from time as Indiana’s governor

Vice President Mike Pence has turned over emails from a private AOL.com account he used to conduct official business while he was Indiana's governor. A spokeswoman for current Gov. Eric Holcomb says Pence's attorneys last month handed over an electronic database containing the emails, which are public records.

Senate Dems spell out conditions on bipartisan tax reform

Senate Democrats and independents said Tuesday that upcoming legislation to rewrite the nation's tax code should ensure the middle class doesn't pay more and the "top 1 percent" doesn't pay less. In a letter to Republican leaders, including President Donald Trump, 45 of the 48 Senate Democratic caucus members said they won't support any upcoming GOP effort to overhaul the tax system that delivers cuts to the top 1 percent or adds to the government's $20 trillion debt.

Trump cutting hundreds of planned regulations

The Trump administration has withdrawn or delayed 860 proposed regulations in its first five months, the beginnings of a regulatory overhaul meant to bolster economic growth. Federal agencies have withdrawn 469 proposed regulations compared to a fall 2016 report when Barack Obama was president, according to figures from the White House budget office.

The Latest: McConnell praises new effort to repeal Obamacare

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is praising a last-ditch Republican bill to repeal and replace "Obamacare" - the latest sign the GOP's repeal effort may be back from the dead. McConnell calls the bill by Sens. Bill Cassidy and Lindsey Graham "an intriguing idea, and one that has a great deal of support."

Leading Off: Cubs visit White House, Francona to return

FILE - In this May 3, 2017, file photo, Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona watches the team's baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit. Francona missed Tuesday night's game against Texas after his second t... Manager Joe Maddon and some of the Chicago Cubs will go to the White House, though it's not an official visit with President Donald Trump.

Segel: Dems must rein in rigid congressional seniority rules

Tip O'Neill, the great speaker of the U.S. House, once remarked to his colleagues that theirs was the only profession he knew where one advanced due to the death, defeat, or disgrace of his colleagues. He was remarking, of course, on the harsh realities of the congressional seniority system.

Trump officials reach out to Democrats on tax overhaul

Trump administration officials are reaching out to Senate Democrats for help in crafting a tax overhaul package, a departure from the go-it-alone strategy Republicans have been taking on health care. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and other administration officials met with Republican and Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee Wednesday.

Democrats of the Year awards held in Longmeadow

Police in Connecticut say a father who was moving a vehicle ran over and killed a toddler in the driveway of a Bristol Massachusetts Senate President Stanley Rosenberg of Amherst was saluted as the Democrat of the Year. Congressman Richard Neal, of Springfield, was honored as the 2017 Democrat of Distinction.

Congress OKs bill averting Saturday gov’t shutdown

With just hours to spare, Congress easily approved a short-term spending bill Friday that would prevent a partial federal shutdown over the weekend. But on President Donald Trump's 99th day in office, lawmakers were leaving until next week without completing two other measures he's coveted: A Republican health care overhaul and a budget financing government for the entire year.

Trump budget will hike defense spending by $54 billion

The White House says President Donald Trump's upcoming budget will propose a whopping $54 billion increase in defense spending and impose corresponding cuts to domestic programs and foreign aid. The result is that Trump's initial budget wouldn't dent budget deficits projected to run about $500 billion.

Richard Neal’s moment has arrived

A low-key, behind-the-scenes, let's-get-a-deal-done type, the Springfield lawmaker is now the ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, which means he will be one of the minority party's point people in critiquing Republican proposals and arguing for Democratic alternatives. As Republicans prepare to repeal Obamacare, Neal frames things this way: "The Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security are all linked," and all essential to the middle class.