Alabama loss may offer a warning to Trump White House

President Donald Trump managed to endorse two different losing candidates in the same Senate race, a setback that is highlighting an experience deficit within the White House political team. "As the leader of the party, I would have liked to have had the seat," Trump acknowledged Wednesday, a day after a special Senate election in Alabama led to the election of Democrat Doug Jones.

GOP hopes Alabama loss is wakeup call for Trump White House

President Donald Trump managed to endorse two different losing candidates in the same Senate race, a setback that is highlighting an experience deficit within the White House political team. "As the leader of the party, I would have liked to have had the seat," Trump acknowledged Wednesday, a day after a special Senate election in Alabama led to the election of Democrat Doug Jones.

Outlook: Inching Toward Deals on Spending, Taxes

Congress now has until Dec. 22 to strike another agreement to keep the government running, while the tax conference officially kicks off this week. President Trump, accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, speaks before a meeting with congressional leaders including House Speaker Paul Ryan, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in the Oval Office on Thursday.

Trump to make case for GOP tax overhaul

President Trump will deliver a closing argument for the proposed Republican tax overhaul in a speech Wednesday, the same day that House and Senate conferees are to begin work on a blended bill. The president will deliver the speech in Washington, according to a person familiar with the plan who wasn't authorized to speak about it publicly.

Pence announces death of family cat Pickles

Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen announced that their cat Pickle died this week, according to Karen Pence's Twitter account. The Pence family took two cats, Oreo and Pickle, a snake and a rabbit named Marlon Bundo to their new home at the Naval Observatory residence in Washington, D.C. Oreo died in June, according to the family.

Pelosi, Schumer lay out demands in White House talks

US President Donald Trump, alongside Vice President Mike Pence , meets with Congressional leadership including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , Republican of Kentucky, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , Democrat of New York, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan , Republican of Wisconsin, and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi , Democrat of California, and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis , in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, December 7, 2017.

Donald Trump Has Made Roy Moore the Face of the Republican Party

The Nation is reader supported: Chip in $10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. Now that Donald Trump has signaled that he believes Roy Moore should be the new face of the Republican Party on Capitol Hill, he has placed every one of his fellow Republican leaders in a tough position.

The 10 Best Netflix Original Shows Of 2017

President Donald Trump will recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on Wednesday and direct the State Department to begin the process to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, senior administration officials said. US President Donald Trump's pledge to declare Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has caused controversy across the world.

Pence spokesman calls assertions in ‘Atlantic’ article ‘categorically untrue’

WASHINGTON, DC - A new report says Vice President Mike Pence considered a push to top the Republican ticket after the Donald Trump Access Hollywood tapes came out. "The people I talk to say he is a lot more ambitious and calculating then he lets on in public," said McKay Coppins, the writer of the article.

Russia probe tests Pence in-the-dark defense

New revelations about Michael Flynn's lies to the FBI are laying bare Vice President Mike Pence's in-the-dark strategy when it comes to Russia's election meddling, raising new questions about whether he could have been left in the dark as he has argued for nearly a year. Advisers have long insisted that Pence was unaware Flynn spoke to then-Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak about a new set of US sanctions on the day they were announced last December.

Europe initiates review into new tax law’s legal compliance

The European Union has launched a review into whether tax-cut legislation passed by the U.S. Senate over the weekend runs afoul of international trade and tax laws. Germany and France initiated the investigation, which tasks the European Commission and the EU's legal service to check if the proposed U.S. policy shift violates international laws, according to acting German Finance Minister Peter Altmaier.

Bob Dunning: Here are some gifts you didn’t know you needed

While gift-giving this Christmas may be a bit more modest on the east side of the tracks, for some unknown reason, a helpful holiday guide arrived in my humble mailbox the other day that should make the obligatory present exchange bearable. It's titled "uncommongoods - your new favorite things."

Lawmakers Reprise Pence Bill to Protect Reporters From Trump Admin.

A bipartisan bill aimed at protecting reporters from revealing confidential sources has its roots in a similar bill co-sponsored by then Congressman Mike Pence 10 years ago, the Washington Examiner reports. Republican Rep. Jim Jordan, former head of the Freedom Caucus, and Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Maryland, introduced a similar bill and hope that Pence's influence will stem any urge that President Donald Trump's administration might have to prosecute reporters.

Collins says Trump transition team wrong to reach out to Russia over sanctions

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, makes her way through a crush of reporters after Republican senators met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, on the GOP effort to overhaul the tax code, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 1, 2017. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said on Sunday that it was wrong for the Trump transition team to reach out to Russia over Obama-era sanctions imposed in response to its interference in the U.S. presidential election but that this doesn't prove collusion.

Merging of 2 tax measures next up

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., confer Friday on Capitol Hill before the late-night tax vote. Schumer noted that the effect of some last-minute revisions had yet to be analyzed by the Joint Committee on Taxation.

Tax bill clears Senate in big boost for Trump, GOP

Republicans muscled the largest tax overhaul in 30 years through the Senate early Saturday, taking a big step toward giving President Donald Trump his first major legislative triumph after months of false starts and frustration on other fronts.

Sen. Jeff Flake secured commitment on DACA fix for his GOP tax plan voteLos Angeles Times

As Republicans negotiated revisions to the GOP tax plan Friday to win their votes, Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona took another approach. Flake won a commitment from Republican leaders - and the White House - to work on a permanent fix that would allow young immigrants known as Dreamers to stay in the U.S. as President Trump prepares to end the DACA program next year.