This Wednesday, March 1, 2017, file photo shows President Donald Trump, flanked by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., left, and House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., right as he speaks during a meeting with House and Senate leadership in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. The president is deploying an outside and inside strategy to fulfill his campaign promise to repeal and replace “Obamacare,” seeking support beyond Washington before making an in-person pitch on Capitol Hill.
Category: Mitch McConnell
Pence appeals for complete GOP support for health overhaul
Vice President Mike Pence appealed for total GOP congressional support for a White House-backed health overhaul during a brief visit Saturday to Kentucky, where the Republican governor and junior senator are among the plan’s skeptics. “This is going to be a battle in Washington, D.C. And for us to seize this opportunity to repeal and replace Obamacare once and for all, we need every Republican in Congress, and we’re counting on Kentucky,” Pence said at an energy company where business leaders had gathered.
Sean Spicer, Mike Pence
Vice President Mike Pence is set to rally support in Kentucky for a White House-backed health care overhaul, traveling to a state that has often been front-and-center in the battle over former President Barack Obama’s sweeping health care law. In Louisville, Pence is scheduled to tour an energy services company with Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, part of an effort to reassure conservative Republicans who have raised objections to the House GOP health care proposal that would scrap the “Obamacare” health care law.
Tillerson steps away from possible pipeline decisions
Secretary of State designate Rex Tillerson pauses during a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 4, 2017. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson , who previously served as the CEO of oil and gas giant ExxonMobil , has recused himself from any decisions regarding the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
Enslaving debt has soared to almost $20 trillion
Within 40 days our national debt is likely to be $20 trillion; four of which is from eight years of George W. Bush and 10 from eight years of Barack Obama – the two biggest spending presidents in U.S. history. Obama alone accumulated more debt than all previous presidents put together.
Bill Whalen
Years ago, the political strategist Dick Morris liked to suggest that America’s chief executive suffered from a split personality – a “Saturday night Bill Clinton” who lacked good moral judgment; a more pious “Sunday morning President Clinton” who was a devoted public servant. “Sunday Trump” is an orgy of panel shows dedicated to the controversy du jour – this weekend, Trump alleging that his predecessor ordered wiretaps for Trump Tower.
Sour Home Alabama: Jeff Sessions is Too Arrogant to Ever Resign
It doesn’t matter how how many times he failed to tell the whole truth during his Senate confirmation hearing. It doesn’t matter how many times he spoke to the Russians.
First House health care votes near, GOP dissenters persist
In this Feb. 27, 2017, file photo, House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis. listens at left as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky.
No Resignation, but Pressure Forces Jeff Sessions to Recuse Himself
Responding to growing pressure both from his colleagues and the public at large, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced Thursday that he is recusing himself from federal investigations into possible Russian interference in the 2016 election. Though he continued to deny the accusation that he lied under oath as “totally false,” he said he spoke with his staff and they recommended recusal.
The struggles of coal retirees come roaring back into the congressional spotlight
A dispute over fixing the health care fund of thousands of retired coal miners almost shut down the federal government in December. The solution was only temporary, and the issue is about to command Congress’ attention again.
Trump to push Pentagon upgrade aboard US aircraft carrier
President Donald Trump, flanked by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. and House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., hosts a meeting with House and Senate leadership, Wednesday, March 1, 2017, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington.
Top intel nominee pledges to resist political pressure
In this Jan. 23, 2017, file photo, National Intelligence Director nominee, former Indiana Sen, Dan Coats waits for the start of a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. on Capitol Hill in Washington.
Democratic response pitched to middle-class white voters who went for Trump
Former Gov. Steve Beshear, D-Ky., followed up President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress late Tuesday surrounded by white, presumably middle-class Americans in what may have been an appeal to a demographic the Democratic Party lost to Trump in the election. Beshear sat casually at a table inside a diner in Lexington, Ky., while he lectured Trump on how his actions as commander-in-chief have hurt the working class in his red state.
Twitter mocks Democrat response
Twitter lit up late Tuesday night to mock former Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, who delivered a stilted response to President Trump’s speech from a coffeehouse. Beshear appeared to be picked to respond because he’s from a working-class state that Democrats are now desperately looking to win back.
Ahead of Trump speech, McConnell takes swipe at Beshear on Obamacare
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell took a swipe Tuesday at former Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, the Democrat chosen to deliver the party’s response to President Donald Trump’s speech tonight to Congress. Beshear, governor from 2007 to 2015, championed the implementation of the Affordable Care Act in Kentucky, and he was tapped in part as a rebuttal to McConnell , a Kentucky Republican who’s one of the law’s biggest foes.
The Latest: Ryan sees Trump as ‘chairman,’ not details guy
House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis. speaks to reporters outside the White House in Washington, Monday, Feb. 27, 2017, following a meeting with President Donald Trump inside.
Partisan discord tainting probes of Russia, Trump, election
In this Jan. 23, 2017, file photo, National Intelligence Director nominee, former Indiana Sen, Dan Coats waits for the start of a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. on Capitol Hill in Washington.
Mitch McConnell
Congress returns to Washington this week to confront dramatic decisions on health care and the Supreme Court that may help determine the course of Donald Trump’s presidency. First, the president will have his say, in his maiden speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.
Congress to address big issues
Congress returns to Washington this week to confront dramatic decisions on health care and the Supreme Court that may help determine the course of Donald Trump’s presidency. First, the president will have his say, in his maiden speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.
At town halls, GOP caught between Trump, angry voters
In this Feb. 21, 2017 file photo, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks at the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the American Legion Post 34, in Lawrenceburg, Ky. President Donald Trump has been in the White House only a little more than a month and already he’s making things awfully uncomfortable for some of his fellow Republicans.
Minneapolis women line up for ‘she persisted’ tattoos
So many women showed up at a Minneapolis tattoo parlor for a permanent reminder of female solidarity that it had to turn away some latecomers. Local women Chelsea Brink, Nora McInerny and Kate O’Reilly organized a fundraiser in which people could get a tattoo of the words “Nevertheless, she persisted,” for $75, Minnesota Public Radio reported .
In rare concession, top Dem predicts Gorsuch will be confirmed
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said Tuesday that President Trump’s pick to replace Justice Scalia on the Supreme Court will likely be confirmed because even if he does not win enough votes, the “nuclear option” would likely be employed. “I hope we do vote him down,” she said in an interview with NY1 .
Republicans Brace for Town Hall Protests About President Trump
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell speaks during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington on Feb. 17, 2017. Republicans used town-hall meetings in 2009 to help channel outrage at the sitting president and take back Congress the next year.
Trumpa s EPA pick, Scott Pruitt, expected to be confirmed Friday
In this Jan. 18, 2017, file photo,Environmental Protection Agency Administrator nominee, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Senate Republicans are poised to use their majority to confirm Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, despite calls from Democrats for a delay.
From Melania to Russia to the travel ban: Seven talking points from…
DONALD TRUMP insisted that he had “inherited a mess” as he launched the most vigorous defence of his presidency to date during a wide-ranging 75-minute impromptu press conference yesterday. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017, in the East Room of the White House in Washington.
US Senators from both parties pledge to continue Mel Brooks-style remake of McCarthy era
“Top Republican and Democratic senators pledged Tuesday to deepen their [security theater over alleged, so far with little if any evidence,] Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential election in the wake of Michael Flynn’s resignation as President Trump’s national security adviser, opening a new and potentially uncomfortable chapter in the uneasy relationship between Trump and Capitol Hill.
For GOP, a dimmed zeal for investigations in Trump era
In this Feb. 14, 2017, photo, House Speaker Paul Ryan Wis., responds to reporters about the ouster of Michael Flynn, President Trump’s national security adviser, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Republicans’ ardor for investigations and oversight, on display throughout the Obama administration, has cooled off considerably with Donald Trump in the White House.
Flynn departure erupts into a full-blown crisis for Trump White House
In this image made from a video taken on Dec. 10, 2015 and made available on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017, US President Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, right, shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in Moscow. Flynn, who resigned following reports that he misled White House officials about his contacts with Russia, was seen attending the 10th anniversary of the Russian television network RT in 2015 where Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a speech.
Former wrestling executive Linda McMahon confirmed to lead SBA
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky says McMahon will “prioritize growing jobs over growing government bureaucracy” and calls that a welcome change from Washington. McMahon served as the chief executive officer at World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. before stepping down to run twice for the Senate in Connecticut.
Mulvaney likely to face budget chief confirmation vote this week in Senate
Rep. Mick Mulvaney testified before the Senate Budget Committee on his nomination to be director of the Office of Management and Budget in the Trump administration on Tuesday. Budget Director-designate Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Budget Committee.
Conservatives sure love progressives and radicals – at least after they’re dead
The right loves to lay claim to legends like Martin Luther King and Susan B. Anthony. Historians beg to differ Sen. Mitch McConnell’s ill-advised silencing of Sen. Elizabeth Warren during the debate over confirming Jeff Sessions as attorney general read as a blatant act of sexism from a man who can’t handle backtalk from a woman.
Senate nears confirmation of Trump’s pick to head Treasury
In this Jan. 19, 2017 file photo, Treasury Secretary-designate Steven Mnuchin testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. The Senate is poised to confirm Mnuchin despite complaints by Democrats that Mnuchin failed to protect thousands of homeowners from unnecessary foreclosures when he headed OneWest Bank.
Protesters mass outside Mitch McConnell’s Louisvillehome to recite Coretta Scott King letter
Protesters recited Coretta Scott King’s decades-old letter opposing newly confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Friday evening outside the Louisville home of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican. Nearly 400 demonstrators gathered outside Mr. McConnell’s residence Friday night to read aloud King’s 1986 critique of Mr. Sessions, the Huffington Post reported.
Worldview: Rubin: Force Trump to see truth about Putin
Trudy Rubin’s Worldview column runs on Thursdays and Sundays. Over the past decade she has made multiple trips to Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt, Turkey, Israel and the West Bank and also written from Syria, Tunisia, Lebanon, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, South Korea and China.
COMMENTARY: What Milo Yiannopoulos and Elizabeth Warren have in common
The term refers to what happens when an attempt to censor information backfires and instead unintentionally draws more attention to the censorship target. Its namesake is Barbra Streisand, who in 2003 sued a photographer for including a photograph of her Malibu home among a series of 12,000 aerial images documenting California coastal erosion.
Mitch McConnell tells Elizabeth Warren (and Coretta Scott King) to sit down and shut up
Donald Trump has won the presidency after narrowly carrying a few states to put him above 270 electoral votes.But according… **NOTE: THE FORM LETTER IS BLANK. WE WILL ACHIEVE MAXIMUM IMPACT WITH UNIQUE LETTERS.
Pence says Trump ‘speaking his mind’ on judge who stopped ban
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Top GOP senators in Obamacare replacement role soften stance on total repeal
Two top Republicans expected to lead the charge in the repealing of the Affordable Care Act said this week they are in favor of repairing it in lieu of a total repeal, which the GOP has aimed to do over the last eight years. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., both spoke about Obamacare and the hurdles the GOP is facing in order to repeal the law in its entirety, according to The Washington Post .
EDITORIAL: Donald Trump picks Neal Gorsuch to fill vacant U.S. Supreme Court seat
Donald Trump named his U.S. Supreme Court pick on Tuesday, the same day that a dozen Democrats refused to show up for a committee vote on two of the president’s Cabinet nominees. The boycott was instructive.
Why ‘cloture’ and ‘nuclear option’ are keys to Trump’s Supreme Court pick
President Trump’s impending announcement of a Supreme Court nominee is fueling speculation that Senate Republicans may use a procedure known as the “nuclear option” to ensure that they can confirm a new justice even if Democrats oppose Trump’s choice. Why ‘cloture’ and ‘nuclear option’ are keys to Trump’s Supreme Court pick President Trump’s impending announcement of a Supreme Court nominee is fueling speculation that Senate Republicans may use a procedure known as the “nuclear option” to ensure that they can confirm a new justice even if Democrats oppose Trump’s choice.