A Mississippi immigrant who made national headlines when she was detained after speaking out a news conference has been released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. Daniela Vargas, 22, was released Friday under an Order of Supervision from the LaSalle Detention Center in Jena, Louisiana, Because she is now under an Order of Supervision, Vargas will have to check in to the local ICE in Pearl office next month, Peterson said.
Category: Republican
Nelson, Rubio fight back over proposed cuts to Coast Guard, NOAA and FEMA
A Tampa-based NOAA crew including Chris Kern, left, Paul Darby and Pat Didler flies towards what was at the time Tropical Storm Hermine. Hurricanes Hermine and Matthew caused more than $100 million damage in Florida last year.
Attorney general seeks resignations of 46 US attorneys
Attorney General Jeff Sessions is seeking the resignations of 46 United States attorneys who were appointed during prior presidential administrations, the Justice Department said Friday. Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by former President Barack Obama already have left their positions, but the nearly four dozen who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked to leave “in order to ensure a uniform transition,” Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said.
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.
Russia probe credibility in question
As congressional investigations into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election are ramping up, so is the political division, raising questions about whether lawmakers’ work will be viewed as credible. The House this week scheduled its first public hearing, which some swiftly dismissed as political theater.
Republicans Love Individual Mandates – As Long As They’re From Corporations
House Republicans are proposing legislation aimed at making it easier for companies to gather genetic data from workers and their families, including their children, when they collect it as part of a voluntary wellness program. The bill, the Preserving Employee Wellness Programs Act, introduced by Representative Virginia Foxx, a Republican from North Carolina and the chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, would also significantly increase the financial costs faced by someone who does not join a company wellness program.
Trump stumping for AHCA? Democrats arena t worried.
The three-phase Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act is intended to end with massive political pressure on Senate Democrats, who’ll face a choice: Vote with them on individual replacement bills, or be blamed for the American Health Care Act’s implementation going awry. The crux of the theory is that 10 Democrats face reelection next year in states won by Trump.
Latta: GOP can’t afford to wait on repeal
U.S. Rep. Bob Latta said in an interview with The Blade on Friday he supports the partial Affordable Care Act repeal bill backed by House Speaker Paul Ryan and President Trump. “We gotta get this thing started,” Mr. Latta said.
House intel leaders ask Justice Department for alleged wiretapping evidence
The leaders of the House Intelligence Committee have formally asked the Justice Department to turn over any documentary evidence – applications, orders or warrants – related to alleged wiretaps of President Donald Trump and his associates during the campaign, two congressional aides confirm to ABC News. They have asked DOJ officials to provide information – if it exists – by March 13, one aide said.
Esty opposes effort to loosen gun rules
U.S. Rep Elizabeth Esty used her new power as the ranking Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee to take on the committee chairman this week in a losing fight over a bill about veterans, mental health and guns. The bill in question would end the practice of classifying a veteran as mentally incompetent if the FBI’s gun background check system showed that he had been assigned a trustee to help manage his personal affairs.
Sessions ask Daly and all Obama-era US attorneys to resign
After Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked all remaining Obama-administration U.S. attorneys to leave, Deirdre M. Daly , announced her resignation Friday. “It has been a great honor and privilege to serve as Connecticut’s United States attorney,” Daly said in a statement.
This Day in Trump, Day 50: Jobs report ‘may have been phony in the past’ but ‘very real now’
Halfway to the fabled 100-day mark that can define the early stages of a presidency, the White House touted with gusto the news that employers added 235,000 new workers to the payrolls in February . And never mind that Trump has previously called that data “totally fiction” and more.
Trump administration purges Obama-era attorneys
All 46 remaining U.S. attorneys were asked to resign immediately . Many others had already left, but now, the rest are being forced out.
GOP plan less generous than Obamacare for older Americans
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, left, spoke with Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. during a Tuesday news conference on health care, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
Corporate Interests Give Tens of Millions to Dismantle Legal Rights of Consumers and Patients
Big business spent tens of millions to push extreme legislation intended to block victims’ legal rights to seek justice against corporate recklessness and medical malpractice, a new Public Citizen fact sheet shows. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce led the corporate assault against individuals’ legal rights.
Cruz Pushes Obamacare Repeal Gambit That Could Roil the Senate
Ted Cruz is pushing a novel strategy to blow up Obamacare, but it just might blow up the Senate too. The Texas senator is unhappy with what many conservatives consider a half-baked repeal-and-replace effort racing through the House, a plan that GOP House leaders say was narrowed to meet Senate rules.
Opening Arctic for Drilling Is Trump Priority, Key Senator Says an hour ago
Senator Lisa Murkowski said President Donald Trump is interested in opening up new coastal waters for oil and gas drilling and reversing Obama-era policies that restrict energy development in Alaska. Both Trump and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke are weighing ways to expand opportunities to drill in Arctic waters though the changes could take years to accomplish administratively, Murkowski said in an interview on the sidelines of the CERAWeek conference in Houston. “It’s fair to say we are looking at how we might be able to — how the administration might be able to — allow for opportunities within this important area, offshore Alaska,” Murkowski said.
Arkansans Invited to Attend Workshop for Veterans History Project
The office of U.S. Senator John Boozman will host a workshop for the Veteran’s History Project on March 18 at 1p.m. at the Plantation Agriculture Museum State Park in Scott, Arkansas. The workshop will be led by Col.
Say a where’s the Democratic plan to fix ObamaCare, anyway?
Remember “mend it, don’t end it”? Democrats have floated that slogan for three years while trying to convince voters that their unhappiness with ObamaCare doesn’t mean throwing it out entirely. A year ago, Chelsea Clinton argued that the “crushing costs” of the ACA needed immediate attention, but not repeal.
a Congress to Trump: Your tweet deletes might be breaking the law – CNET
Remember that trouble President Donald Trump had earlier this month when he was trying to spell “hear by” … I mean “hearby” … I mean hereby in a tweet about Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s alleged close ties to Russia? Well, turns out his three attempts , and more significantly, two deletions, may have been breaking violating federal law. That’s according to Utah Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz and Maryland Democrat Rep. Elijah Cummings, chairman and ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, respectively.
Hill Republican leaders reject suggestion to move up Medicaid expansion sunset
Republican congressional leaders are rejecting Friday any hint from the White House that they should disrupt their carefully crafted bill to repeal and replace Obamacare. After CNN reported Thursday night that President Donald Trump was open to moving up the sunset of the Medicaid expansion up from 2020 to the end of this year, GOP leaders supporting the bill aren’t biting.
Do you wish we had more snow this winter?
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House passes bill to restrict legal claims against companies
The House has approved a bill that would make it harder for individuals or groups to bring legal claims against companies in consumer disputes, employment discrimination cases and other areas. Lawmakers approved the Republican-sponsored measure, 220-201, Thursday night.
New administration seeks resignations of 46 US attorneys
Attorney General Jeff Sessions is seeking the resignations of 46 U.S. attorneys who were holdovers from the Obama administration. Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by President Barack Obama have already left their positions, but the nearly four dozen who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked to leave “in order to ensure a uniform transition,” Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Friday.
Japan bats away U.S. complaint on autos
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga speaks to media during a news conference in this photo taken by Kyodo February 12, 2017. Mandatory credit Kyodo/via Japan rejected U.S. demands for more access to Japan’s car market on Friday, casting doubt over whether it can avoid friction over autos and agriculture imports at high level bilateral talks on economic relations next month.
Which Side Is Gen. Mattis On?
Aa debate over the military’s budget is emerging between defense hawks on Capitol Hill and fiscal hawks in the Trump administration. The fiscal hawks, chief among them Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney, want the next annual defense budget set at $603 billion, a 3 percent increase from the last Obama budget request.
Today in Trump: March 10, 2017
Most election forecasters found themselves in a social media buzzsaw the day after Donald Trump stunned the country with his triumph over Hillary Clinton. Major political oddsmakers had predicted a Clinton win, and famed numbers savant Nate Silver announced the day before the election, “Clinton is a 71 percent favorite to win the election.”
Top generals testify against proposed State Dept. cuts
The two top U.S. generals in charge of military operations in Africa and the Middle East told the Senate Armed Service Committee on Thursday proposed budget cuts at the State Department could hamper the joint departmental effort to fight extremism. “We work very closely with various agencies,” said Marine Corps Gen.
Huntsman in exile: Did appointment make way for Hatch?
For a second time, a president is sending Jon Huntsman overseas on an assignment that could block his political ambitions. President Donald Trump’s decision to tap the Republican former Utah governor as the US ambassador to Russia puts Huntsman on the sidelines the day before veteran Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch announced his plans Thursday to run for another term in 2018.
Poll: Alpharetta democrat leading in conservative district
Georgia’s 6th district seat, which is traditionally Republican dominated, was held by Tom Price before he was sworn in as Secretary of Health and Human Services for the Trump administration in February. Ossoff has never held an elected position, but his online campaign titled “Make Trump Furious,” led to nearly $3 million in donations.
Republicans retain Hackman as party chairwoman
By a vote of 59-17, Hackman was chosen Saturday by local GOP precinct committee members over fellow Republican Lisa Deaton. Other incumbent party officers who ran unopposed were also re-elected to serve another term.
Robinson: Health care plan reflects GOP moral irresponsibility
It’s time to put an end to the myth that Republicans believe in fiscal responsibility. Saving taxpayer dollars takes a back seat to the ideological imperative of blaming and shaming the poor.
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.
ACLU Proves (Again) They Are Partisan Left-Wing Hacks
Jeff Sessions gave answers in his confirmation hearing some people do not like. Senator Al Franken, who is more comfortable writing scripts, didn’t ask the right questions and Sessions responses in context were about contacts with Russian officials about matters of the Presidential campaign.
Trump Pushes Health Bill, But Ryan Owns It
Republican lawmakers don’t want to cross the President, especially since he could walk away and leave the House holding the bag. House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis.
GOP leaders claim momentum as health bill clears hurdles
Republican leaders drove their long-promised legislation to dismantle Barack Obama’s health care law over its first big hurdles in the House on Thursday, claiming fresh momentum despite cries of protest from right, left and After grueling all-night sessions, the Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees both approved their portions of the bill along party-line votes. The legislation, strongly supported by President Donald Trump, would eliminate the unpopular tax penalties for the uninsured under the Affordable Care Act, replacing Obama’s law with a conservative blueprint likely to cover far fewer people but – Republicans hope – increase choice.
GOP-led House passes bill to curb legal claims against big biz over discrimination, consumer gripes
The House has approved a bill that would make it harder for individuals or groups to bring legal claims against companies in consumer disputes, employment discrimination cases and other areas. Lawmakers approved the Republican-sponsored measure, 220-201, Thursday night.
More
House Energy and Commerce Committee member Rep. Tony Cardenas, D-Calif., left, and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., pause as members of the committee argue the details of the GOP’s “Obamacare” replacement bill after working all… . After working through the night, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., is seen on a TV monitor as Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., seated at center, and Rep. Ryan Costello, R-Pa., listen to deba… WASHINGTON – The sun rose Thursday on a House committee’s marathon debate of the Republican health care bill as one lawmaker made a novel offer to mercifully end the session – the promise of food.
After 27-hour Hill debate, second House committee OKs Obamacare repeal
A second House committee approved the Republican Party’s Obamacare repeal bill Thursday, as President Donald Trump flexed his deal-making skills to build momentum behind the legislation amid growing concern among prominent GOP figures that fast-tracking the measure could backfire. The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted to move the bill to the House floor after a marathon hearing lasting 27 hours and 18 minutes, hours after the Ways and Means panel registered the first milestone for the American Health Care Act, endorsing it after their own 18-hour session.
FBI Director James Comey meets with Congress ‘Gang of Eight’
FBI Director James Comey went to Capitol Hill on Thursday to meet with eight members of Congress who represent those who have access to the most highly classified intelligence information, a source told CNN. In the Senate, that includes Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Intelligence committee, Republican Sen. Richard Burr and Democrat Mark Warner respectively.