Category: US House of Representatives

U.S. House Republicans to release healthcare bill changes

FILE PHOTO: House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady speaks with the media on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 14, 2017. Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives will release changes to their healthcare bill on Monday, a top lawmaker said, in hopes of winning passage for the legislation later this week, and eventually, in the Senate.

Bill addresses ‘toxic relationship between US and Pakistan

Entitled “Pakistan State Sponsor of Terrorism Act of 2015,” a bill introduced by Rep. Ted Poe would designate Pakistan one of the world’s originators of globalized state-sponsored terrorism. Poe said upon introducing the bill on Thursday, “Not only is Pakistan an untrustworthy ally, Islamabad has also aided and abetted enemies of the United States for years,” Poe is the chairman of Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade of the House Foreign Relations Committee.

Rep. DeSantis visits Israel, tours possible US embassy sites

While President Trump has backed away from moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a ranking Republican Congressman visited the country Sunday, pushing for the controversial move. Ron DeSantis, the chair of the Subcommittee on National Security, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and toured four possible sites for the embassy relocation, including the two current U.S. consulates in West Jerusalem.

White House eyes steep cuts to leading US climate science agency

Washington: President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to slash one of the government’s premier climate science agencies by 17 per cent, delivering steep cuts to research funding and satellite programs, according to a four-page budget memo obtained by The Washington Post.The proposed cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would also eliminate funding for a variety of smaller programs including external research, coastal management, estuary reserves and “coastal resilience,” which seeks to bolster the ability of coastal areas to withstand major storms and rising seas.

White House eyes steep cuts to leading US climate science agency

Washington: President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to slash one of the government’s premier climate science agencies by 17 per cent, delivering steep cuts to research funding and satellite programs, according to a four-page budget memo obtained by The Washington Post.The proposed cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would also eliminate funding for a variety of smaller programs including external research, coastal management, estuary reserves and “coastal resilience,” which seeks to bolster the ability of coastal areas to withstand major storms and rising seas.

Donald Trump says he has ‘total’ confidence in Jeff Sessions; no need to recuse from Russia probe

Update: President Donald Trump says he “wasn’t aware” that his attorney general — former Sen. Jeff Sessions — had contact with the Russian ambassador during last year’s White House campaign. A growing number of Republicans joined Democratic leaders Thursday in calling for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to step aside from an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election.

Critics: Delay shows travel ban isn’t urgent after all

Critics are seizing on the Trump administration’s decision to delay the issuance of a revised travel ban, saying it undermines the ban’s national security rationale. The new executive order was slated for a mid-week release, but a senior administration official told CNN after Trump’s speech to a joint address of Congress that the timeline was being pushed back in order to keep the spotlight on the positive reaction to his address.

Nunes rejects GOP calls for special prosecutor into Russian ties

Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Tulare, chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, rejected calls from his fellow Republican for a special prosecutor to investigate purported ties between Russia and members of President Trump’s administration and campaign. Earlier Saturday, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista , the former House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chair, said it would be inappropriate for Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was involved with the Trump campaign and is a Trump appointee, to investigate the matter.

US senator revives bill cutting funds to PA over funding for terrorists

Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham will reintroduce legislation next week that would cut US funding to the Palestinian Authority if it continues to provide monetary support to the families of those who commit acts of terror against Israelis. The bill, known as the Taylor Force Act , was first introduced last year by Graham with former Indiana Republican Sen. Dan Coats and Missouri Republican Sen. Roy Blunt.

US senator revives bill cutting funds to PA over funding for terrorists

Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham will reintroduce legislation next week that would cut US funding to the Palestinian Authority if it continues to provide monetary support to the families of those who commit acts of terror against Israelis. The bill, known as the Taylor Force Act , was first introduced last year by Graham with former Indiana Republican Sen. Dan Coats and Missouri Republican Sen. Roy Blunt.

Pence says US to hold Russia accountable, stand with NATO

U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence on Saturday conveyed a message to jittery partners that the Trump administration will “hold Russia accountable” and maintain steadfast support for NATO, a military alliance the American commander in chief once dismissed as “obsolete.” In his overseas debut as vice-president, Pence told the audience at the Munich Security Conference that the U.S. would be “unwavering” in its commitment to NATO and that President Donald Trump would “stand with Europe.”

McCain says Flynn affair shows Trump administration in ‘disarray’

At the Munich Security Conference, McCain said the departure of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn shows that the Trump’s administration is “in many respects, in disarray”, remarking that “they’ve got a lot of work to do”. But McCain blurred the clear line he drew between his pro-Western orthodoxy and Trump’s new populism when he said that Pence and Trump appointee John Kelly would back him up with similar, pro-NATO, pro-democracy, pro-liberal values, pro-Western messages to the conference.

Lawmakers push for answers on Trump teama s Russia ties

A crisis over the relationship between President Donald Trump’s aides and Russia deepened as a growing number of Trump’s fellow Republicans demanded expanded congressional inquiries into the matter. Trump sought to focus attention on what he called criminal intelligence leaks about his ousted national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

AP Sources: Justice warned White House about Flynn contacts

Joseph Dunford, left, and National Security Adviser Michael Flynn as he arrives via Air Force One at MacDill Air Forc… . Kellyanne Conway, left, and Stephen Miller, both senior advisers to President Donald Trump, walk to a news conference with President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Feb. 10, 2017, at the White House in Washin… .

Tom Price sworn in as health and human services secretary

Rep. Tom Price of Georgia was sworn in Friday as health and human services secretary, setting the stage for the conservative to play a leading role in dismantling President Barack Obama’s health care law. Vice President Mike Pence administered the oath to Price hours after he won Senate confirmation on a narrow 52-47 vote early Friday.

Stop picking Tulsi

I’m getting really tired of US House Rep. Tulsi Gabbard being targeted. She’s one of the few members of Congress actually attempting to do her job, When Liza Featherstone started her nonsense on Tulsi, I stopped going to Featherstone’s Twitter feed.

The Latest: Trump press need for tougher immigration checks

President Donald Trump is pressing the need for more stringent screening while his immigration order is on hold by the courts. Trump says in remarks at the U.S. Central Command at the MacDill Air Force base in Florida that, “We need strong programs” so that “people that love us and want to love our country and will end up loving our country are allowed in” and those who “want to destroy us and destroy our country” are kept out.

Dakota Access and Keystone XL Pipelines Revived: Why Does It Matter?

On January 24, President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum expediting review of the application to build the Dakota Access Pipeline. Construction of the 1,172 mile, $3.7 billion pipeline that carries oil from North Dakota into Illinois is almost complete, except for a 1,100 foot section under North Dakota’s Lake Oahe , an important reservoir on the Missouri River.

Congressional leaders scramble to reassure Australia after testy Trump phone call

Top Republican figures on Capitol Hill sought to reassure Australia on Thursday following reports of a remarkably tense phone call between President Trump and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. House Speaker Paul Ryan said Australia was a ”very essential” US ally after being pressed in a morning news conference by reporters on the call, as well as on a tweet late Wednesday where Trump dismissed an agreement to accept refugees from Australia as a ”dumb deal.’

Correction: India-US-Tech Visas story

In a story Jan. 31 about H-1B visas, The Associated Press reported erroneously that proposed legislation could require more companies to prove that they have tried to hire U.S. workers before hiring foreign workers on H-1B visas. The change would actually force more companies to make a good faith effort to hire U.S. workers before considering foreign workers.

Senate Democrats boycotting HHS, Treasury nominees

In a surprise turn of events, Senate Democrats announced Tuesday morning that they are boycotting a committee vote on two of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, drawing fury from Republicans across the aisle. The Senate Finance Committee was set to vote on the nominations of Rep. Tom Price to lead the Department of Health and Human Services and Steve Mnuchin for Treasury Secretary.

Senate Democrats boycotting HHS, Treasury nominees

In a surprise turn of events, Senate Democrats announced Tuesday morning that they are boycotting a committee vote on two of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, drawing fury from Republicans across the aisle. The Senate Finance Committee was set to vote on the nominations of Rep. Tom Price to lead the Department of Health and Human Services and Steve Mnuchin for Treasury Secretary.

Nation-Now 54 mins ago 9:13 p.m.Court grants emergency stay of Trump’s immigration ban

Protesters gather at JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 on Jan. 28, 2017, to demonstrate against President Trump’s executive order to suspend refugee arrivals. President Trump’s ban on immigration by citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries ran into at least a temporary roadblock Saturday night, after a U.S. District judge in Brooklyn granted an emergency stay sought by immigrants’ rights lawyers.

Trump, Putin set for phone call; GOP concerns on sanctions

In this Jan. 25, 2017 file-pool photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks to students at the Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia. A day ahead of President Donald Trump’s weekend call with Putin, the fight within the Republican Party over the direction of U.S. policy toward Moscow intensified.