Politics

Raskin Demands End To Biden Impeachment Probe: “Key Evidence At Heart Of Inquiry Is Based On A Lie”

“In a detailed indictment, Special Counsel David Weiss — who was appointed by former President Donald Trump — has demonstrated how key evidence at the heart of House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry is based on a lie. “Special Counsel Weiss’s investigation is just the most recent to debunk the Ukraine-Burisma conspiracy theory at the heart of this fraudulent impeachment inquiry. “It …

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FL House Approves Bill Making Left Lane Passing Only

Florida Politics reports: Florida may have fewer left-lane laggards on high-speed roadways next year if the Senate approves legislation that just zipped through the House. The bill (HB 317) cleared the Legislature’s lower chamber on a 113-3 vote. Its twin companion (SB 258) now awaits consideration beside it on the Senate floor. If approved, the measure would provide that the …

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Prominent Putin Critic Alexei Navalny Dies In Prison

The Guardian reports: The Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has died in jail, the country’s prison service has said, in what is likely to be seen as a political assassination attributable to Vladimir Putin. Navalny, 47, one of Putin’s most visible and persistent critics, was being held in a jail about 40 miles north of the Arctic Circle where he …

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GOP Rep Drops Montana Senate Bid After Six Days

Helena’s NBC affiliate reports: Republican U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale has dropped out of the Montana U.S. Senate race MTN has confirmed. He entered the race Friday morning after months of speculation and hints of a potential run, with the goal of ultimately challenging Democrat U.S. Sen. Jon Tester in the general election. In a statement, Rosendale said knew the race …

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Shapiro: Endless Chaos Will Cost GOP House Majority

“Democrats are way better at this game than Republicans. Republicans are by and large a fragmentary group, it’s a coalitional group. “The confused messages coming out of the Republican Party is one reason why despite the unpopularity of the Democratic Party, Republicans are cruising for a bruising in November. I think people are whistling past the graveyard. “I don’t mean …

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DeSantis Complains Cultists Have “Hijacked” Book Bans

The New Republic reports: Governor Ron DeSantis on Thursday came out in support of a proposal to limit book bans in schools—the direct result of his own stupid policies. In a press conference, DeSantis tried to claim that accusations that he has enabled book bans in the state of Florida are “a fraud” and “a big hoax.” He blamed “activists” …

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Tennessee GOP Bill Would Outlaw Sales Of Cold Beer

Memphis’s CBS reports: A bill working its way through the Tennessee legislature could put a chill on cold beer sales in the state. SB 2636, according to its summary on the state website, “prohibits a beer permittee from selling at retail refrigerated or cold beer.” It passed two votes in the Senate and was referred to a committee. The bill …

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Dem Bill Would Connect TX Power Grid To Rest Of US

The Hill reports: Reps. Greg Casar (D-Texas) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) have introduced legislation that would connect Texas’s self-contained grid with the rest of the nation, three years after extreme winter weather knocked out the grid and killed hundreds of Texans. Casar and Ocasio-Cortez announced the legislation on Wednesday, the third anniversary of the winter storm. The Connect the Grid …

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Haley Mocks Trump With Valentines To Dictators

The New York Post reports: Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley is ushering in Valentine’s Day with a tongue-in-cheek dig at her old boss, former President Donald Trump, by penning some “love letters” on his behalf. “Happy Valentine’s Day from Donald Trump to dictators around the world! Over the years, Trump has professed his love for the world’s most brutal dictators …

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NATO Chief: Members’ Defense Budgets Are Rising

Bloomberg News reports: A record 18 out of NATO’s 31 countries are expected to meet the alliance’s defense spending goal this year, a commitment Donald Trump has been pushing for in his White House reelection campaign. “European allies are spending more” toward the bloc’s target to spend at least 2% of GDP on defense, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told …

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Dem Tom Suozzi Flips Santos’s Former House Seat

NBC News reports: Democratic former Rep. Tom Suozzi is heading back to Congress after he won the special election in New York’s 3rd District to replace former GOP Rep. George Santos, NBC News projects. Suozzi’s victory Tuesday over Republican Mazi Pilip cuts Republicans’ already razor-thin House majority by one seat, making legislating even more difficult moving forward. The result is …

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House Dems May Go Around Johnson On Ukraine Aid

Newsweek reports: Senior Democrats are suggesting that a discharge petition could be introduced to bring a $95-billion overseas aid bill to a vote in the House of Representatives if Speaker Mike Johnson refuses to introduce it. On Tuesday the bill passed the Senate in a 70-29 vote, but it must also be approved by the House before President Joe Biden …

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McConnell Calls On Johnson To Allow Ukraine Aid Vote

Politico reports: Mitch McConnell urged Speaker Mike Johnson to allow a vote on Ukraine aid in an interview on Tuesday afternoon, though the Senate minority leader said he would not be “so presumptuous as to tell him how to do it.” “We’ve heard all kinds of rumors about whether the House supports Ukraine or doesn’t. It seems to me that …

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Heavy Snow Brings Slow Start To NY Special Election

The New York Times reports: The race has been dominated by an international migrant crisis and attracted $15 million in outside spending. But the special House election to replace George Santos in New York on Tuesday may come down to the most local of problems: an ill-timed Election Day snowstorm. Forecasters were calling for a half foot or more of …

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Senate Approves Ukraine Aid After All-Night Session

The New York Times reports: The Senate passed a long-awaited foreign aid package for Ukraine and Israel early Tuesday morning, delivering a bipartisan endorsement of the legislation after months of negotiations, dire battlefield warnings and political mudslinging. But the measure faced a buzz saw of opposition in the House, where Republican resistance threatened to kill it. The 70-to-29 vote reflected …

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Anti-Trump Republicans To Hold “Anti-CPAC” Summit

The Hill reports: A summit aimed at rivaling the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and featuring prominent Republican critics of former President Trump will take place in Washington later this month. The group Principles First is set to host a summit Feb. 23-25 at the Conrad hotel “focused on advancing a more principled center-right politics in the United States” and …

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Snowstorm Could Help Dem In Race To Replace Santos

Politico reports: The possibility of an Election Day snowstorm in next week’s tight race to replace expelled former Rep. George Santos in Congress is putting pressure on the candidates to turn out their supporters. Any disruption to voting Tuesday could benefit former Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi over Republican nominee Mazi Melesa Pilip, thanks to Democrats’ advantage in early voting so …

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Texas Speaker Censured For AG Impeachment Attempt

Axios reports: The Texas GOP’s executive committee voted to censure House Speaker Dade Phelan (R) on Saturday for his part in the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton and appointing Democrats to chair House committees, among other issues. The censure measure is another instance of the deep infighting that has marked the Texas GOP in the past year, with an …

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GOP Rep. Mike Gallagher Announces Retirement After Blowback For Vote Against Impeaching Sec. Mayorkas

Axios reports: Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.), the chair of the House Select Committee on China, said Saturday he will not seek reelection in November. Gallagher is the fourth Republican committee chair to announce their retirement in 2024 and the second just this week. Gallagher’s announcement comes just days after his controversial vote against impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. His …

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Haley To Troll Trump With Age-Mocking Mobile Video

Politico reports: Nikki Haley is stepping up her attacks on Donald Trump’s age — this time at his own rally in South Carolina. The Haley campaign on Saturday will parade a mobile billboard around the Myrtle Beach area, including by Trump’s rally in Conway, where the former president will appear for the first time this year in the state ahead …

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