Politics

Reuters reports: Peru’s former President Pedro Castillo faced a first court hearing on Thursday over his arrest on charges of rebellion and conspiracy, as his successor issued her first pronouncements from the presidential palace. Castillo’s swift fall from power on Wednesday came after lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to remove the leader following his failed attempt to rule by decree and dissolve …

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema writes for the Arizona Republic: In catering to the fringes, neither party has demonstrated much tolerance for diversity of thought. Bipartisan compromise is seen as a rarely acceptable last resort, rather than the best way to achieve lasting progress. Payback against the opposition party has replaced thoughtful legislating. Americans are told that we have only two choices …

The Hill reports: Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) was reelected Thursday morning to serve another term as Senate majority leader, capping a successful two years for the veteran lawmaker, who was just reelected to a fifth Senate term. Senate Democrats also reelected the rest of Schumer’s leadership team, giving Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) another term as Senate Democratic whip, Sen. Debbie …

From a self-described as scripted TikTok video: I wanted to address this on my own because the media is causing my mental health to be exploited for their gain. I also don’t enjoy the assumptions on why I did what I did. No, it had nothing to do with my sexuality or my father. I’m not suicidal but I am …

The Hill reports: The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol is planning to release its final report on Dec. 21, panel Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) told reporters on Wednesday. Thompson said the release of the report will be accompanied by a “formal presentation,” but the details are still up in the air. Thompson also …

Congress Minutes reports: A bill severely restricting private pet ownership of big cats like tigers and lions passed the Senate by unanimous consent, sending the measure to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature. Certain institutions, such as wildlife sanctuaries, universities and certified zoos, would still be allowed to keep the animals. The bill would also stop members of the …

Politico reports: The Supreme Court struggled to find consensus Wednesday with a legal theory that could strip state courts’ ability to review election laws passed by legislatures, with a critical bloc of justices seemed likely to reject the most robust version of that theory that could mark a dramatic change in how states oversee elections. The case — Moore v. …

The Hill reports: Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Tuesday urged members of her party to stop discouraging early voting and vote by mail. “Our voters need to vote early,” McDaniel told Fox News. “I have said this over and over again. There were many in 2020 saying, ‘Don’t vote by mail, don’t vote early.’ And we have …

The Houston Chronicle reports: Houston police responded to the River Oaks home of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Tuesday night after receiving a call concerning an injured individual on the premises, ABC 13’s Jessica Willey reports. HPD officials told Willey that an unidentified teenager was transported from Cruz’s home to a nearby hospital after authorities arrived at the residence. The …

The Hill reports: Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) announced on Wednesday that he will not challenge Ronna McDaniel for the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) top spot but urged the three-time chairwoman to step aside. “Change is desperately needed, and there are many leaders, myself included, ready and willing to step up to ensure our party retools and transforms as critical elections …

Reuters reports: Germany on Wednesday detained 25 members and supporters of a far-right group that prosecutors said were preparing a violent overthrow of the state, with some members suspected of plotting an armed attack on the parliament. Prosecutors said the group was inspired by the deep state conspiracy theories of QAnon and the Reichsbuerger, who do not recognise the legitimacy …

Atlanta’s Fox affiliate reports: Sen. Raphael Warnock claimed victory late Tuesday night in a tight runoff race for U.S. Senate. Warnock beat out Republican challenger Herschel Walker, a Georgia football legend. “After a hard-fought campaign — or should I say campaigns — it is my honor to utter the four most powerful words ever spoken in a democracy: The people …

The New York Post reports: The MTA wants to redesign subway turnstiles and emergency exit gates — the “superhighway” for deadbeats — to crack down on fare evasion, CEO Janno Lieber said Monday. “The exit gate — which is nominally supposed to be for fire, exiting purposes, to comply with the fire code — has become the superhighway for fare …

NBC News reports: Polls are closing soon in the Senate runoff election in Georgia, where Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock is hoping to fend off a challenge from Republican Herschel Walker. Voters faced rain and some long lines as both parties worked to drive people to the polls for the second time in as many months for the runoff, which was …

Omaha’s ABC affiliate reports: Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts announced on Tuesday that he will seek an appointment to serve as the state’s next U.S. Senator. The state’s upcoming senate vacancy was created by Ben Sasse’s upcoming resignation. “This decision is the result of many hours of prayer and family discussions,” Ricketts said in a statement. Nebraska Democrats came out swinging …

Mediaite reports: “This is the second straight week you’ve come out to begin your press conference criticizing Donald Trump,” CNN’s Manu Raju told McConnell. “Can you say categorically that you would not support him if he were the Republican nominee?” McConnell declined to answer outright. “What I’m saying is, it would be pretty hard to be sworn into the presidency …

Playbook reports: “We’re 28 days away from Republicans having the gavel. We would be stronger in every negotiation. So any Republican that’s out there trying to work with Democrats is wrong,” McCarthy said to Laura Ingraham, who used her monologue last night to rail against Democrats trying to “take advantage of the few weeks remaining to ram through as much …

The Associated Press reports: Indonesia’s Parliament unanimously passed a long-awaited revision of the country’s penal code on Tuesday that criminalizes sex outside of marriage for citizens as well as foreigners, prohibits promotion of contraception and bans defamation of the president and state institutions. Rights groups criticized some of the revisions as overly broad or vague and warned that adding them …

The Huffington Post reports: Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) borrowed one of Donald Trump’s favorite nicknames for his critics when asked about the ex-president calling for the “termination” of the U.S. Constitution over the weekend. “Well, the Republican Party is the Constitution party,” Romney told reporters on Capitol Hill on Monday. “So when he calls to suspend the Constitution, he goes …

Politico reports: Former national security adviser John Bolton said on Monday he was considering a run for president “to stop some of the things Trump has done to the party,” following the suggestion by his former boss on Saturday to allow “termination” of the Constitution. “I’d like to see Shermanesque statements from all the potential candidates,” Bolton said on NBC’s …