Republicans

The Texas Tribune reports: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday asked a Tarrant County judge to jail former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, in another escalation in Republicans’ broader effort to put an end to Texas Democrats’ walkout over a new congressional map. Paxton sued O’Rourke and his political group, Powered by People, last week, arguing that the group was …

The Associated Press reports: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tapped Republican state Sen. Jay Collins to be his next lieutenant governor Tuesday. It’s a closely watched appointment by the two-term governor, who can’t run for reelection in 2026 and has been working to cement his legacy as his time leading the state winds down. If Collins, an Army combat veteran and …

The New Republic reports: Texas House Speaker Duston Burrows revealed Monday that Republicans had tasked the state Department of Public Safety to create a tip line—(866) 786-5972, incidentally the same number as the Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s Fusion Center—hoping that average citizens would help them hunt the wayward lawmakers. “Many have submitted tips about the whereabouts of absent members,” …

“I think we have a very good chance at this. I’ve never lost a subpoena battle, I’ve been chairman of that committee for a year and a half, this is the most challenging subpoena I’ve ever issued, but what makes this subpoena different is that the Democrats voted with Republicans. “This is a bipartisan, congressionally-approved subpoena, and I think that …

Politico reports: Presidential Donald Trump on Monday endorsed Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones for governor in what is expected to be one of the key 2026 races. Trump praised Jones for his loyalty and his athletic accomplishments as a former captain of the University of Georgia Bulldogs. Presidential Donald Trump on Monday endorsed Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones for governor …

“Listen, all those big blue states, they’ve already gerrymandered. Look at the map of Illinois. Look at the map of California, New York and Massachusetts, and so many other blue states they gerrymandered a long time ago. They got nothing left with regard to what they can do. And know this: If California tries to gerrymander five more districts, listen, …

The Hill reports: The Republicans’ “big, beautiful bill” will make the poorest Americans even poorer, while padding the wallets of the highest earners the most, according to an analysis released Monday by Congress’s budget arm. The assessment, conducted by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) at the request of top Democrats, found that the top 10 percent of earners in the …

CBS News reports: In the midst of an already controversial special legislative session, lawmakers have reintroduced a bill that would allow lawsuits to target anyone who manufactures, mails, delivers, prescribes or distributes abortion pills. The bill would also permit people to file a wrongful death lawsuit if the medication results in harm or death of a fetus or the mother, …

Raw Story reports: Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) faced jeers and heckling at a town hall event over his support for President Donald Trump and the One Big Beautiful Bill. LaMalfa began the event on Monday by noting that one member of the audience had insulted President Donald Trump by calling him “the big orange man.” “No fascism in America!” a …

Austin’s NBC affiliate reports: The Texas House once again convened Monday at 1 p.m. to try to meet quorum, one week after Democrats left the state to block mid-decade congressional redistricting. The House had 96 members, four short of a quorum. Two Democrats — Reps. Eddie Morales and Terry Canales — returned to Austin Monday after being absent Friday, though …

The Muddy River News reports: Illinois Republican Jil Tracy has filed a petition in Adams County in pursuit of Texas lawmakers who are hiding out in Illinois in political protest. Tracy wants to be clear that she’s serving as legal counsel to the Texas Attorney General as a private attorney and not in her elected capacity. Tracy also wanted it known …

Florida Politics reports: Leading Florida Republicans say the state deserves more U.S. House seats — as many as five of them. And Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier say the state should get them before the 2026 Midterms. That adjustment would happen with a new census, both said, but could also be done by revisiting decisions made after …

Ars Technica reports: Texas is gearing up for war as a savage, flesh-eating fly appears poised for a US invasion and is expanding its range of victims. On Friday, the Texas Department of Agriculture announced the debut of TDA Swormlure, a synthetic bait designed to attract the flies with a scent that mimics open flesh wounds, which are critical to the …

NBC News reports: Sen. Lindsey Graham said in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that Russia and Ukraine would have to swap some territory to end the war, echoing President Donald Trump‘s comments about land exchanges. “I want to be honest with you, Ukraine is not going to evict every Russian, and Russia is not going to Kyiv, …

“I think a lot of people are seeing higher prices. Our family’s in the construction business, and we get a lot of our timber from Canada and other countries. Yes, it’s higher. Steel prices are up, but it’s for the good of the country. Should we expect high prices for a short time? Yes. But overall, we couldn’t keep going …

The Hill reports: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a major proponent of increased sanctions on Moscow and its allies, signaled Saturday that he supported President Trump’s decision to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s summit with former Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev before the end of the Cold War and subsequent fall of the Soviet Union, Graham …

“I would just say to the president, spend your time where it’s needed more, on geopolitical interests that affect all Americans. This election in New York City does not affect all Americans. Let’s face it. Cuomo’s been talking to Trump for years. They grew up together, side by side. “Fred, the patriarch of the Trump family, supported Mario Cuomo. I …

The Meidas Touch reports: Rep. Eric Burlison, a Missouri Republican serving on the House Oversight Committee, appeared on BlazeTV’s Prime Time with Alex Stein, where he discussed his belief that giants once existed. Burlison told Stein he was scheduled to be at “NephCon 2025,” a conference focused on fringe topics including the biblical Nephilim —figures in Genesis that some interpret …

Houston Public Media reports: As Democrats and Republicans in Texas spar about the prospect of redrawing the state’s congressional districts ahead of the midterm election next year, a state senator from the Houston area is being accused of racism over a social media post about a fellow lawmaker who fled the state. State Rep. Gene Wu of Houston, chair of …

The Washington Post reports: Texas GOP leaders hailed the FBI’s apparent willingness to help them track down the more than 50 Democratic lawmakers who have left the state amid a messy redistricting fight, calling it a necessary step to end a standoff that has ground state politics to a halt. But a day after Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said that …