Republicans

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 …

“I mean, they’re calling him a grumpy old man. They’re attacking Donald Trump. I remember when Melania Trump was not visible for some period of time. You have people in the media and others snickering and speculating that she was no longer with Donald Trump. “We find out later, of course, that she was caring for her ailing mother, who …

“I’ve said for over a year many times that Joe Biden would not be on the ticket and Michelle Obama would be the likely nominee. It’s clear the Democrat deep state run by Barack Obama knew they had to take him down to give them a chance in November. “They set him up in the report calling him a ‘sympathetic, …

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 …

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 …

“I think people see now how far Matt Gaetz will go and the fear he has of what’s in the ethics complaint. He’s trying to protect himself, and that harms our caucus, that harms our majority. In the end, people will see why Gaetz would want to do that. And I think in the end, Gaetz would have a hard …

The Tampa Bay Times reports: Christian Ziegler, the former chairperson for the Republican Party of Florida who is under criminal investigation, is citing a law that protects victims in a bid to stop the release of more information from his cellphone. But police say Ziegler is not the victim of a crime. The Sarasota Police Department opened an investigation into …

The Indiana Capital Chronicle reports: A new dashboard unveiled by the Indiana Attorney General’s Office makes public more than two dozen allegations of “potentially inappropriate materials” in Hoosier schools, like critical race theory materials and gender identity policies. But numerous local officials told the Indiana Capital Chronicle they weren’t made aware of the complaints and contend the allegations were not …

The Huffington Post reports: Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) defended Joe Biden amid questions about the president’s mental acuity following the release of a special counsel’s report that cast the 81-year-old as an elderly man with “significant” memory problems. “I’ve worked with the president, and I haven’t seen anything that’s abnormal before. It was like President Trump saying Nikki Haley three …

NBC News reports: A Louisiana lawmaker is proposing a bill that would allow for nitrogen gas to be used in executions in the event lethal injection is unavailable, making it the latest state to consider adopting the practice after Alabama put a man to death last month through the first-of-its-kind method. Rep. Nicholas Muscarello, a Republican who chairs the House’s …

“I’m calling on Merrick Garland publicly now to do what I think is required under the law in the Constitution. Either charge the president, or he will go to the cabinet and tell them, ‘I believe we have to invoke the 25th Amendment.’ He’s got to do one or the other. If he doesn’t, it will just confirm what everybody …

Axios reports: Former President Trump is kneecapping the Senate hopes of right-wing Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) before they can even get off the ground. The broader rift between Trump and some of the House Republican hardliners who adopted his scorched-earth tactics to fight GOP leadership is moving beyond the House. Trump endorsed businessman Tim Sheehy, the establishment favorite to take …

The Idaho Statesman reports: An Idaho lawmaker wants to expand a law that bans cannibalism over fears about a rise in human composting. Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard, introduced a bill Thursday to expand the state’s cannibalism ban and told a legislative committee that she’s worried about the possibility that people are eating other people. “This is going to be normalized …

The New York Times reports: A lawyer for the chief witness against Representative Matt Gaetz, Republican of Florida, said on Friday that the witness was cooperating with a House Ethics Committee investigation into whether Mr. Gaetz had sex with an underage girl while he was serving in Congress. Fritz Scheller, a lawyer for Mr. Gaetz’s former friend and political ally …

Florida Politics reports: A measure purporting to stop human trafficking by banning people under the age of 21 from working in the adult entertainment sector is slated for another Senate committee stop. The Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice will consider on Tuesday morning Sen. Clay Yarborough’s bill (SB 1690). If the measure advances, it has one stop ahead …

Fox News reports: Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney is calling for the Cabinet to “explore” the use of the Constitution’s 25th Amendment to remove President Biden from office, following Special Counsel Robert Hur’s “alarming” report. Fox News Digital obtained a letter Tenney, R-N.Y., sent to Attorney General Garland Thursday night, sharing her “grave concerns” following the report. Tenney said Biden “needs …

Politico reports: Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan is launching a Senate bid, according to a person familiar with the matter. The anti-Trump Republican is expected to file for the open Senate seat on Friday, the last day of the filing deadline. Hogan is popular in Maryland and his entrance in the race is a huge recruiting coup for Republicans, but …

The Arizona Republic reports: Republican state Sen. Jake Hoffman strong-armed a bill through the Senate Government Committee that would prohibit the display of “satanic memorials, statues, altars or displays, or any other method of representing or honoring Satan” on public property in Arizona. In arguing for Senate Bill 1279, Hoffman said, “It is a desecration of our public property in …

The Associated Press reports: Kansas’ attorney general is telling public schools they’re required to tell parents their children are transgender or non-binary even if they’re not out at home, though Kansas is not among the states with a law that explicitly says to do that. Kobach maintains that failing to disclose when a child is socially transitioning or identifying as …

Florida Politics reports: Language in legislation (SB 1084) advanced by the Senate would preempt local governments from requiring a higher number of parking lot spaces to be reserved for electric vehicles. Instead, state regulations would be the only threshold imposed. But during committee discussion, Sen. Jay Collins, a Tampa Republican carrying the bill, made clear the measure would outlaw extra …