Republicans

The Guardian reports: The former special counsel prosecutor Jay Bratt is scheduled to appear before the Republican-led House judiciary committee next week as it attempts to find instances of politicization in the federal criminal cases brought against Donald Trump, according to three people familiar with the matter. Bratt’s appearance is the first known instance of a special counsel prosecutor being …

The Daily Beast reports: Vice President JD Vance says he isn’t much fussed by new Pope Leo XIV’s criticism of him and President Donald Trump. “I try not to play the politicization of the Pope game,” the vice president told podcast host Hugh Hewitt, responding to past tweets from Pope Leo—who slammed the Trump administration’s immigration policies and said Vance …

Canada’s CTV News reports: U.S. lawmakers are proposing a bill that would allow some Canadian snowbirds to stay in the United States longer, in hopes of rebuilding cross-border tourism and supporting local economies. The Canadian Snowbird Visa Act proposes to extend the length of time eligible Canadian citizens aged 50 and over could visit the U.S. without a visa to …

Sioux Falls Live reports: Revelations about Republican former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s credit card use prompted a legislative oversight committee to question state officials Thursday in Pierre about how the state approves credit card spending for travel and other expenses. The Dakota Scout obtained and published records earlier this year showing about $750,000 billed to the Noem office’s state-issued …

NBC News reports: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said definitively on Friday that she will not enter the U.S. Senate race, as Republicans eye Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff’s seat in the battleground state of Georgia as a crucial pickup to expand their three-seat majority next year. Greene’s announcement comes a day after another Trump ally, Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., announced …

“Grateful to receive the endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party by a historic 60-3 margin. We’re laser focused on growing our Republican voter base & delivering a decisive victory in ‘26. This isn’t about left vs. right. It’s up vs. down. We’ll work hard to earn every last vote.” – Vivek Ramaswamy, posting to X.  According to MAGA outlets, Ohio …

The Guardian reports: A South Carolina firing squad botched the execution of Mikal Mahdi last month, with shooters missing the target area on the man’s heart, causing him to suffer a prolonged death, according to autopsy records and his attorneys. As shots were fired, Mahdi cried out and his arms flexed, and after roughly 45 seconds, he groaned twice, the …

“I’ll take a commutation, clemency, whatever the president is willing to give me. Seven years and three months in prison for a first-time offender over campaign matters just screams ‘over the top,’ and I would appreciate if the president would consider. I do believe this is an unfair judgment handed down to me. I think there was a lot of …

The Daily Mail reports: Republican lawmakers and right leaning media figures fell for a cropped selfie that appeared to show the head of USA Fencing flipping his middle finger before appearing before a hearing on men competing in women’s sports. Republicans on the House Oversight Committee printed out a version of his cropped Instagram image where it looked like he …

“Grand slam, home run, hat trick pick.  I am beyond pleased with President Trump’s decision to make Jeanine Pirro the interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. “She is exactly the right person at the right time to take on this responsibility. She brings to the table wide and deep legal experience combined with a passion for justice and …

The Huffington Post reports: Vice President JD Vance on Thursday defended President Donald Trump’s statement that children will just have to deal with having fewer dolls as a result of his tariffs by offering parents a wild counterpoint: Those kids could go to war. “What I’d ask people is not whether they want two dolls or five dolls or 20 …

CNN reports: A federal court ruled Thursday that Alabama engaged in intentional discrimination when it refused to draw a congressional plan with a second Black majority district after courts, including the Supreme Court, repeatedly rejected maps with just one such district. With the finding, the court said it would consider whether to put Alabama under a Voting Rights Act provision …

Just in via press release: U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the Interstate Obscenity Definition Act today to clarify the legal definition of “obscenity” for all states, making the transmission of obscene content across state lines more easily prosecuted. U.S. Representative Mary Miller (R-IL) is the bill’s co-lead in the House of Representatives. “Obscenity isn’t protected by the First Amendment, …

“I have very little optimism about about him being as pope. But I have no concern whatsoever that he’s going to change the character of the Catholic Church. 2000 years, you know, when you’ve had some of the worst scoundrels known to man as pope and they didn’t change and they didn’t corrupt the church, he’s not going to. “Nothing …

Axios reports: The House voted Thursday to formalize President Trump’s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.” It’s the first time the House has voted to codify one of the president’s executive orders into federal law, though it’s unclear if the Senate will take it up. The bill passed 211-206, with Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) …

“Pete Buttigieg was completely MIA. He vanished from the job of transportation secretary. No one noticed whatsoever. By the way, I would beg to Sean Duffy to also declare war on bike lanes. These are some of the most un-American, European communist garbage. I have a car like a normal American. You know, what’s also not conducive to bike lanes …

“All the narratives are wearing off. Vietnam was a pointless war and we lost. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Afghanistan was a waste. And we gained nothing from any of those wars. “Saudi Arabia has nuclear weapons and the 19 terrorists from 9/11 were all Saudis. Did we go to war with them? Nope. North Korea …

“The last couple of years have been some of the bloodiest ever reported. You’ll see actually in a lot of these tourist destinations, you know, young people. Specifically if you have kids, don’t pay for your college kids to go down to Mexico to party for Spring Break, okay? “That’s probably the worst thing that you can do. A little …

Des Moines’ ABC affiliate reports: An Iowa state senator has filed a resolution to end same-sex marriage. Introduced by Republican Sen. Sandy Salmon on Wednesday, the resolution asks the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its landmark 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges ruling and “restore the natural definition of marriage, a union of one man and one woman.” Her resolution argues the …

The Hill reports: Republican senators are waving off firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) from jumping into next year’s Georgia Senate race, voicing concerns that some of the “crazy” things she’s said might come back to hurt her in a general election race against vulnerable Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff (Ga.). Republican senators fear that Greene, who has a knack for …