Republicans

Axios reports: Matt Gaetz’s former congressional colleagues, in both parties, raised a collective cheer Thursday as the onetime Florida congressman withdrew his nomination for attorney general. But the question members were left still asking: Will Gaetz return to be sworn in for his term in the 119th Congress? “This is the only decent thing Matt Gaetz has ever done,” said …

CNN reports: The woman who says she had sex when she was a minor with then-Rep. Matt Gaetz told the House Ethics Committee she had two sexual encounters with him at one party in 2017, sources familiar with her testimony tell CNN. The woman, who was 17 years old at the time, testified that the second sexual encounter, which has …

CNN reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of Health and Human Services, has a long history of scathing critiques against Trump, labeling him a “threat to democracy,” a “bully,” and, as recently as July, a “terrible president.” But Kennedy’s harshest attacks date back to Trump’s rise in 2016, when on his radio show “Ring of …

Axios reports: Some House Republicans are prepared to block Trump from using a recess appointment on attorney general nominee Matt Gaetz. In the case of recess appointments, the House can use a procedural trick to block a president from bypassing the Senate. Several House Republicans would vote against any motion to go into recess, Axios has learned. For Trump’s plan …

Fox News reports: House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer is expected to establish a subcommittee that will work with the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to eliminate government waste, Fox News Digital has learned. A source familiar told Fox News Digital that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., will chair the Delivering …

CNN reports: A lawsuit alleges Linda McMahon, who President-elect Donald Trump tapped to lead the Department of Education, knowingly enabled the sexual exploitation of children by a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) employee as early as the 1980s — allegations she denies. The suit alleges McMahon, her husband, the WWE and TKO Group Holdings, the league’s parent company, knowingly allowed employee …

The Hill reports: Senate Republicans are warning confirmation proceedings for former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) will be like “Kavanaugh on steroids,” referring to the contentious hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. “The most humane way not only to Mr. Gaetz but to the dignity of our process, the best thing to do is to convince the president …

Politico reports: Donald Trump wants to give former Rep. Pete Hoekstra another turn as a diplomat. Trump announced Wednesday that Hoekstra, who served as ambassador to the Netherlands during his first administration, is his pick for ambassador to Canada for his second. “In my Second Term, Pete will once again help me put AMERICA FIRST,” Trump said in a statement. …

The Associated Press reports: Republican Nick Begich has won Alaska’s U.S. House race, defeating Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola to claim the seat once held by his grandfather. Begich was among the opponents Peltola defeated during her special and regular election wins in 2022, following the death of Republican Rep. Don Young. Wednesday marked the deadline for elections officials to receive …

“Look at a speech I gave holding up pictures of dead children who had been killed by chemical attacks. For her to say that Assad was not behind that? Literally, everything she said about that, were Russian talking points. “Every bit of that, that was Russian propaganda. After Russia invaded Ukraine, Tulsi Gabbard literally blamed NATO, our Western alliance that’s …

Politico reports: The House Ethics Committee on Wednesday did not agree to release the long-anticipated report into Matt Gaetz. “There was not an agreement by the committee to release the report,” Chair Michael Guest (R-Miss.) told reporters after the meeting ended. Other members declined to comment. Democrats have widely called for the report to be released. Many have speculated that …

First, a remind from our post on Monday… Indianapolis’s Fox affiliate reports: A current central Indiana county commissioner has pleaded guilty in a Nevada sexual assault case, days after being elected to his local County Council. John D. Jessup – a current Commissioner for Hancock County’s District 1 – pled guilty this week in a Las Vegas court to one …

The Associated Press reports: Louisiana’s plan to make all of the state’s public school classrooms post the Ten Commandments remains blocked under an order Wednesday by a federal appeals court in New Orleans. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a state request to temporarily stay an earlier order by U.S. District Judge John deGravelles in Baton Rouge while …

The Hill reports: Speaker Mike Johnson has announced that transgender women are not permitted to use bathrooms in the Capitol that match their gender identity, taking a stance on the hot-button issue that has overtaken the Capitol in recent days. The policy, a draft of which was obtained by The Hill — will also apply to bathrooms in House office …

USA Today reports: President-elect Donald Trump designated Matthew Whitaker, a conservative firebrand who filled in briefly as his acting attorney general in the first Trump administration, to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO in his second administration. Whitaker is a former U.S. attorney in Iowa. He served briefly as acting attorney general from November 2018 to February 2019, between Trump …

Semafor reports: Donald Trump may be interested in using steep new tariffs to pay for tax cuts next year, an idea that would force Congress to vote on his aggressive trade agenda. Republican lawmakers, however, are far from sold. Some are already panning the prospect. “I don’t like tariffs, number one. I think the consumer pays them. So they’re regressive. …

Raleigh’s NBC affiliate reports: The Republican-led North Carolina House advanced a bill Tuesday to earmark an additional $227 million in relief aid for victims of Hurricane Helene — a measure stuffed with unrelated provisions aimed at stripping power from the governor, attorney general and other incoming Democratic leaders. The effort comes on the heels of victories in this month’s elections …

Florida Politics reports: State Rep. Joel Rudman will run for Congress in former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz’s open seat. The Navarre Republican counts himself as a close ally of Gaetz, who has represented Florida’s 1st Congressional District since his election in 2016. Rudman first ran for office when his positions on COVID prompted people to challenge his medical license. In …

“He made some statements to me when he was a freshman that I found just kind of amazing and shocking, and I just had to look forward when we were in the committee room. I guess he thought he was a young guy and he was getting started, and I sponsored decriminalization of marijuana laws, and he came up to …

From the New York Post editorial board: While most of the cabinet picks have been excellent, and some of them risky but promising, Gaetz and Gabbard are dreadful. We plead that he rethink them. They’re distracting chaos agents who won’t accomplish what Trump wants them to, and will most likely backfire on his agenda. Gabbard backed the Iran deal, and …