Republicans

The Pensacola News-Journal reports: A Florida attorney who ran unsuccessfully in November as a Democrat for a South Florida seat in Congress is filing a complaint with the Florida Bar against Rep. Matt Gaetz, the Republican congressman who represents Northwest Florida in the U.S. House of Representatives. Pam Keith contends that Gaetz’s conduct in the aftermath of the Nov. 3 …

The Associated Press reports: The Democrats running for Georgia’s two U.S. Senate seats each raised more than $100 million over two months, a massive haul that eclipsed campaign contributions to their Republican opponents. Democrat Jon Ossoff, who is taking on Republican Sen. David Perdue, took in more than $106 million from Oct. 15 through Dec. 16, according to his latest …

The New York Post reports: President Trump’s call for Congress to amend the $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill to increase direct payments to eligible Americans from $600 to $2,000 cannot pass the Senate, according to a top Republican in the body — who said he remains hopeful the commander in chief will sign the measure. “There’s been some apparent misunderstanding …

Business Insider reports: In a Friday evening Tweet, Sen. Lindsey Graham doubled on Trump’s called for Americans $2,000 in aid. “After spending some time with President @realDonaldTrump today, I am convinced he is more determined than ever to increase stimulus payments to $2000 per person and challenge Section 230 big tech liability protection,” Graham tweeted. Trump has regularly railed against …

Raw Story reports: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) spent Christmas Day on the golf course with President Donald Trump after vetoing the defense funding bill. After signing off on several pieces of COVID-19 legislation and a massive tax break for corporations and the wealthy, Graham has suddenly discovered that there’s a national debt concern. George Will writes at the Washington Post: …

Law & Crime reports: Rep. Devin Nunes on Christmas Eve received the legal equivalent of a lump of coal in his stocking: a federal district court judge in DC dismissed a defamation case Nunes launched against The Washington Post and writer Shane Harris. Thus, Nunes, the perennial loser of lawsuits, lost yet again. The case is but one of several …

The New York Daily News reports: A spokesman for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis deleted his Twitter account Thursday after sending yet another controversial tweet about the coronavirus pandemic. Fred Piccolo responded to Reuters editor Corrine Perkins at around 4 a.m. Thursday, South Florida NPR affiliate WLRN reported. Perkins had shared a series of photos showing trauma at hospitals during the …

NBC News reports: Senate Republicans say Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will reach out to Sen.-elect Tommy Tuberville (Ala.) in an attempt to avoid a messy floor fight next month over finalizing the results of the Electoral College vote. Senate Republican Whip John Thune (S.D.) said GOP leaders will tell Tuberville that voting to suspend the tally of the Electoral …

Politico reports: President Donald Trump’s full pardon of Duncan Hunter isn’t playing well in the convicted congressman’s home turf — even among GOP conservatives that have supported Trump. Jon Fleischman, a former state GOP vice chair, is among a crowd of conservative Californians who excoriated the decision on Wednesday. Other loyal Republicans who have supported the president went public with …

ABC News reports: An overwhelming majority of Democrats say President-elect Joe Biden was elected fairly, while only a slim margin of Republicans say the same, according to a USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll released Thursday. Ninety-six percent of Democrats say that Biden was elected fairly in the November presidential election, while just 20 percent of Republicans surveyed said the same. Seventy-eight …

The Washington Post reports: House Republicans on Thursday blocked an effort by House Democrats to approve $2,000 stimulus payments for millions of Americans. Democrats were seeking to advance the measure after President Trump demanded it on Tuesday night, breaking with many of his fellow Republicans. House Democratic leadership attempted to advance the measure by “unanimous consent,” but the effort was …

The Houston Chronicle reports: All John Fetterman wants for Christmas is the $3 million he says Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick owes him. The Democratic lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania has been trolling his Republican counterpart for weeks to collect on the $1 million Patrick offered in November for evidence of fraud in the Nov. 3 election. Three supporters of President …

The Hill reports: Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Wednesday blasted President Trump’s latest pardons of political allies such as and political adviser Roger Stone as “rotten to the core.” Sasse issued his statement Wednesday evening, specifically mentioning Manafort and Stone. “This is rotten to the core,” he said in a terse one-liner. The statement by Sasse said that “felons like …

Mediaite reports: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Wednesday ended a call with House Republicans after they began leaking to the media about his effort to kill a proposal that would include direct $2,000 payments to Americans. McCarthy “just told members on call that somebody is leaking to the NYT … while on the call,” The New York Times’ …

The Hill reports: Rep.-elect Luke Letlow (R-La.), who was hospitalized for COVID-19 on Saturday, has been transferred to an intensive care unit (ICU) in Louisiana, a spokesperson for Letlow confirmed to The Hill on Wednesday. He is receiving the antiviral medication remdesivir and steroids to help combat the virus, according to G.E. Ghali, chancellor of the Shreveport Academic Medical Center. …

Axios reports: Several incoming House freshmen have inquired about carrying guns into the Capitol, leading a board overseeing congressional security to rethink a regulation banning members from packing heat under the dome, a House aide with direct knowledge of the board review told Axios. Some Democratic members say expanded gun carrying on Capitol Hill would be a “provocation” in light …

Changing America reports: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced divergent vaccine plans on Tuesday, saying that the Sunshine State’s elderly senior citizens will be the next to receive initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. But this next step breaks with CDC recommended protocol, which says in addition to those 75 and over, essential workers should receive the next doses. This …

Law & Crime reports: The Arizona Republican Party could face court sanctions for filing a lawsuit even though the state’s audit debunked its allegations, a judge suggested in a ruling tossing the case. “What exactly the Arizona Republican Party and its attorney knew or had reason to know about the status of hand count audit, at the time of filing …

The Hill reports: President Trump went after Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) on Tuesday as he put pressure on GOP senators to back efforts to challenge the Electoral College vote when Congress meets on Jan. 6. The president lashed out at Senate Republicans on Twitter, claiming that they would have lost seats without his endorsement. Trump also suggested that Thune, the …

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump, in a stunning Tuesday night tweet, called the $900 billion Covid relief bill passed by Congress an unsuitable “disgrace” and urged lawmakers to make a number of changes to the measure, including bigger direct payments to individuals and families. The relief legislation passed by Congress on Monday was negotiated in part by a senior Trump …