Republicans

The Hill reports: Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that a lawyer for Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) threatened to sue him if he did not apologize for saying last month that the Republican conspired with an associate of Rudy Giuliani. Lieu’s comments were made in light of an interview Nunes gave on Fox News claiming he had spoken with Lev …

Politico reports: Congressional Republicans are distancing themselves from Robert Hyde, a controversial House candidate and GOP donor who has become the latest figure to get wrapped up in the Ukraine saga that led to President Donald Trump’s impeachment. The top three Republican leaders in the House — Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, Minority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana and …

Courthouse News reports: Three voters and two nonprofits brought a federal complaint Tuesday that says the failure by Texas to register voters through its online driver’s license application is illegal. The lawsuit comes eight days after a cadre of Democrats sued the Texas secretary of state on voter-suppression claims; thousands of Texans were improperly barred from voting in the 2018 …

The Tennessean reports: The Tennessee state Senate started the 2020 legislative session passing its first bill of the year: a controversial measure that protects religious adoption agencies if they choose to discriminate against same-sex couples. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Paul Rose, R-Covington, declares that no licensed adoption agency would be required to participate in a child placement if doing …

Mediaite reports: Florida state representative Chris Latvala accused Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) of creating a game “where members of the FL House got ‘points’ for sleeping with aides, interns, lobbyists, and married legislators,” Tuesday. After Gaetz called out Latvala for posting a photograph with Al Sharpton on Twitter, Latvala replied, “And you created a game where members of the FL …

CNN reports: All 16 of Texas’ Catholic bishops have issued a joint statement slamming Gov. Greg Abbott, who is Catholic, for announcing the state will bar refugees in 2020. The bishops call Abbott’s decision “misguided” and say it “denies people who are fleeing persecution, including religious persecution, from being able to bring their gifts and talents to our state and …

Common Dreams reports: The advocacy group Public Citizen on Monday filed a formal ethics complaint against Senate Majority Mitch McConnell, accusing the powerful Republican of betraying his oath of office by signaling overt bias in favor of President Donald Trump even before his looming impeachment trial begins. “The public declarations by Senator McConnell that his role in the impeachment process …

CBS News reports: The White House is preparing for some Republican senators to join Democrats in voting to call witnesses in President Trump’s impeachment trial, which could get underway in the coming days. Senior White House officials tell CBS News they increasingly believe that at least four Republicans, and likely more, will vote to call witnesses. In addition to Senators …

The Rising reports: Seventeen percent of Republican voters support President Trump’s impeachment and say he should be removed from office, according to a Hill-HarrisX poll released Monday. The figure in the Jan. 8-9 survey marks a 3 percentage point increase from a similar poll conducted in late October. The share of Democratic voters who favor impeachment stood at 80 percent, …

Roll Call reports: Former Speaker John A. Boehner is among a robust contingent of Republicans who want a judge to give convicted former Rep. Chris Collins a break on prison time. The requests for leniency say the New York Republican is a dedicated public servant, father and friend. But the attempt from current and former GOP lawmakers runs contrary to …

The Buffalo News reports: Chris Collins didn’t just destroy his congressional career and put himself at risk of imprisonment when he called his son Cameron to share an inside stock tip in June 2017. He destroyed his dream that his son would be his political heir. And he led Cameron and his future father-in-law into a scheme that turned them …

USA Today reports: Americans by more than 2-1 said the killing of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani has made the United States less safe, a nationwide USA TODAY/Ipsos Poll finds, amid broad concerns about the potential consequences ahead. A majority of those surveyed, by 52%-34%, called President Donald Trump’s behavior with Iran “reckless.” Americans were divided on the wisdom of the …

Courthouse News reports: An Anchorage Superior Court judge on Friday directed Alaska’s Division of Elections to allow the effort to recall Governor Mike Dunleavy to proceed. Judge Eric Aarseth directed the division to distribute petition books no later than Feb. 10. Recall supporters gathered more than 49,000 signatures, nearly twice as many as the 28,501 required to submit the petition …

“They now get to present their case to all of you Republican senators, don’t make me start giving out the phone number. You need to understand here that their sole Constitutional role is they get to impeach. They have decided in their insanity and psychosis and rage to abuse that power and bring up what is a non-case. “And just …

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports: In a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, Gov. Greg Abbott said Friday the state will not allow refugees to resettle in Texas. Under President Donald Trump’s Sept. 26 executive order, cities and states must provide their written consent to allow refugees to resettle within their areas. Nationwide, roughly 40 governors have consented …

The Bangor Daily News reports: Sen. Susan Collins of Maine told reporters on Friday that she is working with a “fairly small group” of fellow Republican senators toward a goal of ensuring witnesses can be called in the chamber’s impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. The Maine senator has said she’s open to calling witnesses during the trial, while other …

The Hill reports: President Trump said his order to launch the drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani came amid pressure from Senate Republicans he views as key allies in his upcoming impeachment trial, the Wall Street Journal reported and New York Times reported this week. The articles did not name the GOP senators, but many of Trump’s allies …

The Christian Post reports: Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts signed a proclamation Wednesday declaring Jan. 22 a “statewide day of prayer” as abortion rights advocates prepare to celebrate the anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide. “I, Pete Ricketts, Governor of the State of Nebraska, do hereby proclaim the 22nd day of January 2020 …

Roll Call reports: Republican senators were told by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday to keep their schedules flexible for the end of next week when they might take up impeachment. Congress is scheduled to leave Washington for a weeklong break at the end of next week that includes the MLK Day holiday on Jan. 20. An attendee at …

The Hill reports: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is backing a resolution to change the Senate’s rules to allow for lawmakers to dismiss articles of impeachment against President Trump before the House sends them over. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) announced on Thursday that McConnell has signed on as a co-sponsor to the resolution, which he introduced earlier this week. …