Republicans

WNYC reports: Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey who built a political brand around unfiltered frank talk aimed at political opponents and constituents alike, is starting a think tank centered on something unexpected: Civility in politics. “Unfortunately our politics have gotten so ugly and divisive in the country that people are not having civilized conversations,” Christie told NJ …

The Washington Post reports: Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) is demanding an apology from the media and Republican leaders after he remarked last week that humanity might not exist if not for rape and incest. At a town hall in Buena Vista County, Iowa, on Saturday, King blamed the controversy on a misquote. He took aim at the Des Moines Register, …

The Tampa Bay Times reports: Congressional Republicans recently circulated talking points on gun violence that falsely described the El Paso massacre and other mass shootings as “violence from the left.” A document obtained by the Tampa Bay Times and sent by House Republicans provides a framework for how to respond to anticipated questions like, “Why won’t you pass legislation to …

CNN reports: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell underwent surgery Thursday in Kentucky related to a shoulder fracture he suffered earlier this month. “Senator McConnell had successful surgery yesterday in Louisville, Kentucky to repair a fracture in his shoulder. The surgery was performed without incident, and the Leader is grateful to the surgical team for their skill,” McConnell’s spokesman David Popp …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: Chances are you haven’t heard of Donnie Bolena. He’s the owner of a small business, an unsuccessful candidate for mayor of Sandy Springs, and a weightlifting fan. Until this weekend, Bolena was also a candidate for the Sixth District congressional seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Marietta. On Saturday, two days after identifying himself …

Florida News Service reports: The Florida Bar confirmed Thursday that its Grievance Committee found “no probable cause” that U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz violated rules when he sent out a tweet accusing Michael Cohen of infidelity as President Donald Trump’s former attorney prepared to testify before Congress. Florida Bar spokeswoman Francine Walker said in an email that a letter of advice …

The Hill reports: House Republican Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney (Wyo.) blasted Rep. Steve King on Wednesday and said it was time for the Iowa Republican “to go” amid uproar over his remarks on rape and incest. This is not the first time Cheney has spoken out against King following controversial comments. In January, the Wyoming Republican said King should “find …

“For the radical Democrats and the liberal media to blame Donald Trump for these massacres is wrong. Unfortunately, that has become all too common for the media elite – they place blame on our conservative institutions, our churches, and our culture.  “The blame for what happened in Texas and Ohio this past week is not at Donald Trump’s feet but …

USA Today reports: Rep. Steve King told an Iowa crowd Wednesday that humanity might not exist if not for rape and incest throughout human history. “What if we went back through all the family trees and just pulled out anyone who was a product of rape or incest? Would there be any population of the world left if we did …

San Antonio’s ABC News affiliate reports: In less than two weeks, Texas residents will be allowed to carry brass knuckles for self defense. Starting Sept. 1, brass knuckles will be removed from the Texas Penal Code’s list of prohibited weapons under legislation signed into law by Gov. Gregg Abbott (R) earlier this year. An analysis of the law conducted by …

Brad Polumbo writes at the Washington Examiner: Progressive activists don’t care about the personal pain they’ve caused Schock and his family. He earned their ire both by being a Republican and for his history — perceived as hypocritical — of voting against gay rights. While in Congress, Schock did not support the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy …

Politico reports: Rep. Duncan Hunter won’t go on trial until next year on corruption charges that involve the spending of campaign cash on vacations, extramarital affairs and other items, a U.S. judge decided Tuesday. U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Whelan changed the trial date from Sept. 10 to Jan. 14 after defense attorneys raised questions about whether an appeals court …

Politico reports: As bad as it’s been for Texas Republicans lately, some members of the party are warning that 2020 could be even worse. The rash of recent House GOP retirements is just the latest sign of a state party in distress: In last year’s midterms, Democrats flipped a pair of longtime GOP districts, a Democrat came within striking distance …

“The Department of Justice failed, and today Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirators think they might have just gotten one last sweetheart deal. “Every single person in the Justice Department — from your Main Justice headquarters staff all the way to the night-shift jailer — knew that this man was a suicide risk, and that his dark secrets couldn’t be allowed to die …

The hypocrisy meter just hurled itself out the window: House conservatives on Friday called on the chamber’s Ethics Committee to investigate Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) for tweeting the names of Trump campaign donors. The letter spearheaded by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) was signed by GOP Reps. Matt Gaetz (Fla.), Jody Hice (Ga.), Debbie Lesko (Ariz.), Jeff Duncan (S.C.), Randy Weber …

Politico reports: Twitter today reversed course and unlocked the campaign account of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, moving to defuse a growing controversy with the Republican political establishment. The company on Wednesday had frozen the McConnell account over a post featuring a profanity-laced video of protesters hurling threats toward the GOP lawmaker’s Kentucky home. The post, the company said, violated …

The Associated Press reports: Shifting the gun violence debate, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday he now wants to consider background checks and other bills, setting up a potentially pivotal moment when lawmakers return in the fall. The Republican leader won’t be calling senators back to work early, as some are demanding. But he told a Kentucky radio station …

The Hill reports: House Republicans in the Illinois delegation are calling for President Trump to not commute the prison sentence of former Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is serving 14 years on federal corruption charges. The push comes in the wake of Trump telling reporters Wednesday he was “very strongly” considering commuting the sentence of the former Celebrity Apprentice …

The Tampa Bay Times reports: The Republican Party of Florida is planning to hold two voter registration drives at a South Florida gun show one week after two mass shootings ended with 31 people dead in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. The party’s regional field director emailed supporters Thursday asking for volunteers to help register voters at the Pembroke …

Roll Call reports: According to several people familiar with the process, Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard C. Shelby, an Alabama Republican, wrote an allocation for the fiscal 2020 Labor-HHS-Education spending bill that is about $5 billion lower than it would have been to provide funding for the wall. Congress and the White House reached agreement on a budget deal raising discretionary …