Republicans

Axios reports: The Ohio College Republican Federation apologized Wednesday evening for a fundraising email calling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D- N.Y.) a “domestic terrorist.” Cortez said earlier she received a “spike in death threats” almost every time Conservative groups made such “uncalled for rhetoric.” In a statement, the college Republicans called the language used in its email “unacceptable.” “The OCRF does …

The Hill reports: Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) is applauding the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange by British police acting on a U.S. extradition warrant. Assange, who published hacked emails from Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee in 2016, had been living in the Embassy of Ecuador in London under asylum protection since 2012. Assange fled to the …

New York Magazine reports: A total abortion ban criminalizing the procedure and classifying it as a homicide cleared a committee Tuesday and will now be debated at the Texas House of Representatives. If House Bill 896 becomes law, abortion could carry penalties ranging from a state jail felony to a capital felony, and patients who seek the procedure could in …

Florida Politics reports: If U.S. Rep. Al Lawson hopes to represent Florida’s 5th Congressional District again, the second-term Democrat will now have to dispatch a Republican. But not just any Republican; Lawson’s new GOP opponent is sympathetic to QAnon populist far-right conspiracies. Matthew Lusk, a bookseller from Macclenny, will be the latest competitor for Lawson, who has yet to encounter …

Hemant Mehta reports at The Friendly Atheist: A bill that will paint a giant target on atheists’ backs for any Christian vigilante who wants to attack them has just passed the Missouri State House. Missouri State Rep. Hardy Billington, a Republican Baptist who recently said his goal in office was to “stand up for Christian values,” wants those atheists to …

The Kansas City Star reports: One of the GOP senators from Kris Kobach’s home state said Tuesday that the Senate would not be able to confirm the Kansas Republican if President Donald Trump tapped him for a cabinet post. Kobach, the former Kansas secretary of state, has been mentioned as a potential candidate for an array of immigration-related positions after …

Politico reports: Republicans are planning a multimillion-dollar offensive aimed at fracturing the Democratic Party’s decades-long stranglehold on the Jewish vote. Spearheading the push is the Republican Jewish Coalition, which receives substantial funding from casino mogul and GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson. On Friday morning, the group’s board members — many of them prominent Republican Party donors — gathered in a conference …

“Chairman Neal, powerful man, head of Ways and Means. I know he’s an adult, but I don’t think he’s like a real adult. He says that he needs Trump’s tax returns, he says it’s policy not politics. He has said that the reason he needs them is that he needs to determine how well the IRS is auditing taxpayers. I …

The New York Times reports: The United States has revoked the visa of the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor because of her attempts to investigate allegations of war crimes in Afghanistan, including any that may have been committed by American forces. The visa revocation — confirmed on Friday by the office of the chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and the State …

Mediaite reports: Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) referred to a Democratic critic on Twitter as a “porn loving whiny bitch” but eventually deleted the insult. “Steve is ignorant of history and a liar,” Gosar tweeted last night in response to Steve Weichert, a former candidate for an Arizona state senate seat, calling the lawmaker a “pig.” In a subsequent tweet fired …

The Charlotte Observer reports: A Russian bank owned by former North Carolina Congressman Charles Taylor has been accused of money laundering and lost its license. The Commercial Bank of Ivanovo “failed on multiple occasions to comply with Bank of Russia regulations” on money laundering “of criminally obtained incomes and the financing of terrorism,” the Bank of Russia said in a …

Talking Points Memo reports: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), a Fox News favorite and a bulldog for President Trump on the Hill, is reportedly mulling a move across the border to Alabama to run for Sen. Doug Jones’ (D-AL) seat when he’s up for reelection in 2020. According to a Republican lawmaker who is close to Gaetz who spoke to The …

Axios reports: Sen. Rand Paul on Thursday blocked a resolution calling for special counsel Robert Mueller’s report to be released to Congress and the public. This is the 5th time that Republicans — led by Paul and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — have blocked the resolution, which passed unanimously in the House last month. Paul has argued in favor …

CNN reports: Robin Hayes, the embattled chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, announced Wednesday that he will stay on as the leader of the party despite being indicted on federal bribery charges. Hayes will, however, hand over the day-to-day responsibilities of the unpaid position to Aubrey Woodard, the 11th District Chair, while he deals with his legal issues. “In …

The Washington Examiner reports: Complaints from House Oversight ranking member Jim Jordan regarding the politicization of the committee were met on Tuesday with derision from Democrats on the panel. Jordan, an Ohio Republican, ripped his Democratic colleagues during a meeting to discuss subpoenaing a former White House aide over the Trump administration’s security clearance policies. “I’ve been on this committee …

The Raleigh News & Observer reports: The chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party has been indicted. Robin Hayes had announced Monday that he won’t seek another term as NC GOP chairman. The indictment comes amid an investigation into political donor Greg Lindberg by U.S. Attorney R. Andrew Murray, an appointee of Republican President Donald Trump who oversees federal trials …

Mediaite reports: In a Monday interview with Good Morning Britain, Sarah Palin complained that she was not invited to join the funeral of her running mate in the 2008 general election. “I was kind of surprised to be publicly disinvited to the funeral,” she said, calling it an “unnecessary step” and adding that the McCain family “didn’t have to embarrass …

The Washington Examiner reports: Sen. Ted Cruz is making common cause with actor George Clooney, known for his liberal brand of politics, in calling for an economic boycott of Brunei after the Southeast Asian country approved a measure that would make gay sex and adultery punishable by stoning. In an op-ed published on Deadline Friday, the actor condemned the Bruneian …

Tucson’s ABC affiliate reports: Documents gathered as part of the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into the conduct of former Prescott Rep. David Stringer show the lawmaker allegedly paid children for sex acts in the 1980s. Stringer resigned earlier this week rather than comply with the committee’s subpoena as it looked into a 1983 sex abuse case and racially insensitive statements …

Axios reports: Reflecting widespread concerns within his party, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has told President Trump he disagrees with the Trump administration’s attempt to get the entire Affordable Care Act thrown out in court. McCarthy told Trump over the phone that the decision made no sense — especially after Democrats killed Republicans in the midterms in part over the …