Biden greeted by GOP Texas governor, House lawmakers upon El Paso arrival
President Biden on Sunday was greeted in El Paso, Texas, by Gov. Greg Abbott (R), who earlier in the day was criticizing the administration over not communicating with local officials about the president's trip to the southern border until the night before. Abbott shook Biden's hand on the tarmac and handed him a letter from Abbott addressed to Biden criticizing him for the visit. “Your visit to our southern border with Mexico today is $20 billion too little and two years too late,” the letter read. Texas Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar, Veronica Escobar and Vic
Read MoreHouse rules package in the spotlight after Speaker vote drama
The rules package that would govern House procedures throughout the new session of Congress is taking center stage after the drawn-out Speakership election in which Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) fought for the votes he needed to eventually take the top leadership spot. Faced with a group of around 20 lawmakers from his own party who voted for alternative candidates and stalled progress until a 15th round of ballots, McCarthy made a
Read MoreGOP grapples with candidate quality problem ahead of 2024
Republicans are figuring out how to strengthen their recruitment efforts after a disappointing 2022 midterm cycle that many Republicans blamed on the poor quality of the party’s candidates. GOP officials and strategists are still poring over the midterm results and debating what exactly went wrong. But there’s broad consensus that the GOP’s roster of untested — and in several cases, controversial — candidates were at least partially responsible for the party’s failed effort to recapture control of the Senate. “One of the lessons from 2022 is that candidate qu
Read MoreTrump takes credit for McCarthy Speaker win
Former President Trump is taking a victory lap following Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-Calif.) win after 15 rounds of voting. "The Fake News Media was, believe it or not, very gracious in their reporting that I greatly helped Kevin McCarthy attain the position of Speaker of the House," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday.
Read MoreThe Memo: Republicans stumble out of the starting blocks
The GOP has stumbled at the starting line of the new Congress, squandering a moment of rare opportunity. Having won a House majority, albeit a slim one, most Republican members were eager to turn up the heat on President Biden and advance the agenda on which voters elected them. Instead, they have spent almost a week embroiled in a debacle, only finally electing Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker in the 15th round of voting soon after midnight Saturday. Even then, the core problem of disunity between McCarthy's supporters and opponents was on vivid displ
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