WASHINGTON — The Trump administration threw the presidential transition into tumult, with President Donald Trump blocking government officials from cooperating with President-elect Joe Biden’s team and Attorney General William Barr authorizing the Justice Department to probe unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud. Some Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, rallied behind Trump's...
GOP Hopes for California House Comeback Rest on Tight Races
LOS ANGELES — A handful of U.S. House contests in California appeared headed for close finishes as Republicans sought to gain ground after losing a string of seats to Democrats in a 2018 rout. In a sign of the uphill fight for Republicans, President Donald Trump lost the heavily Democratic...
Walters: Incompetence Could Be GOP’s Opportunity
California’s ever-shrinking Republican Party will receive little, if any, good news from this year’s elections. The inevitable question will once again rise: Could the GOP, which once dominated the state, ever regain relevance? Probably not, but if there is any chance for revival, it wouldn’t be an ideological reversion but...
Subpoenas Issued in GOP Ballot Collection Investigation, State A.G. Says
California's top law enforcement official says he's issued subpoenas in an investigation into the state Republican Party's deployment of private ballot collection boxes in Fresno and other communities. Attorney General Xavier Becerra revealed the subpoenas in a call with reporters via teleconference on Friday. He was joined by was joined...
Senate GOP Plans Vote on Trump’s Court Pick Before Election
WASHINGTON — Votes in hand, Senate Republicans are charging ahead with plans to confirm President Donald Trump’s pick to fill the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat before the Nov. 3 election, launching a divisive fight over Democratic objections before a nominee is even announced. Trump said Tuesday he will...
Pelosi: House To Stay in Session Until COVID-19 Rescue Pact
WASHINGTON — Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday the House will remain in session until lawmakers deliver another round of COVID-19 relief, a move that came as Democrats from swing districts signaled discontent with a standoff that could force them to face voters without delivering more aid. “We are committed to...
Virus Bill Blocked in Senate as Prospects Dim for New Relief
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats scuttled a scaled-back GOP coronavirus rescue package on Thursday as the parties argued to a standstill over the size and scope of the aid, likely ending hopes for coronavirus relief before the November election. The mostly party-line vote capped weeks of wrangling that gave way to...
GOP Attacks Harris Amid Battle for Catholic Voters’ Support
WASHINGTON — Soon after Joe Biden tapped Kamala Harris as his running mate, some conservatives began trying to portray her as anti-Catholic — a line of attack that President Donald Trump’s campaign continues to amplify as Democrats court Roman Catholic voters. The charge stems in part from questions Harris posed...
GOP Portrayal of Urban Mayhem Doesn’t Always Match Reality
At almost every turn at the Republican National Convention, speakers from the president on down portrayed American cities like Portland, Oregon, New York and Chicago as lawless Democratic wastelands that have been overrun with violence, looting and destruction that is forcing residents to flee for safer locales. The reality on the ground...
Trump’s Big Night: Expect Talk of GOP Progress, Dem Anarchy
WASHINGTON — Four years ago, Donald Trump accepted the Republican Party’s nomination for president with a dark convention speech that painted a dystopian portrait of America in decline and he offered a singular solution: himself. Though Trump has been president for three-and-a-half years, his rhetoric about the state of the...