WASHINGTON — A few Republicans on Thursday criticized the chants of "send her back" by President Donald Trump's rally crowd after he assailed a young Democratic congresswoman who he's suggested should leave the U.S. But so far, no GOP lawmakers are directly taking on Trump, who did nothing to restrain...
Pelosi Implores Democrats to Unify, Warning of Dangers Ahead
WASHINGTON — At a pivotal moment Wednesday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi stood before House Democrats with a lofty message and a stark warning. The battle-born leader implored her majority, after days of high-profile public infighting, to focus on common goals — including defeating President Donald Trump — and to silence the...
Time Running Short, Showdown Looms Over Border Aid Package
WASHINGTON — A House-passed $4.5 billion emergency border aid package faces a dim future in the GOP-held Senate, the chamber's top Republican said Wednesday, as pressure builds to wrap up the measure before the government runs out of money to care for thousands of migrant families and unaccompanied children. The...
Biden Attacks Trump on Trade as Both Come to Iowa
DES MOINES, Iowa — Democrat Joe Biden is assailing President Donald Trump on trade and broadly branding him as "existential threat to America" in a preview of what the country might expect if he prevails in his party's primary contest. The president, also coming to Iowa on Tuesday, was likely...
Walters: Secrecy Abounds on State Budget, Major Bills
Fair warning: By reading this you will be plunging into the Legislature’s almost impenetrably arcane thicket of internal procedures. To begin at the beginning, for decades the state budget was written in secret by the chairmen of the Legislature’s two fiscal committees, Assembly Ways and Means and Senate Finance. This...
Kushner Oversees Immigration Proposals With Eye on Congress
WASHINGTON — Hastily written executive orders. Declarations by tweet. President Donald Trump's White House hasn't been known for its careful crafting of policy. But Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law and senior adviser, has spent months drawing up a long-awaited immigration overhaul plan that the White House began to roll out...
GOP Warnings About Democratic Socialism Tap Voter Unease
ALAMOSA, Colo. — In this scruffy, high-desert town encircled by prairies and potato farms, Sen. Cory Gardner drew shouts of approval last week for his message that Democrats are shoving the country toward socialism. "That's not what government is or what it should be," he told about 200 Alamosa County...
GOP Senators Defend ‘Hero” McCain Against Trump’s Attacks
WASHINGTON — Key Republicans on Wednesday defended the late Sen. John McCain as a "hero" against ongoing attacks from President Donald Trump, daring to say what most in the GOP still won't seven months after the Arizona senator's death from brain cancer. A trio of senators, from the most senior...
Walters: 'Ballot Harvesting' Just Latest Power Move by Politicians
Anyone who harbors the quaint notion that high-stakes politics are rational, much less ethical, should be disabused by two terms: “gerrymandering” and “ballot harvesting.” When Republicans won control of the House of Representatives in 2010 and maintained it for three subsequent election cycles, Democrats complained loudly that it was the...
House Dems Introduce Measure to Revoke Trump Border Edict
WASHINGTON — House Democrats on Friday introduced a resolution to block the national emergency declaration that President Donald Trump issued to fund his long-sought wall along the U.S-Mexico border. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., immediately announced that a vote would come on Tuesday. The move sets up a fight that...