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Republican state official faces criticism for comments on Sinema’s attire Alabama state Auditor Jim Ziegler (R) is facing pushback over a post he shared on Facebook over the weekend discussing Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (D-Ariz.) attire. Ziegler shared photos of the Arizona Democrat donning a dress and tall boots while on the Senate floor last week with the headline: “What newly elected AZ democrat senator Kyrsten Sinema wore to work.” The post prompted heated discussion from commenters, many of whom slammed the Republican and accused him of shaming Sinema for her attire. According to AL.com, Ziegler also wrote that Sinema “took...

Senate Republicans are planning to advance a proposal that would dramatically reduce the amount of time it takes to advance hundreds of Trump nominees by the end of March. Sen. Roy Blunt (Mo.), a member of GOP leadership, said the Rules Committee, which he oversees, would take up the proposal. “I’m looking at the first quarter of the year,” Blunt said, asked about a timeline for taking up the change. The timeline, which was first reported by Politico, is the latest sign that Republicans are feeling bullish about changing the rules for President Trump’s nominees after discussing the idea at...

On Friday, President Donald Trump announced a deal between the White House and Congress to reopen the portion of federal government that had been shuttered since December. In making the announcement, the president thanked both Democrats and Republicans for reaching a deal as he praised the 800,000 federal workers who had been furloughed for their “patriotism” and dedication to the country. Much to the angst of his supporters, the 21-day stopgap funding measure POTUS agreed to sign does not include any money for additional border walls and barriers. But that’s because Democrats were demanding that the president reopen the government...

Rep. Ilan Omar (D-MN) claimed the Trump administration was waging a “coup” against the Venezuelan government for recognizing opposition leader Juan Guaido, who temporarily assumed presidential powers in an effort to unseat Nicolas Maduro. “A US backed coup in Venezuela is not a solution to the dire issues they face,” she said on Twitter. “Trump’s efforts to install a far right opposition will only incite violence and further destabilize the region. We must support Mexico, Uruguay & the Vatican’s efforts to facilitate a peaceful dialogue.” Ilhan Omar ✔@IlhanMN A US backed coup in Venezuela is not a solution to the...

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) blocked a request to pay the Coast Guard on Thursday after Republicans refused to also open the rest of the federal government. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) tried to take up legislation to pay the Coast Guard, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security. Schumer blocked the request after first asking if Kennedy would modify his request to instead reopen the quarter of the government currently closed. "President Trump is responsible not only for thousands of Coast Guard personnel not getting paid but hundreds of thousands of other federal employees also not getting...

The Drudge Report blasted out its breaking news siren on Friday, reporting that an agreement has been reached to end the government shutdown. Matt Drudge‘s high-trafficked news aggregator reported that according to a source, a shutdown agreement has been reached, and that an announcement is set for 1 p.m. “SOURCE: SHUTDOWN AGREEMENT REACHED,” the Drudge headline blared. “ANNOUNCEMENT SET FOR 1 PM.” “GOVT TO REOPEN ‘TEMPORARILY’,” it added. The nearly six-week government shutdown appeared set to continue after two measures to reopen the government — one that would fund President Donald Trump’s border wall, and one did not — failed...

Senate Democrats blocked a White House backed-plan to end the 34-day partial shutdown, turning it down in a 51-47 vote on Thursday. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) joined with Republicans to advance the measure, but it fell short of the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster. In an unexpected development, Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) voted against Trump's plan. Lee is considered a fiscal hawk and Cotton is one of the Senate’s most conservative members on immigration. The Senate is expected to hold a second vote Thursday on a continuing resolution (CR) that would fund the quarter...

President Trump said late Wednesday that he would deliver his State of the Union address after the ongoing partial government shutdown is over. "As the Shutdown was going on, Nancy Pelosi asked me to give the State of the Union Address," Trump wrote in a tweet. "I agreed. She then changed her mind because of the Shutdown, suggesting a later date. This is her prerogative - I will do the Address when the Shutdown is over." Trump clarified earlier statements suggesting he may do an “alternative” State of the Union, writing that he was not seeking an alternative venue because...

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday blocked a Republican bill that would pay the Coast Guard without ending the ongoing partial government shutdown.

Last week and today, Democrats voted against a measure that would pay federal workers during the partial shutdown. Republicans brought the bill to the floor. Democrats want Americans to suffer so they blame President Trump. Six Democrats broke with leadership and voted with Republicans last week, and ten this week. Did you even know this happened ? I doubt it. The media is barely reporting it. Rep. Crenshaw reported it last week and every Republican should have been tweeting. Crenshaw wrote on Twitter: “Last week, House GOP voted to pay federal employees their 1st paycheck of 2019, despite the...

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) will break with President Trump and vote to reopen the government without funding for a border wall, his spokesman told The Denver Post editorial board. Gardner is one of three Republicans expected to vote to advance the "clean" funding bill. Gardner’s spokesman told the Post that the senator planned to vote for a “clean funding bill … with no border-security funding attached.”

Freshman Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was the only House Democrat to vote against a bill to end the longest government shutdown in US history on Wednesday. The liberal lawmaker said she deviated from her party because she didn't want to allocate any funding for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE), which she called to eliminate during her campaign.

The House speaker, fortified by brutal polling for Donald Trump, refuses to provide the President an easy way out of his own political box as the government shutdown sparked by his demand for a border wall drags into a 34th day. In his latest skirmish with Pelosi, Trump effectively admitted defeat late Wednesday and conceded that he would not be able to give his State of the Union address until after the shutdown ends. Earlier in the day, he had publicly thrown down a gauntlet and tried to force the speaker to back down over her refusal to let next...

Dear Madam Speaker: Thank you for your letter of January 3, 2019, sent to me after the long Shutdown began, inviting me to address the Nation on January 29th as to the State of the Union. As you know, I had already accepted your kind invitation, however, I then received another letter from you dated January 16th, 2019, wherein you expressed concerns regarding security during the State of the Union Address due to the Shutdown. Even prior to asking, I was contacted by the Department of Homeland Security and the United States Secret Service to explain that there would be...

WASHINGTON — Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, facing fallout from a lawsuit claiming she fired an aide who said she was sexually assaulted by a supervisor at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, said on Wednesday she had decided to resign as the foundation’s chairwoman. Ms. Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat in her 13th term, also stepped aside temporarily from an important House Judiciary subcommittee chairmanship, the committee said. Ms. Jackson Lee made the decision to step aside from both roles as pressure was growing within her own party to account for the claims in a Jan. 11 lawsuit brought by a...

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515 Dear Madam Speaker:Thank you for your letter of January 3, 2019, sent to me long after the Shutdown began, inviting me to address the Nation on January 29th as to the State of the Union. As you know, I had already accepted your kind invitation, however, I then received another letter from you dated January 16, 2019, wherein you expressed concerns regarding security during the State of the Union Address due to the Shutdown. Even prior to asking, I was contacted by the Department of Homeland Security and...

President Trump told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a new letter Wednesday that he still plans to deliver next week’s scheduled State of the Union address from the House floor even though Pelosi urged him to delay the speech because of the government shutdown. The president, in his letter, said there are "no security concerns" surrounding the event, in response to Pelosi raising that as a potential issue because of the partial shutdown. “I look forward to seeing you on the evening on January 29th in the Chamber of the House of Representatives,” Trump wrote. “It would be so very...

Another Democrat has flipped script and is demanding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi actually negotiate with President Donald Trump on a solution to reopen the federal government.While speaking with a local news outlet, Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-MI, said Pelosi needs to “get in the damn room” with Trump and work out a compromise.[snip] “We all have a fire under us to get something done,” Slotkin said. “We’re trying to still figure out the dynamic between all of us, and the leadership is still trying to figure out how to manage this very, very energetic and outspoken class.”

Last week was dominated with pettiness and silliness, as President Trump responded to Speaker Pelosi's cheap 'State of the Union' stunt with some retaliatory theater of his own.  Pelosi hid behind the Secret Service and DHS to raise bogus "security concerns," only to insult those very public servants when they contradicted her unfounded sloppiness.  Then Trump foraged about for a hammer with which to clobber Pelosi in return, settling on the abrupt cancelation of an overseas trip.  But since that display of mutual childishness, the president has made two smart plays: First, he adopted a constructive tone and approach in...

President Trump announced Tuesday his intent to renominate 51 of his judicial nominees, who didn’t see confirmation votes during the last Congress and whose nominations had expired at the end of last year. Out of the 51 picks for the federal bench, nine were for federal circuit court vacancies including Neomi J. Rao, who was tapped to fill Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh’s old seat on the D.C. Circuit. Liberal groups have already vowed to oppose her nomination. Ms. Rao, who works in the White House budget office, came under scrutiny after several news outlets reported earlier this month about college...