Free Republic

WASHINGTON, D.C. —U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) issued the following statement after voting against raising the debt ceiling. “After five years of out-of-control White House spending, including a jobless, trillion-dollar stimulus, now is hardly the time to give the President carte blanche to continue his spending spree. I voted against raising the debt ceiling because we need sensible reforms to cut down on spending and restrain Washington going forward.”

In case you weren’t glued to C-Span2 for the last hour, here’s what you missed. The Senate voted 67-31 to quash a filibuster by Sen. Ted Cruz that would have blocked the Senate from lifting the federal debt ceiling. Cruz voted against cloture, naturally. But the top GOP leaders, fellow Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, sided with Democrats to cut off the filibuster. The measure raising the federal credit line through March 2015 sailed through the House on Tuesday, after Speaker John Boehner decided that it would be better to let Democrats own it...

In a suspenseful vote, the Senate agreed to advance legislation that would lift the debt ceiling into 2015. The procedural hurdle was full of drama as Republicans were reluctant to provide the five votes needed to move forward with the bill. Ultimately, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) — both of whom are up for reelection this year and face primary challengers — voted to advance the debt hike measure. The procedural vote will almost certainly be fodder in their reelection races. The chamber ultimately passed the bill 55-43 in a vote that only required a...

Republicans in the Senate are struggling to come up with the five votes they'd need to ensure passage on Wednesday of a House bill raising the debt ceiling. The measure is likely to win support from the upper chamber's 53 Democrats and the two Independents that caucus with Democrats. But only one Republican, Sen. Mark Kirk (Ill.), has so far said he would back the bill. The measure needs 60 votes because Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is filibustering the bill over the lack of spending reforms attached to it. Kirk told The Hill the vote would be close. “I think...

Bad blood is one way to describe it. Soon that political plasma will begin to boil, as the pending 2014-midterm elections will launch a grueling two-year process to determine which major Republican faction wins control of the party. Will the grassroots or the GOP establishment prevail? The war earnestly begins in the Lone Star State less than 30 days from now. Texas Sen. John Cornyn is fighting off intra-party challenges from a crowded field of Republicans, each of whom claims the mantle of grassroots champion. Congressman Steve Stockman (R-Seabrook) is notable among the challengers. In the March 4 Texas primary,...