Free Republic

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-NC) told reporters on Thursday morning that “11 or 12 governors” support former Sen. Rick Santorum’s plan to repeal and replace Obamacare through block grants. Breitbart News reported on former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s plan to block grant health care to the states. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), as well as Rep. Meadows, endorse the plan. During the Thursday meeting at Bloomberg’s D.C. office, Meadows revealed that “11 or 12 governors” support the concept of block granting health care to the states. Santorum told Breitbart News that the plan will allow...

President Donald Trump may have made a short-term deal this week to fund the government and raise the debt ceiling, but he's also placed House Speaker Paul Ryan in the crosshairs of the far-right members within his conference once again.

In recent weeks, officials inside Germany’s security agencies have been fondly circulating an article from the website of Foreign Policy magazine that was published on Aug. 3 with the headline, “Russian Hackers Can’t Beat German Democracy.” The article speculates about what Russia could do to disrupt the German federal election, which takes place on Sept. 24, and argues that the Russians will certainly attempt to interfere. Notably, though, the magazine concludes that the Kremlin is unlikely to succeed. Germany, the article argues, is excellently prepared for dealing with any attack because politicians and voters alike have been sensitized to the...

President Trump is one step closer to fulfilling one of his core campaign promises; building a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. Moments ago, CBP announced it awarded four companies “other materials” contracts for border wall prototypes.

Several influential House conservatives are privately plotting ways to use the legislative calendar this fall to push their hard-line agenda — including quiet discussions about possibly mounting a leadership challenge to House Speaker Paul D. Ryan. The group has gone so far as to float the idea of recruiting former House speaker Newt Gingrich or former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum as potential replacements for Ryan (R-Wis.) should there be a rebellion. The Constitution does not require that an elected member of the House serve as speaker. While the chances that a non-House member could mount a credible threat to Ryan...

Just days after former White House chief advisor met with key Freedom Caucus members, they are now unleashing a fury of anger and criticism at House Speaker Paul Ryan for his failure and advancing the Republican legislative agenda. Steve Bannon reportedly met with House Freedom Caucus member Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C. on Sunday where they discussed their fall agenda and battle strategy. Their main goal is SHUTTING DOWN the RINOs in Congress who refuse to support Trump’s conservative agenda, including Paul Ryan. The three caucus members who met with Ryan, Reps. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and Scott Perry...

Three Freedom Caucus leaders brought warning to House Speaker Paul Ryan on Wednesday as former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon has been speaking with GOP lawmakers, according to a new report from the Washington Post. Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows, Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Scott Perry met with Ryan on Wednesday according to two sources that spoke with the Post. The report noted Meadows’ longtime close relationship with Bannon. The lawmakers voiced the importance of seeing leadership set conservative policies in place and warned that their continued support may depend on it. The Post added that Bannon has...

Steve Bannon, former White House chief strategist, and Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., have begun to examine potential replacements for House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. in the event conservatives attempt to oust him from his leadership role, according to a report Wednesday. Meadows was a leading figure in the push to remove former Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, back in 2015. Shortly after this effort, Boehner stepped down.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A new Republican bill to replace Obamacare will be unveiled in the U.S. Senate on Monday with backing from President Donald Trump, according to one of two Republican senators who have crafted the legislation. The lawmaker, Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, told reporters he was optimistic the legislation could pass before a Sept. 30 deadline. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has said he will hold a vote if the bill can attract support from enough senators for it to succeed on a simple majority.

The special Alabama Senate primary is at once the most exciting and the most boring spectacle in politics. Depending on who's keeping score, the contest between Judge Roy Moore and incumbent Sen. Luther Strange will be either blowout or barnburner, slaughter or slugfest. New polling from Montgomery-based Southeast Research suggests the latter. With 19 days before Election Day, according to the poll, Strange is trailing Moore by 16 points: 52 to 36 percent.

President Donald Trump reached a deal with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to raise the debt limit, fund Hurricane Harvey relief, and keep the government open until December. The deal is a warning to Republicans — primarily to the party establishment, which has fought Trump at every turn, but also to conservative Republicans, who have long worried about Trump shifting leftwards. It is no secret that Trump is frustrated with the party establishment, and particularly with congressional leaders, notably Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who failed to whip his caucus into delivering the...

President Trump for once united Washington on Wednesday — in shock. Republicans and Democrats alike were left scratching their heads after the president did a deal with Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over the express wishes of the most senior members of his own party. Trump signed up to terms proposed by the Democrats on government funding, which would soon have run out, and the nation’s debt ceiling, which would soon have been hit. Crucially, another funding measure and another hike in the debt ceiling will be required before the end of the year....

The senator who cast the final vote to kill Obamacare repeal is unexpectedly helping to revive that effort from the dead. Sen. John McCain told the Hill Wednesday that he would support a plan offered by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) to repeal the Affordable Care Act. We haven’t seen a final version of this plan. Cassidy has told reporters including Jennifer Haberkorn at Politico that they’re still polishing the details. (This, as she notes, “doesn’t bode well for quick movement.”) The Senate rejected four different Obamacare repeal plans in late July. Cassidy-Graham emerged in the midst...

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said Wednesday that he would support a plan to repeal Obamacare led by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA). ”Yes. You think I wouldn’t be?” McCain told reporters Wednesday, asked if he would support the legislation, the Hill reported. Arizona’s senior senator, whose close friendship with Graham is well known, affirmed that he thought the bill, in The Hill’s words, “has legs before Sept. 30.” The Graham-Cassidy legislation would essentially dismantle much of Obamacare’s federal infrastructure, turning over federal dollars to the states to do with what they wish, though that flexibility at the...

If you read any political commentary over the last few weeks, you probably heard that Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake has problems. He’s in a feud with a president from his own party. His primary challenger led him in a recent poll. He may have trouble winning the general election in 2018 (if he makes it that far). His state has a large and growing Hispanic population -- which makes it a constant target for Democrats. The list goes on. So how much do these problems matter? Is Flake really in danger of losing his seat? It’s hard to answer these...

Former state Rep. Joe Carr is laying the foundation to run against Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee in the Republican primary next year, accusing the incumbent of being too reluctant to back President Trump’s agenda. He’s formed a political action committee dubbed “Stand Firm America” that raised $500,000 over the last three weeks, in what Mr. Carr said is an early show of support. Mr. Carr becomes the latest insurgent hoping to use Mr. Trump as a cudgel in a Republican primary, making the president a critical dividing line within the GOP. “There is a great opportunity for someone like...

A slim plurality of Republican voters are less likely to support their member of Congress if they backed Mitch McConnell to remain on as majority leader, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll. The poll, which was conducted Aug. 31 to Sept. 3, found that just 28 percent of Republican voters surveyed said they’d be more likely to vote for a member of Congress that supported McConnell.

Tuesday the Senate Conservatives Fund announced it is supporting former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore in Alabama’s U.S. Senate special election Republican primary runoff on September 26. SCF President Ken Cuccinelli made the announcement in an open letter, noting the supporters in Alabama and nationwide supported Moore over Strange by an “overwhelming” 97 percent. “I’m proud to announce the Senate Conservatives Fund’s endorsement of Judge Roy Moore in Alabama’s special election for U.S. Senate,” Cuccinelli wrote. “After collecting feedback from our supporters in Alabama and across the nation last week, an overwhelming 97% said they thought we should...

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), the chairman of the influential House Freedom Caucus, on Wednesday endorsed Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate race, spurning the incumbent backed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and President Trump.  Meadow's decision to back Moore over Sen. Luther Strange (R-Ala.) gives the insurgent candidate one of his biggest endorsements yet ahead of the Sept. 26 GOP primary runoff. In a statement announcing his decision, Meadows took a swipe at McConnell and his allied super PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, which has spent millions on the airwaves to boost Strange. "The people of Alabama are seeing millions...

The rising political star of Judge Roy Moore in Alabama is another surprise in a political season defined by the unexpected and the unconventional. On Aug. 15, Moore finished ahead of Senator Luther Strange in a primary election to pick the Republican candidate who will run in November's general election to fill the seat of former Senator Jeff Sessions. Sessions vacated the seat to become the nation's attorney general. Strange, who was Alabama's attorney general, was appointed by then-Governor Robert Bentley to temporarily fill Sessions' seat. Despite Strange being endorsed by President Trump, and perceived as the Republican Party favorite,...