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The Senate advanced a controversial judicial pick for President Trump on Wednesday after Vice President Pence cast a tie-breaking vote for the nomination. Senators were deadlocked 50-50 to end debate on Thomas Farr's nomination to be a district judge for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Pence, presiding over the chamber, then cast the tie-breaking vote. The fate of Farr's nomination was held in suspense even going into the start of the vote on Wednesday afternoon. Four Republicans were viewed as potential swing votes: Sens. Marco Rubio (Fla.), Tim Scott (S.C.), Susan Collins (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska). But Collins...

After losing close governor’s races in Georgia and Florida, Stacey Abrams and Andrew Gillum are joining other black leaders to oppose one of President Donald Trump’s picks for a lifetime federal judgeship. Abrams and Gillum say in a joint statement Tuesday that the Senate should reject Thomas Farr’s nomination to a district court in North Carolina. The Democrats say Farr has a “discriminatory ideology” that threatens the voting rights of nonwhites. …

Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer pleaded with Republican Senators on Monday to defeat President Trump’s nominee to a North Carolina judgeship, saying Thomas Alvin Farr has shown he doesn’t respect black voters’ rights. Mr. Schumer said all 49 Democrats will vote against Mr. Farr, as will one Republican, Sen. Jeff Flake. If they can sway another GOP senator, they could defeat the nomination, dealing a blow to Mr. Trump. “This is a man who stands for disenfranchisement of voters, particularly minority voters, that is what he stands for. You can try to parse it any way you want, but that...

Inside the Strangest Job on the Campaign Trail "What about your gaffes?" Campaign trackers make sure candidates can't escape slipups.By Emma RollerKelli Farr remembers running through a cornfield after getting yelled at by a crowd of Sarah Palin fans.It was 2008, and Farr was working as a campaign tracker—someone employed by an opposing political party to follow a candidate on the campaign trail, documenting his or her every move, in hopes of capturing a slipup......Farr is now the vice president and director of tracking at American Bridge, a Democratic organization that is sisters with Media Matters and Correct the Record,...

On Tuesday I voted to end the war in Iraq. Finally, the House of Representatives passed a bill that provides money solely for the purpose of withdrawing our troops from Iraq. Though the bill, HR 4156, must leap high hurdles in the Senate and again at the White House, I am proud to have cast my vote to get out of Iraq and bring home our troops. The bill passed 218-203 and joining me in this vote were my strong anti-war colleagues such as Rep. Barbara Lee and Rep. Lynn Woolsey. The majority of 'no' votes were cast by Republican...

9-13-04 - Jim McDermott Mr. MCDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, in the one minute it will take to read these remarks, an Uzi can fire off 1,700 rounds. Uzis and similar assault weapons are about to be legal again, as if we don't have enough to worry about in America. For the past ten years, the assault weapons ban has protected Americans from these lethal, military-designed guns. These weapons are not used for hunting animals. They are used to kill human beings. The assault weapons ban has bipartisan support, both in Congress and across the nation. Seventy-five percent of Americans want to...

Company Says Farr Violated Rules POSTED: 1:31 pm CDT August 10, 2004 UPDATED: 1:40 pm CDT August 10, 2004 JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Republican Amtrak conductor has been suspended for suggesting passengers should vote against Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. Conductor Leslie Farr is challenging Democratic Congressman William Lacy Clay in the November election. Last week, Farr was on a Kansas City-to-St. Louis train that was delayed several hours while waiting for Kerry's locomotive to leave St. Louis and head to a rally in Jefferson City. Farr says he told passengers they would be delayed because of Kerry, then...

Army intelligence officer charged with violating security at Guantanamo Bay detention camp Saturday November 29, 2003 SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) An Army intelligence officer was charged Saturday with violating security at the U.S. detention camp for terrorist suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He is the fourth worker at the base accused of such violations. Two Arabic translators and a Muslim chaplain face charges ranging from espionage to adultery. U.S. Army Col. Jack Farr was charged Saturday with failing to obey a lawful general order and making a false official statement, all violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice,...

In his former career as a successful car alarm manufacturer, Rep. Darrell Issa pressured his employees to develop "new product, new product." Issa wanted the newest gadgets, technology and features in a fraction of the standard two-year development cycle. Now Issa brings the same shortened time frame and 'why not?' spirit to a late-blooming political career. Since 1998, he has lost a Republican Senate primary race and won two House races in California. Of late, he has become the driving force behind the effort to recall Gray Davis, California's embattled Democratic governor, and has openly declared his interest in succeeding...