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Defense Secretary Jim Mattis urged President Trump to get congressional approval before the United States launched airstrikes against Syria last week, but was overruled by Mr. Trump, who wanted a rapid and dramatic response, military and administration officials said. Mr. Trump, the officials said, wanted to be seen as backing up a series of bellicose tweets with action, but was warned that an overly aggressive response risked igniting a wider war with Russia. Friday night’s limited strikes on three targets, which lasted under two minutes, were the compromise.

These are documents sought by Capitol Hill officials for almost 8 years. Providing these documents was one of our top priorities in delivering a new FBI era of transparency. Thank you to the committee and Chairman @RepRickCrawford for your partnership in getting Americans the truth.

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have condemned the House-passed spending bill and vowed to vote against it when it comes up in the Senate, even as other Democrats say they’ll support it to avert a government shutdown. Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) accused Republicans of passing “draconian” policies, and called on Senate Democrats to take a stance against the budget. “We’re facing a hostile government takeover and @SenateDems can do something about it,” Pressley, who opposed the continuing resolution, wrote on social media Friday. “The Trump-Musk spending bill will make our constituents hungrier, sicker, and poorer. Listen to your constituents....

Congressional Democrats appeared to greatly enhance their wealth in 2024, despite only earning a yearly salary of $174,000. Democrat stock portfolios in 2024 far outpaced the S&P 500, a study by Unusual Whales found Tuesday, spiking on average 31 percent, seven points higher than the S&P 500 (24 percent) and five points higher than Republican colleagues (26 percent). Unusual Whales estimated each member’s stock portfolio performance by calculating the value of each stock from the beginning of 2024 to the end of 2024. The biggest Democrat offender was Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), whose portfolio spiked 142 percent, the report...

President Joe Biden and his White House were “largely absent” from the government funding negotiations in Congress this week, according to the Hill, which cited statements from political strategists and lawmakers. As President-elect Donald Trump and his camp grappled with congressional Republicans over a resolution while the threat of a government shutdown increased as the year comes to a close, Biden and his administration officials have mostly been silent.

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-Calif.) said mass deportations could cause a spike in costs for American families, including at the grocery store. President-elect Trump has repeatedly pledged large-scale deportations of illegal immigrants, which could greatly impact the workforce. “What we also see, I think, under mass deportations, as you’re going to see further cost for American families going up if you start deporting the agricultural workforce and people in the essential jobs that are putting food on the table, grocery costs are only going to go up,” Barragán said during a Wednesday afternoon MSNBC appearance. She...

The Republican brand is benefitting from a late surge on the generic congressional ballot. The GOP had been behind all summer, sometimes by as much as two points. Ten days ago, however, the Republican Party began to climb in the RealClearPolitics average poll of generic ballot polls. Today, the GOP leads by nearly a full point, 47.6 to 46.7 percent. This is no fluke, meaning it is not based on one outlier poll that can skew the entire field. Of the seven most recent polls, Republicans have led in five and two are tied. That shows real movement in the...

A report has found that the United States military is “not prepared” to fight in a major war, as “major powers” — such as Russia and China — have become “top threats” to the U.S., with China “outpacing” the U.S. The report, which the Commission on the National Defense Strategy released in July, reveals that while the U.S. is currently facing some of “the most serious and most challenging” threats since 1945, several problems are preventing the U.S. military from being able to address threats from China or Russia.

More than 200 anonymous staff members across 122 Democratic and Republican congressional offices signed a letter this week calling for Congress to protest or boycott Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech next week on Capitol Hill, citing concerns about the ongoing war in Gaza. The letter, organized by the Congressional Progressive Staff Associationa nd signed by 230 House and Senate staffers, said speaking out against Netanyahu’s July 24 joint address to Congress was an “issue of morality” and not politics. “Citizens, students, and lawmakers across the country and the world have spoken out against the actions of Mr. Netanyahu in...

THE WASHINGTON STAND—The Biden administration has intervened to prevent the Secret Service from briefing a House committee investigating the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, a member of the committee told Family Research Council. “After the Secret Service agreed to brief members of the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security took over communications with the committee and has since refused to confirm a briefing time,” said a statement from the Oversight Committee emailed to FRC from Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz.. “The Oversight Committee has a long record of bipartisan oversight of the Secret Service, and...

Climate change protesters are hoping to “shut down” the annual Congressional Baseball Game on Wednesday night. Youth-led activist group Climate Defiance plans to protest at the north gate of Nationals Park and “shut” the game down, Evan Drukker-Schardl, an organizer for the group, told The Hill. “This game is an important kind of illustration of what’s wrong with our politics and our political elite that’s destroying our planet,” Drukker-Schardl said. “We’re not going to let this celebration of corporate political corruption go unchallenged.” The organization, established in March 2023, also led a plan to blockade the White House Correspondents’ Dinner...

A UN Security Council meeting tomorrow on the Memorial Day Weekend attack by Israel in the southern Gaza city... In Israel's largest city Tel Aviv tonight a clash between Eritreans who support and oppose the country's government... US Central Command says a drone launched from Yemen was destroyed... An alert over Israel's southern port city of Eilat tonight... Canada's Immigration Minister saying five thousand people from Gaza will be allowed to enter Canada... In the British election campaign the Conservative Party suspending MP Lucy Allan. Allan endorsed a Reform UK... In Amsterdam riot police stopping an effort by Pro-Palestinian demonstrators...

Republicans top Democrats by nine points when voters are asked whom they prefer to control Congress. “If the elections for Congress were held today, 49% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for the Republican candidate, while 40% would vote for the Democrat,” according to the latest polling from Rasmussen Reports. “Just five percent (5%) would vote for some other candidate, but another nine percent (7%) are not sure.” Rasmussen adds that in “the final poll before Election Day 2022, Republicans held a five-point lead and scored a net gain of nine seats to capture a 222-213 House majority.

The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is calling on corporate America to recommit to diversity, equity and inclusion promises, including $50 billion in investments, made after the 2020 murder of George Floyd. In a corporate accountability letter, previewed by The Hill, the CBC asks corporations for an update on their racial equity investments and to work with the caucus to create legislative solutions that will help close the racial wealth gap. “For years advocates have taken a front-row seat in this fight, working tirelessly to ensure the Black community prospers against these odds,” the CBC said in the letter. “It is...

Hunter Biden stated that he is exempt from participating in a deposition, citing the ‘illegitimacy’ of the House committee that issued the subpoena. Hunter Biden believes he is above the law. During a press conference, Hunter said he welcomed questions from the House Oversight Committee regarding their investigations into his criminal family. But there’s a catch: Hunter insists he will NOT testify behind closed doors for his deposition as required by the House Oversight Subpoena. Instead, he said he would only welcome inquiries in public. “I’m here…to ensure that the House committee’s illegitimate investigations of my family do not proceed...

New York’s highest court tossed out the state’s congressional maps, giving a redistricting panel another shot to redraw several hotly contested districts that could decide control of the House of Representatives in 2024. In a 4-3 decision, the New York court of appeals upheld a challenge by Democrats arguing the state’s redistricting commission and legislature should have another crack at implementing districts ahead of 2024. The high court ruled last year that the Democratic-controlled legislature unconstitutionally approved gerrymandered districts in their favor, leading to a court appointed special master to redraw them for last year’s midterms. “It is our obligation...

Congressional staffers are being advised not to wear jewelry or become distracted on cell phones while walking around in crime-ridden, Democrat-run Washington, DC. House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil (R-WI) held a meeting that included Capitol Police and focused on things staffers can do to lessen the chances of becoming targets of criminals as crime surges in D.C., the Washington Times reported. Steil said, “There’s no indication that crime is being reduced in our nation’s capital, so people are working to make sure that they’re protected.

Michael Cohen, who served as former President Trump’s personal attorney, said in a new interview that he is considering a run for Congress. Cohen told Semafor he is “interested” in running as a Democrat. Cohen added that he is currently living on the East Side of Manhattan, meaning he would potentially make a bid for New York’s 12th Congressional District seat, now held by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.). “I am interested and there’s a multitude of folks encouraging me to run,” Cohen said in the interview.

President Biden this week will talk to congressional Democrats about pushing back on Republican policies, as well as building on their own work. Biden will deliver remarks at the House Democratic Caucus Issues Conference in Baltimore on Wednesday, and on Thursday he will attend the Senate Democratic Caucus lunch in Washington, D.C. “The President will speak to congressional Democrats about building on the progress they have achieved making the economy work from the bottom up and the middle out, as well as combating Republicans’ top-down policies that hurt working Americans,” a White House official said, previewing the remarks at both...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is urging Congress to come together in a bipartisan fashion to pass legislation to prevent a looming rail strike that would cripple the American economy, calling it the "best way forward" amid stalled labor negotiations between the major freight railroads and four hold-out unions. Buttigieg's comments came during a Tuesday evening interview with Fox News Digital at the Memphis International Airport, where he touted a $174 million investment from the Department of Transportation (DOT) for the production of de-icing pads at the facility "Where I hope to see it going is bipartisan cooperation...