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The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, led by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, delayed a vote to confirm several Trump administration appointees on Thursday after she was criticized by a Cabinet member over her health care vote.

Three years after he led the charge to require consumers to ditch their comfortable old incandescent lights in favor of those twisty CFL bulbs, Rep. Fred Upton now wants to be the man to help undo that law as the next chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. That about-face is not unique among lawmakers looking to atone for stances they've taken over the past decade as they seek to gain top posts in a decidedly more conservative Republican Congress, but his reversal underscores how intent the GOP is on proving it has broken with past practices. "We have...

Complete title: Conservatives Say Naming Upton As Chairman of Energy and Commerce Committee Would Be 'Slap in the Face' Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) seeks the chairmanship of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee (CNSNews.com) – Conservatives say it would be an insult if House Republicans allow Rep. Fred Upton, a liberal Republican from Michigan, to chair the House Energy and Commerce Committee when the GOP takes control of the lower chamber in January.“It would be a real slap in the face for him to be selected the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,” Richard Viguerie, president of the Manassas,...

Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), who hopes to chair the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, does not believe incoming freshman Republicans are keen on granting Upton’s main rival a term-limit waiver that he’s seeking. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), the panel’s senior Republican, is a seeking a waiver from GOP caucus rules that prevent members from serving more than three terms (which is six years) atop a committee. RELATED ARTICLES Upton: Hastings lacks support to ‘steal’ energy jurisdiction “Within the caucus, we have to decide whether or not six years is six years” Upton said in an interview broadcast Sunday...

Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) seeks the chairmanship of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee (CNSNews.com) – Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) may have some explaining to do to fellow GOP colleagues as he seeks the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, given the incoming wave of new conservatives who may not appreciate some aspects of Upton's voting record.Upton joined with Rep. Jane Harman (D.-Calif.) in  2007 to co-author the legislation that effectively banned indoor incandescent light bulbs in the United States. In the last Congress, he an Harman teamed up again to offer new legislation that would extend the...