Hakeem Jeffries

Ten Democrats joined with Republicans to clear the 60-vote threshold needed to advance the measure. The vote was 62-38

Flyers demanding Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., vote against the continuing resolution are taped to the Capitol South Metro station in Washington on Friday morning.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Thursday night that he would surrender to President Donald Trump and vote to fund Trump and financier Elon Musk’s ongoing rampage across the face of American democracy.Schumer said that he had decided to back the partisan government spending bill proposed by Republicans that had been opposed by all but one Democrat in the House. His remarks came less than 24 hours after the senator touted the claim that Republicans did not have the votes to invoke cloture, the Senate procedural vote required before a full vote on an issue.In a New York Times op-ed defending his pro-Trump posture (which would indicate that Schumer used some element of pre-planning to roll out his position), Schumer made the laughable argument that Republicans would prefer a shutdown over congressional assistance to advance their agenda.“But even if the White House says differently, Mr. Trump and Elon Musk want a shutdown. We should not give them one. The risk of allowing the president to take even more power via a government shutdown is a much worse path,” he wrote.Senate Minority Leader Chuck SchumerThe premise of Schumer’s piece was almost immediately shattered as the social media account for Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee expressed the party’s unbridled glee at the capitulation.“Schumer caved. Trump won. Incredible,” the @JudiciaryGOP account noted.Former Republican congressman and Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows explained in a Newsmax appearance, “[Trump]'s got Schumer right where he wants him.”The federal government is already in a state of near shutdown since Trump took office on Jan. 20.He has ignored longstanding laws and precedents and fired thousands of federal workers. He is using government funds for a full force attack on American civil rights, purging evidence of advances made across American history by multiple ethnic groups, including Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, and others. He is purging LGBTQ+ people who want to serve and protect their country. He is shifting back and forth on nonsensical tariffs that are converting the growing economy he inherited into a state of near-recession.Before Schumer’s announcement, moderate Delaware Democratic Sen. Chris Coons made it clear why he would oppose the bill, noting, “I don't want my vote to give an imprimatur to what President Trump is doing.”The Schumer announcement of his betrayal led to an unusually strident expression of anger and dismay from House Democrats.“I know I speak for so many in our caucus when I say Schumer is misreading this moment,” Vermont Rep. Becca Balint told Axios. Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee added, “I don't know where Schumer is coming from. ... It doesn't look good for the leader.”A senior House Democrat told Axios that “people are furious” at Schumer, and that some have floated the notion of marching to the Senate floor to protest his actions. Another member told the outlet that Schumer’s position has led to a “complete and utter meltdown on all text chains” on the Democratic side.“People are pissed,” one member told them, while another explained, “There is definitely a primary recruitment effort happening right now ... not just Schumer, but for everyone who votes no.”New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who since January has been unequivocal in her opposition to Trump’s actions, has been leading an effort to oppose the bill. Ocasio-Cortez urged the public to call Democratic senators and lobby them to vote “no,” and criticized the Schumer-led Senate Democratic Caucus for their attempts to hide behind procedural games while ultimately clearing a path for the bill to pass.Following Schumer’s announcement, Ocasio-Cortez told reporters, “I think there is a deep sense of outrage and betrayal.”House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries“Just to see Senate Democrats even consider acquiescing to Elon Musk, I think, is a huge slap in the face. And I think there is a wide sense of betrayal if things proceed as currently planned,” she added.House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and the other members of House Democratic leadership released a statement after Schumer made his decision public, restating their opposition to the bill.They described the legislation that now has Schumer’s backing as a Republican attempt to “jam their extreme partisan legislation down the throats of the American people.” The statement didn’t mention Schumer by name but the timing indicated a highly unusual rebuke of a senior Democrat.The one person who’s praising Schumer for caving to Trump? Trump:Schumer is out on a political limb with his extreme position. Recent opinion polling shows the public is extremely opposed toTrump’s attack on democracy. In Quinnipiac University’s poll released Thursday, 60% of voters said they were opposed to Elon Musk and DOGE. Additionally, 54% of voters said that Musk/DOGE are hurting the country.Schumer has served in Congress since 1981. He swore an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” as both a representative and a senator.By siding with Trump and Musk, the senator betrays his oath of office.Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include a response from Trump.Campaign Action

Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., is hosting town halls on Friday in Republican-held congressional districts in Iowa and Nebraska.

Republicans will face a critical test of their unity when a spending bill that would avoid a partial government shutdown and keep federal agencies funded through September comes up for a vote.Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is teeing up the bill for a vote as soon as Tuesday despite the lack of buy-in from Democrats, essentially daring them to oppose it and risk a shutdown that would begin Saturday if lawmakers fail to act.Republicans will need overwhelming support from their members in both chambers — and some help from Senate Democrats — to get the bill to President Donald Trump’s desk. It’s one of the biggest legislative tests so far of the Republican president’s second term, prompting Vice President JD Vance to visit Capitol Hill on Tuesday morning to rally support.“We have to keep the government in operation,” Johnson said as he emerged from a House Republican meeting. “It’s a fundamental responsibility of ours. The vice president echoed that sentiment. It was very well received and very well delivered. I think the holdouts are down to just one or two.”The strategy has the backing of Trump, who is calling on Republicans to “remain UNITED — NO DISSENT — Fight for another day when the timing is right.”House Republicans said the bill would trim $13 billion in non-defense spending from the levels in the 2024 budget year and increase defense spending by $6 billion, which are rather flat changes for both categories when compared with an overall topline of nearly $1.7 trillion in discretionary spending. The bill does not cover the majority of government spending, including Social Security and Medicare. Funding for those two programs is on auto pilot and not regularly reviewed by Congress. Democrats are mostly worried about the discretion the bill gives the Trump administration on spending decisions. They are already alarmed by the administration’s efforts to make major cuts through the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, run by billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk. And they say the spending bill would fuel the effort.“This is not a clean CR. This bill is a blank check,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee. “It’s a blank check for Elon Musk and President Trump.”Elon Musk19 hours agoMusk says DOGE is in almost every federal agency and plans to double staffTrump administration2 hours agoPregnant federal employees who were fired grapple with stress of losing insurance and looking for workDepartment of Justice6 hours agoDOJ official says she was fired after opposing the restoration of Mel Gibson's gun rightsSpending bills typically come with specific funding directives for key programs, but hundreds of those directives fall away under the legislation, according to a memo released by Senate Democrats. So the administration will have more leeway to reshape priorities. “President Trump has endorsed this full-year CR because he understands what is in it for him: more power over federal spending to pick winners and losers and devastate Democratic states and priorities,” the memo warned. For example, the Democratic memo said the bill would allow the administration to steer money away from combating fentanyl and instead use it on mass deportation initiatives.Normally, when it comes to keeping the government fully open for business, Republicans have had to work with Democrats to craft a bipartisan measure that both sides can support. That’s because Republicans almost always lack the votes to pass spending bills on their own. This time, Republican leaders are pushing for a vote despite Democratic opposition. Trump is showing an ability this term to hold Republicans in line. He met with several of the House chamber’s most conservative members last week.Now, House Republicans who routinely vote against spending bills said they would support this one. The House Freedom Caucus, which includes many of the House’s most conservative members, issued a statement of support saying “contrary to Congress’ longtime abuse of this legislative tool, this CR is a paradigm shift.”Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is still a holdout, though. He says he’ll vote no.“I guess deficits only matter when we’re in the minority,” said Massie, when asked why colleagues weren’t listening to his concerns.Trump went after Massie on social media, calling him a “GRANDSTANDER, who’s too much trouble.”“HE SHOULD BE PRIMARIED, and I will lead the charge against him,” Trump posted online.Rep. Tom Cole, the Republican chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, acknowledged the continuing resolution was not the outcome he was seeking but said it was time to end the cycle of short-term extensions Congress has been passing to keep the government open. This will be the third for the current budget year.“Congress does have other things to do,” said Cole, of Oklahoma. “It’s got a lot on its plate this year.”Meanwhile, House Democratic leaders have come out strongly against it. Less clear is how strongly they’ll push members in competitive battleground districts to follow their lead.“House Democrats will not be complicit in the Republican efforts to hurt the American people,” House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said.Senate Democrats generally seem to be emphasizing patience at this stage, waiting to see if Republicans can muscle the bill through the House before taking a stand. “No comment,” said top Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York as he rushed through the hallway outside the Senate chamber.Still, several rank-and-file Democrats criticized the measure. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey said he was stunned that Republicans were “trying to jam through something that is their way or the highway.”If the bill does move to the Senate later this week, support from at least eight Democratic senators will likely be needed for it to advance to passage.“It’ll be up to the Democrats whether they want to deliver the votes and keep the government from shutting down,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.Democrats also introduced an alternative bill Monday night funding the government through April 11. The bill could serve as a Plan B if the GOP-led effort falters.The spending bill could also have major ramifications for the District of Columbia’s government. City officials voiced their concerns during a news conference outside the Capitol on Monday, and district residents later in the day flooded the hearing room and surrounding hallway where lawmakers were considering debate rules for the measure.The bill would limit the district to last year’s funding levels, though it’s already spending at 2025 levels. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, said the proposal would require the district to cut $1.1 billion in spending in the next six months since it has already passed a balanced budget and is midway through its fiscal year. That means, officials said, cuts to critical services such as education and public safety.The mayor also emphasized that the district’s 2025 budget focused on boosting three priorities: public safety, public education and economic growth. “If the Congress goes through with this action, it will work against a priority that President Trump and I share, and that is to make Washington, D.C., the best, most beautiful city in the world,” Bowser said.Associated Press writers Leah Askarinam, Gary Fields and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

Rep. Jim McGovern slammed Republicans for their "ridiculous" claims about his party while "bragging about this big mandate."

Elon Musk is telling Republican lawmakers that he's not to blame for the firings of thousands of federal workers as he pushes to downsize the government.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams is in a state of legal and political purgatory

Democrats in Congress seemed surprised as President Trump fully unleashed Elon Musk to upend the federal government. Can they mount a real opposition?

Aerosmith, Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, James Taylor, Jelly Roll, Lil Jon, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mariah Carey, Miranda Lambert, Ozzy Osbourne, P!nk, Reba, Stevie Nicks, and more leading effort to close 100-year loophole, finally require big radio companies to pay artists...

Survey Says is a weekly column rounding up three of the most important polling trends or data points you need to know about. You’ll also find data-based updates on past Daily Kos reporting, plus a vibe check on a trend that’s driving politics.Trump’s unpopular plan for GazaPresident Donald Trump stunned the world on Tuesday when he proposed that the U.S. seize the Gaza Strip and displace the 2 million Palestinians living there. As always, it’s impossible to gauge how serious he is. On Wednesday, the White House press secretary ludicrously called the proposal an “out-of-the-box idea” toward Trump’s goal of “lasting peace in the Middle East.”Either way, Americans are skeptical, to say the least. The plurality of Americans (47%) oppose the U.S. “taking ownership” of the Gaza Strip, according to a new YouGov survey. Just 22% back the idea. xDatawrapper ContentWhile Republicans are more likely than Democrats to support the proposal, the idea still isn’t that popular with the GOP. Twenty-nine percent of Republicans and 57% of Democrats oppose the plan. Additionally, 49% of independents oppose it.This lack of domestic approval for Trump’s idea tracks with its international condemnation. Even some GOP lawmakers haven’t been defending it. These dissenters haven’t phased Trump, though. On Thursday, he defended his proposal, saying Gaza “would be turned over to the United States by Israel at the conclusion of fighting.”Trump the president vs. Trump the manDespite Trump’s cruel and idiotic Gaza plan, Americans are rosier about the job he’s doing as president than they are about him as a person.As of Friday at 12 PM ET, 538’s polling averages have Trump’s net favorability at -0.6 percentage points (46.9% favorable, 47.5% unfavorable) but his net job approval at +5.6 points (49.2% approve, 44.7% disapprove). That said, this approval rating is historically bad since presidents usually enjoy a “honeymoon” period shortly after inauguration.What should we make of this? Well, it could be that Americans like many of Trump’s policies more than him personally. For instance, Americans are veering to the right on certain immigration policies. In December, 53% of registered voters supported mass deportations, while 46% opposed the idea, according to Civiqs polling for Daily Kos.xDatawrapper ContentSome of Trump’s other immigration policies are relatively popular too. The latest Civiqs poll for Daily Kos finds that 53% of registered voters support U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducting raids in major cities. Forty-six percent oppose that idea.A large majority of the public is also sympathetic to limiting gender-affirming care for minors. In a January survey from Ipsos for The New York Times, 71% of Americans said no one under the age of 18 should have access to puberty-blocking drugs or hormone therapy. And a plurality (49%) agreed that “society has gone too far in accommodating transgender people”—a result that aligns with Trump’s proclamation that there are only two biological sexes (though scientists largely disagree).Taken together, this data suggests the country is leaning to the right on some high-profile issues—at least for now.But even for people who like his politics, there are many reasons to dislike Trump personally. For one, people think he uses social media too much. A YouGov survey from late January found that a plurality of Americans (36%) think he posts to social media “too often,” while only 4% want him to do it more.Trump and his allies have also toyed with him running for a third term, and generally speaking, Americans aren’t keen on him bending the rules for his benefit. For instance, he’s promised to seek vengeance against those whom he thinks have wronged him, but the New York Times/Ipsos poll found that 73% of Americans oppose Trump using the government to investigate and prosecute his enemies. Plus, not all of Trump’s ideas are popular. Poll after poll shows that Americans oppose ending birthright citizenship and Trump’s repeated instigation of a global trade war, among his other executive orders and plans.Americans hate politics—and a lot of politiciansPolitics tend to make people feel exhausted or hopeless, so it’s no surprise that Americans have a less-than-cheery view of politicians.A new Gallup survey asked Americans’ opinions on 14 politicians or Trump-aligned figures, and half had net-negative favorability. That includes four prominent Democrats: Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. Only one Democrat—House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries—has a net-positive favorability, and even then, the plurality of Americans (37%) have no opinion on him.Three Republicans or Trump administration figures were underwater too.Several recent surveys have shown that people don’t like billionaire Elon Musk, who heads up the controversial Department of Government Efficiency (an advisory commission, not a real department). And Gallup has further confirmation of that: Just 43% of Americans have a positive view of him, while 47% do not. Embattled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wasn’t beloved, either. In fact, he has the highest net-unfavorable rating of any Trump-aligned figure Gallup asked about: 22% favorable, 29% unfavorable. That said, a near-majority of Americans (49%) has no opinion on him.The third major Trump-world figure Americans aren’t fond of is ... Trump himself. For now, his “honeymoon” period has been average at best, and Gallup has him at 48% unfavorable and 50% unfavorable. Meanwhile, the latest Civiqs poll for Daily Kos found that just 45% of registered voters approved of the job Trump is doing as president, while a majority (52%) did not.Gallup conducted its poll shortly after Inauguration Day, so rosy-ish opinions of Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick to be director of national intelligence, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee for health secretary, are likely to wane as the public gets to know them better. After all, not only are they deplorable figures, but also they each only narrowly earned the approval of the Senate committees needed to push their nominations to the floor for a final vote. And getting them that far took a fair deal of outsize pressure (i.e., bullying). Any updates?Daily Kos is all over Elon Musk as he tries to wreck the federal government. And not only are people souring on Musk, but new polling from YouGov shows that 48% of Americans think he has too much influence in Trump’s administration, compared with 29% who think he has the right amount of influence and just 3% (!) who want him to have more.Remember when conservatives defended Musk after he threw up two Nazi salutes on Inauguration Day? The latest Civiqs poll for Daily Kos finds that 86% of Democrats (correctly) consider it Nazi salute—but 87% of Republicans say it was not. As we’ve noted, egg prices are skyrocketing, and now even beloved chain Waffle House has announced it will add a surcharge to eggs. Turns out, nearly equal shares of Republicans (77%) as Democrats (76%) are dissatisfied with the price of eggs, according to Civiqs. Vibe checkVoters feel a lot of ways about the direction of the nation. According to Civiqs as of Friday, just 22% of registered voters are hopeful about the way things are going, while 17% are scared, 14% are depressed, and 15% are angry. Notably, there was an uptick in registered voters who are excited (13%) following November’s election, but that’s largely due to Republicans’ changing mood. Campaign Action

Democratic lawmakers are speaking out against Elon Musk having access to the Treasury Department over fears of misappropriating taxpayers funds.

Rep. Debbie Dingell, chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, speaks at a news conference last November, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in the background.

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., left, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., hold a media availability Tuesday in the Capitol on “legislative proposals to fight the chaos of the Trump Administration."

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries criticized President Donald Trump's agenda in a press conference on Friday.

Donald Trump, who overcame impeachments, criminal indictments and a pair of assassination attempts to win another term in the White House, will be sworn in Monday as the 47th U.S. president taking charge as Republicans claim unified control of Washington and set out to reshape the country’s institutions.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump, who overcame impeachments, criminal indictments and a pair of assassination attempts to win another term in the White House, will be sworn in Monday as the 47th U.S. president taking charge as Republicans claim unified...

Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) decision to shake up leadership on the House Intelligence Committee sent shockwaves throughout the panel and beyond, fueling concerns on both sides of the aisle about the influence of the MAGA-right and how sensitive national security matters will be handled in the looming Trump era. Johnson declined to re-appoint Rep. Mike [...]

“The American people are hungry for change," said Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), one of a handful of next-generation Democrats gunning for top committee posts.

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday left the door open to adjourning Congress so President-elect Donald Trump can appoint his Cabinet nominees outside of the usual Senate confirmation process if necessary.“We’re in a time of very divided government and a very partisan atmosphere in Washington. I wish it were not. I wish the Senate would simply do its job of advise and consent and allow the president to put the persons in his Cabinet of his choosing. But if this thing bogs down, it would be a great detriment to the country, to the American people,” Johnson, R-La., told “Fox News Sunday” in response to a question about whether he’d be willing to let Trump use the recess appointment process, rather than the traditional Senate confirmation process for certain nominees.A recess appointment occurs when a president unilaterally bypasses the Senate’s responsibility to confirm Cabinet nominees and appoints them to the job during a period when both the House and Senate are not in session for at least 10 days.Johnson said Sunday, “We’ll evaluate all that at the appropriate time, and we’ll make the appropriate decision. There may be a function for that. We’ll have to see how it plays out.”He added, “I’m sympathetic to all these arguments. As I said, we’ll have to see how this develops. I am very hopeful, very hopeful, that the Senate will do its job, and that is, provide its advice and consent and move these nominees along.”To allow the recess appointment process to take place, the House and Senate would have to both vote to adjourn for a period of at least 10 days, which would either require them to agree unanimously to do so, or would require both chambers to vote on a concurrent resolution to adjourn for a specific amount of time.Both chambers usually gavel in for pro forma sessions even during times of recess specifically to prevent the president from making recess appointments and bypassing congressional approval.President Barack Obama once tried to use recess appointments and was rebuked by the Supreme Court, which said in 2014 that recesses needed to be 10 days or longer for recess appointments to be legal.Johnson isn’t the only Trump ally who has left the door open to using a recess appointment to confirm Trump’s Cabinet picks.Also on Sunday, Oklahoma GOP Sen. Markwayne Mullin told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that confirming some of Trump’s picks would be a “very difficult” process, and thus recess appointments would be a “last resort.”“It’d be the absolute last resort,” Mullin said. “But if that’s what we have to do to get the confirmation through, then absolutely, let’s do it. But I would say that would be last option.”House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Sunday that Democrats would try to push against GOP efforts to make recess appointments, telling NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that if Republicans try to bypass the usual Senate confirmation process, “we will work very closely with our Senate Democratic colleagues. I have great trust and respect in [Senate Majority] Leader Chuck Schumer and [Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman] Dick Durbin to make sure that no end runs can be done.”On Sunday, Johnson also spoke about Trump’s pick for attorney general, GOP former Rep. Matt Gaetz.Gaetz is under scrutiny after he resigned from the House last week in the wake of his nomination to Trump’s Cabinet.While serving in Congress, he was the subject of an investigation by the House Ethics Committee into allegations that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl. Gaetz has repeatedly denied the allegations, but senators on both sides of the aisle have called for the committee’s report to be released publicly or shared with them privately ahead of his confirmation vote.Johnson had previously advocated against the release of the report and on Sunday told CNN, “What I have said with regard to the report is that it should not come out, and why, because Matt Gaetz resigned from Congress. He is no longer a member. There’s a very important protocol and tradition and rule that we maintain that the House Ethics Committee’s jurisdiction does not extend to nonmembers of Congress.”He added that senators will “have a rigorous review and vetting process in the Senate, but they don’t need to rely upon a report or a draft report, a rough draft report that was prepared by the Ethics Committee for its very limited purposes.”Johnson also said that he has not spoken to the president-elect about the ethics report.“I have literally not discussed one word about the ethics report, not once, and I’ve been with him quite a bit this week,” Johnson said.This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:Woman testifies to House Ethics Committee saying Gaetz had sex with minorTop House Foreign Affairs Democrat: Tulsi Gabbard is a ‘risk to national security’Senator-elect Gallego discusses Latino base, border security and latest Trump picks

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) reacts to Democrats’ losses in the 2024 election and discusses President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks.

Republicans will maintain control of the House of Representatives by the thinnest of margins, NBC News projected Wednesday, handing President-elect Donald Trump and his party all the levers of power in Washington.A Republican-controlled Congress will allow Trump to quickly fill out his Cabinet and other top administration roles and advance his agenda for at least the next two years. Last week, Republicans flipped three Democratic Senate seats to win control of the upper chamber.House Republicans’ razor-thin victory was propelled by Trump’s decisive win over Vice President Kamala Harris in both the Electoral College and the popular vote. It represents a stinging blow to Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and the Democrats, who now will have virtually no check on Trump, a man they warned on the campaign trail is a threat to democracy, an extremist and a fascist.“It is a beautiful morning in Washington. It is a new day in America,” a celebratory Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said on the steps of the Capitol, flanked by his leadership team, as the House returned to Washington on Tuesday. “The sun is shining, and that is a reflection about how we all feel.”How Republicans wonDemocrats had believed they were in a good position to win back the majority they lost just two years ago. They needed a net gain of only four seats to flip control of the House given that Republicans now hold 220 seats to the Democrats’ 212 — one of the smallest majorities in modern history.But the two parties basically have fought to a draw in the House, preserving a status quo that favored Republicans.In New York, Democrats were able to knock off a trio of vulnerable freshman GOP incumbents: Rep. Brandon Williams in the Syracuse region, Rep. Anthony D’Esposito on Long Island, and Rep. Marc Molinaro, whose district includes parts of the Hudson Valley and the Catskills. They were among the 18 GOP House districts that President Joe Biden carried in 2020.Democratic challenger George Whitesides also ousted vulnerable GOP Rep. Mike Garcia in Southern California.But Trump’s triumph — including wins in battlegrounds like Pennsylvania and Michigan where there were key House races — helped buoy GOP incumbents and new candidates in the places that mattered.Two of the biggest GOP prizes came in the Keystone State. Republicans unseated two vulnerable, veteran Democrats in neighboring districts in eastern Pennsylvania. GOP businessman Rob Bresnahan ousted six-term Rep. Matt Cartwright, a former member of leadership, in the 8th District, which Trump carried in 2020. In the neighboring 7th District based in Allentown, GOP state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie upset Democratic Rep. Susan Wild, the top Democrat on the House Ethics Committee.Meanwhile, In the capital of Harrisburg, Democrats believed they had a good chance to knock off former Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry, a Trump ally who played a role in the effort to overturn the 2020 election. But the six-term incumbent beat back a strong challenge from former local TV anchor Janelle Stelson, who attacked Perry on everything from the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and abortion rights to his votes on veterans issues.Republicans also captured a Michigan seat that had been held by Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who successfully ran for an open Senate seat. And GOP challenger Gabe Evans narrowly defeated freshman Rep. Yadira Caraveo, D-Colo., by less than 1 percentage point in a heavily Hispanic district north of Denver.The task of governingThe tiny House victory is hugely consequential as Republicans turn to the task of governing. When Trump and his congressional allies take the reins in January, they will have another rare opportunity to push through major policy initiatives through “reconciliation” — an arcane process that would allow the GOP to fast-track legislation without Democratic support.Discussions about what reforms to pursue began even before the election, with some Republicans pushing to use reconciliation to renew expiring Trump tax cuts and others like Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump ally, calling for Republicans to take up border security legislation. It’s not yet clear what would be in that border bill, but Trump has said repeatedly that he will “seal” the southern border on day one as president and launch “the largest deportation program in American history.”In the closing days of the campaign, Johnson told supporters a “massive” reform of the Affordable Care Act would be part of the GOP’s first 100-day agenda, though he has since denied that Republicans would try to repeal Obamacare as they failed to do in 2017.With very little wiggle room, Republicans are sure to run into challenges. And Trump has already selected two members of the new majority to serve in his administration, Reps. Elise Stefanik of New York and Mike Waltz of Florida. Both are in solidly Republican districts the party will likely carry in special elections to replace them, but vacancies following their departures could be an issue for Johnson.Decision 20243 hours agoTrump returns to White House, thanks Biden for ‘smooth transition'Donald Trump4 hours agoSpecial counsel Jack Smith and team to resign before Trump takes officeThe GOP had a minuscule majority in this Congress, and it struggled to push its agenda forward. Instead, the past two years were defined by a successful conservative coup against Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California, the expulsion of a New York Republican congressman and intraparty squabbling over GOP spending bills.Johnson and Republicans will now have partners in a Senate majority and the White House, which they hope will allow them to rally behind Trump and put some of that infighting behind them. Johnson and his top lieutenants — Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a fellow Louisiana Republican, and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn. — are all running unopposed for re-election in their top jobs on Wednesday.Johnson will still need to secure 218 votes on the House floor on the first day of the new Congress, in early January, to win his first full term as speaker.“If there’s unified government ... if we have a bicameral approach — Republicans in both chambers working together to develop that agenda and implement it, and President Trump is guiding the way — I think you will certainly have a lot less dissension in the ranks on our side,” Johnson said in an interview with NBC News at a Pennsylvania campaign stop before the election.“I think everybody’s going to want to be a part of that majority that is solving the problems of the country,” the speaker added. “And I think governing is going to be a whole lot easier come January.”This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:Senate Republicans choose John Thune as their new leaderElon Musk may already be overstaying his welcome in Trump’s orbitHouse Democrat to introduce resolution reiterating that Trump can only serve two terms as president

Democrat Kamala Harris urged unity in a concession speech at Howard University following her defeat to Republican Donald Trump. The election results prompted foreign leaders and President Joe Biden to congratulate Trump and left Democrats downtrodden after the former president...

The races for control of Congress are at a stalemate

Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. By Daniela Altimari, Mary Ellen McIntire and Niels Lesniewski Liz Cheney is the top GOP surrogate for Kamala Harris, while Fred Upton disclosed Thursday [...]The post At the Races: And then there were two appeared first on Roll Call.

Now, lawmakers from one of the most chaotic and unproductive legislative sessions in modern times are trying to persuade voters to keep them on the job.

Thirteen service members killed in the 2021 Kabul bombing posthumously received Congressional Gold Medals in a ceremony.

538's politics chat discusses how the DNC has gone down so far, with Democrats leaning into themes of "joy" and "freedom" throughout the week.

(NEXSTAR) – Kamala Harris is set to accept her party’s nomination for president at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night, capping a four-day event that included ringing endorsements from President Biden and former Presidents Obama and Clinton — and even a few figures from her Republican opponent’s former administration. The theme of the fourth [...]

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz delivers his acceptance speech during day three of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

The Democratic presidential ticket's online fundraising has skyrocketed since Kamala Harris replaced Joe Biden as the party's nominee.

Trump had secured his GOP presidential nomination and had been directing most of his criticism towards Biden rather than Harris.

President Joe Biden’s announcement Sunday he won’t seek the nomination that he won this year in primaries and caucuses in every state puts the Democratic Party in uncharted territory.

Donald Trump’s estranged niece threw an epic burn at her uncle as she gave her support to Kamala Harris for president.“I finally agree with Donald,” she wrote on X Sunday night. “It would be a huge mistake to elect the older candidate in American history.”She was referring to multiple attacks Trump has made on “Sleepy Joe” Biden’s age, claiming the 81-year-old was too old to effectively do the job.After Biden dropped out Sunday, Trump, 78, becomes the oldest candidate to stand for president of the U.S.In 2020, when Biden was 77 — a year younger than Trump is now — many Republicans expressed concern that he was too old to do the job.ALSO READ: Heritage Foundation eyes multi-million dollar legal fight against Biden replacementBiden dropped out of the campaign after multiple senior Democrats expressed concern about his ability to win. It followed a debate performance last month that ignited worries about his cognitive ability.Mary Trump, a highly vocal opponent of her uncle, said after the debate that Trump was, "The worst, weakest, most traitorous candidate for the presidency in this country's history."

President Biden hesitated to drop his re-election campaign in part because he and his senior advisers worried that Vice President Kamala Harris wasn't up to taking on Donald Trump, according to three Biden aides familiar with recent talks about his plans.Why it matters: Biden, 81, ultimately decided to withdraw under pressure from the party and endorsed Harris, but his private anxieties reflect broader questions among some Democratic leaders about Harris as their nominee this November.Driving the news: This next week will be critical for Harris, 59, to prove doubters wrong as she moves quickly to try to clear the field of potential challengers for the Democratic nomination.Biden, Bill and Hillary Clinton and many Democratic lawmakers quickly endorsed Harris, but others — including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former President Barack Obama — did not immediately do so."We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead," Obama said in a statement. "But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges."Zoom in: Harris' time as vice president has been occasionally rocky, defined in part by large staff turnover, retreating from politically risky responsibilities, and mocking from some Beltway insiders.Much of Harris' staff has turned over in the past 31⁄2 years.About half of the vice president's staff is paid by the Senate, which requires regular disclosures. Of the 47 Harris staffers listed in 2021, only five still worked for her as of this spring, according to the disclosures. Her full staff list is not publicly disclosed.During Obama's first term, then-Vice President Biden had far more staff stability, as 17 of 38 of his aides stayed with him over a similar period, according to the disclosures for staff paid by the Senate.Former Harris aides told Axios the high turnover is partly because of how the vice president treats her staff.Some former aides said Harris had high standards that some did not want to keep up with, but others felt that she frequently grilled them the way she grilled Trump officials, such as then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, when she represented California in the U.S. Senate. Former aides often refer to it as Harris' "prosecuting the staff."During the 2020 campaign, Biden aides recall watching Harris interrogate her then-chief of staff Karine Jean-Pierre to the point that it made others uncomfortable.After the election, Jean-Pierre moved to the White House's press team.A person familiar with the matter said Biden told Jean-Pierre that she was only "on loan" during the campaign and that her move to the White House was always part of the plan.The intrigue: The relationship between the vice president's office and the West Wing has often been tense.White House aides sometimes felt Harris wasn't a team player and stayed away from any task with risk.But some Harris aides felt that the White House, particularly top aide Anita Dunn, wasn't helpful to the vice president.At times, Harris aides suspected Biden's team didn't want to give Harris opportunities to shine to avoid her being seen as a viable alternative to Biden ahead of his re-election bid.Even so, Dunn worked to elevate Harris during Biden's campaign, particularly with Harris' work in pushing to defend abortion rights.In response to questions for this article, Harris' chief of staff Lorraine Voles said in a statement: "Anita is a supportive colleague who works closely every day with the Office of the Vice President."The tensions between the Biden and Harris staffs could get personal, however.Some Harris senior aides told others they resented how Biden's team got frustrated with the optics of Meena Harris, the vice president's niece, publishing a children's book just before Biden's inauguration — but then celebrated when Hunter Biden published his book months later.Voles added that Biden and Harris' many achievements in the president's term were "possible in part due to the hard work of the White House staff who view themselves as one team."But some Democrats found the Biden team's quiet trashing of Harris ironic, given that they had complained for the past decade about how Obama aides had done the same thing to Biden when he was vice president.Zoom out: Some of the tensions between the Biden and Harris teams are because the principals are very different people, aides to both told Axios. Biden is a white Irish Catholic man who learned politics by trying to shake every hand in the small state of Delaware.Harris, 22 years younger, is a multiracial woman who worked her way up in the much larger state of California, where political races often are won by how much money you can raise. There are personality differences as well: Harris is much more attuned to the pop culture of movies and music, while Biden rarely engages with pop culture in that way. Between the lines: Harris has been cautious and reluctant to participate in events that weren't tightly controlled, Harris and Biden aides said.In 2022, the White House internally pushed Harris to be the headliner for D.C.'s traditional Gridiron Dinner, but she resisted. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo did it instead.Harris has faced race-baiting from some conservatives, and at times has focused on critical coverage of her in ways aides have found unhelpful — like when she has watched Fox News' "The Five."In April 2022, Harris was the guest for a dinner at D.C. news mogul David Bradley's home — a salon-style event Bradley hosts with Washington journalists and newsmakers.Harris' anxiety about the dinner was such that her staff held a mock dinner beforehand, with staffers playing participants, according to two people familiar with the event.Harris aides even considered including wine in the mock prep so Harris could practice with a glass or two.They ultimately decided against it.The other side: In endorsing Harris, Biden said that "my very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my vice president. And it's been the best decision I've made."White House communications director Ben LaBolt added that Harris "has been incredibly loyal and dedicated."Rachel Palermo, Harris' former deputy communications director, told Axios that Harris "has high standards because she is well prepared" and that "she is an incredible legal mind."Carmel Martin, Harris' former domestic policy adviser, added: "I never felt grilled by the vice president. I think she holds high standards for her staff but she is also a great boss and mentor."

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's campaign is insisting anew that he is not stepping aside as he faces the stark reality that many Democrats at the highest levels want him to bow out of the 2024 election to make way for a new nominee and try to prevent widespread party losses in November.

Democrats intend to make abortion a key issue in the 2024 election — it is important to set the record straight.