Senator in 2010 deposition: 13-year-olds can consent to sex
Before he became a leading voice for conservative causes on Capitol Hill, U.S. Senator James Lankford spent more than a decade as the director of youth programming at the Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center, a sprawling campground about 80 miles south of Oklahoma City that attracts more than 50,000 campers in grades six through 12 each year. In 2009, while Lankford worked at the camp, the family of a 13-year-old girl sued a 15-year-old boy who was alleged to have had sex with her at the camp. Lankford, who was not in Congress at the time, is not alleged to have had any direct knowledge of the alleged assault, has not been accused of any wrongdoing and was not a defendant in the lawsuit, which was settled for an undisclosed amount before it was scheduled to go to trial.
news.yahoo.comRepublicans, on cusp of abortion win, seek to change the subject
Republicans for months have been on the rhetorical offensive against President Biden and fellow Democrats โ hammering them on the Afghanistan withdrawal, on increasing homicide rates, on a chaotic southern border and on seemingly ever-rising inflation. Now theyโre the ones searching for the right message.
washingtonpost.comSenators issue bipartisan call to restore donors' tax breaks
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers called Thursday for restoring the charitable deduction for donors who donโt itemize their taxes, a priority for nonprofits nationwide, but a key senator was noncommittal on the question of whether to support legislation designed to boost payout from foundations and donor-advised funds.
Senators issue bipartisan call to restore donors' tax breaks
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers called Thursday for restoring the charitable deduction for donors who donโt itemize their taxes, a priority for nonprofits nationwide, but a key senator was noncommittal on the question of whether to support legislation designed to boost payouts from foundations and donor-advised funds. โThe charitable deduction is a lifeline, not a loophole,โ said Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, who said there would be bipartisan support for renewing and expanding the deduction. Sen. James Lankford, a Republican from Oklahoma, echoed that call, saying he was โpassionateโ about expanding the charitable deduction.
news.yahoo.comElection experts sound alarms as costs escalate and funding dwindles
A pot of money for helping run elections is running dry, worrying local election officials. Many states are also banning the type of private funding provided by Zuckerberg, which is also worrying local election officials. Much of this funding was used in 2020 to deal with the pandemic. Democrats want more funding included in any election bill -- including the bipartisan ECA push -- but Republicans are balking.
washingtonpost.comGOP Lawmakers Want to Cancel Ice Cream After Ben & Jerryโs Fiasco
Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via GettySen. James Lankford (R-OK) is among a vexed group of lawmakers coming forward with threats to cancel ice cream after Ben & Jerryโs announced this week it wouldnโt renew its current license agreement with its manufacturer in Israel which also distributes frozen treats to the West Bank.โIf Ben & Jerryโs wants to have a meltdown & boycott Israel, OK is ready to respond. Oklahoma has an anti-boycott of Israel law in place,โ Lankford wrote on Twitter Wednesday. More than t
news.yahoo.comSeemingly safe GOP incumbents under attack from right-wing
Republican U.S. Sen. James Lankford would seem to have all the conservative credentials he'd need to coast to re-election in deep-red Oklahoma. A devout Baptist, Lankford was the director of the nationโs largest Christian youth camp for more than a decade. The antagonist is a 29-year-old evangelical minister and political newcomer who managed to draw more than 2,000 people to a โFreedom Rally" headlined by Donald Trump's former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, at which Lankford was accused of being not conservative enough.
news.yahoo.comOklahoma GOP Turns on Senator for Not Worshipping Trump Enough
Anna Moneymaker-Pool/GettyJackson Lahmeyer is a 29-year old pastor and political unknown from Tulsa who believes he meets the most important qualification for political service in todayโs Republican Party: fealty to Donald Trump.Lahmeyer also believes Trump should be reinstated as president, wants every state subjected to a full 2020 election audit, and thinks the F.B.I. and โantifaโ pushed into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.His primary campaign against Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) has been blessed b
news.yahoo.comJames Lankford's election-truther challenger gets 'unheard of' boost from GOP officials
Frustration with Republican Sen. James Lankford over declining to vote to object to Electoral College results on Jan. 6 is manifesting in โunheard ofโ support for his election-truther Republican primary opponent from state party officials.
news.yahoo.comGOP Senator Confronts HHS Secretary on โBirthing Peopleโ Phrase: โMom Is a Pretty Good Wordโ
Oklahoma senator James Lankford (R.) confronted Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra Thursday over the departmentโs replacement of "mothers" with the term "birthing people."
news.yahoo.comCentury after massacre, Blacks struggle for political voice
In the early days of Oklahomaโs statehood, an angry white mob fanned by rumors of a Black uprising burned a thriving African American community in the oil boomtown of Tulsa. Although the area was quietly rebuilt and enjoyed a renaissance in the years after the 1921 Race Massacre, the struggle among Black people over their place in the city didnโt end. Before statehood in 1907, Oklahoma was home to Native American tribes pushed out of other regions by white expansion.
news.yahoo.comLawmakers frustrated over delay in Census redistricting data
FILE - This March 19, 2020, file photo, shows a 2020 census letter mailed to a U.S. resident. At a hearing of the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee, Republican lawmakers told acting Census Bureau director Ron Jarmin that the delay was upending their states' redistricting plans. The state of Alabama also has sued the Census Bureau in an effort to force it to release the redistricting data early. โThat meant some of the work we would have started for the redistricting data was set aside for later. The acting Census Bureau director also said the cost of executing the 2020 census would be under its $15.6 billion budget.
By slimmest of margins, Senate takes up $1.9T relief bill
Itโs widely expected the Senate will approve the bill and the House will whisk it to Biden for his signature by mid-March, handing him a crucial early legislative victory. โWe are not going to be timid in the face of a great challenge," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Biden and Senate leaders had agreed Wednesday to retain the $400 weekly jobless payments included in the version of the relief bill the House approved Saturday. In another bargain that satisfied moderates, Biden and Senate Democrats agreed Wednesday to tighten eligibility for the direct checks to individuals. AdAs soon as the Senate began considering the bill, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., forced the chamber's clerks to begin reading the entire 628-page measure aloud.
Rioters acted on Trumpโs โorder,โ Democrats say in trial
Even out of office, Democrats warned, Trump could whip up a mob of followers for similar damage. Even out of the White House, the former president holds influence over large swaths of voters. Rioters roamed the halls chanting, โHang Mike Pence,โ and eerily singing out, โWhere are you, Nancy?โ in search of Pelosi. The first president to face an impeachment trial after leaving office, Trump is also the first to be twice impeached. His lawyers say he cannot be convicted because he is already gone from the White House.
โDistressing and emotionalโ: Senators relive horror of riot
Reporters vie for a response from Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, as Senators take a dinner break while arguments continue in former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON โ For 90 tense minutes, members of the Senate relived the horror. The rioters were โ58 stepsโ from senators at one point, impeachment manager Eric Swalwell told them. Senators were silent afterward, some sitting quietly and alone, as if to process it all. He walked out of the room in the middle of the presentation, as impeachment manager Stacey Plaskett detailed the threats to Penceโs life.
White House budget chief nominee apologizes for past tweets
Neera Tanden also admitted to spending โmany monthsโ removing past Twitter posts, saying, โI deleted tweets because I regretted them." He said that included Tanden calling Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton "a fraudโ and tweeting that โvampires have more heartโ than Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford said Tanden had tweeted more over the past four years than even Trump did. Still, Senate discussion of Tanden's nomination is likely to center more on her past tweets than her budget priorities. Cotton has said they were โfilled with hate.โ Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn suggested previously that she'd face โcertainly a problematic pathโ to nomination.
Where Biden stood, reminders of a failed insurrection
President-elect Joe Biden and his wife Jill, walk out for the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. On the very spot where President Joe Biden delivered his inaugural address, an insurrectionist mob had tried โ and failed โ to overturn his election just two weeks before. The Associated Press has the privilege of a seat on the inaugural platform every four years in a tradition dating as far back as anyone can remember. It ensured a quick pace and gave Biden helpful hints such as a reminder to โbuild" to the finish. Biden had just a handful of small verbal stumbles and couldnโt resist adding an unscripted โfolksโ โ a Biden trademark โ toward the end.
Somber Senate unites to reject election challenges
Tennessee's GOP senators abandoned the effort, as did Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., who lost her runoff election Tuesday, helping to deliver control of the Senate to Democrats. Wisconsin's GOP Sen. Ron Johnson dropped out, as did James Lankford, R-Okla., a promising younger Republican who raised eyebrows when initially supporting the effort. We will not bow to lawlessness or intimidation," said Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. โWe are back at our posts. As senators debated, Trump took it on the chin from longtime critics like Mitt Romney, R-Utah. Enough is enough.โRomney, the party's 2012 nominee, reminded his colleagues that he knows how unpleasant it is to lose a presidential election, drawing hearty laughter.
Several GOP senators will no longer object to Electoral College votes after rioters storm Capitol
Those claims were further fanned by more than a dozen GOP senators and dozens more Republican House members who had indicated they planned to object to certifying votes in key battleground states. Earlier in the day, the rioters interrupted the procedural meeting to count the electoral votes when they breached the Capitol building, sending lawmakers into hiding. Later, when protesters stormed the Capitol building, Cruz admonished on Twitter, "Those storming the Capitol need to stop NOW. Other senators who were expected to object to the Electoral College votes shared statements on Twitter that condemned the violence, with many praising the Capitol police. Other Republicans who are allies of Trump but hadn't gone so far as to support objecting to the Electoral College votes also condemned the chaos on Capitol Hill Wednesday night.
cnbc.comWATCH LIVE: Both houses of Congress recessed as protesters enter US Capitol
A woman was shot and killed inside the Capitol, and Washingtonโs mayor instituted an evening curfew in an attempt to contain the violence. Together, the protests and the GOP election objections amounted to an almost unthinkable challenge to American democracy and exposed the depths of the divisions that have coursed through the country during Trumpโs four years in office. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress would show the world โwhat America is made of" with the outcome. Some House lawmakers tweeted they were sheltering in place in their offices. As darkness fell, law enforcement officers worked their way toward the protesters, using percussion grenades to clear the area around the Capitol.
Trump says heโll โfight like hellโ to hold on to presidency
Eleven Republican senators saying they will not be voting Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, to confirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory include Wyoming's newly sworn in Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Cheyenne-area rancher and former congresswoman. It is unclear just what the Republican senators will do, but the process could drag into the night as the two chambers will have to consider each objection individually. He is under growing pressure from Trump and others to tip the results in Trumpโs favor. And more than a dozen Republican senators have said they will not support the effort. The commission remains his focus, he has said, not to undo the election results, even though that would be the practical effect of a successful objection.
Republicans condemn โschemeโ to undo election for Trump
Though he got nothing but cheers Monday night, Trump's attempt to overturn the presidential election i s splitting the Republican Party. Trump repeated numerous times his claims of election fraud, which have been rejected by election officials โ Republican as well as Democratic in state after state โ and courts up to the U.S. Supreme Court. Two current Republican senators, Rob Portman of Ohio and Mike Lee of Utah, joined the growing number who now oppose the legislators' challenge. Larry Hogan of Maryland; Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the third-ranking House GOP leader; and former House Speaker Paul Ryan โ have criticized the GOP efforts to overturn the election. Cruz's coalition of 11 Republican senators vows to reject the Electoral College tallies unless Congress launches a commission to immediately conduct an audit of the election results.
Republicans condemn โschemeโ to undo election for Trump
Of the more than 50 lawsuits the president and his allies have filed challenging election results, nearly all have been dismissed or dropped. Other prominent former officials also criticized the ongoing attack on election results. Cruz's coalition of 11 Republican senators vows to reject the Electoral College tallies unless Congress launches a commission to immediately conduct an audit of the election results. The convening of the joint session to count the Electoral College votes has faced objections before. States choose their own election officials and draft their election laws.
More GOP lawmakers enlist in Trump effort to undo Biden win
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas on Saturday announced a coalition of 11 senators and senators-elect who have been enlisted for Trumpโs effort. But their challenges, and those from House Republicans, represent the most sweeping effort to undo a presidential election outcome since the Civil War. said the Republican effort to create a federal commission โto supersede state certifications" is wrong. On the other side of the Republican divide, several senators spoke out Saturday against Cruz and Hawley's effort. McConnell had previously warned GOP senators not to participate in raising objections, saying it would be a terrible vote for colleagues.
A few cracks but no big GOP break with Trump on Biden's win
The GOP governor acknowledged Thursday that Biden's lead is getting "bigger and bigger by the dayโ and Trumpโs legal options are dissipating. Many Trump allies in Washington see no path to a Trump victory but remain wary of crossing the outgoing Republican president โ or his supporters โ especially with control of the Senate still uncertain. GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy suggested Thursday that Biden doesnโt need intelligence briefings because Trump might remain president in the new year. Spencer Cox wrote on Twitter, citing the significant number of Democrats who doubted the legitimacy of Trump's 2016 election victory. โJoe Biden is the president-elect.โGeorge W. Bush, the only living former Republican president, acknowledged Biden's victory on Sunday.
A few cracks but no big GOP break with Trump on Biden's win
The GOP governor acknowledged that Biden's lead is getting "bigger and bigger by the dayโ and Trumpโs legal options are dissipating. Many Trump allies in Washington see no path to a Trump victory but remain wary of crossing the outgoing Republican president โ or his supporters โ especially with control of the Senate still uncertain. GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy suggested Thursday that Biden doesnโt need intelligence briefings because Trump might remain president in the new year. Spencer Cox wrote on Twitter, citing the significant number of Democrats who doubted the legitimacy of Trump's 2016 election victory. โJoe Biden is the president-elect.โGeorge W. Bush, the only living former Republican president, acknowledged Biden's victory on Sunday.
Senior GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley says Biden should receive classified intelligence briefings from Trump administration
Top Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley on Thursday said President-elect Joe Biden should be receiving classified intelligence briefings from the Trump administration. Spokesmen from the Trump and Biden campaigns did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment on Grassley's remarks. Grassley, the most senior Republican in the Senate and the chairman of its powerful Finance Committee, is not the only member of his party to insist Biden be granted access to the daily intelligence briefings. The campaign has filed lawsuits in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia and Arizona โ all states where Biden either leads Trump or is projected to win. Trump, meanwhile, has amplified a barrage of conspiracy theories to suggest that widespread voter fraud has "rigged" the election against him.
cnbc.comBiden moves forward without help from Trump's intel team
As he contests this year's election results, Trump has not authorized President-elect Joe Biden to lay eyes on the brief. National security and intelligence experts hope Trump changes his mind, citing the need for an incoming president to be fully prepared to confront any national security issues on Day One. That's the type of information that might be in the PDB, a daily summary of high-level, classified information and analysis on national security issues that's been offered to presidents since 1946. It is coordinated and delivered by the Office of the National Intelligence Director with input from the CIA and other agencies. Biden is missing out on all counts: More than a week into his transition, Biden doesn't have access to the PDB, the agencies or government resources to help him get ready to take charge.
Republicans vote to advance Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination to the full Senate
Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted unanimously on Thursday to advance the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court over a boycott from the committee's Democrats. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) arrives next to U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) for a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to be an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., October 22, 2020. Circuit Court of Appeals approximately three years ago, will be the sixth Republican-appointee on the nine-judge Supreme Court, and Trump's third nominee. Democratic Senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee boycott the committee vote on Amy Coney Barrett to serve as an associate justice on the Supreme Court of the United States during a Senate Judiciary Committee Executive Business meeting in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 22, 2020.
cnbc.comLafayette Square could decide Trump's legacy and election
And now Lafayette Square. Trump had briefly been forced to take shelter in the emergency White House bunker and flames had risen from St. Johns Church across from the executive mansion. Lafayette Square was ordered to be cleared. The White House quickly produced a slick ad celebrating the triumph. Some observers believe Trump may be able to cast aside Lafayette Square too.
Trump moved Tulsa rally date after learning about Juneteenth
Trump had scheduled the rally for June 19, known as Juneteenth because it marks the end of slavery in the United States. He didn't see it as disrespectful to be able to do it on Juneteenth, Lankford said. Other people interpreted it differently and so he moved the rally date.Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said he was thankful that Trump rescheduled the rally. But Trump's campaign was aware, according to two campaign officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose internal discussions. Although selecting June 19 was not meant to be incendiary, some pushback was expected, the Trump campaign officials said.
Quickly, carefully, GOP senators consider policing changes
Sen. Rand Paul wants to stop sending surplus U.S. military equipment to local law enforcement. And GOP Sen. Mitt Romney is trying to assemble a bipartisan package of bills in response to police violence. I think we should all be optimistic right now," Scott, the only black GOP senator, told reporters at the Capitol. Lawmakers are watching as demonstrations erupt in all corners of the country, from the biggest cities to the smallest towns, and acknowledging the arrival of a mass movement for law enforcement changes as politically impossible to ignore. Obviously this is a national awakening, GOP Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia said Tuesday on CNBC.
Trump photo op, talk of military force amp up GOP challenge
But when Trump was caught bragging of sexual assault and seeking political help from Ukraine, the country was relatively comfortable. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, told reporters Tuesday when asked whether Trump's use of force against peaceful protesters was the right thing to do. Even now, as they squirm about the president's suggestion of using the military to enforce the law, most Republicans aren't breaking with Trump. Defense Secretary Mike Esper, who allowed himself to be squarely at the center of Trump's photo op at St. Johns, scrambled. As of right now, Secretary Esper is still Secretary Esper, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during her midday briefing.
Trump photo op, talk of military force amp up GOP challenge
But when Trump was caught bragging of sexual assault and seeking political help from Ukraine, the country was relatively comfortable. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, told reporters Tuesday when asked whether Trump's use of force against peaceful protesters was the right thing to do. Even now, as they squirm about the president's suggestion of using the military to enforce the law, most Republicans aren't breaking with Trump. Defense Secretary Mike Esper, who allowed himself to be squarely at the center of Trump's photo op at St. Johns, scrambled. As of right now, Secretary Esper is still Secretary Esper, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during her midday briefing.