Jeffries makes historic bid to lead House Dems after Pelosi
A day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced she would step aside, congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York has announced his history-making bid to become the first Black person to helm a major political party in Congress as leader of the House Democrats.
House approves pro-union bill despite dim Senate odds
But it faces an all-but-certain Republican blockade in a narrowly divided Senate and is unlikely to become law. AdโIโve heard Democrats argue that itโs the unions that built the middle class,โ said Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., the senior Republican on the House labor panel. And what this bill does is take away their freedom.โLabor unions have long been a bedrock of Democratic support. โThis far-reaching legislation is nothing more than an union boss wish list,โ said Foxx, who led Republican debate on the bill. Virginia Republican Rep. Bob Good excoriated the bill, saying it would effectively โfunnel money to Democratsโ by allowing unions to collect additional dues.
House approves pro-union bill despite dim Senate odds
But it faces an all-but-certain Republican blockade in a narrowly divided Senate and is unlikely to become law. AdโIโve heard Democrats argue that itโs the unions that built the middle class,โ said Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., the senior Republican on the House labor panel. And what this bill does is take away their freedom.โLabor unions have long been a bedrock of Democratic support. โThis far-reaching legislation is nothing more than an union boss wish list,โ said Foxx, who led Republican debate on the bill. Virginia Republican Rep. Bob Good excoriated the bill, saying it would effectively โfunnel money to Democratsโ by allowing unions to collect additional dues.
Biden hails House passage of $1.9T virus bill, now to Senate
โWe have no time to waste,โ Biden said at the White House after the House passage early Saturday. That ships the bill to the Senate, where Democrats seem bent on resuscitating their minimum wage push and fights could erupt over state aid and other issues. Biden said weeks ago that he didn't expect the minimum wage increase to survive the Senate's rules. But those same Senate rules prohibit provisions with only an โincidentalโ impact on the federal budget because they are chiefly driven by other policy purposes. Republicans oppose the $15 minimum wage target as an expense that would hurt businesses and cost jobs.
House passes $1.9T pandemic bill on near party-line vote
The new presidentโs vision for flushing cash to individuals, businesses, states and cities battered by COVID-19 passed on a near party-line 219-212 vote. Biden said weeks ago that he didn't expect the minimum wage increase to survive the Senate's rules. But those same Senate rules prohibit provisions with only an โincidentalโ impact on the federal budget because they are chiefly driven by other policy purposes. MacDonough decided that the minimum wage provision failed that test. Republicans oppose the $15 minimum wage target as an expense that would hurt businesses and cost jobs.
EXPLAINER: What were the warnings before the Capitol riot?
Fencing and razor wire surrounds the perimeter of the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021. Scott Applewhite)Capitol Police leadership had plenty of intelligence warning that armed extremists were planning to target the Capitol over President Donald Trumpโs election loss, according to new testimony Thursday. In an appearance before a House subcommittee, acting Chief Yogananda Pittman said none of the warnings forecast the mass attack that actually took place. โI cannot get past a glaring discrepancy between intelligence received and preparation,โ Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., said during Thursday's hearing before the House Appropriations Committee. AdThe Capitol Police union issued a vote of no confidence last week against Pittman.
All 13 Texas Democrats in the U.S. House have called for impeaching Donald Trump after Wednesdayโs riot
With Democratic leadership in Congress calling for the removal of President Donald Trump 12 days before his term expires, all Texas Democrats in the U.S. House support the idea of impeaching him for a second time. โThis insurrection was incited, encouraged and praised by the President of the United States โ an assault on the United States that would once have been unthinkable.โโIt is now clear that the President of the United States represents a grave threat to our Constitution and to our country,โ she added. โHe has willfully incited violence against the government of the United States. The Senate will soon be narrowly controlled by the Democrats and any movement to remove Trump from office with just days left in his presidency would need Republican support. But Democrats fell well short of removing Trump in the Republican-controlled Senate and he was easily acquitted.
Congressman Al Green discusses impeachment options for Trump
___4:55 p.m.Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has become the first Republican member of the Senate to call for President Donald Trumpโs resignation. His call comes two days after supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol and unsuccessfully tried to stop Congress from affirming Bidenโs victory. โAlan Fram___12:45 p.m.A leading centrist Democratic senator says it seems unlikely that President Donald Trump can be quickly removed from office. Schiff said Friday that Democrats warned during Trumpโs impeachment that he would โtry to cheatโ to remain in office. ___8:40 a.m.A police officer has died from injuries he suffered when President Donald Trumpโs supporters stormed the Capitol.