A Trump campaign rally set for Wilmington, North Carolina, on April 20 was postponed due to severe thunderstorms. A crowd of several hundred had gathered outdoors at the Wilmington International Airport for the 7 p.m. event. Lightning streaks were visible in the distance as high winds drove the storm toward the event site, framing the […]

INDIANAPOLIS—Crowds across North America stood transfixed on April 8 as the moon temporarily blocked the light of the sun, casting a shadow over a 115-mile-wide swath of planet Earth. As the moment of totality approached, a hush fell over the thousand or so people gathered at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Moments later, silence gave way […]

Four states held presidential primaries on April 2, and one of them also decided the fate of two proposed amendments to its constitution. Candidates other than Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump remained on the ballots for their respective parties, yet both handily won their nominating contents in Connecticut, New York, Wisconsin, and Rhode Island. […]

President Joe Biden will visit the city of Baltimore next week in the wake of the errant cargo ship strike that destroyed the center span of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, shutting down major sea and ground transportation arteries indefinitely. The president made the announcement in response to a reporter’s question on March 29, three […]

HOUSTON—The Republican National Committee (RNC) has elected new leadership endorsed by former President Donald Trump after Ronna McDaniel, the group’s longest-serving chair, stepped down on March 8. Michael Whatley, chair of the North Carolina Republican Party whom President Trump endorsed last month to lead the RNC, was elected by a voice vote to succeed Ms. […]

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.—The American film industry has cooperated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to gain access to China’s massive market, enabling the CCP to shape the perception of the despotic regime through movies. This is an intentional strategy to win the battle of public perception through arts and entertainment, a tactic that goes back to […]

Democrats bested Republicans in California’s senatorial primary and most of the state’s 52 congressional contests on Super Tuesday. Republicans, though outnumbered two-to-one in registered voters, managed to hold their ground by winning several congressional primaries that the Democratic National Committee (DNC) had targeted to flip in 2024. In California’s open or “jungle” primary system, the […]

Immigration, abortion, Gaza, taxes, the economy, President Joe Biden’s age, President Donald Trump’s trials—voters had a lot on their minds as they cast primary election ballots on Super Tuesday, the nation’s biggest day for voting outside the general election. Voters in 15 states took to the polls on March 5 to select candidates for November’s […]

Presidents Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump were swept to victory in all but one of their respective Super Tuesday primary elections, moving each of them within a few delegates of clinching their party’s presidential nomination. President Trump won 14 of the 15 Republican contests and is poised to claim the lion’s share of […]

FORT PIERCE, Fla.—U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon heard arguments today on former President Donald Trump’s request to delay the trial on federal criminal charges related to the retention of classified documents after leaving the White House, but did not make an immediate ruling. Special Counsel Jack Smith sought to move the trial date from […]

The U.S. Senate passed a stopgap funding bill Thursday night and sent it to the desk of President Joe Biden for signing, narrowly averting another potential government shutdown that would have occurred at midnight on March 1. The bill cleared the Senate in a 77–13 vote on Thursday night after four Republican amendments were defeated […]

News Analysis CHARLESTON, S.C.—Republican voters delivered a decisive result for President Donald Trump in the South Carolina presidential primary. The former president demonstrated his command over Republican voters in the fourth and final early primary, defeating the state’s former governor Nikki Haley by 20 percentage points on Feb. 24. “The people spoke for Trump,” Rep. […]

CHARLESTON, S.C.—President Donald Trump notched another decisive win in the Republican presidential primary, defeating former governor Nikki Haley in her home state of South Carolina. Given the lopsided polling in this two-person race between President Trump and Ms. Haley, the outcome of the Feb. 24 contest was never in doubt. Yet the margin of victory […]

The South Carolina Republican primary is the fourth presidential nominating contest of 2024 but only the second head-to-head matchup between former President Donald Trump and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. President Trump holds a commanding advantage in South Carolina polls, leading Ms. Haley with 65 percent to her 32 percent in an average of recent […]

COLUMBIA, S.C.—South Carolina as expected delivered a rousing victory to President Joe Biden in the nation’s first official Democratic primary election. The incumbent president won 96 percent of the vote on Feb. 3 with 75 percent of votes counted. The president had faced only token opposition from Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) and author Marianne Williamson […]

CONCORD, N.H.—Former President Donald Trump won the New Hampshire Republican primary on Jan. 23, defeating Nikki Haley, the last contender standing from an initial field of 13 major candidates. In the Democratic primary, President Joe Biden, who did not appear on the ballot, saved face thanks to a write-in campaign in a contest that was […]

CONCORD, N.H.—Nikki Haley now faces a head-to-head contest with President Donald Trump in New Hampshire’s Republican primary after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s exit from the race. The Jan. 23 contest promises to be a critical test of Ms. Haley’s ability to challenge President Trump’s dominance in the race for the presidential nomination. “It’s now one […]

CONCORD, N.H.—Former presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson has endorsed Nikki Haley’s bid for the Republican presidential nomination. The former Arkansas governor gave Ms. Haley the nod in a social media post on Jan. 20, three days ahead of the New Hampshire primary election. “Anyone who believes Donald Trump will unite this country has been asleep over […]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis defied expectations to claim a second-place finish in the Iowa caucuses but now faces long odds in two primary contests that could make or break his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination. Mr. DeSantis and Ms. Haley are locked in a battle to become the single Republican alternative to President Donald […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Former President Donald Trump claimed a huge victory in the Iowa caucuses, cementing his place as the prohibitive favorite in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. The night was not a total loss for others as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis claimed a second-place finish, scoring well above his recent standing in the […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley appear to be locked in a battle for second place in the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses as former President Donald Trump continues to hold a commanding lead in the polls. Ms. Haley eclipsed Mr. DeSantis in a pair of polls released last week […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Howling winds, blowing snow, and sub-zero temperatures hampered Republican presidential candidates making their final campaign rounds ahead of the Jan. 15 caucuses. The Hawkeye state battled its second blizzard in a week after up to 15 inches of snow fell in some areas on Jan. 12, quickly followed by a sharp drop in […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley will square off Jan. 10 in the fifth and final Republican presidential debate before the Iowa caucuses. Former President Donald Trump, who holds a commanding lead in polls of likely Iowa caucusgoers, will again skip the debate to hold an event of his […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Presidential candidates Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley fielded questions from voters 11 days before the Iowa caucus, appearing consecutively on the same stage in a town hall meeting on Jan. 4. The televised event represented a narrowing of the Republican field, though the clear frontrunner for the nomination, former President Donald Trump, was […]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley will take part in back-to-back town-hall-style meetings in Iowa on Jan. 4, just 11 days before the Iowa caucuses, the first-in-the-nation presidential nominating contest. The event, organized by CNN, features the two Republicans who have mounted the strongest challenge to former President Donald Trump, who […]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and some 60 House Republicans visited the west Texas border town of Eagle Pass, where customs officials recently recorded more than 4,000 contacts with illegal immigrants on a single day. The visit calls attention to the nation’s dysfunctional immigration system, which has allowed more than 6.5 million people to cross […]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will lead a delegation of 60 Republican lawmakers to Eagle Pass, Texas, on Jan. 3, highlighting the illegal immigration crisis that has overwhelmed the Customs and Border Protection service, flooding both border communities and major cities with as many as 12,000 people a day entering the country unlawfully. The visit […]

The Senate will not vote before Christmas on additional aid for Ukraine, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Dec. 19. Mr. Schumer, who held the Senate in session this week to work on the supplemental aid deal and other matters, was nevertheless optimistic that a deal would soon be reached. “We know it’s going […]

Senators will return to work next week in hopes of reaching an agreement on border policy measures that have been tied to a bill to authorize additional arms and ammunition for Ukraine before Christmas, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced on Dec. 14. The Senate had been scheduled to adjourn for the holidays on […]

The House of Representatives will not approve supplemental military aid to Ukraine unless the Senate agrees to close the open southern border of the United States, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told a gathering of senators on Nov. 29.  The message highlights the point of contention between Republicans and Democrats over how to handle President Joe […]

House Republicans have launched a website to provide information to the public on the impeachment inquiry into the business dealings of President Joe Biden. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, announced the site at the GOP’s weekly press conference on Nov. 12, calling it a “one-stop shop” for the latest findings […]

President Joe Biden signed a stop-gap spending bill, the second this year, delaying once again the threat of a partial government shutdown. The White House said President Biden signed the bill into law on Nov. 16, barely 24 hours before spending authority for the federal government was set to expire. The measure extends government funding […]

The federal government will remain open as the Senate on late Wednesday joined the House in passing a stopgap funding measure that will extend the previous year’s funding in two stages through Feb. 2. The bill passed 87-11 in the upper chamber. It now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk for signature. Senate Majority Leader […]

House Republicans handed Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) a legislative loss on Nov. 15 by blocking consideration of a spending bill just one day after passing a stop-gap funding measure to keep the government open into the next year. Eighteen Republicans joined 207 Democrats in torpedoing a procedural vote on legislation that would fund the Departments […]

Republican senators failed to force immediate consideration of a standalone aid package for Israel that passed the House on Nov. 2. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) led the Nov. 14 debate calling for unanimous consent to bypass the Senate’s arcane rules and vote on the $14.3 billion measure in support of Israel, which does not include […]

The House of Representatives on Nov. 14 passed a stop-gap spending bill to continue government funding in two stages through Feb. 2. 209 Democrats joined 127 Republicans to pass the measure in a vote of 336-95. It was opposed by 93 Republicans and two Democrats. The bipartisan passage produced a major win for Speaker Mike […]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is done with short-term continuing resolutions—after this one. Mr. Johnson defended his decision to present a “laddered” stopgap spending bill as both a useful innovation and a last resort in a Nov. 14 press conference held just ahead of a House debate on the measure. “This was a very important […]

Speaker Mike Johnson’s two-step stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown is set to be voted by the House on Nov. 14 under a process that requires Democrat support to pass. The bill will be voted on the floor under a suspension of rules, according to a Monday night scheduling notice from Majority Leader […]

Voters decided a number of statewide elections and ballot questions on Oct. 7 that gave clues to shifts taking place in American politics. Gubernatorial races in Kentucky and Mississippi, statehouse contests in Virginia, and ballot measures in Ohio reveal a changing Republican party, the problem with influencing out-of-state races, and the possible emergence of a […]

JACKSON, Miss.—Republican Gov. Tate Reeves of Mississippi has been reelected, fending off a strong challenge from Democrat Brandon Presley to continue the GOP’s 20-year occupancy of the state’s executive mansion. The Oct. 7 victory bucked a Blue Wave of Democratic victories elsewhere in the country as Mississippians, who are fiercely proud of their culture trusted […]

House Republicans aim to pass three bills this week, and President Joe Biden has already threatened to veto two of them. That may not concern House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who has said he wants to pass conservative spending bills to increase his negotiating advantage with the Democrat-controlled Senate and White House. The three bills […]

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) signaled his eagerness to get the House of Representatives back to work with his first words from the podium. Immediately after taking the oath of office, the new speaker turned to the full House and asked, “Would you all like to get right into governing?” After 22 days of inaction, members […]

Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) has been elected speaker of the House of Representatives, clearing the way for the chamber to reopen after 22 days of enforced idleness since the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). He became the 56th speaker of the chamber on Oct. 25, winning 220 votes—including unanimous support from the Republican […]

House Republicans named their fourth, and possibly final, speaker designate on Oct. 24—just hours after their third candidate was nominated and then withdrew for lack of support. The development capped off an extraordinary day as the chamber hit three weeks without a speaker. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) was elected with 128 votes in an evening […]

Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) is the third consecutive GOP speaker-designate to withdraw from the race under fierce opposition from a minority of his fellow Republicans. The House has been largely paralyzed for three weeks without a speaker. Mr. Emmer, 62, won an intra-conference nominating contest 117-97 on Oct. 24. But a confirming vote taken […]

A more subdued House Republican conference returned to Washington for its third speaker candidate search on Oct. 23. After an emotional three week, which began with the ouster of the former speaker and included the failed candidacies of two Republican speaker designees, members appeared more relaxed and ready to cooperate on finding a candidate who […]

House Republicans return to Washington on Oct. 23 for a third attempt to elect a speaker in as many weeks. The deeply divided Republican conference is back to square one in its quest for a leader after a tumultuous series of events that began with the ouster of the former speaker and includes the failed […]

House Republicans revoked the nomination of Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) for speaker of the House in a vote of no-confidence taken on Oct. 20, shortly after he continued to lose ground on a third ballot on the House floor. The 112 to 86 vote came amid intense frustration among House members over the events of […]

A plan to temporarily empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) to conduct House business appears to be faltering. Speaker Designate Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) favored the plan after his candidacy lost rather than gained support among Republicans in a second ballot cast on Oct. 18 in the House. “I’m still running for speaker and […]

House Republicans are intending to introduce a motion Oct. 19 to temporarily empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) to conduct House business until January. The move is backed by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who chose to do so after his candidacy for the speakership lost ground in a second ballot cast on Oct. 18, […]

The House of Representatives remains without a speaker as Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) failed to receive a majority on a second ballot, cast on Oct. 18. Mr. Jordan received 199 Republican votes, one fewer than the previous ballot and 18 short of the number needed to elect him. Also, 22 Republicans refused to vote for […]

House Republicans tried and failed to elect a speaker in a floor vote Oct. 17, prolonging the drama that began with the ousting of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) two weeks ago. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who was the GOP conference’s second choice to replace Mr. McCarthy, gained 200 votes on a first ballot cast […]

House Republicans have selected their second speaker nominee in three days and will now make a second attempt to bring their designee to a vote on the House floor. Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) won the latest nomination on Oct. 13, defeating Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.) 124-88. The outcome came after five days of […]

Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) was nominated for speaker of the House by the Republican conference at 1:00 p.m. Oct. 11, defeating Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) 113–98. Mr. Scalise is expected to face Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) in an election by the full House scheduled for 3:00 p.m. the same day. With […]

Republicans held a debate with their two candidates for speaker of the House on Oct. 10 and emerged after two hours no closer to identifying the nominee to unite the divided conference. Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), both highly respected within the Republican conference, each spoke and responded […]

A fractured Republican conference will meet Oct. 11 to select their candidate for speaker of the House, even as many members remain angry over the ouster of former speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) barely a week ago. The 221 Republican representatives will also vote on potential structural changes to their conference, which threaten to deepen the […]

House Republicans met to discuss options for the election of a new House speaker after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted in an unprecedented vote to vacate the chair. They plan to hold a speaker’s candidate forum on Oct. 10 and proceed with an election in the House on Oct. 11. At the GOP conference […]

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has been removed as House speaker by a vote of the House of Representatives on a motion to vacate the chair brought by a member of his own party. The unprecedented action plunges the House into what is certain to be a contentious speaker’s battle as it simultaneously battles the calendar […]

The Senate ratified a 45-day continuing resolution passed earlier today by the House, which President Joe Biden signed late Saturday night, thus averting a government shutdown that would otherwise have occurred at midnight. The 88-9 vote included broad bipartisan support, although the final bill did not include the additional $6.15 billion in aid for Ukraine […]

The House of Representatives defeated a stopgap funding bill on Friday, dealing a blow to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as he attempted to forestall a possible government shutdown that is less than 48 hours away. Twenty-one Republicans joined Democrats in opposing the legislation, bringing the final tally to 198–232. Momentum in the funding debate […]

News Analysis Republican presidential candidates took the stage for a second Republican debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Simi Valley, California, on Wednesday. Appearing in order of their standing in national polls were Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, South Carolina […]

The House of Representatives passed a procedural vote allowing consideration of four spending bills totaling nearly $1.1 trillion, which marks a significant step toward the completion of the appropriations process just five days before the end of the fiscal year. Moments after the Sept. 26 vote, Mr. McCarthy said he would bring a continuing resolution […]

Why are Republicans struggling to pass a simple procedural vote? What are the few holdouts hoping to gain, and how are Democrats reacting? For analysis, NTD spoke with Lawrence Wilson, a reporter for The Epoch Times.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) reached a point of frustration on Sept. 21 after Republicans failed—for the second time—to pass a procedural vote to allow debate on the 2024 defense appropriations bill. The failed vote capped a string of setbacks for Mr. McCarthy in trying to avert a government shutdown, which will be triggered when […]

House Republicans failed for a second time to pass a procedural vote that would allow consideration of the $826 billion defense appropriations bill by the full House. The nearly unprecedented setback comes amid a bitter battle over spending among House Republicans, just nine days ahead of a potential government shutdown. For hardliners in the Republican […]

Republicans failed to pass a procedural vote on the consideration of the defense appropriations bill, effectively blocking its consideration by the House. The failed vote is the latest setback to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in his effort to keep the fractious Republican caucus together and complete the 2024 appropriations process. The vote failed 212–214 […]

A short-term continuing resolution (CR) aimed at averting a government shutdown while allowing Congress an additional month to come to an agreement on spending has been cleared for consideration by the House of Representatives. The House Rules Committee voted 9-3 along party lines to pass the rule for consideration of H.R. 5525, Continuing Appropriations and […]

Former President Donald Trump has pledged to appoint a task force to investigate alleged political persecution by the administration if elected to a second term. The 77-year-old former president and leading Republican candidate made the promise before the more than 1,000 attendees at the Pray, Vote, Stand Summit in Washington on Sept. 15. “To reverse […]

President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will share the stage at a conservative political conference in Washington on Sept. 15, giving attendees a rare side-by-side comparison of the two frontrunners for the Republican presidential nomination. The event, Pray, Vote, Stand, comes less than a week after supporters of Mr. DeSantis jeered President Trump […]

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) dared Republican colleagues to make good on their threat to come after his leadership position by filing a motion to vacate the chair during a closed-door meeting on Sept. 14. Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) confirmed to The Epoch Times that Mr. McCarthy directly confronted the threat made by some hardline […]

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced on Sept. 12 that the House will open an impeachment inquiry to investigate the possible involvement of President Joe Biden in the business dealings of his son Hunter Biden. “House Republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct. Taken together these allegations paint a picture of a […]

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) departed Washington for the summer recess leaving a pair of vexing problems to ripen on his desk. When the speaker returns next week, he’ll find both issues right where he left them but six weeks closer to an expiration date. McCarthy will have only a dozen legislative days to avoid […]

Defense attorneys have accused U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith of intentionally hampering former President Donald Trump’s ability to conduct a presidential campaign and to effectively defend himself in two major criminal trials that could be held within weeks of one another. At issue is the tight scheduling of two major trials, which President Trump’s defense […]

INDIANAPOLIS—Former Vice President Mike Pence unveiled an energy policy aimed at displacing China as the world’s largest energy producer. Mr. Pence, now a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, portrayed energy dominance as vital for national security and economic growth in a campaign statement released on Aug. 8. “The extraction, production, transportation, and delivery of […]

DES MOINES, Iowa—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis began the reboot of his presidential campaign with a two-day bus tour of small towns in central Iowa, culminating in a rousing speech at a state Republican fundraising dinner where he was one of a handful of standouts among the 14 candidates to take the stage. The DeSantis campaign […]

The U.S. government is withholding information on UFOs from Congress and the American people, which is eroding public trust and endangering national security, according to members of the House of Representatives. UFOs were once considered a fringe topic, the province of hoaxsters and conspiracy theorists. But amid mounting evidence of unexplained, potentially other-worldly, aircraft with […]

Members of the House Freedom Caucus (HFC) aim to limit discretionary spending to $1.471 trillion and are not afraid to trigger a government shutdown in order to reach that goal. The staunchly conservative Republicans announced their intention at a July 25 press conference on Capitol Hill, just ahead of expected votes on the first two […]

President Joe Biden will veto the first two appropriations bills to be voted on by the House if they reach his desk, according to White House Office of Management and Budget statements released on July 24. The statements are a shot across the bow of the Republican-controlled House as it has begun to legislate steeper […]

President Joe Biden took his economic message to Philadelphia, touting his administration’s progress in rebuilding the middle class by stimulating American manufacturing, upgrading infrastructure, and increasing wages. The stop was the latest in a string of appearances by Mr. Biden aimed at selling his economic record to voters in the run-up to the 2024 election. […]

HELSINKI—The Russian war against Ukraine is all but over, President Joe Biden asserted on July 13, saying Putin has “already lost the war.” The remark came during a press conference welcoming Finland into the NATO alliance. Standing alongside Finland President Sauli Niinisto, Mr. Biden responded to questions about the possibility of Ukraine’s entering NATO after […]

President Joe Biden reacted swiftly to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to invalidate his plan to forgive many student loans by announcing new measures to provide relief to borrowers. Biden made a televised statement on June 30, within hours of the court decision, promising to provide debt relief for some borrowers and a temporary measure […]

The United States and its allies had nothing to do with the mutiny undertaken by Yevgeny Prigozhin and the private Russian army known as the Wagner Group that occurred in Russia on June 23 and June 24, according to U.S. President Joe Biden. The president commented on the short-lived insurrection during White House remarks on […]

Former president Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami on Tuesday to 37 felony charges related to his handling of classified government documents. “One of the saddest days in the history of our country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on June 13 while en route to the federal courthouse. “We are […]

Former Vice President Mike Pence entered the 2024 presidential race on June 7 with a video announcement released on Twitter and drenched in religious language and references to the Republican glory days of the 1980s. By doing so, the Indiana native staked his ground as the candidate representing religious faith and the can-do optimism of […]

President Joe Biden signed the Fiscal Responsibility Act on Saturday, suspending the debt ceiling for 19 months and bringing a monthslong political battle to a close. The compromise legislation negotiated by Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) passed both houses of Congress with bipartisan support this week, averting a potential default on the nation’s […]

President Joe Biden promoted the recent debt ceiling agreement that prevented a historic U.S. default in his first-ever address to the nation from the Oval Office on June 2. He said he would sign the bill into law on Saturday. Biden began his address by highlighting the significance of the deal he reached with House […]

The Senate ended the threat of a U.S. default on its financial obligations by passing the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 on June 1. The measure now moves to the desk of President Joe Biden, whose signature will lay the matter to rest for at least the next 19 months. The bill passed in a […]

The U.S. House of Representatives inched the country away from financial default by passing a temporary suspension of the nation’s debt ceiling. Members approved a compromise in the debt ceiling standoff negotiated by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in a bipartisan vote of 314 to 117 on May 31. Seventy-one Republicans […]

Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress both portray the long-awaited deal to raise the nation’s debt ceiling as a win for their side. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, unveiled on May 29, ends a months-long disagreement between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) over the terms for increasing the borrowing limit. […]

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen revised the projected X-date for the budget ceiling to June 5, pushing back the threat of a default on the nation’s financial obligations for four days. Yellen updated the prediction on the afternoon of May 26, revising the previous estimate of “early June” given in January and later revised to “potentially […]

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) vented frustration over President Joe Biden’s unwillingness to reduce federal discretionary spending in 2024 in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling. “It didn’t seem like it’d be this hard,” McCarthy told reporters at midday on May 24. The Speaker then listed a litany of complaints against Biden and the Democrat […]

The White House remains optimistic about achieving an agreement on raising the nation’s debt ceiling and preventing a default on the national debt. “[President Joe] Biden and [House Speaker Kevin] McCarthy [(D-Calif.)] had a productive meeting on Monday. Just moments ago, the White House negotiators ended their meeting; they met for hours. And so they’re […]

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Joe Biden clearly defined their areas of disagreement over raising the debt ceiling and cutting federal spending, paving the way for negotiators from both sides to iron out a deal. Emerging from a 90-minute conversation at the White House on May 22, McCarthy described the meeting in positive […]

Congress will approve a deal on the debt ceiling if the president and the speaker of the House are able to forge an agreement, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) predicted on May 22. “I think anytime you come to an agreement that you’re negotiating with the president, Democrats and Republicans are both going to vote […]

President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will meet on May 22 for in-person talks on resolving the debt ceiling crisis. Over the weekend, negotiations between representatives from each side stalled as both doubled down on their demands. Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.), the lead negotiator for Republicans, told reporters on May 19 that […]

America will not default on its financial obligations and an agreement on spending priorities will be reached in the coming days, President Joe Biden said before departing on a trip to strengthen U.S. relationships with allies. “America is not a deadbeat nation. We pay our bills. The nation has never defaulted on its debt, and […]

President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) have delegated primary negotiations over raising the debt ceiling and cutting spending to trusted surrogates, establishing a clearer process for resolving the standoff between the parties. Steve Richetti, counselor to the president, and Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, will negotiate on […]

President Joe Biden is optimistic about reaching an agreement with congressional Republicans on the nation’s debt ceiling. A follow-up meeting between the parties will take place on May 16, the president said. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told reporters that Democrats appear to want a default more than they want a solution to the problem. […]

ST. LOUIS—Kimberly M. Gardner, the embattled St. Louis circuit attorney who had been accused of failing to perform her duties, has resigned effective June 1. Gardner posted her letter of resignation on Twitter on May 4, two days after visiting judge John Torbitzky ordered seven out of 10 claims filed against her by Missouri Attorney […]

President Joe Biden has invited House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other congressional leaders to a meeting on raising the nation’s debt limit, but he has no intention of negotiating on the matter. Instead, the president will use the May 9 sit-down to remind Republicans of their constitutional duty to raise the debt ceiling and […]