Tag: U.S. House

A divided House votes for resolution condemning Trump’s racist remarks

A divided House voted Tuesday to condemn President Trump’s racist remarks telling four minority congresswomen to “go back” to their ancestral countries, with all but a handful of Republicans dismissing the rebuke as harassment while many Democrats pressed their leaders for harsher punishment of the president.

The imagery of the 240-to-187 vote was stark: A diverse Democratic caucus cast the president’s words as an affront to millions of Americans and descendants of immigrants, while Republican lawmakers — the vast majority of them white men — stood with Trump against a resolution that rejected his “racist comments that have legitimized fear and hatred of new Americans and people of color.”

Trump insisted in a string of tweets Tuesday morning that he’s not a racist — “I don’t have a Racist bone in my body!” he wrote — and the top two Republicans in Congress, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) made identical statements when pressed on Trump’s remarks: “The president is not a racist.”Washington Post logo

View the complete July 17 article by Mike DeBonis, John Wagner and Rachael Bade on The Washington Post website here.

House demands to see Trump’s cyberwarfare directive

But senators who oversee the Pentagon are not as concerned

A small but significant quarrel is emerging between a bipartisan team of lawmakers in the House and the Trump administration over how the Pentagon is going about using its newly minted authority to strike back against adversaries in cyberspace.

Democratic and Republican leaders of the House Armed Services Committee and its emerging threats subcommittee — in a rare instance of bipartisan pushback against the White House — have repeatedly asked administration officials for a still-secret memo issued by President Donald Trump that lifted earlier restrictions on U.S. Cyber Command’s operations against adversaries.The White House has thus far refused to provide the memo, and the House last week voted to include an amendment in its version of the 2020 Pentagon policy bill that would force the administration to turn over “all National Security Presidential Memorandums relating to Department of Defense operations in cyberspace.”

View the complete July 16 article by Gopal Ratnam and John M Donnelly on The Roll Call website here.

Pelosi rejects short-term debt ceiling hike as budget talks extend

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Monday night turned aside the notion of a short-term debt ceiling hike as she continues negotiating on a broader budget deal with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

After days of hashing out their positions over the phone, Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Mnuchin spoke again Monday night, with plans to talk on Tuesday, according to a Pelosi aide.

“We shall see,” Pelosi said when asked about the possibility of striking a sweeping two-year agreement before the August recess that lifts the budget caps and the debt limit.

View the complete July 15 article by Caitlin Emma on the Politico website here.

Trump steps up attacks on minority congresswomen

The Hill logoPresident Trump on Monday stepped up his attacks on four progressive, minority Democratic lawmakers, which were widely condemned by Democrats — and some Republicans — as racist and unbecoming of an American president.

One day after Trump said the four women should “go back” to their home countries, even though all are U.S. citizens, the president denied he was being racist and expressed no remorse when told that white nationalist groups found common cause with his message.

“It doesn’t concern me because many people agree with me,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House during an event highlighting American manufacturing.

View the complete July 15 article by Jordan Fabian on The Hill website here.

Pelosi announces House resolution to condemn Trump’s ‘xenophobic tweets’

The Hill logoSpeaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Monday urged House Democrats to support a resolution to condemn President Trump for tweeting that four Democratic congresswomen of color should “go back” to their countries, even though all are U.S. citizens.

“The House cannot allow the President’s characterization of immigrants to our country to stand. Our Republican colleagues must join us in condemning the President’s xenophobic tweets,” Pelosi wrote in a letter to House Democrats announcing a “forthcoming” resolution from Reps. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.), who was born in Poland, Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), and other Democratic members who were born abroad.

“This weekend, the President went beyond his own low standards using disgraceful language about Members of Congress,” Pelosi added. “Rather than attack Members of Congress, he should work with us for humane immigration policy that reflects American values.”

View the complete July 15 article by Cristina Marcos on The Hill website here.

House approves amendment seeking to block Trump from taking military action against Iran

The Hill logoThe House on Friday voted 251-170 to approve an amendment intended to block President Trump from taking military action against Iran.

The amendment would prohibit funding U.S. military action against Iran unless Congress has declared war or enacted another specific statutory authorization.

Some Republicans broke rank to support it, including vocal Trump ally Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who co-sponsored the amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Twenty-seven Republicans sided with Democrats to support the amendment, while seven Democrats voted against it.

View the complete July 12 article by Rebecca Kheel on The Hill website here.

Judiciary issues blitz of subpoenas for Kushner, Sessions, Trump associates

The Hill logoThe House Judiciary Committee voted along party lines Thursday to authorize subpoenas for documents and testimony from a dozen current and former Trump administration officials and associates related to the panel’s investigation into alleged obstruction of justice by President Trump. 

The committee also voted to authorize subpoenas for documents and testimony related to the Trump administration’s immigration policies, amid massive outrage by Democrats over conditions in detention facilities at the southern border.

The committee approved the resolution authorizing the slew of subpoenas in a 21-12 vote after a contentious markup Thursday, during which Republicans and Democrats sparred over the setup of former special counsel Robert Mueller’s impending testimony and the immigration crisis.

View the complete July 11 article by Morgan Chalfant and Olivia Beaver on The Hill website here.

House will vote ‘soon’ to hold Barr, Ross in criminal contempt over citizenship question

Pelosi announces plans for full House vote in dear colleague letter, also outlining legislative steps to protect migrants

The House will “soon” vote to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary William Ross in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas for documents explaining the administration’s rationale for wanting to add a citizenship question to the census, Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote in a “Dear Colleague” letter on Monday.

The Oversight and Reform Committee last month approved a contempt resolution against Barr and Ross that included language to refer the matter to the U.S. attorney in Washington for possible criminal charges, as well as authorize the pursuit of a lawsuit.

The Justice and Commerce departments have provided the Oversight Committee with some documents on the citizenship question while withholding others over claims of executive privilege.

View the complete July 8 article by Lindsey McPherson on The Roll Call website here.

Trump plans rally in Greenville, NC, on day Mueller is set to testify

President Donald Trump will hold a rally in Greenville, NC, on July 17, according to his campaign website.

The rally at Williams Arena is the same day former special counsel Robert Mueller is set to testify before Congress on his investigation into the Trump campaign, The Hill reported. Mueller will “publicly testify before the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees,” according to the Associated Press.

The Keep America Great rally is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Only two tickets per person are available for those registering to attend the Greenville rally, according to the website.

View the complete July 2 article by Noah Feit on The Charlotte Observer here.

House Democrats to hold hearing next week on treatment of migrant children

The Hill logoThe House Oversight and Reform Committee has scheduled a hearing next week to hear testimony from Trump administration officials about the separation and treatment of immigrant children at the southern border.

Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) has invited acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan and acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Mark Morgan to testify at a hearing on July 12. Neither have confirmed their appearance, according to the committee. 

“The Trump Administration’s actions at the southern border are grotesque and dehumanizing,” Cummings said in a statement Tuesday.

View the complete July 2 article by Morgan Chalfant on The Hill website here.