Congress – News Stories About Congress - Page 79

Nov 12, 2008 3:03 PM CST

Pelosi Among Most Powerful of Speakers

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi may wield her influence behind the scenes, but she is the most powerful woman in the history of US politics, Politico reports, and with recent Democratic gains in Congress, she's poised to have power few other speakers could match. Though she’s nice about it, “whatever Nancy...

Mark Foley Ends Silence, Still Can't Explain Page Scandal

Nov 12, 2008 10:34 AM CST

Mark Foley Ends Silence, Still Can't Explain Page Scandal

2 years after resignation, Republican tries to put own spin on explicit messages to teens

(Newser) - Even today, 2 years after Mark Foley's very public fall from grace, the former congressman can't explain why he sent lurid, sexually explicit computer messages to male teens working as Capitol Hill pages. "There was never anywhere in those conversations where someone said, 'Stop,' or 'I'm not enjoying...

Senate Dem Unveils Broad Health Reform

Nov 12, 2008 7:21 AM CST

Senate Dem Unveils Broad Health Reform

Baucus proposal would guarantee insurance for all citizens

(Newser) - Barack Obama made health care reform a key plank of his campaign, but even before he's been inaugurated Congressional Democrats are introducing legislation to transform the system. Leading the charge is Max Baucus, the Montana senator who leads the finance committee. His plan, which he'll introduce today, guarantees health insurance...

Pelosi Urges Lame-Duck Session to Push Auto Bailout

Nov 11, 2008 5:35 PM CST

Pelosi Urges Lame-Duck Session to Push Auto Bailout

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi plans to convene a lame-duck House session to vote on an expanded rescue of the auto industry, the Wall Street Journal reports. “I am confident Congress can consider emergency assistance legislation next week,” the House Speaker said. Both GM and Ford have said they are cash...

Conservatism Dead
by Its Own Hand:
O'Rourke

OPINION

Nov 10, 2008 6:05 PM CST

Conservatism Dead by Its Own Hand: O'Rourke

Bloated government is only one (though huge) legacy of GOP reign

(Newser) - Modern conservatism is dead, and conservatives are to blame, PJ O’Rourke writes for the Weekly Standard. “Anyone who is still on the left is obviously insane and not responsible for his or her actions,” he contends. “No, we on the right did it.” Ideal after...

Gore: 5 Steps to Save Planet

OPINION

Nov 9, 2008 12:11 PM CST

Gore: 5 Steps to Save Planet

Nobel laureate calls on Obama, new Congress to act now

(Newser) - The road to energy efficiency is paved with the same solutions needed to fix the economic crisis, Al Gore writes in a New York Times op-ed. Dismissing proposals for domestic drilling, the climate crusader says, “We simply cannot any longer base the strategy for human survival on a cynical...

Dems Push Paulson to
Fund Big 3 Automakers

Nov 8, 2008 4:56 PM CST

Dems Push Paulson to Fund Big 3 Automakers

Pelosi, Reid want $700B bailout to aid GM, Ford, and Chrysler

(Newser) - Congressional Democrats are urging Henry Paulson to pump funds into the sputtering Big Three automakers, Politico reports. In a letter to the treasury secretary, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid called for a broadening of the $700 billion bailout package to help GM, Ford, and Chrysler qualify for federal aid. A...

Pelosi Urges
Lame-Duck
Stimulus Bill

Nov 5, 2008 3:56 PM CST

Pelosi Urges Lame-Duck Stimulus Bill

Democrats say bipartisan, White House support crucial to measure

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi says she hopes to quickly push through a $61 billion economic stimulus package but will need the support of President Bush and the current crop of Senate Republicans, Reuters reports. Pelosi said a "lame duck session" could come as early as Nov. 16. "It depends on...

Runoff Likely
in Georgia
Senate Race

Nov 5, 2008 2:41 PM CST

Runoff Likely in Georgia Senate Race

National party groups pledge support pitting GOP incumbent Chambliss vs. Dem Martin

(Newser) - Georgia’s US Senate race is heading to a runoff, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports today, as Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss is just shy of the 50% plus one vote needed to defeat Democratic challenger Jim Martin. Both candidates wasted no time to launch campaigns for the vote that would be...

GOP Loses Last Stronghold in New England

ANALYSIS

Nov 5, 2008 2:35 PM CST

GOP Loses Last Stronghold in New England

Himes' victory over Shays in Conn. completes Republican rout

(Newser) - With the defeat of Rep. Christopher Shays in Connecticut, the GOP has been completely routed from New England. The Republicans’ expulsion from the Northeast derives from losses in centrist districts, those where moderate Republicans like Shays could be expected to win, Fred Barnes writes in the Weekly Standard.

Bachmann Holds on to Her Seat

Nov 5, 2008 1:44 PM CST

Bachmann Holds on to Her Seat

Minnesota GOP rep hangs on after questioning patriotism of fellow lawmakers

(Newser) - Rep. Michele Bachmann survived her campaign near-death experience, narrowly holding on to her House seat in yesterday's election, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Bachman caused a furor 2 weeks ago when she charged not only Barack Obama but fellow members of Congress with harboring "anti-American" views in a cable...

Hagan Defeats Dole;
Dems Flip 5 Seats So Far

senate results

Nov 4, 2008 11:01 PM CST

Hagan Defeats Dole; Dems Flip 5 Seats So Far

(Newser) - Kay Hagan defeated Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina and at least four other Democrats captured Republican seats in the Senate as the party inched toward a filibuster-proof goal of 60 seats, ABC News reports. It's going down to the wire. Democrats now have 56 seats, and four races remain undecided,...

Dems Pad Majority; Murtha Survives, But Shays Out

House results

Nov 4, 2008 10:16 PM CST

Dems Pad Majority; Murtha Survives, But Shays Out

(Newser) - House Democrats, who held a 36-seat lead going in, beefed up their advantage tonight and appeared likely to keep padding it as results continued to pour in. Christopher Shays, the lone Republican in the New England delegation, was the highest-profile victim of an emerging landslide, but John Murtha of Pennsylvania...

New Take on
Old Law Stymies FBI Probes of Congress

Nov 1, 2008 1:14 PM CDT

New Take on Old Law Stymies FBI Probes of Congress

Constitutional clause being used as shield

(Newser) - The FBI is doing its best to root out corruption on Capitol Hill—Robert Mueller called it the bureau’s “top criminal priority”—but investigators are being thwarted by a new twist on a constitutional provision, the Washington Post reports. The “speech or debate” clause was intended...

6 Governors
Push Feds for Quicker Auto Industry Relief

Oct 30, 2008 2:29 PM CDT

6 Governors Push Feds for Quicker Auto Industry Relief

Tight credit hurts car sales: Granholm

(Newser) - Michigan’s Jennifer Granholm and five other US governors urged federal officials today to act quickly in delivering financial aid to the auto industry, the Detroit Free Press reports. In a letter, the governors of Delaware, Kentucky, New York, Ohio and South Dakota stress that the credit crisis has hurt...

Kennedy Returns to DC Today

Oct 28, 2008 11:32 AM CDT

Kennedy Returns to DC Today

Embattled senator plans to stay until Thanksgiving

(Newser) - Ted Kennedy, who has been recovering from brain cancer and chemotherapy on Cape Cod, will return to his Washington home today. The 76-year-old senator is expected to stay until Thanksgiving before returning to his family's Hyannis Port compound. Kennedy has steadily increased his public activity since his seizure in May,...

Senate Contests Ringing Up Record Ad Tabs

Oct 28, 2008 10:05 AM CDT

Senate Contests Ringing Up Record Ad Tabs

Some races tipping $30M mark, inundating voters with 'cacophony'

(Newser) - Senate races in 11 hotly contested states are drawing record sums in spending on TV advertising, the Washington Post reports. Both parties stick to repeated attacks: Democrats and their backers tie Republicans to Bush and aid for big corporations, while GOP supporters say Democrats will tax and spend freely. “...

Bush's Next Act: Try Congress

OPINION

Oct 27, 2008 2:34 PM CDT

Bush's Next Act: Try Congress

With John Quincy Adams as model, Dubya could do plenty of good in House

(Newser) - President Bush can't have 4 more years, but he could try for 2, Steve Coronella writes in the Christian Science Monitor. Coronella urges Bush to follow John Quincy Adams, who served 17 years in the House. As a representative from Texas, he writes, “Bush could go on to make...

Joe the Congressman?

Oct 25, 2008 11:40 AM CDT

Joe the Congressman?

Would battle popular northern Ohio representative

(Newser) - Joe the Plumber is mulling a 2010 congressional bid. The man John McCain turned into an instant celebrity—and the centerpiece of the GOP campaign in the home stretch—told radio host Laura Ingraham yesterday he might take on a highly popular incumbent in northern Ohio, CNN reports. “I'll...

GOP Closes Wallet on NC Rep. Hayes

Oct 24, 2008 4:38 PM CDT

GOP Closes Wallet on NC Rep. Hayes

Remark that 'liberals hate real Americans' bites back in close race

(Newser) - Rep. Robin Hayes is still struggling to get out from under a comment he made last weekend that “liberals hate real Americans,” and the Republican National Committee has cancelled plans to help in a tight re-election fight with an ad buy in his North Carolina district, the Charlotte ...