CNN – US Politics

By Kit Maher, Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was ordering a “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers coming to and leaving from Venezuela, ratcheting up pressure against leader Nicolás Maduro’s regime and suggesting an economic motive to the US’ military campaign in the region. Punctuating the words

By Kit Maher, Kristen Holmes, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order Thursday that would reschedule marijuana to a lower drug classification — a move that would ease federal restrictions, though it would not mean full legalization, according to a source familiar with the planning and a senior White

By Aleena Fayaz, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a proclamation expanding the list of countries with full or partial travel restrictions to 39, increasing from the previous list of 19 countries, according to the White House. The proclamation adds seven new countries to the full travel ban list: Laos, Sierra Leone,

By Priscilla Alvarez, Jennifer Hansler, Nimi Princewill, CNN (CNN) — The South African government briefly held, then released, two US government employees on assignment in South Africa as part of the Trump administration’s bid to admit Afrikaners to the United States, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation. The incident appeared to mark an

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — The Pentagon has launched a new “official Command” phase of its investigation into whether Sen. Mark Kelly will be punished for his involvement in a video that reminded members of the military they have a duty to refuse illegal orders, with a decision likely to be made in about

By Devan Cole, Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — A federal judge indicated Tuesday that he won’t order President Donald Trump to immediately stop work on the massive new White House ballroom. But US District Judge Richard Leon left open the possibility that he could intervene in the high-stakes legal fight over the project at a

By Adam Cancryn, CNN (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday sought to rally gloomy Pennsylvania voters behind the Trump administration’s economic agenda, alleviate their cost-of living concerns — and accomplish it all more efficiently than President Donald Trump had done a week before. Returning to the swing state just days after Trump delivered

By Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — The House Judiciary Committee is demanding interviews with four current and former Department of Justice officials who were involved in subpoenaing phone records for several members of Congress around the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, the day before Republicans interview former special counsel Jack Smith. The interview requests to

By Alejandra Jaramillo, Alayna Treene, CNN (CNN) — The president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., is engaged to Palm Beach socialite Bettina Anderson, a spokesperson for Trump Jr. confirmed to CNN. President Donald Trump announced the engagement on Monday night at a White House holiday party. The announcement brought fresh attention to a relationship that

By Kevin Liptak, Alejandra Jaramillo, Kristen Holmes, CNN (CNN) — The White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, delivered a series of unusually candid and at times unflattering assessments of President Donald Trump, his second-term agenda and some of his closest allies in a series of wide-ranging interviews with Vanity Fair published Tuesday. Across more

By Adam Cancryn, Alayna Treene, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump bragged to Pennsylvanians last week that he’d delivered an “unbelievable” economy. Now, it’s up to Vice President JD Vance to explain why they’re not yet feeling the benefits. Vance will return to the swing state on Tuesday to tout Trump’s economic agenda, marking the

By Steve Contorno, Elle Reeve, Kristen Holmes, CNN (CNN) — Erika Kirk, the widow of slain conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, met Monday with podcaster Candace Owens amid an intensifying public feud over Owens’ promotion of conspiracy theories surrounding Kirk’s death. Both women described the meeting as “productive” in social media posts Monday night. Owens wrote

CNN By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — Retiring Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced on Monday her engagement to Brian Glenn, a pro-Trump pundit who works for the far-right news network Real America’s Voice. “Happily ever after!!!” Greene posted on X. Glenn, who is chief White House correspondent for the MAGA-aligned network, also shared

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — The US military conducted strikes against three alleged drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Monday, killing 8 people, according to US Southern Command. “On Dec. 15, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted lethal kinetic strikes on three vessels operated

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — Retiring Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced on Monday her engagement to Brian Glenn, a pro-Trump pundit who works for the far-right news network Real America’s Voice. “Happily ever after!!!” Greene posted on X. Glenn, who is chief White House correspondent for the MAGA-aligned network, also shared the

By Sarah Ferris, CNN (CNN) — Speaker Mike Johnson is facing a possible revolt from a small bloc of GOP centrists this week over the looming expiration of Covid-era Obamacare subsidies — which will spike premiums for tens of millions of Americans in 2026. In Congress’ final work week of 2025, GOP leaders are prepared

By Devan Cole, CNN (CNN) — A Secret Service official involved in the construction of President Donald Trump’s massive new White House ballroom said Monday that any temporary pause on the project could hamper the agency’s ability to carry out its protective mission. The warning – made in a sworn statement by USSS Deputy Director

By Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — The House Oversight Committee is offering former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton new deposition dates in January as part of the panel’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein – and threatening the possibility of contempt proceedings if they do not comply. In a letter obtained by

By Kit Maher, Steve Contorno, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump said Monday that the White House is “very strongly” considering signing an executive order to reschedule marijuana to a lower drug classification, which would ease federal restrictions. “We are considering that because a lot of people want to see it — the reclassification, because

By Kit Maher, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday classifying “illicit fentanyl and its core precursor chemicals” as weapons of mass destruction — though it was not immediately clear what practical effect that might have. “Today I’m taking one more step to protect Americans from the scourge of deadly fentanyl

By Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump on Monday described an end to the war in Ukraine as closer than ever, with American officials earlier in the day suggesting beefed-up security guarantees for Kyiv had advanced the peace talks — but that the US offer would not be on the table forever. “I

By Casey Gannon, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department on Monday said it has arrested four people in the Los Angeles area for allegedly working together on a bomb plot that was set to take place around the city on New Year’s Eve. The four people arrested – Audrey Ilene Carroll, Dante Garfield, Zachary Aaron

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — The two US Army soldiers killed in Syria on Saturday were Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa, according to the Army. They were both members of the Iowa National Guard. The

By Tami Luhby, CNN (CNN) — House Republicans have approved their version of a health care bill as the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies looms ever closer. But the legislation does not address those subsidies, and Obamacare enrollees who want their coverage to begin on January 1 don’t have the luxury of time.

By Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Lawmakers are scrambling to address skyrocketing health care costs in the final days before Congress leaves Washington for the holidays, with enhanced tax credits that make insurance premiums more affordable for millions of Americans set to expire at the end of the month. After the Senate failed to advance

By Camila DeChalus, CNN (CNN) — A new House committee report alleges the former DC police chief pressured officers to manipulate crime data to create the appearance of a safer city. The report, released Sunday by the Republican-led House Oversight Committee, claims there was an active effort to downplay crime in the nation’s capital and

By Edward Wu, Molly English, CNN (CNN) — The Republican plans to pick off five Democratic-held congressional seats in Texas once seemed like a sure thing. Not anymore. President Donald Trump’s flagging approval ratings, particularly among Latinos, and strong Democratic performance in this year’s special elections have changed both parties’ assumptions. Now, the cushion the

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN (CNN) — In a major win for former FBI Director James Comey in the Justice Department’s continued attempts to prosecute him, a judge is depriving federal investigators from accessing central evidence in the case for the foreseeable future. The federal judge’s ruling late Friday says investigators must return electronic data they