National Politics

President Donald Trump’s budget director is accusing President-elect Joe Biden’s team of issuing “false statements” regarding his office’s cooperation during the ongoing transition, insisting the office has been fully transparent over the course of 45 meetings. Still, in a letter to Biden’s transition chief dated Thursday, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought said

Two Republican members of the House of Representatives tell CNN that they expect at least 140 of their GOP colleagues in the House to vote against counting the electoral votes on January 6 when Congress is expected to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. President Donald Trump’s Republican allies have virtually zero chance of changing the

Republican Rep.-elect Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina says he “absolutely” regrets posting a tweet mocking liberals just after he was elected last month. Cawthorn, who is set to become the youngest member of Congress in modern history when he’s sworn in Sunday, wrote in a tweet on November 3: “Cry more, lib.” “It was targeted

Americans can expect to start seeing $600 in their bank accounts immediately as the federal government’s second round of stimulus payments is being sent out, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service said. The direct deposits will continue into next week, while paper checks will be mailed out beginning Wednesday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin

Just a week after Sen. Marco Rubio was criticized for getting the coronavirus vaccine ahead of some front-line workers, the Florida Republican is back in the hot seat for his comments accusing Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and others of manipulating public perception surrounding Covid-19. “Dr. Fauci

Florida Congresswoman-elect María Elvira Salazar said Thursday that she has tested positive for Covid-19 and will be unable to attend the congressional swearing-in ceremony at the US Capitol on Sunday. Salazar, a Republican, said on Twitter she was admitted to a local hospital with heart arrhythmia, commonly known as an irregular heartbeat, on December 23,

Senators are still blocking an immediate and final vote to override President Donald Trump’s veto of the National Defense Authorization Act, Republican leaders are grappling with a new problem on their hands: GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri and his planned objection to the results of a fair and free election. The backlash is coming

United States President Donald Trump received unconfirmed information earlier this month that China sought to pay non-state actors to attack American forces in Afghanistan, a senior administration official told CNN. The intelligence, which will be declassified by the Trump administration, was provided to the President in his daily brief on December 17, the official said.

The Census Bureau announced it will miss Thursday’s deadline to produce the population count used to divide seats in Congress between the states. The Wednesday announcement was expected, and the key question remains whether the Census Bureau and Commerce Department will present the tally to President Donald Trump prior to his departure from office on

Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley said Wednesday he will object when Congress counts the Electoral College votes next week, which will force lawmakers in both the House and Senate to vote on whether to accept the results of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. Hawley is the first senator to announce plans to object to the results,

Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue are on defense just under one week from a crucial Senate runoff election that will determine who holds Senate power, as the President’s public statements and actions in the final days of his administration are looming over close runoff elections in Georgia. Among several false claims about election

A total of 2,570,593 votes have been cast in Georgia’s runoff elections, the Georgia secretary of state’s office told CNN Wednesday, with Georgia’s two US Senate seats and control of the chamber in the balance. Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue both face runoffs after failing to garner more than 50% of the vote

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rejected a bill to increase direct payments to $2,000, likely closing the door on any pathway to passage before the end of the Congress this weekend. McConnell took to the Senate floor to attack the House-passed bill, specifically on the issue of higher-income individuals and couples that would be eligible

On Joe Biden’s first day as President, his White House will issue a memo to halt or delay midnight regulations and actions taken by the Trump administration that will not have taken effect by Inauguration Day, Biden transition spokesperson Jen Psaki told reporters on Wednesday. Psaki noted that issuing a regulatory freeze is standard practice

The Trump administration will halt imports of palm oil from Malaysia over findings of forced labor abuses at the plantations of one of the country’s top producers of the product, which is found in many everyday items. It is the latest in a string of Customs and Border Protection restrictions aimed at stopping goods made

The Trump administration will soon take steps toward designating Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism as an 11th hour effort to create hurdles for the incoming Biden administration, which is likely to pursue warmer ties with Havana. A senior administration official told CNN that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to make the

The biggest obstacle to retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin’s nomination for secretary of defense is his retirement date from the military just four years ago — too recent under American law and for the tastes of several members of Congress. Multiple Democratic aides tell CNN they don’t think Austin’s nomination is in serious jeopardy right