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Tag: Nancy Pelosi

  • McCarthy meets with Taiwan leader as China threatens ‘actions’ in response

    McCarthy meets with Taiwan leader as China threatens ‘actions’ in response

    US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) (R) speaks with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen while arriving for a bipartisan meeting at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, on April 5, 2023.

    Frederic J. Brown | Afp | Getty Images

    House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and a bipartisan congressional delegation are meeting Wednesday with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in Simi Valley, California, in a move that has increased simmering U.S. tensions with China.

    The Republican House speaker is the highest ranking U.S. official to meet with a leader of Taiwan on U.S. soil since 1979.

    Tsai’s meeting with McCarthy follows private meetings she held last week with small groups of U.S. lawmakers. On Friday, she met with three members of the Senate Armed Services Committee in New York City: Sens. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.

    Also on Friday, Tsai met with House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries in his home state of New York.

    Unlike those low-key meetings, however, McCarthy’s afternoon of scheduled events with Tsai will include a group of House members and will feature a public joint appearance covered by the international media.

    Even portions of Wednesday’s meeting that were billed as private became public when McCarthy tweeted a photo of him and Tsai speaking one-on-one.

    The meeting has infuriated China’s Communist Party leadership and prompted veiled threats from Beijing to members of Congress who will be attending the events. China’s government said it planned to take “resolute actions” to respond to the “provocation.”

    In Los Angeles, the Chinese Consulate on Monday warned McCarthy not to “repeat disastrous past mistakes and further damage Sino-U.S. relations.” The consulate was referring to a visit by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to Taiwan last August.

    That visit prompted furious condemnation from Beijing, including the launch of live-fire Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait just hours after Pelosi departed the self-ruling island, whose population exceeds 24 million people.

    When McCarthy’s predecessor, Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., visited Taiwan in August, the first House speaker to do so in 25 years, China responded with unprecedented live-fire drills. 

    China views Taiwan as a province of the Chinese mainland, and it considers any attempt by Taiwan’s leaders to act independently of Beijing as a threat to Chinese sovereignty.

    Tsai’s weeklong trip to the United States is technically unofficial, and is referred to as a “transit,” rather than a visit. But in reality, Tsai’s packed schedule of high-level meetings with U.S. lawmakers would rival that of any official visit by a world leader.

    Tsai’s trip to the United States adds a new strain to the already fragile U.S.-China relationship, weakened in recent years by Beijing’s territorial expansion in the South China Sea and its aggressive effort to control Taiwan.

    Taiwan supporters hold signs during a rally in front of the Westin Bonaventure hotel where Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will spend the night ahead of meeting with Kevin McCarthy, in Los Angeles, April 4, 2023. 

    Frederic J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images

    In February, a Chinese reconnaissance balloon flying over the United States sparked a public outcry, until it was shot down by American fighter jets off the East Coast.

    The following month, a U.S. ban on government devices using the social media app TikTok, which is owned by China’s ByteDance, drew an angry rebuke from Beijing.

    This is a developing story, and will be updated throughout the day.

    CNBC Politics

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  • George Santos “Shouldn’t Be There”: Republican Infighting Spills Over at Joe Biden’s State of the Union

    George Santos “Shouldn’t Be There”: Republican Infighting Spills Over at Joe Biden’s State of the Union

    Kevin McCarthy pledged that he and Republicans would not engage in “childish games” Tuesday night. He would not be ripping up the copy of Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech, he said, taking a shot across Nancy Pelosi’s bow who tore the pages of Donald Trump’s speech three years ago. McCarthy and Republican leaders reportedly reminded the party that the “cameras are on” and “mics are hot.” “We’re members of Congress. We have a code of ethics of how we should portray ourselves,” McCarthy added in a CNN interview. McCarthy, finally Speaker of the House after a protracted and painful election in early January, however, sat at the lectern next to Vice President Kamala Harris, watching over a Republican party that had a very different idea of how Tuesday would play out.

    Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, an ally of McCarthy, spent much of the day walking around the Capitol complex with a large white balloon in hand, a jab at the Biden Administration’s handling of the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon in United States’ airspace earlier this week. The balloon didn’t join Greene in the House chamber, where the Georgia firebrand sat in the back of the room, notably apart from Colorado’s Lauren Boebert, who took a swipe at her balloon antics earlier in the day when asked if she was preparing any forms of protest Tuesday. “Well, I won’t be bringing a white helium balloon, if that’s what you’re asking,” Boebert told The Hill. 

    That kind of GOP infighting defined the start of the evening, particularly when reporters noticed a tense exchange between Utah Republican senator Mitt Romney and George Santos, who apparently got to the chamber early to save a seat by the main aisle where Biden entered the chamber. “He is a sick puppy,” Romney said of Santos after the speech. “He shouldn’t be there,” he said, noting his disappointment in how McCarthy has handled the New York Republican who has been caught in a litany of lies. 

    “Given the fact that he’s under ethics investigation he should be sitting in the back row and being quiet instead of parading in front of the president,” Romney added. When asked if he was disappointed that Speaker McCarthy had not called on Santos to resign, the Utah Senator bluntly responded, “Yes.” 

    Just after 9:07 PM on Tuesday night, Biden took the lectern to applause. For weeks, Biden toiled away with a number of his top aides—Mike Donilon, Bruce Reed, Steve Ricchetti, Anita Dunn, Vinay Reddy, being the most influential—crafting the president’s address. The group spent this past weekend cloistered at Camp David, to finetune and polish the prose, according to a White House official. Throughout his roughly hour-long speech, Biden pulled from the same pantry of rhetorical staples that have contoured his political career — the importance of bipartisanship, his working class roots — and sought to highlight the accomplishments of his administration. 

     McCarthy sat aloof behind him, largely expressionless. He clapped at the obvious areas of agreement. He even laughed at some of Biden’s jokes. For much of Biden’s speech, Republicans responded civilly—until they didn’t. Biden’s declaration that some Republicans were intent on cutting Social Security and Medicare, prompted boos from members of the party. McCarthy shook his head as Biden doubled down, seemingly enjoying pushing Republicans deeper in a corner against the very entitlement cuts that conservatives have long called for. But when one Republican was heard shouting “liar” at the president, McCarthy appeared to shush his own.

    McCarthy’s subtle signal to his ranks to simmer down was soon lost. When Biden boasted of his administration’s efforts to curb China’s influence, Greene shouted, “China is spying on us!” in between laughs. Minutes later, Greene invoked China again when the president noted that 700,000 Americans die from Fentanyl overdoses each year. “It is coming from China,” she said. At this point, other Republicans shouted, “Close the border.” And one Republican sunk even lower, heard saying, “It is your fault!” 

    China was something of a theme of the night. Greene’s balloon aside, McCarthy invited former NBA player turned activist Enes Kanter Freedom, who has been an outspoken critic of human rights abuses in Turkey and China. “I have so much respect for the speaker as both a leader, and a friend. His support for me doesn’t go unappreciated for even a moment, and I hope he can lead by example to others to stand for what is right,” Freedom told Vanity Fair. 

    To be sure, Democrats also made political statements with their guests. Pelosi invited Sergeant Aquilino Gonnell who served as a Capitol Police officer during the January 6, 2021 insurrection and her husband Paul Pelosi, who had become the subject of right-wing conspiracies after being brutally attacked in his own home. Freshman Democrat Maxwell Frost, a longtime gun activist before he ran for Congress, invited Manuel Oliver, father of Parkland shooting victim Joaquin Oliver.

    But the Republicans’ performance Tuesday night was something of a roadmap for the next two years. Grappling with a silver of a majority in the House, McCarthy will have a difficult time wrangling his own fractious caucus, let alone shepherd legislation that survives the House, the Democrat-controlled Senate and Biden’s veto. Meanwhile, as early as this week House Republicans are poised to launch a series of investigations into everything from the border, to the Chinese spy balloon, to Hunter Biden’s laptop and foreign business dealings. And then there’s Santos, who is now officially under investigation by the House’s ethics committee — and is certainly good at taking up a lot of oxygen in the room.

    Abigail Tracy

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  • Court releases video of attack on Paul Pelosi | CNN Politics

    Court releases video of attack on Paul Pelosi | CNN Politics



    CNN
     — 

    The San Francisco Superior Court on Friday released video and audio recorded during last year’s attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, including police body-cam footage depicting the moment of the attack and the alleged assailant’s police interview where he admitted he wanted to hold the then-House speaker hostage.

    The video and audio files were released after a California court ruled the district attorney’s office must make the materials public.

    One of the videos shows body-cam footage from officers who arrived at Pelosi’s home on October 28, 2022, when he was attacked. The footage shows the chaos of the moment in which alleged assailant David DePape attacked.

    In the video, which includes graphic and violent content, Paul Pelosi and DePape both appear to have a hand on the hammer and DePape is holding Pelosi’s arm when the officers opened the door.

    “Drop the hammer,” the officer says.

    “Uh, nope,” DePape responds.

    DePape then grabbed the hammer out of Pelosi’s hand, lunged toward him while striking him in the head. The officers rushed into the home, subduing DePape and handcuffing him.

    Court releases video of attack on Paul Pelosi

    In addition to the body-cam footage, the files include audio from a police interview with DePape, the 911 call Paul Pelosi made while DePape was in the home and surveillance video showing DePape breaking into the home.

    The files were exhibits in a preliminary court hearing. The court’s decision mandating the public release of the materials came following a motion by a coalition of news organizations, including CNN, arguing that the circumstances involving the residence of the then-speaker of the House demanded transparency.

    Lawyers for DePape argued against the public release of the audio and footage, writing it would “irreparably damage” his right to a fair trial. DePape has pleaded not guilty to a litany of state and federal crimes related to the attack, including assault and attempted murder.

    Speaking briefly to reporters Friday afternoon, Nancy Pelosi said she had “absolutely no intention of seeing the deadly assault on my husband’s life.” She said that Paul Pelosi is “making progress, but it will take more time” and that she would not be making additional public comments about the case.

    In the audio recording of a San Francisco police officer’s interview of DePape following his October arrest, DePape admitted to attacking Paul Pelosi and described his plans to hold Nancy Pelosi hostage when he broke into the couple’s San Francisco home.

    “Yeah, I mean, I’m not trying to, like, get away with this, so, you know, I know exactly what I did,” DePape said toward the beginning of the 17-minute audio clip.

    “Well, I was going to basically hold her hostage, and I was going to talk to her,” DePape said of Nancy Pelosi. “If she told the truth, I’d let her go scot-free. If she f**king lied, I was going to break her kneecaps.”

    In the interview, DePape embraced conspiracy theories about Democrats and Pelosi, complaining about a Democratic “crime spree” and baselessly claiming that Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats had spied on former President Donald Trump’s campaign.

    “They are the criminals,” DePape said.

    The officer walked DePape through his break-in of the Pelosi house and his encounter with Paul Pelosi. When he was asked why he didn’t leave after Paul Pelosi called the police, DePape compared himself to the Founding Fathers’ fighting the British.

    “When I left my house, I left to go fight tyranny. I did not leave to go surrender,” he said.

    DePape explained why he attacked Paul Pelosi after the police arrived, when they both were holding onto a hammer. “He thinks that I’ll just surrender, and it’s like, I didn’t come there to surrender,” DePape said. “And I told him that I would go through him. And so I basically yank it away from him and hit him.”

    In the 911 call audio, Pelosi seemed to be subtly attempting to tell the dispatcher he was in danger while DePape was listening in. CNN has previously reported Pelosi made the call when he went into his bathroom, where his cell phone was charging.

    “There’s a gentleman here just waiting for my wife to come back, Nancy Pelosi. He’s just waiting for her to come back, but she’s not going to be here for days, so I guess we’ll have to wait,” Pelosi said to the dispatcher.

    “He thinks everything’s good. I’ve got a problem, but he thinks everything’s good,” Pelosi said at another point in the 2-minute, 56-second recording.

    The dispatcher asked Pelosi if he knew who the man was, and Pelosi said he did not. “He’s telling me to put the phone down and just do what he says,” Pelosi said.

    “Who is David?” the dispatcher asked.

    “I don’t know,” Pelosi said.

    DePape then spoke up on the call. “I’m a friend of theirs,” he said.

    “He says he’s a friend. But as I said …” Pelosi said.

    “But you don’t know who he is?” the dispatcher responded.

    “No ma’am,” Pelosi said.

    In the surveillance footage, DePape is seen breaking into the Pelosi home. The scene was captured by a US Capitol Police security camera installed at Pelosi’s San Francisco residence.

    The attack on Paul Pelosi was a factor in Nancy Pelosi’s decision to step back from House Democratic leadership, she has said previously.

    nancy pelosi anderson cooper intvu solo 1107

    Exclusive: Pelosi recounts moment she learned that her husband was attacked

    Court documents revealed DePape allegedly woke Paul Pelosi shortly after 2 a.m., carrying a large hammer and several white zip ties, and demanded: “Where’s Nancy? Where’s Nancy?” He then threatened to tie up Paul Pelosi and prevented him from escaping via elevator, according to the documents. DePape later allegedly told him, “I can take you out.”

    Following the attack, Paul Pelosi underwent surgery “to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands,” a spokesman for Nancy Pelosi said in a statement. On Thursday, Nancy Pelosi said her husband’s recovery was “one day at a time.” She said she didn’t know if she would see the video when it was released.

    This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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  • Paul Pelosi Will Probably Have to Wait on That Apology From the Right-Wing Media

    Paul Pelosi Will Probably Have to Wait on That Apology From the Right-Wing Media

    In the immediate wake of a man breaking into Nancy Pelosi’s San Fransisco home and viciously attacking her husband, the right-wing media, Republicans, and their conservative followers got into formation to do what they do best: spread baseless rumors about the assault and mock the victim. 

    Tucker Carlson fueled conspiracy theories that Paul Pelosi and his attacker, David DePape, were lovers. Elon Musk, who’d become the owner of Twitter just three days prior, shared a story with his 112 million followers from a website known to traffic in false information, that the man was a prostitute with whom Pelosi had gotten into a dispute. (He later deleted the tweet but not before writing, “There is a tiny possibility there might be more to this story than meets the eye.”) Donald Trump Jr. retweeted a “Paul Pelosi” Halloween costume made up of simply underwear and hammer, writing: “The internet remains undefeated.” Representative Claudia Tenney commented “LOL” on a photo of a group of men holding hammers beside a gay pride flag, before deleting the tweet. Charlie Kirk, the conservative YouTube host, said on his podcast he hoped an “amazing patriot” would go bail out DePape, “ask him some questions,” and become a “midterm hero.”

    On Thursday, Fox News host Sean Hannity had a guest on his show who speculated that set-to-be-released footage of the attack would “not help the prosecution” and raise “more questions than it answers.”

    On Friday, footage of the attack was released. In addition to being deeply difficult to watch—viewers can see the moment when DePape beats the 82-year-old Pelosi with a hammer—it also makes the gang at Fox News and beyond not only look very stupid but like the depraved ghouls they are. Will they see it that way and apologize to the victim and his family? We’re going to go out on a limb and assume the answer starts with an “h” and ends with a “—ell f–king no.” Are you familiar at all with how these people operate? They’re about to double down, if they haven’t already.

    Draw up the articles of impeachment now

    Bess Levin

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  • Court orders the release of video capturing the attack on Paul Pelosi at his San Francisco home | CNN Politics

    Court orders the release of video capturing the attack on Paul Pelosi at his San Francisco home | CNN Politics



    CNN
     — 

    A California court on Wednesday ruled that the San Francisco district attorney’s office must make public the 911 audio calls, police body camera footage and home surveillance video recorded the night of the attack at the Pelosis’ San Francisco home last year. Audio from police interviews with David DePape, the alleged attacker, must also be made public, the court ruled.

    The decision came following a motion by a coalition of news organizations, including CNN, seeking the release of the material.

    It’s not immediately clear how soon the material will be made public.

    DePape has pleaded not guilty to a litany of state and federal crimes, including assault and attempted murder. His lawyers argued against the public release of the audio and footage, writing it would “irreparably damage” his right to a fair trial.

    Paul Pelosi was violently attacked in October with a hammer at the couple’s home by a male assailant who was searching for the House speaker, according to court documents – a development that ultimately drove then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s decision to leave House Democratic leadership.

    Pelosi underwent surgery “to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands” following the incident, a spokesman for Nancy Pelosi said in a statement. The California Democratic congresswoman told CNN last week that while her husband is “doing OK,” it will still “take a little while for him to be back to normal.”

    Court documents revealed DePape allegedly woke Paul Pelosi shortly after 2 a.m., carrying a large hammer and several white zip ties, and demanded: “Where’s Nancy? Where’s Nancy?” He then threatened to tie up Paul Pelosi and prevented him from escaping via elevator, according to the documents. DePape later allegedly told him, “I can take you out.”

    Pelosi placed a 911 call during the attack after convincing the assailant to let him go to the bathroom, where his phone was charging, and he spoke cryptically to police. CNN previously reported that police body cam footage from the incident is expected to show what officers saw when Paul Pelosi opened the door and his assailant attacked him with a hammer, fracturing his skull.

    A limited number of Pelosi family members met with authorities in November to listen to the call and to view the footage, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins told Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room” at the time, confirming details first reported by CNN.

    Asked by CNN’s Anderson Cooper in early November whether she wanted to hear the call her husband placed, Nancy Pelosi said, “I don’t think so. I don’t know if I’ll have to. I just don’t know. That’s all a matter on the legal side of things.” But she added, “Paul saved his own life with that call.”

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  • California judge orders release of footage of Pelosi attack

    California judge orders release of footage of Pelosi attack

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Footage of the attack on former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband will be released to the public after a judge on Wednesday denied prosecutors’ request to keep it secret.

    San Francisco Superior Court Judge Stephen M. Murphy ruled there was no reason to keep the footage secret, especially after prosecutors played it in open court during a preliminary hearing last month, according to Thomas R. Burke, a San Francisco-based lawyer who represented The Associated Press and a host of other news agencies in their attempt to access the evidence.

    The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office handed over the evidence to Murphy on Wednesday following a court hearing. Murphy asked the court clerk’s office to distribute it to the media, which could happen as soon as Thursday.

    Paul Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi’s husband, was asleep at the couple’s San Francisco home on Oct. 28 when someone broke in and beat him with a hammer. Prosecutors have charged 42-year-old David DePape in connection with the attack.

    During a preliminary hearing last month, prosecutors played portions of Paul Pelosi’s 911 call plus footage from Capitol police surveillance cameras, body cameras worn by the two police officers who arrived at the house, and video from DePape’s interview with police.

    But when news organizations asked for copies of that evidence, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office refused to release it. The attack, which occurred just days before the 2022 midterm elections, prompted intense speculation from the public that fueled the spread of false information.

    The district attorney’s office argued releasing the footage publicly would only allow people to manipulate it in their quest to spread false information.

    But the news agencies argued it was vital for prosecutors to publicly share their evidence that could debunk any false information swirling on the internet about the attack.

    “You don’t eliminate the public right of access just because of concerns about conspiracy theories,” Burke said.

    The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office did not respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

    The news agencies who sought the release of the footage includes The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Press Democrat, CNN, Fox News, CBS, ABC, NBC and KQED, an NPR-member radio station in San Francisco.

    DePape pleaded not guilty last month to six charges, including attempted murder. Police have said DePape told them there was “evil in Washington” and he wanted to harm Nancy Pelosi because she was second in line to the presidency. His case is pending.

    Democrats lost their majority in the House of Representatives after the midterm elections. Republicans elected California Republican U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy as the new speaker. Pelosi will remain in Congress, but she stepped down as Democratic leader. She was replaced by Hakeem Jeffries from New York.

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  • Judge orders release of video of attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband

    Judge orders release of video of attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband

    Sacramento — Footage of the attack on former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband will be released to the public after a judge on Wednesday denied a request from prosecutors to keep it secret.

    San Francisco Superior Court Judge Stephen M. Murphy ruled there was no reason to keep the footage secret, especially after prosecutors played it in open court during a preliminary hearing last month, according to Thomas R. Burke, a San Francisco-based lawyer who represented CBS News, The Associated Press and a host of other news agencies in their attempt to access the evidence.

    The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office handed over the evidence to Murphy on Wednesday following a court hearing. Murphy asked the court clerk’s office to distribute it to the media, which could happen as soon as Thursday.

    Paul Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi’s husband, was asleep at the couple’s San Francisco home on Oct. 28 when someone broke in and beat him with a hammer. Prosecutors have charged 42-year-old David DePape in connection with the attack.

    President Biden Hosts 2022 NBA Champions Golden State Warriors
    Rep. Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul Pelosi, top center, during an event hosting the Golden State Warriors in the East Room of the White House on Jan. 17, 2023. 

    Al Drago / Bloomberg via Getty Images


    During a preliminary hearing last month, prosecutors played portions of Paul Pelosi’s 911 call plus footage from Capitol police surveillance cameras, body cameras worn by the two police officers who arrived at the house, and video from DePape’s interview with police.

    But when news organizations asked for copies of that evidence, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office refused to release it. The attack, which occurred just days before the 2022 midterm elections, prompted intense speculation from the public that fueled the spread of false information.

    The district attorney’s office argued releasing the footage publicly would only enable people to manipulate it in their quest to spread false information.

    But the news agencies argued it was vital for prosecutors to publicly share their evidence that could debunk any false information swirling on the internet about the attack.

    “You don’t eliminate the public right of access just because of concerns about conspiracy theories,” Burke said.

    The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office did not respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

    The news agencies who sought the release of the footage also included The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Press Democrat, CNN, Fox News, ABC, NBC and KQED, an NPR-member radio station in San Francisco.

    DePape pleaded not guilty last month to six charges, including attempted murder. Police have said DePape told them there was “evil in Washington” and he wanted to harm Nancy Pelosi because she was second in line to the presidency. His case is pending.

    Democrats lost their majority in the House of Representatives after the midterm elections. Republicans elected California Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy as the new speaker. Pelosi will remain in Congress, but she stepped down as Democratic leader. She was replaced by Hakeem Jeffries from New York. 

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  • Fact check: McCarthy’s false, misleading and evidence-free claims since becoming House speaker | CNN Politics

    Fact check: McCarthy’s false, misleading and evidence-free claims since becoming House speaker | CNN Politics


    Washington
    CNN
     — 

    Since winning a difficult battle to become speaker of the House of Representatives, Republican Kevin McCarthy has made public claims that are misleading, lacking any evidence or plain wrong.

    Here is a fact check of recent McCarthy comments about the debt ceiling, funding for the Internal Revenue Service, the FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s resort and residence in Florida, President Joe Biden’s stance on stoves and Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff.

    McCarthy’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

    McCarthy has cited the example of Rep. Nancy Pelosi, his Democratic predecessor as House speaker, while defending conservative Republicans’ insistence that any agreement to lift the federal debt ceiling must be paired with cuts to government spending – a trade-off McCarthy agreed to when he was trying to persuade conservatives to support his bid for speaker. Specifically, McCarthy has claimed that even Pelosi agreed to a spending cap as part of a deal to lift the debt ceiling under Trump.

    “When Nancy Pelosi was speaker, that’s what transpired. To get a debt ceiling, they also got a cap on spending for the next two years,” McCarthy told reporters at a press conference on January 12. When Fox host Maria Bartiromo told McCarthy in a January 15 interview that “they” would not agree to a spending cap, he responded, “Well Maria, I don’t believe that’s the case, because when Donald Trump was president and when Nancy Pelosi was speaker, that’s exactly what happened for them to get a debt ceiling lifted last time. They agreed to a spending cap.”

    Facts First: McCarthy’s claims are highly misleading. The deal Pelosi agreed to with the Trump administration in 2019 actually loosened spending caps that were already in place at the time because of a 2011 law. In other words, while congressional conservatives today want to use a debt ceiling deal to reduce government spending, the Pelosi deal allowed for billions in additional government spending above the pre-existing maximum. The two situations are nothing alike.

    Shai Akabas, director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center think tank, said when asked about the accuracy of McCarthy’s claims: “I’m going to steer clear of characterizing the Speaker’s remarks, but as an objective matter, the deal reached in 2019 increased the spending caps set by the Budget Control Act of 2011.”

    The 2019 deal, which was criticized by many congressional conservatives, also ensured that Budget Control Act’s caps on discretionary spending – which were created as a result of a 2011 debt ceiling deal between a Democratic president and a Republican speaker of the House – would not be extended past 2021. Spending caps vanishing is the opposite of McCarthy’s suggestion that the deal “got” a spending cap.

    Pelosi spokesperson Aaron Bennett said in an email that McCarthy is “trying to rewrite history.” Bennett said, “As Republicans in Congress and in the Administration noted at the time, in 2019, Speaker Pelosi and Democrats were eager to reach bipartisan agreement to raise the debt limit and, as part of the agreement, avert damaging funding cuts for defense and domestic programs.”

    In various statements since becoming speaker, McCarthy has boasted of how the first bill passed by the new Republican majority in the House “repealed 87,000 IRS agents” or “repealed funding for 87,000 new IRS agents.”

    Facts First: McCarthy’s claims are false. House Republicans did pass a bill that seeks to eliminate about $71 billion of the approximately $80 billion in additional Internal Revenue Service funding that Biden signed into law in last year’s Inflation Reduction Act – but that funding is not going to hire 87,000 “agents.” In addition, Biden has already made clear he would veto this new Republican bill even if the bill somehow made it through the Democratic-controlled Senate, so no funding has actually been “repealed.” It would be accurate for McCarthy to say House Republicans “voted to repeal” the funding, but the boast that they actually “repealed” something is inaccurate.

    CNN’s Katie Lobosco explains in detail here why the claim about “87,000 new IRS agents” is an exaggeration. The claim, which has become a common Republican talking point, has been fact-checked by numerous media outlets over more than five months, including The Washington Post in response to McCarthy remarks earlier this January.

    Here’s a summary. While Inflation Reduction Act funding may well allow for the hiring of tens of thousands of IRS employees, far from all of these employees will be IRS agents conducting audits and investigations. Many other employees will be hired for the non-agent roles, from customer service to information technology, that make up the vast majority of the IRS workforce. And a significant number of the hires are expected to fill the vacant posts left by retirements and other attrition, not take newly created positions.

    The IRS has not yet released a detailed breakdown of how it plans to use the funding provided by the Inflation Reduction Act, so it’s impossible to say precisely how many new “agents” will be hired. But it is already clear that the total won’t approach 87,000.

    In his interview with Fox’s Bartiromo on January 15, McCarthy criticized federal law enforcement for executing a search warrant at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and residence in Florida, which the FBI says resulted in the recovery of more than 100 government documents marked as classified and hundreds of other government documents. Echoing a claim Trump has made, McCarthy said of the documents: “They knew it was there. They could have come and taken it any time they wanted.”

    Facts First: It is clearly not true that the authorities could somehow have come to Mar-a-Lago at any time, without conducting a formal search, and taken all of the presidential records they were seeking from Trump. By the time of the search, the federal government – first the National Archives and Records Administration and then the Justice Department – had been asking Trump for more than a year to return government records. Even when the Justice Department went beyond asking in May and served Trump’s team with a subpoena for the return of all documents with classification markings, Trump’s team returned only some of these documents. In June, a Trump lawyer signed a document certifying on behalf of Trump’s office that all of the documents had been returned, though that was not true.

    When FBI agents and a Justice Department attorney visited Mar-a-Lago without a search warrant on that June day to accept documents the Trump team was returning in response to the subpoena, a Trump lawyer “explicitly prohibited government personnel from opening or looking inside any of the boxes that remained in the storage room,” the department said in a court filing after the August search. In other words, according to the department, the government was not even allowed to poke around to see if there were government records still at Mar-a-Lago, let alone take those records.

    In the August court filing, the department pointedly called into question the extent to which the Trump team had cooperated: “That the FBI, in a matter of hours, recovered twice as many documents with classification markings as the ‘diligent search’ that the former President’s counsel and other representatives had weeks to perform calls into serious question the representations made in the June 3 certification and casts doubt on the extent of cooperation in this matter.”

    McCarthy wrote in a New York Post article published on January 12: “While President Joe Biden wants to control the kind of stove Americans can cook on, House Republicans are certainly cooking with gas.” He repeated the claim on Twitter the next morning.

    Facts First: There is no evidence for this claim; Biden has not expressed a desire to control the kind of stove Americans can cook on. McCarthy was baselessly attributing the comments of a single Biden appointee to Biden himself.

    It is true that a Biden appointee on the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, Richard Trumka Jr., told Bloomberg earlier this month that gas stoves pose a “hidden hazard,” as they emit air pollutants, and said, “Any option is on the table. Products that can’t be made safe can be banned.” But the day before McCarthy’s article was published by the New York Post, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a press briefing: “The president does not support banning gas stoves. And the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which is independent, is not banning gas stoves.”

    To date, even the commission itself has not shown support for a ban on gas stoves or for any particular new regulations on gas stoves. Commission Chairman Alexander Hoehn-Saric said in a statement the day before McCarthy’s article was published: “I am not looking to ban gas stoves and the CPSC has no proceeding to do so.” Rather, he said, the commission is researching gas emissions in stoves, “exploring new ways to address health risks,” and strengthening voluntary safety standards – and will this spring ask the public “to provide us with information about gas stove emissions and potential solutions for reducing any associated risks.”

    Trumka told CNN’s Matt Egan that while every option remains on the table, any ban would apply only to new gas stoves, not the gas stoves already in people’s homes. And he noted that the Inflation Reduction Act makes people eligible for a rebate of up to $840 to voluntarily switch to an electric stove.

    Defending his plan to bar Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff from sitting on the House Intelligence Committee, a committee Schiff chaired during the Democratic majority from early 2019 to the beginning of this year, McCarthy criticized Schiff on January 12 over his handling of the first impeachment of Trump. Among other things, McCarthy said: “Adam Schiff openly lied to the American public. He told you he had proof. He told you he didn’t know the whistleblower.”

    Facts First: There is no evidence for McCarthy’s insinuation that Schiff lied when he said he didn’t know the anonymous whistleblower who came forward in 2019 with allegations – which were subsequently corroborated – about how Trump had attempted to use the power of his office to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate Biden, his looming rival in the 2020 election.

    Schiff said last week in a statement to CNN: “Kevin McCarthy continues to falsely assert I know the Ukraine whistleblower. Let me be clear – I have never met the whistleblower and the only thing I know about their identity is what I have read in press. McCarthy’s real objection is we proved the whistleblower’s claim to be true and impeached Donald Trump for withholding millions from Ukraine to extort its help with his campaign.” Schiff also made this comment to The Washington Post, which fact-checked the McCarthy claim last week, and has consistently said the same since late 2019.

    The New York Times reported in 2019 that, according to an unnamed official, a House Intelligence Committee aide who had been contacted by the whistleblower before the whistleblower filed a formal complaint did not inform Schiff of the person’s identity when conveying to Schiff “some” information about what the person had said. And Reuters reported in 2019 that a person familiar with the whistleblower’s contacts said the whistleblower hadn’t met or spoken with Schiff.

    McCarthy could have fairly repeated Republican criticism of a claim Schiff made in a 2019 television appearance about the committee’s communication with the whistleblower; Schiff said at the time “we have not spoken directly with the whistleblower” even though it soon emerged that the whistleblower had contacted the committee aide before filing the complaint. (A committee spokesperson said at the time that Schiff had been merely trying to say that the committee hadn’t heard actual testimony from the whistleblower, but that Schiff acknowledged his words “should have been more carefully phrased to make that distinction clear.”)

    Regardless, McCarthy didn’t argue here that Schiff had been misleading about the committee’s dealings with the whistleblower; he strongly suggested that Schiff lied in saying he didn’t know the whistleblower. That’s baseless. There has never been any indication that Schiff had a relationship with the whistleblower when he said he didn’t, nor that Schiff knew the whistleblower’s identity when he said he didn’t.

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  • Pelosi Had Priests Attempt Exorcism Of Home After Attack On Husband: Daughter

    Pelosi Had Priests Attempt Exorcism Of Home After Attack On Husband: Daughter

    Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), a devout Catholic, had priests attempt an exorcism of her San Francisco home after the hammer attack there on husband Paul Pelosi, her daughter said.

    Paul Pelosi’s skull was fractured in the October home invasion and he continues to recover. David DePape, awaiting trial on attempted murder charges, reportedly told police he intended to kidnap and harm the lawmaker because she was second in line to the presidency. But she was in Washington at the time.

    “I think that weighed really heavy on her soul,” Alexandra Pelosi told The New York Times’ Maureen Dowd in a column published Saturday. “I think she felt really guilty. I think that really broke her. Over Thanksgiving, she had priests coming, trying to have an exorcism of the house and having prayer services.”

    The exact nature of the exorcism, a religious rite intended to expel evil, was not revealed. Or even whether an actual exorcism took place. Pelosi’s Washington office didn’t reply immediately to HuffPost’s request for comment early Tuesday.

    Pelosi took a ribbing from political opponents after her daughter’s revelation.

    “Will she also be coordinating [an exorcism] for the speaker’s office?” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) said, per the New York Post.

    A clergy member at Pelosi’s local Roman Catholic parish said his staff did not participate in an exorcism at her home, the tabloid reported.

    Pelosi and her husband were spotted recently at the Broadway play “Leopoldstadt.”

    “He’s been out a bit because the doctor said he has to have something to look forward to,” the lawmaker said last weekend. “So again, one day at a time.”

    Nancy Pelosi and Paul Pelosi pose backstage at the hit play “Leopoldstadt” on Broadway at The Longacre Theater on January 14, 2023, in New York City.

    Bruce Glikas via Getty Images

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  • Jan. 6 rioter who put feet on desk in Pelosi’s office convicted on all counts

    Jan. 6 rioter who put feet on desk in Pelosi’s office convicted on all counts

    A supporter of US President Donald Trump sits inside the office of US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi as he protest inside the US Capitol in Washington, DC, January 6, 2021.

    Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images

    An Arkansas man who was photographed during the Jan. 6 riot with his feet on a desk in then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, was found guilty on all counts Monday after brief jury deliberations.

    Richard Barnett faced eight charges stemming from the insurrection, including theft of government property. He said repeatedly in court last week that he regretted what transpired at the Capitol that day but did not consider his actions illegal.

    Barnett appears in images from the riot reclining in a chair in the speaker’s office, with his feet propped up, and what the government referred to as a “stun device” tucked in his pants. Before leaving Pelosi’s office, Barnett took an envelope that he later displayed for cameras outside the Capitol.

    In court on Friday, before the case was handed to the jury, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gordon pored over Barnett’s version of Jan. 6 and poked holes in his testimony, visibly angering Barnett.

    Barnett, who a day earlier had said he would apologize to Pelosi, D-Calif., if she were in court, admitted during cross-examination that when a police officer told him he needed to leave her office he replied: “You need to give up communism.”

    Barnett also admitted to telling an officer in the Capitol: “We’re in a war. You need to pick a side. Don’t be on the wrong side or you’re going to get hurt.”

    Richard ‘Bigo’ Barnett arrives at the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse for jury selection in his trial on January 10, 2023 in Washington, DC.

    Win Mcnamee | Getty Images

    Defending his actions, Barnett said he didn’t believe he had violated the law on Jan. 6.

    “I made some bad mistakes and I regret them but I don’t think I broke the law,” Barnett said Friday. “I feel like a f—— idiot.”

    Two years after the riot, the FBI and the Justice Department’s investigation into the Capitol attack has yielded 900 arrests and nearly 500 guilty pleas.

    — Dareh Gregorian contributed.

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  • CBS Weekend News, January 7, 2023

    CBS Weekend News, January 7, 2023

    CBS Weekend News, January 7, 2023 – CBS News


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    Kevin McCarthy elected House speaker on 15th round of voting; Rep. Jimmy Gomez babysits son amid Congressional chaos

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  • Kevin McCarthy elected House speaker on 15th round of voting

    Kevin McCarthy elected House speaker on 15th round of voting

    Kevin McCarthy elected House speaker on 15th round of voting – CBS News


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    After a historic 15 rounds of voting, Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy was finally elected as House speaker early Saturday morning. Christina Ruffini has the details.

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  • Brand New Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills Jokes About Vicious Attack On Paul Pelosi

    Brand New Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills Jokes About Vicious Attack On Paul Pelosi

    A brand new Republican member of Congress from Florida tweeted a shocking joke about the 2022 vicious home invasion beating of 82-year-old Paul Pelosi, husband of former House speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

    “Finally,” slammed new Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.), “one less gavel in the Pelosi house for Paul to fight with in his underwear.”

    The ugly tweet was apparently Mills’ version of a celebration of the ascendency to House speaker of Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

    Mills was also making fun of the brutal attack on Paul Pelosi, who was beaten with a hammer in the middle of the night last October by a violent Republican sympathizer allegedly out to get a list of Democratic targets.

    Suspect David DePape pleaded not guilty last month to six criminal charges in the attack, including attempted murder and elder abuse.

    Officials said DePape had planned to kidnap Nancy Pelosi — who was in Washington at the time of the attack — when he broke into the couple’s San Francisco home. Instead, law enforcement authorities said the 42-year-old defendant severely beat her husband with a hammer in an attack that was witnessed by two police officers. The assault shocked America.

    Pelosi was knocked unconscious and woke up in a pool of his own blood. He underwent surgery to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands.

    GOP conspiracists at the time spread wild conspiracy theories and tried in vain to baselessly spin the violence as a a gay tryst gone wrong.

    The message by Mills, who is an Army combat veteran, was retweeted by Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who said he wanted the public to “see the indecency that makes up the House GOP.”

    “He owes Speaker Pelosi an apology,” Swalwell added.

    Mills flippantly responded to Swalwell: “You owe America an apology.”

    Mills could not immediately be reached for comment.

    Mills was roundly bashed by critics. Twitter users’ responses to Mills appeared to be almost universally, scathingly negative.

    Mills apparently later deleted the tweet, but it had already been retweeted by countless aghast followers.

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  • Rep. Jimmy Gomez babysits son amid Congressional chaos

    Rep. Jimmy Gomez babysits son amid Congressional chaos

    Rep. Jimmy Gomez babysits son amid Congressional chaos – CBS News


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    When Rep. Jimmy Gomez brought his infant son to Capitol Hill this week, he expected a quick return home. But with the vote for House speaker dragging much longer than expected, Gomez found himself working overtime in both public duty and dad duty. Caitlin Huey-Burns has the story.

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  • 1/6: CBS News Weekender

    1/6: CBS News Weekender

    1/6: CBS News Weekender – CBS News


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    Catherine Herridge reports on new developments in the days-long battle to elect a new House speaker, the ongoing investigation into pipe bombs left on Capitol Hill ahead of the Jan. 6 riot, and which Broadway shows are closing.

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  • CBS Evening News, January 6, 2023

    CBS Evening News, January 6, 2023

    CBS Evening News, January 6, 2023 – CBS News


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    Kevin McCarthy gains votes in bitter House speaker fight; Autistic boy gifted $15,000 piano from stranger.

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  • Kevin McCarthy gains votes in bitter House speaker fight

    Kevin McCarthy gains votes in bitter House speaker fight

    Kevin McCarthy gains votes in bitter House speaker fight – CBS News


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    Support for Kevin McCarthy for House speaker is growing among Republicans as more than a dozen representatives flipped their support for the GOP leader after four days of votes. Nikole Killion has the details.

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  • Seventh vote about to begin as GOP’s McCarthy seeks deal

    Seventh vote about to begin as GOP’s McCarthy seeks deal

    WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives was poised Thursday to hold its seventh vote this week to elect a new speaker, as Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., sought to revive his embattled bid for the speaker’s gavel by agreeing to demands from key conservative holdouts.

    “I think everyone in the conversation wants to find a solution,” McCarthy said on his way into the House chamber. “What we’re doing is we’re having really good progress in conversation. I think everybody in the conversation wants to find a solution.”

    Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., gave up the gavel at noon on Tuesday, after Republicans took control of the chamber in November’s elections. The absence of a speaker has left the House in disarray, largely due to the fact that rank-and-file members can’t be sworn into office until a speaker is elected and cannot set up their local or Washington offices. This leaves all 434 members of the House technically still members-elect, not official voting representatives. 

    Ahead of Thursday’s votes, Democratic Party leaders berated Republicans for the party’s dysfunction, and emphasized the harm that going days without a House speaker was inflicting on the legislative branch and the nation.

    “We cannot organize our district offices, get our new members doing that political work of our constituent services, helping serve the people who sent us here on their behalf,” incoming Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., told reporters in the Capitol Thursday morning. “Kevin McCarthy’s ego in his pursuit of the speakership at all costs is drowning out the voices and the needs of the American people.”

    Democrats also emphasized that the absence of a speaker was threatening U.S. national security by keeping members of Congress from accessing classified intelligence that is only available to lawmakers after they have taken the oath of office, which none of them can take without a speaker.

    CNBC Politics

    Read more of CNBC’s politics coverage:

    “At the end of the day, all we are asking Republicans to do is to figure out a way for themselves to organize so the Congress can get together and do the business of the American people,” Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said at a press conference with Clark.

    She accused McCarthy of being “held hostage to his own ambitions.”

    “This is about your responsibility to organize government. It is fundamental to who we are as members of Congress,” Clark said.

    McCarthy, meanwhile, negotiated late into the night Wednesday with both allies and his opponents to try to strike a deal that would get him the gavel, following six failed votes over Tuesday and Wednesday.

    “I think we’re making progress,” McCarthy said on his way into the Capitol Thursday morning, according to NBC News. “I think people are talking and that’s a good sign. I think that’s very good. Look, we’re all working together, to find a solution.”

    McCarthy’s latest concessions paved the way for a new round of votes that are expected to begin Thursday at 12 p.m. ET.

    U.S. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) reacts on the floor of the House Chamber with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) as Democrats force the House to vote on whether to continue a late evening session against McCarthy’s wishes, while the competition for Speaker of the House continues, on the second day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 4, 2023 

    Jonathan Ernst | Reuters

    It was unclear, however, whether the promises made would translate into any shifts in the vote count on Thursday.

    The first major concession McCarthy agreed to Wednesday was a change to the rules to allow any member of the party to call for a vote on whether to replace the House speaker at any time, a far lower threshold than the current bar, according to NBC News.

    “Any one, any where, any time,” is how Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz, one of McCarthy’s staunchest opponents, described the new rule to NBC late Wednesday night.

    Gaetz also said McCarthy had agreed to name members of the far-right House Freedom Caucus to positions on key committees, including the powerful House Rules Committee, which controls which bills make it to the floor for a vote, and which bills languish indefinitely in committees.

    This change satisfied another demand from the far right, that its bloc of members be given more power to push their preferred bills to the House floor.

    Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) passionately addresses other conservative Republican members of the House in the middle of the House Chamber after a fourth round of voting still failed to elect U.S. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as new Speaker of the House on the second day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 4, 2023. 

    Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters

    McCarthy’s allies did not deny that he had agreed to new concessions, NBC reported, but they refused to confirm specifics.

    “The question is movement and positive movement,” Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-NC, told NBC News and other reporters camped outside the meeting rooms late Wednesday night. “We’ve had an afternoon turned evening of very positive discussions and there seems to be goodwill around Republicans and McCarthy that is shaping up in a very nice way.”

    The limited progress came after McCarthy had failed in six votes over two days to reach the minimum number needed to become speaker, in this case 218 votes, if all 434 incoming House members cast ballots.

    Not only had McCarthy failed to hit 218, but over the course of 48 hours, McCarthy’s support had actually shrunk from 203 to 201, after two members of his caucus, Florida Rep. Byron Donalds and Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz, changed their votes.

    Democrats, meanwhile, remained in lockstep throughout the votes, casting all 212 of their ballots unanimously every time for Jeffries.

    Incoming Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), incoming Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA) and incoming Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-CA) hold a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., December 13, 2022. 

    Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters

    This is a developing story and will be updated throughout the day.

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  • Today in History WED JAN 04

    Today in History WED JAN 04

    Today in History

    Today is Wednesday, Jan. 4, the fourth day of 2023. There are 361 days left in the year.

    Today’s Highlight in History:

    On Jan. 4, 2007, Nancy Pelosi was elected the first female speaker of the House as Democrats took control of Congress.

    On this date:

    In 1821, the first native-born American saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton, died in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

    In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his State of the Union address, called for legislation to provide assistance for the jobless, elderly, impoverished children and the disabled.

    In 1948, Burma (now called Myanmar) became independent of British rule.

    In 1964, Pope Paul VI began a visit to the Holy Land, the first papal pilgrimage of its kind

    In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson delivered his State of the Union address in which he outlined the goals of his “Great Society.”

    In 1974, President Richard Nixon refused to hand over tape recordings and documents subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee.

    In 1987, 16 people were killed when an Amtrak train bound from Washington, D.C., to Boston collided with Conrail locomotives that had crossed into its path from a side track in Chase, Maryland.

    In 1990, Charles Stuart, who’d claimed that he’d been wounded and his pregnant wife fatally shot by a robber, leapt to his death off a Boston bridge after he himself became a suspect.

    In 1999, Europe’s new currency, the euro, got off to a strong start on its first trading day, rising against the dollar on world currency markets. Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura took the oath of office as Minnesota’s governor.

    In 2002, Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Ross Chapman, a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, was killed by small-arms fire during an ambush in eastern Afghanistan; he was the first American military death from enemy fire in the war against terrorism.

    In 2006, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a significant stroke; his official powers were transferred to his deputy, Ehud Olmert (EH’-hood OHL’-murt). (Sharon remained in a coma until his death in January 2014.)

    In 2015, Pope Francis named 156 new cardinals, selecting them from 14 countries, including far-flung corners of the world, to reflect the diversity of the Roman Catholic church and its growth in places like Asia and Africa.

    Ten years ago: The new Congress passed a $9.7 billion bill to help pay flood insurance claims to homeowners, renters and businesses damaged by Superstorm Sandy. No. 10 Texas A&M beat No. 12 Oklahoma, 41-13, in the Cotton Bowl.

    Five years ago: The Trump administration moved to vastly expand offshore drilling from the Atlantic to the Arctic oceans with a five-year plan that would open up federal waters off of California for the first time in decades and possibly open new areas of oil and gas exploration along the East Coast. A massive winter storm roared into the East Coast, dumping as much as 17 inches of snow in some areas. The Dow Jones Industrial Average burst through the 25,000 mark, closing at 25,075.13 just five weeks after its first close above 24,000. Ray Thomas, a founding member of the British rock group the Moody Blues, died at his home south of London at the age of 76, months before the band would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

    One year ago: Nearly a year after the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, a poll by The Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that only about 4 in 10 Republicans recalled the attack by supporters of Donald Trump as violent or extremely violent; just 22% of Republicans said Trump bore significant responsibility for the riot. The government reported that a record 4.5 million Americans had quit their jobs in November, more evidence that the U.S. job market was bouncing back strongly from the coronavirus recession.

    Today’s Birthdays: Actor Barbara Rush is 96. Opera singer Grace Bumbry is 86. Actor Dyan Cannon is 84. Author-historian Doris Kearns Goodwin is 80. Country singer Kathy Forester (The Forester Sisters) is 69. Actor Ann Magnuson is 68. Rock musician Bernard Sumner (New Order, Joy Division) is 68. Country singer Patty Loveless is 66. Actor Julian Sands is 65. Rock singer Michael Stipe is 63. Actor Patrick Cassidy is 61. Actor Dave Foley is 60. Actor Dot Jones is 59. Actor Rick Hearst is 58. Singer-musician Cait O’Riordan is 58. Actor Julia Ormond is 58. Former tennis player Guy Forget (ghee fohr-ZHAY’) is 58. Country singer Deana Carter is 57. Rock musician Benjamin Darvill (Crash Test Dummies) is 56. Actor Josh Stamberg is 53. Actor Damon Gupton is 50. Actor-singer Jill Marie Jones is 48. Actor D’Arcy Carden is 43. Christian rock singer Spencer Chamberlain (Underoath) is 40. Actor Lenora Crichlow is 38. Comedian-actor Charlyne Yi is 37. MLB All-Star Kris Bryant is 30. Actor-singer Coco Jones is 25.

    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxToday in History

    Today is Wednesday, Jan. 4, the fourth day of 2023. There are 361 days left in the year.

    Today’s Highlight in History:

    On Jan. 4, 2007, Nancy Pelosi was elected the first female speaker of the House as Democrats took control of Congress.

    On this date:

    In 1821, the first native-born American saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton, died in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

    In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his State of the Union address, called for legislation to provide assistance for the jobless, elderly, impoverished children and the disabled.

    In 1948, Burma (now called Myanmar) became independent of British rule.

    In 1964, Pope Paul VI began a visit to the Holy Land, the first papal pilgrimage of its kind

    In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson delivered his State of the Union address in which he outlined the goals of his “Great Society.”

    In 1974, President Richard Nixon refused to hand over tape recordings and documents subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee.

    In 1987, 16 people were killed when an Amtrak train bound from Washington, D.C., to Boston collided with Conrail locomotives that had crossed into its path from a side track in Chase, Maryland.

    In 1990, Charles Stuart, who’d claimed that he’d been wounded and his pregnant wife fatally shot by a robber, leapt to his death off a Boston bridge after he himself became a suspect.

    In 1999, Europe’s new currency, the euro, got off to a strong start on its first trading day, rising against the dollar on world currency markets. Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura took the oath of office as Minnesota’s governor.

    In 2002, Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Ross Chapman, a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, was killed by small-arms fire during an ambush in eastern Afghanistan; he was the first American military death from enemy fire in the war against terrorism.

    In 2006, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a significant stroke; his official powers were transferred to his deputy, Ehud Olmert (EH’-hood OHL’-murt). (Sharon remained in a coma until his death in January 2014.)

    In 2015, Pope Francis named 156 new cardinals, selecting them from 14 countries, including far-flung corners of the world, to reflect the diversity of the Roman Catholic church and its growth in places like Asia and Africa.

    Ten years ago: The government reported that the nation’s jobless rate hit 5 percent in December 2007, a two-year high, fanning recession fears. Britney Spears lost custody of her two sons to ex-husband Kevin Federline a day after police and paramedics were called to her home.

    Five years ago: The new Congress passed a $9.7 billion bill to help pay flood insurance claims to homeowners, renters and businesses damaged by Superstorm Sandy. No. 10 Texas A&M beat No. 12 Oklahoma, 41-13, in the Cotton Bowl.

    One year ago: Nearly a year after the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, a poll by The Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that only about 4 in 10 Republicans recalled the attack by supporters of Donald Trump as violent or extremely violent; just 22% of Republicans said Trump bore significant responsibility for the riot. The government reported that a record 4.5 million Americans had quit their jobs in November, more evidence that the U.S. job market was bouncing back strongly from the coronavirus recession.

    Today’s Birthdays: Actor Barbara Rush is 96. Opera singer Grace Bumbry is 86. Actor Dyan Cannon is 84. Author-historian Doris Kearns Goodwin is 80. Country singer Kathy Forester (The Forester Sisters) is 68. Actor Ann Magnuson is 67. Rock musician Bernard Sumner (New Order, Joy Division) is 67. Country singer Patty Loveless is 66. Actor Julian Sands is 65. Rock singer Michael Stipe is 63. Actor Patrick Cassidy is 61. Actor Dave Foley is 60. Actor Dot Jones is 59. Actor Rick Hearst is 58. Singer-musician Cait O’Riordan is 58. Actor Julia Ormond is 58. Former tennis player Guy Forget (ghee fohr-ZHAY’) is 58. Country singer Deana Carter is 57. Rock musician Benjamin Darvill (Crash Test Dummies) is 56. Actor Josh Stamberg is 53. Actor Damon Gupton is 50. Actor-singer Jill Marie Jones is 48. Actor D’Arcy Carden is 43. Christian rock singer Spencer Chamberlain (Underoath) is 40. Actor Lenora Crichlow is 38. Comedian-actor Charlyne Yi is 37. MLB All-Star Kris Bryant is 31. Actor-singer Coco Jones is 25.

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  • Kevin McCarthy’s Reckoning

    Kevin McCarthy’s Reckoning

    Republicans today could take control of the House of Representatives, giving them a foothold of power in Washington from which to smother Joe Biden’s agenda and generally make life hell for the president and his family.

    Or they might not.

    It all depends on whether Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the GOP House leader, can lock down the final votes he needs to become speaker. As of this morning, McCarthy was short of the 218 required for a majority. He can afford to lose only four Republicans in the party-line vote if all members are present. So far, at least five and potentially more than a dozen far-right lawmakers remain opposed to McCarthy’s candidacy or are withholding their support.

    Should McCarthy falter on the first vote, to be taken shortly after the 118th Congress gavels into session at noon, the House would remain in a state of limbo. (Democrats and more than a few Republicans might call it purgatory.) Without a speaker, the House can do nothing. It cannot adopt the rules it will use to operate for the next two years; it cannot debate or pass legislation; it cannot form committees and name chairs; it cannot unleash the torrent of subpoenas that Republicans have vowed to send the Biden administration’s way. Without a speaker, in other words, the GOP has no majority.

    So for the moment, the functioning of the legislative branch depends on McCarthy’s ability to wrangle votes. And like any deadlocked negotiation on Capitol Hill, his—and the GOP’s—predicament could be resolved quickly, or it could endure for quite a while. If no candidate receives a majority of votes on the first ballot for speaker this afternoon—the only candidate who has a legitimate chance on that roll call is McCarthy—then the House must keep voting until someone does. McCarthy has said he will not drop out after the first ballot, effectively hoping to wear down his GOP opposition or cut deals that will secure him the votes he needs. (His office did not respond to a request for comment last night.) He has little hope of appealing to Democrats, who neither trust nor respect a Republican leader who has spent the past seven years cozying up to Donald Trump.

    Read: The new majority

    The vote for speaker is the most formal of congressional roll calls and lasts well over an hour. Beginning alphabetically by last name, the clerk calls out the name of each of the 435 members, who then reply verbally with the candidate of their choice. No speaker vote has gone to a second ballot in more than a century, leaving no modern precedent for what happens if McCarthy does not get the support of 218 members. He could strike a quick deal and win on a second ballot by nightfall, or the series of ballots could drag out for days or even weeks, especially if the House recesses so that Republicans can convene privately to figure out what to do.

    McCarthy is known for being affable but has no reputation for tactical or legislative brilliance. He has desperately tried to placate the five most ardent holdouts—a quintet that includes the Trump loyalist Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida—with concessions that would empower individual members at the expense of McCarthy’s sway as speaker. The most contentious of these involves what’s known as the “motion to vacate,” a mechanism by which members can force a vote to depose the speaker.

    Until recent years, the motion to vacate was a rarely used relic of procedural arcana. But in 2015, then-Representative Mark Meadows of North Carolina—an ambitious conservative who would go on to greater notoriety as Trump’s final chief of staff—dusted off the motion to vacate and essentially pushed Speaker John Boehner into retirement. When Democrats regained the House majority in 2019, Nancy Pelosi, who’d once again ascended to the speakership, engineered a rules change so that only members of the party leadership could deploy the motion to vacate. McCarthy was hoping to keep that change largely in place, but his GOP opponents have demanded that the House revert to the old rules, which would make it much easier for them to oust the speaker as soon as he antagonized them (say, by going around conservatives to pass legislation with Democrats). Over the weekend, McCarthy told Republicans he’d be willing to create a five-member threshold for forcing a vote on the speaker—a significant move on his part but still not as far as his critics on the right would like.

    Although the speaker vote today could be the most suspenseful in memory, McCarthy himself is not in an unfamiliar position. In 2015, he was the presumed successor to Boehner, but a poorly timed gaffe and mistrust among conservatives forced him to withdraw before the vote. He seems intent on avoiding that fate this time around. Nonetheless, McCarthy’s opponents see him as a stooge of the party establishment that they ran to dismantle; they also just don’t seem to like him very much. As yet, McCarthy has no real challenger. But the hardline holdouts have teased a mystery candidate who could step forward on the second ballot, and McCarthy’s ostensibly loyal second-in-command, Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana, could emerge as a potential consensus choice.

    “Governance will be a challenge,” Oklahoma’s Tom Cole, a longtime Republican lawmaker and McCarthy ally, told me a couple months ago. He said it back when Republicans seemed to be on the verge of a resounding midterm victory, one that likely would have smoothed McCarthy’s path to the speakership. Now it sounds like a significant understatement.

    The high likelihood is that eventually, perhaps even today, Republicans will claim the narrow House majority that they won at the polls. But even if McCarthy squeaks by on the first or second ballot, the party’s struggle simply to organize itself behind a leader won’t soon be forgotten. It will stand as a painful reminder of the GOP’s electoral underperformance in November, and, almost certainly, it will serve as a harbinger of a rocky two years to come.

    Russell Berman

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