Capitol agenda: Jack Smith jumps into a Judiciary minefield

Indiana Republicans just showed what real conservatism looks like

Indiana Republicans' decision wasn’t just political defiance of Trump — it was a deliberate assertion of state authority.

If Democrat policies make energy affordable, why are they backtracking from them?

Why are they retreating?

Trump turns to primetime address to sell agenda

Morning Report is The Hill's a.m. newsletter. Subscribe here. In today's issue: ▪ Trump World rallies around Susie Wiles ▪ Jack Smith heads to Capitol Hill ▪ Hegseth rebuffs calls to release video ▪ Trump expands travel ban President Trump will leverage the bully pulpit

Transcript: America’s Three Media Crises and How to Fix Them

This is a lightly edited transcript of the December 16 edition of Right Now With Perry Bacon. You can watch the video here or by following this show on YouTube or Substack . Perry Bacon: I’m Perry Bacon and this is The New Republic show Right Now . I’m joined by Victor Pickard.

The New Republic’s Books of the Year 2025

Some of the books we chose this year touched familiarly big themes: the place of the United States in the Americas ; the weakness of democracy in the U.S. and what it would take to shore it up. And some are close-up, intimate studies of the subtlest changes in the relationships

The MAGA Crack-Up Is Overrated. MAGA Is Here to Stay.

There is an emerging conventional wisdom that MAGA is eating itself alive with internecine warfare between various politicians, pundits, thought leaders. People also point to the diminution of Trump as a tired, spent force as a reason for celebration. They want hope in a time

Senate GOP grows uneasy as Pentagon’s Kelly investigation escalates

Senate Republicans are growing increasingly uneasy with the Pentagon’s investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced his office is escalating its probe into him. The Defense Department announced Monday the review into Kelly has

How Labor Scored a Surprising Win in the GOP-Controlled House

Something unusual happened last week that didn’t attract sufficient attention. It concerned the latest in what’s been a heartening recent series of House Republican rebellions against President Donald Trump. Congressional Republicans have bucked Trump lately by voting to

GOP senators break with Hegseth over video of missile strike on survivors

Republican senators are openly questioning Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s decision not to release the full video of a Sept. 2 follow-up strike on two survivors of an initial military strike against a Venezuelan boat, second-guessing a key decision in the Trump

Crockett's Texas Senate bid divides Democrats

Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s (D-Texas) last-minute bid for Senate is dividing Democrats as the party looks to oust incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R). Crockett, a polarizing figure who has built a significant following through her viral attacks on President Trump and other Republicans,

As MAHA rages at EPA chemical policies, Zeldin seeks to reconcile

Leaders of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are seeking to reconcile as they face the wrath of some members of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement over recent chemical-related decisions. Last month, MAHA activists circulated a petition online calling for the

America’s Three Media Crises and How to Fix Them

You can watch this episode of Right Now With Perry Bacon above or by following this show on YouTube or Substack . You can read a transcript here . There are three crises afflicting America’s news media, according to Victor Pickard , a professor at the University of

AI Isn’t Just Spying on You. It’s Tricking You Into Spending More.

As if it’s not bad enough that artificial intelligence is coming for your job—or at least making it worse —and the data centers fueling it are raising your utility bills and destroying your environment . Turns out, AI is also spying on your shopping habits and using that

Trump Press Sec Goes Off Rails as Susie Wiles Fiasco Takes Worse Turn

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles gave numerous interviews to Vanity Fair that were way too candid about, well, everything. That prompted press secretary Karoline Leavitt to offer some rancid spin : She went full cult in praise of Trump. She dissembled lamely about “fake

Jack Smith wants to tell Congress about his Trump investigations. That comes with risks.

The House Judiciary Committee will question the former special counsel behind closed doors.

Greene says ‘dam is breaking’ on Trump’s influence on GOP

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said Monday that "the dam is breaking” on President Trump’s influence over the Republican Party. “I think the dam is breaking. Many Republicans may not have called him out, but last week, 13 Republicans voted with Democrats to overturn one of

Ocasio Cortez blasts boat strike briefings: 'That was a joke'

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) slammed briefings on recent strikes on alleged drug boats, calling them “a joke.” “Were you satisfied with the answers that — you’ve gotten so far today in these classified briefings —” journalist Pablo Manríquez asked Ocasio-Cortez in a

House won't vote on ObamaCare amendments after heated committee meeting

Republicans on the House Rules Committee on Tuesday shut the door on amendments to extend the expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies, effectively setting the stage for a surge in health insurance premiums as Congress leaves for winter recess later this week. A group of

No Sept. 2 boat strike video release for you

Welcome to The Hill's Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security The Big Story No Sept. 2 boat strike video release for you Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Democrats are battling over publicly releasing the video of the U.S.

Brown shooting person of interest cased area that morning: Police

A person of interest in the recent shooting at Brown University in Rhode Island cased the area Saturday morning, according to police “We believe that he was actually casing out this area to commit the crime,” Providence Police Department Chief Oscar Perez said during a press

Trump labels Maduro regime terrorist organization, orders blockade of sanctioned oil tankers

President Trump said Tuesday he would designate Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's regime a foreign terrorist organization and direct the blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and exiting Venezuela. Trump posted on Truth Social that he was ordering a "total and

Democrat wins Kentucky state Senate special election

Democrat Gary Clemons has won a special election to a fill a Kentucky state Senate seat, according to Decision Desk HQ. Clemons, president of United Steelworkers Local 1693 and an Army veteran, beat back challenges from Republican Calvin Leach, an Army veteran and former state

Rollins threatens Minnesota's SNAP benefits under new 'pilot program'

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins sent a letter on Tuesday to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) requiring him to conduct recertifications for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients in four counties. “As part of the recertification process, ensure SNAP

Republicans ready to jump off ObamaCare cliff

Click in for more news from The Hill {beacon} Health Care Health Care The Big Story Republicans ready to jump off ObamaCare cliff Republicans are gearing up to let enhanced ObamaCare subsidies expire at the end of the month. The deadline was Monday for people on Affordable

Watch live: Trump participates in Hanukkah celebration from White House

President Trump will participate in a Hanukkah celebration at the White House Tuesday evening. The event comes as Jewish groups in the U.S. have urged their counterparts to increase security precautions after an attack during a Hanukkah celebration on Bondi Beach in Sydney,

Biden: 'If we don't lead, who leads the world? Russia? China?'

Former President Biden, during a Monday meet-and-greet event for his presidential library, urged the United States to press ahead as a world leader. “If we don't lead, who leads the world? Russia? China?” Biden asked. “We have to. We owe it to our own families, we owe it to

Fitzpatrick declines to turn off ACA discharge petition as amendment talks drag on

The big challenges facing banks

Presented by the Bank Policy Institute — {beacon} Business & Economy Business & Economy PRESENTED BY THE BANK POLICY INSTITUTE The Big Story Bank experts tackle changes facing industry, consumers The banking sector is changing fast, with policymakers, industry leaders and

Susie Wiles comes under the spotlight after Vanity Fair remarks

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles is grappling with a controversy of her own making after she made a number of startling admissions in a series of interviews with Vanity Fair. In an article published Tuesday that drew on 11 interviews with Wiles over the past year, the

UK lawmaker: BBC should 'stick by their guns' against Trump defamation suit

A British lawmaker on Tuesday urged the BBC to "stick by their guns" in its new legal fight with President Trump, who sued the media company and claimed it edited a speech he gave to supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, before the U.S. Capitol attack. "I think it's right that the BBC

Warner Bros. Discovery preparing to tell shareholders: Back Netflix deal over Paramount

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), the massive media conglomerate that owns HBO, CNN and a number of other top brands in news and entertainment, is preparing to advise its top shareholders to reject a bid from Paramount to buy the company and back a planned deal with Netflix

Get up to SPEED on today's floor drama

{beacon} Energy & Environment Energy & Environment The Big Story Permitting bill advances after hardliner pushback A group of hardline conservatives in the House on Tuesday threatened to block a permitting reform bill, but ended their saber-rattling and voted to advance the

Republican tensions boil over as ObamaCare deadline approaches

Republican tensions boiled over Tuesday in the Capitol over the fate of expiring ObamaCare subsidies that could play an outsized role in the race for the House next year. Republican moderates lashed out at House GOP leadership just hours after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)

The Memo: White House closes ranks around Susie Wiles amid Vanity Fair furor

President Trump led an effort to close ranks around White House chief of staff Susie Wiles on Tuesday, seeking to contain damage of Wiles’s own making. The furor was kicked off by a move that stunned Washington. Wiles — known both for a relative aversion to the spotlight and

2 additional Heritage Foundation board members leave amid Carlson-Fuentes fallout

Two more Heritage Foundation board of trustees members resigned Tuesday in the wake of the conservative think tank's president defending an interview between conservative pundit Tucker Carlson and white nationalist Nick Fuentes. "No institution that hesitates to condemn

Hegseth, Democrats battle over Sept. 2 boat strike video release

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Democrats are battling over publicly releasing the video of the U.S. military’s Sept. 2 attack on an alleged drug-trafficking boat in the Caribbean, a controversial operation in which two boatwrecked survivors were killed, spurring war crime

Susie Wiles May Have Screwed Trump’s Revenge Quest on Letitia James

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles may have just ruined any chance President Donald Trump had of reviving his administration’s indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James. In a wildly candid interview with Vanity Fair published Tuesday, Wiles admitted that Trump’s

Sen. Chris Murphy after boat strike briefing: There's 'no fentanyl' and 'no legal justification'

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Tuesday’s classified briefing with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirms the Trump administration has no legal or national security justification for the strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and

Makary denies plans for COVID-19 black box warning

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary on Monday denied recent reports suggesting plans for his agency to add a black box warning to COVID-19 vaccines. CNN reported last week that the FDA was considering adding a black box warning to the COVID-19 vaccine,

Federal judge disinclined to temporarily halt White House ballroom construction

A federal judge said Tuesday he is not inclined to temporarily halt President Trump’s White House ballroom construction project at the request of a preservationist group that sued. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, said the

Mick Foley cuts ties with WWE, says Trump's Reiner comments 'final straw'

WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley said Tuesday he is cutting ties with the professional wrestling organization, citing its close relationship with the Trump administration. Foley, who’s long been critical of President Trump, said the president’s comments on the death of acclaimed

Trump critics note Charlie Kirk in ripping remarks over Rob Reiner

President Trump is facing backlash from both ends of the political spectrum for his response to the killings of director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, with some critics arguing the president’s words were particularly troublesome in the wake of conservative

House GOP pushes major permitting bill through key vote

ICE denies pulling over Omar's son, accuses lawmaker of 'PR stunt'

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Tuesday that its officials did not pull over Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-Minn.) son and accused her of a “PR stunt.” “[Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)] has absolutely ZERO record of its officers or agents pulling over

South African authorities raid US refugee facility

South African authorities raided a U.S. refugee facility in Johannesburg, briefly detaining U.S. staff who have been processing white Afrikaner refugees. The episode is sure to be a source of further tension between U.S. and South African officials who have denied claims from

FDA warns major retailers over recalled baby formula sales

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) called on food industry companies to strengthen their recall compliance practices, less than a month after recalled ByHeart infant formula was found on shelves. In a Monday letter to industry leaders, Donald Prater — the FDA’s principal

Live results: Democrats seek to defend Kentucky state Senate seat in special election

Democrats are looking to hold onto a state Senate seat in Kentucky that was vacated earlier this year when David Yates stepped down to serve as Jefferson County Clerk. The special election Tuesday night pits Democrat Gary Clemons, an Army veteran and union leader, against

Trump expands travel ban, targeting Syria, South Sudan and others

President Trump on Tuesday signed a proclamation expanding the scope of his administration’s ban on travel into the United States from various countries, targeting Syria and those from the Palestinian territory. The proclamation adds “full restrictions and entry limitations” on

Republican Forced to Answer How Many Somalis He Represents Are Garbage

Minnesota Republican Representative Tom Emmer was asked directly if he agreed with President Trump’s assessment that the thousands of Somali residents he represents are “garbage.” He couldn’t give a straight answer. “Mr. Emmer, do you agree with President Trump that say[s]