#senate-republicans

#senate-republicans

(CNN)Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders gave a combative speech Tuesday evening in response to President Joe Biden's State of the Union address, drawing a sharp contrast with Biden as she delivered a series of blistering criticisms of the president.Sanders called Biden "unfit to serve as commander in chief," said his "weakness puts our nation and the world at risk" and described the political landscape in dire terms.

President Joe Biden and House Republicans have promised not to touch Social Security in their battle over cutting spending to address the nation's debt ceiling crisis.While that vow is intended to indicate support of the popular entitlement program, it could actually lead to financial disaster.Tens of millions of senior citizens and other recipients could see their benefits slashed by at least 20% within a decade.

A state Senate Republican is suing Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and 10 other Democrats over the upper chamber's Judiciary Committee vote against advancing Governor Kathy Hochul's pick of Judge Hector LaSalle to lead the state's highest court.The legal gambit, highly unusual for a typical state judiciary confirmation process, aims to force a floor vote LaSalle's nomination after it failed in the Judiciary Committee last month by a 10-9 vote.

Three closely watched ailing senators remain away from the Capitol this week and it's not clear when they will return.One of them, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, has spoken directly with some members of his leadership team and conveyed to them he is doing well and anxious to get back to work.

Nearly two years after President Biden nominated him to be ambassador to India, former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti may finally get a confirmation vote in the Senate.Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Thursday set up the process of holding a vote on Garcetti's nomination as soon as next week as the former mayor's chances of confirmation grow increasingly positive.

It's fair to say that many Republicans were hoping for a smoother opening day.Instead the House adjourned Monday without picking a speaker."The unsteadiness I see over there [in the House] concerns me.We get the majority, and then we start a circular firing squad," said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), a member of Republican leadership.

A Wednesday vote in the Senate would align with the House's plan to return that evening to start pushing the so-called omnibus across the finish line.And some senior aides think that whenever the spending package does make it to the House, the chamber could pull a late-night session, sending members home as quickly as possible to avoid the wintry weather.

As the year comes to a close, a spending bill to fund the government - and potentially reinstate the lapsed Child Tax Credit for 2023 - is in peril.Despite a huge push by Democrats to come to a compromise to rejuvenate the wildly popular Expanded Child Tax Credit, it appears that the plan, which lifted four million children out of poverty when it was in place, will not be included in this spending package.

McConnell touted the fact that the omnibus contains more money for the military than non-military domestic priorities.Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell participates in a Pop-Up Conversation with Punchbowl News at the AT&T Forum on March 31, 2022, in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell celebrated what he called a win for the GOP as lawmakers on Tuesday unveiled a sprawling government funding package that includes $858 billion in military spending and leaves out a Child Tax Credit expansion that Democrats and progressive advocates demanded.

Yet, McCarthy's decision to let Carlson access thousands of hours of Capitol footage from the riot has left a lingering cloud over his own leadership team, which was repeatedly pressed about the move as Carlson continues to downplay the violence of the siege by supporters of former President Donald Trump.

McConnell's standing as the longest serving Senate party leader stood in stark contrast to the situation of GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, who on the same day failed to attain the necessary votes to become speaker on a first House ballot.McConnell, meanwhile, achieved his record after beating back his first leadership challenge in November.

The legislation, led by Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.),Susan Collins (R-Maine), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), would ensure that the federal government recognizes a same-sex marriage, even if a couple moves to a state that doesn't do so.In addition, the bill would repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman and passed the Senate by an overwhelming margin.

President Joe Biden says the Inflation Reduction Act, which contains some $370 billion in climate spending, represents the most sweeping government investment in clean energy "ever, ever, ever."To ensure that investment is worthwhile, he'll need an equally unprecedented overhaul of federal rules and regulations.

Billionaire Warren Buffett, one of the wealthiest men in the world and the CEO of BNSF Railway's parent company, saw his wealth jump by nearly $1.4 billion in a single day earlier this week, a sum that could easily fund 15 days of paid sick leave for every rail worker in the United States.BNSF is one of the major railroad giants refusing to budge in contract negotiations with rail unions as they fight for 15 days of paid sick leave.

After Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.),Schumer proposes that the next position is the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, currently helmed by Stabenow (D-Mich.),followed by the chair of the Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee, a position currently held by Klobuchar (D-Minn.).