Month: January 2024

Haley calls Trump attorney’s argument against legal charges ‘ridiculous’

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Former Ambassador Nikki Haley responded to a Trump attorney’s defense of his immunity from legal charges as president as "ridiculous" during the last GOP presidential debate before the Iowa caucuses. 

"Do you agree with the argument Donald Trump's lawyer made in court that a president should have immunity for any conduct, including in ordering the assassination of a political rival unless that president is impeached and convicted by the Senate for that offense first?" CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Haley during a debate on Wednesday night. 

"No, that's ridiculous," Haley responded. "That's absolutely ridiculous. I mean, we need to use some common sense here. You can't go and kill a political rival and then claim, you know, immunity from a president. I think we have to start doing things that are right and you know Ron said we should have leaders that we can look up to. Well, then stop lying, because nobody's going to want to look up to you if you're lying."

Haley continued, "But what I do think we need to look at is what has President Trump done? You look at the last few years and our country is completely divided. It's divided over extremes. It's divided over hatred. It's divided over the fact that people think that if someone doesn't agree with you that they're bad. And now we have leaders in our country that decide who's good and who's bad, who's right, and who's wrong, that's not what a leader does. What a leader does is they bring out the best in people and get them to see the way forward."

HALEY, DESANTIS FIRE SHOTS AT TRUMP IN HEAD-TO-HEAD DEBATE: ‘HE DID NOT DELIVER’

The question from Tapper to Haley was in reference to a comment from Trump lawyer D. John Sauer this week in a Washington D.C. courtroom where he answered with a "qualified yes" when asked if Trump’s immunity from prosecution as president would apply if Trump "ordered S.E.A.L. Team 6 to assassinate a political rival."

"He would have to be impeached and convicted," Sauer argued.

JUDGE JUDY ENDORSES NIKKI HALEY FOR PRESIDENT: 'SHE IS WHIP SMART...SHE IS THE FUTURE'

Sauer said, "There's a political process that would have to occur under the structure of our Constitution which would require conviction and impeachment by the Senate in these exceptional cases, as the OLC memo itself points out from the Department of Justice you'd expect a speedy impeachment and conviction."

Sauer argued before a federal appeals court Tuesday that the president has "absolute immunity," even after leaving office — an argument that the judges appeared to be skeptical of.

Judge Karen Henderson, an appointee of former President George H.W. Bush, fired back, saying: "I think it’s paradoxical to say that his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed allows him to violate criminal law." 

But Sauer argued that Biden, "the current incumbent of the presidency is prosecuting his number one political opponent and his greatest electoral threat."

Meanwhile, Special Counsel Jack Smith's team argued that presidents are not entitled to absolute immunity and that Trump’s alleged actions following the November 2020 election fall outside a president’s official job duties.

"The president has a unique constitutional role but he is not above the law. Separation of powers principles, constitutional text, history, precedent and immunity doctrines all point to the conclusion that a former president enjoys no immunity from prosecution," prosecutor James Pearce said, adding that a case in which a former president is alleged to have sought to overturn an election "is not the place to recognize some novel form of immunity."

Fox News Digital reached out to the Trump campaign for comment but did not immediately receive a response. 

Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman contributed to this report

Trump says Biden brought ‘chaos’ to US, vows to bring ‘success’ in possible second term

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Former President Trump, if elected to a second term, said he would alleviate the "chaos" brought to the nation by the Biden administration by securing the southern border, bringing America back to energy independence, strengthening the economy and expanding and strengthening the military.

Trump, the 2024 GOP frontrunner, participated in a Fox News Town Hall Wednesday night in Des Moines, Iowa, just days before the highly-anticipated first-in-the-nation primary contests in the Hawkeye State on Jan. 15.

Trump, who leads the Republican primary field by a massive margin, stands at or above 50% support in the latest polls in Iowa. 

The town hall was co-moderated by "Special Report" chief political anchor Bret Baier and "The Story" executive editor and anchor Martha MacCallum. 

TRUMP ON POTENTIAL 2024 VP PICK: 'I KNOW WHO IT'S GOING TO BE'

Trump took questions from Iowa voters on a number of issues, but said President Biden has brought "chaos" to the country.

"They have chaos at the border. They have chaos in the military. People are going woke," Trump said. "We have chaos now. Look at today with Hunter Biden going into Congress and just sitting down and the bedlam that’s been caused today. You have chaos." 

Trump said the country has "more" chaos with Biden than under his presidency.

"He can’t put two sentences together and he’s representing us on nuclear weapons with Putin and Xi and all of these very smart people—the media hates when I say they’re smart, but let me tell you, they’re very smart and they’re very cunning," Trump said.

"I think we had very little chaos," Trump said, reflecting on his administration. "I think most of the chaos was caused by the Democrats constantly going after me." 

Trump went on to point to the "phony Russia, Russia, Russia" investigation; his impeachments; and more.

"They had the chaos. They were the ones that caused the chaos," Trump said. "We didn’t have chaos." 

Trump said that under his presidency, the United States saw the "biggest tax cuts in history" and "the biggest regulation cuts in history." 

TRUMP STARTS 2024 IN ‘STRONGEST POSSIBLE POSITION’ IN REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY RACE

"I had no wars. I’m the only president in 72 years—I didn’t have any wars," Trump said. 

But Trump said Biden and Democrats use the "narrative" that he would bring chaos "because they have nothing else."

"The new narrative they have, as you know, is I’m going to be a dictator, because a guy like Biden, there’s nothing he can run on—everything he’s turned out, it’s turned out badly," Trump said.

Trump said under Biden, the border "is a disaster" and "the worst border in history."

"I think the worst border in the history of the world," Trump said.

In Fiscal Year 2023 alone, border officials encountered nearly 2.5 million migrant encounters at the southern border--including 600,000 getaways, and 249 people on the terror watch list. 

The GOP frontrunner said that if elected, his second term would begin by "immediately" terminating "every open borders policy of the Biden administration."

In September, Trump announced his plans to carry out "the largest domestic deportation operation in American history" if he is elected to a second term.

Additionally, he plans to "invoke the Alien Enemies Act to remove all known or suspected Gang Members, drug dealers, or Cartel Members from the United States"—an effort he says will end the "scourge of illegal alien gang violence once and for all."

Meanwhile, Trump was asked to respond to Biden’s claims, and to say that political violence is "never acceptable."

"Well, of course, that’s right," Trump said. "And of course, I’m the one who had very little of it. Take a look at wars again—I didn’t start—I wasn’t involved in wars. We beat the hell out of ISIS. We won 100%. We brought our troops back home."

He added: "Look at the violence that we’ve had recently."

COURT DATES AND PRIMARIES: TRUMP FACES COMPETING CALENDARS IN 2024

Trump went on to say that Biden’s presidency is "bedlam."

"You have a man who can’t lead. You have a man who can’t find his way off a stage after he makes a speech that lasts for about two minutes," Trump said. "Now, I think bedlam is Joe Biden."

Trump said Biden is using a "political ploy" by claiming that he "wants to be a dictator."

But as for being a "dictator," Trump joked that he would be—but only for one day.

"I’m going to be a dictator for one day. We’re going to do two things: the border—we’re going to make it so tight, you can’t get in unless you come in legally—and the other, we’re going to drill, baby, drill," Trump said. "After that, I’m not going to be a dictator after that. I’m not going to be a dictator."

TRUMP FIRES BACK AT JAN. 6 CRITICISM, SAYS BIDEN IS A 'TRUE THREAT TO DEMOCRACY'

But Trump, who said he has "gotten to know Washington," and who said "everybody wants to come work for us" in a possible second term, said he was "not going to have time for retribution."

"I'm not going to have time for retribution," Trump said. "We’re going to make this country so successful again. I'm not going to have time for retribution." 

He added: "And remember this, our ultimate retribution is success…There won't be retribution. There will be success."

Moving onto the economy, Trump said it is "horrible, except the stock market's going up." 

"And I think the stock market's got markets going up because I'm leading Biden in all of the polls-- every poll, every single poll for in states that normally are not easy to lead," Trump said. "But I would say this we have a situation in which I believe the stock market goes up because I'm leading. I think if I wasn't leading, the stock market would be 25% lower. And I think, frankly, if I didn't win, I think the stock market would crash." 

Moderator Bret Baier pointed to comments Trump made this month in which he said if there is a crash of the stock market, he hoped it would be during "this next 12 months because I don’t want to be Herbert Hoover. The one president I just don’t want to be, Herbert Hoover."

On Wednesday, Trump clarified, saying that he believes "there will be a crash if I don't win." 

TRUMP EDGES BIDEN AGAIN IN NEW 2024 POLL, BUILDS SUPPORT WITH YOUNGER VOTERS

"And I say that and I do not want to be Herbert Hoover. You know, Herbert Hoover was 1929. He was the president. And that was not a good time to be. I don't want to be Herbert Hoover and I won't be Herbert Hoover," Trump said. 

Trump has been criticized as a "big government Republican" by his GOP opponents for adding $8 trillion to the national debt during his tenure, but he defended his record--especially during the coronavirus pandemic. 

"I say very simply, we were starting to pay down debt," Trump said. "We were going to pay down a lot of debt when COVID came along. If I didn't inject this country with money, you would have had a depression, the likes of which you have never seen."

Trump continued, "You had to inject money. We gave businesses that were going bankrupt, temporarily bankrupt, but they needed money. We helped businesses. If I didn't do that, you would have had a depression in this country. That was a very good investment. And now what they should be doing instead of the kind of debt that they're building at record levels, they should be paying down their debt and they ought to go into the energy business instead of this Green New Scam business that they're in."

Meanwhile, as for a running mate, Trump said he's already made his pick. 

"I can't tell you that really, I mean, I know who it's going to be," Trump said. 

"We'll do another show sometime," Trump said when pushed by host Martha MacCallum to "give us a hint."

"What about any of the people who you've run against?" MacCallum asked. "Would you be open to mending fences with any of them?"

"Oh, sure. I will, I will," Trump responded. 

GOP lawmakers threaten to hold government funding until border is secured

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Republican lawmakers threatened to hold up government funding in exchange for stronger border security during a press conference led by Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-M.D., Wednesday afternoon. 

A bipartisan group of lawmakers began talks with White House officials in December, but have been unsuccessful in reaching a deal.

"What you're going to start witnessing is the House of Representatives doing whatever we can with the tools that are available to us to let the administration know that they are not going to get additional funding for their priorities until we see a secure border," Rosendale told reporters. 

On Jan. 19, funding will expire for several federal departments, including Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Energy, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. 

SENATE NOT EXPECTED TO RELEASE TEXT ON BORDER PACKAGE THIS WEEK

On Feb. 2, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Defense Departments will also run out of funding. Congress may have to pass a continuing resolution, known as a CR, to keep agencies temporarily funded until a full budget is agreed upon.

"Don't tell me this is for want of federal legislation. This is for want of an utter, defiant, lawless refusal to enforce our border," Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, a member on the upper chamber's budget committee, told reporters on Wednesday. 

"I tell President Biden, secure the border or shut it down. We're not going to continue to fund your government as if nothing had changed, when we've got this crisis unfolding on monumental proportions, whether it's all of government or just the White House toilet paper budget — I don't know — but there have to be consequences for him doing this."

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., also in attendance, said the only way to get border security passed is "to hold up whatever we can, whether it's Ukraine funding, whatever it is they want, and say we don't get that funding unless we get a secure border."

DEMS, GOP AT STANDSTILL ON BORDER SECURITY DEAL WITH SEVERAL ‘UNANSWERED ISSUES’ REMAINING

"Otherwise … we're going to continue to have an open border," he said.

Rep. Cory Millis, R-Fl., told reporters, "No American should be told that we must pay to secure the borders of another nation in order to negotiate to secure our own."

Lankford, alongside other lead negotiators Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., began negotiations with U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and other Biden officials a week before the upper chamber was scheduled to go on its holiday recess.

Republicans want several measures included in a deal, including more restrictions on parole and reforming how asylum is granted, making the process more stringent for qualifying for asylum. They also want to increase detention beds and the presence of parole agents.

Lawmakers hope to strike a deal that will tie border security measures into the national supplemental funding request that would provide some $60 billion to Ukraine and $14 billion to Israel. But GOP lawmakers have insisted that either the supplemental or government funding have some border security conditions attached to it. 

Many hours of private negotiations have transpired since the talks began last month, but no deal has been agreed upon so far. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., spoke with President Biden about the worsening crisis at the southern border on Wednesday, too, urging him to use his "executive authority to secure the southern border," according to Johnson's spokesman Raj Shah. 

REPUBLICANS ACCELERATE PROBE INTO BIDEN ADMINISTRATION'S ACTIONS TO HOUSE MIGRANTS ON FEDERAL LANDS

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There were over 302,000 migrant encounters in December, after fiscal year 2023 saw a record 2.4 million encounters overall. A recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement report said the agency removed 142,580 illegal immigrants in fiscal year 2023, up considerably from 72,177 in fiscal year 2022 and 59,011 in fiscal year 2021, but still down from the highs of 267,258 under the Trump administration in fiscal year 2019.

Fox News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report. 

Fox News Politics: 2024 GOP field shrinks

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.

What's Happening? 

- President Trump participates in Fox News town hall at 9 p.m. ET

- Clinton, Newsom seen in Mexico amid Epstein doc drops

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie suspended his presidential campaign, saying "it's clear to me tonight that there isn't a path for me to win the nomination."

Hunter Biden unexpectedly appeared with his attorneys at the House Oversight Committee's meeting Wednesday morning to consider the resolution that would set up a full House vote on whether to hold him in contempt of Congress for defying a congressional subpoena as part of the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden.

Biden and his attorneys Abbe Lowell and Kevin Morris came to Capitol Hill to sit in the audience as lawmakers on the panel considered whether to pass the resolution out of committee. Biden and his attorneys ultimately left before the vote on the resolution. 

In the chaos that unfolded as Biden walked out, reporters peppered him with questions while an unidentified man shouted asked him, "Are you on crack today?"

'UNACCEPTABLE': White House under fire for housing migrants on national park lands …Read more

'COMPLETE DERELICTION': Former military pilots in Congress call for Austin's resignation …Read more

HOUSE BROKEN: GOP rebels plunge House into chaos amid government spending standoff …Read more

'WORKING FOR JOE BIDEN': Angry House Republicans at odds over hardliners' threat to fire Speaker Johnson …Read more

'NO BALLS': Nancy Mace shreds Hunter Biden during surprise Capitol Hill appearance …Read more

'POLITICAL SHAM': Homeland Dems take aim at GOP ahead of Mayorkas impeachment hearing …Read more

'DEEPLY DISTURBED': Bipartisan lawmakers urge Bernie Sanders hold committee hearing on antisemitism on campus …Read more

MOTION TO VACATE: Chip Roy makes pointed threat at Mike Johnson's leadership …Read more

ASSAULT AND MISCHIEF: Lauren Boebert's ex arrested after altercation with congresswoman …Read more

'MADNESS NEEDS TO END': Stefanik slams NYC for shifting students to remote learning to house migrants at high school …Read more

TOO 'FAR LEFT': Former NM Democrat sheriff switches parties, launches bid for Senate …Read more

ZOOM ZOOM: Former NASCAR driver, GOP candidate gets endorsement from House speaker …Read more

TRUMP TO IOWA: Trump to participate in Fox News town hall …Read more

TRUMP STAYS: Another state court rejects effort to bar GOP front-runner from 2024 ballot …Read more

‘TOTALLY COMPROMISED’: Trump blasts Fulton County prosecutor Fani Willis after romantic partner allegations …Read more

BRAGGING RIGHTS: Indiana Gov. Holcomb touts strong manufacturing, health initiatives in final state address …Read more

PALLING AROUND: Clinton, Newsom seen palling around in Mexico amid Epstein doc release …Read more

ICYMI: Trump attorney goes low, House GOP goes bonkers

Posted on by Jen Hayden

House Oversight Committee explodes as Hunter Biden crashes their party

The president’s son called their bluff, and Republicans folded like a cheap suit.

Watch Rep. Jared Moskowitz call GOP’s bluff on Hunter Biden

This Florida Democrat is developing a habit of embarrassing Republicans on the House Oversight Committee.

Judge rescinds permission for Trump to give his own closing argument at his civil fraud trial

Judge Arthur Engoron’s patience is running thin with a defendant who refuses to play by the rules.

Watch AOC slam Rep. Nancy Mace's rant on white privilege

Oh my goodness, bless Nancy’s heart.

Rep. Raskin tells Marjorie Taylor Greene she's the 'porn expert' on the committee

The thin-skinned “gentlelady” from Georgia brought her “I want to speak with the manager” energy.

Cartoon: Clay Bennett on the NRA

A look at Wayne LaPierre’s resignation letter to the NRA.

More top stories:

Trump attorney defends the right to assassinate political opponents

If this sounds like Trump’s attorney is saying a president could order a hit on a political opponent and never face prosecution unless his own party supported his impeachment, that’s exactly what he’s saying.

Maine renews effort to elect president by national popular vote

Democrats are making a new push for a huge change to presidential elections.

2023 was the hottest year in human history. 2024 is already setting records

Even the cold weather the United States is experiencing at the moment could be directly related to the way the climate crisis is warming the Arctic.

GOP gerrymandering targeted two Black women. Now they're facing off in a primary

This shouldn't be happening in the first place, but the GOP played dirty and here we are.

Senate inches closer to border deal. Will House GOP and Trump kill it?

Republicans need to decide whether they stand with Ukraine or with Donald Trump.

Click here to see more cartoons.

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House committees formally recommend to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

The House Oversight Committee and the House Judiciary Committee passed resolutions to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress for defying a congressional subpoena as part of the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden, setting up a full vote on the House floor in the coming days that would recommend the first son for prosecution.

The vote at the House Judiciary Committee was 23-14. 

The House Oversight Committee vote was 25-21. 

The House Judiciary Committee's resolution and the House Oversight Committee's resolution will go to the House Rules Committee. 

It is unclear, at this point, whether each committee's resolution will be considered on the floor for a full vote, or if the House Rules Committee will combine both resolutions into one for consideration for a contempt of Congress vote. 

A source familiar tells Fox News Digital a full House floor vote could come as early as next week.

HUNTER BIDEN MAKES SHOCKING APPEARANCE AT HIS OWN CONTEMPT HEARING

Hunter Biden made a surprise appearance at the House Oversight Committee markup with his attorneys Abbe Lowell and Kevin Morris. 

Hunter Biden, ahead of his subpoenaed deposition on Dec. 13, had offered to testify publicly. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan rejected his request, stressing that the first son would not have special treatment and pointed to the dozens of other witnesses that have appeared, as compelled, for their interviews and depositions. Comer and Jordan vowed to release the transcript of Hunter Biden’s deposition.

The first son, though, defied the subpoena, ignored the offer and delivered a public statement outside the Capitol. At the time, he said his "father was not financially involved in my business." 

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Wednesday that Hunter Biden "blantantly defied two lawful subpoenas." 

Comer said "Hunter Biden’s willful refusal to comply with the committees’ subpoenas is a criminal act" that "constitutes contempt of Congress and warrants referral to the appropriate United States Attorney’s Office for prosecution as prescribed by law."

HOUSE GOP SAYS HUNTER BIDEN ‘VIOLATED FEDERAL LAW' BY DEFYING SUBPOENA, PREPARE CONTEMPT RESOLUTION

"We will not provide Hunter Biden with special treatment because of his last name," Comer said. "All Americans must be treated equally under the law. And that includes the Bidens." 

During the meeting Wednesday, lawmakers acknowledged Biden was in the audience, with Democratic lawmakers asking to have Biden take questions during the session — a request Republicans rejected. 

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., said if the committee wants to hear from Biden, the panel should vote and "hear from Hunter right now." 

"Who wants to hear from Hunter right now, today? Anyone? Come on," Moskowitz said. "Who wants to hear from Hunter? Yeah, no one. So I'm a visual learner, and the visual is clear. Nobody over there wants to hear from the witness." 

WHITE HOUSE MUM ON WHETHER HUNTER BIDEN GAVE ADVANCED NOTICE HE WOULD APPEAR AT HOUSE CONTEMPT MEETING

Biden and his attorneys ultimately left the markup session before the vote on the resolution. 

"Hunter chose a hearing where Republicans could not distort manipulate, or misuse that testimony," his attorney Abbe Lowell said, calling the move to consider a resolution to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress "unprecedented" in light of his offer to "publicly answer all their proper questions." 

"The question there is, what are they afraid of?" Lowell asked, before departing the Capitol. 

Meanwhile, the White House refused to answer questions on whether it was told in advance that Hunter Biden would attend the House Oversight's mark-up session on Wednesday. 

"So here's what I'll say. And I've said this many times before: Hunter, as you all know, as a private citizen, he's not a member of this White House," Jean-Pierre said. "He makes his own decisions like he did today about how to respond to Congress."

She went on to refer "any further questions, any additional questions about this process" to Hunter Biden’s attorneys.

When pressed again on whether the White House was informed in advance, Jean-Pierre said: "I don’t have anything — we don’t have anything else to share beyond that."

Last month, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, expanded their investigation to probe whether President Biden was involved in his son's "scheme" to defy his subpoena for deposition earlier this month, which, they say, "could constitute an impeachable offense." 

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

House GOP advances effort to hold Hunter Biden in contempt

Posted on by Congress

House Republicans are one step closer to holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress after he skipped a closed-door deposition last month.

The House Judiciary Committee voted 23-14, along party lines, to send a resolution and a report recommending the president’s son be held in contempt to the full House. The Oversight Committee is also expected to vote on Wednesday.

It paves the way for a dramatic showdown on the House floor, where Republicans will need near total unity among their two-vote majority to refer the president’s son to the Justice Department. Should they get there, DOJ will ultimately decide if Hunter Biden – who is already facing two criminal cases– will get slapped with new charges.

“He blatantly defied two lawful subpoenas. Hunter Biden’s willful refusal to comply with the committee subpoenas is a criminal act,” Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) said on Wednesday.

Hunter Biden also made a brief surprise appearance at the Oversight Committee meeting, prompting GOP anger. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said in the room: "I think he should be hauled off to jail right now." He left as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) tried to start questioning him.

Speaker Mike Johnson, asked about the appearance, told reporters that doesn’t change that Hunter Biden hasn’t complied with the GOP’s subpoenas, and that he supports efforts to hold him in contempt. Spokespeople for Johnson didn’t immediately respond to a question on Wednesday about how quickly a vote could be scheduled on a contempt resolution.

House Republicans view Hunter Biden as a top witness in their sweeping impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, which has largely focused on business deals by his family members. GOP investigators are in the final stages of that probe, which has also looked at Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents and the years-long federal investigation into Hunter Biden.

While the House GOP has found evidence of Hunter Biden using his last name to bolster his own influence, and poked holes in previous statements by Joe Biden and the White House they’ve struggled to find clear evidence that proves Joe Biden took actions as president or vice president that were meant to bolster his family’s business deals.

Republicans are starting off the year juggling priorities, including an effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that has gained new momentum after being on the backburner for months. That’s on top of calls to add Attorney General Merrick Garland and Defense Secretary Austin Lloyd to their list of Biden administration officials in line for impeachment.

At the same time, they’ve got a quickly approaching Jan. 19 deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown, with no plan yet for how to avoid it.

Wednesday’s vote comes after Republicans subpoenaed Hunter Biden late last year to meet with congressional investigators on Dec. 13. Instead, he skipped the closed-door interview, speaking briefly to reporters outside the Capitol to defend his father and reiterate that he would be willing to take part in a public hearing.

“Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics, expose their baseless inquiry, or hear what I have to say. What are they afraid of? I am here,” Hunter Biden said at the time.

The move angered congressional Republicans, who said they received no heads-up about the move. They had publicly warned that they would pursue contempt if he didn’t appear before the deposition.

Hunter Biden’s lawyers have defended their decision to not comply with the GOP subpoena, arguing that a closed-door hearing would set up the possibility that his testimony would be selectively leaked. His legal team, the White House and congressional Democrats have roundly criticized Republicans for pursuing contempt – reminding them of comments by Comer earlier last year where he appeared open to a public hearing.

“We are here today because the chairman has bizarrely decided to obstruct his own investigation and is now seeking to hold Hunter Biden in contempt after he accepted the chairman’s multiple public offers to come answer the committee’s questions under oath before the American people,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said at Wednesday’s Oversight hearing.

White House spokesperson Ian Sams said in a statement that “House Republicans are less than ten days from sparking a partial government shutdown that many of their far-right members are rooting for, but instead of working full-time to avoid it, they are wasting time on political stunts.”

Republicans have since rejected a public hearing, however, unless Hunter Biden first speaks with them behind closed doors.

Meanwhile, Hunter Biden is scheduled to appear in court in California on Thursday over federal tax charges. Republicans’ effort to hold him in contempt could force the DOJ to weigh another politically contentious decision.

Congress has held 10 people in contempt since 2008, but only two have faced federal charges, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Congressional investigators spoke with Hunter Biden’s art dealer this week. Republicans are also still working to set up a closed-door interview with Joe Biden’s brother, James Biden, whom they subpoenaed last year.

Posted in Uncategorized

McConnell unwittingly explains why Trump now owns the Republican Party

Posted on by Kerry Eleveld

During the same February 2021 impeachment trial speech in which Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called Donald Trump "practically and morally responsible" for the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, McConnell also argued that impeachment alone was never intended to be "the final forum" for justice.

"Trump is still liable for everything he did while he was in office—as an ordinary citizen," McConnell said as he sought to explain away the vote he had cast to acquit Trump.

"We have a criminal justice system in this country," McConnell continued. "We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being held accountable by either one."

Yet on Tuesday when McConnell was asked if he still believes Trump isn't immune from prosecution, McConnell dodged the question, choosing instead to reframe the legal query as an electoral matter.

"Well, my view of the presidential race is that I choose not to get involved in it, and comment about any of the people running for the Republican nomination," McConnell responded.

Q: “You had argued, after voting to acquit the former president that presidents are not immune from prosecution is that still your view?” McConnell: “I choose not to get involved...and comment about any of the people running for the Republican nomination.” pic.twitter.com/uhVut62se8

— Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) January 9, 2024

If anyone wonders why Trump now owns the GOP, they need look no further than the feckless leadership of McConnell, who has failed at every turn to challenge Trump's takeover of the party.

It's a point former Rep. Liz Cheney has made repeatedly during her book tour for "Oath and Honor." In the book, Cheney writes that McConnell originally seemed "firm in his view" that Trump should be impeached. But as the vote approached, he got squishy and ultimately folded.

“Leader McConnell, who had made a career out of savvy political calculation and behind-the-scenes maneuvering, got this one wrong,” Cheney writes.

After years of McConnell worship by Beltway journalists, the fact that he 100% whiffed on the most consequential issue of our time might finally be sinking into the psyche of some political journalists and analysts.

As former U.S. attorney, deputy assistant attorney general, and “Talking Feds” host Harry Litman noted this week on NPR's “Trump Trials” podcast, we would never be here if McConnell hadn't "blinked" on convicting Trump.

"When you think of all the forks in the road over the last several years, that one moment with McConnell who was obviously saying that [Trump] was guilty and should have been convicted, stands out to me as the absolute road not taken," Litman observed.

That would have been the most "straight-forward" and appropriate way for McConnell to have "solved this national nightmare," Litman added, "and he blinked."

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Republicans, Dems spar at Mayorkas impeachment hearing as state AGs describe impact of migrant crisis

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Republicans and Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee clashed at the first hearing to examine whether DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas should be impeached over his handling of the crisis at the southern border – and as state attorneys general explained how the crisis had harmed their states.

The committee held the first impeachment hearing at a time when the migrant crisis is setting records at the border, with over 302,000 migrant encounters in December, and a current release rate of over 85%. 

Republicans and Democrats have been deeply split over what has caused the crisis and those divisions were on display as Republicans pointed at the Biden administration, and Democrats accused Republicans of not working with them to fix the crisis. 

HOUSE HOMELAND DEMOCRATS BACK MAYORKAS, SLAM GOP ‘SHAM’ AHEAD OF IMPEACHMENT HEARING 

"Secretary Mayorkas has brazenly refused to enforce the laws passed by Congress and has enacted policies that knowingly make our country less safe," Chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn., said. "What we’re seeing here is a willful violation of the oath of office taken by Secretary Mayorkas."

Republicans have blamed an expanded catch-and-release, a rollback of Trump-era policies, an "abuse" of humanitarian parole to release migrants into the interior, and the ending of border wall construction as factors in what has encouraged a massive and historic migrant crisis. Green also said his committee’s investigation has uncovered 100 instances where Mayorkas has misled the public.

DHS and Democrats have rejected that narrative, pointing to what it says are a large number of recent removals and returns and saying that authorities need more funding and a comprehensive immigration reform package – including a $14 billion supplemental funding request currently being negotiated in Congress. 

Ranking member Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., accused Republicans of throwing "political red meat" to their base in an effort to keep campaign money coming in during an election year.

"It’s now campaign season, and Republicans recently rolled out their impeachment proceedings against the secretary like the pre-planned, pre-determined political stunt it is. This is not a legitimate impeachment," he said.

Thompson also defended Mayorkas' conduct in office.

"The facts show Secretary Mayorkas is doing his job across all the department’s many critical homeland security missions, including border security and immigration enforcement. Despite what Republicans would have Americans believe, Secretary Mayorkas is enforcing immigration law," he said.

Republicans invited three Republican attorneys general from the heartland to describe the impact the crisis had on their states. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen described an explosion of fentanyl pouring into the state, with authorities on track to have seized half a million dosage units in 2023, from over 6,000 in 2020. 

The drug is produced primarily in Mexico using Chinese precursors and then shipped across the southern land border. It can be fatal in tiny doses and is often hidden in other drugs so users don’t know they are ingesting fentanyl. Republicans have linked the fentanyl crisis to the border crisis. 

MAYORKAS TELLS BORDER PATROL AGENTS THAT ‘ABOVE 85%’ OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED INTO US: SOURCES 

Knudsen said he believed the border had been largely secured under the Trump administration, but that work had been undone under the leadership of Mayorkas.

"Secretary Mayorkas is the architect of that destruction. The American people are watching. They know that our border was secured just a few years ago. They see the devastation metastasizing in our communities from drugs and human trafficking. The conclusion is clear, Secretary Mayorkas has violated his oath, and I urge this body to impeach," he said.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond described the crime his state had seen, citing stats that the Oklahama Department of Corrections is housing more than 500 illegal immigrants convicted of violent crimes. 

"Illegal immigration cost Oklahoma taxpayers more than $750 million each year with a minimal offset return," he said.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said the number of illegal immigrants who have entered the U.S. since 2021 is larger than the population of his state.

"These numbers are not an accident. There is only one reason eight million people illegally cross a sovereign nation's border – because they know that they can get away with it," he said. "There has been an orchestrated lack of enforcement of our nation's immigration laws. [Mayorkas] has failed to do that which is most fundamental to his mission. Protect our border."

Frank Bowman, a law professor at the University of Missouri, called as a witness by Democrats, was skeptical of the impeachment claims being made – warning that impeachment cannot be used for policy disagreements.

"Official conduct must meet a very high threshold of seriousness. It must also be of a type that corrupts and subverts political and governmental process, and it ought to be plainly wrong, regardless of legal," he said. "The most commonly encountered categories of impeachable conduct are official corruption, abuse of power, betrayal of the nation's foreign policy interests, subversion of the Constitution. There is no serious allegation of which I'm aware that the secretary has done any of those things."

Meanwhile, DHS issued a memo ripping into the impeachment effort, pointing to prior comments from Republicans who say the threshold for impeachment has not been met. It also argued that it has stopped more fentanyl in the last two years than in the previous five years combined.

"Members of Congress serious about addressing these challenges should oppose this baseless impeachment that is going nowhere and instead work with the Department to keep America safe by properly funding DHS’s vital missions and reforming our broken immigration laws," the agency said.