Month: December 2025

NC Senate showdown escalates as Trump rallies behind Whatley to keep GOP seat

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

President Donald Trump heads to battleground North Carolina on Friday as he aims to keep an open Senate seat, previously held by a Republican, in GOP hands in next year's midterm elections.

Trump will hold an evening event on affordability as he teams up in the crucial southeastern state with Michael Whatley, a former Republican National Committee (RNC) chair and clear frontrunner for the GOP Senate nomination in the 2026 race to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis.

Whatley is likely to face off next year against former two-term Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper in what's expected to be one of the most expensive and crucial Senate battles in the country, as the GOP works to hold its 53-47 majority in the chamber. And rising prices will be a top issue on the campaign trail.

"President Trump won North Carolina all three times. 2016, 2020, and 2024... because he connects directly with the people of North Carolina, talking about the issues that they care about. So it is very important to have him on the ground," Whatley emphasized this week in a Fox News Digital interview.

TRUMP-BACKED RNC CHAIR JUMPS INTO ‘MARQUEE’ SENATE BATTLE 

Low propensity MAGA voters and other Trump supporters don't always head to the polls in elections when the president's not on the ballot, which is a major concern for Republicans heading into next year's midterms.

That's why Whatley, a former state GOP chair whom Trump handpicked in 2024 to run the RNC and urged this summer to run for the Senate, would love to see the president return to North Carolina numerous times next year.

GOP SENATE CAMPAIGN CHIEF AIMS TO EXPAND 2026 MAP IN THIS BLUE-LEANING STATE

"He is fantastically popular in North Carolina," Whatley said of Trump. "He has a real affinity for the state. The voters...love him, and it'll be very, very good to get him back in North Carolina."

But more importantly, Whatley and other Republicans are aiming to frame the 2026 elections as a referendum on Trump and his agenda.

"We're certainly going to need him to be on the ballot," Whatley emphasized. "When you think about what happens if we lose the House, if we lose the Senate, if the Democrats take over, and they go right back to investigations and hoaxes and impeachments, that is really, truly the president and his legacy are going to be on the ballot."

With inflation remaining persistent this year, Democrats have stayed laser focused on the issue of affordability, which fueled them to decisive victories in last month's 2025 elections and over performances in a slew of special elections this year.

THE GOP'S TAKE ON HIGH-PROFILE SENATE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARIES: 'THEY'RE IN SHAMBLES'

The same issue that boosted Trump and Republicans to sweeping ballot box victories in 2024 is now dragging the president's approval ratings on the economy to record lows.

Whatley argued that the president "is fighting right now to bring down gasoline prices... We're fighting, you know, every day against the Fed, trying to get them to lower interest rates and make housing more affordable. And you know, there's, there's a fight every day with this administration to try and bring down the prices for everybody."

And looking ahead to next year, Whatley said, "We're seeing signs already that the economy is starting to tick up and is starting to take hold as the President's policies are getting in place. We need to make sure that we have the trade policies, the tax policies, the regulatory policies from this administration that are going to help our small businesses, our manufacturers and our farmers across North Carolina."

But Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin sees Trump and Republicans headed for a ballot box disaster.

"Donald Trump has lost the economy, is losing his mind, and is going to lose the midterms," Martin said in a statement ahead of Trump's stop in North Carolina.

Whatley has been busy crisscrossing North Carolina and highlighted that "we're talking to every single community. We will be in all 100 counties across North Carolina, and we're fighting for every single family."

And he plans to hold tight to Trump.

"Our voters know Donald Trump, and they know me. I've worked on his campaigns since 2016. President Trump won North Carolina in all three election cycles. So we know how to win, and we have the policies that are going to win," Whatley emphasized.

And pointing to Cooper, who won election and re-election four times as attorney general before becoming governor, Whatley charged that "Roy Cooper is on the wrong side of every 80-20 issue. He has fought harder for criminals, for illegal aliens, men who want to, you know, play in women's sports and be in women's locker rooms. Those are issue sets that he's going to have to defend."

But Cooper's campaign countered, saying in a statement to Fox News Digital that the former governor "has spent his career fighting for North Carolina families by lowering health care costs and keeping their communities safe while Michael Whatley spent decades at the beck and call of DC politicians delivering for billionaires and special interests at the expense of the middle class."

Moderate Democrats push back as progressives move to oust Jeffries, Clark over Trump strategy

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Moderate Democrats in the House of Representatives pushed back against far-left portions of their base, rejecting claims that party leaders in the House should be replaced for failing to effectively oppose President Donald Trump.

Challenges to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., have been more theater than substance, moderates told Fox News Digital.

"They want to see loud screaming, and they want to see protests," Rep. George Latimer, D-N.Y., said of the challengers.

SHOWDOWN FOR THE HOUSE: DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS BRACE FOR HIGH-STAKES MIDTERM CLASH

"The showtime nature of Congress is what they’re responding to." 

In the past week, Clark received a primary challenge from Jonathan Paz, a candidate of Bolivian descent who argues that Democratic leadership has grown ineffective.

"I’m challenging one of the most powerful Democrats in the House because we need new leadership. Let’s call it what it is. Our Democratic leaders are failing us. They’re not stopping Trump. They’re not making life more affordable. They’re not building a party for the working class," Paz said in a campaign video. 

Paz said his father was deported when he was 14 years old.

Clark's challenge follows a similar one to Jeffries, the No. 1 Democrat in the House. Chi Ossé, a progressive-leaning New York City councilmember, decided to run against Jeffries, citing dissatisfaction with Jeffries' resistance to the administration. 

"More exceptional ‘leadership’ from our supposed ‘leader,’" Ossé said in a post on X, reacting to news that Jeffries and other Democrats would not pursue impeachment charges against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

Ossé has since dropped his bid.

While Jeffries’ challenger has since stepped down, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., said he believes the rumblings against Jeffries and Clark are representative of a pocket of frustration that’s going to persist. Moskowitz, who has voted with Republicans on matters like border security and trimming government spending, said those voters and prospective challengers must decide what’s most important to them.

"I think we’re on our way to winning the House in 2026, but Democrats along that journey are going to have to make a decision whether they want power or purity," Moskowitz said.

"Once we’re in the majority, we can have that purity discussion policy of which way we go. But we have got to get power before we can get there."

He believes the challenges are needlessly divisive and pose a threat to the party’s solidarity.

PROGRESSIVE POWERHOUSES LAUNCH PRIMARY WAR AGAINST DEMOCRATIC ESTABLISHMENT AHEAD OF 2026 ELECTIONS

"Democrats are very capable of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory with, you know, ‘Let’s primary our entire leadership as we’re trying to take the House,’" Moskowitz said.

Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., who has called on his party to make strides toward the political center, said he thinks those individuals should be evaluated on an individual basis and not extrapolated out to represent all Democrat voters.

"I think it’s politics. Different people have different motivations. Some people want to run because of their lifelong ambitions. Some people aren’t happy with the way things are. Some people want to try to change the world," Suozzi said.

"I don’t know about these individual cases."

GOP SEIZES ON DEM CIVIL WAR AS PROGRESSIVES JUMP INTO KEY 2026 SENATE RACES: ‘THEY'RE IN SHAMBLES’

Latimer believes challengers are also wrong about the relative ineffectiveness of Democratic leadership. He believes that the party has managed to secure victories that have flown under the radar — even in the shadow of a Republican governing trifecta.

"Now you have polling data that shows that Americans understand that the shutdown was a fight over healthcare, that healthcare benefits have to be saved," Latimer said, referring to the government’s recent shutdown over Obamacare federal subsidies that seemingly left Democrats largely empty-handed.

"That’s smart. But it’s not necessarily what someone wants to [see] because it doesn’t have the showy nature of it."

Instead of appeasing the more highlight-focused portions of the party, Latimer urged his fellow Democrats to instead focus on a more strategically advantageous use of their time.

"The voter's in the middle," Latimer said. 

"If you want to win the House, you’ve got to win people over who haven’t been committed to you. You’ve got to convince them that your strategies are right. I think that’s what leadership is doing."

6 years ago, Trump was impeached—for the first time

Posted on by Walter Einenkel

On Dec. 18, 2019, for what was then the third time in U.S. history, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Donald Trump. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivered a powerful speech invoking the late Elijah Cummings, a civil rights hero and former congressman.

YouTube Video

Pelosi: As our beloved chairman Elijah Cummings, an oversight committee chair, our North Star, said when announcing his support for this action, “When the history books are written about this tumultuous era, I want them to show that I was among those in the House of Representatives who stood up to lawlessness and tyranny.” He also said, almost prophetically, “When we are dancing with the angels, the question will be what did we do to make sure we kept our democracy intact?”

Elijah, as you know, has since passed on. Now he is dancing with the angels, and I know that he and all of us here are very proud of the moral courage of members who want to honor the vision of our founders for a republic, the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform to defend it, and the aspirations of our children to live freely within it. Today we are here to defend democracy for the people. May God bless America.

A few weeks later, the Republican-controlled Senate held Trump’s impeachment trial, where then-Rep. Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, delivered a similarly emotional message in his closing arguments.

YouTube Video

Schiff: But here, right is supposed to matter. It's what's made us the greatest nation on Earth. No constitution can protect us if right doesn't matter anymore. And you know you can't trust this president to do what's right for this country. You can trust he will do what's right for Donald Trump. He'll do it now. He's done it before. He'll do it for the next several months. He'll do it in the election if he's allowed to. This is why if you find him guilty, you must find that he should be removed. Because right matters. Because right matters. And the truth matters. Otherwise, we are lost.

Republican senators—many of whom voted to impeach then-President Bill Clinton—ultimately shirked their constitutional duties and acquitted Trump.

GOP seizes on Dem civil war as progressives jump into key 2026 Senate races: ‘They’re in shambles’

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Without a clear party leader after losses up and down the ballot in 2024, progressive Democrats are wading into next year’s most competitive Senate primaries and exposing deep ideological rifts that some strategists warn could alienate swing voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Republicans have celebrated progressive firebrand Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s decision to launch a Senate campaign in Texas. While President Donald Trump has dismissed her as "low IQ," Crockett has built a national audience, amassing millions of social media followers and the name recognition to instantly reshape the race.

"The Democratic Party, they’re in shambles everywhere around the country — and no place more obvious than Texas," National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., told Fox News Digital. "Jasmine getting in this race is great news."

For Republicans, Crockett’s rise supports their argument that Democrats are veering too far-left to compete in red and purple states. Her campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's comment request.

JAMES CARVILLE BLASTS CROCKETT FOR BREAKING 'FIRST RULE OF POLITICS' FOCUSING ON HERSELF MORE THAN VOTERS

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who is defending his seat, agreed, telling Fox News Digital, "She can't win, so I'm really happy she's decided to run."

PROGRESSIVE POWERHOUSES LAUNCH PRIMARY WAR AGAINST DEMOCRATIC ESTABLISHMENT AHEAD OF 2026 ELECTIONS

And while Republicans breathe a sigh of relief, as Texas could be a pick-up opportunity for the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee in 2026, some moderate Democrats are not convinced that a progressive candidate like Crockett will benefit the party in the long run.

Liam Kerr, a Democratic strategist and co-founder of the centrist group Welcome, published an October report titled, "Deciding to Win," warning that Democrats risk alienating voters by embracing far-left positions.

"Any Democrat who can do math should be worried," Kerr told Fox News Digital, arguing that "it's not just losing this race."

"It's also damaging the overall party brand, hurting candidates down-ballot, and losing the muscles you build that focus on persuading voters," he said.

Crockett has gone viral for her public missteps and gaffes, from calling Gov. Greg Abbott, "Governor Hot Wheels," to referring to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene as a "bleach blonde bad built butch body," during a House Oversight Committee hearing.

"When you explicitly say we don't need Trump voters to win, you're not only denying mass, you're denying an opportunity for voters to consider Democrats for other races and in the future," Kerr said.

Kerr added that "centrists need to be off the sidelines with the same energy that the left is bringing to these fights."

"Republicans have developed a very clear framework for voters to view Democrats as elite, out-of-touch, and extreme," Kerr explained. "Every time a high-profile Democrat says something out of touch or extreme, it just adds credence to that, and it's like the swing voter is permanently on a jury, where Republicans have a strong prosecutor and Democrats have terrible witnesses, and you just keep giving more pieces of evidence that you're guilty of extremism."

And Republicans who spoke to Fox News Digital this week seemed to be following that very playbook.

"All across the country, what we're seeing is Jasmine is being repeated, replicated all across the country," Scott said. "Socialism is in vogue in the Democrat Party. It is a sad day around the country for those who believe that the Democrat Party was going to have a comeback. They're not coming back. We're going to win, keep the majority, expand the majority all across the map."

Yet, the Democratic Party has claimed to be on the "offense" following gubernatorial wins in Virginia and New Jersey this year and after losing a ruby red Tennessee district by nine points in December's special election.

But Scott, who is the Republican spearheading efforts to maintain the Senate majority, said the buck doesn't stop at Crockett.

"The Democrats, you look at who's in their primaries – cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs," Scott said. "Michigan, a devastating manifestation. Three Democrats fighting tooth and nail to lose to Mike Rogers."

Michigan's Democratic Senate candidates include rising progressive star state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, Sen. Bernie Sanders-aligned Dr. Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Haley Stevens, who recently filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Cornyn said progressive candidates jumping into these Senate Democratic primaries prove the "Democratic Party has become the captive of the left wing," pointing to New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani's successful socialist campaign.

"Even people like Chuck Schumer have been hijacked by the Bernie Sanders and AOC wing of the Democratic Party," Cornyn said, referring to progressive star Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment regarding the implication that he is losing control of Senate Democrats.

Cornyn, who served as NRSC chair for two terms, said that groups, like the DSCC, are losing power as candidates can find national recognition and build their own coalition without the support of the organized political parties.

"The organized political parties have lost power because of the advent of Super PACs and all these various ways that people, even without political party support, can basically win these contested primaries, and together with those small turnout in the primaries and usually the most rabid activists, they elect people who are ultimately, and I hope, unelectable," Cornyn said.

And Kerr told Fox News Digital that the DSCC "has a very strong track record, but the political industry is moving away from parties being in control."

JASMINE CROCKETT USES TRUMP'S 'LOW IQ' INSULTS TO LAUNCH HER TEXAS SENATE CAMPAIGN IN DEBUT AD

"The formal party has less and less power every year that goes by. And individual candidates who are able to fundraise and communicate directly to hardcore Democrats are gaining more and more power relative to the party," Kerr said, arguing that the DSCC's "ability to slow or stop these candidates is diminishing over time."

When reached for comment, the DSCC pushed back on criticism that the Senate Democrats' campaign arm is losing control.

"The DSCC has one goal: to win a Democratic Senate majority," DSCC Spokesperson Maeve Coyle told Fox News Digital. "We’ve created a path to do that this cycle by recruiting formidable candidates and expanding the map, building strong general election infrastructure, and disqualifying Republican opponents – those are the strategies that led Senate Democrats to overperform in the last four election cycles, and it’s how we will flip the majority in 2026."

While Republicans are seizing on the messy Democratic primaries and accusing far-left candidates of running the party, Democratic commentator Kaivan Shroff, a Hillary Clinton campaign alum, told Fox News Digital that primaries can actually be a good thing, and as "a qualified rising star in the party whose seat was redistricted," Crockett deserves an opportunity to run.

But Shroff cautioned that it "cannot be a vicious, divisive primary where everything you don't like about the other candidate is a conspiracy or everything is blamed on the establishment."

The Democratic commentator applauded Texas state Rep. James Talarico for quickly affirming his commitment to treating Crockett "with the utmost respect" in the primary process.

"I think there's a great case that it's a net positive, even win or lose, that Crockett is in this race," Shroff said, particularly if the two candidates can debate on policy differences instead of just bashing Trump.

While traditional party structures seem less influential as candidates can build their own brand and coalition, Shroff said the party is lacking clear leadership to steer candidates through such ideological crossroads.

"We saw Nancy Pelosi be a really unique expert at that, and just how she handled the Squad when they first came on, AOC and that evolution was so unique. I don't know that we have a leader in the party that's able to show that sort of leadership at this time," Shroff said.

House Republican retirement spree continues

Posted on by Emily Singer

The deluge of congressional retirements that Republicans feared was incoming appears to be starting, with Washington State GOP Rep. Dan Newhouse announcing on Wednesday that he will not seek reelection.

“This decision comes with no reservations or remorse, only gratitude for the tremendous opportunity to have represented my home state in Congress,” Newhouse said in a statement.

Related | Trump looks weak—and Republicans are rushing to the exits

Newhouse is the first Republican to announce his retirement following the spate of special elections earlier this month that sent a chill through the spines of the GOP. Republicans fear that the growing backlash to President Donald Trump will sweep them out of power in the 2026 midterms, and lead other GOP lawmakers like Newhouse to decide to hang it up rather than fight to live another day.

Following the GOP's underperformance in a U.S. House special election in Tennessee, Puck News reported that as many as 20 Republicans would announce plans to retire rather than seek reelection in 2026. Those 20 retirements would be on top of the 24 House Republicans who had already announced plans to either retire or seek other offices—a large number that suggests GOP lawmakers expected to be in the minority upon their return in 2027 and would rather try their hand at something else.

Newhouse, for his part, is one of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump in January 2021, after Trump incited the violent and deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol to try to steal the 2020 election he had handily lost.

Rep. David Valadao

With Newhouse's retirement, just one Republican who voted to impeach Trump over the insurrection remains: Rep. David Valadao of California. However, Valadao is one of the most vulnerable GOP lawmakers up for reelection in 2026, and could see his district slip away if the blue wave that appears to be building crests.

Newhouse's district is heavily Republican. Trump carried it by 20 points in 2024, and 17 points four years earlier against Joe Biden, making it unlikely a Democrat could win here even in a wave. However, Newhouse could be replaced with a more far-right lawmaker, giving Trump a more reliable vote for his evil agenda.

Indeed, Trump and his allies tried to oust Newhouse in 2024 in an effort to replace him with a MAGA representative who would blindly follow Trump’s orders. But Newhouse narrowly hung on in a 2024 election against a MAGA-backed challenger. 

With Newhouse’s retirement, Trump allies are crowing about being able to install one of their own.

House Republican who voted to impeach Trump in 2021 won’t seek re-election

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., one of the few Republicans who voted to impeach President Donald Trump in 2021, announced on Wednesday that he will not seek re-election in 2026.

"This decision comes with no reservations or remorse, only gratitude for the tremendous opportunity to have represented my home state in Congress," Newhouse wrote in a statement.

"After over 25 years of public service, including more than a decade in the House, I am grateful to the Washingtonians who put their faith in me, as well as the colleagues I have served with on both sides of the aisle," he added.

Newhouse's incoming departure means that Rep. David Valadao, R-Calif., is the only remaining House Republican who voted in favor of Trump's impeachment in 2021.

US–VENEZUELA SHOWDOWN THREATENS TO JOLT GAS PRICES — WHAT COULD SPARK A SURGE

Newhouse was one of 10 House Republicans who supported the impeachment effort. In addition to Valadao, the others were Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming; Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio; Rep. Jamie Herrera-Beutler of Washington; Rep. John Katko of New York; Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois; Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan; Rep. Tom Rice of South Carolina and Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan.

The latter eight all left Congress before January 2023.

Newhouse won re-election in 2024 despite Trump making an effort to oust him.

"Newhouse has to go! He wished he didn’t do what he did, but it’s too late," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Tuesday morning, just a week before Election Day.

MODERATE REPUBLICAN ERUPTS ON HOUSE GOP LEADERS, SAYS NOT HOLDING OBAMACARE VOTE IS 'ABSOLUTE BULLS---'

Trump also emphasized his support for Newhouse's rival. "Jerrod Sessler is a fantastic Candidate and will be a GREAT Congressman for Washington State’s 4th Congressional District."

"He is running against a Weak and Pathetic RINO named Newhouse, who voted to, for no reason, Impeach me," Trump wrote at the time.

HOUSE GOP TENSIONS ERUPT AS REPUBLICANS TURN ON EACH OTHER HEADING INTO YEAR'S END

Sessler, a Navy veteran, unsuccessfully challenged  Newhouse for Washington's 4th Congressional District. In addition to Trump, he is also backed by the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus.

At the time, Newhouse argued his vote to impeach Trump wouldn't be a problem.

"I worked very closely and successfully with President Trump and his first administration and I feel very confident that I can do that again," he told the Yakima Herald-Republic.

Fox News' Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

The Speaker’s Lobby: What Congress’ December script means for healthcare next year

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

This December on Capitol Hill appears to follow a familiar script.

There’s a deadline for Congress to act on (insert issue here). And if lawmakers don’t move by Jan. 1, then (insert consequence here). So, everyone on Capitol Hill clamors over pathways to finish (given issue). Lawmakers and staff are at the end of their wits. Everyone is worried about Congress successfully fixing the problem and getting everyone home for the holidays.

There’s always the concern that Congress will emerge as The Grinch, pilfering Whoville of Christmas toys.

But lawmakers often wind up toiling with the diligence and efficiency of Santa’s elves, plowing through late-night, overnight and weekend sessions, usually finishing (insert issue here) in the St. Nick of time.

THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THURSDAY'S BIG SENATE VOTES ON HEALTHCARE

This pattern is always the same. With few variations.

This parliamentary dance of the sugar plum fairies frequently centers on deadlines for government funding, the debt ceiling and tax policy. Such was the case when the Senate passed the first version of Obamacare on Christmas Eve morning in 2009. Republicans skated on thin ice to finish their tax reform package in December 2017.

Lawmakers moved expeditiously to approve a defense policy bill in late 2020, then made sure they had just enough time on the calendar to override President Trump’s veto of the legislation before the very end of the 116th Congress in early January 2021.

The deadlines sometimes veer into the political. There was a crush to finish articles of impeachment on the House floor for both presidents Clinton and Trump in December 1998 and December 2019, respectively.

And, so, after everyone got this fall’s government shutdown worked out of their systems, lawmakers were far from prepared to address its root cause. Democrats refused to fund the government unless Congress addressed spiking healthcare premiums. Those premiums shoot up on Jan. 1. And no one has built enough consensus to pass a bill before the end of the year.

Yet.

But it’s only mid-December. And everyone knows that the congressional Christmas legislative spirit can be slow to take hold. Some of that holiday magic may have officially arrived Thursday afternoon after the Senate incinerated competing Republican and Democratic healthcare plans.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., pushed a three-year extension of the current Obamacare subsidies with no built-in reforms.

"This is going to require that Democrats come off a position they know is an untenable one and sit down in a serious way and work with Republicans," Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said of the Democratic proposal.

Thune characterized the Democrats’ gambit as "a political messaging exercise."

MODERATE REPUBLICANS STAGE OBAMACARE REBELLION AS HEALTH COST FRUSTRATIONS ERUPT IN HOUSE

Republicans even mulled not putting forth a healthcare plan at all. It was the group of Senate Democrats who ultimately helped break a filibuster to reopen the government last month that demanded a healthcare-related vote (not a fix, but a vote) in December. So, that’s all Thune would commit to.

"If Republicans just vote no on a Democrat proposal, we'll let the premiums go up and Republicans don't offer anything. What message is that going to send?" asked Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. "I know what people in Missouri will think. They'll look at that, and they'll say, ‘Well, you guys don't do anything. You've just let my premiums go up.’"

It may yet come to that.

So, there’s a holiday healthcare affordability crisis.

"People are looking now at exactly what's ahead for them, and they're very, very frightened," said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee.

But most Senate Republicans coalesced around a plan drafted by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Michael Crapo, R-Idaho, and Senate Health Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy, R-La. The bill would not renew Obamacare subsidies. Instead, it would allow people to deposit money into a healthcare savings account and shop around for coverage.

"Our plan will reduce premiums by 1% and save taxpayers money," boasted Crapo. "In contrast, the Democrats' temporary COVID bonuses do not lower costs or premiums at all."

With skyrocketing prices, Republicans are desperate to do something, even if it’s a figgy pudding leaf, as they face competitive races next year.

COLLINS, MORENO UNVEIL OBAMACARE PLAN AS REPUBLICANS SEARCH FOR SOLUTION TO EXPIRING SUBSIDIES

"It has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with people in Ohio and across America who need to be able to afford access to healthcare," said Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio.

Gov. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, appointed Husted to succeed Vice President Vance after he left the Senate. So, 2026 will be Husted’s first time on the ballot for the Senate.

There was some chatter that Republicans might allow for a limited extension of the Obamacare aid so long as Democrats agreed to abortion restrictions in exchange.

"Off the table. They know it damn well," thundered Schumer.

So, the competing plans needed 60 yeas to clear a procedural hurdle. But that also meant that both plans were destined to fail without solving the problem before the end of the year.

"We have to have something viable to vote on before we get out of here," lamented Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.

That’s why some Christmas congressional calendar magic often compels lawmakers to find a last-minute solution.

"Every legislator up here would like to be home for Christmas," said Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan. "That pressure is what forces us to come together."

CONGRESS FACES HOLIDAY CRUNCH AS HEALTH CARE FIX COLLIDES WITH SHRINKING CALENDAR

We’ll know soon if everyone buckles down to harness soaring premiums after days of political posturing.

"This should have been done in July or August. So, we are up against a deadline," said Hawley.

And procrastination by lawmakers may yet do them in.

"Healthcare is unbelievably complicated," said Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D. "You're not going to reform it and bring down costs overnight."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is now promising a separate, still unwritten healthcare bill for the floor in the coming days.

"You're going to see a package come together that will be on the floor next week that will actually reduce premiums for 100% of Americans," said Johnson.

But it’s unclear if Congress can pass anything.

"I think there's a fear of working with Democrats. There's a fear (of) taking action without the blessing of the President," said Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev.

GOP WRESTLES WITH OBAMACARE FIX AS TRUMP LOOMS OVER SUBSIDY FIGHT

That’s why it’s possible Congress could skip town for the holidays without solving the problem.

"It will be used like a sledgehammer on us a year from now," said Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb.

Not a great message for Republicans — especially on affordability — before the midterms.

"If there's no vote, that'll run contrary to what the majority of the House wants and what the vast majority of the American people want," said Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif.

That political concern may be just enough to force the sides to find some Christmas magic and address the issue before the holidays.

That’s one Yuletide script in Congress.

But there’s a script to not fixing things, too.

If Congress leaves town, every communications director on Capitol Hill will author a press release accusing the other side of channeling Ebenezer Scrooge, declaring "Bah humbug!" or dumping a lump of coal in the stockings of voters on Christmas.

That’s the script.

And every year, it sleighs me.

23 Dems join House Republicans to kill progressive’s Trump impeachment bid

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

A lone progressive's effort to impeach President Donald Trump failed Thursday, with nearly two dozen Democrats joining the House GOP to quash it.

Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, moved to get a vote on two articles of impeachment Wednesday night via a privileged resolution, a mechanism allowing lawmakers to force action on a bill within two legislative days.

Republicans called for a vote to table the measure on Thursday, a move that effectively kills consideration of the bill itself when a privileged resolution is called for.

Twenty-three Democrats joined Republicans in pushing the impeachment aside. A significant number of Democrats also voted "present," including all three senior leaders — House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., and Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-Calif.

DEM LAWMAKER SETS LITMUS TEST FOR PARTY WITH 5TH TRUMP IMPEACHMENT EFFORT 

"Impeachment is a sacred constitutional vehicle designed to hold a corrupt executive accountable for abuse of power, breaking the law and violating the public trust. The effort traditionally requires a comprehensive investigative process, the collection and review of thousands of documents, an exacting scrutiny of the facts, the examination of dozens of key witnesses, Congressional hearings, sustained public organizing and the marshaling of the forces of democracy to build a broad national consensus," the trio said in a statement explaining their vote.

"None of that serious work has been done, with the Republican majority focused solely on rubber stamping Donald Trump’s extreme agenda. Accordingly, we will be voting ‘present’ on today’s motion to table the impeachment resolution as we continue our fight to make life more affordable for everyday Americans."

The final vote fell 237 to 140, with 47 "present" votes.

Among the Democrats who voted to table the measure are Reps. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., Josh Riley, D-N.Y., Jared Golden, D-Maine, Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H., Sharice Davids, D-Kan., Don Davis, D-N.C., Shomari Figures, D-Ala., and others.

Green has filed articles of impeachment against Trump several times over the past year and notably was thrown out of the president's joint address to Congress in March for repeatedly interrupting his speech.

FOX NEWS POLITICS NEWSLETTER: AL GREEN'S PUSH TO IMPEACH TRUMP FLOPS

The latest impeachment push includes two articles charging abuse of power, according to legislative text viewed by Fox News Digital.

The first count accuses Trump of calling for the "execution" of six congressional Democrats. It was in response to Trump accusing those Democrats of "seditious behavior," which he said was "punishable by death" after they posted a video urging military service members to refuse illegal orders by the federal government.

The video caused a firestorm on the right, with the FBI opening an inquiry into those Democrats — who all defended their comments.

Green's second allegation of abuse of power charges Trump with having "fostered a political climate in which lawmakers and judges face threats of political violence and physical assault; and in this climate has made threats and vituperative comments against federal judges, putting at risk their safety and well-being, and undermining the independence of our judiciary."

But while the vast majority of Democrats have made no secret of their disdain and disagreements with Trump, it appears that few have the appetite to make a largely symbolic gesture toward impeachment.

Even Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has side-stepped questions on supporting impeachment multiple times this year, including most recently on Dec. 1 when asked about the military's double-tap strikes on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat in September.

"Republicans will never allow articles of impeachment to be brought to the floor of the House of Representatives. And we know that's the case, because Donald Trump will order them not to do it. So what's on the table is a meaningful investigation, which we can hope would be bipartisan," Jeffries said at the time.

Even if the impeachment vote were to move forward, it's all but certain that the GOP majority in the Senate would quickly dispense of it.