Political Headlines
Matt Gaetz says he’s not returning to Congress after dropping bid to be attorney general
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Matt Gaetz said Friday he will not return to Congress after withdrawing his name from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general.In an interview with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on "Real America's Voice," Gaetz said he is "still going to be in the fight but it's going to be from a new perch.""I do not intend to join the 119th Congress," he said. "There are a number of fantastic Floridians who've stepped up to run for my seat, people who have inspired with their heroism, with their public service. And I'm actually excited to see northwest Florida go to new heights and have great representation."Questions swirled about Gaetz's future after he dropped his confirmation bid on Thursday ... Read More
Congressional Republicans continue to introduce bills eliminating the Department of Education
Patrick Semansky-Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds introduced the "Returning Education Back to Our States Act" on Thursday, signaling a commitment to deliver on President-elect Donald Trump's vow to dismantle the Department of Education.In the conservative movement to return education back to local control, Rounds said the legislation would "eliminate" the department while redistributing all critical federal programs to other agencies.Rounds' announcement was first reported by Fox News."For years, I've worked toward removing the federal Department of Education," the Republican senator wrote in a statement, adding "I'm pleased that President-elect Trump shares this vision, and I'm excited to work with him and Republican majorities in the Senate and House to make this a reality. This legislation is a ... Read More
Trump announces Pam Bondi is his new AG pick after Gaetz withdraws
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- On the same day that former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration as President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general, Trump announced that he will pick former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to fill that role in his administration.Bondi, 59, has remained in Trump’s inner circle for years and has continued to advise him on legal matters. She was one of the lawyers who defended Trump during his first Senate impeachment trial."I have known Pam for many years -- She is smart and tough, and is an AMERICA FIRST Fighter, who will do a terrific job as Attorney General!" Trump said in a Truth Social post.Bondi's nomination must be confirmed by the Senate. She did not immediately ... Read More
Matt Gaetz AG nomination: Timeline
Nathan Howard/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- In the span of eight days, former Rep. Matt Gaetz went from a reelected House member to an attorney general pick in President-elect Donald Trump's second administration to ultimately bowing out before a Senate confirmation.Here is a timeline of the roller coaster of events for the embattled ex-congressman.Nov. 13, 2024President-elect Donald Trump announces that Gaetz, who had won reelection for Florida's 1st district on Election Day, was his nominee for attorney general.Gaetz resigns from Congress that day, according to House Speaker Mike Johnson.Several House Republicans meeting behind closed doors said there was an audible gasp in the room when they heard Trump had picked Gaetz, sources told ABC News.Gaetz was investigated for alleged sex trafficking by ... Read More
Can Matt Gaetz return to Congress after withdrawing as AG pick?
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his bid to serve as attorney general in the next Trump administration, but the question remains: can he go back to his old job as a member of Congress?Gaetz, for his part, has only expressed an intent not to take the oath of office for the 119th Congress -- which begins on Jan. 3, 2024 and for which Gaetz won reelection. He cannot preemptively resign from a session of Congress that has not yet convened or that he has not taken an oath to serve -- that means he is still eligible to serve in the 119th although he cannot under any circumstances withdraw his resignation from ... Read More
Even though Gaetz has withdrawn, Democrats will keep pushing for release of ethics report
Andrea Renault/Star Max/GC Images(WASHINGTON) -- Even though former Rep. Matt Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general, Illinois Democratic Rep. Sean Casten said Thursday that he'll continue to try to compel the House Ethics Committee to release its report on Gaetz.“While I welcome the news that Matt Gaetz is withdrawing from consideration for Attorney General, it remains important that the Gaetz report be made available to the American people,” Casten said in a statement.Casten and Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee introduced privileged resolutions on Wednesday to try to force the committee to release the report after the Ethics Committee voted along party lines not to disclose it. Under House rules, once a privileged resolution is ... Read More
Mayorkas, Wray draw bipartisan fire for declining to testify in public at threats hearing
Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Top officials from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security on Thursday drew bipartisan fire for declining to testify in public at a Senate hearing on "worldwide threats" and instead offering to testify in a classified setting.Both Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Homeland Security Committee expressed anger at what they called Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and FBI Director Christopher Wray's "refusal" to testify in public."In a shocking departure from the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee's longstanding tradition of transparency and oversight of the threats facing our nation, for the first time in more than 15 years, the Homeland Security and FBI Director have refused to appear before the Committee to provide ... Read More
Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration as Donald Trump’s attorney general
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz announced Thursday he is withdrawing his name from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general."I had excellent meetings with Senators yesterday," Gaetz wrote in a post on X. "I appreciate their thoughtful feedback - and the incredible support of so many. While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition. There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I'll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General. Trump's DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1.""I remain fully committed to see ... Read More
Trump team warns Republicans to support Cabinet picks or face primary funded by Musk
Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As controversy continues to cloud some of President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet picks, his team has an ominous warning for Republicans who don't fall in line behind his nominees.ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl reports that one senior Trump adviser said the message to lawmakers is, "If you are on the wrong side of the vote, you're buying yourself a primary.""That is all," the adviser told Karl. "And there's a guy named Elon Musk who is going to finance it.""The president gets to decide his Cabinet. No one else," the adviser added.The threat came as Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth (tapped for attorney general and defense secretary, respectively) made the rounds on ... Read More
Pete Hegseth, Vance meet with GOP senators to fight for nomination
John Lamparski/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill Thursday to accompany President-elect Donald Trump's controversial pick to be secretary of the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth, where they met with Republican senators in hopes of helping his nomination process amid new details about a 2017 sexual assault claim against him.Hegseth met with several Republican senators Thursday morning including Sens. John Barrasso, Roger Wicker, Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty.Hegseth emerged from his final meeting with the Republicans and thanked Trump, Vance and the senators, for the "incredible opportunity" to be nominated as the secretary of the Department of Defense. He said he takes the senate's advice and consent for this nomination "very seriously.""It's an Incredible opportunity that ... Read More
How Trump has infused parts of Project 2025 into his administration
James Devaney/GC Images(WASHINGTON) -- President-elect Donald Trump distanced himself from Project 2025 on the campaign trail but has since nominated several authors or contributors from the controversial conservative presidential wishlist to his administration.Trump called the Project 2025 policy proposals -- which include restrictions on abortion pills, birth control pills and Medicare access, as well as eliminating a couple of federal agencies -- "extreme, seriously extreme" in a July 20 rally."I don't know anything about it. I don't want to know anything about it," he previously said, despite having many connections to its authors and contributors.Democrats pounced on Trump for Project 2025 during the election season, calling it a warning of what is to come under a second Trump term."Project 2025 is the plan by ... Read More
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick for top intel role, draws scrutiny over Russia comments
Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (R-HI) takes the stage during a Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump campaign rally at Lancaster Airport on November 03, 2024 in Lititz, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)(WASHINGTON) -- President-elect Donald Trump's pick for the director of national intelligence, former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, has little experience working with the nation's spy agencies and a long track record of echoing the Russian disinformation they work to expose and to counter -- a combination her critics claim should be disqualifying.Gabbard, 43, who represented Hawaii as a Democrat from 2013-2021 and ran for the party's presidential nomination in 2020 before becoming a Republican earlier this year, has been accused of harboring sympathies for the Kremlin ... Read More
Linda McMahon’s background as Trump’s pick for education secretary
Henrik5000/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Linda McMahon's background -- in both education and as a co-founder of sports entertainment company World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. -- has come under scrutiny since President-elect Donald Trump named her as his pick to lead the Department of Education on Tuesday.McMahon is a longtime ally of Trump who served as his transition co-chair and the former head of the U.S. Small Business Administration.Though she is primarily known for founding and leading the WWE, she has had several stints in education -- starting with her nomination to the Connecticut State Board of Education in 2009.At the confirmation hearing in 2009, she said education was her passion and that her work as CEO of the WWE taught her ... Read More
‘Kavanaugh on steroids’: Gaetz, Vance meet with GOP senators amid questions
Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images(WASHNGTON) -- Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump's pick to be attorney general, met with Republican senators on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning alongside Vice President-elect JD Vance, making his case for the job hours before the House Ethics Committee discussed its report on him, ultimately deciding against releasing its report.Several senators had called for the House Ethics Committee to release its report into Gaetz over allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use before they would consider his confirmation.The House Ethics Committee on Wednesday voted against releasing its report on Gaetz after multiple rounds of votes, a source familiar tells ABC News.After Trump announced Gaetz as his attorney general pick, the Florida congressman resigned from ... Read More
Trump transition live updates: Gaetz says he will not rejoin Congress
Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead via Flickr(WASHINGTON) -- Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for attorney general, said Thursday he is withdrawing his name for the role -- just a day after Gaetz spoke with Republican senators on Capitol Hill about the nomination process.Trump has named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, as his new pick for the role.Another controversial Cabinet pick, Pete Hegseth, is on the Hill on Thursday with Vice President-elect JD Vance to make his case for the secretary of the Department of Defense job.Meanwhile, Trump continues to announce his picks for top jobs inside his administration.Gaetz says he will not rejoin CongressFormer Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, who withdrew as President-elect ... Read More
Stock market surges on Election Day
Stephen Maturen/Getty Images(NEW YORK CITY) -- The U.S. stock market climbed higher in trading on Tuesday, as voters rushed to the polls and the nation awaited the results of a closely contested presidential election.The S&P 500 ticked upward about 1.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained more than 400 points, jumping about 1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.4%.Gains at large tech firms are helping to boost the market. Shares of Nvidia, an artificial intelligence chipmaker, climbed nearly 3% in early trading.At market close, tech giants Meta and Amazon had each seen shares rise about 2%.The Nasdaq briefly halted trading of Trump Media and Technology Group Corp, the media company owned by former President Donald Trump. The stock price fell rapidly ... Read More
What we know about the shooter
WASHINGTON (AP) — The man identified as the shooter in the apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump was a 20-year-old from a Pittsburgh suburb not far from the campaign rally where one attendee was killed. Investigators were working Sunday to gather more information about Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who they say opened fire at the rally before being killed by Secret Service days before Trump was to accept the Republican nomination for a third time. An FBI official said late Saturday that investigators had not yet determined a motive. Two spectators were critically injured, authorities said. Relatives of Crooks didn’t immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press. His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late ... Read MorePrayers for Trump also pour in from political rivals
Prayers for the former president are also coming from his political opponents. “I am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe. Political violence has no place in our country,†said Sen. Chuck Schumer in a statement. “We should all condemn what happened today and I am hoping for the health of the former president and everyone else at the rally,†Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy posted on the social platform X. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a post on X that his “thoughts and prayers are with former President Trump†and expressed thanks “for the decisive law enforcement response.†... Read MoreTop of page
