Congressional & Capitol Hill News

Conservative members of Congress think Republicans could improve on their outreach to the black community. “I think we need to do a better job of reaching out to the African American community,” Rep. Raúl Labrador, R-Idaho, said at The Heritage Foundation’s monthly Conversations With Conservatives. “We need to do a better job of showing the…

Senate Republicans are quickly running out of runway to get a filibuster overhaul package off the ground. The political will is directly proportional to the proximity of the general election: The closer November comes, the less likely reform becomes. One of the chief advocates for change, Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., says he knows how tight…

The House of Representatives concluded a tense debate Thursday by voting 250-169 to end a controversial Obama administration program called Operation Choke Point. Critics say the secretive program, run by the Department of Justice, has been used to target politically unpopular industries such as gun sellers. “We’re elated,” Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., one of the bill’s co-sponsors, told The Daily Signal after…

Rep. Daniel Webster, R-Fla., says he has “saved” taxpayers $2 million over the past five years by not spending all of his office budget. Webster says he returned $384,256.64 unused last month in his latest penny-pinching. He adds that Congress could reap $1.5 billion in savings over five years if every member followed his example. “There are plenty of places…

A bill to repeal a rule allowing transgender individuals in Washington state to use public bathrooms based on their gender identity has cleared a state Senate committee. The Daily Signal reported previously that the state’s Human Rights Commission approved the rule, which requires such access to sex-specific facilities including bathrooms and locker rooms. It took effect Dec….

A Missouri state senator proposes to ban abortion based on prenatal screenings for Down syndrome. State Sen. David Sater, R-Cassville, told The Daily Signal he is sponsoring S.B. 802 in the Missouri Senate at a time when other state legislatures have taken similar action to protect unborn children with Down syndrome. “I think it is discrimination…

To make a point about constitutional rights, a state legislator has filed a bill to create requirements and a registry for journalists and to impose fines and other penalties for violating the provisions. “Every time I turn around, there’s a spin on the Second Amendment,” South Carolina state Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, told the Index-Journal in Greenwood, S.C.  He…

The Senate voted 55-43 Wednesday to block legislation that would strengthen the vetting process for refugees seeking haven in the United States. As fears of terrorism remain heightened, the bill would have made it more difficult for refugees emigrating from Iraq and Syria to apply for temporary status by requiring the FBI and Department of…

Legislation that would have given Congress the authority to audit the Federal Reserve was blocked Tuesday in the Senate. The bill fell seven votes shy of clearing the 60-vote threshold needed to advance out of the chamber. The vote was 53-44. If passed, the legislation would have expanded oversight over the central bank and, for…

HOT SPRINGS, Va.—Conservative lawmakers, scholars, and activists say it’s time for the Virginia General Assembly to look into the taxpayer funding of academics and scientists who don't want President Obama to tolerate dissenting views on climate change. The question, they told The Daily Signal, is why taxpayers should pay for the work of radical academics and…