Congressional & Capitol Hill News

The Daily Signal delivers comprehensive congressional news with reporting and conservative commentary on House and Senate activities, legislative priorities, committee investigations, leadership battles, and the fight for conservative policy in both chambers of Congress.
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    • News

    How This GOP Senator Plans to Protect Religious Groups From Providing Health Insurance That Violates Beliefs

    A Republican senator is rolling out a new bill that would protect religious organizations and other groups from having to provide health insurance coverage to employees that poses religious or moral objections, The Daily Signal has learned. Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., introduced the Health Care Conscience Rights Act today. The legislation protects religious organizations, private…
    Melissa Quinn
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    • News

    Did Your Senator Vote to Defund Planned Parenthood? See Here

    A Senate bill to strip Planned Parenthood of its $500 million in federal funding fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance, gaining the support of 53 senators. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., voted no, which allows him to bring it back for a vote at a later time. Sen. Lindsey Graham R-S.C.,…
    Kelsey Bolar
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    • Opinion

    What’s Wrong With the Senate Energy Bill

    The Senate is attempting to move forward with allegedly non-controversial legislation, the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015, which, according to proponents, contains no “poison pills.” But for anyone who wants to swallow a strong dose of government intervention and anti-market energy policy, this bill is chock-full of poison pills. Like the last two major…
    Nicolas Loris
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    • Opinion

    How Rich Corporate Elites Are Lobbying Lawmakers to Crush Marriage Advocates

    What do you do when you can’t persuade the American people to embrace your values? You use government coercion to impose those values on people. And you get rich corporate elites to lobby government on your behalf. That’s what’s taking place right now in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s ruling on gay marriage. Last…
    Ryan T. Anderson
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    • News

    Democratic Lawmaker: ‘Black Lives Matter’ Protesters Should Be in Front of Planned Parenthoods

    Democrat Bill Patmon, a state representative in Ohio, has introduced a bill to end Ohio state funding to Planned Parenthood. “Five thousand, four hundred and ninety-nine abortions are in Cuyahoga County, which I happen to represent,” Patmon said in a speech Tuesday. “And 63 percent of them are black women, 63 percent of them are of a certain hue…
    Daily Signal Staff
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    • News

    Senate Will Attempt to Defund Planned Parenthood Before Recess

    Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday the Senate will vote on a bill to defund Planned Parenthood before lawmakers leave Capitol Hill next week for August recess. Republican legislators have pushed heavily to strip federal funding from the group following the release of three undercover videos showing top Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sale…
    Natalie Johnson
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    • Opinion

    What John Kerry Gets Wrong About the Senate, Treaties and the Iran Deal

    At a hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Secretary of State John Kerry was asked why the administration did not submit the Iran nuclear agreement to the Senate for its advice and consent as an Article II treaty. Kerry responded that the agreement wasn’t treated as a treaty “because you can’t pass a treaty…
    Steven Groves
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    • News

    House Rejects Senate Highway Plan, Vows to Pass Short-Term Bill Without Saving Export-Import Bank

    In a blunt rejection of the Senate’s attempt to enact a longer-term fix for the nation’s roads, rails and bridges, the House of Representatives plans to pass a patch extending the Highway Trust Fund for three months. The House then plans to quickly leave town for the month-long August recess, signaling that it has no…
    Melissa Quinn
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    • Opinion

    One Step Lawmakers Could Take to Boost Job Creation

    For the last 30 years start-ups have been steadily declining as a share of total businesses in the U.S. This is especially worrisome given that start-ups account for most of the new job creation in the economy. Entrepreneurship is a key source of innovation in our economy, as well as an important factor driving productivity…
    David Allen
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    • News

    How Senate Conservatives Plan to Challenge GOP Leadership

    Conservatives in the U.S. Senate are gearing up to challenge Republican leadership today, setting their sights on a plan to repeal Obamacare with 51 votes—a measure that will easily pass if the 54 GOP senators support it. The move comes after several contentious days of fighting over the GOP leadership’s priorities. Senate Majority Leader Mitch…
    Robert B. Bluey
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    • News

    Lawmakers Introduce Defund Planned Parenthood Legislation

    Lawmakers in the House and Senate have introduced legislation to cut off federal funding for Planned Parenthood in the wake of two undercover videos sparking concern about the organization’s abortion practices. Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., introduced the Defund Planned Parenthood Act, and Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., offered corresponding legislation in the Senate. In a speech on the House…
    Kate Scanlon
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    • Opinion

    15 Questions on Iran That Should Be Asked in Senate Hearing

    On Thursday morning the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), chaired by Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., will meet to hold its first hearing on the Iran Nuclear Agreement. Appearing before the Committee will be three administration witnesses, including Secretary of State John Kerry, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew and Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. There is a significant level of concern…
    Joshua Meservey
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    • Opinion

    Why the Senate Plan to Save the Highway Trust Fund Falls Short

    Last week, the House passed an $8-billion bailout of the Highway Trust Fund using gimmicky offsets and tax increases to finance new highway and transit spending through mid-December. Not to be outdone, the Senate released its 1,030-page, six-year highway deal, including $48 billion in offsets that make even more extensive use of tax increases and…
    Michael Sargent
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    • News

    These Senators Want Planned Parenthood Investigated

    Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and 10 other senators sent a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell requesting that they launch an investigation into allegations that Planned Parenthood is selling fetal organs. Two undercover videos have been released by the Center for Medical Progress showing two Planned…
    Kate Scanlon
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    • Opinion

    The Sneaky Way Lawmakers Get Around the Earmark Ban

    In the midst of the horrifying allegations that Planned Parenthood has been selling organs of aborted babies, there’s been at least a bit of good news from Washington. On Tuesday, the House of Representatives scrapped a floor vote which would have given millions of taxpayer dollars to the Susan G. Komen organization, which in turn…
    Jim DeMint
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    • News

    Kentucky Lawmakers Move to Protect County Clerks, Clergy Opposed to Gay Marriage

    Three Kentucky legislators have filed bills to protect county clerks or religious leaders who say their faith does not allow them to help same-sex couples get married. “I won’t say people have fear, but there certainly is heightened concern,”  @addiawuchner says. One bill, announced Wednesday, would shield county clerks from liability if they refuse, citing…
    Ken McIntyre
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    • News

    Senate Passes Education Law Overhaul, but Challenges Remain

    The Senate Thursday passed a bipartisan rewrite of No Child Left Behind, the nation’s Bush-era education standards that extended the federal government’s reach into U.S. public schools. The legislation passed by a 81-17 vote one week after the House voted along party lines to narrowly pass its more conservative version of No Child Left Behind….
    Natalie Johnson
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    • Opinion

    Congress Begins Investigation Into Planned Parenthood, but Lawmakers Shouldn’t Stop There

    On Wednesday, two House committees announced they will begin an investigation into Planned Parenthood’s alleged harvesting and sale of body parts from unborn babies. In an undercover video released yesterday, Dr. Deborah Nucatola, senior director of medical services at Planned Parenthood, detailed with startling calmness how she chooses to perform abortion procedures in order to…
    Sarah Torre
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    • News

    With Odds ‘Rigged’ Against Them, Skeptical Lawmakers Hope Americans Turn Against Iran Deal

    Congressional opponents of the nuclear deal with Iran are using words like “horrible,” “disgrace” and “disturbed” to describe the agreement, signaling the tough fight ahead as lawmakers impart on a 60-day review period. At a monthly gathering of House conservatives on Capitol Hill, skeptical lawmakers said they hoped the review period—which will overlap with Congress’…
    Josh Siegel
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    • News

    Conservative Lawmakers Vow to Defund Planned Parenthood After Reveal of Graphic Video

    Conservatives in the House were quick to push for defunding Planned Parenthood Wednesday after a video surfaced showing a top official graphically describing the group’s sale of body parts from aborted fetuses. “No taxpayer funds should be affiliated with something that so many people find completely reprehensible,” said Rep. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo. Lummis said the…
    Natalie Johnson
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