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

    Senate Confirms Kash Patel as FBI Director

    The Senate confirmed Kash Patel to become FBI director today on a narrow vote of 51-49. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaksa joined Democrats in voting against the nomination.   President Donald Trump nominated Patel to reform the FBI, which has been the subject of several whistleblower complaints in recent…
    Fred Lucas
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    • News

    Trump’s Pro-Union Labor Secretary Pick Draws Scrutiny From Senators of Both Parties

    Senators from both parties had tough questions Wednesday for Lori Chavez-DeRemer, President Donald Trump’s nominee for labor secretary, who breaks the traditional GOP mold in her support of unions. Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican congresswoman from Oregon who represents Trump’s efforts to woo union members, came under fire from Republicans concerned about her previous policies on…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Patel, Stefanik, McMahon Among Picks Awaiting Senate OK

    Just short of a month into President Donald Trump’s second term, the Senate has already confirmed the vast majority of Trump’s top Cabinet nominees.  Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., celebrated the feverish pace of the confirmations, writing on X, “The liberal media told you [Tulsi Gabbard’s, Pete Hegseth’s, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s] Cabinet nominations were…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Senate Confirms Gabbard as Intel Chief

    The Senate confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence in a 52-to-48 vote on Wednesday. Gabbard, who served four terms in the House of Representatives from 2013 to 2021 as a Democrat but subsequently became an independent and then a Republican, was approved on a near-party-line vote. All 45 Democrats and the two nominal…
    Jacob Adams
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    • News

    Members of Congress Warn About Looming Debt Crisis

    As Republicans in Congress explore how they will accomplish President Donald Trump’s agenda through budget reconciliation, concerns about a national debt crisis percolate in the background. “Whether new spending comes in the form of tax relief or actual new spending, such as a border wall … it will have to be offset, because it can’t…
    Jacob Adams
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    • Opinion

    4 Charts Show Why Congress Must Embrace Spending Restraint

    This year, Congress is expected to pass at least one major legislative package through what is known as the reconciliation process, which enables easier passage for certain types of budgetary changes. The top goal for reconciliation will be extending and improving on the success of the 2017 tax cuts, which were a big success for…
    David Ditch
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    • News

    Musk Backs Congress Reining in Bureaucratic Spending

    Amid President Donald Trump’s and entrepreneur Elon Musk’s public push to downsize the federal government, Sen. Mike Lee is advocating for the REINS Act, a bill that would rein in agencies’ power and give Congress more of a say in spending decisions. The bill has even received support from Musk himself, who reposted on X…
    George Caldwell
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    Washington State Bill Would Force Catholic Priests to Violate Church Law

    DAILY CALLER NEWS FOUNDATION—A proposed law in Washington state would require priests to violate Catholic Church law by breaking the seal of confession. The bill would amend the current state law that requires law enforcement, teachers, medical professionals, or child care providers to report cases of child abuse or neglect to include church clergy that…
    Jaryn Crouson
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    Senators Introduce Bill to Protect Supreme Court Justices

    After an escalation in political violence over the past several years, including protesters at the homes of Supreme Court justices, several United States senators introduced legislation on Wednesday to increase the penalties for those that threaten federal judges, including Supreme Court justices.  The bill, sponsored by Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Ted Cruz, R-Texas; Mike Lee,…
    Jacob Adams
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    • Opinion

    Independent in Name Only: Maine Senator Consistently Votes Liberal Democratic Party Line

    Sen. Angus King of Maine bills himself as an “independent,” but his voting record is such that if it could, the Federal Trade Commission might want to charge him with false advertising. That’s because, when Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York says “Jump,” King—like the Democrats he caucuses with, despite being a nominal…
    Peter Parisi
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    MAGA Agenda on the Line as Cabinet Picks Move to the Senate Floor 

    Some of President Donald Trump’s most contentious Cabinet picks are facing crucial votes this week after a string of hearings that saw senators on both sides of the aisle grill nominees on key issues, including abortion, vaccines, and immigration. With Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination passing out of committee by a 14-13 margin Tuesday morning…
    Moira Gleason
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    Here’s How Senate Republicans Respond to California’s Devastating Wildfires

    FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Senate Republicans are working to eliminate the environmental regulations they think contributed to the devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires last month. In response to the wildfires, which devastated more than 60 square miles of Southern California, Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., joining two other senators, introduced two measures Tuesday intended to…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Senator Asks Rubio to Investigate Biden Forcing Radical Abortion Law on Black-Majority Country

    Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio asking him to investigate reports that a foreign aid agency pushed abortion on a black-majority country under the Biden administration. The letter cites The Daily Signal’s Dec. 16 report that the Biden administration was pressuring Sierra Leone to pass an unpopular pro-abortion…
    Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell
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    Ex-Democrat Gabbard Faces Democratic Senators’ Fury at Hearing for DNI Chief Pick

    After Tulsi Gabbard’s tense three-hour confirmation hearing Thursday, Democratic members of the Select Intelligence Committee remained bitterly opposed to President Donald Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence. Gabbard—like fellow Trump nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—is a former Democrat who curiously faces a more difficult confirmation process than lifelong Republicans, such as Secretary of State…
    George Caldwell
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    • Opinion

    Trump’s Best Shot to Get His Agenda Through Congress, Explained

    The budget reconciliation process stands as President Donald Trump’s and congressional Republicans’ best—and likely only—hope to pass their agenda through Congress. While this policymaking mechanism has become more well-known in recent years because recent presidents have used it to get their policies through Congress, the budget reconciliation process is difficult to untangle—even for the seasoned…
    Bradley Devlin
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    • News

    RFK Jr.’s Hearing Sparks Partisan Clash Among Senate Panel’s Members

    After Robert F. Kennedy’s tense three-hour hearing on his nomination as secretary of the Department of Human Health and Services, Republican and Democratic senators remain fiercely divided over the health activist who now represents a large part of President Donald Trump’s coalition. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., emerged from the hearing to tell the press that…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Republicans Smell Blood in Michigan Senate Race

    After Michigan Democrat Sen. Gary Peters' surprise announcement that he would not be seeking reelection Tuesday, Republicans in the Wolverine State are eyeing the possibility of their first Senate win in the swing state in the 21st century.  Peters, 66, explained in a video statement that he would not run for a third term in…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Senate Gets to Work on Panama Canal: ‘We Cannot Turn a Blind Eye’

    The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee convened Tuesday to discuss the American-Chinese rivalry at the Panama Canal, one of President Donald Trump’s major talking points since his reelection in November. Trump has repeatedly called for the United States to take back control of the canal—while not ruling out using military force to do so—and…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Republicans in Congress Seek to Buttress Trump’s Border Agenda

    After a slew of Trump administration executive orders aimed at strengthening the border against illegal immigration, Republican lawmakers are gearing up to support the effort with a number of bills focused on reforming the asylum process and finishing the border wall. The president has already made several moves to strengthen the border—declaring an emergency at…
    George Caldwell
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    • News

    Every Senate Democrat Votes Against Protecting Babies Born Alive From Botched Abortion

    Every Senate Democrat on Wednesday afternoon voted against protecting the lives of babies born alive after botched abortions. The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, introduced by Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Jim Banks, R-Ind., states that a baby born alive from a failed abortion deserves the same protection and medical care as other newborns. “Almost…
    Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell
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