U.S. Senate News
This section focuses on the upper chamber of Congress, from major policy debates to confirmation hearings. The Daily Signal provides a conservative look at Senate priorities.
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news
3 Things to Know as 2020 Election Challenge Moves to Congress
After their party’s presidential nominee lost in the Electoral College, some House members lined up to object to and challenge the results during the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress to count the electoral votes. House Democrats made 11 objections. In each case, then-outgoing Vice President Joe Biden—presiding over the session in his role as… -
opinion
Congress Should Renew the Generalized System of Preferences Trade Law Without Add-Ons or Delay
Rep. Earl Blumenauer, chairman of the House Ways and Means trade subcommittee, introduced legislation this week that would renew a trade program that eliminates tariffs on certain products from developing countries. Americans save roughly $1 billion annually in tariffs on imports, thanks to the Generalized System of Preferences, but the program is currently set to… -
opinion
Congress Should Not Kick Small Businesses While They Are Down
Progressives and some Republicans are trying to sneak a bill into the National Defense Authorization Act that would impose a beneficial ownership reporting regime on small businesses. It would create a large compliance burden on approximately 11 million businesses with 20 or fewer employees (the only non-exempt category) and would create as many as a… -
opinion
Problematic Women: Meet One of Congress’ Youngest New Members
Rep.-elect Kat Cammack, R-Fla., faults an Obama-era policy for leaving her and her mother homeless in 2011. After spending months living in a motel, an opportunity arose for Cammack to work on the successful campaign of Rep. Ted Yoho, R-Fla. Cammack’s passion for politics only grew as she continued to work for Yoho after his… -
opinion
This Business Owner-Turned-Congresswoman Will Go to DC to Fight for American Jobs
The House of Representatives will welcome new conservative members in January. Rep.-elect Yvette Herrell, R-N.M., is one such member, and today she joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to discuss how she plans to further and protect American’s founding principles in Washington. As a former business owner, Herrell, who is of Cherokee descent, says her top… -
opinion
Not Just Talk: How Congress Can Reduce Health Care Premiums and Improve Access to Care
If there’s one thing Americans agree on, it’s the need for change in our health care system. The pandemic has further exposed the need for reform to lower health care costs and make it easier to see the doctor of your choice. Leaders on the left try to claim that only big-government solutions driven from Washington can… -
news
6 Key Senate Races Called, but Control of Senate Still Up for Grabs
Control of the Senate remains up for grabs, with no declared victor in several key races. Prior to Tuesday night, Republicans held 53 of 100 seats. Democrats, including the two nominal independents in their caucus, held 47. Democrats needed to pick up four Senate seats to control the upper chamber if former Vice President Joe… -
news
4 Big Takeaways From Senate Hearing on Tech Bias
The CEOs of Twitter, Facebook, and Google defended themselves Wednesday on Capitol Hill from charges of political bias in how they share news and other information. They testified before a Senate committee roughly a week after Twitter and Facebook suppressed a New York Post expose on the lucrative foreign business dealings of Hunter Biden, son… -
news
‘Fill the Seat!’: Barrett Backers Rally as Senate Panel Advances Her Nomination
“Fill the seat! Fill the seat!” That was what a crowd gathered in front of the Dirksen Senate Office Building chanted Thursday, hours after the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court. The committee’s action sends the nomination to the full Senate, where it’s scheduled for a Monday vote. … -
news
Barrett Will Be ‘Role Model’ for Our Daughters and Granddaughters, Female GOP Senators Say
Female Republican senators praised Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Wednesday, saying that Barrett will inspire their daughters and granddaughters through her example as a dignified legal jurist and successful mother. “Folks, this is what a mom can do,” Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said at a Wednesday press conference. “I tell my daughter… -
news
4 Questions James Comey Actually Answered in Senate Hearing
Former FBI Director James Comey took questions from a Senate committee for almost four hours Wednesday, but had the same answers for many of them. Comey, who President Donald Trump fired in May 2017, fielded questions remotely by video link primarily about the FBI’s Russia-Trump investigation, code-named “Crossfire Hurricane,” before the Justice Department named a… -
opinion
The Left’s Anti-Christian Dogma Is Living Loudly Within Senate Democrats
While President Donald Trump has not yet announced a nominee for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s vacant Supreme Court seat, politicians and members of the press have already launched a full-scale assault on federal appeals court Judge Amy Coney Barrett—who has emerged as a leading contender for the vacancy—over her faith and religious beliefs…. -
opinion
How Fast Can Senate Move? 1 Supreme Court Justice Confirmed Same Day Nominated
The Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg focuses attention on an obscure—but very important—process within our system of government; namely, how does such a job opening get filled? First, there’s no manual, rulebook, or set of instructions. The Constitution, in fact, has very little to say about it. It… -
news
Senator Questions Whether Mueller Team’s Wiped Cellphones a ‘Widespread Intentional Effort’
A leading Senate Republican is questioning whether deletions from more than two dozen cellphones used by the special counsel’s team in the Trump-Russia probe were part of a “widespread intentional effort” to scrub data from the devices. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, asked Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Christopher… -
opinion
New Report Shows Why Congress Must Address National Debt
The Congressional Budget Office released an update to its federal budget projections—the first full update to include effects from COVID-19. While the federal government’s finances were already grim in January despite several years of solid economic growth, this updated report details how things have gone from bad to worse. First, the deficit for 2020 is… -
news
Senate Intel Panel Finds ‘Absolutely No Evidence’ of Collusion, Faced Roadblocks
The Senate Intelligence Committee said in a long-awaited report released Tuesday that there is no evidence that the Trump campaign conspired with the Russian government to influence the 2016 election, affirming the findings of other investigations into an alleged Trump-Kremlin conspiracy. The Intelligence Committee's report, which clocks in at 966 pages, also offers a scathing assessment… -
opinion
After the Supreme Court’s Oklahoma Decision, the Rights of Accused on Tribal Land Are Up in the Air. Congress Should Make Things Clearer, Not Less So.
On the last day of the Supreme Court’s pandemic-extended term, the court declared that nearly half the state of Oklahoma remained reservation land. This thrust matters concerning jurisdiction on reservations and tribal lands on the center stage. The implications of the Supreme Court’s decision are staggering, especially in the criminal justice context. Some 2,000 convictions… -
opinion
How Leftists Would Destroy Congress’ Bipartisan US-Colombia Policy
Bipartisanship might be rare in the halls of Congress, but the U.S.-Colombia relationship defies that stereotype. For decades, policymakers on both sides of the aisle have understood the importance of sustained U.S. commitment to Colombia’s peace, stability, and security. While legislators often lose sight of the long view required in foreign policy, congressional oversight and… -
opinion
How Congress Could and Should Modernize Federal Regulation of Meat Inspection
The federal government has created numerous barriers to the sale of meat and poultry, but underlying those restrictions is a complete disregard for many farmers, states, and consumers. Recently, COVID-19-related bottlenecks at meat processing plants have shone a spotlight on the flawed federal meat inspection system. Congress now seems to be paying attention. Several pieces… -
opinion
House, Senate Defense Authorization Votes Are Rare, Welcome Show of Bipartisanship
The House of Representatives and the Senate approved their respective versions of the National Defense Authorization Act last week. Both passed with strong bipartisan support. The House version passed 295 to 125, while the Senate bill was approved 86 to 14. The lopsided margins in favor show there are strong majorities in both parties and…