Republican Party News
Featuring coverage of Republican priorities, legislation, and internal debates, this section examines how the party shapes U.S. politics from a conservative perspective.
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- News
Ted Cruz Lays Out 4 Priorities for a Blockbuster Year for Conservatives
We have “a historic opportunity,” was the message of Sen. Ted Cruz at the Road to Majority Conference. “It is June 2017, and Hillary Clinton is not president and Neil Gorsuch is a Supreme Court justice,” said the Texas Republican Thursday. This year “demonstrates that elections matter,” Cruz said. “It demonstrates that men and women…Christine Roe -
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In Jim Jordan They Trust: Back Home, Voters Put Faith in Obamacare Foe
MINSTER, Ohio—Across the country, Republicans in Congress are returning home to face angry constituents at town halls and other public events, voters in both parties who want answers from elected officials about the GOP’s stalled plan to repeal and replace Obamacare. But here in Ohio’s 4th Congressional District, the response to Rep. Jim Jordan couldn’t…Melissa Quinn -
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RSC Chairman Talks ‘Hopeful Meeting’ With Pence on Obamacare
Conservatives in Congress met with Vice President Mike Pence Wednesday to discuss the American Health Care Act, the Republican alternative to Obamacare. “It was the most hopeful meeting that I feel like we have been part of, especially when it’s in a large group like that,” Republican Study Committee Chairman Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C., told…Rachel del Guidice -
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Mitch McConnell Finds ‘Lot to Like’ in GOP’s Obamacare Replacement Bill
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stumped Thursday for House Republican leadership’s American Health Care Act at a press event, saying, “There’s a lot to like about it.” “It repeals a significant number of taxes on the American people, [and] Republicans usually like repealing taxes,” McConnell said, in a jab at conservative lawmakers who are balking…Caleb Ecarma -
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Rand Paul, Jim Jordan Buck Leadership by Reviving 2015 Obamacare Repeal
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has reintroduced an Obamacare repeal bill that passed both houses of Congress in 2015, highlighting conservatives’ dissatisfaction with Republican leadership’s new bill to replace the health care law. Paul stressed that the language is the same as the repeal legislation that Republicans in the House and Senate passed and sent to…Morgan Walker -
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Pence Highlights Administration’s Commitment to School Choice in Meeting With Black College Leaders
Vice President Mike Pence stressed to a group of college administrators that the Trump administration is committed to greater education choice for elementary and high school students. “Parents on an increasing basis are able to choose for their young children the school regardless of their income and area code,” @mike_pence says. The vice president spoke…Fred Lucas -
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Pence Vows to End ‘Obamacare Nightmare’
Vice President Mike Pence attempted to assure conservative activists Thursday night that Obamacare is on its way out. “Let me assure you,” Pence said at the annual Conservative Action Political Conference, or CPAC, “America’s Obamacare nightmare is about to end.” As plans to repeal and replace Obamacare remain in limbo, Pence made the issue centerfold…Kelsey Bolar -
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Ted Cruz, at CPAC, Urges Term Limits for Congress
Now is the time for lawmakers to follow through on promises they made in their 2016 campaigns, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told the crowd Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference. “This election was the American people saying, ‘Enough already with the corruption in both parties, Democrats and Republicans who have been here too long,’”…Rachel del Guidice -
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Ted Cruz’s Take on Obamacare, in 4 Quotes
In a prime-time debate on CNN this week, Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, discussed “The Future of Obamacare” in America. Cruz, a leading critic of the law, used the moment to outline the law’s failures. Here are four things Cruz said about Obamacare: 1) “Now, nobody thinks we’re done once Obamacare is…Morgan Walker -
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At March for Life, Pence Pledges Restoration of ‘Culture of Life’ in US
“Life is winning again in America.” That was the message Vice President Mike Pence told the thousands gathered for the March for Life in Washington, D.C., Friday. “Along with you, we will not grow weary, we will not rest until we restore a culture of life in America for ourselves and our posterity,” Pence said….James Rogers -
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Black Leaders Who Support Jeff Sessions: ‘He Is a Good Man, Let That Be Heard’
During his confirmation hearing for U.S. attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions faced questions about his record on issues of race and civil rights. Allegations of racism contributed to the downfall of Sessions’ 1986 bid for a federal judgeship before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the same committee he is seeking approval from to move forward as…Kelsey Bolar -
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3 Takeaways From Gen. John Kelly’s Homeland Security Confirmation Hearing
On Tuesday, retired Gen. John Kelly, the nominee to be secretary of homeland security, went before the Senate’s Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee for his confirmation hearing. Here are the top three takeaways from that hearing. 1. The Department of Homeland Security’s management and morale are a top focus for Congress and for Kelly. Multiple…David Inserra -
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4 Big Concerns From Day 2 of Jeff Sessions’ Confirmation Hearings
The first day of confirmation hearings for Sen. Jeff Sessions was comparatively collegial compared to the more contentious speakers who testified Wednesday for and against President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next attorney general. Sessions didn’t testify during the second day of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearings, but former staffers and law enforcement advocates…Fred Lucas -
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9 Issues Discussed at Rex Tillerson’s Confirmation Hearing to Be Trump’s Secretary of State
At his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of state pick Rex Tillerson took harsh questioning from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee about his business dealings in Russia during his career as CEO of Exxon Mobil Corp. In a moment where Russia is under fire for interfering in the U.S. election, and the…Josh Siegel -
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Newt Gingrich Explains Why the Media Can’t Comprehend Trump
President-elect Donald Trump’s successful candidacy is the result of an unequivocal disconnect between elite media and average Americans, says former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Speaking Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation at the first of a six-part series on Trumpism, Gingrich explained how the media’s disdain for the American people ultimately led to Trump’s victory in…Morgan Walker -
- Opinion
The Real Reason for the Left’s All-Out Assault on Jeff Sessions
Observers of this week’s confirmation hearings for the post of U.S. attorney general might think it odd to see Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., rewind the clock to a single voter fraud case from the 1980s. Under persistent questioning, Sessions has had to defend his decision to prosecute a case of brazen voter fraud—something that was…J. Christian Adams -
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Al Sharpton Makes Some Serious Charges Against Jeff Sessions. Here Are the Facts.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is organizing a resistance movement comprised of black civil rights leaders to protest the presidency of Donald Trump. He showed up Tuesday at Sen. Jeff Sessions’ confirmation hearing for attorney general. In an interview with The Daily Signal, Sharpton rehashed allegations of racism against the Alabama senator, claiming they were “found to be substantial.”…Kelsey Bolar -
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8 Takeaways From the First Day of Jeff Sessions’ Confirmation Hearings
It got rowdy at times during the hearing Tuesday on Sen. Jeff Sessions’ nomination to become attorney general, but not so much because of fellow senators who questioned the Alabama Republican. Protesters interrupted the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing multiple times, some dressed in Ku Klux Klan outfits, others wearing the familiar Code Pink attire. They shouted…Fred Lucas -
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What to Know About Rex Tillerson, Trump’s Pick to Be Secretary of State
President-elect Donald Trump made it official Tuesday in announcing his selection of Rex Tillerson, the CEO of Exxon Mobil Corp. who has been scrutinized for his relationship with Russia, to be the next secretary of state. “I am honored by President-elect Trump’s nomination and share his vision for restoring the credibility of the United States’…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
No, Jeff Sessions as Attorney General Won’t Mean Criminal Justice Reform Is Dead
Media and advocacy groups have claimed that President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., to be our next U.S. attorney general has killed criminal justice reform. But those naysayers have forgotten their history and the nature of federalism. In 2001, it was not a Democrat but Sessions who introduced measured sentencing legislation to…John-Michael Seibler