House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
At the top of Kevin McCarthy’s to-do list as he begins his role as House Speaker is adopting a new rules package for the chamber when it convenes Monday evening.
McCarthy, who was elected speaker after a historic 15 ballots, made a series of concessions to conservative Republicans in order to secure the votes he needed to win the position. Those deals will be center stage as the House votes on whether to pass the new rules package.
Among the biggest concessions, McCarthy agreed to allow a single lawmaker to call a vote to oust the speaker; a condition on which he initially said he would not budge. The California Republican also agreed to holding a vote on congressional term limits, putting more House Freedom Caucus members on the powerful House Rules Committee, and to mandate 72 hours for bills to be reviewed before votes, among others.
Even more concessions could be revealed during the evening vote. At least two Republicans have already said they are skeptical of the new rules package, which could make things challenging for McCarthy since he can only afford to lose four votes on legislation and still overcome Democratic opposition.
President Joe Biden swept into wartime Israel for a 7 1/2-hour visit Wednesday that produced a heaping dose of vocal support and a deal to get limited humanitarian aid into Gaza from Egypt.
The Pentagon has sent “prepare to deploy” orders to about 2,000 U.S. troops to be ready to respond to the Israel-Hamas war, two U.S. officials said on the condition of anonymity to discuss a decision that has not been announced yet.
The head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service has taken responsibility for not warning of the bloody Oct. 7 Hamas rampage that killed over 1,400 Israelis.
Republicans rejected Rep. Jim Jordan for House speaker on a first ballot Tuesday, as an unexpectedly numerous 20 holdouts denied the hard-charging ally of Donald Trump the GOP majority needed to seize the gavel.
The federal judge overseeing the 2020 election subversion case against Donald Trump in Washington imposed a narrow gag order on him on Monday, barring the Republican former president from making statements targeting prosecutors, possible witnesses and the judge's staff.
A 71-year-old Illinois man accused of fatally stabbing a 6-year-old boy and seriously wounding a 32-year-old woman was charged with a hate crime Sunday.
Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan as their new nominee for House speaker on Friday during internal voting, putting the gavel within reach of the staunch ally of GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump.
