Political News Headlines

IRS official Lerner refuses to testify before Congress

Internal Revenue Service official Lois Lerner, who leads the exempt organizations division under scrutiny for targeting conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status, is refusing to testify before Congress, the Los Angeles Times reports. Lerner was supposed to appear before the House Oversight Committee Wednesday. The Times reports that Lerner's attorney, William W. Taylor III, [...]

Obama announces his election commission team

President Barack Obama on Tuesday filled out his Presidential Commission on Election Administration, which was created to improve election systems in the United States. "As I said in my State of the Union Address, when any American, no matter where they live or what their party, is denied that right [to vote] simply because too [...]

In tragedy, consolation only goes so far

When John Kennedy Jr., son of the former president, died with his wife and sister-in-law in a plane crash in 1999, I heard a well-known televangelist assured us that “this is all part of God’s plan.”

Former IRS commissioner: ‘Not personally responsible’ for creating the ‘Be On The Lookout’ list

Former Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Douglas Shulman said that he was "not personally responsible" for the agency's practice of placing elevated scrutiny on conservative groups that applied for nonprofit status, but that he regrets it occurred during his tenure. "I certainly am not personally responsible for creating a list that had inappropriate criteria on it. [...]

Senator accuses IRS officials of withholding information in 2012 about agency practices

Two top Internal Revenue Service officials knew that the agency was using a list to scrutinize applications for tax-exempt status that included the phrase "tea party" as early as the spring of 2012, but did not tell lawmakers until this year. Former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman and outgoing Commissioner Steven Miller told the Senate Finance [...]

Christie Stars in NJ Tourism Ads, Dems Cry Foul

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and his family are starring in television commercials that are part of a publicly funded $25 million tourism campaign to encourage people to visit the Jersey Shore after Superstorm Sandy, but Democrats say they are simply taxpayer-funded campaign ads. The...

GOP Lieutenant Governor Candidate in Va. Compares Planned Parenthood to KKK

This weekend, Virginia Republicans found their candidate for lieutenant governor in E.W. Jackson, a Chesapeake, Va. pastor who has compared Planned Parenthood to the Ku Klux Klan and also suggested that black Americans are being enslaved by the Democratic Party. “It is time to end...

Republicans Informed of IRS Investigation Last Year

Much has been made of the fact that senior Treasury Department officials were told about the investigation into the treatment of tea party groups in June 2012 — months before last year’s the Presidential election. Republicans who requested the investigation were also told about it...

Obama Pivots to Jobs Tour at End of Scandal Filled Week

After a week filled with political scandals, President Obama turned to promoting his jobs tour in his weekly address Saturday. “That’s why I like getting out of the Washington echo chamber whenever I can – because too often, our politics aren’t focused on the same...

IRS Planted Question About Tax Exempt Groups

The Internal Revenue Service planted a question at an American Bar Association conference in order to reveal that it had inappropriately targeted conservative groups prior to the 2012 elections.  But members of Congress are questioning why they weren’t told earlier. The question that prompted Lois...

Ark. treasurer resigns amid charges she took cash

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas' state treasurer resigned Tuesday after being accused of taking at least $36,000 in cash — sometimes stashed in a pie box — from a broker who later came to manage a large share of the state's $3.3 billion investment portfolio.

House GOP panel moves on deep budget cuts

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans controlling the House are pressing ahead with slashing cuts to domestic programs far deeper than the cuts departments like Education, Interior and State are facing under an already painful round of automatic austerity.

Pentagon wants $450M for Guantanamo prison

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon wants more than $450 million for maintaining and upgrading the Guantanamo Bay prison that President Barack Obama wants to close.

McKeon: State didn't ask for help before Benghazi

WASHINGTON (AP) — A senior House Republican says U.S. military forces weren't in a position to help those under attack at a U.S. diplomatic post in Libya because the State Department had failed to ask the Pentagon for help in securing the compound before the raid.

Key senator to let Myanmar sanctions bill lapse

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell, easing up on his long-held tough stance on Myanmar, said Tuesday he planned to allow key sanctions legislation against the Southeast Asian nation to lapse because of the country's progress toward democracy.

Why Oklahoma's Two Republican Senators Are Leery of Unfunded Tornado Relief

Oklahoma's two Republican senators, Tom Coburn and Jim Inhofe, are among the most fiscally conservative in all of Congress. In the wake of the deadly tornadoes that hit their home state Monday, they're living up to their reputations.  

Don't Hold Your Breath Waiting for Public Opinion to Turn Against Obama

Another day, another poll showing that President Obama's job-approval rating is not collapsing under the weight of scandals and controversies. Why is he holding steady? Will it last? And will Republicans take any cues from his staying power?

Top IRS Official to Invoke Fifth, Issa Subpoenas

Lois Lerner, the IRS official who headed the tax-exempt division when the targeting of tea-party groups took place, plans to invoke her Fifth Amendment right to refuse to answer questions before Congress on Wednesday.

Immigration Bill's Last Hurdle Tonight -- Gay Rights

Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy poses the last major hurdle to the immigration bill clearing his own committee.

Virginia Republicans Panicking Over Their Choice for Lieutenant Governor

A minister who compared gays to pedophiles and Planned Parenthood to the Klu Klux Klan is not the No. 2 candidate Republican Party reformers had in mind for the marquee race of 2013.

The IRS Doesn't Know How to Hide Bad News

Lois Lerner will plead the Fifth before a congressional committee investigating the IRS's targeting of conservative groups. Lerner broke the news of the scandal — even to President Obama! — by planting a question with an audience member when she gave a speech at a tax lawyers' conference on May 10. In hindsight, that strategy for releasing the news does not look like it was a great idea. ...

Michele Bachmann Has Inspired a Sexy Romance Novel

Michele Bachmann was the muse for a new romance novel called Fires of Siberia, to be published June 1, about a fiery presidential candidate who tries to bone up on her foreign policy credentials only to get stuck in the wilderness with a sexy stranger. "Inspired by the life of Tea Party leader and Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Fires of Siberia is an old-fashioned bodice ripper romance that brings the heat for the 2013 summer beach reading season," touts publisher Badlands Unlimited.

Republican Overreach on IRS

While there has been plenty to find fault with in the revelation that the IRS targeted some tea party groups seeking tax exempt status, some of the Republican rhetoric has been an overreach. Rep. Michele Bachmann falsely claimed that Americans “most personal, sensitive, intimate, private healthcare information is in the … More

Why We Can't Forget That Oklahoma's Senators Voted Against Sandy Relief

Nearly four months ago, Oklahoma Senators Tom Coburn and James Inhofe both voted against H.R.152, the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act that eventually sent $50.5 billion in relief to victims of Hurricane Sandy. And in the flurry of last night's devastation in Moore, Oklahoma. it was impossible not to forget that fact, knowing the federal government would soon rally to the cause.

Anthony Weiner May Think He's Closer Friends with the Clintons Than They Do

Anthony Weiner's problem might be that while his wife Huma Abedin, a longtime aide to Hillary Clinton, is a Clinton friend, he isn't. Weiner will announce he's running for New York City mayor sometime this week, but he won't get the Clintons' official support or endorsement, Politico's Maggie Haberman reports. The official reason? There are just so many good candidates in the race. Hillary's spokesman says she "knows all of the candidates, she has worked with many of them, and is close with many of them, so won’t be weighing in one way or the other. ...

Immigration reform bill largely untouched going into fifth day of debate

A bipartisan group of senators begins a fifth full day of debating changes to the immigration reform bill Tuesday. So far, the so-called mark-up process has left the sweeping overhaul of the nation's immigration laws—which would legalize most of the country's 11 million undocumented immigrants—largely untouched. On Tuesday, the senators will address some of the [...]

What Obama Has in Common With Bill Clinton

A majority of Americans approve of the job President Obama's doing and think he's focused on issues that are important to them, even though a majority also think the IRS intentionally singled out conservative groups for harassment, according to a new Washington Post/ABC News poll.

Which came first: The chicken, the egg or the 10th Amendment?

A current brawl in Washington features a fight over who can sell eggs in California and whether Congress is violating the intent the its 10th Amendment in a way that could scramble consumer prices.

Obama offers prayers, federal support for Oklahoma following deadly tornado

President Barack Obama on Tuesday morning assured residents of Oklahoma that they have both the nation's support and the federal government's assistance as they reel from the aftermath of a deadly tornado. "Our prayers are with the people of Oklahoma today," Obama said during remarks delivered at the White House after a giant tornado tore [...]

Jon Stewart Explains The Obama Administration's 'Random Guy' Defense

In the wake of what he is calling "Hurricane Scandy," last night Jon Stewart looked at Obama's defensive strategy: sending out a random guy to Sunday morning talk shows. Right now that guy happens to be Dan Pfieffer, a senior advisor to the president, but Stewart calls him "Kevin's older brother from Home Alone."

Despite Rubio’s wooing, radio hosts protest immigration reform bill

Conservative radio talk show hosts have signed a letter opposing the sweeping immigration reform bill in the Senate, bucking tea party favorite Sen. Marco Rubio's attempts to win their support for the bill, which would combine enhanced border security with a legalization program for the nation's unauthorized immigrants. Rubio, a member of the "gang of [...]

Obama directs FEMA to ready help for tornado-ravaged Oklahoma

President Barack Obama has been getting updates on the massive tornado that ravaged homes and schools near Oklahoma City and has directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to prepare to get "all available assistance" to the disaster-hit area, the White House said Monday. FEMA has been closely monitoring the storm. Obama has discussed it with [...]

Obama to meet Chinese President Xi in June

President Barack Obama will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time on June 7-8 in California, the White House announced on Monday. The talks come amid rising U.S. anger at alleged cyberattacks originating in China and concerns about Beijing’s expanding global influence. “The two leaders will review progress & challenges in U.S.-China [...]

GOP official: ‘Institutional barriers’ remain for Republican women seeking office

The Republican Party is actively working to recruit more women to run for public office, but they still face "institutional barriers" to getting involved in GOP politics at the ground level, Republican State Leadership Committee President Chris Jankowski said on Monday. As part of the RSLC's Right Women Right Now project, the organization, which specializes [...]

Obama to visit Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama will visit Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania from June 26 to July 3, the White House announced on Monday. The Obamas spent one emotionally charged day in Ghana in July 2009—the president's only other visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office. "The president will reinforce the importance [...]

White House chief of staff McDonough, others knew of IRS investigation

It seems we didn't know the whole story about what the White House knew when about the Internal Revenue Service's improper targeting of conservatives. And neither did the White House spokesman. White House press secretary Jay Carney revealed during Monday's briefing that in addition to White House counsel Kathy Ruemmler, White House chief of staff [...]