McConnell Deploys 'Nuclear Option' to Speed Approval of Trump Nominees

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell deployed the so-called 'nuclear option' Wednesday by changing the Republican-controlled chamber’s rules to speed approval of President Donald Trump’s nominees who have been slow-walked by Democrats.
'It is time for this sorry chapter to end,' said the Kentucky Republican, who noted the new rules will apply to future nominees by the president. 'It’s time to return this body to a more normal and reasonable process for fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities, no matter which party controls the White House.'

Under the new rule approved 51-48, debate time on the Senate floor for lower-level administration nominees will be cut to two hours from 30 hours. The Senate plans to vote later Wednesday to adopt the same rule for U.S. district court judges.
McConnell said the move is needed to allow Trump to staff his government. It will help McConnell fill scores of open judgeships -- a top priority -- without having to use months of the Senate calendar.
The GOP is leaving unchanged the requirement of 30 hours’ debate for Cabinet-level appointments, other senior appointments and higher court nominees.

Democrats called the rule change another power grab by McConnell, who used obstruction tactics numerous times himself when Barack Obama was president. McConnell refused to hold a hearing for Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland and blocked numerous other lower court nominees in the final two years of Obama’s presidency. The Supreme Court seat ultimately went to Trump appointee Neil Gorsuch.
Democrats suggested there isn’t a real problem in confirming presidential nominees. They point to statements by McConnell and Trump bragging about setting records for court confirmations, and to Trump appointees who have either left under ethical clouds or been blocked on the Senate floor.

'It’s going to make it easier to rush unqualified and extreme Trump nominees to the Senate before anybody notices,' said Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon.
McConnell’s blockade of key Obama nominations prompted then-Democratic Leader Harry Reid to deploy the nuclear option to eliminate the 60-vote threshold to advance most nominations. At the time, McConnell was livid. Now, he’s echoing Reid’s arguments about the need to prevent a minority from obstructing a president, and using the same tool Reid used to overturn Senate precedent.

McConnell also used the procedure -- which effectively breaks the Senate rules to change the rules -- in 2017 to eliminate the 60-vote threshold for Supreme Court nominations.
Still, a number of Republicans insist on keeping the legislative filibuster, which allows the minority party to demand a 60-vote threshold to advance a bill. McConnell himself made clear Wednesday he still opposes getting rid of the legislative filibuster.
'The legislative filibuster is central to the nature of the Senate,' McConnell said. 'It always has been and must always be the distinctive quality of this institution.'

Sen. Michael Bennet says he has prostate cancer; Dem's planned 2020 run depends on health

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., said Wednesday night that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer as he considers a 2020 Democratic presidential bid. (Associated Press)

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., a potential 2020 presidential hopeful, said late Wednesday that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but still plans on running if he is cancer-free after surgery.
Bennet, 54, said in a statement he was diagnosed late last month. He plans to have surgery to remove his prostate gland in Colorado during the congressional recess, which begins April 11.
“While hearing news like this is never easy, I am fortunate it was detected early, and as a result, my prognosis is good,” Bennet said in a statement.
The prognosis came just as the Colorado Democrat was preparing to officially announce his candidacy.
“The idea was to announce sometime in April,” Bennet told the Colorado Independent. “That was the plan. We hired some staff. We interviewed people for positions in New Hampshire and Iowa. And then I went for the physical. In my last physical, my PSA was high. They did a biopsy, and it was clear. But this time, it was not clear."
Bennet told the Independent that he still plans to run for president if he beats the cancer diagnosis. But if he doesn’t, he said, “I’d have to make another decision.”
“This unanticipated hurdle only reinforces how strongly I feel about contributing to the larger conversation about the future of our country, and I am even more committed to drive that conversation in a positive direction,” Bennet said in his statement.
If the senator does enter the 2020 race for the White House, he’ll be competing against a large field of contenders (it currently stands at 14), including Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Kamala Harris, D-Calif. And there’s already a candidate from Colorado in the race: the state’s former two-term governor – John Hickenlooper, who launched his campaign last month.
Unlike several candidates in the 2020 race, Bennet, considered a moderate, opposes single-payer government health care.
The Democrat has made headlines recently for taking aim at controversial comments by freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., that were widely deemed anti-Semitic, calling them “hateful.”
In an interview with Fox News last month, Bennet said, “My mom and her parents were Polish Jews who survived the Holocaust and almost all the rest of the family was killed.” He explained that “they eventually made their way to America” to escape anti-Semitism.
Bennet also blasted Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas earlier this year on the Senate floor for crying “crocodile tears” over members of the coast guard not getting paid during the government shutdown.
Bennet has served in the Senate since 2009 and is a past chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He previously served as superintendent of Denver's public schools.
He and his wife Susan Daggett have three daughters, according to Bennet's website.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Dem Stacey Abrams still not conceding defeat, claims GOP stole Georgia election

Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams speaks during the National Action Network Convention in New York City, April 3, 2019. (Associated Press)

Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams questioned the legitimacy of her 2018 loss during an event in New York City on Wednesday, saying she refuses to concede the race to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, while accusing the GOP of stealing the election.
"Despite the final tally and the inauguration [of Gov. Brian Kemp] and the situation we find ourselves in, I do have a very affirmative statement to make: We won," she told the crowd at the annual convention of the Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network.
Abrams ran as a Democrat and would have been the first African-American woman governor in America had she won. She lost to Kemp by more than 54,000 votes, but has repeatedly refused to concede the outcome.
"Concession needs to say something is right and true and proper," Abrams said, according to the Washington Examiner. "You can't trick me into saying it was right."
During her campaign, Abrams was backed by big-name celebrities and prominent Democrats like Hillary Clinton and former President Barack Obama. The results were mired in controversy because Kemp, who was Georgia’s secretary of state at the time, oversaw the election.
Civil rights groups have accused Kemp of suppressing low-income people and minorities of their voting rights using the state's "exact match" law. The law requires election officials to flag any voter registration application if the identifying information doesn't match the voter's information in existing records.
A group backed by Abrams filed a federal lawsuit in January over the alleged voter suppression. Kemp has denied that he disenfranchised voters for his own benefit.
Abrams' name has been floated as a possible running mate for former Vice President Joe Biden, who is considering a 2020 Democratic White House bid. It has also been rumored that Abrams is considering her own 2020 presidential run.

AOC reminds Trump in tweet about tax return request: 'We didn't ask you'

Disrespecting arrogant little twit.

In a tweet Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez referred to a letter that Democrats wrote to the IRS, requesting six years of President Trump's tax returns. 

In a tweet Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., suggested that House Democrats won't be taking no for an answer in seeking access to President Trump's tax returns.
The freshman congresswoman boiled her view of the situation down to the following mock conversation between Congress and the president:
"Congress: 'We’re going to need a copy of the President’s tax returns from 2013-2018.'
"45: 'No, I’m ‘under audit.'
"Congress: 'We didn’t ask you.' "
After Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on his Russia investigation found no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, some Democrats have been continuing efforts to investigate the president's business dealings and other actions.
Ocasio-Cortez's tweet referred to the House Ways and Means Committee’s request to the IRS for six years of the president's tax records.
During the election, Trump broke the long-standing tradition of presidential candidates releasing their tax returns, saying they were under audit. He has continued to dodge the issue as president.
Congressional Republicans claim with their IRS request Democrats have "weaponized" the tax law.
The president recently took note of the impact Ocasio-Cortez has made on the Democratic Party since taking office in January.
"The Green New Deal, done by a young bartender, 29 years old," Trump told a crowd of House Republicans at a dinner in Washington on Tuesday, referring to Ocasio-Cortez and her package of proposals for U.S. efforts to combat climate change. "A young bartender, wonderful young woman.”
The president then claimed that longtime Democrats had become "petrified of her."

Southern Border Cartoons

President Trump: Security is more important than trade, border shutdown possible

President Donald Trump speaks as he meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, April 2, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

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UPDATED 1:07 PM PT — Tuesday, April 2, 2019

President Trump is now saying “security is more important” to him than trade as he considers shutting down the southern border.
This comes as some raise concerns about the economic impact of a border shutdown, but White House Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow told CNBC he’s “looking at keeping truck lanes open” to lessen the economic impact
In the meantime, President Trump said Mexico is finally stepping in to help stop the flow of illegal immigrants from Central America as he doubles down on his threat to cut U.S. aid to Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Sarah Sanders suggested the president doesn’t want to shutdown the southern border, but will use it as his last resort if he feels the safety of Americans are in jeopardy. While speaking with reporters Tuesday, the White House press secretary said closing the border isn’t the main priority of this administration. She said Democrats must help address the issue of illegal immigration to keep ports of entry open.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders talks with reporters outside the White House, Tuesday, April 2, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Sanders claimed the southern border is being overrun and the president could be forced to close it.
“Look, Democrats are leaving us absolutely no choice at this point, we’ve already had to move roughly 750 personnel from ports of entry,” she told reporters. “And it looks like we’re going to have to move more, which will force those lines to go longer to cross the border and eventually it may be that it’s the best decision that we close the border.”
Sanders also said Mexico must ramp up its efforts to curb illegal immigration into the U.S.

Wisconsin Supreme Court race likely heading toward recount

FILE--In this March 15, 2019 file photo, Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates Lisa Neubauer, left, speaks during a debate with opponent Brian Hagedorn, right, at the Wisconsin State Bar Center in Madison, Wis. (Associated Press) 

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race to replace a retiring liberal judge appeared to be heading for a recount Tuesday, with the outcome largely seen as a measure of the battleground state’s mood ahead of the 2020 presidential election.

With the unofficial vote tally at 99 percent, only 1,600 votes out of nearly 1.2 million votes cast separated conservative candidate Brian Hagedorn, the leader, from liberal-backed challenger Lisa Neubauer.
The Associated Press did not declare a winner, noting that the race was within the 1 percentage point margin for a recount. If the margin remains within the 1 percentage point difference, the trailing candidate would be allowed to request a recount paid for by taxpayers.
"This race is too close to call," Neubauer campaign manager Tyler Hendricks said in a statement obtained by FOX6 Milwaukee. "We are almost assuredly headed to a recount. We are going to make sure every vote is counted. Wisconsinites deserve to know we have had a fair election and that every vote is counted."
The court is currently controlled 4-3 by conservatives, who have held the majority since 2008. If Hagedorn wins, the scales would tip in favor of conservatives 5-2, ensuring majority control for years to come. Liberals were hoping for a Neubauer win to give them a shot at taking majority control in 2020.
The outcome will also test the climate of the imminent 2020 election cycle, with Wisconsin seen as a critical battleground for presidential hopefuls. In 2016, Donald Trump won Wisconsin with 47.8 percent of the vote to Hillary Clinton's 47 percent.
Both Neubauer, 61, and Hagedorn, 41, are appeals court judges.
The winner will serve a 10-year term and replace retiring liberal Justice Shirley Abrahamson, who is 85.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Lori Lightfoot wins Chicago mayoral race, to become city's first black woman mayor

Lori Lightfoot, right, was projected to defeat Toni Preckwinkle in the race for Chicago mayor. (Getty Images/AP, File) 

Former federal prosecutor Lori Lightfoot easily won the Chicago mayor's race Tuesday, earning support from every part of the city to defeat a longtime political insider and become the first black woman and openly gay person to lead the nation's third-largest city.

Lightfoot, who had never been elected to public office, delivered a commanding victory over Toni Preckwinkle, who served in the City Council for 19 years before becoming Cook County Board president. Preckwinkle also is chairwoman of the county Democratic Party.
Lightfoot promised to rid City Hall of corruption and help low-income and working-class people she said had been "left behind and ignored" by Chicago's political ruling class. It was a message that resonated with voters weary of political scandal and insider deals, and who said the city's leaders for too long have invested in downtown at the expense of neighborhoods.
"Together we can and will make Chicago a place where your zip code doesn't determine your destiny," Lightfoot told a cheering crowd at her victory party. "We can and we will break this city's endless cycle of corruption and never again — never ever — allow politicians to profit from elected positions."
She said people are seeing "a city reborn" — a place where race and "who you love" don't matter.

In this March 24, 2019 photo, Chicago mayoral candidate Lori Lightfoot, right, participates in a candidate forum in Chicago. Lightfoot and Toni Preckwinkle, left, are competing to make history by becoming the city's first black, female mayor. On issues their positions are similar. But their resumes are not, and that may make all the difference when voters pick a new mayor on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford)

Lightfoot had emerged as the surprising leader in the first round of voting in February when 14 candidates were on the ballot to succeed Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who decided against running for a third term.
Chicago will become the largest U.S. city to elect a black woman as mayor when Lightfoot is sworn in May 20. She will join seven other black women currently serving as mayors in major U.S. cities, including Atlanta and New Orleans.
The vote to succeed Emanuel came just days after Chicago state prosecutors stunned the nation by opting to drop charges against actor Jussie Smollett, who was accused of faking a hate-crime attack that implicated supporters of President Trump.
Prosecutors have said they did not intend to vindicate Smollett, but the actor publicly claimed exoneration -- leading comedians to mock him, and police unions and the mayor's office to cry foul.
Lightfoot seized on outrage over the deadly shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald -- at the hands of white officer Jason Van Dyke -- to launch her campaign. That was even before Emanuel announced he wouldn't seek a third term amid criticism for initially resisting calls to release video of the shooting.
"I'm not a person who decided I would climb the ladder of a corrupt political party," Lightfoot said during a debate last month. "I don't hold the title of committeeman, central committeeman, boss of the party."
That was a not-so-veiled reference to Preckwinkle, who also leads the county's Democratic Party and had countered that her opponent lacked the necessary experience for the job.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, right, and Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, center, at a news conference last month after prosecutors abruptly dropped all charges against "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford, File)

"This is not an entry-level job," Preckwinkle said repeatedly during the campaign. "It's easy to talk about change. It's hard to actually do it. And that's been my experience — being a change maker, a change agent, transforming institutions and communities."
Joyce Ross, 64, a certified nursing assistant living on the West Side, said she cast her ballot Tuesday for Lightfoot. Ross also said she believed Lightfoot would be better able to clean up the police department and curb the city's violence.
In addition, she said she was bothered by Preckwinkle's association with longtime Alderman Ed Burke, who was indicted earlier this year on charges he tried to shake down a restaurant owner who wanted to build in his ward.
"My momma always said birds of a feather flock together," Ross said.
The campaign between the two women got off to a contentious start, with Preckwinkle's advertising focusing on Lightfoot's work as a partner at Mayer Brown, one of the nation's largest law firms, and tagging her as a "wealthy corporate lawyer."
Preckwinkle also tried to cast Lightfoot as an insider for working in police oversight posts under Emanuel and police oversight, procurement and emergency communications posts under former Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Dueling protestors speaking out Monday in Chicago over Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx's office's decision to drop all charges against "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

In one ad, Preckwinkle criticized Lightfoot's oversight of emergency communications in 2004 when a fire killed four children. A judge ordered Lightfoot to preserve 911 tapes after questions were raised about how the emergency call was handled. The ad noted some of the tapes were destroyed, prompting the judge to rebuke Lightfoot. The ad sparked a backlash from the family of three of the children killed, with their sister accusing Preckwinkle of trying to take advantage of her family's tragedy.
Lightfoot also responded by scolding her opponent for being negative while also airing ads pointing out Preckwinkle's connection to powerful local Democrats, including one under federal indictment.
Preckwinkle spent much of her time during the campaign answering for her ties to Chicago's political establishment. She and her supporters asserted her rise to Democratic Party leadership did not hinder her ability to oppose policies promoted by the city's ever-powerful mayors.
"My whole career has been about change, and change is action and results, not simply words," said Preckwinkle, who said her experience made her better positioned to lead a city with financial problems and poorer neighborhoods hit by gun violence.
Despite the barbs on the campaign trail, the two advanced similar ideas to boost the city's finances.
Both candidates expressed support for a casino in Chicago and for changing the state's income tax system to a graduated tax, in which higher earners would be taxed at a higher rate.
Preckwinkle said that while downtown development should remain a priority, it should not be at the cost of neighborhood growth. She promoted additional investments in neighborhood schools, affordable housing and criminal justice reform.
Lightfoot said that as mayor, she would focus on investing in neighborhoods on the West and South Sides and bring transparency and accountability to City Hall. She added she also wanted to end City Hall corruption and restore people's faith in government.
"The machine's been in decline for a while, but it still has a grip on certain things," Lightfoot said. "This is our opportunity to send it to its grave, once and for all."