Politics

By Chandelis Duster and Karl de Vries, CNN Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley announced on Friday that he will run for reelection, further solidifying Republican chances of holding the seat in 2022. “It’s 4 a.m. in Iowa so I’m running. I do that 6 days a week. Before I start the day I want you

By Simone Pathe, CNN After a rough month for President Joe Biden, Republicans think they have more than historical precedent on their side to retake the Senate in 2022. Traditionally, the party out of the White House does better in the midterms. But the surging Delta variant, a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and intra-party fissures

By Nikki Carvajal, CNN President Joe Biden will host the leaders of India, Australia and Japan at the White House on Friday for the first in-person meeting of “The Quad,” an informal group of countries that many see as an effort to push back against China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region — and one that

By Kevin Liptak, Priscilla Alvarez, Jeremy Diamond and Jasmine Wright, CNN When members of the Congressional Black Caucus arrived to Vice President Kamala Harris’ residence this week for an event marking the group’s 50th anniversary, talk quickly turned to the devolving humanitarian crisis on the US-Mexico border. Gathered on a mild evening on the lawn

By Eric Bradner and Anna-Maja Rappard, CNN The final report produced by Cyber Ninjas, the company hired by Arizona Senate Republicans to conduct a months-long, partisan review of the 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County in the 2020 election, shows that the results of reviewers’ hand recount are nearly identical to the county’s tally.

By Nicole Gaouette, Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler, CNN Secretary of State Antony Blinken defended US leadership at the United Nations on Thursday even as he acknowledged that it will take time to repair relations with France, one of America’s oldest allies, after missteps by the Biden administration. The top US diplomat, speaking to reporters

By Kristin Wilson, CNN The House has voted to approve the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2022 with wide bipartisan support. The bill, which sets the guidelines for defense policy, authorizes spending in line with the Pentagon’s priorities, though it does not appropriate the spending itself. The vote was 316-113. The Senate will

By Mark Morales Dr. Howard Zucker, the New York state health commissioner during the Covid-19 crisis who became engulfed in the Cuomo administration’s nursing home controversy, is stepping down. Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Zucker’s departure Thursday during a Covid-19 briefing, adding that he will stay on as health commissioner until the position is filled. Zucker’s

By Jeff Zeleny and Evan Perez, CNN The White House is taking steps to release information to a congressional committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol about what former President Donald Trump and his aides were doing as violence erupted that day, a decision that is likely to set up a legal fight

By Ryan Nobles and Annie Grayer, CNN The select committee investigating the January 6 riot at the US Capitol issued its first round of subpoenas Thursday, targeting close aides and allies of former President Donald Trump. The subpoenas come as the select committee seeks to investigate efforts the Trump White House took to potentially overturn

By Hannah Rabinowitz The Justice Department unsealed charges on Thursday against an organizer from the conservative advocacy group FreedomWorks for his alleged role in the January 6 insurrection. Brandon Prenzlin was charged last week with four federal misdemeanors for what prosecutors say was just over three minutes inside the Capitol. According to court documents, a

By Geneva Sands, CNN Customs and Border Protection targeted US citizens, including journalists and attorneys, during the Trump administration as it monitored migrant caravans traveling through Mexico, according to a new Department of Homeland Security Inspector General report. As part of its response to the caravan, the agency conducted unnecessary inspections, improperly shared sensitive information

By Marshall Cohen An Oklahoma man who took a beer from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office during the January 6 insurrection pleaded guilty Thursday to a misdemeanor offense. Andrew Ericson, 24, pleaded guilty to one count of illegally protesting inside the US Capitol, which has become a standard charge for rioters who aren’t accused of

By Ted Barrett, CNN The Senate is expected to vote Monday on a key procedural motion to advance a temporary government funding bill that includes a suspension of the debt ceiling, according to senators and aides in each party. The vote has not been locked in by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Republicans in the

By Sean Lyngaas, CNN Suspected foreign government-backed hackers last month breached a computer network at one of the largest ports on the US Gulf Coast, but early detection of the incident meant the intruders weren’t in a position to disrupt shipping operations, according to a Coast Guard analysis of the incident obtained by CNN and

By Paul LeBlanc, CNN It’s a new day for a 3,500-year-old artifact. US officials on Thursday formally returned the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet to Iraq after the Justice Department had deemed that it “entered the United States contrary to federal law.” “The tablet is a treasure to the world. And it will now return to its

By Gregory Krieg, CNN For all but eight of the last 30 years, a Republican has occupied the governor’s office in Massachusetts. The state that so many Americans equate with mainline liberalism — “Taxachusetts” was the GOP’s old derisive nickname — has a habit of electing Republicans to its top job, even as it sends