National Politics

By Paul LeBlanc, CNN Former President Donald Trump in March called the crowd that had gathered for his speech before the deadly US Capitol insurrection “loving” in an exclusive audio recording obtained by CNN. “I think it was the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken before. It went from that point — which is almost at

By Kristen Holmes and Kaitlan Collins, CNN Top Biden health officials and some White House officials are holding preliminary conversations on revising mask recommendations for vaccinated Americans as the Delta variant spreads throughout the US, according to multiple sources familiar with discussions. Officials have weighed whether guidance should be revisited after the US Centers for

By Paige Levin CNN’s Don Lemon moderates as President Joe Biden answers questions in a CNN town hall in Cincinnati on Wednesday. Watch the full event below. Biden explains how he’s working to dispel vaccine misinformation The President tackles vaccine misinformation and urges Americans to get vaccinated against Covid-19. Biden slams ‘Jim Crow on steroids’

By Paul LeBlanc, CNN Joe Biden quipped Wednesday evening that the first time he heard “Hail to the Chief” as President he asked, “Where is he?” Calling the storied presidential anthem a “great tune” during a CNN town hall in Ohio, Biden said that “you feel a little self-conscious” hearing it as commander in chief.

By Kate Sullivan, CNN President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he did not want to get “wrapped up” in arguments about the filibuster and it would “throw the entire Congress into chaos,” as some Democrats call for weakening the Senate’s filibuster rules in order to pass voting rights legislation. “What I want to do is I’m trying

By Devan Cole, CNN President Joe Biden said Wednesday that children under the age of 12 could be eligible to receive a Covid-19 vaccine “soon,” predicting that the government could green light the rollout for young Americans in the next few months. “Soon, I believe,” Biden said when asked by CNN’s Don Lemon when most

By Paul LeBlanc, CNN President Joe Biden on Wednesday raised the alarm about conspiracy theories flourishing in the US and dividing the nation, warning that “the rest of the world’s wondering about us.” Speaking at a CNN town hall in Ohio, Biden said the US has “got to get beyond this” moment after referencing the

By Kevin Liptak, CNN President Joe Biden arrived in Ohio on Wednesday mindful the days for actual bipartisan governing in Washington are quickly waning. Throughout his CNN town hall, he voiced again and again his conviction that Republicans will come along, even though some are poisoned by conspiracies and others, he said, are “lying” on

By Devan Cole, CNN West Virginia must pause its enforcement of a new law that prohibits transgender women and girls from participating in public school sports, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, allowing the plaintiff in the lawsuit to sign up for her school’s girls’ cross-country and track teams while the challenge awaits a final decision.

By Tami Luhby, CNN Many parents were thrilled to have hundreds of dollars suddenly land in their bank accounts last week, as the Internal Revenue Service distributed the first of six monthly child tax credit payments. This is the first time the child tax credit is being paid out on a monthly basis. When lawmakers

By Tara Subramaniam and Holmes Lybrand, CNN Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio suggested Wednesday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had been responsible for the security presence at the US Capitol on January 6, after Pelosi rejected his appointment to serve on the select committee investigating the insurrection. “Why wasn’t there a proper security presence

By Melanie Zanona, CNN Indiana Republican Rep. Jim Banks was just about to send a letter to Democrats requesting a GOP witness for the January 6 select committee’s first hearing when he had the rug pulled out from under him. Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Wednesday afternoon that she was rejecting both Banks and Rep. Jim

By Hannah Rabinowitz and Marshall Cohen A federal judge forced a US Capitol rioter to unlock his laptop Wednesday after prosecutors argued that it likely contained footage of the January 6 insurrection from his helmet-worn camera. The judge granted the Justice Department’s request to place Capitol riot defendant Guy Reffitt in front of his laptop

By Evan Perez, Erica Orden, Paula Reid and Katelyn Polantz, CNN Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn investigating Tom Barrack, a prominent ally to former President Donald Trump, for allegedly violating foreign lobbying laws had enough evidence to bring charges last year, but held off doing so until the arrival of the new presidential administration, according to

By Devan Cole, CNN A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked Arkansas’ ban on gender-affirming treatment for transgender youth from going into effect later this month. Judge James M. Moody Jr. granted a preliminary injunction against the ban that was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of four transgender adolescents in Arkansas