National Politics

By CNN Staff, CNN (CNN) — In a superseding indictment made public Tuesday, federal prosecutors allege Sen. Bob Menendez accepted race car tickets and other gifts from Qatar as part of a yearslong corruption scheme. Prosecutors also say the bribery and extortion scheme continued into 2023, a year longer than initially alleged. Read the superseding

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — Federal prosecutors allege Sen. Bob Menendez accepted race car tickets and other gifts from Qatar as part of a yearslong corruption scheme, with the Gulf nation joining Egypt as another foreign country the New Jersey Democrat is accused of helping while in office. Prosecutors allege in the superseding indictment

By Alex Marquardt and Natasha Bertrand, CNN (CNN) — The United States has quietly reached an agreement that extends its military presence at a sprawling base in Qatar for another 10 years, three US defense officials and another official familiar with the agreement told CNN. The deal, which has not been announced publicly, highlights Washington’s reliance on the tiny Gulf country that has

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — Former President Donald Trump has asked a Maine court to overturn the secretary of state’s decision to remove him from the 2024 primary ballot there because of his role in the January 6, 2021, US Capitol insurrection. Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, announced her decision last week, saying

By Devan Cole, CNN (CNN) — A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the Biden administration can’t enforce guidance meant to protect abortion access in life-threatening or health-saving situations even where abortion is banned. The guidance from the US Department of Health and Human Services says that medical providers who are required to provide emergency care to pregnant patients regardless of their

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — The Biden administration has asked the Supreme Court to allow the US Border Patrol to remove razor wire at the US-Mexico border – another escalation in the dispute between President Joe Biden and Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott over border policy. The dispute is over whether the Border Patrol has the legal authority to cut concertina wire

By Katie Lobosco, CNN Washington (CNN) — A long-awaited update to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as the FAFSA, was released on December 30. But at first, the online form is only available during short periods of time during what the Department of Education is calling a “soft launch.” We want

By Kate Sullivan, CNN (CNN) — House Whip Tom Emmer announced on Wednesday that he is backing former President Donald Trump in his latest bid for the White House. With Emmer’s announcement on X, all of the Republican House leaders have now backed Trump’s re-election campaign. “Democrats have made clear they will use every tool

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — A federal appeals court denied Donald Trump’s effort to delay his defamation trial set to begin in two weeks. In a brief court order issued late last week, a three-member panel of judges for the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, denied Trump’s motion without elaborating. Trump asked

By Eric Bradner, CNN (CNN) — Former President Donald Trump, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis qualified for CNN’s January 10 Republican presidential primary debate in Iowa, the network announced Tuesday. The debate is a final opportunity for candidates to make an impression in front of a national audience before voting

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — A federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected Michael Cohen’s attempt to revive his lawsuit against Donald Trump for allegedly retaliating against him for promoting a tell-all book critical of the former president. Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, had sued Trump, former Attorney General Bill Barr, and other Justice Department officials for

By Clare Foran and Haley Talbot, CNN The new year will bring new challenges for lawmakers, who must confront crises at home and abroad as the 2024 elections take center stage and threaten to deepen partisan divisions on Capitol Hill. The race for the White House is poised to play a major role in influencing

By Steve Contorno and Kit Maher, CNN Waukee, Iowa (CNN) — With TVs inside a packed central Iowa sports bar tuned to the Citrus Bowl, the phrase “dumpster fire” could be heard over the pub’s speakers midway through the second quarter. But the criticism wasn’t directed at the Iowa Hawkeyes’ lackluster performance in the New

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN (CNN) — Much of Donald Trump’s legal strategy in his federal 2020 election interference case has, so far, centered around trying to delay the start of his March trial until after the November presidential election. But in recent court filings, and according to sources familiar with the Trump team’s approach, other

By Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN (CNN) — The 2024 campaign year for President Joe Biden’s inner circle will largely be about carefully ratcheting up the intensity against Donald Trump, wary of voters becoming dulled to what they expect to be the former president’s ever wilder rhetoric and promises about what he would do if back in

By Brad Lendon, CNN (CNN) — The US Navy is pulling the world’s largest warship, sent to the eastern Mediterranean Sea after Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, back to the United States as it reevaluates its global force requirements, the US Sixth Fleet said in a statement Monday. The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford will head back to

CNN By Simone Pathe, CNN (CNN) — The high-stakes presidential election has taken on increased significance for Democrats’ precarious path to holding power in the Senate. Why? Because of the map. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin’s decision not to run for reelection in West Virginia underscored how advantageous the 2024 playing field is for Republicans. But President Joe

By Colin McCullough, CNN (CNN) — Former Democratic Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, who served nearly 30 years in Congress, died Sunday, according to a Facebook post from her son. Johnson, a nurse before entering politics, was born in 1935 in Waco, Texas. She received her nursing certificate in 1955 and served as a Texas state