National Politics

By Adam Cancryn, Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — The United States seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday, President Donald Trump said, escalating US pressure on President Nicolas Maduro’s regime. “As you probably know we’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela,” Trump said. “Large tanker, very large, largest

By Gabe Cohen, CNN (CNN) — After years of promoting baseless claims of voter fraud that President Donald Trump has frequently touted, a conservative activist has landed a top position at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The activist Gregg Phillips shot to fame after launching the narrative that millions of illegal votes were cast in

By Ellis Kim, Manu Raju, Sarah Ferris, CNN (CNN) — The House on Wednesday advanced the National Defense Authorization Act for the next fiscal year, sending the massive defense policy bill to the Senate for final passage. Both Democrats and Republicans voted overwhelmingly to approve the measure, which sets out the nation’s defense policy agenda

By Haley Britzky, Brianna Keilar, CNN (CNN) — Another 81 women who say they were “subjected to invasive, unnecessary, and degrading touching, voyeurism, and covert filming” are joining a lawsuit originally filed in November against Army Maj. Blaine McGraw, a gynecologist who was charged this week with secretly recording his patients during exams. The new

By Gloria Pazmino, CNN (CNN) — New York City Comptroller Brad Lander launched his bid for New York’s 10th Congressional District on Wednesday, challenging Rep. Dan Goldman in what is expected to be a heated primary in one of the city’s most left-leaning districts. The race will serve as a test for the city’s left-leaning

By Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN (CNN) — Kamala Harris is extending her book tour into 2026 – but now it’s going to be about more than selling books. The former vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee on Wednesday morning announced a slate of stops starting in January and going every week through April, taking her

By Arit John, CNN (CNN) — Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro condemned the rise of political violence during a joint interview with CNN’s Dana Bash, calling on politicians, including President Donald Trump, to help lower the temperature in the country. The two responded on Tuesday to the president’s comments

By Daniel Dale, CNN (CNN) — It was an international controversy during President Donald Trump’s first term. Media outlets including CNN reported that, at a closed-door January 2018 meeting with senators about immigration policy, Trump had asked why the US should accept immigrants from “shithole countries” such as some in Africa. Trump’s White House spokesperson

By Sarah Ferris, Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — A number of endangered GOP lawmakers on Wednesday privately pressed Republican leaders to address expiring Covid-era health care subsidies — but faced sharp pushback from the right flank of their party. And House Republican leaders remained adamant that they did not support a short-term fix, making it

By Sean Lyngaas, CNN (CNN) — The US has indicted a Ukrainian woman for her alleged involvement with Russia-backed cybercriminal groups that have caused disruptions at American water and meat processing facilities, the Justice Department has said. The case against Victoria Dubranova, 33, who was extradited to the US earlier this year and pleaded not

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — A federal judge on Wednesday approved the unsealing of documents from the investigation and criminal prosecution of accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. The decision from Manhattan judge Richard M. Berman comes one day after a different New York judge approved the release of records in the case against Epstein’s

By Alayna Treene, CNN (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance is expected to travel to Pennsylvania next week to deliver remarks on the economy and the cost of living, continuing the administration’s newfound push to convince voters that the White House is focused on affordability concerns, a spokesperson said. Vance will speak at an event

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — As the US military has undertaken a campaign of attacks against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, at least five people have survived initial strikes ending up in the water after explosions killed fellow crew members and disabled their ships. But what happened next

By Ethan Cohen, CNN (CNN) — Democrats continued their run of successes in special elections by flipping a state House seat in Georgia Tuesday. The Democratic victory, in a district that voted for President Donald Trump by about 12 percentage points last year, comes ahead of next year’s critical midterms, when Georgians will vote in

By Haley Britzky, Brianna Keilar, CNN (CNN) — An Army gynecologist accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of his former patients is officially charged with allegedly recording his patients, along with several other related charges, the Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel said Tuesday. Maj. Blaine McGraw, a doctor at Fort Hood, Texas, was charged

By Sunlen Serfaty, Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — In a move that could send millions of student loan borrowers scrambling, the Trump administration announced an agreement on Tuesday to end the SAVE plan, a Biden-era repayment plan that has faced legal challenges for years. The Saving on Valuable Education (SAVE) plan is an income-driven

By Jim Sciutto, CNN (CNN) — Following President Donald Trump’s claim that Ukraine is “losing” the war against Russia’s ongoing invasion and that Moscow now has the “upper hand,” multiple officials told CNN there are no new US or European assessments suggesting there have been significant changes on the battlefield and they don’t see any

By Morgan Rimmer, Alison Main, Ted Barrett, CNN (CNN) — Majority Leader John Thune announced that the Senate will vote Thursday on a Republican-led alternative to Democrats’ three-year extension of soon-to-expire enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits. Neither bill, however, is expected to get the 60 votes needed to advance. Republicans have accused Democrats of

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department said in court documents on Tuesday that it plans to continue its efforts to prosecute former FBI Director James Comey. The department’s stance was revealed in a lawsuit brought by the former FBI’s director’s friend and former lawyer Dan Richman. It comes two weeks after Comey’s