House of Representatives

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Congress Cuts Racist Crack Sentencing Disparity

Felony amount now only 18 times higher for powder cocaine

(Newser) - Congress quietly eased up the federal sentencing guideline on crack cocaine yesterday, addressing one of the more glaring disparities of the drug war. In what critics have called a racist double-standard, possessing a mere 5 grams of crack is considered a felony, compared to 500 grams for powdered cocaine. The...

Erin Andrews Almost Cries Touting Stalker Law

'There is hope,' she says

(Newser) - Erin Andrews appeared on Capitol Hill today to speak out in favor of a new, tougher federal stalking law, and nearly came to tears in the process. “These stories are not easy to talk about,” said the ESPN reporter, flanked by members of Congress. “It's so funny....

House Panel Accuses Rangel of Ethics Violations

A separate panel begins a trial later this month

(Newser) - A House investigative committee has charged Rep. Charlie Rangel, the former chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, with ethics violations. The panel's actions sends the case to a trial on the allegations. A separate ethics panel will decide whether the alleged violations can be proved by clear,...

House Extends Jobless Benefits

Measure now goes to President Obama for his signature

(Newser) - Congress has approved legislation to restore unemployment insurance to people who have been out of work for six months or more, ending a seven-week interruption that caused 2.5 million people to lose benefits averaging about $300 a week. The 272-152 House vote sends the measure to President Obama, who...

Pelosi: Dems 'Will Keep Control of the House. Period'

House speaker is optimistic (in fundraising letter)

(Newser) - Whatever Robert Gibbs may think , Nancy Pelosi isues a defiant prediction about the midterms: "Here is what will happen in November. Democrats will keep control of the House. Period." Of course, it wouldn't hurt if Democratic supporters opened their wallets, she adds in a fundraising letter . She helpfully...

House Panel Votes to Block New BP Drilling

Firm facing 7-year ban on applying for new offshore leases

(Newser) - BP faces being banned from new offshore drilling for up to 7 years under a measure passed by the House Natural Resources Committee. The amendment to a sweeping oil reform bill doesn't mention BP by name, but bans firms that have had more than 10 fatalities at drilling facilities or...

House Passes Wall St. Reform; Senate Delays Its Vote

Harry Reid needs time to corral votes

(Newser) - The easy vote is over for financial reform: The sweeping measure that, among many other things, creates a consumer protection agency and puts limits on derivatives trading breezed through the House 237-192. But it won't reach President Obama's desk by July 4 as planned because the Senate has postponed its...

Rep: Recession Victims Not Minorities, But 'Good Americans'

Dem Kanjorski comments spark uproar

(Newser) - Pennsylvania's Democratic Congressman Paul Kanjorski is under intense fire for remarks contrasting "minorities" and "good American people." People helped by a Pennsylvania foreclosure prevention program "are not minorities, and they're not defective, and they're not all the things you like to insinuate that these programs are...

Cost of Nancy Pelosi's New Office? $18K. Per Month.

It's almost double what the next biggest spender in the House pays

(Newser) - Speaker Nancy Pelosi has moved her district offices to a new building in San Francisco, to which she now pays $18,736 in monthly rent. The space is nearly a third larger, at quadruple the cost of the old office. The next highest monthly office rent for a member of...

La. Rep. Cries During Oil Spill Testimony

'Everything I know and love is at risk'

(Newser) - Things got emotional in the House today, when Louisiana Rep. Charlie Melancon broke down during his testimony about the Louisiana oil spill. He began by rattling off a string of disasters that has befallen his state, like Hurricanes Katrina, Gustav, and Ike. “It's not been fun,” he said....

House Votes to Repeal Don't Ask

Measure to let gays serve openly clears another hurdle

(Newser) - The military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy on gay service members took another big step towards becoming history tonight after the House voted 234-193 in favor of repeal. The Senate Armed Services Committee had earlier voted 16-12 of favor of repeal. Both measures won't implement repeal until after a...

Palin Pick Parrots Obama

Congressional hopeful rips off 2004 DNC speech

(Newser) - A congressional candidate from Idaho has the backing of Sarah Palin but a taste for the rhetoric of Barack Obama. A fellow Idaho Republican—not even an opponent, but a candidate for state senate—has released an attack ad contrasting Vaughn Ward's announcement of his candidacy with then-state senator Obama's...

Indiana's GOP Rep. Souder Resigns, Admits Affair

Eight-term Indiana congressman slept with staffer

(Newser) - Indiana Rep. Mark Souder will announce his resignation today, after admitting to an affair with a female staffer that had, until now, only been a rumor. Souder will leave office as soon as Friday, Fox News reports. In his statement, he will say he “sinned against God, my wife...

Texas Republican Uses Porn to Kill Science Bill

(Newser) - US Rep. Ralph Hall misused a House procedural rule, meant to insure that minorities have a voice, to effectively kill a science funding bill last week. Hall killed a bill that would renew Bush-backed support for science innovation and education by tying a vote to stop it from reaching the...

Florida Has Spoken: First House Win Goes to the Democrats

(Newser) - Democratic state Sen. Ted Deutch yesterday handily won the first US House race since Congress passed Obamacare, with 62% of the vote. In the contest for retiring Democrat Robert Wexler's seat, Deutch's GOP opponent sought to make the race a referendum on health care reform, which he lambasted as a...

Oops: Congress Might Have Killed Its Own Health Care

Health bill error may leave lawmakers, aides without coverage

(Newser) - If you know exactly how the health care reform bill will impact your coverage, you may be a step ahead of your member of Congress, according to the New York Times . A report from the Congressional Research Service found that—because of imprecise language and a possible drafting error in...

Democrats Could Lose 50-Plus House Seats
Democrats Could Lose 50-Plus House Seats
Nate Silver
Apr 9, 2010 1:57 PM CDT

Democrats Could Lose 50-Plus House Seats

Or worse, if things go really badly

(Newser) - The worst-case scenarios for the Democrats in the midterm elections are bad indeed, Nate Silver warns. He cites "one reasonably well-informed translation of the generic ballot polls" that forecasts a 51-seat loss in the House if the elections were held today. It's not too late to shift the momentum,...

New Rangel Challenge From Adam Clayton Powell IV
 New Rangel Challenge From 
 Adam Clayton Powell IV 

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON
Apr 8, 2010 11:09 AM CDT

New Rangel Challenge From Adam Clayton Powell IV

NY lawmaker aims to take back seat Rangel took from dad

(Newser) - In a twist of fate, New York lawmaker Adam Clayton Powell IV will use Charlie Rangel’s ethics problems against him in an upcoming House Democratic primary, much as Rangel used similar allegations against Powell’s father to unseat him in 1970. But Powell’s decision to mount a challenge...

John McCain Is Congress's Twitter King

Arizona senator's following 46 times greater than nearest rival

(Newser) - John McCain is leading the charge of tweeting lawmakers, with 46 times more Twitter followers—a cool 1.7 million —than his nearest competitor, Missouri Democrat Sen. Claire McCaskill. McCain’s popularity also illustrates Republicans’ quick embrace of the social network; twice as many of them tweet, compared to...

Conservative Tom Coburn: Pelosi Is 'Nice,' Fox 'Biased'

Oklahoma senator tells town hall to not be fooled by TV

(Newser) - Staunchly conservative Republican Senator Tom Coburn displayed a surprising bipartisan spirit at a recent town hall in his home state of Oklahoma, praising Democratic House speaker Nancy Pelosi and putting down Fox News. He may be “180 degrees in opposition” to Pelosi, Coburn told the crowd, but “she...

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