Watch live: Lawmakers honor late Sen. Lindsey Graham

The late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) will be honored in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday morning ahead of his funeral service in Washington, D.C. Graham, who died July 11 at age 71 from an aortic dissection, was a staunch conservative and known war hawk. His dedication to fighting for Israel and Ukraine — including [...]

Watch live: Lawmakers honor late Sen. Lindsey Graham

The late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) will be honored in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday morning ahead of his funeral service in Washington, D.C. Graham, who died July 11 at age 71 from an aortic dissection, was a staunch conservative and known war hawk. His dedication to fighting for Israel and Ukraine — including…

Teary-eyed lawmakers give Lindsey Graham somber final salute at the Capitol... as JD Vance lightens mood with jest

Lawmakers wiped away tears in the US Capitol Rotunda as Republicans and Democrats alike paid homage to the late Senator Lindsey Graham on Tuesday morning.

GOP senators burned by Trump ready to blow up White House priority as clock ticks: report

Two outgoing GOP senators previously burned by President Donald Trump are threatening to sink a White House priority as a critical committee vote nears Thursday, Punchbowl News reported Tuesday.Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, whom Trump nominated last month for the permanent role after firing Pam Bondi, is scheduled to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday for his confirmation vote, just 48 hours away as of Tuesday morning. But Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) – both leaving Congress after pressure from Trump – are “holding firm” against confirming Blanche without getting something in return.“Both senators, whose votes are needed for Blanche to advance to the Senate floor, are demanding that the Justice Department formally eliminate the ‘anti-weaponization’ fund and curtail an audit immunity deal for President Donald Trump,” Punchbowl News’ report reads.“Both senators seem comfortable holding out to force DOJ’s hand, threatening a delay of Blanche’s committee vote that could stifle GOP leaders’ plans to confirm Blanche on the floor before the August recess.”Tillis told Punchbowl News that an agreement had yet to be reached on eliminating the Justice Department’s anti-weaponization fund, a taxpayer-funded $1.7 billion fund dedicated to awarding payouts to those who’ve claimed to have been unfairly targeted by the Biden Administration. He also said no deal had been reached on curtailing Trump and his family’s newfound immunity from tax audits.Tillis warned that, unless his and Cornyn’s demands were met, they’d “just have to delay” Blanche's confirmation.Both senators are part of a growing list of GOP “apostates” – Republican lawmakers ousted by Trump for various reasons – who’ve gone on to become well-positioned to undercut the White House’s agenda without fear of repercussions. Others include Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who lost his primary race after voting to rein in the president’s war powers, and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), defeated by a Trump-backed opponent after spearheading the Epstein Files Transparency Act, much to the chagrin of the president.

Why This MN Lawmaker Had Some Nasty Things to Say About This Dem Senate Candidate

‘Mystery’ group caught ‘meddling’ in Dem election amid wave of GOP interference: report

A “mystery” super political action committee (PAC) formed “only recently” has been exposed for dumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into a competitive Michigan Democratic primary, Punchbowl News reported Tuesday, employing tactics similar to other dark money groups later discovered to be tied to Republican operatives.The group, Michigan Sunrise PAC, has poured close to $600,000 into the race during its final stretch, and in support of progressive congressional candidate William Lawrence, while also hitting Lawrence’s Democratic opponent Matt Maasdam.“The group began airing a TV ad over the weekend slamming Maasdam as a ‘Florida Republican’ who was bankrolled by MAGA billionaires,” Punchbowl News reported. “Digital ads touted Lawrence as the best candidate to stop President Donald Trump while highlighting his endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) and Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.”The group’s late involvement in the race, which Punchbowl News described as “meddling,” bore hallmarks of other dark money PACs that “meddled” in other recent Democratic primary elections, PACs that ultimately admitted to being tied to Republican operatives.“Michigan Sunrise PAC only recently filed with the FEC and won’t have to reveal its donors until after the Aug. 4 primary,” Punchbowl News’ report reads. “The group has gone to great lengths to hide its funders and operators.”In Nebraska, Maine, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas, Lead Left PAC and Real Change PAC dumped around $4.4 million in May to influence Democratic primaries, and much like Michigan Sunrise PAC, “took great effort to hide their leadership and partisan affiliations,” Punchbowl News previously reported. Lead Left PAC and Real Change PAC were later discovered to have been funded by Conservative Americans PAC, a group funded by American Prosperity Alliance, a GOP-aligned nonprofit organization tied to former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) that advocates for conservative policies. American Prosperity Alliance made more than $22.5 million in contributions during the 2024 election cycle to various GOP-aligned PACs, according to OpenSecrets.

MAGA-loving actor Rob Schneider declares war on Texas GOP — with bizarre reason

Rob Schneider, a Hollywood star who has grown controversial in recent years for his ties to the MAGA movement, is publicly opposing the Texas GOP.The bizarre reason is that he believes they have let Islamic law take over the Lone Star State.Schneider, a notorious conspiracy theorist who has long pushed crank medical misinformation and quack cures for illnesses, took to X on Monday to outline his case against senior Republican officials in Texas, including Gov. Greg Abbott, and attorney general turned Senate candidate Ken Paxton."I never thought I would watch the Islamic and Marxist threat seize large parts of our great nation," wrote Schneider. "For years we have seen the damage this alliance has done to Europe, and now we are witnessing the same damage unfolding in the blue states. What I never fully understood until recently is how deeply this threat is already embedded — and how rapidly it is gaining power —inside red states."Schneider then went on to list what he saw as the evidence Texas is under siege by an Islamic takeover."Organizations with terror ties receive nonprofit status and political access while most elected officials either pander or look the other way," wrote Schneider, accusing Texas of being complicit through taxpayer funding of "madrasas." "Does anyone even care what is happening to the children trapped inside these abusive training schools that pump out imams? Your state has Sharia courts, Sharia judges, and Sharia patrols — and not one has been shut down.""I will keep speaking until every Texas politician takes this transformation seriously and understands the threat that every Texas citizen is up against — because this threat is advancing," wrote Schneider, before slamming the GOP for "the protective circle around their most powerful elected leaders — Ken Paxton, Greg Abbott, and Dan Patrick."Conspiracy theories about Islamic takeovers of Texas have propagated for years, spread by pointing to immigrant communities that have taken root in the state. Recently, a moral panic erupted over an Islamic event planned at a water park in North Texas.

Fauci diary entries: ‘Press is going wild with me’

Former chief White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci was keenly aware of the media’s interest in him early on in the COVID-19 pandemic, and considered some of the attention “flattering,” according to diary entries released by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). Over the weekend, Paul published more than a thousand pages of Fauci’s diary entries as…