Jon Ossoff

The Republican Senate primary in Texas has barely started, but the knives are out. Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton are tearing each other apart in a feud that’s personal, public, and growing nastier by the week. And the big question now is: Could the GOP’s demolition derby pose an opening for Democrats? Two new polls suggest it’s possible. If Paxton, the more scandal-plagued of the two, wins the GOP nomination—as current polling indicates—he could be vulnerable in a general election against Democrat Colin Allred, a former member of the House. Allred, who challenged Sen. Ted Cruz in 2024 and lost by more than 8 percentage points, has hinted he might take another swing.Texas state Attorney General Ken PaxtonOne GOP internal poll, obtained by the Houston Chronicle, showed Paxton leading Cornyn by 17 points in a primary matchup, 50% to 33%. But in a general election, the same poll had Allred beating Paxton by a stunning 15 points, 52% to 37%. A separate survey, commissioned by the Senate Leadership Fund super PAC, had Paxton up 16 points on Cornyn in the primary and found that while Cornyn led Allred by 6 points, Paxton was trailing Allred by 1 point.If you’ve watched Texas politics for any length of time, you’ve seen this movie before. Every few years, Democrats hope a rising star—Wendy Davis, Beto O’Rourke, and now maybe Allred again—can finally flip Texas blue, whether it’s the governor’s mansion or a Senate seat. And every few years, they fall short.Still, Texas’ 2026 Senate election will draw national attention again. Texas is simply too big and too pivotal to ignore, and the GOP primary is shaping up to be a cash-burning brawl that could leave the eventual nominee bloodied and broke. Allred, for his part, didn’t run a bad campaign last time, and there’s every reason to believe some Democrats want him to take another swing.But let’s be real: It’s far too early to take these general election polls seriously. Also, internal polls are largely untrustworthy. The parties behind them rarely don’t have a vested interest in an election outcome, and the polls’ results are almost always disclosed to push a specific narrative.Republican Sen. John Cornyn of TexasAlso, Allred has already lost one Texas Senate race, and no Democrat has won statewide since 1994. Furthermore, hopes that the state’s growing Latino population would shift the state toward Democrats have yet to materialize. And while Paxton may be damaged, so was Cruz. A few polls even showed Allred ahead late in last year’s race—and Cruz still beat him. That said, Democrats do have reasons for cautious optimism in 2026. For now, they can sit back and watch Cornyn and Paxton tear each other to shreds in a primary that’s already toxic. It’s not just messy—it’s expensive. And it could fracture the party enough to force outside GOP groups and President Donald Trump to step in.Elsewhere in the South, the landscape is shifting. Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision to sit out Georgia’s Senate race just improved Democrat Jon Ossoff’s odds for reelection. In North Carolina, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper could run for Senate, putting another Republican-held seat in play.It’s still a steep climb, though. Democrats need to net four seats to flip the Senate, but the national environment in 2026 might help. Election prognosticator Nate Silver recently pointed out that the average midterm advantage for the out-of-power party since 1994 is 4.4 points in the House national popular vote. But with Trump’s persistent unpopularity and Democrats’ overperformance in 2025’s elections, that advantage could swell, perhaps resembling the blue wave of 2018, where Democrats led Republicans by 8.6 points in the House popular vote.xDatawrapper ContentA wave like that would change the Senate map. North Carolina and Georgia would lean Democratic rather than be toss-ups, according to Silver, and while Alaska, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, and Texas would still lean Republican, none would be off the board.There are some wild cards too. In Ohio, former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, could attempt a comeback against Republican Sen. Jon Husted. Meanwhile, in Alaska, the state’s ranked-choice voting system gives a moderate Democrat—possibly former Rep. Mary Peltola—a fighting chance against incumbent Dan Sullivan, whose approval numbers are soft.Some races may be looking easier as well. Ossoff is surely breathing easier with Kemp out. In New Hampshire, the GOP failed to recruit former Gov. Chris Sununu, leaving the party likely to recycle Scott Brown, who has lost Senate races in both Massachusetts and New Hampshire.Long term, the map looks better. As Silver noted, between 2026 and 2028, four Senate races will take place in presidential battlegrounds—one each in Maine (2026) and Wisconsin (2028), and two in North Carolina (2026 and 2028). If Democrats flip three of those four and win back the White House, he argued, they’d likely secure a governing trifecta in 2028.It won’t be easy. Texas probably won’t be the state to break the GOP’s stranglehold on the Senate. But it might, just maybe, help loosen it.Campaign Action

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency has come under bipartisan criticism over his agency’s actions to cancel billions of dollars in congressionally approved spending to address chronic pollution in minority communities and jump-start clean energy programs.

Republicans are making menacing threats against a trio of Democratic lawmakers who visited an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility to conduct routine oversight, saying the three could face censure, expulsion from Congress, and even be arrested, in the latest sign that Republicans are descending into fascism in President Donald Trump’s second term.On Tuesday night, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem accused the three Democratic lawmakers—New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, LaMonica McIver, and Robert Menendez Jr.—of committing "felonies" at the ICE facility in New Jersey, when in fact it was the ICE agents who provoked the scene by arresting Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.“We had members of Congress assaulting law enforcement officers. They were cooperating with criminals to create criminal acts, and then they’re saying that they were providing oversight. This wasn't oversight. This was committing felonies,” Noem said in an appearance on Fox News. xxYouTube VideoA Department of Homeland Security spokesperson also said last week that arresting the three Democrats was “on the table.”Meanwhile, Republican Rep. Buddy Carter of Georgia introduced legislation to kick the three lawmakers off of their committees. His legislation is likely an effort to boost his Trumpian bona fides as he runs for the GOP Senate nomination in Georgia, to take on Democratic incumbent Jon Ossoff next November.And House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday that House Republicans could go further by possibly expelling the three lawmakers from Congress because they visited the ICE facility.“It's pretty clear that the law was violated,” Johnson said at a news conference on Capitol Hill. “You might've noticed the Wisconsin judge that was trying to conceal the illegal alien ... I’m told that she'll be facing potentially six years in jail and $350,000 in fines because she obstructed the proceedings, obstructed justice. ... So look, what these House Democrats did is in that same lane, the same vein, of what the judge is being indicted for. So I think there’s some legal ramifications to play out here."xxYouTube VideoOf course, the Democratic lawmakers were legally allowed to enter the ICE facility for oversight, but they were being blocked by the ICE officers at the facility. The situation escalated when ICE then arrested Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, leading to the chaotic confrontation. Eventually, the lawmakers were allowed to enter for their oversight tour. The Democratic lawmakers being targeted for their ICE visit said as much.“We have no idea what they have in mind, other than to create an environment of intimidation just by claiming that perhaps we might be subject to arrest,” Watson Coleman told CNN. “Nothing happened other than the chaos that they created themselves.”Newark Mayor Ras BarakaUltimately, Republicans are big mad that Democrats are trying to call attention to the injustices in Trump and the GOP's immigration agenda, and thus are accusing Democrats of performing stunts. Of course, Republicans love themselves an immigration stunt.Noem has been dressing up in costume and traveling the globe to make herself seem like a big, scary immigration cop. She and other GOP members of Congress have been visiting the Salvadoran prison that Trump has deported immigrants to without due process, creating their own version of torture porn in the process.Democrats called out that hypocrisy at a Wednesday hearing on Capitol Hill, where Noem was testifying about the DHS budget."Secretary Noem, I'm glad you found time among your many photo ops and costume changes to testify about why President Trump is seeking more taxpayer dollars," Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi said sarcastically.Rep. Eric Swalwell, Democrat of California, made a similar jab at ICE Barbie.“I’m a former prosecutor. I have put people away for life sentences who are gang members. I don’t need to wear costumes to show how tough I am. What makes me different from you is when I put those people away, I did it with the weight of the law behind me,” Swalwell said at the hearing.xxYouTube VideoOuch.Campaign Action

'Let the Democrats be Democrats'

Georgia’s governor and a lightning-rod congresswoman decided last week to not run for the U.S. Senate

'The polling shows I can win'

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's decision came days after Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp chose not to seek the Republican nomination.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene won't challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia in next year’s midterms.

Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a top House ally of President Donald Trump and a MAGA firebrand with a national following, is passing on a 2026 Senate run.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene won't challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia in next year’s midterms.

President Donald Trump may love Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s loyalty, but even he doesn’t think she can win a Senate race in Georgia.According to Axios, the president is expected to huddle soon with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to see if they can agree on a single Republican to take on Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in 2026. And one name both seem eager to cross off the list is Greene’s.“The president, like the governor, wants someone who can win,” a White House adviser told the outlet. Despite being one of Trump’s loudest acolytes in Congress, Greene is apparently too toxic for a statewide run. She’s been floating bids for Senate or governor since Kemp is term-limited from running again. After Kemp took himself out of the Senate race, Greene told reporters she’s weighing her options and insisted that polling shows she could win statewide.Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia“The polling shows I can win the governor’s primary or I can win the Senate primary,” she said earlier this week. “That’s a choice that I can make, and I’ll give it some thought.”It’s unclear what polling she’s talking about, though. The most recent numbers from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution paint a very different picture: In a hypothetical matchup, Ossoff beats Greene by a whopping 17 percentage points—54% to 37%. That’s the largest margin in any of the survey’s hypothetical general-election matchups. Among independents, 60% said they’d pick Ossoff. The same poll found Kemp and Ossoff in a dead heat.Which is to say: Greene might be the worst possible candidate Republicans could put up in Georgia. And even Trump seems to get it.“The president loves MTG. He doesn’t love her chances in a general,” the Trump adviser admitted to Axios.Related | Georgia senator announces record-breaking haul as GOP pushes attack adsThat brutal honesty seems to be sinking in. The report says Greene is “aware of the perception that she could not win a general election.” Good instinct.Greene is a noted conspiracy theorist. She has falsely asserted that the government has used weather weapons to attack Republican areas of the country. And she’s expressed belief in QAnon, the absurd conspiracy that claims various celebrities and high-profile Democrats are Satan-worshipping pedophiles. To say the very least, she is prone to controversy.Georgia is Republicans’ best shot to flip a Senate seat in the 2026 midterm elections, though Ossoff has been aggressively raising money and building his statewide brand. Democrats are playing defense across a brutal Senate map, including in Georgia, and are hoping to hold the line while making gains in the House.xDatawrapper ContentBut the GOP still hasn’t found its champion. Rep. Buddy Carter jumped into the race on Thursday, though he’s unlikely to get Trump’s backing—Axios notes he’s “not a preferred candidate,” either.Instead, Trump and Kemp are reportedly eyeing three potential challengers: Rep. Brian Jack (a former Trump aide), Small Business Administrator and former Senator Kelly Loeffler (who lost her 2021 runoff to Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock), and Rep. Mike Collins.Collins is reportedly the early favorite. “He lines up on the Venn diagram,” one GOP strategist said. “He’s at every [Trump] rally. He’s a trucker, so he has a blue-collar business background and would be the firebrand, workhorse candidate.”Republicans are nervous that a weak Senate candidate could tank the whole statewide ticket. After all, 2026 will also feature a governor’s race in Georgia. With the political winds blowing unpredictably, the party is desperate to strike the right balance between electability and MAGA loyalty. Greene, it turns out, fails on both counts. And that’s saying something.Campaign Action

A majority of the public opposes funding cuts to Medicaid.

Multiple states are gearing up for competitive gubernatorial elections next year, which will offer a litmus test for the parties on voter sentiment.

After weeks of Republican hand-wringing over who might take on Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia, the party just lost its best shot. On Monday, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced that he won’t be running for the seat in 2026, dealing a major blow to GOP operatives who were hoping he could flip one of the most vulnerable Democratic-held seats.“I have decided that being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family,” Kemp wrote on X. Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of GeorgiaHe added that he spoke with President Donald Trump and Senate leadership and pledged to help elect a “strong Republican nominee” who would “put hardworking Georgians first.” “I am confident we will be united in that important effort, and I look forward to electing the next generation of leaders up and down the ballot here in the Peach State who will keep our state and nation headed in the right direction in 2026 and beyond,” Kemp wrote.That’s a nice sentiment, but the loss is real. And in Georgia, the reaction was swift. “Not necessarily the news we wanted to hear,” former Cobb County GOP Chair Jason Shepherd told Politico, summing up Republicans’ disappointment.Kemp was by far the GOP’s strongest potential contender and the clearest threat to Ossoff, who has built a fundraising juggernaut. The Democratic incumbent raked in $11 million in the first quarter of 2025 alone, a staggering sum that his team says is the largest ever first-quarter haul for an incumbent senator during an off year.Related | Georgia senator announces record-breaking haul as GOP pushes attack adsBut Kemp wouldn’t just have had to contend with Ossoff’s war chest. Running statewide as a Republican in 2026 will be tough. Trump’s approval ratings are dragging, and his policy agenda is already shaping up to be a political liability in key battlegrounds like Georgia. Kemp likely saw that and wisely bowed out, leaving someone else to take the hit.This isn’t just a loss; it’s a warning sign. Even in a cycle where the Senate map should tilt toward the GOP, Georgia is far from a gimme. Despite both Senate Majority Leader John Thune and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Tim Scott personally trying to recruit Kemp, he still turned it down.Ossoff isn’t guaranteed to win reelection, but the GOP now faces a familiar dilemma: finding a candidate who can survive a MAGA-fueled primary and still win a general election.Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of GeorgiaKemp’s decision could trigger a crowded and messy primary. Trump loyalist Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene hasn’t ruled out a run, though early polling suggests that she’d struggle statewide. But that hasn’t stopped her from stoking speculation. “I have a lot of options open,” she told NBC News last week, though she was vague on whether she’s actively making calls or just basking in the buzz.Other names are floating around, including Reps. Buddy Carter, Mike Collins, and Rich McCormick, but none of them have Kemp’s statewide profile and infrastructure. Georgia is a top GOP target in 2026, as one of just two Senate seats Democrats are defending in states that Trump won in 2024. But Kemp’s decision speaks volumes. He didn’t want to run in a midterm year where Republicans will have to answer for Trump’s chaos—and probably kiss the ring.That was never going to be a good fit. In 2024, Trump publicly called Kemp “Little Brian Kemp” and slammed his wife for not backing his reelection. Kemp fired back, telling Trump to “leave my family out of it.” Things may have since thawed, but no one expects Kemp to grovel for Trump’s approval.Which means that Kemp’s out. Ossoff is loaded. And Republicans are back to square one.Campaign Action

Sens. Thom Tillis, left, and Bill Cassidy are among the most vulnerable senators up for reelection next year, either in a primary or general election. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

The NRSC and DNC have shown vastly different candidate recruitment strategies.

Democrats newly buoyed by President Trump's steadily sinking approval ratings are stubbornly divided over their resistance strategy and path back to power. One hundred days into Trump’s second term, liberal Democrats on and off Capitol Hill are stepping up their hard-line opposition to the norm-smashing president, advancing aggressive tactics — backed by the party’s progressive [...]

'Not be fired up about running against her'

After Sen. Dick Durbin announced his retirement, the idea of the "Biden effect" came back into focus.

A growing number of Democrats in the Senate are stepping aside and clearing the way for the next generation of leaders as the party debates its path forward in the Trump 2.0 era.

California Rep. Young Kim was among nine Republicans in battleground House races who raised more than $1 million during the first quarter. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) met with Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday as the GOP lobbies the Georgia Republican to run for Senate in 2026.Why it matters: Georgia is a top pickup opportunity for Senate Republicans, and the popular Kemp is seen as the party's strongest potential candidate.Thune was joined at Monday's lunch in Atlanta by NRSC Chair Tim Scott (R-S.C.), according to two people familiar with the meeting.Kemp's wife, Marty, also attended.The intrigue: Kemp has a complicated relationship with President Trump, who attacked the governor for not overturning his 2020 election defeat in Georgia. But the Trump-Kemp relationship appears to be on the mend. The two appeared side-by-side during the 2024 election, and Kemp invited Trump to appear at a recent Republican Governors Association meeting.Between the lines: Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff is a formidable fundraiser, and has been cited by the NRSC as an example of how Democrats are drawing large sums ahead of the midterm election.Kemp, a two-term governor, also has a major fundraising network and an established grassroots operation.Scott told Axios in March he expects Kemp to make a decision soon, and that the party has been in touch with other possible candidates in the event the governor doesn't run."If [Kemp] runs, he wins," Scott said.Go deeper: The making of Brian Kemp

A letter obtained by NPR marks a rare bipartisan critique from Capitol Hill of the administration's immigration policy.

Republicans are hoping Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp runs for Senate next year. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia announced early Monday that he pulled in a jaw-dropping $11 million in the first quarter of 2025, which his team says is the largest ever Q1 haul for an incumbent senator during an off year.“I’m grateful to the hundreds of thousands of record-shattering supporters who have already joined what will be the biggest and most relentless turnout effort in Georgia history,” Ossoff said in a statement.Ossoff’s campaign says the $11 million came from an average donation of just $32, with contributions rolling in from 156 of Georgia’s 159 counties. Nearly 260,000 individual donors chipped in, including 155,000 first-timers. That’s a serious flex for someone who doesn’t even have an opponent yet.The announcement dropped just days after the Senate GOP’s top outside political operation launched a seven-figure ad blitz against Ossoff—using tired, transphobic talking points in a bid to turn voters against him.“Man-to-man defense isn’t woke enough of Ossoff. He’s for they/them,” the ad, which aired during some of the weekend’s biggest sporting events, sneered.But as Republicans double down on their bigotry, Ossoff is gearing up for a fight, with the $11 million haul likely just the opening salvo. For context, the 2022 Senate race in Georgia—where Democrat Raphael Warnock narrowly defeated Republican Herschel Walker—became the most expensive Senate contest of the cycle.Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of GeorgiaWhat’s working to Ossoff’s advantage is his proven ability to rake in massive amounts of cash during competitive election years. In 2020, Ossoff raised more than $21 million in a single quarter in his race to unseat Republican Sen. David Perdue—setting a fundraising record for Senate elections in the state.So far, no major GOP challengers have stepped up to challenge Ossoff. While a few Republicans have made noise about running, most seem to be keeping their powder dry until Gov. Brian Kemp decides whether he will run. Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has also hinted that she might throw her hat in the ring. But no matter who ends up jumping in, Ossoff’s monster fundraising haul is already enough to give any would-be challenger pause.Georgia is one of just two “toss-up” Senate races Democrats will be defending in 2026. The other is Michigan, where Sen. Gary Peters is retiring. Republicans are eyeing Georgia after Trump carried the state by nearly two points in 2024, but Ossoff has already kicked off campaigning with a rally in Atlanta with Warnock in late March.With Republicans running cringe-worthy ads more than a year before the election, though, it’s clear who’s really feeling the heat. And the GOP should be sweating. While Ossoff is raking in millions without a named opponent, Trump’s tanking the economy, largely with GOP support.Notably, Ossoff wasn’t the only Democrat reporting impressive Q1 numbers. In Virginia, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger raised $6.7 million in her gubernatorial bid against Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears. Meanwhile, in Colorado’s 8th District, Democrat Manny Rutinel—who just launched his campaign in late January—pulled in more than $1 million in what’s expected to be one of the most fiercely contested House races of the year.If the off-year fundraising is already this fierce, Republicans might want to start investing in some umbrellas—a blue wave could be on the horizon.Campaign Action

Staffers wheel pizzas through the Capitol as the Senate prepares to begin its vote-a-rama on the GOP’s budget resolution on Friday evening.

The Senate GOP’s top outside political operation is gearing up to launch its first salvo of the midterms with a new ad targeting Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia—kicking off what’s expected to be a relentless campaign.According to Axios, the seven-figure ad blitz from One Nation, the issue advocacy arm of the Senate Leadership Fund super PAC, will begin airing Saturday. It will run during marquee sporting events like the Final Four men’s and women’s basketball games, the Masters Tournament, and Atlanta Braves broadcasts. True to form, Republicans are leaning on their same old tired anti-trans rhetoric. “Man-to-man defense isn’t woke enough for Ossoff. He’s for they/them,” one ad sneers.Though it’s still early in the midterm cycle, Republicans are clearly nervous about potential a blue wave (and for good reason), and they’re pulling out all the stops in hope of clinging to their slim Senate majority. Theoretically, the 2026 midterms should favor Democrats—despite three Senate retirements, they’re poised to reclaim the House. But the Senate map is trickier. Ossoff’s seat, in particular, is one of the toughest to defend, with the nonpartisan Cook Political Report already calling it a “toss-up.”Oddly, no Republican has yet stepped forward to run against Ossoff. While a few names are floating around, many within the party are holding out hope that Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp will enter the race. A source familiar with Kemp’s thinking told Axios he’s “still considering it.”Given the current political climate, it’s a fair question whether Kemp—who’s term-limited and can’t run for reelection in 2026—wants to risk his political future by jumping into a cycle where Republicans are almost guaranteed to flop. President Donald Trump is deeply unpopular, the GOP brand isn’t faring much better, and there’s little reason to believe that will soon change.Georgia Gov. Brian KempThen again, some members of the GOP with less to lose might not be so hesitant. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of Trump’s loudest cheerleaders in Congress, has already left the door open to a potential Senate or gubernatorial run in 2026.What’s perhaps most revealing about the GOP’s early offensive against Ossoff is that, with no declared candidate and a party scrambling to defend Trump’s disastrous tariffs, Republicans don’t seem to have much to run on—other than attacking transgender people. Though, that’s less of a strategy than it is a confession: They’re betting voters will be more outraged by culture war nonsense than by policies that are actively draining their wallets. That’s a risky bet.To be fair, polls show a rightward shift on trans issues among adults—including some Democrats—and Axios suggests that this sentiment could be more pronounced in a red-leaning state like Georgia. One Nation even shared internal polling claiming that 79% of Georgia’s registered voters support banning “biological males” from women’s sports.But Ossoff isn’t taking the bait. In fact, it looks like his reelection strategy is already locked in: go on the offensive and hammer Trump at every turn.“American parents don’t need federal bureaucrats confirming our children’s genitalia. Athletic associations and local school districts can ensure fair, safe competition in childhood athletics,” a spokesperson for Ossoff told Axios.Other Democrats would do well to take note. The lesson from 2024 isn’t that the party should culturally drift rightward—it’s that it doesn’t need to. With real ammunition on the economy, health care, and Social Security, there’s no need to mimic GOP cruelty to be competitive.Campaign Action

U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock voted Thursday to reject an effort to block $8.8 billion in arms sales to Israel for its war with Hamas. The move comes months after the two Georgia Democrats supported a separate push...

Republicans need to worry about getting bullied by Elon Musk, and Democrats need to worry about AIPAC, Sanders said.The post Trying to Block Arms to Israel, Bernie Sanders Denounces AIPAC’s Massive Election Spending appeared first on The Intercept.

Fifteen Senate Democrats backed a pair of resolutions from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to withhold billions of dollars in offensive weapons sales and other military aid to Israel.Why it matters: The votes split the party, revealing continued internal divisions over Democrats' views on the war in Gaza and support for the Israeli government. The measures failed 15-82 and 15-83.Sanders wants to cancel the Trump administration's proposed sales of $8.8 billion in bombs and other munitions to Israel.In addition to Sanders, Democratic Sens. Richard Durbin (Ill.), Martin Heinrich (N.M.), Mazie Hirono (Hawaii), Ben Ray Luján (N.M.), Tim Kaine (Va.), and Andy Kim (N.J.) voted in favor.So did Ed Markey (Mass.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Chris Murphy (Conn.), Brian Schatz (Hawaii), Tina Smith (Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (Md.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Peter Welch (Vt.).No Republicans supported the measures.The big picture: Sanders forced similar votes under the Biden administration to call out U.S. support for Israel's war efforts in Gaza."The United States must end our complicity in these atrocities, we cannot be part of this any longer," Sanders said in a video he released on Wednesday.The vote comes as Israel resumed its war in Gaza last month, despite a ceasefire deal between the two sides that was signed earlier this year.Between the lines: Senate Democrats facing reelection next year were split on the resolution. "No" votes could open up incumbents to attacks from their left.Sens. John Hickenlooper (D-Col.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I) — all up for reelection next year — voted "no."Go deeper: Israel resumes war in Gaza with a series of massive airstrikes against HamasEditor's note; This story has been updated with additional reporting.

U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams has stepped down as chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia

Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. Pennsylvania Democrats won a pair of legislative races this week, flipping a state Senate district and retaining a state House seat to keep their [...]The post At the Races: Spring fever appeared first on Roll Call.

Senior administration officials struggled to explain why the publicly available app was used to discuss such a delicate matter.

Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu opens up on the possibility of launching a 2026 Senate run, and on his relationship with President Donald Trump

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is seeking to rally Democrats desperate for effective action now against President Donald Trump’s administration. In a speech before 2,000 people in Atlanta on Saturday, Ossoff pledged that “Georgia will bow to no king!” Ossoff’s campaign...

A group of 10 Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), on Friday voted to advance a Republican-crafted bill to fund the government through Sept. 30, taking a crucial step toward avoiding a government shutdown while infuriating many within their own party. The pivotal procedural vote, which passed 62-28, puts the bill on a glidepath [...]

Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is keeping the door open to a possible Republican run in the 2026 race to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

'Sides with the most radical members of his party'

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) surprised Washington Thursday by announcing on the Senate floor that he would vote to advance a House Republican-drafted six-month government funding bill, splitting with fellow Senate Democrats who are loudly calling for the bill’s defeat. Schumer’s announcement provides crucial political cover to Senate Democratic centrists who are thinking [...]

“We're choosing between awful and terrible,” one Senate Democrat lamented of efforts to stave off a government shutdown.

Seventeen Democratic senators joined their Republican colleagues on Monday and voted to confirm Lori Chavez-DeRemer as President Donald Trump’s Secretary of Labor.The Democrats who voted with the administration: Ruben Gallego (Arizona), Mark Kelly (Arizona), Adam Schiff (California), Michael Bennet (Colorado), John Hickenlooper (Colorado), Jon Ossoff (Georgia), Raphael Warnock (Georgia), Gary Peters (Michigan), Elissa Slotkin (Michigan), Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota), Maggie Hassan (New Hampshire), Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nevada), Jacky Rosen (Nevada), Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island), Mark Warner (Virginia), and Tim Kaine (Virginia).Twenty-nine Democrats opposed the nomination and only three Republicans voted “no,” meaning that the nomination would have advanced with the 50 Republican “yes” votes even if every Democrat had voted “no.” Instead, the Democratic votes gave the majority party bipartisan cover. As labor secretary, Chavez-DeRemer is expected to carry out Trump’s anti-labor, anti-worker agenda, like the ongoing purge of hundreds of vital government employees under Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency.President Donald TrumpThe vote stands in contrast to the Democratic Party’s repeated claims that they are united in opposition to Trump and his agenda. In fact, at the Senate level, the party has voted again and again to confirm Trump’s nominees and has supported legislative maneuvers allowing votes on nominees that they oppose in a final vote.Despite warning signs like Trump’s past political and policy failures (see: his entire first term) and his racist, destructive rhetoric (see: his entire life), a significant portion of the Democratic Party has empowered him with their Senate votes. Then they eventually regret it. For instance, multiple senators have now gone on the record to say their votes to confirm Secretary of State Marco Rubio (every Senate Democrat voted for him) was a mistake.The cover offered for Chavez-DeRemer is that her record is not as anti-labor as Trump’s, and that she made some statements during her confirmation hearing that offered a moderate stance on labor issues. (However, she does oppose a minimum-wage increase). But like Trump’s other nominees, such as Linda McMahon at the Department of Education and Sean Duffy at the Department of Transportation, Cabinet secretaries are ultimately tasked with executing Trump’s vision.Democrats have faltered in opposition to Trump. Party leadership has chastised a few breakaway members for being strident in speaking out against Trump’s abuses, and have favored a less confrontational approach even as Trump and Musk have thrown out decades of American traditions and values.Trump didn’t need the Democratic Party to install another friendly face in the federal government, but Democrats helped him anyway.Campaign Action

Sens. Ossoff and Shaheen explained why they had voted with all Democrats to block a bill to bar males from women’s sports.

U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is expected to announce later this month whether or not she’ll seek a fourth six-year term representing New Hampshire in the Senate when she’s up for re-election next year.

Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. Democrats’ divided responses to President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress culminated with 10 of them in the House voting with Republicans on Thursday to censure Texas Democratic [...]The post At the Races: Censure and sensitivity appeared first on Roll Call.

'This is an 80/20 issue'

Staffers carry pizzas from We, The Pizza across the windy and frigid East Front plaza into the Capitol for the budget votes on Thursday night.

Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday brought bleak news for congressional Democrats: Just 21 percent of voters approve of the way they are doing [...]The post At the Races: Dems the breaks appeared first on Roll Call.