Seth McLaughlin
Articles by Seth McLaughlin
Reid’s latest offer for spending deal rejected by Republicans
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Wednesday that Democrats are willing to negotiate with House Republicans over future spending if GOP lawmakers agree to fund all government operations and Obamacare through mid-November. Published October 2, 2013
Federal watchdogs are early shutdown victims
Sunshine and oversight were two of the early casualties of the government shutdown, with the agencies charged with watching over the federal government saying they had to furlough employees in order to comply with the shutdown. Published October 1, 2013
House rejects restoration of funds during shutdown for veterans, parks
With the government shutdown closing national monuments and sending federal office workers home, House Republicans changed tactics Tuesday and tried to pass individual spending bills that they said would restore money to high-profile programs such as veterans affairs, national parks and the Smithsonian Institution. Published October 1, 2013
Sen. Ted Cruz plans to donate salary to charity each day of government shutdown
Sen. Ted Cruz said Monday that if the lawmakers fail to reach a deal to avert a government shutdown, then he will donate his salary to charity for each day that it is shuttered. Published October 1, 2013
GOP Rep. Charlie Dent: House should fund the government without Obamacare changes
Breaking with the more conservative wing of his party, Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania said Monday that it is time for his fellow Republicans to pass a continuing funding resolution that does not include the one-year delay of Obamacare. Published September 30, 2013
La. Gov. Bobby Jindal steps up fight with Obama over school voucher program
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal on Monday invited President Obama to travel to the Bayou State to meet with the parents of the students who are benefiting from a school voucher program that is now the target of a federal government desegregation lawsuit. Published September 30, 2013
GOP applaud Manchin support of Obamacare delay
Republican lawmakers say they hope that Sen. Joe Manchin III will serve as a guiding light for others in his party after the West Virginia Democrat said he would support a one-year delay of Obamacare's individual mandate — a move that would basically gut the law. Published September 29, 2013
House GOP to seek one-year delay in Obamacare on government shutdown bill
House Republicans said Saturday they will try to pass another stopgap spending bill that delays President Obama's health law for one year, in a final effort to try to put a dent in Obamacare before more of it takes effect next week — but Democrats immediately shot the plan down, saying it virtually guarantees a government shutdown. Published September 28, 2013
Pelosi: Tea party tail is wagging the Republican dog
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Friday that the "tail is wagging the dog" of the Republican party in the ongoing debate over spending on Capitol Hill. Published September 27, 2013
Ted Cruz now leads GOP presidential pack: poll
Fresh off his 21-hour filibuster against Obamacare funding, a new poll shows that Sen. Ted Cruz has leapfrogged past his potential rivals for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and that GOP primary voters trust him more than their party leaders on Capitol Hill. Published September 27, 2013
Rep. Peter King: Sen. Ted Cruz tapped into ‘dark strain in the American political psyche’
Sen. Ted Cruz's filibuster may have boosted his presidential aspirations, but it also created an opening for such potential 2016 rivals as Rep. Peter T. King, who Thursday called some of Mr. Cruz's supporters "vile." Published September 26, 2013
Ted Cruz raises profile with filibuster, but fails to sway senators or voters
Sen. Ted Cruz's epic talk energized his tea party supporters and raised his profile ahead of the 2016 presidential contest, but there is little evidence that it fostered a rethink among voters or their elected representatives in the Senate, who said they didn't see an uptick in calls during the 21-hour affair. Published September 25, 2013
Lindsey Graham’s 2014 re-election chances uncertain: Poll
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham may be in for a bumpy ride in his bid to secure a third term in November 2014, a new poll suggests. Published September 25, 2013
Polls show disdain for Obamacare, fewer back shutdown
Polls tend to show that a plurality of voters disapprove of Obamacare, but that they would rather see lawmakers carve out an alternative solution to the law than force a government shutdown to defund it. Published September 24, 2013
Sen. Ted Cruz says he speaks for most Americans about stopping Obamacare
Declaring himself the voice of average Texans and Americans fed up with Washington, Sen. Ted Cruz took to the Senate floor Tuesday afternoon to try to talk President Obama's health care law to death. Published September 24, 2013
Ex-British Prime Minister Tony Blair: International community needs to see ‘results’ in Syria
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Tuesday that he would have supported President Obama's push for airstrikes against Syria's Assad regime in response to its alleged use of chemical weapons, a position putting him out of sync with his former party, which led the push back against the plan. Published September 24, 2013
GOP’s Rand Paul carving out his own campaign path
Despite trying to put distance between himself and his father, Sen. Rand Paul appears to be holding onto the supporters who powered former Rep. Ron Paul through the past two presidential campaigns. Published September 23, 2013
Rep. Paul Ryan spurs talk of White House run with book deal
Rep. Paul Ryan — former vice presidential candidate, current Wisconsin congressman and rumored White House candidate for 2016 — has scored a deal for a book, due out in August, commenting on the state of conservatism and the way of the Republican Party's future. Published September 23, 2013
Sen. John McCain ‘hates’ Sen. Ted Cruz: report
Sen. John McCain does not have a high opinion of the freshman Republican from Texas, Sen. Ted Cruz. Published September 23, 2013
Paul: Liberty movement is winning and could help GOP win too
Sen. Rand Paul told members of the liberty movement that they've been "winning" the big policy battles on Capitol Hill and that their message could grow even stronger in the coming years if former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the next Democratic nominee for president. Published September 19, 2013