Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
HHS: 10 million have paid Obamacare premiums
About 6.4 million people could lose their Obamacare subsidies if the Supreme Court rules against the administration later this month, according to an official update Tuesday that said more than 10 million Americans had effectuated their coverage by paying their premiums through the end of March. Published June 2, 2015
House panel votes to repeal Obamacare’s medical device tax
A powerful House committee approved a bill Tuesday to repeal Obamacare's medical device tax, a provision that's been criticized by members of both parties as a misguided way to pay for the health overhaul. Published June 2, 2015
Kevin McCarthy resists push to remove Dennis Hastert portrait from Capitol: ‘Premature’
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Monday addressed criminal charges against former Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, who was indicted by a grand jury this week on charges of hiding currency and lying to FBI officials about it. Published June 1, 2015
Kevin McCarthy to Senate: Just send our Patriot Act rewrite to Obama
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy told the Senate Monday to swiftly take up and pass a bipartisan rewrite of the Patriot Act that extends major snooping powers while curtailing its controversial record-collection provision, saying he has a "real concern for the safety of the U.S." after persistent roadblocks in the upper chamber allowed key anti-terror tools to expire. Published June 1, 2015
Supreme Court sides with Muslim teen over Abercrombie in headscarf case
The Supreme Court sided Monday with a Muslim teenager who couldn't get a job at Abercrombie and Fitch because her headscarf conflicted with the chain's dress policy, saying it is up to employers to accommodate religious practices even if candidates don't point out their needs. Published June 1, 2015
Federal judge skeptical of White House bid to toss John Boehner’s suit over Obamacare
A federal judge struggled Thursday with the administration's claim the House GOP is pushing an "abstract" lawsuit against Obamacare that should be tossed, signaling she'll take a hard look at Speaker John A. Boehner's controversial bid to highlight the separation of powers between Congress and the presidency -- and the judiciary's right to referee their disputes. Published May 28, 2015
Obamacare foes seek end to losing streak at Supreme Court
Obamacare opponents have been on a losing streak in federal courts over the past year, suffering setbacks as judges have ruled against them on challenges to the health care law's constitutionality and efforts to carve out protections from its birth control rules on faith-based employers. Published May 27, 2015
U.S. Capitol being evacuated
The U.S. Capitol was reopened Tuesday afternoon after having been evacuated for an hour in an apparent false fire alarm that sent hundreds of workers streaming from the seat of government. Published May 26, 2015
Florida Gov. Rick Scott decries Obama strong-arm tactics on health care funding
Florida lawmakers say they're closer to averting a government shutdown this summer after the Obama administration moved to defuse a health-funding standoff with Republican Gov. Rick Scott that has featured a lawsuit, comparisons to a TV mob family and personal pleas to Congress. Published May 24, 2015
Adam Schiff: Senate should fix its ‘catastrophe’ with House-backed security bill
Rep. Adam Schiff of California urged the Senate on Sunday to quickly resolve its standoff over the government's snooping powers by passing a bill that has sailed through the House in a bipartisan vote. Published May 24, 2015
Ohio Gov. John Kasich edges closer to 2016 run
Ohio Gov. John Kasich hinted Sunday that he is ready to jump into the GOP race for president, saying he's "very optimistic about where we're headed." Published May 24, 2015
Ohio Gov. John Kasich praises peaceful protests in Cleveland following cop acquittal
Ohio Gov. John Kasich praised Cleveland for its peaceful protests after a judge acquitted a white police offer of manslaughter in the shooting deaths of two unarmed black motorists. Published May 24, 2015
!["Airstrikes are effective, but neither they, nor really anything we do, can substitute for the Iraqi forces' will to fight. They're the ones who [need] that to beat ISIL and then keep them beaten," Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said. (Associated Press)](https://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/media/image/2015/03/18/Congress_Defense.JPEG-0d4b0_c0-160-3000-1908_s652x380.jpg?9463278a9c6251a8bc8628f23092ced3e873cbc9)
Ashton Carter: Iraqi forces showed ‘no will to fight’ in Ramadi
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter accused Iraqi forces Sunday of showing "no will to fight" Islamic State guerrillas who seized a crucial city west of Baghdad, a blunt assessment that drew an immediate rebuke from Iraqi officials who think the U.S. is scapegoating their besieged nation to obscure its own failures in the region. Published May 24, 2015
Mike Huckabee on NSA: Want to snoop? Get a warrant
Mike Huckabee says the government should get a warrant before it snoops on email and phone calls or collects call data. Published May 24, 2015
FEC deadlocks on wealthy donor giving limits
The Federal Election Commission stalemated Thursday on writing new campaign finance rules to limit wealthy donors' spending in federal elections, virtually ensuring next year's elections will be fought under the current rules that the Supreme Court has written in several major decisions this decade. Published May 21, 2015
A quarter of Obamacare enrollees say the law hurt them, even those with gov’t subsidies: Survey
More than a quarter of Obamacare enrollees say they've been negatively affected by the law, according to a study released Thursday that finds deeply partisan views of the 2010 overhaul persist. Published May 21, 2015
Religious nonprofits lose Obamacare contraception mandate court ruling second time this week
A federal appeals court said Wednesday it will not reconsider a pro-life ministry's plea for relief from Obamacare's birth control mandate, dealing a second blow in as many days to religious nonprofits who say the administration is ignoring its strongly held beliefs and signals from the Supreme Court. Published May 20, 2015
Obamacare contraception decision imposed by court on priest group
A federal appeals court said Wednesday it will not reconsider a pro-life ministry's plea for relief from Obamacare's birth control mandate, dealing a second blow in as many days to religious nonprofits who say the administration is ignoring its strongly held beliefs and signals from the Supreme Court. Published May 20, 2015
Senate would put colleges on hook for student loan default
College and universities that churn out students who default on their federal loans should be forced to bear some of the brunt of those costs, senators said Wednesday in a bipartisan push to try to make schools with high student default rates have to put "skin in the game." Published May 20, 2015
Marco Rubio, House GOP back Rick Scott in Medicaid standoff with HHS
Presidential candidate Marco Rubio and other Florida Republicans urged President Obama on Wednesday to renew federal funding for health program at the center of a festering dispute between Gov. Rick Scott and the administration, which wants the state to expand Medicaid under Obamacare instead. Published May 20, 2015
