Cheney blames McCarthy for House Speaker havoc

BY LAUREN SFORZA

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Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) on Sunday blamed former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for the havoc wreaked on the House as a result of his ouster from the leadership post, citing his elevation of members who wanted to overturn the 2020 election results and "looking the other way" when it comes to Jan. 6.

"I wish that it were surprising," she said when asked about the House's lack of a Speaker on CNN's "State of the Union."

"You know, what we've seen is a result of really, the leadership decisions that Kevin McCarthy made all the way back after the 2020 election and certainly after January 6, then, you know, looking the other way in the face of the kind of assault on our democracy that we've seen from Donald Trump and his allies in the house, including Jim Jordan."

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McConnell won't back any candidate for Speaker: 'I'm not an expert on the House' 

BY REMA RAHMAN

McConnell told CBS “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan that he hopes the House would settle the problem “pretty quickly” but wouldn’t put his backing behind any fresh batch of candidates that have emerged since late last week when Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) again failed to win enough voters to lead the chamber.

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McCaul calls House Speaker chaos 'embarrassing': 'I don’t know how this plays out'

BY MIRANDA NAZZARO

“This is probably one of the most embarrassing things I’ve seen,” McCaul said Sunday on ABC News’s “This Week,” noting that he’s serving his 10th term in Congress. “Because if we don’t have a Speaker of the House, we can’t govern. And every day goes by, we’re essentially shut down as a government.”

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McCarthy backs Emmer for Speaker: 'He knows how to do the job'

BY LAUREN SFORZA

McCarthy said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that now “is not the moment in time to play around with learning on the job,” citing the ongoing violence in the Middle East, the U.S.-Mexico border and the economic reasons. He suggested that Emmer is “someone who understands how to do this job.”

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McConnell sides with Biden on bundling Ukraine, Israel aid: ‘I view it as all interconnected’ 

BY LAUREN SFORZA

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in an interview on Sunday that he sides with President Biden on the matter of bundling Ukraine and Israel aid together — while noting their opposing views on domestic issues.

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Tim Scott says he’d vote against Ukraine, Israel package in its ‘current construct’

BY MIRANDA NAZZARO

Asked on ABC News’s “This Week,” if he will vote against the White House’s funding request, Scott said, “I will in the current construct, but there’s no doubt that we spent about — over the last two years — $100 billion to Ukraine and this one package is $61 billion for Ukraine, only $14 billion for Israel.”

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Blinken dodges question on whether US has asked Israel to delay ground operation

BY LAUREN SFORZA

“We are not in the business of second guessing what they’re doing,” Blinken said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” when asked if the U.S. was asking Israel to delay a ground operation.

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US upping Mid East presence due to risk of attacks on American troops, Austin says

BY LAUREN SFORZA

“What we’re seeing is a prospect of a significant escalation of attacks on our troops and our people throughout the region,” Austin said on ABC’s “This Week.” “And because of that, we’re going to do what’s necessary to make sure that our troops are in that position and they were protected and that we have the ability to respond.”

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Cheney says Biden providing ‘better leadership’ than Trump on foreign policy

BY LAUREN SFORZA

When CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Cheney on “State of the Union” whether Biden or Trump was “providing better leadership on the international stage right now,” the Wyoming Republican said “certainly” Biden is. She also took aim at Trump’s criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this month, who he accused of “letting us down” in 2020 just before the U.S. killed a top Iranian general.

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McConnell says he’s ‘glad’ Menendez not a Republican amid superseding indictment

BY MIRANDA NAZZARO

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-K.Y.) said Sunday he is “glad” Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is not a Republican amid federal charges involving Menendez acting as a foreign agent to the Egyptian government in exchange for luxurious bribes.

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