Trump sends ‘clear message’ to Democrats with Miller promotion

By Julia Manchester

President Trump sent a blunt message to the incoming Democratic majority on Capitol Hill by tapping Stephen Miller to be his new chief of staff, setting up what is likely to be a contentious two years between both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. 

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The Memo: GOP fumbles for way forward in a world beyond Trump

By Niall Stanage

A historic election week is ending, but the debate about the future of the Republican Party is just beginning.

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Do midterms change the calculus for bipartisan permitting reform?

By Rachel Frazin

With the midterm elections in the rearview mirror, the Senate is barreling ahead with major energy and infrastructure legislation in the lame-duck session.

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Democrats blast ‘dangerous’ elevation of Miller as refusal to learn from the election

By Rebecca Beitsch

To congressional Democrats, President Trump’s decision to promote aide Stephen Miller to serve as his chief of staff meant two things: an elevation of the aide’s extremist views and a refusal to heed the will of voters who delivered the left a historic victory.

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GOP’s lame-duck plans unravel after election drubbing

By Alexander Bolton

Republicans’ hopes of finishing a big chunk of President Trump’s agenda in the lame-duck session of Congress are rapidly deflating in the wake of the blowout losses their party suffered in Tuesday’s election, according to Republican aides on Capitol Hill.

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Schools scramble after Google gives AI ultimatum

By Lexi Lonas Cochran

Schools are scrambling after Google said Tuesday that education leaders need to either accept some AI in classrooms or lose access to its search engine.  

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How Scott Colom turned his Mississippi Senate race into a nail-biter

By Sarah Fortinsky

Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) is fighting for her political life as Democrat Scott Colom threatens to pull off one of the biggest upsets of the midterms in a state that hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1982.

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Comer says ‘there’s a lot of questions about Hegseth’ amid impeachment push

By Filip Timotija

Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the chair of the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Friday “there’s a lot of questions” in the Republican conference about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) prepares for an impeachment push next week. 

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DOJ dismisses lawsuit over California’s 20,000 disputed ballots

By Ford McCracken

The Justice Department (DOJ) requested Friday to dismiss its lawsuit against California, which sought to make the state’s election officials set aside roughly 20,000 ballots for voters the federal government alleged were not U.S. citizens.

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Why isn’t the PEACE Act law already?

By Gregory P. Wilson, opinion contributor

OPINION | Militarily, Russia has promised another brutal winter of warfare and daily war crimes without remorse for needless civilian casualties. Financially, despite massive assistance from its allies since 2022, Ukraine faces an estimated $35 billion budget gap as a direct result of Russia’s relentless illegal aggression in Europe.

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Democrats can’t heal the US-Canada bond Trump destroyed

By Andrew Latham, opinion contributor 

OPINION | Democrats won control of both the Senate and House on Tuesday, and Canadians breathed a sigh of relief. After nearly two years of insults, economic coercion, talk of Canada becoming the 51st state, and the whole “Lake America” debacle, their relief is understandable. 

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The New York Times: How Elon Musk frittered away nearly $500 million on the midterms

By Theodore Schleifer

Elon Musk spent nearly half a billion dollars during the midterm cycle, the most in any election period for a donor who wasn’t a candidate himself.

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The Wall Street Journal: Trump signals combative next 2 years with elevation of Stephen Miller

By Michelle Hackman, Josh Dawsey, Alex Leary and Sadie Gurman

After a brutal election that gutted Republican power in Washington, President Trump has chosen one of his most loyal and divisive advisers as the new White House chief of staff, signaling a combative posture for the final two years of the Trump era.

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Associated Press: Italy’s Meloni blames pro-Russian hackers for leak of foreign minister’s data on the dark web

By Colleen Berry

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Saturday that his personal data had been disseminated on the dark web, an encrypted part of the internet, and that he has been exposed to “threats and intimidation.” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni blamed pro-Russian hackers for the leak.

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The Washington Post: Hegseth draws fire after using government resources for partisan video

By Tara Copp

Watchdog groups said the defense secretary’s self-promotional messaging as he fights to keep his job probably violated federal law.

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