U.S. Senate

WASHINGTON – Suddenly it seems there’s nothing left to talk about but the weather. After weeks of talks and amid mounting concerns that the nation might actually default on its debts for the first time in history, the Senate on... Read More

WASHINGTON — Information technology officials told a Senate panel Wednesday the U.S. Department of Homeland Security needs to update its computer systems even while the government struggles to pay its bills. The alternative could be hackers using artificial intelligence to... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy both said they had a productive debt ceiling discussion late Monday at the White House, but there was no agreement as negotiators strained to raise the nation's borrowing limit... Read More

WILMINGTON, Del. — Longtime Democratic Sen. Tom Carper announced Monday that he will not seek reelection in 2024, capping a 20-year career in the U.S. Senate. “If there’s ever an opportune time to step aside and pass the torch to... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., filed paperwork on Friday officially making him a candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Scott, the U.S. Senate’s only Black Republican, is scheduled to formally announce his entry into the race on Monday... Read More

WASHINGTON — Information technology officials urged the Senate Tuesday not to overlook the dangers of artificial intelligence as they try to use it to improve the efficiency of government and industry. During two Senate hearings, corporate, government and academic leaders... Read More

WASHINGTON — A new Senate bill, the Sickle Cell Care Expansion Act, would provide educational incentives and create competitive grants to help grow the number of health care workers trained to care for sickle cell disease patients. The lead sponsor... Read More

All eyes will be on the Supreme Court today — sort of — on this the first anniversary of Politico publishing the leaked draft majority opinion in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the landmark Roe... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ben Cardin, Maryland’s senior U.S. senator, a Democrat and winner of 36 elections, including primaries and general election contests, announced Monday he will not seek reelection next year. Cardin’s decision will bring to an end an astonishing... Read More

WASHINGTON — Music superstar Sir Elton John testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Wednesday morning. Appearing remotely from the United Kingdom at the “PEPFAR at 20: Achieving and Sustaining Epidemic Control” hearing, he urged the committee to continue to... Read More

WASHINGTON — A Senate panel tried to chart a course Tuesday for the United States to transition to electric vehicles while acknowledging major cost and regulatory obstacles lie ahead. There are too few stations to recharge electric vehicle batteries, the... Read More

WASHINGTON — A day after unveiling his plan for the debt limit before a roomful of bigwigs at the New York Stock Exchange Institute in New York, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Tuesday will try to sell his fellow... Read More

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats are calling on Chief Justice John Roberts to investigate fellow Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for failing to disclose luxury vacations and other perks he received over more than 20 years from a billionaire friend. The... Read More

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Bob Casey will seek a fourth term in office, bringing the power of incumbency and unmatched name recognition in Pennsylvania politics to his party’s defense of a seat in a critical presidential battleground state.... Read More

WASHINGTON —  A bipartisan group of senators is urging colleagues to embrace “advanced” nuclear power to help the nation meet its clean energy goals. Sens. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., recently introduced the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile... Read More

WASHINGTON — Democratic senators on Wednesday accused coffeehouse chain Starbucks of union busting as it sought to squelch growing discontent among its workers. “The issue is pretty simple, workers have a right to join a union,” said Sen. Bernie Sanders,... Read More

WASHINGTON — There may be a bipartisan cryptocurrency regulation coming. But of course, there are partisan differences over how to protect consumers while maintaining an industry-friendly environment.  Cryptocurrencies, and the blockchain foundation these currencies run on, have experienced greater volatility... Read More

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan Senate bill would expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and first responders who died as a result of carcinogenic exposure during their service. The bill introduced by Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and... Read More

WASHINGTON — A bill introduced in the Senate last week would require the Supreme Court to televise its hearings. Senators who introduced the bill said it would help to ensure transparency and better public understanding of how the court operates.... Read More

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday charging him in relation to the ongoing abductions of children from Ukraine. The move marks the first time a leader of... Read More

WASHINGTON — The new chief of space operations for the U.S. Space Force advocated for a shift in defense strategies Tuesday at a Senate hearing. He recommended that the United States put large groupings of small satellites into low earth... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to strike down a proposed Washington, D.C., criminal reform bill. The senators, like members of the House days earlier, said it is too soft on crime. They also said it calls into... Read More

WASHINGTON — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is being treated for a concussion after tripping at a dinner event Wednesday night and is expected to remain in the hospital for a few days, his spokesman said Thursday afternoon. McConnell,... Read More

WASHINGTON — The National Education Association is throwing its support behind independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' effort to pay public school teachers a minimum of $60,000 a year.  Sanders, chairman of the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, on... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell was hospitalized after tripping at a local hotel, a spokesman for the senator said. The Kentucky senator, who's 81, was attending a private dinner in Washington on Wednesday when he tripped. He was admitted... Read More

WASHINGTON — “It is strange … to see Elizabeth Warren and Mitt Romney promoting the same thing,” Sen. Romney, R-Utah, quipped at an advocacy event Wednesday night in the Senate Hart building. His pledge to the late Sen. Orrin Hatch,... Read More

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Railroads like the one involved in last month's fiery crash and toxic chemical release in Ohio would be subject to a series of new federal safety regulations and financial consequences under legislation being introduced Wednesday by the state's... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., announced on Monday she’s running for the U.S. Senate seat in Michigan being vacated by incumbent Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow. Stabenow announced in early January that she “decided to pass the torch” to a... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., announced Wednesday he will run for reelection in 2024, a move seen as helping the party hold onto its narrow Senate majority in what some pundits have said could be a difficult year for... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., checked himself into the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on Wednesday night to receive treatment for clinical depression, his office said Thursday. The senator, who suffered a near-fatal stroke while... Read More