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Archive: Branch vs. Branch
Kucinich Bringing Back Impeachment This Week
Keeping true to his word, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) informed his colleagues today that he would bring one article of impeachment against President Bush "for taking our nation and our troops to war based on lies" to the House floor Thursday. In early June, Kucinich introduced 35 articles of impeachment...
By Ben Pershing | July 8, 2008; 05:12 PM ET | Comments (36)
'War Powers' Plan Faces Steep Odds
Former secretaries of state James Baker and Warren Christopher held a press conference on Capitol Hill this morning to unveil the fruit of their most recent bipartisan commission labors, a proposal to repeal the dysfunctional 1973 War Powers Act and replace it with a new framework to govern how and...
By Ben Pershing | July 8, 2008; 04:44 PM ET | Comments (22)
Banning 'the Next Karl Rove'?
During his nearly seven years on the White House staff, Karl Rove became famous (and to his critics, infamous) as a supposed political puppet-master, influencing everything from the legislative agenda to candidate recruitment in order to extend and expand Republican power across the land. But if one key congressional Democrat...
By Ben Pershing | July 8, 2008; 10:47 AM ET | Comments (0)
Let's Make a Deal
After 18 months of mostly partisan fighting and gridlock in Congress, this week has seen bipartisan deals on three high-profile, hot-button issues. On Tuesday, Senate Democrats and Republicans announced a compromise on a big housing rescue bill that had stymied the chamber for weeks. Yesterday, House leaders from both sides...
By Ben Pershing | June 19, 2008; 11:45 AM ET | Comments (29)
Kucinich Vows to Keep Up Impeachment Fight
The House voted today by a comfortable margin to refer 35 articles of impeachment against President Bush to the Judiciary Committee, as the measure's chief sponsor vowed to bring the issue up again if the panel does not agree to hold hearings. On a 251-166 vote, the chamber elected to...
By Ben Pershing | June 11, 2008; 03:56 PM ET | Comments (39)
Impeachment Vote Set for This Afternoon
The House is set to vote this afternoon on whether to refer articles of impeachment against President Bush to the Judiciary Committee, where they are unlikely to see any further action during this Congress. The impeachment resolution -- accusing Bush of manufacturing a case for war in Iraq, among other...
By Ben Pershing | June 11, 2008; 11:10 AM ET | Comments (102)
Kucinich Escalates Impeachment Fight
UPDATE 4 PM: Kucinich's re-election campaign issued a statement this afternoon saying that its Web site "was shut down this morning by a series of suspicious and fast-moving events several hours after Kucinich introduced 35 Articles of Impeachment against President George W. Bush." The site appears to be working fine...
By Ben Pershing | June 10, 2008; 01:46 PM ET | Comments (84)
GOP Rep. Hits Bush On 'Signing Statements'
A House Republican lawmaker has fired a shot across President Bush's bow over his frequent use of "Presidential Signing Statements" to give his opinion on -- or to even express his intent to ignore -- laws passed by Congress. Though signing statements have long been used by past presidents, they...
By Ben Pershing | May 12, 2008; 03:05 PM ET | Comments (13)
On Iraq Bill, More Questions Than Answers
What will likely be the last major showdown over Iraq between the Bush administration and the Democratic Congress is nearly upon us, and the shape of the battle to come remains decidedly unclear. Next week or the week after, Democratic leaders hope to bring to the House floor a supplemental...
By Ben Pershing | April 24, 2008; 07:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
Specter: Mukasey Is 'Still Wearing His Robe'
Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) today accused the Bush administration of being overly obstinate on a range of controversial issues, expressing particular frustration at Attorney General Michael Mukasey's unwillingness to compromise. "Mukasey is non-negotiable," Specter said at a meeting with the Washington Post editorial board. "Mukasey is still wearing his robe."...
By Ben Pershing | April 17, 2008; 06:40 PM ET | Comments (35)
The Costs of War
As the Senate begins moving on the latest military supplemental spending bill, congressional Democrats are mounting a new push to highlight the growing cost of the Iraq war and its affects on funding for domestic priorities. House and Senate Democratic leaders gathered today to tout new data from the Joint...
By Ben Pershing | April 16, 2008; 03:50 PM ET | Comments (12)
After Petraeus, a Growing Divide
Two days of hearings on the progress of the Iraq war did nothing to bring President Bush and congressional Democrats any closer to a consensus on future action, as both sides have laid down increasingly combative markers today. This morning, Bush announced that tours in Iraq and Afganistan for Army...
By Ben Pershing | April 10, 2008; 01:21 PM ET | Comments (199)
Pelosi to Stop Clock on Colombia Deal
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) threw a counter-punch at President Bush on the Colombia free trade agreement today, announcing that the House would vote on a rules change to stop a legally mandated 90-day clock for Congress to take up the measure. Bush sent Congress the Colombia measure on Tuesday,...
By Ben Pershing | April 9, 2008; 01:16 PM ET | Comments (37)
On FISA, No Endgame in Sight
The House is slated to vote later today on Democrats' latest version of a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act bill, and the measure should pass, despite the solid opposition of the GOP and even some Democrats. But the bill, which does not contain immunity for telecommunications companies, differs significantly from what...
By Ben Pershing | March 13, 2008; 11:35 AM ET | Comments (3)
Suit Escalates Battle Between Branches
Escalating the years-long battle between the branches over the scope of executive power, the House Judiciary Committee filed suit today in federal court to force two White House officials to comply with subpoenas seeking documents and testimony on the firings of nine U.S. attorneys last year. The lawsuit could prove...
By Ben Pershing | March 10, 2008; 01:05 PM ET | Comments (5)
The Other FISA Debate
Amid the titanic fight last week over the expiration of the terrorist surveillance law, there was another, less intense debate brewing below the surface. This wasn't your standard Republican vs. Democrat debate. It cut across all lines, pitting executive branch agencies against each other, prompting disagreements among lawmakers of the...
By Ben Pershing | February 17, 2008; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (23)
Player of the Week: John Conyers
House Democrats left town Thursday for the President's Day recess having fired two controversial salvos at the Bush administration -- approving contempt of Congress citations against White House officials while refusing to renew a terrorism surveillance law. House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) was at the fulcrum of both moves,...
By Ben Pershing | February 15, 2008; 02:40 PM ET | Comments (16)
Bush, GOP Rebuke House Democrats on Surveillance Bill
House Democrats left Washington today for a week-long recess without taking action on a terrorist surveillance bill set to expire Friday night, drawing theatrical protests from congressional Republicans and a sharp rebuke from President Bush. The decision by Democratic leaders to ignore Bush's call for immediate action sets up a...
By Ben Pershing | February 14, 2008; 06:30 PM ET | Comments (172)
House Will Let Surveillance Bill Expire
UPDATE, 1:12 p.m. ET: President Bush just sought to increase pressure on Democrats to act on the surveillance law by saying he would delay his planned trip to Africa this weekend if he is needed in Washington to work on or sign a bill. "If we have to delay [the...
By Ben Pershing | February 14, 2008; 12:35 PM ET | Comments (51)
House Mulls Contempt Votes Against Bolten, Miers
After months of delay, House leaders are considering bringing contempt citations against White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and ex-White House counsel Harriet Miers to the chamber floor for votes Thursday. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said this morning that it was "possible" the citations would be on...
By Ben Pershing | February 13, 2008; 12:48 PM ET | Comments (4)
SOTU Expectations Low on the Hill
Leading up to President Bush's final State of the Union speech tonight, expectations on Capitol Hill are low, though for reasons that are split along party lines. Democrats don't expect to hear much from Bush that they'll like tonight, for the simple reason that they've never expected much from him...
By Ben Pershing | January 28, 2008; 06:35 PM ET | Comments (9)
Pots, Kettles and Earmarks
President Bush plans to throw down the gauntlet on earmarks in his State of the Union address tonight, vowing to veto appropriations bills this year that don't cut earmark spending by at least half. But many members of Congress have some earmark advice of their own that they'd like Bush...
By Ben Pershing | January 28, 2008; 02:57 PM ET | Comments (3)
Congress on the Clock for Stimulus
The Federal Reserve can apparently turn on a dime, cutting a key interest rate as stock markets around the world go into the tank. Don't expect such quick action from Congress. House and Senate leaders are holding a meeting-fest this week, scheduling all manner of discussions, briefings, and sit-downs with...
By Ben Pershing | January 22, 2008; 01:45 PM ET | Comments (20)
Reid (Briefly) Off-Key on Stimulus
For the past week, cynical Congressional reporters and observers have been treated to the highly unusual sight of Democratic leaders, GOP leaders and President Bush singing a rousing chorus of Kumbaya on the forthcoming economic stimulus package. Heartwarming as all the bipartisan photo-ops and talk of unity have been, one...
By Ben Pershing | January 18, 2008; 05:51 PM ET | Comments (9)
Impeachment Update!
Here's a quick update on the chances that the House will impeach President Bush or Vice President Cheney during their last year in office: It's not happening. At the end of her weekly press briefing this morning, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was asked why she had not supported the burgeoning...
By Ben Pershing | January 17, 2008; 11:53 AM ET | Comments (60)
Is That a Veto in Your Pocket?
Congress and the Bush administration are playing a game of constitutional footsie with a bill that sets funding levels for the Pentagon and includes a pay increase for members of the military. Over the next two weeks lawmakers will return to Washington for the second session of the 110th Congress...
By Ben Pershing | January 14, 2008; 04:52 PM ET | Comments (7)
Congress Ready to Stimulate
With the stock market shaky and economic worries rising to the top of the campaign issue pyramid, you can expect members of Congress to return to town in the next two weeks with money on their minds. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is no Ben Bernanke - Congress can't just wave...
By Ben Pershing | January 11, 2008; 12:20 PM ET | Comments (1)
UPDATE: Hoyer: 'Impeachment ... Not on Our Agenda'
After the vote on the impeachment resolution, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) unequivocally said he expects no action taken by the Judiciary Committee to consider the Kucinich articles of impeachment against Vice President Cheney. "The speaker and I have both said impeachment, either of the president or the vice...
By Paul Kane | November 6, 2007; 06:20 PM ET | Comments (66)
Cheney Impeachment Resolution Sent to House Committee
The House voted today to send a resolution considering the impeachment of Vice President Cheney to the Judiciary Committee, a move that embarrassed Democratic leaders who were forced into the parliamentary tactic to avoid a floor debate on impeachment. Led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, the long-shot anti-war candidate for the...
By Paul Kane | November 6, 2007; 04:55 PM ET | Comments (388)
Obama: DOJ Official Must Be Fired
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) today called on the Justice Department to fire a top official over controversial comments the official made about minorities. John K. Tanner, chief of the voting rights section in the Justice Department's civil rights division, recently told a Latino group in Los Angeles that "minorities don't...
By Paul Kane | October 19, 2007; 01:39 PM ET | Comments (28)
Democrats Begin SCHIP Veto Override Campaign
With a presidential veto of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) now official, Congressional Democrats have formally embarked on a campaign to find the 15 to 20 votes from House Republicans they will need to override President Bush's veto pen. Aides say because the $35 billion expansion of the...
By Paul Kane | October 3, 2007; 12:53 PM ET | Comments (165)
How Rove Hopes to Avoid Capitol Hill
Now that Karl Rove has announced his plans to leave the White House, it's never too soon to look at the legal fallout from his decision. Rove, President Bush's top political adviser for more than 12 years, could be held in contempt of Congress for his refusal to appear before...
By Paul Kane | August 13, 2007; 04:40 PM ET | Comments (40)
The U.S. Attorney Investigative Line-up Card
Investigations here, investigations there, investigations of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales everywhere. You almost need a lineup card to keep track of all the investigations targeting the growing scandal at the Justice Department. So, like a baseball manager handing in his batting order at the start of the game, Capitol Briefing...
By Paul Kane | July 27, 2007; 12:44 PM ET | Comments (11)
A Contempt Explainer
At 12:14 p.m. ET Wednesday, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) called out that the report was "agreed to," announcing the panel's formal approval a contempt-of-Congress citation against two senior White House officials. Thus began a complicated process that now requires House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to make the...
By Paul Kane | July 26, 2007; 05:00 AM ET | Comments (15)
