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After winning his third consecutive GOP primary contest Tuesday in Nevada, Donald Trump has landed his first congressional endorsements, the latest sign members of the Republican political establishment are coming to terms with the New York businessman securing the GOP presidential nomination. Rep. Chris Collins, R-New York, a wealthy former businessman from upstate New York, said in a statement this morning that Trump "understands the importance of American exceptionalism, and has the unique qualifications to make America great again." Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-California, told Politico this morning that he will support Trump's bid for the GOP nomination for president, a...

One of Marco Rubio's newest congressional endorsers struggled to point to one specific thing he has seen over the course of the last year from the Florida senator that, as MSNBC's Thomas Roberts asked, "demonstrates presidential character." Not only that, but he also called some of the Rubio's past actions "frustrating." At the end of his interview, freshman Rep. Cresent Hardy (R-Nev.) was asked the question about what he has seen from Rubio over the course of his last year in Congress. Hardy took office in January 2015, a little more than three months before Rubio announced his candidacy. "On...

We have a marvelous opportunity to "remove the rascal." In Lebanon is Kyle McCarter, a conservative Illinois state Senator, worthy of your trust. He is a successful businessman, successful in the Illinois state legislature, has fiercely defended the American family, unborn life, gun rights and traditional marriage, is committed to the conservative philosophy of limited government, national sovereignty and traditional values, and pledged to oppose any tax increases Congress proposes and to support economic freedom by working to decrease the tax burden of taxpayers.

Texans start voting in the presidential election in eight days....

Former FBI Supervisory Special Agent and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Fitzpatrick, standing outside the Bucks County Courthouse in Doylestown on Thursday, announced his candidacy for Pennsylvania’s Eighth Congressional District in the House of Representatives. “The time is now to restore integrity and honor to our nation’s capital. Our government is broken. People have lost faith in the system: Corruption is rampant in our nation’s capital and Harrisburg. And all the while, too many politicians prefer to be political ideologues, rather than the problem solvers we need,” said Fitzpatrick surrounded by supporters. “I believe I have the experience and background...

Delegate Patrick L. McDonough, a staunchly conservative Republican, will announce Friday that he will try to unseat Democratic Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger in November, saying he hopes to be part of a conservative revolution in this deep-blue state. Mr. McDonough, who has represented Harford and Baltimore counties in the House of Delegates for 17 years, said that he’s grown tired of what he derisively calls the “Maryland General Asylum” and that he’s ready to try to make an impact at the national level. A fan of GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s immigration policy, Mr. McDonough said he wants to use...

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has been under investigation by the FBI for several months, and former U.S. House Majority leader Tom DeLay said Monday that the FBI is "ready to indict" her for using a private email server to conduct government business. During an interview on "The Steve Malzberg Show," DeLay, a Republican from Texas, said he has friends in the FBI who tell him "they're ready to indict" the former Secretary of State. "They're ready to recommend an indictment and they also say that if the attorney general does not indict, they're going public," DeLay said. Clinton's use...

Civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) used a pair of appearances in Los Angeles on Saturday to urge young student activists to continue to fight for equality in the United States, warning that Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump could set the country back with his divisive rhetoric aimed at immigrants and Muslims. "I've been around a while and Trump reminds me so much of a lot of the things that George Wallace said and did," Lewis said in an interview with The Times after speaking at Cal State L.A. "I think demagogues are pretty dangerous, really. ... We shouldn't...

Link only due to copyright issues: http://www.rgj.com/story/news/politics/2016/01/13/nevadas-adam-laxalt-endorses-ted-cruz/78744608/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=

This is really damn amazing. I mean really amazing. I told you guys the Republican Establishment was coming to terms with Donald Trump because they hate Ted Cruz so much. This is another data point.Follow this story from the Politico. A leading Republican pollster privately told Speaker Paul Ryan and his leadership team Sen. Ted Cruz would be the biggest drag on House Republicans should he win his party's nomination, according to multiple sources who attended a small meeting of senior GOP lawmakers earlier this month.During the gathering in Annapolis, Maryland, Dave Sackett of the Tarrance Group reviewed a recent...

WASHINGTON -- A New Jersey imam will be sitting Tuesday in the same place where House members last year voted to restrict Syrian refugees from coming to the U.S. Imam Hamad Ahmad Chebli of the Islamic Society of Central Jersey in Monmouth Junction will be watching President Barack Obama's State of the Union address in person as the guest of Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-12th Dist.). The speech traditionally is given in the chambers of the U.S. House. "We will be, all of us, under the roof of the Congress," Chebli said by telephone. "Who can say, 'So-and-so is better...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Second district Congressman Alex Mooney endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) Tuesday in his run for the White House. Mooney will become Cruz for President's West Virginia Chairman. "I am proud to endorse Ted Cruz for President. Senator Cruz's father, Rafael, visited West Virginia to discuss how he fled communist Cuba to live in freedom in America just as my mother did," said Mooney in part of a statement. "I have had the pleasure of visiting with Senator Cruz on several occasions to discuss the shared conservative policies for which we are fighting in Congress." Cruz responded that...

Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) says he has endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for president. "I am endorsing Sen. Cruz because I have worked with him in the trenches, fought battles with him on the Hill, and he has proven himself to be honorable, tough, and a man of his word," Gosar said in a statement. "He votes the way he says he will vote. He backs his words with action. I respect that and for that reason I think he will make a great President." Gosar has been one of the few members of Congress who has fought for conservative...

WASHINGTON -- Donald Trump continues to lead in national polls among the many GOP contenders for president, but members of Utah's all-Republican congressional delegation said they believe voters will make a different choice. "It's a problem because he's both an asset and a tremendous liability," Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said of the possibility the billionaire businessman and reality TV star could become the Republican nominee in 2016. Trump is attracting huge crowds, "telling people what they want to hear, and they're all mad at everybody here" in Washington, Hatch said. "But you still have to be responsible, no matter what...

YEAS NAYS PRES NV REPUBLICAN 150 95 1 DEMOCRATIC 166 18 4 INDEPENDENT TOTALS 316 113 5

Eight-term Missouri Congressman Sam Graves on Monday endorsed Ted Cruz for president. Said Graves of northwest Missouri: “I have personally seen Ted Cruz stand up and fight on the issues that matter the most to conservatives, even when it wasn’t popular in Congress. He has never wavered. He has always stood on principle. And he has always put the American people first.” Graves’ long-time campaign consultant Jeff Roe is running Cruz’s campaign, so the endorsement is not a big surprise. “As threats emerge – from ISIS, to Russia, to the Iranian nuclear program – we need a president with the...

Via the Daily Caller comes a new word from gun control liberals that should be added to their growing dictionary of terms that do not exist. Yesterday, California Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez warned about something called “multi-automatic weapons” flowing into the state: (VIDEO-AT-LINK)Appearing on MSNBC Live with Tamron Hall on Thursday, Sanchez made up a term to describe a gun while blasting congressional inaction. “The reality is that Congress has been trying to get up some of these issues [relating to mental health] for the last five years, and we haven’t been able to,” she said We let the assault...

Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) says refugees fleeing war-torn Syria are trying to come to the U.S. for a “paid vacation” in the form of generous welfare programs. “I’m one of these folks that think we need to stop paying these folks to come here, and we’re paying them about $15,000 a year in free health care, free food, free shelter, free clothing, free transportation,” Brooks said on the Dale Jackson Show on Friday, as first reported by the liberal media outlet ThinkProgress. ADVERTISEMENT “You know, just go down the litany of wealth-transfer programs that these people are entitled to, and...

His felony conviction barred him from the Ohio House but not the U.S. House, so Steve Kraus has announced he will seek the Republican nod to challenge U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur next year. The 9th District stretches along Lake Erie shoreline from Toledo to East Cleveland. Miss Kaptur, who has been in Congress since 1983, was re-elected in 2014 with 68 percent of the vote. Kraus said his campaign will focus on the same things he did during his short tenure in the House, energy independence, job creation, and clean water. But given his recent experience with the justice system,...

CEDAR RAPIDS | Conservative U.S. Rep. Steve King’s endorsement of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in the GOP presidential sweepstakes was no bombshell, but that didn’t stop it from reverberating around the Iowa political echo chamber Monday, a day on which no Republican candidates were campaigning in the state. Not only had King and Cruz recently shot pheasants at the western Iowa congressman’s fundraiser, but his son, Jeff King, has been working for a Cruz super PAC. Still, King’s endorsement is seen as a conservative seal of approval. “It certainly helps Cruz, given King’s solid conservative credentials,” said Steffen Schmidt, Iowa...