Free Republic

Greg Nash Resignation letter at link. Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.) is resigning effective immediately, he announced Thursday, after initially seeking to remain in Congress despite his conviction on corruption charges. "In my previous letter I indicated a later resignation date in order to provide for an orderly transition of my office after 21 years in the House," he wrote in a letter to Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). "However, out of respect for the entire House Leadership, and so as not to cause a distraction from the House's work for the people, I have changed my effective date." Fattah first...

Greg Nash Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.) submitted a letter of resignation from Congress on Wednesday that laid out his plan to remain as a member through October 3. The letter, sent a day after a jury convicted him of 23 corruption charges, was quickly ripped by Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who called on Democratic leaders to join him in demanding Fattah's immediate resignation. "Mr. Fattah has betrayed the trust of this institution and the people of Pennsylvania, and for that he should resign immediately from the House of Representatives," Ryan said in a statement he tweeted out Wednesday. "We...

The House voted Friday to order the Library of Congress to keep using the term “illegal alien” to describe those who come to the U.S. without authorization, saying that as long as federal laws written by Congress use those terms, so should their official records-keeper. The library earlier this had proposed changing, saying that despite being used in law, the term had “become pejorative” and needed to be axed. Instead the library said it would use “noncitizen” to refer to illegal immigrants, and “unauthorized immigration” to refer to the broader issue. Republicans revolted against the change, and demanded in the...

Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.) has introduced legislation that would allow young immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to work for congressional offices. Qualifying individuals who came to the U.S. illegally as children and hold temporary work permits through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program currently are not eligible to be employed by lawmakers. Only U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and certain refugees can work for members of the House and Senate. The bill offered by Kirkpatrick, who is running for Senate in Arizona, would provide an exemption for DACA recipients. “Telling these young people they cannot...

The House on Monday passed legislation that would create the most sweeping reforms to federal open records laws in nearly a decade. Approved by voice vote, the measure would limit exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) that now allow federal agencies to hold back information. The bill would also create a single online portal for people to make FOIA requests and require agencies to publicly post frequently requested records online. The legislation has been years in the making, following persistent complaints about the FOIA process from journalists, the public and members of Congress. "We regularly use the Freedom...

(TRUNEWS)-The House will consider action Tuesday on the U.S. visa waiver program that allows 40 % of foreign visitors to enter the U.S. effortlessly. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy expects the bill to pass, due to bipartisan support, he told CNN. The program permits citizens of participating countries to travel to the U.S. without a visa for up to 90 days, when they meet certain requirements. Fox News has reported the program has allowed 20 million people from 38 countries to visit the U.S. The bill being voted on in the House will end visa-free visits from people who have...

The House overwhelmingly passed legislation on Tuesday (407 to 19) that would overhaul the federal visa waiver program and bar those from Iraq, Syria, Iran and the Sudan, or those who have visited those countries in the last five years, from traveling to the United States without a visa. Action on the proposal comes in response to the recent attacks in Paris from ISIS operatives, and the shooting in California by a couple that expressed support for the terror group on social media. "This will help neutralize the threat from foreign terrorists entering our country," House Speaker Paul Ryan said...

John Boehner is out (eventually). Kevin McCarthy is out. Conservatives in the House of Representatives are on a roll. But where is the roll going? I applaud the ouster of these insiders. The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the career ambitions of politicians. But what comes next, what follows bold action, is just as important, if not more. On that front, it seems conservatives were wholly unprepared. Nothing against Daniel Webster or Jason Chaffetz, but are they really people who leap to mind when you think “leader?” Or even “articulate and quick-witted conservative”? Have...

It’s easy to be wrong when predicting the future of politics and politicians. But in March of 2014, Kevin “Coach” Collins was spot on in predicting the downfall of John Boehner and the end of his days as House Speaker. That Coach is Right piece is posted below. “Could this be the end of Boehner’s Speakership?” By Kevin “Coach” Collins March 26th, 2014 John Boehner is often a difficult man to figure out. Sometimes he seems to want to lead the fight to restore America’s greatness; but other times he seems hell bent on destroying what is left of America...

On Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot channel 125, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC)96%, who is leading the effort to oust House Speaker Rep. John Boehner (R-OH)35% from his leadership post, said the effort to remove Boehner is getting momentum because GOP constituents are sick and tired of a GOP establishment leadership that does not fulfill campaign promises. Meadows told guest-host Matt Boyle, who recently profiled the conservative North Carolina Representative in a feature story that can be read here, that Boehner will need the votes of Democrats to remain Speaker if a vote is held today. Regarding his motion...

When former Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller passed on a bid in the Silver State’s 3rd District last week, it sent Democrats back to the drawing board again to find a nominee for this Tossup seat in 2016. Miller’s decision to sit the race out was a disappointment for national Democrats, who thought his profile would make him a strong candidate for this highly competitive seat. But it’s indicative of a larger issue Democrats face this cycle: Recruiting House candidates in 2016 hasn’t been as easy as many predicted two years ago. More than a year from Election Day,...

The House will vote this week on legislation that would deny funding to “sanctuary cities” that have policies designed to shelter illegal immigrants from deportation. Sanctuary cities largely refuse to cooperate with federal immigration policies. Such laws have come under heavier scrutiny in the wake of Kathryn Steinle's death last month in San Francisco. Steinle, 32, was fatally shot while walking with her father along San Francisco's waterfront. The police have charged Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, an illegal immigrant with a history of felony convictions who had been deported five times, with the crime. Legislation authored by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.)...

The House rebuffed a proposal Thursday to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility by the end of 2017. An amendment to the annual national defense authorization that would provide a framework for closing the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, failed on a vote of 174-249. Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee and author of the amendment, called the facility an "international eyesore." He noted that the U.S. already has prisons that can hold dangerous convicted terrorists. "We have the facilities. We have the ability to hold them safely here," Smith said. The legislation...

A popular Illinois congressman once considered a rising star in the Republican party is in deep trouble for reportedly using taxpayer money to fund an extravagant lifestyle that includes stays at luxurious hotels, world travel, expensive cars and private jet rides to concerts and pro sporting events. The lawmaker’s name is Aaron Schock and he’s only 33, but he’s a seasoned politician who should have known better than to use public funds as a personal piggy bank. For six years he’s represented a working-class district in Peoria, Illinois in the U.S. House. One national media report says he had a...

The White House is reportedly exploring how to handle Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's upcoming address to Congress and is considering a media blitz to counter his messaging. The Associated Press reported Friday that U.S. officials are mulling multiple responses, including having President Obama sit for an interview with "a prominent journalist known for coverage of the rift between Obama and Netanyahu." Other options include senior White House national security aides appearing on multiple Sunday morning shows as well as the administration bucking tradition and sending lower-level foreign policy officials to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference, the...

A day after winning his third term as Speaker, John Boehner (R-Ohio) said his conference had begun a "family conversation" about how to respond to the 25 conservatives who revolted and voted against him on the floor. Boehner confirmed that the Rules Committee agreed hours after the Tuesday vote to boot two of the defectors off the committee: Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.), who challenged Boehner for Speaker, and Rep. Richard Nugent (R-Fla.), who voted for his fellow Florida Republican. But the Speaker said no final decisions had been made, suggesting Webster and Nugent could rejoin the committee, even as some...

"................This is why we have elections — to choose representatives. The 2014 congressional elections were quite good for conservatives, who are restive and impatient for reform. Many of them fault congressional leaders, especially John Boehner and Senate leader Mitch McConnell, for being too eager to compromise and too generous in their terms. There might have been a mutiny against McConnell if all the likely candidates for Senate majority leader — Senators Rubio, Paul, Cruz, etc. — weren’t running for president. Will Rogers famously joked: “I don’t belong to any organized political party — I’m a Democrat,” and there has long...

Iron-fisted U.S. House Speaker John Boehner is moving quickly to punish conservative Republicans who tried to oust him Tuesday during the biennial leadership election. Hours after the contentious vote, Florida Rep. Daniel Webster – who actively campaigned against Boehner and persuaded 12 GOP members to support him – found himself left off the membership list of the powerful House Rules Committee, where he served for the last two years. Rep. Rich Nugent, a fellow Floridian who voted for him, suffered the same fate. 'My philosophy,' Webster told reporters after he heard the news that he had been bumped from the...

Glenn Beck on Tuesday tore into Congressman Chris Stewart (R-Utah) over his decision to vote for John Boehner as speaker of the House, saying he believes Stewart — who has been his friend for years — is losing his soul. Beck asked the congressman whether it was Boehner’s decision to fund Obamacare, his support of the CRomnibus bill, or his decision to continually delay any action in opposing President Barack Obama’s agenda that garnered his support. Stewart said the allegations against Boehner aren’t true, and continued: “I think in the time we have here, we can’t go back and review...

Barring a stunner, John Boehner will be reelected as speaker when the House convenes for the beginning of the 114th Congress. But as opposition from conservatives trickles out, it appears Boehner won't be able to escape the indignity of watching a dozen or more members of his own party refuse to support him in a public vote shortly after noon on Tuesday. For the second consecutive term, a vote that is ordinarily a formality will carry with it the potential for high drama. Two Republicans, Representatives Ted Yoho of Florida and Louie Gohmert of Texas, have launched what can only...