Free Republic

After hysterical theatrics demanding records from Brett Kavanaugh's career, Democrats haven't said a word as Biden conceals Senate records. The hypocrisy of Democrats, and their media allies, is on prominent display in their handling of sexual assault allegation against Joe Biden versus their treatment of Brett Kavanaugh. Another example of the hypocrisy relates to the demand, or lack thereof, for documents related to the official government work of the two men. Until they switched at the last minute to Christine Blasey Ford’s allegation, Democrats’ main message and procedural complaint against Kavanaugh was that they needed to review millions of public...

The math was never on the GOP’s side. Republicans enjoy a 53-47 majority in the U.S. Senate, but the party’s defending 23 of the 35 seats up for grabs in the chamber this November. And while at least a half-dozen GOP seats are considered battlegrounds, Democrats are defending just a handful of vulnerable incumbents. Two developments this month appear to be giving the Democrats a further boost. “I do think it’s 50/50 right now. I think that Democrats' odds have improved over the past month,” predicted Jessica Taylor, who closely tracks the Senate races for the Cook Report, a leading...

Mitch McConnell is open to cutting a deal to provide reeling states and cities with relief during the pandemic-fueled recession. But it will come at a price. Video by Fox News In an interview on Monday, the Senate majority leader said it’s “highly likely” the next coronavirus response bill will aid local governments whose budgets have been decimated by lockdowns and now face spiraling deficits. But to unlock that money, McConnell also wants Congress to limit the liabilities of health care workers, business owners and employees from lawsuits as they reopen in the coming weeks and months. “We probably will...

The Senate on Tuesday passed a $484 billion package to bolster small businesses and hospitals ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic and expand testing for Covid-19. After the unanimous Senate vote, the bill heads to the House, which aims to approve it by Thursday. The measure injects another $310 billion into a key loan program designed to keep employees on small company payrolls. The initial $350 billion in the so-called Paycheck Protection Program, created as part of the $2 trillion rescue package passed last month, dried up last week. It is unclear how many firms have actually received the money.

The Senate overwhelmingly passed a near half-trillion-dollar coronavirus bill on Tuesday to replenish a small-business loan program and fund hospitals and testing efforts. The $484 billion bill is the fourth large coronavirus deal since last month — and comes after a political standoff caused a lapse last week in the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, which gives businesses loans that will be forgiven if they don’t lay off workers. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) sought unsuccessfully to pass a $250 billion expansion of the loan program this month, but was blocked by Democrats who wanted a larger package...

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Sunday when asked about a potential primary challenge from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) that he’s focused on his job. “Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez this week did not rule out a possible 2022 primary run against you,” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Schumer on "State of the Union," referencing the representative’s interview with Politico Playbook last week. “Are you confident you could beat her?” “Look, throughout my career, I have done my job. I'm totally focused on this COVID. We are the epicenter,” Schumer responded, referring to his home state. **SNIP** Asked by Politico if...

Over half of likely Arizona voters surveyed said they’d choose political newcomer Mark Kelly over current seatholder Sen. Martha McSally in their race, according to a poll released Wednesday. Kelly, a Democrat, led McSally 51%-42% in the OH Predictive Insights survey of 600, with 7% undecided. The cellphone-landline poll of 600 contacted April 7-8 had a margin of error of 4%.

Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) reportedly said on Thursday that he has fantasized about holding up coronavirus disinfectant from Kentuckians to make Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) pass more Democrat measures. Malinowski, a Democrat representing New Jersey’s seventh congressional district, said in a call that he would threaten McConnell by withholding Lysol for his constituents. “Fun fact about Somerset County [New Jersey], we make 100 percent of the national supply of Lysol disinfectant,” he said in a video obtained by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). “I’ve thought about using with Mitch McConnell, like, ‘Hey, we’re going to hold up...

Jobless claims continue to surge as more than 6.6 million Americans filed new unemployment benefits last week, according to new data released from the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday.That brings the three-week total of new unemployment claims to 16.8 million as the economic fallout over the Wuhan coronavirus continues to take its toll on the nation’s economy. About 6.6 million Americans had filed new claims the week before and 3.3 million new claims were filed in the week ending on March 28. The previous record for number of new filings in a single week was in 1982 when 695,000...

On Tuesday morning, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) announced the happy news that he has recovered from the coronavirus. He's not resting on his laurels, however. The senator decided to jump right back into work, getting his hands dirty — but not in the Senate. "I appreciate all the best wishes I have received. I have been retested and I am negative," Paul tweeted. "I have started volunteering at a local hospital to assist those in my community who are in need of medical help, including Coronavirus patients. Together we will overcome this!" Paul is not just a senator — he's...

Opening of session with hymn rather than invocation. (Not sure how to post a video) https://youtu.be/i3wUcXhikQ4

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) holds a significant lead over Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) in the race for her Senate seat, a new poll found. A Battleground Connect survey of likely voters in the upcoming special election first reported by Politico revealed that 36 percent support Collins, who has represented the 9th district in Georgia since 2013, for the Senate seat currently held by Loeffler. Loeffler currently trails both Collins and a Democratic opponent, pastor Raphael Warnock of the Ebenezer Baptist Church, and sits at 13 percent in the poll. Warnock registered support from 16 percent of voters, indicating that Collins...

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is breaking with President Trump's decision to fire Michael Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community, saying his removal was "not warranted." "While I recognize that the President has the authority to appoint and remove Inspectors General, I believe Inspector General Atkinson served the intelligence community and the American people well, and his removal was not warranted," she said in a statement over the weekend. Collins noted that by giving the heads of the House and Senate Intelligence committees a 30-day notification that he was removing Atkinson, Trump...

Georgia Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler traded millions in stocks in the days after a closed Senate briefing on the coronavirus – and dumped holdings in retail stores that have been battered by the pandemic. The wealthy Loeffler, who was appointed to her seat and is married to the president of the New York Stock Exchange, sold $18.7 million in International Stock Exchange, according to information her office shared with the Atlanta Journal Constitution. That is the company that owns the New York Stock Exchange. The trades came Feb. 26 and March 11, as the virus spread but the broader public...

As part of an unprecedented $2 trillion stimulus bill expected to pass the Senate on Wednesday night, many Americans experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19 will soon be eligible for a $1,200 check and expanded unemployment benefits. But despite promises from Democratic congressional leaders, the sweeping legislation will leave behind some of the country's most vulnerable residents: undocumented immigrants and mixed status families. According to a draft of the bill, the relief explicitly excludes those without Social Security numbers from obtaining the one-time cash assistance payments that will soon be sent to millions of Americans. Even more glaring, advocates said,...

Democrats are taking a beating because House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) derailed a bipartisan Wuhan coronavirus relief plan. Members of both parties worked through the weekend to come to an agreement and, at the last minute, Pelosi decided it would be better for the House to introduce their own coronavirus relief plan. Her reasoning? There weren't enough progressive items in the bill and Democrats saw this as the perfect opportunity to fundamentally transform America into what they think it should be. Senators who were part of the negotiations and agreed to the bill before Pelosi blew it up decided to...

The Senate was burning the midnight oil but they finally managed to hold a vote and unanimously decide to take ten percent of the national GDP and light it on fire late last night. The final coronavirus relief package cleverly named the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) passed on a 96-0 vote. The final price tag will come in at slightly more than two trillion (with a “T”) dollars. Of course, it can’t go to the President’s desk unless Nancy Pelosi decides to hold a vote on it later this morning, but we’ll get to that...

Republicans and Democrats finally stopped squabbling long enough to spend an estimated $2 trillion on what they claim is emergency coronavirus relief. Here’s the good, the bad, and the ugly of the bill. The Good 1. Payroll Tax Deferral Employer-side payroll tax payments are suspended through the end of the year, to be paid half by year-end 2021 and half by year-end 2022. This will increase business liquidity by about $700 billion. While I would have preferred a cut to a deferral, this will significantly lessen the near-term tax burden on business payrolls, encouraging businesses to retain and restore jobs....

mitch mcconnell on tv just now senate passes emergency $2t relief bill 100-0 with some snarky reporters biting his ankles about pelosi's alleged lack of happiness

Hopes were high after the Senate and the White House announced they had reached a deal on a $2.2 trillion economic stimulus package for Americans affected by the Wuhan coronavirus. But those hopes fizzled out after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi threatened another delay on the vote. Then four Republican senators noticed a "massive drafting error" that would result in "a strong incentive for employees to be laid off instead of going to work." But there were more issues where those came from. Sen. Bernie Sanders saw the Republicans' threat and raised them one of his own. In his eyes, the...