Congress

Capitol agenda: Markwayne Mullin’s rockier-than-expected road

Published

6 months ago

March 19, 2026

It’s Markwayne Mullin’s day of reckoning after a fiery Senate hearing Wednesday.

The Oklahoma Republican will likely secure the votes he needs at the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee Thursday, though it’s not a sure thing. If things go as expected, he could be confirmed as DHS secretary early next week, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told Blue Light News.

But Wednesday’s drama at HSGAC — the only obvious chokepoint for his nomination — heralds some real issues going forward given the fierce opposition Mullin encountered from Chair Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and tough questioning from Democrats.

— One angry chair: Paul told reporters Mullin’s anger issues and his expression of sympathy for the man who attacked and severely injured Paul in 2017 means “he’s unfit to be leading a large law enforcement agency.”

But Paul made clear his personal opposition would not preclude showing “courtesy to the White House,” and he vowed to move forward with Thursday’s 9:30 a.m. vote.

The chair predicted Mullin would still advance with the help of at least one Democrat. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) appears open to supporting Mullin, though he would not commit publicly to backing him Wednesday, saying only his “mind is still open.”

Even if Mullin stalls in the panel vote, Paul suggested the White House could ask for a “negative recommendation,” allowing a floor vote to proceed. “I mean, there are things I would consider,” he said.

But he also made clear he will be watching Mullin closely as he takes the reins at DHS — especially immigration enforcement agencies that have been plagued by use-of-force controversies.

“We’re going to go fast with the nomination hearing. We’re going to go fast with the vote. But I can’t vote for a guy who’s got anger” issues, Paul said.

— Many skeptical Democrats: Mullin presented himself during Wednesday’s hearing as a different type of leader than ousted Secretary Kristi Noem. Democrats weren’t receptive.

“My goal at six months is that we’re not in the lead story every single day,” Mullin said. “My goal is for people to understand we’re out there. We’re protecting them.”

Mullin indicated he’d reverse a controversial administration decision allowing ICE agents to enter homes with only an administrative warrant, not a signoff from a judge. Ending that practice is a huge sticking point for Democrats in DHS funding talks.

But several HSGAC Democrats like Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Ruben Gallego of Arizona said after the hearing that Mullin’s comments aren’t a ray of hope for breaking the shutdown impasse. At least not yet.

“Openness [to judicial warrants] doesn’t mean anything to me until I see it in actual legislation,” Gallego told Blue Light News.

What else we’re watching:

— Gabbard takes the stand again: The House Intelligence committee will have a hearing on worldwide threats to American security, with testimony from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, FBI Director Kash Patel, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and other officials at 8:30 a.m.

— Sanders to force vote on Israel arms sale: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is introducing joint resolutions of disapproval Thursday over several U.S. arms sales to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, his office tells Blue Light News. The resolutions take aim at a combined $658 million worth of munitions sales.

— Next Epstein deposition: Darren Indyke, a lawyer for Jeffrey Epstein and a co-executor of his estate, will testify before the House Oversight committee Thursday in a highly anticipated closed-door deposition. Eager for answers about Epstein’s crimes, lawmakers are amid a series of closed-door sessions with people who are seen as close to the late convicted sex offender, including his accountant Richard Kahn and client Les Wexner.

Jordain Carney and Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.

Congress

House passes Russia sanctions bill, handing Trump more leverage against Moscow

Published

2 hours ago

September 16, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The House passed the sweeping Russia sanctions bill long championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham on Wednesday, sending the legislation to the White House for President Donald Trump’s signature after more than a year of congressional maneuvering.

The 262 to 159 vote ends a nearly two-year lull in Ukraine assistance from Congress, which had not passed any major Ukraine efforts since a 2024 emergency aid package. The bill faced a number of obstacles on the path to the Resolute Desk, including significant opposition from some House Democrats who argued that the bill would give the White House too much tariff power.

After weathering a number of storms to make it out of Capitol Hill, the legislation is all but guaranteed to get Trump’s signature.

The long-anticipated legislation issues mandatory sanctions on Russia’s leadership and energy sector — as well as new sanctions on collaborators in Moscow’s defense industry and its so-called shadow fleet. Advocates of the bill, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, have argued it would give the White House necessary tools to squeeze Russia economically, curbing the flow of funds to Moscow’s war machine.

But, to many Democrats’ dismay, the legislation also includes a 100% tariff on top buyers of Russian energy. Opponents of the bill have cautioned that the tariff provision would hand another cudgel for Trump to use against not only U.S. foes but also global allies — an action the White House has repeatedly taken since Trump returned to office.

“We cannot grant more tariff power that we know he will abuse,” Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) said in comments on the House floor Wednesday.

Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, argued that the tariffs would worsen the economic pain already felt by everyday Americans and that without a security assistance package or more air defense, they would not do enough to concretely help Ukraine.

In comments on the House floor earlier Wednesday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries outlined why he planned to withhold support for the measure.

“The manner in which this bill has been written doesn’t require the president of the United States to impose sanctions on Russia,” Jeffries said. “In fact, there are so many loopholes written into the bill, I believe, that it’s very unlikely that the sanctions relief contemplated in the legislation will ever see the light of day.”

That disagreement has caused a growing rift among Democrats in recent days. Fifty-eight House Democrats broke with Jeffries to vote yes on the measure.

In a letter addressed to House Democrats, Senate Foreign Relations ranking member Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) urged her colleagues to pass the legislation, warning that failing to do so would send a dangerous message to both Russian leader Vladimir Putin and other international foes.

“Congress’s failure to impose additional costs would send a dangerous signal,” Shaheen wrote. “The Kremlin is watching. Kyiv is watching. Our NATO allies are watching. So are Beijing, Tehran and Pyongyang.”

Congress

Rand Paul kills Kennedy’s AI ‘kill switch’ bill

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Sen. Rand Paul blocked an attempt by fellow Republican Sen. John Kennedy to quickly pass legislation that would require companies to build a “kill switch” into their artificial intelligence model.

Kennedy, of Louisiana, went to the Senate floor Wednesday to try to pass his bill without holding a formal vote — a step that can be prevented by any one of his 99 colleagues. He argued that the measure was effectively a short-term step, with Congress unlikely to pass more sweeping AI legislation in the immediate future even amid fears that technological advancements could spiral out of human control.

“We are not going to get up off our ice-cold lazy butts and address this anytime soon,” Kennedy said about Congress’ inability to pass a more comprehensive bill. “But still we’ve got this risk out there that we know is real of one of these models becoming the Terminator.”

Paul, however, blocked Kennedy’s request to pass the bill through a unanimous consent agreement, saying from the Senate floor, “I think we should have as many facts as possible before we dictate rules for the whole economy.”

“I don’t oppose the spirit of this bill but I do ask that we make sure that we have all the information,” the Kentucky lawmaker added.

Paul tried to amend Kennedy’s bill to establish a group that could make recommendations on AI guardrail policies to the Senate Commerce Committee. Kennedy rejected that suggestion.

“My mama didn’t raise a fool,” he said, adding, “a committee is a way to kill this.”

Kennedy’s push for a vote comes after he told reporters Monday that he intended to roll out legislation and attempt to pass it this week, even while he acknowledged that he didn’t yet have any formal buy-in from his colleagues. He also appeared to know by earlier in the day Wednesday that he was running into a roadblock, saying in an interview that he expected Paul to offer a counterproposal.

Congress

House votes to hold Leon Black in contempt of Congress

Published

6 hours ago

September 16, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The House voted Wednesday by unanimous consent to hold billionaire investor Leon Black in contempt of Congress after he refused to comply with two congressional subpoenas sought by the Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into the late Jeffrey Epstein.

The matter is now in the hands of the Justice Department, which will determine whether to ultimately bring charges against Black. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It marks the first time a witness has been held in contempt over the course of the Oversight panel’s yearlong probe into Epstein and the web of powerful people who enabled his abuse for years before his conviction on sex trafficking charges.

“This vote is an important step towards justice and accountability,” said the committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Robert Garcia of California. “Leon Black has continued to defy two congressional subpoenas and we need to know why he gave Jeffrey Epstein $180 million dollars. We will continue to center the survivors in our fight to hold those responsible for these horrific crimes. We are just getting started.”

Black, according to the Oversight Committee, had a close personal relationship with Epstein for years as well as financial connections, with Black paying Epstein over $158 million. He was brought in for a transcribed interview with the panel members in June but refused to turn over certain nondisclosure agreements he entered into with women tied back to Epstein, resulting in subpoenas to compel their release.

Black has refused to comply with the demand, instead choosing to sue the Oversight Committee on allegations the leaders overstepped their authority in making their demands. It did not stop the committee from moving forward with contempt proceedings, voting Tuesday to recommend the full House take action.

“As a result of his extensive dealings with Epstein, Mr. Black possesses firsthand information regarding the activities of Epstein and [Ghislaine] Maxwell and their efforts to establish relationships and curry favor with influential individuals while engaged in sex trafficking,” the panel said in its contempt resolution.

Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler, Black’s attorneys, in a statement called the action against Black “politically motivated and completely retaliatory by a Chairman who is focused solely on himself and his own political ambitions without any regard for the truth and the law.”

“We intend to pursue our litigation challenging this action and will hold the Committee and Chairman [James] Comer [R-Ky.] accountable in the courts,” the lawyers added.

Comer, in a statement, said, “no one is above the law. Leon Black defied two subpoenas, and the U.S. House of Representatives acted swiftly to find him in contempt of Congress. We will continue to seek transparency for the American people and justice for survivors in our investigation of the federal government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein and [co-conspirator] Ghislaine Maxwell criminal cases.”