Congress
Vance to Senate GOP lunch
Vice President JD Vance is attending Thursday’s Senate Republican lunch.
The visit comes as senators try to make progress on several key priorities and leave Washington for a five-week recess. Among the unsettled issues is whether the GOP will advance a budget framework for a new party-line spending bill and take votes on the SAVE America elections bill.
Sen. Jon Husted said Thursday his fellow Ohio Republican, Rep. Max Miller, should “step aside as a candidate and resign from Congress” — breaking days of silence about the burgeoning controversy over domestic abuse claims that Miller denies.
Husted serves alongside Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), the father of Miller’s ex-wife. He remained quiet on the issue this week even after Bernie Moreno broke his own silence Sunday to denounce Miller as unfit for office and in need of “professional help.”
Husted said in his latest statement he does “not see how a campaign for Congress benefits” Miller, ex-wife Emily Moreno or their daughter.
“I believe Max would be making the right decision to step aside as a candidate and resign from Congress to focus on what is in the best interest of his daughter,” Husted added. “Years from now, I believe he will look back and know it was the right choice for her.”
A spokesperson for Miller did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Miller has repeatedly denied the allegations, which include drawing a gun on Emily Moreno and breaking their child’s collarbone, and called them “politically motivated” in a BLN interview this week.
Earlier in the week, Husted said he was “sad about the situation” and said he hoped President Donald Trump would “help move things along.” Miller spoke to Trump earlier this week but said afterward he had no plans to resign.
Husted’s statement came as several Senate Republicans spoke out in support of the Moreno family. Sen. Tim Sheehy of Montana said earlier on Thursday that Miller should “step aside and seek help,” calling him “a degenerate sociopath.”
Husted issued his statement as another prominent Ohio Republican, Vice President JD Vance, addressed Senate Republicans at a Capitol Hill lunch hosted by Bernie Moreno. Vance has not publicly commented on the matter.
The controversies around Miller have threatened what had been considered a safe Republican district, with Democratic nominee Brian Poindexter mounting a strong campaign to deny Miller a third term. The White House has privately pushed for Miller to drop out of the race before Monday — the deadline for Ohio Republicans to replace his name on the ballot.
The House Ethics Committee said earlier this week it is investigating the domestic abuse allegations as well as claims of illegal drug use by Miller — a probe the lawmaker asked for in a bid to clear his name. Speaker Mike Johnson subsequently told Blue Light News in an interview that he would allow that investigation to run its course and would not call on Miller to step down or end his candidacy.
Senate Agriculture Committee Democrats rejected a GOP-led farm bill Thursday in a vote that highlights deep partisan divisions over nutrition aid cuts and leaves Congress without a clear path toward reauthorizing the long-overdue bill.
Chair John Boozman recessed the panel indefinitely after the 10-11 vote, meaning that he can call members back to revisit the bill at any point, including in September after the chamber’s August break.
Democrats stood united against Boozman’s package, sticking to their demand for a two-year delay to Republicans’ requirement that states share the cost of providing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
“I want us to get to a bipartisan agreement. I think people know that that is how I have operated in this place, and that’s what I want to get done,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), the panel’s ranking member. “But first and foremost, that includes addressing this ridiculous [SNAP] situation.”
Boozman offered a one-year SNAP delay, language to authorize year-round E15 sales and increased funding for a program that distributes food through food banks in hopes of attracting bipartisan support. GOP senators resisted Democrats’ efforts to push for a longer delay.
Republicans needed at least one Democratic vote to advance the bill due to the absence of Sen. Mitch McConnell on Thursday. Boozman accused Democrats of holding SNAP participants “hostage and holding our farmers hostage.”
“I want to be clear: A two-year delay does not have the support of the majority in Congress or of the White House. The offer before you is the best, and it’s the final offer,” Boozman said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) defended Boozman’s offer during the markup.
“The chairman fought as hard as he could,” said Thune, a longtime Agriculture Committee member. “The proposal in front of us … gives everybody another year to do this and saves some states in this room a whole lot of money.”
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) said that “all of us knew before we walked in this room” that the bill would fail due to the SNAP stalemate.
“I want to get the bipartisan stuff done, and we’re not going to get a farm bill. That’s the game here today,” Booker said.
Senators adopted dozens of amendments to the original text, including those that would permanently transfer the Food for Peace program to USDA and make hot rotisserie chicken eligible under SNAP. They rejected several Democratic-led amendments to undo SNAP funding cuts and add other nutrition priorities to the bill along party lines.
Rachel Shin contributed to this report.
Rep. Jay Obernolte, a California Republican leading the charge on wide-ranging artificial intelligence legislation in the House, said Thursday he’s ramping up pressure for a committee vote after a series of cyber breaches involving rogue AI models.
“We have been aware of the need for this type of bill for the last couple of years,” the California Republican told reporters in Washington. “However, the recent events have certainly elevated the discussion amongst my colleagues and elevated awareness of just how necessary this bill is. So, in that sense, it’s been timely.”
Obernolte’s comments follow a series of recent disclosures by OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta that their models autonomously engaged in cyberattacks.
The lawmaker is leading legislation with Democratic Rep. Lori Trahan of Massachusetts that would preempt some state AI regulations and give the federal government the ability to restrict deployment of AI models that pose catastrophic risks.
Obernolte said Thursday that discussions with fellow lawmakers about his bill have continued since the House left Washington last week, including during a recent trip focused on critical minerals. He said leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee seems open to holding a vote on the bill in September but have made no commitments.
“We feel like that’s a reasonable compromise that everyone can be happy with,” Obernolte said. “So we’re going to push to have some hearings and markups on that in Energy and Commerce when we return in September.”
A spokesperson for House Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Obernolte said he has been briefed on a yet-to-be publicly released White House framework for vetting AI cybersecurity risks and that he has had “constant discussions” with the administration.
-
The Josh Fourrier Show2 years agoDOOMSDAY: Trump won, now what?
-
Politics1 year agoFormer ‘Squad’ members launching ‘Bowman and Bush’ YouTube show
-
The Dictatorship1 year agoLuigi Mangione acknowledges public support in first official statement since arrest
-
Uncategorized2 years ago
Bob Good to step down as Freedom Caucus chair this week
-
Politics1 year agoFormer Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron launches Senate bid
-
The Dictatorship1 year agoPete Hegseth’s tenure at the Pentagon goes from bad to worse
-
Politics1 year agoBlue Light News’s Editorial Director Ryan Hutchins speaks at Blue Light News’s 2025 Governors Summit
-
The Dictatorship11 months agoMike Johnson sums up the GOP’s arrogant position on military occupation with two words