Politics

‘Enjoy the basement!’ New California members of Congress move in to Capitol — as the old move out Near the cafeteria of the Rayburn House Office Building, right next to the trash bins, is a drab room with rows of cubicles wistfully called the “Departing Member Center.” After every election, sitting members of the House … Read more

But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth! Rudyard Kipling, “The Ballad of East and West” — THE TWO POLITICAL celebrities liked those lines so much that they put them on their campaign poster. … Read more

A personal connection with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s chief of staff led to Renee Zito’s selection as California’s drug and alcohol treatment czar. But more than a year into her tenure, Zito’s aptitude is being questioned by substance abuse professionals and by an independent state watchdog agency. Before she was tapped to run the California Department … Read more

Susie Wiles, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for chief of staff, will have her work cut out for her. Though the job has traditionally entailed policing who has access to the president, Trump chafed at such efforts during his first presidency as he churned through four chiefs of staff. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press) As incoming … Read more

Residents attend a Durango City Council meeting to speak about the continued fluoridation of the Colorado town’s drinking water. (Christian Burney / Associated Press) For about 50 years, adding cavity-preventing fluoride to drinking water was a popular public health measure in Yorktown, a leafy town north of New York City. But in September, the town’s … Read more

In Ohio, it really was all about the turnout — though in ways that defied the conventional political wisdom of the Buckeye State. A hugely motivated Republican base, driven in part by a “marriage protection” amendment to the state constitution, proved more than equal to the task of matching heavy increases in Democratic voting strength … Read more

Acting Atty. Gen. Matthew Whitaker jokingly asks for questions as he leaves a news conference where no questions were allowed Thursday in Nashville, Tenn. (Mark Humphrey / AP) Iowa attorney Matthew Whitaker had an audacious plan to land a plum federal job in 2017 — appearing regularly as a conservative pundit on cable TV shows … Read more

A worker in Arizona makes masks. (Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press) The text messages and emails come in the middle of the night from strangers claiming to be middlemen and manufacturers. Deals are cut quickly; millions of dollars are wired overseas. Sometimes the supplies arrive; other times, the too-good-to-be-true offers prove to be just … Read more

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), left, walks with Vice President-elect Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) on Capitol Hill. (Mark Schiefelbein / Associated Press) After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill last week in a new, more visible role: helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet … Read more

When President Trump campaigned this spring at the Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson, one part of his predecessor’s approach got a special endorsement. “It was during the Revolution that Jackson first confronted and defied an arrogant elite. Does that sound familiar?” Trump asked to laughs from his audience. When Trump ally and National Rifle … Read more