President Joe Biden called for an end to the Senate filibuster during a visit to Atlanta’s Morehouse College campus, arguing Senate Democrats can push past GOP opposition now blocking major voting rights legislation. Read more»

Mitch McConnell lives in an alternate reality where principles, hypocrisy, irony, and lying your ass off only apply to Democrats. If a Republican changes his mind and does the exact thing he railed on and on against previously, then you’re not supposed to remember that. Read more»

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Tuesday stressed that Democrats are prepared to change Senate rules to pass voting rights legislation — and linked the move to the attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump. Read more»

With the midterm elections approaching, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer warned on Monday that the Senate is prepared to debate changes in the filibuster if Republicans continue to block the advancement of voting rights legislation. Read more»

In the 25 years since President Bill Clinton took Ronald Reagan's notions to their apotheosis in his 1996 welfare reform law - which Clinton said would “end welfare as we know it” - federal welfare funding, frozen by law at 1996 levels, has been decimated. Read more»

With less than a year before voters return to the ballot box for the 2022 midterms, Democrats are scrambling to revive legislation aimed at expanding voting rights that has stalled out in the Senate and unable to overcome filibusters imposed by Republicans. Read more»

I’m just having some fun here with my colleagues because I saw at least four Grinch/Manchin cartoons today before noon. OK, I’m exaggerating. It may have been 1 p.m. Read more»

Joe Manchin voted against Trump’s tax cuts for the rich but he’s now defending them. I bet West Virginia has more poverty babies than trust-fund babies. Read more»

Arizona’s U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema remains opposed to weakening the Senate’s 60-vote threshold for moving ahead on legislation, even as other Democrats are floating the idea of making an exception to the chamber’s rules to pass major voting rights measures. Read more»

President Joe Biden’s giant social and climate spending bill on Thursday night appeared stalled in the U.S. Senate for some time to come, a deep frustration for congressional Democrats who aimed to pass the ambitious package by the Christmas recess. Read more»

Dr. Robert Califf, former head of the Food and Drug Administration and President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the FDA again, drew praise from a top Senate Republican, as well as critical questions from conservatives and others during a Tuesday confirmation hearing. Read more»

Senate Republicans, with the support of Democratic Senators Jon Tester of Montana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, voted to scrap President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate that would require vaccinations at private businesses with 100 or more employees. Read more»

The Democrats’ “Build Back Better” bill that passed the U.S. House did include four weeks of paid leave -but that provision is at risk of deletion in the Senate due to Sen. Joe Manchin- and a failure to take action could have significant political consequences for Democrats in 2022. Read more»

Congressional Democrats cheered after approving President Joe Biden’s massive social spending and climate bill - but a major struggle lies ahead, and Democrats cannot lose any votes if they are to send the Build Back Better measure to Biden’s desk. Read more»

U.S. House Democrats united around a landmark $1.85 trillion social spending and climate bill on Friday, sending the major plank of President Joe Biden’s economic agenda to the Senate - though major revisions are expected to gain support from Senate Democratic moderates. Read more»