Political developments with market and economic implications.
Coverage of political events, elections, legislation, and regulatory changes that influence markets and economic policy. Focuses on political risk, fiscal decisions, and policy uncertainty relevant to investors.
351 total articles
Newly disclosed Justice Department records provided to the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee have prompted fresh scrutiny from the committee’s top Democrat over potential national security hazards and the possibility that classified materials retained by former President Donald Trump were tied to his private business interests. The documents…
Kristen Clarke, who led the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division during the Biden administration, will become general counsel for the NAACP as the organization signals a stepped-up legal response to what it calls intensifying assaults on voting rights and civil liberties. The move follows a year of litigation by the group against new ele…
Since returning to the White House, President Donald Trump has initiated a series of directives and public remarks aimed at reshaping how U.S. historical and cultural institutions present the nation’s past. Actions include an executive order targeting perceived "anti-American ideology," reviews and removals of slavery-related exhibits and signage a…
Trae Stephens, co-founder of defense contractor Anduril Industries and a partner at Founders Fund, told attendees at the Hill and Valley Forum in Washington that congressional paralysis and parts of the technology industry have contributed to a strategic advantage for China. Stephens cataloged a range of U.S. legislative failures across immigration…
Delta Air Lines announced a temporary suspension of specialized services provided to members of Congress, attributing the change to resource constraints stemming from the ongoing partial government shutdown. The carrier said airport escorts and VIP treatments such as seat upgrades and rebooking assistance will be halted, though lawmakers will conti…
President Donald Trump cast a mail-in ballot this week in a Palm Beach County special election even as he denounced mail-in voting as "cheating" and urged Republicans to condition Homeland Security funding on passage of the SAVE America Act, which would restrict mail-in ballots and impose additional registration requirements.
A federal judge will hear oral arguments on Anthropic's bid to block a Pentagon supply-chain risk designation that prevents the AI developer from bidding on certain military contracts. The company says the designation was unlawful retaliation for its stance on AI safety and opposition to domestic surveillance; the government says the move responded…
Saudi authorities are edging toward participating in a U.S.-led campaign against Iranian forces after recent missile and drone strikes on energy infrastructure shifted Gulf security assessments. Riyadh has approved U.S. access to King Fahd air base and senior officials say a decision to join attacks is imminent. The United Arab Emirates is also inc…
California’s open, top-two primary and a congested field of candidates have produced an unusual outcome possibility: two Republicans advancing to the November governor’s race. With Gov. Gavin Newsom barred from a third term, several Democrats and two leading Republicans remain tightly grouped in polls. A key debate and the remaining weeks before th…
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on the legality of a border policy known as "metering" — a practice that allowed U.S. immigration officials to turn away asylum seekers at ports of entry when officials determined border crossings were too strained to accept more claims. The case focuses narrowly on whether migrants who are stopped on the …
The U.S. Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Markwayne Mullin as the next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, replacing Kristi Noem. Mullin has voiced support for President Trump’s hardline immigration agenda but indicated he would scale back certain aggressive enforcement directives. The confirmation follows months of political controversy…
Four weeks after the start of the Iran war, President Donald Trump is expected to focus on crime and immigration during a visit to Memphis, Tennessee. The trip highlights a federal law-enforcement surge that began in September and the administration’s effort to emphasize public safety while managing war-driven economic concerns tied to rising fuel …
The Trump administration has placed a statue of Christopher Columbus on the north side of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House, part of a broader effort to alter public representations of U.S. history. The gift, a reconstruction of a 1984 Baltimore statue, has reignited debates over monuments removed during 2020 racial justic…
Two former FBI special agents have filed an anonymous federal lawsuit in Washington D.C. accusing FBI Director Kash Patel of terminating them last fall because of their limited work on the Arctic Frost investigation into alleged fake electors tied to efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The suit seeks reinstatement and contends the agents’ consti…
Federal prosecutors in Miami have issued a subpoena to former FBI Director James Comey as part of a Justice Department investigation into government officials who previously investigated or prosecuted Donald Trump. The probe, which has produced more than 130 subpoenas since last year, targets senior officials from the Obama and Biden administration…
The director of national intelligence told a Senate panel that the intelligence community has not identified a foreign threat to the upcoming congressional elections, prompting pushback from the panel's vice chairman over the absence of election-interference language in the annual threat assessment and the DNI's recent involvement in domestic elect…
House Republican leader Mike Johnson and senior intelligence officials are urging a rapid, straightforward extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The provision permits the NSA to collect intelligence on foreigners via U.S. communications infrastructure and allows law enforcement to query that data without a warrant. …
House Republican leader Mike Johnson and senior U.S. intelligence officials are advocating for a rapid, uncomplicated reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which permits the National Security Agency to collect foreign intelligence from data traversing U.S. digital infrastructure. The effort faces unresolved po…
A U.S. Senate committee voted to forward Senator Markwayne Mullin's nomination for Homeland Security secretary to the full Senate, even as the committee's Republican chairman criticized Mullin's past statements and announced his opposition. The nomination follows the abrupt firing of Kristi Noem and comes amid controversy over federal immigration e…
Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton emerged victorious in the Democratic primary to succeed retiring U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, defeating 10 rivals and positioning herself for a likely November win in the heavily Democratic state. Stratton ran on an explicitly progressive platform, including a push for a $25 federal minimum wage and calls …
Wolfe Research presented three scenarios for how the conflict in Iran could unfold, ranging from a swift dominance by U.S. forces to a prolonged ground campaign. Analyst Tobin Marcus characterizes the situation as highly uncertain but places the highest probability on a base case that resembles the more optimistic path - a conflict stretching into …
The Senate Intelligence Committee will hold its annual worldwide threats hearing Wednesday, offering senators a public forum to question senior aides to President Donald Trump about the conflict with Iran that began on February 28. Lawmakers from both parties have demanded greater transparency after weeks of classified briefings and growing concern…
Senate Republicans are using debate over the SAVE America Act to frame Democrats as opponents of voter-ID measures and to reinforce claims of widespread illegal voting, despite legal prohibitions and evidence that non-citizen voting in federal elections is extremely rare. Democrats say the bill targets a non-existent problem and risks disenfranchis…
The U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran has become a flashpoint in several Democratic primaries, with progressive challengers accusing more moderate or establishment-backed rivals of accepting money from defense contractors and pro-Israel groups. These disputes are playing out in contests across Michigan, Colorado, Illinois, Maine and North Carol…
The Republican-led U.S. Senate confirmed Anna St. John to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana by a 51-45 vote. St. John, president and general counsel of the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute and a longtime class-action critic, faced opposition from Democrats and former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson for her prior testimony…
