Hello, readers. Welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele here, USA TODAY's congressional correspondent. It's Wednesday, and things up here in the Senate were something of a "train wreck" this morning, as Majority Leader John Thune put it. He walked back that statement eventually, though, saying it was a "little extreme" – more on that later.
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Missouri vs. Michigan (vs. Israel) |
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the most influential pro-Israel group, suffered a tough loss in a key Senate Democratic primary election yesterday in Michigan. AIPAC's preferred candidate, the Chuck Schumer-backed Rep. Haley Stevens, conceded to Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive who's been fiercely critical of the Netanyahu government. It was a close one, though; Stevens lost by fewer than 20,000 votes, per the latest counts. In Missouri, however, incumbent Rep. Wesley Bell fended off an anti-AIPAC challenge from former congresswoman Cori Bush.
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The political tableau underscored how Democrats' stances on Israel will only continue to be a divisive issue within the party.
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The Senate is making some progress toward breaking its pre-recess logjam. Between confirming Todd Blanche, passing a government funding stopgap, advancing a college athletics bill and more, there remains much on the agenda. This morning, amid GOP disagreements about a number of things stalling the legislative sprint, Thune was sounding less than optimistic. "It's a bit of a train wreck, isn't it?" he said on his way into the chamber. He later called that analogy "probably a little extreme." "It's just a series of things that are sort of piled up," he said.
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The Max Miller saga continues |
Sen. Bernie Moreno is punching back at Rep. Max Miller, his former son-in-law who's been accused by Emily Moreno, the senator's daughter, of domestic violence. On CNN last night, Miller, who denies the abuse allegations, accused his ex-father-in-law of being "politically vindictive" for calling on him to resign from Congress. In the halls of the Capitol this afternoon, Moreno talked to me and other reporters about his 2-year-old granddaughter, saying, "I can't even express to you what it feels like to have her in my life. I just wish her dad felt the same way."
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Miller has repeatedly reiterated his love for his daughter, and last night said he's staying in his reelection race so that when she grows up, "she is not going to see that her father caved to political and social media pressures for something that he never did."
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Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com.
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The House Ethics Committee found evidence that the Republican congressman did housework for his young female staffers and sent them lavish gifts.
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The Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz as director of the CDC, handing the Trump administration a rare win after repeated failed attempts.
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In a victory speech on Aug. 5, the Democratic upstart reflected on how if not "for an accident of history," he might have been a cab driver in Egypt.
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