Republicans in Congress haven't announced an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, but Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) is already suggesting witnesses for the hearings.
During an interview on Tuesday, podcaster Benny Johnson asked Boebert if former President Barack Obama knew about the crimes alleged by Republicans.
"Do you think that Obama knew about all this?" Johnson wondered. "I mean, candidly, do you think that President Obama, like, knew that Joe Biden was doing this? Do you think he's complicit in this?"
"Certainly, that's a strong allegation," Boebert replied. "And maybe we need to bring Barack Obama in to testify before one of these committees to see exactly what he knows."
But Boebert argued that a "paper trail" could be enough to impeach Biden.
"And so I believe that we are going to see a lot of connections come out," she said. "I don't know if Barack Obama is going to be one of those. But we seem to uncover something new every time that we look into this."
The far-right Freedom Caucus, long the premier disruption wing of the GOP in the House, is facing an "identity crisis" — and the rise of a rival group that seeks to claim its mantle, The New York Timesreported on Tuesday.
All of this comes amid previous reports of turmoil within the group, including the ouster of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) for her feud with Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and her closeness to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
"As the Republican Party has moved further to the right, the fringe has become the mainstream, swelling the ranks of the Freedom Caucus but making it difficult for the group to stay aligned on policy and strategy," reported Annie Karni, Robert Draper, and Luke Broadwater. To further complicate matters, "The rise of another hard-right faction in the House calling itself “the Twenty” — including some members of the caucus and some who have long refused to join — has raised questions in recent months about where the real power lies on the far right."
"The Twenty," which consists of members including Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), is "a group of 20 populist members that has in recent months become the more disruptive threat to Mr. McCarthy’s control of the House," and due to its smaller size, considers itself more efficient and better able to wage fights against the establishment.
Part of the split is fallout over the debt ceiling negotiations earlier this year, which enraged far-right lawmakers after McCarthy accepted minimal concessions from Biden in order to prevent an economic catastrophe. At the time, some members even threatened to try to force a confidence vote against McCarthy, but this has not happened.
All of this could play a critical role in budget talks coming up. House Republicans forced a number of right-wing priorities into the defense bill, including anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion provisions, but these have virtually no chance of passing the Senate, setting up a conference debate and a potential showdown.
A Maryland man has been hit with hate crime charges after he allegedly killed three people and wounded three more during a parking dispute, the Associated Press reported.
Charles Robert Smith, 43, faces first-degree murder and hate-crime charges in the killings of his neighbors Mario Mireles, his father Nicholas Mireles, and Christian Segovia. Smith is white, while his victims were Latino.
Police say the victims were shot while at a party when a dispute over a parking spot broke out. "Mireles went to Smith’s home to talk about it and was arguing with Shirley Smith when her son Charles Smith returned home and confronted him. The verbal argument became physical," the AP's report states.
Smith then pulled out a gun and Mireles tried to grab it. Smith then shot Mireles and Segovia before he "stood over Mario Mireles and shot him several more times," police say.
He then went into his neighboring house and got a rifle and began shooting through a window at people who came to help the victims. He fatally shot Nicolas Mireles, and wounded Rosalina Segovia, Paul Johnnson and Enner Canales-Hernandez, the AP reported.
Smith and the Mireles family had been feuding for years, according to police. The Mireles had accused him of making racist remarks towards them, as well as other neighbors who are Black.
A Use of Force Review Board will review an incident in Ohio where an unarmed Black man was attacked by a K-9 unit even though his hands were up.
In a
statement, Circleville Mayor Don McIlroy and Chief G. Shawn Baer confirmed that the attack was being examined.
Circleville's Police Department "was involved in a mutual aid request by the Ohio State Highway Patrol," the statement said. "In compliance with the Circleville Police Department Policy, a Use of Force Review Board was convened immediately and is reviewing the incident."
According to
The Columbus Dispatch, the incident occurred on July 4 and was caught on camera. Ohio State Highway Patrol chased Jadarrius Rose, 23, after he allegedly failed to stop for a vehicle inspection.
The video indicates state troopers asked the K-9 handler not to release the dogs if the suspect surrendered.
"Do not release the dog with his hands up!" one state trooper can be heard saying in the video.
"Although Rose appeared to comply with authorities in the video, a Circleville K9-handling police officer is seen releasing the dog and commanding the dog to attack Rose," the report said.
Rose was charged with "failure to comply with an order or signal of a police officer." But Ross County Prosecutor Jeffrey Marks vowed to press additional charges for refusing to comply with officers' commands.
Nana Watson, president of the NAACP's Columbus Branch, compared the attack to incidents during the Civil Rights Movement.
"This type of behavior should not be tolerated," Watson said. "It brings back those hurtful memories of hate for Black people."
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) tried to justify throwing away a memorial pin and pamphlet showing a 10-year-old girl who was killed in the Uvalde mass shooting.
The Colorado Republican addressed a widely shared video clip showing her throwing the pin and photo in the trash. She claimed she had not heard the activist who handed her the items when he approached because she was wearing Airpods as she walked in the U.S. Capitol, and she claimed she recognized the man as someone who had made her feel unsafe, reported The Independent.
"I was walking, had Airpods in, tried to tell the man I was occupied, he continued, and as he was handing me what turned out to be a memorial pin, I recognized him as a man who came at me very aggressively just a few weeks prior during a press conference," Boebert said. "He was so aggressive that he was apprehended by another member and detained by Capitol police officers."
"So I want to make it very clear that I did not want to receive anything that this man had to give me, nor did I know what he was handing me," Boebert added. "I was very vocal when the shooting took place in Uvalde, and that was horrific all the way around."
The activist disputed Boebert's claims, saying the lawmaker's staff asked police to remove him from the event because he was wearing a shirt that called to "ban assault weapons," and he said officers never detained him.
Furious with his tenure as House Speaker, the conservative Club For Growth has committed to spending at least $20 million on the reelection campaigns of the 20 GOP lawmakers who opposed handing Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) the gavel.
According to a report from Politico, Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and eighteen others now dubbed the "The Patriot 20" can expect help in the next election allowing them to make McCarthy's job difficult, assuming he is still the speaker when the 2024 election rolls around.
As Politico's Ally Mutnick wrote, David McIntosh, president of the anti-tax group fears GOP moderates might target the 20 lawmakers with primary opponents.
As Mutnick explained, "Making our financial commitment public may serve as an effective deterrent to some potential challengers. Moderate donors and candidates seeking to settle scores should save their money, because we are prepared to win at all costs.”
Politico reports, "The Club’s primary goal will be to defend the five freshmen members of the group who are especially vulnerable: Reps. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.), Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), Josh Brecheen (R-Okla.), Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) and Keith Self (R-Texas). McIntosh wrote the Club would also closely monitor any primary challengers to the 15 other members, a group which includes some of the biggest congressional rabble rousers, such as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.). Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.), who is considering a Senate run, is also on the list."
The report adds that the Club for Growth, by announcing their plans, appears to be trying to "spook" McCarthy and his allies from trying it to rid themselves of the more vexatious members of their caucus while also noting that, to date, few of "The Patriot 20" are facing any serious challengers who have the big campaign chests needed to be competitive.
If it appears that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is getting more support from Republicans than Democrats in his ostensibly Democratic campaign for president, you're not imagining it. The environmental lawyer turned conspiracy theorist who claims pediatric vaccines cause autism and recently suggested COVID was a bioweapon "ethnically targeted" to spare Jews has numerous Republicans talking up his candidacy, and Jason Boles, head of the super PAC supporting Kennedy, has also done campaign finance for Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and George Santos (R-NY).
Kennedy probably doesn't even realize that he's being used by Republican operatives to try to divide Democrats, argued "On Brand" podcaster Donny Deutsch on MSNBC's "Deadline: White House" Friday.
"All these people can say and do whatever they want, but do you think the public understands that the people behind Kennedy's run are Republicans and does Kennedy understand that the most extreme Republicans are using him?" asked anchor Nicolle Wallace.
"He's a Republican plush toy at this point, and it's actually pathetic and it's sad," said Deutsch. "And, you know, there's no surprise there. You and I could have gotten a room together and said you know what at some point the Republicans are going to try to find this year's Ralph Nader or Jill Stein or whoever it is, and who would have thought it would be Kennedy? But I think the more you ask the question, do we report this news? That is the news, what is behind it, and it's the Republican machine, the MAGA part of the Republican machine."
"Do you think he knows that, Donny?" asked Wallace.
"No," said Deutcsh. "I don't think he's well. I think his past speaks for itself. I think he's a delusional guy."
"What do you think it says that the people closest to him, his family, are the ones with some of the harshest rebukes for him?" Wallace.
"I think it says it all," said Deutsch. "When your family is like, stay away from this guy — I would love to be at Thanksgiving dinner, but it says it all."
An attorney representing Hunter Biden has filed an ethics complaint against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) for displaying naked pictures of him without consent during a congressional hearing, calling it "a new level of abhorrent behavior," USA TODAY reported on Friday.
"The lawyer, Abbe Lowell, told the Office of Congressional Ethics in a letter that the Georgia Republican’s 'unmoored verbal abuses and attacks on Biden represented numerous ethics violations,'" reported Bart Jansen.
"Lowell previously complained in April about Greene over alleged defamation, false allegations, publication of private photos and 'bizarre dissemination of conspiracy theories about Mr. Biden and members of his family.'"
The picture was shown during a hearing into the tax charges against Hunter Biden, who recently filed a guilty plea in exchange for a deal after an extensive investigation by David Weiss, the U.S. Attorney for Delaware. Republicans have produced whistleblowers alleging that the Justice Department interfered to prevent more serious charges.
This is not the only case of Greene broadcasting Hunter Biden's nude photos; she also blasted them out in an email to supporters.
Some analysts have speculated whether this may have resulted in the pictures being disseminated to children, although there is no evidence this is the case, and Greene's email disclaimed that parental discretion is advised.
Greene, who was infamous for previously pushing QAnon conspiracy theories before being elected to Congress but later disavowed them, was stripped of her committee assignments in the last Congress over social media activity in which she endorsed killing prominent Democrats.
However, the GOP restored her assignments after taking the House majority last year. More recently, she was booted from the far-right House Freedom Caucus, partly because of conflict with Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and partly due to fears she is too close to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert is now locked in a toss-up fight for reelection as the right-wing firebrand is getting clobbered in the fundraising race by a Democratic rival who came nearly 600 votes of ousting her in the midterms. The non-partisan Cook Report downgraded the controversial Trump-loving lawmaker’s seat to “lean Republican” as repeat challenger Adam Frisch continues to build momentum in the western Colorado swing district. “Boebert (has) avoided taking any steps to moderate her image since coming within 546 votes of losing to (Frisch),” Cook analyst Dave Wasserman wrote i...
On July 17, the New York Times published a disturbing article by Jonathan Swan, Charlie Savage and Maggie Haberman that details former President Donald Trump and his allies' plans to give the U.S. federal government a major makeover if he wins the 2024 election. The journalists reported that the Trump campaign envisions a "sweeping expansion of presidential power over the machinery of government" that would greatly undermine the United States' system of checks and balances in 2025.
The Times' report came at a time when Trump is facing two criminal indictments: a 37-count prosecution by special counsel Jack Smith and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and a 34-count New York State prosecution by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jr. And more indictments may be coming soon: Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results are the focus of criminal investigations by Smith for DOJ and Fulton County DA Fani Willis for the State of Georgia.
On his Truth Social platform, Trump announced that he had received a "target letter" from the DOJ in connection with Smith's 2020 election/January 6, 2021 probe — indicting that another indictment is likely.
University of Baltimore law professor and former federal prosecutor Kimberly Wehle examines these developments in an article published by the conservative website The Bulwark on July 20. And she has a warning: These indictments may be the last chance to hold Trump accountable for his actions and save the United States from full-fledged authoritarianism.
"Whatever the downsides of four more years of Joe Biden, it is clear that American democracy cannot survive another Trump presidency," Wehle warns. "To understand why, one need only glance at another vital piece of recent reporting by the New York Times that Trump and his allies intend to fundamentally reshape the office of the presidency if they regain the White House in 2024. Russell T. Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget under Trump, summed it up succinctly: 'What we’re trying to do is identify the pockets of independence and seize them.' If this sounds scary, it should."
Wehle continues, "This plan is not entirely new. Thirteen days before the 2020 presidential election, Trump issued an executive order to remake large swaths of the federal workforce. Secretly developed over the preceding six months, it aimed to reassign tens of thousands of civil servants with influence over federal policy as 'Schedule F' employees, stripping them of employment protections in order to render them vulnerable to at-will termination by the president…. Under current law, presidents appoint around 4000 people to government roles during their administration, and those employees can legally operate as de facto loyalists. Schedule F would increase that number to as many as 50,000."
The law professor notes that although Schedule F was "rescinded" after Joe Biden was sworn in as president in January 2021, Trump "could bring it back if reelected in 2024."
Responding to the Times' article, MSNBC's Joy Reid slammed Trump's plot as a model for full-fledged authoritarianism. And The New Republic's Tori Otten described it as a "fascist plan to consolidate power."
Trump's legal problems aren't hurting him in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. Polls released during the second half of July have found him leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis by 35 percent (Morning Consult) or 29 percent (Quinnipiac). If this holds up, 2024 is likely to see a Biden/Trump rematch.
Wisconsin-based journalist Bill Lueders, in an article published by The Bulwark on July 20, stresses that GOP reactions to Trump's legal problems have been totally "unhinged" — with everyone from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado) angrily railing against Smith and the DOJ.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) tweeted, "BREAKING: I will be introducing legislation to DEFUND Jack Smith's witch hunt against President Trump." And Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) tweeted, "STAND WITH TRUMP!! STAND WITH TRUMP!! Democrats KNOW they can't beat Trump in 2024, so they've weaponized the FBI YET AGAIN to try to take him down. These people will deeply regret this when Trump is BACK in the White House!!"
Lueders observes, "There is nothing unusual about these reactions. The MAGA crowd flocks to them reflexively. The filing of criminal charges against Trump — for falsifying business records, mishandling classified documents, attempting a coup and, to come, pressuring officials in Georgia to fabricate election results — corroborates their warped perception of Trump as a victim. It draws them to him even more."
United States Representative Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) on Wednesday ridiculed the House Oversight Committee's crusade against President Joe Biden's son Hunter following the Justice Department's multi-count indictment against Chairman James Comer's (R-Kentucky) supposed key informant.
Israeli-American think tank director Gal Luft was charged with eight felonies and faces a maximum sentence of one hundred years in prison for the combined offenses.
This development has damaged the credibility of the GOP's probe of alleged Biden family corruption, for which they have provided no evidence.
Raskin, the ranking Democratic member on Oversight, noted as much during Wednesday's hearing.
"The majority's long-promised star witness turns out to be a fugitive from American justice; an arms trafficker indicted on eight federal criminal felony counts, and an unregistered foreign agent for China who tried to trade Chinese arms for Iranian oil. So I guess he's not gonna be a witness for the majority anytime soon," Raskin said.
"Well after the failed SARS reports, bank records, form 10-23," Raskin quipped, "we can conclude that this Inspector Clouseau-style quest for something that doesn't exist has turned our Committee into a theater of the absurd; an exercise in futility and embarrassment."
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and the Republican Party have a problem on their hands: The congresswoman’s offensively headline-grabbing ways in Washington have turned her safe Republican seat into a toss-up that promises to be one of the most expensive House races in 2024 — if not in history.
In 2022, Boebert beat local businessman Adam Frisch by a mere 546 votes, but Frisch — who is angling for a rematch — continues to lap her in fundraising for the 2024 cycle.
With a haul of more than $2.6 million for the second quarter, Frisch raked in more than three times Boebert’s roughly $818,000, which she says is because Democrats want to “buy this seat.”
“Democrats would love to have my scalp. They won’t get it,” Boebert told Raw Story. “I’ve got a job to do. Not worried.”
If Boebert isn’t worried yet, Democrats say she should open her eyes. Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and the GOP’s tenuous hold on power is dependent on a mere four seat majority. While Democratic party leaders see their easiest path back to the majority winding through states like New York, California or even North Carolina, a pickup is a pickup. And Colorado’s 3rd District is a prime target.
“Democrats can capture it. Obviously, we're down by four seats, so if we can win one seat, that would be very important to win that seat,” Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) told Raw Story.
During last year’s midterms, Boebert and Frisch combined raised upward of $16 million – the seventh most of any House race nationwide, according to OpenSecrets.
While Frisch took a few months off, he ramped up his 2024 fundraising in February 2023.
Boebert now has$1.44 million cash on hand to Frisch’s$2.49 million, as of June 30. If he keeps up at this pace, he’ll obliterate his midterm fundraising totals, which has senior Democrats such as DeGette smiling.
“Adam Frisch really represents that district quite well. He's moderate. He's a businessman, and I think he'd be great for the third season: fundraising. He never stopped,” DeGette said.
Earlier this year, Boebert was one of a handful of Freedom Caucus members who heckled and booed President Joe Biden during his State of the Union address. Last month, she introduced articles of impeachment against Biden. Boebert is also embroiled in a spat with another far-right congresswoman — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) — who recently called her a “little bitch” on the House floor.
That’s only helped Frisch.
“Fundraising’s not hard when you're in that position,” DeGette said.
Frisch says he has received donations from Democrats in all 50 states. But Republicans say all of Frisch’s outside money will only help Boebert.
“She'll do better this time,” Richard Hudson (R-NC), chairman of the National Republican Campaign Committee told Raw Story. “I’m confident she’ll be reelected, because she works her district.”
While Boebert’s fundraising is lagging behind, the NRCC says it’s prepared to step up and help her.
“Absolutely. We support our incumbents. We’re a member organization,” Hudson said. “That's always been a race on our target list, that we're concerned about and we'll continue to do everything we need to do to help her get reelected.”
Colorado Democrats aren’t counting Boebert out, even as they say she’s in trouble with independent-minded voters in the state.
“She's proven she can fundraise, she's got charisma, but she's tied herself very closely to the MAGA side of the Republican Party and in large parts of Colorado that's not popular,” Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) told Raw Story. “Even on the Western Slope it’s not popular in large portions.”
Hickenlooper also points out that Frisch still has a primary to win. While there’s little competition at the moment, the former governor expects Grand Junction Mayor Anna Stout to challenge Frisch, which he says will only strengthen Democrat’s chances against Boebert in 2024 – regardless of whether she faces Frisch
“Who knows how good Frisch is? He's only run one campaign,” Hickenlooper said. “There's gonna be a primary, and Frisch certainly has a huge head start. He’s got that network put together, and I think Frisch demonstrated that he's got a story to tell. He's got a vision of what he thinks that district needs in representation.”
A top Georgia Republican party leader has split with one of the state’s most high-profile – and controversial – political figures.
Brian K. Pritchard, the newly elected first vice-chair of the Georgia GOP, said on his online show Friday that he’s “through” with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene after the congresswoman’s ongoing support for the Republican establishment at the expense of her ultraconservative allies, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Pritchard is a conservative talk radio host who last month was among a group of election deniers elected to the state GOP’s top leadership posts.
Pritchard on Friday cited Greene’s expulsion from the right-wing Freedom Caucus and an incident with Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) in which Greene reportedly called her colleague a “little b----” for his condemnation of Greene.
“I’m through with her. I’m through,” Pritchard said on his online show.
“Marjorie Taylor Greene now says she likes being a ‘free agent.’ Well guess what Marjorie, have at it,” he said, comparing Greene’s fight with U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., to “a high school girl who went to the bathroom to smoke.”
Greene’s comment in support of the debt limit deal in which she said that unlike some of her ultraconservative allies she doesn’t live in a “conservative fantasy land” angered Pritchard, The AJC reports.
“If your member of Congress voted against the debt ceiling. Everything coming out of this woman’s mouth is a direct shot at your member of Congress,” he said.
Pritchard speculated that Greene is moderating her stated views in order to run for the Senate in 2026.
He said she “turned her back on MAGA and turned her back on the people of the 14th District.”
“I’ve had it. I tried, But this is it,” he said. “Every single [expletive] thing that comes out of your mouth is an attack on my congressman. Who do you think you are?”
