Congressional Republicans are advancing a bill that would make it a federal crime to block interstate highways after mass demonstrations in Los Angeles caused major backups on key roadways.
Republican Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia reintroduced the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1057">bill</a>, the Safe Passage on Interstates Act, in February after it stalled in the Senate last year. The legislation would create a federal law against the intentional obstruction of interstate highways.
“There is nothing ‘peaceful’ about the riots and looting we’ve seen in Los Angeles. Blue states and cities have shown that they would rather have lawlessness and disfunction over law and order, and we need to get these people off our streets and in jail where they belong,” Collins told The Daily Wire in a statement. “The Safe Passage on Interstates Act would give [Attorney General] Pam Bondi and [FBI Director] Kash Patel the tools to put an end to highway protests and lock these criminals up.”
The push to give more tools to federal authorities comes after demonstrators have repeatedly flooded the 101 Freeway in Los Angeles, stopping traffic and causing backups. Protesters again took over the freeway on Tuesday evening, until Los Angeles Police Department officers pushed the mob off the freeway onto a parallel road.
Similar demonstrations could <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/08/us/la-immigration-protests-photos-map.html">break out</a> in major cities across the United States. Protests took place in at least two dozen other major cities on Monday, from Seattle, Washington, to Jacksonville, Florida. Demonstrators marched in opposition to federal authorities enforcing immigration law and deporting illegal aliens.
In statements to The Daily Wire, co-sponsors of the bill and members of the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in the House, of which Collins is a member, are pushing Collins’ bill as an antidote to the flashes of anarchy that have broken out on interstate highways. The bill is needed sooner rather than later to prevent riots from spreading throughout the country.
California Rep. Tom McClintock said the bill “will save lives.”
“All Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but when cars are lit on fire and ambulances are blocked on major roadways, it is no longer peaceful,” said McClintock.
Oklahoma Rep. Stephanie Bice blamed the chaos in Los Angeles on “local leaders” such as Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. Bice called Collins’ bill “a step towards restoring law and order and safeguarding communities from radical protestors intent on sowing chaos throughout the country.”
Ohio’s Dave Taylor said that &#8220;From families driving their children to school, to truck drivers transporting goods, to law enforcement responding to emergencies, we all depend on our Nation’s roads being clear and safe every day.”
Texas Rep. Andy Weber called the bill “more critical than ever.”
&#8220;Blocking our highways and disrupting the daily lives of law-abiding Americans is not a form of protest – it&#8217;s lawlessness, and it must not be tolerated,” he said.

101 freeway

Republicans Push Federal Ban On Blocking Interstates After L.A. Riots Cause Highway Chaos

House Republicans

Los Angeles

The father of the terrorist who killed two Israeli embassy staffers on Wednesday was invited to attend President Donald Trump’s March joint address in Congress at the behest of a far-Left member of Congress.
Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-IL), <a href="https://x.com/RepChuyGarcia/status/1710746107683217744" target="_blank" rel="noopener">who called for a ceasefire</a> on October 7, 2023, as Hamas terrorists were still raping and slaughtering Israeli civilians, hosted Eric Rodriguez—the father of suspected murderer Elias Rodriguez— at Trump’s March 4 speech.
“Eric Rodriguez was our guest during the President’s Joint Speech to Congress, but we don’t know his family,” a spokesperson for Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/05/23/us-news/dc-jewish-shooting-suspect-elias-rodriguez-father-eric-rodriquez-invited-to-trump-address-by-far-left-lawmaker-chuy-rodriguez/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told the New York Post</a> Thursday.
Elias Rodriguez, 30, of Chicago, was detained by police on suspicion of murdering Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, on Wednesday night in Washington, D.C. The couple was shot at close range, and Milgrim was shot multiple times while crawling away, according to court documents. According to police, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/charges-revealed-in-d-c-terror-attack-shooter-did-it-for-palestine-fbi-says?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Charges+Revealed+In+D.C.+Terror+Attack%3B+Shooter+%E2%80%98Did+It+For+Palestine%2C%E2%80%99+FBI+Says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the terrorist told</a> officers he “did it for Palestine.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israeli-embassy-staff-murdered-by-unidentified-shooter-outside-capitol-jewish-museum?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Two+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+Murdered+By+Keffiyeh-Wearing+Man+Shouting+%E2%80%98Free+Palestine%E2%80%99+In+DC" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TWO ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFFERS MURDERED BY KEFFIYEH-WEARING MAN SHOUTING ‘FREE PALESTINE’ IN DC</a>
García <a href="https://chuygarcia.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-garcia-to-spotlight-attacks-on-veterans-and-workers-rights-at-presidential-joint-address">announced</a> Rodriguez&#8217;s invitation the day before the speech, claiming that “his presence at the Joint Address is a powerful statement: we will not sit back while veterans and workers are treated as political pawns.”
Rodriguez is a disabled Army veteran and an employee at Edward Hines Jr. Veterans Administration Hospital in Illinois, according to the statement.
&#8220;We’ve seen this playbook before—divide and weaken workers, then hand over public services to private interests,&#8221; García wrote. &#8220;But this time, we’re ready. With leaders like Eric and the power of our unions, we’re fighting back stronger than ever.&#8221;
In a video for the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1153962276435857" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Service Employees International Union</a> on the same day, Rodriguez said he was in Washington, D.C., because he is “concerned about what Donald Trump, Elon Musk and DOGE are doing to the VA system.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/friends-family-react-to-murder-of-israeli-embassy-staffers-by-keffiyeh-wearing-terrorist?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Friends%2C+Family+React+To+Murder+Of+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+By+Keffiyeh-Wearing+Terrorist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FRIENDS, FAMILY REACT TO MURDER OF ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFFERS BY KEFFIYEH-WEARING TERRORIST</a>
García has been a critic of Israel since it launched its defense war against Hamas, <a href="https://chuygarcia.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-garcia-s-statement-on-today-s-votes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">including opposing</a> military aid to Israel; last April, he claimed that he rejects “U.S. complicity in the devastation of Palestinian life in Gaza.” García said he opposed sending offensive weapons because “it would signal support for an expanded invasion of Rafah,” the city where six hostages were murdered shortly before being found by the IDF and where Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was later killed.
“The US cannot continue to be complicit in the destruction of Palestinian life in Gaza,” <a href="https://x.com/RepChuyGarcia/status/1782395207213826332" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he posted</a>.
In September, García <a href="https://x.com/RepChuyGarcia/status/1836891353415819500" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opposed cutting</a> funding to UNRWA, despite its <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-n-fires-multiple-unrwa-employees-after-discovering-evidence-of-alleged-involvement-in-october-7-attacks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">workers&#8217; participation</a> in the October 7 massacre and the testimony of hostages saying they <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj91ygv803xo">were held</a> in UNRWA facilities. UNRWA has also been criticized for promoting antisemitism in its schools and promoting Palestinian dependency on the global community by granting refugee status to the descendants of refugees, which no other group is granted.
On Friday, a group of over 50 House Republicans <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-republicans-condemn-evil-murder-of-israeli-embassy-staffers-antisemitic-terrorism?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=House+Republicans+Condemn+%E2%80%98Evil%E2%80%99+Murder+Of+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers%3A+%E2%80%98Antisemitic+Terrorism%E2%80%99" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced a resolution</a> condemning the murder of Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky.
<div id="attachment_924077" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-924077" class="size-large wp-image-924077" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-864x576.jpg" alt="Sarah Milgrim" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Sarah Milgrim, an American citizen and Israeli embassy staffer, was murdered on Wednesday night when attending an event with her boyfriend. The attacker has a history of anti-Israel and radical leftist rhetoric. (Photo: X)</div>
Elias Rodriguez was once affiliated with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a leftist group linked to Chinese Communist Party funding networks that have been repeatedly contacted by sanctioned Iranian state media, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/terrorist-who-killed-israeli-embassy-staffers-was-influenced-by-a-foreign-linked-leftist-org?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Terrorist+Who+Killed+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+Was+Influenced+By+A+Foreign-Linked+Leftist+Org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a report</a>.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rubio-threatens-to-snatch-visas-from-pro-hamas-thugs-at-columbia-university?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Rubio+Threatens+To+Snatch+Visas+From+%E2%80%98Pro-Hamas+Thugs%E2%80%99+At+Columbia+University" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RUBIO THREATENS TO SNATCH VISAS FROM ‘PRO-HAMAS THUGS’ AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY</a>
Sarah Milgrim’s father, who is an American Jew from the Kansas City suburbs, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/father-of-murdered-israeli-embassy-staffer-says-daughter-was-dedicated-to-peace-building?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Father+Of+Murdered+Israeli+Embassy+Staffer+Says+Daughter+Was+Dedicated+To+Peace-Building" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said his daughter</a> was dedicated to peace-building. She was a full-time employee at the embassy’s Department of Public Diplomacy. 
At a Wednesday night press conference, Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter said Lischinsky and Milgrim were about to get engaged.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=memorial&amp;utm_content=editorialmemorialday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Memorial Day Sale – Get 40% Off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
“The couple that was gunned down tonight in the name of free Palestine is a couple that was about to be engaged,” he said. “The young man purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem. They were a beautiful couple who came to enjoy an evening in Washington’s cultural center.”
Lischinsky, 30, was a German-Israeli dual citizen and a devout evangelical Christian who immigrated to Israel at the age of 16 and served in the Israel Defense Forces.

Milgrim and Lichinsky

Father Of D.C. Terror Suspect Attended Trump Joint Address At Behest Of Far-Left House Democrat

antisemitism

Congress

House Democrats

Israel

U.S.

A group of over 50 House Republicans on Friday introduced a resolution condemning the murder of Israeli embassy staffers Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky.
“This wasn’t just a tragedy, it was a targeted act of antisemitic terrorism carried out by a radical leftist,” Rep. Addison McDowell, who introduced the resolution, told The Daily Wire.
“Yaron and Sarah were murdered for being Jewish and for believing in peace. When a movement sympathizes with terrorists, we shouldn’t be surprised when that same movement produces actual terrorists.”
Elias Rodriguez, 30, of Chicago, was detained by police on suspicion of murdering Lischinsky, 30, and Milgrim, 26, on Wednesday night in Washington, D.C. The couple was shot at close range, and Milgrim was shot multiple times while crawling away, according to court documents. According to police, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/charges-revealed-in-d-c-terror-attack-shooter-did-it-for-palestine-fbi-says?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Charges+Revealed+In+D.C.+Terror+Attack%3B+Shooter+%E2%80%98Did+It+For+Palestine%2C%E2%80%99+FBI+Says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the terrorist told </a>officers he “did it for Palestine.”
No Democrats signed on to the resolution.
Cosponsors of the bill include heavy hitters like Reps. Lisa McClain (R-MI), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), and Max Miller (R-OH), who is Jewish.
McDowell said he introduced the resolution to condemn growing antisemitism and to honor the lives of the slain couple.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israeli-embassy-staff-murdered-by-unidentified-shooter-outside-capitol-jewish-museum?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Two+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+Murdered+By+Keffiyeh-Wearing+Man+Shouting+%E2%80%98Free+Palestine%E2%80%99+In+DC" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TWO ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFFERS MURDERED BY KEFFIYEH-WEARING MAN SHOUTING ‘FREE PALESTINE’ IN DC</a>
“I want Congress to be on the record that it’s not just that antisemitism is evil, but also that the killer was part of an evil movement that seems to be growing in our country,” he said. “We can’t paper over that. We need to address it head on.”
The resolution, titled “Condemning Antisemitism and Remembering Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim,” identifies antisemitism as a “centuries-old form of hatred and discrimination that has led to immeasurable suffering, persecution, and loss of life, culminating most horrifically in the Holocaust, and continues to manifest in violence, vandalism, and policies targeting Jewish communities around the world.”
It cites the rise of antisemitic incidents in the United States, including attacks on synagogues, Jewish schools, museums, cultural centers, and individuals perceived as Jewish.
<div id="attachment_924077" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-924077" class="size-large wp-image-924077" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-864x576.jpg" alt="Sarah Milgrim" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/2.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Sarah Milgrim, an American citizen and Israeli embassy staffer, was murdered on Wednesday night while attending an event with her boyfriend. The attacker has a history of anti-Israel and radical leftist rhetoric. (Photo: X)</div>
Rodriguez was once affiliated with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a leftist group linked to Chinese Communist Party funding networks that have been repeatedly contacted by sanctioned Iranian state media, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/terrorist-who-killed-israeli-embassy-staffers-was-influenced-by-a-foreign-linked-leftist-org?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Terrorist+Who+Killed+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+Was+Influenced+By+A+Foreign-Linked+Leftist+Org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a report</a>.
Milgrim and Lischinsky&#8217;s bodies are expected to arrive in Israel for burial on Friday. The families have requested privacy and that no media be present.
Sarah Milgrim&#8217;s father, who is an American Jew, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/father-of-murdered-israeli-embassy-staffer-says-daughter-was-dedicated-to-peace-building?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Father+Of+Murdered+Israeli+Embassy+Staffer+Says+Daughter+Was+Dedicated+To+Peace-Building" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said his daughter</a> was dedicated to peace-building.
Robert Milgrim, 73, told the New York Post that his daughter was attending an event about getting more humanitarian aid to Gazans.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/friends-family-react-to-murder-of-israeli-embassy-staffers-by-keffiyeh-wearing-terrorist?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Friends%2C+Family+React+To+Murder+Of+Israeli+Embassy+Staffers+By+Keffiyeh-Wearing+Terrorist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FRIENDS, FAMILY REACT TO MURDER OF ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFFERS BY KEFFIYEH-WEARING TERRORIST</a>
“Last night, she was attending an affair to figure out how to get more aid into Gaza,” <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/05/22/us-news/gunned-down-israeli-embassy-staffer-sarah-milgrim-worked-on-peace-building-between-palestinians-and-israelis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Milgrim said</a>. “The night she was killed, she was trying to help the situation — that’s the irony.”
Milgrim, who grew up in the Kansas City suburbs, was a full-time employee at the embassy’s Department of Public Diplomacy. She received her Master of Arts at American University and was also a graduate of the University for Peace.
The “About” section on her LinkedIn profile says her “passion lies at the intersection of peacebuilding, religious engagement, and environmental work.”
Robert said his daughter spent multiple summers in Israel working with “peace-building groups” to mend the divide between Israelis and Arabs. He added that his daughter was supposed to travel to Israel on Sunday to meet Lischinsky&#8217;s family.
<div id="attachment_923893" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-923893" class="size-large wp-image-923893" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Templates-864x576.png" alt="The two Israeli Embassy staffers killed" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Templates-864x576.png 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Templates-300x200.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Templates-768x512.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Templates.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Yaron Lichinsky and Sarah Milgrim were murdered in Washington, D.C. Wednesday night. (Photo: Yaron Lichinsky/X)</div>
“She was happier now than she ever was in her life,” Robert said. “She was truly in love with Yaron and vice versa.”
At a Wednesday night press conference, Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter said Lischinsky and Milgrim were about to get engaged.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=memorial&amp;utm_content=editorialmemorialday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Memorial Day Sale – Get 40% Off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
“The couple that was gunned down tonight in the name of free Palestine is a couple that was about to be engaged,” he said. “The young man purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem. They were a beautiful couple who came to enjoy an evening in Washington’s cultural center.”
Lischinsky, 30, was a German-Israeli dual citizen and a devout evangelical Christian who immigrated to Israel at the age of 16 and served in the Israel Defense Forces. He studied at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and was fluent in German, Hebrew, English, and Japanese.
He moved to work as a political analyst at the Israeli embassy in 2022.

Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky

House Republicans Condemn ‘Evil’ Murder Of Israeli Embassy Staffers: ‘Antisemitic Terrorism’

House of Representatives

President Donald Trump paid a visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, pushing House Republicans to pass the &#8220;one big, beautiful bill&#8221; with encouragement mixed with some criticism.
Trump told reporters his meeting with GOP lawmakers was about &#8220;love&#8221; and &#8220;unity,&#8221; but then mentioned, &#8220;Anybody that didn&#8217;t support it as a Republican, I would consider to be a fool.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
President Trump after meeting with <a href="https://twitter.com/HouseGOP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HouseGOP</a>: &#8220;It was a meeting of unity&#8230;Anybody that didn&#8217;t support it as a Republican I would consider to be a fool&#8230;This was a meeting of love.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/cARFr21Ps9">pic.twitter.com/cARFr21Ps9</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1924846821857267952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
House Republicans continue to clash about spending cuts and certain provisions in the bill that is progressing through Congress via the reconciliation process, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/passing-trump-one-big-beautiful-bill-gop-duty-voters-white-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener">aiming</a> to provide funding for Trump’s domestic priorities, retain the 2017 tax cuts, raise the debt limit, and more.
One key component that threatens to derail the House bid to pass the bill is the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap. GOP members from high-tax blue states are fighting for a higher limit than the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-tax-deduction-cap-threatens-to-derail-trumps-one-big-beautiful-bill" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$30,000</a> that made it into the legislation.
Trump urged House Republicans not to let SALT impede the bill&#8217;s progress, noting they could fight about the issue in the future, a source familiar with the matter told The Daily Wire.
Medicaid has been another sticking point.
According to the source, Trump told Republicans not to touch the program, except for removing waste, fraud, and abuse — such as booting off illegal immigrants and common-sense work requirements.
Trump conveyed that he is losing patience with all holdouts in the House GOP, including the SALT Caucus and the conservative House Freedom Caucus pushing for more extensive spending cuts, per the source. He also made it clear that he wants every Republican to vote in favor of the bill.
With a slim House majority and near-certain Democrat opposition, Republicans can likely afford only a few defectors to send the bill to the Senate.
One person Trump publicly called out was Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) after a reporter noted that the congressman <a href="https://x.com/cspan/status/1924819640665936195" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggested</a> the bill would result in &#8220;Biden levels&#8221; of spending and bigger deficits.
&#8220;I don’t think Thomas Massie understands government. I think he’s a grandstander, frankly,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://x.com/cspan/status/1924819640665936195" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> before the meeting, adding later, &#8220;I think he should be voted out of office.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
President Trump on <a href="https://twitter.com/RepThomasMassie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepThomasMassie</a>: &#8220;I don&#8217;t think Thomas Massie understands government. I think he&#8217;s a grand-stander, frankly&#8230;I think he should be voted out of office.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/YCLdSac95d">pic.twitter.com/YCLdSac95d</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1924819640665936195?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Punchbowl News co-founder Jake Sherman <a href="https://x.com/JakeSherman/status/1924831698442653802" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on X that Trump &#8220;griped&#8221; about Massie while speaking to House Republicans. &#8220;He asked if Massie was in the room, which he was, and then compared him to [Republican Senator from Kentucky] RAND PAUL. He said he could never get their votes no matter what,&#8221; the journalist added.
Massie alluded to the exchange with a tongue-in-cheek post of his own.
&#8220;I usually don’t talk about private conversations in our GOP meetings but the rumors are true… President Trump said that although I have similar hair to @RandPaul, he thinks mine is better,&#8221; Massie <a href="https://x.com/RepThomasMassie/status/1924849560431562992" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.

President Trump Attends GOP House Caucus Meeting On Capitol Hill As Budget Bill Faces Resistance

In Capitol Hill Visit, Trump Tells House GOP: Back ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Or Be A ‘Fool’

Donald Trump

Politics

Spending Bill

Taxes

Thomas Massie

U.S. House of Representatives

This week, every GOP senator except one and 177 out of 220 GOP members of the House signed a <a href="https://www.ricketts.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Document_250514_125039.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> to President Donald Trump supporting his past statements and urging that Iran’s capacity to enrich uranium be permanently eliminated.
The effort was spearheaded by Nebraska Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts and House Republican Study Committee Chair Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX). Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul was the only Republican senator who would not sign the letter.
The signatories acknowledged Trump’s “strong support&#8221; for &#8220;efforts to secure a deal with Iran that dismantles its nuclear program, and to reinforce the explicit warnings that you and officials in your administration have issued that the regime must permanently give up any capacity for enrichment.”
After noting Trump’s first-term withdrawal from the “deeply broken” Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and his imposition of maximum pressure on the regime, the signatories pointed out that the Obama JCPOA deal “allowed Iran to sell oil, provided waivers allowing third countries to help Iran build out its nuclear program, and included the termination of United Nations sanctions on the regime.&#8221;
They noted that Trump’s maximum pressure campaign had deterred Iran from making substantial nuclear progress. “Tragically, the Biden administration systematically undid that pressure, functionally re-implementing the nuclear deal. They immediately rescinded your decision to reimpose U.N. sanctions, allowed Iran to sell oil at JCPOA-levels, and even re-issued waivers allowing Iran to build out its nuclear program,” they continued.
“As you predicted, those policies indeed allowed Iran to reach the brink of nuclear breakout, which is where they are today,” they asserted. “The scope and breadth of Iran’s nuclear buildout have made it impossible to verify any new deal that allows Iran to continue enriching uranium. In its most recent report, published on February 26, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that because of Iran’s activities over the last four years, ‘the Agency has lost continuity of knowledge in relation to the production and current inventory of centrifuges, rotors and bellows, heavy water and UOC, which it will not be possible to restore.’”
They quoted Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum that stated, “Iran’s nuclear program, including its enrichment- and reprocessing-related capabilities and nuclear-capable missiles, poses an existential danger to the United States and the entire civilized world,” then additionally quoted him saying recently that only “full dismantlement” of those capabilities would be acceptable.
“We cannot afford another agreement that enables Iran to play for time, as the JCPOA did. The Iranian regime should know that the administration has Congressional backing to ensure their ability to enrich uranium is permanently eliminated,” they concluded.

MixCollage-16-May-2025-10-53-AM-8010

Nearly Every Congressional Republican Wants Trump To Show No Mercy With Iran Deal

Executive

Iran

Iran Nuclear Deal

U.S. Senate

Republicans in Congress have proposed charging asylum seekers $1,000 to gain entry into the United States.
The proposal is part of a 116-page bill released by the House Judiciary Committee on Monday, which Republicans are seeking to include in a larger package implementing President Donald Trump&#8217;s agenda, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/28/us/politics/house-republicans-asylum-fees.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. If passed, the Republicans&#8217; proposal would mark the first time the United States charged migrants to claim asylum from countries where they face persecution. The money generated by the asylum claims would go toward securing the southern border.
Backers of the proposal say it would cut down on the total number of asylum claims and allow those with legitimate asylum claims to be admitted into the country more quickly. Proponents also argue that the $1,000 fee would weed out those from the process who are only trying to get a free ride to the United States and deter illegal entries at the southern border, according to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5271541-republicans-immigration-bill-judiciary-trump-agenda/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Hill</a>.
Those sponsoring children would face a $3,500 fee, and asylees already in the United States would be charged $550 to apply for a work authorization, according to the House GOP proposal. The measure was proposed after the Trump administration unveiled a program in February to give wealthy foreigners a path to citizenship in the United States with a &#8220;Trump Gold Card,&#8221; which would be sold for $5 million. The president said that he hoped the Gold Card would generate trillions of dollars in revenue, which could go toward paying off the national debt.
Revenue from the GOP-proposed asylee fees would likely go toward building new immigration detention centers, hiring more Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) staff, and helping immigration judges better staff their courts. The Times reported that the Republicans&#8217; budget blueprint calls for $45 billion for immigration detention centers and $8 billion for ICE staff.
Earlier this month, House Republicans <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hold-trump-scores-big-beautiful-victory-house-budget-vote" target="_blank" rel="noopener">passed</a> a budget plan that gets the ball rolling for Trump&#8217;s domestic agenda and allows for lawmakers in both the House and the Senate to begin developing legislation. The House Judiciary Committee is set to discuss its legislation, which includes the plan for asylee fees, this week. After House committees mark up individual bills that deal with their respective jurisdictions, Republicans will combine them into one reconciliation measure and try to pass the legislation with a simple majority vote.

Non-governmental Organizations Offer Support To Migrants Stranded In Mexico City

House Republicans Propose Fees For Asylum Seekers

House Judiciary Committee

Immigration

One of the things I always warn folks against in politics is the belief that anything that happens is eternal — that the change is eternal and there will never be another loss in the future.
I&#8217;m old enough to remember when George W. Bush won reelection in 2004 and secured the Congress of the United States, that there were Republicans who thought the Republican Party would never lose again. It was the initiation of a brand-new era. Then, of course, by 2006 Democrats had taken the Congress, and by 2008 the presidency.
I&#8217;m also old enough to remember when, in the aftermath of Barack Obama&#8217;s 2012 victory, Democrats proclaimed they would never lose again. They had a brand-new, undefeatable coalition that would just continue to grow and Republicans would be in the minority forever. Within four years, however, Republicans had taken the presidency with Donald Trump.
Now I hear Republicans who sound triumphalist about the idea that Democrats can never win again, will never take power again. They say all the trends are against the Democrats. That&#8217;s true, the trends are against Democrats right now and that&#8217;s a good thing.
We see population movement from north to south, from blue states to red states, knowing electoral votes will follow. We see the Democrats failing to find any sort of leadership class in the aftermath of the Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders octogenarian triumvirate.
However, politics change quickly. Things happen. 
And there are warning signs on the horizon. The biggest one is that President Trump&#8217;s popularity is not transferable to every single other Republican candidate. You cannot just take President Trump, stamp him on a thing, and then hope that thing is going to be a winner. That is not how it works.
Barack Obama tried the same thing. It didn’t work with him either. 
Every politician has to build their own coalition. Every politician has to have their own group of people who follow them for their own personal reasons.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2168-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h3>
So this bizarre idea that everyone in politics seems to have, both on the Right and the Left — that you can take a very popular politician and then smear that popularity over the bread of normie politicians and expect it to taste exactly the same — that is not how it works. 
This is precisely why President Trump&#8217;s administration must be successful.
President Trump is doing very important work on everything from getting rid of DEI to completely restructuring education in the country to changing how we spend to eliminating waste, fraud and abuse. On foreign policy, he&#8217;s restoring a sense of American military power and deterrence. He&#8217;s actually doing peace through strength. And he&#8217;s looking with fresh eyes at difficult situations like the Middle East.
These are very important things that President Trump is doing. And that means no mistakes.
“No mistakes” should be the byword inside the Trump administration. And the warning signs are there. Pretending they are not is simply whistling past the graveyard.
I know Republicans are all very happy and we want to tell ourselves that President Trump won an extraordinarily broad-ranging victory in his race against Kamala Harris.
The truth is that the 2024 election result was actually far closer than people would like to acknowledge. And that is not a rip on President Trump by any measure. It was a narrow win and that means if a few votes shift, suddenly things are different. And that could happen. Pretending that it can&#8217;t happen is a fool&#8217;s errand.
In the end, President Trump won 77.3 million votes. And Kamala Harris, a horrendous candidate running on the back of a dead candidate, won 75 million votes. President Trump won 49.8% of the vote and Kamala Harris won 48.3% of the vote. That is a solid electoral victory but it&#8217;s not, by any stretch of the imagination, a giant blowout, which is why I&#8217;m saying Republicans need to be careful.
We are starting to see some early indicators of the fact that a Democratic electorate could revive itself. One of those warning signs came courtesy of this special election shocker in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, which went for President Trump last year by 16 points. Democrats flipped the state Senate seat in Pennsylvania — a seat that the GOP had occupied for literally decades.
The reality is that in special election races, it&#8217;s very hard to generalize from those races because they tend to have lower turnout. And so what you get is opposition turning out at a higher rate and the home party turnout coming in at a low rate, believing that there&#8217;s not going to be any sort of competitive election.
But as The Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/opinion/lancaster-county-special-election-pennsylvania-republicans-james-malone-josh-parsons-ken-martin-85a0644a?mod=hp_opin_pos_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">points out</a>, Republicans might want to take the surprise loss in MAGA country as a warning.
That is not wrong.
It’s also true because on Thursday, Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), President Trump&#8217;s excellent nominee for the U.N. ambassador, had her nomination withdrawn by President Trump. It wasn’t because he doesn&#8217;t like Elise Stefanik — he thinks that she&#8217;s terrific. He is doing it because the margin in the Congress of the United States is simply too narrow.
President Trump had made a bunch of moves to take representatives from particular districts and put them in his Cabinet, including National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. That was going to include Elise Stefanik. There are three or four different congresspeople who&#8217;ve been pulled into the administration, leaving their districts open for an election.
President Trump is basically signaling here that the House of Representatives is on a knife&#8217;s edge and you can&#8217;t pull good congresspeople from their districts to serve in other aspects of the executive branch for fear the GOP might lose the district.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) put out <a href="https://x.com/SpeakerJohnson/status/1905330013244915791">a statement</a> saying he would immediately invite Elise Stefanik to return to the leadership table, adding, “It is well known Republicans have a razor-thin House majority, and Elise’s agreement to withdraw her nomination will allow us to keep one of the toughest, most resolute members of our Conference in place to help drive forward President Trump’s America First policies.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said Stefanik&#8217;s withdrawal was just a result of the political realities they&#8217;re grappling with in the House, that every vote counts.
For this, you can thank some congresspeople like Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who reliably votes “No” on every contentious vote in the House of Representatives, meaning that the majority shrinks by one every single time.
There is also concern in other districts where there really should not be any concern. In Florida&#8217;s sixth Congressional District, which is Mike Waltz’ old seat, there is now a special election and it&#8217;s really competitive. Democrats are pouring money into that particular race, which is far too close right now. This should not be a competitive district.
I expect that Republicans will hold the seat. But the fact that it&#8217;s even competitive signals that any sort of overweening confidence among Republicans is misguided.
We have to act like every possession matters. We can&#8217;t act like we’re up 30 points when in reality we’re up two and there are just a couple of minutes left in the ballgame.
None of us should be overconfident.

President Trump Swears-In Alina Habba As US Attorney For New Jersey

The Danger Of Overconfidence

Ben Shapiro

Democratic Party

Democrats

Elections

Elise Stefanik

Opinion

President Trump

Republican Party

Rep. Al Green (D-TX), who has now been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/10-dems-join-gop-to-censure-rep-al-green-for-heckling-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">censured</a> for heckling President Donald Trump during his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, might face more punitive measures from House Republicans fed up with his antics.
Daily Caller News Foundation reporter Myles Morell <a href="https://x.com/MylesMorell/status/1897734296586105271" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> a video on X on Thursday showing Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) being asked whether he thinks Republicans should &#8220;take a step further and potentially bring a vote to expel&#8221; Green.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨BREAKING: Congressman <a href="https://twitter.com/timburchett?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@timburchett</a> said “at some point we have to restore decorum and Al just might be that sacrificial lamb” when asked if republicans should take a step further and potentially bring a vote to expel <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAlGreen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepAlGreen</a>. <a href="https://t.co/NVqSwyn9q0">pic.twitter.com/NVqSwyn9q0</a>
&mdash; Myles Morell (@MylesMorell) <a href="https://twitter.com/MylesMorell/status/1897734296586105271?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Yea,&#8221; Burchett replied. &#8220;I think it could be a reasonable consideration because I think &#8230; we&#8217;re going to have to do something to combat this craziness that&#8217;s going on. At some point we have to restore decorum and Al just might be that sacrificial lamb.&#8221;
Expulsion from the House requires a two-thirds majority vote to succeed and has only happened a handful of times throughout U.S. history. Two expelled members were convicted of crimes, while three others were kicked out in 1861 for backing the Confederacy. The most recent vote took place in late 2023, when the House <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-votes-to-expel-george-santos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expelled</a> Rep. George Santos (R-NY) as he faced federal charges. Santos later <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/former-congressman-george-santos-pleads-guilty-fraud-and-identity-theft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pleaded</a> guilty to identity theft and wire fraud charges.
In another video — this one from the Daily Caller News Foundation&#8217;s Andi Shae Napier — House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) dismissed the notion that the GOP would be able to expel members not aligned with Trump&#8217;s &#8220;MAGA&#8221; movement, noting how it would require a two-thirds majority vote for such an bid to succeed and stressing that such an outcome &#8220;will never happen.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨BREAKING: House Democratic Leader <a href="https://twitter.com/RepJeffries?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepJeffries</a> says “They have no ability to expel members &#8230;. that will never happen.”
Even though Republican Rep <a href="https://twitter.com/timburchett?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@timburchett</a> told me earlier that Republicans pushing to expel would be a “reasonable consideration”. 
Video by <a href="https://twitter.com/AndiNapier?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AndiNapier</a> <a href="https://t.co/4ja9OXsEgy">pic.twitter.com/4ja9OXsEgy</a>
&mdash; Myles Morell (@MylesMorell) <a href="https://twitter.com/MylesMorell/status/1897750066388939209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
Earlier on Thursday, the GOP-led House <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/10-dems-join-gop-to-censure-rep-al-green-for-heckling-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">censured</a> Green in a bipartisan fashion for his outburst during Trump&#8217;s speech earlier in the week. Ten Democrats joined with 214 Republicans in voting to pass the censure resolution. Two Democrats also voted &#8220;present.&#8221; The final vote was 224-198-2.
&#8220;Today, I voted to censure a fellow member of Congress. When you knowingly break House rules, as Rep. Green did, it shouldn&#8217;t be surprising to face consequences,&#8221; Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) <a href="https://x.com/RepMGP/status/1897718371346792787" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on X. &#8220;Congress should respect the co-equal office of the Presidency, regardless of who holds the job, do our constitutional duty, and stop with the theatrics at these events.&#8221;
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) called Green to present himself to the well of the House chamber for pronouncement of the censure, but another disruption ensued. A group of Democrats <a href="https://x.com/Phil_Lewis_/status/1897674818666868765" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stood</a> in the well with Green and sang &#8220;We Shall Overcome&#8221; while Johnson slammed his gavel and called for the House to &#8220;come to order.&#8221; Johnson ultimately <a href="https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/1897672545211416803" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the House would stand in recess.
&#8220;When I’m censured I’m singing Freebird,&#8221; Burchett <a href="https://x.com/timburchett/status/1897703751475249415" target="_blank" rel="noopener">quipped</a> in a post to X, referring to the song by rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
When I’m censured I’m singing Freebird.
&mdash; Tim Burchett (@timburchett) <a href="https://twitter.com/timburchett/status/1897703751475249415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gop-resolution-seeks-to-strip-committee-assignments-from-dems-who-disrupted-al-green-censure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unveiled</a> a resolution that seeks to strip committee assignments from those who interrupted the censure. The conservative House Freedom Caucus released a statement from its chairman, Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), saying the group intends to file a resolution that specifically aims to remove Green&#8217;s committee assignments.
Green, who has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-democrat-moves-to-impeach-trump-over-dastardly-deeds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed</a> multiple articles of impeachment against Trump over the years, spoke in the House chamber after being censured. During his more than 30 minutes of remarks, the Democrat said, &#8220;And still I rise a proud, liberated Democrat, unbought, unbossed, and unafraid.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;And still I rise a proud, liberated Democrat, unbought, unbossed and unafraid.&quot;
WATCH: Complete remarks from <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAlGreen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepAlGreen</a> (D-TX) following House censure. <a href="https://t.co/LIKoxLFUem">pic.twitter.com/LIKoxLFUem</a>
&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1897730905642340852?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Rep. Al Green (D-TX)

Could Al Green Face An Expulsion Vote? One GOP Lawmaker Believes That’s A ‘Reasonable Consideration’

Tim Burchett

House Republicans are being urged to skip in-person town hall events because they are being taken over by &#8220;Democrat activists,&#8221; party leaders said on Tuesday.
NBC News journalist Melanie Zanona <a href="https://x.com/MZanona/status/1897013033727369617" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> to X on Tuesday that Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), confirmed to her that he advised colleagues to eschew in-person town hall events in favor of tele-town halls or Facebook Live discussions.
&#8220;Unfortunately, in-person town halls are no longer effective because Democrat activists are threatening democracy by disrupting the actual communication at town halls,&#8221; Hudson reportedly said. &#8220;They need to use technology to reach more constituents.&#8221;
Some House Republicans have been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/23/us/politics/republicans-congress-town-halls-trump.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confronted</a> at recent town hall events by people raising concerns about the Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort led by Elon Musk.
On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114099009721475492" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned</a>: &#8220;Paid &#8216;troublemakers&#8217; are attending Republican Town Hall Meetings. It is all part of the game for the Democrats, but just like our big LANDSLIDE ELECTION, it’s not going to work for them!&#8221;
Trump won the White House in the 2024 presidential election while Republicans maintained a narrow grip on the House and secured a slim majority in the Senate.
Fox News correspondent Chad Pergram offered some historical context about the town hall clashes in a <a href="https://x.com/ChadPergram/status/1897005292698644629" target="_blank" rel="noopener">post</a> to X:
<blockquote>Republicans have been hammered at some town halls over cuts to DOGE. This is similar to a tactic which Republicans deployed in the summer of 2009 to torch Democrats over Obamacare – as they tried to hold the House. The approach was seemingly successful as each day yielded intense video of angry people yelling at Democrats and chasing them out of meetings. The scenes we are seeing now are not quite as electric. But similar. Republicans then won back the House in the 2010 midterms, flipping a record 63 seats.</blockquote>
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) took a swipe at House Republicans over the news about them being encouraged to steer clear of in-person town hall events.
&#8220;House Republicans have just been ordered to stop holding Town Hall meetings,&#8221; Jeffries <a href="https://x.com/RepJeffries/status/1896970343530836410" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a post on X. &#8220;They can run from their extreme agenda. We will never let them hide.&#8221;
In a press conference on Tuesday, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) <a href="https://x.com/PRod_FromOz/status/1897011868528730184" target="_blank" rel="noopener">echoed</a> the view that House Republicans should avoid holding in-person town hall events and instead use technology to engage with voters or meet with &#8220;small subgroups&#8221; of industry or their respective communities.
&#8220;Democrat activists who don&#8217;t live in the district very often will show up for these town hall events, and they&#8217;ll go in an hour early and fill all the seats, and so the constituents and the people from the community that are actually represented don&#8217;t even get a seat,&#8221; Johnson said.
He added later, &#8220;There are people who do this as a profession. They&#8217;re professional protesters. So why would we give them a forum to do that right now? The best thing that our members can do is communicate directly, frequently, consistently with their constituents and there are other avenues to do it than just doing in to try to give the other side sound bites.&#8221;

Mike Johnson and Richard Hudson

House GOP Leaders Raise Alarm Over ‘Democrat Activists’ At Town Halls

Hakeem Jeffries

Mike Johnson

Former college swimmer and women&#8217;s rights advocate Riley Gaines is slated to speak at a members&#8217; lunch on Wednesday, The Daily Wire has learned.
Gaines, a former NCAA swimmer, became the face of the fight to save women’s sports after competing against trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas. Wednesday’s event is the latest point of collaboration between Gaines and the committee, whose members have led the charge on protecting women’s sports and spaces.
Gaines was on Capitol Hill last month when the House of Representatives passed the Protection of Women and Girls Act, which was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-again-passes-bill-to-protect-womens-sports">introduced</a> by Republican Study Committee member Rep. Greg Steube (FL).
“Americans are united in our belief that men have no place in women’s sports, whether it’s breaking records, entering locker rooms, or stealing scholarship opportunities,” Steube <a href="https://mikejohnson.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1526">said at the time</a>. “Denying biological truth erases fairness in sports and puts women’s safety and opportunities at risk.”
Gaines praised House Republicans for passing the bill, which she said brings the country “one step closer to ensuring no more women lose trophies, roster spots, playing time, scholarships, or fair competition to men in their own sport.”
As The Daily Wire’s Mary Margaret Olohan <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-learned-to-embrace-the-transgender-culture-wars">chronicled</a>, Gaines was one of several activists whose work helped bring President Donald Trump around on the transgender issue. Trump, who shied away from the issue during his 2020 campaign, made it a pillar of his 2024 race — a move that helped <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-exposed-kamalas-radical-stances-on-gender-americans-voted-against-it">propel him</a> to a landslide victory.
Since taking office, Trump has taken several steps to protect biological women. On his first day in office, he signed an executive order stipulating it was the official policy of the United States that there are <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-sign-executive-order-defining-sex-as-male-and-female">only two genders</a>. Just days later, he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/daily-wire-celebrates-trumps-move-to-ban-child-transgender-medical-transitions">signed an order</a> banning taxpayer-funded gender transitions for minors, a move that has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hospitals-across-u-s-stop-transitioning-children-after-trump-signs-order-protecting-kids">already stopped</a> hospitals from performing these often irreversible procedures.
Gaines made headlines once again this week thanks to her appearance in an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/j-k-rowling-shares-powerful-ad-about-protecting-female-sports-but-theres-more-to-the-story">ad showcasing</a> her and other female athletes who have faced criticism for defending women’s sports.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
This is the first and likely the last time I’ll retweet an ad, but I love it. <a href="https://t.co/oALpr5c10v">pic.twitter.com/oALpr5c10v</a>
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) <a href="https://twitter.com/jk_rowling/status/1886348443745976525?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> 
J.K. Rowling, who has also come under fire for her defense of biological women, shared the ad on X, saying, “This is the first and likely the last time I’ll retweet an ad, but I love it.”
The Republican Study Committee is viewed as the policy engine of House Republicans. Its decision to host Gaines signals its continued dedication to leading on gender issues.

Riley Gaines and House Republicans Speak Following Vote On The Protection Of Women And Girls In Sports Act

Republican Study Committee Set To Host Riley Gaines

Riley Gaines

Transgender

Women's sports

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/house-republicans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">House Republicans</a> are not done winning after their overall 2024 victory that left the Democrats in &#8220;disarray,&#8221; Speaker <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mike-johnson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mike Johnson</a> (R-LA) declared on Monday.
Johnson delivered a bullish preview for his party in the years to come at the House GOP issues retreat at President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a>&#8216;s Doral resort in Florida.
He was joined by National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson (R-NC), GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-MI), and Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL).
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerJohnson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SpeakerJohnson</a>: &#8220;We are going to win and grow the House majority in 2026. Historically when the president takes the Oval Office, then his party then loses on average a number of seats in the House in that first midterm. That won&#8217;t happen this time around&#8230;&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/tTf0nBAmYD">pic.twitter.com/tTf0nBAmYD</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1883979833023049997?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The Democratic Party is in disarray. They have no obvious leader. They have no obvious vision or agenda,&#8221; Johnson said.
&#8220;Their platform has to be rewritten whole cloth, and they don’t exactly know how they are going to wander in this wilderness for the next couple of years,&#8221; he added.
Democrats lost control of the Senate and the White House in last year&#8217;s election while they failed to crack the Republican majority in the House.
Johnson predicted that the amount of restructuring the Democrats need to do will blow past the 2026 midterms and into the 2028 presidential election.
&#8220;It’s not just gonna be a couple of years, though; it’s gonna be four years at least and then more because we are going to win — grow the House majority in 2026,&#8221; he said.
Republicans managed to retain control of the House in the 2024 election and currently have a 218-215 majority, giving leadership a slim margin in divisive votes.
There are two vacancies: one left by former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and another by former Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL), who is now Trump&#8217;s national security adviser.
Special congressional primaries in their districts are being <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/what-to-expect-in-floridas-special-congressional-primaries" target="_blank" rel="noopener">held</a> in Florida on Tuesday. The special general election has been scheduled for April 1.
Johnson acknowledged that, &#8220;Historically when the president takes the Oval Office, then his party then loses on average a number of seats in the House in that first midterm.&#8221;
Indeed, after Trump won the 2016 presidential election, the Republicans then lost command of the House in the 2018 midterms as Democrats <a href="https://www.axios.com/2018/11/07/full-list-2018-midterm-election-seats-flipped" target="_blank" rel="noopener">flipped 41 seats</a>.
However, Johnson argued, &#8220;That won&#8217;t happen this time around because there has been a sea change. And we&#8217;re going to deliver on this agenda and that begins now.&#8221;

Speaker Johnson Predicts House GOP Will Expand Majority In 2026 With Dems In ‘Disarray’

Election

Republicans

The House Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement is set to hold a hearing on the Biden administration’s failure to secure the border and potential solutions the Trump administration could employ, The Daily Wire has learned.
The upcoming hearing, titled “Restoring Immigration Enforcement in America,” is set to take place on Wednesday, January 22nd, just two days after Donald Trump is inaugurated as the 47th president. It will be the first House Judiciary Committee hearing of the year, and &#8220;will examine how the Biden Administration dismantled immigration enforcement and what the Trump administration can do to restore integrity to America’s immigration system,” according to a description of the hearing obtained by The Daily Wire.
“The American people gave Republicans a mandate in November when they put us in the driver’s seat,” said Texas Rep. Brandon Gill (R.) who will participate in the upcoming hearing. “The Judiciary Committee Republicans are ready to hit the ground running, restore law and order back in our home districts, and secure the southern border.”
“With President Trump as our leader, we have momentum and energy as we hold our first Judiciary hearing of the year,” he told The Daily Wire.
Just under <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/nationwide-encounters">11 million</a> illegal alien encounters were between fiscal year 2021 and October 2024 under the Biden administration. The figure marks a colossal increase from President Donald Trump’s first term, when there were roughly 3 million nationwide encounters with illegal aliens. The Biden administration has even rushed to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-biden-races-to-sell-off-border-wall-parts-before-trump-takes-office">sell off border wall material</a> for pennies on the dollar in the final days before Trump returns to office, The Daily Wire revealed.
Trump has pledged to strengthen border security through a slate of different policies and carry out the largest mass deportation operation in American history, which is expected to initially focus on illegal aliens who have been convicted of violent crimes.
A series of polls have found that Americans are widely supportive of Trump’s immigration agenda. Nearly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/americans-strongly-supportive-of-trumps-mass-deportation-agenda-poll-finds">60 percent</a> of respondents to one poll said that they would support an effort to deport all illegal aliens from the United States, not just those who have been convicted of a violent crime. One poll from this summer found that a majority of American adults want <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/majority-of-americans-want-fewer-immigrants-poll-finds">less immigration</a> into the United States.
Trump is expected to swiftly reinstate the Remain in Mexico policy upon retaking office. The measure, which required migrants to remain in Mexico while their asylum claims were processed, was ditched by the Biden administration, which allowed migrants to be released into the United States. Some migrants were released into the country by the Biden administration and given immigration court dates <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/11/migrants-admitted-to-us-given-2035-immigration-court-dates/">in 2035</a>.
Trump has nominated South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security and tapped former Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Tom Homan as his <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trumps-border-czar-has-a-plan-to-stop-illegal-immigration">border czar</a>.
Noem said today in her confirmation hearing that the Trump administration will end the CBPOne App, a controversial program that allows migrants to remotely schedule their asylum appointments, increasing the flow of migrants into the United States.

Border wall

EXCLUSIVE: First House Judiciary Hearing Of 2025 To Focus On Biden Border Failures

Biden Administration

Border Crisis

Illegal Immigration

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