National Politics

By Devan Cole, CNN (CNN) — A federal appeals court is letting President Donald Trump continue his deployment of National Guard troops in the nation’s capital. In a unanimous decision issued Wednesday by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, the court indefinitely paused a lower court order that had required Trump to remove thousands of

By Sarah Ferris, Manu Raju, CNN (CNN) — A bloc of House GOP centrists just made the ultimate hardball play against Speaker Mike Johnson — agreeing to help Democrats effectively seize control of the Republican agenda by forcing a vote on their own bill on the looming Obamacare subsidies cliff. The stunning blow to Johnson

By Casey Gannon, Katelyn Polantz, Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — Former special counsel Jack Smith on Wednesday defended his criminal investigation into President Donald Trump in a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee as he faces scrutiny from Republican lawmakers. “The decision to bring charges against President Trump was mine, but the basis for

By Alexandra Skores, CNN (CNN) — The US Air Force announced plans Tuesday to purchase two Boeing 747-8 aircraft to support its future presidential airlift program, with an Air Force official confirming it would acquire the planes from German carrier Lufthansa. At a price tag of $400 million, the Air Force said in a statement

By Elle Reeve, CNN (CNN) — In her first podcast episode after what she described as a 4.5-hour conversation with Erika Kirk, conservative podcaster Candace Owens said Tuesday that she still does not believe that the person charged with murder for Charlie Kirk’s death is solely responsible. Erika Kirk’s efforts to tamp down on speculation

By Sarah Ferris, CNN (CNN) — Speaker Mike Johnson is charging ahead with a GOP health plan that allows Biden-era Obamacare subsidies to expire this month — all but guaranteeing that the money will indeed lapse and spike premiums for tens of millions of Americans next year. In a high-stakes Tuesday night meeting, top House

By Aleena Fayaz, CNN (CNN) — GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Tuesday slammed President Donald Trump for his comments on the murders of Rob and Michele Reiner, as she predicted more Republicans will follow her lead in breaking with Trump. “I thought that statement was absolutely completely below the office of the president of

By Kit Maher, Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was ordering a “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers coming to and leaving from Venezuela, ratcheting up pressure against leader Nicolás Maduro’s regime and suggesting an economic motive to the US’ military campaign in the region. Punctuating the words

By Priscilla Alvarez, Jennifer Hansler, Nimi Princewill, CNN (CNN) — The South African government briefly held, then released, two US government employees on assignment in South Africa as part of the Trump administration’s bid to admit Afrikaners to the United States, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation. The incident appeared to mark an

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — The Pentagon has launched a new “official Command” phase of its investigation into whether Sen. Mark Kelly will be punished for his involvement in a video that reminded members of the military they have a duty to refuse illegal orders, with a decision likely to be made in about

By Devan Cole, Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — A federal judge indicated Tuesday that he won’t order President Donald Trump to immediately stop work on the massive new White House ballroom. But US District Judge Richard Leon left open the possibility that he could intervene in the high-stakes legal fight over the project at a

By Adam Cancryn, CNN (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday sought to rally gloomy Pennsylvania voters behind the Trump administration’s economic agenda, alleviate their cost-of living concerns — and accomplish it all more efficiently than President Donald Trump had done a week before. Returning to the swing state just days after Trump delivered

By Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — The House Judiciary Committee is demanding interviews with four current and former Department of Justice officials who were involved in subpoenaing phone records for several members of Congress around the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, the day before Republicans interview former special counsel Jack Smith. The interview requests to

By Haley Britzky, Alison Main, Manu Raju, Morgan Rimmer, CNN (CNN) — The Pentagon will not release to the public the full video of the US military’s strike on an alleged drug boat on September 2, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said. The attack, which included a follow-up strike that killed two crew members who