Skip to Content

Politics

Actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger

Schwarzenegger urges Californians to oppose Democratic redistricting ballot measure, as GOP presses on in other states

CNN By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger denounced congressional redistricting efforts happening across the United States, describing them as cheating in an interview airing on “CNN’s State of the Union” on Sunday. “There’s this war going on all over the United States. Who can out cheat the other one?”

Continue Reading

‘Elect the Jersey guy’: How Jack Ciattarelli is trying to erase Democrats’ advantage in a crucial governor’s race

By Eric Bradner, CNN East Brunswick, New Jersey (CNN) — Jack Ciattarelli ticked through the states where New Jersey’s most recent Democratic governors grew up as he kicked off a rally Wednesday night. “They brought Jon Corzine here from Illinois — that didn’t work out so well. They brought Phil Murphy from Massachusetts — this

Continue Reading

Schwarzenegger urges Californians to oppose Democratic redistricting ballot measure, as GOP presses on in other states

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger denounced congressional redistricting efforts happening across the United States, describing them as cheating in an interview airing on “CNN’s State of the Union” on Sunday. “There’s this war going on all over the United States. Who can out cheat the other one?” the

Continue Reading

Sen. McCormick defends Trump’s controversial moves, praises his Democratic counterpart as shutdown continues

By Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Republican Sen. David McCormick defended Donald Trump’s latest controversial moves in a rare interview, including the president’s $230 million request for the Justice Department to pay his legal bills, the demolition of the White House’s East Wing, and his party’s handling of the government shutdown. He also compared Democrats

Continue Reading

Fact check: Democratic leaders misleadingly snip White House press secretary’s ‘main priority’ quote out of context

By Daniel Dale, CNN (CNN) — Top Democrats in the Senate and House of Representatives have taken a Thursday quote from the White House press secretary out of context to deliver a misleading attack on President Donald Trump. A reporter asked press secretary Karoline Leavitt at a Thursday briefing: “In addition to the ballroom and

Continue Reading

Republican tensions rise over Kevin McCarthy’s faltering push to fight California redistricting

By Arit John, Sarah Ferris, CNN (CNN) — This summer, a fired-up Kevin McCarthy vowed to personally lead the fight against California Democrats’ redistricting push, aiming to raise $100 million to help protect Republican lawmakers in his home state. But in the final weeks of the high-stakes election, the former GOP speaker has fallen massively

Continue Reading
Attorney General Letitia James speaks during a press conference in New York on February 16

Prosecutor who resisted bringing charges against NY AG was fired after allegations she sent case info to her personal email

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — The Virginia federal prosecutor who resisted bringing mortgage fraud charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James sent investigative files with James’ personally identifying information to her own private email account, according an email reviewed by CNN. The prosecutor, Beth Yusi, was dismissed earlier this month at least in

Continue Reading

Zohran Mamdani Fast Facts

CNN Editorial Research (CNN) — Here is a look at the life of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor and first South Asian mayor. Personal Birth date: October 18, 1991 Birth place: Kampala, Uganda Birth name: Zohran Kwame Mamdani Father: Mahmood Mamdani, professor at Columbia University Mother: Mira Nair, filmmaker

Continue Reading

Looking to speed up building network of migrant detention centers, Trump administration turns to the US Navy

By Natasha Bertrand, Priscilla Alvarez, CNN (CNN) — The Department of Homeland Security is funneling $10 billion through the Navy to help facilitate the construction of a sprawling network of migrant detention centers across the US in an arrangement aimed at getting the centers built faster, according to sources and federal contracting documents. Construction on

Continue Reading

Virginia Democrats prepare to reshape US House districts in counter to Trump’s redistricting push

By Associated Press Richmond, Virginia (AP) — Virginia Democrats are taking steps to redraw their state’s US House districts, hoping to boost the party’s chances in next year’s midterm elections and counter President Donald Trump’s push for more partisan districts in Republican-run states. Virginia House Speaker Don Scott sent a letter Thursday to members telling

Continue Reading

Supreme Court liberals decry ‘excruciating suffocation’ in nitrogen hypoxia executions

By John Fritze, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court’s three liberal justices on Thursday laid out a remarkable critique of nitrogen hypoxia executions, asserting that the new form of capital punishment causes “psychological terror” and “excruciating suffocation” in the condemned and likely violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. Justice Sonia Sotomayor,

Continue Reading
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a notice on October 23 that her legal team plans to ask for her indictment to be dismissed

NY AG Letitia James to ask for her case to be dismissed due to appointment of Lindsey Halligan

By Devan Cole, Casey Gannon, Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a notice on Thursday that her legal team plans to ask for her indictment to be dismissed, citing the appointment of President Donald Trump’s handpicked prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, according to a filing submitted by James’ legal team. “Please

Continue Reading

House Democrats launch probe into Trump’s potential $230M payment from his own Justice Department

By Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — Democratic Reps. Jamie Raskin and Robert Garcia are launching an investigation into President Donald Trump’s reported demand that his own Justice Department hand over $230 million as compensation for past federal investigations into him, according to a letter obtained by CNN. Trump’s ask, made through administrative claims filed in

Continue Reading

GOP attempts to squeeze Democrats with vote to pay ‘essential workers,’ including troops and TSA agents

By Sarah Ferris, Manu Raju, Morgan Rimmer, CNN (CNN) — Senate GOP leaders are again shaking up their strategy as they look for more ways to pressure Democrats to end a three-week stalemate over government funding — this time, with a vote that would keep paychecks flowing to “essential” workers. Democrats, however, are expected to

Continue Reading

White House releases list of donors for Trump’s multi-million-dollar ballroom

By Kit Maher, Jake Tapper, Alejandra Jaramillo, CNN (CNN) — Apple, Amazon, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Google, Coinbase, Comcast and Meta are just some of the major companies who have made donations to build President Donald Trump’s proposed 90,000-square-foot ballroom, according to the White House. Trump has repeatedly said that work on the ballroom is privately

Continue Reading

Trump plows past concerns over East Wing demolition — and envisions an even bigger ballroom than initially planned

By Kevin Liptak, Kristen Holmes, Kaitlan Collins, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump has proceeded with enormous latitude as he constructs his massive new ballroom, bypassing concerns raised by preservationists and so far stopping short of seeking approval from the commission overseeing construction on federal buildings to tear down the entirety of the White House

Continue Reading

Dissension in the ranks: Some, but not all, federal law enforcement employees are getting paychecks this week

By Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — The Trump administration’s move to issue paychecks this week to some but not all federal law enforcement employees during the government shutdown is sowing division in the ranks and does little to resolve the harm being done to ongoing investigations, current and former law enforcement officials tell CNN. Under

Continue Reading
President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters in the Oval Office of the White House

What we know about Trump’s bid to claim $230 million from his own Justice Department

By Hannah Rabinowitz, Katelyn Polantz, Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump’s demand that his own Justice Department hand over $230 million as compensation for federal investigations into his behavior is an unprecedented example of how his past indictment lingers over the presidency. His ask, made through administrative claims filed in 2023 and 2024

Continue Reading

Lawyers for Jack Smith rebut claims that investigators ‘wiretapped’ GOP members of Congress in January 6 probe

Attorneys for former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith rebutted claims by Republican lawmakers that investigators in the January 6 election subversion case had “wiretapped” GOP members of Congress.

Senate Republicans in recent weeks accused Smith and the FBI of “political weaponization” after the FBI disclosed 2023 court orders used to obtain phone toll records belonging to eight senators and one House member. The records covered calls over four days surrounding the January 6, 2021, attack by Donald Trump supporters on the Capitol.

Continue Reading

US sanctions Russia’s two largest oil companies and calls on Moscow to agree to immediate ceasefire

By Jennifer Hansler, Kit Maher, Kaitlan Collins, CNN (CNN) — The Trump administration on Wednesday imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies as it called on Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in the war with Ukraine. President Donald Trump had for weeks signaled he could impose penalties against Russia for its continuation

Continue Reading

Barack Obama joins Gavin Newsom to promote California Democrats’ effort to redraw US House maps

By Arit John, CNN (CNN) — Former President Barack Obama urged voters to back California Democrats’ redistricting effort during a virtual event with Gov. Gavin Newsom Wednesday, framing the proposed constitutional amendment as a way to counter President Donald Trump’s efforts to skew the 2026 midterm elections in Republicans’ favor. The measure, Proposition 50, would

Continue Reading
Former President Barack Obama addresses the Obama Foundation's 2024 Democracy Forum in Chicago

Barack Obama joins Gavin Newsom to promote California Democrats’ effort to redraw US House maps

ZOOM| CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM By Arit John, CNN (CNN) — Former President Barack Obama urged voters to back California Democrats’ redistricting effort during a virtual event with Gov. Gavin Newsom Wednesday, framing the proposed constitutional amendment as a way to counter President Donald Trump’s efforts to skew the 2026 midterm elections in Republicans’ favor.

Continue Reading

The inside story of how Jesse Jackson almost became America’s first Black presidential nominee

By Abby Phillip, CNN (CNN) — Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., a civil rights leader and political outsider, ran for president in two groundbreaking campaigns that changed American politics. A son of the segregated South who went from nothing to eventually becoming one of the most well-known public figures in America, Jackson’s outsider political campaigns challenged

Continue Reading

‘Language matters’: Advocates worry about Melania Trump’s rhetoric around returned Ukrainian children

By Betsy Klein, Kylie Atwood, CNN (CNN) — While praising first lady Melania Trump’s work to return Ukrainian children from Russian captivity, President Donald Trump last week seemed to downplay the estimates of the number of children allegedly abducted since the war began. Seated across the table in the White House Cabinet Room, Ukrainian President

Continue Reading

Hegseth orders prior approval for ‘all interactions’ between military officials and Congress

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — The Pentagon is barring nearly all Defense Department personnel, including military commanders, from talking to Congress or state lawmakers unless they have received prior approval from the agency’s office of legislative affairs, according to a memo signed this month by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and obtained by CNN. “Unauthorized

Continue Reading

Historic preservation group urges pause on East Wing demolition as Trump pushes ahead with his ballroom

By Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — One of the nation’s premier historic preservation groups on Tuesday urged the Trump administration to pause demolition of the White House East Wing, which excavators began tearing into this week to make way for President Donald Trump’s planned ballroom. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Congressionally chartered non-profit

Continue Reading

‘We absolutely need him’: Some in GOP say it’s time for Trump to get involved in shutdown talks even as leaders rebuff idea

By Adam Cancryn, Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — Republican leaders have stuck to a straightforward position in their standoff with Democrats over government funding: No negotiations until the shutdown ends. But as the impasse drags on, some rank-and-file Republicans are starting to wonder if it’s time to change tactics. Several GOP lawmakers have suggested that

Continue Reading
Vice President JD Vance arrives in Lod

Vance downplays concerns over ceasefire in visit to Israel as Trump administration officials privately worry

CNN By Alayna Treene, Eugenia Yosef, CNN (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance downplayed concerns about the fragility of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire while speaking in Israel on Tuesday, even as some Trump administration officials are privately concerned the deal could fall apart, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. “What we’ve seen the past week

Continue Reading

Vance downplays concerns over ceasefire in visit to Israel as Trump administration officials privately worry

By Alayna Treene, Eugenia Yosef, CNN (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance downplayed concerns about the fragility of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire while speaking in Israel on Tuesday, even as some Trump administration officials are privately concerned the deal could fall apart, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. “What we’ve seen the past week gives

Continue Reading

North Carolina legislature gives final approval to new congressional map that could give GOP one more seat in US House

By Fredreka Schouten, Dianne Gallagher, CNN (CNN) — The North Carolina House on Wednesday gave final approval to a new congressional map aimed at helping Republicans eke out an additional GOP seat to help shore up the party’s majority in the US House after next year’s midterm elections. Senate Bill 249 passed on a 66-48

Continue Reading

‘He’s not going to pass’: Thune says controversial Trump nominee for whistleblower office won’t be confirmed

By Morgan Rimmer, Annie Grayer, Ted Barrett, CNN (CNN) — Paul Ingrassia’s nomination to lead the Office of Special Counsel is dead on arrival in the Senate, per Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who declared Monday night that “he’s not going to pass” after Politico reported on racist text messages allegedly sent by Ingrassia to

Continue Reading