2018 Presidential Election
- Thread starter Marky Bunny
- Start date
House Democrats to introduce READS Act to tackle student debt crisis
Friday, January 27th, 2023
Congressional Democrats will introduce the Reforming Education Access and Debt Solutions (READS) Act on Monday to address the problems facing millions of Americans thanks to the high cost of higher education.
Taking policies and ideas championed by President Seaborn during his re-election campaign, the READS Act will give the Secretary of Education the statutory authority to remove up to $20,000 worth of federal student loans from any eligible borrower upon the date the act is ratified, would automatically forgive any student loans after 15 years of payments regardless of the outstanding balance, make the amount loan providers can require for repayment dependent on the borrower's income and retroactively allow borrowers who paid off all loans, or who have loans less than $20,000 to get a tax-free refund.
The bill's author, Rep. Marcus LeBrandt (D-OH), chair of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, said that the act would "be truly transformative to a generation of Americans saddled with excessive student debt," and would "give a boost to the borrowers who worked hard and paid their debt" by giving them a refund.
House Republicans quickly decried the bill as "a socialist handout" in the words of Rep. Steve Milling (R-LA), the ranking member on the Education and Workforce Committee and a "give-away to the educated and comfortable elite" according to Rep. Carol Goodman (R-MO). Senate Minority Whip Max Lobell III (R-GA) said the act was "an example of the Democrats' catering to a narrow constituency when there are much more pressing national problems", and said that Republicans would fight what he called an "inappropriate" bill.
While the legislation is aimed largely at tackling student debt racked up in college and graduate schools, LeBrandt says that the language was written to include attendees of technical and vocational schools as well.
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Friday, January 27th 2023
Mark Gilmore elected RNC chair
Salt Lake City, UT— Former Walken White House staffer Mark Gilmore was elected to be the new chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) after two rounds of balloting at the annual RNC meeting today.
Gilmore was elected after narrowly failing to win a majority of votes from the 168 committee members in the first round. In the second and final round, Gilmore won with 111 votes, far outpacing former Michigan Republican chair Danielle Janssen (43) and conservative activist Hanson McNabb (11) after the runner-up in the first round, Maine Republican chair Sam Woodson, withdrew and endorsed Gilmore.
"We need all of you," Gilmore told the audience after the results were announced. "We have heard those who want to point fingers and relitigate the past. But as Republicans, we are united. And the Democrats and the media will soon hear us when we stop Sam Seaborn's radical agenda and retake Congress in 2024!"
Outgoing RNC chair James Ritchie, whose tenure as governor of Florida (2011-2019) briefly overlapped with Gilmore's tenure as head of the Florida Republican Party (2009-2012), proudly handed over the reins of the party to someone he called a "dedicated Republican and [his] great friend." Ritchie declined to run for a second two-year term after criticism from the right-wing of the party over the contentious presidential primary campaign in 2022, and the resulting split between the majority of Republican voters who stayed loyal to presidential nominee Alan Duke and a minority who backed independent conservative Andrew Long.
Monday, January 30th 2023
Video of Lauren Parker-Seaborn dancing causes outrage on the right
Washington, D.C.— A video taken of First Lady Lauren Parker-Seaborn cutting loose at a party has several members of the conservative media sphere, including some Republican politicians, up in arms. A video shared by a TikTok user @royslesx showed the First Lady at what appears to be an after-party for one of the post-inaugural balls hosted after President Seaborn's second inauguration ten days ago. The video shows the First Lady singing along to the song playing ("Lady Marmalade" from the soundtrack to the film Moulin Rouge) and dancing with other guests at the after party.
The user, who spoke to ACN on condition of anonymity, said he spilled a drink on his phone shortly after recording the video and before he was able to share it. He reportedly just got the phone back from a repair shop before he uploaded the video.
Within hours, the video was on right-wing social media accounts and Fox News hosts were commenting on the First Lady's moves, with Fox and Friends host Brian Kilmeade saying Parker-Seaborn was "clearly on something" and called for the First Lady to be drug-tested.
"She's the First Lady of the United States and has two small children," Rep. Darren Gibson (R-MI) said in an interview on Fox when the subject was broached. "This is really shameful behavior on many levels."
Meanwhile, most commenters on social media and in elected office criticized the blowback to the video of Parker-Seaborn, with Speaker of the House Daniel Maddox (D-IL) calling the reaction on Fox and Friends "overblown" and Kilmeade's suggestion of a drug test for the First Lady "the dumbest thing I've ever heard."
The White House said that the video showed the First Lady "having a good time" according to White House Communications Director Mark Sterns, who said that the idea that the First Lady was being inappropriate or was intoxicated "out of the question."
"The way some people are talking about [the video] makes me think they still think Elvis Presley was 'too provocative'." Sterns joked.
For her part, Lauren Parker-Seaborn took the incident in stride, saying she "now had proof to show [the Seaborns' twin children] that at least one of their parents has rhythm", an allusion to President Sam Seaborn's well-known clumsiness.
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Stray confirmed as Secretary of State
Monday, January 30th, 2023
The United States Senate today confirmed Paris Stray, President Seaborn's nominee to be Secretary of State, by a vote of 90 to 7.
Stray, who has served as Ambassador to the United Nations since 2019, faced little opposition from senators from either party when she appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier this month. She will be only the second woman to be the "top diplomat" of the United States after Rita Frederickson, who served as the Secretary of State during the final two years of the Lassiter administration.
Stray was sworn in soon after being confirmed, and pledged to continue her predecessor August Adair's work in "representing our national interests and our values" abroad. Seaborn has nominated former state senator and progressive activist Kelly Phelps to succeed Stray as the United States' ambassador to the United Nations.
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Tuesday, 31 January 2023
Turkey begins to remove troops from Cyprus
Turkish armed forces have begun the first phase of withdrawal from territory of the Republic of Cyprus, with soldiers of Turkey and the unrecognized Republic of Northern Cyprus withdrawing all forces within ten kilometers of the British sovereign base areas (SBAs) of Akrotiri and Dhekhalia and handing control over to members of the NATO Cyprus Observation Force (nicknamed "COFOR") before moving to the new lines of control.
Within a few hours after the change, Brigadier-General John Pawlowski of the Canadian Army and head of COFOR, turned over administration and security over most of the ceded territory to forces of the Republic of Cyprus, the first time in nearly 18 months that Cypriot forces have controlled territory on the island.
With thousands of displaced Cypriots in the SBAs, a trickle of those whose homes lie within the "ten-kilometer zone" has begun to leave the overburdened SBAs despite concerns within both NATO and the Cypriot government.
Turkish and Northern Cypriot forces will fully withdraw behind the so-called "Attila Line" that marked the unofficial boundary between the Republic of Cyprus and Northern Cyprus by the end of May as part of the ceasefire agreement made in December.
I am picturing the scene with the first lady dancing like Elaine on the Seinfeld episode "The Little Kicks."
The drug test idea is the only one lifted from the reaction to Sanna Marin's party video.
The rest is just how Fox News & the like hyperventilate about inconsequential or slightly unusual things prominent liberal/Democratic politicians do (especially if they're non-white, women, or both) to the point where it comes across as bizarre to people who don't exclusively consume right-wing media.
It's nothing like that at all (hence the First Lady's joke about rhythm). The whole story was inspired by a recent video of Anne Hathaway dancing at a party, which is why I had Parker-Seaborn dancing to the exact same song as her actress did in the video.
Wednesday February 1st, 2023
Labour leader Jack Coll to undergo gallbladder removal surgery
Labour leader Jack Coll is to have surgery to remove his gallbladder during the course of today, the Labour party confirmed. The 58-year-old was diagnosed with cholecystitis, an inflammation of the gallbladder, after becoming "unwell with severe abdominal pain" at his London home on Tuesday evening.
His place at PMQ's today was taken by his deputy, Victoria Thorpe who faced the Deputy Prime-Minister Fiona Wallace, who as per the long standing tradition stood in for the Prime-Minister who stayed away with Mr Coll absent.
In statement issued by the Labour party, Party Chair Ryan Arnold said that Mr Coll "would return to his duties following a period of recuperation", although he gave no further details of the timescale involved, and said that Victoria Thorpe would chair the Shadow Cabinet whilst he was away.
Top Stories This Week
Senate confirms Randy as new AG
Monday, February 6th, 2023
The Senate today confirmed federal judge Wilson Randy as Attorney General, the second of President Sam Seaborn's second-term Cabinet picks to be confirmed. Approved with by a margin of 74 to 23, Randy was sworn in a late afternoon ceremony at the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building. Randy was appointed to the US District Court for Western Michigan by President Josiah Bartlet in 2000 and was most famous for presiding over the trial of disgraced congressman Roger Baker (R-MI) as a result of the Penetrobe Engineering scandal. More of Seaborn's second-term nominees are expected to be voted on by the Democratic-controlled Senate later this week.
Monster jobs report drops unemployment rate to lowest level since 1969
Friday, February 3rd, 2023
An unexpectedly good jobs report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the US economy added over half a million jobs in January 2023, dropping the unemployment level to the lowest since March 1969. The bureau's monthly report exceeded all expectations, with economists having expected that the report would show 185,000 jobs would have been added in January. With the report, the US unemployment rate reached 3.4%, the lowest level in over 50 years. The Seaborn administration trumpeted the report as a "vindication of the president's approach to creating a strong middle class" in the words of White House Director of Communications Mark Sterns, while Republicans have attacked the report as "misleading" and the job growth as "part of a big-government bubble" according to House Minority Leader Mitchell Harris (R-IN).
Thousands dead after earthquake strikes Haiti
Saturday, February 4th, 2023
Thousands of people in Haiti were killed on Saturday after a massive earthquake rocked the troubled island nation early in the morning. With an estimated magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale, the quake began roughly 6:30 AM local time at the commune of Petit-Trou-de-Nippes, roughly 90 miles (150 kilometers) west of the capital city of Port-au-Prince. Tens of thousands of buildings have been reported to have either collapsed or suffered significant structural damage, prompting president Michel Philippe to declare a nationwide state of emergency.
While the number of confirmed dead has risen to roughly 1,800 by Monday afternoon, the number is expected to rise as communication continues to be slowly restored to rural parts of the country. Damage has also been reported to some buildings in the neighboring Dominican Republic. International aid and humanitarian relief has begun to pour into the country since late Saturday evening following Philippe's proclamation.
Secret Service director resigns after internal investigation
Thursday, February 2nd, 2023
Director of the United States Secret Service James Burke resigned on Thursday following an internal investigation that found that the protective organization "failed in part of their protective mission" as a result of several agents' inaction regarding the health of former presidential candidate Alan Duke (R). An internal investigation, overseen by former director Ron Butterfield, found that agents had observed Duke exhibiting "what in hindsight were obvious symptoms of ill health" that the reports suggests presaged Duke's stroke shortly after the November general election. The report, ordered by Treasury Secretary Meredith Payne, says that agents "observed [Duke] in private and recognized unusual behavior that...reasonable individuals...could interpret as a sign of medical distress" but did not pass their observations onto either the candidate or to Duke's personal physician.
Three agents were reportedly fired as a result of the report, while two were removed from field duties pending further investigation. Deputy director Leon I. Stuckey will serve as acting director until a permanent replacement is named.
Australian PM says he plans to step down before next election
Sunday, February 5th, 2023
Australian Prime Minister Dominic Rogers announced on Sunday that he would step down as leader of the ruling center-left Labor Party and prime minister before the country's next general election. In a statement, Rogers said he had come to the decision that it would "be the best for myself and my party" for a change in leadership to occur before the next general election, due in late 2024. He cited "the exacting toll" of leadership on both himself and his family for his decision.
The 47 year-old prime minister took office in 2018, ousting his predecessor Fiona Warne's center-right coalition government. Rogers led Labor to a second majority in 2021 in what has been described as the "biggest political surprise" in Australia in nearly five decades. While he has instrumented several reforms while in office, including increasing the national minimum wage and overhauling the country's labor codes, Rogers and his government recently gained international attention to omit King Charles III's (who serves as Australia's head of state) portrait from the country's five-dollar bill in favor of an image honoring indigenous Australians.
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Petrelli confirmed as Defense secretary
Tuesday, February 7th, 2023
Former congressman Nate Petrelli (D-NY) was confirmed by the United States Senate to serve as the nation's next Secretary of Defense, with a strong 70-27 confirmation vote in his favor. Petrelli formally took control over the Department of Defense from former secretary Jack Shannon, a retired general who served as chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under presidents Santos and Walken.
Petrelli served in Congress from 2007 until leaving office in January, having lost the post-redistricting Democratic primary against fellow incumbent Julie Dreyer in an upset. Prior to leaving office, he was the lead Democrat on the House Armed Services committee from 2019 to 2023, serving as chair from 2019 to 2021.
The Senate also confirmed Petrelli's former colleague representative Olivia Buckland (D-IN) to the post of Secretary of Health and Human Services today, by a margin of 59 to 40. Buckland's confirmation has resulted in the second vacancy of the new Congress, with the first being another House seat vacated by the death of its holder (Winchester Collins of California).
New Secret Service chief says agency "made mistakes", will reevaluate guidelines
Monday, February 13th, 2023
Newly-named Director of the United States Secret Service Gina Toscano said that the agency "made mistakes" in a meeting with congressional leaders shortly after being named head of the protective service, and confirmed that the agency would reevaluate its guidelines regarding disclosing possible signs of medical distress suffered by those under Secret Service protection.
Toscano is the first woman to lead the Secret Service, having been selected by President Seaborn to take over after her predecessor James Burke resigned as a result of the internal investigation into the service's protection of former presidential candidate Alan Duke. Duke, who suffered a stroke a week after losing the presidential contest last election to Seaborn, was reportedly observed by Secret Service agents to be exhibiting behavior that Treasury Secretary Meredith Payne called "signs of medical distress", but declined to inform Duke or the campaign's doctors.
Hearings into the agency have begun on Capitol Hill, with Republicans accusing the agency of "politically-motivated malpractice" in its treatment of Duke (both Toscano and deputy director Leon I. Stuckey have said that they have found little evidence that any inaction was motivated as a result of political disagreements), while leading Democrats, including Congressman Chris Thiele (D-RI), head of the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, have called for a "serious probe into agency practices" over the matter.
Earlier in her career, Toscano was one of the Secret Service agents present when white supremacists attempted to murder President Josiah Bartlet and his body-man Charlie Young (the current US Trade Representative) at Rosslyn, Virginia in 2000, injuring Bartlet and 3 others, including then-White House staffer Josh Lyman (now a Democratic congressman from Connecticut). Toscano, protecting Bartlet's youngest daughter Zoey at the time, was the main eyewitness identifying spotter Carl Leroy in the crowd, which helped lead to Leroy's quick apprehension after the other two perpetrators (Ed Vinyard and Ethan Alexander) were killed quickly after they attempted to assassinate Bartlet and Young. As a result of her prominence in identifying Leroy, Toscano was transferred away from protective detail, working in anti-counterfeiting operations until 2011, when she became the agent in charge of the Las Vegas Secret Service office.
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Tuesday, 14 February 2023
Civil unrest and devastation hinder Haitian aid efforts
Humanitarian aid to the devastated nation of Haiti is facing tremendous hurtles owing to the widespread devastation caused by last week's earthquake as well as civil unrest against the government of President Michel Philippe. Personnel from the International Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) have reported that the devastation caused by the 4 February earthquake near the capital of Port-au-Prince has "tremendously damaged" the country's infrastructure and led to "tens of thousands of buildings" collapsing or being declared uninhabitable thanks to lax building codes and poor building materials.
Meanwhile, civil unrest has also hindered aid to parts of the country, with antigovernment protesters in Port-au-Prince calling for Philippe to resign for the poor state of infrastructure in the country, which some have blamed on government corruption.
The Foreign Office has joined other western and European nations in offering humanitarian aid and telling its citizens to leave Haiti unless they are volunteering for relief efforts. Foreign Secretary Adam Jackson repeated his admonition to British citizens in Haiti to avoid "areas of domestic unrest" in the troubled island republic, while addressing the House of Commons on Monday over the government's proposal to create a United Nations peacekeeping force for Haiti if the civil unrest begins to impact the neighboring Dominican Republic.
List of Members of the 118th United States Congress
(as of February 19, 2023)
United States Senate
(as of February 19, 2023)
United States Senate
Party standings
Democratic: 51
Republican: 49
Members listed by classes
Alabama
2. Cody Riley (R) Wil Wheaton
3. Jim Doldier (R) Jason Beghe
Alaska2. Robert Cantina (R) William Sadler
3. Bill Forrestal (D) Jeremy Renner
Arizona1. Tony McMichael (D) Reid Scott
3. Antonio Rodrigues (D) Jon Seda
Arkansas2. Hubert "Arkansas" Smith (D) Nathan Burgess
3. Fletcher Carey (R) G.W. Bailey
California1. Nicole Kershaw (D) Natalie Portman
3. Abbie Heilemann (D) Téa Leoni
Colorado2. Ben Newell (D) Peter Krause
3. Camille Aubry (D) Mélissa Theuriau
Connecticut1. Michelle Van Dorn (D) Edie Falco
3. Chris Casey (D) Johnny Galecki
Delaware1. Joseph McKenna (D) Jeff Doucette
2. Clare McAuley (D) Terry Farrell
Florida1. Alicia DeSantos (D) Roxann Dawson
2. Tanner McClay (R) Timothy Stack
Georgia1. Charlie Forrester (R) Mitch Pileggi
2. Max Lobell III (R) Skeet Ulrich
Hawaii1. Arthur Breech (D) Peter Coyote
3. David Kuhio (D) Cliff Curtis
Idaho2. Gina DiMeo (R) Rebecca Mader
3. David Arkin (R) Reed Birney
Illinois2. Mitch Bryce (D) Alan Dale
3. Joyce Pearce (D) Michelle Forbes
Indiana1. Rudi Robinson (D) Reggie Miller
3. Gibson Carluke (R) Jay Karnes
Iowa2. Joe Joeckler (R) David Eigenberg
3. Christine Ledford (D) Sarah Wynter
Kansas2. Peter Gault (R) Kevin Nealon
3. Curt Judd (R) Jeff Hephner
Kentucky2. James Lincoln (R) Kelly AuCoin
3. Chris Mannix (D) Michael Imperioli
Louisiana2. Rick Remick (D) Treat Williams
3. David Morrison (R) Michael Harney
Maine1. William Katt (D) Peter Friedman
2. Stephen Wilson (D) Kelsey Grammer
Maryland1. Cain McClelland (D) Matt Oberg
3. Joe Derrick (D) Danny Huston
Massachusetts1. Ryan Lyndell (D) Mark Hamill
2. Jimmy Fitzsimmons (D) Aaron Eckhart
Michigan1. Becky Reeseman (D) Amy Aquino
3. Michael Rice (D) Larenz Tate
Minnesota1. Lara Mansfield (D) Ann Cusack
2. Peggy Jones (D) Zoe McLellan
Mississippi1. Ann Choate (R) Mary-Pat Green
2. Dylan McNamara (R) Nick Chinlund
Missouri1. Lewis Henderson (R) Louis Herthum
3. Laura Shallick (R) Patricia Heaton
Montana1. George Wirth (R) Barry Corbin
2. Kurt Carner (D) Michael Chernus
Nebraska1. Bill Daniel (R) Bruce Boxleitner
2. Emmit George (R) William B. Davis
Nevada1. Vic Huntington (D) Eric Dane
3. Matthew Spencer (D) Matthew Gray Gubler
New Hampshire2. Felix Moore (R) Richard Topol
3. Ellie Wilkins (R) Sigourney Weaver
New Jersey1. Alex Crossley (D) Brady Corbet
2. Dante Jenkins (D) Harry Lennix
New Mexico1. Michael Rojas (R) Enrique Murciano
2. Andy Ritter (D) Jon Rubenstein
New York1. Andrew Thorn (D) Patrick Dempsey
3. Tim Burrell (D) Woody Harrelson
North Carolina2. Kenny Sattler (R) Kevin O'Rourke
3. Hank King (D) Anson Mount
North Dakota1. Jamie Muller (R) Spencer Garrett
3. Matt Chantler (R) Heath Shuler
Ohio1. Dylan Garrison (R) Michael Showalter
3. Ruth Norton-Stewart (R) Marcia Gay Harden
Oklahoma2. Daryl Lukins (R) Rick Worthy
3. Lawrence Martin (R) William R. Moses
Oregon2. Curtis Ryan (R) Neil Patrick Harris
3. Robert Greys (D) Wil Love
Pennsylvania1. Carlin Cassidy (R) Paul Johansson
3. Matt Clausen (D) Tim Daly
Rhode Island1. John Huntingdon (D) Jon Lithgow
2. Jim Velasquez (D) Esi Morales
South Carolina2. Hamilton Crooks (R) Liev Schreiber
3. Brad Maxwell (R) Steve Coulter
South Dakota2. Tim Masters (R) Anthony Edwards
3. Tony Sutton (R) Jeff Witzke
Tennessee1. Dan Hammond (R) William Sanderson
2. Patrick Stacy (R) Dwight Schultz
Texas1. Davis Roberts (R) Shawn Doyle
2. Mark Cumberland (R) Ingo Rademacher
Utah1. Jeff Heston (R) Anthony LaPaglia
3. Mark Elderton (R) Julian McMahon
Vermont1. Sarah O’Brien (D) Mary Steenburgen
3. Marietta Nerlinger (D) Michele Scarabelli
Virginia1. Rob Buchanan (R) Patrick Fabian
2. Lou Thornton (D) Janeane Garofalo
Washington1. William Wiley (D) James Earl Jones
3. Andrew Howard (D) Matt Lanter
West Virginia1. Sam Hedrick (R) Derek Cecil
2. Mac Walters (R) Currie Graham
Wisconsin1. Nate Bradshaw (D) Adam Brody
3. Drake Headley (D) Sean Astin
Wyoming1. Herman Morton (R) Chuck Shumata
2. Kent Harris (R) Tim Snay
United States House of Representatives
Party standings
Democratic: 231
Republican: 202
Vacant: 2
Members listed by district
Alabama
01. Matt Averhoff (R)
02. Bryan Mason (R)
03. Simeon Pullner (R)
04. Gary Bridges (R)
05. MacKenzie Dreifort (R)
06. Corey Parker (R)
07. Billy McCain (D)
AlaskaAL. Franklin Woodside (D) Jack Coleman
Arizona01. Kishore Vakil (D)
02. Quentin Collier (R)
03. Hector Arroyo (D)
04. Emma Avila (D)
05. Bill Jones (R)
06. Brandon Morgan (R)
07. Ivan Gutierrez (D)
08. Tammy Lorenz (R)
09. James Culkin (R)
Arkansas01. Karl Greer (R)
02. Jack Stanton (D) John Travolta
03. Bonnie Thayer (R)
04. Mason Arnold (R)
California01. Doug Grassley (R)
02. Marvin Hallifax (D) Lewis Black
03. Kevin Johnson (R)
04. John Capuano (D)
05. Nathan Merritt (R)
06. José Ebrard (D)
07. Claudia Greenwood (D) Kristin Davis
08. Julianne Wake (D)
09. Cody Joseph (D)
10. Kristin LeBrandt (D) Brenda Strong
11. Jack Caton (D) Scott Bakula
12. Stephen Savage (D) Ben McKenzie
13. Will Durham (R) Michael Vartan
14. Kara Sherman (D)
15. George Simmell (D) George Wyner
16. Ken Uyeda (D)
17. Katherine Garcia (D)
18. Ernesto Granado (D) Gael Garcia Bernal
19. Sam Howard (D) Chris Egan
20. vacant
21. Julia Simmons (D)
22. Trent Gorman (D)
23. Johnston Meek (R)
24. Ben Wade (D)
25. Maria Lopez Estudillo (D)
26. Jennifer Vinick (R) Sasha Alexander
27. Kristin Vasquez (R)
28. Juan Vincente (D)
29. Gabriel Morillo (D)
30. Eve Howard (D) Sophia Bush
31. Kellen Cahill (D) Daniel Tosh
32. T.J. Conover (D)
33. Judy Portillo (D)
34. Luis De Herrera (D)
35. Kerri Lindo (D)
36. Brody Lambert (D)
37. Russell Lewis (D)
38. Erin Baker (D)
39. Leslie Wang (D)
40. Riley Church (R) Eric Winter
41. Rob McLauchlin (R)
42. Megan McKeena (D)
43. Tavon Glass (D) Don Cheadle
44. Marcia Gutierrez (D)
45. Jay Chao (D)
46. Pablo Aldrete (D)
47. Alex Perrin (D)
48. Brian DeMaio (R)
49. Sam Cohen (D)
50. Andy Lamkin (D)
51. Sara Pérez (D)
52. Rebecca Burgoon (D)
Colorado01. Olivia King (D)
02. Chris Petrie (D)
03. Sidney Ball (R)
04. Matthew Garner (R)
05. J.R. Schultz (D)
06. Sophia Hill (D)
07. Nick Henderson (D)
08. Diana Baca (D)
Connecticut01. Laura Halperin (D)
02. Rosalie Mazur (D)
03. Ned Rothstein (D)
04. Max Brantley (D)
05. Josh Lyman (D) Bradley Whitford
DelawareAL. Tanya Mathis (D)
Florida01. Lawrence Locke (R)
02. Lynn Haven (R)
03. Rick Hunter (R)
04. Gary Card (R)
05. Francis Kilner (R)
06. Scott McGregor (R) Neal McDonough
07. Audra Weaver (R)
08. Kay Mort (R)
09. Kendrick Baker (D)
10. Colleen Schrute (D)
11. Trent Thornburg (R)
12. Ted Wyman (R)
13. Luke Minnear (D) Wayne Knight
14. Steven Stevens (D) Dwayne Johnson
15. Laura Duralia (R)
16. Ted Broderick (R)
17. Tim Johnson (R) Adam Driver
18. Randal Simons VI (R)
19. Mychal Tate (R)
20. Jeff Johnson (D) Eddie Murphy
21. Martin Negron (R)
22. Selina Draper (D)
23. Robert Bruce (D) Michael C. Hall
24. Paula Armitage (D)
25. Tim Walker (D)
26. Marina Álvarez (D)
27. Carol Gelsey (D) Catherine Keener
28. Jose Cervantes (D) David Zayas
Georgia01. Dustin Benedict (R)
02. Jessie Hayward (D)
03. Auggie Davis (R)
04. Eli Palmer (D)
05. Donte Madison (D)
06. Elton Russell (R)
07. Cheryl McCracken (D)
08. Craig Huron (R)
09. Cass Erving (R)
10. Jim Hagen (R)
11. Rick Gordon (R)
12. Rick Cummings (R)
13. Anderson Gruber (D)
14. Patty King (R) Sidney Powell
Hawaii01. Michelle Takei (D)
02. Brian Kapahala (D)
Idaho01. Ron Gossman (R)
02. Heathcliff Verlander (R)
Illinois01. Danny Owens (D)
02. Robyn O'Neal (D)
03. Maria Machado (D)
04. Pedro Rodriguez (D)
05. Mary Maskaleris (D)
06. J.R. Jennsen (D)
07. John Baxley (D)
08. James Incavaglia (D)
09. Daniel Maddox (D) Nathan Fillion
10. Chris Sandler (D)
11. Jim Hinojosa (D)
12. Marvin Troughton (R)
13. Jess Munchak (D)
14. Carmen Bell (D)
15. Bill Delmon (R) James Downey
16. Callie Durling (R)
17. Eric Cordero (D)
Indiana01. Tom Strnad (D)
02. Jackie Raines (R)
03. Mark Hospers (R)
04. Todd Means (R)
05. Stanley Carmichael (R)
06. Mitchell Harris (R) Peter Berg
07. vacant
08. Gary Tutt (R)
09. Kris Young (R)
Iowa01. Rita Pence (D)
02. Ty Blount (D)
03. Tyler Anderson (R)
04. Brian Hale (R)
Kansas01. Philip Goddard (R)
02. Tawny Crier (R) Valerie Maheffy
03. Lynsey Kimber (D)
04. Kirk Brewer (R) Brandon Routh
Kentucky01. Pauline Gardner (R)
02. Martin Reynolds (R)
03. Wendy Nealling (D)
04. Daniel Abend (R) Rick Holmes
05. Calvin Robin (R)
06. Bernard Clark (R)
Louisiana01. Steven Milling (R)
02. Sam Callas (D) Brad Pitt
03. Julie Bernard (R)
04. Steve Harriman (R)
05. Eugene Tewes (R)
06. Patricia Stecker (R)
Maine01. Diane Frost (D) Cybill Shepherd
02. Peter Zelowsky (D)
Maryland01. Donald Richter (R)
02. Sam Weston (D)
03. Dan Whiteside (D) Jordan Bridges
04. Janelle Carson (D)
05. Brianna Fritz (D)
06. Jack Phelps (D)
07. Demetrius Gray (D)
08. Benjamin Emanuel (D)
Massachusetts01. Mark Sellner (D) John Getz
02. Stephen Reed (D)
03. Caroline Martin (D)
04. Eli Gold (D)
05. Arianna Cathey (D)
06. Ray Sindh (D)
07. Monique Halliday (D)
08. Theo Damaskos (D)
09. Peter Swanson (D) Seth MacFarlane
Michigan01. Mark Bowman (R)
02. Peter Mouw (R)
03. Jill Mulkens (D)
04. Freddie Coons (R)
05. Jerry Proctor (R)
06. Nikolas Bronislaus (D)
07. Darren Gibson (R) David St. James
08. Richard Arthur (D)
09. Lucas Gregory (R)
10. Brad Baran (D)
11. Andrew Travis (D) Casey Affleck
12. Shashi Gupta (D)
13. Brandon Fields (D) Kevin Michael Richardson
Minnesota01. Jim Hegseth
02. Dan Greene (D)
03. Pauline Granholm (D)
04. Melanie Selles (D)
05. Fatima Ali (D)
06. Brett Randolph (R)
07. Karen Hansen (R)
08. Jordan Samuels (D) Nicholas Brendan
Mississippi01. Donnie Reeves (R)
02. Raymond Purcell (D)
03. Curtis Spurling (R)
04. Greg Fournier (R)
Missouri01. Jo Dole (D)
02. Zach Thibodeaux (R)
03. Carol Goodman (R)
04. Todd Hitch (R)
05. David Moore (D)
06. Jordan Peele (R)
07. Patricia Templeton (R)
08. Nick Brown (R)
Montana01. Steve McGinnis (R)
02. Ethan Moellar (R)
Nebraska01. Anthony Bentley (R)
02. J.D. Garrett (R)
03. Gail Trent (R)
Nevada01. Derek Maxwell (D)
02. Matt Soltero (R)
03. Nancy Tackett (D)
04. Micah O'Rourke (D)
New Hampshire01. Nick Barlos (D)
02. Benjamin Benoit (D) Jim Abele
New Jersey01. Walt Hubbard (D)
02. Tucker Fitzpatrick (R)
03. Ty Branson (D)
04. Stu Clendon (R)
05. D.R. Perry (D)
06. Holly Clarke (D)
07. Connor Ramsey (R)
08. Khalil Hamdan (D)
09. Kevin Redman (D) Justin Long
10. Cedric Williams (D)
11. Becca Hedberg (D)
12. Gregory Laurie (D)
New Mexico01. Tomas Candellario (D)
02. Jimmy Hamlin (D)
03. Esteban Cabello (D)
New York01. Joe Calhoun (R) Joe O'Connor
02. Jim McHenry (R)
03. Ronnie Tucker (D) Steve Schirripa
04. Mike Tuccinelli (D)
05. Patrick Sampson (D)
06. Keira Briggs (D)
07. David Ramirez (D)
08. Greg Hamilton (D)
09. Sharon Pine (D)
10. Montell Jamison (D)
11. Eli Rosen (D) Anthony Carrigan
12. Julia Dreyer (D) Amy Poehler
13. Naomi Herrera-Rodriguez (D) Diane Guerrero
14. Wire Munson (D)
15. Rich Torres (D)
16. Olivia Stabler (D)
17. Carol Powell (D)
18. Steve Donnelly (D)
19. Josh Crowley (D)
20. Sam Heller (D)
21. Mike Mazzieri (D)
22. Jack Rivers (D)
23. Jim Cutter (R) Richard Dean Anderson
24. Andrew Casey (R)
25. Melissa Castle (D)
26. Mark Jenks (D)
North Carolina01. Sue Borden (D)
02. John Sellers (D)
03. Frank McCabe (R)
04. Andrea Quinn (D)
05. Tommy Ray Mitchell (R)
06. Beverly Carr (D)
07. Henry Bortles (R)
08. Denny Irving (R)
09. Samantha Wilcox (R)
10. John M. Porter (R)
11. Jim Woodcock (R)
12. Aaron Bonds (D)
13. Mary Lou Chambers (R)
14. Jack Jefferson (D)
North DakotaAL. Veronica Benjamin (R)
Ohio01. Joan Reese (D) Christina Hendricks
02. Brett Holberger (R)
03. Tom Remus (D)
04. Joseph Bellefontaine (R)
05. Don Ramsay (R)
06. Jerry Hoff (R)
07. Joseph Steele (R) Rupert Friend
08. Robert G. Mitchell (R) Bruce McCulloch
09. Greg Zorn (R)
10. Glenn Shaw (R)
11. Marcus LeBrandt (D) Tim Reid
12. Cynthi Tibbs (R)
13. Nicole Hutchins (D)
14. Dustin Walton (R)
15. Todd White (R)
Oklahoma01. Rod Wooden (R)
02. Markford Wayne (R)
03. Shane Reeves (R)
04. Solomon Christian Malden (R)
05. Terry Molloney (R)
Oregon01. Alex Truesdale (D)
02. Greg Hutchins (R)
03. Evan Rhodes (D)
04. Cody Zucker (R) Seth Adkins
05. Melissa Leon-Thompson (D)
06. Andrea Downey (D)
Pennsylvania01. Brian Kinsky (D)
02. Lydia Hemmer (D)
03. Art Chennault (D)
04. Josephine Clark (D)
05. Jacob Klein (D)
06. Emily Jampoler (D)
07. Mary Quaife (D)
08. Anthony Cipriani (D)
09. Ben Sizemore (R)
10. Sean Reilly (R)
11. Eddie Santoni (R)
12. Samantha Kennedy (D)
13. Phil Taylor (R)
14. Joseph Bruno (R) James Handy
15. Kyle Jackson (R)
16. Rhonda Persell (R)
17. Rob Raschi (D)
Rhode Island01. Tim Longo (D)
02. Chris Thiele (D) Christopher Cousins
South Carolina01. Billie Smith (R)
02. Scott Wilson (R)
03. Todd Winters (R)
04. Elle Barclay (D) Alison Brie
05. Wilson Sharpe (R)
06. Bill Collins (D)
07. Phil Wheaton (R)
South DakotaAL. Jeff Wanner (R)
Tennessee01. Alan Spicer (R)
02. Brent Allen (R)
03. Percy Barnett (R)
04. Marsha Holzhauer (R)
05. Andy Winslow (R)
06. Miles Harper (R)
07. Roy Norton (R)
08. Ronald Schultz (R)
09. Isaac Marshall (D)
Texas01. Charles Miner (R)
02. Dave Carlton (R)
03. Michelle Rodriguez (R)
04. John Westphal (R)
05. Greg Sheffield (R)
06. Roy Ryan (R)
07. Nadine Pannill (D)
08. Earl Bragan (R)
09. Patsy Burns (D)
10. Cory Bender (R)
11. Ronald Gennings (R)
12. John Peters (R)
13. Gary Oliver (R)
14. Bob Mayer (R) Stephen Root
15. Maria Consuelo (D)
16. Jose Sutter (D)
17. John Collington (R)
18. Ana Flores (D)
19. Randy Pitt (R)
20. Juan Iglesias (D)
21. Benedicto Romero (R)
22. Peter Lien (R) Art Chubadalah
23. Gina Ramírez (D)
24. Merchant Tanner (R)
25. Lee Weldon (R)
26. Uriah Rathburn (R) Tom Waring
27. Mike Burton (R)
28. Francis Suarez (D)
29. Tracy Luna (D)
30. Eddie Cullen (D)
31. Christopher Finn (R) Frank Ashmore
32. Ted Worthy (D)
33. Mark Dewitt (D)
34. Felipe Vega (D)
35. Robert Zapata (D)
36. Al Farley (R)
37. Diego Chavez (D)
38. Frank Parry (R)
Utah01. Rulon Carrington (R)
02. Chris Hughes (R)
03. Karl Beck (R)
04. Julianne Betancourt (R)
VermontAL. Alexis Laroquette (D) Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
Virginia01. John Marks (R)
02. Frank Harrison (R)
03. Gina Pratt (D) Ronnie Troup
04. Kenneth Dent (D)
05. Chris Maddox (R)
06. Clint Desjarlais (R)
07. Brett Henson (R)
08. Allison Baynes (D)
09. John Wark (R)
10. Lew Tosini (D)
11. Mark Andrews (D)
Washington01. George Washington Li (D)
02. Randy Sims (D)
03. Carolyn Klosterman (R)
04. Chip Brown (R)
05. Steven Thomas (R)
06. Patty Thompson-Cline (D)
07. Kevin Lyson (D)
08. Ann Gowing (D)
09. Cameron Hall (D)
10. Tom Vanier (D)
West Virginia01. John Cleveland (R)
02. Jason McCloud (R)
Wisconsin01. Samuel Botrell (R)
02. Bud Wachtell (D) James Eckhouse
03. Brian Forman (D)
04. Sheila Fields (D) Charlotte Colavin
05. Booby Cornbaugh (R)
06. Glen Heinsohn (R)
07. Tom Erstad (R)
08. Matt Lynch (R)
WyomingAL. Abel Sheen (R)
Former members
Congressman Winchester Collins (R-CA-20), January 3 to 10 — died in office; seat currently vacant.
Congresswoman Olivia Buckland (D-IN-07), January 3 to February 7 — resigned to become Secretary of Health and Human Services; seat currently vacant. Barbara Hershey
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White House announces forum on healthcare reform for early March
Monday, February 20th, 2023
The White House announced that it will hold a forum between congressional, medical, industry and union leaders on healthcare on March 6 to formulate a healthcare proposal that it will present to Congress.
White House Chief of Staff Will Bailey said that the forum will bring together stakeholders for their input on policy proposals the White House is considering, and for them to offer their own solutions to insure every American gets healthcare coverage.
"The president won a large mandate in part because of his pledge to reform our healthcare system that leaves millions of Americans uninsured or forces them to pay way too much for inadequate healthcare plans," Bailey said. "But reform of such a large sector of our economy and one that will affect almost every American, will require careful planning and finding the best solutions for the American people."
Around 46 million Americans, or nearly 15 percent of adults and seven percent of children, do not have health insurance. President Seaborn has in the past proposed both a universal healthcare system similar to those in other developed countries or a "public option" where Americans could buy into a low-cost government-run healthcare policy that would compete with private insurance. Both proposals have been criticized by Republican leaders, with House Minority Leader Mitchell Harris (R-IN) decrying universal healthcare as "socialized medicine" and saying a "public option" was "an insidious attempt to enact government control over Americans' health care choices."
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Monday, February 20th 2023
Former presidential candidate Alan Duke retires from public life
Claremore, OK— In an open letter, former Republican presidential nominee Alan Duke announced today that he would be retiring from public life, citing the health effects of a stroke he suffered shortly after the most recent presidential election in November.
Duke, who has not made public appearances since suffering the stroke, revealed that he had suffered "likely permanent" damage to the speech center of his brain, making it difficult for him to communicate audibly, and has been suffering from ataxia (lack of muscle control) that has affected his balance and partial facial paralysis as a result of the stroke.
"I am thankful that in my retirement, a new generation of American leaders stand ready to continue the fight that I have waged during my time in public life." Duke wrote. The former senator also revealed that he had relinquished his place on the board of the Klaxon Oil corporation, which he had been set to return to before his stroke, although Klaxon CEO Corbin Davis later clarified that Duke would remain an honorary, non-voting member of the Klaxon board.
Duke shocked the political world with his victory in the Republican primaries, with his hard-right views and controversial and bigoted statements making him the most polarizing presidential nominee in recent memory. Aided in part by Texas billionaire Andrew Long running as an independent looking to gather the support of "anti-Duke" Republicans, Duke and his equally controversial running mate, retired general Lloyd Pendleton, were defeated in the largest loss by a Republican candidate in over fifty years.
President Seaborn said he and First Lady Lauren Parker-Seaborn and "millions of Americans" were saddened by the news of Duke's affliction and asked Americans to "join Lauren and I in prayer for Alan Duke and his family."
Tuesday February 21st, 2023
UK Parliament Polling
Lab 33% (-1)
Con 33% (+1)
NPP 12% (n/c)
Lib Dem 11%(+1)
SNP 3% (n/c)
Green 2% (-1)
Soc Alliance 2% (n/c)
Others 3% (n/c)
Scotland
SNP 35% (n/c)
Lab 25% (-1)
Con 25% (+1)
Lib Dem 9% (n/c)
Soc Alliance 4% (n/c)
Scot Green 2% (n/c)
+/- from Jan 3rd 2023 poll
Based on the above figures, this would be the make up of the House of Commons
Lab: 287 (-6)
Con: 270 (+6)
SNP: 28 (n/c)
Lib Dem: 22 (n/c)
NPP: 20 (n/c)
NI: 18
PC: 3 (n/c)
Soc All: 1 (n/c)
Speaker: 1 (n/c)
*Result Labour 39 short of a majority (326)
Are there any signs of the PM calling an election, given it needs to be held by September?
It is actually October, it isn't a straight five years from election, if you look at OTL. It was April 9th 1992 with the next election on May 1st 1997. The last date the PM could call an election is Thursday October 5th.
As for calling a General Election, at this stage, no point, although the Tories have edged themselves level, Labour would still have a small advantage in terms of seats, if the current polling reflected the actual result, it would produce the Hung Parliament from hell, and almost certainly another election within a few months. Duggan will see how the local elections go on May 4th, and hope for a "feel good factor" from the Kings Coronation on May 6th.
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Senate confirms Gomez as Energy Secretary
Wednesday, February 22nd, 2023
The Senate today ratified President Seaborn's choice of former Texas lieutenant governor Ralph Gomez (D) to be the nation's next Secretary of Energy. Gomez, who served under former vice president John Hoynes during the disgraced former vice president's brief political comeback, was confirmed by a large 65 to 33 margin, replacing former secretary Joan Tanner, who left office in early January.
Gomez, the first Latino to serve as Secretary of Energy, was opposed by several environmentalist organizations, including the Sierra Club, for his past association with several Texas-based oil companies and his statements during his confirmation hearing that he did not oppose further drilling for natural gas to meet America's energy needs, although he declined to answer questions about drilling in specific federal lands or protected lands. Gomez also reiterated his support for more robust energy and power grid standards, and said he was "enraged" by the Texas power grid's failures due to cold weather in February 2021, a problem exacerbated by most of Texas' power being outside the purview of federal regulations.
"If I am confirmed, I will work with elected officials at all levels of government to try and prevent something like [the 2021 Texas power crisis] from ever happening again." Gomez said in his confirmation testimony.
With Gomez's confirmation, only two Cabinet agencies, the Department of Commerce and Department of Transportation do not yet have permanent secretaries confirmed by the Senate. Two other Cabinet-level positions (Ambassador to the United Nations and administrator of the Small Business Administration) also have nominees that are yet to be confirmed or rejected by the Senate.