News
Senate rejects proposal to overturn VA’s abortion ban
The U.S. Senate squashed an effort Wednesday by Democratic lawmakers to overturn the Department of Veterans Affairs’ ban on abortions or abortion counseling for VA patients. In a 50-48 vote, the Senate rejected a proposal by Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, to reinstate VA coverage of abortions. Blumenthal said the ban, which we...[Read More]
Senate Republicans vote down legislation to halt Iran war
Senate Republicans voted down an effort Wednesday to halt President Donald Trump’s war against Iran, demonstrating early support for a conflict that has rapidly spread across the Middle East with no clear U.S. exit strategy. The legislation, known as a war powers resolution, failed on a 47-53 vote tally. The vote fell mostly along party lines, though Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted in ...[Read More]
Senate votes down measure to limit Trump’s ability to strike Venezuela
Senate Republicans voted to reject legislation Thursday that would have put a check on President Donald Trump’s ability to launch an attack against Venezuela, as Democrats pressed Congress to take a stronger role in Trump’s high-stakes campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Lawmakers, including top Republicans, have demanded that the Trump administration provide them with more infor...[Read More]
Senate, House defense bills seek to prevent renaming of US Navy vessels
Congress is seeking to limit the authority of the Navy Secretary when it comes to changing the names of U.S. Navy vessels. The Senate Armed Services Committee’s markup of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act includes a section that the notes that the service secretary, a position currently held by Hung Cao, may only change the name of a vessel with the consent of the Senate. Sin...[Read More]
Senator encouraged Trump to ‘blow up something’ in message to cartels
Within a week of Donald Trump’s election, Sen. Lindsey Graham counseled the president-elect to quickly send a message to the drug cartels from the White House. “Blow up something,” Graham told Trump. The brazen military strike on a suspected drug-smuggling speedboat carrying 11 people from Venezuela this month is just what the South Carolina senator had in mind. But it has cleaved fresh divisions ...[Read More]
Senator encouraged Trump to ‘blow up something’ in message to cartels
Within a week of Donald Trump’s election, Sen. Lindsey Graham counseled the president-elect to quickly send a message to the drug cartels from the White House. “Blow up something,” Graham told Trump. The brazen military strike on a suspected drug-smuggling speedboat carrying 11 people from Venezuela this month is just what the South Carolina senator had in mind. But it has cleaved fresh divisions ...[Read More]
Senator presses Navy for answers on USS Abraham Lincoln deployment
Sen. Richard Blumenthal is asking the Navy to account for conditions aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and detail the extensions to the ship’s original deployment schedule. The Connecticut Democrat, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent a letter on Wednesday to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao seeking information about the carrier’s lo...[Read More]
Senator stalls 3 ‘unfit’ officer promotions in retort to Hegseth
An Oregon senator has placed a hold on unanimous consent promotions for three military officers, citing behavior — including war zone misconduct allegations and a podcast with extremist language and viewpoints — that he says make the officers “unfit” for higher roles. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., placed a hold Wednesday on the promotions of Marine Lt. Col. Vincent Noble, Col. Thomas Siverts and Navy Lt...[Read More]
Senator ‘alarmed’ about barracks privatization, seeks answers from DOD
A U.S. senator who has been an outspoken critic of the military’s privatized family housing wants answers from the Defense Department about its plans to privatize more barracks. “Given the significant challenges that privatization has imposed on military family housing for decades, directly resulting from the substantial failures of private housing providers, I am alarmed that the Department of De...[Read More]
Senators introduce bill to abolish military draft agency
A bipartisan group of lawmakers unveiled legislation on Thursday that would dismantle the government agency responsible for maintaining the military draft database of young, eligible men. The bill — advanced by Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo. — would phase out the Selective Service System, citing its annual operating cost of more than $31 million per year. ...[Read More]
Senators question whether military pharmacy program is the best deal for beneficiaries
Senators questioned Wednesday whether the financial details of the military’s Tricare pharmacy program benefit the contractor, Express Scripts, more than military beneficiaries. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., raised concerns about anti-competitive tactics, questioning the practice of allowing Express Scripts — the largest pharmacy benefit manager in the United States — to have the contract as exc...[Read More]
Senators seek to make it easier for VA to exhume ‘disgraced’ veterans
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators wants to make it easier to exhume and remove the remains of veterans convicted of serious crimes from national cemeteries. “The burial grounds of our national cemeteries should be reserved for the bravest and most honorable among us,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in a statement announcing the bill introduced Tuesday. The legislation would give the Department ...[Read More]