Democrats’ pessimism about party’s future is highest in 8 years: poll
A new poll finds that Democrats are feeling glum about their party’s prospects after Republican President-elect Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election. Democratic pessimism about the party’s future is at its highest point in eight years, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. Republicans, on the other hand, are riding high and have the most optimistic outlook about their party recorded since the 2016 election, Trump’s last presidential victory. For the first time since 2016, more Americans say the GOP, not the Democratic Party, represents the interests of “people like them” very or somewhat well, 50% to 43%. Trump defeated Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, winning 312 Electoral College Votes to her 226 votes and sweeping all the battleground states. Republicans also flipped control of the Senate and managed to cling to their majority in the House of Representatives as well – guaranteeing full control of the federal government with a favorable 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court. DEMOCRATIC PENNSYLVANIA ELECTION OFFICIAL APOLOGIZES FOR CONTROVERSIAL COMMENTS AS SENATE RECOUNT BEGINS Short of a filibuster-proof supermajority in the Senate, there is not much more Republicans could ask for in terms of power to enact their agenda at the federal level. So Democrats, understandably, are not thrilled about their party. A majority of Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents, 51%, still say they are optimistic about the party’s future. However, 49% are pessimistic – an increase of 20 percentage points from how Democrats felt after the 2022 midterm election’s mixed results, according to the Pew Research Center. The number of pessimistic Democrats is also about 10 percentage points higher than when Hillary Clinton lost to Trump in 2016. DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST HINTS AT RUNNING TO LEAD THE DNC IN ORDER TO MAKE ‘DEMOCRATS FUN AGAIN’ Those who are under age 50 and those further to the left than conservative and moderate Democrats tended to be more pessimistic. Republicans, however, are far more optimistic about their party today (86%) than they were after the 2022 midterms (65%) and Trump’s 2016 victory (79%). WHAT WEARY SAN FRANCISCANS ARE SAYING AFTER VOTERS REJECTED ‘STRANGLEHOLD’ OF THE PROGRESSIVE LEFT The Pew Research Center noted the partisan gap in Republican and Democratic views of their respective party’s futures is at 35 percentage points, the largest of any recent election. Additionally, more Americans now say the GOP best represents their interests than those who say it is the Democratic Party who does so. About half of Americans say Republicans best represent “people like them” compared to 43% who say so about Democrats – a shift from recent years when the Democratic Party was believed to be more representative of “people like them.” That swing of opinion is almost entirely among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, 85% of whom now say the GOP represents them well or somewhat well. That is a 14-point gain from a previous Pew Research Center survey in June 2023. Most Democrats, 72%, still say their party represents them at least somewhat well. A small minority on both sides say their respective parties do not represent their interests well.
Matt Gaetz says he will not serve in the upcoming session of Congress
Former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz said on a podcast Friday he will not be joining Congress next year, settling an issue that had been the subject of intense speculation in the hours after he withdrew his name from consideration as attorney general. Gaetz had resigned last week from the 118th session of Congress, but it was unclear whether he would serve in the 119th session, beginning in January. Prior to resigning, Gaetz had been under a monthslong investigation by the House Ethics Committee, and the suggestion he might return to Congress touched off a flurry of speculation from members. MATT GAETZ WITHDRAWS FROM CONSIDERATION TO SERVE AS ATTORNEY GENERAL Gaetz dismissed that speculation Friday in an interview with podcaster Charlie Kirk. “There are a number of fantastic Floridians who’ve stepped up to run for my seat, people who have inspired with their heroism, with their public service,” Gaetz told Kirk in an interview on his eponymous podcast. “And I’m actually excited to see Northwest Florida go to new heights and have great representation.” Gaetz did say he planned to be part of staffing the incoming Trump administration and praised Trump’s pick of former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to replace him as the top U.S. prosecutor if confirmed by the Senate. “My good friend Pam Bondi is going to be a phenomenal attorney general for Donald Trump,” Gaetz told Kirk. “She has the legal acumen. She hates criminals. She is a bright legal mind and a fellow Floridian.” The interview comes hours after Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration as Trump’s nominee for attorney general on Thursday, citing what he described as the “distraction” his nomination had caused due to a swirl of allegations about paying underage women for sex. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz said in announcing the decision. The House Ethics Committee had deadlocked days earlier on whether to release their report on their investigation into Gaetz, which kicked off following a Justice Department investigation in 2021 stemming from allegations related to sex trafficking. The DOJ did not press charges in the matter, and attorneys for Gaetz said in 2023 that the Justice Department had dropped the investigation. “We have just spoken with the DOJ and have been informed that they have concluded their investigation into Congressman Gaetz and allegations related to sex trafficking and obstruction of justice, and they have determined not to bring any charges against him,” Gaetz attorneys Marc Mukasey and Isabelle Kirshner said in a statement in February 2023 reported by multiple news outlets. Gaetz has denied all accusations. In an interview Friday, he stressed that he plans to continue to fight on behalf of the president-elect, despite his decision to resign from Congress. “I’m going to be fighting for President Trump,” Gaetz said, adding: “I’m going to be doing whatever he asks of me, as I always have. But I think that eight years is probably enough time in the United States Congress.”
Trump’s ICE nominee decision could be imminent as deportation plan takes spotlight
FIRST ON FOX: A decision on whom President-elect Trump will nominate to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is expected within the coming days, sources familiar with proceedings tell Fox News Digital – ahead of what could be significant opposition to mass deportations from some Democratic states next year. Discussions have been held at Mar-a-Lago this week, and a decision could be made as early as Friday. Whoever is nominated will require Senate confirmation. Who is in the running is unclear. One source said on Thursday that there are still multiple candidates being discussed and that the Trump team has yet to whittle the list down. WHO ELSE COULD BE ON PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP’S IMMIGRATION ‘DREAM TEAM?’ Sources had previously suggested that John Fabbricatore, a former ICE field officer, and Todd Lyons, currently leading the agency’s Enforcement and Removal Operation (ERO) unit in Boston, were among the top contenders. The transition team is understood to be looking for someone with a deep law enforcement background to lead the agency. But Fabbricatore is now understood to be out of the running to lead the agency. Lyons is believed to be held in high regard within the agency and by a number of people on the transition team, given his leadership of the Boston unit and his teams’ work in chasing down criminal illegal immigrants who had been released from custody in the sanctuary city. ‘100% ON BOARD’: BORDER STATE OFFERS TRUMP MASSIVE PLOT OF LAND TO AID MASSIVE DEPORTATION OPERATION Whoever leads the agency will be in the media and political spotlight in the next year as they spearhead what President-elect Trump has promised will be a historic mass deportation operation. Trump has appointed former ICE Director Thomas Homan as “border czar,” and he is expected to take a leadership role in the efforts to secure the border and launch the mass deportation operation. He has also announced that South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem will be his nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security. The transition team has already been eyeing a significant expansion of detention in order to facilitate the operation, with an increase in beds and expanded detention capacity near major metropolitan areas. Those efforts are already drawing significant opposition from Democratic officials in some states. The governors of Illinois, Arizona and Massachusetts have said they won’t assist the administration in the operation. But some Republican states have offered support, with Texas offering more than 1,400 acres of land to stage mass deportations near the border.
Mike Rogers replacing Wray as FBI director is not happening, Trump adviser says
Former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers is no longer under consideration to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the incoming administration, according to a senior adviser to President-elect Donald Trump. Dan Scavino, who will serve as deputy chief of staff in the new White House, posted on social media Friday that a Rogers hire is “not happening.” “Just spoke to President Trump regarding Mike Rogers going to the FBI. It’s not happening — In his own words, ‘I have never even given it a thought.’ Not happening,” Scavino said. Rogers, the 2024 Republican Senate nominee in Michigan who lost his election last week by a razor-thin margin, was considered a leading candidate to be the next FBI director since Trump intends to fire the current director, Christopher Wray. FOX NEWS PROJECTS DEMOCRATS HOLD ONTO KEY SEAT IN BATTLEGROUND MICHIGAN A Republican source familiar told Fox News Digital that Rogers met with Trump last week at the president-elect’s Mar-a-Lago residence. He also met with Trump’s transition team to discuss potentially serving as FBI director, sources familiar said. Trump transition spokesman Brian Hughes declined to comment on Scavino’s post specifically. MIKE ROGERS IN CONSIDERATION FOR FBI CHIEF AFTER MEETING IN MAR-A-LAGO WITH TRUMP TRANSITION TEAM, SOURCES SAY “For transition, we don’t speculate on selections and don’t get ahead of official announcements from President Trump,” he said. Rogers told “FOX & Friends” earlier Friday that “the culture of the FBI on the seventh floor needs to be changed.” Rogers, who worked as a special agent with the FBI in its Chicago office and served as chair of the House Intelligence Committee during the final four years of his decade-long tenure in Congress, was interviewed in 2017 during Trump’s first administration to serve as FBI director after James Comey was dismissed. TRUMP TURNS TO ALLIES AND LOYALISTS TO IMPLEMENT HIS AMERICA FIRST AGENDA But Trump at the time decided to appoint Christopher Wray to the traditional 10-year term steering the federal law enforcement agency. Trump, throughout his 2024 White House bid, campaigned in part on cleaning house at the FBI and has repeatedly claimed — without providing proof — that the bureau is chocked full of politically motivated and corrupt executives. And while not as much as others, Wray at times has been a target of Trump’s criticism. Another name that has been floated in media reports to potentially serve as FBI director in the second Trump administration is Kash Patel, the controversial aide and adviser who served roles at the National Security Council and Defense Department during the final two years of Trump’s first administration. The Department of Justice declined to comment on Scavino ruling out Rogers. Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Hochul spearheads plan to pay NYers to switch to green appliances amid state money woes
New York is rolling out a new incentive for residents who switch to green alternatives for their household appliances. In an announcement Thursday, Gov. Kathy Hochul revealed that her state will be the first to offer a rebate under a new Appliance Upgrade Program. The rebate, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), offers low-and moderate-income households up to $840 if they switch out their fossil fuel-powered clothes dryers with heat pump-powered alternatives. “New York is demonstrating its continued commitment to ensuring an equitable energy transition by leveraging all federal funds available to incentivize consumers to make energy-efficient appliance purchases a priority,” Hochul said in a statement. EXPERTS RIP ‘TRIPLE CROWN OF BAD REGS’ AS BIDEN ADMIN POSTS GAS STOVE RULE IT DENIED WAS A BAN “As a result of these new rebates, low- and moderate-income New Yorkers will save energy and money while doing their laundry with modern technology that will reduce emissions,” she added. 5 INSANE BIDEN-HARRIS APPLIANCE REGULATIONS HEADING YOUR WAY The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), also praised the new initiative. “NYSERDA is pleased to start distributing this IRA funding for home appliance rebates through a customer-centric approach that ensures low-and moderate-income New Yorkers can easily upgrade inefficient clothes drying equipment or purchase a dryer for the first time,” NYSERDA said. The handout comes as New York ranks as having the second-highest debt burden in the nation in 2021, according to the New York State Comptroller. The comptroller’s office released a report on the state’s financing plan, which projected New York would issue over 3.4 times more debt than it will retire over the next five years. New York has been pushing to phase out fossil fuels in the state but has been previously criticized for its initiatives. Officials announced in May 2023 that beginning in 2026, New York will prohibit gas stoves and heating systems for new construction of buildings seven stories or fewer, according to reports. “I think it’s ridiculous, and I think the danger is that it almost seems comedic and so people can take it, you know, maybe not as seriously as they should,” New York Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt told Fox News Digital in an interview before the ban. “It is going to increase people’s utility rates in the state of New York, it is going to decrease energy reliability in the state of New York, and it will do nothing to fight climate change.”
New York judge grants Trump request to file motion to dismiss charges, cancels sentencing indefinitely
Judge Juan Merchan on Friday granted President-elect Donald Trump’s request to file a motion to dismiss the charges in New York v. Trump and removed the sentencing date for the president-elect from the schedule. Merchan said Trump attorneys have until Dec. 2 to file their motion for dismissal. Merchan said Bragg has until Dec. 9 to respond. Merchan also confirmed the stay in sentencing for Trump, which was requested by both Trump’s and Bragg’s attorneys. The sentencing was scheduled for Nov. 26, but on Friday, Merchan said that date “is adjourned.” Trump spokesman and incoming White House communications director Steven Cheung reacted to Merchan’s ruling Friday, telling Fox News Digital it is a “decisive win” for the president. “In a decisive win for President Trump, the hoax Manhattan Case is now fully stayed and sentencing is adjourned,” Cheung told Fox News Digital. “President Trump won a landslide victory as the American People have issued a mandate to return him to office and dispose of all remnants of the Witch Hunt cases.” Cheung added, “All of the sham lawfare attacks against President Trump are now destroyed and we are focused on Making America Great Again.” In a letter to Merchan on Wednesday, Trump defense attorney and now-nominee for Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche demanded the case against Trump be tossed. “On November 5, 2024, the Nation’s People issued a mandate that supersedes the political motivations of DANY’s ‘People,’” Blanche wrote. “This case must be immediately dismissed.” Blanche said that “immediate dismissal of this case is mandated by the federal Constitution, the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, and the interests of justice, in order to facilitate the orderly transition of Executive power following President Trump’s overwhelming victory in the 2024 Presidential Election.” BRAGG CASE ‘EFFECTIVELY OVER’ IN ‘MAJOR VICTORY,’ TRUMP OFFICIALS SAY Blanche’s pre-motion letter on Wednesday was sent in order to request permission to file a motion to dismiss by Dec. 20 and to request a stay on all deadlines, which Bragg and New York prosecutors had agreed to. The letter came after Bragg sent a letter to Merchan on Tuesday requesting a stay on the case until 2029. Bragg said he would oppose Trump’s motion to dismiss but said he would be open to receiving the defense argument. Blanche argued that Bragg “appears to not yet be ready to dismiss this politically-motivated and fatally flawed case, which is what is mandated by the law and will happen as justice takes its course.” Blanche pointed to Bragg’s own election campaign for another term as Manhattan district attorney. Blanche argued that “continuing with this case would be ‘uniquely destabilizing’ and threatens to ‘hamstring the operation of the whole governmental apparatus, both in foreign and domestic affairs.’” “The Court must address these new issues and dismiss the case, prior to issuing a decision on the previously filed Presidential immunity motion,” Blanche explained. “Any other action would obviously violate the presidential immunity doctrine and the Supremacy Clause.” TRUMP LAWYERS DEMAND BRAGG CASE BE ‘IMMEDIATELY DISMISSED,’ SAY ELECTION ‘SUPERSEDES’ POLITICAL ‘MOTIVATIONS’ Blanche added that “even if the Court were to wrongly deny the new interests-of-justice motion, which it should not do, the appropriate forum for any additional proceedings must first be resolved in President Trump’s removal appeal.” Blanche said that if the court denies any aspect of relief, including by moving forward with any proceedings, Trump would request that the court stay the implementation of the ruling so that President-elect Trump has “adequate time to pursue appellate review.” Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree stemming from the yearslong investigation related to alleged hush money payments run by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. Former Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance initiated the investigation, and Bragg prosecuted Trump. After an unprecedented six-week trial in New York City, a jury found the president guilty on all counts. PROSECUTORS REQUEST STAY IN TRUMP NY CASE UNTIL 2029 AS DEFENSE PLANS MOTION FOR DISMISSAL ‘ONCE AND FOR ALL’ Merchan last week granted a stay on all deadlines associated with conviction proceedings against Trump in the final weeks before he is sworn in as the 47th president of the United States — including the Nov. 26 sentencing date. Trump officials on Tuesday argued that Bragg’s request was a representation of “a total failure of the prosecution,” and interpreted the case as being “effectively over.” Meanwhile, Trump attorneys had requested that Merchan overturn the guilty verdict altogether, citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that former presidents have substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts in office. The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision on presidential immunity came from a question that stemmed from charges brought against Trump in a separate, federal case brought by special counsel Jack Smith related to the events on Jan. 6, 2021 and any alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges in that case.
‘Great meeting’: Tim Scott reveals Trump’s ‘all in’ to help GOP protect majority in 2026 midterms
Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the new chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, says President-elect Trump is on-board to help the senator in his mission to protect and expand the newly won GOP majority in the Senate. Scott, who last week was elected by his Republican colleagues as chair of the Senate GOP campaign committee, met with the former and future president at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. “Just had a great meeting with President @realDonaldTrump! He’s all in to help the @NRSC keep a Republican majority for his entire four years AND create a generation of opportunity!” Scott wrote in a social media post on Thursday night. TRUMP ALLY TIM SCOTT’S NEW MISSION TO TO HELP THE INCOMING PRESIDENT After losing the Senate majority in the 2020 elections, the GOP flipped four Democrat-held seats earlier this month, and will control the chamber 53-47 when the next Congress convenes at the beginning of the new year. In his first interview following his election as NRSC chair, Scott told Fox News Digital last week that “what we’re going to do is defend the seats that we have and expand the map so that we can increase the majority brought to us by the Trump victory.” In this month’s elections, unlike in 2016 and 2020, Trump outperformed many of the GOP’s Senate candidates. JD VANCE IS THE HEIR APPARENT TO TRUMP, BUT HERE ARE SOME OTHER REPUBLICANS WHO MAY RUN FOR PRESIDENT IN 2028 Scott told Fox News Digital that he wants Trump to participate as much as he can in the 2026 Senate contests. “Every day and every way, President Trump, I know you have a full-time job. I’m going to ask you to have two full-time jobs. Let’s expand this map,” Scott emphasized. He said “that means that every single day we need President Trump on the campaign trail, doing fundraisers, talking to folks, because this is President Donald J. Trump’s party, and we need to make sure we expand it, from the man to the movement. We need him to do it.” Scott last year unsuccessfully ran for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, before ending his bid and endorsing Trump. The senator was a high-profile surrogate for Trump on the campaign trail this year. While not as favorable as the 2024 Senate map, the 2026 electoral landscape does give the Republicans some opportunities to flip seats. Democratic Sens. Jon Ossoff of Georgia and Gary Peters of Michigan are up for re-election in two years in key battleground states Trump flipped last week. And Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire will be up for re-election in a perennial swing state that Trump lost but over-performed from his 2020 showing. In Virginia, where Trump lost by just five points last week, Democratic Sen. Mark Warner will be up for re-election. HERE ARE THE DEMOCRATS WHO MAY EVENTUALLY RUN FOR THE WHITE HOUSE IN 2028 “How do you expand the map?” Scott asked. “You look at Georgia and Michigan and New Hampshire and Virginia. And if you’re stretching – take a look at New Mexico and Minnesota. President Trump was very competitive in those states.” But Republicans will also have to play defense. GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is up for re-election in a reliably blue state. And Sen. Thom Tills of North Carolina is also up in 2026, in a battleground state that Trump narrowly won. Scott emphasized that “the good news is as long as Susan Collins is running, I think we have a shot to win. Last time, she won by several points. This time, she’ll win by several points. Thom Tillis staying in North Carolina is good for our party.” THIS DEMOCRATIC SENATOR MAY BE TAKING OVER THE PARTY’S SENATE CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE In the 2022 election cycle, when the Republicans blew a chance to win back the majority, NRSC chair Sen. Rick Scott of Florida was criticized for a hands-off approach in the GOP Senate primaries. This past cycle, now-former NRSC chair Sen. Steve Daines of Montana got involved in Senate Republican nomination battles. Asked whether the NRSC will take sides in competitive Republican Senate primaries during his tenure the next two years, Scott told Fox News, “I think the best thing for us to do is have a family conversation next year about what we’re looking at. How we’re going to defend that map and then make the best decisions we can as it relates to making sure that we end up with more seats than we currently have.” “Thank God we’re at 53. I’d like to see 55,” Scott added. Asked whether holding 55 seats was his goal, Scott joked, “if it were up to me, we’d have 100 seats.” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who easily won re-election earlier this month in blue-state New York, is expected to take over as chair of the rival Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Senate Democrats will hold their leadership elections later this year. David Bergstein, the DSCC communications director for the past couple of election cycles, told Fox News that “in a challenging political environment, Democrats made history. We won multiple races in states won by Trump. We dramatically over-performed the presidential results. And for the first time in over a decade, Senate Democrats have won multiple races in states won by the opposite party’s presidential nominee.” “The outcome of this cycle puts Senate Democrats in the strongest possible position to reclaim the majority in 2026,” Bergstein touted.
Trump’s team still hasn’t signed transition of power agreements, White House says
The Trump-Vance transition team has still not signed documents required to formally begin the transition of power, the White House says. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Thursday that “Our teams continue to stay in touch” and “as of now… the Trump-Vance transition team has not yet entered into the agreements with the White House and the General Service Administration (GSA).” Not signing the documents means the government can’t provide security clearances and briefings to incoming administration officials and the FBI can’t screen Trump’s picks for the Cabinet and other key posts. The agreements also provide “office space, IT equipment, office supplies, fleet vehicles, mail management, and payment of compensation and other expenses,” according to the GSA. “President Biden met with the president-elect to show that transition of power and obviously offering, any assistance, needed to make sure that happens in a way that is peaceful, obviously, and efficient,” according to Jean-Pierre. PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP ANNOUNCES PAM BONDI AS HIS NEW PICK FOR US ATTORNEY GENERAL “So were going to continue to engage with the Trump transition team, to ensure that we do have that efficient, effective, transition of power,” she added. “And in those conversations, we certainly are stressing that the White House and the administration stand ready to provide assistance and that access to services and information certainly outlined in the GSA, and the White House memorandum of agreement. So, those conversations continue. And we want this to go smoothly, and that’s what we’re trying to get to.” The continued delay on agreeing to start the formal transition process may eventually force senators to vote on Trump’s Cabinet picks without the benefit of the usual background checks, the Associated Press reported. REPUBLICAN SENATOR DEBUTS BILL TO ABOLISH THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FOLLOWING TRUMP CAMPAIGN PROMISE That process is designed to uncover personal problems, criminal histories and other potential red flags that would raise questions about a nominee’s suitability for key jobs. It’s unclear why the documents haven’t been signed yet. Transition spokesman Brian Hughes said earlier this month that the team’s “lawyers continue to constructively engage with” lawyers and officials from President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration and promised updates “once a decision is made.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Incumbent Iowa Republican says Dem House opponent ‘wasting taxpayer money’ with recount
An incumbent Iowa Republican seeking re-election to the House has accused her Democratic opponent of “wasting taxpayer money” by pursuing a recount of their close contest. The Associated Press has not yet called the race in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District, where Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, leads Democratic challenger Christina Bohannan by just 801 votes. Bohannan requested a recount last week. “Four counties in IA-01 have completed their recounts and I’ve gained 2 votes. Once again Christina Bohannan and the Dems are wasting taxpayer money,” Miller-Meeks posted on X Thursday. She has previously declared victory and her campaign is confident in her lead. CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION OBSERVERS DEPLOY TO IOWA FOR RECOUNT IN UNCALLED HOUSE RACE Congressional election observers from the House Committee on Administration were deployed to Iowa to monitor the uncalled race this week. Bohannan’s campaign said in a statement last week that they want to ensure “every voter is heard” and pledged to “accept the results regardless of outcome.” Republicans have already clinched a razor-thin House majority, but a GOP victory in Iowa would allow the factious conference some room for dissent without log jamming President-elect Trump’s agenda in the next Congress. DEMOCRAT BOB CASEY CONCEDES PENNSYLVANIA SENATE RACE TO DAVE MCCORMICK, ENDING RECOUNT Republican incumbents held onto Iowa’s three other congressional seats, including the competitive 3rd District where Zach Nunn fended off a challenge from Democrat Lanon Baccam. Republican incumbents Ashley Hinson in the 2nd District and Randy Feenstra in the 4th District won decisively. Hinson defeated Democrat Sarah Corkery. Feenstra defeated Democrat Ryan Melton. DEMOCRATS ADVANCE 5 MORE BIDEN JUDICIAL NOMINEES So far, Republicans have claimed 219 seats in the House of Representatives while Democrats have held on to 213. There are still two uncalled races in California’s 13th and 45th Congressional Districts, where Republican incumbents are defending their seats by extremely close margins. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The race in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District is a rematch. Miller-Meeks previously defeated Bohannan by a much larger margin of 7 percentage points in 2022. Miller-Meeks earned a first term in Congress representing Iowa’s 2nd District when she defeated Democrat Rita Hart by just six votes in 2020. Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Mitch McConnell announces his new posts for the 119th Congress
Outgoing Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced that he will chair the Senate Rules Committee as well as the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense during the 119th Congress. “America’s national security interests face the gravest array of threats since the Second World War. At this critical moment, a new Senate Republican majority has a responsibility to secure the future of U.S. leadership and primacy,” McConnell said in a statement. “I intend to play an active role in this urgent mission as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, and I look forward to working closely with incoming Chair Susan Collins to accomplish our shared goal,” he noted. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, is currently the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and the ranking member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. RICK SCOTT OUTLINES CONSENSUS FOR ‘DRAMATIC CHANGE’ TO SENATE OPERATION IN POST-MCCONNELL ERA “The Senate Rules Committee will also have important work to accomplish in the 119th Congress, and I look forward to leading it as Chairman,” McConnell said in the statement. “Defending the Senate as an institution and protecting the right to political speech in our elections remain among my longest-standing priorities. Ranking Member Deb Fischer has done an outstanding job advancing these causes, and I know she will remain a key partner in the committee’s ongoing work,” he noted. McConnell, 82, has served in the U.S. Senate since 1985, which means he will soon reach his 40-year-anniversary in the chamber. His current term ends in early 2027. MITCH MCCONNELL STEPPING DOWN AS REPUBLICAN LEADER While he has helmed the Senate GOP since 2007, McConnell announced earlier this year that his current term as Senate Republican leader would be his last in the position. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. has been tapped to succeed McConnell in the role next year. Republicans won the Senate majority during the 2024 elections — Thune will be Senate majority leader. THUNE SAYS TRUMP’S BORDER PLAN IS 1ST UP IN RIGOROUS PRIORITY LIST FOR NEW CONGRESS: ‘REAL WORK BEGINS’ “John Thune’s election is a clear endorsement of a consummate leader. The confidence our colleagues have placed in John’s legislative experience and political skill is well deserved,” McConnell said in a statement. “The American people elected Republicans to restore stability and order after four years of Washington Democrats’ failure. John Thune will take the reins with a tremendous opportunity to lead this transformation, and Senate Republicans stand behind him, ready to get to work,” he added.