WASHINGTON (AP) — House approval of a scaled-back farm bill is setting up what could be an even bigger fight over food stamps and the role of domestic food aid in the United States.
Food stamps have been a part of farm bills since the 1970s to gain urban Democratic votes for the rural measure. But that union has soured this year as the food aid has exploded in cost and House Republicans have taken aim at the program. Normally bipartisan, farm bills have become much less so.
35. GOP rejects comprehensive approach on immigration - Friday, July 5, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans are embracing a step-by-step approach to immigration, in contrast to the sweeping plan passed by the Senate and backed by the White House. But they're offering neither specifics nor a timetable — nor any mention of possible citizenship for an estimated 11 million immigrants living in the country unlawfully.
36. House's rejection of farm bill leaves few options - Friday, June 21, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House's broad rejection of a massive farm bill could signal a shift in the way Congress views agriculture policy.
Farm issues once had enormous clout on Capitol Hill, but the healthy agriculture economy and an increased interest in cutting spending have worked against farm-state lawmakers who are now trying to push a farm bill through for a third year in a row.
37. House set to OK bill to change overtime pay law - Friday, May 3, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-led House is poised to approve a bill that would give private sector workers the option of choosing paid time off instead of cash wages for working overtime.
The measure would allow employees who work more than 40 hours a week to save up their earned time off for use weeks or months later. GOP lawmakers say they want to give busy working parents at private firms the same flexibility that public sector workers have to take time off to spend with their children or care for aging parents.
38. GOP seeks alternative to overtime pay - Friday, May 3, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — It seems like a simple proposition: give employees who work more than 40 hours a week the option of taking paid time off instead of overtime pay.
The choice already exists in the public sector. Federal and state workers can save earned time off and use it weeks or even months later to attend a parent-teacher conference, care for an elderly parent or deal with home repairs.
39. Obama, NY and NJ lawmakers press for Sandy aid - Friday, December 28, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans and Democrats from New York and New Jersey lashed out at House Speaker John Boehner on Wednesday for pulling legislation on Hurricane Sandy aid, demanding that he reverse course and allow a vote as their constituents continue to struggle with the aftermath of the devastating storm. President Barack Obama called for an immediate House vote, and governors of the two states called House inaction a "dereliction of duty."
40. Congress OKs cliff deal, signaling future fights - Friday, December 28, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress' excruciating, extraordinary New Year's Day approval of a compromise averting a prolonged tumble off the fiscal cliff hands President Barack Obama most of the tax boosts on the rich that he campaigned on.
41. Boehner on averting fiscal cliff: 'God only knows' - Friday, December 21, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker John Boehner signaled on Friday he's still open to negotiations with President Barack Obama on avoiding across-the-board tax increases set to hit taxpayers Jan. 1, but sounded pessimistic about reaching a grand deal with the president.
42. Bill to extend fed insurance plan dies in Senate - Friday, December 14, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal program giving unlimited insurance guarantees to some no-interest bank accounts, enacted at the height of the financial meltdown, will die out at the end of the year following defeat of a Senate plan to extend it.
43. Congress, with much left to do, takes 5 weeks off - Friday, August 3, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — After a final day of partisan battles over drought relief and cybersecurity, members of Congress streamed out of the Capitol looking forward to five weeks of vacation and a fall fraught with decisions on the political and economic future of the country.
44. House leaders: Drought bill may come up next week - Friday, July 27, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republican leaders said Thursday they expected to take up legislation next week to help farmers and ranchers, particularly livestock producers, hit by the drought that has parched much of the nation.
45. House leaders wary of farm, postal bill showdowns - Friday, July 20, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate-passed bills to cut farm subsidies and food stamps and overhaul the financially teetering Postal Service have been put on hold by House Republican leaders wary of igniting internal party fights or risking voters' ire three months before the election.
46. Senate rejects Dem, GOP business tax cut bills - Friday, July 13, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Thursday rejected rival Democratic and Republican plans for cutting taxes on businesses, with both parties refusing to yield ground in their election-year struggle over how best to spark the economy.
47. Health care law survives with Roberts' help - Friday, June 29, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Obamacare lives.
America's historic health care overhaul, derided by Republicans as intrusive, costly "Obamacare," narrowly survived an election-year battle at the Supreme Court Thursday with the improbable help of conservative Chief Justice John Roberts.
48. High court upholds Obama health law by 5-4 vote - Friday, June 22, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld virtually all of President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul, including the hotly debated core requirement that nearly every American have health insurance.
49. Lawmakers try to save stalled transportation bill - Friday, June 15, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — House and Senate leaders are making a last-ditch effort to revive stalled legislation to overhaul federal transportation programs — Congress' best bet for passage of a major jobs bill this year — but prospects for passage before the November election are dimming.
50. GOP derails Senate 'Buffett rule' taxes on wealthy - Friday, April 13, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans derailed a Democratic "Buffett rule" bill Monday forcing the nation's top earners to pay at least 30 percent of their income in taxes, using the day before Americans' taxes are due to defy President Barack Obama on one of his signature election-year issues.
51. GOP, Dems clash over Obama tax boosts on wealthy - Saturday, April 14, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans accused President Barack Obama of pitting Americans against each other as they moved Monday toward blocking a Democratic attempt in the Senate to impose Obama's "Buffett rule" taxes on the rich. Democrats said it was time for the tax code to treat the wealthy and the middle class fairly.
52. Long political fights ahead over dueling tax plans - Friday, April 13, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats and Republicans are forcing votes in Congress this coming week on competing tax plans that affect millionaires and smaller businesses, and they know the proposals are doomed from the start.
53. Obama signs small business legislation - Friday, April 6, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama signed bipartisan jobs legislation Thursday that will help small businesses and make it easier for startups to raise capital, saying it could be a "game-changer" for entrepreneurs dreaming of founding the next Microsoft or Facebook.
54. Senate passes small business investment bill - Friday, March 23, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Legislation to help startup companies raise capital by reducing some federal regulations won easy passage in the Senate Thursday despite warnings from some Democrats that less government oversight would mean more abuse and scams.
55. Popular small business bill hits Senate obstacles - Friday, March 16, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — It might seem a recipe for success: Legislation to help small businesses raise capital passed the House last week with 95 percent of lawmakers voting for it and President Barack Obama's support. But in today's Congress, nothing comes easy.
56. House passes bipartisan bill to help startups - Friday, March 9, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Showing that they can on occasion work together, House lawmakers on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a package of bills making it easier for small businesses and startups to raise the capital they need to grow and hire new workers.
57. GOP promotes plan to help small businesses - Friday, February 24, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans on Tuesday unveiled a package of largely uncontroversial measures they said will help small businesses raise capital and create jobs while showing that Congress can put aside its partisan differences and act in the country's economic interests.
58. House bans federal lawmakers from insider trading - Friday, February 10, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Thursday joined the Senate in voting to explicitly prohibit members of Congress and other top officials from making investments on insider information. But an effort to bridle purveyors of Capitol Hill political intelligence could delay the bill's enactment.
59. House passes insider trading bill - Friday, February 3, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed a bill banning Congress and executive branch officials from insider trading, but brushed aside a provision aimed at reining in those who pry financial information from Congress and sell it to investment firms.
60. House GOP offers its own insider trading bill - Friday, February 3, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — New legislation from House Republicans would ban insider trading by thousands of federal officials and bar lawmakers who are convicted of a felony from collecting government pensions.
61. House ready to consider insider trading ban - Friday, February 3, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Legislation that would ban insider trading by lawmakers and thousands of executive branch officials headed for what could be a more contentious debate in the House after sailing through the Senate on a 96-3 vote.
62. Senate clears way for vote on insider-trading ban - Friday, January 27, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is rushing to make it absolutely clear to everyone that its members are banned from insider stock trading, hoping to improve their sagging image that has approval ratings at historic lows.
63. Obama to Republicans: Game on - Friday, January 20, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama delivered an election-year broadside to Republicans: Game on.
The GOP, from Congress to the campaign trail, signaled it's ready for the fight.
In his third State of the Union address, Obama issued a populist call for income equality that echoed the Occupy Wall Street movement. He challenged GOP lawmakers to work with him or move aside so he could use the power of the presidency to produce results for an electorate uncertain whether he deserves another term.
64. House GOP to reject stopgap payroll tax cut - Friday, December 16, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — With the Senate adjourned for the holidays, House Republicans are moving to shelve a bipartisan two-month extension of the Social Security payroll tax cut that cleared the Senate over the weekend and are demanding instead that their fellow lawmakers return to the Capitol for negotiations.
65. Debt, elections prod GOP to ease anti-tax stance - Friday, November 18, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The GOP's image as a rigidly anti-tax party is softening. Spurred by federal debt worries in Congress, the shift conceivably could reshape the Republican Party's brand ahead of the 2012 elections, forcing tough decisions by its presidential candidates.
66. GOP hopefuls oppose potential deficit deal - Friday, November 11, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential hopefuls are assaulting a proposal by GOP lawmakers on a bipartisan deficit-reduction panel that calls for increased tax revenues even as the special supercommittee appears increasingly headed for deadlock.
67. US Supreme Court: Pre-election health care showdown - Friday, November 11, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday promised an extraordinarily thorough springtime review of President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul — more than five hours of argument, unprecedented in modern times — in time for a likely ruling affecting millions of Americans just before the presidential election in November.
68. House to repeal law withholding contractors' taxes - Friday, October 21, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Against a backdrop of thousands of government contractors underpaying their taxes by billions of dollars, Congress decided in 2006 to start withholding 3 percent of the contracted price until taxes owed are paid. It never happened.
69. Obama, GOP push and pull on economic plans - Friday, September 30, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Seeking to gain political advantage, President Barack Obama insisted Monday that Congress vote on his entire $447 billion economic plan this month, a step promptly rejected by Republicans who called for both sides to find common ground in their competing proposals to stimulate growth.
70. House to wrap up emergency spending bill - Friday, September 30, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is poised to fund the government for six weeks to give President Barack Obama and lawmakers more time to work out some $1 trillion of unfinished agency budgets for the fiscal year already days old.
71. Obama would hike taxes to pay for his jobs bill - Friday, September 9, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a sharp challenge to the GOP, President Barack Obama proposed paying for his costly new jobs plan Monday with tax hikes that Republicans have already rejected, and he accused them of political motives if they still refuse to go along.
72. Congress returns to fight over jobs, budget cuts - Friday, September 2, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fights large and small await Congress as it gets back to business, with jobs and budget cuts topping a contentious agenda that also includes a lengthy roster of lower-profile but must-do items that also are potential victims of partisan gridlock.
73. White House: Irene's federal cost $1.5 billion - Friday, September 2, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House estimated on Monday that Hurricane Irene will cost federal taxpayers $1.5 billion in disaster relief, further ballooning a government account that was already the focus of fresh partisan friction between President Barack Obama and Congress.
74. Battle over disaster aid brewing in Congress - Friday, August 26, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) - A political battle between the tea party-driven House and the Democratic-controlled Senate is threatening to slow money to the government's main disaster aid account, which is so low that new rebuilding projects have been put on hold to help victims of Hurricane Irene and future disasters.
75. House GOP to spike rules as part of jobs agenda - Friday, August 26, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Republican agenda this fall will focus on repealing environmental and labor regulations that GOP lawmakers say are driving up the cost of doing business and discouraging employers from hiring new workers.
76. The next deficit deal: There's a rough road ahead - Friday, July 29, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The special panel's goal is lofty: concoct a deal both parties will embrace to slash federal deficits by a mammoth $1.5 trillion or more over the next decade.
Yet from the moment House and Senate leaders appoint the 12 members until the 2012 elections, hurricane-force political pressures are going to make it tough to produce anything substantial.
77. Conservative leader takes fight to his own party - Friday, July 22, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Barack Obama complains about House Republicans unwilling to compromise on a deficit reduction package, he's talking about Rep. Jim Jordan, a former wrestling champion from Ohio who is becoming a driving force in the debt debate on Capitol Hill.
78. White House threatens to veto Boehner's House plan - Friday, July 22, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House threatened on Tuesday to veto emergency legislation pending in the House to avert a threatened national default, a pre-emptive strike issued as Republican Speaker John Boehner labored to line up enough votes to pass the measure.
79. Boehner: 'No deal' on ending debt limit stalemate - Friday, July 22, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Speaker John Boehner declared Friday that the House has "done its job" toward resolving the impasse over raising the government's debt limit and said it was time for the Senate to act.
80. Tea party takes its turn in debt battle - Friday, July 15, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House weighed in with a veto threat Monday against a tea party-backed plan to let the government borrow another $2.4 trillion, a measure conditioned on big and immediate spending cuts and adoption by Congress of a constitutional amendment to balance the federal budget.
81. Obama challenges Congress: Do 'something big' - Friday, July 15, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Friday challenged Congress to compromise and "do something big" to reduce long-term deficits, insisting he was willing to make his own tough choices including trimming benefits for wealthy Medicare recipients. Facing a critical Aug. 2 deadline to raise the nation's debt limit, Obama said the public was on his side but "we're running out of time."
82. Biden, congressional group begin budget talks - Friday, April 29, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden and top lawmakers are beginning their quest to tame the spiraling U.S. debt with small steps aimed at finding what common ground might exist in vastly different approaches toward restructuring government spending.
83. Democrats turn 'Where are the jobs?' chant on GOP - Friday, February 11, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans won sweeping victories last November by taunting Democrats with "Where are the jobs?" Democrats are now throwing those taunts back, saying it's Republicans who will knock thousands of Americans out of work with their demands for deep cuts in federal spending.