Feb 1, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Mitt Romney shunned from conservative conference after impeachment vote

Mitt Romney at the Capitol on Jan. 29. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, on Friday disinvited GOP Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) from the CPAC 2020 conference, following a key vote in President Trump's Senate impeachment trial.

Driving the news: Romney was one of two Republican senators to break ranks on Friday and vote for additional evidence and witness testimony. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) also voted to call witnesses.

Go deeper... ⚖️ Live updates: Trump on track for acquittal

Go deeper

Axios
Updated 19 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Politics: Americans feel Trump's sickness makes him harder to trust — Florida breaks record for in-person early voting.
  2. Health: The next wave is gaining steam.
  3. Education: Schools haven't become hotspots.
  4. World: Ireland moving back into lockdown — Argentina becomes 5th country to report 1 million infections.
Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian, author of China
2 hours ago - World

China embraces hostage diplomacy

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

The Chinese government is threatening to detain foreign citizens unless their home governments do what Beijing demands. In some cases, China has already made good on those threats.

The big picture: This marks a potential evolution of China's "wolf warrior diplomacy" to outright rogue state behavior, putting it in the company of countries like North Korea and Iran, which have also engaged in hostage diplomacy.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Ashley Gold, Kyle Daly
3 hours ago - Technology

Justice Department sues Google over alleged search monopoly

Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios

The Justice Department and 11 states Tuesday filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google, accusing the company of using anticompetitive tactics to illegally monopolize the online search and search advertising markets.

Why it matters: The long-awaited suit is Washington's first major blow against the tech giants that many on both the right and left argue have grown too large and powerful. Still, this is just step one in what could be a lengthy and messy court battle.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow