Sep 17, 2019

GOP Rep. Paul Cook to retire from Congress

Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images

Rep. Paul Cook (R-Calif.) will retire at the end of his term in 2020 and announce a run for a seat on the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The big picture: Cook is the 18th Republican overall to retire from the House during this term, but it's worth noting that his district remains distinctly tilted toward the GOP despite Democratic investment in the area. Cook was re-elected with more than 62% of the vote in 2018, and President Trump beat Mitt Romney's performance in the district during the 2016 presidential election.

Go deeper: Rep. Bill Flores is the 5th Texas Republican to announce retirement

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Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler

Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Updates: George Floyd protests continue past curfews

Protesters on Tuesday evening by the metal fence recently erected outside the White House. Photo: Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

Protests over the death of George Floyd and other police-related killings of black people continued Tuesday night across the U.S. for the eighth consecutive day — prompting a federal response from the National Guard, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.

The latest: Protesters were still out en masse for mostly after curfews were in force in cities including Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles and Portland — where police used pepper spray and flash bangs on a group throwing projectiles at them during an "unlawful assembly," per KATU. Portland police said this group was separate to the thousands of demonstrators who protested peacefully elsewhere in the city.

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Ursula Perano, Zachary Basu

Updated 4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Primary elections test impact of protests, coronavirus on voting

Election official at a polling place at McKinley Technology High School in Washington, D.C. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

In the midst of a global pandemic and national protests over the death of George Floyd, eight states and the District of Columbia held primary elections on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, needs to win 425 of the 479 delegates up for grabs in order to officially clinch the nomination. There are a number of key down-ballot races throughout the country as well, including a primary in Iowa that could determine the fate of Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa).

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Zachary Basu

4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Iowa Rep. Steve King defeated in GOP primary

Rep. Steve King. Photo: Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images

State Sen. Randy Feenstra defeated incumbent Rep. Steve King in Tuesday's Republican primary for Iowa's 4th congressional district, according to the Cook Political Report.

Why it matters: King's history of racist remarks has made him one of the most controversial politicians in the country and a pariah within the Republican Party.

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