House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) have agreed to create a bipartisan task force to forge a new process for removing lawmakers from their committees, McCarthy's office confirmed to Axios.
Why it matters: The task force would address a partisan tit-for-tat over committee assignments that has seen five members of the minority party kicked off panels in the last two years.
First Lady Jill Biden told AP in an exclusive interview Friday that President Biden intends to run for re-election in 2024 and "pretty much" only has to choose a time and place for the formal announcement.
Why it matters: The first lady's comments are a strong indication Biden, who turned 80 in November, will announce a re-election campaign, as he and White House aides have previously suggested.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday called the lawsuit challenging the FDA's approval of abortion pills an "attack on the very foundation of our public health system."
The big picture: The vice president's comments come ahead of a ruling —expected as soon as today — that could end access nationwide to mifepristone, a drug used for medication abortions and miscarriage care, potentially making this the most important abortion ruling since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Advocates, analysts and policymakers are giving mixed reviews to the Biden administration's move to let states use Medicaid funds for food.
Why it matters: Some are glad that Medicaid will be available as an additional tool to address food insecurity and diet-related health conditions, but others see expanding programs like SNAP as the priority ahead of a looming hunger cliff.
Colleges are reevaluating longstanding hallmarks of the admissions process as they try to figure out how to attract a diverse student body in a world without affirmative action.
Why it matters: The Supreme Court is widely expected to rule later this year that schools can't explicitly consider applicants' race. And trying to achieve the same ends through different means may require colleges to make some dramatic changes.
North Korea's state media said Friday its military conducted a "strategic cruise missile" drill off its eastern coast the previous day.
Details: KCNA claims that the North Korean military fired four "Hwasal-2" long-range missiles in the North Hamgyong Province. Seoul officials said there had been a launch but added without further elaboration that South Korean and U.S. intelligence detected differing flight details to Pyongyang's claims, per AP.
Two brothers being held at the U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay for nearly 20 years have been transferred to Pakistan, the Department of Defense announced Thursday.
The big picture: Abdul Rahim Ghulam Rabbani, 55, and Mohammed Ahmed Ghulam Rabbani, 53, were detained without charge after being accused of helping operate safe houses for suspected Al-Qaeda operatives after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to the New York Times.
Ben Harris, the chief economist at the Treasury Department and a key architect of President Biden’s price cap on Russian oil, is preparing to leave the administration in the coming weeks, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Harris, a longtime Biden adviser, played a leading role in developing the president's Build Back Better agenda during the campaign — then helped get parts of it signed into law.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is privately telling big-dollar donors that bad candidates for governor and Senate were a top reason the GOP didn't win more House seats in 2022, emphasizing that quality candidates matter up and down the ticket.
Why it matters: By explaining why his party underperformed in the last election, McCarthy and the National Republican Congressional Committee are also setting expectations for the next one.
The GOP's 2024 presidential field has an inertia problem.
The big picture: Former President Trump is a wounded front-runner who Republicans privately fear will lose to President Biden if he's the nominee. But he won't go away until a Republican challenger steps into the middle of the ring to dislodge him, and so far, every viable contender is pulling their punches.
