Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) announced Wednesday he plans to introduce articles of impeachment against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
Why it matters: The long-shot effort centers on two scandals currently rocking the Pentagon — a new report about Signalgate and allegations of a follow-up strike against an alleged Venezuelan drug boat.
The big picture: Validating the president's executive order barring U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants from U.S. citizenship would overrule a right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment and upheld by SCOTUS over a century ago.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson are both considering votes on GOP health care priorities next week — if they can figure out what those priorities are.
Why it matters: Democrats are unified in their demand for a three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act's enhanced subsidies, which expire Dec. 31. Republicans are still divided and debating their counter offers.
Mayor-elect Helena Moreno, a native of Mexico, issues five demands of the Department of Homeland Security she said were inspired by complaints over its agents' actions. Video: Chelsea Brasted/Axios
New Orleans City Council leaders are demanding the Department of Homeland Security release arrest data, its agents remove their masks and the department offer clear due process protections as an immigration blitz is underway in the metro area.
Why it matters: The move represents the first organized political effort to push back against what DHS is calling "Operation Catahoula Crunch."
Why it matters: If the justices agree with the president, the court could overrule a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and upheld by SCOTUS over a century ago.
Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) said Friday she was pepper sprayed and "pushed around" by Immigration and Custom Enforcement officers during a raid in her district.
Why it matters: The alleged incident follows a series of physical confrontations this year between Democratic lawmakers and federal law enforcement, particularly ICE.
In Congress, the GOP's immigration crackdown increasingly includes more scrutiny of people who have already navigated the lengthy legal process.
The big picture: After two National Guard personnel were shot last week in D.C., the Trump administration has paused asylum, vowed to expand its travel bans to more than 30 countries and called for a review of green card holders from 19 countries.
The Indiana House passed a new, partisan congressional map Friday, setting up a showdown in the Senate, where there might not be enough support to send the bill to the governor.
Why it matters: Indiana is the latest state to take action in the mid-decade redistricting push intended to fulfill President Trump's request to net the GOP the extra seats ahead of the 2026 midterms.
These changes could have reverberations for years as Democrats and Republicans scramble to nullify each other's gains.
President Trump said winning the first-ever FIFA Peace Prize was "truly one of the great honors" of his life at the 2026 World Cup Draw on Friday.
Why it matters: The largely symbolic prize comes months after the president lost his bid for the Nobel Peace Prize despite leaning heavily into foreign diplomacy in his second term.
Criminals are usingAI-generated photos and videos of people's loved ones to create virtual kidnapping scams for ransom, the FBI warned Friday.
The big picture: AI-related scams, from widespread voice-cloning tools to increasingly realistic AI-generated pictures and videos, are leaving people more vulnerable to fabricated crimes as the line between real and fake blurs.
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators are holding a second day of talks in Miami around President Trump's peace plan on Friday, U.S. and Ukrainian officials say.
Why it matters: While the Ukrainian and Russian public positions appear irreconcilable, U.S. officials continue to believe compromise could be within reach even on the most sensitive issue of territory.
Free entry to National Parks will now be granted on President Trump's birthday but not on Martin Luther King Jr. Day or Juneteenth.
Why it matters: The Trump administration has almost entirely overhauled the list of free National Park days, favoring days that celebrate U.S. patriotism instead of traditional federal holidays.
Top Trump administration officials on Friday decried the European Commission's nearly $140 million (€120 million) fine on Elon Musk's X for violating its moderation law.
Why it matters: The penaltysets up a potential showdown with the Trump administration, which has criticized Europe's content digital market laws as "overseas extortion."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is working with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to develop a coordinated strategy to make the 2026 election a referendum on affordability.
Why it matters:Making America affordable again (you could call it MAAA) will run through nearly every part of their effort to draw a sharp contrast between their economic plans and President Trump's record.
The new head of the U.S. government's market-moving energy stats and analysis arm has revealed plans to formally track data centers as the AI boom deepens.
Why it matters: Policymakers, investors, activists and everyone in between are struggling to understand what, exactly, is happening with this growing source of energy demand.
The Trump administration blamed much of America's and the world's current woes on immigration in an explosive new national security document that accuses Europe of undermining peace in Ukraine and China of ripping off the U.S.
Why it matters: The National Security Strategy, released Friday morning, asserts a "'Trump Corollary' to the Monroe Doctrine" that declares the U.S. will assert its political, economic and military will across the Western Hemisphere.
A new Trump-aligned online fundraising platform has emerged, and is poised to upend the Republican Party's massive cash ecosystem.
Why it matters: The new platform — called Impact — will clash with the party's dominant small-dollar fundraising partner, WinRed, for supremacy over the GOP gold mine.
Lawmakers are demanding the Pentagon release additional documents and details on a second strike in the Caribbean that killed shipwrecked survivors on an alleged drug boat following Thursday's briefings from the admiral involved.
A grand jury declined to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James for a second time on Thursday, multiple outlets reported.
The big picture: The Justice Department attempted to indict James again less than two weeks after a federal judge dismissed the agency's mortgage fraud case last week.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) had his security increased this week after pardoned Jan. 6 defendant Taylor Taranto allegedly showed up near the Maryland congressman's house, Axios has learned.
Taranto was previously convicted for an incident involving threats against Raskin and former President Obama.
Why it matters: It's the latest in a string of frightening security incidents rattling Democratic lawmakers as members of Congress already face a surge of threats.
