Obama Judge Fines Respected Journalist $800/Day for Protecting Confidential Source

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Obama Judge Fines Respected Journalist $800/Day for Protecting Confidential Source

(Headline USA) An activist judge in D.C.’s District Court held veteran investigative reporter Catherine Herridge in civil contempt on Thursday for refusing to divulge her source for a series of Fox News stories about a Chinese American scientist who was investigated by the FBI but never charged.

Judge Christopher Cooper imposed a fine of $800 per day until Herridge complies, but the fine will not go into effect immediately to give her time to appeal.

Cooper wrote that he “recognizes the paramount importance of a free press in our society” and the critical role of confidential sources in investigative journalism. But the judge said the court “also has its own role to play in upholding the law and safeguarding judicial authority.”

“Herridge and many of her colleagues in the journalism community may disagree with that decision and prefer that a different balance be struck, but she is not permitted to flout a federal court’s order with impunity,” wrote Cooper, who was nominated to the bench by former President Barack Obama.

A spokesperson from Fox News told Headline USA in a statement from the company that the Stalinesque tactic could have alarming implications.

“Holding a journalist in contempt for protecting a confidential source has a deeply chilling effect on journalism,” said the statement. “FOX News Media remains committed to protecting the rights of a free press and freedom of speech and believes this decision should be appealed.”

Representatives from CBS did not immediately respond to emails from the Associated Press seeking comment. A lawyer for Herridge, Patrick Philbin, declined to comment.

The source is being sought by Yanpin Chen, who has sued the government over the leak of details about the federal probe into statements she made on immigration forms related to work on a Chinese astronaut program.

Herridge, who was recently laid off by CBS News, published an investigative series for Fox News in 2017 that examined Chen’s ties to the Chinese military and raised questions about whether the scientist was using a professional school she founded in Virginia to help the Chinese government get information about American servicemembers.

The stories relied on what her lawyers contend were items leaked from the probe, including snippets of an FBI document summarizing an interview conducted during the investigation, personal photographs, and information taken from her immigration and naturalization forms and from an internal FBI PowerPoint presentation.

Chen sued the FBI and Justice Department in 2018, saying her personal information was selectively leaked to “smear her reputation and damage her livelihood.”

The judge had ordered Herridge in August to answer questions about her source or sources in a deposition with Chen’s lawyers. The judge ruled that Chen’s need to know for the sake of her lawsuit overcomes Herridge’s right to shield her source, despite the “vital importance of a free press and the critical role” that confidential sources play in journalists’ work.

Herridge was interviewed under oath in September by a lawyer for Chen, but declined dozens of times to answer questions about her sources, saying at one point, “My understanding is that the courts have ruled that in order to seek further judicial review in this case, I must now decline the order, and respectfully I am invoking my First Amendment rights in declining to answer the question.”

Philbin, who served as deputy White House counsel during the Trump administration, has said that forcing Herridge to turn over her sources “would destroy her credibility and cripple her ability to play a role in bringing important information to light for the public.”

Philbin also told the judge that disclosing the identity of Herridge’s sources raises national security concerns, writing in court papers that there is a “serious risk” that Chen “was involved in making information about U.S. military members available” to the Chinese.

Two former top FBI officials have also warned that Cooper’s actions could threaten national security. Those officials—former National Counterintelligence and Security Center Director William Evanina and the former head of the FBI’s China office, Holden Triplett—have both given sworn declarations in support of Herridge.

Legal fights over whether journalists should have to divulge sources are rare, though they’ve arisen several times in the last couple decades in Privacy Act cases like the one filed by Chen. Some lawsuits have ended with a hefty Justice Department settlement in place of a journalist being forced to reveal a source, an outcome that remains possible in Herridge’s case.

In 2008, for instance, the Justice Department agreed to pay $5.8 million to settle a lawsuit by Army scientist Steven Hatfill, who was falsely identified as a person of interest in the 2001 anthrax attacks. That settlement resulted in a contempt order being vacated against a journalist who was being asked to name her sources.

Appointed by Barack Obama to the DC District Court in March 2014, Cooper has a long history with the Democratic establishment.

He previously served in Bill Clinton’s Justice Department in the mid-90s, and was a member of the Obama/Biden transition team in 2008. His wife, Amy Jeffress, worked as a national security counselor for Attorney General Eric Holder, and she represented disgraced anti-Trump FBI employee Lisa Page in 2018.

Moreover, Jeffress’s connection with the “Crossfire Hurricane” investigation raised questions of a possible conflict of interest when Cooper was the judge assigned to oversee then-special counsel John Durham’s case against former Hillary Clinton lawyer Michael Sussmann—a case that ultimately failed.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Epstein Grand Jury Documents to be Released under New Florida Law

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Epstein Grand Jury Documents to be Released under New Florida Law

(Andrew Powell, The Center Square) Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law Thursday that will publicly release grand jury documents, including those related to the late Jeffrey Epstein.

Before his death in a Florida prison cell, Epstein stood accused of running a massive child sex trafficking ring.

DeSantis signed House Bill 117 Thursday, which would disclose grand jury testimony while revising the list of persons prohibited from disclosing witness testimony and would create an exception for requests by media or interested persons.

“They say that justice delayed is justice denied, and I think in many respects this whole ordeal has proven that to be true,” DeSantis said.

DeSantis said the investigation into Epstein was hindered because there was no access to the grand jury documents around the case.

“The Legislature and I agree that there needs to be a mechanism in some of these rare circumstances where people can get the truth and where we can try to pursue justice,” DeSantis said.

Epstein and his longtime girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell were accused of flying underage girls by private jet to his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands for sexual exploitation.

Epstein faced criminal charges in Florida in 2006 but was able to get a more lenient plea deal that saved him from a long prison sentence. He was sentenced to 18 months but served more than a year in a Florida state prison.

In 2019, Epstein died while awaiting trial in New York after prosecutors concluded they were not bound to the terms of Epstein’s 2006 deal.

Authorities said he committee suicide by hanging himself in his jail cell, but that ruling has been widely scrutinized because of the circumstances related to his death and the potential number of high-profile co-conspirators he could have implicated.

“We’re now sitting here decades later, and you’ve had Epstein, and then Maxwell is actually in prison in Florida, and yet nothing else has ever happened with any of this,” DeSantis said. “How is that possible given the magnitude of what was going on, and what was going on in Florida was only a fraction of what was happening.”

DeSantis noted that Epstein was engaged in these activities and abuse in New York City, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands, and added Epstein had a massive operation targeting very young girls.

“To not have justice on this is something that has been a big black spot on our justice system…and why did that happen?” DeSantis said. “It happened because, you know, you had someone that was very rich, well connected, and was able to engineer an outcome that the average citizen would likely never be able to do.”

House Judiciary Investigating ATF’s Unconstitutional Effort to Ban Private Gun Sales

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House Judiciary Investigating ATF’s Unconstitutional Effort to Ban Private Gun Sales

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The House Judiciary Committee has launched a probe into the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ attempt to ban the private sale of firearms through a byzantine regulation change.

The Judiciary Committee’s move follows multiple ATF employees blowing the whistle on a 1,300-page internal ATF document attempting to justify a rule pursuing citizens for the private sale of firearms.

According to those whistleblowers, the ATF is attempting to effectively ban private gun sales by expanding the definition of who would be classified as a “dealer” under federal law. Dealers are required to obtain a license to become a Federal Firearms Licensee, or FFL.

Right now, people are required to become an FFL only if dealing firearms is their principal livelihood. But the ATF is seeking to change that rule so that “even a single transaction, or offer to engage in a transaction, when combined with other evidence, may be sufficient to require a license” as an FFL.

GOP lawmakers are demanding to know how and why the ATF decided to push for this radical regulation change.

“It appears that the Biden Administration is attempting to abuse the federal rulemaking process to circumvent Congress in order to achieve a far-left policy outcome,” said Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and 19 other Republicans in a Thursday letter to ATF Director Steve Dettelbach.

“This language gives Americans no certainty about the enforcement of federal law, and gives ATF blanket authority to create new presumptions with no notice.”

Jordan seeks a briefing from Dettelbach on the details of his regulatory efforts.

“Please produce all documents and communications in your possession between ATF and any organizations ATF consulted, collaborated, and discussed the September 8, 2023, notice with,” Jordan asked, specifying that he also seeks communications between ATF and the White House.

Jordan seeks answers from the ATF by March 14.

The whistleblower advocacy group Empower Oversight is also seeking information on the ATF’s regulation.

The group filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the ATF, seeking all internal government communications about the regulation, including any emails using the terms “ban,” “private sale,” “universal background,” and “gun control.”

“The fact that inside ATF sources are blowing the whistle on this draft rule is an indication of what a difficult position it would put the ATF in. ATF agents did not sign up to go after law-abiding citizens for private sales protected under the Second Amendment of the Constitution,” said Empower Oversight President Tristan Leavitt.

“The lessons of the Ruby Ridge and Waco standoffs should make clear that attempting to enforce such an expansive regulation could endanger countless ATF field agents who are forced to serve as the face of the Biden Administration in going after private firearms owners for constitutionally-protected firearms sales.”

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

‘Squad’ Members Led Fellow Dems on Secret Trip to Commie Cuba

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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‘Squad’ Members Led Fellow Dems on Secret Trip to Commie Cuba

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) A delegation of the U.S. Congressional Progressive Caucus, also known as the “Squad,” traveled last week to communist Cuba, with the trip neither being disclosed by the legislators nor reported in Cuban state media.

About a dozen people who were led by U.S. Reps. Pramila Jayapal, D–Wash., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., according to Miami Herald. A congressional staffer from the office of Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., also traveled to Cuba.

The communist-loving politicians of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which is comprised of more than 100 lawmakers and chaired by Jayapal, confirmed the trip after the news about them traveling to a dictatorial country was revealed.

“Representatives Jayapal and Omar traveled to Cuba last week, where they met with people from across Cuban civil society and government officials to discuss human rights and the U.S.-Cuba bilateral relationship,” a Caucus spokesperson said.

The news about the trip was not very surprising, since Democrats, generally speaking, and the members of the “Squad,” in particular, expressed their support of the communist nation before.

Jayapal and Omar, for example, have always been very vocal critics of the U.S. embargo against Cuba and have supported bills to normalize relations with the communist government, the news source reported.

The politicians were among the 40 Democrats who voted against a symbolic resolution that would support peaceful demonstrators who protested against the Cuban government in July 2021 and “[call] for the immediate release of arbitrarily detained Cuban citizens.”

In addition to that, Jayapal urged the Biden administration back in January 2024 to remove Cuba from the U.S. list of countries that sponsor terrorism, a decision that was made in the last days of Donald Trump’s time in office that Jayapal said had “devastated” Cuba’s economy.

“Being on this list has made it nearly impossible for Cuba to do international business, driving an economic downturn that has led residents to flee the country. It’s time to re-engage with Cuba,” she said.

One of the other things about the trip was that Cuban official media usually highlighted American politicians who were going to the island, framing their visit as a gesture of “solidarity” with the people of Cuba or support for ending the U.S. embargo. However, the state media was silent this time, as well as Cuba’s Foreign Ministry.

Biden Campaign Surrogate Claims It’s ‘Racist’ to Point Out Immigrant Crime Wave

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Biden Campaign Surrogate Claims It’s ‘Racist’ to Point Out Immigrant Crime Wave

(Headline USA) A Democrat congressman and Biden campaign surrogate claimed this week that it was “racist” to point out that crime involving illegal-immigrant perpetrators was on the rise.

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., blasted former President Donald Trump during a press call organized by President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign on Wednesday, accusing the GOP frontrunner of capitalizing on the death of Laken Riley, a Georgia student who was killed by an illegal immigrant last week.

Trump released a poignant ad on Tuesday warning voters that they were “not safe” in Biden’s America.

“This immigrant crime narrative is racist,” Garcia claimed, according to the Washington Examiner.

“It is not true,” he continued. “Donald Trump is out here saying we’re poisoning the blood of this country—and the facts don’t bear that out.”

Illegal immigrants were “by and large” committing “less crime,” he continued.

“So whenever this narrative comes forward, you know, it’s just an untrue narrative,” Garcia added.

Garcia went on to blast Trump for his planned visit to the border on Thursday, which threatened to upstage a border visit by President Joe Biden while putting pressure on him not to gloss over the realities of the crisis.

“Donald Trump is going to the border to do what we all know that he does best, which is divide, distract, offend, cause division, and really do nothing to address issues and challenges that we have at the border,” Garcia complained. “So we can expect that he is going to use his racist language, he’s going to spew hate, outrage, division while providing no real plan to fix our broken immigration system.”

Many of the policies that Trump put in place to fix the border crisis during his first term were immediately rolled back by Biden via executive order on day 1 of his administration. He has since continued to deny that their is a crisis, despite record numbers of asylum-seeking illegals, who have overwhelmed even blue-run sanctuary cities.

The Biden administration faced increased scrutiny over its handling of the border crisis following Riley’s death. The nursing student was allegedly killed by a Venezuelan national, Jose Antonio Ibarra, who is accused of bashing in her skull on the University of Georgia campus.

Trump shared his new ad in a post on Truth Social, vowing to battle “migrant crime” if elected in November.

“Crooked Joe Biden’s Border INVASION is destroying our country and killing our citizens!” Trump wrote. “The horrible murder of 22-year-old Laken Riley at the University of Georgia should have NEVER happened!” 

He went on to promise to “immediately Seal the Border, Stop the Invasion, and on Day One, we will begin the largest deportation operation of illegal CRIMINALS in American History!”

Hunter Biden Told Lawmakers He Was ‘High Or Drunk’ When He Threatened Chinese Associate

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Hunter Biden Told Lawmakers He Was ‘High Or Drunk’ When He Threatened Chinese Associate

(Headline USA) Hunter Biden told lawmakers during his closed-door testimony on Wednesday that he was “high or drunk” when he name-dropped his father in a threatening text message to a Chinese business associate, according to the Daily Mail.

A readout of his testimony revealed that Hunter admitted to sending the WhatsApp text to Henry Zhao, who worked for the Chinese Communist Party-linked energy company CEFC, in 2017.

“I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled,” Hunter wrote to Zhao.

“Tell the director that I would like to resolve this now before it gets out of hand, and now means tonight,” he continued. “And, Z, if I get a call or text from anyone involved in this other than you, Zhang, or the chairman, I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction.”

Although many of the messages from Hunter’s abandoned laptop contain typographical and spelling errors, the message to Zhao—despite his purported state of inebriation—was perfectly punctuated

Yet, Hunter not only claimed during his deposition that he had lost control of his faculties when he sent the message, but also that he “sent it to the wrong recipient, and is now embarrassed” by it.

Within 10 days of the threatening message, CEFC sent $5.1 million to Biden family-linked accounts, according to financial information obtained by congressional Republicans.

Hunter also reportedly insisted throughout his testimony that his father, President Joe Biden, had nothing to do with his foreign business dealings. 

“I am here today to provide the committees with the one incontestable fact that should end the false premise of this inquiry: I did not involve my father in my business,” he claimed in a statement before his six-hour deposition. “Not while I was a practicing lawyer, not in my investments or transactions domestic or international, not as a board member, and not as an artist. Never.”

He went on to dismiss Republicans’ investigation into his finances as “baseless and MAGA-motivated conspiracy theories.”

However, at one point Hunter admitted that his father was, in fact, the “big guy” mentioned in an email by James Gilliar, one of the Biden family’s business associates.

Hunter blamed the email on Gilliar, telling lawmakers that Gilliar was “out of his mind for even suggesting Joe Biden get involved in their joint venture.”

House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said the testimony would usher in the “next phase” of the impeachment investigation.

“I think a public hearing will hopefully clear up some discrepancies between some of the statements being made by some of the associates and that we heard today,” Comer said in a statement afterward.

White House Claims Biden ‘Doesn’t Need’ a Cognitive Exam

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White House Claims Biden ‘Doesn’t Need’ a Cognitive Exam

(Headline USA) The White House claimed Wednesday that President Joe Biden didn’t take a cognitive exam as part of his annual physical because he “doesn’t need” one, CBS News reported.

Biden underwent the annual health check, which was conducted by a team of 20 doctors, last week, and the results were released on Wednesday in a six-page, memorandum-style summary from Kevin C. O’Connor, the official physician to the president.

The summary reported that Biden remained “fit for duty” and that he “fully executes all of his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations.”

When asked if a cognitive test was part of it, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the doctors who examined Biden found him to be so mentally sound that they did not feel the need to give him one.

“The president doesn’t need a cognitive test,” Jean-Pierre said.

“That is not my assessment, she continued. “That is the assessment of the president’s doctor; that is also the assessment of his neurologist.”

She went on to claim that the rigors of his daily routine were evidence enough of his cognitive faculties, even though the actual performance of many of his duties would seem to indicate otherwise.

Biden “passes a cognitive test every day—every day—as he moves from one topic to another topic, understanding the granular level of these topics,” Jean-Pierre claimed, accurately characterizing Biden’s disjunctive thought process, if not his level of comprehension.

“You saw him talking about fighting crime today,” she said. Tomorrow he’s going to the border.”

Biden has also waived off concerns about his mental acuity, joking that his doctors “think I look too young” after returning from his annual physical.

“There is nothing different than last year,” he added.

But his own frequent gaffes and blunders seem to suggest that the 81-year-old’s condition, which was already in decline at the start of his term, has been rapidly deteriorating.

On three occasions in the month of February alone, confused current European officials with deceased ones and mixed up the leaders of Mexico and Egypt.

And a report from his own Justice Department indicated that Biden suffered from an extremely poor memory, with special counsel Robert Hur revealing that he had forgotten when he was vice president and when his late son Beau died during the course of an interview to investigate his mishandling of classified materials.

Biden Gives $850M to a Chinese Battery Company

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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Biden Gives $850M to a Chinese Battery Company

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) The Biden administration gave an $850 million conditional loan to a company called KORE Power so that it would build a battery production plant in Arizona and the United States’ reliance on China’s batteries would be decreased, even though the company itself is owned by the communist regime.

The administration presented the project as a way to “strengthen the domestic battery supply chain” and combat China’s grip on the global market. However, as it was revealed through the court documents and corporate disclosure filings that were obtained by the Washington Free Beacon, KORE, with its Idaho headquarters and a small staff of around 150 employees, has extensive roots in China.

KORE is 14% co-owned by Do-Fluoride New Materials (DFD), a Chinese battery manufacturer led by Chinese Communist Party official Li Shijiang, the records revealed.

In addition to that, one of KORE’s directors is Li Shijiang’s daughter, Li Lingyun, who also serves as vice chair of DFD and as vice president of China’s state-supervised Patent Protection Association, the news source wrote.

KORE disclosed in a November court filing that DFD New Energy, a China-based subsidiary of Do-Fluoride New Materials, will help it build the Arizona battery plant.

“The facility is under construction at present and DFD New Energy will assist in the buildout,” KORE’s CEO Lindsay Gorrill said.

DFD will help KORE build the Arizona facility by providing intellectual property, research and development and engineering capabilities, according to the Department of Energy.

The department also said that it conducted “extensive due diligence” on the arrangement while adding that KORE has been working to reduce its Chinese ownership, to eventually become completely independent of Chinese technology, the news source said.

“For a program that was supposed to decrease America’s reliance on China, this is incredibly counterproductive. It’s outrageous that a company partly owned by a Chinese company with ties to the CCP would be rewarded with taxpayer money,” Caitlin Sutherland, executive director of the watchdog group Americans for Public Trust, said.

Freedom Caucus Reveals Who McConnell Really Represents in Mocking Tweet

Jacob Bruns
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Freedom Caucus Reveals Who McConnell Really Represents in Mocking Tweet

(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) The House Freedom Caucus mocked Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., by calling out his true loyalties after the longtime senator announced that he planned to step down as Senate minority leader in November, The Hill reported.

Specifically, the conservative alliance identified the rapidly declining senator, who turned 82 in February, as both a Democrat and a representative of Ukraine:

“Our thoughts are with our Democrat colleagues in the Senate on the retirement of the Co-Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (D-Ukraine),” they wrote, proceeding to call for Republicans in Congress’s upper chamber not to wait for McConnell’s personal deadline but to do what is best for the party “IMMEDIATELY.”

Conservative satirical website the Babylon Bee was similarly inspired, running the headline “BREAKING: Ukraine To Lose Top Republican Senate Seat.”

McConnell made the announcement on Wednesday—triggering a possible succession crisis among RINO members of the uniparty who have patiently waited their turn since 2007, when McConnell was promoted from majority whip following the retirement of Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn.

“One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” said McConnell. “So I stand before you today … to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.”

On Thursday, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, because the first out of the gate to signal his hope of succeeding the longest tenured party leader in the history of the U.S. Senate

McConnell, who will not face re-election until 2026, did not indicate that he planned leave the Senate early, despite stepping down from his leadership role.

However, he would undoubtedly face a steep climb getting re-elected due to his high-profile feud with presumptive GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump and his increasing estrangement from the Republican Party base on many key issues.

McConnell capitulated to Democrats in February by signing on to a massive redistribution of wealth from the American working class to the Ukrainian government, and he reportedly joined Democrats this week in putting intense pressure on House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to do the same.

“Every argument against this is wrong,” McConnell said at the time, defending the $95 billion package, the better part of which is destined for Ukraine.

“I feel strongly this is in our best interest, America’s best interest and the world’s best interests to do this,” he added.

He also faced criticism for refusing to give financial support to several Trump-backed candidates who faced close races during the 2022 midterm election.

Arizona’s Blake Masters, Nevada’s Adam Laxalt, Pennsylvania’s Mehmet Oz, Georgia’s Herschel Walker and other candidates in potentially close races were hung out to dry as McConnell prioritized the primary battle in Alaska to save fellow RINO Lisa Murkowski, costing his party a shot at regaining the majority.

From referring to the funding of Ukraine as America’s “No. 1 priority” to taking a “principled” stand against the Republican voter base, McConnell has doubled and tripled down on mortgaging the future of Americans for his foreign policy ventures.

Meanwhile, another fellow RINO, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, thanked McConnell on the Senate floor Wednesday for his “extraordinary service not only to our caucus but more importantly to the Senate as an institution and our country.”

Trump Quietly Unveils Successor Pick to Replace McConnell

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Trump Quietly Unveils Successor Pick to Replace McConnell

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Former President Donald Trump has secretly disclosed his pick to succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who stirred Congress into a frenzy on Wednesday by announcing his retirement by the end of the year. 

Trump privately encouraged Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., to pursue the leadership position set to become vacant upon McConnell’s departure, several media outlets reported on Thursday. 

Daines, currently serving as the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, emphasized his focus on securing the majority ahead of the 2024 election.

“I told [Trump] the most important thing I can do this moment is to make sure we have a Senate majority in November,” Daines told Politico after the outlet revealed that Trump’s endorsement of Daines occurred before McConnell’s announcement. 

Shortly after McConnell’s retirement announcement, several names were rumored to be potential replacements, including Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D.; Republican Conference Chair John Barrasso, R-Wy.; and former Whip John Cornyn. 

Out of the three, only Cornyn has officially declared his bid. “I am asking my Republican colleagues to give me the opportunity to succeed Leader McConnell,” Cornyn said in a statement, as reported by the Hill.

“Throughout my time I’ve built a track record of listening to colleagues and seeking consensus, while leading the fight to stop bad policies that are harmful to our nation and the conservative cause,” he added. 

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., another rumored candidate, stated that whoever replaces McConnell should have a “relationship” with the Republican president.

Sen. Josh Hawley expressed his preference for Scott or Daines to become the next leader. While welcoming McConnell’s exit, Hawley remarked that it should have occurred last year. 

“It’s time. My only question is, why wait until November? We need new leadership now,” he said, according to Newsweek.

McConnell is the longest-serving Senate leader, with 17 years under his belt. He was first elected to the Senate in 1985. 

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