Joseph Clark

First Afghan evacuees arriving as U.S. seeks more landing sites; interpreters threatened by Taliban

The Biden administration has begun evacuating to the U.S. the first interpreters and other Afghan nationals who face possible retaliation from the Taliban insurgency for helping American troops, senior administration officials announced Thursday.

July 30, 2021

Congress approves emergency spending to repay National Guard, Capitol Police for Jan. 6 riot costs

Congress gave final approval Thursday to a $2 billion emergency supplemental spending bill to reimburse the U.S. Capitol Police and National Guard for their deployment in response to Jan. 6.

July 29, 2021

Senate passes emergency spending to repay National Guard, Capitol Police for Jan. 6 deployments

The Senate passed a $2 billion emergency supplemental spending bill Thursday to reimburse the U.S. Capitol Police and National Guard for their deployment in response to Jan. 6 riot.

July 29, 2021

Senators strike $2 billion deal to reimburse Capitol Police, National Guard for Jan. 6 deployments

The Senate Appropriations Committee reached a deal Tuesday to reimburse the National Guard and U.S. Capitol Police for deployments during the Jan. 6 riot.

July 27, 2021

Biden’s budget ‘injects risk’ to nuclear weapons modernization, senior officials warn Congress

Senior nuclear security officials have expressed concern over the Biden administration's proposed budget, saying the funding puts nuclear modernization initiatives at risk.

July 27, 2021

Senate Democrats put female draft back on the table

Senate Democrats are quickly advancing legislation that would expand the military draft to include women.

July 26, 2021

House Democrats stiff-arm hearing on backlog of requests for veterans’ records

Republicans' calls for a hearing into an extensive backlog of veterans' requests for records on everything from military burials to employment screening have been met with silence by the chairwoman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, New York Democrat.

July 23, 2021

Dems cave to GOP demands for vote delay, public hearing on repeal of Iraq war powers

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez on Thursday bowed to Republican pressure and delayed a vote to repeal the president's war powers granted for the two Iraq wars.

July 22, 2021

Ilhan Omar leads congressional call for U.S. special envoy to combat Islamophobia

Rep. Ilhan Omar is leading House lawmakers in demanding that the Biden administration create a special envoy to combat Islamophobia, citing a rise in anti-Muslim incidents across the globe.

July 22, 2021

Navy warns it’s running out of capabilities to cut, budget moves threaten readiness

The Navy warned Congress today that it is quickly reaching the end of the line on divestments before cutting into capabilities needed for deterrence and war fighting.

July 21, 2021

Lawmakers push to reclaim war powers from presidents

A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation this week to strengthen the Nixon-era resolution aimed at curbing the president's ability to fight lengthy wars abroad without congressional approval.

July 21, 2021

Senate panel advances military-justice overhaul proposal

A Senate subcommittee on Tuesday advanced an amendment to overhaul the military's process for prosecuting major crimes, including sexual assault, by removing decisions from the chain of command.

July 20, 2021

‘Nothing short of historic’: House panel presses for support of Cuba protesters

Lawmakers on a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee called for U.S. support to the Cuban people in the first Congressional hearing on the communist government's crackdown on protesters who began taking to the street just over a week ago.

July 20, 2021

‘I’m waiting for my number’: Time running out for Afghan allies caught in U.S. evacuation snare

The Biden administration is moving amid heavy criticism to address a backlog of about 18,000 applicants and announced last week that 700 Afghanis who have been cleared to emigrate to the U.S. will be relocated to Fort Lee, Virginia, ultimately with 1,800 of their relatives.

July 20, 2021

Lawsuit: DOD shutters Air Force Academy oversight board, nixes review of critical race theory

A member of the Air Force Academy Board of Visitors has sued over Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin suspending the board, claiming it prevented vital oversight, including over the potential introduction of critical race theory in the university curriculum.

July 19, 2021

House panel votes to cut funding to Chinese researchers in wake of COVID pandemic

A House panel this week passed several measures aimed at cutting U.S. taxpayer funding for scientific research in China, as a growing number of lawmakers increase calls for transparency into the origins of COVID-19.

July 17, 2021

Democrats on House panel buck Republican input on omnibus China bill

House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats largely dismissed Republican input Thursday before passing the committee's comprehensive bill aimed at countering China.

July 15, 2021

Pence says Biden administration ‘rolling over’ for China, as Beijing ‘senses weakness’

Former Vice President Mike Pence warned Wednesday that the Biden administration is showing "weakness" to China's leaders by failing to hold Beijing accountable for the COVID-19 pandemic.

July 14, 2021

Biden to start evacuation flights this month for Afghan interpreters in jeopardy as U.S. pulls out

The Biden administration plans to begin this month evacuating interpreters and other Afghans who face deadly retaliation for helping U.S. troops during the 20-year war, according to the White House.

July 14, 2021

Democrat-led House panel votes to repeal war-on-terror authorization

The House Appropriations Committee approved an amendment Tuesday tied to next year's defense spending bill that would repeal the 2001 war authorization that has provided the domestic legal authority to execute the global war on terror following the attacks on 9/11.

July 13, 2021