S.A. Miller

Rangel ethics inquiries vex House leaders

A renewed ethics probe of Rep. Charles B. Rangel of New York poses an embarrassing distraction for House Democrats, as the Ways and Means Committee that he leads will oversee House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plans for an $825 billion economic rescue and a tax increase on wealthy Americans.

January 26, 2009

GOP to grill Holder on interrogation

Republicans raised new challenges to Eric H. Holder Jr.'s bid to become attorney general as the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton as the secretary of state Wednesday.

January 22, 2009

Holder’s confirmation on hold

Senate Republicans temporarily put the brakes on Eric Holder's confirmation as attorney general, pressing Mr. Obama's nominee for fuller answers about his views on Bush administration interrogations and spying and whether intelligence agents involved will face criminal prosecution.

January 21, 2009

Landing back in Texas, Bush says he ‘gave it my all’

Withdrawing from the triumphal inaugural celebration for his successor in Washington, former President George W. Bush said in a series of farewell speeches that he was not "bitter" but satisfied with his tenure as he returned to life as a private citizen in Texas.

January 20, 2009

Post-inaugural Congress to revisit fiscal crisis

Congress will return to work less than 24 hours after the historic inauguration of Barack Obama, tackling a busy schedule Wednesday that includes spending measures totaling more than $1 trillion and a confirmation hearing on a controversial nomination to the president's Cabinet.

January 19, 2009

Reversing downturn is Obama’s first job

The lobbying frenzy for a piece of Barack Obama's more than $800 billion economic stimulus package is in full swing, and the competition is stiff for the unprecedented amount of money that's on the table.

January 19, 2009

Thousands crowd Obama rail stops

Walter Glover, his wife and two small children bundled up and drove three hours from their home in New Kent County, Va., to join the thousands of people facing frigid weather to see President-elect Barack Obama's whistle-stop speech here.

January 18, 2009

Senate welcomes Burris to fold

A who's who of senators and House members flocked to Sen. Roland Burris on the U.S. Senate floor after his swearing-in Thursday as the chamber's newest member, ending an embarrassing episode for Democrats who vowed to block his appointment.

January 16, 2009

Republicans delay Geithner hearing

Senate Republicans backed off a confirmation fight Wednesday over Treasury Secretary-designate Timothy Geithner's failure to pay nearly $35,000 in federal taxes, though they bumped a hearing on the appointment until after President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration next week.

January 15, 2009

Democrats spare little time to tackle agenda

Congress' Democratic leaders opened the session eager to advance an agenda long frustrated by President Bush but then quickly asserted their independence from President-elect Barack Obama as well, wrangling over a $800 billion economic rescue destined to be a signature program of the new administration.

January 14, 2009

Tax, housekeeper issues trip up Geithner

President-elect Barack Obama's pick for U.S. Treasury Secretary came under fire Tuesday on Capitol Hill for employing a housekeeper with expired immigration papers and for failing to pay his full taxes.

January 14, 2009

House approves bills for equal pay

House Democrats put their beefed up majority to work Friday to pass two bills that ease limits on pay discrimination lawsuits, the first pieces of legislation passed this session.

January 10, 2009

Obama: U.S. to weaken without stimulus

President-elect Barack Obama sought to move the economic stimulus debate past broad agreement on the outlines, pushing Congress to overcome squabbles or risk a long recession that threatens America's standing.

January 9, 2009

Pelosi wants stimulus bill by inauguration

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vowed Thursday to have a roughly $1 trillion economic stimulus bill on the floor during the week of President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration Jan. 20 and passed through Congress within three weeks.

January 8, 2009

Support grows for Burris on Hill

Democratic leaders backpedaled furiously Wednesday from past vows to block a Senate seat going to Roland W. Burris, whose appointment by scandal-smeared Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich over fellow Democrats' objections cast a pall over the opening days of the 111th Congress.

January 8, 2009

Confident Burris expects to be seated soon

UPDATED: An increasingly confident Roland W. Burris of Illinois, whose disputed appointment to the U.S. Senate has befuddled the Democratic leadership, said Wednesday that a path has been cleared for him to assume the Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.

January 7, 2009

Feinstein backs Burris as busy Congress begins

The 111th Congress opened Tuesday to a raucous start on a day typically reserved for ceremony, as Democrats dealt with an embarrassing sideshow over President-elect Barack Obama's replacement in the Senate and pushed through rules changes to limit minority Republicans' ability to influence legislation.

January 7, 2009

Burris refused a seat in the U.S. Senate

Disputed Senate appointee Roland W. Burris' quest to be seated in the chamber Monday ended abruptly in the Secretary of the Senate's office, where his credentials were rejected.

January 6, 2009

Obama pushes stimulus plan on Hill

President-elect Barack Obama laid his huge economic stimulus plan before Congress on Monday and received warm support from Republicans on his first full day of work in Washington.