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Articles by Tom Howell Jr.

Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is calling for a $1.8 billion project to combat Aedes aegypti. (Associated Press) **FILE**

CDC, Democrats make last-ditch plea for more Zika money

The Obama administration and Democratic allies made a last-ditch plea for extra Zika funding Thursday, citing its rapid spread in Puerto Rico and the rising tally of U.S. babies born with defects tied to the disease.

July 7, 2016
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. (Associated Press) ** FILE **

Treasury cooked up excuse for Obamacare payments: GOP report

The Obama administration ignored its own advice and forged ahead with Obamacare payments to insurers without permission from Congress, House Republicans said Thursday in a scathing report that says the White House dismissed the Constitution's separation of powers and swiped $7 billion from taxpayers.

July 7, 2016
(Associated Press/File)

Opioid funding bill in doubt as GOP refuses immediate $1 billion

Republicans shot down Democrats' efforts Wednesday to add nearly $1 billion in funding to a bill designed to combat the nationwide opioid epidemic, leaving the fate of the measure in doubt as Democrats regroup and decide whether they can live without the quick cash injection.

July 6, 2016
Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. speaks in Trenton, N.J., on June 10, 2013. (Associated Press) **FILE**

Democrats threaten to oppose opioid plan over funding

Democratic negotiators threatened to oppose an emerging plan to address the nation's prescription opioid and heroin epidemic Wednesday after Republicans rebuffed their attempts to add nearly $1 billion to the deal, raising doubts about yet another effort to address a public health crisis in jeopardy.

July 6, 2016
In this photo provided by Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., Democratic members of Congress, including Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., center, and Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., left, participate in sit-in protest on the floor of the House on Capitol Hill in Washington on Wednesday, June 22, 2016, seeking a vote on gun-control measures. (Rep. John Yarmuth via AP) ** FILE **

GOP leaders resist Democratic calls for gun votes

House Republican leaders signaled Tuesday they won't cave to Democratic demands for a vote on "no fly, no buy" gun legislation because it would strip people of their constitutional rights and reward the minority party for waging a boisterous sit-in on the chamber floor.

July 5, 2016
Rio de Janierio Olympic officials are pressing on with preps for the Summer Games, saying that the Southern Hemisphere's winter months will allow time for instituting measures to head off Zika virus concerns. (Associated Press)

NIH plans to enlist U.S. Olympic team for Zika study

The National Institutes of Health said Tuesday it plans to monitor Olympic athletes, coaches and staff for exposure to the Zika virus during the Summer Games in Brazil, calling it an "unique opportunity" to study the mosquito-borne outbreak at its epicenter.

July 5, 2016
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington in this June 9, 2016, file photo. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) ** FILE **

Zika funding needed to head off disease, U.S. voters say

As Americans turned out by the millions for barbecues and fireworks for Monday's July 4 festivities, Republicans were hoping that every mosquito bite will make the patriotic revelers think of the Zika virus — and of Democrats.

July 4, 2016
Donald Trump appeared to be angling for a political boost no matter what the FBI recommends. If Hillary Clinton is indicted, she might be nudged out of the race. If she isn't, he can cry malfeasance. "Like I said, the system is totally rigged!" he said on Twitter. (Associated Press)

Donald Trump says no charges for Hillary Clinton in email probe, cites inside sources

Hillary Clinton's sit-down with the FBI snapped the political world to attention over the sleepy July Fourth holiday weekend, with Democrats saying charges are outside "the realm of possibility" and Republicans signaling the same, yet only because they think the Justice Department will not hurt President Obama's handpicked successor.

July 3, 2016
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, Alabama Republican, listens as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testifies on U.S. monetary policy on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 21, 2016. (Associated Press) **FILE**

Democrats urge Sen. Richard Shelby to drop Ex-Im blockade

Dozens of Senate Democrats urged Sen. Richard Shelby on Thursday to reconsider his decision to block a nominee to the Export-Import Bank, arguing his blockade is holding back an agency that enjoys majority support from Congress.

June 30, 2016