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Articles by Tom Howell Jr.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, Maryland Democrat, leaves the House Chamber at the Capitol in Washington on Feb. 27, 2015. (Associated Press) **FILE**

Steny Hoyer: Up to GOP caucus to decide next speaker

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer said Tuesday it will be up to the Republican majority to decide who replaces departing Speaker John A. Boehner this month, downplaying what role, if any, Democrats will play if his likely successor cannot rally majority support from the chamber.

October 6, 2015
House Committee on the Budget Chairman Tom Price, Georgia Republican (Associated Press) **FILE**

House budget-minders tee up moves to dismantle Obamacare

House Republicans announced Friday they will forge ahead next week with efforts to dismantle Obamacare through a fast-track budget process, wasting little time after three panels recommended ways to repeal the 2010 law's most unpopular mandates, taxes and regulations.

October 2, 2015
Rep. Edward R. Royce, California Republican (Associated Press) **FILE**

House votes to delay Iran sanctions relief until terror victims get paid

Taking the first steps to try to scuttle the Iran nuclear agreement, the House approved a bill Thursday that would block President Obama from lifting sanctions on Tehran until the regime makes billions of dollars in court-ordered payments to American victims of state-sponsored terrorism.

October 1, 2015
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif. leaves a procedural vote and debate in the House on a stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown on Sept. 30, 2015, on Capitol Hill in Washington. A temporary funding measure aiming to keep the government open past a midnight deadline sailed through the Senate on Wednesday and was expected to make its way shortly through a divided House and on to President Barack Obama. (Associated Press)

House passes funding bill, averting government shutdown

The House approved a stopgap spending bill Wednesday to fund federal operations for 10 more weeks, clearing the bill for President Obama's signature with several hours to spare before a midnight deadline to keep the government open.

September 30, 2015
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Republican, answers questions during an interview with The Associated Press in his office on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 9, 2015. (Associated Press) **FILE**

House panel votes to scrap Obamacare mandates

The House Ways and Means Committee moved Tuesday to chip away at Obamacare by using a fast-track budget tool to repeal the law's most unpopular taxes and provisions, including the mandate requiring Americans to hold insurance.

September 29, 2015
Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas Republican (Associated Press) **FILE**

Senate advances bill to avert gov’t shutdown; Ted Cruz decries ‘surrender’

The Senate took a major step Monday toward keeping the government open and funded beyond this week, staving off hard-line conservatives' push to threaten a government shutdown over funding for Planned Parenthood, as House GOP leaders settled on a new strategy to force the pro-life issue onto President Obama's desk.

September 28, 2015
The Capitol building in Washington, D.C. (Associated Press)

House GOP freshmen, top Democrat Steny Hoyer seek offramp from looming shutdown

Nearly a dozen freshmen Republicans pushed their party colleagues not to pursue hard-line tactics that risk yet another federal shutdown, while a top Democrat said Wednesday his party will not "burn down the House," as congressional factions jockeyed to meet next week's deadline to fund the government.

September 23, 2015
"Right now, we're playing a game of chicken, and it's a dangerous game," said Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, who pleaded for her fellow Republicans to forgo a repeat of the 16-day shutdown in 2013. (Associated Press)

Planned Parenthood funding vote sets up government shutdown showdown

Senate Republicans set up a vote Thursday to withhold some money from Planned Parenthood as part of a deal to keep the government funded beyond the end of this month, cuing an abortion-tinged shutdown showdown just hours after Pope Francis addresses a joint meeting of Congress.

September 22, 2015
FILE - In this Sept. 16, 2015 file photo, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell of Ky. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democrats seem certain to block Republican legislation banning most late-term abortions in a Senate showdown with plenty of political significance but little suspense. I'm asking colleagues to open their hearts and help defend the defenseless," McConnell said Monday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Senate GOP unveils measure to fund government through Dec. 11

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday he will push a short-term spending bill that funds the government through Dec. 11 and redirects Planned Parenthood funding to other health centers amid controversy over the organization's abortion practice.

September 22, 2015
FILE - In this Nov. 12, 2014 file photo, the HealthCare.gov website, where people can buy health insurance, is displayed on a laptop screen, in Portland, Ore. About 9.9 million people have signed up and paid for health insurance under President Barack Obama's health care law, the administration said Sept. 8, 2015, a slight dip from a previous count but on track toward the administration's year-end goal of 9.1 million. (AP Photo/Don Ryan, File)

Obamacare website contractor paid $4M to fix own mistakes: audit

The Obama administration paid $4 million to a leading HealthCare.gov contractor to fix some of its own errors on the balky website, according to an audit Tuesday that says the government held back only a small portion of payments to the company that was ultimately dropped from the project.

September 22, 2015