Tom Howell Jr.

Insurers lobby goes to bat for Obamacare

A major trade group for America's health insurers is supporting the Obama administration's defense against a lawsuit that questions whether Congress intended to let Obamacare tax credits flow to states that opted to let the federal government run their new insurance markets.

February 18, 2014

N.J. mayor won’t cooperate with Christie attorneys over Bridgegate: report

The mayor of a New Jersey town at the center of the "Bridgegate" scandal overshadowing Gov. Chris Christie's second term said Tuesday he will not talk to lawyers hired by the governor to look into lane closures last September near the George Washington Bridge, according to a new report.

February 18, 2014

Republican Governors Association launches website to attack Democratic candidates

The Republican Governors Association has launched a new website called Blue State Madness to take on Democrats in 2014 gubernatorial races.

February 18, 2014

‘Joe the Plumber’ lands a union job, report says

The conservative hero known as "Joe the Plumber" announced on Facebook this week that he's landed a union job in Ohio with Chrysler Group LLC.

February 18, 2014

Sen. Roger Wicker says GOP colleague John Cornyn of Texas will win his primary

Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn's bid for re-election got a boost this week from a GOP colleague and one of the top newspapers in his state.

February 18, 2014

Former U.S. Rep. Melvin Jay Reynolds arrested in Zimbabwe

Former Rep. Melvin Jay Reynolds has been arrested in Zimbabwe on allegations he possessed pornographic material and violated immigration laws, an immigration official in the African country told The Associated Press.

February 18, 2014

Billionaire donor to spend $100 million in Koch-style bid to fight climate change: report

A billionaire who spent $11 million to help put Terry McAuliffe in the governor's mansion in Virginia plans to spend up to $100 million during this year's election cycle to press for climate change measures, a new report said.

February 18, 2014

Obama’s stimulus package, 5 years later: Dems defend, Republicans ridicule

Though its political bite has faded compared with Obamacare and other fights, the $800 billion-plus stimulus still divides the two major parties five years after it was signed, with Democrats saying it prevented a worse collapse and Republicans saying a still-sluggish economy is proof that President Obama wasted much of the money.

February 17, 2014

Genius! Apple Store model helps Conn. reach Obamacare goals

Connecticut easily reached its Obamacare enrollment goals by taking a page from the Apple company and opening up storefronts that allow people to drift in and get the skinny on the labyrinthine law, according to Forbes.

February 17, 2014

Obama to Charles Barkley: I’m cool with the term ‘Obamacare’

President Obama says he's OK with the term "Obamacare" to describe his signature, yet controversial, health care law.

February 17, 2014

Kentucky tea partiers to McConnell: Step aside for Matt Bevin

The United Kentucky Tea Party on Monday said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell should drop out of the Republican primary in their state so conservatives can rally around Matt Bevin, the GOP candidate who is challenging Mr. McConnell from the political right.

February 17, 2014

FDA says it’s not too late to get a flu shot

The FDA wants Americans to know it isn't too late to get a flu vaccine, as virus activity typically peaks in January and February and can circulate well into May.

February 17, 2014

N.Y. voters support medical marijuana; slimmer margin wants recreational use

A majority of New Yorkers support the legalization of small amounts of marijuana for personal use and, by a much larger margin, would support a medical marijuana program in their state, a new poll said.

February 17, 2014

Sen. John Cornyn marks five-year anniversary of Obama’s stimulus with harsh words

Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn on Monday marked the five-year anniversary of President Obama's economic stimulus, but it was hardly a laudatory toast to the 2009 bid to restart America's infrastructure and workforce.

February 17, 2014

Radical group in Syria even too brutal for al Qaeda, report says

A new report says radical Islamist group ISIS is "so brutal that even al Qaeda keeps its distance," and it left a trail of violence as they were driven out of the Syrian town of Addana.

February 17, 2014

Eleanor Roosevelt ranked the top first lady; Michelle Obama fifth, Hillary in sixth

Eleanor Roosevelt kept the top spot in a new survey that ranks American first ladies — her fifth No. 1 ranking over the last 32 years — while Michelle Obama edged out Hillary Clinton to come in fifth.

February 17, 2014

Americans give border security, dealing with illegal immigrants in U.S. equal weight, poll shows

Americans now assign equal weight to border security and a plan to deal with illegal immigrants who are in the United States, the top two aspects of immigration reform up for debate on Capitol Hill, a new poll says.

February 17, 2014

Obama’s executive actions can backfire on Democrats if GOP takes the White House

President Obama's repeated use of executive powers to ease the rollout of his health care law could be setting the stage for Republicans to roll back the overhaul's most controversial parts if they retake the White House in 2016, say analysts who have tracked the law's shifting landscape.

February 16, 2014

Bill Nye ‘the Science Guy’ and Rep. Marsha Blackburn don’t see eye to eye on climate change

Bill Nye "the Science Guy" and a Tennesssee congresswoman went toe-to-toe over climate change Sunday, a topic that's heating up as much of the United States suffers from either fierce winter storms or intense drought.

February 16, 2014

Romney again dismisses any talk of another presidential run

In case there was any doubt, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney reiterated on Sunday he is not gunning for the White House ever again.

February 16, 2014