Katie Britt on Cruz's podcast recounted how Speaker Johnson told her not to worry about how past rebuttals went.

"He's like, 'People are going to tell you horror stories about all these things that happened, people's career will be blown up over it --it will be fine,'" she said Britt said the media "didn't do their homework" on her speech.

"The liberal media isn't interested in the truth. They're interested in burying the truth about Joe Biden and his border crisis"

"When all the facts come out, people will see the truth," she added

Lankford says he anticipates supplemental won’t pass Wednesday ! Wow. Lankford won’t say if he’ll vote to advance his own bill on Wednesday !

“The biggest issue that I have is obviously I've got a lot of members that have questions on it. It's not going to move and become law if we try to be able to force this right now on it.”

“It’s a very specific legal argument and I’m afraid I’m just not up on it enough to be able to comment,” GOP Sen. Rand Paul says of Trump’s immunity claims Cornyn seems to be more up on the legal theory.

“I think the law should apply to everybody,” he says. “That’s one of the things that makes America unique and it’s very important.”

GOP Sen. Mike Rounds: “You never like to hear a former president has been found in civil court guilty of those types of actions.”

Asked if he could support someone found liable of battery, Rounds said, “I would have a difficult time doing so.”

He heaped praise on Tim Scott Sen. Kennedy declined to comment when asked about jury finding Trump liable of sexual battery.

“I don’t have anything for you on that.”

Graham on MTG, others applauding leaker of classified info:

"What they’re suggesting will destroy America's ability to defend itself. That it’s OK to release classified information based on your political views. That the ends justify the means. It is not OK," he says on ABC Graham added: "There is no justification for this. And for any member of Congress to suggest it’s OK to leak classified information because you agree with the cause is terrible, irresponsible, and puts America in serious danger."

January 6 report is out january6th.house.gov/sites/democrat… "Neither the intelligence community nor law enforcement obtained intelligence in advance of January 6th on the full extent of the ongoing planning by President Trump, John Eastman, Rudolph Giuliani
and their associates to overturn the certified election results."

This Florida Senate debate is so hot it's basically impossible to transcribe in real time At one point, Demings accused Rubio of "lying, cheating and trying to steal"

Republican Mike Lee is wearing a blue tie, and Independent Evan McMullin is wearing a red tie #analysis #debates #whattowatchfor a Milton Friedman reference from Mike Lee in tonight's debate

drink 1 shot

I spent a day talking to voters in battleground Georgia counties about the Walker revelations. They're holding their nose and sticking with him if it means a Senate win.

“We’re all sinners,” one woman said. "We’ve all done some things we’re not proud of." huffpost.com/entry/herschel… One Trump supporter said he worried what else may come out but he didn't intend to change his vote. Another called Walker "dishonest" but said he's all they've got.

“I’m not crazy about him but he’s better than the alternative."

Baldwin and Sinema - Dem negotiators on same-sex marriage bill - are sitting on GOP side of the floor, waiting for Rs to enter to vote. Baldwin holding a sheet of paper in hand. Text expected “shortly,” she said earlier “No Sullivan yet?” Sinema asks a GOP clerk

Portman, meanwhile, appears to be reading over some text with Capito

It’s done: The Senate has passed the Dem climate and health care bill 50-50, with VP Harris casting tie-breaker. Been long, long and winding road, capped by grueling 15 hours of votes on amendments. Dems stuck together to the end. Big round of applause in the chamber

Manchin votes no and sticks with Dems against Thune’s amendment Sinema votes yes - meaning it will pass

Senate voting on Kennedy's amendment he says will "reimplement a rule Biden repealed to make insulin available at community health care centers." Would pay pay for it by redirecting money away from Obamacare.

Murray says Rs should support the insulin price cap instead 50-50, Kennedy amendment is not adopted

Coming hilarity: the Bernie amendment to “extend the special rules for the child tax credit that applied for 2021 and to increase the corporate tax rate.”

Dems absolutely support this — especially progressives — but they’re going to vote no because it would blow up the bill Manchin killed the CTC extension partly because, he said, it wasn’t funded for a 10 year window. What did he agree to instead that is only funded for a few years (Republicans argue it’ll get extended longer)? The ACA subsidies

Details on Schumer/Manchin deal

Total revenue: $739B
$369.75B on energy/climate
$300B on deficit reduction
corporate min tax

ACA subsidies extended for three years (Manchin previously agreed to two) Manchin/Schumer joint statement:

"The revised legislative text will be submitted to the Parliamentarian for review this evening and the full Senate will consider it next week."

GOP senators are introducing a bill to raise the mandatory commercial pilot retirement age from 65 to 67 to address flight delays and cancellations

"I'm 67 -- I don't think I'm going to take up flying -- but I'm in pretty good shape," Graham says in SC Graham says he recently had "five or six" flight cancellations in one day

Capito when asked about House bill codifying gay marriage protections and if she supports gay marriage in general:

“I’d rather answer those questions when we have the vote” Asked about gay marriage bill and his stance on the issue, Grassley said, “It’s the law of the land.”

He didn’t respond when a reporter said so was Roe.

Manchin tells @HoppyKercheval he wanted to wait longer:

"I said, 'Chuck until we see the July inflation figures...then let's wait until that comes out so we know we're going down a path that won't be inflationary" Manchin: "I said, 'Chuck if you're on a political deadline and it has to get done in July, the one thing you know can get done is do the bill on drug prices, letting Medicare negotiate'"

"It's not prudent to do the other right now," he added, referring to climate + energy

Dems are about to try to UC a bill seeking to protect right to travel out of state to obtain an abortion. Unclear if any Rs will block it, though several GOP senators I spoke to yesterday called it unnecessary Daines says on the floor that Democrats' bill to protect right to travel out of state for abortion would allow "fly-in abortions" and that it would "protect the greed of woke corporations" who have pledged to cover travel costs of their employees

Alright fine a good reason to go to the House side January 6 committee says they've received new "specific information about what the president and his former aides were doing" in the White House on January 6 and in the days leading up to it

Senate now voting to advance gun violence bill. First procedural step Cornyn and Schumer shaking hands on the floor