The Tea Party

Seven Tests That Can Keep Republicans from Screwing Up

By Edward Morrissey

It didn’t take long for Republicans to make their first tin-eared mistake after winning a broad victory in November. In fact, they had barely opened the new session of Congress before performing a...
One Place the Trump Train Isn’t Stopping: Paul Ryan’s Backyard

By Martin Matishak

In a year in which an outsider candidate seized the reins of one of the country’s two major political parties, there’s one place where folks haven’t gotten the anti-establishment message: House...
Two-Thirds of the US Government Basically Won’t Work for the Next Year

By Rob Garver

With a deadlocked Supreme Court and a compromise-averse Congress, 2016 promises to be a year in which simply keeping the lights on will be a major accomplishment.
House Freedom Caucus Prepares to Challenge Ryan on 2016 Agenda

By Eric Pianin

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) has gotten off to a strong start with the far-right conservatives in his conference who drove former Speaker John Boehner from office and blocked Boehner’s heir...
Ted Cruz Gets a Boost from Powerful Conservative Insiders

By Rob Garver

An influential political action group in Washington, Heritage Action for America, all but endorsed the presidential candidacy of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on Monday, with the release of an analysis of the...

Boehner Ready to Exit a Historically Feeble Congress

By Rob Garver

As he heads into what appears to be the final week his leadership of the House of Representatives, House Speaker John Boehner will be the subject of no end of retrospective profiles of his career...
Did Paul Ryan Outsmart the Freedom Caucus?

By Rob Garver

The news that Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan had persuaded a large majority of the House of Representatives’ most conservative element to support his bid for Speaker of the House left the...
Paul Ryan Has Probably Already Lost His Shot at the Presidency

By Rob Garver

Regardless of whether Rep. Paul Ryan decides to declare himself a candidate for Speaker of the House sometime this week, his political future will likely sustain some real damage – and there is...
Meet the Freedom Caucus, the Group Inflaming Washington

By Martin Matishak

If you don’t know much about a group of congressional lawmakers called the House Freedom Caucus, don’t worry; you’ll hear about them plenty in the weeks and month ahead.
Why You – Yes, You – Could Be the Next Speaker of the House

By Martin Matishak

Spoiler alert: The race to be the next Speaker of the House is pretty much over.

Obama Steps In and Summons Boehner and Others

By Eric Pianin

On Day Two of the government shutdown , President Barack Obama on Wednesday invited House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and other congressional leaders to the White House for a meeting late this...
Obama Snookers GOP into Government Shutdown

By Liz Peek

Don’t kid yourself--President Obama has been gunning for a government shut-down. His polls are sinking, his second-term agenda is dead in the water, and he’s defending the NSA snooping, Benghazi and...
Federal Workers Feeling the Sting of the Shutdown

By Eric Pianin

Meet three federal workers who were among the hundreds of thousands furloughed on Tuesday after Congress and the White House missed the deadline for extending spending authority because of a dogfight...
A Grumpy Obama Tells Republican Foes To Grow Up

By Eric Pianin

A grumpy President Obama urged Republicans who helped trigger the first government shutdown in 17 years to start acting like adults and work with him to negotiate a budget deal that doesn’t include...
Government Shutdown: A Guide for Consumers

By Eric Pianin and Brianna Ehley

In Washington on Tuesday morning, hundreds of thousands of federal workers were given a few hours to clear off their desks and head home to an uncertain future as the first day of the government...

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