Melissa Joan Hart visits Capitol Hill to urge gun reform
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GOP senators used a special conference meeting Wednesday to air their deepening differences over Ukraine aid — but left the room still lacking any immediate consensus on how to bridge that divide.
The meeting was requested by 17 Republicans, most of them conservatives, as the party continues to wrangle internal divisions over Ukraine funding that’s set for attachment to a stalled $100 billion-plus national security spending package also benefiting Taiwan, Israel and border security. Wednesday’s meeting followed a heated Senate GOP lunch on Tuesday that put the rift over the Ukraine-border talks on full display — after that contentious affair, some were unsure of what to expect from another round of discussion.
But attendees described Wednesday’s meeting as more tame. And yielding nothing significant as far as policy agreements or breakthroughs.
“It was much more from the heart and not angry and lashing out,” said Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.).
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said the meeting was “an open airing of different views on Ukraine.” Sen. Tommy Tuberville said it was an opportunity for people get things “off their chests.”
Sens. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) spoke during the meeting, according to Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who said the four lawmakers gave “some very powerful addresses.”
“I think there’s a general consensus the majority of our conference feel like we need to support Ukraine,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C) said afterward. “There’s a discussion about humanitarian aid, sustaining government operations, lethal aid, but i thought it was a very good discussion.”
One idea Republicans are discussing is focusing any new Ukraine aid on the military, an attempt to break the logjam and sell the funding to some skeptical colleagues within their own ranks.
“Focusing military aid to Ukraine on military aid and letting some of the other countries that maybe don’t do as much on military aid, like Canada and the EU, [focus] on direct budget support and some econ aid, that is really to me a growing consensus amongst our conference that could help get the Ukraine aid over the goal line with a lot of Republican support,” Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska.) said.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) has proposed a resolution supporting a delay in any debate on the national security spending agreement — once it appears — unless members have “adequate” time to review it. But that plan did not get taken up on Wednesday, per attendees.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) remains adamantly in favor of Ukraine aid, but a growing faction of his own members feel differently. On the Senate floor Wednesday morning, McConnell argued funding Ukraine has “never been about charity” or “virtue signaling,” but is instead “about cold, hard American interests.”
House and Senate Republicans have demanded that stronger border policies get tied to further Ukraine aid. The senators leading those border policy negotiations — led by Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) — say they are close to a deal but don’t have bill text yet. Lankford and Murphy have both said their product is now getting looked over in the Appropriations Committee.
Two members of Senate Republican leadership on Wednesday offered Donald Trump soft support as the party’s likely presidential nominee — but also urged him to view his New Hampshire victory as a nudge to do more to court independent voters.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the conference’s No. 2 leader, said that he’d support Trump if the former president wins the party’s nod, but gave no hint he’ll endorse before the primary is officially over. Thune, who faced tension with Trump ahead of his 2022 reelection bid to the Senate, acknowledged after Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary that voters are “breaking heavily” for Trump, who is “in a commanding position.”
“I’ve said all along I’ll support the nominee. So if he’s the nominee, I’ll do what I can to help the team win the presidency,” Thune said.
That position aligns with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who hasn’t endorsed Trump and largely avoids saying his name at all — but has also said he’ll support the party’s presidential nominee. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a leadership counselor to McConnell, also said Wednesday that he won’t endorse in the primary but that he’ll support the party’s nominee.
Both Thune and Tillis added that Trump rival Nikki Haley’s strong showing with independent and swing voters in New Hampshire results should signal to the Trump team that it has a weakness outside the party’s die-hard base.
“They are going to have to reach out and convince” independents, Tillis said of the Trump campaign.
The Senate Republican conference has long lagged behind their House counterparts in their level of Trump support, though a growing number have either endorsed him or indicated that they’ll support him if he wins the nomination.
While neither Thune nor Tillis gave any indication they would offer Trump a full-throated endorsement now, two of the “three Johns” — a popular Hill reference to Thune, Senate GOP Conference Chair John Barrasso (Wyo.) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), all viewed as potential successors to McConnell when he steps down — are explicitly on board with the former president.
Thune and Trump have had an occasionally rocky history. Trump lashed out repeatedly at Thune after the GOP senator acknowledged the obvious — that the then-president’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election on Jan. 6 would fall short. Trump called for a primary challenger against Thune, who easily won reelection in 2022.
Chuck Schumer’s push to more strongly regulate Zyn nicotine pouches he says are being pushed to teens has lit a smokeless fire among some conservative lawmakers.
“I’m delivering a warning to parents, because these nicotine pouches seem to lock their sights on young kids, teenagers and even lower. And then use the social media to hook them,” the Senate majority leader said at a press conference this week urging the FDA and FTC to probe the product.
Conservatives seized on his comments.
“It’ll make a lot of people mad. He wants to do that and cut out menthol cigarettes. I don’t think we need to do that,” said Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), also citing the delayed Biden administration ban on menthol cigarettes.
“I think he got his priorities wrong,” Tuberville added.
“I’m not a user myself, but it’s hard to believe that’s one of the most pressing problems for the country right now,” said Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) in a short interview.
Schumer’s comments didn’t escape the eyes of House Republicans either.
“Big Brother Schumer doesn’t want us to chew or smoke,” wrote Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), chair of the NRCC, alongside a picture of him in hunting fatigues. “Come and take it!”
“I know for a fact our service members and emergency responders use Zyn as an alternative to tobacco to help stay alert,” wrote Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.). “This is a massive overreach.”
Others took a more cautious approach, saying they weren’t familiar with the product or wanted to learn more.
“Where there’s a health care consideration, everybody has to look at that,” said Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.). “I don’t like the government banning stuff either.”
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), ranking member of the HELP Committee, said simply “I’d like to know more about” Schumer’s call.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre referred all questions about Zyn to the FDA when asked on Wednesday.
Actress Melissa Joan Hart joined Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and other advocates to rally support for his legislation that would restrict access to certain semi-automatic firearms, large-capacity magazines and related conversion devices.
Hart, most famous for her roles in TV shows like “Clarissa Explains It All” and “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” said her political views on access to weapons changed following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting in which 26 people were killed, including 20 children. She was then near the scene of the 2023 shooting at the The Covenant School in Nashville, where she helped fleeing children to safety.
“I used to believe that you couldn’t mess with the Second Amendment because that’s a threat to our freedom as Americans. But now I can say that we are not free as long as weapons of war are allowed in the hands of untrained, unchecked citizens,” said Hart, who has previously supported Republican candidates. “We are not free if our children are forced to practice lockdown drills at school and at church, and we are not free if we have to live in fear.”
Whitney Port, who rose to fame on “The Hills,” added: “I have a six-year-old child and the realization that my child is practicing for a mass shooting in school fills me with fear and overwhelming stress.”
Heinrich, a lifelong gun owner, has five members of the Democratic conference as co-sponsors.
Mitch McConnell is still keeping his distance from Donald Trump — even as New Hampshire primary voters cast ballots that could solidify his grip on the GOP nomination.
Asked about his avoidance of a Trump endorsement during his weekly briefing with reporters, McConnell said he’s “stayed out of” the presidential primary and “when I change my mind on that, I’ll let you all know.”
“I don’t have any news to make today. We’re all watching New Hampshire with great interest,” McConnell added.
McConnell is not the only member of Senate Republican leadership to sidestep a Trump endorsement thus far. Both Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) and Conference Vice Chair Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) have also stayed away.
But as Trump continues to push toward the party’s nomination — the field has narrowed to only him and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley — Senate Republicans are beginning to get off the fence and into his camp. McConnell has previously said he will support the Republican nominee, whomever that may be.
McConnell’s relationship with Trump may prove even more politically decisive over the next few weeks if the Senate manages to strike a border deal that could unlock the White House’s stalled national security emergency spending plan. Trump has indicated he’s against the still-in flux agreement, which would include aid for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and the border — all top priorities for McConnell.
Rep. Kelly Armstrong won’t seek reelection to North Dakota’s sole House seat and will run to replace Doug Burgum as governor, he announced Tuesday.
“North Dakotans will always do better when we are in charge of our own destiny,” Armstrong (R-N.D.) said in a statement. “That’s why I’ve decided to come home to run for Governor.”
The announcement came mere hours after Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told POLITICO he would not run for the office. Burgum said he would not seek a third term on Monday.
Armstrong first came to the House in 2019 after previously serving as chair of the North Dakota Republican Party. He voted to certify President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 election and voted to codify the right to same-sex marriage in 2022.
Jordain Carney contributed to this report.
Sen. James Lankford, the lead GOP negotiator on a border-foreign aid package, said there won’t be a vote on the bipartisan proposal this week as senators work to iron out final sticking points.
Instead, Lankford (R-Okla.) said he’s “very hopeful” that he, Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) can release the text of the deal they have been negotiating sometime this week.
“It could be later on this week if all the things continue to come together,” Lankford said. But, he added, there “certainly” wouldn’t be a vote this week.
Murphy added that negotiators are working “as fast as we can. … [But] there’s still some issues left to solve.”
“There is no reason for us to wait weeks to get this bill on the floor. And so I am hopeful that our Republican colleagues will work with us to wrap up the supplemental — both the policy changes and the funding necessary to effectuate the policy changes — in the next few days so that we can answer the call for Ukraine,” Murphy said.
Senate Republicans spent most of their closed-door lunch discussing the negotiations, with some airing frustrations about the length of the talks and concerns that leadership could force a quick vote. Some conservatives are also pitching breaking up the components of the border-foreign aid deal into individual pieces that would each get their own vote.
“Several points of view came out … at decibel levels a little higher than normal,” said Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.).
Braun summed up the frustration during the lunch meeting: “It’s taken so long, and now there’s talk about maybe getting something to the floor and voting on it in a day or two. I think that would cause a real uproar.”
Lankford, asked about some of the feedback from his colleagues, added that “everybody wants to read it. … Everybody wants to be able to go through it..”
“They’re all frustrated they’re not in the room,” he said.
Senators had hoped to be ready to vote on a deal as soon as this week — but there were already signs that it was looking increasingly unlikely.
“There are a few items still outstanding. So … we’re not on a glide path to get this done this week,” Senate GOP Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) told reporters earlier Tuesday.
But negotiators and leadership signaled Tuesday that they still believe they are close to a deal. Even if they can get something through the Senate, it could still face a heavy lift in the House, where a growing number of conservatives are wary of additional Ukraine aid.
“We will give members time to read the text before we vote, that’s for sure. And as for amendments and how to deal with the floor, Leader [Mitch] McConnell and I will have to work that out once we’ve come to an agreement,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.
North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer said he won’t run to replace Gov. Doug Burgum after the incumbent governor announced Monday he wouldn’t pursue a third term.
“I’m not running for governor,” he told POLITICO in an interview, calling it a “logical question” following Burgum’s announcement.
Cramer (R-N.D.), who came to the Senate in 2018 and is up for reelection in 2024, said he wants to continue to accumulate seniority in a second term in office.
“In the second six-year term, you probably like quadruple your influence,” he said. “Seniority is probably more important.”
Burgum said he wouldn’t seek reelection to the highest office in Bismarck shortly after dropping his presidential bid and endorsing former President Donald Trump.
The state’s other GOP senator, John Hoeven, previously served for ten years as governor.
Republicans once slammed John Fetterman as a “radical socialist” who was “too dangerous” to get elected.
These days, they seem to like him just fine.
Now that Fetterman is touting ironclad support for Israel and calling for stricter border policies, his Senate colleagues across the aisle describe him as “independent” and “sticking to his guns.” Interviews with nearly a dozen GOP senators revealed a growing warmth toward Fetterman that goes beyond delight at seeing how much his new identity has irked progressives.
It seems Republicans are now more open to partnering with Fetterman on policy because of his recent party-bucking.
“It certainly makes it more appealing to want to work with him on things if you see this independent streak,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said of Fetterman’s recent remarks.
No grand partnerships have sprung up on legislation just yet. But the mere fact that Republicans view him in those terms is a statement on Fetterman’s political evolution.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who frustrated many in his own party with his months-long blockade of military promotions, lauded Fetterman as someone who “speaks his own mind” and “doesn’t follow the party line.” Tuberville added that “it’s easier to talk, carry on a conversation,” with a political opponent who’s “open-minded.”
It’s unclear whether Fetterman can, or even wants to, leverage his new niche as a Democrat who Republicans can tolerate — possibly even like — into a productive role as a Senate dealmaker. It’s a disappearing typecast: Sens. Mitt Romney‘s (R-Utah) and Joe Manchin‘s (D-W.Va.) imminent retirements are hollowing out the chamber’s small but influential bloc of aisle-crossing negotiators, and that void could grow if Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) also passes on reelection.
But Fetterman’s voting record remains staunchly in line with the rest of his party. In a brief interview for this story, the first-term senator didn’t express explicit interest in taking on more partnerships with the GOP — but he didn’t rule it out, either. Fetterman even argued that Republicans who have personally praised his recent remarks on the border and Israel shouldn’t be so shocked.
“Outside of Philadelphia, they have these gigantic billboards, where it was like, ‘Fetterman = open border’ … it just turns out that it’s all bullshit,” Fetterman said in an interview, referring to Republicans’ 2022 campaign attacks on him. “And I would have thought that professionals would have realized that most of it is all bullshit.”
Just over a year ago, Senate Republicans were working hard to brand Fetterman as a younger version of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) — an actual democratic socialist — who was unfit for office. Over the past three months, however, Fetterman showed a side of his ideology that seemed to genuinely startle his GOP colleagues.
Not only did he vocally defend Israel in its war against Hamas, as Sanders and other liberal leaders suggested curbs on U.S. aid, Fetterman defended bipartisan talks on stricter border policies that slow the flow of migrants into the U.S. And he bucked his own leadership by calling for the expulsion of a fellow Democrat, indicted New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez.
“He’s not in lockstep with the progressives in his party … I don’t know if he’s had an epiphany or exactly what’s going on, but [it’s] obviously gotten a lot of people’s attention,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas).
In fact, Fetterman has repeatedly stressed he is not a progressive. Yet core elements of his political persona remain very much in line with the left: He wants to abolish the filibuster; he wants universal health care, though he’s not embraced Sanders’ flagship “Medicare for all” slogan; he still dons hoodies in the staid Senate, reveling in the establishment’s alarm at his casual garb.
On the campaign trail, Fetterman even quipped that he might let down centrist-leaning “Joe Manchin Democrats,” nudging members of his party to “vote like Democrats.” When it comes to votes during his first year in office, he’s stayed true to that watchword — rarely straying from the party line.
Taking the man as a whole, many Senate Republicans are ready to take a new look at Fetterman.
“I know from politics, my own race, that not everything people say about you is actually true,” said Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), who added that Fetterman has said some “smart” things over the past few months, particularly about the border. The two first-term senators have worked together on rail safety legislation that Vance still hopes will pass this year.
Fetterman has also cosponsored several agriculture-focused bills alongside Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), who credited the Pennsylvanian for “bucking Biden and everybody else” on immigration. The administration has also been open to bipartisan border talks.
Even off the Hill, Fetterman has won praise from Republicans, including two current GOP Senate candidates. Former Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.), who’s seeking a comeback in the upper chamber, has said he likes Fetterman. Dave McCormick, who’s hoping to take on Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) next fall, said he’s been “surprised” by Fetterman and that he thinks the Democrat has “moral clarity” on the border and Israel.
Still, Fetterman’s new GOP fans are also curbing their enthusiasm for him. Cramer argued that Fetterman leans liberal on most issues, saying that his “views are largely left, in some cases very left.” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said he appreciated Fetterman “sticking to his guns” on the border and Israel but pushed back on any suggestion that the Democrat is on an all-out independent streak.
Kennedy also indicated that Republicans shouldn’t let Fetterman’s metamorphosis matter too much.
“Just because somebody agrees or disagrees with you doesn’t mean you ought to like or dislike them,” he said. “You should respect differences of opinion.”