First Run News

WASHINGTON — In the chaotic moments after an Army Special Forces team and 30 Nigerien troops were ambushed by militants in a remote corner of West Africa three weeks ago, four of the Americans were separated from the larger group. Their squad mates immediately alerted commanders that they were under attack — then called for help nearly an hour later, as a top Pentagon official said this week — and ground forces from Niger’s army and French Mirage jets were both dispatched. About two hours later, the firefig

WASHINGTON — President Trump on Thursday directed the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the opioid crisis a public health emergency, taking long-anticipated action to address a rapidly escalating epidemic of drug use. But even as he vowed to alleviate the scourge of drug addiction and abuse that has swept the country — a priority that resonated strongly with the working-class voters who supported his presidential campaign — Mr.

WASHINGTON — President Trump on Thursday directed the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the opioid crisis a public health emergency, taking long-anticipated action to address a rapidly escalating epidemic of drug use. But even as he vowed to alleviate the scourge of drug addiction and abuse that has swept the country — a priority that resonated strongly with the working-class voters who supported his presidential campaign — Mr.

WASHINGTON — Three times in a single day last week, Senator Lindsey Graham’s cellphone rang. The first time, President Trump called about the health care fight in Congress. The second time, the president thanked the senator for defending his honor on television. Then Mr. Trump rang seeking more intelligence on health care. Mr. Graham — Republican of South Carolina and a onetime target of the president’s barbs on Twitter — has transformed himself into the Senate’s Trump whisperer, shrugging off the White House chaos, personal insults and deep ideological differences in exchange for Mr.

WASHINGTON — This past summer, the Trump administration debated lowering the annual cap on refugees admitted to the United States. Should it stay at 110,000, be cut to 50,000 or fall somewhere in between? John F. Kelly offered his opinion. If it were up to him, he said, the number would be between zero and one. Mr. Kelly’s comment made its way around the White House, according to an administration official, and reinforced what is only now becoming clear to many on the outside. While some officials had predicted Mr.

WASHINGTON — The Republican race to overhaul the tax code broke into a sprint on Thursday, with House members narrowly clearing a budget blueprint that would allow a tax bill to pass Congress without any Democratic votes, and Senate leaders signaling that the bill could be introduced, debated and approved in both chambers by the end of November. Those ambitions are already complicated by difficult math, both in terms of tax revenues and vote counts.

WASHINGTON — The Republican race to overhaul the tax code broke into a sprint on Thursday, with House members narrowly clearing a budget blueprint that would allow a tax bill to pass Congress without any Democratic votes, and Senate leaders signaling that the bill could be introduced, debated and approved in both chambers by the end of November. Those ambitions are already complicated by difficult math, both in terms of tax revenues and vote counts.

The president came to power by accident, a populist, out of the mainstream of the party that nominated him, and believed by many to be a racist. His name was Andrew Johnson and he escaped removal from office by impeachment by one vote in the Republican senate. In looking for an historical parallel to the statements this week of prominent Republican senators about the president of their party—the example of Andrew Johnson is the closest I can come. Sure, there have been lots of senators who have opposed their party’s presid

Close to a month after the due date, the Trump administration has still not implemented the Russia sanctions that Congress passed nearly unanimously and Trump signed begrudgingly in August. The law, which also targets Iran and North Korea, called on the Trump administration to identify which Russian intelligence and defense officials would be targeted before Oct.

At a time when service, sacrifice and Gold Star families are at the forefront of the nation’s dialogue, ABC News’ “Powerhouse Politics” podcast. “It’s different than anything I’ve ever done.