First Run News

WASHINGTON — Few people have more power in President Trump’s White House than Madeleine Westerhout, his executive assistant who controls access to the Oval Office, delivers the president’s marker-scribbled messages, sends orders to top military officials, prints emails and articles to show Trump, and seeks to keep a tight grip on his schedule. But she was not always a staunch supporter of the president.

Former Vice President Joe Biden still holds a comfortable lead in the Democratic primary, an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Thursday shows, but Senator Elizabeth Warren is steadily gaining ground. Biden leads with 26 percent, and he is followed by Warren with 19 percent. Senator Kamala Harris and Senator Bernie Sanders are tied with 13 percent. South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg pulled in 7 percent. The latest poll shows Warren and Harris continuing to surge after the first Democratic debates last month in Miami.

WASHINGTON — President Trump abandoned his controversial bid to demand citizenship details from all respondents in next year’s census Thursday, instead directing federal agencies to try to compile the information using existing databases. ‘‘It is essential that we have a clear breakdown of the number of citizens and non-citizens that make up the United States population,’’ Trump said at a Rose Garden announcement.

WASHINGTON — President Trump unloaded via Twitter on former GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan, calling him a ‘‘lame duck failure.’’ Ryan is very critical of Trump in the book ‘‘American Carnage’’ by Tim Alberta of Politico, in excerpts running in various publications. Alberta wrote the former speaker could not stand the idea of another two years with the president and saw retirement as the ‘‘escape hatch,’’ according to The Washington Post. Ryan is quoted saying: ‘‘I'm telling you, he didn’t know anything about government .

A federal judge on Wednesday rejected the Department of Justice's (DOJ) bid to swap attorneys working on a case involving the census citizenship question, the second judge to do so in as many days. Judge George Hazel wrote that he agrees with the other judge's "well-reasoned order" rejecting the Trump administration's proposed change in legal teams, saying that "a shift in counsel at this late stage may be disruptive to an already complicated and expedited case." The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 C

Embattled Labor Secretary MORE is “outstanding,” despite swirling questions about his job security. During a nearly hourlong news conference, Acosta said he is “pleased” that federal prosecutors in New York City are bringing sex trafficking charges against Epstein but argued that “facts are being overlooked” in criticism of the deal he previously struck, which some have called too lenient. Under that deal, Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution under Florida law, registered as a sex offender and spent just over a year in jail while having work-release privi

House Democrats are scrambling to pick up the pieces following one of their biggest ruptures since seizing the House majority in the historic elections of last fall. Speaker MORE (D-Calif.), at a closed-door meeting of the caucus Wednesday, took the extraordinary step of admonishing her troops for openly attacking one another over policy disputes.

Democrats voiced confidence on Wednesday that they will be able to pass a sweeping defense policy bill this week despite continuing intraparty squabbles born from the fallout over a border aid bill. “I feel confident the support is there for the [defense bill].

The poll found that a majority – 57% – of veterans approve of Trump’s handling of the military, with about half at 48% saying his policies have made the military stronger. Forty-one percent of veterans said they disapproved and only 23% said they have made the military weaker. The poll surveyed 1,284 U.S.

On Wednesday, 140 House Republicans, 224 House Democrats, and Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) — led by Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) — voted to allow Indian nationals to effectively monopolize the U.S.