House adjourns in disarray as support for Jordan looks weaker than expected
House Republicans are adjourning for the weekend after their designated candidate for speaker, Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, appears to be well short of the support needed for a chamber-wide vote to give him the gavel.
It’s the second time GOP lawmakers have gathered to pick a speaker-designate in three days. Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., won an internal vote on Wednesday but stepped back from the race on Thursday night after it became clear he did not have enough support for a House floor vote.
Jordan won 124 votes against his rival in the race, Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., who won 81. It was followed by a second secret ballot vote on whether lawmakers would support Jordan on the House floor, in which he won 152 votes.
A GOP candidate for speaker would need to reach 217 votes to win a House-wide vote with no Democratic support.
This story is breaking and will be updated…
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Fox News Politics: Close (but no Speaker)
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Republicans voted to designate Rep. Jim Jordan as nominee for House speaker Friday — then recessed for the day …Read more
Jordan won 124 votes from Republicans in the secret ballot (which is more than the 113 Majority Leader Steve Scalise won earlier in the week). The next step would be a vote on the House floor, but it’s not clear when that will occur.
MATH PROBLEM: Jordan still has to get a majority vote on the House floor to become speaker.
The math problem proved impossible for Scalise this week, and Jordan is facing a similar issue. A second GOP conference vote Friday only gave him 152 votes. If, as expected, every Democrat opposes the GOP nominee, Jordan can only afford to lose a handful of Republican votes.
NEW CHALLENGER: Ousted former speaker McCarthy endorses Jordan – but another candidate made a surprising entrance into the speaker fight …Read more
‘LOCK THE DOOR’: On Thursday a GOP lawmaker called on the party to work through weekend to elect speaker …Read more
Stay up to date on the latest developments in Israel’s fight against Hamas terrorists
‘DAY OF RAGE’: Anti-Israel protests erupt …Read more
HEZBOLLAH ATTACKS: Lebanese terror group takes responsibility for attacks …Read more
LIGHTNING ROD: Trump takes heat for comments on Israeli president, terrorists …Read more
UNDER PRESSURE: Biden facing congressional probe into climate work program …Read more
A NEW FIGHTER: Georgia GOP congressman throws hat in ring for speaker’s gavel …Read more
‘UNWAVERING SUPPORT’: Schumer to lead lawmakers on congressional delegation to Israel this weekend …Read more
‘ABHORRENT’: GOP Republicans who graduated from Harvard blast school’s response to antisemitism …Read more
BIPARTISAN PROPOSAL: Reps seek funding to protect US Jewish communities from terror …Read more
LAS VEGAS SHOW: Trump and 2024 GOP presidential rivals on same stage at confab in key early voting state …Read more
PHILLY TRIP: Biden stumbles up podium stairs …Read more
RACE FOR 2ND PLACE: Two candidates battling in the polls behind Trump …Read more
FAMILY TIES: Top Biden aide with close ties to Hunter was involved with handling of classified docs …Read more
‘PAY FOR DAMAGES’: Senator suggests new use for Iran’s $6B unfrozen assets …Read more
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.
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Ohio Gov. DeWine signs bill to increase legal payouts in Boy Scout sex abuse cases
Victims of child sexual abuse in Ohio will see more compensation for the crimes committed against them while in the Boy Scouts of America after Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed a new law guaranteeing it Thursday.
The measure was enacted amid the organization’s bankruptcy settlement, first filed in 2020 after tens of thousands of men nationwide brought forth claims they had been sexually abused by their Scout leaders. Nearly 2,000 of those men are from Ohio.
The organization filed bankruptcy in order to continue operating while still partially compensating victims after an onslaught of lawsuits against them.
The amount that victims receive varies state by state based on the length of the statute of limitations for civil claims — as well as the length and severity of each abuse case.
Until DeWine signed off on the new law, Ohio’s current civil statute of limitations in bankruptcy cases was 12 years. That’s now void for the next five years, meaning Boy Scout abuse victims filing a claim will receive all the money they’re owed through the settlement, rather than just 30 to 45% of it.
Ohio is the first to take advantage of the settlement’s provision allowing states to extend the statute of limitations, according to one of the measure’s sponsors, Republican Rep. Bill Seitz of the Cincinnati area.
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Feds, local officials pledge $450M to dredge out Milwaukee waterways
Federal, state and local officials have agreed to spend about $450 million to dredge contaminated sediment from Milwaukee’s Lake Michigan harbor and area rivers.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it will devote $275 million from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to the project. The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, We Energies, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County Parks will contribute another $170 million.
MILWAUKEE SUBURB BEGINS SOURCING MAJORITY OF WATER SUPPLY FROM LAKE MICHIGAN
The project calls for removing almost 2 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment from the harbor and 12 miles of the Milwaukee, Menomonee and Kinnickinnic rivers.
Industrial activities in the region have left the sediment polluted with PCBs, petroleum compounds and heavy metals, including mercury, lead and chromium, according to the EPA. Removing the sediment will lead to improved water quality, healthy fish and wildlife and better recreational opportunities, agency officials said.
EPA URGED TO INTERVENE IN ALABAMA WATER SYSTEM REPORTEDLY PLAGUED BY CONTAMINATION, LEAKS
Dredging will likely begin in 2026 or 2027, said Chris Korleski, director of the EPA’s Great Lakes National Program Office. The sewerage district needs time to build a storage facility for the sediment, he said.
Congress created the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative in 2010 to fund cleanup projects in the basin. Congress has allocated about $300 million for the program annually. The sweeping infrastructure package that cleared Congress in 2021 pumps about $1 billion into the initiative over the next five years, making the Milwaukee project possible, Korleski said.
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Biden administration awards $500M for new COVID treatments
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Friday announced it is awarding $500 million in grants to support the development of future COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics.
The funds were granted through the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) as part of the federal government’s Project NextGen, which aims to enhance preparedness against future COVID-19 variants. HHS awarded $1.4 billion in grants through the same program earlier this year.
Among the recipients were the developers of two intranasal vaccine candidates: CastleVax and Codagenix. They were awarded $8.5 million and $10 million respectively.
Intranasal vaccines are rare but not unheard of. In the U.S., the spray flu vaccine called FluMist is approved for people aged two to 49.
Joanna Kaufman, executive vice president for oncology and immunology at Codagenix, recently spoke on the available data on her company’s intranasal vaccine candidate, CoviLiv, during a discussion with the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
Unlike the more common mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, the intranasal candidate from Codagenix is more traditional in that is uses a modified, weakened version of the virus to induce an immune response
“CoviLiv can induce a robust, systemic immune response after intranasal delivery of this live attenuated bio-vaccine,” Kaufman said, adding that her company’s vaccine induced a response that not only targeted spike proteins — as mRNA vaccines do — but also other viral proteins that mutate less.
ASPR assistant secretary Dawn O’Connell called the grants “important steps forward” for the Biden administration.
“The vaccine selections and funding announced today are important steps forward for Project NextGen — with vaccine and therapeutics candidates moving quickly to clinical trials that will start in the coming months,” O’Connell said in a statement.
“The technologies that [HHS] is investing in, from intranasal vaccines to self-amplifying mRNA, will bolster our protection against COVID-19 for years to come,” she added.
A self-amplifying mRNA vaccine candidate being developed by Gritstone Bio was also awarded $10 million.
According to the company, its self-amplifying mRNA vaccine differs from a normal mRNA vaccine by creating multiple copies of a virus’s RNA, as opposed to a single copy. This difference potentially allows for strong potency at significantly smaller doses and better refrigerator stability.
HHS also awarded $240 million in grants to companies developing newer viral testing and sampling technologies as well as another $241 million to companies developing new treatments like monoclonal antibodies.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to keeping people safe from COVID-19,” HHS secretary Xavier Becerra wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“By investing in next-generation vaccines and treatments through Project NextGen, we can improve our ability to respond to new variants, reduce transmission, stop infections, and save lives,” he added.
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Biden says Hamas makes ‘al Qaeda look pure’
President Biden on Friday said the terrorist group Hamas, which brutally attacked Israel last weekend, is worse than al Qaeda, the organization behind the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
“The more we learned about the attack, the more horrifying it becomes. More than 1,000 — 1,000 innocent lives lost, including at least 27 Americans. These guys make, they make al Qaeda look pure. They’re pure evil,” Biden said during remarks in Philadelphia on Friday.
“The United States, make no mistake about it, stands with Israel,” he added.
Also on Friday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who is in Tel Aviv, compared Hamas to the terrorist group ISIS.
“The deliberate cruelty of Hamas vividly reminds me of ISIS: bloodthirsty, fanatical and hateful,” Austin said at a press conference with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. “And like ISIS, Hamas has nothing to offer but zealotry and bigotry and death.”
Biden, in Philadelphia, said his administration is making sure Israel has what it needs to defend itself and respond to the Hamas attacks.
He also called the situation in Gaza a humanitarian crisis after Israel called for 1 million people in Gaza to evacuate, suggesting a ground assault could be on the way.
Biden said his team is communicating directly with the governments of Israel, Egypt and Jordan, as well as the United Nations, to surge support for the humanitarian consequences after the attack against Israel.
“We can’t lose sight of that fact that the overwhelming majority of the Palestinians had nothing to do with Hamas and Hamas’s appalling attacks, and they’re suffering as a result as well,” he said.
The president earlier on Friday spoke with the family members of Americans missing after the attacks. Fourteen U.S. citizens are unaccounted for, and the White House has said that a very small number of that group are being held as hostages.
“They’re going through agony not knowing what the status of their sons, daughters, husbands, wives, husbands, children are. You know, it’s gut-wrenching,” he said of the families of the 14 Americans.
“We’re not going to stop until we bring them home,” Biden added.
The White House has said they are focused on bringing the hostages home but have been limited on details like their whereabouts and condition.
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White House negotiates combined aid to Israel and Ukraine with Senate
The White House had an unclassified briefing with members of Congress this week about potentially adding aid to Israel in a package with Ukraine, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.
A source told Fox News Digital senior officials in the administration briefed the upper chamber on a phone call that it would like to see a “mega package” of aid to both nations, as well for Taiwan, border security and a nonprofit security program to protect houses of worship like synagogues, mosques and churches.
But the Senate is out on recess until next week, and the House is frozen without a leader after it voted to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., last week. Negotiations in the upper chamber are more likely to go public next week since the temporary spending patch for the government expires Nov. 17. The current spending deal does not include any additional assistance to Ukraine.
While talks behind closed doors began this week, the Biden administration has not publicly asked Congress for a funding package for Israel, which would mainly replenish its weaponry and strengthen its Iron Dome defense. The administration did not put a figure on the supplemental package the White House is seeking.
LIVE UPDATES: ISRAEL AT WAR WITH HAMAS
One source familiar with the talks said congressional members “brought up what Israel might need” and “asked the (administration) their plans.” The administration outlined three areas for Israeli military support: precision-guided munitions, artillery and air defense, also known as the Iron Dome.
According to another GOP aide, there is more bipartisan support for aid to Israel in both chambers compared to those who are supportive of sending more aid to the Eastern European nation. Ukraine has already received upward of $100 billion from the federal government to aid in its defense against the Russian invasion that began in February 2022.
POPE AFFIRMS ISRAEL HAS ‘RIGHT’ TO ‘DEFEND THEMSELVES,’ MOURNS INNOCENTS IN GAZA
The difference between the two regions, one GOP aide said, is that Ukraine needs much more support on a “ground zero” scale, whereas Israel is already an established nation that will likely need a much smaller funding amount to support its fight against Hamas.
The Islamic militant terrorist group launched a surprise attack on Israel Saturday. An estimated 1,200 Israelis have been killed and thousands more have been wounded. At least 25 Americans are dead, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed Thursday.
“People are gonna grumble, but they’re gonna vote for it,” a source familiar with the negotiations said.
The controversial package currently in negotiations will likely tee up legislation brought to the floor when the Senate returns.
One Republican senator’s aide said the lawmaker “would need to see what the details are” before supporting a dual Ukraine-Israel package.
LIVE UPDATES: NETANYAHU SAYS ‘HAMAS IS ISIS’ AS ISRAEL PREPARES FOR GROUND INVASION OF GAZA
“Too speculative at this point,” the aide said.
While on recess, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., along with a group of bipartisan lawmakers, took a congressional delegation on a trip to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing Monday to iron out relations between the U.S. and the communist nation. That trip was cut short and lawmakers returned Thursday evening with bloodshed continuing in Israel.
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House GOP selects Jordan as speaker candidate, teeing up House-wide vote
House Republicans selected a new candidate for speaker on Friday after days of disarray kicked off by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s historic ouster from the job.
House Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, was nominated for the position in a closed-door House GOP conference earlier Friday. The next step is a House-wide vote, where he will not be able to lose more than four Republican votes to still win the gavel without Democratic support.
Republicans hastily scheduled a candidate forum to pick their new leader on Friday afternoon after multiple measures aimed at raising the threshold to nominate someone failed.
It’s the second time House Republicans had to pick a candidate in the wake of McCarthy’s ouster. Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., won a majority of 113 votes via secret ballot on Wednesday in the GOP’s first attempt to choose a replacement for McCarthy, R-Calif.
HOUSE GOP LAUNCH SERIOUS TALKS ABOUT RULE UPHEAVAL AFTER SCALISE’S STUNNING EXIT FROM SPEAKER RACE
But fast-growing opposition to his bid forced Scalise to drop out of the race on Thursday night.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, had been the expected frontrunner in the race, while Georgia Republican Rep. Austin Scott surprised many — including, it appeared, himself — when he entered the race after Republicans’ closed-door conference meeting earlier on Friday.
“When I woke up this morning, I had no intention of doing this. It took me a long time to even get to my wife to tell, her call our friends, be in prayer, because we’re not — we haven’t done any preparation or any whipping,” Scott told reporters. “But I believe if we as Republicans are going to make the majority, we have to do the right things the right way. And we’re not doing that right now.”
This story is breaking and will be updated…
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Watchdog demands ethics office investigate Jamaal Bowman’s fire alarm stunt: ‘Intentional act’
A government watchdog group is calling for an investigation into Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., infamously pulling a fire alarm in a congressional office building, which Republicans believe was intended to disrupt a budget vote.
On Friday, the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) demanded the Office of Congressional Ethics open an inquiry into his actions in a complaint that also called for a probe into whether Bowman abused government resources for political purposes through his social media accounts.
“Rep. Bowman’s continued abuse of official resources shows a complete disregard for federal law and House Ethics Rules, and it is frustrating for the American public to see this go on without repercussion,” FACT president Kendra Arnold said. “In light of our previous complaint, there is simply no credible claim that he doesn’t know the rules that govern social media usage, which shows he’s intentionally not following them.”
“Furthermore, his disruption of official proceedings by pulling the fire alarm warrant further scrutiny by the OCE,” Arnold said. “The OCE has a duty to hold Members accountable to the law and ethics rules on behalf of the American public, and we encourage them to do so here,” said Kendra Arnold, Executive Director of FACT.”
BOWMAN DEFENDS FIRE ALARM SCANDAL BY REPEATING TALKING POINT ABOUT BEING ‘IN A RUSH’ TO VOTE
Bowman activated the alarm in late September, ahead of a crucial House vote in one of the House of Representatives office buildings, which triggered an evacuation. It occurred just after Republicans announced they would rush a stopgap spending bill known as a “continuing resolution” to the House floor.
Bowman claimed he has pulled the fire alarm believing it would open a door he had been trying to exit through. He also asserted that he was not trying to delay a vote, which Republicans did not buy.
“It’s very clear it was a fire alarm,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y, said. “If you wanted to push the door open like he claims, perhaps an alarm would have gone off, but that’s not what he did. And also, there’s access to the Capitol through many different ways. It’s not just through the doors.”
FACT, likewise, believes that Bowman deliberately set off the fire alarm.
“He simply cannot credibly claim he doesn’t know the difference between a fire alarm and an automatic door button, and it’s clear he did not pull the alarm for a legitimate reason,” FACT wrote in its complaint.
“There is no question that he intentionally set off the fire alarm, regardless of whether his motive for doing so was to delay a vote or to use a door that was not permitted,” the group said. “For either motive it was an intentional act that violated House Ethics Rules, and his clear disregard for federal law and ethics rules as shown above must be considered when assessing his actions here.”
REP. BOWMAN SHOCKS MEDIA, CONSERVATIVES WITH ‘GARBAGE’ STATEMENT AFTER PULLING FIRE ALARM
FACT’s complaint also calls for the ethics office to probe what they say is a pattern of Bowman using official government resources for political purposes. According to the watchdog, Bowman has posted official content on his campaign social media account, violating ethics rules.
“Since April, Bowman’s unethical use of government resources has not only continued but has grown even more egregious,” the complaint states. “First, he has continued to post official content on his campaign social media account but he has also attempted to portray his campaign social media account as an official account.”
“Moreover, on his campaign account, he has continued to regularly post official content, such as video of House floor proceedings,” the group later said.
Bowman’s posts “violating federal law and ethics rules are too numerous to include” in the complaint, FACT wrote.
Bowman’s office did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
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