Kate Santaliz
@kate_santaliz
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Covering Congress for @NBCNews | @ElliottSchoolGW alum | [email protected]
Washington, DC
Joined April 2017
SCOOP: Sen. Bob Menendez is calling allies and informing them that it is his intention to resign from the Senate, two sources directly familiar with the conversations tell NBC News. W/ @JulieNBCNews @carolelee.
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Leader Schumer presents Vice President Harris with the golden gavel after she broke the record by casting the most tie-breaking votes in the Senate in U.S. history
News: VP Harris has just made history by breaking the record for most tie-breaking votes by a VP in US history. The tie-breaking vote on a procedural motion was her 32nd, which has now broken the record long-held by VP John C. Calhoun, who broke 31 ties between 1825-1832.
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Congressman George Santos’ congressional Twitter account has been suspended again. This is the third time it has been suspended today.
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NEWS: Convicted Senator Bob Menendez just took himself off the ballot and will no longer run for reelection as an Independent
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American Legion National Commander Daniel Seehafer wrote a letter to Senate leadership today urging Schumer and McConnell to find a solution Tuberville’s blockade . “Our allies and adversaries are watching closely; inaction risks innumerable consequences.”
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McConnell introducing Sinema ahead of her speech at the University of Louisville calls her the “most effective first-term Senator” he’s seen in his time.
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NEWS: Leader McConnell returns to the Senate after being hospitalized last month
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NEW: Speaker Emeritus Pelosi will be the special guest at a virtual fundraiser for Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego’s Senate campaign .
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Constituents of Congressman George Santos traveled to Capitol Hill to demand his resignation and deliver a petition to Speaker McCarthy calling for a vote to expel Santos from Congress
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NEWS: A deal has been struck to prevent the lay offs of dozens of Senate cafeteria workers. The funding deal will prevent those workers from losing their jobs on Friday, multiple Senators tell NBC News.
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Senate vibe check from Fetterman:. “If anyone finds a banana stuck up Rand Paul’s tail pipe, it wasn’t me”.
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Speaker Pelosi, choking up, says “it’s a sad day for all of us” speaking of Senator Feinstein’s passing
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NEW: Sen Britt’s SOTU response wasn’t the first time she told the anecdote about sex trafficking victim Karla Jancinto Romero. Britt has referenced Romero’s story at least 5 times this year to criticize Biden’s border policies, an NBC News analysis shows
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Santos tells reporters he will NOT resign after GOP officials in Nassau called for his immediate resignation.
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Asked Santos if he was wearing anything bought with campaign funds - including the Ferragamo shoes he was wearing . “No, nothing.” Santos said looking down at his clothes. “These shoes are six years old.”
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NEW: W/ @JulieNBCNews Rep. Ted Lieu introduced a resolution calling on Congress to look into artificial intelligence, but his non-binding measure was generated entirely by AI
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“We’re going to make progress, we’re going to shock you,” McCarthy says walking into the Capitol
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We spoke with Eula Rochard, who describes herself as the “RuPaul” of Brazil, and was friends with Santos while he was living in Brazil. Eula told us that she met Santos when he was “coming up in the drag world” and was a mentor to him. 🧵 w/ Olympia Sonnier.
The most recent obsession from the media claiming that I am a drag Queen or “performed” as a drag Queen is categorically false. The media continues to make outrageous claims about my life while I am working to deliver results. I will not be distracted nor fazed by this.
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I asked Santos when the public will get answers from him: “When I will respond to the press, it’s going to be comprehensive. Not now, not like this.”. Asked if a congressman who has come under controversy should be out at a karaoke bar taking selfies, his staff interjected.
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Stolen funds raised for a disabled veteran’s service dog, and immigration docs showing his mother was not in New York as he claimed on 9/11, are just the latest developments embroiling George Santos. @lizbrownkaiser and I mapped out the controversy
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Eula described Santos as having an “outgrown sense of grandeur” and said that “he lied all the time.” She said that Santos was “never the type of drag queen who could hold down the show,” and that he never actually worked at the drag club because he “couldn’t cut it.”.
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NEWS: Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Ben Cardin will preside over Prime Minister Netanyahu’s joint address on Wednesday, per a congressional aide. President Pro Temp Patty Murray declined to preside, per her office. W/ @frankthorp.
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Congressman George Santos will attend the pro-Trump rally in NY today.
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Vice President-elect JD Vance is on the Hill today to give his son’s Cub Scout group a tour
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EXCLUSIVE: The January 6 committee plans to issue at least three criminal charges against Trump, including obstructing an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the government, and inciting or assisting an insurrection W/ @alivitali @haleytalbotnbc
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TX Sens. Cornyn & Cruz dodged questions about their state denying Kate Cox an abortion despite a fatal fetal diagnosis and health risks . "I’m not a state official. I'm happy to comment on things I'm responsible for" Cornyn told me.
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McCarthy told me that the House is NOT going to adjourn today. “We’ll have another vote today”.
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Senator Lummis brushed off the allegations of sexual assault and alcohol abuse against Pete Hegseth:. “They're throwing disparaging remarks at someone who has earned a great deal of credibility. Are soldiers sometimes Wild Childs? Yeah, that can happen,” she said.
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Texas Senator John Cornyn on Kate Cox and whether he supports AG Paxton. “Well I’m a federal official…I’m not going to comment on what state officials are doing. I’m happy to comment on anything I’m responsible for.”.
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When Santos came back to Brazil in 2008, Eula told us he tried to compete for the Rio de Janeiro drag title and lost. Santos was also “trying to throw his money around” according to Eula, issuing checks that didn’t have funds.
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George Santos’ constituents delivered a petition to his office calling for his resignation. Santos wouldn’t come out of his office and had a staffer receive it instead. The petition has 1,500 signatures.
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Santos says that after his tense exchange with Senator Romney on the House floor, Senator Sinema told him to “hang in there buddy.” . He adds that she was “very polite, very kind hearted.”.
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NEW: Lake and Gallego will face off in their first and only debate for Senate tonight. We spoke with both candidates this week who shared fiery criticisms leading up to tonight's showdown. The latest from #AZSEN w/ @JulieNBCNews @AlexanderTabet .
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Chairman Bennie Thompson told reporters that the Jan 6 committee reissued a subpoena for Rep. Mo Brooks today. Thompson said the original subpoena had expired while Brooks was on the campaign trail, but it’s “the same document.”.
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NEW: @JulieNBCNews sat down with Duckworth, Booker & Murray ahead of their push to codify protections for IVF . “This is not about the petty politics. It's about the people in our communities that are really struggling,” Booker said.
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Durbin indicates supplemental will likely get pushed to the new year and calls the January schedule “a mess”. “A lot of deadlines that we face in the first few weeks of next year…and we don't have a great record when it comes to that”.
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Tuberville has now cancelled this presser minutes after announcing . It’s not clear why yet.
NEW: Tuberville will be making a big announcement regarding his hold on military promotions during a press conference early this afternoon.
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Ernst on Cotton’s confidence in the race for the No. 3 GOP leadership job:. “Well, Kamala Harris thought she had the votes too…”.
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SCOOP: The J6 committee believes it has sufficient evidence for criminal referrals against Trump lawyer John Eastman, and will likely unveil these referrals during today’s meeting, including criminal referrals for Trump we reported yesterday .W/ @alivitali & @haleytalbotnbc.
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Santos told me that he didn’t lie about his mother dying in 9/11. “No, I did not” he told me when I asked if he lied. Immigration documents show that his mother was not in New York on 9/11.
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Senator Cornyn (R-TX) says he doesn’t expect Trump to be the GOP nominee for 2024, but if he is, Cornyn says he’ll support him.
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NEW: Senate Dems are unveiling a new package to protect and increase the affordability of IVF . It comes as the Senate is pushing to put reproductive rights at center stage, with a vote this week on the Right to Contraception Act.
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Majority Leader Schumer reacts to the passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein:. “It’s a very, very sad day and I’ll be speaking on the floor shortly” he told me.
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Speaker McCarthy told reporters he will NOT support a defense supplemental . “The senators are not paying attention to how the system works,” McCarthy said. “The idea that they think they're going to go around it is not going to work.”.
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Santos told me that he will address the press “in his own time.” For the past several weeks, he has told reporters he will talk “soon.” . Asked to specify what “soon” means and when he will finally address the allegations against him, Santos told me again, that he will “soon.”.
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SCOOP: Indicted Senator Bob Menendez has collected the necessary signatures to run for reelection as an Independent, five people familiar told NBC. He needs 800 signatures by June 4 to get on the ballot, but his goal is 10,000. W @JulieNBCNews @carolelee .
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"She couldn't provide an abortion. She couldn't do any of the things that she was trained to do because of the restrictions in Texas. As a result, it landed me in the ICU with sepsis.". Story w/ @alivitali reflecting on one year without Roe.
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NEWS: Menendez will not run for reelection as a Democrat but hopes that his “exoneration” will allow him to run as an Independent in June. Menendez released a 9-minute long campaign video, but took it down moments ago.
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Mo Brooks tells reporters that he had multiple conversations directly with Trump about presidential pardons. Brooks said that ultimately he and Trump thought it would be best to “let it play out” and not issue pardons “preemptively”.
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NEWS: Santos filed a statement of candidacy with the FEC today, indicating his intent to run for re-election in 2024.
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SCOOP: Allies of former Sen. Menendez were rebuffed by the Biden White House when they asked for a pardon on his behalf . Now, Menendez is looking to President-elect Trump to secure clemency as he’s facing years in prison . w/ @carolelee @news_jul .
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Senator Durbin tells me he’ll be voting NO on the resolution to block the DC crime bill - splitting with Leader Schumer.
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NY Reps. Torres and Goldman join the presser. “Of the 535 members in Congress, there's no one who poses a greater threat to the integrity of the institution.”
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McCarthy just now dodging questions from reporters again on the J6 footage while leaving the Capitol.
Speaker McCarthy, who has thus far been very accessible to press, hasn’t answered questions on giving Jan 6 video to Tucker Carlson. After telling @mkraju & me ~230pm that he'd be right back to talk, he just left the Cap via an alt door, avoiding press outside his office.
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The group, Concerned Citizens of NY-03, was created just a few weeks ago. They say they have only one goal, “have George Santos removed from squatting in our seat.”.
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Schumer after the passage of reconciliation: “This is my lucky blue suit” “I had a feeling I’d be wearing it today”
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Protestors inside the Senate Appropriations Committee hearing with Secretaries Blinken and Austin are being escorted out of the room. Code Pink protestors are shouting “ceasefire now!”
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TORRES: “His only reason for remaining in public office is to maintain leverage for plea bargain in the event of criminal prosecution. His only purpose is to be a punch line for comedians.”.
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NEW: Republican strategists are shifting away from “pro-life” messaging on abortion, according to several senators who attended a closed-door presentation on abortion polling this week. Reporting w/ @JulieNBCNews @brennanleach @lizbrownkaiser .
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LANCASTER COUNTY - Trump says to shoot him, “someone would have to shoot through the fake news.” . “I don’t mind that so much,” he said. Press typically stands on risers in the middle of the rally.
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George Santos denied the authenticity of the leaked Facebook post reported by the Patch yesterday. “I have a black father and a Jewish ancestry. Let's have a genuine conversation. It's not real,” Santos told me this morning. (FB post below)
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NEW: Lawmakers announce bipartisan tax deal that expands the child tax credit and provides a series of breaks for businesses. W/ @sahilkapur .
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NEW: Ethics Committee expects DOJ to come to a resolution on George Santos before the committee’s investigation wraps up. The committee’s investigation is taking longer than expected and a source tells NBC the investigation into Santos isn’t over.
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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore generates buzz — and his own selfie line — rallying House Democrats w/ @scottwongDC
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Former Rep. George Santos is returning to Capitol Hill tonight for the first time since his expulsion to attend President Biden’s State of the Union address, one source familiar told me . Confirming @kadiagoba.
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Senator Cruz tells me that he will NOT support the Gun Safety Bill. He says the bill negotiated by his Texas counterpart, Cornyn, follows “the wrong approach”.
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Tune into @LindseyReiser this morning and 3-5PM for the latest coverage on the March on Washington and voting rights in DC
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Sen Tillis says he plans to FOIA Danielle Hegseth’s original interview with the FBI, even if it’s after Pete Hegseth’s final confirmation vote . Her Dec. interview was not disclosed by the transition team in his background check. “I’m just trying to connect the dots,” he said.
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Schumer as the vote closed: “came close”.
3-93: Senate defeated Rand Paul’s amendment to the House-passed social security pension benefits bill to raise the Social Security retirement age to 70. 60 votes were needed for adoption.
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NEW: NJ & NY senators are demanding a briefing from FBI, DHS & FAA on the drone sightings as soon as possible . “Protecting civilian infrastructure, safety, and privacy as well as military assets and personnel will require a comprehensive response from Congress”
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Senate braces for a “train wreck” of confirmation hearings for Trump’s cabinet picks this week. w @sahilkapur @news_jul @frankthorp .
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SCOOP: Reproductive Freedom for All, F.K.A. NARAL Pro-Choice America, is endorsing Congressman Ruben Gallego in AZ-SEN after backing Senator Kyrsten Sinema in her last election . “The only candidate in this race we can trust…is Gallego.” .
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Reacting to the NYT article stating that he aided the coal industry, earning himself millions, Sen. Manchin tells me that "everything that we've done has been complying with whatever regulations, ethical and everything" since he has been in public office.
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Unlike other competitive Senate races, Sen Bob Casey and his GOP challenger Dave McCormick are sticking with the top of the ticket, but also noting areas where they diverge from their party’s presidential nominees . The latest from PA w/ @JulieNBCNews .
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Sen. Warner organizing a group of Democratic senators to meet next week to discuss the path forward for President Biden, four sources familiar with the outreach told NBC News on Friday. @washingtonpost first reported . @JulieNBCNews @frankthorp @ryanobles
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Santos is now refusing to answer questions. “I have a constitutional right to not answer questions,” he told me.
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NEW: Tuberville will be making a big announcement regarding his hold on military promotions during a press conference early this afternoon.
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“Of course,” McConnell says when asked if he has the votes for leader.
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President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump pay respects to Jimmy.Carter in the Capitol
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Asked why he’s not attending tonight, Santos told reporters that he “just doesn’t have the time.” Instead, he says he’ll be working on constituent services tonight.
Congressman George Santos will not be attending the new member orientation at the White House tonight. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Monday that all new members of Congress are invited.
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Senate Dems are holding a press conference on reproductive rights this morning. Murray says that Dems won’t support Cruz and Britt’s IVF bill. “We are not going to accept any legislation that puts personhood into law.”
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Hogan’s campaign responds to Trump telling @aishahhasnie that he’ll endorse him: . “Governor Hogan has been clear he is not supporting President Trump just as he didn’t in 2016 and 2020.”.
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Ohio Clock strikes midnight and we have officially hit the government shutdown deadline . The Senate will be voting soon on a short-term spending bill to keep the government open through March 14, 2024
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“The speaker is going to have to decide where he wants to be in this chapter of history,” Senator Tillis told reporters this morning. “If Putin wins, Republicans will lose.”.
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Senator Murray on Britt and Cruz's IVF bill: "If Republicans were serious about ending the chaos they created post-Dobbs, they would join Democrats in working to protect all reproductive health care, including IVF. .
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ICYMI: Sens Blackburn & Duckworth are introducing new legislation today that pushes for aspiring cosmetologists to take a domestic violence prevention training course to obtain their licenses. Read more below w/ @JulieNBCNews .
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Speaker Pelosi walks to the House floor where she’s expected to make an announcement about her future plans
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McConnell on Matt Gaetz withdrawing him name for AG: “I think that was an excellent move on the part of the incoming president.”. The outgoing leader said he no opinion on who President-elect Trump should nominate for the position now.
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Congressman George Santos will not be attending the new member orientation at the White House tonight. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Monday that all new members of Congress are invited.
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Judiciary Chair Durbin is calling on the House Ethics Committee to “preserve and share all relevant documentation” of their report into Matt Gaetz . “If for some reason, this report is concealed by American people, raises a serious question about this nomination,“
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NEW: Sens. Shaheen and Ernst are introducing legislation to tackle the national child care shortage through a DoD-led pilot program that would help child care providers near military installations train and recruit staff members.
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McCarthy arrives at the Capitol for the 2nd day of voting on speaker . “We’re making progress,” he told reporters
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McConnell, wearing bandages on his face and wrist, tells reporters he’s feeling “good” after he fell during lunch today
Sen. Mitch McConnell recovering from minor injuries after a fall, his office says. @frankthorp @kate_santaliz & me:
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