GOP rebels back off threat to force Johnson ouster vote this week as they seek deal

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., appears to be backing off her threat to force a vote on ousting Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., this week. “We’ve had discussions in the speaker’s office and right now the ball is in Mike Johnson’s court,” Greene told reporters alongside Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., on Tuesday.  The pair met with … Continue reading GOP rebels back off threat to force Johnson ouster vote this week as they seek deal

Liz Cheney won't commit to voting for Joe Biden in 'View' appearance, but will 'never' vote for Trump

Former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney joined the hosts of ABC’s “The View” on Wednesday and refused to commit to voting for President Biden in 2024, but said she would never vote for Donald Trump. 

The hosts of “The View” asked Cheney twice if she would vote for Biden in 2024 over Trump, if he ends up being the Republican nominee

“Nobody has voted yet, so we don’t know for sure who the nominees are going to be on each side,” Cheney said.

She also argued that the Republican Party was not likely to survive and there would be “a huge tectonic shift in our politics.” Co-host Joy Behar asked Cheney again who she would vote for in 2024 if it were Biden v. Trump, which polls show is currently the most likely matchup in November.

CONSERVATIVES SLAM LIZ CHENEY AFTER SHE ENDORSES MICHIGAN DEMOCRAT SLOTKIN

“Let me ask you a radical question, because I know you’re a patriotic American… Would you vote for Biden?” Behar asked.

“I’m not going to endorse anybody today,” Cheney said. “And I think that, again, we don’t know exactly what the choice will be. I’d say that I will never vote for Donald Trump. There are some conservatives who are trying to make this claim that somehow Biden is a bigger risk than Trump. My view is, I disagree with a lot of Joe Biden’s policies. We can survive bad policies. We cannot survive torching the Constitution.”

Behar agreed and said Biden was not “crazy.” 

Cheney released a memoir titled “Oath & Honor” focused on the former president and the “threat posed by his efforts to overturn the election” of 2020. The daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, she was an ally of Trump’s at times when he was in office and ascended to chair of the House Republican Conference, but she vehemently opposed his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. She further angered Republicans when she joined the Jan. 6 House Select Committee that investigated the events surrounding the 2021 Capitol riot. 

As a result, she was defeated in a landslide in her GOP primary race for Wyoming’s at-large congressional seat in 2022.

LIZ CHENEY ADDRESSES CRITICISMS OF HER CRITIQUES OF TRUMP AND BIDEN

The anti-Trump Republican delivered a speech in New Hampshire on Friday and called on voters to reject the “plague of cowardice” within the GOP.

“Speak for us all. Tell the world who we are with your vote. Tell them that we are a good and a great nation,” she added. “But make sure they know that we do not bend, we do not break and we do not yield in the defense of our freedom. Show the world that we will defeat the plague of cowardice sweeping through the Republican Party.”

Cheney also told the hosts of “The View” that politicians must continue to talk about democracy, even if Americans are tired of the democracy message. 

CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“We have to make sure people understand, especially independents, that if — when you get down to if it ends up being a choice, if he ends up as the Republican nominee, independents cannot say to themselves, ‘You know what, I don’t like a bunch of things about him but I’m going to go ahead and vote for him.’ We cannot take that risk, because we know what he’s done. He attempted to seize power, and he’s continuing every single day to make threats of political violence, he’s been absolutely clear he will not have around him again the people who stopped the very worst,” she said.

Schumer praises Biden for making deal with McCarthy, tells Senate to prepare for weekend vote

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer praised President Joe Biden for coming to a debt ceiling agreement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and told senators to prepare for a vote later this week.

Schumer made the statement in a “dear colleagues” letter to his fellow Democrats on Sunday. The caucus will meet over the phone to discuss the specifics of the budget deal later Sunday and early this week, he said in the letter.

“I salute President Biden for protecting the American economy and delivering for American families by taking the threat of default off the table,” Schumer wrote. “I look forward to seeing the language of the agreement and reviewing it carefully.”

“These have been a difficult few weeks given how intransigent and extreme the MAGA Republicans are, but nonetheless we must avoid default and its grave consequences for the American people,” he added.

DEBT CEILING AGREEMENT IN PRINCIPLE REACHED BETWEEN DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS

McCarthy also noted a warning from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that the U.S. would not be able to pay its debts beyond June 5 if Congress does not act.

McCarthy has vowed that lawmakers in the House will get 72 hours to review the text of the agreement before voting on it, pushing back the Senate process to later this week.

SPEAKER MCCARTHY DEFENDS BUDGET COMPROMISE AS CONSERVATIVES BALK: ‘A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION’

Biden’s White House team negotiated with Republican leadership throughout the weekend before announcing an “agreement in principle” on Sunday. The speaker defended that agreement in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday.”

MCCARTHY CITES ‘PROGRESS’ IN US DEBT-CEILING TALKS WITH WHITE HOUSE

“Maybe it doesn’t do everything for everyone, but this is a step in the right direction that no one thought that we would be able to today,” McCarthy told host Shannon Bream.

“I’ll debate this bill with anybody,” he continued. “Is it everything I wanted? No, because we don’t control all of it. But it is the biggest rescission in history. It is the biggest cut Congress has ever voted for in that process.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Several Republicans remain opposed to the legislation, most of them within the House Freedom Caucus. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, blasted the bill for not cutting the vast majority of Biden’s push to expand the IRS, among other things.

Crenshaw: Drama over McCarthy vote 'seemed very, very pointless'

Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, softened his tone Sunday toward the Republican holdouts who temporarily blocked Kevin McCarthy’s speakership bid, saying that while he doesn’t actually believe his Republican colleagues are “terrorists,” he thinks the way they went about stalling the House vote was “pointless.”

“There was no reason for us to keep voting, keep voting, keep allowing these speeches that just degraded and diminished and insulted Kevin McCarthy,” Crenshaw said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “We didn’t have to keep doing that. We could have just adjourned for the whole week and just kept negotiating.”

“That’s where the heartburn is and that’s what I want people to know,” he said. “This deal was easy. That wasn’t the hard part, right? There’s not as much disagreement as everyone thinks on how that rules package went by and what some of the new changes needed to be. The only thing I’ll disagree with this group on is, is that it could have been done earlier.”

“So that’s what justifies the animosity that occurred all week, and it seemed very, very pointless,” he added.

TED CRUZ CHASTISES DAN CRENSHAW FOR ‘OVERHEATED RHETORIC’ IN HOUSE SPEAKER FIGHT: ‘SETTLE DOWN’

Crenshaw came under fire from fellow Republicans on day two of the lengthy speaker vote last week after he blasted the 21 holdouts, accusing them of looking for a “scalp” and likening them to “terrorists.” 

“That’s why we’re saying it, because we cannot let the terrorists win,” Crenshaw told Fox News Radio

His use of the word “terrorists” drew criticism from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Fox News host Tucker Carlson and others, but Crenshaw defended the term as “a figure of speech.” 

“Unclutch your pearls. It’s a figure of speech. You can’t insult, slander and hold everyone hostage with no way out – and not expect me to punch back,” he tweeted Wednesday. “Grow thicker skin.” 

Crenshaw echoed the same sentiment on Sunday but offered an apology to any of the holdouts who may have taken him literally.

REPUBLICANS’ BATTLE OVER HOUSE SPEAKERSHIP HAS BEEN ‘COMING TO A HEAD FOR A LONG TIME’ REP. SCALISE

“Look, things get heated and things get said. Obviously, the people who took offense by that, it’s pretty obvious that it’s meant as a turn of phrase,” he said.

“I was a little taken aback by the sensitivity of it,” he continued. “To the extent that I have colleagues that were offended by it, I sincerely apologize to them. I don’t want them to think I actually believe they’re terrorists.”

McCarthy won the speakership position on Saturday in a record 15th round of voting, receiving 216 votes, a bare majority that was lower than the normal 218 votes needed because six of his remaining GOP detractors relented to vote “present.” 

The GOP rules package McCarthy sent to members included the central concession that would allow any five Republican representatives to force a vote of no confidence in the speaker. Previous House rules, put in place by previous Speaker Nancy Pelosi, required a member of the House leadership from the majority party to initiate a vote to remove the current speaker.

Fox News’ Kelly Laco contributed to this report.

Philadelphia voters say Fetterman's health won't impact their vote, citing Biden's age and health

Philadelphia voters shared whether they were concerned about Lt. Gov. John Letterman’s health if elected to the Senate and if it would impact their vote in the midterm elections, with some citing President Biden’s health as reassurance. 

“He might not be healthy mentally, but he seems healthy,” Devon, from Philadelphia, said. 

“Look at Joe Biden. He’s an older guy,” he continued. “You know he has his health problems, and he’s still able to run the country.”

But Kevin, living in Philadelphia, said he’s concerned about Fetterman’s health and lack of campaign engagement. 

MEDIA PUTS MORE EMPHASIS ON FETTERMAN’S HEALTH AS PENNSYLVANIA ELECTION HEATS UP

“You can’t run for office telling people you’re okay if you’re not okay,” Kevin said. “If something shows up he should be providing some kind of documentation that he has a clean bill of health.” 

Fetterman, serving as the 34th Lt. Gov of Pennsylvania, suffered a stroke in May, undergoing surgery on May 17 – the day Pennsylvania voters elected him as the Democratic candidate for Senate. Fetterman returned to the campaign trail in August and recently agreed to debate his opponent, Republican Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz, scheduled for Oct. 25. 

“I have no issues with his health all, because I still think he’s able to do his job,” Betty, from Philadelphia, said. She said speech issues are expected after a stroke and mentioned Biden stammers in his speeches.

DR. OZ DOUBLES DOWN IN PENNSYLVANIA SENATE FIGHT, SAYS FETTERMAN IS SCARED TO DEBATE OR LYING ABOUT HEALTH

Loreal, living in Philadelphia, said she has been less concerned about Fetterman’s health than Biden’s and older leaders.

Joe Biden became the oldest president ever elected to office when he won in 2020, and will be 80 in November. Some Congressional leaders within the legislative branch are even older, including Senator Dianne Feinstein at 88, whose been reported to show signs of memory loss. 

“We’ve had older people who’ve had other serious health concerns that have certainly been ones to be concerned about, but they’re doing just fine,” Loreal said.

In the 2020 presidential election, Philadelphia, a strongly left-leaning city, was crucial to Joe Biden winning Pennsylvania. Yet Fetterman statewide only leads Oz, 52% to 47%, in the Pennsylvania Senate race, according to the latest CBS News poll.

2022 MIDTERM ELECTION NEWS AS REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS RACE TO NOVEMBER

“It looks like he’s recovering,” Will, from Pennsylvania, said. “I’m gonna trust what he’s telling us.”

“Even if it’s gonna take him a little bit of time while he’s in the senate to get it all the way back he’s by far the best option,” he said. 

Psaki calls Florida parental rights bill 'a form of bullying', dodges question on similar Biden 1994 vote

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki condemned the Florida parental rights in education bill as “discriminatory,” “horrific,” and “a form of bullying,” repeating a narrative that brands the legislation as “Don’t Say Gay” despite the bill’s actual contents.