Politics

The Fix
Analysis

Three big questions on Mark Milley

Milley has been tight-lipped in response to a new report on his assurances to China, while pointing to his upcoming Sept. 28 testimony. Here's what that testimony should focus upon.

(Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

The Fix
Analysis

How the Senate parliamentarian could make or break Democrats’ spending bill

Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough will advise Democrats on what they can squeeze into their massive spending bill.

Lindsey Graham and Mike Lee personally vetted Trump’s fraud claims, new book says. They were unpersuaded.

“Peril,” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, reveals how far the two Republicans went in examining the president’s fraud claims.

Fact Checker
Analysis

Blinken’s claim that Biden ‘did not inherit a plan’ for Afghan withdrawal

The Secretary of State asserted the Trump administration left behind no plan for withdrawal from Afghanistan but Trump officials vehemently disagree.

The Fix

The Fix
Analysis

The role of physical threats in Trump’s domination of the GOP

Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio), who is retiring, is the latest to cite a deluge of death threats after running afoul of Trump. And it's worth asking how much of a role such literal intimidation plays in Trump's stranglehold on the party.

Biden seeks a phone call with France’s Macron to calm the waters

U.S. and French officials have spent days engulfed in public snubs and private exchanges after last week’s U.S. deal with Australia and the UK. The White House is looking for ways to ease the tensions.

Jair Bolsonaro, defiantly unvaccinated, will test U.N. General Assembly’s covid ‘honor system’

It’s an open question whether the coronavirus mandate will be enforced.

GOP Rep. Zeldin announces leukemia diagnosis, remission

Zeldin, a four-term congressman and vocal supporter of former president Donald Trump, is also running for governor of New York.

Analysis

Think all politics are local? The California recall says most politics are now national.

But what worked for Gov. Gavin Newsom in that election won’t all necessarily translate for Democrats in 2022.

Rahm Emanuel, a target of the left, may be rescued by Republicans

Emanuel, Biden’s nominee for ambassador to Japan, has earned the hostility of many liberals during his long career. But some Senate Republicans say they will support his confirmation.

Republican leaders remain silent as Trump casts perpetrators of Jan. 6 attack as political prisoners

The state of the party was put into focus with the sudden retirement announcement of Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio), a onetime rising GOP star who cited “the toxic dynamics inside our own party” for his decision.

Legal Issues

Court hearings, guilty pleas belie right-wing recasting of Jan. 6 defendants as persecuted patriots

About 73 pleas, roughly 600 charged and dozens still jailed. Ahead of the Justice for J6 rally, a look at where the defendants stand.

Federal workers can be fired for refusing vaccination, but must show up to work until their cases are determined, new guidance says

The guidance follows a mandate for federal workers announced by President Biden last week as part of a series of measures to blunt the growth of the delta variant.

Capitol Police chief dropped request for armed National Guard members to be on standby for Saturday’s rally after Pentagon discussions

A top Senate security official said the original request did not follow proper protocol. Chief J. Thomas Manger instead asked for troops who would be unarmed, other than batons, which was approved by the Department of Defense.