Senate GOP news stories on Newser

Fellow Republicans Turn on Jim Bunning

M. Morris — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:00:00 CST

Senate Republicans are breaking ranks as Jim Bunning continues to stall a $10 billion employment and health measure, with Susan Collins of Maine taking to the floor of the chamber this morning to express her "hope that we can act together for the American people." She urged Bunning to drop...

Ensign Admits Affair; Nev. Senator Is Rising GOP Star

John Johnson — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:36:59 CDT

John Ensign, a Republican senator from Nevada said to be considering a presidential run in 2012, admitted today that he had an extramarital affair with a campaign staffer, reports Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post . "It's absolutely the worst thing I've ever done in my life," he said at a...

Gender Gap in GOP Is Striking, Problematic

Katherine Thompson — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:15:00 CDT

Women may make up the majority of America, but they comprise just 10% of the GOP House and Senate—compared to about 23% for Dems—and that gender gap "could make the Republicans’ climb back to power even steeper," writes Erika Lovely in Politico. It's not that the four Republican...

Mac Is Back, Pushing Reforms

Drew Nelles — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:00:01 CST

Sen. John McCain, forgotten but not gone after his failed bid for the presidency, was back in form this week as he pushed bipartisan reform of earmarks and lobbying, Congressional Quarterly reports. Though the Arizona Republican’s eyes were watery and he had some trouble reading at the press conference, “He’s...

GOP Stalwart Bond Will Leave Senate After 2010

Gabriel Winant — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 10:44:33 CST

The GOP just can’t catch a break. Kit Bond, another senior Republican senator from a swing state, announced his retirement today, Politico reports. Bond joins Florida’s Mel Martinez, Kansas’ Sam Brownback, and, likely, Texas’ Kay Bailey Hutchison in a clutch of GOP Senate retirements. His decision not to run for...

Ex-Senator Jesse Helms Dead at 86

Kevin Spak — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 10:44:47 CDT

Jesse Helms, a polarizing figure who represented North Carolina in the US Senate for 30 years before retiring in 2003, died today in Raleigh, the News & Observer reports. He was 86. A pro-segregation TV commentator before entering national politics, the first Republican senator from North Carolina since Reconstruction opposed...

It's Every Man for Himself in the Senate GOP

Sam Gale Rosen — Tue, 27 May 2008 12:49:30 CDT

Skittish Senate Republicans are ignoring attempts at leadership from George Bush and John McCain and forging their own paths with an eye toward reelection. Twenty-five GOP senators defied would-be party leaders and crossed the aisle to vote for Jim Webb's new GI Bill, the Politico reports. "The Senate has already...

GOP Senators Try to Outflank Dems on Iraq Funding Bill

Jane Yager — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:41:00 CST

After months of blocking Democrat-sponsored anti-war bills, Senate Republicans changed course sharply yesterday, agreeing to advance a bill that cuts off funding for combat in Iraq after 120 days. GOP senators made the switch on grounds that a debate over conditions in Iraq allows them time to hail progress in...

Craig Can't Rescind Guilty Plea

Polly Davis Doig — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 14:06:18 CDT

A Minnesota judge today rejected Sen. Larry Craig's attempt to rescind his guilty plea in a June men's bathroom sex sting, saying it had been entered "accurately, voluntarily, and intelligently," CNN reports. There was no immediate response from the Idaho Republican, who had said he would resign if he was...