Steny Hoyer sees experience as his advantage

GREENBELT, Maryland – House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Mechanicsville, doesn’t seem especially concerned about his reelection next year. “My strategy for reelection is to continue to do a job everyday that people will see and appreciate,” he told Capital News…

House Judiciary Committee opens next impeachment phase with rancor, legal debate

WASHINGTON – Three constitutional lawyers characterized President Donald Trump’s actions toward Ukraine as a serious abuse of power that constitutes high crimes and misdemeanors during impeachment hearings Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee. “When President Trump invited – indeed, demanded…

Former adviser tells impeachment inquiry Trump envoy was on ‘domestic political errand’

WASHINGTON – Former National Security Council Russia expert Fiona Hill and diplomat David Holmes testified in what may be the final public impeachment hearing Thursday, reinforcing previous witnesses’ assertions that President Donald Trump directly linked a White House meeting and…

Sondland confirms quid pro quo in “seminal” fourth impeachment hearing

WASHINGTON – Gordon Sondland, the United States ambassador to the European Union, told House investigators Wednesday that President Donald Trump and other top administration officials sought a quid pro quo with Ukraine, tying military aid to an announcement of an…

Amidst “intimidating” tweets from Trump, envoy tells impeachment probe of ‘smear campaign’

WASHINGTON – As Marie Yovanovitch, ousted U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, testified before the House Intelligence Committee Friday as part of the impeachment inquiry, she was attacked on Twitter by President Donald Trump.  The historic moment was labeled by the panel’s…

In first public impeachment hearing, revelations of new Trump Ukraine call

WASHINGTON – During the first public hearing of the House impeachment inquiry, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor revealed Wednesday that his aide overheard Donald Trump asking about “the investigations” in a July 26 phone call with U.S. Ambassador…

45 years ago, another presidential impeachment involved another Sarbanes

WASHINGTON – On July 26, 1974, Maryland Rep. Paul Sarbanes introduced the first article of impeachment against President Richard Nixon during the House Judiciary Committee’s deliberations over the Watergate scandal.  The article was unanimously supported by all 21 Democrats on…

A divided House approves path to possible Trump impeachment

WASHINGTON — House Democrats Thursday formalized the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, as they shifted the proceedings to a more public phase and made the case for the president’s removal from office. The House passed a resolution by a…

House slows impeachment probe amidst Cummings commemorations

WASHINGTON – The nation’s capital and the late Elijah Cummings’s hometown of Baltimore are observing three days of commemorations of his life this week, slightly slowing the House impeachment inquiry. But Cummings’s oversight panel intends to carry on his work, Acting…

“Washington Bullpen” podcast: The legacy of Rep. Elijah Cummings

WASHINGTON — Rep. Elijah Cummings, representative for Maryland’s 7th Congressional District, died on Thursday morning after “long-standing health problems,” according to his office. He was 68. The congressman is remembered as a fierce supporter of lowering drug costs, fighting for…