Texas Elections Investigation

HOUSTON (AP) – Nine people have pleaded not guilty to felony charges brought forth in a rural Texas county by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton as part of a widening elections investigation.
Correspondent Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
The probe is being criticized by Latino rights activists as being politically driven.

The nine people, who were indicted in June, appeared either in person or by Zoom during a court hearing on Wednesday in Pearsall, Texas, before state District Judge Sid Harle.

Those indicted include a former mayor and city council member and the chief of staff to a state representative. The indictments are the latest development in an investigation Paxton started to root out voter fraud, which is rare.

In May, six other people were indicted as part of Paxton’s investigation.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Deputies Shot in Virginia

GRETNA, Virginia (AP) – Three sheriff’s deputies who were shot while executing warrants in southern Virginia were “shaken up” but doing well. Bernie Bennett has this report.

VERBATIM:
Pittsylvania County Sheriff Michael Taylor says the warrants were for brandishing a firearm and trespassing. The depubites were also serving a protective order.

After the all clear, Sheriff Taylor told reporters there was an hour-long standoff, but it ended peacefully and with the suspected shooter in custody.

Republican Congressman John McGuire, who represents Virginia’s 5th congressional district, said in a post on X that his thoughts and prayers were with deputies and he also extended his thoughts and prayers to their families.

Pittsylvania County is located along the state’s southern border with North Carolina, about 98 miles northwest of Raleigh.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Mayor Bowser DIscusses President Trump

As National Guard troops deploy across her city as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to clamp down on crime, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is responding with relative restraint.

VERBATIM:
She’s called President Trump’s takeover of the city’s police department and his decision to activate 800 members of the guard “unsettling and unprecedented” and gone as far as to cast his efforts as part of an “authoritarian push.”

But Bowser has so far declined to respond with the kind of biting rhetoric and personal attacks typical of other high-profile Democratic leaders.

She even suggested the surge in resources might benefit the city and noted that limited home rule allows the federal government “to intrude on our autonomy in many ways.”

Bowser is in her third term as mayor of the Capital City.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Radio News Shows Profits after a 30 Year Low

Radio news profitability rises after a 30-year low. Details from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
The latest RTDNA/Newhouse School at Syracuse University Survey found that radio news profitability rose to 13% in 2025. That has a rebound from last year’s 30-year Survey low of 10.1%.

Clear patterns of profitability are hard to identify. Stations in major markets are just as likely to profit from news as those in smaller markets, and the same holds true regardless of staff size. For whatever reason, stations in the South and Midwest are more likely to show a profit from news than stations in the Northeast or West.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

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Rep. Stefanik Gains on Gov. Hochul in Possible NY Governor Match-Up

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul lost a chunk of her gaping lead over a potential Republican challenger in the latest snapshot of a possible matchup for next year’s governor’s race. Correspondent Bernie Bennett has more details.

VERBATIM:
The Democratic incumbent led Rep. Elise Stefanik by 45% to 31% in a Siena College survey of voters released Tuesday, a 14-point edge that had shrunk from the 23-point lead Hochul held in a Siena poll from June.

Huge shares of voters in both polls declined to pick a favorite in the hypothetical race, showing a lot of room for shifts in either direction if the matchup takes place.

Stefanik, who has represented northeastern New York in the House for more than a decade, is weighing a 2026 run for governor and says she’ll announce her decision after this November’s elections for county and local offices in New York.

Fellow GOP Rep. Mike Lawler, who also considered entering the race, decided last month to run for re-election instead, clearing the field for now for Stefanik, if she opts to run.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Sen. Schumer Faces Low Favorability Ratings

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York saw his favorability rating dip in a poll released Tuesday, as many in the party call for generational changes. More on this from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
According to a Siena College poll, Schumer is at his lowest favorability rating, dating back to February 2005, at 38% who approve to 50% who disapprove. That’s a change from 41% and 47%, respectively, in June.

The Brooklyn native is also down with New York City voters, 39%-46%.

Following Democrats’ major losses in 2024, many in the party have begun pushing for a generational shift, calling for younger voices in office, as many established members face primaries from the younger generation heading into the 2026 midterm elections.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

The Posse-Comitatus Act

President Donald Trump’s recent actions have sparked debate over the Posse Comitatus Act, a law from 1878 that limits military involvement in domestic affairs.

VERBATIM:
On Tuesday, about 800 National Guard troops arrived in Washington, D.C., after President Trump declared that they were needed to reduce crime in the Disrict. Meanwhile, a California judge is reviewing whether Mr. Trump’s federalization of Guard personnel in Los Angeles during immigration protests violated this law.

The Posse Comitatus Act prevents the military from enforcing domestic laws unless bypassed by Congress or under the Insurrection Act. Experts say the law’s enforcement has clear limitations and remains largely untested.

Posse Comitatus can be bypassed by a congressional vote or in order to defend the Constitution.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Alaska’s History of Summits

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – When U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska on Friday, it will be the latest chapter in the 49th state’s long history with Russia – and with international tensions. An update from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
Siberian fur traders arrived from across the Bering Sea in the first part of the 18th century, and the imprint of Russian settlement in Alaska remains.

The oldest building in Anchorage is a Russian Orthodox church, and many Alaska Natives have Russian surnames. But Alaska has been U.S. territory since 1867. Some observers say it is a bad choice for a summit on the Russia-Ukraine war because it sends a message that territory can change hands.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

President Trump: Kennedy Center Honors

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump will be visiting the Kennedy Center on Wednesday, the same day that the recipients of this year’s honors are announced. Reporter Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
President Trump avoided the Kennedy Center Honors during his first term due in part to protests from artists.

In his second term, he has made himself chairman and fired the board of trustees.

On Tuesday, Mr. Trump teased a possible name change for the center on Truth Social. He also promised to restore it to its former glory.

It’s unclear how this year’s honorees will be chosen, but the President has indicated he wants a more active role.

Bernie Bennett in Washington.

Trump’s Presidential Powers in DC Takeover

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump took unprecedented steps toward federalizing Washington, D.C. on Monday, saying it’s needed to fight crime even as city leaders pointed to data showing violence is down. Bernie Bennett shares details about the President’s authority in this matter.

VERBATIM:
The Constitution calls for the creation of the District of Columbia to serve as the federal seat of power under the jurisdiction of Congress rather than any state.

While the Home Rule Act allowed for greater local control, the president can still call up the National Guard in Washington. Section 740 of the Home Rule Act allows for the president to take over Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department for 48 hours, with possible extensions to 30 days, during times of emergencies.

It wasn’t immediately clear how long this takeover might last or exactly what it might mean. It could also face challenges in court.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Maine – Referendum Votes

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) – Maine can’t enforce a voter-approved foreign election interference law that a federal appeals court said likely violates the Constitution by limiting political donations.

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OUT CUE: That’s Correspondent Bernie Bennett reporting.

VERBATIM: Voters in the state overwhelmingly approved a referendum that bans foreign governments and companies with 5% or more foreign government ownership from donating to state referendum races.

The law has been on hold pending federal lawsuits from utilities companies and media organizations that raise constitutional challenges about it. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston says it affirms a lower-court ruling that the law likely violates the First Amendment.

Delivery Drones Will Soon Be Everywhere

Delivery drones are supposed to be fast, yet the long-promised technology has been slow to take off in the United States. More on this from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: More than six years after the Federal Aviation Administration approved the first commercial home deliveries with drones, the service still is confined to a handful of suburbs. That could soon change.

The FAA proposed a new rule last week that would make it easier for companies to fly drones outside of an operator’s line of sight. A handful of companies do that now, but they had to obtain waivers.

Walmart, Amazon, DoorDash and the drone companies they work with say they are preparing to make drone-based deliveries available to millions more U.S. households.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

President Trump Reaches Deal with House GOP

President Donald Trump has announced that he made a deal with most of the House Republicans who derailed a procedural vote on a package of legislation, including three cryptocurrency bills. More on this from Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: President Trump wrote on Truth Social Tuesday night: “I am in the Oval Office with 11 of the 12 Congressmen/women necessary to pass the GENIUS Act and, after a short discussion, they have all agreed to vote tomorrow morning in favor of the Rule.

“Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was at the meeting via telephone, and looks forward to taking the Vote as early as possible. I want to thank the Congressmen/women for their quick and positive response. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

The deal followed days of GOP infighting that threatened to stall the president’s legislative agenda in the House.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Senate Holds “Vote-a-rama” on Recissions Bill

WASHINGTON – The Senate narrowly advanced a request from the White House to claw back billions in funds for international aid and public broadcasting, as Congress faces a Friday deadline to act. Correspondent Bernie Bennett has this story.

(POSSIBLE OUTCUE: The rescissions request would cut 8 billion dollars for USAID and 1 billion dollars for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.)

VERBATIM: The request, known as a rescissions package, cleared its first procedural hurdles late Tuesday, with the help of Vice President JD Vance. The vice president cast two tie-breaking votes after three Republicans joined all Democrats in opposing it.

Earlier Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune appeared uncertain if he had the votes to advance it but moved ahead with a pair of procedural votes later in the day. 

Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted against moving forward.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Rep. Stefanik Breaks Fundraising Record

Rep. Elise Stefanik’s campaign announced Monday she raked in 4 million dollars in the second quarter of the year, leaving her with 11 million dollars cash on hand, breaking multiple records. Reporter Bernie Bennett has more on this story.

VERBATIM: Stefanik’s cash on hand total is the largest for a New York Republican ever, according to her campaign. Additionally, the haul is the largest off-year quarter haul for a Republican in the state.

Sources told reporters last month that Stefanik is preparing to launch her campaign for governor, challenging Democrat incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Hochul’s political operation announced on Monday that the governor raised more than 11.8 million dollars during the first half of 2025.

Republican Congressman Mike Lawler is also considering a challenge against Hochul, while Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has also been floated as a potential candidate.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

An Active Shooter Attacking Border Patrol Agents is Neutralized

An active shooter armed with tactical gear and a rifle opened fire upon Border Patrol agents as they arrived at a Border Patrol annex facility in McAllen, Texas on Monday. Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
Agents and local police returned fire and killed the gunman. No federal agents were hit, but one McAllen police officer was struck. Law enforcement sources say the officer is in stable condition.

Oficers believes the attack was a purposeful ambush targeting Border Patrol officials.

Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement, “Both Border Patrol agents and local police helped neutralize the shooter. This is an ongoing investigation led by the FBI. More information will be shared as it becomes available.”

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Sen. Cornyn Says Texans are in Prayer

A July Fourth weekend deluge in Texas caused catastrophic flash flooding that has killed at least 89 people. Details on this story from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
On a Sunday morning interview show, Sen. John Cornyn said Texas is unified in prayer and rescue efforts as the flooding hazard remains. The Texas Republican said, While it  “was a 100-year flood event in an area that had been known to flood,” it had never flooded this much and this quickly.

Camp Mystic in Kerr County says Monday morning that it is “grieving the loss” of 27 campers and counselors as the search continues for victims of the disaster. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott declared July 6 a day of prayer.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

House GOP Celebrates Passage of Big, Beautiful Bill

House Republican Leaders took a victory lap after passing the “Big, Beautiful Bill” Thursday and sending it to the White House. Reporter Bernie Bennett has the story.

VERBATIM: Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters he knew this conference would pass the largest tax cut legislation in history.

HOUSE GOP ON BBB-johnson-a2-THUpm (:07) “it’s belief”

Majority Leader Steve Scalise said it took a lot of work to bring this to the House floor.

HOUSE GOP ON BBB-scalise-a5-THUpm (:10) “voting yes”

The Bill now moves on to the White House for the President’s signature.

Bernie Bennett in Washington.

The House Advances the Big Beautiful Bill

The “big, beautiful bill” is heading to President Trump’s desk. We have an update from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: House Republicans on Thursday passed the core of President Trump’s domestic policy agenda – including sweeping tax cuts, a crackdown on immigration, a boost in energy production and huge cuts in Medicaid – overcoming months of infighting on Capitol Hill to deliver what could be the defining legislation of Mr. Trump’s second term.

The 218-214 vote came together after more than a year of intense planning by GOP lawmakers, weeks of scrambling to reconcile the conflicting visions among House and Senate Republicans, and days of last-minute lobbying to cajole holdouts in both chambers to get on board.
Bernie Bennett reporting.

Minority Leader Jeffries Breaks Floor Speech Record

Hakeem Jeffries breaks the record for the longest House floor speech ever. We go to Correspondent Bernie Bennett for an update.

VERBATIM: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries spoke on the floor of the chamber for the longest time in U.S. history in protest of President Donald Trump’s mega spending bill, breaking a record previously held by then-Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.\
Jeffries began shortly before 5 a.m. Thursday by saying he was going to take his “sweet time on behalf of the American people.”

McCarthy’s “minute” lasted over eight and a half hours back in 2021, when he was protesting legislation championed by then-President Joe Biden dubbed “Build Back Better.”
Jeffries beat the record around 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries Approaches Record Marathon Speech

Democrat Hakeem Jeffries’s ‘magic minute’ enters hour 9 with the House on the verge of passing President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” More details from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: House Republicans early Thursday morning advanced President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” teeing up a final vote after a marathon day of negotiations and a dramatic overnight vote.
But before the House can take a final vote, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries gets a so-called magic minute, an unlimited amount of time to argue against the bill on the House floor.
Earlier in the morning, Speaker Mike Johnson kept the procedural vote open for almost six hours as GOP leaders persuaded holdout Republican members to vote in favor of it.
Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Aides to Former President Biden Will Testify Before House Panel

Several former top aides to former President Joe Biden agreed to interview with the House Oversight Committee as part of its probe of Biden’s mental acuity while in office. Details from correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: The committee scheduled former chief of staff Ron Klain to interview on July 24; former counselor to the president Steve Ricchetti for July 30; former senior adviser to the president Mike Donilon for July 31; former deputy chief of staff Bruce Reed for Aug. 5; and former senior advisor to the president Anita Dunn for Aug. 7, according to an Oversight aide.

Chair James Comer, who’s mulling a bid for Kentucky governor, has issued subpoenas to Biden physician Kevin O’Connor and former assistant to the president Anthony Bernal for their depositions.

Bernie Bennett, the Capitol.

Intern for House Republican Member Gunned Down in DC

An intern for Rep. Ron Estes was killed in a Northwest D.C. shooting. Details on this from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: Eric Tarpinian-Jachym was shot and killed in Northwest D.C. on Monday night, Metropolitan Police and the Kansas Republican confirmed.
The Intern would have been a senior at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst this fall.
The 21-year-old was a Granby, Mass., resident who joined Estes’ office earlier in June. Metropolitan Police said in a statement Wednesday that detectives believe he was not the intended target of the shooting.
Police responded to the sound of gunshots on the 1200 block of Seventh Street Northwest just before 10:30 p.m. Monday night.
Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Ohio congressman Flips Vote to Support Senate Version of BBB

Ohio Republican Warren Davidson, who voted against the House GOP’s version of President Trump’s mega bill in May, said Wednesday that he’s a “yes” on the Senate-passed legislation.

VERBATIM: Davidson said he spoke with President Trump a “couple times before changing” his vote.
Davidson previously opposed the House bill for not being more aggressive in cutting spending.
He was one of two Republicans who voted no on the bill in May. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the other. Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris of Maryland voted “present.”
Discussing his decision to back the new plan, Davidson said, “I think the reality is I wanted to give us a chance to get a better product.”
Bernie Bennett, Capitol Hill.